Reports of rap music’s demise have been greatly exaggerated. The rap game is alive and well, especially in the indie world, which is thriving right now. As 2025 has moved forward, the list of real album of the year contenders keeps getting longer. The Backwoodz cinematic universe continues to release great music at an unreal pace. While billy woods’ Golliwog and the new Golliwog remix album are still in heavy rotation, Armand Hammer have returned with a new album called Mercy, produced entirely by The Alchemist. On this week’s episode, the three bad brothers you know so well share their first reactions to Mercy and to the August Fanon-produced Golliwog remix record. It’s not all Backwoodz talk, though. The bros sit down with rapper and producer Chester Watson to discuss his influences, his ballet roots, and his new beat tape and crew project, Psychic Warfare Department. They wrap up the episode by talking about Outkast’s recent induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Nate’s vision quest into the Mojave Desert, where he caught a live set from the homies Open Mike Eagle and Video Dave. DEM ONE produced this episode Theme song by DJ Cutso and DEM ONE Dad Bod Rap Pod is a proud member of the Stony Island Audio Network

"There are years that ask questions and years that answer."– Zora Neale Hurston In indie rap, as in life, the fruit of one’s labor doesn’t always show up right away. You put in the work, you bet on yourself, and sometimes the payoff comes much later. Long Island-bred rapper and producer Theravada has been planting seeds for years, trusting that the grind would eventually bear fruit. This year, he’s finally reaping the benefits. With five beat placements on Earl Sweatshirt’s album-of-the-year contender Live Laugh Love, Theravada has surged into underground rap’s collective consciousness in a way that can’t be ignored. On top of that, he dropped an excellent full-length project, The Years We Have Left, and teamed up with slow-flow legend Evidence on Unlearning Vol. 2. Theravada took time to chop it up with us from his studio in Amityville. He talked about his breakout year, his influences, and why modern basketball just doesn’t hit the same. D up and tap in!

In the annals of rap history, there are countless tracks that spark instant, ecstatic reactions. Whether it’s Kid ’N Play inviting you to revive the Charleston or House of Pain demanding that you jump in place, these songs live rent-free in our collective memory. Then there are the truly explosive anthems like M.O.P.’s Ante Up, a track that lets you channel the chaos and swagger of an armed jewel thief without leaving your living room. The Brownsville duo’s biggest hit has enjoyed remarkable staying power for more than two decades, reaching far beyond hardcore hip hop circles. Sporting events and commercials have both used this teeth-gritting classic to get audiences fired up. This week, we sit down with Lil’ Fame, one half of the iconic M.O.P., to talk about the enduring success of Ante Up, his creative process, and the lessons he learned from working with legends like Guru and DJ Premier. In the intro segment, Dave and Demone break down the rap songs that get them the most hyped. DEM produced this episode DJ Cutso produced the theme song

Let’s fire up the wayback machine and head to 1995, a simpler time, no doubt. Back when commuting by bus, trying to meet girls, and rapping about rapping were all viable rap song topics. Hell, this was still an era when rap groups were still a thing. Enter The Nonce (stop giggling, UK heads): the Project Blowed–affiliated duo of Yousef Afloat and Nouka Basetype, who dropped their underrated debut World Ultimate on Rick Rubin’s American Recordings in the year of our lord nineteen hundred and ninety-five. Their breakout track “Mixtapes” became an underground classic, while the laid-back single “Bus Stops” got some well-deserved shine in the final moments before hip-hop’s harder elements took over. Arriving at the tail end of rap’s second (or maybe third) golden era, World Ultimate fused the jazzy, head-nodding vibes of the Native Tongues with the sharp, freestyle freneticism of the L.A.’s Project Blowed scene. On this week’s episode, the bros take a deep dive into World Ultimate to see how it holds up three decades later. Tune in, turn up, and decide for yourself if their takes are on point. 

