In this part 2 of our coverage of Banner’s 2M1 Movement and release of Sex, Drugs, and Video Games, the young adults of Year Up Atlanta asked interesting questions of the rap star activist:

Terry Harris, student: My teacher taught us about that certain people or entrepreneurs have had certain habits that have helped them be successful. The one that most appealed to me is taking a risk. What was one of the biggest risks that you have taken, how did you feel when you took it, and what was the outcome of taking that risk?

David Banner: Honestly, to be real with you, just about everything I’ve done in my life has been a risk. I had a 3.9987 in an accelerated Master’s program, and I actually worked in my department. But something in my spirit told me that it wasn’t for me. That that wasn’t my path. That wasn’t my goal. So, I packed my clothes and I left. First, I went to New York, and I lived in New York homeless. I was homeless in New York for a spell. And then I met Wendy Day. She let me sleep on the couch. Well, let me sleep on the floor. I took all of that knowledge that I learned street tips and everything from New York, and I moved back to Mississippi and opened up an independent record label.

I mean I would go to Kinko’s, and I would print “David Banner” 10 times on a sheet of paper, and I would cut ‘em out. I would put ‘em on all the cars every night by myself. Finally, some dope boys came up to me and say, “Dude I will buy yo CD if you don’t put no more paper on my car.” And that’s why I was saying knowing your vision, knowing your place, being open enough to hear the spirit whenever it calls you. Whatever you believe in, I’m not judging whatever you believe in but hearing that spirit inside of you and being able to listen. So, that was one of the biggest risks that I took. It’s funny now because I make more than the president of the college. [laughter]

Sabrina Prioleau, student: I’m developing this nonprofit program called “Campaign to Love a Black Man,” and you were talking about reinstating families and getting us to be a cohesive unit. It’s so hard with Hip-hop dictating to this generation of women that we are all bit*hes and hoes. As women, we want to give love effortlessly. How can we do that to you and not feel like you’re rejecting us?

David Banner: Wow! That’s a age old question. One thing that I do want you to know, and I want you to take into consideration as we move forward, I had the opportunity to speak to Congress on behalf of Hip-Hop, and one of the things that I told people is that what you have to understand is that systematically this has been going on for 500 years. Not to take responsibility away from us, but it goes back also into the visions and other things that we see outside of Hip-Hop. It’s easy for us to blame Hip-Hop because nobody’s gon’ protect Hip-Hop.

It’s like the problems in America are so much deeper than just rap,but since you asked the question about rap, I’ll address that. If we really want better, we have to support better. We have to start acting better. One of the problems in Hip-Hop is there are a lot of rappers that I know – and I’m not gon’ call they name, ’cause it’s not for me to put ‘em on front street – that really wanna do better. Me and 9^th Wonder put out an album called Death of A Pop Star. And the whole album was positive. It had all these positive messages and guess what it did. Right, nothing.

The thing is that I have had to try to find a way to work in the constraints of the system to make sure that we make some money, so I’m actually able to be able to get in the front of you. It’s sad, but if it wasn’t for “Play” or “Like A Pimp”, I wouldn’t be sitting in front of you talking. Do you know how it feels as a man to understand what I understand now about our culture and the things that we do, but my tool is just the thing that I fight against? Do you know how that feels? As much as I try to do for our community, at the end of the day, I’m looked at as the problem.

That’s why I said it’s gon’ have to get to the point when we break the system. If I got two million people who down with David Banner regardless, I can put out whatever music I want to. Because my two million people will realize it’s not about record sales. If I tell my two million people, “Ok we gon start making better music,” and then I’ll have two million numbers behind it, then I can go to the labels, and whoever, and say this kinda music does sell, ‘cause we got two million people behind it. But what has to happen is the people have to get behind it. Because what’ll end up happening is just like what happens to the rest of our leaders. They end up broke, lonely, and dead. So I need help. I’m one of the ones that’s willing to do it. But I need help.

Kenya Manchester, student: Besides making music and putting out positive music, what would you do with the $2 million that you gain from 2M1?

David Banner: 2M1. First of all, I’m gon answer your question like this – we giving 16 songs with some of the top artists in the whole wide world. We are giving 16 videos. I like to tell people, whatever I do with the money shouldn’t matter, because you get the service. But, because I’m the type of man that I am, I’m gonna tell you. But the same thing that you ask me we should ask all of these products. We should ask Doritos. We should ask Jordan. We should ask Nike, but we only ask ourselves that. “I wanna know what you gon do with the money. What you gon do with $2 million, David Banner? ‘Cause I don’t want you to make nothing.” Not saying that you was doing that. But what I am gonna do with it is that we’re gonna give part of the proceeds to charity. We gon’ pay my staff. We gon’ pay me back cause I spent a lot of my money on this project. And then the other $1 million, we gon’ shoot a movie with. Remember when I told you the 2M1 was about changing our images?

AllHipHop.com: Let’s talk about Trayvon. You’ve been very outspoken about Trayvon Martin. What should the situation, and the case…..what should he mean to this generation?

David Banner: The Trayvon Martin case means even more to me now because the day before I spoke at Harvard, I spoke in front of Trayvon Martin and Oscar Grant’s family. What Trayvon Martin should mean to you is that, it goes back to the movement. What it should mean to you guys is it should show you how America values our life. At the end of the day I want y’all to remember this was a child. When they speak about him regardless, we forget that this was a Black child. If Trayvon Martin was White and Zimmerman was Black, would this case be different? If Trayvon Martin was White, he probably wouldn’t be dead right now. The implications of this trial should show us where we are in America, and what we need to work towards. There’s something that I want to say that I’m working on personally ,‘cause I honestly think that if we start treating ourselves better, and we start respecting ourselves a lot better, it’ll leave less space for other people to treat us the way that they do.

David Banner: Can I tell them one more thing?

AllHipHop.com: Of course.

David Banner: Y’all find out what your goals are now, what your goals are. A lot of times in our community, we follow what our parents or what somebody else had. Their vision. Get somewhere and get quiet and find in your spirit what your purpose is and what your goals are. Research. Find out what your goals are and don’t go into anything but that. Stay directly on your path.

Sometimes distractions come in your life that look like they’re good. Like different jobs and different situations that come your way. Stay on your path. If you stay on your path, as I look you in your eye, I promise something will come out of it. I thought I was supposed to be a rapper all my life. God revealed to me that rap was just like an apple in front of the donkey’s face, something to tempt me and keep me focused. Now I do Gatorade commercials, I score movies. Y’all heard that Gatorade commercial, [sings] “If you want a revolution…?” That’s me! I wrote and produced that. More money than I ever got on tour. [laughter] But that’s because I stayed on my path.

Check out Part 1 of David Banner’s Year Up visit, and learn more about Year Up here. Follow them on Twitter (@YearUp).

Download David Banner’s Sex, Drugs and Video Games. Follow him on Twitter (@THEREALBANNER).

Ruslan eventually gave Beleaf a set of turntables and encouraged him to put his love for music into action – Beleaf instantly discovered his talent as a DJ and MC. The duo discovered they shared not only a love for Hip-Hop, but a burning desire to get better and a commitment to perfect their craft. Together, they decided to form a Hip-Hop crew that would make an impact on the culture, the San Diego community, and the world.

theBREAX have been doing exactly that. The crew has grown to include Mic B on drums, Jruckers on keys, and Bam on bass. Together, they have cultivated a large and diverse community of loyal fans through their own headlining shows, and opening up for world-class acts such as Mobb Deep, Ghostface Killah, Raekwon, Arrested Development, Lecrae, War, and Fred Hammond. When theBREAX released their debut album, “Never Arrive,” in December, 2011, it rocketed to #3 on the iTunes Hip-Hop charts.

Check out theBREAX video below for “Breaking Out The Box”:

“Breaking Out The can be found on the compilation album, Rapzilla Presents … King Kulture, available on iTunes now.

Simply put, when a legend speaks, you listen.

You embrace and respect what they brought to the table. What can you learn from the eyes of greatness and apply it to your own life? How do the ways of their time still hold true? AllHipHop.com pondered these questions, as we examined the State of Hip-Hop while listening to Kool Herc a year ago at the Core DJ Retreat in Miami, Florida.

Hearing the “Father of Hip-Hop” break down the culture’s origins and how he came to be who he was, in essence, was pure greatness. While some of the dialogue was confusing, what you do pull from Kool Herc speech is a sense of appreciation for an art form that was made for the kids. It doesn’t matter to Kool Herc if it’s snap music, if it’s electronic dance Hip-Hop, or if rappers like Drake are singing or not. It’s about the kids.

Hip-Hop was created for the kids to keep them out of trouble in the post Vietnam years in the Bronx, when drugs and gang violence was running rampant. New York City was a far cry from the relatively safe streets that people enjoy today. Times were hard and Hip-Hop was the savior for a whole generation of people looking to escape the madness and questionable government policies leading into Reagan era.

Take a minute to absorb the words (and video) of one of Hip-Hop’s most iconic figures, The “Father of Hip-Hop,” Kool Herc:

I never called nobody names. When I started to do this right here, it was to see people have fun. Thats it and that’s only it, it’s for the kids. When I did a party, “[They'd say] when is the next joint?” I’m on my bicycle, I play ball, my name came from playing basketball, it didn’t come from playing DJ.

When I got off the court, played my ball game, East-side, West-side, “Yo Herc, when’s you next party?” “I met a girl there,” “I met some people there,” “It was a jam, I met somebody from the Bronx.” So my name was bridging gaps and denting a lot of confusion, to put the Blacks and Puerto Ricans in the same neighborhood. If you don’t understand my language, your language is anarchy and it’s a problem, so best thing to do to diffuse that, was to learn a little bit of the good words in Spanish, and I learned some of the bad words in Spanish. So to be alive, you need to be aware. And that’s all that is. 1967 I came here from Jamaica.

Anyways, you know what I’m saying, they thought that Hip-Hop wasn’t going to last, on down there with the hippity-hop, on down there with the gutter racks. Weeks come into months, months come into years, years come into decades. All I could sum it up and say right now is it’s a continuation of Martin Luther King’s dream. I didn’t know, I was giving shout outs to brothers, fathers and older brothers out there in Vietnam. Not over there right now, and the war still continues with us, the civil war still continues with us and we still get denied, when the thing should be on a holiday. We be laughing and loving what we do with our selves, I got nothing to say about being cute or nothing. I was in my bed seat and had everything working.

And I got something to say, there won’t be no shout outs and yo-yo-yo. It’s about the kids. If I had it my way, and it should be the way, because we done brought Hennessy and all that stuff and made everyone rich, and we still in the gutter. OK, the kids, the kids, they the one that started it. Every kid in the debt should have $50 in their stipend to go and touch it, smell it, whatever. It should be in the stipend. You know we give them $12 for the bus trip and all that, come on, we been making other people rich. It’s no problem in that, but give back to the folks who made it good and that made them rich. So we ain’t gotta come up on the hill.

But remember the biggest climbers take place right here, and the person who did it got shot down here today. Crime Central USA still. We gotta stop killing ourselves, don’t knock another Black man for making money. People should be here right now, man, you know, people should be here right now, enjoying this right now. Why they kill them, for what man, for money? We supposed to love ourselves, man. I’m here because of y’all. I’m not here to be in a camp, I’m in a place called Cheers, where everybody knows your name and they’re glad I came, and I love it, man. Core DJ, keep doing what you are doing man. Thank you everybody, thank you this came from nothing, they didn’t think it would last, and it did last. AND STILL HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPION OF THE WORLD…. HIP-HOP Y’ALL!

A$AP Rocky, fresh off his BET Award nomination and performance at South Jersey’s Bamboozle Festival with artists such as alleged girlfriend Iggy Azalea, Action Bronson, and Mac Miller, will stop by the couch, too.

MTV RapFix Live airs today (May 23) at 4PM. Open the media player by clicking the link below or view on rapfix.mtv.com.

Twenty-five years after its initial broadcasting on Dutch public television, 5 Day Weekend has made this rare, historical footage commercially available for the very first time. In support of Big Fun in the Big Town’s worldwide release (DVD: May 22, 2012), Bram van Splunteren spoke with AllHipHop.com about his passion for filmmaking, early radio resistance to hip-hop music, and the vital support received from Def Jam publicist Bill Adler.

AllHipHop.com:  Big Fun in the Big Town is an extraordinary masterwork – documenting Hip-Hop’s emergence as an international phenomenon during its infancy. What life events served as key influences in the development of this project?

Bram van Splunteren:  I was a rock journalist writing for Holland’s biggest music magazine, Oor (Ear), before I went to the Amsterdam film school. After film school, in the early ’80s, I got offered a radio show where I had a lot of freedom to play my favorite music. While I was still doing radio, I started working in television – producing and directing small music shows. The bands I was getting for those shows were mostly white alternative rock bands – from Nick Cave’s Birthday Party to ’80s cult bands like The Replacements and Husker Du.

But in the mid-’80s, I discovered rap thanks to one of the first Beastie Boys 12 inches, “She’s On It” [from the soundtrack of 1985 film, Krush Groove].  And shortly after that I got an offer to direct six music documentaries. Big Fun was the first to be completed and my very first documentary for Dutch national television. In the same year, I did one about Iggy Pop. Both were filmed in the USA. And in the next year, I filmed docs on Nick Cave, John Hiatt, and Liverpool. I also documented The Red Hot Chili Peppers’ first European tour in 1987 as they traveled Europe in a small van. I was the first filmmaker to make a documentary about them and I filmed them on several occasions afterwards.

AllHipHop.com:  As a Hip-Hop fan living in Holland, miles and miles away from New York City, what do you immediately recall about your initial encounter with rap music and Hip-Hop as a larger culture?

Bram van Splunteren:  I knew “Rapper’s Delight” from the Sugar Hill Gang – and played it on my radio show – but I thought it more a curiosity. The same with “The Breaks” by Kurtis Blow.  The lyrics of Grandmaster Flash’s “The Message” really touched me, but the production and sound of it was still too disco-ish for me to totally get into it. And then came The Beastie Boys. They blew me away from the start. This was before their first album Licensed to Ill. I just loved Rick Rubin’s production and the dry sound of the drums. The same with LL Cool J’s album. And RUN DMC of course I liked, too, though Rubin did not produce them.

