Summertime ‘96. A shy, awkward me was surrounded by comic book nerds, dope boys, gangbangers, and high school jocks with one thing in common… Streetwear.

I was a huge Drake fan when I first heard his freestyle mixtape Comeback Season, but I can’t go 10 more years of the same sound. Is this all you got, Drake?

The very mention of Beyonce or Kanye dropping a new project leaves millions of musicheads gasping for air. Many of us can recall what we were doing the exact moment Jay-Z delivered The Blueprint. The magnitude of a great album may forever coincide with specific moments in our lives and this year promises to be a big one.

From talk show hosts Ellen DeGeneres and Jimmy Fallon to Former President Barack Obama and your everyday hipster in the Bay Area, fashionable sneakers are in a league of their own.

Last week, I attended an intimate event put on by Devlin Carter for entrepreneurs, artists, designers, and creatives. It changed my life.

The past year has been somewhat noiseless for quite a few of the heavy hitters in music. Is this a sign? Where can hip-hop go from here?