[Out Now] D.I.T.C. - "Sessions"

You all know that D.I.T.C. released a brand new album, their first in 16 years not counting compilations, EPs and mixtapes. Although it was credited to D.I.T.C. Studios it was obviously a real crew album as it featured all new material from mainly Fat Joe, AG, OC, Diamond D with even Lord Finesse came out of retirement for a brand new verse. The Studios album was released as a joint venture by Slice-Of-Spice and the groups own album. Now the group is releasing their own version of the LP, entitled "Sessions" which drops today (October 28) on iTunes with hopefully physical copies to follow. The project features many of the same songs from the "D.I.T.C. Studios" album, either as-is or in remixed form, along with a few brand new cuts. Interestingly enough, the crews original classic "Worldwide" was met with a similiar fate. Due to members not being able to being on the same page the album was released in three different incarnations - "Worldwide" (CD), "The Official Version" (LP) and "All Love" (Japan). Either way I'm always down for some new D.I.T.C.!

Check out the video for the Diamond D, Lord Finesse and Fat Joe reunion on "Rock Shyt" (which also appeared on the Studios version) as well as the Showbiz remix of "It's Cold Outside" below. Cop the digital 12-track LP @ iTunes now.

D.I.T.C. - "It's Cold Outside" [Show & Motif Remix]

To be honest with y'all I wasn't blown away by the new D.I.T.C. album. The Crates is my favorite group in Hip Hop and I expect nothing but the best from them. So with that said the LP was still very good but compared to "Worldwide" and the likes it just didn't bring the same level of freshness to the table that I've come to expect from a crew of this caliber. OC and AG still brought it though and it was great to hear Fat Joe back in the fold again, but it didn't feel quite like the future classic I had my hopes set out for. To be fair though I only listened to the album a couple of times so far and it might very well be a grower.

One track that stood out for me on those early listens were the AG, OC and Fat Joe collaboration "It's Cold Outside" which is now getting the remix treatment courtesy of Showbiz and Motif Alumni. We all know Show is one of the most incredible beat masters around but the singles produced by newcomer Motif Alumni was truly a revelation. I really like how The Crates still give young cats (both producers and emcees) a chance at the spotlight with various D.I.T.C. projects. Titlted "The Test Session Remix" Show and Motif strips down the beat to its bare bones with thumping bass, boom bap drums and the occassional synth effect. Below you'll also find another headnodder that failed to make the final LP cut, "All Of That" - once again produced by Showbiz, this time featuring long-time associate A-Bless and the late, great Tashane. Visit DITC Ent @ Soundcloud for more exclusives and be sure to grab the pre-order of the new D.I.T.C. album from UGHH in your format of choice - 2xLP or CD.

AG & Party Arty - "Gimme The Mic"

D.I.T.C. camp is on FIRE right now - we haven't had this much Diggin' projects lined up in years. This atonal piano banger called "Gimme The Mic" is dominated by AG's usual smooth punchlines and similies while the late Party Arty adds adlibs and a vaulted hype verse. Ray West does a great job with this joint as he was been accustomed too by now. Apparantly this is from an ucpoming album from the duo called "Live From The Balcony", set off by an OC track, and followed by eight additional songs shared between Party Arty and AG, all set to the tones of Ray West.

And of course in case you have missed it, AG, OC, Fat Joe, Showbiz and the guys have actually spent the last year in the new D.I.T.C. Studos (following the demolition of the old D&D) recordig a brand new abum - the first proper release from the crew since "Worldwide" in early 2000. I'm gonna wait to listen til' the full project is available but you can stream a good 19 minutes sampler and several singles over at their Soundcloud page. The physical project will be available to purchase from D.I.T.C.'s own website along with some nice hoodies and stuff - check it out.

D.I.T.C. Studios - Bangers Upon Bangers

It's been quite a while since I updated this blog as I'm sure you know- The thing is that I don't have the passion to continue do daily updates for a few reasons. No. 1 I barely listen to hip-hop at the moment (it's all about jazz like the Mwandishi sextet, all Miles Davis, Eric Dolphy, Coltrane and so on); No. 2 I still check for new hip-hop but i don't feel that there's been much music up to par recently; No. 3 I have been employed as a full-time librarian so the time is quite precious. But besides that I'm letting the site be up throwing some ill updates every once in a while.

