The Source (magazine)#The Source Awards

The Source was founded in August 1988, by two Harvard University students, David Mays and Jonathan Shecter. The two had the show Street Beat on the college radio station WHRB,{{cite web|last1=Adams|first1=Dart|title=How Boston quietly triumphed as a seminal rap city|url=https://www.npr.org/2023/07/17/1187519977/hip-hop-50-boston|publisher=NPR Music|date=July 17, 2023|access-date=August 17, 2024}} initially using The Source to promote it.{{sfn|Gorman|2022|p=323}} According to Mays, the name of the magazine comes from the song "Ya Slippin'" by Boogie Down Productions.{{sfn|Mays|2022|loc=at 33:30}} The first issue was a one-page newsletter, distributed for free. It was printed on Mays's personal Macintosh computer and funded with $200 of their own money.{{cite news|last=Mehren|first=Elizabeth|date=April 16, 1990|title=Head of the Class in College of Letters, Arts and Rap|department=Calendar|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1990-04-16-ca-933-story.html|work=Los Angeles Times|page=F1|access-date=August 15, 2024}} Initially, the magazine's readership was drawn from the mailing list of the radio show's listeners. Two other Harvard students, H. Edward Young and James Bernard, soon joined the team; Young helped Mays with the business side of the magazine, while Bernard and Shecter worked on its content. With a $10,000 loan from a friend they purchased better hardware and rented an office in Somerville, Massachusetts, which allowed them to publish 10,000 copies every two months. During its first year, the magazine adopted full-color covers,{{sfn|Chang|2005|page=411}} and then transitioned into a professionally designed 64-page monthly magazine during the second year.{{cite news|last=Tommasini|first=Anthony|date=January 28, 1990|title=Yo! Harvard hip-hop. Two seniors have a hit in their rap-music magazine|url=https://newspapers.com/article/the-boston-globe-article-about-the-sourc/153336429/|via=Newspapers.com|work=The Boston Globe|page=B33, [https://newspapers.com/article/the-boston-globe-article-about-the-sourc/153336722/ B36]|access-date=August 15, 2024}}

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| quote = There was better criticism to be had in The Village Voice, better industry coverage in Billboard, better reporting and actual copy-editing in Spin, but The Source had the authority of young heads on a mission.

| source = Jeff Chang, Can't Stop Won't Stop: A History of the Hip-Hop Generation{{sfn|Chang|2005|page=412}}

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After Mays and Shecter graduated in June 1990, the magazine moved from Boston, Massachusetts to New York City.{{cite news|last=Cox|first=Meg|date=September 25, 1991|title=Little Rap-Music Magazine Has Big Aims|work=The Wall Street Journal|pages=B1–B2|location=New York|id={{ProQuest|398258000}}}}{{cite news|last=McShane|first=Larry|date=October 13, 1991|title=Rap magazine has Harvard roots|url=https://newspapers.com/article/the-palm-beach-post-article-about-the-so/153333295/|via=Newspapers.com|work=The Palm Beach Post|page=2L|access-date=August 15, 2024}} To financially support the move, the team asked for advance payments for ads from several record labels, raising $70,000. Their editorial team, called the Mind Squad, was also growing; by 1991, it included Reginald Dennis, Chris Wilder, Matteo "Matty C" Capoluongo, Rob "Reef" Tewlow, Bobbito Garcia, dream hampton, and Kierna Mayo, along with other contributors.{{sfn|Chang|2005|pages=411, 414}} Matty C was responsible for the "Unsigned Hype" section, which showcased up-and-coming rappers,{{sfn|Abrams|2022|p=348}} and helped launch careers of numerous artists, including Notorious B.I.G., DMX, Common, Mobb Deep, DJ Shadow, and Eminem.{{sfn|Chang|2005|page=413}}{{cite web|title=Eminem-Source feud wounds both sides|url=https://www.today.com/popculture/eminem-source-feud-wounds-both-sides-wbna4143570|website=Today|agency=The Associated Press|date=February 5, 2004|access-date=August 18, 2024}} James Bernard became the magazine's coeditor-in-chief, Chris Wilder was its senior editor.{{sfn|Chang|2005|page=414}} Reginald Dennis, who joined the magazine as an intern, became its music editor, responsible for the "Record Report" album review section. The Source{{'s}} album ratings, presented on a scale from one to five microphones ("mics"),{{efn|Initially, The Source{{'s}} album reviews did not include ratings. When the magazine began using ratings, it first used exploding records, which were later replaced by microphones.{{sfn|Dennis|2005}}}} often led to hot debates, both inside the Mind Squad and outside of the magazine.{{sfn|Chang|2005|page=413}}{{sfn|Gorman|2022|pp=324–326}} Pitchfork{{'s}} Dean Van Nguyen wrote: "The Source{{'s}} mic-based rating system became the most trusted scale of quality in rap".{{cite web|last1=Nguyen|first1=Dean Van|title=How a Group of Journalists Turned Hip-Hop Into a Literary Movement|url=https://pitchfork.com/features/article/how-a-group-of-journalists-turned-hip-hop-into-a-literary-movement/|website=Pitchfork|date=March 12, 2018|access-date=August 17, 2024}} The magazine's highest rating—five mics, signifying "a hip-hop classic"—became highly sought-after.{{cite web|last1=Orosz|first1=Nora Grayce|last2=Scarano|first2=Ross|last3=Gale|first3=Alex|last4=Rocque|first4=Anslem|last5=Frydenlund|first5=Zach|last6=Bengtson|first6=Russ|last7=Tharpe|first7=Frazier|last8=Ortiz|first8=Edwin|last9=Klinkenberg|first9=Brendan|last10=Diaz|first10=Angel|title=What Makes a Classic Rap Album?|url=https://www.complex.com/music/a/nora-grayce-orosz/what-makes-a-classic-album|website=Complex|date=May 16, 2017|access-date=August 17, 2024}} "That half-mic to five-mic system really meant something to hip-hop artists. People wanted to start fights with Source writers over reviews—and some writers got terrorized", said Greg Tate.

