(AllHipHop News) It was not that long ago that Sean “Diddy” Combs was accused of physically assaulting Drake in a nightclub. Apparently, the incident has not affected the Bad Boy Records founder’s appreciation for Drizzy’s music.
(AllHipHop News) When Dr. Dre released his last album, 1999’s 2001, most consumers still bought CDs. In 2015, music streaming has become a more popular way for fans to listen to new projects, and Dre’s Compton became the first major test for Apple’s new streaming service Apple Music.
According to the New York Times, Compton was streamed 25 million times worldwide in its first week of release. The Apple Music exclusive was reportedly streamed 11 million times in the United States.
The 11 million number for Compton is impressive, but it fails in comparison to Drake’s If You’re Reading This It’s Too Late topping 48 million streams in one week and Kendrick Lamar’s To Pimp A Butterfly pulling around 39 million streams. Both albums from Drake and Kendrick were available on other streaming services.
Apple Music launched in June. The service had the disadvantage of coming into a very competitive marketplace after other established streaming platforms like Spotify, Pandora, and Rdio have been available for years.
Dre’s latest LP is expected to open on the Billboard 200 album chart in the number 2 position behind Luke Bryan’s Kill The Lights. Compton is expected to sell around 280,000 copies. The project’s sps (sales plus streaming) will be close to 300,000 units (every 1,500 streams equal one album sale).
Does this look familiar to you? Do you remember Krush Groove?
This movie is called “Krush Groove” and it was supposedly the story of early Def Jam, made in 1985! Here is the description:
In the movie, Russell Walker has signed all of the hottest acts to his Krush Groove record label, including Run-D.M.C., Dr. Jeckyll & Mr. Hyde (Alonzo Brown), and Kurtis Blow. Rick Rubin produces their records. When Run-D.M.C. has a hit record and Russell doesn’t have the money to press records, he borrows money from a street hustler. At the same time, Russell and his brother Run are both competing for the heart of R&B singer-percussionist Sheila E. Also appearing in the film are LL Cool J, the Beastie Boys, New Edition, the Fat Boys and some of their songs, as well as others from the likes of Chaka Khan, Debbie Harry, and the Gap Band. Members of the R&B group Full Force also make a cameo in the film as bodyguards.
Anyway, that was a long, long time ago – 30 years! The word on the street is that a revised, more truthful look at Def Jam Records as a movement. I’m thinking it could happen and be an epic story! Thoughts?
Recently, Mac Miller has released a new song from his album GO:OD AM. The single, titled “Break The Law” shows a more aggressive Mac Miller this time around. Ever since his last project Watching Movies With The Sound Off, the Pittsburg rapper has been taking his sound to a weirder state. Give “Break The Law” below, Mac Miller’s next album is also set to release in September.
A concert crowd had an unfortunate ending to Nicki Minaj’s performance in California earlier this weekend. TMZ released a video showing the fans being pepper sprayed during the Nicki’s performance. Although several people were frantic about the spraying, things eventually cooled down. Check out the video below.
On Pharrell’s show OTHERtone, the iconic stopped by the studio to talk about a meeting legendary celebrities. Pharrell has met a lot of celebrities during his career. However, none of them seems to match his encounters with Michael Jackson. On the Beats 1 radio show, Pharrell tells Tyler about meeting Michael Jackson. According to the clip, Pharrell met the legendary singer twice before his passing in 2009. Check out the clip below.
Young Thug’s next album might’ve been pushed back, but today the rapper released a new video titled “Again” featuring Gucci Mane. The original song was produced by London On Da Track, with their collaborative mixtape coming out soon. The video itself is pretty ratchet, the location of the set was at Gucci Mane’s photo exhibit in Atlanta. Check out “Again” below.
Well, we didn’t see this coming, amid the “Straight Outta Compton” furor! Some parody people got together and revisit N.W.A.’s hits from a squeaky clean kids’ point of view. “Love The Police”? Really? Check out the comedic malarky. LOL!
A few months back rapper iEKNOWS dropped off a dope perspective single for “Intermission 1998” which also featured some strong vocals from Draea Brookes. Today iEKNOWS returns and delivers the official music video for, “Intermission 1998,” which also serves as the first single from the forthcoming full length project “Rolling With The Punches” scheduled to drop in the next few months.
Cp3 Filmworks makes exclusive statement to AllHipHop.com, about the upcoming biopic movie King Of The South:
The actress, talk show host and rapper lands a major role to play the mother of the young Percy Miller aka Master P rags to riches story. The film is based on Master P’s overcoming poverty and finding a way out the ghetto for his family through his music.