Apart from the music, I knew about graffiti and breakdancing, but going to New York in 1986 for Big Fun was really my first encounter with hip-hop as a culture. I had traveled to New York before, but never been into any of the black neighborhoods like Harlem and the Bronx. And when we finally went there it was pretty scary because we were told white folks don’t go into these neighborhoods, not even in the daytime. I loved the shoot we did at the school in the Bronx, where school kids were just rapping and beat-boxing everywhere, without instruments, and with such high quality. Like the guys that do the “Michael Jackson and his white glove” rap. That’s when I really felt the culture, the whole feel behind it.

AllHipHop.com:  At what point did your passion for filmmaking merge with your love of hip-hop?

Bram van Splunteren:  Around the time I was totally crazy about hip-hop and was playing it a lot in my originally rock-oriented radio show. I was met with a lot of resistance when I started playing all this hip-hop – from both listeners and my company. At some point, my boss didn’t allow me to play more than two hip-hop records every hour. In Holland, people weren’t taking Hip-Hop very seriously – especially in those days. Even the leading Dutch pop magazine was calling it a passing trend: just  a couple of kids talking –not even singing!-over the sound of drum machines and boasting about themselves.

So when I got the chance to make a documentary, I thought I could maybe convince people to take rap more seriously, by showing them where this music came from culturally, and why rappers were saying the things they were saying. Like how great they were, what kind of big car they drive and how many gold chains they wear around their necks. To say these kind of things was considered totally uncool in the kind alternative white middle class circles in which I was a part.

AllHipHop.com:  What insight can you share about the  pre-production process for Big Fun?

Bram van Splunteren:  My radio show had already done several phone interviews with LL Cool J, Run-DMC, Whodini and the Beastie Boys. Those all went through the office of Def Jam Records, the leading hip hop record label of the time. I was always dealing with – and talking to – their publicist Bill Adler. He was very friendly and always helping me out and he knew a lot of people inside and outside the Def Jam stable. So when we started pre-production for the film I immediately contacted him. He was a great help. Without Bill we could not have made this film. We got two weeks from my company to shoot two documentaries at once. One was Big Fun and the other focused on Iggy Pop, which featured a lengthy interview on location in New York, along with a visit to Ann Arbor, where Iggy and the Stooges started out.

Later,  back in Holland, we later filmed Iggy Pop live in concert. Since the interview with Iggy Pop only took a few hours, I had extra time for the hip-hop documentary, which is where my heart lied. It was also the film for which I needed the most time, due to the multiple artists and locations we wanted to film. The crew was made up of only four people: camera, sound, the host and myself – directing and producing on the spot. The film was shot on 16 mm film – which was great. In those days, the difference between film and video was quite big. I remember being constantly on the phone with Bill Adler. 

I think the question I bothered him with most was: “When can we do LL?” LL Cool J was very busy in those days but I felt I really needed him because he was the biggest star at that moment – along with Run-DMC. In the end, we got RUN DMC and we got LL – both fortunately on location, and not in a hotel or office. I really stressed to Bill Adler that we needed to see as much of New York City as possible. He helped me out with getting the artists in their natural environment. We visited LL at his grandmother’s house in Queens, which became one of the cutest scenes in the film. But we didn’t get the Beastie Boys, who were also on the top of my list. They were constantly gone or recording or whatever.

AllHipHop.com:  Now, 25 years later, what you think have been the most drastic changes in music documentary filmmaking?

Bram van Splunteren:  In Holland, making music documentaries has become very difficult. In the old days, the channel I worked for didn’t care about ratings. As a national television station – paid for by the government – they were just focused on making interesting shows and documentaries. They also had funding to make them – on a low budget scale. Nowadays, there is much more pressure to get as many viewers as possible, and music documentaries or other cultural programs generally do not attract large amounts of viewers. Consequently, there is now very little money to make them.

The channels want to spend their money on other shows that attract more viewers. I have always concentrated on bands at the beginning of their careers, because it allows me to film with them in interesting locations beyond hotel rooms and record company offices. In the early nineties, for instance, having become good friends with The Red Hot Chili Peppers, I filmed them at home in Los Angeles – right before “Under the Bridge” [from the 1991 studio album Blood Sugar Sex Magik]. After that point, they got so big that recreating that experience was no longer possible.

Although I do not make music documentaries anymore, I assume it has not become easier to film bands and follow them closely like I have done with several artists. Now, I have moved onto ‘human interest’ orientated programs, and I do not following music professionally the way I did. I just hear what’s  popular and played on the radio. Of course, I know the big Hip-Hop names and their most famous tunes, but that’s about it. As a musical form, thanks in part to its crossover and use of pop and R&B, a big international audience has finally come to accept it, because of the use of choruses and melodies that one can sing along to.

AllHipHop.com:  Analyzing Big Fun in the Big Town within the context of history, explain the importance of why artists should document their sonic and visual legacy.

Bram van Splunteren:  Hip-hop started as a very controversial art form and evolved into a mainstream billion-dollar business. In a way, it seems quite natural and a normal part in the cycle of life – because things never stay the same. People grow up and get older and develop themselves. And then new generations stand up, discover their own identity and do something different than the generation before them. It is important to record history, so we can learn from the past and examine the things have transformed our lives, our culture, and worldview.

For more of Clayton Perry’s “views” and interviews, browse his “digital archive” – www.claytonperry.com - and follow him on Twitter (@crperry84).

Problem didn’t waste a second after Mollywood’s release and got right back into the studio where he began creating new music immediately. During that time, Problem along with Diamond Lane Music Group artist Bad Lucc completed their upcoming collaborative project, Diamond Lane America, which is set to be released later this month.

Having one project on the horizon wasn’t enough for Problem though, so he began crafting the follow-up to Welcome to Mollywood titled Back to Mollywood, which he plans to release before his debut album, Plan B, hits retailers later this year.

Problem spoke to AllHipHop.com in New York City’s Madison Square Park about his recent studio sessions with E-40, of which fans can expect a number of new records from, his upcoming work with Grand Hustle’s latest addition, Iggy Azalea, and his dream collaboration with Drake and Prince. Check out our exclusive interview with Problem below:

Problem – “Welcome”:

Follow Problem On Twitter: (@ItsAProblem)

“There’s a lot more business involved [in putting out an album] than the general public is aware of. And that part causes the actual delay with [Interscope]. I’m releasing my album July 3rd, whether is has commercial promotions or not,” he told AllHipHop.com exclusively. “My birthday is July 6, and I planned for it. And I’m doing everything that I planned to do regardless if it’s huge airplay or not. I could care less, I’m putting the record out.”

The untitled album has been in the works for a number of months and is reportedly finished at press time. Another project, Black Magic, was almost the fifth album from 50, but he scraped the entire project. Since his debut, Get Rich Or Die Trying, all of 50′s albums have been released via Interscope.

He said that the freedom from concerns of sales and business have helped him produce music closer to his heart.

“I don’t need a record to sell. How much money you think I’ma make off record sales? You think I’ma sell 13 million records?” Its starting to feel like that corner that I left,” 50 Cent explained, stressing that music’s ability to make money is now very limited. “I ain’t going to keep sitting on the records. Even if everything ain’t in order, album five will be out July 3 and they can wait another two years for me to give them another one.”

“I have new ideas so my passion for making the music hasn’t gone anywhere. That’s why I’m making music for free. The mixtape is for free unless DJ Drama is getting some paper I don’t know about. I need a piece of that paper,” 50 joked.

“It’s not about the money,” Drama replied. “It’s about the music.”

And musically, 50 delivers.

The Lost Tape, a 15-track opus, features cameos from Eminem, Snoop Dogg, Jeremih, Precious Paris, Kidd Kidd and beats from a number of producers like !llMind, and Araab Muzik.

50 Cent explained The Lost Tape was the culmination of an attempted collaboration dating back to 2007.

“At the point is when the actual network of technology started kicking in. I started thisis50.com. So, started to put mixtapes out without actually having a DJ brand on it,” he explained. “It drove traffic to the site. It was effective there, so I said we might as well go and do [the mix tape with Drama.]“

He also said he wanted to get back to the real taste makers like DJ Drama, not bloggers that have begun to curate the culture.

“My entire career I’ve been happy with the launch of my material. I only put music out on the mixtapes to develop a consistency, because I believe consistency is the key to all success. And I’m giving out samples. If we selling dope, we gonna give out a few sample so the fiends know exactly what to expect. Drama and Gangsta Grillz is the biggest [mixtape] brand standing.”

Drama, a native of Philadelphia, explained his role in The Lost Tape at a time that seems particularly pivotal in 50 Cent’s illustrious career.

“I had my input, you know. I listened to the record upfront and we swapped out a few records to make this tape what is actually is today. When it becomes my brand, I like to treat them as albums,” Drama said. “And with Fif, because our brands are so strong, and the relevancy to the mix tape game, it would be a lot of eyes so I wanted to make sure we put the most potent project out – possible.”

Drama also said 50 Cent would be taking the mix tape hustle to the viral market as he has in the past, but to the next level.

“He’s doing a viral to every song. You know, every song will have a video. We worked on what were the strongest songs. Basically, treat it like an album, something people would flock to once they got an album,” Drama said.

Interscope has not release a statement or confirmation as to the release date for 50′s new album.

In the meantime, download or listen to The Lost Tape below.

AllHipHop.com visited the set of “Hip-Hop Squares” and chopped it up with a number of talents from MTV2′s brand new game show, which will feature artists, actors, comedians, and personalities such as Ghostface Killah, Kat Graham, Fat Joe, Childish Gambino, Common, Machine Gun Kelly, Method Man, Damien Lemon, and many, many more.

Hip-Hop icon and Strange Music founder, Tech N9ne, spoke with AllHipHop.com about his involvement with the show, saying, “I think it’s beautiful that they would call on independent artists like myself and Mac Miller to come be seen ’cause my movement is underground. It’s bubbling into the mainstream but it’s an underground movement so to be a part of something like this is a wonderful thing.”

Comedian Donnell Rawlings, most famously known for his role as “Ashy Larry” on “Chappelle’s Show” and a current star of MTV2′s “Guy Code”, was ecstastic to tell AllHipHop.com about what he saw as the big draw: “They paying me motherf*cker! I think they’re putting a lot of money behind getting everybody to know about it, and it’s a funny show.

“Everybody knows “Hollywood Squares” with Whoopi Goldberg as the center square, but now to flip it and have the Hip-Hop version of it is very cool, and I think it’s a good way to introduce some of the younger kids to a show that’s been so iconic for years,” Rawlings noted.

We asked a number of the new “Squares,” including DJ Khaled, Method Man, Biz Markie, Vinny from “Jersey Shore”, and LaMarr Woodley from the Pittsburgh Steelers, about their favorite game-show memories. They also filled us in on why they’re excited to be a part of “Hip-Hop Squares“, and what show they think deserves to be “Hip-Hopified.” 

Check out our exclusive behind-the-scenes video below:

MTV2′s Hip-Hop Squares premieres tonight (May 22) at 11 PM EST.

In this two-part interview, AllHipHop.com was happy to talk to David Banner about his new album, the 2M1 Movement, and why he’s excited to be launching a whole new model for the music industry.

Banner also did AllHipHop.com a colossal favor by making a surprise visit to a group of Atlanta’s most determined young people to share his special brand of street wisdom. Read the interview and watch the video below:

One of rap music’s most noted rapper/actor/producers, David Banner is quickly become well-known as the culture’s most influential public speaker. Fresh off his appearance as a special guest lecturer at The L.A. Riots: Twenty Years Later, a symposium at Harvard University, Banner continues to tour the country doing press and public speaking in support of his 2M1 Movement.

Banner stopped by the Atlanta site of Year Up, a youth workforce development program that helps 18-to-24 year-olds learn the technical and professional skills that will prepare them for entry-level jobs in corporate America. The 10-year-old program, founded in Boston, boasts an 85 percent success rate in getting its graduates employed in jobs that pay a livable wage. The Atlanta students were surprised by the celebrity appearance and quickly learned that there is more to a rap star than just their music. Banner spoke bluntly on the trials that the urban young adults will face when entering the corporate landscape. Banner, a graduate of Southern University, also spoke about the importance of reading and self-education. The emerging activist also talked about the death of Trayvon Martin, a subject that he has been far from silent on.

AllHipHop.com: Recently, you were at Harvard University lecturing on the 20^th Anniversary of the L.A. riots. So having come from Mississippi, did it occur to you while you were up there, “I’m at Harvard University?”

David Banner: Well, it really did, but what I will say is what God revealed to me afterwards is that if we prepare, there is no reason for you to fear anything. So I prepared myself. It’s crazy because that’s one thing they try to do to our people in general. When I say our people I mean people from urban situations. They try to keep us encased in fear. Honestly, if you truly have your spirit together and you truly have prepared and taking those man hours to do whatever it is in life, it don’t matter what question they ask you. It don’t matter what they do, what they say. Whether it’s Harvard or a street corner, if you are truly prepared it doesn’t matter.

AllHipHop.com: So Year Up, the organization that is hosting us here is about “Closing the Opportunity Divide,” a term coined to really represent the systematic things that keep urban young adults from being successful, with jobs and further college education. So what advice would you give our students in the hip-hop generation about systems change? What is Hip-Hop’s responsibility when it comes to systems change?

David Banner: Ok. When you say systems change tell me exactly what you mean.

AllHipHop.com: Changing the institutions like the educational systems and the prison industrial system.

David Banner: I got it. Alright, first of all, (faces students) I wanna tell y’all something, I’m proud of y’all. I’m proud of everybody that’s sitting in these chairs right now. ‘Cause each and every one of you guys could’ve been somewhere else. One of the problems with our people is that we don’t congratulate each other enough.

But about systems change. I created a movement called 2M1. What 2M1 is…I started looking at not just urban music but movies, television, all of that. We have been degraded to nothing. No movies that depict us, you know, all of our music is so negative. The name of my album is called Sex, Drugs & Videogames. And everybody was like “Sex, Drugs, Videogames? What does he mean by that?” What I meant is if all you ever give our children is sex, drugs and videogames what do you think they’re gonna regurgitate? And that’s all we ever see on television.

System changes also come in the way that we think about ourselves. The American system only teaches us in most cases, they don’t teach us before slavery. They never tell us that we kings and queens. They never tell us that the Pythagorean Theorem comes off the walls of Egypt. And imagine me figuring out all this n the middle of “ay yo, see the Chevy with the butterfly doors,” and I was like wow. That’s why I took off, if y’all were wondering why I disappeared for a while.

