Atmosphere: "Somebody, MN ft. Kill the Vultures, Big Quarters & MaLLy"

Atmosphere, Kill the Vultures, Big Quarters, and MaLLy are embarking on the six-show Welcome to MN tour. It's the same cities as last year, with added dates in Minneapolis and Duluth. Fantastic lineup and should be a great time. I've got my tickets for the First Ave show, and I hear they're going fast, so grab them ASAP if you haven't yet.

Similar to last year's "Minnesota Nice," all the acts on this mini-tour made a song together. Stream/download it below.

Atmosphere: "Somebody, MN ft. Kill the Vultures, Big Quarters & MaLLy"

Dates for the 2012 Welcome To Minnesota Tour:

2.20 - Mankato, MN @ Verizon Wireless Center Ballroom   

2.21 - Bemidji, MN @ Sanford Center Ballroom  

2.22 - Minneapolis, MN @ First Avenue  

2.23 - Duluth, MN @ Clyde Iron Works  

2.25 - Rochester, MN @ Mayo Civic Center Auditorium 

2.26 - St. Cloud, MN @ SCSU Atwood Center Ballroom

MaLLy: "Stomp Through ft. Tigre" (Prod. Last Word)

New heat from MaLLy, featuring Tigre of 925ve and produced by Last Word.

The Tribe & Big Cats!: Make Good EP

I've said it before and I'll probably say it again: Make Good marks the best music the Tribe & Big Cats! have put out as a group yet. It also ranks among my favorite local releases of 2011. Stream it below, and buy it for $5 at their Bandcamp site.

The Tribe & Big Cats!: Make Good EP

U of SAV: Real Cool World (Free Album)

U of SAV is a duo composed of local rapper/producer Oppi and his parter Vinnie who currently resides in Milwaukee. Today they release their debut project, Real Cool World. If you're sick of the pretentiousness that populates much of the current rap landscape, you may very well enjoy this release. It's also possibly the most piano-heavy album I've heard in a long time. Lipset makes a guest appearance. Stream it below or hit the U of SAV Bandcamp site to download.

U of SAV: Real Cool World

O-D: Free Myself (Free Album)

O-D is a producer in the 4Shades crew. Even if you don't know him by name, you've likely heard his work if you follow the Twin Cities scene; he's produced for M.anifest, Krukid, Toki Wright, Tribe & Big Cats! and more. Check out his album Free Myself.

O-D: Free Myself

Prof: King Gampo (Full Album Download)

You may remember Prof's announcement of his new album King Gampo because of its wonderfully creative and extensive preorder package. Well, the album came out about a week ago, but what I didn't realize is that Prof actually made the whole thing available for free. Check out the album below, go download it, and make sure to award this man's generosity by supporting him at one of his live shows.

See More Perspective: "Summertime Hip Hop BBQ Jam for the World (Remix) ft. Guante & Heidi Barton Stink"

Here's a new old joint from See More Perspective, as his "Summertime Hip-Hop BBQ Jam" was remixed with a new verse, some added beatboxing, and guest spots from Guante and Heidi Barton Stink.

See More Perspective: "Summertime Hip Hop BBQ Jam for the World (Remix) ft. Guante & Heidi Barton Stink"

Unknown Prophets: "Knocking Out Imposters ft. Planet Asia"

This one is a very good look for the UPs, getting Planet Asia for the lead single to their upcoming World Premier 2.

Unknown Prophets: "Knocking Out Imposters ft. Planet Asia"

Danami: "Hustle Hard (Freestyle)" + "Can't Be Friends (Remix)"

Here's two new tracks from Danami.

Danami: "Hustle Hard (Freestyle)" + "Can't Be Friends (Remix)" (Download together)

Danami: "Hustle Hard (Freestyle)"

Danami: "Can't Be Friends (Remix)"

Maria Isa: "Secured"

Maria Isa must have had a busy few months. This song, "Secured" is from her new mixtape Sip It, Vol. 1. Additionally, her and Muja Messiah have been working on their VillaRosa project. Thanks for Jon Jon for sending this through.

