Confucius and Fresh confer on GloRilla’s growing popularity, check the pulse on Austin’s hip-hop scene, and predict the state of Drill music’s foreseeable future.
Cardi B
SXSW Plans / The Hard Early ’00s
Find out what Confucius, Fresh, and KUTX have coming up for SXSW and decide whether or not Nelly’s first three albums came up in the “hardest’ era. And in between Hip-Hop Facts and Confucius Reads the News, feathers get ruffled with Fresh’s Unpopular Opinion around the recent wave of women in rap.
Hip-Hop’s Golden Age?
Confucius and Fresh talk to Austin hip-hop pioneer Tee-Double about his career and how it feels to be one of the honorees at The Austin Hip-Hop Awards Sunday, September 17th from 2pm-5pm at the Austin Central Library.
Then they debate whether or not this is the golden age of hip-hop.
You’ll learn Hip-Hop Facts about why Cardi B’s verse didn’t end up on the final version of Ice Spice’s “Munch,” how LL Cool J and 50 Cent almost made an album together, what the connection between Warren G And Pimp C is and more.
Fresh states the Unpopular Opinion that Drake is a bit of a clout chaser.
Confucius talks about Mitt Romney’s announcement that he will not run for reelection, the release of El Chapo’s wife from prison and more on Confucius Reads the News
SXSBreaks is Back!
The Breaks talk about why Cardi B has stayed relevant, and reveal the lineup for SXSBreaks, the SXSW showcase featuring Austin’s best hip-hop and R&B Acts.
You’ll learn hip-hop facts about how Wu-Tang was the first rap group to do a worldwide tour with a rock band, who was D’Angelo’s “Devil’s Pie” originally belonged to, how good the original version of Dr. Dre’s The Chronic really was, and more.
Fresh states the Unpopular Opinion that Odd Future is the most underrated rap collective in history.
Confucius talked about the Eagles losing the Super Bowl, the recent UFO sightings in the states, and more in Confucius Reads the News.
Commercialization vs. Culture
Inspired by yet another Rolling Stone article, Confucius and Fresh kick off this week’s episode with a discussion on how Hip-Hop’s increasing commercialization affects its cultural relevance.
As the Nicki v. Cardi spat continues, the fellas talk up the importance of women in Hip-Hop, especially when it comes to lyrical effect on men.
Fresh’s Unpopular Opinion suggests cities ought to stop “adopting” artists as their own asset, before Confucius Reads the News about Kanye West and Parler, Biden’s Student Loan Forgiveness Program, and Jay-Z’s Bacardi lawsuit.
Being Blackballed in 2022
In this week’s edition of The Breaks, Fresh and Confucius kick off the conversation with a reflection on what it means to be “blackballed” and if it truly continues to exist in the current industry climate.
The fellas move on to a debate about whether or not Cardi B is overrated compared to Nicki Minaj, especially in terms of collaborating with fellow female artists.
On Hip-Hop Facts you’ll learn about some unexpected writing credits, the anniversaries of Loud Records, Def Jam South, and beef at the 2012 BET Hip-Hop Awards.
Fresh’s Unpopular Opinion puts a spin on the discourse between DJ Akademiks, LL Cool J, and others about how much credit hip-hop pioneers deserve in light of not warning new generations about the perils of the industry.
Finally on Confucius Reads the News, get a recap of the latest headlines on Kanye West, Harry Styles, N.O.R.E., and Donald Trump.
DJ Hella Yella Speaks!
This week on The Breaks:
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- Confucius and Fresh interview Austin’s DJ Hella Yella about his career and his new radio show on KAZI 88.7.
- In this week’s installment of Hip-Hop Facts you’ll learn interesting things about video director Ralph McDaniels, who Ludacris’ co-host was in his early radio days, why Ice Cube wasn’t allowed to do a song with Dr. Dre and Eazy-E, the story behind CL Smooth and Pete Rock’s song “They Reminisce Over You (Troy)” and more.
- Fresh states the Unpopular Opinion that contrary to what some people are saying, there are a lot of exciting things happening in hip-hop right now.
