A De La Soul Starter Kit So, you want to get into De La Soul but don’t know where to begin? Okayplayer has your back.
The Miraculous and Inevitable Life and Rhymes of De La Soul A look at how De La Soul weathered industry turmoil, cultural shifts, and personal heartbreak to become one of hip-hop’s most resilient and beloved groups.
Don't Teach Me Nonsense: Fela Kuti as a Sample in Rap As the world marks Fela Kuti's 87th posthumous birthday this week, Okayplayer and OkayAfrica celebrate the legendary musician's life and legacy with stories that explore his lasting impact on music, culture, and activism.
Bridging The Gap: A Diane Martel Visual Double Mixtape Today, Okayplayer remembers the late, great auteur Diane Martel with a mixtape of the most memorable music videos she directed.
Rediscovered: Raekwon’s ‘Only Built 4 Cuban Linx…’ Raekwon’s ‘Only Built 4 Cuban Linx…’ became the standout album of the Wu-Tang Clan’s discography. Okayplayer reflects on the legendary ‘Purple Tape.’
Rediscovered: A Tribe Called Quest’s 'People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm' OKP looks back in the rain at A Tribe Called Quest’s legendary debut.
An Evening with Ayo Balogun, the Chef Behind the Most Intimate Nigerian Restaurant in Brooklyn Ayo Balogun is the brains behind Department of Culture, Brooklyn’s most authentic Nigerian restaurant. We spent an evening at the restaurant, taking in all of its charms.
The Best Food We Ate at the West Indian Day Parade in Brooklyn If you are a New Yorker, the West Indian Day Parade is the single best eating day of the year. Here were the best things we ate during the 2023 iteration.
What the WGA Strike Means for Black Writers We spoke to Greg Iwinski, a long tenured late night screenwriter and WGA East council member, about the ongoing Writers Guild of America strike and the future of Black creatives in Hollywood.
DJ Kay Slay’s Story is the Story of Hip-Hop On the eve of his birthday, the late DJ Kay Slay was honored with a street in East Harlem. We take a look back at how the New York City legend went from being graff writer Dez to one of the most prominent bootleging DJs in hip-hop.
A Conversation with Director Charlie Ahearn About ‘Wild Style’ — "The First Hip-Hop Movie" Wild Styledirector Charlie Ahearn talked about the film’s legacy, its influences, working with Fab 5 Freddy and more.
First Look Friday: A Very Brooklyn Dinner with Maiya The Don For our latest First Look Friday, we ate shrimp and steak at Applebee's with Maiya The Don, who spoke about her journey from beauty influencer to being one of the most exciting female rappers coming out of Brooklyn.
Exploring Cuts & Slices, Brooklyn’s Most Viral Pizza Shop Cuts & Slices is a Brooklyn-based pizzeria that serves unconventional pies featuring ingredients like shrimp, truffles, and oxtail. We take a look at why the shop has become such a viral phenomenon.
The Quentin Tarantino Situation: Using Racism as a Literary Device Throughout his career, Quentin Tarantino has used racism and misogyny as a shorthand to color in his broadly sketched, stock genre characters.
Standing Outside the Anderson .Paak Show with a Bottle in my Pocket In the spirit of documenting a New York summer evening, our intrepid correspondent details their experience listening in on an Anderson .Paak show the old-fashioned way — for free, from the fringes of an open-air venue.
Exploring The Legend of Snyder Wings: The Best Fried Chicken in New York City On Utica Avenue, a Chinese spot with a line out the door is known by word of mouth for the best fried chicken in New York City. After a month-long hiatus, we recaptured the crispy, tender magic of Snyder Wings.
Summer Jam: The Place Where New York Hip-Hop Still Thrives With so many festival options out there, Hot 97 is using an old-school tactic to keep their annual Summer Jam festival relevant: investing in local New York City talent.
How Sample Drill Is Leading One Of Rap's Most Bizarre Sampling Eras New York City's most notable drill producers have defined themselves by the songs they sample, so much so that critics and fans alike have phrased the trend as "sample drill."
