Episodes
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Episode 344-Wrath of the Math Retrospective
Few rap songs are as singularly iconic as Jeru the Damaja’s “Come Clean.” This lightning-bolt single and the accompanying album, The Sun Rises in the East, made Jeru instant backpack royalty in 1994. In this episode of Dad Bod Rap Pod, we break down Jeru’s follow-up LP, Wrath of the Math. Two…
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Episode 343: Q3 Album Reviews
Hard to believe the year is already two-thirds done. 2026 has been a great year for rap, and don’t let any crusty-ass hater tell you otherwise. Case in point: we’re talking about four new albums that are all dope in different ways. In this episode, the bros break down Homeboy Sandman and Jack...
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Episode 342-2026 Mid-Year Review
The first half of 2026 has already delivered a stacked lineup of rap releases, so we fired up the mics to take stock of the year's best albums so far. Before getting into our midyear favorites, we talk about our all-time favorite summer rap anthems and unpack J. Cole's unexpected affinity for…
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Episode 341-Stolen Pastrami Valor (Blu & Exile, sideshow, Nappy Nina album reviews) )
The three bad brothers that you know so well gathered on May Day/Cinco De Mayo weekend to renew their fraternal bonds and review a batch of three new (ish) Rap records. On this week's episode of the Dad Bod Rap Pod, listen to the fellas give their opinions about the following albums Time Heals...
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Episode 340-Q2 Rap Up: Pompeii/Utility, I Guess U Had To Be There, and Miami Lice
What’s good party people, For those of you who religiously track new rap releases, the beginning of the year can be a slow and uneventful stretch. If you want to be in those theoretical Album of the Year conversations, dropping in Q1 is a good way to get forgotten by December. For that reason…
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Episode 339-Quiet Luxury (656 Album Review)
What's good y'all!? We’re back like we never left. The first Dad Bod Rap Pod episode of the year finds your humble hosts in awe of the new Roc Marciano album 656. How did the king of quiet couplets manage to outdo himself again? Tune in to hear what the bros have to say. Since 656 leans into the...
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Quibble Jam 2025
The wait is over! The best fake hip-hop awards show on the internet is finally here. 2025 was an incredible year for rap music, from the Clipse’s omnipresent comeback to woods and August Fanon cooking up one of the most interesting remix records in recent memory. The year of our lord 2025 truly…
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Episode 336: E.1999 Eternal Retrospective
The year was 1995. Bill Clinton was president. The internet was still just a flicker in Al Gore’s eye. Gas was $1.15 a gallon, and a group of rapid-fire harmonizing rappers from Cleveland, Ohio, was disrupting the whole East vs. West narrative with a completely new sound and approach. Under the...
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Episode #335 Just Grindin' with guest Chester Watson
Reports of rap music’s demise have been greatly exaggerated. The rap game is alive and well, especially in the indie world, which is thriving right now. As 2025 has moved forward, the list of real album of the year contenders keeps getting longer. The Backwoodz cinematic universe continues to...
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Episode 334-It Was A Good Year wiht guest Theravada
"There are years that ask questions and years that answer."– Zora Neale Hurston In indie rap, as in life, the fruit of one’s labor doesn’t always show up right away. You put in the work, you bet on yourself, and sometimes the payoff comes much later. Long Island-bred rapper and producer Theravada...
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Episode 333-Expensive Words with guest Lil Fame of M.O.P.
In the annals of rap history, there are countless tracks that spark instant, ecstatic reactions. Whether it’s Kid ’N Play inviting you to revive the Charleston or House of Pain demanding that you jump in place, these songs live rent-free in our collective memory. Then there are the truly…
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Episode 332-World Ultimate Retrospective
Let’s fire up the wayback machine and head to 1995, a simpler time, no doubt. Back when commuting by bus, trying to meet girls, and rapping about rapping were all viable rap song topics. Hell, this was still an era when rap groups were still a thing. Enter The Nonce (stop giggling, UK heads): the...
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Episode 331- Soul Food Retrospective
It's hard to imagine an album more well-respected than Goodie Mob's debut, Soul Food. It gets well-deserved love from rap enthusiasts from all over the map: the south, backpackers, people who like a little bit of spirituality in the mix, beat heads, lyric lovers, pretty much everyone. Goodie Mob...