My first thought was to make a D.I.T.C. blog/website and since the start of The Lost Tapes I don't think I missed any new shit from the Diggin' crew as well as posted interviews by Diamond D, Buckwild and E-Blaze. 2014 and 2015 brought us plenthy of dope new releases from Lord Finesse, Showbiz & AG, OC (with Apollo Brown) and most importantly the Slice-Of-Spice sponosred "The D.I.T.C. Remix Project" which featured incredible modern takes on some of the D.I. classics updated by some of the finest proudcers around (it even included a previously never before heard Big L verse on Finesse's "Thick" mix - is this the original?). A while back D.I.TC. dropped the news about an upcoming brand new album and dropped some ill snippets and a single or two on their Soundcloud.

Since then they have posted a brand new track each and every week, featuring all living members of the crew - including a slamming Fat Joe verse on the guitar heavy boom bap monster "Rock Shyt", also featuring Lord Finesse (first verse in a decade) and Diamond D. You got a short AG banger produced by Buckwild, several heavy OC joints, D.I.T.C. fam member M. Gage getting busy over Showbiz productions, the soulful O & A collabo "16 & Out" which Lord Finesse truly blessed with that boom bap we all love., If you open the Soundcloud page and press play on the first song you'll be able to hear all uplaoded tracks in chronological order - creating somehwat of a new D.I.T.C. mixtape so don't fucking SLEEP!

D.I.T.C. STUDIOS - THE SOUNDCLOUD TAPE

D.I.T.C. - "Diggin' Number" / "Brolic"

As you, my loyal readers, noticed in the last half of 2015 I really became somewhat disillusioned with hip-hop (and still am to a degree) and I will expand on this theme on an article I intend to write called "Hip Hop and the celebration of mediocricity" which I feel is a huge problem with the musical aspect of this culture right now. But as you notice by many updates today I feel that several artists are coming back out with that real shit that I've been longing to hear and provides a much needed counterbalance to the extreme wackness of the mainstream artists like Young Thug, Slim Jesus, Stitches, all that drill music bullshit and so on as well as the so called "underground movement" which I feel rehash old tried and tested formulas that have been done so much better in the past, without saying nothing new.

But upcoming projects from favorite artists like D.I.T.C., K-Def, Ghostface/Killah Priest, KRS-One, Scarface, Erykah Badu and younger talents like Kamasi Washington, Kendrick Lamar, Flying Lotus, Thundercat, and even Kanye West is restoring some of my faith for 2016. Especially Diggin' in the Crates has long been a favorte and as I've written previously the original intent for a website of mine was one exclusively designed around that group. Though I've been somewhat dissapointed in the rehashing of old material over and over again as well as hastily put together projects like "The Movement" and "Unreleased Production '94", stellar projects like Finesse's "The SP1200 Project(s)", OCs "Trophies" and "Ray's Café", AG's EP with DJ Koss, Show & A's "Mughsot" trilogy and Diamond's "The Diam Piece" (and his excellent and ridiciously overlooked BIGREC collaboration "DoomsDay") is ample proof that this collective is still at the top of their game. However a new group album has been at the top of the list of many hip-hop fans wish list for over a decade by now and the excellent "The Remix Project" has turned out to be a appetizer for an upcoming full-length by the entire crew. 