Flavor Unit executive Shakim Compere says, “This is a great role for Queen Latifah. Master P has an amazing story and has broke a lot of barriers in hip-hop, paving the way for artists to make real money and run their own businesses in the music industry. We have so much respect for what he’s done in the game, we want to help make sure that his story is told authentically with A-list talent.” The King of The South is the latest theatrical endeavor for Latifah who most recently starred in Lifetime’s Steel Magnolia‘s reboot. Her Flavor Unit also struck in overall deal with BET and Centric to revive VH1’s scripted series Single Ladies.
King of The South is written by Parde Bridget, Wayne Conley and Percy Miller, produced by CP3 Filmworks. The recreation of young Percy Millers’s life and the rise of the Ice Cream Man, No Limit empire, how one man with his last $500, turn down a million-dollar record contract to go on to sell over 75 million records on his own independent label.
What is going on in the word? If you are in a battle, shouldn’t it be all out war? I mean, a general should be commanding the troops into battle. Furthermore in rap, the war is waged in terms of lyrics. But Meek is saying that his crew hide the password to his own Twitter account so he could not tweet against Drake. Now, all respect due to Meek, but this seems odd as Young Thug collaborating with 50 Cent.
On Tuesday, August 11, AllHipHop.com had the wonderful opportunity to speak with Aftermath recording artist (and AHH Breeding Ground alumni), Jon Connor. The Flint, Michigan, native’s skills and tireless dedication to his craft have really been paying off as of late. Not only did he sign with the legendary Dr. Dre, but he also made two outstanding contributions to Dre’s Compton offering.
During our conversation, Connor, among other things, broke down what its like working with one of the best producers to ever do it, shared memories of being on the set for Straight Outta Compton, and hinted that he has more dope music on the way.
One of the things he said to me while wrapping up was, “At the end of the day, I’m a fan of Hip-Hop just like everybody else. I’m one of the people.” And that is something which, even with all his success, has never evaded him.
If Connor continues to build on his already strong pillars of talent, respect for Hip-Hop culture, and gratitude for his fans, he will have a long and successful career which surpasses the competition.
It’s still Aftermath and there ain’t goin’ be nothin’ after that!
AllHipHop.com: Thank you so much for taking time to speak me and AllHipHop.com. We really appreciate it. You and I have talked before and that was a real pleasure, so I’ve been looking forward to this interview.
Jon Connor: I want to say back, the same thing with you all. It’s mutual. I appreciate you all and the way you have always supported me from day one. It’s always a pleasure, man.
First off, congratulations on the Compton album. Are you pleased with the response it has been getting?
Yes, there has been an overwhelming love. And just knowing that everybody has been so excited and finally we get this project from Dre that people have been waiting so long for. The love is overwhelming; the response has been amazing. And the way it’s going hand-in-hand with the Straight Outta Compton movie, you couldn’t ask for a better platform or set up.
I’ve seen social media pics of you, Dre, and others in the studio where you’ve referred to yourself as a “student.” What would you say is the greatest lesson you’ve learned from these sessions?
There’s so many because, with Dre, Dre is the greatest producer of all-time. For me, he’s like the Quincy Jones of Hip-Hop. So the thing is, everyday you’re constantly learning. I’d say one of the greatest things I’ve learned from Dre is that greatness is in the details. Don’t let anything slide. If you’re tired or have been working for 12 hours and are ready to go to sleep, you still put in the same effort and the same time as when you first got there. Work your hardest until you can barely keep your eyes open. If you have to go through every song and comb through every lyric and melody and harmony and cadence, you do it because he [Dr. Dre] has a commitment to greatness. We all call Dr. Dre the greatest of all-time and I’m just fortunate and blessed enough to be able to be at the studio and understand why. I’ve always thought I had a grind and hard work ethic in me, but, by being around Dre, it just got taken to another level.
Just to follow up with that, to paint a picture, have you been in the studio with Dre where you’ve watched him make a beat? Or has it been where he has pulled up an instrumental and asked you to write to it? How does that whole process work?
That process is actually different from record to record. There are joints where I was actually there for the conception of the music. Like “One Shot One Kill,” I was there when that beat got made. “One Shot One Kill” is like my baby laughs. I watched it go from an idea and a sample to the addition of the live instrumentation and Snoop and everything that it eventually ended up becoming. But it’s different from record to record, Dre is the type of cat where it’s all based on the feel. If he’s feeling it and the vibe and the energy is there… he doesn’t care how the creative process happens. The one common denominator in every record is that the vibe and positive energy is there.
That’s actually a great segue into one of my other questions. What went through your head when you first found out that you were given song credit as the lead performing artist on “One Shot One Kill” as opposed to just being a guest feature?
I still don’t know if that has completely soaked into my brain. It’s crazy. I have a record with me featuring Snoop Dogg on Dr. Dre’s last album. That’s beyond anything I could have ever dreamed. It feels amazing. Statik Selektah hit me and he said, “You are forever etched in Hip-Hop history.” And the magnitude of that statement, I don’t know if I’ll ever really be able to fathom or truly understand it. All I know is that it’s an amazing feeling and honestly it’s hard for me to even put it in words.