I disappeared for a while because I got an opportunity to go overseas. And I got an opportunity to see how they looked at our people, and I was embarrassed. I was really, really, really embarrassed and it messed with me mentally because not only am I a rapper, I’m a producer too. I’m an actor, too. So I was like, man, I had a lot to do with that, but then God revealed to me that it’s nothing wrong with what I do. I just have to bring some balance. We can do what we do in the club. That’s all a part of us, but we need some balance. So to answer your question about the systems changes, the only way the systems are gonna change is when you guys get into power and we start opening up our own situations.

AllHipHop.com: So what are some of the ways that we start changing our situations?

David Banner: That is what 2M1 is for me. I wanna get two million people to donate at least one dollar, and everybody thinks it’s about the dollar. It’s not about the dollar. That’s why I did 2M1. I’mma implement this system, and I’mma teach people how to make money. Instead of begging record companies to come and help us we start our own situations and provide and feed our own people.

AllHipHop.com: In a room full of young people who in about two/three months will earn the opportunity to go on internship in Corporate America. Now being that they come from Atlanta urban environments and are going into corporate America, and we know some of the challenges that they will experience, it’s somewhere that they need to go. They need that opportunity to be able to get into entry level jobs, to be able to work their way up through corporate America. How do we prepare them knowing some of the systems that they’re going into?

David Banner: There’s this double consciousness theory that says that Black people to be three or four people. Like you are one person in the ‘hood, you’re one person when you come to school, another person at the job. What I’ll tell you guys going into the corporate system, just be prepared to have to adjust for a little while. Because again I truly believe that you guys are the future and I feel like I’m not just saying this. That you have the power to create.

So, you go into these corporate structures to learn. To be a sponge. Not to be an employee all your life. But what I will ask you guys is that in whatever you do be the best. Literally be the best. You’re gonna have to be the best anyway. But be the best. Articulate yourself as well as you possibly can and as much as you can and I know it’s hard. Keep as much of you as you can in the inside and talk to somebody, but be the best.

Check out Part 2 of our exclusive interview with David Banner tomorrow, where he talks about Trayvon Martin, the biggest risk he ever took, and how he has diversified his music industry career and set himself up for longevity.

DOWNLOAD Sex Drugs and Video Games HERE

Follow David Banner on Twitter (@THEREALBANNER).

He also left beyond some classics that always get the house rocking, especially on birthdays. Here is AllHipHop.com’s rundown of “Notorious B.I.G.’s Top 5 Tributes to the Good Life”:

1) “JUICY”: Biggie laments on his impoverished childhood, then remembers, ‘Wait, I’m rich now!’

“Birthdays was the worst days/ Now we drink champagne when we thirsty…”:

2) “PARTY AND BULLSHIT”: This is an anthem for ‘hood boys gone wild, and we all know Biggie had major love for his Brooklyn streets.

“Loungin’ black, smokin’ sacks up in Acs/ and Sidekicks with my sidekicks rockin’ fly kicks…”

3) “HYPNOTIZE”: At just 24, Biggie was already embracing his grown and sexy on this upbeat winner from Life After Death.

“Poppa been smooth since days of Underoos/ Never lose, never choose to…”

4) “SKY’S THE LIMIT”: Just check the lyrics – Biggie seemed super thankful here, and he had a lot to celebrate before his untimely passing in 1997.

“I like this young man. When he came out, he went from ashy to classy…”:

5) “F*CKING YOU TONIGHT” – Ever the mack, B.I.G. knew that no night of partying should end up with your homies still around.

“Skip the wine and the candlelight/ No Cristal tonight/ If it’s alright with you/ We f*ckin’ (that’s cool)…“

Happy birthday and R.I.P. to The Notorious B.I.G.! (May 21, 1972 – March 9, 1997) Tell us your favorites in the comment section!

Mid-way through his “Club Paradise” tour, Drizzy Drake rocked Atlanta with a star-studded and long-anticipated show. The YMCMB phenom told the audience, “They been trying to keep us apart for about a year and a half now,” alluding to the last time Drake performed in Atlanta, which was October 2010.

Taking the stage to “Lord Knows”, his song with Rick Ross from Take Care, and then launching into snippets of his many hits, Drake got the crowd of almost 17,000 to their feet and kept them there. It was a cool night in Atlanta, and the audience at the outdoor amphitheater endured brief rainshowers during the opening acts, which included French Montana, Meek Mill, Waka Flocka Flame, and 2 Chainz.

The nearly two-hour Drake set had a theatrical feel, with black and white screens and dozens of solo spotlights bringing back out 2 Chainz. The duo performed “No Lie”, and surprisingly, T.I., came out and performed “What You Know”, after being persuaded by Drake, who said, “I ain’t much of a favor asker, but since we are in the A, and you are The King, can we take ‘em back on some classic sh*t?”

Drake also brought Waka Flocka Flame back out during his set, and he was officially dubbed “The King of the Club,” performing his banger, “Round of Applause”. Future made an appearance as well, and he and Drake rocked “Tony Montana”, followed by another appearance from Bad Boy/MMG’s French Montana.

During “Marvin’s Room,” the amphitheater sounded like it was hosting choir rehearsal, as all you could hear were women’s voices. The diverse crowd was largely women, yet every nationality was represented, which is true to Drake’s fan base. He cleverly made the audience a part of his act by turning up the house lights and individually shouting out people in the crowd. The move demonstrated that this tour is a defining moment for Aubrey Drake Graham, one where he distinguishes himself as more than just the artist of the moment, but one who is here to stay.

“Until next time Atlanta… Take Care.”

Drake’s “Club Paradise” tour runs through June 17.

And, although his star is rising, there’s always GOT to be something. So, we had an honest discussion with the underground MC about topics such as the controversy involving his supporters.

Check out the interview below where Chappell shares his thoughts on AllHipHop.com’s Top 25 Underground Artists of 2011 list, and what it’s like to balance family life while on the road:

Rasheed Chappell – “Break Loose”

Follow Rasheed Chappell on Twitter (@RasheedChappell).

Catch up with AllHipHop.com contributor Skyyhook on Twitter (@SkyyhookRadio) and at SkyyhookRadio.com.

“I am so authentic, I’m so off in it /
They try to figure me out, but it’s not a gimmick /
Hi Hip-Hop, don’t act like you don’t know me /
We got the same mama! Don’t you try to disown me…”

As the Don Cannon and Lecrae collaboration begins, Lecrae addresses how critics try to categorize what he does by placing all of his songs, lyrics, and content-related material into a “box”. It’s a reaction for some to categorize or stereotype music when explaining it to others, and it’s easier to do when you realize the content is Christian in almost every aspect. Although it’s easier to simply box his music, so much is missed if you only take that assumption to be the finalizing word. Lecrae’s a great rapper with strong beliefs, and both of those dimensions battle for supremacy in Church Clothes.

The most impressive thing about Church Clothes is its ability to focus on the Christian values without coming off as preachy, or even Bible-thumping. Lecrae speaks from his experiences and his convictions, and it’s ingrained within the lyrics. It’s evident in the Texas-inspired “Welcome To H-Town” (featuring Dre Murray and Reach Record labelmate Tedashii), which has Lecrae and company rhyming about their ties to the city in a way that would make DJ Screw proud. It’s on display alongside ex-Clipse member No Malice, as they rhyme about their beliefs on “Darkest Hour” (although the hook’s cheesy in comparison to the rest of the project). It’s also showcased when addressing people of their self-worth on “Special” and “Rise”, with the latter being produced by 9^th Wonder.

The production (which features the aforementioned 9^th Wonder, Boi-1da, Street Symphony, and others) and overall presentation makes this feel as if it could be slid into a CD changer alongside other Don Cannon projects. However, the messages from Church Clothes ring with clarity and a determination that most rappers have to pay to achieve. There’s a sense of purpose in Lecrae’s lyrics, and refreshingly, his rhymes don’t ever take a back seat to the message; they instead coordinate rather well together, pun intended. With Church Clothes being topped off with most of the features delivering solid verses (Thisl, Tedashii, Andy Mineo, and more), it’s hard to categorize Lecrae as a Gospel rapper, when there seems to be much more to him than that generic label. It’s good music, and well worth the time if you’re interested in listening for yourself.

“I’m not a Gospel rapper, not a Holy Roller /
I’m just a product of Grace, spreading hope to the hopeless…”

• Download Lecrae and Don Cannon’s “Church Clothes” here.

Kendick Lamar has established a considerable platform for his fellow Black Hippy brethren to springboard from. As a collective, Jay Rock, Schoolboy Q, Ab-Soul and Lamar have released just a few songs under the Black Hippy name, but after the success of the latter’s Section.80, all four find themselves on Dr Dre’s Aftermath imprint; a label where even established artists like Rakim and Raekwon have failed to make an impact. While Jay Rock and Q have cut their teeth on their own independent releases, Ab-Soul is the last member out of the gate, and with his tiny output, unusual personal styling and a seemingly lack of enthusiasm for glossy production methods or large, radio-friendly hooks, he looks a very small fish in the pond where the good doctor resides.

While he might prove quite the quandary for Aftermath’s marketing department, Ab may well be the most artistically interesting of the Hippy clan. Control System (not released on Aftermath, by the way) is a long, complex record of scratchy beats, widescreen subject matter and elaborate rhyming schemes, which goes some of the way to explaining Ab’s lack of output thus far is his young career. His attention to detail is stellar, intricately building his rhymes with clever wordplay, popping syllables off each other like a well tuned jazz drummer. On “Bohemian Grove”, for example, Ab pulls out all the tricks, veering from three word bars to lengthy prose. Later, on “Illuminate” – where he addresses his unlikely place within the Hip-Hop world – his turn of speed is impressive, often putting the brakes on mid-rhyme, leaning into words slowly before jamming down on the accelerator and letting loose once more.

It’s wonderfully compelling to hear Ab construct his dense rhyme patterns, and he’s boosted by a near-flawless selection of beats. Production-wise Control System is in the same vein of Lemar’s Section.80, compiling a series of jazzy samples, AM radio soul and horror movie-esque compositions, linking instrumentation with subject matter wisely. “It was all a dream/I swear, it never happened,” opens ‘Pineal Gland’, which adds to the dark, nightmarish feel of the music. The doomed romance Ab outlays on “The Book of Soul” is beautifully scored by some ice-cold piano chords and rolling drum loops, while the scary outline of world politics on “Terrorist Threat” is appropriately foreboding.

Danny Brown shows up on “Terrorist Threat” and his manic spitting steals the show, underlining that, while Ab-Soul shows strong signs of being a great rap artist, he still has a way to go to be a truly great rapper. Still, Control System slowly reveals itself to be one of the most accomplished debut Hip-Hop records in quite some time.

Meek Mill may be the hottest rapper in the world right now. Coming off a breakout year, being signed to a powerhouse label (Maybach Music Group), and keeping his name relevant with standout guest appearances in between, he makes an impressive case for the position. With an enormous amount of hype surrounding him, it’s sink or swim for the Philly native and his latest project, Dreamchasers 2.

The “Intro” begins with a clip of Mike Tyson popping off at the mouth brashly, then proceeds to see Meek Mill rival this fierceness with killer raps (“I’m getting’ money/Must be Illuminati/ They think I signed up ‘cause I just got a new Ferrari”). One of the best with wordplay, the entire tape showcases his lyrical skill. “Flexin’” and “Everyday” both have heavy production and see Meek throw around hot lines like ones at a strip club; frequent and almost carelessly. “A-1 Everything” features Kendrick Lamar, and he gruffs his way through the fast-paced song, (I got a bus full of b*tches/ Call that Jerome Bettis). However, the best track here is “Burn”, featuring  Big Sean who outshines Mill and propels the song to anthem-level heights (“Bad b*tch in her cha-cha/ Grabbin’ on her chi-chi’s”). The mixtape is composed of hard beats and hard rhymes; it’s the sort of quality street music that’s very hard to resist.

Another standout is “Amen”- a more feel-good song with no shortage of quality rapping, featuring Drake. Meek Mill attempts to balance out the boastful rhymes with different tones of music, like the afore mentioned; “Use To Be” does a decent job at creating a ominous, inspirational record, but the adaptation of “Ready or Not” does it better.”Take U Home” features both Wale and Big Sean and is sure to divide fans and critics alike. Sampling the chorus of the ’80s hit by Lisa Lisa and the Cult Jam, some may see it as innovative and neat, while others will deem it wack in mere seconds. Posse cuts “Racked Up Shawty” (Fabolous, French Montana) and “House Party Remix” (Fabolous, Wale, Mac Miller) do their job of keeping the flow of good music going. Meek doesn’t have to stray away from bragging since he’s good at it.

If you like rap, you’ll most likely find something to like on this record. There is no denying the slick lines that Meek Mill kicks; he’s as hot as Young Jeezy was back in the early 2000’s. Because he’s with MMG, all of his production is top-tier, and he has no trouble getting high-profile guest appearances. There are some sub-par tracks on the record, but ultimately Meek Mill just raised his buzz from its already tall heights. Dreamchasers 2 is too hard to hate.

• Download Dreamchasers 2 here.

With an all-important co-sign from Wu-Tang Clan’s Raekwon, one of the most respected (and still relevant) artists in Hip-Hop, Canada’s JD Era has already fought half the battle. The Toronto-born spitter, fresh off signing a deal with Raekwon’s Canada-based record label, ICE H20 Records, has recently released his first mixtape under the imprint, entitled No Handouts.

“It ain’t even one [American] rapper yet that really has taken it to that next level of setting up shop in another country, you know? I’ve done it,” says Raekwon to AllHipHop.com. “And I’ve done it in great faith, because I know that these places I go to, they got a lot of love…”

Rae and JD Era stopped by the AllHipHop offices recently to share the story of how they linked in the first place, and why – legendary co-sign or not – JD Era is the real deal:

Haven’t heard his new mixtape yet?

Download JD Era’s No Handouts HERE.

Follow Raekwon (@Raekwon) and JD Era (@JDEra) on Twitter.

Today (March 15) we’ve got Ali speaking on his close friend and fellow rapper Freeway, who his daughter refers to as “Uncle Free” and when fans can expect their highly-anticipated collaborative project. Here’s a hint: it’s going to be a while.

The last time Ali spoke on the project was in early November when the MC from Minneapolis told HHDX, “The album with [Freeway] is still way too early to talk about. We’re definitely going to keep making that one but it’s way too soon to start talking about. I don’t like to start the excitement to try to get people excited about stuff way early because then it feels like, ‘Come on, you’re taking forever,’ and it’s like, ‘No, I’m just taking the time that I need to take.’”

Ali first hooked up with Freeway in 2008 on Jake One’s “The Truth” from the producer’s White Van Music, and the two MCs came together again one year later for “Best At It,” which also featured Joell Ortiz and was featured on Ali’s album Us.

