Brooklyn’s own “The Rub” select their ten favorite tracks of the year in this new mix, exclusive to the Mixcloud Select subscribers!

It’s the return of DJ Ayres’s Favorite Things mix series, with a round up of his favorite tracks of 2022! From grimy bars to smooth Afrobeats, disco to UKG, Ayres selects a little bit of everything! You can catch him live at The Bell House (including NYE!), more info at ITSTHERUB.COM.

DOWNLOAD Rub Radio – Favorite Things 2022 (DJ Ayres)

Tracklist:

DJ Day – Within
Saba – Still (ft. Smino & 6LACK)
Fivio Foreign – Through The Fire (ft. Quavo)
Glorilla – Tomorrow 2 (ft. Cardi B)
Megan thee Stallion – Plan B
SZA – Smoking on my Ex Pack
Pusha T – Diet Coke
Action Bronson – Tongpo (ft. Conway the Machine)
Earl Sweatshirt – Old Friend
Kevin Gates – Body
Lil Yachty – Poland
070 Shake – Cocoon
Two Shell – home
Hudson Mohawke – Rain Shadow
Wax Motif – Waiting
Charli XCX – Beg for You (ft. Rina Sawayama)
Beyonce – ALIEN SUPERSTAR
Drake – Sticky
Pink Pantheress – Boy’s a liar
IDK – Taco
Disclosure – Waterfall (ToKiMONSTA Remix)
Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs – Never Seen You Dance
Tyler ICU – Inhiziyo (ft. Nkosazana Daughter, Kabza De Small & DJ Maphorisa)
Lil Silva & Sampha – Backwards
Kendrick Lamar -Silent Hill (ft. Kodak Black)
Conway the Machine – God Don’t Make Mistakes (ft. Annette Price)

With most producers, part two of a “Best of Mix” would be for the rarities, the underrated album cuts, the B-sides. But with DJ Premier, The Rub could do 10 of these and never run out of bangers! Gang Starr Foundation represents heavily of course, plus Nas, Biggie, Jay-Z, KRS, Rakim, and street anthems from Screwball, Royce Da 5’9″, Rah Digga and Krumb Snatcha.

For more Rub Radio producer mixes including J Dilla, Madlib and Prince Paul, and the year by year History of Hip-Hop mixes, visit: http://www.itstherub.com/category/history-of-hip-hop/

DOWNLOAD Rub Radio – History of Hip-Hop: The Producers Vol. 14, DJ Premier part 2

Tracklist:

Jeru The Damaja – Come Clean
Heather B – My Kinda N***a (ft. M.O.P.)
Nas – N.Y. State of Mind (Pt. I & Pt. II)
The Notorious B.I.G. – Ten Crack Commandments
Gang Starr – Above the Clouds (ft. Inspectah Deck)
Group Home – Livin Proof
KRS One – MC’s Act Like They Don’t Know
Chubb Rock, O.C. & Jeru The Damaja – Return of the Crooklyn Dodgers
Gang Starr – Code of the Streets
Jay-Z – Friend or Foe ’98
Jay-Z – So Ghetto
Mos Def – Mathematics
Rah Digga – Lessons of Today
Sauce Money – Intruder Alert
Screwball – FAYBAN
M.O.P. – Stick To Ya Gunz (ft. Kool G Rap)
Royce Da 5’9”- Boom
Gang Starr – Full Clip
Tony Touch ft. Gang Starr – The Peacemaker
Rakim – It’s Been a Long Time
Krumb Snatcha – Closer to God
Devin the Dude – Doobie Ashtray

This summer The Rub is celebrating 20 years, so for Rub Radio we’re keeping it extremely Brooklyn with the best of DJ Premier! This is just part 1, with stone cold classics from Gang Starr, Biggie, Nas and Jay-Z plus personal favorites by CNN, The Lox, D.I.T.C., Griselda and more.

