The Cypher
The cypher includes a playlist of YouTube #Shorts available to our website visitors.
The All-Female Rap Compilations That Built Hip Hop
Before streaming playlists, independent labels used compilation albums to launch stars, and women carried some of the most important ones. From "B-Girls Live and Kickin'"...
Mariah Carey PROVED She Could Sing Live 🎤 MTV Unplugged Moment
Mariah Carey didn't just show up to MTV Unplugged, she showed OUT. 🎙️ From those legendary whistle notes to her and Trey Lorenz turning "I'll Be There" into a defining U...
The Bet That Created Yo! MTV Raps Unplugged 🎤
A producer put his own paycheck on the line to prove rappers could perform live with a band, no DJ, no tricks. That bet became Yo! MTV Raps Unplugged in 1991, featuring L...
The Michael Jackson Unplugged We Never Got 😢
Jay Ray shares his dream MTV Unplugged that never happened: a stripped-down Michael Jackson performing "Billie Jean" and "Man in the Mirror" with just a stool, a mic, and...
How Milli Vanilli's Scandal Helped MTV Unplugged Become A Hit 🎸
The Milli Vanilli lip-syncing scandal didn't just end a career — it changed the game for live music on TV. 🎤 Once artists got caught faking it, everyone else wanted to p...
This Sega Game Song Was Inspired by a House Music Classic 🎮🎶
Did you know "Streets of Rage 2" has a house music connection? Composer Yuzo Koshiro modeled the track "Go Straight" after Inner City's 1988 house anthem "Good Life," bri...
The Real Roxanne Was Actually TWO Different People 😳
Most people don't know that "The Real Roxanne" was played by two different young women. After Roxanne Shanté's "Roxanne's Revenge" blew up, UTFO and Full Force created a ...
Sparky D & Roxanne Shanté: Rivals On Stage, Sisters Off It
Behind the battles was real sisterhood. 🤝 While touring together during the Roxanne Wars, Roxanne Shanté — a brand-new teenage mother — got stiffed by a promoter who ref...
The Roxanne Wars: How Sparky D Made History 👑🎤
Before Cardi vs. Nicki, there was the Roxanne Wars. 🎙️ UTFO's "Roxanne, Roxanne" sparked a chain of answer records — Roxanne Shanté's "Roxanne's Revenge," then Sparky D'...
The Biz Markie Lawsuit That Changed Hip Hop Forever
In 1991, Biz Markie dropped I Need a Haircut, and one sampled song changed the music industry forever. The Grand Upright Music vs. Warner Bros. case made sample clearance...