Zion I has just dropped a new video from their album The Take Over. This one is a club banger titled “Juicy Juice”. You can listen to the rest of the tracks from the album for free at zioni-thetakeover.com.

As usual Zion I come with a solid album that shows a wide variety of musical influences, from old school to future school without ditching pop sensibilities. The Take Over gets some guest support from Brother Ali, Devin the Dude, K.Flay, Ty and Jennifer Johns.

When you listen to the top 40 rap hits nowadays, sometimes you hear lyrics so ridiculous that you wonder if the mc really believes his own hype, or if it’s just an act to gain exposure. Eminem reached superstar status with his raw humor and shock factor. Outkast has shown enough overall depth in their music so that their playful tracks don’t come off so shallow. But putting a positive message in hip-hop has gone out of style, and few are able to pull it off in a balanced way.

In 2009 the purpose of music is entertainment, but leave it up to this subversive mc from Alabama to bring the ruckus and rock a message. Thed Weller is like a good guy pro wrestler: he’s trying to do the right thing, but ain’t afraid to kick a little ass along the way. With battle raps like this, you’ll think about joining the good guys.

I’ve been rappin since Nissans was Datsuns / my rhymes connect like Al Graham Bell pagin Watson
I’m from a whole other world / it is my space that you lost in / wack mcs set their soul for sale, that’s what it’s costin
I’m like frosting over any cake track / I’ll take the dopest mc and make him think he can’t rap / In fact
That’s what Thed Weller thrives on / I’ll rap your ears to death and won’t stop until I rap your eyes gone…

- Better Than I Can Tell You

Don’t get it twisted though, Thed Weller’s Better Than I Can Tell You LP isn’t the typical ego-driven chant-down-babylon manifesto against the mainstream. The track Grown Man Music expresses his music’s maturity, while Hold it in the Road (some serious production on this track by Constantine the Emcee) speaks on walking the straight path in a world that rewards shortcuts. The album weaves together organic instruments and raw sampling, ranging from melodic hip-hop ballad to old school banger. Thed also sprinkles in some soul, featuring several guest singers who add to the musical possibilities and keep the album from stagnating.

The full album is available for free mp3 download at ThedWeller.com until Jan. 20. All proceeds from this album go to benefit the Hip-Hop is Music Foundation (HHIM) so if you download the free album, think about kicking down a couple bucks to promote the art form.

With over 50 thousand downloads and still going strong Asoka is arguably one of the fastest rising stars on the underground scene. Unlike other underground artists, Asoka has already worked with numerous multi-platinum stars some of which include: 50 Cent and G-Unit, Juelz Santana, 2Pac’s legendary group The Outlawz, and Eminem & Dr Dre’s protégé Stat Quo.

In 2006 Asoka appeared on an official 2Pac Shakur CD sponsored by Shakur’s company Makaveli-Branded. As always Asoka continued making his way around the mixtape circuit while working on his new album. 17 months in the making, with over a hundred songs in the vault, Asoka stepped out of the studio with “The Underground Artist.” Picking only his favorite records from the period, the album is packed with 21 songs and has a running time of 79 minutes and 56 seconds.

Artists featured on the album include:

- Stat Quo from Shady/Aftermath
- Young Noble from Young Buck’s Ca$hVille Ent.
- Hussein Fatal from The Outlawz
- Sonjay Dutt from SPIKE TV’s TNA Wrestling

Download a free mp3 from the album right here:
Asoka: Heroes Always Die feat. Hussein Fatal

The entire album can be downloaded for free at IndianRapper.com or on MySpace.com/Asoka

I know this site hasn’t been updated very often over the last few years. There are a lot of different reasons why. UndergroundHip-Hop.net was created 10 years ago, when (1) I had a lot more free time, (2) I was deep in my hip-hop fanaticism, and (3) the music industry was not doing as bad as it is today. As I evolved as an individual, my musical tastes evolved alongside. I stopped listening to underground hip-hop very much.  So why revive this site now?

Distance is a good thing when it comes to evaluating any piece of art. Like two lovers being reunited after a long absence, I have a new found perspective and appreciation for a wider variety of hip-hop.

But there’s a more important reason for choosing now to resurrect this site. The music industry is fucked. Record labels are making less and less money every year while the execs can’t recognize the one simple fact that talented, unique musicians are the way to success. Pirating had a lot to do with it also. Free music on p2p and torrents are one of the top reasons why anybody bothers to get an internet connection in the first place. Plus, the 9/11 paranoia combined with the RAVE Act came down hard on concert attendance. I don’t think it’s an exaggeration to say that most professional musicians have another job.

Most of the world is experiencing an economic recession right now, and that means the big labels are less willing to take a risk on a new underground hip-hop artist. Less risk from the labels means more of the same songs on the radio and MTV. With the recent merging of the satellite radio stations XM and Sirius, their playlists are now starting to look more like traditional radio. Except you have to pay for it.

Artists and labels have come and disappeared, with few holding strong. Hip-hop will never go out of style. Hundreds of new people are coming online everyday, all around the world. They’re hungry to find good hip-hop. Or they’re hungry to be heard. And we all want to eat.