Since its early days, the magazine branched out from hip-hop music into topics like fashion, graffiti, and politics, highlighting various issues affecting the Black community.{{sfn|Chang|2005|pages=413–414}} Adopting the tagline "the magazine of hip-hop music, culture & politics",{{cite web|last1=Caramanica|first1=Jon|author-link1=Jon Caramanica|title=How Did The Source Cover the 1992 Los Angeles Uprisings?|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/07/arts/music/popcast-the-source-rodney-king.html|website=The New York Times|date=June 7, 2020|access-date=August 18, 2024}} The Source published stories on protests against police brutality, misogyny and violence against women.{{cite magazine|last=Léger|first=Dimitry Elias|author-link=Dimitry Elias Léger|date=September 19, 2014|title=When The Source Magazine Was the Source of All Cool|url=https://observer.com/2014/09/the-source-magazine-turns-25/|magazine=The New York Observer|access-date=August 15, 2024}} In 1991, the magazine hosted a summit for rappers affiliated with the Five-Percent Nation.{{cite news|last=Hochman|first=Steve|date=July 7, 1991|title=Radical: Extreme Islamic Beliefs Are Finding An Outlet In Rap|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/st-louis-post-dispatch-five-percent-nat/91169590/|via=Newspapers.com|work=St. Louis Post-Dispatch|page=4C|access-date=August 15, 2024}} Next year, James Bernard flew to Los Angeles during the riots and spent several days interviewing locals, publishing an article that stood apart from the coverage by the mainstream media.

By 1991, The Source had a circulation of 40,000 and reached nearly a million dollars in revenue.{{sfn|Chang|2005|page=415}} David Mays said in an interview with The Wall Street Journal that he wanted The Source to be "Rolling Stone of the next generation". Chuck D of Public Enemy praised The Source, calling it "the bible of the hip-hop industry";{{cite news|author= |title=1-page newsletter grows into the 1st national rap magazine|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/chicago-tribune-article-about-the-source/153565759/|via=Newspapers.com|work=Chicago Tribune|at=sect. 5, p. 15I|date=June 20, 1991|access-date=August 19, 2024}} the phrase was shortened to "the bible of hip-hop" and used by the magazine throughout its history. The magazine, that was previously sold via subscriptions and in record stores, now had newsstand distribution across the United States. It was also available in Canada, England, Australia, Italy, and the Netherlands. Mays, Shecter, and Bernard discussed selling the magazine to the producer Quincy Jones, the entrepreneur Russell Simmons, and the media conglomerate Time Warner. The negotiations were unsuccessful, because the team thought Time Warner's offer was too low. Two years later, Jones launched a competing magazine, Vibe.{{sfn|Chang|2005|page=423–424}}

The Source continued growing in the following years, reaching a circulation of 100,000 copies in 1994.{{cite news|author= |title=Black magazines blossom|url=https://newspapers.com/article/reno-gazette-journal-the-source-magazine/153636468|via=Newspapers.com|work=Reno Gazette-Journal|page=39|date=March 10, 1994|access-date=August 20, 2024}} On April 25 of that year, the magazine launched its first Source Awards show.{{cite magazine|last=Nelson|first=Havelock|author-link=Havelock Nelson (writer)|date=May 7, 1994|title=Source Awards Make Choppy Debut|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=SAgEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA28|via=Google Books|magazine=Billboard|page=28|location=New York|access-date=August 18, 2024}} Prior to the creation of the standalone event, the magazine awarded artists in a special segment of the music show Yo! MTV Raps.{{sfn|Mays|Scott|2015}} The award show was created by David Mays, with him and the rest of the staff believing that other awards, such as the Grammy Awards, underappreciated hip-hop. Tickets for the show sold out in minutes; however, TV networks refused to broadcast it.{{cite magazine|last=Graff|first=Gary|date=April 25, 1994|title=Hip-hop gets its due with Source Awards|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/detroit-free-press-article-about-the-sou/153635948|via=Newspapers.com|magazine=Detroit Free Press|page=3E|access-date=August 20, 2024}}

The magazine was now the target of criticism and attacks. "Angry over negative coverage or reviews, sometimes even angry over positive coverage, rappers and their handlers issued threats that sometimes became physical attacks", wrote Jeff Chang.{{sfn|Chang|2005|page=426}} David Mays, who had not been involved in the magazine's editorial side since 1989, now frequently relayed them the complaints he received from rappers, managers, and their labels about certain reviews; the editors ignored him.{{sfn|Chang|2005|page=427}} Rapper KRS-One threatened to boycott the Source Awards, believing that the magazine's staff did not have the authority to judge hip-hop artists.{{sfn|Gorman|2022|pp=324–326}} Public Enemy, whose leader previously praised The Source, now released a music video for the song "I Stand Accused", where they destroy the offices of The Sauce magazine. Cypress Hill has burned copies of the magazine during their concerts.{{cite news|last=Wartofsky|first=Alona|date=January 1, 1999|title=More Magazines Jostling to Cover Lucrative Hip-Hop Beat|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1999-jan-01-ca-59427-story.html|work=Los Angeles Times|page=F18|access-date=August 20, 2024}} West Coast hip-hop artists believed their scene was underrepresented by The Source, which led to the creation of West Coast-focused Rap Pages.{{sfn|McLeod|2002|page=158}}

Another point of contention, brought up by KRS-One and other critics of the magazine, was a conflict of interest.{{sfn|Gorman|2022|pp=324–326}}{{cite web|last1=Dukes|first1=Rahman|title=Benzino Ignites Beef By Calling Eminem '2003 Vanilla Ice'|url=http://www.mtv.com:80/news/1458854/benzino-ignites-beef-by-calling-eminem-2003-vanilla-ice/|publisher=MTV|date=November 22, 2002|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141011225238/http://www.mtv.com:80/news/1458854/benzino-ignites-beef-by-calling-eminem-2003-vanilla-ice/|archive-date=October 11, 2014|access-date=August 22, 2024}} During the early days in Boston, David Mays befriended the local rapper Raymond "Ray Dog" Scott, who later chose the stage name Benzino. Along with several other rappers, Benzino formed the Almighty RSO. According to James Bernard, Mays was the group's manager,{{cite news|last=|first=|date=October 14, 1994|title='Source' in Raydog fight|url=https://newspapers.com/article/the-tennessean-article-about-the-source/153341339/|via=Newspapers.com|work=The Tennessean|agency=Billboard Publications|page=35|access-date=August 15, 2024}} who helped them get signed to RCA Records.{{cite news|last=Kurtz|first=Howard|author-link=Howard Kurtz|date=September 29, 1994|title=Credibility Rap in N.Y.; Editors Rip Boss's Connection to Band|newspaper=The Washington Post|page=D02}} At the time, Mays denied being the group's manager, but confirmed that he presented their demo tapes to various record labels.{{cite news|last=Goetz|first=Thomas|date=October 11, 1994|volume=39|number=41|title=Cut off at The Source|url=|work=The Village Voice|department=Rockbeat|page=88}} The rest of Mind Squad refused to review the group's upcoming EP Revenge of da Badd Boyz. They accused the group of intimidating the magazine's editors, with Bernard claiming Benzino threatened to "[put them] in bodybags" if the EP received less than 4 mics.{{sfn|Chang|2005|page=429}}{{cite magazine|last=Tyrangiel|first=Josh|date=January 5, 2004|title=A Source of Discomfort|url=https://content.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,570256,00.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230102122802/https://content.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,570256,00.html|archive-date=January 2, 2023|magazine=Time|page=|location=New York|access-date=August 15, 2024}} Mays asked Bernard for "fair and objective coverage of RSO". In a later interview, Mays said that he believes that "the [magazine's] success was going through [some of the editors'] heads" and that the attitude shift caused them to lose the genuine passion and appreciation for the music and culture.{{sfn|Mays|2022|loc=at 51:20}} After Bernard refused to cover the Almighty RSO, Mays chose to do it himself.

