Killah Priest: The Prelude to the Offering
Whether it's from his solo work or from his work with his various groups (the Maccabeez, Sunz of Man, Black Market Militia,and The Four Horsemen) it's undeniable that Killah Priest is one of the best to ever do it. Sadly he was plagued by the gift and the curse of having a classic debut album. His following albums "View From Mesada" and "Black August" didn't live up to the expectations that "Heavy Mental" so clearly set. If his mixtape "Prelude to the Offering" is any indication, the forthcoming album "The Offering" should put an end to that. Featuring exclusive freestyles, unreleased tracks and classics like B. I. B. L. E. and One Step, Prelude is proof the Killah hasn't lost a step. The album features collaborations with Nas, Immortal Technique and his aforementioned groups Sunz of Man and The Four Horsemen. Hardcore fans and newcomers alike will be more that happy with this current offering. (For more from Killah Preist check his myspace.com/killahpriest.) - Lee H. Tillman

New Money
Session, a Bronx native, is without question a battle worthy MC. With slick wordplay like "You a Clark Kent nigga, only turn Superman when you go in the booth." and "You're a one hit wonder, I make wonders with one hit." he's bound to get noticed. After teaming up with QN5 Music (The same people that brought us Cunning Linguist) and DJ Envy he has released his mixtape "New Money." Although he sounds undoubtedly hungry him bringing the crown back to NY is unlikely. Especially when he gets outshined by Shadey Records Alum Stat Quo 4 songs into the CD. Not that he's wack. Quite the opposite. It's just that the mixtape scene is flooded right now and this one doesn't provide anything we haven't heard before which is about an hours worth or slick one liners. He sounds like he'd go hard at Fight Klub but as we all know battle MC's usually don't make great albums. He's defiantly worth a listen though. Check out myspace.com/spicasso to see for yourself. - Lee H. Tillman.

T West – Crackle Of Light
A glimmer of hope for the future of Hiphop resides far north in a region known for montées suited in red uniforms, brandishing accents that Americans can’t seem to stop mocking in film and animated shorts. The fact remains that Canada has a tremendous amount of talent to offer the world when it comes to Hiphop. This can not be denied. Almost seems like everywhere else other then the place where the culture began, are it’s participants seeming to really get it by showing appreciation for the elements that started with, some invisible young men and women (would be have-nots), and ultimately leading to the creation of an entity that has made a whole lot of people (have) globally.

T West approaches his tracks with the weight of the world on his young shoulders. I don’t believe that his knees will buckle anytime soon. From his freshman release you can see that he has much more then potential. A grasp on the current state of the world and his generation's concerns is what he has and he effortlessly expresses them in an impressive manner. Crackle of Light is actually an album, not a collection of songs like most assembly-line Hiphop these days. Let me also say, that along with T West being a pretty tight emcee, his production skills are to be envied by producers that only produce. Listening to West is an inspiration. He makes you question where the minds of his, ought to be mentors are. But I guess it has become the responsibility of a younger generation to regulate everything from music to politics, since they’ve been in many ways shunned by their parents that never took complete responsibility for them. Crackle of Light is definitely a spark in a very dark world, controlled by maniacs that could learn a lot from the well thought out words of young man that’s only doing what he was placed here to do.
- Les-tor Manchestor