It's hard to imagine an album more well-respected than Goodie Mob's debut, Soul Food. It gets well-deserved love from rap enthusiasts from all over the map: the south, backpackers, people who like a little bit of spirituality in the mix, beat heads, lyric lovers, pretty much everyone. Goodie Mob never quite got the shine that their close compatriots Outkast did, and maybe that's part of the reason why underground fans still hold this album dear 30 years after its release. This week on the show DBRP hosts David Ma, Demone Carter and Nate LeBlanc are examining this classic record which still sounds fresh after severl decades. After some contextual table setting, we use our patented rubric to try and assign numerical scores to our feelings about this work of art. We have done this several times, most prominently on our Beastie Boys series over the summer, but we have never had a final score result quite like this one before. Tune in! Dad Bod Rap Pod is brought to you by Stony Island Audio.

his episode has a lot of moving parts. Imagine a Rube Goldberg Machine with interview snippets pinging around a maze of album reviews and blue balls jokes. I (DEM) had the privilege of interviewing Radamiz right before his live set at the Midway SF. The audio is a little rough, rugged, and raw in spots, but the interview has the crackle of real-life human interaction. Interspersed between clips of the interview, me and the bros discuss the records that are in heavy rotation for us right now: Jay Electronica's 4 Album Spasm Live, Laugh, Love (Earl Sweatshirt) The Years We Have Left (Theravada) Sortilege (Preservation & Gabe Nandez) Per usual thats me (DEM ONE) on the theme song alongside my birthday twin DJ Cutso. I produced this week's episode, and I'm not gonna lie, it kind of kicked my ass (in a good way). If you're in a jeep and you dig what you're hearing, consider subscribing to our Patreon, where you can find 100s of hours of fly niche content. Patreon.com/DadBodRapPod

This week, we break format for a very, very special spin-off episode. DEM ONE and Blockhead reprise their sex/relationship pod, Talk Like Sex. On this edition of Two 40+ dudes discuss the misogyny meter on Freddie Gibbs' new record, lifetime Tinder bans, the ethics of dirty mackin’, and the different approaches to partner fulfillment. Sex, love, and music are discussed with fly nuance. It’s Talk Like Sex! Episode produced by DEM ONE Theme song produced by DJ Cutso Dad Bod Rap Pod is a proud member of the Stony Island Audio Network

"If you've never walked through the woods listening to Nobody Beats the Biz then you ain't never heard hip-hop." The above quote is from one of multi-talented poet/rapper/actor Saul Williams' earliest released tracks, but it could just easily serve as a thesis statement for this podcast. This week DBRP hosts Demone Carter, David Ma and Nate LeBlanc are thrilled to present a thought provoking conversation with Williams. We touch on his recorded work, his training, his acting in movies like the recent phenomenon Sinners, and his general artistic outlook. Saul is a deeply reverent hip-hop head who grew up in the genre but is also not afraid to experiment in an attempt to transcend its strictures. We found his responses to be enlightening, and we hope you feel the same. As always, if you would like to hear an extended version of this episode with music clips for the tracks referenced, please consider joining our Patreon at www.patreon.com/dadbodrappod DBRP is a proud member of the Stony Island Audio podcast network, run by another charismatic multi-hyphenate. Catch Open Mike Eagle on tour now in a city near you!

Episode 328 Sour Times with guest DJ Haram  Show notes from the bleeding edge… Far beyond the genteel pop music stylings that comprise our day-to-day listening environment, there exists a world of sound that refuses to be refined, restrained, or easily defined. This is the space that New York–based DJ Haram inhabits: her experimental style blends bass, Middle Eastern percussion, noise, and elements of indie rap. You can hear this in her collaborations with the boundary-breaking artists Armand Hammer and Moor Mother. On this week’s episode of the Dad Bod Rap Pod, we talk with DJ Haram about her new album Beside Myself, out now on Hyperdub Ltd. She opens up about her musical evolution, personal politics, and reflections on mortality in an illuminating conversation. The DJ Haram interview is framed by our intro and outro segments, where we highlight some of our favorite fringe and obscure records. Wade into the deep end with us. Produced by Demone Carter, aka DEM ONE. Theme song by Cutso, with lyrics by DEM ONE Dad Bod Rap Pod is a proud member of the Stony Island Audio Network Tracks mentioned in this episode: Sometimes Care Looks Like Leave Me The Fuck Alone — Small Bill Rounds — Four Tet Murmations — Flock Snaeha (Bang Bang) — Pan Pon How Great Thou Art — Sensational Saints Last Days of Being A Wanker — Lolina