In September 1994, when the November issue of The Source was already prepared for printing, Mays secretly added a feature article about the Almighty RSO.{{sfn|Chang|2005|page=430}} The article, titled "Boston Bigshots", was written by Mays himself and Bönz Malone. Described by The New York Times as laudatory,{{cite news|last=Carmody|first=Deirdre|title=The Media Business: Magazines|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1994/10/17/business/the-media-business-magazines.html|work=The New York Times|date=October 17, 1994|page=D8|access-date=August 20, 2024}} the article did not disclose any connections between its authors and the group. It is not mentioned in the magazine's table of contents, as the pages used by it were prepared for advertisements. No other members of the Mind Squad knew about the article's existence. When Bernard found out about it, he called the rest of the staff for an emergency meeting, where they decided that Mays needed to resign. After Bernard and Shecter confronted him next day, he called Benzino, who in turn called Shecter to threaten him. When Shecter went to the police with a recording of the call, he was advised to resolve the conflict without arresting Benzino. On the next day, when the Almighty RSO had a press day at RCA, James Bernard and Reginald Dennis went there to hand Benzino a summon. When he realized they were there to "embarrass" him, four members of RSO started a fight with Bernard and Dennis.{{sfn|Chang|2005|pages=430–432}} Benzino claims the group threw the journalists through a glass door, losing the deal with RCA as the result.{{sfn|Scott|2023|loc=at 1:22:57}} After returning to The Source offices, Bernard sent his resignation letter via fax machine to 750 music industry executives.{{sfn|Chang|2005|page=432}} In the five-page letter, Bernard denounced Mays and called for his resignation. When they saw that public condemnation of Mays had no effect, they attempted to force him to sell his share of the magazine. However, they needed the support of the fourth owner, H. Edward Young.{{sfn|Chang|2005|page=432}} When he refused to cooperate, Bernard, Shecter, Dennis, and six other editors left the magazine.{{sfn|Gorman|2022|pp=324–326}}{{sfn|Chang|2005|page=432}} Despite the setback, the magazine published its next, December 1994 issue on time, with the help of temporary writers. Bernard and Shecter received stock certificates, which Mays later bought back. In 1997, Bernard and Dennis launched XXL magazine,{{sfn|Chang|2005|page=433}} which would be The Source{{'s}} main competitor throughout the early 2000s.{{cite news|last=Ogunnaike|first=Lola|author-link=Lola Ogunnaike|date=January 29, 2003|title=War of the Words at Hip-Hop Magazines|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2003/01/29/arts/war-of-the-words-at-hip-hop-magazines.html|work=The New York Times|page=E1, E8|access-date=August 18, 2024}}

Following the editors' walkout, Benzino gradually became more involved with the magazine. In 1995, he became a business partner of Mays, with Los Angeles Times describing his role as a "charismatic consultant". His involvement was not officially acknowledged until 2002. Critics of The Source believed Benzino received preferential treatment in the magazine and later used it during his feuds.{{cite news|last=Boucher|first=Geoff|date=January 17, 2003|title=Rapping out battle lines|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2003-jan-17-et-boucher17-story.html|work=Los Angeles Times|page=|access-date=August 18, 2024}} "[Benzino] increasingly became [the magazine's] public face, particularly when he provoked bitter feuds", wrote Paul Gorman in his book Totally Wired.{{sfn|Gorman|2022|pp=324–326}}

The magazine's next event, the 1995 Source Awards, was the first rap award show ever televised.{{cite news|last=Deggans|first=Eric|date=August 5, 1995|title=Rough start for first TV rap awards|url=https://newspapers.com/article/asbury-park-press-article-about-1995-sou/153816315/|via=Newspapers.com|work=Asbury Park Press|page=C3|access-date=August 23, 2024}} The show is considered an important moment in hip-hop's history and is often seen as the catalyst for the East Coast–West Coast hip-hop rivalry.{{cite magazine|last1=Ramirez|first1=Erika|title=Throwback Thursday: Suge Knight Disses Diddy at 1995 Source Awards|url=https://www.billboard.com/music/rb-hip-hop/throwback-thursday-suge-knight-diddy-1995-source-awards-6363520/|magazine=Billboard|date=December 4, 2014|access-date=August 22, 2024}}{{cite web|last1=Greene|first1=Andy|title=The 50 Worst Decisions in Music History|url=https://au.rollingstone.com/music/music-lists/the-50-worst-decisions-in-music-history-44119/suge-knight-addresses-the-1995-source-awards-44150/|website=Rolling Stone Australia|date=November 28, 2022|access-date=August 22, 2024}}{{cite web|last1=Berry|first1=Peter A.|title=Diddy Claims He Confronted Suge Knight After Infamous 1995 Source Awards Speech|url=https://www.xxlmag.com/diddy-claims-confronted-suge-source-awards/|website=XXL|date=November 30, 2016|access-date=August 22, 2024}} In his op-ed for Time magazine, Questlove of the Roots, who attended the show, described it as a "funeral in hip hop's history".{{cite magazine|last1=Thompson|first1=Ahmir "Questlove"|author-link=Questlove|title=The Day Hip-Hop Changed Forever|url=https://time.com/6302777/questlove-hip-hop-legacy-essay/|magazine=Time|date=August 10, 2023|access-date=August 15, 2024}} While receiving an award, Death Row's CEO Suge Knight invited other artists to join his label if they did not want to "worry about the executive producer trying to be all in the videos, all on the record, dancing". This comment was widely interpreted as a jab aimed at Puff Daddy, CEO of the East Coast label Bad Boy.{{cite magazine|last1=Ramirez|first1=Erika|title=Throwback Thursday: Suge Knight Disses Diddy at 1995 Source Awards|url=https://www.billboard.com/music/rb-hip-hop/throwback-thursday-suge-knight-diddy-1995-source-awards-6363520/|magazine=Billboard|date=December 4, 2014|access-date=November 7, 2024}}{{cite web|last1=Ahmed|first1=Insanul|title=All In the Video: Diddy's 10 Best Cameos|url=https://www.complex.com/music/a/insanul-ahmed/all-in-the-video-diddys-10-best-cameos|website=Complex|date=May 6, 2010|access-date=November 7, 2024}} During the same ceremony, the Southern hip-hop group Outkast was booed by the rest of the audience as they accepted the award for Best New Artist.{{cite web|last1=Fertel|first1=Rien|title=The South got something to say in Chronicling Stankonia|url=https://www.avclub.com/the-south-got-something-to-say-in-chronicling-stankonia-1846273852|website=The A.V. Club|date=February 22, 2021|access-date=November 7, 2024}} Frustrated, the group's member André 3000 ended his speech with "the South got something to say"—a line that, according to Sierra A. Porter of USA Today, "became a mantra" for Southern hip-hop artists.{{cite news|last1=Porter|first1=Sierra A.|title='The South got something to say': Inside the rise of Atlanta hip-hop|url=https://eu.usatoday.com/in-depth/entertainment/music/2021/02/10/atlanta-hip-hop-how-outkast-goodie-mob-changed-rap-forever/4407393001/|work=USA Today|date=February 10, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221206034237/https://eu.usatoday.com/in-depth/entertainment/music/2021/02/10/atlanta-hip-hop-how-outkast-goodie-mob-changed-rap-forever/4407393001/|archive-date=December 6, 2022|access-date=November 7, 2024}} Over the following years, Southern hip-hop rose to prominence, reshaping the sound and landscape of hip-hop.{{cite news|last1=Brasch|first1=Ben|title=How André 3000's 'the South got something to say' speech changed hip-hop|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/history/2023/08/07/hip-hop-andre-3000-southern-rap/|newspaper=The Washington Post|date=August 7, 2023|access-date=November 7, 2024}}