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Episode 330-Untamed Inspiration with guest Radamiz
his episode has a lot of moving parts. Imagine a Rube Goldberg Machine with interview snippets pinging around a maze of album reviews and blue balls jokes. I (DEM) had the privilege of interviewing Radamiz right before his live set at the Midway SF. The audio is a little rough, rugged, and raw in...
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Talk Like Sex Ep.5: Hands-on Experience
This week, we break format for a very, very special spin-off episode. DEM ONE and Blockhead reprise their sex/relationship pod, Talk Like Sex. On this edition of Two 40+ dudes discuss the misogyny meter on Freddie Gibbs' new record, lifetime Tinder bans, the ethics of dirty mackin’, and the...
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Episode 329- We Float Organically with guest Saul Williams
"If you've never walked through the woods listening to Nobody Beats the Biz then you ain't never heard hip-hop." The above quote is from one of multi-talented poet/rapper/actor Saul Williams' earliest released tracks, but it could just easily serve as a thesis statement for this podcast. This…
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Episode 328-Sour Times with guest DJ Haram
Episode 328 Sour Times with guest DJ Haram Show notes from the bleeding edge… Far beyond the genteel pop music stylings that comprise our day-to-day listening environment, there exists a world of sound that refuses to be refined, restrained, or easily defined. This is the space that New…
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Episode 327-The Best Albums of 2025 (thus far)
Serious question: Where does the time go? It feels like just yesterday I was nursing a New Year’s Eve hangover and wondering what 2025 would portend for rap releases. Now the year is three-fourths done, the holidays are around the corner, and there’s already a slew of music to talk about. On this...
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Episode 326- The Gestures of Jesters with guest Slug of Atmosphere
We've got a really big show for you this week. We have had the pleasure of interviewing Slug (and Ant, but never both together) of Atmosphere a few times. Atmosphere never quite got bigger than The Beatles (or breast implants) but there is no denying that over the last 30 years they have proven...
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Episode 325-Rhythm In Odd Places with guest August Fanon
Sometimes the curatorial bent of this show comes from a deep curiosity about the people behind the music we love. The question “What’s their deal?” often sparks the journey toward a great interview. Patience is also part of the process because tracking down the artists we want to pepper with...
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Episode 324- Compounds & Punchlines with guest Lord Finesse
Every once in a while we are lucky to enough to be able to speak to a true hip-hop legend, and today is one of those occasions. Dad Bod Rap Pod hosts David Ma, Demone Carter and Nate LeBlanc are thrilled to be talking to and about Lord Finesse on this week's episode. Lord Finesse made three…
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3 Bad Brothers A Beastie Boys Breakdown- The Beasties Draft
Please note: A better, longer version of this episode with sound clips for every song mentioned is available on the Dad Bod Rap Pod Patreon. From Pollywog Stew to Hot Sauce Part 2, we have officially covered the Beastie Boys' legendary career. We are wrapping up our miniseries this week with a...
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3 Bad Brothers A Beastie Boys Breakdown- The Mix Up & Hot Sauce Committee pt 2
It's summertime, the living is easy, and we figured why not play a doubleheader? Today on Dad Bod Rap Pod, hosts Demone Carter, David Ma and Nate LeBlanc with help from Producer Cutso break down the final albums in the Beastie Boys' Catalog. First up is the Mix Up from 2007, the only official...
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3 Bad Brothers A Beastie Boys Breakdown- To The 5 Boroughs
This week Dad Bod Rap Pod hosts Demone Carter, David Ma, and Nate LeBlanc alongside Producer Cutso, are breaking down the Beastie Boys' fifth album, To The 5 Boroughs. Where their previous few records had been eclectic mixes of jammy, loungey instrumental songs, punk egergy, and hard-hitting...
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3 Bad Brothers A Beastie Boys Breakdown- Hello Nasty with guest Open Mike Eagle
* Please note: This is an edited version of the episode, we have been forced to remove the interstitial music that is part of what makes the show unique. Extended episodes with more clips and music are available at patreon.com/dadbodrappod * In the pivotal fifth installment of our Beastie Boys...
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3 Bad Bothers A Beastie Boys Breakdown- Ill Communication with guest Kenny Segal
This week we are breaking down Ill Communication as part of our miniseries entitled 3 Bad Brothers A Beastie Boys Breakdown. DBRP hosts Nate LeBlanc, David Ma and Demone Carter are joined by one of the very best producers in hip-hop, Kenny Segal, who knows a thing or two about blending disparate...
