MUSIC: DJ CUZZIN B - Summer Spirit Fest Mixtape '14

It’s time for the Summer Spirit Festival where every year they turn Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia, MD into a showcase of the world’s best R&B and hip-hop. This year there seems to be a theme to the festivities with three of the greatest female artists of the past two decades performing in one place. Me’Shell Ndegeocello was laying down the groundwork for but future leaning R&B hybrids that would eventually spawn neo-soul in addition to contributions to rock and especially jazz music. Around the same time a young singer and rapper named Lauryn Hill was cutting her teeth in the Fugees until she dropped her magnum opus The Miseducation Of... that still resonates till tis day. And for the past few years Janelle Monae has been the hardest working person in show business; performing at such a level even musical luminaries like Prince have jumped at the chance to work with her. On top of other famous acts like Talib Kweli and newcomers like RDGLDGRN it looks like the 2014 edition is shaping to be one of their best yet. It's brought to you by CD Enterprises, Inc and you can cop tickets here.

DJ Cuzzin B’s dropped a mixtape to commemorate the long running festival and we at The Couch Sessions are happy to bring it to you. As usual he throws in a few curve balls to show why he’s so good at these types of things; while the wide variety of acts might make a pretty scattered sounding mixtape Cuzzin B works his magic and makes it a beautiful cohesive whole. It’s a trip to remind us what we love about R&B and hip hop and you can download it right here.