Check out the exclusive clip below:

Follow Brother Ali On Twitter: (@BrotherAli)

One upon a time, DMX’s scattershot frantic, staccato style was a dependable anchor that held down just about any song he appeared on. But, when he’s on songs like “Where I Wanna Be,” he really sounds like a punch-drunk version of himself. He’s got the fight, but the sharpness really isn’t there like the late ’90s and 2000s. On “Sh*t Don’t Change,” Snoop Dogg joins his fellow dog for a remake of 2009′S “Boss Life.” If you didn’t know this was a regurgitation, it would be possible to enjoy the song, but this record was an old Dr. Dre-produced hit.

All is not lost. The song “Last Hope,”which came out last year shows the depth and reaffirms why we still love DMX:

Even though “Lost Hope” is a reworking of an obscure artist named Dizzy Dao, we’ll accept it into DMX’s repertoire of music. But neither “That’s My Baby,” which features Tyrese, a scant Lil Wayne blip, or “Wright or Wrong” help salvage The Weigh In from the recycle bin, sadly enough.

Lastly, the actual audio quality of The Weigh In seems to be severely compromised and suffers from a lack of funding. The mix-down sounds as if it was done in somebody’s bedroom lined by egg crates, not Quad Studios where It’s Dark and Hell Is Hot was masterfully recorded. The music sounds dated and, honestly, terrible. DMX represents, not only a successful legacy in Hip-Hop, but an era that has seen better days. Hopefully, those of us that are fans of the dog will be blessed with a work of art in his upcoming album, Undisputed, that really reflects his past, or a rich future in music is not promised in this era.

There’s no love lost for DMX, just disappointment. At least, all dogs to go heaven, no matter what.

Click here to listen to or to download The Weigh In.

With the June release of his new mixtape, P.S. I’m Sorry 2, on the horizon, Bizzy is rapidly putting the finish touches on what he believes will be something that fans both old and new will always remember from the Good Luck rapper.

Check out our exclusive interview with Bizzy below:

For more information, visit ListenToBiz.com

Follow Bizzy Crook On Twitter: (@BizzyCrook)

Part 1 follows B.o.B during the day before his album release. B.o.B visits “The View”, BET’s 106 & Park, Associated Press, Power 105.1 with DJ Clue and Hot 97′s Funkmaster Flex.

B.o.B “Strange Clouds” Album Link
http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/strange-clouds/id518748242
This is Teaser #3 from The Next 48 Hours w/ B.o.B

The Next 48 Hours is an original production by AllHipHop.com, JumpOff TV and Tantrum Productions. Directed by Steve Raze.

But make no mistake, his BBAS Crew is represented on every song! Check out our interview with the BBAS Alum, Koncept:

AllHipHop.com: Thanks for taking out a few minutes to speak with AllHipHop, Koncept. We see you’ve been getting it in with the solo thing for 2012. What have you been up to the last few months?

Koncept: Thank you! I really appreciate your love and support. It means a lot. I dropped my official debut album, Awaken, on Soulspazm Records. We also dropped an EP for the project on wax titled, Watch The Sky Fall. Been pushing the album and having a great time!

AllHipHop.com: That’s dope! So talk to us about the new video. What was the concept (no pun intended) behind the video, and who was involved in the direction and production?

Koncept: We just dropped the J57 “Pulp Fiction” video. It was directed by our homie, FreshPres. We wanted the video to have a real raw feeling to it. J57 and I both grew up in New York listening to that real raw authentic sh*t (excuse my language), and that’s what we wanted the video to reflect.

AllHipHop.com: Ah, ok, that’s what’s up…

Koncept: I am also proud to let you know that my video for “Aspirations” is now in rotation on MTVu, which features Soul Khan and is also produced by J57. This was produced and directed by Hyer Ground.

AllHipHop.com: So then, we can expect to see some Brown Bag Allstar cameos in them both?

Koncept: You can catch J57. It’s actually his record; I’m just the featured guest on it. This was the first video for his EP(s) dropping later this month (May 2012). Every project that we do, even solo, is always a Brown Bag AllStars record. For instance, my album, Awaken, is my solo debut, but it is still a BBAS record. J57 produced the majority of it with The Audible Doctor. Soul Khan is featured on the album. Deejay Element does scratches on it. Then I have some of our other brothers on it. We keep it in the family.

AllHipHop.com: Oh wow, very nice! I saw that you are about to go out on tour with Those Bodega Brovas and Tanya Morgan. When does all of that kick off, and what are you looking forward to the most?

Koncept: The tour starts in Chicago on May 23. Honestly, I’m really excited about it all. It doesn’t get much better than being able to travel around, rock new places, and do what I love. Making money while doing it is always great, too! [laughter] I’m gonna get on stage and smash it every night. I just got back from touring the UK with Soul Khan, too. I’ve been having a blast!

AllHipHop.com: Sounds like fun! So what’s next on the horizon for Koncept? What can we expect to see coming up from you in the near future?

Koncept: Right now, I’m working on an EP all produced by my Brown Bag brother, Deejay Element. You can expect that to drop sometime this summer, along with a bunch of fly videos.I am working on my next full album, but I can’t talk much about that yet. [laughter] We also got a Brown Bag Allstars EP dropping soon. It’s in it’s final stages now. There’s no official date just yet, but it’s sounding crazy! You can stay up on everything at www.iamkoncept.com. Thank you for your support! Again, it really does mean a lot.

AllHipHop.com: Thank you, Koncept, for speaking with us, and we look forward to hearing more in the near future.

In 2012, Plug 1 (Dave) and Posdnous (Plug 2) of De La Soul find themselves at a new crossroads – still young enough to create interesting rap with stimulating visuals and lyricism, yet clearly not like most of today’s younger musical set – and not overly obsessed with decadence and or telling strippers what to do with a pole.

So, what’s their answer to the dilemma of what to do next? De La Soul’s Plug 1 & Plug 2 Present…First Serve, a “concept album” as defined by Dave, recorded by the fictional characters, Jacob Barrow and Deen Whitter. The duo bears a striking, possibly satirical resemblance to a few of today’s top rappers, and their make-believe Goon Time Records label does, too.

But Dave SWEARS ON EVERYTHING that those are just mere coincidences, so AllHipHop.com checked in to get the real deal on who’s serving what first?:

AllHipHop.com: Hi Dave. How are you?

Dave: I’m good. How are you?

AllHipHop.com: I’m great. Thanks. So what’s up?

Dave: Well, we were in Paris and throughout the UK for a month….

AllHipHop.com: Oh, word? Back from overseas, dope. Well, let me ask you about First Serve. I remember you guys sent us the exclusive when you first made the announcement about First Serve earlier this year, so thank you for that.

But when First Serve was first announced, it was called a lot of things – a group, an album, a concept, a movie soundtrack. So I wanted to ask you to define just what First Serve really is.

Dave: I mean, it’s just another adventure, another challenge. I guess, you know, when you put it on the shelf, you would call it a concept album. But for us, it’s just another lilypad in the pond that we’re just hopping onto. We’ve always liked to challenge ourselves and try different things, and not stay on one course. This record gave us the opportunity to record overseas and do things we like. We like challenging ourselves in regards to meeting up with people we are unfamiliar with, but musically seem to have a lot of parallels.

When we hooked up with Kalid and DJ Chocolate, two guys out of Paris who produced for us as well, so I was like, ‘OK, let’s see what this is about. They had this concept, they wanted to do an album, but more like a Blaxploitation kinda movie kinda thing, and they wanted to place it in the early ‘70s. We sat down and said obviously, that’s something we’re familiar with, but let’s do something in the present. And now we have a story of two guys who were like close friends, they were like brothers in their adventures and their pursuit of their dreams.

So for us, it’s just another challenge, another idea, another way to go in what we do, pretty much.

AllHipHop.com: So, would you call this a total reinvention of yourselves, or is this just for this time, and we may see some other derivation of you guys later?

Dave: You know, it’s funny you say that. It’s not a new birth of or a reincarnation into another group. These are two brand new people.

AllHipHop.com: Right…

Dave: They have no connection at all to myself or Pos, you know? Deen Whitter is totally opposite of Dave Jolicouer. He’s rambunctious, a little loud, you know, a bit of an alcoholic. It’s somebody totally brand new, so this isn’t De La [Soul] at all. Now the music and the style in which it’s recorded, it has De La [Soul] blood in its veins, but this is a totally new encounter. These are different people.

AllHipHop.com: OK, well, I’ve seen quite a few of the visuals and heard some of the music, so I want to ask you about some observations I had. The first is that you talk about Jacob and Deen as these fictional characters, but you seem to be poking a little bit of fun, or making a little bit of commentary on the industry. Like you had “Goon Time Records” and that sort of thing. Was part of your plan to use a comedic way to talk about some of the wackness that’s going on?

Dave: No, not at all. I think that’s something people are going to expect from De La [Soul]…the guys who do parodies, the guys who make fun of the guys who always have some sort of platform to stand on. But, not at all. I think it’s that we tried to make this as real as possible, you know, in regards to a story, a reflection of how real things are. It’s not to ridicule them, it’s just as much as there’s a Freeway and there’s a Rick Ross, and there’s a, I believe his name is Stalley, and so many others, why can’t there be a Dean Whitter that has a beard?

AllHipHop.com: OK, right… [laughter]

Dave: This isn’t to clown any of those guys. He just happens to have a beard like them. I’m sure there’s so many of these early starting labels, whether it was a Cash Money or whether it was a No Limit or a Bad Boy…why can’t there be Goon Time?

AllHipHop.com: Ummm, OK… [more laughter]

Dave: It isn’t to clown them at all! It’s to borrow from real life.

AllHipHop.com: Right.

Dave: That’s all it is. People say that Pos’ character is clowning like a Kanye or Will Smith. No, not at all. This guy feels like he’s a superstar, and he wants to be flamboyant in his clothing or what have you, why can’t he be? [laughter] I think it’s because it’s De La [Soul], people just off the bat take it like ‘they’re dissing and clowning people.’ Nah, we’re creating a scene with real things and people who we want you to take as real people as well.

AllHipHop.com: OK. I’ll buy that, but it sounds like a bit of a diplomatic answer, knowing the history of you guys.

Dave: No! Honestly, it’s not a diplomatic answer, and I think that’s one of the things…we’ve been posed this question on several occasions, but whether it’s a Rick Ross or it’s a Kanye, and I’m saying the both…whether it’s a label who’s trying to make it happen, I cheer ‘em on. This industry is for a lot of people to get as much as they can, and hopefully do something historical and legendary and phenomenal, so I’m all for it. I think people always just try to connect De La [Soul] as trying to check something. That isn’t the case, I mean, that isn’t the case. We never sat down and said, ‘I’m gonna look like Rick Ross.’ Nah, that’s what I want my character to look like.

AllHipHop.com: OK, well, I didn’t sort of dig deep for anything like that. It sorted of just looked like some of the symbolism that you guys used was…but OK, I was gonna say also for the visuals, it’s very fun, it’s very trippy, almost like an acid trip. I thought of “The Great Space Coaster”! I’m kinda showing my age on that. [laughter] How did you guys decide to go the way you did with the visuals?

Dave: Actually, the video concept was from the video director, Schwarzke? I forget his first name, I apologize. He came up with the idea and the concept of just making a real Paris, Parisienne look, with all of the artwork and the drawings, and just the exaggeration of things and what have you. I think it worked out cool. I think it looks great. I think we found somebody who aligns in De La [Soul] style, trying new things and trying experimental things and really taking them there. So I think what we’ve gotten so far is something that we’ve really loved and appreciated. Hopefully we’ll continue that route with the future presentations, you know, video or posters or covers or what have you. It looks good; I’m enjoying it as well.

AllHipHop.com: Yeah, it definitely does fit the style of how you guys have sort of been offbeat right from the beginning. So, let me ask you about your assessment of Hip-Hop right now. We’ve had a lot of things in the news, Trayvon Martin and stuff like that, that has a portion of the audience calling for music that has some substance to it again. You guys, really the whole Native Tongue family, have been known for substance. So, how is it looking to you right now in the industry?

Dave: Yeah, you know, it’s tough. I think sometimes social events and social issues definitely bring a serious note to Hip-Hop and rap music as a whole. Sometimes it’s kinda cool, it’s to its benefit. People gotta definitely check themselves, and hopefully, you know what, whether it’s a song or whether it’s a statement or whether it’s just a life change, it will be helpful to grow. I think the direction has been great thus far, you know what I mean? They can become the biggest moguls in this game. It’s great to see that happening…to see them be able to give family members and friends, you know, jobs and experiences, and so on and so forth.

I just think overall, maybe some will last, 15 years or so. We fall off the path sometimes. I think there’s still a little bit too much – hmm, how would I say it? – full of it, BS’ing in the game. I don’t think every record has to be about partying. I don’t think every record has to do that. It’s gotten even worse these days with like pouring champagne on chicks and like trying to be the most obscene now. You know, it’s like I think we still need to censor ourselves sometimes, because there are a lot of impressionable minds out there. Sometimes a positive message here and there could help.

But as a whole, I think we’re moving forward, and we’re also getting older and more mature in the game. Even the young dudes these days are coming in with more of a role model look and are trying to do the right things. Hopefully they’ll exercise that a little bit more. It can get better just like anything else; the whole Hip-Hop could get a little bit smarter, but I think it’s a learning process, and we’re a work in progress. Hopefully in the next few years, we’ll see things getting better.

AllHipHop.com: Alright, cool. So lastly, I wanted to ask you, I know you guys had the project released on Duck Down, and I wanted to ask what’s next for this whole “First Serve” concept? And wait, where is Maseo? Where’s Maseo???

Dave: Maseo is here. He actually called me this morning. That’s one thing we want people to understand. This is a project that Pos and I were called for, because the producers are also DJs, and so, in recording this record, there wasn’t any need for a DJ. So that’s something that was discussed, and he gave us his blessing and we made this happen. We’re also working on a De La [Soul] album now. Actually, we’re recording two records at this point in time, and Mase is right here. It’s just, you know, fulfilling what we had to do with this project first, and then we’ll put out the De La [Soul] records. So, we here – Plug 1, 2 and 3. We here.

AllHipHop.com: OK, that’s great to hear. So, is there anything else you want to shout out to our audience while we’re here?

