BOBBY ROBINSON, whose tiny record shop on Harlem's 125th St. spawned No. 1 national hits and made him an uptown patriarch for six decades, died yesterday.

 

He was 93 and had been ill for several years - though he regularly went to work at his shop until it was forced to close in January 2008.

 

Impeccably dressed, well-spoken and ambitious to make his mark in the entertainment business, Robinson opened Bobby's Happy House in 1946.

 

His shop was the first black-owned business on 125th St., and within five years he used it to launch a series of record labels.

 

Sometimes working with his brother Danny, who also had an office on 125th St., Robinson recorded hundreds of artists from Gladys Knight and the Pips to Grandmaster Flash and…

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By Boyce Watkins, PhD



One of the great mysteries of hip-hop lies with the death of the Notorious B.I.G., aka Biggie Smalls aka Christopher Wallace.



Biggie's murder in 1997 put the hip-hop community on hold and opened the door for a new era with regard to regional divisions in music.



After years of being accused of not telling the entire truth in Biggie's murder, a task force of various local and federal law enforcement officials have now told CNN (see below) that they are actively pursuing leads in the 13-year-old homicide.





One official is stating that the information has "reinvigorated" the case, but that he could not elaborate because of the ongoing investigation.



Wallace was murdered on March 9, 1997, at the age of 24. He was leaving a… Continue

Beastie Boys rapper Adam Yauch has been given the all-clear in his cancer battle, 18 months after he was diagnosed with the disease.…

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I really don’t know what constitutes for “relevant” coverage in HIP-HOP news in America these days, but I really want to give you all a heads up. As you know I’ve been through three passports, 76 countries on the regular in the name of Hip-Hop since 1987 and in 2010, although I’ve never stopped traveling the earth this year, I’ve seen, heard and felt some new things.

As far as RAP and HIP-HOP, it’s like USA Olympic basketball, the world has parity now and have surpassed the USA in ALL of the basic fundamentals of HIP-HOP – TURNTABLISM, BREAKING,…

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Nas is in the giving spirit for the holidays.

The renowned Queens lyricist headed to Harlem on Wednesday (December 22) to serve Christmas dinner to families affected by HIV/AIDS as part of an event run by music industry professional turned activist Maria Davis. And the Illmatic MC was more than willing to lend a hand, and his celebrity, to help the cause.

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