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Oliver Wang

Oliver Wang is a music writer, scholar, and DJ based in California. Since 1994, he's written on popular music, culture, race, and America for outlets such as NPR, Vibe, Wax Poetics, Scratch, The Village Voice, SF Bay Guardian, and LA Weekly.

Wang begins work as an assistant professor in sociology at Long Beach State this fall; He also hosts the renowned audioblog soul-sides.com. For more information, visit o-dub.com.

The Record
10:59 am
Mon May 6, 2013

20 Years Ago Biz Markie Got The Last Laugh

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Credit Courtesy of Cold Chillin' Records/Warner Bros.
Biz Markie in costume in the gatefold of the LP version of All Samples Cleared!
Credit Courtesy of Cold Chillin'/Warner Bros
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Music Reviews
4:49 pm
Thu March 14, 2013

Lady: Two Soul Stalwarts Find A New Groove Together

Credit Courtesy of the artist
R&B singers Nicole Wray and Terri Walker have teamed up as the duo Lady.
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Originally published on Fri March 15, 2013 6:59 am

R&B singers Nicole Wray and Terri Walker both had promising starts to their careers more than ten years ago. Wray came up on the Virginia coast under the wing of mentor Missy Elliott. Walker, a Londoner, was classically trained yet released her debut on a Def Jam subsidiary. Both enjoyed early critical success but by decade's end struggled to find a wide audience. Instead, they found each other.

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All Songs Considered
10:03 am
Tue January 8, 2013

The Kids Of PS22 Take On Tame Impala

Credit Victor Breinberg
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The Record
12:12 pm
Tue December 4, 2012

Saviors Of Local Soul: The Archival Science Of The Numero Group

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Credit Courtesy of the Numero Group
The Numero Group's Eccentric Soul: Omnibus includes 45 seven-inch singles highlighting local soul scenes from around the country.
Credit Courtesy of the Numero Group
The staff of the reissue label the Numero Group.
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Music Reviews
12:14 pm
Mon November 19, 2012

Bill Withers: The Everyman Singer With A Poet's Soul

Credit Fin Costello / Redferns
Bill Withers onstage in 1973.
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Originally published on Mon November 26, 2012 9:38 am

Bill Withers' very first single became a breakout hit in 1971. He would go on to record nine albums over the next 14 years, and all of them are now available on a new box set, The Complete Sussex and Columbia Masters.

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The Record
9:00 am
Thu September 20, 2012

The Purple Tape: Only Built 4 Collectors

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Credit Courtesy of the artist
The Purple Tape: Raekwon's 1995 album Only Built 4 Cuban Linx... was originally released on a limited-edition purple cassette that became a collector's item.
Credit Courtesy of the artist
Purple Tapes: Raekwon's 1995 album Only Built 4 Cuban Linx... was originally released on a limited-edition purple cassette that became a collector's item.
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Originally published on Thu September 20, 2012 3:09 pm

The Beatles had "The White Album." Prince's long-time work-in-progress became dubbed "The Black Album." Rapper Raekwon had "The Purple Tape," one the most storied cassettes in hip-hop history.

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Music Reviews
12:58 pm
Tue September 18, 2012

Two Attempts To Turn Summer Platinum Into Fall Gold

Credit Vanessa Heins / Courtesy of Universal Music Group
Carly Rae Jepsen and the cover of Kanye West's latest album, Cruel Summer.
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Originally published on Wed September 19, 2012 7:47 am

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