Declaime & Madlib: In The Beginning (Vol. 1)

• 

I could probably drive myself crazy thinking about how many unheard Madlib joints there are dotted around the planet. Last month it was announced that he would be releasing a bunch of previously lost and unreleased tracks with long-term friend and collaborator, Declaime. That collection is now available for your listening pleasure and features some suitably dusty gems from the mid-90’s, which mark the first utterances of their creative partnership. You can stream the album in full below.

Mr Muthafuckin’ eXquire: Black Mirror (video)

A new video has emerged for the previously released eXquire joint, Black Mirror. The track first appeared back in July, and features production from Madlib.

Mr Muthafuckin’ eXquire: Black Mirror (Prod. by Madlib)

Timely music here from Mr MFN eXquire, as he tackles the topics of black masculinity and community, over some unsurprisingly tight production from Madlib. The track is dedicated to eXquire’s uncle, Shango, who passed away last month. Streams and downloads of Black Mirror are also available.

Freddie Gibbs & Madlib w/ El Michels Affair: Gat Damn (The Diamond Mine Sessions)

While I do feel a bit dirty posting an Amazon Music exclusive, the strength of the performance outweighs any real moral objections I might have. Freddie Gibbs and Madlib recently hooked up with the aforementioned spawn of the devil to give an exclusive live rendition of Gat Damn, which is taken from last year’s acclaimed Bandana. MadGibbs are also joined by El Michels Affair, which is a genius move as you will hear from the end result.

Oh No & Madlib ft. Elzhi & Chino XL: Superhumans

Last week social media was buzzing after confirmation that next year would finally deliver the long-awaited collaboration between Madlib and Oh No. The brothers have long been hinting at the prospect of a joint album, but until now those hints had not materialised into anything definite. But now it’s been confirmed that The Professionals will be unleashed into the world early next year and it looks like they’re going to be more than ably assisted, it this first audio leak is anything to go by. On Superhumans, the duo are joined by Detroit legend, Elzhi, and Bronx veteran, Chino XL. The full release of The Professionals is set for 17 January and pre-orders are available now via Rappcats.

Andre 3000 & Madlib: Otis Benjamin (Stream)

As far as mash-ups go, this is one of the ones that you thought would already have been given life by now, judging by how popular the two main players are. The geniuses over at Altered Crates have blended some of Andre 3000’s best features, with a selection of Madlib’s forever on point instrumentals, resulting in Otis Benjamin. The speculation over Andre’s solo project is likely to continue for a while, but in the meantime this release will do nicely. You can stream it below and downloads are available via Bandcamp.

Wiki: Eggs (Video)

We now have a home movie style video for the recent drop from Wiki, where the Ratking MC delivered his distinctive flows over some tasty Madlib production. Streaming options for Eggs are also available.

Freddie Gibbs: Fake Names (Colors Performance)

Gangster Gibbs recently passed through the Colors studio, to record a blinding rendition of his Fake Names track, which can be found on the recent Madlib-produced Bandana album. Gibbs’ UK tour kicks off on 22 October in Brighton. Tickets for all dates can be found here.

Wiki: Eggs

Always happy to see the arrival of new music from Wiki, even more so when the production is handled by Madlib. Aside from another single in 2018, Eggs is the only music we’ve heard from the New York MC since his superb 2017 album, No Mountains in Manhattan. I’m hoping this means that another album is on the way, but for now enjoy this nutritious loosie.

Freddie Gibbs & Madlib: Half Manne Half Cocaine

Yesterday saw the release of the latest visuals from Freddie Gibbs and Madlib’s recent reunion album. The video for Half Manna Half Cocaine features guest appearances from Eric Andre, Quasimoto and Silverio Diaz. Bandana is out now.