I suspect this is fake. The Rick Ross I know doesn’t make people faint like that. Wait, I don’t know Rick Ross at all. But, he is a star, despite his assertions Anyway, on the new MMZ network, Rozay and the crew show off a hood rat looking chick that bubbily runs up on Rozay…then FAINTS. Now, Ross didn’t seem to be in on any joke, but the chick’s fain seemed crazy fake to me. Then she popped up all bubbles again! I’m thinking she’s a fraud b. The video is below.
“They keep us talking, but if we stop talking about them then they should worry!” -illseed.
Today, Nas celebrates his 40th birthday today and we at AllHipHop celebrate with him. In honor of the legendary rhymester, AHH’s chief of staff Chuck “Jigsaw” Creekmur wrangled a whopping 40 things he’s learned from Nas. Read on and see if there’s anything you can relate to and add on to the lessons we’ve amassed from the 40-year-old lyrical phenom.
40) NORMAL SUCKS. Nas is the ultimate rap introvert. But, it seems, at one point he decided to be a reluctant star and totally embraced being a stand out.
39) PERFECTION? You don’t have to be perfect. When Nas came in the game, he was spitting bars so immaculate that critics and fans made him into the heir apparent to the likes of Rakim and Kool G Rap. However immaculate his rhymes, we found that Nas was far from perfect, and that made for a more interesting person.
38) THE DEVIL IS A LIE. Nas probably captured a lot of angry, rebellious youth sentiments when he was dropping all those ill rhymes early on(“I went to hell for snuffin’ Jesus”). Later in life, the lesson comes and you’re actually God’s son (or daughter). Believe that.
37) KEEP YOUR FANS HAPPY. There has always been this love hate thing with Nas. But, he’s produced his best work when he’s completely honest in his life and his fans respond appropriately.
36) F**K YOUR OPINION. Greatness doesn’t concern itself with the opinions of the mediocre. Nas’s presumed foibles have generally redeemed themselves over time.
35) FEAR. “N****s fear what they don’t understand, hate what they can’t conquer.” – “Hate Me Now”
34) STAY BALANCED. Nas has always has a great mix of ill lines and conscious jewels. You could tell he cared about kids, the community as well as killing the competition. A lot of artists have tried to do this (Common, Killer Mike, Talib, Saigon, Ice Cube) with varying degrees of awesomeness, but I think Nas mastered it.
33) READING IS FUNDAMENTAL. Nas was an avid reader and that is apparent in the quality, color and depth of his lyrical content. You can travel the universe by reading.
32) EVERYBODY CAN’T MAKE THE TRIP. Nas has run with a lot of people through the years. Most of them aren’t around these days for a variety of reasons. Nas’ life has taught us that, sometimes you have to take that trip – your journey – alone.
31) TURN PAIN INTO PASSION. Stillmatic is still a beloved Nas album. On it, the QB King turned his deepest pain (loss of his mother, streets saying he was “dead”) into one of the most epic moments in history.
30) YOU CAN GO TOO FAR. I hated when Nas tried to simulate lynching Jay Z at Hot 97’s Summer Jam. It would have sullied his legacy had he been allowed. Even emcee illness has limits.
29) KNOW YOUR STRENGTHS. “Belly” is a cult classic movie, but acting was definitely not a strong suit of the “chipped tooth don” at that time.
28) BE A FATHER. Nas’ song “Daughters” was a risky move, but an inspirational one for those of us with little ladies. Still, a rapper rapping the vitues of fatherhood is a good example for all, even if it includes putting your own on blast a bit.
27) FINISH THE JOB! My homey and journalist friend Jerry Barrow is still waiting for that Nas/Preemo album. “Sometimes the thing you want to do the most is the hardest to finish,” Jerry says. Lets make that happen, Nas!
26) WOUNDS HEAL. “I had a pretty public divorce. They’re not easy – divorces – and it took me a long time to really get through.” – Nas Give it time. Wounds heal if you let them.
25) CHECK THE HOMIES, GET RESPECT. Nas has had a lot of beef, many of which come from his friends. But, he’s gotten his respect by putting them in their place from time to time. “From time to time, Nas has had to put former friends in pocket and still get their respect – Prodigy, Cormega and so on,” says edit legend Daetwon Thomas.
24) HAVE STYLE. After his first album, Nas gave up a lot of the fatigues and Tims for leather outfits and suits. It was necessary at the time and these days, he’s close to being a Hip-Hop style icon. Those rappers that dissed him are one of those “trapped in the 90’s n***as” now.
