by Nick Brower | Apr 19, 2018 | MUSIC, ON THIS DAY IN HIPHOP
What’s happening everybody?! We’re in for another real good day in Hip Hop history. And it’s centered around another one of my all time favorites. On this day in 1994 Nas blessed all of our ears with Illmatic. Illmatic was Nas’ debut album and is widely regarded as one of the best of all time. Known for his lyrical skills, Nas painted pictures of life in the projects and told stories will incredible detail while delivering dope flows over complex rhyme patterns. Illmatic is certified platinum and served as the launching point for Nas’ huge career. You can’t talk about east coast rap without mention Nasty Nas.
Besides Nas’ dope lyrics, the album will go down in history for another reason. It was one of the first commercially successful album that featured many different producers. Traditionally, an MC a a producer, or DJ, would come as a package deal. Jam Master Jay did all of Run DMC’s beats. Rakim only spit over Eric B.’s stuff. Pete Rock and C.L. Smooth did all of their stuff together. I could go on for days, but you get the point. Illmatic broke the mold and featured songs from multiple different producers including Q-Tip, DJ Premier, Larger Professor, and Pete Rock. The success of the album made it common place for rappers to get their beats from all over.
On a personal note, this is probably my number one album of all time (I go back and forth between this, Reasonable Doubt, and People’s Instinctive Travels and The Paths of Rhythm depending on my mood). Illmatic is one of the few albums that I actually own a hard copy of. I’ll never forget the day I bought it. A friend and I cut school to buy Watch The Throne the day it came out and I stumbled across Illmatic and couldn’t help myself. We headed straight home and bumped both albums back to back. I fell in love instantly and the CD hasn’t left the player in my car ever since. I could listen to Illmatic over and over again on a loop and never get sick of it. So if you haven’t listened to it yet, don’t talk to me until you do. It’s a must listen for anyone who calls themselves a hip hop fan. Now, I’m gonna go celebrate its 24th birthday by listening to it a couple times, I suggest you do the same.
by Nick Brower | Apr 19, 2018 | SPORTS
We had four games on the NHL schedule last night. Pittsburgh blew out Philly 5-0 to take a 3-1 series lead. Crosby led the way once again with a goal and an assist and Matt Murray made 26 saves to record the shutout. Pittsburgh seems poised to finish this series as they head back home for game 5. Tampa Bay also took a 3-1 series lead over the Devils after a 3-1 win. New Jersey struck first at home when Kyle Palmieri scored on a power play early in the first but could not capitalize. Kucherov led the charge for Tampa with two goals and an assist. The Devils were able to steal a game at home, but heading back to Tampa down 3-1 spells trouble for them. This is definitely now the Lightning’s series to lose. Nashville took a commanding 3-1 series lead after beating Colorado. Nashville may be in the lead here but they have not looked impressive. Their usually great defense has not been playing up to their standards. They are still in good position to move on to the next round, but they will need to clean up that backline if they want to have further success. Finally, San Jose completed their sweep of Anaheim and will move on to the next round after a 2-1 win. Hertl and Sorensen created the offense with a goal a piece and Jones was great in net, stopping 30 of 31 shots. The Sharks have looked good, but will face a tough test in Las Vegas next. The Golden Knights have continually shocked the hockey world in their inaugural season and I don’t see the train stopping anytime soon. The road to the Stanley Cup pushes on tonight as Boston will play Toronto and Washington will take on Columbus in a pair of game 4’s.
by Nick Brower | Apr 19, 2018 | SPORTS
Utah was able to tie their series up last night with a 102-95 win over the Thunder. Rookie sensation Donovan Mitchell led the charge with 28 points and Ricky Rubio had a great game with 22, 9, and 7. The deciding factor was definitely Utah’s stellar defense. That has been their identity all season and it did not disappoint last night. They held all of OKC’s big three to under 20 points and only allowed the Thunder to shoot 40% from the field and 31% from three while forcing 13 turnovers. Keeping OKC under 100 points is the key. If they can keep up this defensive pace they will be in good shape, especially as the series heads back to Utah.
Ricky Rubio has this team playing really good offensive basketball as well. He was the missing piece. He allows Mitchell to work off the ball and has become a great facilitator for Derrick Favors, who pitched in 20 and 16 boards last night as well. Utah is looking like one of the most complete teams in the playoffs right now. Especially with their ability to close out games. They looked real strong in the fourth, outscoring OKC 28-16. Mitchell is showing poise well beyond his years and OKC still can’t seem to figure out their offense. All that talent keeps getting in its own way. They better figure it out quick, because Utah definitely has their game figured out.
by Nick Brower | Apr 19, 2018 | SPORTS
The Rockets took a commanding 2-0 series lead over Minnesota with a 102-82 win. Minnesota led after the first quarter, but Houston’s defense smothered them for the rest of the night. On a night where James Harden struggled shooting the ball, this defense came up big. Not a single Timberwolve scored over 20 points. Chris Paul led the charge on offense for the Rockets, scoring 27 while dishing out 8 assists. If this is what Houston looks like when Harden goes 2-18 from the field and 1-10 from 3, watch out. This was a statement game big time. In last year’s playoffs, if Harden struggled the Rockets got spanked. CP3 has the skills to carry a game both with his scoring and his ability to get his teammates good looks. And their new and improved defense makes them a real scary team. This offense can outscore just about anybody, and if they are forcing 16 turnovers and ripping 8 steals like they did last night not many teams stand a chance. Now they have to keep the pressure on as the series moves to Minnesota. The Timberwolves are clearly overmatched here, but any NBA team can get a win at home. The Rockets need to end this ASAP and get a few days off, wasting time would just be silly.
by Nick Brower | Apr 18, 2018 | SPORTS
LeBron James put his team on his back tonight as the Cavs tie up their series with Indiana 1 a piece. King James recorded his 20th 40 point performance in the playoffs, tying Michael Jordan for most all time and finished with 46 points, 12 boards and 5 assists. Indiana played very well and even with LeBron’s huge night they were only a missed three by Oladipo late away from taking this game. LeBron is great, we all know that, but it took his absolute best game to get a win. The Cavs are in trouble here against the Pacers. Indiana has looked real good so far. The Cavs need to step their game up as a collective if they want to survive this series. You cannot depend on LeBron to pour in 40+ every night. And to make matters tougher, Kevin Love seemed to re-injure his left hand late in the fourth. If he can’t go for the rest of the series, I really don’t see the Cavs surviving. They are going to have a tough time moving on even if he is healthy. Indiana is a huge basketball state. Expect that arena to be jumping when the series moves to the Pacers home court. The Cavs may have won tonight, but they are officially on upset alert.