Serious question: Where does the time go? It feels like just yesterday I was nursing a New Year’s Eve hangover and wondering what 2025 would portend for rap releases. Now the year is three-fourths done, the holidays are around the corner, and there’s already a slew of music to talk about. On this week’s episode of Dad Bod Rap Pod, the three bad brothers you know so well share their favorite rap records of 2025 (thus far). Think of it as our mid-year retrospective, except we’re submitting it three months late, real high school vibes. The big takeaway is this: rap music is alive and thriving in 2025, especially indie rap. Did your favorite new album make the DBRP top nine? Tune in to find out, fam. Spoiler alert: the album of the year is still billy woods – Golliwog. But we also break down nine other releases from this year that are damn good, if not great. Program note: We recorded this episode about three weeks ago, before excellent records like Evidence’s Unlearning Vol. 2 and Earl Sweatshirt’s Live, Laugh, Love dropped. So you won’t hear us talk about them here, but trust we’ve listened and will have plenty to say by year’s end. If you’re the type who likes to keep up week by week, I invite you to join our Patreon at Patreon.com/dadbodrappod. That’s where we post weekly bonus segments that are more topical. In any event, I hope your year is going well, all things considered. -DEM This week’s episode was produced by Demone Carter (a.k.a. DEM ONE). Theme song by DEM ONE and DJ Cutso. Dad Bod Rap Pod is a proud member of the Stony Island Audio Network!

We've got a really big show for you this week. We have had the pleasure of interviewing Slug (and Ant, but never both together) of Atmosphere a few times. Atmosphere never quite got bigger than The Beatles (or breast implants) but there is no denying that over the last 30 years they have proven themselves to be one of the most consistent and prolific independent hip-hop groups of all time. Both gentlemen display a deep musical knowledge in their work, and on today's program we chat with Slug about his "easter egg" references, his connection with the storied concert venue Red Rocks, wellness on tour, and of course Atmosphere's next album, Jestures. Though the album will not drop for a few weeks, we preview its unique development process. Ant and Slug "gamified" their production on this record, making one song for each letter of the alphabet, one at a time, A-Z. Inspired by this approach, DBRP hosts Demone Carter, David Ma and Nate LeBlanc recorded their longest intro segment ever, riffing on 26 rappers and their careers, also in alphabet (aerobics) order. I think it's pretty safe to say that you have never heard a podcast episode quite like this. Huge thanks to Slug for joining us, it was a real pleasure to speak with someone so thoughtful and self-deprecating while also being pretty darn successful in this niche of hip-hop that we we care about. Please catch Atmosphere on the Dank Days of Summer Tour with Cypress Hill, Lupe Fiasco and the Pharcyde, coming soon to a town near you. Dad Bod Rap Pod is bought to you by Stony Island Audio, the podcast network that values being "underground" for so long that the term loses all meaning.

Sometimes the curatorial bent of this show comes from a deep curiosity about the people behind the music we love. The question “What’s their deal?” often sparks the journey toward a great interview. Patience is also part of the process because tracking down the artists we want to pepper with questions isn’t always easy, and it doesn’t always fit neatly into our recording schedule. This week’s interview with producer August Fanon has been a long time coming, and it was well worth the wait. He was gracious and open as he spoke with us about his journey as a producer, his creative process, and the sources of his inspiration. In the intro, we share some of our favorite August Fanon productions, and in the outro, we discuss the best Fanon-plus-rapper collaborations. We hope you enjoy this conversation with one of the most interesting figures in indie rap. If you want to hear the deluxe version of this episode, please consider subscribing to our Patreon! patreon.com/dadbodrappod

Every once in a while we are lucky to enough to be able to speak to a true hip-hop legend, and today is one of those occasions. Dad Bod Rap Pod hosts David Ma, Demone Carter and Nate LeBlanc are thrilled to be talking to and about Lord Finesse on this week's episode. Lord Finesse made three highly influential albums as an artist in the 90's and continues to impact the culture as a respected DJ and producer today. He is here to promote his latest album The SP1200 Files: Sounds & Frequencies In Technicolor. We caught up with Ness in his studio where he was busy working on remastering his classic debut The Funky Technician. As always, we also dive into his history, we think even a dedicated DITC head will learn something new from this interview. An extended version of this episode, along with hundreds of hours of bonus commentary, playlists, mixes, and a thriving community of rap nerds is available on our patreon: www.patreon.com/dadbodrappod DBRP is brought to you by Stony Island Audio.