23) LOOK. “In the land of the blind, the man with one eye is the King.” – Nas on “N.I.*.*.E.R.” (Originally from scholar Desiderius Erasmus)
22) TRUST. Trust is hard and sometimes you have to have eyes every where. But, there are some people that you have to trust. Nas is one of them. When he did the “Untitled” (at first called N.I.*.*.E.R. album, I had to go on Fox News and defend Nas without even hearing the album. I trust him on this one and he came through with a dope album. 21) BE REVOLUTIONARY. Earlier this year, at the 2013 Grammys, Nas said, “Peace, god.” Most people didn’t get it, but it was that was a revolutionary moment. Keep it revolutionary.
20) BE SPECIAL. “Anybody can be a rapper, but not anybody can be a classical artist.” – Nas
19) CLASS ACT. Do it with class. The general public doesn’t quite know all that Nas gone through in his personal life. One thing is for sure, he’s been a class act dealing with it, unlike so many Hip-Hop artists with messy lives.
18) GET HELP! On Illmatic, Stillmatic and Life Is Good (and others), Nas reportedly allowed other people to pick the beats he rapped over. That’s not a knock against him, but he’s never been regarded as the created A&R. He’s a better artist because of it.
17) BE A LIVING EXAMPLE. A lot of rappers have come and gone, but we only examine a few by the full breadth of their lives. Nas is different in that we’ve watched him go from boy to man in all the tests that go with that. There are a lot of lessons in a public life like that if you look closely.
16) STUDY THE GREATS! Nas wasn’t mentioned in the same breath as the early greats like Rakim, Kane and Kool G Rap for no reason. He studied those guys and then took it to another level to augment his own greatness.
15) HISTORY. “Make history before you go.” – Nas on “Life Is What You Make It”
14) CHALLENGE YOURSELF. One of the hardest challenges of any great artist is topping your own greatness. Nas has done this by evolving with the times, and taking his craft into uncharged waters, all the while silencing his critics. A lot of people were disappointed by his second album, It Was Written, but its still his most commercially successful album to date. Shout out to The Trackmasters!
13) THE REWARD COMES LATER SOMETIMES. Honestly, “Oochie Walley” is one of my least favorite Nas records. Still, every time it plays in the club, we rock to it.
12) THERE IS A FOUNTAIN OF YOUTH. Nas found it. He looks younger than most rappers half his age.
11) FALLING OFF AIN’T SO BAD. One of my best friends, Chris reminded me that Nas has fallen off a few times and taken lots of backlash for his failures. That only makes the comeback so much sweeter.
10) NEVER GIVE UP – AllHipHop scribe, Biba Adams says, “One of the things I’ve learned from Nas is to never give up even when all looks lost.”
9) WATCH AND LISTEN. AllHipHop writer Keith Nelson told me that Nas taught him to listen and watch. “Nas taught me to take your surroundings and understand there’s a story everywhere. The girl you see with the ballers is probably a ‘Black Girl Lost.’ Those bullets on the ground have a story too (‘I Gave You Power’), letters you write are art as well (‘One Mic’). Nas was and will always be the greatest Hip-Hop storyteller ever to me.”
8) LET OLD BEEF GO. One of the best moments in Hip-Hop history was when Jay Z and Nas ended their beef. They were better for it and so were we.
7) KEEP IT HONEST. Nas’s career is arguably book marked by his best two albums Illmatic and Life is good (excluding The Lost Tapes). Part of that is because those albums are extremely relatable but also reflective of his life and times. 6) KEEP ON MOVING. Nas’s divorce had everybody hating Kelis, but not Nas. He wrote about his wrongs and their relationship in “Life Is Good,” keeping it so honest his ex didn’t take issue with it.
5) GIVE WISDOM. I’ve always appreciated that Nas gives wisdom through his art. Tumblr has a whole world of Nas quotes to take in.
4) FOCUS. A lot of people wanted Nas to be the consummate business man like Jay Z. But, Nas seems in a great space now, where he’s happy being who he is, where he is.
3) ETHER. One of the best times to go after your enemies is when they think they have beaten you. They thought Nas was finished after Jay dropped “The Takeover.” They couldn’t have been more wrong.
2) SLEEP. “I never sleep, ’cause sleep is the cousin of death.” – Nas on “New York State of Mind.” This lyric literally changed my life and the lives of millions. The metaphor can be taken a number of ways, choose one.
1) NAS LOST. Really? You can lose, but you never lose the chance to get back up. “Nas Lost.” You’ve heard it over and over and there have been lost of jokes. But character is built more through trials and tribulations more than victories. Nas had definitely had his share of set backs – personally and professionally – but this is what endears us to him. “I want to have fun. It’s a beautiful life. You learn, you win, you lose, but you get up.” – Nas
In fact, if you get back up, you don’t really lose.
On any list of the greatest hip-hop artists to ever do it, his name is mentioned. Whether Top 5 Dead or Alive, Top 3 of All Time, there is one name that is almost never disputed… Nas.
