And speaking of hip hop, here comes the Chemo Kid

Giovanni Goodman, a.k.a. the Chemo Kid, is about to get mad props from the media, I bet. The Vacaville rapper popped up in my "hyphy" Google alert as an up-and-comer who's been battling cancer for about a half-decade.

The 20-something rhymer, who grew up in Queens listening to such old-school flavors as Public Enemy and De La Soul, is set to drop his debut disc, "The Chemical Chronicles," next month.

For the full story on my San Jose Culture Examiner page, CLICK HERE.