Immortal Technique

A viciously lyrical emcee and budding producer based in New York City, Immortal Technique is arguably the most important political rapper in the game today. Born in a South American military hospital, his family relocated to Harlem when he was a youngster and he grew up as a child of hip-hop, doing grafitti and rapping at a young age. Like many men uptown, he got into his fair share of street drama, resulting in multiple arrests and eventually landing him in prison on aggravated assault charges. While serving a short bid, he honed his rhyme skills, penning many songs when he wasn't battling opponents in the yard. Upon his release in 1999, Immortal Technique hit the streets hard, staying out of trouble but developing a strong reputation as one of the city's premier battle rappers. He won many verbal showdowns, destroying lesser emcees at events like the Rocksteady Anniversary and Braggin Rites. Soon he released his first independent album, Revolutionary Vol. 1, which balanced his hardcore mic skills with a heavy dose of well-informed anti-government sentiment. The CD sold thousands of copies and earned him "Unsigned Hype" status in The Source magazine in late 2002. Revolutionary Vol. 2 followed the next year, and found him sharpening his lyrical swords and continuing his attack on the injustices of American law enforcement, the military, covert ops, racist drug wars and President Bush. The album also featured Mumia Abdul Jamal and like-minded artists such as C-Rayz Walz, with provocative cover artwork that depicted many high-ranking U.S. officials shot to death in the Oval Office. The album moved even more units than his earlier efforts, won press from XXL and the Washington Post and further irked the police, who raided Tech's hotel room under false pretenses when he was touring in 2004. While the mainstream rap market is all about glorifying corporate-sponsored thuggery, Immortal Technique, like Public Enemy and dead prez before him, is on the forefront of bringing intelligent, politically-charged hip-hop back to prominence. With his high-quality songs, business-minded work ethic, and relentless performances, he is a much-needed element in the industry. Assuming he can avoid the wrath of the black helicopters, he could very well usher in a new movement of social justice in popular music.

DJ Vadim

Representing hip-hop culture worldwide, Russian-born turntablist/producer DJ Vadim offers up head-nodding rhythms crippled with mood-swingy samples. Oft compared to Mo' Wax visionary DJ Shadow in stateside circles, DJ Vadim sets down a style that enhances beats and rap lyrics with reverent electronics. Unassuming synths and innovative sound effects underscore potent hip-hop abstraction in true Ninja Tune form. Based out of London, this internationally acclaimed beat chemist stands beside beat correspondents DJ Cam of France and Japan's DJ Krush.

Motion Man

A Bay Area super-emcee with a long history in the rap game, Motion Man began his career as a DJ, working with the late-1980s crew Zero Tolerance. Throughout the '90s, he was often featured on Sway and King Tech's world-famous "Wake Up Show" radio program, appeared on a slew of compilation records (Laid In Full, Droppen The Bomb, etc.), and collaborated on several records with Kool Keith. In 2000, Motion, Keith, and KutMaster Kurt joined forces on the exceptional Masters Of Illusion album, where Motion's alter ego Clifton Santiago arguably stole the show from his better-known counterparts. Motion continued to work with a variety of artists, popping up on two editions of Playstation's "Knock Out Kings" video game, and making a cameo on Linkin Park's remix album Reanimation. In 2002, he released his long-awaited debut solo album Clearing The Field, which also featured the likes of Biz Markie, Planet Asia, and E-40. Known for his hyper-unique, ultra-charismatic rhyme schemes and diverse flow, Motion is one of the most original emcees in hip-hop today.