The magazine continued expanding throughout the second half of the 1990s. Apart from the award show, David Mays launched syndicated The Source Magazine Radio Network, The Source Magazine All Hip-Hop Hour television program, The Source Presents: Hip Hop Hits compilation album series, and The Source Youth Foundation.{{sfn|Chang|2005|p=433}} By 1997, The Source was the highest selling music magazine on newsstands in the United States, with circulation of 317,369 copies compared to Rolling Stone{{'s}} 169,625 copies.{{sfn|McLeod|2002|p=157}}{{cite news|last=Holmes|first=Emory II|newspaper=Los Angeles Times|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1999-aug-20-ca-1854-story.html|title=Hip-Hop Goes Prime Time With Source Music Awards|date=August 20, 1999|archive-date=September 5, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230905175118/https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1999-aug-20-ca-1854-story.html|url-status=live|access-date=August 15, 2024}} The same year Mays and Rolling Stone{{'s}} co-founder Jann Wenner entered partnership negotiations, but the two could not agree on terms.{{sfn|Chang|2005|p=433}}

After the original Mind Squad left the magazine in 1994, the editorial side was led by Bönz Malone, Marc "Ronin Ro" Flores, and Adario Strange, who became editor-in-chief in 1995. Selwyn Seyfu Hinds, who previously worked at The Village Voice, was chosen for music editor position. Hinds brought more editors, such as Tracii McGregor and Ego Trip{{'s}} co-founder Elliott Wilson.{{cite magazine|last=Dunn|first=Faith|date=April 2006|issue=198|title=Knowledge of Self|magazine=The Source|pages=44–51|location=New York}} When Adario Strange left the magazine in 1997, Selwyn Seyfu Hinds replaced him as editor-in-chief, while Elliott Wilson became The Source{{'s}} music editor. Edward Young, the last original partner of David Mays, also left the magazine in 1997.

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| quote = This is what the journalists didn't understand. If they give [artists] two and a half mics and the label that the group came from is paying us half a million a year in advertisement, it doesn't work good for us. [...] Integrity, integrity... Integrity don't pay the bills.

| source = Interview with Benzino, 2023{{sfn|Scott|2023|loc=at 1:46:29}}

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In 1998, Elliott Wilson left The Source, stating that he resigned after discovering that David Mays had secretly increased the album ratings of Kurupt's Kuruption! and Canibus' Can-I-Bus.{{sfn|Wilson|2024|loc=at 1:10:00}} In a later interview, Wilson said that, in hindsight, he does not consider the rating change to be significant.{{sfn|Wilson|2024|loc=at 1:11:47}} "But you couldn't tell me nothing at that time, 'cause I'm all young and passionate, I've been done wrong and this isn't right", said the journalist.{{sfn|Wilson|2024|loc=at 1:12:13}} A year later Elliott Wilson joined the competing magazine XXL as editor-in-chief.{{cite news|last=Wartofsky|first=Alona|date=February 25, 2003|title=Ink-Splattered Hip-Hop Rivalry; Magazines XXL and the Source Feud On|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/2003/02/25/ink-splattered-hip-hop-rivalry/0a55761f-45e8-4726-943b-f1aa8a7705d6/|newspaper=The Washington Post|page=C.01|access-date=November 13, 2024}} Driven by "personal resentment", he made it his goal to overtake The Source as the most popular hip-hop magazine.

The magazine further expanded in 1998 with the launch of its website.{{cite news|newspaper=Advertising Age|url=https://adage.com/article/news/jamtv-brings-hip-hop-online-source/5752|title=JamTV brings hip-hop online with The Source|date=August 26, 1998|access-date=January 2, 2023|archive-date=September 5, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230905175125/https://adage.com/article/news/jamtv-brings-hip-hop-online-source/5752|url-status=live}} According to David Mays, maintaining full ownership was important to him. Rather than launching the website in a partnership and splitting expenses, he funded its development with a $12 million loan, using the magazine as collateral.{{sfn|Mays|2021}} "I took a gamble that in retrospect I shouldn't have taken", said Mays in a 2022 interview.{{sfn|Mays|2022|at=1:26:36}} Burdened by loan payments in the wake of the dot-com crash, in 2002 he sold 18% of the magazine to the private equity firm Black Enterprise/Greenwich Street for $12 million.{{sfn|Mays|2022|at=1:27:28}} Later that year Mays received an $18 million loan from Textron Financial, which he used to repay an earlier loan and cover the losses.{{cite magazine|last=Golianopoulos|first=Thomas|date=September 20, 2011|title=How Dave Mays and Benzino Got Back in the Game with Hip Hop Weekly|url=https://observer.com/2011/09/how-dave-mays-and-benzino-got-back-in-the-game-with-hip-hop-weekly/|magazine=The New York Observer|access-date=August 15, 2024}}

