Discuss “Turntables and a glockenspiel? ”

For weeks, I had been waiting to ask the guys in Blackalicious one question: “What do you think of modern hip-hop, and how do you see yourselves fitting into this structure?” Talking to the kings of underground hip-hop, I expected — and wanted — Blackalicious MC Gift of Gab and producer Chief Xcel to bash the shameless antics of modern hip-hop, claiming Blackalicious itself to be an alternative to mainstream rap.

Chief Xcel said nothing of the sort. “We’re 20-year veterans,” he explained. “I don’t even consider us fitting into modern hip-hop; we are modern hip-hop. If anything, hip-hop fits into us,” he boasted. Although his confidence may come across as arrogance, it is more a sign of risks taken, innovations made, and...