And just like the hip-hop culture that bred him did last month, today, the God MC is turning 40. He has been celebrating his special day with parties in New York and Las Vegas. He has been celebrated by his peers with shout outs and write-ups by magazines and websites. It is all well-deserved.
With 13 albums under his belt, Nas is more than an emcee; he is an anchor of this culture. He is one of our greatest living legends.
Complex Magazine kicked off “Nas Week,” with content about the man, the artist. Here is their unique original video feature, “Nas: Defining Moments.”
(AllHipHop News) Gucci Mane has been arrested again, this time for possessing weed and a gun.
The rapper was taken by police around 12:05 am this morning, according to TMZ.
A friend of Gucci complained about his behavior and summoned the police. When they arrived, the rapper, real name Radric Davis. threatened them and cursed at them.
The rapper, 33, was taken into custody and booked for carrying a concealed weapon, disorderly conduct and marijuana possession.
(AllHipHop News) Drake is ten days away from dropping his third studio album Nothing Was The Same, and the Young Money performer spent this last week giving the world a taste of what to expect on the LP.
After releasing the polarizing song “Wu-Tang Forever” earlier this week, the Toronto native visited Late Night With Jimmy Fallon on Friday evening to premiere the very personal track “Too Much” featuring Sampha.
Jimmy also interviewed Drake during the program. He talks about the cover art for NWTS, collaborators he worked with on the project, and his upcoming “Would You Like A Tour?” tour with Miguel and Future. He then teamed with Fallon to take on fellow guest Scarlett Johansson and The Roots’ Black Thought in a game of charades.
RoQ’y TyRaiD has never been one to shy away from a topic or a lyrical fight. He always manages to find a way to cram about two hundred million words into a sixteen bar verse and does it with ease! His continuous calls for lyricism to return to the mainstream Hip Hop realm have not gone unheeded. He’s the alternative to the mundane and uninspired artists out here.
The energy and fervor in which RoQ’y approaches his verses on any song are nothing to laugh at. To put it plainly, the kid can rap his ass off!
But don’t just take our word for it! Check out his new joint “MAD”
Here’s another one of our faves just to drive out point home!
And one last song for good measure!
Keep up with RoQ’y TyRaid on Twitter [twitter-follow screen_name=’RoQyTyRaiD’]
(AllHipHop News) It appears that Kanye West’s decision to charge at photographer Daniel Ramos at LAX airport has led to the Yeezus rapper to be charged by police for a crime. TMZ is reporting that Kanye will face criminal battery and attempted grand theft misdemeanors for the July 19th confrontation.
According to Ramos’ attorney, Gloria Allred, Kanye caused her client to suffer serious injuries. Ramos was taken to the hospital after the incident occurred.
It was reported in July that West would most likely not face charges in the case because of lack of evidence, and sources revealed that he would consider agreeing to a “civil compromise” with the pap. Ramos ended up filing a lawsuit against West in Los Angeles Superior Court last month claiming among other things that Kanye interfered with the photog’s civil rights.
If convicted on both counts, Kanye could be sentenced up to 1 year in jail. West is to be arraigned on October 10th.
“Sh*t I been on this Earth for a while/and there ain’t no church in the wild/I ain’t been to church in a while/F*ck these rap nigg*s they just want to purchase your style/You live a fake nig*a life so it should hurt when you smile.”-Domo Genesis
As the culture of Hip Hop enters its postmodern stage with genres clashing together (Yeezus, Magna Carta Holy Grail, etc) Odd Future’s Domo Genesis and Hodgy Beats deliver a boom bap lyrical assault with “In The Meantime”. While both MC’s deliver impassioned verses, Domo Genesis shows the sort of advanced lyrical dexterity that made his verse on Earl Sweatshirt’s “Knight” so arresting that it makes you forget anything else associated with the song.
The duo is expected to perform at Odd Future’s Camp Flog Gnaw Festival at LA Coliseum on November 9th with the rest of the extensive Odd Future acts performing sets as well. The group’s highly anticipated self-titled debut full length album is set to be available on October 31st.
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perfect. When Nas came in the game, he was spitting bars so immaculate that critics and fans made him into the heir apparent to the likes of Rakim and Kool G Rap. However immaculate his rhymes, we found that Nas was far from perfect, and that made for a more interesting person.
26) WOUNDS HEAL. “I had a pretty public divorce. They’re not easy – divorces – and it took me a long time to really get through.” – Nas Give it time. Wounds heal if you let them.
21) BE REVOLUTIONARY. Earlier this year, at the 2013 Grammys, Nas said, “Peace, god.” Most people didn’t get it, but it was that was a revolutionary moment. Keep it revolutionary.
6) KEEP ON MOVING. Nas’s divorce had everybody hating Kelis, but not Nas. He wrote about his wrongs and their relationship in “Life Is Good,” keeping it so honest his ex didn’t take issue with it.