DOWNLOAD Rub Radio – History of Hip-Hop: The Producers Vol. 13, DJ Premier part 1

Tracklist:

Gang Starr – Just to Get a Rep
Lord Finesse – Baby, You Nasty
KRS One – Outta Here
Das EFX – Real Hip-Hop
Notorious B.I.G. – Unbelievable
Nas – Represent
Gang Starr – I’m The Man (ft. Melachi da Nutcracker & Jeru the Damaja)
Group Home – Supa Star
Jeru The Damaja – D. Original
M.O.P. – Downtown Swinga ’96
Showbiz & A.G. – Next Level (Nyte Time Mix)
Crooklyn Dodgers – Crooklyn
Jay-Z – A Million And One Questions (Premiere Remix)
D.I.T.C. – Da Enemy
Rakim – New York (Ya Out There)
Gang Starr – The Militia (ft. Freddie Foxxx and Big Shug)
Charlie Baltimore – Everybody Wanna Know
The Lox – Recognize
Common – The 6th Sense
O.C. – My World
D’Angelo – Devil’s Pie
Craig David – 7 Days (DJ Premier Remix ft. Mos Def)
Capone N Noreaga – The Invincible
Nas – Nas Is Like
AZ – The Format
Torae – Get It Done (ft. Skyzoo)
Game – Born in the Trap
DJ Premier – Headlines (ft. Westside Gunn, Conway & Benny)
Dilated Peoples – Good As Gone

Lots of new rap music this month with some throwbacks / samples sprinkled in. This is Rub Radio!

DOWNLOAD Rub Radio (April 2022)

Tracklist:

DJ Shadow – 6 Days
Pusha T – Just So You Remember
Slim Thug – 3 Kings
Nigo – Lost and Found Freestyle 2019 (ft. A$AP Rocky & Tyler the Creator)
Slim Thug – Like A Boss
Masta Ace – Born To Roll
Cool Kids – SCAM LIKELY
2 Chainz – Neighbors Know My Name
D4L – Laffy Taffy
Buddy – Black 2
Bas & Gunna – [Admire Her] Denzel Curry – X-Wing
Jack Harlow – First Class
Petey Pablo – Freek-A-Leak
Fergie – Glamorous (ft. Ludacris)
Lil Silva & Sampha – Backwards

Hit-Boy is an impossible name to live up to unless you’re responsible for Jay-Z & Kanye West’s biggest hit of the last 15 years. And that’s to say nothing of his hand in SICKO MODE, a song which has 1.6 BILLION WITH A “B” streams on a single streaming service (which will not be named here). From crafting Beyoncé anthems to recently producing two entire Nas albums single-handedly, the California native has more than earned his moniker.

DOWNLOAD Rub Radio – History of Hip-Hop: The Producers Vol. 12, Hit-Boy

Tracklist:

A$AP Rocky – Goldie
Kanye West – Clique (ft. Big Sean & Jay-Z)
Kendrick Lamar – Backseat Freestyle
Beyonce – *** Flawless
Watch The Throne – N***s in Paris
Travis Scott – SICKO MODE (ft. Drake) / CAROUSEL
Young Money – Trophies (ft. Drake)
DJ Khaled ft. Kanye – Cold
Jay Rock – Wow Freestyle (ft. Kendrick Lamar)
Pusha T – My God
A$AP Rocky – 1 Train (ft. Kendrick Lamar, Joey Bada$$, Yelawolf, Danny Brown, Action Bronson & Big K.R.I.T.)
Big Sean – Deep Reverence (ft. Nipsey Hussle)
Benny The Butcher – Legend
Nas – Nobody (ft. Ms. Lauryn Hill)
Nipsey Hussle – Racks in the Middle (ft. Roddy Ricch)

Last but not least in the series of “Top of 2021” mixes exclusive to our Select subscribers, we have the good guys of The Rub. They tried to trim down their selection to 10 tracks but end up keeping the best 13, hope you enjoy the music as much as they do!