The circulation reached 450,000 in 1999.{{cite news|last=Freedom du Lac|first=Josh|date=August 20, 1999|title=Go to The Source|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-sacramento-bee-the-source-article/158665037/|via=Newspapers.com|work=The Sacramento Bee|pages=G1, G3|access-date=November 8, 2024}} The same year Selwyn Hinds resigned following a disagreement with Benzino. Made Men, Benzino's new group, was preparing the release of their debut album, Classic Limited Edition.{{cite web|last1=Sokol|first1=Brett|title=Still in the Hood|url=https://www.miaminewtimes.com/news/still-in-the-hood-6347881|website=Miami New Times|access-date=December 2, 2024|date=May 22, 2003|archive-date=November 19, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231119163157/https://www.miaminewtimes.com/news/still-in-the-hood-6347881|url-status=live}} The magazine's Source Films was working on the heavily advertised Made Men movie. After the group was placed on the cover of Rap Pages magazine, Benzino demanded the same treatment from The Source. According to Miami New Times, Hinds left the magazine after a tense meeting with Benzino, who was dissatisfied with "Hinds treating the Made Men as something less than superstars" and refusing to give them a cover story. Los Angeles Times wrote that Hinds left after the review of Classic Limited Edition was altered. In the review, written by a fictitious pseudonymous editor, the album received a near-perfect 4.5 mics rating.{{cite web|last1=Dukes|first1=Rahman|title=Benzino, Love & Hip-Hop Star To Appear On RapFix Live|url=https://www.mtv.com/news/992lfo/benzino-to-appear-on-rapfix-live|website=MTV|access-date=December 2, 2024|date=August 8, 2012|archive-date=November 19, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231119164658/https://www.mtv.com/news/992lfo/benzino-to-appear-on-rapfix-live|url-status=dead}} After Hinds' departure, Carlito Rodriguez was named the next editor-in-chief.

After a several-year hiatus, the Source Awards returned in 1999. The next two events were held in California, airing in prime time on national television.{{cite web|last1=Storm|first1=Mason|title=Source Awards Move to Miami|url=https://hiphopdx.com/news/id.207/title.source-awards-move-to-miami|website=HipHopDX|date=June 14, 2001|access-date=December 11, 2024}} The 2000 event ended abruptly when police intervened following a fight on stage.{{cite magazine|last=Hall|first=Rashaun|date=September 2, 2000|title=Altercations Erupt At Hip-Hop Awards|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fBEEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA6|via=Google Books|magazine=Billboard|page=6|access-date=December 11, 2024}}{{cite magazine|author= |title=The Rolling Stone Rock & Roll Year 2000 In Review: For Best Brawl...|magazine=Rolling Stone|date=December 28, 2000 – January 4, 2001|issue=858–859|page=68}} In 2001, the awards moved to Miami, Florida, with improved security measures following the incident.

The Source launched three international editions: The Source Latino, The Source France, and The Source Japan.{{cite web|last1=Watkins|first1=Greg|title=Benzino: Pump Up the Volume|url=https://allhiphop.com/features/benzino-pump-up-the-volume/|website=AllHipHop|date=November 9, 2005|access-date=April 22, 2025}} The French version, launched in 2003, did not meet expected readership levels, with the heavily promoted first issue selling 14,000 copies out of 70,000 printed. By the time it closed in 2005, its monthly readership had dropped to 6,500.{{cite web|last1=Lewis|first1=Miles Marshall|author-link=Miles Marshall Lewis|title=Hiphop Négritude|url=https://www.popmatters.com/lewis051123-2496177571.html|website=PopMatters|date=November 22, 2005|access-date=April 22, 2025}}

Soon after Carlito Rodriguez left The Source in 2002, music editor Kim Osorio became its first female editor-in-chief.{{cite news|last=Clemente|first=Rosa|date=November 1–7, 2006|title=All Eyes on Her|url=http://www.villagevoice.com/music/0644,clemente,74884,22.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070616094241/http://www.villagevoice.com/music/0644,clemente,74884,22.html|archive-date=June 16, 2007|work=The Village Voice|page=85|access-date=December 11, 2024}}{{cite web|last1=Eustice|first1=Kyle|title=Former 'Source' Editor-In-Chief Kim Osorio Applauds Women In Hip Hop But Says There's A 'Long Way To Go'|url=https://hiphopdx.com/news/id.69185/title.former-source-editor-in-chief-kim-osorio-applauds-women-in-hip-hop-but-says-theres-a-long-way-to-go|website=HipHopDX|date=March 30, 2022|access-date=December 11, 2024}} During her tenure, the magazine's circulation peaked at nearly 500,000 copies. The magazine was also embroiled in several feuds during that era. Elliott Wilson, then editor-in-chief of XXL magazine, began attacking The Source and its staff. In December 2002, he placed an ad in Billboard magazine, urging advertisers to switch from The Source to XXL. Over the following months, Wilson and Osorio exchanged attacks in the editorials of their respective magazines. The February 2003 issue of The Source featured a poster with a cartoon muscleman breaking Elliott Wilson in half. In response, XXL published a caricature of aged Benzino with his son. According to Elliott Wilson, Benzino, furious over the caricature, confronted him in the XXL office, prompting Wilson to stop the attacks.{{sfn|Wilson|2024|at=1:24:37}}