The album which is to be titled "D.I.T.C. Studios" is set to be released via Slice-Of-Spice (the same label who handled the remix album and all recent Lord Finesse releases) definitely seems to be an official follow up to 1999's excellent, yet somewhat underrated "Worldwide" LP on Tommy Boy. All active emcees is participating again (AG, Fat Joe, Diamond D, OC) with at least one apperance by Milano promised. Judging by the four singles released thus far the main difference seems to be that the crew has turned to more outside producers this time around which might be a wise move since interviews throughout the years have revealed that the main problem the members had with the direction of the debut was that the four D.I. producers wanted to stray in somewhat different directions. Following the soulful "Make 'Em So Proud" and my personal favorite "My City", the last week has seen two more singles from the album being unleashed on the highly anticipating public. "Diggin' Number" features AG, OC and Fat Joe and is produced by J. Clyde while Diamond D handles beats and production on "Brolic" which sports verses from AG, OC and Diamond himself. This ish is shaping up lovely so be sure to check out the joints below and be sure to support the real once this album drops - I know I will, and I barely bought a single hip-hop album in 2015.

D.I.T.C. - "My City" / "Make 'Em Proud"

Now this right here is a true treat that I know a lot of real hip-hop heads like myself have been awaiting for years upon years by now... and that is the official reunion of D.I.T.C. as an actual group rather than a loose crew. There's been talk of a new album in interviews for a long time by now but I remember OC somewhere saying that for it to happen everybody would need to be on board and on the same page - meaning that without Fat Joe the chances of a new Diggin' in the Crates LP were slim to none. I had my doubts as if Joe would ever return to the fold as I haven't heard him claim D.I.T.C. since 1999 or somewhere around that time. The great news is that the whole group have been back in the studio recording brand new material that will be unleashed on the world sometime during 2016.

Not much information has been made available at this point but I've seen it mentioned as both an upcoming album and an upcoming compilation so we'll see were we will eventualy land. The one thing I do know is that the release will be a Co-Op between D.I.T.C. (the label) and Slice-Of-Spice, much like the excellent remix project that dropped back in 2014. This means that it will be available on both vinyl and CD which of course is fantastic news. So far one full track has been made available to the public - "Make 'Em Proud (Hold Up)", a collaboration between Fat Joe, AG and Diamond D over a Lord Finesse production (speaking of 'Ness it will be interesting to see whether or not he will be rhyming again). Just as I was writing this and going on to get the links for the music I noticed that a second single has just been released - a joint called "My City", produced by a to me unknown cat by the name of Motif Alumni (peep his Soundcloud - SKILLS!). In addition to the two singles the group's official Soundcloud page also holds 90 seconds snippets for an additional three songs. Most exciting news in quite some time, don't you think?!

FAT JOE - "Part Deux: Original Version" [1995]

Some more Lost Tapes goodies for y'all... you know I'm crazy about D.I.T.C. so this is a great find right here. Since I first heard time Domingo on Fat Joe's excellent and highly overlooked sophomore album, "Jealous One's Envy" I've been checking for his name in credits! This take on the song is a mezmering version of what would appear on the album, sporting a progressive, yet dusty production that really goes well with Joe's ruff bars, though it will definitely take some listening before it really connects due to being used to the LP version. The track is lifted from Domingo's "Sessions & Lessons" album which is set to drop before the year's end. The compilation also features new music from Sean Price, Ruste Juxx amongst many others and can pre-ordered right here. Stay tuned and....... TURN IT UP!!

FAT JOE / BIG PUN / NAS / RAEKWON / JADAKISS - "John Blaze" [Original Mix]

Just an old classic for any music purists that might've missed this gem before. This is the original mix of "John Blaze", the blazing posse cut from Fat Joe's third (and last truly dope) album "Don Cartagena", recorded somewhere between '97 and early '98.  This demo version features a different, very scaled down beat that makes sure all the attention is kept on the immaculate wordplay of these five heavyweight lyricists. What's really interesting is the different Esco verse that sets off the session. The video up top is of course the music video for the album version while the original demo mix, ripped from a DJ Clue tape, is available to download. Shouts to the original ripper of this, and peace to SiccMade for the upload.

FAT JOE Ft. BIG PUN, NAS, JADAKISS & RAEKWON - "JOHN BLAZE" [OG MIX]

SHAQ Ft. BIG PUN, FAT JOE & EZ MO B - "The Bigger They R" (1996)

This is just incredible right here... Now, I know this joint has been out for a while but its producer Domingo has finally unveiled a full/CDQ version of this gem of a lost tape. Recorded in 1996 for "You Can't Stop the Reign", Shaquille O'Neal was hellbent on making a respectable album by surrounding him with all sort of legitimate talents. For "The Bigger They R" he invited Big Punisher and Fat Joe as well as Easy Mo Bee (!), and it's a real shame this never was heard back in the days because it's absolute killer. Terror Squadians!

