In this final episode of this audio series, I needed to come full circle with an idea that I started twenty years ago as a young man, my instincts to uncover a battleground between Hip-Hop music and law enforcement was way ahead of the curve, and at that time with the completion of my documentary film Rap Sheet, I thought I had some answers, and clarity on what I set out to accomplish.   In hindsight, when I look at the landscape between our criminal justice system today, and the many cases of murder, or crime tied to the music of Hip-Hop, I wonder if in those twenty years if nothing ..read more

Join hosts Nicole Luciano and Johnny ‘The Greek’ Anagnopoulos, two of the producers of The Dossier, as they break down all things crime and hip-hop, gleaned from their years of investigative work on the topic. From the Biggie and Tupac murders, to the twenty plus killings that are tangentially related to Death Row Records, Suge Knight, the Bloods, the East vs. West rivalry, the gangster cops inside the LAPD and much more. This week, Niki and Johnny begin the episode discussing a certain former LAPD detective’s recent attempt to muddy up the truth and smear one of our favorite people. Then they ..read more

As the news cycle churns, and people search for more answers around the HSI investigation of Puff, this last week an excellent article dropped in New York Magazine by acclaimed journalist Craig Jenkins, someone I admire, and a damn good writer.  The New York Magazine article stood out for various reasons, because as of now with no breaking news, Jenkins as the author took a more , “think piece” approach to it, and was immensely analytical and thoughtful in a way that I have not read anywhere else, but I also wanted to dig into his point of view just a bit, as I know he has the right inst ..read more

91 MURDERS in Hip-Hop, that is the current number of Hip-Hop artists who have been killed since 1987 when Scott La Rock was killed in the Bronx, and TakeOff was tragically taken from the world in 2022. 91 Murders, wherein close to 50 of those murders remained unsolved by the police. Some are long running investigations and some of these cases have taken on mythical status where the narrative of who murdered who is now lost down a rabbit hole of Internet conspiracy theories, YouTube misinformation videos, and social media sleuths who spread speculation, and bullshit theori ..read more

Join hosts Nicole Luciano and Johnny ‘The Greek’ Anagnopoulos, two of the producers of The Dossier, as they break down all things crime and hip-hop, gleaned from their years of investigative work on the topic. From the Biggie and Tupac murders, to the twenty plus killings that are tangentially related to Death Row Records, Suge Knight, the Bloods, the East vs. West rivalry, the gangster cops inside the LAPD and much more. In this week’s episode, Niki and Johnny touch on Suge Knight’s recent speaking tour on the podcast and YouTube circuit. They also delve into the incident that turned Death Ro ..read more

When the ticker came across the screen on CNN on March 26th, 20024 there was news footage of a HSI or Homeland Security tactical team raiding Diddy’s home, and it was at that moment people started to wonder what HSI is and why do they look like a paramilitary operation in the United States…. So, I wanted to be clear and really understand where did Homeland Security come from? AND WHY would they be involved in investigating arguably Hip-Hop’s biggest mogul? Well, 11 days after the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, Pennsylvania Governor Tom Ridge was appointed as the first Director of the ..read more

The story of the Hip-Hop Cops when I started the documentary back in 2004, was that it was a secret unit, and it was shrouded in mystery, for many reasons. The journey of going inside Hip-Hop and law enforcement for two years, left me with a few takeaways, but more importantly it left me with a question inside my head that played over and over. Why was the Hip-Hop music industry at War with the Cops, and more importantly why did Hip-Hop have such a distinct connection to the War on Drugs.   While the NYPD, FBI, HIDTA, and the United States Attorney looked at the business ..read more

Join hosts Nicole Luciano and Johnny ‘The Greek’ Anagnopoulos, two of the producers of The Dossier, as they break down all things crime and hip-hop, gleaned from their years of investigative work on the topic. From the Biggie and Tupac murders, to the twenty plus killings that are tangentially related to Death Row Records, Suge Knight, the Bloods, the East vs. West rivalry, the gangster cops inside the LAPD and much more. In this inaugural episode of Collateral Damage, Niki and Johnny give listeners some background on their work and how they’ve gained some expertise on the topics that will b ..read more

Where to begin, with the news of Homeland Security Investigations raiding the homes of Diddy in Los Angeles, New York, and Miami, it is very clear to me that something is afoot, combine that with rumors being reported that the Southern District is interviewing 3 what they are identifying as Jane Doe victims, and one John Doe, and Diddy has really hit a trifecta.  But let’s not get ahead of ourselves here, and let's make some early analysis.  Personally, I have some experience covering HSI or Homeland Security Investigations, and in my work I have also embedded with them on an opera ..read more

As my persistence to tell the story of the Hip-Hop Cops increased, my “fixers” —Steve Lobel and Pistol Pete, delivered on their promise to secure me interview subjects. What sounded good in theory, was in reality far different, as their strategy was to merely accost artists and executives pretty much anywhere—at studios, at parties, concerts, on the street, back alleys—they even spotted Kanye West at an album release party and convinced him to do an interview in the back of the club’s kitchen. In true Kanye fashion he gave me a great sound byte, even though I wa ..read more