- In Confucius Reads the News, Confucius talks about the recent run-in between Freddie Gibbs and Jim Jones, President’s Biden’s reversal on canceling student loan debt, Cardi B’s latest accomplishment and more.
You can hear the latest full broadcast of The Breaks Saturday night show.
Confucius vs Verzuz
This week on The Breaks:
- Fresh is still out so Confucius talks about the recent Verzuz between Souja Boy and Bow Wow, both of whom have been accused of physically assaulting women and asks whether the organizers of Verzuz should be more accountable when it comes to the artists they showcase.
- Confucius talks about the recent article in the Austin Chronicle that he was interviewed for called “21 Austin Rappers to Know in 21.” He applauds the spotlight on Austin’s hip-hop scene and encourages artists who may not have made it on the list not to worry and to keep on doing the work they love.
- you’ll learn interesting things about Cardi B, Young Thug, The Weeknd, T-Pain, Kanye & more in this week’s installment of Hip-Hop Facts.
- Confucius talks about Tyler the Creator after the release of his new mixtape “Call Me if You Get Lost.”
- In his Confucius Says segment, Confucius encourages listeners to lean into loyalty.
You can hear the latest full broadcast of The Breaks Saturday night show.
All Things Grammys
This week on The Breaks hosts Confucius and Fresh:
- Discuss this year’s Grammy Awards.
- Jump into the drama surrounding Kirk Franklin after his son Kerrion released a profanity laden phone call from the gospel artist.
- Drop little known facts about about Grammy history, the movie “Paid in Full,” the tv shows “In Living Color” and “Snowfall” and more in the latest installment of Random Hip-Hop Facts
- Fresh states the Unpopular Opinion that while it’s wonderful to see the Black Pumas represent Austin on the national stage, he still thinks Austin is being unfairly depicted as a guitar only town.
- Inspired by the Megan the Stallion and Cardi B’s Grammy performance of WAP! Confucius encourages men to stop policing women’s behavior and fathers to stop policing their daughter’s sexuality in his Confucius Says segment.
You can hear the latest full broadcast of The Breaks Saturday night show.
Don’t Argue with Stupid
This week on The Breaks Fresh and Confucius:
- Discuss the success of Cardi B’s new song “WAP” featuring Megan the Stallion.
- Talk about the recent arrests of two men for the 2002 murder of Run DMC’s Jam Master Jay.
- Theorize as to why Akon might be hanging out with Tekashi 6ix9ine.
- Debate whether Kim Kardashian’s involvement in the effort to free C Murder will be make an impact.
- In his Unpopular Opinion, Fresh hopes that Jay-Z can let go of any lingering pettiness he might feel towards Nas.
- In his Confucius Says segment, Confucius says that it’s not worth it to try to understand other people’s baffling decisions.
WAP!
This week on The Breaks Fresh and Confucius:
- Talk about why they love “WAP” by Cardi B and Megan thee Stallion and explain why they’re frustrated by the backlash surrounding the song.
- Celebrate the birth of hip-hop on on August 11, 1973. That’s when DJ Kool Herc threw the “Back to School Jam” at 1520 Sedgwick Avenue in the Bronx, NYC.
- Debate what it means for a song to be “a hit.”
- In his Unpopular Opinion, Fresh states that the XXL Magazine Freshman Class is still relevant.
- Confucius encourages people to rethink what closure means in his Confucius Says segment.
Legacy, Legacy, Legacy
This week on The Breaks:
- Confucius and Fresh send their condolences to the family of local artist Chameleon Brenden Foster after his passing.
- They also talk about how, although legacies are important, new artists don’t have to be aware of everyone who came before them in order to thrive in the Austin Music Scene.
- They discuss why the allegations brought against Cardi B’s friend Star Brim might work against Cardi herself.
- Confucius and Fresh reflect on Big Sean’s discussion with Joe Budden about stepping back from the spotlight for his mental health.
- In his “Unpopular Opinion,” Fresh talks about letting humility take a backseat to self-promotion once in a while.
- Confucius defends his social media presence in his “Confucius Says.”
- This week’s local song of the week is INFRAR3D’s “Bag Baby.”
Listen to this episode of The Breaks
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Hear the music from The Breaks played on their Saturday Night Hip-hop show