Lord Grunge is one half of the legendary Grand Buffet. He’s recently released two excellent solo records, as well as releasing two records with Shark Tank. Grunge is one my closest friends in the world, and he’s always been like an older brother to me, in the rap game and in life. I was excited to get him to break down this detailed history of Grand Buffet.

He talks about Grand Buffet’s early shows in restaurants, biker bars and parking lots in the outskirts of Pittsburgh. We talk about their early opening tours with Wesley Willis, Nature Kids and Sage Francis. He breaks down becoming a headlining touring act off the strength of their live show, as well as the burnout of relying on touring as a sole source of income.

Mike Riley hooked us up with an excellent homage to Black Sheep’s A Wolf In Sheep’s Clothing. It all went down at the Lineup Room.

DDM is one of my favorite rappers in Baltimore. He first gained recognition as a battle rapper at Baltimore’s 5 Seasons. He’s been working as a solo artist for years, and he’s now teaming up with Paul Hutson to form Bond St. District.

He tells me about growing up as a loner kid with a rich fantasy life, watching Sailor Moon and Westerns on TV. We talk about learning to rise above the dark side of the music business, and how he went from filing for bankruptcy at age nineteen to becoming business savvy and independent. On the second half of the show, Paul Hutson joins the conversation, and they break down their new Bond St. District project.

Mike Riley‘s art this week is an homage to Rob Base and D.J. E-Z Rock’s It Takes Two. As always, this was recorded at The Lineup Room.

A-Class is one of the most consistent battle rappers in the game, and he’s earned respect in Grind Time, King Of The Dot and countless other battle leagues. We first met at a house show in 2003, and I’ve followed his career ever since. I had a great time getting the inside scoop on how the battle rap world works.

He told me about going from high school battles to Scribble Jam to the modern battle era. He talked about being excited by seeing how the battle world has evolved, and being inspired by the challenge of having to perpetually write more bars for upcoming opponents. We also talk about the strangeness of grown men tearing each other down with racial jokes.

This week, Mike Riley came with a tight homage to Eazy E’s Eazy-Duz-It. It all went down at The Lineup Room.

Mike Riley is the cartoonist behind Mike Riley Comics and I Taste Sound. He’s also been a part of the Baltimore venues Lo-Fi Social Club and The Hexagon. He’s been hooking up these sweet cartoons you see on each episode of Height Zone World.

We had a great conversation. He described the slow process of going from a frustrated, would-be artist, to a thriving, productive artist. You can hear the gratitude he has towards everyone that helped show him the path, from club owners that let him be a part of local art shows to friends that encouraged him to keep expanding the universe of his characters.

This episode’s art is an homage to Ice-T’s Power. It all went down at The Lineup Room.