Another, highly publicized feud was between Benzino and the rapper Eminem.{{cite web|last1=Ryon|first1=Sean|title=Benzino Apologizes For Feud With Eminem|url=https://hiphopdx.com/news/id.20869/title.benzino-apologizes-for-feud-with-eminem|website=HipHopDX|date=August 21, 2012|access-date=December 12, 2024}}{{efn|At the beginning of his career, Eminem was featured in the Unsigned Hype column in 1998.}} Believing that Eminem is an industry plant who "takes sales away from all the other rappers",{{sfn|Gorman|2022|pp=324–326}}{{cite magazine|last=Eliscu|first=Jenny|author-link=Jenny Eliscu|date=January 23, 2003|issue=914|title=Eminem's Nemesis|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/benzino-eminem-feud-heats-up-186119/|magazine=Rolling Stone|page=13|access-date=December 12, 2024}} Benzino attacked him with several diss tracks.{{cite magazine|last1=Elibert|first1=Mark|title=A History of Eminem's Beefs, From Machine Gun Kelly to Mariah Carey, Joe Budden & Ja Rule|url=https://www.billboard.com/lists/eminem-beefs-explained/benzino/|magazine=Billboard|date=June 3, 2024|access-date=December 12, 2024}} Eminem responded with his own diss tracks, including "Nail in the Coffin", which, according to Billboard, "marked the start of what would turn out to be a swift decline [of The Source] from the top of the rap media world".{{cite magazine|last1=Scott|first1=Damien|last2=Lamarre|first2=Carl|last3=Diaz|first3=Angel|last4=Saponara|first4=Michael|last5=Denis|first5=Kyle|title=The 15 Most Scathing Hip-Hop Diss Songs of All Time|url=https://www.billboard.com/lists/diss-songs-rap/eminem-nail-in-the-coffin/|magazine=Billboard|date=May 23, 2024|access-date=December 12, 2024}} When Benzino was added to the magazine's masthead as a co-founder in 2003, he began using the magazine as a platform to attack Eminem.{{cite news|last=Sanneh|first=Kelefa|author-link=Kelefa Sanneh|date=November 20, 2003|title=Unguarded Lyrics Embarrass Eminem|department=Critic's Notebook|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2003/11/20/arts/critic-s-notebook-unguarded-lyrics-embarrass-eminem.html|work=The New York Times|page=E.1|access-date=December 12, 2024}}{{cite magazine|last1=Elibert|first1=Mark|title=A History of Eminem's Beefs, From Machine Gun Kelly to Mariah Carey, Joe Budden & Ja Rule|url=https://www.billboard.com/lists/eminem-beefs-explained/benzino/|magazine=Billboard|date=June 3, 2024|access-date=September 2, 2024}} In February, the magazine published an essay titled "The Unbearable Whiteness of Emceeing", criticizing Eminem. This issue also included a poster with a cartoon depiction of Benzino holding Eminem's severed head. In response, Eminem's label, Interscope, pulled its advertisements from The Source,{{cite news|last=Younge|first=Gary|author-link=Gary Younge|date=January 31, 2003|title=War of words rocks world of hip-hop|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2003/jan/31/arts.pressandpublishing|work=The Guardian|page=1.21|location=London|access-date=December 12, 2024}} with Def Jam soon following them.{{cite news|last=Farber|first=Jim|date=August 3, 2005|title=A Source of Trouble|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/daily-news-the-source/160793095/|via=Newspapers.com|work=New York Daily News|page=35|access-date=December 13, 2024}} David Mays said in an interview that this move did not affect the magazine as these advertisements only accounted for a small fraction of their revenue.{{sfn|Mays|2022|at=1:35:43}} The 2003 Source Awards show in Miami was largely ignored by popular artists.{{cite news|last=McDonnell|first=Evelyn|author-link=Evelyn McDonnell|date=October 12, 2003|title=Will The Source Awards finally shake its bad rap?|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-miami-herald-the-source/161012513/|via=Newspapers.com|work=The Miami Herald|page=9M|access-date=December 16, 2024}} Despite previously having an unresolved conflict with XXL,{{sfn|Wilson|2024|at=1:19:30}} Eminem now began cooperating with the magazine. Its March 2003 issue, featuring Eminem, Dr. Dre, and 50 Cent on the cover, was the first XXL issue that outsold The Source on the newsstands.{{cite news|last1=Arango|first1=Tim|title=Rap Bible Bashed; the Source Hit Hard on Newsstand by Rival XXL|url=https://nypost.com/2003/05/19/rap-bible-bashed-the-source-hit-hard-on-newsstand-by-rival-xxl/|work=The New York Post|date=May 19, 2003|access-date=December 12, 2024}} According to Jeremy Miller, then chief operating officer of The Source, the feud with Eminem had a negative impact on the magazine's sales. "Within a year, newsstand sales went from 380,000 to 300,000 to 270,000. That was huge", said Miller. In 2004, The Source stopped providing its circulation data to the Audit Bureau of Circulations for an independent audit.

In November 2003, The Source held a press conference where Mays and Benzino played previously unreleased demo recordings of young Eminem, in which he expresses contempt towards Black women and uses racial slurs.{{cite news|last1=Lewis|first1=Randy|title=Eminem: Tape was 'foolishness'|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2003-nov-20-wk-quick20.4-story.html|work=Los Angeles Times|date=November 20, 2003|access-date=December 17, 2024}}{{cite news|last1=Gumbel|first1=Andrew|title=Eminem apologises for his old racist rap|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/eminem-apologises-for-his-old-racist-rap-79348.html|work=The Independent|date=November 21, 2003|access-date=December 17, 2024}} The magazine had planned to cover the recordings in detail,{{cite web|title=Court blocks release of racist Eminem songs|url=https://www.today.com/popculture/court-blocks-release-racist-eminem-songs-wbna3760604|website=Today|agency=The Associated Press|date=December 19, 2003|access-date=December 17, 2024}} but was ultimately allowed by the court to only release a 20-second snippet, which was included in the February 2004 issue.{{cite web|last1=Mcclam|first1=Erin|title=Eminem Vs. Source Magazine|url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/eminem-vs-source-magazine/|publisher=CBS News|date=June 10, 2004|access-date=August 15, 2024}}{{cite magazine|title=Judge OKs 'Source' Excerpt Of Eminem Song|url=https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/judge-oks-source-excerpt-of-eminem-song-67664/|magazine=Billboard|date=December 23, 2003|access-date=December 17, 2024}} Eminem publicly apologized for the lyrics, explaining that he was frustrated following a breakup with his Black girlfriend.{{cite news|last1=Ogunnaike|first1=Lola|title=Rivals Call Eminem Racist Over Lyrics From the Past|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2003/11/19/nyregion/rivals-call-eminem-racist-over-lyrics-from-the-past.html|work=The New York Times|date=November 19, 2003|access-date=December 17, 2024}} He later successfully sued The Source after the magazine posted full lyrics on its website.{{cite news|title=Eminem 'wins copyright wrangle'|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/3801091.stm|work=BBC News|date=June 12, 2004|access-date=December 17, 2024}}

