Interdependent Media (iM) is a label that describes itself by stating “We put out records. Good ones, at that,” on its website.

Keeping that concise characterization in mind, we’ll tell you what the Berkeley, CA-based indie hip-hop imprint has on the burners for 2009.

Detroit rapper FINALE has put the finishing touches on his debut album, A Pipe Dream and a Promise, and he was anything but alone while in the studio. Fellow Motor City veteran Black Milk, along with producers Nottz and Oddissee laid some beatwork beneath FINALE’s lyrical flow. iM also created a Super Mario Bros.-themed online videogame to promote the album, in which FINALE is a stand-in for Mario and players who beat the game will receive an exclusive remix. A Pipe Dream and a Promise is out April 7.

Following that, Von Pea, Donwill, and Illyas—collectively known as Tanya Morgan—will drop their sophomore full-length, Brooklynati, named after a fictional landscape the group concocted. As with Pipe Dream, there’s more than just an album in store. The city of Brooklynati currently has a website that’s so intricate fans can apply for drivers licenses (though we assume said licenses wouldn’t do much if a cop pulled you over in real life). The album drops May 12.

Upon beating FINALE’s game and visiting Brooklynati’s Chamber of Commerce, we can anticipate releases from iM founder Evan Phillips (a.k.a. Truthlive), whose new album, Patience, was entirely produced by Jake One, a live album from Somalia-born K’NAAN, and a new full-length, The C of Tranquility, from MC Canibus. Stay tuned for release dates on these.

Stream: Tanya Morgan – “How Low”

Pictured: Tanya Morgan

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