Tracklist:

1- Nobles (ft. Earl Sweatshirt & Navy Blue) – Alchemist
2- Plentiful (ft. Pusha T) * Ayres’s Beanie Sigel Edit – Alicia Keys
3- Dear God (ft. Kevin Gates) – FL Dusa
4- Peru – Fireboy DML
5- Fountains (ft. Tems) – Drake
6- West Indies – Koffee
7- Otra Noche Sin Ti (ft. Khalid) – J Balvin
8- Cúrame – Rauw Alejandro
9- Be Careful (ft. Thundercat) – Kaytranada
10- Ocean (ft. Jamie Foxx) Amp Fiddler & Moodyman Remix – Solomun
11- Nerve – Rush Davis & Kingdom
12- Butterflies – Skrillex, Four Tet & Starrah
13- Just For Me – Pink Pantheress

Rub Radio is international zone coasting this month, playing our favorite new music from all over: Toronto, Montreal, Haiti, South Africa, Nigeria, Jamaica, Los Angeles, Hamburg, Belfast, London, Atlanta, Memphis, Queens, Philly, Newark… Grab your passport and let’s go!

DOWNLOAD Rub Radio (November 2021)

Tracklist:

Fireboy DML – Peru
Kaytranada – $payforhaiti (ft. Mach-Hommy)
Keys N Krates – Original Classic (ft. Juicy J, Chip & Marbl)
Grandtheft & The Halluci Nation – Saucin (ft. So Loki & Dom Vallie)
Doja Cat – Options (ft. JID)
Syd & Smino – Right Track
Tems – Replay
Katy B – Under My Skin
Pink Pantheress – i must apologize
Shenseea – Run Run
Majid Jordan – Sway (ft. Diddy)
Little Simz – Point and Kill (ft. Obongjayar)
Common – When We Move (ft. Black Thought & Seun Kuti)
Frigid Armodillo – Rule of Calm
Choices – Cybernetic
Rush Davis & Kingdom – Nerve
Boys Noize & ABRA – Affection
Bicep – Apricots

In our first Timbaland mix, we focused on his foundation, and in the follow up, we’ve put together a mix of absolute bangers from the height of his career. #1 hits for Missy Elliott, Justin Timberlake, Jay-Z, Beyoncé, 50 Cent, Omarion and Bubba Sparxxx, plus lesser known tracks with MIA, Shawnna, Jeezy and more.

DOWNLOAD Rub Radio – History of Hip-Hop: The Producers Vol. 11, Timbaland Part 2

Tracklist:

Omarion – Ice Box (co-produced by The Royal Court)
Justin Timberlake (co-produced by Danja & J. Timberlake)
Timbaland – The Way I Are (ft. Keri Hilson & D.O.E., co-produced by Danja)
Timbaland – Give It To Me (ft. Nelly Furtado & Justin Timberlake, co-produced by Danja)
Missy Elliott – Pass That Dutch (co-produced by Missy)
Missy Elliott – Gossip Folks (ft. Ludacris, co-produced by Missy)
Ludacris – Rollout (My Business)
Jay-Z – Big Pimpin’ (ft. UGK)
Rick Ross – You Know I Got It (Reprise)
Jeezy – 3 A.M. (ft. Timbaland)
50 Cent – Ayo Technology (ft. Justin Timberlake & Timbaland, co-produced by Danja)
Timbaland – Shakin (ft. Aaliyah)
The LOX – Ryde or Die Bitch (ft. Eve & Timbaland)
Beyoncé – Partition (co-produced by Justin Timberlake, Mike Dean, J-Roc, Key Wane)
Bubba Sparxxx – Ugly
Missy Elliott – Get Ur Freak On
Timbaland – Drop (ft. Magoo & Fatman Scoop, co-produced by Craig Brockman)
M.I.A. – Come Around (ft. Timbaland)
Shawnna – Shake Dat Shit (ft. Ludacris)
Jay-Z – Jigga What Jigga Who (ft. Amil)
Tweet – Oops (Oh My) (ft. Missy Elliott)
Ginuwine – Same Ol G
Aaliyah – Rock The Boat

The Rub is back! Tickets for September 25 are here: The Rub 19th Anniversary

The Producer Series has been so much fun to work on, and our newest entry is nothing short of magical! In hindsight, Timbaland is universally accepted as the gold standard of hip-hop and R&B production, but when he first came out of Virginia Beach in the 1990s, it was like an alien had landed on Earth, bearing otherworldly technology. The double-time drum patterns, the beatboxing, the sample flips, the synthesizers: he was truly speaking a different language. In Part 1, we’ve featured many of his early hits with Missy, Aaliyah, Jay-Z, Nas and Ginuwine, with a sprinkling of forgotten gems from Tweet, Ms Jade, Nelly Furtado and Pastor Troy.

