Freestyle classic by the one and only Debbie Deb, with an instantly recognizable melody. A guaranteed sure shot! 12-inch, Vinyl record

A new record by the legendary Sergio Mendes – bursting into the 21st century on a catchy wave of Will I Am production – reworking gems from the Brazilian songbook and more with guest appearances by Stevie Wonder, Erykah Badu, Q-Tip, India Arie, Black Thought, Chali 2Na, Marcelo D2, John Legend and others! Will I Am has been annoying hip hop purists for years thanks to the relentless candy-coated pop gloss of recent Black Eyed Peas records – but he brings an intelligent, reverent and educated approach to the Brazilian keys legend Sergio Mendes – whose familiar grooves are a lovely accomplice to the sparkling hip hop/pop background. The guest stars seem to be here out of genuine love of the music – and provide far more graceful appearances than we would have expected! A very sweet surprise with bright, warm, and lovely moments – almost good enough for us to forgive Will I Am for "My Humps"! Tracks include "Mas Que Nada" feat Black Eyed Peas, "Berimbau/Consolacao" feat Stevie Wonder & Gracinha Leporace, "That Heat" feat Erykah Badu & Will I Am, "Let Me" feat Jill Scott & Will I Am, "Please Baby Don't" feat John Legend, "Samba Da Bencao" feat Marcelo D2, "Yes, Yes, Y'All" feat Black Thought, Chali 2Na & others and much more! (Brazil, Hip Hop) CD

MF Doom left our planet all too soon, and he left behind a great legacy of music, too – including a previous collaboration with the Czarface collective, nicely matched by this posthumous set! The balance here is great, and the set brings the metal man of mystery into great play with his collaborators and guests who include DMC, Kendra Morris, and Del The Funky Homosapien – all coming together on an album that's every bit as fun as the first time around, and maybe even more essential, given that we're not going to hear that much more from the unissued archives of MF Doom. Titles include "This Is Canon Now", "So Strange", "Young World", "Mando Calrissian", "Doom Unto Others", "The King & Eye", and "Czarwyn's Theory Of People Getting Loose". LP, Vinyl record album

The Neptunes' first release as NERD! The music and verses are completely different from their big hits productions for others in the early 00. All these years later, we're still not sure what they're up to here – are they serious and making music they love or thumbing their noses at the music industry with a huge inside joke? Either way, it's good to hear some dope original hip hop that doesn't fit into any of the normal club/radio/underground/abstract hip hop categories. Includes "Lapdance", "Things Are Getting Better", "Brain", "Provider", "Truth Or Dare" (feat. Kelis & Pusha T), "Tape You", "Run To The Sun", "Baby Doll", "Am I High" (feat. Malice), "Rock Star", "Bobby James", "Stay Together". NOTE: This is the "Live" US version with a nice range of styles – with live band accompaniment by the band Spymob – and sounds from a lighter funky soul style, to rough, guitar and drums heavy rap rock (in a good way – not that played out, rap metal way). CD

Pusha T is back in the sort of strong territory that marked his music with Clipse back in the day – mean production that's handled by Pharrell on most of the album's tracks – who himself is maybe out to prove that he's still got a lot of bite left in his music as well! Lyrically, the album's maybe not out to change the world – but Pusha's got some all-star help on board to keep things on track – a lineup that includes Pharrell himself, Kanye, Kid Cudi, and Jay Z. Titles include "Diet Coke", "I Pray For You", "Hear Me Clearly", "Rock N Roll", "Call My Bluff", "Scrape It Off", "Neck & Wrist", "Dreamin Of The Past", and "Just So You Remember". LP, Vinyl record album

A set that comes out a decade after the first album by footwork maestro RP Boo, but one that features tracks recorded in the first ten years of the 21st Century – music from a time when footwork was really exploding on the Chicago scene as a wonderful blend of house music influences and some of the grittier elements of hip hop! But as you'll hear on the record, the style here is tied to neither at all – as it offers up a blisteringly rhythm progression of sounds – as urban as some of the Afro-Futurist work from Detroit, but even more stark and spare as well. Titles include "Pop Machine", "Azzoutof Control", "Porno", "Off Da Hook", "Say Grace", "Total Darkness", "Heavy Heat", "Eraser", and "BOTO". LP, Vinyl record album

Tsutchie does a really wonderful job here – blending hip hop elements and some warmer melodic moments – all with a vibe that makes the Samurai Champloo soundtracks so unique! Think of a hip hop take on the instrumental music from a Studio Ghibli film, and you'll get part of the charm – but there's a lot more going on at the core – and at many moments, the simplicity of the sound is the real charm – as you'll hear on "Flip", "Mists", "Absolute", "Adapt Myself", "No Icon", "Stretch Out", "Tune", "Deeper Than Words", "Let Me Know What U Think", and "Strike Back". Azumi Riki of Small Circle Of Friends also makes an appearance on "Fly". LP, Vinyl record album

The second Pharcyde record – and though not as blunted and playful as the first one, it's still nearly as great – with that unrivaled, wholly original, easy west coast vibe! The production is more steady-handed this time around, which alienated fans of Bizarre Ride early on, but it also laid the groundwork for the late 90s Jay Dee groove of keyboards and measured beats! The set also features production by M-Walk and Diamond D. 17 tracks including "Bullsh*t", "Pharcyde", "Groupie Therapy", the classic single "Runnin", "She Said", "Splattitorium", "Drop", "Somethin That Means Somethin", "Hey You", "Devil Music", "Emerald Butterfly", "Heart & Soul", "The Hustle", "The E.N.D." and more. LP, Vinyl record album

A hell of a comeback for Tribe Called Quest – maybe one of the best musical comebacks ever, and a fantastic reminder of why we loved the group so much in the first place! 18 years have passed since we last heard from the trio (now, sadly, a duo) – and that time only seems to have sharpened their sound, and given them a more powerful presence than ever! Everything we loved about them is still very firmly in place – that sense of collaboration, almost improvisation in a jazz-like way, and those moments of surprise and wonder at all the deft turns they can take in a short space. Yet there's also a new edge – one that might be even more powerful in this highly politicized moment in American history – a bite that the group never had before, and a larger social agenda that makes all of their incredible skills even more amazing, when focused on a target. We've certainly missed them – but the album's also well worth the wait! Titles include "Black Spasmodic", "The Donald", "The Space Program", "We The People", "Solid Wall Of Sound", "Dis Generation", "Kids", "Melatonin", "Enough", "Movin Backwards", and "The Killing Season". LP, Vinyl record album

Funky sounds from Dan Ubick of Connie Price & The Keystones – and a killer set in this excellent sound library series from Madlib! As with the other volumes, the music has a strong nod to the classic 70s era of sound library funk, but also updates the work strongly too – in this case with the psychedelic funky elements that you'd guess from Dan's previous experience – served up in heavy drums from Connie Price that are often ready for hip hop samples – and colored with strings from Ubick at times, almost at a level that has a slight nod to David Axelrod! Other instrumentation includes guitars, bass, and keyboards – and tunes include "Snakes In The Walls", "El Escorpion", "The Return", "Antenna Up", "Flip Of A Switch", "Spanish Moss", "Black Coffee", "Gris Gris", "Hearts Of Darkness", and "Fly Swatter". (Sound Library, Hip Hop) LP, Vinyl record album