And then, of course, there’s “For the Love of Money” which you also appear on. Prior to telling a friend about this interview, he sent me a screenshot of his phone with that song highlighted and a caption which read “This song is on repeat.” He told me how he looked you up, and I said that I’d been following your work for years. You’re satisfying old fans and getting new ones. It’s a beautiful thing, bro.
And with that I want to say ‘thank you’ and tell your man I said, ‘thank you‘ too. It’s an amazing time. This is my dream. I’m a kid from Flint, Michigan, man. It’s one of the most poverty-stricken places in the United States and so for us to be talking about the things we’re talking about, I’m truly humbled by that and I just to let the people know there’s more where that came from and I’ll forever be thankful to Dre for giving me this platform. And I want to thank AllHipHop because you’ve all been rocking with me for years and y’all know the grind that I’ve put down and how hard I worked for this. And with Dre, he saw and understood me as an artist and believed in me enough to give me a platform. I’m just humbled by all of this.
One of the things I did to prepare for this is I went back and listened to “Big Brother” off of your Best in the World series. And listened to how you described the whole scenario where Dre signed you. How did that situation play out?
Yo, it was three phone calls and a flight. There was the initial call when Xzibit hit me like, “Yo, I’m gonna let Dre hear your music.” Then the second call was, “Okay, give me 10 songs you want Dre to hear.” Then the third call was, “Dre wants you to be in California tomorrow.” When I got to California, I was working the whole time. Think about it, man. I’m from Flint. If you’re from Flint, you think Dr. Dre lives on like Mars or Jupiter. And so for him to like your music… he was just playing beats and I rapped every verse I ever wrote. I was pulling out verses from high school. I was like I’m not leaving this house until Dr. Dre falls in love with what I do. Whatever he needed to hear, I was gonna spit it. It got to the point where I rapped so much, he finally just stopped the music and was like, “Alright, what do you want to do?” And that was the moment that changed my life.
Thoughts on Straight Outta Compton?
It’s crazy, my experiences with the movie because I was fortunate enough to go on the set as they were making the movie. There’s no weirder feeling, I was on the set one day where they were shooting a scene with the characters that play Dr. Dre and his wife Nicole. And I’m sitting in one of these chairs on set as the real Dr. Dre and Nicole are sitting in front of me. I leaned into Dre and was like, “Man, do you feel crazy right now?” When I got signed to Aftermath, the movie was still at its infant stage where they still coming up with the script and picking actors. I had a chance to legitimately watch this movie grow and become what it has become… I think people already know it’s going to be good because it’s the story of N.W.A and we all want to see it, but just the attention to detail that Gary, Dre, and Cube put into the movie – I think it’s going to surprise people because they’ll be things about N.W.A and their relationship and how things went down that none of us as fans knew. It’s a great movie for Hip-Hop and a great movie in the sense of just being a great movie.
Do you have any more Best in the World stuff coming out or is your next release going to be your Aftermath debut with original music?
You know what? I don’t want to give away too much, but just know that the things that I am working on are almost done. And we are so close to completion, it’s crazy. But right now though, I just want the people to enjoy Compton. For me right now, it’s all about Dre and thirty years plus of the greatest to ever do it. It’s Dre Day!
Earlier this summer, Diplo released an single named “Doctor Pepper” with rappers Riff Raff, OG Maco, and CL. Recently, the Mad Decent producer has finally released the official set of visuals for the track. “Doctor Pepper” is an insanely weird video, including several models floor twerking (literally), a ton of odd floating images including two censored Pikachus and Dr. Pepper cans, and a huge green Hummer to put it all together. Check out “Doctor Pepper” below.
St. Louis rapper, Doughboy, releases official video for his new single “Break Da Knob”. Currently playing in 26 radio markets, this record is all over the radio in the midwest and south. Watch “Break Da Knob” below.
With the “Pain 2 Power” album already in mastering, Dylan delivers pure hot fire once again as he spits on the beat that got his original platinum selling group famous “Bad Boy This, Bad Boy That”, with locations of all the places that Diddy commanded them to go as juveniles on the hit show “Making The Band” and brief cameo with Lil Mama.
The Understudy’s had a hand behind some of your favorite cuts from A$AP Ferg, Missy Elliot, French Montana and Crystal Caines just name a few. They’ve single-handedly worked with up and coming talent and have essentially made them hot. Enter Aston Rush, the latest Bronx import who’s been working closely with The Understudy with new EP come this September. Rush releases his new single titled “Fall In Love” that was spawned from a conversation with a female who wasn’t able fall in love because she’s been hurt too many times. That in mind, Rush wrote up a remedy in this latest cut.
