Had to get a new episode to you before the end of the summer! We're talking our favorite listens from the past few months, Noname's new album, and our thoughts on where hip-hop has been & where it's going. Koku also tells a story about his experience at Earl Sweatshirt's "Doris" 10 Year Anniversary show in Chicago. Enjoy!

Recorded live at Koku's apartment! On this episode, we're talking about AI (that could turn you into AI), Daniel Caesar's controversial return, and the mess that was Frank Ocean's Coachella performance. Koku also asks ChatGPT to describe the Alex + Koku podcast. You gotta hear its response 😂

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If y'all have been wondering how Koku got so BROLIC, boy do we have a treat for you! Got the one and only Vic Young on this episode, a.k.a. KOKU's PERSONAL TRAINER. Vic is the founder of Infinite Training Systems, and he also has a really dope perspective on hip-hop music. On this episode, we're talking experimentation in rap, Lil Yachty's latest album, all of Koku's lookalikes, and how we felt when we thought we lost Datpiff forever. There's a whole lot of good stuff in this episode, and we hope y'all enjoy it!!!

Follow Vic on IG: https://instagram.com/mrtraininfinite

Follow Infinite Training Systems on IG: https://instagram.com/traininfinite

EPISODE 40, WE MIDDLE AGED!!! The homie Aloe Vera, who's an incredible musician, poet, and organizer from Columbus, Ohio, blessed us with their presence on the podcast & dropped ALL the gems. Tbh this episode starts poppin off from the jump. We're talking weird AI generated fingers, Black alternative music, finding beauty in gospel music despite many Christian churches' violence towards queer people, and the myth of "new" sounds in music. We loved this conversation a lot & hope y'all enjoy listening!

Follow Aloe Vera on IG: https://instagram.com/aloerenegade

Follow Aloe Vera on Spotify: http://bit.ly/3x2TbDO

Listen to Aloe Vera's album with Steel Tipped Dove, Days Pass Strange: http://bit.ly/3x3oZbw

FIRST EPISODE OF 2023 + EVERYTHING IS GOING IN OUR FAVOR!!! We got Emme Reed, our first guest of the year & resident lucky girl, on the podcast to talk about the artists we want to know everything about, our most memorable celebrity encounters, Frank Ocean headlining Coachella, and more! It's 2023, let's clown around!!!!

Follow Emme on IG: https://www.instagram.com/emmereed

Follow Alex + Koku on IG: https://www.instagram.com/alexandkoku

We're closing out 2022 with a dream guest: Columbus, Ohio's own Hanif Abdurraqib! You probably know Hanif from one of his critically acclaimed essay collections, They Can't Kill Us Until They Kill Us (2017) & A Little Devil in America: Notes in Praise of Black Performance (2021), or his 2019 book, Go Ahead in the Rain: Notes on A Tribe Called Quest. Hanif has also written two poetry collections, The Crown Ain't Worth Much in 2016 & A Fortune for Your Disaster in 2019, in addition to having essays and music criticism published in The FADER, Pitchfork, The New Yorker, and The New York Times.

We catch Hanif during his end-of-year break and talk to him about his favorite musical moments in 2022, writing as a communal practice, criticizing art and its artists from a place of love, and more. Lots of gems in this episode. Hope y'all enjoy!

Follow Hanif on Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/nifmuhammad

Follow Hanif on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/NifMuhammad

Follow Alex + Koku on Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/alexandkoku

This is our last episode with Verge.fm. Unfortunately, Verge.fm's weekly volunteer-run radio is coming to an end after November due to it becoming unsustainable for their team to continue operating. BIG thank you to the Verge.fm team for believing in Alex + Koku and giving us a platform to share our show with folks in Columbus and beyond. BUT DON'T WORRY. We're not going anywhere. You can continue to listen to Alex + Koku wherever you stream podcasts!

On episode 37, we're honoring Takeoff and chatting about how we felt before Drake & 21 Savage's Her Loss release. We also get into our thoughts on how the music industry has shifted its focus more towards digital streaming platforms and TikTok.

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Y'all good? We're out here sharing some NEW music from Dom Deshawn and talking about what it would like if UK artists overthrew the monarchy. Idk bro just tune in 😭😭

Catch us every 4th Saturday at 4pm ET on Verge FM wherever you stream podcasts!