Foundationmag.com

Today, as part of their “Best CDs of the Year” series, NPR posted a list of their Top 10 mixtapes. Even though these are all hip-hop tapes, and we are aware that mixtapes exist for other genres as well, Foundation Magazine would like to congratulate all the DJs and artists who made the list. Without a doubt, these were all great tapes, and even though our Year End Wrap Up looked a little bit different, it is still good to see mixtape culture getting some shine from major media.

NPR.org, December 19, 2008 - The word “mixtape” — the hip-hop equivalent to the bootleg concert tape — now refers to mixes of songs burned to CD or offered as a digital download, sold on street corners and swapped on message boards. They represent hip-hop artists taking back the power over their music from label politics, mainstream media and the tyranny of copyright law (and FCC language restrictions). In this purely democratic world unsigned rappers build a fan base, past-their-prime artists re-connect with an audience, and major-label commodities show their adventurous side on records that overprotective label reps would never authorize and commercial radio could never pick up. Here are some of this year’s finest tapes.

Click here to check out the list.