In 1987, aspiring rapper Timothy Parker met DJ Xavier Mosley in economics class at Kennedy High School in Sacramento. Parker became MC Gift of Gab and Mosley became DJ Chief XCel and together they formed Blackalicious. In the two decades since that time, the duo has become one of the most beloved groups in hip hop, praised for bringing intelligence back to a music form sometimes panned for its shallowness. Rolling Stone called Gift of Gab a "phenomenal lyricist who could battle any of today's multi-platinum-selling MCs," and the Village Voice called XCel "technically miraculous." Gift of Gab, Mr. Lif and Chali 2na (Jurassic 5) will play Monday at Harlow's in a show hosted by fellow rappe

  On Saturday, Feb. 28 Harlow's will be hosting Rock and Rhyme, beginning at 9 p.m. Lyrics Born, a Hip Hop artist with local connections will be headlining the show at Midnight. Lyrics Born went to UC Davis with Gift of Gab and Chief Xcel of Blackalicious, Lateef the Truthspeaker, DJ Shadow and Jeff Chang aka DJ Zen. In addition to being one half of the band Latryx with Lateef, Lyrics Born has released two albums, three mix tapes, a remix album and a live album as a solo artist. His single "Callin' Out" was featured in a Diet Coke advertisement featuring Adrian Brody, while his single "I Like It, I Love It" was featured in a Playstation 3 advertisement. His rhymes are as diverse as his mu

Sacramento's music scene looks to be pretty busy this next week, from club shows to ticket on-sales for some of the biggest names in the world. Tickets on sale include those for Coldplay's summer tour, which is scheduled for the Sleep Train Amphitheatre on July 14.  Tickets go on sale Saturday morning at 10 a.m.  Another big name tour going on sale will not hit Sacramento - at least it hasn't been announced - but it is a show that will please Sacramento's classic rock-hungry concert-going audience: Eric Clapton's duo tour with Steve Winwood. The two were band mates in the 1969 "supergroup," Blind Faith, and songs from that band's one album, including Winwood's stoner classic, "Can't Find