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3 Bad Brothers A Beastie Boys Breakdown- Check Your Head with guest Sean Kantrowitz
All summer long, Dad Bod Rap Pod is breaking down the Beastie Boys' legendary career in an album-per-episode miniseries. This week things start to get really interesting as the Boys build their own studio in LA so they can jam with Mario C at the boards and Money Mark on keys, crafting their...
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3 Bad Brothers A Beastie Boys Breakdown- Paul's Boutique with guest Cutso
The finest in men's opinions, this is Paul's Boutique. In many ways, we created this entire miniseries so that we could talk about Paul's Boutique. For Dad Bod Rap Pod hosts Nate LeBlanc, David Ma, and Producer Cutso, this is a foundational document, one of the keys that unlocked our love of…
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3 Bad Brothers A Beastie Boys Breakdown- Licensed To Ill with guest Dante Ross
Welcome to 3 Bad Brothers, A Beastie Boys Breakdown. For the next 8 weeks, the Dad Bod Rap Pod crew and some special guests will be going album by album through the Beastie Boys' career. This week we are focused on Ad Rock, MCA and Mike D's first album, the wildly successful Licensed To Ill with...
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Episode 323- Dungeness Family with guest billy woods
We are so back. After a longer than expected hiatus to write, record, and produce our Beastie Boys miniseries (more on that in a moment) we are returning to the world of weekly indie rap podcasting with a special guest. We sometimes joke that DBRP started as a way for three old friends to share...
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Quibble Jam 2024 Pt.2
Another rap year is in the books! In part 2 of Quibble Jam 2024, the three bad brothers you know so well hand out more fictional awards and share big, sincere laughs. This is the last Dad Bod Rap Episode of 2024. On behalf of the squad, I would like to thank everyone for their time, attention…
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Quibble Jam 2024 Pt.1
2024 was an amazing year for this podcast and rap as an art form. After a brief hiatus, the best fake awards show in Hip Hop is back. It's Quibble Jam 2024, and the bros have created a gang of hilarious categories and figurative trophies to hand out. Did your favorite albums from this year get...
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Episode 320- Book Talk with guest Jaap van der Doelen
We begin this week's episode paying tribute to the recently passed Saafir. The Saucee Nomad is a Bay Area legend, an actor, and an MC with a unique sense of rhythm. DBRP hosts Demone Carter, David Ma and Nate LeBlanc share memories from Saafir's career, a few personal run-ins, and discuss his...
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Episode 319-Tical Retrospective
For many hip-hop heads of a certain vintage, the first Wu-Tang record and the subsequent solo albums represent the pinnacle of musical grittiness, lyrical density, and impressive business acumen. Watching RZA and the supremely talented Clan members take over the world with an uncompromising sound...
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Episode 318- Stressed Out with guest Prince Po
Dad Bod Rap Pod is back with a double dose of interviews. We kick off this week's show with some thoughts on the passing of the legendary music producer and raconteur Quincy Jones. Then we have an interview with Prince Po, one half of the almighty Organized Konfusion. We had a chance to interview...
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Episode 317- 6 Feet Deep Retrospective
It's a good idea to check in with your favorite works of art as you get older. You may find that you have outgrown certain albums, or that they haven't aged well. Maybe the meaning will deepen over time, as certain aspects of a record mean something different as you move through life with a...
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Episode 316-My Favorite Thing with guest Nappy Nina
This week, we are recapping our experience attending History Of The Bay, an event organized by fellow Bay Area hip-hop podcaster Dregs One. While it did not result in any usable interviews, DBRP co-hosts David Ma and Nate LeBlanc were glad to spend an afternoon immersed in the Bay Area's unique...
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Episode 315-Metal Majician with guest Kurious
We must begin this week by paying tribute to Ka, a truly great rapper and producer who made uncompromising music for the real heads. May he rest in peace. The first segment of the show this week acts as a real-time processing of the incredibly sad news of Ka's passing. DBRP hosts Demone Carter,...