Please note: A better, longer version of this episode with sound clips for every song mentioned is available on the Dad Bod Rap Pod Patreon. Go to www.patreon.com/dadbodrappod and use promo code BEASTIE to get your first month's access for only $1 From Pollywog Stew to Hot Sauce Part 2, we have officially covered the Beastie Boys' legendary career. We are wrapping up our miniseries this week with a special episode where DBRP hosts Nate LeBlanc, David Ma and Demone Carter draft their top 5 Beastie Boys songs. In between segments we have exclusive voicemails from friends, listeners, artists and indie hip-hop podcast royalty breaking down their favorite tracks as well. Though we had some pretty tough criticisms over the last few weeks, today's episode is a celebration of everything we love about the Beasties, an iconic American band that spanned genres, eras, and mediums in a unique and inspiring way. As we close out this series, we want to thank everyone who helped us along the way, especially guest commentators Dante Ross, Sean Kantrowitz, Kenny Segal, and Open Mike Eagle. Huge thanks to Rory Simms for the art, Stephanie Barajas for the photos, Defcee for writing and recording our theme song, we appreciate your talents. But most of all, we have to thank Cutso aka Producer Cutso aka P Monetary for joining us on this journey. Cutty is an amazing DJ, a great producer in the creative and technical senses of the word, and a great friend. Please give him a follow and listen to his music and mixes and consider getting DJ lessons from his new venture, First Wav Preservation Society. We are going to take a quick break and then be back with our regularly scheduled programming of banter, puns, jokes, interviews with hip-hop creators and legends, and more very soon. Sincere thanks to everyone who tuned in, reached out, and participated in this project in any way. We give thanks to the Beastie Boys for all of their great music and for giving us so much to talk about. RIP MCA, an inspiring person. 3 Bad Brothers, A Beastie Boys Breakdown is a production of Dad Bod Rap Pod Hosted By Demone Carter, David Ma, and Nate LeBlanc Executive Produced by Nate LeBlanc Produced by Demone Carter and Paolo “Cutso” Bello  Edited by Demone Carter and Nate LeBlanc  Engineering and Post-Production by Paolo “Cutso” Bello Artwork by Rory Simms Photography by Stephanie Barajas  Youtube version produced by Paolo “Cutso” Bello Theme song written and recorded by Defcee and Produced by Cutso Dad Bod Rap Pod is distributed by Open Mike Eagle’s Stony Island Audio

It's summertime, the living is easy, and we figured why not play a doubleheader? Today on Dad Bod Rap Pod, hosts Demone Carter, David Ma and Nate LeBlanc with help from Producer Cutso break down the final albums in the Beastie Boys' Catalog. First up is the Mix Up from 2007, the only official instrumental LP in their catalog, since In Sound From Way Out is a compilation. The Boys established a dress code and payed homage to their favorite wordless acts and we have thoughts about it. Is it "classic material" or "placid material?" There's only one way to find out. Then we turn our attention to 2011's Hot Sauce Committe pt 2, the Beastie Boys' last album. In some ways it is a return to form, bringing back their signature processed vocals and combining eclectic musical styles in the way that only they can. We also spend some time discussing the elaborate record nerd mythology they attempted to establish in the liner notes. While we have discussed, dissected, debated and ranked every Beasties album, we are not quite done yet. Tune in next week for the Beastie Boys song draft, a celebrations of a great rap group, featuring selections from our hosts and calls form friends of the program from around the world.