FAT JOE DA GANGSTA - Radio Promos for DJ Red Alert

I'm a big fan of Fat Joe's first two  albums, perhaps not so much the writing and delivery as the overall vibe, the hunger in Joe's performance and of course the production supplied mainly by Diamond D. While checking out an old interview with Diamond he mentioned that Fat Joe had approached him to hook him up with studio time and the musical relationship took off from there. He said that the first thing they recorded together and put out were a couple of radio promos for DJ Red Alert that got crazy love and helped Da Fat Gangsta get his record deal. I had never heard these tracks before (and especially the later one, which also features the first recorded apperance by Armageddon, is basically a full song) and as I'm always eager to check out some D.I.T.C. ish I had to go check for them. Thanks to YouTube users McJazzyA and WilizmEnt we're able to hear both of these thrilling tunes so press play and crank it up.

D.I.T.C. - "Da Enemy" [Bink Remix]

The always underrated Bink gives us his take on one of the hardest hip-hop bangers of all time, D.I.T.C.'s "Da Enemy" featuring stand out performances from both Big L and Fat Joe. This is the third single from  the upcoming "D.I.T.C. The Remix Project", and every single track so far has been absolutely blazing. I previously posted the radio rip of DJ Premier's remix of the first D.I.T.C. posse cut ever recorded, 1991:s "Diggin' in the Crates" - which is now also available in its full CDQ version for download via the official D.I.T.C. Entertainment website. This LP is definitely extremely high on my wish list right now and we only have to wait about a week to get it in all its glory. BANG THESE OUT LOUD!!

"Da Enemy" [Bink Remix] / "D.I.T.C." [DJ Premier Remix] / "We All" [Alchemist Remix] @ DITCEnt.com

BIG PUN - "Still Not A Player" [Demo]

Justice over @ 2DopeBoyz just posted this, so I figured I'd borrow it for The Lost Tapes as well since it's great to get to hear "new" ish by The Punisher. "Still Not A Player" is of course considered a real classic but to me I really prefer "Capital Punishment" without it since the only thing it manages to do is to annoy me. The original Minnesota mix though? Now that's another story completely... But back to this rough demo version which apparantly originally was dug up by DJ Soul and made the mixtape rounds. This version also features additional vocals by Cuban Link and is overall a cool listen. 

As a lil' bonus I also uploaded a related track which never made it to the final version of "Capital Punishment" though it most definitely should have - matter of fact, when I upload the album to my iPod I usually delete "Still Not A Player" and replace it with this track. "Wishful Thinking" features Big Pun, Kool G Rap, Fat Joe and B-Real going crazy over a hard to the core Showbiz production. A crazy posse cut if I ever heard one, and how this didn't make the LP is forever beyond me (it was placed as the B-side to the "I'm Not A Player" 12").

BIG PUN / FAT JOE / KOOL G RAP / B-REAL - "WISHFUL THINKING"

[Mixtape] FAT JOE - "The DARKSIDE 3"

It's only a few years back that I pretty much had given up entirely on new, dope music from Fat Joe but the truth is that when he wants to he can still honor his roots and drop that hard headnod shit. "Darkside III" got a lot of things going for it with Joe, who's in fine form here, spitting unfiltered coke lines over bangers supplied by the likes of DJ Premier, 9th Wonder, Diamond D, Cool & Dre and StreetRunner. Grab it for free below, thanks to DatPiff.

Download Mixtape | Free Mixtapes Powered by DatPiff.com

Chi-Ali Ft. Fat Joe - "Games & Things"

The new single from Chi-Ali "Games & Things" is a real nice, laid-back joint featuring Fat Joe. This is an especially dope listen for two reasons; to hear Chi-Ali attack the mic again for one of the first time after his long bid, and to me it's still always good to hear Joey Crack on tight productions. I'm well familiar with the sample used for the song but I can't recall what song I'm thinking off right now... hmmm.