Maria Isa: "Secured"

Toki Wright: "25/8/366 ft. Oskar Ly" (Prod. Lazerbeak)

Funny story about this song: back in 2009 when I compiled tracks from artists all over the Midwest for the Flyover Land, Vol. 1 mixtape, I got an overwhelmingly positive response from artists. In fact, I had a stash of leftover songs that I chose to hold out for a second installment of the mixtape series. One of those songs was "25/8/366", a Toki Wright track produced by Lazerbeak. So, while Flyover Land, Vol. 2 never came to fruition — mostly due to my poor work ethic and getting sidetracked by life in general — I've had this song in my iTunes library for a couple of years. Fast forward to one hour ago, Toki sends me an email to release (rerelease?) it. It's stream only on Midwest Broadcast, hit the link below to visit the SoulTools Bandcamp site if you want to download it. You know you can't go wrong when you've got Toki and Lazerbeak on the same track, two of the finest artists in the Twin Cities rap scene. Enjoy.

Toki Wright: "25/8/366 ft. Oskar Ly" (Prod. Lazerbeak)

BK-One: 'Rádio Do Canibal' Extras

BK-One and Benzilla collaborated to create Rádio Do Canibal back in 2009, one of the year's most creative and brilliant hip-hop albums. It remains one of my top-5 Rhymesayers-released albums in recent memory. Now it's 2011, and BK-One has decided to gradually release some extras from the original Rádio Do Canibal studio sessions. Included are instrumentals that didn't make the cut, and original or demo versions of album tracks. BK-One is releasing these songs via his Soundcloud page, and who knows how many more he'll let loose, so I strongly recommend subscribing so you don't miss any exclusive releases. I'll link below to his entire page, where (so far) you can find Slug's original demo of "Gittit," two unreleaed instrumentals, the demo of "Love Like That," and the original version of "Here I Am." I'll try to keep up and post the new additions to the playlist.

BK-One: Rádio Do Canibal Extras

Jay-Z & Kanye West: "Otis"

"Otis" is the new Watch The Throne single inspired from the work of my favorite singer of all time. The two superstars trade bars over a sample from "Try A Little Tenderness." It sounds so soulful, don't you agree? Stream this YouTube link below while it lasts, or head over to Jay-Z's Life + Times website to check it out.

Jay-Z & Kanye West: "Otis"

T.Q.D.: The Appetizer EP, Vol. 3

The Quiet Dude releases the third installment in his Appetizer EP series. This one is another assortment of tracks he's been working on while he prepares to release two solo LPs this year.

T.Q.D.: The Appetizer EP, Vol. 3

Trama: "Nod Ya Head"

Here's some more music from Trama. If you didn't catch "One Day At A Time" from a couple of weeks ago then go check that out.

Trama: "Nod Ya Head"

Black Milk: "Brain ft. Jack White"

Jack White's Third Man Records has been releasing a lot of one-off singles with various artists lately. The label dipped into hip-hop for the for the first time, and recruited Black Milk to collaborate with none other than Jack White himself.

Now if you'll excuse me for a moment, I'm just going to be a fan for a moment. The White Stripes are without a doubt one of my favorite bands ever, and I'm quite a big Black Milk fan on top of that. With White's Detroit upbringing and Black Milk's knack for hard-hitting production, this is pretty much a great pairing. I can only hope the two work together more in the future. Or at least Jack will work on more hip-hop tracks (my head will explode when "Ray Bans" comes out, remember that one?).

Anyway, the tracks are being released on July 12 digitally and on 7" vinyl. Jack Whitco-produced the singles with Black Milk, as well as played guitar on the A-side, "Brain" and drums on the B-side, "Royal Mega." You can follow the link below to listen to "Brain" through the Third Man Records Soundcloud website. Enjoy.

Black Milk: "Brain ft. Jack White"

Lipset: "Trusty Battle Gear ft. DYC, MaLLy and Initial MC"

Here's another one off the Level Heads Project. Track 14 from the Level Heads LP is "Trusty Battle Gear" and features DYC, MaLLY, and Initial MC of Duenday.

Lipset: "Trusty Battle Gear ft. DYC, MaLLy and Initial MC"

Trama: "One Day At A Time"

Good to hear from Trama again. After a proposed retirement, it seems as if he's back in action again. No word on if this is just a freebie or from a upcoming project.

Trama: "One Day At A Time"

Common: "Ghetto Dreams ft. Nas"

No description necessary. Common's The Dreamer, The Believer, is due sometime in November, and if this is any indication it'll be great.

Common: "Ghetto Dreams ft. Nas"

I.B.E.: "YOURS ft. Alicia Steele"

New Intelligent Black Enterprise.

I.B.E.: "YOURS ft. Alicia Steele"