Dave: Yeah, definitely they can check us out on Twitter. If anything, I appreciate the fact that people are giving us a chance – this is 2012. Our first release was 1988, and we’ve been blessed to be able to sustain it and be here. This album is a testament to it. I’m sure there will be people who are not fans of this record, but it’s to get the newcomers to appreciate the work that we do. You know, they don’t have to be fans, but when they recognize the hard work and ambition and what not that was put into the music, I just appreciate everybody who took a listen to the First Serve project as well as De La [Soul] projects in the past.

You still haven’t experienced First Serve? Check it out HERE, and visit their Tumblr page, too.

In addition to Rozay and Meek Mill, Epic recording artist Future, who recently released his debut album Pluto and is about to embark on a 45-city tour with G.O.O.D. Music’s Pusha T, performed a number of his hits like “Magic,” “Tony Montana,”Racks”, and “Same Damn Time,” which got one of the biggest responses from the capacity crowd.

Atlanta trio Travis Porter also performed as did MMG/Bad Boy artist and self-proclaimed “Coke Boy” French Montana, whose “Shot Caller (Remix)” was the perfect track to bring Rick Ross to the stage for his headlining set with Meek Mill.

With DJ Zeke on the 1′s and 2′s and impressive opening sets featuring Cota, Mike Classic, and Rae, Springfest was the perfect way to bring an end to one season and prepare concertgoers for a jam-packed summer of live music.

Check out some performance footage from Power 99′s Springfest below:

Mother’s Day is one of America’s oldest non-religious holidays. It dates back to the Civil War, created by peace advocates who supposed if there was one thing that could people could agree on during the war, it was the love of a mother.

Hopefully, Mom was there for you when no one else was, drying your tears and cooking meals that only she could create. The love of a nurturing mother can inspire a child and give them the confidence to reach for their dreams, but, that isn’t every person’s experience. The relationship between a mother and child is one of the most complicated in humanity.

This weekend, AllHipHop.com salutes “Hip-Hop Moms We Love.” Some of them shine as amazing examples for their artistic seeds, some fueled their kids to be anything but like them. Either way, they gave birth to some of our favorite artists. Whether she was great or not so great, whether she brought you in this world or not, whether she is still here in the physical or on another plane; we hope you take a moment this Sunday to think about your Mom:

Dr. Donda West (Kanye West)

A noted scholar and college professor, Dr. West was, at one point, chairwoman of Chicago State University’s English Department, a position she left to help her son in his business and community service efforts.

In 2007, Dr. West published the book, Raising Kanye: Life Lessons from the Mother of a Hip-Hop Star. The subject of poignant songs by her son like, “Hey Mama,” Dr. Donda West passed away November 10, 2010.

Dr. Mahalia Hines (Common)

A principal in Chicago Public Schools for almost 20 years, Dr. Hines helped her son to write his memoir, One Day It’ll All Make Sense, released last year. A friend of Kanye’s mom, Dr. Donda West, Dr. Hines expresses the grief in the book that she felt when she passed away. 

Dr. Hines works as Common’s business manager and helps to run his Common Ground Foundation, a community service venture that helps fuel reading initiatives in Chicago.

Dr. Brenda Greene (Talib Kweli)  

As a professor of English and the Executive Director of the Center for Black Literature at Medgar Evers College at the City University of New York, it is no wonder that Dr. Brenda Greene produced a son as lyrically prolific as Talib Kweli.

Dr. Greene’s scholarly work focuses on African-American and Multi-Cultural Literature. Not coincidentally, Talib Kweli worked for years in a bookstore in Fort Greene, Brooklyn.

Gloria Carter (Jay-Z)

On “December 4th,” the classic song from Jay-Z on The Black Album, Gloria Carter provided amazing commentary about the birth and early childhood of her superstar son, Shawn, claiming that when he was born weighing 10 pounds, his birth was painless. Ms. Carter is currently the CEO of the Shawn Carter Foundation, which offers scholarships to single mothers, children who attend alternative schools, those attaining GEDs, the previously incarcerated, and other non-traditional students who need assistance with pursuing higher education.

Maureen Yancey (J. Dilla)

After the loss of James DeWitt “J Dilla” Yancey, Maureen Yancey (Ma Dukes) has fought ceaselessly to not only preserve, but protect and promote the legacy of her eldest son. Despite facing her own health problems and Dilla’s sizeable debts, Ms. Yancey established the J. Dilla Foundation, a community service program to help engage the arts in schools. Ms. Yancey will soon release J. Dilla: Rebirth of Detroit, a new album from her company, Yancey Media, which features unreleased music from the legendary beatmaker.

Nancy Jones (Jim Jones)

After appearing on “Love & Hip Hop”, Nancy Jones was either a mom that you loved or one that you loved to hate. But, one thing was true: it was obvious that Mama Jones has a ferocious love for her only son. Many may not know that Ms. Jones attended and graduated from New York’s Fashion Institute of Technology, and with the assistance of the visibility from her appearance on “Love & Hip Hop”, Jones is launching her own clothing line and a community service program for women called Sparkle On.

Debbie Mathers (Eminem)

Debbie Mathers was one of the most-controversial family members the music industry had seen since Courtney Love. Her son’s fame, their estranged relationship, and the many songs made about her made her famous, for a short time, in her own right. At one point, Ms. Mathers made her own CD, sued her son for millions, and frequented the talk show circuit. Despite her many flaws, it’s undeniable that Debbie Mathers is a mother who has inspired some of the most gripping songs in Hip-Hop in recent decades.

Voletta Wallace (The Notorious B.I.G) and Afeni Shakur (2Pac)

No list about Hip-Hop mothers is complete until listing these two phenomenal women. Ms. Wallace and Ms. Shakur (pictured at top) have worked tirelessly to preserve the legacies of their sons, whose memories and music loom eternally over Hip-Hop music and culture.

Both Ms. Wallace and Ms. Shakur maintain charitable organizations, The Christopher Wallace Memorial Foundation and The Tupac Amaru Shakur Foundation, which both help young people to achieve success. Both mothers frequently appear on television shows and in documentaries about their sons. Ms. Wallace and Ms. Shakur have both written books and produced films about the legacies of their sons; they remain the perennial mothers of Hip-Hop culture.

Biba Adams is a Senior Staff Writer for AllHipHop.com. She is also the mother of a teenage daughter, and the only child of a great mom. Wish her a Happy Mother’s Day on Twitter (@BibatheDiva).

Rap legend Raekwon; Charli Baltimore, “Love & Hip Hop’s” Olivia; actor and host of “106 & Park, Terrence J.; La La Anthony; and Empire Girls, Adrienne Bailon and Julissa Bermudez, shared their Mother’s Day stories with us.

From super-generous gifts like chartering a boat off the coast of Miami for the special weekend, to the simplistic things like getting up extra early to get your mother’s favorite croissants, we heard an array of stories from artists and actors alike.

Check out the video below to see which celebrity paid off their mother’s house, which one is spoiling their mom with a trip to Jamaica this year, and who whisked their mother away to Europe to honor and celebrate the ultimate sacrifice – motherhood.

Happy Mother’s Day from AllHipHop.com!

If you’ve been keeping up with VH1′s “Couples Therapy”, then you already know it was a really emotional ride for X. He let it all hang out as he worked through issues with his on again-off again wife, Tashera Simmons. He even revealed the probable source of his longtime challenges in life – a loveless relationship with his mother as a child.

If you weren’t keeping up, then wait no more! Below is a video of DMX’s time on the show:

B.o.B. has to be one of the most interesting specimens in Hip-Hop. Entering the game with conscious lyrics and unique vibes, the ATLien soared to new heights last year with explosive mainstream success off his debut album- which showed an array of sides to the rapper.  With this taken into consideration, fans know to expect an eclectic sound and something outside of the box on his sophomore LP, Strange Clouds. The question is, how strange will this be?

The intro, “Bombs Away” features actor Morgan Freeman for dialogue on the track. The first piece of strange is encountered, though the feature goes well with the cinematic production that Bobby Ray utilizes to flex his straight rap skills (“I am in drive, y’all are in park/ Look at my shot, look at the arc/ Look at the crowd as soon as I start”). Each song takes on its own personality, and makes for an adventurous ride. “Ray Bands” sounds like a T.I. influenced, but ultimately B.o.B.-stamped, boastful track.

Tip makes an actual appearance on “Arena” alongside Chris Brown, and B.o.B. shows some of his best lines (“Flow dumb, but I’m so smart/ I compose art, call me Mozart”). Standout “So Good” is where B.o.B. sounds the most comfortable; with ambitious production, catchy chorus work, and no features. The entire album is filled with big name artists that can cramp B.o.B’s style at times, and this sounds like he’s stretching out his musical arms for a breath of fresh air.

The guest appearances cover a great distance, from Nicki Minaj letting her wild cadence loose on the equally unstable and fluctuating “Out of My Mind”,  to OneRepublic front man Ryan Tedder’s involvement on the tranquil “Never Let You Go”.  However, the biggest features come on the album’s two biggest singles. “Both of Us” features Taylor Swift; and while Hip-Hop fans may fight the urge to hate inside of them, fans of “Nothin’ on You” and “Airplanes” may have found a song to fill a void these left. In contrast, Lil’ Wayne has a verse on the jamming title track, “Strange Clouds”. Showcasing heavy, distorted bass thumps, both Southern rappers display their excellent wordplay (“I’m top chef/ you Top Ramon/ I’m top shelf…”).

The album’s two singles are polar opposites of each other in sound, but stand right next to each other on the track-listing; which speaks greatly to what B.o.B. is as an artist. He swings for the fences on every song, making the listen incredibly fun. Because he spans such a great length of sounds, there are sure to be a few not to your liking, as well as many aimed right towards it. B.o.B. has nearly mastered the crossover record in Hip-Hop, like music’s Allen Iverson. But if he was an NBA player, Bobby Ray would more accurately be Dirk Nowitzki – a player doing what he’s not supposed to be doing at his position. He dares genre boundaries to guard him.

From Jay-Z and Queen Latifah, to Run-DMC and the Notorious B.I.G., Booker revealed that his taste in music varies, depending on his mood.

“Sometimes when I feel defiant, I like Biggie and really [he had] one of the all-time greatest Hip-Hop albums,” said Mayor Cory Booker.

Booker, who jogs with his iPod every morning, expressed that he finds inspiration and power from listening to music.

“I really fell in love with Common and Talib Kweli; those guys really spoke to me at a really important time in my life when I was just coming out of law school and getting involved, ” said Mayor Cory Booker. “I found a lot of strength from their raps.”

Check out the video below with Mayor Cory Booker revealing his favorite Hip-Hop artists, why he feels music is a great cultural unifier, and why he has “99 Problems, but a glitch ain’t one”!

Mayor Booker loves social media! Follow him on Twitter (@CoryBooker).

On those rumors, Twista is keen to set the record straight with AllHipHop.com. His upcoming album, The Dark Horse, is due for release on his own label, Get Money Gang Entertainment, and he looks set to further enhance his unique rap legacy:

AllHipHop.com: I’m sorry to remind you about this, but you turn 40 this year. Did you ever think at this stage in your life you’d be still making new albums?

Twista: Early on in my career, I didn’t think so, because you used to hear a lot of talk about rappers retiring. Like, that seemed to be a norm that was about to place, but later through the years, you started to hear rappers talking about never retiring, or doing it forever. Especially looking at artists like Jay-Z, Nas, Eminem; artists like that, my age and older. Jay-Z and Nas, they’re older, but Eminem is close to my age, and he’s still considered one of the top rappers in the game, so I definitely think I can play it out just as long as an R&B artist can play their career out.

AllHipHop.com: About the new album, what can we expect? Where does it fit in with what you’ve done in the past?

Twista: I think it fits in perfectly. I look at it as a continuum, or a protocol. Everybody looks forward to hearing what the Twista’s next album will sound like, in the hopes that it sounds like the original material they’ve heard. And I feel like you can always do different projects and venture out, but I definitely feel like when I go down my lane to give them the next Twista album, that I need to make sure that I satisfy the fans, so they can be like ‘yeah!’ It’s going to be the hard music mixed with the melodic music for the radio.

AllHipHop.com: There’s been a lot of rumors you’re going to sign for G.O.O.D. Music. Could you just clarify that situation?

Twista: Yeah, my words got a little misconstrued when I did an interview, and I told the person it was possible because my main producer [The Legendary Traxter] works a lot with Kanye. I really just left it open on my end as a possibility, but as far as us having any talks on anything actually happening concrete, nothing has happened like that as of yet. But as far as that being a possible place for me to end up, as far as me feeling right, then I would say, yes. But as far as anything transpiring, nothing has happened like that yet.

AllHipHop.com: Is Kanye working on the new album at all?

Twista: I’m definitely looking forward to having him working on the project with me. We haven’t had anything set in stone, but I don’t want to finish the project and not have him have some hand in it in some way, whether it’s production or someone from his team, or something, to something with me.

AllHipHop.com: I think what excites people is that you’ve always managed to coax a different side out of him. Songs like “Slow Jamz”, “Overnight Celebrity”, and “Impossible”, they’re pretty unique in his cannon of work. Tell me about the synergy you guys have in the studio. What do you think brings that out? And, at the same time, what does he bring out in you?

Twista: Great question. I definitely think when me and him go in the studio, we have an energy, and I think, what it is that he brings out of me is, like, once he goes into it and has an idea for a song, it’s just different. It’s Kanye, so it’s like ‘wow,’ and I gotta do what I have to do to compliment it or mess with it. So I think I go into a mode when I think it’s time to work with Kanye, and I think when he has a vision of me on a song, he’ll listen and he’ll be like, ‘man, I hear Twista on this.’ And usually it’s a perfect fit when he hears a person on a song.

But I also think that I help bring an element to him to with songs like “Overnight Celebrity” where I wanted to rap over that particular beat, as far as the original song, and he was able to go grab the song and turn it into his vision from that, too. So I definitely think we work really good together, and I would love for a situation to happen where me and him could get the opportunity to work more.

AllHipHop.com: Looking back over your career, you’ve done a lot for meshing Hip-Hop and R&B over the years. Was that always the kind of music you gravitated towards when you were young?

Twista: I think that, growing up in my household, listening to a lot of ’70s music and, y’know, that whole type of vibe, listening to artists like that. Hearing it play in my house, artists like The Isley Brothers, Marvin Gaye, Luther Vandross, y’know, almost exactly like the song ["Slow Jamz"] says, we used to listen to a lot of that in my household.