This week Dad Bod Rap Pod hosts Demone Carter, David Ma, and Nate LeBlanc alongside Producer Cutso, are breaking down the Beastie Boys' fifth album, To The 5 Boroughs. Where their previous few records had been eclectic mixes of jammy, loungey instrumental songs, punk egergy, and hard-hitting leftfield hip-hop, for this album the Boys decided to approach early 2000s America with an old-school hip-hop sensibility. As you will hear, we are not fans of this choice. Since we didn't really care for this record, we devote a lot of this episode to talking about Grand Royal, the Beastie Boys' magazine and record label. The magazine is an important and now quite rare document of the Boys' hipster sensibilities that shined a light on a lot of creative people. It's probably one of the coolest things that a major band could have done for their listeners in a pre-internet age. The record label was a bit more hit and miss but also a worthwhile endeavor that shut down just as it was starting to get interesting by signing some fascinating underground MCs. Thanks to everyone who has joined us on the album-by-album look into the Beasties' fascinating career. Please consider joining our patreon at patreon.com/dadbodrappod for more bonus content, banter episodes, curated music, and playlists. Use promo code BEASTIE to get your first month for just $1 3 Bad Brothers, A Beasties Boys Breakdown is a production of Dad Bod Rap Pod Hosted By Demone Carter, David Ma, and Nate LeBlanc Executive Produced by Nate LeBlanc Produced by Demone Carter and Paolo “Cutso” Bello  Edited by Demone Carter and Nate LeBlanc  Engineering and Post-Production by Paolo “Cutso” Bello Artwork by Rory Simms Photography by Stephanie Barajas  Youtube version produced by Paolo “Cutso” Bello Theme song written and recorded by Defcee and Produced by Cutso Dad Bod Rap Pod is distributed by Open Mike Eagle’s Stony Island Audio

* Please note: This is an edited version of the episode, we have been forced to remove the interstitial music that is part of what makes the show unique. Extended episodes with more clips and music are available at patreon.com/dadbodrappod * In the pivotal fifth installment of our Beastie Boys miniseries, the Boys have moved back to New York and they are hopping around different studios demoing ideas that will eventually lead to their album Hello Nasty, a sprawling and eclectic work that fuses all of their previous modes into one sound that we call the "Beastie singularity." Rather than jamming and finding ideas in the edit, this time around they are fusing their record collections, old school hip-hop sensibility and guest vocalists into one well-produced mix which many BB fans and the band themselves hold as their best album. Joining DBRP hosts Demone Carter, David Ma and Nate LeBlanc to break this all down is iconic rap artist, podcaster, and hip-hop commentator Open Mike Eagle. One of hip-hop's most astute observers, Mike details his longstanding relationship with Hello Nasty in his inimitable smart, funny way. Be sure to pre-order his new album Neighborhood Gods Unlimited ahead of its release on July 11th. Big shouts to our main man Cutso for joining us on the mic for this album, he helps us understand the vital role that Mixmaster Mike played in re-energizing the Beastie Boys live experience right as their hair began to gray. All in all, this is a really fun episode about an album that we admire but have a few of our customary quibbles with, especially with its length and sequencing. Please share your feedback in the comments. 3 Bad Brothers, A Beasties Boys Breakdown is a production of Dad Bod Rap Pod Hosted By Demone Carter, David Ma, and Nate LeBlanc Executive Produced by Nate LeBlanc Produced by Demone Carter and Paolo “Cutso” Bello  Edited by Demone Carter and Nate LeBlanc  Engineering and Post-Production by Paolo “Cutso” Bello Artwork by Rory Simms Photography by Stephanie Barajas  Youtube version produced by Paolo “Cutso” Bello Theme song written and recorded by Defcee and Produced by Cutso Dad Bod Rap Pod is distributed by Open Mike Eagle’s Stony Island Audio