Kim Osorio was fired from The Source in March 2005.{{cite news|last=Carlson|first=Peter|date=October 25, 2006|title=Hip-Hop Editor Wins Suit Over Her Firing|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/2006/10/25/hip-hop-editor-wins-suit-over-her-firing/ecd17878-c413-4877-a887-f8f2af240d7f/|newspaper=The Washington Post|page=|access-date=August 15, 2024}} Soon after, she sued the magazine, David Mays, and Benzino for sexual harassment, gender discrimination, defamation, retaliatory discharge and maintaining a hostile work environment. The jury dismissed the allegations of discrimination and sexual harassment, but ruled in favor of Osorio on her defamation and retaliation claims. She was initially awarded $15.5 million, though the amount was later reduced to $8 million.{{cite web|last1=Rhett|first1=S.|title=Kim Osorio Wins $8 Mil...Not $15 From The Source|url=https://hiphopdx.com/news/id.4595/title.kim-osorio-wins-8-mil-not-15-from-the-source|website=HipHopDX|date=November 2, 2006|access-date=December 29, 2024}}

Joshua "Fahiym" Ratcliffe was named the next editor-in-chief; he resigned five months later, due to a disagreement with Benzino over the score for Little Brother's album The Minstrel Show.{{cite news|last=Hunter|first=Aina|date=November 23, 2005|title=The Source Under Fire|url=https://www.villagevoice.com/the-source-under-fire/|work=The Village Voice|pages=26, 28, 30|access-date=August 15, 2024}}{{cite web|last1=Blanco|first1=Alvin "Aqua Boogie"|title=The Source's Editor-In-Chief Resigns|url=http://www.allhiphop.com/hiphopnews/|website=AllHipHop|date=August 16, 2005|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050817053542/http://www.allhiphop.com/hiphopnews/|archive-date=August 17, 2005|access-date=December 30, 2024}} Following his departure, former Village Voice writer Dasun Allah served as The Source{{'s}} editor-in-chief for four months before being fired.

Throughout the year, the magazine was targeted with several other lawsuits. Image Entertainment sued them for failing to produce two Hip Hop Hits compilation albums, as well as for copyright infringement on their previous compilation albums. Textron Financial filed a lawsuit seeking to place The Source into receivership, claiming it was owed $18 million. The company accused David Mays and Benzino of inadequate financial management, spending on "promotional jewelry" and vacations, while neglecting rent, bills, and taxes.

The contract Mays signed with Black Enterprise/Greenwich Street in 2002 allowed them to take control of the magazine if it defaults on the loan payments. While it was an improbable scenario in the early 2000s, when the magazine was at its peak, now this clause allowed the company to fire both David Mays and Benzino. Black Enterprise appointed Jeremy Miller as the new publisher of The Source. After an unsuccessful appeal,{{cite news|last=Hinckley|first=David|date=February 1, 2006|title=Going To The Source|department=Radio Dial|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/daily-news-the-source/160113887/|via=Newspapers.com|work=New York Daily News|page=88|access-date=December 2, 2024}} Mays and Benzino left the magazine in January 2006. Later that year, they launched Hip Hop Weekly, a bimonthly celebrity-focused magazine, modeled after Us Weekly and People.

As the new management began the reorganization process, they faced numerous challenges: the magazine lost advertisers, failed to pay former employees and creditors, and could not deliver new issues to 140,000 subscribers. With $1.3 million in assets and $35 million of debt, the magazine filed for bankruptcy in 2007.{{cite magazine|last=Slagle|first=Dana|title=The Source Magazine Files For Bankruptcy; Plans To Reorganize|date=May 21, 2007|volume=111|number=20|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8joDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA48|via=Google Books|magazine=Jet|location=Chicago|page=48|publisher=Johnson Publishing Company|access-date=August 15, 2024}} Entertainment lawyer and publisher L. Londell McMillan purchased The Source in August 2008.{{cite news|last=Fletcher|first=Heather|newspaper=AdWeek|url=https://www.adweek.com/media/co-owner-executive-publisher-l-londell-mcmillan-reveals-he-plans-revive-ailing-hip-hop-brand-difficult-economy-411900|title=Finding Success at The Source|date=September 1, 2009|access-date=August 15, 2024|url-access=subscription}} He was familiar with the magazine as he was one of its creditors. His goal was to "restore the editorial, creative and management integrity of the business". By the end of the year, he had successfully brought back several major advertisers.

Kim Osorio rejoined The Source in 2012 as editor-in-chief. When she left next year to focus on a television career, the magazine abolished the editor-in-chief position and switched to being run by a committee, with senior staff members overseeing its content and McMillan remaining the face of the magazine. With the rise of the Internet era and advertisement revenue further dropping, he had to downsize the team, eventually leaving only a skeleton crew and outsourcing content writing to independent journalists. The magazine switched to releasing an issue every two months, but still struggled with this schedule, publishing only three issues in 2014.{{cite web|last1=Suskind|first1=Alex|title=It Was All a Dream: Drama, Bullshit, and the Rebirth of The Source Magazine|url=https://www.thedailybeast.com/it-was-all-a-dream-drama-bullshit-and-the-rebirth-of-the-source-magazine|website=The Daily Beast|date=October 14, 2014|access-date=August 15, 2024}}

The Record Report is a section in the publication in which the magazine's staff rates hip-hop albums. Ratings range from one to five mics, paralleling a typical five-star rating scale. An album that is rated at four-and-a-half or five mics is considered by The Source to be a superior hip hop album. Over the first ten years or so, the heralded five-mic rating only applied to albums that were universally lauded hip hop albums.{{cite web |author=Osorio, Kim |url=http://thesource.com/2012/05/14/5micswhogotnext |title=5 Mics: Who Got Next? |work=The Source |date=May 14, 2012 |access-date=May 1, 2019 |archive-date=September 5, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230905175127/https://thesource.com/2012/05/14/5micswhogotnext/ |url-status=live }} A total of 45 albums have been awarded five mics; a complete, chronological list is below.{{Cite web

|url=https://thesource.com/articles/32776/Kanye-West-Earns-5-Mics-In-The-Source?thesource-prod=45cf64d26i7de17tfce1cnc3r3

|title=Kanye West Earns 5 Mics In The Source |website=The Source

|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101203183056/https://thesource.com/articles/32776/Kanye-West-Earns-5-Mics-In-The-Source?thesource-prod=45cf64d26i7de17tfce1cnc3r3

|archive-date=December 3, 2010}}

Albums that originally received five mics:{{sfn|Thompson|Greenman|2024}}

• People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm – A Tribe Called Quest
• Edutainment – Boogie Down Productions{{cite magazine|date=Summer 1990|volume=3|number=4|title=Summer LP Preview: Boogie Down Productions – Edutainment|magazine=The Source|page=43}}
• Let the Rhythm Hit 'Em – Eric B. & Rakim
• AmeriKKKa's Most Wanted – Ice Cube
• One for All – Brand Nubian
• De La Soul Is Dead – De La Soul
• The Low End Theory – A Tribe Called Quest
• Illmatic – Nas
• Life After Death – The Notorious B.I.G.
• Aquemini – Outkast
• The Blueprint – Jay-Z
• Stillmatic – Nas
• The Fix – Scarface
• The Naked Truth – Lil' Kim
• Trill OG – Bun B
• My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy – Kanye West