So as I got older and I got into Hip-Hop, and got into samples and things like that, we would say then ‘let’s split this’ – that’s what we called it – ‘let’s split this’ or ‘let’s split that’, y’know? There’s a lot of songs that I came up doing that people are familiar with where I was like, ‘I really wanna rap on that someday; I want a producer to take that and turn it into something for me on the rap side.’ Yeah, I do that a lot.

AllHipHop.com: Is that what fans can expect from the new album?

Twista: It’s going to be that die hard Twista style mixed in with a little bit of the new vibe. I definitely pay attention to younger artists that come out and new sounds that come out. I definitely want to make sure I’m able to artistically incorporate what I’m hearing. I like to pay attention to it and stay current. I’m always listening to the new mixtapes so that I can naturally stay on pace with the younger cats when I’m making my album. I don’t like to force it, I don’t like to sit down and think, ‘OK, let me make a song like this person.’ What I do is just keep my ear open and stay current and listen to things with what’s coming out so I can naturally.

AllHipHop.com: Going back to you being, I suppose, one of the veterans, what do you think of Hip-Hop these days? You think it’s in a good state?

Twista: I think it’s in a good state in certain ways, and in certain ways I think it’s in a bad state. Good state, as far as artists being able to get their music out there without having to do a lot of the things they had to do at first. As long as you’ve got a computer, you can get online and get your music heard. I definitely think that’s a plus. The artist has everything at their hands by just having a computer. I think that’s real hot and very important.

But some of the negatives? Man, there’s a million rappers out there, man, my God! Who can possibly listen to all this music? Who has enough downtime? What I’m saying is I feel like the market is oversaturated. Too many people are trying to do music and not get involved with the other elements of music. I think there’s other things pertaining to what we do that’s important to.

AllHipHop.com: The title of the album is going to be called The Dark Horse. Is there meaning to that?

If you listen to it, and look at some of the old cats who’ve used the title before, one of The Beatles [George Harrison] was actually called “the dark horse” before, because you didn’t know how much of his musical involvement had a hand in what Beatles material came out. The dark horse meaning, like, the least expected person to win the race, or the least expected person to win the Superbowl. I look at the dark horse as the person that you don’t always expect to see coming out on top. I consider myself a dark horse in the industry.

AllHipHop.com: And you still feel that after all your years in the industry and all your success?

Twista: Yeah, all the time. It never goes away for some people. I’m pretty sure some basketball teams will tell you, no matter what, people consider them an underdog. I feel like people know I’m lyrical, they know that I’m dope, but I feel like, they don’t feel like I let enough of it out. I think when they listen to The Dark Horse, it will remind them of what I do for Hip-Hop, and they’ll enjoy it.

Twista’s The Dark Horse is set for release this year. Follow him on Twitter (@TWISTAgmg).

Dean Van Nguyen is a contributing writer for AllHipHop.com, and we’re proud to have him from all the way across the pond in Ireland! Follow Dean on Twitter (@DeanVanNguyen).

B.o.B “Strange Clouds” Album Link
http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/strange-clouds/id518748242
This is Teaser #3 from The Next 48 Hours w/ B.o.B

The Next 48 Hours is an AllHipHop.com, JumpOff.TV and Tantrum Production.

AllHipHop.com: Let’s talk about some of your biggest songs. I want to start off with a song that you produced for Murs called “Can It Be.” You flipped Michael Jackson’s “I Wanna Be Where You Are” song for that one.

Scoop Deville: It was cool to be in the lab with Murs, because he was very supportive of me being an up-and-coming producer. He was picking some of my beats, and he chose another one, which ended up being “The Science”, which was a real different type of beat than “Can It Be.” Murs is known for being a rebel artist that breaks away from what everybody else does. I really wish that “Can It Be” song was pushed a little more, even from myself. I wasn’t as hip to the Internet game back then as I am now.

AllHipHop.com: You were very successful in translating the feeling from that Michael Jackson song over to your beat.

Scoop Deville: A lot of artists liked that beat. I played that one for so many cats, but I held onto it. I knew that when Murs got a hold of it, he would do something special with it. I am happy with how that record came out.

AllHipHop.com: Let’s talk about Snoop Dogg’s “I Wanna Rock” song.

Scoop Deville: Let’s go back before that song to when I first linked up with Snoop Dogg. I was in high school, and my pops woke me up ,and he said, “Hey, you might want to miss school today. I’m going to a Snoop Dogg video shoot, and Pharrell from The Neptunes is going to be there.” So I went to the shoot and brought about five or six of my beat CDs. I was in a trailer with B-Real and my pops. Snoop walked in and started to big up my pops.

My beats were playing in the background, and after a while, I saw Snoop bobbing his head. He had asked who the beats belonged to, and everybody in the room told him that they belonged to me. He came up to me and said, “That’s you?” I played him a few more beats, and he started freestyling. I have that on tape, too. This was all inside B-Real’s trailer at the “Vato” video shoot. Snoop’s management told me that they were going to holler at me. Sure enough, it turned into having eight records with Snoop. I also have a record with Pimp C and Snoop that hasn’t seen the light of day yet.

I was living in Las Vegas at the time, and I did “Life of the Party” and “Those Girls” for Snoop. I was around 18 when all of that started popping off. When DJ Quik mixed the album, he told me that I had some pretty dope stuff. He also told me that my songs were fun to play live with Snoop’s band, and he asked me how I did certain things.

AllHipHop.com: DJ Quik was taking notes from you?

Scoop Deville: He was definitely bigging me up and showing a lot of love. I was just thinking to myself, “I don’t even know how to read music and here is Snoop’s band giving me props on how the music was arranged.”

AllHipHop.com: I was there with DJ Quik and Terrace Martin in a studio out in Burbank, California, when he was mixing one of your songs for Snoop’s Ego Trippin’ album.

Scoop Deville: Ego Trippin’ was our first experience together, and after that, Snoop has always hit me up for beats.

AllHipHop.com: After your work with Snoop, other artists began to hit you up for music.

Scoop Deville: “I Wanna Rock” hit New York in such a crazy way. The clubs, the radio, and the streets took to the song, and everywhere you went, you would hear the beat knockin’ out of the systems. That was unreal for me to be in New York and hearing my song on the radio. Funkmaster Flex dropped bombs on it, and introduced it as the hottest record at the time.

AllHipHop.com: What I dug about that record is that you sampled another Hip-Hop song – a legendary one at that. “It Takes Two” by Rob Base & DJ EZ-Rock is an all-time classic.

Scoop Deville: Growing up, songs like that were so huge to me. Those are my classics.

AllHipHop.com: What were you thinking when you put that song together?

Scoop Deville: To be honest, I will have a bunch of songs that I’m rocking that month, and I will just click on them. If it does something to me, then I will flip it. That’s what happened with the Kendrick Lamar and Dr. Dre record. I heard something special, and I flipped it. I have so many records to choose from, that my sound bank is retarded.

AllHipHop.com: I’m sure by now the readers want us to get in to “The Recipe” song that you made for Kendrick and Dre, so let’s get in to it.

Scoop Deville: I was on my way to the airport to go to Atlanta, and I was listening to a station called KCRW. They played a song that just won me over the moment that I heard it. I didn’t know who the group was or who sung it. I remembered the lyrics, and I went on the Internet and found it through a search. I feel like if I connect with a certain song, no matter the time of day or where it’s at, then it’s for a reason. That song definitely came my way for a reason. The song by the way, is called “Meet The Frownies” by a group called Twin Sister.

AllHipHop.com: How did the beat get to Dr. Dre?

Scoop Deville: I was sitting on that track unsure of who I was going to give it to, but I did have Dr. Dre in mind. I told myself if I were to ever do a song with Dr. Dre, this would be it. One day, I got a hold of Stat Quo, and he came over to my house. I played him some beats and he was like, “I’m taking this to Dre.” Not long after, I received a personal phone call from Dr. Dre.

AllHipHop.com: When was this?

Scoop Deville: I would say in 2011. I had been sitting on the beat since the end of 2010.

AllHipHop.com: What did Dr. Dre say when he called you?

Scoop Deville: He asked if I would be interested in working with him on some records, and I told him absolutely. I sent him some files and told him that I would love to be a part of anything he had going on. That’s a phone call that you definitely want to have when you are in this business. I accomplished something that day.

AllHipHop.com: You were at your house when he called?

Scoop Deville: It was on my cell phone, but yes, I was at the house. Stat Quo was the one who actually called me, and he put Dre on the phone. It all started about what he needed for Detox. I believe that he sacrificed the beats that I gave him for Kendrick’s project. I’ve been in the studio with other Aftermath artists like Slim the Mobster. The record before “The Recipe” was the one with 50 Cent called “Wait Until Tonight.”

AllHipHop.com: Jay-Z even rapped over your “I Wanna Rock” beat for the remix!

Scoop Deville: That was a surprise. There was a rumor going around about it, but I didn’t believe it – and sure enough it happened. I heard DJ Felli Fel from Power 106 play i,t and I was like, “Oh sh*t.” It still hasn’t even sunk in yet. All of this has been surreal so far. Busta Rhymes called to congratulate me on everything that’s going on right now. He told me that I was destroying everything in the streets. I have that message at the house.

AllHipHop.com: That’s a message that you definitely want to save.

Scoop Deville: As soon as I heard it, I saved it. I mic’ed it up and recorded it. That’s the kind of sh*t that really let’s you know that people are checking for you.

AllHipHop.com: Where does it all go from here? Have you even thought about that yet?

Scoop Deville: I have been thinking about it. Now is the time to let the world know who Scoop Deville is and what I’m capable of doing. I want to shock people and this is a shock to people.

AllHipHop.com: It shouldn’t be though. “The Recipe” isn’t your first huge song.

Scoop Deville: Well it’s a shock to me [laughter]. Dre is one of my idols. I’m from the West Coast and I’ve seen every movement that he’s been involved in. To even be a part of this movement is unreal for me.

AllHipHop.com: I hope this isn’t taken the wrong way because I’m one of the biggest Dre fans, but some of the more recent songs that he’s put out have not received the love that he’s used to. This song, “The Recipe,” has got a lot of fans excited. The beat is hot, Dre’s flow is fresh, and it’s all over a Scoop Deville track.

Scoop Deville: He’s not just rapping over anybody’s sh*t too. This is Dr. Dre. He has every kind of musical source available to him. I’m glad that he chose this as the single because it is a different kind of track.

AllHipHop.com: It’s definitely not the typical radio song. It goes left from all of the rap songs on the radio right now. I think it’s real easy for an artist to just go with the flow and sound like whatever is being played at the moment.

Scoop Deville: I think that’s what caught Dre’s attention as well. It has such a cool and melodic feel. It does something to you when you hear it, just as the original record did to me when I first heard it. It reminds me of the song that Eminem used for “Stan.” It had everybody searching for the original. I told the Twin Sister band that I flipped their joint and sent it to Dr. Dre and they got all excited. They ended up sending me every type of file on their song. The group has other good songs too and that’s the point of all of this – you need to take notice of good music.

AllHipHop.com: Are you and your father going to make more music together?

Scoop Deville: Yes. My father can still write and create songs. I would never put an age limit on Hip-Hop. He can still do this. There are still talented artists, who are older, that we still need in this business.

AllHipHop.com: You and your father did the Welcome to Frost Angeles album together, but that’s a Kid Frost album. What about a Kid Frost and Scoop Deville album?

Scoop Deville: Sure. I want to do album with my pops. That’s something that I will have forever. That would be a part of history and something special for my life.

AllHipHop.com: A father and son Hip-Hop album would be amazing. I’m trying to rack my brain and I can’t think of one.

Scoop Deville: That would be different but that’s what it’s all about – doing it for the love of music. That’s my pops and I would do anything for him.

AllHipHop.com: He’s never tried to take one of your hot tracks to keep for himself?

Scoop Deville: [Laughter] Sometimes he’ll be like, “I need that.” Sometimes I say, “Dad, this is special and I want to give it to someone.” We’ll work it out and I’ll give him some heat. It’s dope to see my dad still do his thing. He still makes a living off of this.

AllHipHop.com: I have been concerned about his recent health problems.

Scoop Deville: Me too. I was there, and I went through those situations with him. It’s hard when reality hits you. It’s fun to be out on the scene, but it definitely takes its toll on a lot of artists. We’ve lost a few artists recently, and it’s important to take care of your health.

AllHipHop.com: The Hip-Hop lifestyle isn’t known for being healthy.

Scoop Deville: Yeah, you don’t hear of anybody rapping about salads, but I have seen some on Instagram post pictures of their healthy meals. It is hard being out there, because partying and networking is the scene. However, it’s a new time, and we have to stay positive and healthy. I used to be very overweight, and I had to start taking care of my health. My father and I have had talks about this. The reality is that we have to take care of ourselves.

After releasing The Bite-Marked Heart on Rhymesayers Entertainment in early February, Ali set his attentions on finding the perfect band to back him during his live performances, and debuted them to an overwhelming reaction at the 2012 South By Southwest (SXSW) Music and Film Festival in Austin, Texas, this past March.

AllHipHop.com caught up with Ali after one of his stellar performances, and asked the man from Minneapolis to dissect his writing and recording process, as well as explain to us how he deals with writer’s block, or what he more commonly refers to as “heart block.”

Ali also spoke to us about his socially-charged, fifth studio album, Mourning In America and Dreaming In Color, which he currently has on deck for release this August, along with a host of other topics including Jake One, being creative, his favorite tracks, and much more.

Check out our exclusive interview with Brother Ali below:

Follow Brother Ali on Twitter (@BrotherAli).

Toronto’s Airplane Boys, who have warmed-up crowds onstage for with J. Cole, Big Sean, Snoop Dogg, Kendrick Lamar, and Mac Miller, also appeared on the show. Check out a recap of the Canadian cats who recently captured a slew of new fans at Coachella 2012:

Some of the best dancers in the world converge…Down Under? Yep! Check out some video below from MNET’s “In The Scene” to see why you should never sleep on Australia’s international B-Boy competition scene:

“Beats Per MNET” airs on MNET on Wednesdays at 9PM/EST. Check your local cable listings.

The Next 48 Hours is an original production by AllHipHop.com, Jump Off TV and Tantrum Productions.

Directed by Steve Raze

Mia X is set to do big things soon with the spirit of her grandmother watching over her. And while she preps for the culinary limelight, she’s back in the studio cooking up new music for you to cook along to. Check out the exclusive video below as she talks about her new venture, and lets us in the studio for a sneak listen at her new music:

Follow Mia X on Twitter (@TheRealMiaX) and be on the lookout for news about her upcoming cooking series!