Fat Joe Da Gangsta - "The Shit WAS Real" ('92-'96)

Remember Fat Joe Da Gangsta, the latino rapper from the Bronx who repped Diggin' In The Crates and dissed commercial bullshit in the name of real hip hop? In 2011 with radio designed collaborations with everyone from Paris Hilton to Lil' Wayne on the resumé it's easy to forget that was how it all started for Don Cartagena as a youngin back in the early '90s. I can't hate too much on Joey tho since it has become clear that he's in this game for the money but at least he always sprinkles a few hot tracks on (almost) all of his albums, but I haven't bought one of his albums since "Loyalty" in 2002 and I doubt I ever will again. I'm still looking out for whatever little "gift" to his early fans he throws out there every now and then.

As you've surely noticed I'm giving alot of space for the D.I.T.C. crew on this blog, and will continue to do so, as they represent the type of hip hop music I like the best; true true school you could call it if you will. Although Fat Joe has strayed far from the original formula, there's no reason to deny that there was a time when he made alot of hot music and appeared on several heavy posse cuts and other ill cameos. This 18 tracks compilation features the majority of Fat Joe's non album material from 1993 to 1996 with the intro and outro dating back to '92. I think there was a R&B track from around '95 that I cut since it didn't fit with what I wanted to present and I also passed on Diamond D's "Pass That Shit" as you should have "Stunts, Blunts & Hip Hop" in your collection already. Thanks to AtlantisWasReal and TheBigSleep over @ The T.R.O.Y. Blog forum for helping me out a bit with ths one, much props guys!

01. "Intro: Da Gangsta's Takin' Ova"
02. "Big Apple Gone Rotten" (w. Armageddon)
03. "Beg No Friends" [Valley Mob Mix] (w. Stricly Roots, Grand Puba & Chill Will)
04. "The Rhythm" (w. Bas Blasta, Lord Finesse, JuJu & Godfather Don)
05. "I Shot Ya" (w. LL Cool J, Prodigy, Foxy Brown & Keith Murray)
06. "1,2 Pass It" [Preemo Remix] (w. KRS-One, Jeru the Damaja, Smif-N-Wessun, Mad Lion & Doug E. Fresh)
07. "Fire Water" (w. Big Punisher, Raekwon & Armageddon)
08. "Wishful Thinking" (w. Big Punisher, Kool G Rap & B-Real)
09. "Da Gangsta Interlude" (w. Mesanjars Of Funk)
10. "El Gran Combo" (w. Main One, Joe Fatal, Kurious, Prince & Powerule)
11. "Gotta Go Down" (w. Akinyele, Doo Wop, Lord Tariq & Pretty Boy Floyd)
12. "Boriquas On Da Set" [Frankie Cutlass Remix] (w. Doo Wop)
13. "I'm Tryin' to Tell 'Em"
14. "Out For The $" (w. DJ Honda, The Beatnus & Common Sense)
15. "Session" (w. Blackface)
16. "Stay Away From The Nasty Hoes" (w. Sadat X)
17. "The Bigger They R (Shaq, Crack & Pun)" (w. Big Punisher & Shaquille O'Neal)
18. "Outro: A View From The Underground"

FAT JOE - "THE SHIT WAS REAL"

A.G and Fat Joe?!!

Maybe I should rename this place the D.I.T.C. blog considering the amount of Diggin' material I posted recently and will continue to do so. Yesterday we got the Show & KRS-One street single, 950 & AG's mixtape and E-Blaze's beat tape and today I present a real treat for y'all. Fat Joe hasn't rapped with anyone from his original D.I. crew for over a decade so I almost chocked on my sub when I got this in my inbox. AG and Fat Joe is both featured as guests on 950 Plus's street single "The Empire Strikes Back". BX STAND UP!

950 PLUS / AG / FAT JOE - "EMPIRE STRIKES BACK"