On this episode, we pay homage to Hip-Hop culture by discussing the significance, growth, changes and longevity of the genre.  We pay particular attention to Chuck D's PBS documentary "Fight the Power:  How Hip-Hop Changed the World!"

In courtrooms across America, defendant-authored rap lyrics are being introduced as incriminating evidence. Prosecutors describe these lyrics as an admission of guilt.   Please join us as we speak with McKinley "MAC" Phipps, a rap artist that spent 21 years in prison for a crime he maintains he did not commit.  Mac tells us how his rap lyrics and rap persona were used to prosecute and incarcerate him for 21 years.

The story of FN Meka — a fictitious character billed as the first musical artist partly powered by artificial intelligence to be signed by a major record label — might seem like a bizarre one-off if you have not been paying attention to the digital world.

But to seasoned observers of technology in pop music and the debate over cultural appropriation, the rise and fall of this so-called robot rapper, whose songs were written and voiced by humans, has raised important questions that are not going away anytime soon.

In this episode, we discuss the controversy surrounding FN Meka, including  him being signed by Capital Records and the stereotypes embedded in this avatar.