Last month, AllHipHop.com sat down with Kid Frost and got his amazing story, which included the raising of his record-producing son. Now, we return to Kid Frost’s studio to get the story from Scoop Deville right on the heels of his biggest record to date, “The Recipe,” by Kendrick Lamar and Dr. Dre. In this two-part interview, we go in-depth with Scoop Deville to get his full story and to give the readers an insight in to his life and the music that he creates:

AllHipHop.com: I heard that you just recently came back from Jamaica and that you collaborated with the Marleys. What brought you out there?

Scoop Deville: One of the records that I did for Dr. Dre had Damian Marley on it, and he found out that I made the beat. Damian flew myself and a friend, Byze One, out there, and it was incredible. They took care of us like we were royalty. If we weren’t with them, it would have been a different situation, because walking those streets of Trench Town were unreal. They sent word out that we were with the Marleys, and nobody messed with us.

When I first went in to the studio, I kind of just stood in the background watching them get down. After a bit, I opened up and started talking to the musicians and jamming out with them. It was incredible just being in the same place that Bob Marley made records and sang. We were at the Tuff Gong studio.

AllHipHop.com: We interviewed your father, and he told us that when you were a kid, he gave you keyboards to pound and play on.

Scoop Deville: I did that at first to get his attention, especially when he had to roll out somewhere. As time went on, it became fun. I learned the basics from my grandfather before he passed away. Just those three chords that he taught me allowed me to move my hands around the keyboard and play just about anything by ear and by feel. I’m not a guitar player, but I can pick it up and play something – and it will sound great.

I always had equipment around me, even my dad’s equipment. I would mess around in the studio with the beat machines. I was around Tony G, Fredwreck, and all of these cats that were doing great records. I would watch them as a kid, and they would leave the room with the equipment on.

AllHipHop.com: And you would just take over?

Scoop Deville: I would just take over and do my own sessions and play my own beats. Tony G gave me lessons on how to work the MPC. I was so lucky and blessed to have that upbringing. There were some talented people in the studio – even my pops. He was always making beats. Everywhere we were at, there was always a studio around. Even back then, he could have been anything he wanted to be, like a fireman, and I would have done the same thing. That’s my father, and a father teaches his traits to his son. I always loved music, and I was infatuated with its sound. I loved it all: Rock, Old School, ’80s, Reggae. You can still play those records today, and they’ll kill anything today.

AllHipHop.com: Is this a Billy Joel sample on this beat that you’re playing right now? It sounds like his song, “My Life.”

Scoop Deville: It is. This is from a project that I’m working on called ScoopaLoops. I take random songs and sample them. It’s to put these young cats on game with good music.

AllHipHip.com: This Billy Joel song is way before your time.

Scoop Deville: These songs were always on in my house growing up. My dad always played songs from he was growing up. I’m 24 years old, so being born in the late ’80s, I grew up with the early ’90s artists like Gang-Starr, A Tribe Called Quest, and X-Clan. Some of these artists were my father’s friends.

AllHipHop.com: What was it like growing up as the son of Kid Frost?

Scoop Deville: It was crazy, because people knew who he was, yet he was just “dad” to me. He coached baseball and was heavily involved in my life, all while touring on the road. He would take me on the tours sometimes, too. I saw the positive and negative sides of the music business. I’d listen to his business calls and watch his hustle. I would chill with Ice-T’s son while our fathers hung out. When I went to school, people would ask what my father did for a living and they would trip out when I told them.

AllHipHop.com: Him being on the road a lot must have been hard on you, though.

Scoop Deville: Yeah. In those times, I would get letters and postcards from wherever he was at in the world at that time. His career was poppin’ for real when I was kid. He would be in Paris, Japan, Germany – everywhere. He would always bring me back something when he got home. He’s my role model. I know every word to his songs.

Nowadays, it’s different. The older cats know about him, but some of the younger generation have never heard of him. It’s a great thing to be a part of, though. It’s like the Marley boys and their father.

AllHipHop.com: Do you remember when “La Raza” was made?

Scoop Deville: I was a toddler, but I was there! I was even in the video. Dad held me in his arms throughout it.

AllHipHop.com: You got an early start in music, but I know that it took a while for you to become good at it. Everybody sucks when they first start.

Scoop Deville: [Laughter] Everybody sucks when they first start. I was just putting loops together, not even really making beats. One of the machines had loops already programmed, and I would just mix them together. Then I started to figure out how to make them on my own. I had a crate of records from family and friends, and I would sample anything that was dope. I built an archive of samples from just about everything – even sounds of a baby sneezing or crying.

AllHipHop.com: Do you remember the first real beat that you made?

Scoop Deville: Yes, I do. It was a Bob Marley sample. It was the bass line ending to “I Shot The Sheriff”. I put some Biz Markie drums over it and looped it all.

AllHipHop.com: Did you play that for your dad? Was there a time where he didn’t take the beats seriously?

Scoop Deville: He was very supportive. When he bought my first computer, he was telling everybody that his son could make beats. I was always fiddling around with keyboards and stuff, but when I got my computer with its programs, it was over.

AllHipHop.com: What were some of the first programs that you used?

Scoop Deville: Acid and Sonic Foundary were some of my first programs. They had pre-loops on them that my dad showed me how to use. It was just a hobby that I got better and better at. It turned in to something more serious, and I still use some of those programs to this day. I did the Kendrick Lamar and Dr. Dre record from the Acid program. Some things you don’t have to change if the quality is great.

AllHipHop.com: Your dad told us that he knew you were going to make it when you made the “Mamacita” song by Baby Bash.

Scoop Deville: I sampled an Isley Brothers joint for that one. Bash was with my dad, and he asked me to play him some beats. I played him some tracks, and he was digging them, so he flew me and my father out to Texas. I was only 15 or 16 at the time. I was out there for a week doing records for him. That was my first real experience at getting my feet wet in this industry. The record was on the Billboard charts and was played on stations like KIIS FM in Los Angeles, which is one of the largest stations in the country.

AllHipHop.com: Normal 16-year-old kids don’t have songs that they’ve produced on the radio [laughter].

Scoop Deville: I wasn’t a normal kid, although I did have a normal childhood growing up playing baseball and stuff. We were a music family. Dad would be in the studio, and I would be there right in back of him. He even wrote raps for me and encouraged me to try it. Learning things on the way, I got to meet some really cool people. I did a song with Mac Dre when he came by the studio one time. Then me and my dad made an entire album together called Welcome to Frost Angeles. I was no older than 17, but I knew that I could do it because of the amount of time that I had already spent in the studio.

AllHipHop.com: It’s one thing to record with another artist, but this is your dad. That has to be an entirely different experience.

Scoop Deville: It was a different element of experience, but he was feeling everything that we were coming up with. We trusted each other with our work, and he even suggested that I write him a 16-bar rap. I went and wrote him some bars, and he went into the booth while I sat and listened at the board – it was a special moment.

AllHipHop.com: I know that you made music, but I had no idea that you wrote rhymes, too.

Scoop Deville: I used to rap my ABC’s [laughter].

Kid Frost interjects: There’s footage of him rapping for The Boo-Yah Tribe when he was like three or four years old.

AllHipHop.com: How is it that you got to break out as a producer instead of a rapper?

Scoop Deville: Production came to me a bit easier, because I was always so hands on with instruments. In high school, I was on the drum line squad, and we were pounding out Hip-Hop breaks. That was just another sign that told me that I could really do this.

AllHipHop.com: Do you wish you could have come out as a rapper first? Or, are you happy with the way things turned out.

Scoop Deville: As a producer you have to understand how to rap and how to arrange and make a song. I could be just a beat maker sending beats to artists and just hoping that they do something good with it. I’m at the point where I can come up with a concept, a hook to help with some of the raps, arrange the song and mix it.

AllHipHop.com: You mentioned sending beats off to artists. Do you wish that you could sit down with more artists in the studio?

Scoop Deville: Yes, I definitely want to have input in to the building of the record. It’s different when an artist vibes with you in the studio, instead of them just skimming through beats. When you vibe together, the artist can capture what you were feeling when you created that beat and you can help them in creating their own song. It works hand in hand, although sometimes an artist really knows what they are doing, and they can create their own magic. Nowadays, I want to be with the artist during that process, because I know what I bring to the table.

Check back tomorrow for Part 2 where Scoop Deville talks about “The Recipe” record and more!

In this episode of RAPPIN WITH RAVEN, Raven goes in-studio with EVITAN, takes a listen to tracks from their upcoming album, and discusses why the two decided to collaborate on the new project.

Dres discusses bringing the “Golden Era” of Hip-Hop to the present, while Jarobi discusses how serious Hip-Hop has become. In addition to preparing to bring the fun back into Hip-Hop, Jarobi also gives a quick tip on how to stay out of trouble by talking to yourself in the mirror daily.

Check out exclusive video with EVITAN below:

Follow Jarobi (@jarobione) and Dres (@DresBlacksheep) on Twitter.

“Raven The Blazin Eurasian” is an AllHipHop.com contributor. Check out more of her interviews HERE, and follow her on Twitter (@BlazinEurasian).

The former Murder Inc. rapstress has a lot on her plate these days. From recording new music to starring in a new movie, and even finding time to manage her daughters blossoming modeling career, Charli is determined to showcase all of her talents this time around.

First on her agenda is the recent release of her mixtape, Natural Born Khronicles. The mixtape finds her teaming up with Dutch of Major Figgaz fame, and follows the blueprint from the 1994 movie, Natural Born Killers.

“We modeled it after Natural Born Killers, so even our photography and everything is us posing like Mickey and Mallory. I just felt like it was something different that had never been done before,” said Charli Baltimore during her interview at the AllHipHop offices.

Charli also spoke about the supergroup, “The Commission”, which she was a part of alongside Biggie Smalls, Jay-Z, and Busta Rhymes. The group was later extended to include Sean “Diddy” Combs, Kaleb “Un” Rivera, and Lil’ Cease. And, although numerous songs were made, such as “Brooklyn’s Finest”, “I Love the Dough”, “Victory”, “What’s Beef” and “Young G’s”, the group disbanded after Biggie’s March 1997 death.

“Big was setting [The Commission] up. He had a whole vision in mind of what he wanted it to be…it was definitely going down. His next project would have been [The Commission]. Unfortunately, we didn’t get a chance to work together because of his untimely death,” said Charli Baltimore.

When asked if she would be excited to see a Notorious B.I.G. hologram created, Charli, who says she still hasn’t seen the Tupac hologram, said it would be “a little strange.”

“I always try to look at stuff when I think about Big, about how he would feel about that. I’m not really sure of how I feel about it…it’s a little strange for me, a little strange,” said Charli Baltimore.

Check out AllHipHop.com’s full interview with Charli Baltimore below:

Next up is Charli’s upcoming sophomore album, True Lies, which is slated for a July release. The first single, “All Eyes”, features Maino and will be released later this month. You can also catch Charli on the big screen this summer, with a starring role in the upcoming film, Guns and Roses 2. Check out a clip of Charli the actress in action below:

For most people, when you mention Ham Squad, you think of B.o.B, not his partner in rhyme, Playboy Tre. If you did, you’d most likely associate his name with the online antics (most notably the Youtube videos) instead of his music. However, you’d be mistaken to simply ignore his skill, or his relevance when it comes to his consistency when delivering feature verses, or in this case, quality mixtapes. Tre’s been a workhorse for quite some time, and although he’s played the background in the past, he’s still quite the monster when it comes to lyrics and concepts; with the recent release of Liquor Store Mascot 2: Patron & Instrumentals, he does that yet again.

As you could assume from the title, most of the songs and lyrics here are liquor-fueled, but it never truly becomes a redundant title due to Tre’s creativity. It doesn’t mean that there aren’t a couple of “party and bullsh**” songs like “5th of Drank” and “We All In“, but the project isn’t limited to those type of songs and that’s what makes this enjoyable. “Shot of Rum” is essentially a posse cut which takes a disrespectfully clever line from P. Dukes‘ first bars (“I got your girl on a shot of rum / she say that’s too strong so she chased it with a shot of c*m”) and features Bobby Creekwater, Jarren Benton, Homebwoi, and Bo Hagon  (of BME / Lil’ Jon fame). “Lady Liquor” has Playboy Tre making the comparison of his bottle to a beautiful but conniving female. The self-titled track (“Patron & Instrumentals“) has him just reflecting over different aspects of his life.

All of this is in addition to the other high-quality tracks featured here. “Still Standing” and “Care After Me” all have inspirational themes running through them, and Tre is still as lyrically potent on these songs as he is when rhyming with the intent of dropping memorable lines. The production is also solid throughout, with beats being helmed from a plethora of producers that include The Honorable C-Note, Homebwoi, Young Shawn, DJ Burn One, and more. Overall, there isn’t much to dislike here unless you mistake the liquor-fueled lyrics to be liquor-filled, and surprisingly, that’s not the case here. With solid production, well executed lyrics and concepts, and a few standout features (most notably from Big Rec on “Something To Say” due to his ridiculous flow), Playboy Tre’s Liquor Store Mascot 2: Patron & Instrumentals is definitely worthy of its rating.

• Download “Liquor Store Mascot 2: Patron & Instrumentals” here.

Check out the new music video for “Fallin” off Trip Lee’s fourth studio album, The Good Life. The video was produced by Jesus Diaz and directed by Francis De La Torre.

The Good Life is available in stores now and on iTunes! Follow Trip Lee on Twitter (@triplee116). Find more from AllHipHop.com contributor Chad Horton at Rapzilla.com.

AllHipHop.com’s Chuck “Jigsaw” Creekmur recently sat down with Wiz Khalifa and time traveled back to the year 2005, when Wiz was only 18 years old and had just released his first mixtape,  Prince of the City – Welcome to Pistolvania.

“I was real lyrical back then, man, because I was finding my lane, and there were a alot of lyrical cats out there already who were covering that and doing that way more than I felt like doing that,” said Wiz Khalifa.

Taking a moment to critique his fashion statement on the cover, Wiz feels he embodied a winner on the mixtape cover:

“I look like the young champion of my city. I look like I really, really might run that town. With that 5X State Property hoodie on from Burlington, and that 6X tall tee from Foot Locker, and my Pittsburgh hat. That’s a hard cover, man.”

Check out the video below as Wiz Khalifa reminisces about his earlier days as a young spitter, gives advice to his younger self, and breaks down his look on the cover of his first mixtape, Prince of the City – Welcome to Pistolvania.

