I’ll probably be branded a traitor for doing this. The tag “hipster rap” is anathema to most of the artists who have been branded with it. These people would like you to know that what they make is simply hip hop, not hipster rap or nerdo rap or any such pigeonholing label. However, the useful thing about tags is that they allow you to promote a bunch of stuff you like that sort of shares a similar sensibility. So here’s a hipster rap primer: a guide to a bunch of artists who wear funky clothes, like geeky, old-school things, and make music that may be rap but is definitely not from the 50 Cent/mainstream radio school of rap.

(Song descriptions and downloadable playlist are available by visiting the original URL; click below.)