Episode 146: Phonte

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Phonte Coleman is best known for his work with the pioneering rap group Little Brother, who came straight out of North Carolina in the early 2000s and garnered praise from fans and artists alike by giving a new spin to classic hip-hop. Phonte was a standout, with his witty, dense rhymes - packed with sometimes obscure allusions - and his powerful singing.

With supporters like ?uestlove and Pete Rock, Little Brother gained enough attention to garner a deal with Atlantic Records for their 2005 record The Minstrel Show. While the deal itself was short-lived, the group continued to release material up until they disbanded in 2007.

While Little Brother was still extant, Phonte met the Dutch producer Nicolay, and the two began collaborating as The Foreign Exchange. That group is still going strong, with their latest album Tales From The Land Of Milk And Honey coming out just last year.

As if all that wasn’t enough, Coleman has released his own solo album, 2011’s Charity Starts At Home, and a follow-up is due later this year. Most recently, he played a key role in the VH1 movie – soon to be a series – The Breaks, a story about the hip-hop industry in 1990.

Tracks featured in this episode:

1. “Joe Rock Baby”
2. “Joe Rock Baby”
3. Ahm & DeeVee, “Least Expected”
4. VERSE BEHAVIOR: Antoine Harris As “Ahm” From VH1’s “The Breaks”
5. Little Brother, “Cheatin’”
6. Little Brother, “Cheatin’”
7. D4L, “Laffy Taffy”
8. MiMS, “This Is Why I’m Hot”
9. Jibbs, “Chain Hang Low”
10. R. Kelly, “Trapped in the Closet”
11. Flip Wilson - Geraldine and Harry Belafonte
12. Chris Rock, “Rap Standup”
13. Kenny Loggins, “What A Fool Believes”
14. Little Brother, “The Listening”
15. Boogie Down Productions, “My Philosophy”
16. Little Brother, “Welcome To Durham”
17. The Cipher Episode 32: Big Daddy Kane
18. Little Brother, “Curtain Call”
19. Vevo Presents: Shady CXVPHER
20. Little Brother f/Chaundon, “So Cold”
21. Eric B. & Rakim, “Follow The Leader”
22. Special Ed, “I Got It Made”
23. Little Brother, “Before The Night Is Over”
24. Little Brother f/Chaundon, “So Cold”
25. Retro Bartles & Jaymes Commercial Perfect Ice Topping
26. Phonte f/Jeanne Jolly, “Everything Is Falling Down”
27. Captain & Tennille, “Love Will Keep Us Together”
28. Little Brother f/L.E.G.A.C.Y., “Flash And Flare”
29. Little Brother f/DJ Spinna, “Intergalactic Soul”
30. Ronnie Foster, “Mystic Brew”
31. A Tribe Called Quest, “Electric Relaxation”
32. Little Brother f/Darien Brockington, “All For You”
33. Little Brother f/Supastition, “Rollin Out”
34. Little Brother, “Knock Knock”
35. Little Brother, “Home”
36. Little Brother f/L.E.G.A.C.Y. & Chaundon, “Boondock Saints”
37. SNAP!, “The Power”
38. The Foreign Exchange, “I Wanna Know”
39. Phonte f/Median, “Eternally”
40. Little Brother, “Speed”
41. Phonte, “Sendin My Love”
42. Phonte, “Ball And Chain”
43. Little Brother, “The Get Up”
44. Taygravy And Eccentric, “Microcosmic”
45. Taygravy And Eccentric, “Pain 4 My Dogz”
46. Taygravy And Eccentric, “69th Chamber Intercourse”
47. Taygravy And Eccentric f/Jack Benson, Percy Miracles, & Dungeon Family, “All Night”
48. Taygravy And Eccentric, “The Time Has Come”
49. Taygravy And Eccentric, “Whodies On Fire”

Show notes:

1. Phonte, “Death Of A Star: How A Piece Of Fried Chicken Killed Percy Miracles”
2. Noisey, “Gene Brown Is The Guy Who Finds The Rare Samples For All Your Favorite Hip-Hop Songs”