MCA and the Beasties are represented in the book along with a testimonial. Five people people will be randomly selected via Twitter between Monday and Wednesday. All you have to do is tweet @AllHipHopcom and @JustinBUA your favorite line or lyric from MCA using the hashtag #MCALEGEND.

Enter as may times as you want!

For more info on BUA, you can check him out on Facebook (www.facebook.com/bua) and Twitter (@justinBUA) where he personally updates new paintings and drawings weekly. You can also reach him at www.justinbua.com, where The Legends of Hip Hop is available for purchase.

The Legends of Hip Hop Info – http://justinbua.com/legends-of-hiphop.html
BUA bio – http://justinbua.com/bio.html

A variety of celebrities showed up to support Brackins’ latest effort, which features upcoming single “Fuck Friends.”

Rapper Game, Bad Girls Club Camilla Poindexter aka Cali Kutt-Throat, Sean Kingston, Jeremih, Ty$ and others turned up at the event.

Check out some flicks from the event and download Bobby Brackins mixtape “Stay On It” here.

Adam “MCA” Yauch passed away today, Friday, May 4, 2012, at age 47.

Sadly, the full threesome that was the Beastie Boys is now missing a member, and at AllHipHop.com, we’re now missing a pioneer and influential friend.

The Beastie Boys were and are a veritable force to be reckoned with – their eclectic styles, rooted in the foundation of New York Hip-Hop and led by some of the most brilliant business and music minds ever, are things to marvel.

And, although he leaves behind his partners Michael “Mike D” Diamond and Adam “Ad-Rock” Horowitz to carry the torch, MCA’s contributions will never be forgotten. In his memory, we offer the “Top 5 Irreplaceable Beastie Boys Moments in Rap History”:

5. Finding the Gumption to Catapult Themselves Into Longevity

Lifelong Beastie Boys fans might remember that the trio rode the wave to the top of Hip-Hop early on with a sound that was new but not so far-fetched, even to inner city kids who didn’t know Rock. That in itself was already a feat, considering the group’s initial place in Hardcore Punk before they made the transition to MC’ing. But the Rock infusion stuck around, and the goodness kept coming.

With smarts, creative visuals, and lots of zaniness in their production, over the years, the Beastie Boys dared to release the very different. Different paid off, as Hello Nasty, in 1998, earned them two Grammy Awards – one for Best Alternative Music Performance (Hello Nasty) and Best Performance by a Rap Group (or Duo) for the album track, “Intergalactic”.

4. Paving The Way for Rap In The Mainstream, No Matter What Their Color

In the early to mid-‘80s, the genre known as Rap was still a baby – restless, misunderstood, and sometimes scary to the larger audience. And while Rap was nearly 99% dominated by Black youngsters at the time, thank goodness for the Beastie Boys, who helped make the music more palatable to the corporate big wigs who ran the industry.

The Beastie Boys’ “creamy” complexions were just the ticket we needed to infiltrate MTV and the CD game – in fact, Licensed to Ill was considered one of the first rap albums to be plated on the new disk technology in 1986.

3. Having the Forethought To Work With Early Def Jam Geniuses Rick Rubin and Russell Simmons

Russell Simmons wasn’t nearly as flossy, and Rick Rubin was just as much a hippie then – but they both had their finger on the pulse of Hip-Hop. The two, who met in a college dorm in New York, didn’t know it yet, but with the Beastie Boys and Run-DMC in tow, they were about to make beautiful music together.

It was their fledgling Def Jam that cranked out the Beastie Boys’ first recording, “Rock Hard”, in 1984. And the rest is Hip-Hop history…

2. A Well-Deserved Induction into the Rock N Roll Hall of Fame

It seems as if God’s timing knows best. Just three weeks ago (on April 15, 2012), the Beastie Boys were inducted into the coveted Rock N Roll Hall of Fame, and celebrated for their nearly 30-year contributions to the music industry. The late MCA was too ill to attend, but Chuck D was there to present the award, and his groupmates and friends like The Roots, Travie McCoy, and Kid Rock partied hard and acknowledged him well before his passing.

“We’re in the rock and roll hall of fame? That’s f*ckin’ crazy and awesome! While we are very proud of the music we make, we have to acknowledge the inspiration from our families, friends and musicians like the slits, bad brains, x-ray spex, the treacherous three and too many others to possibly name. And most of all, we give thanks to New York City and the world of musical influence it provided for us,” the Beastie Boys said in a statement about the auspicious occasion.

1. The Classic Work of Art That Is Licensed To Ill

When the Beastie Boys kicked in Rap’s doors in the mid-‘80s, the naysayers didn’t even have time to hate! Whether created by White, Black, or in between, good Hip-Hop is what it is. The budding industry at the time took notice, marveling at the fresh feeling that the Beastie Boys brought to the game.

With classic production, memorable titles, and lyrics that made you laugh out loud, Licensed To Ill brought diversity to the field in 1986, opening up endless possibilities for the genre in the future. It was also the first of four platinum-plus selling albums for the group, going on to sell over nine million copies worldwide. That’s ill.

Rest in peace to Adam “MCA” Yauch, and long live the Beasties! Share your own memories below.

While he was bred in the MIA (and his name proudly bears his home state of Florida), it’s difficult to put Flo Rida in a box as simply a Florida artist. Flo’s sound is worldwide and appears to have no boundaries. From Europe to Asia to Australia, Flo Rida is collecting big checks for big shows that are paying for a lavish lifestyle that anyone would desire. With endorsements, live television appearances on “Wrestlemania”, “The Voice”, and Google Upfront 2102, it’s difficult to see how Flo isn’t winning.

In this exclusive sit down with AllHipHop.com, Flo Rida explains his move to (EDM), how he is brushing off recent lawsuits, his work with Lady Gaga and Lil Wayne, and details on his new label, IMG International Group:

AllHipHop.com: First off, how’s everything going with Poe Boy? How have the international concerts been? Seems like you are always over the place, homie….

Flo Rida: Oh, man, you know it’s great. It’s just amazing, I actually just did a tour with Pitbull out in Canada. You know I started my new label the IMG International Group, and I brought my artist Tyler Maderos out there, who is from Canada. He came out and rocked the crowd; he actually has a lot of fans out there. I actually went out to Australia recently and did a bunch of big shows and things like that, and I just shot my video for “Whistle” in Acapulco, Mexico, and I’m just gearing up for more places to be on tour.

AllHipHop.com: Speaking of international shows, can you comment on the lawsuit for $80,000 by the promotional company, Fat Butta, in Australia?

Flo Rida: Yeah, man, for the most part Australia went well, but, man, you know a lot of times anyone can come up and say anything and get everyone’s attention when it comes to just being an artist. I’m just happy that none of it is true, and it’s all about what happens in the end. I’m just happy it’s not true, and lot of times, promoters try to jerk you and they are called “janky promoters,” man.

Flo Rida: Wild Ones ft Sia

AllHipHop.com: [laughter] I guess that just comes with the territory when you’re getting $80,000 per show in the first place.

Flo Rida: Yeah, man, you know that’s just somebody trying to take advantage of me having #1 records, and they just want to bring our stuff in the negative, and they feel like they should pay you a certain amount of money, and they feel like they shouldn’t give you a ride to the venue. Maybe they thought that I should have brought my Bugatti to Australia, and that I could have brought my own car. With that being said, I think that says a lot.

AllHipHop.com: I assumed your answer would be somewhere along those lines [laughter]. Tell me about the video in Mexico for the new single, “Whistle.”

Flo Rida: Yeah, it was just amazing. It was the whole Poe Boy fam, as well as the IMG. We all went out there private jet style, and it seemed like the whole city came out to support the video. It was like the whole Poe Boy family – Billy Blue, Brisco, Wild Child, Stacy, and everyone – came out there, and we just enjoyed ourselves for two days, man. This record is going to be one of my biggest records yet. You guys will get a chance to see that video in a month or so.

Flo Rida – Whistle [Audio]

AllHipHop.com: Talk to me about what you have planned for “The Voice”.

Flo Rida: Oh yeah, I’m actually supposed to go on “The Voice” real soon and perform. I’m looking forward to that, and I’m gonna bring my band and everything.

AllHipHop.com: You have a live band? How many people are in your band?

Flo Rida:  Yeah, man, I have five people in the band.

AllHipHop.com: It just seems like right now you have reached the point in your career with the Google Upfront event, “The Voice”, and “Wrestlemania 28″ with MGK, that you are really out there. How does it feel to be on that platform?

Flo Rida: I mean, it’s just amazing because I definitely work hard. You know they say, if you work hard, you can play hard, and so I’m definitely enjoying it, as well as inspiring artists signed to my record label. You look back to when I didn’t have a record deal, to when I was walking 20 miles to take my demo certain places, taking the Greyhound to L.A., and living on the streets. It pays off when you work hard and when you have a passion and you believe in yourself and when everyone else might not believe in you.

AllHipHop.com: What do you think was the defining moment in your career, when your career sort of tipped the scale so to speak, and you really took your career to the next level?

Flo Rida: When I got a chance to run into my manager, Freezy and E-Class, who is the CEO of Poe Boy Records. You know those guys believed in me, as well as my parents.

Flo Rida: Good Feeling

AllHipHop.com: Ok, that’s what’s up, man. Now heading into the realm of the studio, you have a project coming out this summer right?

Flo Rida: Yeah, man, we still working on the name of the album and everything, but yeah, it’s going to be coming out real soon.

AllHipHop.com: Ok, so you’re still working on the name, huh?

Flo Rida: Yeah, we got the records, but as far as the name we still working on that. So far my boy Lil’ Wayne is on the album, he was on my first album. LMFAO is on the album, Sia who is on the record, “Wild Ones”, which is doing amazing, it’s #1 all over the world.  As well as the song “Good Feeling,” featuring the late great Etta James, just to name a few.

AllHipHop.com: One thing with your music is that you can tell there is a heavy influence of electronic dance music (EDM). Can you talk about that and how that style of music has influenced your music?

Flo Rida: For the most part, I just loved music in general growing up in Miami where there’s various different ethnicities, and I got a chance to choose from the music culture, from the Haitians, to the Jamaicans and the Latinos, and everything like that. So to transition over to Spanish music and everything, it really wasn’t that hard, because I had to be versatile being in Miami. I might receive a beat from somebody, and being an artist without a record deal, I had to be able to spit to different types of music, so now to me, it’s something that’s just natural now.

AllHipHop.com: Right. Now, recently, Drake came out and made statements about electronic dance music, saying that it “lacked integrity,” and that it didn’t have as much soul as he would like, just to paraphrase. Do you feel like EDM has more soul than people give it credit for?

Flo Rida: I mean, anything that I do, I gotta put some soul in it. But for the most part, to each his own. You can’t knock a man for what he feels. It’s freedom of speech.

AllHipHop.com: Are you fan of Drake’s music?

Flo Rida: Yeah, I’m a fan of Drake’s music.

AllHipHop.com: Oh ok, that’s what’s up. One thing that’s going to be really big is that you just remixed a Lady Gaga song. How did that come together?

Flo Rida: Well, I actually just did a remix to the record. You know for the most part, I talk to some people when I do records and/or we chop up the business, but on that record in particular, I just did the record.

AllHipHop.com: Will you be having more work with her [Lady Gaga] in the future?

Flo Rida: I mean, I don’t mind. I worked on the album on her first album, Starstruck. If she’s ’bout it, then I’m with it. We gonna see what’s up.

AllHipHop.com: As far as some of the tracks that may have more of a Hip-Hop feel than the ones that are more dance-inspired, can you tell me which ones you think that real Hip-Hop heads are going to be diggin’.

Flo Rida: It’s a couple of them. I got a record with Lil’ Wayne that shows the versatility of both, and then I got a record on the album that has more of an urban feel on there’s that pop edge to it, where I’m singing on the record, and my rhyme pattern is definitely something of my early work.

AllHipHop.com: It’s cool that you are expanding the genre of Hip-Hop to different directions beyond what people traditionally think that it is. A lot of times Hip-Hop can be about different things at times, so it shows courage to step out there, and you are winning at it, getting big shows and endorsements. Definitely congrats, bro.

Flo Rida: For the most part I think it takes courage for the newer artists, because I am one of the first artists to do it how I am doing it, and for me, it didn’t take courage. It was natural, it was just for me being more versatile.

When we spoke to XV a few weeks back - before he headlined his first New York City show - he updated us on the status of his debut album,The Kid With the Green Backpack, which boasts Just Blaze as executive producer. We also discovered that XV isn’t just a Warner Bros. recording artist; he’s also a major movie and comic fan.

It was only natural, with the summer movie season officially upon us starting with tonight’s midnight release of The Avengers, to ask XV about his most anticipated summer movies. In a movie season that will see releases like The Dark Knight Rises, G.I. Joe: Retaliation, Men In Black III and The Amazing Spider-Man among many others, the kid from Kansas picks his top three choices.

Check out the video below:

Follow XV on Twitter (@XtotheV).

Get @PlayboyTre mixtape “Liquor Store Mascot 2: Patron & Instrumentals” HERE

Get @BoBATL new album “Strange Clouds” HERE

Jadakiss has always been the consistent bet in rap; if you ever needed a feature that would garner the automatic street appeal, there aren’t too many artists that would take priority over the LOX representative. He’s been putting out constant music for years, but that classic LP has eluded him to this point. With the upcoming release of his next album “Top Five, Dead or Alive“, he’s looking to prove he’s able to create that classic. Mixtapes, however? That’s a different subject altogether; his projects all contain high replayability due to his versatility, and that’s exactly the case yet again with his DJ-Drama powered “Consignment” mixtape which dropped recently.

There’s nothing here that will seem out of the ordinary for Kiss fans. Jadakiss is the slow-flow professional, and he utilizes that flow on almost every song here. As far as the aforementioned versatility, he goes from holding songs down solo (“Nightmares and Migranes“) to pulling out artists like Meek Mill and Yung Joc for club smashes (“By The Bar”) to playing the assist man himself behind others (“I’m Good”, with Cito and Goldie). There isn’t a role that Jadakiss hasn’t learned to fill effectively, and it shows here.

The only true issue with the mixtape is the same thing that works in its favor; there’s nothing here that seems out of the ordinary for fans and newcomers alike. This is a dope project for Kiss fans, but there’s nothing special here that sets this project out from his last aside from the production. That’s not a bad thing by any means, but “Consignment” is more of a reminder of his skills than a project displaying something new. That being said, if you rock with Jadakiss and need more music to hold you over until “Top Five” drops, then you’ll want to check this one out.

• Download Jadakiss and DJ Drama’s “Consignment” here.