For the month of March, HipHopCanada is running a weekly recap of THE BLOCK, providing a brief summary of what host Angeline Tetteh-Wayoe had on deck for listeners.
THE BLOCK airs weekdays from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. (7:30 Newfoundland), on CBC Music and CBC Listen. Every episode is archived in the CBC Listen app, with 24 2-hour streams available at the time this story was published.
Episode 31 – March 15, 2021
Week 7 of The Block kicks off with an 80’s classic, as Tetteh-Wayoe dropped the needle on the 1987 Terence Trent D’Arby single, “Wishing Well,” off his studio album debut. The two-hour playlist also features a ton of great Canadian talents including Haviah Mighty, Drake, TOBi, Clairmont the Second, Divine Brown, k-os, and several more.
One of several major standouts on the list included a massive track from budding Toronto rap star, LB Spiffy. “Again,” featuring Bankrol Hayden, is a single off LB’s 2020 album, LB No Pounds. It was also great to see Dragon Fli Empire featured along with their 2006 release, “Headphones,” off the Invasion album. The group is still going strong and released the project Banff Avenue just last year.
Episode 32 – March 16, 2021
Episode 32 of THE BLOCK began with a classic by 70’s funk-soul band, War (originally called Eric Burdon and War). “The World is a Ghetto” was featured on the group’s album by the same name which was Billboard’s best-selling album of 1973.
A long with the Long Beach supergroup, the two-hour playlist features a great combo of new bangers and classic throwbacks. The line-up includes Canadians like Grand Analog, Junia-T and Charmaine, as well as international acts like Cardi B, Heavy D, A Tribe Called Quest, and more.
Episode 33 – March 17, 2021
East Coast-based band Aquakultre kicks of Episode 33 with their popular track, “I Doubt It.” The song was featured on their 2020 album, Bleeding Gums Murphy, and is their most successful song to date on iTunes.
The two-hour playlist is pack with great music and features tracks by Puffy L’z, JellyTooFly, Kanye West, N.W.A., k-os, and a ton more. A huge standout was the new Miloh Smith-assisted single, “4AM in Toronto” by Junia-T. The track is featured on the Deluxe version of Junia’s critically acclaimed album, Studio Monk, which dropped just a few days ago.
Episode 34 – March 18, 2021
Episode 34 of THE BLOCK begins with the first single off the second and final studio album by The Notorious B.I.G. The chart-topping “Hypnotize” was released just a week before Biggie was killed in a drive-by shooting in Los Angeles. It was the fifth song by an artist to hit number one posthumously, and it peaked at No. 3 in Canada.
The two-hour playlist was one of our favourite from the week and also featured tracks by artists like Nas, Jay-Z, Biz Markie, Tanika Charles, Fugees, George Clinton and more. The Canadian classic “Father Time” by Saukrates is always a standout on any playlist, as is the classic “Really Livin’” by Vancouver’s The Rascalz. The West Coast was also well-represented by budding star Boslen and his 2020 single, “My Ways.”
Episode 35 – March 19, 2021
The last episode of the week begins with “If It Isn’t Love” a song by American R&B quintet New Edition, and the first single from their fifth studio album, Heart Break, which dropped in 1988.
The two-hour playlist features a perfect dose of new bangers and classic throwbacks including songs by Eric B. & Rakim, Raekwon, Tweet, Megan Thee Stallion, Kendrick Lamar, LL Cool J, and many more. Choclair fans will be thrilled to hear one of his latest singles, “RocDat,” which precedes his most recent track, “Mint,” which came out in March 5. Host Tetteh-Wayoe also brought some sounds from across the pond by featuring the Ella Mai-assisted “One and Only” by UK star, J Hus.
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