Backwoodz

If you will allow an imperfect analogy, Mike Ladd is underground hip-hop's Terrence Malick: an uncompromising auteur whose early work was both unconventional and critically acclaimed before he abruptly withdrew from the scene he helped build and decamped

Yaphet is the new album from rapper Curly Castro–also known as one half of the dynamic duo Shrapknel–out September 18, 2026, on Backwoodz Studioz. On Yaphet, Castro draws inspiration from the Blaxploitation film genre of the 1970’s; using that era’s black

Serengeti, one of hip-hop’s most singular and imaginative storytellers, returns to the expansive world of Kenny Dennis with KennyV. For more than a decade, Serengeti has used his mustachioed, Chicago-born alter ego to build one of rap’s funniest, stranges

Sortilège is the new album from esteemed producer and DJ Preservation and ascendant talent Gabe ''Nandez. The two artists first linked on Aethiopes, Preservation’s 2022 collaboration with billy woods, where Nandez was featured alongside Boldy James on one

"All Portrait, No Chorus" is the new album from indie rap pioneer doseone and NYC producer Steel Tipped Dove. Together, these two artists have crafted an uncompromising masterpiece. Knowing the caliber of MC he is paired with, dove skillfully paints with

"Critical Thot" is the bold new collaborative album from Bay Area-based rapper/producer Sha Ray and producer/electronic musician DJ Haram - two uncompromising artists reshaping rap and experimental sound. It is an intriguing pairing; Haram is one-half of

When billy woods released "Today, I Wrote Nothing" ten years ago, it was an unexpected departure from a rapper who was just starting to make waves in the indie rap scene. "TIWN" was comprised of short vignettes, quietly eclectic production, and the only g

Backwoodz Open Mike Eagle & Kenny Segal: DOOMED! LP

Backwoodz Studioz is excited to announce the release of Crayola Circles, a collaboration between rapper Fatboi Sharif and producer Child Actor. While both artists have long standing connections to Backwoodz, this album marks their first collaboration of a

Maps is the 2023 album from NYC rapper Billy Woods and LA producer Kenny Segal, their first full collaboration since 2019's Hiding Places. Four years after that landmark record, the duo have reunited with a vengeance. Maps is a story of the road, or roads

Two turntables and a microphone. There is a truth in the clarity of that simple coda, a truth that also belies the breadth of what is possible within its confines. Sometimes you gotta get reminded. I Guess U Had to Be There, the new album from NYC rapper

Human Error Club is keyboardists Diego Gaeta and Jesse Justice and drummer Mekala Session. Gaeta is a jazz-trained pianist with a restless harmonic imagination. Justice honed his chops making beats before trading his MPC for a Fender Rhodes, always mainta

Looking back more than four years later at Haram, it is easier to see the forest for the trees. At the time, much of the attention fell on how this outsider duo would fare under the bright lights - which was fair, Armand Hammer had never done a single pro

Armand Hammer and The Alchemist build worlds. Their first was Haram and it remains locked in orbit, equal parts lush and foreboding. Their new one is called Mercy and it’s made out of blood and empire, children’s laughter, unpaid parking tickets and unkep

It is the five year anniversary of the release of billy woods and Kenny Segal’s classic album Hiding Places. As time passes, and more of the duo’s work enters the canon, it is easy to forget what an unlikely pairing these two were in 2019. Both woods and

Golliwog is Billy Woods’ first album in two years, preceded by 2023’s Maps, his second collaboration with producer Kenny Segal. That nimble travelogue has little in common with Woods’ newest work, despite the fact that Segal shows up a couple times in the