Albums that were not rated upon their releases, but were later rated five mics in 2002:{{cite magazine |title=Blueprints |magazine=The Source |issue=150 |date=March 2002 |pages=164–173}}

• Run-D.M.C. – Run-D.M.C.
• Radio – LL Cool J
• Licensed to Ill – Beastie Boys
• Raising Hell – Run-D.M.C.
• Criminal Minded – Boogie Down Productions
• Paid in Full – Eric B. & Rakim
• By All Means Necessary – Boogie Down Productions
• It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back – Public Enemy
• Long Live the Kane – Big Daddy Kane
• Critical Beatdown – Ultramagnetic MCs
• Straight Out the Jungle – Jungle Brothers
• Strictly Business – EPMD
• The Great Adventures of Slick Rick – Slick Rick
• Straight Outta Compton – N.W.A
• No One Can Do It Better – The D.O.C.
• All Eyez on Me – 2Pac

Albums that originally received 4.5 mics, and were later re-rated to five:{{cite magazine |title=Got Five on It |magazine=The Source |issue=150 |date=March 2002 |pages=174–178}}

• Breaking Atoms – Main Source
• Death Certificate – Ice Cube
• The Chronic – Dr. Dre
• Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers) – Wu-Tang Clan
• Ready to Die – The Notorious B.I.G.
• The Infamous – Mobb Deep
• Only Built 4 Cuban Linx... – Raekwon
• 2001 – Dr. Dre

Albums that originally received four mics, and were later re-rated to five:

• Grip It! On That Other Level – Geto Boys
• Doggystyle – Snoop Doggy Dogg
• The Diary – Scarface
• Me Against the World – 2Pac
• The Score – The Fugees
• Reasonable Doubt - Jay-Z

The Source released a compilation album of hip-hop hits.

{{notelist}}

{{Reflist}}

• {{cite book|last=Chang|first=Jeff|author-link=Jeff Chang (journalist)|title=Can't Stop Won't Stop: A History of the Hip-Hop Generation|title-link=Can't Stop Won't Stop (book)|date=2005|publisher=St. Martin's Press|location=New York|isbn=0-312-30143-X}}
• {{cite book|last=Abrams|first=Jonathan|title=The Come Up: An Oral History of the Rise of Hip-Hop|date=2022|publisher=Crown Publishing Group|location=New York|isbn=978-1-9848-2514-8}}
• {{cite book|author-last=Gorman|author-first=Paul|author-link=Paul Gorman|title=Totally Wired: The Rise & Fall of the Music Press|date=2022|publisher=Thames & Hudson|isbn=978-0-500-02263-4}}
• {{cite book|editor-last=Jones|editor-first=Steve|title=Pop Music and the Press|chapter=Chapter 9: The Politics and History of Hip-Hop Journalism|chapter-url=https://archive.org/details/popmusicpress0000unse/page/156/mode/2up|author-last1=McLeod|author-first1=Kembrew|author1-link=Kembrew McLeod|date=2002|publisher=Temple University Press|isbn=1-56639-965-3|chapter-url-access=registration}}
• {{cite book |title=Hip-Hop Is History |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ZXHfEAAAQBAJ&pg=PT76|chapter=1997–2002: Dare Me to Drive?|last1=Thompson |first1=Ahmir "Questlove" |publisher=Auwa Books |year=2024 |isbn=978-0-374-61408-9 |edition=1st |author-link1=Questlove |last2=Greenman |first2=Ben |author-link2=Ben Greenman}}

• {{cite interview|last=Dennis|first=Reginald C.|interviewer=((J-23))|title=The Source Magazine (Early 90's): The Greatest Story Never Told|work=HipHopDX|date=April 17, 2005|url=https://hiphopdx.com/interviews/id.406/title.part-1-the-greatest-story-never-told|access-date=August 15, 2024}}
• {{cite interview|last1=Mays|first1=David|author-link1=David Mays|last2=Scott|first2=Raymond "Benzino"|author-link2=Benzino|interviewer-last1=Cantor|interviewer-first1=Paul|title=How the 1995 Source Awards Changed Rap Forever|url=https://www.complex.com/music/a/paul-cantor/how-the-1995-source-awards-changed-rap-forever|work=Complex|date=August 3, 2015|access-date=August 15, 2024}}
• {{cite interview|last=Mays|first=David|author-link=David Mays|interviewer-last=Crawford|interviewer-first=Percy|url=https://newpittsburghcourier.com/2021/10/13/the-source-magazine-co-founder-returns-to-hip-hop-roots-with-podcast-company/|title=The Source magazine co-founder returns to hip hop roots with podcast company|work=New Pittsburgh Courier|date=October 13, 2021}}
• {{cite interview|last1=Mays|first1=David|author-link1=David Mays|interviewer-last1=Prez|interviewer-first1=Shawn|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uqDrHKpLFrg|via=YouTube|title=Dave Mays on Launching & Losing The Source, Benzino, Eminem, Suge Knight, Snoop|date=January 16, 2022}}
• {{cite interview|last1=Scott|first1=Raymond "Benzino"|author-link1=Benzino|title=My Expert Opinion EP #199: Benzino Talks The Source, Coi Leray, Eminem Beef & Music Industry + More|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IY2J00iCpko|via=YouTube|interviewer-last1=Hoffa|interviewer-first1=Math|date=August 29, 2023}}
• {{cite interview|last=Wilson|first=Elliott|author-link=Elliott Wilson (journalist)|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TaW0wnQlkkA|title=Legendary Hip-Hop Journalist Elliott Wilson Tells His Life Story|via=YouTube|date=August 24, 2024|interviewer=DJ Vlad}}

* [https://unkut.com/2013/01/jonathan-shecter-aka-shecky-green-the-unkut-interview Jonathan Shecter aka Shecky Green – The Unkut Interview, Part 1, Jan. 2013]

{{DEFAULTSORT:Source, The}}

Category:African-American magazines

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Category:Music magazines published in the United States