For this week’s Mahal, I met up with Baltimore rapper Al Rogers and New York City shredder Eby Ghafarian to cruise the Lower East Side and pregame the release of Al’s first ever LP, Almost. Al got his start by reciting poetry, then graduated to writing his own. He was inspired by Tupac’s A Rose That Grew from Concrete and his love for women—he was brought up in a strong household without a father, but with a remarkable mother. Here is my evening with Al. Be sure and look out for the Almost tape, dropping on March 26, 2013.

Photos by Cheney Orr and Video by Taji Ameen.

@RedAlurk