By processing the “Mo Money Mo Problems” music video, Nick Hardeman has generated a series of images which display the color and action of the video in a highly abstract form.

The newest song released off Jay-Z’s upcoming album, The Blueprint 3, is not particularly earth-shaking in its musicality, but rather for its statement, entitled “D.O.A.,” or Death of Auto-Tune.
But what is auto-tune? The term has been a particular source of both fervor and heated contention throughout both pop and rap oeuvres over the last year or two, becoming radio-ubiquitous to the point that many are likely exposed to it (willingly or otherwise) without knowing what it is.
Auto-tune is a software audio processing filter developed by Antares Audio Technologies, originally developed for producers who had to deal with singing starlets who [...]

Chris Brogan took notice of a novel promotion technique used by the person or team over at the Eminem Twitter account. They were live tweeting real-world locations in Detroit where fans could go and pick up tickets. It’s an interesting kind of digital-physical treasure hunt, where tickets were hidden in locations like mailboxes and shoes around the city.
[via Chris Brogan]

Bronx Rhymes is an interactive project that combines physical location and digital mobility to trace the roots of hip-hop in the Bronx where the genre is said to have been born. The project is the brainchild of interactive designers, Masha Ioveva and Claudia Bernett, as a means of exploring different facets of musical history across a variety of mediums. An unlikely pair to serve as the ambassadors of hip-hop perhaps, but with their thoughtful approach the duo has created an engaging portrait that chronicles the early days of rap, while leaving plenty of room for it to grow.  
In areas around [...]

An exhibition of works by legendary street photographer Martha Cooper is currently being presented at Subliminal Projects in LA until February 13th.  Martha Cooper is a photographer who has been capturing the graffiti and hip-hop scenes through colorful images since the 1970s.  She started by documenting imaginative children in New York City and quickly became involved in the development of hip-hop culture.  Her recent book, Going Postal, is a collection of street art utilizing postal labels for their canvas.  Throughout her lengthy and celebrated career, Cooper has proven her ability to capture the spirit of graffiti and the often-anonymous artists [...]

 
Much like its American counterpart, Chinese Hip-Hop rose from the streets, giving a voice to disaffected youth whose message might not otherwise be heard. While this form of expression has been around in China since the 90’s, it failed to gain a widespread following until musicians started rapping in Chinese, a fairly recent development that brings greater relevancy and reach to the form. And though steadily growing in popularity, at its root rap is still vehicle of protest and as such, an underground phenomenon that a mainstream audience is not prepared to understand or face, particularly given the Chinese government’s [...]