On the evening of July 16th a representative for rapper Biz Markie announced that he has passed away. Although an actual cause of death was not given, the statement did say that he died peacefully with his wife Tara by his side.

Verzuz has announced that two major hip-hop groups: The Lox and Dipset, will go head to head on Tuesday, August 3rd. This is going to be one of those must see music moments because these are two heavy-weights.

Persons in the New York area will have the option to watch it online, like the rest of us, or live in-person at Madison Square Gardens. It’s schedule to start at 6PM PT / 9PM ET. Tickets are available at msg dot com.

Originally released on August 27, 1996, Outkast‘s ATLiens has been listed by several magazines and critics as one of the greatest hip-hop albums of all time. To commemorate the 25th Anniversary Get On Down is offering an exclusive bundle which includes the following:

-4 X LP set housed in a custom gatefold jacket with printed inner bags pressed on standard black vinyl including the vocal album and instrumental album, which is being released commercially for the first time.

-Glow In The Dark big hole 45 featuring the single Elevators b/w ATLiens housed in a custom printed inner sleeve and miniature outer jacket mimicking the commercial 12″ release. This 45 will be limited to 3000 copies worldwide.

Please be advised that this is now available via pre-order with an expected ship date in September 2021. Click here for additional information.

Veteran hip-hop MC Talib Kweli will do back to back sets at Sony’s Blue Note Jazz Festival this weekend. He will be performing on the 16th, 17th and 18th at the Blue Note Jazz Club (located at 131 West 3rd Street) in New York.

Doors will open at 6PM, with showtime at 8PM. There is a non-refundable entrance fee of $55 USD. Click here for tickets.

Rapper and producer DJ Quik is schedule to perform at Yoshi’s, located at 510 Embarcadero West in Oakland, California on Friday, August 6th. In addition to enjoying the live show, fans and supporters of Quik will also be able to participate in a meet and greet session.

Tickets and additional information about this event are available here.

The eleventh staging of the annual iHeartRadio Music Festival will take place at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on September 17th and 18th. The event features two nights of non-stop chart-topping hits, musical world premieres and never-before-seen collaborations from the world’s biggest stars and hottest emerging artists.

This year’s lineup includes: Cheap Trick, Dua Lipa, Florida Georgia Line, J. Cole, Maroon 5, Nelly, Weezer, Billie Eilish, Coldplay, Journey, Khalid, Lil Baby, Sam Hunt and more. Click here for tickets and additional info.