Be on the look out for Part 2, coming at the end of September!

DOWNLOAD Rub Radio – History of Hip-Hop: The Producers Vol. 10, Timbaland Part 1

Tracklist:

Aaliyah – Are You That Somebody (OG + Supafriendz Remix)
Memphis Bleek – Is That Your Chick (ft. Jay-Z & Missy Elliott)
Missy Elliott – Beep Me 911 (ft. 702 & Magoo)
SWV – Can We Get Kinky Tonight (ft. Missy Elliott)
Missy Elliott – Sock It 2 Me
Timbaland & Magoo – Luv 2 Luv U
Aaliyah – Try Again (ft. Timbaland)
Nas – You Won’t See Me Tonight (ft Aaliyah)
Pastor Troy – Are We Cuttin (ft. N.O.R.E. & Ms Jade)
Petey Pablo – Raise Up (All Cities Mix)
Jay-Z – Snoopy Track (ft. Juvenile)
Jay-Z – It’s Hot
Missy Elliott – The Rain
Tweet – Call Me
Ms Jade – Ching Ching (ft. Timbaland & Nelly Furtado)
Justin Timberlake – Cry Me A River
Ginuwine – Pony
Jay-Z – Dirt Off Your Shoulderz
Rell – It’s Obvious (ft. Jay-Z)
Nas – Owe Me (ft. Ginuwine)
Lil Kim – The Jump Off
LL Cool J – Headsprung
Ludacris – Potion
Cee-Lo – I’ll Be Around
Fabolous – Make Me Better (ft. Ne-Yo)
Timbaland – Grab The Wheel (ft. 6LACK)
Bryson Tiller – Sorry Not Sorry
Aaliyah – One In A Million
Tink – Million

FINALLY we celebrate the producer of some of our favorite rap records of the past 25 years, Alan the Chemist! The breadth of this man’s career is remarkable: he started out in The Whooliganz in the early 90s, made big waves in underground hip-hop with beats for Dilated Peoples, became Mobb Deep’s in-house producer, and went on to craft hits for Jadakiss, Eminem, Nas, Cam’ron and a whole lot more. Unlike most of his peers, in 2021 he still releases at a breakneck pace, with Griselda, Action Bronson, Curren$y, Earl Sweatshirt, and the list goes on. And he raps! It was almost impossible to boil this all down into a 40 minute mix but we did it.

DOWNLOAD Rub Radio – History of Hip-Hop: The Producers Vol. 9, The Alchemist

Tracklist:

Jadakiss – We Gonna Make It (ft. Styles P)
Prodigy – Keep It Thorough
Dilated Peoples – Worst Comes To Worst
The Alchemist – Hold You Down (ft. Nina Sky & Prodigy)
Mac Miller – Red Dot Music (ft. Action Bronson)
Schoolboy Q – Break The Bank
Pharoahe Monch – No Mercy (ft. M.O.P.)
Dilated Peoples – The Main Event
The High & Mighty – Open Mic Night (ft. Baby Blak & Rasheed)
Styles P – I’m Black (ft. Marsha Ambrosius)
Mobb Deep – Got It Twisted
Cam’Ron – Wet Wipes
The Alchemist – Nobles (ft. Earl Sweatshirt & Navy Blue)
Conway the Machine – 200 Pies (ft. 2 Chainz)
Kendrick Lamar – Fear
Jay Electronica – The Neverending Story
Anderson .Paak – Make It Better