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Episode 314-Fried Fish Revelations with guest ELUCID
Even though we have dedicated quite a few episodes of this show talking about contemporary hip-hop, especially the left field, intensely wordy variety, we have not been able to settle on a name for what we see as a movement of like-minded artists at its cutting edge. One of our struggles in…
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Episode 313-Culture Over Commerce with guest J Sands
Real heads know J Sands as a true vet who’s built a solid, no-compromise career. Hailing from Cincinnati and making waves with the group Lone Catalyst, he’s back with a new project called Cash Flow, Buddha, and Shelter. This time, he’s leaning into classic 90s boom-bapery. We chopped it up with…
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Episode 312- In a New York Minute with guest Godfather Don
Since dropping his debut album Hazardous in 1991, Godfather Don has been popping periodically and reminding us that his sword remains sharp. His latest project, Thesis, is a testament to the enduring power of hard beats and straight-ahead rhymin'. Not content with just killing it lyrically, GFD…
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Đặc Biệt Rap Pod Episode 3- A Saigon Travelogue
Xiên chào, welcome to Đặc Biệt Rap Pod, a miniseries about music, food, and travel. Dad Bod Rap Pod hosts Demone Carter, David Ma and Nate LeBlanc recently traveled to Saigon, also known as Ho Chi Minh City, in Vietnam. We received a grant to participate in a cultural exchange program, and since…
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Đặc Biệt Rap Pod Episode 2- The Lady In The Alley Is A Mind Reader
Xiên chào, welcome to Đặc Biệt Rap Pod, a miniseries about music, food, and travel. Dad Bod Rap Pod hosts Demone Carter, David Ma and Nate LeBlanc recently traveled to Saigon, also known as Ho Chi Minh City, in Vietnam. We received a grant to participate in a cultural exchange program, and since…
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Đặc Biệt Rap Pod Episode 1- Subcultural Exchange
Xiên chào, welcome to Đặc Biệt Rap Pod, a miniseries about music, food, and travel. Dad Bod Rap Pod hosts Demone Carter, David Ma and Nate LeBlanc recently traveled to Saigon, also known as Ho Chi Minh City, in Vietnam. We received a grant to participate in a cultural exchange program, and since…
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Episode 311-I'm An Artist Now with guest Ant from Atmosphere
On this week's episode, DEM chops it up with Ant, the producer half of the iconic rap duo Atmosphere. His debut instrumental album, Collection of Sounds Vol.1, is the first release of a four-part series dropping via Rhymesayers Entertainment on September 6th. Ant talks about DJing, his obsessive...
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Fly Sporadic- Guest Appearances (Patreon Freeview)
We'll be the first to admit it... the rumors are true, we do have a Patreon. Behind the paywall there is a shadow universe of exclusive audio segments, record reviews, polls, discussion, and one very special fake radio show. DBRP co-host Nate LeBlanc will occasionally reach into the record…
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Episode 310- Blowout Comb Retrospective
What makes a spy creamy? How important is it for lyrics to make grammatical sense? Has any record ever had a better vibe than this one? These among many other questions are answered by Dad Bod Rap Pod hosts Demone Carter, David Ma, and Nate LeBlanc on this week's look back at Digable Planets'…
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Episode 309- Dare Iz A Darkside Retrospective
Welcome to Dad Bod Rap Pod, a years-long hip-hop related conversation between three 40-somehting friends. This week the fellas Nate LeBlanc, David Ma and Demone Carter re-listened to Dare Iz A Darkside by Redman and were somewhat surprised by what they heard. In the 30 years since this record was...
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Episode 308- Skyzoo Live Interview
It's pretty rare for a rapper of Skyzoo's caliber to perform live in downtown San Jose where our podcast is based, so we made sure to not only attend the show but to hang out in the green room a bit and have a conversation with one of NY's finest. Dad Bod Rap Pod hosts Demone Carter and David Ma...
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Episode 307- Resurrection Retrospective
This week we stagger in the gathering to discuss Common's classic 1994 release Resurrection. This is an important record for DBRP hosts David Ma, Demone Carter, and Nate LeBlanc, who collectively cannot believe this album is 30 years old. We discuss the incredible synergy between rapper Common...
About this show
Hip-hop discussion podcast from rapper Demone Carter aka DEM ONE, music writer David Ma, and record collector Nate LeBlanc featuring interviews with well-respected figures from rap's past and present. A Stony Island Audio experience.
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