Blog: Blackraptor.

Our guest mixtape series continues with a standout collection from a music taste-maker friend who's been sending me year-end mixes for over 10 years, the one and only Whitney... Listen in the player below or on Spotify here . [...]

Only about half of these tracks are in Spotify's library, so I recommend listening in the player above. You can listen to an abbreviated version on Spotify here . You can get updates by following us on Facebook or Twitter , or if you want to receive an email any time a new playlist is posted, just send us a note to blackraptorsubscribe@gmail.com .

Ricky Rozay has released his latest mixtape effort, Rich Forever, featuring guest appearances from Nas, Pharrell, John Legend, Diddy, Wale, 2 Chainz and more. Most of the material was written while on a trip to South Africa and DJ Khaled was heavily involved prior to his untimely passing. The tape is a pre-cursor for Ross' upcoming full-length, God Forgives, I Don't. You can download the free mixtape here . NOTE: At that link, wait until the timer counts down underneath the Twitter and Facebook icons, then fill in the download code and click download.

Over the past couple of years, artists like Drake, The Weeknd and Frank Ocean have continued to push r&b back to the forefront of mainstream awareness. Besides R. Kelly, no other artist has been responsible for their template than The-Dream . He's been working on his latest album, The Love IV (Diary of a Mad Man) , for quite awhile and today he dropped the first single, ROC . This track doesn't break any new ground, but it's nice to know we've got a full album of late-night slow jams coming soon. Rumor has it that Kells, [...]

From the traffic clogged streets of Jakarta, MIXTAPE 39 brings you a few more tracks that are eligible for the BEST OF moniker. While some tracks are worthy of top tiered designations others play the role of BEST OF B-sides. Unlike last week's selection, there is no particular order to this MIXTAPE other than an attempt at flow. True to BearKlaw form, the terrestrial beginning goes to the astral plane before descending back to Earth. While some of the tracks are very new, others might be a bit overplayed (to this listener) but still merit inclusion as they defined weeks [...]

The Weeknd , aka Abel Tesfaye, might be the most important artist to emerge in 2011. When I first heard "High for This" and "Morning" off his debut mixtape House of Balloons back in March, I was hooked on the blown out beats, late-night falsetto and over-the-top lyrics. He followed that up with a second installation, Thursday , which, as a whole, didn't quite reach the bar set by House of Balloons, but tracks like "The Birds Part 13 and "The Zone" still became favorites. Two months later, he popped up again as a major influence on [...]

These are what I consider to the best 50 tracks of 2011, in order. For variety's sake, I didn't use any artists more than once. That said, there were some artists deserving of more than one spot, namely Drake, M83, Bon Iver, Cut Copy, Fleet Foxes and The Weeknd. You can also listen to this mixtape on Spotify . [...]

Our guest mixtape series continues with an excellent electronic collection from our friend Stephan... "This mixtape was born out of a moment that I'm sure everyone's experienced. You've got your iPod on shuffle and then out of nowhere, bam, a song that you had totally forgotten about comes on. This time, it was the song that opens the playlist. And it got me thinking about other electronic or electronic influenced songs that I've dug recently and in the past. So I ran through my music library and pulled out some [...]

This is simply a collection of the 25 best tracks I've listened to over the past few weeks. While heavy on new songs, there are a few antique beats thrown in, including a 30-year old Stevie Nicks classic that is still ahead of its time. You can listen in the player below or on Spotify . You can get updates by following us on Facebook or Twitter , or if you want to receive an email any time a new playlist is posted, just send us a note to blackraptorsubscribe@gmail.com . Enjoy...

As part of our ongoing guest mixtape series, Mr. Echo compiled a world music playlist via Spotify... When making this international playlist for Blackraptor, I wanted to find songs that were different but still had elements familiar to U.S. music fans. It's interesting how influences travel, and I find that good music is good music, whether Blues from the deserts of East Africa like Tinariwen, or American punk-influenced pop written by 20 year-old Swedish girls, like Razika. I hope you hear something that you haven't heard before on this playlist, [...]

I read this the other day and it has stuck with me: The Dalai Lama, when asked what surprised him most about humanity, answered "Man. Because he sacrifices his health in order to make money. Then he sacrifices money to recuperate his health. And then he is so anxious about the future that he does not enjoy the present; the result being that he does not live in the present or the future; he lives as if he is never going to die, and then dies having never really lived." [...]

As an older, white, British chap, David Rodigan isn't exactly the type of person you expect when you gear up to listen to a reggae legend, but that's exactly what he is. Having acquired a taste for early reggae predecessors as a school boy, Rodigan began DJ'ing at the age of 15 and landed his first professional gig spinning reggae records on BBC Radio London in 1978. That was the beginning of a storied career traveling the world, wowing audiences and cementing his cred during legendary "clashes" against other reggae DJ's in the West Indies, the US and [...]

Things have been quiet from Brooklyn-based nu-disco outfit Tippy Toes lately, but they just reappeared with a Fall Mix on Soundcloud. Sounds like they've got DJ gigs on the horizon, which will hopefully lead to some live shows in the not so distant future. One can dream, right? Anyway, this shit is nice... Tippy Toes Fall Mix

• abeseiferth - Tippy Toes Fall Mix

This playlist was put together before I heard about Steve Jobs death so there's no connection between the songs and his passing. That said, I think it is important to note that I stumbled on several of these songs while working on a MacBook, listened to them on an iPod & iTunes and I'm posting this from an iPad. As Obama wrote last night, "The world has lost a visionary. And there is no greater tribute to Steve's success than the fact that most of the world learned of his passing on a device he invented." May he [...]

The line to get into Roseland wrapped around all four sides of the block, so we ducked into the Russian Vodka Room down the street to liquor up. Horseradish vodka? Approved. We wound up walking in a little before 9 without too much of a wait (read: we cut the line) and found our way up to the Mezzanine, prime real estate for a view, room to dance, no line at the bar or bathroom. Perfect. Four Tet came on right at 9 and played a pretty mellow set, which is [...]

It had been over 8 years since the last time I saw Wilco in Central Park. Back in June of '03 they co-headlined there with Sonic Youth as part of their Yankee Hotel Foxtrot tour. I've seen them about a dozen times since and they have steadily evolved into one of the best live acts on the touring circuit (imo). I went back for more on Friday night (9/23). It was drizzling when I walked into the park, and in an effort to fit in as much as possible before [...]

• Wilco - Art Of Almost

...Due to technical difficulties in BearKlaw's Den we had to postpone last week's Mixtape. But fret not hallowed listeners.... We bring you a hearty dose of music to get your week going full blast. If it gets you moving don't be afraid to pass it around... This week Blackraptor goes in search of the American Dream through our beloved medium of Rock n' Roll (with a nod over the pond once or twice). We hope this makes for a lovely soundtrack to your day/week and gets your head bangin' and swayin'. Keep an ear [...]

This is a collection of my favorite 32 hip-hop tracks of all time. Feel free to let me know what you think I've overlooked. You can stream below like usual or check it out on Spotify . You can get updates by following us on Facebook [...]

In the third installment of our guest mixtape series, DJ Tipples comes correct... Twice this summer I've been visited by a great horned owl in the tree just above my back balcony in Brooklyn. On his most recent visit he landed with a 5 foot wingspan and acknowledged me with a curious head turn. I then watched as a feather floated towards the backyard, blew directly over my head and landed perfectly square on my doorstep. The Pawnees view the owl as [...]

To celebrate Volume 30 and to thank our loyal readers, we've made this mixtape available for download . You can still stream below like usual or catch an abbreviated version on Spotify . You can get updates by following us on [...]