2013 is officially starting off with a bang for AZ, as the Grammy-Nominated Recording Artist, makes his return to the Hip-Hop scene with the release of his highly-anticipated new LP ‘Doe Or Die II’, which will be released later this year.

AZ wet the appetites of fans for ‘Doe Or Die II’ in early January with his “Genesis” freestyle. Since the release of the ‘Doe Or Die’ anniversary album in 2011, AZ has been working to perfect each song for the new album; and fans will definitely be pleased with the follow up. AZ first became known by appearing on Nas‘ landmark 1994 album, ‘Illmatic’, as his hook on ‘Life’s A Bitch’ still resounds today and he was also featured on ‘Illmatic’’s opening opus “The Genesis”. AZ was the only guest feature on ‘Illmatic’ and soon thereafter he signed with EMI and released his own debut LP ‘Doe Or Die’ in 1995 to widespread critical acclaim. The album’s lead single, ‘Sugar Hill’, became one of AZ‘s major commercially successful records as a solo artist, reaching #25 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, and achieving Gold status. In 2002, he released ‘Aziatic’ from which his single ‘The Essence’ f/ Nas was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group. AZ has since released four solo-LP’s (his solo release ‘Undeniable’ also made a high debut on the Billboard charts) and worked with artists such as Nas, RZA, DJ Premier, Ghostface, Raekwon, Pete Rock, Buckwild, Trackmasters, Emile, Lil Fame, Phonte, Sheek Louch, Styles P, Foxy Brown, Beanie Sigel, Nottz, Large Professor, Bink, MoSS, & Statik Selektah and remained a constant staple with fans and critics alike. Today, AZ is back and better than ever and is readying his forthcoming ‘Doe Or Die II’ release. On ‘Thank You’, AZ goes in on a medley of beats provided by DJ Doo Wop.

New Audio: Marco Polo f/ Artifacts- ‘Back To Work’

Today we release the third in the series of Legendary Emcees on beats by Marco Polo with samples that were impossible to clear… we present ‘Back To Work’ f/ Artifacts (Scratches by Shylow). Taken from Marco Polo‘s forthcoming free-LP ‘Newport Authority 2′ as Marco states “I’ve recorded so much quality material over the last few years and I really want to share it all. It couldn’t all possibly fit on ‘Port Authority 2′; hence ‘Newport Authority 2′ came to be.” Will feature appearances from Rakim, Big Daddy Kane, Artifacts, Das Efx, Lil Fame (M.O.P.), Torae & Ruste Juxx all rocking over Marco’s production. Yet, the project everyone should really be excited for is Marco’s ‘Port Authority 2′ LP which will be released this spring on Soulspazm Records. ‘Port Authority 2′ features appearances from Organized Konfusion (yes, a new Organized Konfusion track!!), Gangrene, Talib Kweli, DJ Premier, Masta Ace, Posdnuos (De La Soul), Kardinal Offishal, Styles P, Nature, Rah Digga, Slaine, Celph Titled, Ill Bill, Large Professor, Inspectah Deck, O.C. & many many more.

www.marcopolobeats.com