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Want to understand why the rhymes of hip-hop legends like Rakim and Biggie Smalls just sound better than everything else? This new video will tell you why.

Vox's Estelle Caswell sat down with Martin Connor, a professional music theorist, to break down exactly why certain rhymes flow so well and sound so smart. Using artists like Rakim, Biggie, and Eminem as examples, the two succinctly explain the level of thought and care that hip-hop's best rappers put into their songs. The video will make you feel like you just aced an Intro to Music Theory course, and watching it will give you a better understanding of hip-hop as an art form.

To see the full video, visit here.

Common appeared on today's Sway in the Morning show to talk about the upcoming American Black Film Festival, but the star of "Selma" and "Barbershop: The Next Cut" also used the opportunity to remind the world that he can still rhyme.

The Oscar and Grammy award winning artist recently announced that he has been working on his eleventh solo LP, and this morning he gave the world a preview of "Black America," which is rumored to be the first track off of the upcoming album.

Common isn't letting the mainstream recognition he's received through his acting work get in the way of his trademark political acti

Rizwan “Riz” Ahmed is an English rapper as well as an actor. He was born in Wembley, London into a Muslim family and is of Pakistani Heritage. His parents left Karachi, Pakistan and moved to England in the 70s before Riz was born. He attended school in London and later graduated from Christ Church , Oxford with a degree in PPE (philosophy, politics, and economics; a degree course at Oxford). He also studied acting at the Central School of Speech and Drama. 

Kicking off his rap career, the track “Post 9/11 Blues” was released in 2006 as satirical social commentary. It was, at first, banned from British airplay and deemed “politically sensitive.” Other tracks, however, like “Sour Times,” accompanied by a video, were not b

On the 19th of May, The New York City Borough of Brooklyn officially announced the commemoration of the day – 21st of May to the Notorious rapper, Christopher ‘Notorious B.I.G’ Wallace. Eric Adam, the President of the Brooklyn Borough declared the day saying “On his birthday, Brooklyn solutes on of its own. Who has never been forgotten as long as his music plays, his energy will remain." Adams then went on to comment on how the music of Notorious B.I.G brought the world’s attention to the Borough of Brooklyn, saying “Biggie put Brooklyn on the map”. In attendance of the day’s commemorated day was his daughter Ty’anna Wallace who was presented the citation, acknowledged the honor by saying “She knew her father loved Br

De La Soul's new album, "...And The Anonymous Nobody," won't be released until August, but the band is giving the world a preview of their new sound with the release of "Pain," a new track with a verse by Snoop Dogg.

You can listen to "Pain" while playing a short interactive game on the band's official website.

"Pain" is the second track from "And The Anonymous Nobody" that De La Soul has released, the first being "Trainwreck," which was released last month as part of the "For Your Pain and Suffering" EP, which also featured b-sides that didn't make it onto the final tracklist for the upcoming album.

Production on "And

Los Angeles native and underground hip-hop staple, Alejandro Ocana, better known as 2Mex, was getting ready to get out of St. Bernadine's Medical Center and into rehabilitation when he picked up the phone. After a long, grueling month at the San Bernardino hospital, where he almost lost his life, he spoke of how lucky he is to be leaving at all. 

Essentially an undiagnosed diabetic, Ocana was admitted to the hospital with a blood sugar of 700, which is extremely dangerous. Normal blood sugar numbers should range between 80 and 140. Thankfully, doctors were able to save his life, but couldn’t save his lower right leg. Ocana is now tasked with the overwhelming chore of learning how to walk again and using a prosthetic, but with his propitious attitude and sea of s