Show Notes
Digable Planets helped redefine the possibilities of hip-hop in the early 1990s, blending jazz, funk, political consciousness, and a distinctly cosmic sensibility into a sound that resisted easy categorization. More than three decades later, Ishmael Butler (Butterfly) and Craig Irving (Doodlebug) join Donwill backstage at Brooklyn Bowl to revisit the group's unlikely beginnings, from three artists representing Seattle, Philadelphia, and Maryland to a Grammy-winning collective that made Brooklyn its creative home. They reflect on the success of Reachin' (A New Refutation of Time and Space), the complicated cultural politics of winning a Grammy in hip-hop's early years, and how their revolutionary upbringing informed the music and visual identity of Blowout Comb. Digable Planets break down:
The origins of Digable Planets: How three MCs from different cities found one another and built their creative foundation in Brooklyn.
The making of Blowout Comb: How Black Panther Party newspapers, revolutionary family histories, and live musicians shaped the group's second album.
The Grammy paradox: Why winning Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group was both a milestone and a complicated achievement in early-'90s hip-hop.
Why rap groups are disappearing: How social media, individual branding, and changing ideas about community have transformed hip-hop's collaborative culture.
Beyond the jazz rap label: Why the group resisted genre restrictions, how their music found new life through Snoop Dogg and E-40 samples, and what keeps their catalog relevant across generations.
Be sure to check out Ladybug Mecca's episode on Blowout Comb, too!
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Created and hosted by award-winning artist and cultural commentator Donwill, The Almanac of Rap is Areya Media’s living archive of hip-hop history, told by the people who made it. Through deeply researched interviews, cultural deep dives and conversations with artists, producers, DJs and architects of the culture, the series connects hip-hop’s past to the ideas shaping its future.
A two-time Webby Award winner and three-time w3 Gold Award winner, The Almanac of Rap approaches hip-hop with the curiosity of music journalism and the intimacy of conversation documenting the stories, sounds and cultural details that deserve a permanent place in the record.
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More from The Almanac of Rap
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Before Digable Planets helped redefine the sound of alternative hip-hop, Ladybug Mecca was a young artist absorbing Brazilian music, jazz, and the rhythms of her family's home. Three decades after Blowout Comb became a cornerstone of jazz-inflected hip-hop, the pioneering MC joins Donwill to discuss her latest chapter as a recipient of Harvard University's Nasir Jones Hip-Hop Fellowship. Her research traces the connections between hip-hop and Afro-Brazilian traditions, from Candomblé drumming to capoeira, challenging the idea that hip-hop simply arrived in Brazil rather than finding a culture already connected through rhythm, movement, and shared African ancestry.
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