This week we are breaking down Ill Communication as part of our miniseries entitled 3 Bad Brothers A Beastie Boys Breakdown. DBRP hosts Nate LeBlanc, David Ma and Demone Carter are joined by one of the very best producers in hip-hop, Kenny Segal, who knows a thing or two about blending disparate elements into a cohesive whole, as the Beasties did on one of their most successful records. In the popular imagination, the Beasties' anthemic rock song Sabotage and its iconic video are probably the highlights from this record, but for us rap nerds, it also contains some of their very best alternative hip-hop songs. We get into some specifics about Sure Shot, Flute Loop and of course Get It Together, the mostly-freestyled jam they recorded with Q-Tip from A Tribe Called Quest. At the end of the episode we rank the album on our 5-point rubric, talking about the best beats, rhymes and magic moments, as well as the album's lasting cultural impact and replay-ability. We'd love to hear from all of you, what do you think of this album? Leave a comment with any thoughts. Please make sure to listen to the very end to hear a snippet of Kenny's one and only Beasties remix, which may in an alternative timeline have been released on Grand Royal and changed the course of his life. 3 Bad Brothers A Beastie Boys Breakdown is a production of Dad Bod Rap Pod Hosted By Demone Carter, David Ma, and Nate LeBlanc Executive Produced by Nate LeBlanc Produced by Demone Carter and Paolo “Cutso” Bello  Edited by Demone Carter and Nate LeBlanc  Engineering and Post-Production by Paolo “Cutso” Bello Artwork by Rory Simms Photography by Stephanie Barajas  Youtube version produced by Paolo “Cutso” Bello Theme song written and recorded by Defcee and Produced by Cutso Dad Bod Rap Pod is distributed by Open Mike Eagle’s Stony Island Audio

All summer long, Dad Bod Rap Pod is breaking down the Beastie Boys' legendary career in an album-per-episode miniseries. This week things start to get really interesting as the Boys build their own studio in LA so they can jam with Mario C at the boards and Money Mark on keys, crafting their pivotal album, the eclectic and electric Check Your Head. DBRP hosts Nate LeBlanc, David Ma and Demone Carter are joined by hip-hop trivia king and fellow podcaster Sean Kantrowitz to discuss the Beasties picking their instruments back up, karaoke mics, the Boys' Jewish heritage, and much more. After lots of context is provided and we discuss what we like and are less enthused about on the album, we score the art on a numeric rubric. Disagree with our takes? Please let us know in the comments. Tell us what number you would assign to the Beats, Rhymes, Cultural Impact, Replay-ability and Magic Moments out of 10. Tune in next week as we examine the world-conquering Ill Communication with one of the very best producers of rap music in the world right now, Kenny Segal. 3 Bad Brothers, A Beastie Boys Breakdown is a production of Dad Bod Rap Pod Hosted By Demone Carter, David Ma, and Nate LeBlanc Executive Produced by Nate LeBlanc Produced by Demone Carter and Paolo “Cutso” Bello  Edited by Demone Carter and Nate LeBlanc  Engineering and Post-Production by Paolo “Cutso” Bello Artwork by Rory Simms Photography by Stephanie Barajas  Youtube version produced by Paolo “Cutso” Bello Theme song written and recorded by Defcee and Produced by Cutso Dad Bod Rap Pod is distributed by Open Mike Eagle’s Stony Island Audio

The finest in men's opinions, this is Paul's Boutique. In many ways, we created this entire miniseries so that we could talk about Paul's Boutique. For Dad Bod Rap Pod hosts Nate LeBlanc, David Ma, and Producer Cutso, this is a foundational document, one of the keys that unlocked our love of music and hip-hop in general. Host Demone Carter feels slightly differently, as you will hear. The Beastie Boys' second album is many things: A pinnacle of the art of sampling, an experiment in song structures, a step away from their first album and many of its casual fans, a reflection of their first time on the west coast, a deepening of the bond between all three group members as displayed in their intertwining vocal arrangements. We will break all of that down on this episode, the 2nd in our 8-part series tracking the development of one of the great American bands and a group that both set trends and broke precedents in the hip-hop world. 3 Bad Brothers, A Beasties Boys Breakdown is a production of Dad Bod Rap Pod Hosted By Demone Carter, David Ma, and Nate LeBlanc Executive Produced by Nate LeBlanc Produced by Demone Carter and Paolo “Cutso” Bello  Edited by Demone Carter and Nate LeBlanc  Engineering and Post-Production by Paolo “Cutso” Bello Artwork by Rory Simms Photography by Stephanie Barajas  Youtube version produced by Paolo “Cutso” Bello Theme song written and recorded by Defcee and Produced by Cutso Dad Bod Rap Pod is distributed by Open Mike Eagle’s Stony Island Audio