Alphonse Pierre

New York

Staff Writer at Pitchfork

s/o Taye Diggs

Articles

HiTech: HONEYPAQQ Vol. 1

1 week ago | pitchfork.com | Alphonse Pierre

On the night of a snowstorm in Detroit this January, I slid across icy roads like Connor McDavid in a rental car to hit up a HiTech DJ set. Not too many others made it out, but the ghettotech group—MCs and producers Milf Melly, King Milo, and 47 Chops—were behind the boards in their hometown shouting dancefloor commands and flicking knobs like it was one of those storied Detroit club nights.
On the New York Knicks and New York Hip-Hop

2 weeks ago | pitchfork.com | Alphonse Pierre

Three weeks ago, the Knicks did a thing that, in all my sentient years on Earth, they’ve never done: avoid a completely embarrassing disaster. It was Game 6 of the NBA playoffs, on the road in the first round against a scrappy, overachieving Detroit Pistons team that was riding the clever playmaking of Cade Cunningham, unconscious shotmaking of Malik Beasley, and veteran leadership of J. Cole doppelgänger Tobias Harris.
On the New York Knicks and New York Hip-Hop

2 weeks ago | sports.yahoo.com | Alphonse Pierre

All products featured on Pitchfork are independently selected by Pitchfork editors. However, when you buy something through our retail links, Condé Nast may earn an affiliate commission. AdvertisementThree weeks ago, the Knicks did a thing that, in all my sentient years on Earth, they’ve never done: avoid a completely embarrassing disaster.
Thirty Years In, Styles P Is Still a Man of the People

2 weeks ago | pitchfork.com | Alphonse Pierre

OG!Big Bro!Family!God!At a shoulder-to-shoulder 420 cannabis festival inside of Washington Square Park, Styles P is approached with these words of endearment by old heads versed in Five-Percenter lingo and twentysomethings who can’t remember a time in New York where Styles, as both one third of the gully Yonkers trio the Lox (with Jadakiss and Sheek Louch) and solo, wasn’t a local hip-hop giant.
What the Hell Is Justin Bieber Doing on Rob49’s “WTHelly?”

3 weeks ago | pitchfork.com | Alphonse Pierre

Stupid rich pop stars have dreams, too. At least as far as I can tell. Beyoncé wants to turn pop stardom into the family business. Taylor Swift probably wants to use her army of 35-year-old white women to get access to the nuclear codes. Ariana Grande wants the next Wicked movie to win her every award. Katy Perry wants, I don’t know, Katy Perry stuff. Halsey, for a moment, wanted me to have a very bad day at work. Drake wants to be Kendrick. Kendrick wants to be Drake.
HeadHuncho Amir: STILL AIN NUN BIGGER

1 month ago | pitchfork.com | Alphonse Pierre

In the shadow of Houston, a Southern rap mecca, is Dallas: an underdog hip-hop city that has rarely gotten its due. One of the first Dallas rappers to get a buzz was the D.O.C., who broke out in the late ’80s with the homegrown Fila Fresh Crew, then hit the road to L.A., assisting with N.W.A. and the rise of Death Row.
Tovi: “jiggy”

1 month ago | pitchfork.com | Alphonse Pierre

Listening to Tovi’s “Jiggy” is what I imagine it was like to sit in a dark room in 1994 taking in Bone Thugs’ group prayer on “Mr. Quija” for the first time. The Philly drill weirdo pushes the hushed, faded-out flows Ot7Quanny and NR Boor have tinkered with to the brink, rapping like a vengeful mummy back from the afterlife.
An Interview With OnlyHeaven, the Hopeless Romantic of New Orleans Bounce

1 month ago | yahoo.com | Alphonse Pierre

Photo courtesy of OnlyHeaven. Graphic by Chris Panicker. One of my obsessions is the hip-hop love song, and how the exaggerated, theatrical, and lustful nature of the genre makes for some of the realest and funniest depictions of catching feelings.
“jiggy” | Flipboard

1 month ago | flipboard.com | Alphonse Pierre

1 hour ago“Come on buddy. Wow.” Someone finally asked Walton Goggins what, exactly, is going on with him and fellow The White Lotus star Aimee Lou Wood, and he was less than thrilled by the question. In an interview published on May 1, The Times wrote that Walton "won't talk" about his upcoming Saturday Night …
Lunchbox: “Nothing Gone Last”

1 month ago | pitchfork.com | Alphonse Pierre

On first listen, Lunchbox’s rubbery melodies might seem like they belong in conversation with the post-Future internet rap that’s soundtracked mosh pits everywhere throughout the 2020s. But despite a few stylistic similarities, the emotion in his music feels more intimate, meditative, and soulful. “Nothing Gone Last,” from the Harlem native’s new tape, L.B. Cooper, is more likely to make you stare into the middle distance thinking about your life decisions than headbang.