You may have heard Josef Leimberg long before you knew his name. The trumpeter, producer, and engineer behind records for Kendrick Lamar, SZA, Snoop Dogg, and Erykah Badu sits down with Incense N Ashtrays to trace the connections between jazz, hip-hop, funk, and his own albums Astral Progressions and Mystic Journey.
From Dr. Dre and Battlecat to Thundercat, Flying Lotus, Mac Miller, and film scoring, Taylor Graves has quietly helped shape some of Los Angeles’ most adventurous music. In this IncenseNashtrays profile, Graves discusses his musical upbringing, the Bruner-Graves sound, and the journey behind the credits.
At DJ Phase’s annual Bronxdale Houses celebration, I heard directly from the people preserving hip hop’s overlooked early history. DJ Phase and Disco King Mario’s daughter, Mina, shared the stories of a Bronx scene already moving speakers, cutting breakbeats, and building community before Kool Herc’s famous 1973 party.
Gladys Knight and Smokey Robinson brought timeless Black American music, high energy, and personal memories to the Hollywood Bowl—reminding Los Angeles why it remains the city’s greatest summer venue.
Was Rhythm & Blues simply another genre, or did it become the musical language that shaped the modern world? This essay traces the Black American origins of Rock & Roll, Soul, Funk, Disco, Hip Hop, House, Reggae, Afrobeat, K-Pop, Latin Pop, and more, arguing that Rhythm & Blues became one of the parent musical traditions from which modern popular music evolved.
For decades, Clive Davis has been celebrated as one of the most influential executives in music history. But what if his greatest impact wasn't the stars he helped create, but the musical traditions that disappeared under his watch? This article examines Davis' rise from Harvard-trained lawyer to industry kingmaker, the 1973 payola scandal that nearly ended his career, his rivalry with Walter Yetnikoff, the Whitney Houston crossover blueprint, and the corporate philosophy that critics argue stripped Black American music of its gospel foundation, live musicianship, and artist-centered development. From Earth, Wind & Fire to Bad Boy Records, this is a look at how one executive came to symbolize the transformation of music from a cultural ecosystem into a corporate product.