He said it on his 2004 studio album, A Long Hot Summer, and we'll say it again: "Ain't nothin' like hip hop music. That's why we choose it. The world just can't refuse it." Let that be the chant that ignites warm weather memories amongst your comrades and sends feel-good vibrations through your entire body, as legendary hip hop revolutionary Masta Ace takes you back to the hypnotic beats and classic street corner music of the underground NYC scene of the early 1990s tonight at Duke's.

Brooklyn born and bred, the NYC-based MC got his start in the business as a member of the acclaimed '80s hip hop collective the Juice Crew, whose roster boasts underground hip hop sensations Kool G Rap, Big Daddy Kane, Craig G, and Biz Markie. In 1990, his debut album, Take a Look Around, produced two sizzling standout singles, the cooly confident and rock sampled "Music Man" and the cheeky and playfully constructed "Me & The Biz." From there, Masta Ace went on to produce his 1995 release, Sittin' on Chrome, which was met by tremendous commercial success as it made its way to the Top 20 list on Billboard's R&B/hip hop album chart. Emerging from the 1990s as an influential scene stealer, the emcee directed all of his momentum into his 2001 lyrical masterwork, arguably one of his most widely celebrated projects, Disposable Arts, which is most notable for its inventive storyline album concept. Finally, 2012 saw the release of MA DOOM: Son of Yvonne, an album through which he intimately speaks to his mother after her passing.

The 46-year-old Brooklyn emcee is currently on a Canadian tour, and according to Duke's entertainment director JJ Alfieri, the favorite local Buffalo bar is his only US stop. "The tours (old school hip hop artists) do now and the performances they do now especially at clubs like Duke's really revolve around reconnecting with their fans," JJ said, who remembers lively and typical summer strolls down Hertel Avenue and hearing the Masta Ace cult hit "Born to Roll" blasting from cars with their tops rolled back. "We're lucky to get these guys in here." But with such an impressive discography under his belt, who's to say there's really a "Finally" on the timeline of such an accomplished hip hop veteran and man on the move? There's not really. With a constant itch to create, Masta Ace's hustle is unstoppable, and last night he stopped by the recording studio at Nickel City Records in Downtown Buffalo, the brainchild of sought-out, college-aged producer Jamie Catania and director of music Jake Sabers, to produce a special track with some young bucks from the underground, Natural Ingredients. In-studio guests included Prime Example, Koolie High, and Charlie the Butcher (all pictured above with Masta Ace, right.) A passing of the torch so to speak? Quite possibly. Masta Ace will be joined tonight by fellow eMC crew members Wordsworth, Stricklin, hip hop group Natural Ingredients, DJ LoPro and Charlie the Butcher. The show starts at 10 pm. Tickets are $10 at the door. See you there.

Photo by J.K. Media