Jay-Z just brought out JAZ-O and gave him his flowers at the Reasonable Doubt 30th Anniversary concert and they performed Bring It On right after 🤯 "This is Jaz-O he's from Marcy Projects, we would go to his house to do a little writing to sharpen our skills, if you were to give anybody credit for me being on the stage tonight give it to the man JAZ-O"

On December 7, 1971 at the Boys Club of America on Hoe Avenue in the South Bronx, over 100 leaders from roughly 20 different New York street gangs, including the Black Spades and Ghetto Brothers, met to negotiate a truce. The truce was prompted by the murder of Black Benjy, a member of the Ghetto Brothers. The meeting significantly reduced community violence in the area against civilians and created rules of engagement between rival gangs that held until 1981, when crack began to flood inner cities. This gathering is considered a pivotal moment in the history of the Bronx, contributing to the environment that allowed hip-hop culture to emerge. It was also one of the inspirations for the film "The Warriors."

John Lennon wrote a beautiful song about socialism. “Imagine no possessions” he told us. He also: – helped write his band’s anti-tax anthem, Taxman – incorporated his IP holdings – moved to a lower-tax country – fiercely protected his royalties - drove two Rolls Royce’s and had multiple luxury homes. – made sure even the royalty cheques for Imagine were kept safe for his estate so his family would remain wealthy in perpetuity. If he believed it, he’d have lived it. The trouble with socialism is that even the people who love the idea won’t run the experiment on themselves. John Lennon writing Imagine while owning two Rolls Royce Phantoms and later having a law suit to protect his royalties tells you all you need to know about socialism in practice. It doesn’t work outside of the imagination.

Happy 56th birthday, Pete Rock 💎 Pete has been among the most consistent producers for the last 30+ years. It's great to hear him still producing quality music after this long in the game. What's your favorite Pete Rock beat?