True hip-hop will never die. But if the people want to rescue real rap music, they’re gonna have to fight. That’s what Miramar producer Hazardis Soundz is doing with his latest mixtape, Save the Culture, which is a battle cry of lethal verses, head-cracking beats, and OG rappers from the…
Waking up at the crack of dawn, having to deal with chatty co-workers way too early in the morning, and attending never-ending meetings … Yeah, Mondays can be pretty brutal. But when you live in Miami, there’s one thing that’ll make everything alright with the world: music. And when you’ve…
King Tuff’s Kyle Thomas does not have all the answers. Shit, why should he? The Vermont native has already explored enough facets of the guitar-wielding arts to make any casual player seem innocuous. So why pester him in these nascent days of garage rock’s revival? Oh yes, why not? He’s…
#FreeElCritico On March 21, 2013, Ángel Yunier Remón Arzuaga, a Cuban rapper also known as El Critico Del Arte (which translates to The Art Critic), was arrested during a raid on his home by agents of the Castro regime. On October 15, 2014, he was sentenced to six years in…
“If you add up the numbers in 2015, you get eight,” says Danny Burns, singer, guitarist, songwriter, and numerologist for Miami garage rock band Grey 8s, when asked about his plans for the upcoming year. The group began in Dania, where Burns and drummer Andres Bedoya formed the foundation of…
Saturday night in Miami is flashy, glitzy, glamorous, and quite often expensive. So what is a party kid to do when your wallet is low and your mood is chill? Can’t you just hit a club, have a drink, and listen to some dope tunes without going all out? Sidebar…
Well, would you look at that? The first week of 2015 has come to an end. At this point, all of your Holiday bills are likely creeping in, and chances are you’re regretting that antique knife collection you purchased for your now ex-boyfriend. Then it hits you — you’re broke…..
“We’re a brand that’s growing from the bottom up,” the Life in Color crew told Crossfade back in 2013, just days before the first-ever LIC Festival was set to splatter neon paint across the Magic City. “We want to just stay hungry, stay humble, and if all goes well, we’ll…
Who’s going Grovin’? Well, we only just announced Miami New Times’ new role as the musical party planner for the Coconut Grove Arts Festival last month. But yep, it’s already time to reveal the 14 national and local bands playing February 14 to 16 at Peacock Park in Miami’s original…
Torche is a kickass rock band. These guys riff, shred, and open portals of feedback into annihilating dimensions of brutality. But they do so while maintaining a welcoming, accessible tone that’s drawn legions of fans and won over critics, all around the world. Their new album, Restarter, is slated to…
Sir Elton returns. It’s been 12 years since the rock legend, gay icon, and member of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire has sung about “hunting the horny back toad” in Miami. He last played at the old Miami Arena. (And South Florida at Sunrise’s then-BankAtlantic Center, now…
UPDATE Ultra 2015 just revealed its Phase Two lineup and the fest’s set times. Remember that time when we told you about the rumor that Avicii, Afrojack, Die Antwoord, Deep Dish, Loco Dice, Röyksopp, and Kygo were going to be at Ultra Music Festival 2015? We were right. Ultra has…
Rock ‘n’ roll and buns. That’s what California’s Burger Records and Cheap Miami will be bringing to the Magic City when Burger Revolution 3 Fest hits the grill at Churchill’s Pub. “It’s like a worldwide festival,” explains Cheap Miami’s Patrick Garcia of the Burger party. “It’s open to every city…
When King Sporty died, Rihanna cried. The man who wrote “Buffalo Soldier” with Bob Marley in a smoke-filled studio in Hialeah flew to the other side on Monday, January 5 in a Miami hospital at the age of 71. With roots in Jamaica’s Trenchtown music scene that wholly informed hip-hop,…
Welcome to the first full week of 2015. At this point, you’ve either (a) broken your New Year’s resolution or (b) failed to even come up with a self-improvement plan for these next 12 months. But regardless of your post-NYE circumstances, we here at Crossfade would like to propose a…
For seven decades, Montgomery Bernard “Monty” Alexander has been at the forefront of jazz. After immigrating to Miami with his family from Jamaica in 1961, it would be a chance meeting at a now-defunct Miami jazz club that would set the wheels in motion for Alexander’s five decades-plus as one…
Update: The schedule has been announced for J Dilla Weekend 2015 in Miami. On February 10, 2006, James Dewitt Yancey, also known as J Dilla, died. He had suffered from health problems for much of his life. And he was only 32 when he passed away after a heart attack…
Darren “DJ Spin” Rudnick produced “Scarred,” “It’s Your Birthday,” and “Raise the Roof.” And he was just 12 years old when he first saw 2 Live Crew in concert at the Miami Baseball Stadium. He’d known the group’s music since age 11, when a buddy from school showed him the…
Get down to Grassroots. In 1990, Donna the Buffalo — a cajun, rock, folk, reggae, and country fusion crew — invited friends, fellow bands, and followers to Ithaca, New York, for the inaugural Finger Lakes Grassroots Festival. And over the last quarter century, the movement’s given birth to two sister…
Ballin’ with Hova and Becks… For the past year, former fútbol star and underwear model David Beckham has been working to bring Major League Soccer to Miami. It’s been an absolute soap opera, with starts, stops, schmoozing, recriminations, failed stadium site proposals at Port of Miami and Museum Park, worries…
There is a special place in the memory bank for that first person who turned you on to something cool, whether they slipped you a flyer or made a mixtape. For D.C.-based band Ex Hex, featuring indie veteran Mary Timony (Wild Flag, Helium, Autoclave), bassist Betsy Wright (Fire Tapes), and…
UPDATE Erykah Badu and Run-D.M.C. just joined Jazz in the Gardens 2015. Jazzin’, slow jammin’, bumpin’ ‘n’ grindin’… In just a few months, Miami’s most mature ‘n’ sexy music fest, Jazz in the Gardens, will return to Sun Life Stadium for yet another sweaty, screaming two-night stand. As always, there’s…
