Javier Starks isn't a look-at-me rapper. He's nothing if not respectful, even referring to his male peers as "sir." And while Starks is energetic, he often keeps to himself in public, quietly reciting his own rhymes or studying the performances onstage.
Perhaps that humble demeanor made it easier to secure guest spots for his Faces of [...]

Runway Reformation: Check It and Notorious got a pretty dramatic do-over Saturday night from MPD, who lent the gay street gangs space in its Boys and Girls Club to hold a fashion show, reports the Post. It was the debut of TurnItUp, Check It's new apparel brand. Not that the kids have renounced violence, at least the [...]

Phil Adé is certainly prolific. When he isn't flooding the DMV with an endless stream of free music—he dropped four (four!) mixtapes in 2011—the young MC headlines local shows and lends his fiery wordplay to songs like this. All of which is welcome news for his dedicated listeners, if not for his haters (listen to his verse [...]

1. SmCity featuring Pro'verb, "My Own Boss"
Of all the rap videos that prominently feature Malcolm X imagery, at least 99 percent are sincere.

In preparation for his new album The Indie Life: Hate, Love & Money dropping next Thursday, DMV rapper SmCity has released a new single: "Mr. IDGAF," featuring MC/producer Oddisee and star-in-waiting Phil Ade.
In case you really need to know, "IDGAF" stands for "I don't give a fuck." On the brassy Oddisee-produced track, the three MCs chastise the [...]

There's a magnetic flair to Phil Adé and his music, which combines youthfully aggressive lyrics with an airy array of trunk-rattling loops. Adé captivates on the mic, whether he's rhyming about the pitfalls of fame or living life in the fast lane. Fine, so he isn't famous. Either way, when Adé speaks, you listen.
And the Grenadian-Nigerian [...]

Nineteen students from area schools, including American University, George Washington University, Corcoran College of Art and Design, and University of Maryland, were selected to show their work in Conner’s annual MFA/ BFA show “Academy 2011”—but the 11 Maryland Institute College of Art students may win the most [...]

Although his Fuck the World album dropped in January, Laelo Hood released "Hooked on You" as a single yesterday, a breezy tale of drug dependence featuring vocalist Maimouna Youssef on the hook. "Hooked" is a dope record (sorry, I couldn't resist), and one of the better songs from Laelo's album. DCMumboSauce has the single.
 

Phil Adé's new track "Monte Carlo Dreams," with its blatant U.S. Royalty samples, probably exists because the Maryland rapper and the D.C. rock band already had a thing goin' on. (Click that link and watch that video, it's kinda nice.) The original "Monte Carlo" was a "coke-kissed Fleetwood Mac-style jam" (yeah, I just quoted myself), [...]

All week, Arts Desk profiles area artists heading to Texas for the South by Southwest Music Conference, March 15-20.
On last year’s exceptional summer mixtape, The Letterman, DMV rapper Phil Adé made his intentions and aesthetics perfectly clear:“I’m the only 21-year-old that raps like he’s 30.”
Adé’s flow is mature and smoky. Catch his guest verses alongside area MCs [...]