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Soundcheck

Friday, May 11, 2007
  • A still from "The Hip Hop Project"
    A still from "The Hip Hop Project"

    Extracurricular Hero

    When a Brooklyn hip-hop artist started an after-school program for teens, his students thought it was just a chance to cut a record. Today on Soundcheck, discover how beats and rhymes changed their lives. Plus, Canadian alt-rock band Sloan’s new album boasts a whopping 30 songs. Find out which one they’ll perform live.

The Hip Hop Project

Once a homeless teenager in Brooklyn, Chris "Kazi" Rolle was determined to help other kids avoid the pitfalls of street life. He founded an after-school program called The Hip Hop Project that works with young people aspiring to be rappers. We talk with Rolle and Matt Ruskin, director of a new documentary about the program.

The Hip Hop Project site

Sloan

The eighth album from Canadian rock stars Sloan is appropriately titled Never Hear the End of It. Clocking in at over 75 minutes, the disc features 30 songs filled with insight from a veteran indie group that formed in 1991. We ask members Chris Murphy and Jay Ferguson how they created a catchy pop behemoth that another group might have turned out as three separate releases.

Sloan's web site

The Ill Effects of Urban Noise

Soundcheck

Soundcheck received an overwhelming response to our segment on the effects of urban noise. So much so that Arline Bronzaft decided to address the feedback. Listen to the original segment and read Bronzaft's response.