Grammy and Oscar-winner Jennifer Hudson is coming to the small screen this fall in NBC’s second season of the hit show, “Smash”.
“American Idol” is dishing out the stars, as this decision will bring two former contestants into the show – Hudson and the show’s protagonist, Katherine McPhee.
Executive producer Steven Spielberg supports the addition, saying:
“First Dreamgirls, now ‘Smash’. I have no doubt Jennifer will continue to deliver even more inspiration to the audience responsible for giving us a second season on NBC. It’s wonderful to be reunited with her at DreamWorks Television and NBC.”
(AllHipHop News) It’s nearly July, and the reps from Brooklyn Bodega are in full planning mode for the 2012 Brooklyn Hip Hop Festival (BHF 2012).
This year’s festival, to be held from July 9-14 at various New York City locations, boasts Busta Rhymes of Native Tongue, Leaders Of The New School, and Cash Money fame as its headliner for the culminating concert on July 14. Brooklyn Bodega recently announced that Philadelphia rapper Freeway would open for Busta Rhymes during the show that has typically included an “and Friends” portion in years past.
Added to the BHF 2012 kickoff event, The Show & Prove Super Bowl, are DJ/engineer Young Guru and rap group Evitan, consisting of True School MCs, Dres of Blacksheep and Jarobi of A Tribe Called Quest.
Festival host and pioneer Uncle Ralph McDaniels of Video Music Box will join the “Salute The DJ” event, along with Chuck Chillout and Sucio Smash. KissFM host Bob Slade will be joining BEI, and “The Dummy Clap Film Festival” will show two screenings on Friday, July 13, including the documentary, The Infamous Mobb Deep.
Ali Shaheed Muhammad of A Tribe Called Quest is the featured DJ for the “Dummy Clap” after-party, and the BHF 2012 Official Concert After-Party on July 14 will host Fat Tony and French-Chilean MC Ana Tijoux.
Nearly 200 donors helped to support the BHF 2012 with over $15,000 in donations through its recent, online Kickstarter Campaign.
For tickets to the Show and Prove Concert Super Bowl, click here.
For tickets to the Brooklyn Hip-Hop Festival 2012, click here.
A lot of people know who J Hatch is. They just don’t know that they know who J Hatch is. Permit us to explain. J Hatch is a man of many hats in that he is always somewhere in the Hip-Hop game doing something.
If there is a stage, a live performance, and an eager artist ready to shine in the spotlight, then J Hatch can’t be too far away! His contributions through iStandardProducers.com and the “Get Your Buzz Up Showcase” are but a few of the things he does well.
He’s a host, a moderator, and a professional, and AllHipHop.com got a moment to talk with J Hatch to learn what it takes to make his Hip-Hop world go-round, the endless travel scene, and how many people he relies on to make each showcase a success.
AllHipHop.com: J, you do a whole lot in the music industry. We’re not sure when you find time to sleep, sir! Explain what iStandardProducers.com, the “Get Your Buzz Up Showcase”, and Coast 2 Coast Mixtapes are?
J Hatch: I am the co-founder of iStandard; we’ve run the largest live producer-driven event in the nation for seven years and are currently doing said events in 25 cities. We have placed records with artists such as 50 Cent (most recently on The Lost Tapes), Diddy, Rick Ross, Sean Kingston, and many more. We also operate the largest online production website, iStandardProducers.com, where new producers can not only get up-to-date news and exclusive production oriented content, but connect with their favorite artists by submitting music directly to them through our relationships.
I am the founder of the “Get Your Buzz Up” Industry EXperience, an artist showcase that takes things to the next level in regards to exposure for artists who are involved in the movement. Up until about four months ago, I was the VP of Coast 2 Coast Mixtapes, and I helped expand the brand into various markets through their monthly industry mixers. I also was the project manager on their annual Coast 2 Coast Convention for last four years.
AllHipHop.com: How did you become involved with them?
J Hatch: Every great company has a great team. I don’t do this myself. Don Di Napoli (my business partner and co-founder of iStandard) approached me with an idea of doing some type of event for producers, since I had already been doing them for artists. We sat down at the famous Katz Deli in NYC and mapped out a game plan. Seven years, multiple placements, staff expansion to 35 as of July 1, site numbers through the roof, we couldn’t be happier.
“Get Your Buzz Up” I started with my business partner Drawzilla and Mike Trampe of Maad Management. We wanted to create a special experience for up and coming artists that other showcases failed to do. We provide all artists with additional perks through doing our show, such as their own HD video clip, placement on a mixtape that gets distributed to four million contacts, a chance to perform in front of influential people in the music industry, an incredible prize package that includes a full paid trip to Miami to perform, and much more.
Coast 2 Coast is an explosive brand with a lot of potential. I met the CEO, Lil Fats, through one of my interns who was working on getting one of my artist’s additional mixtape exposure. We spoke on the phone, clicked quickly, and started working on some initiatives between brands. After a year or two, I became a consultant and project manager for their convention and helped get their business into an organized self-sufficient powerhouse.
AllHipHop.com: What is it that you guys are looking for an artist to bring to the stage when they are performing for you?
J Hatch: I want to see professionalism, passion, and pure talent. Also, a lot of artists don’t realize they are a walking billboard and must present their brand consistently every day. Being on Twitter and Facebook spamming people with links is not going to get you recognized. Wake up people, you can’t sound like every artist out and make it in the game. Be yourself and push the envelope.
AllHipHop.com: It seems like you are always on the road! That has to be hard. How often do you get to see the inside of your own home?
J Hatch: Man, as we speak I am home for only 18 hours, head out to L.A. tomorrow and have seven events in four cities in next nine days. It’s definitely something you have to be built for, but I couldn’t even be doing this without our incredible support system within iStandard and Get Your Buzz Up.
AllHipHop.com: With all that traveling, you must have some pretty interesting stories from a city or two. Care to share any of them?
J Hatch: Every city has its own story, honestly. The producers all bring their own take on this production thing, so it keeps everything very interesting. I would say one of the high points was our recent session with The Mekanics, in-studio with Yelawolf at ATL’s legendary Patchwerk Studios after our 5th Annual “Beast of The Beats” (our year-end event powered by Monster Energy Drink that brings back all the winners in the 25 cities to New York City for a major finale with a major prize package – see videos below).
Plus, meeting and building relationships with some of the biggest names in the production game is always an incredible thing, too.
AllHipHop.com: What’s up next for J Hatch and all of the various projects you are working on?
J Hatch: Next up is an overseas and Canada expansion and a new event roll-out called “Beat Camp” for iStandard in 2013. I’m focusing on a few other non-music projects as well. To find out what we have going on, follow us on Twitter (@iStandard) and (@GetYourBuzzUp), and follow me personally (@Mogulstatus).
We have a lot of positive things coming up. Big shouts to my incredible business partners, Don Di Napoli, Mike Trampe, Drawzilla, and the the whole team, Rhythm J, 2ew Gunn Ciz, PJ, Daniel R, J Wil, Gerald Kong, Premise, Shah Evans, Joe Ramos, Ace, and anyone else that has helped advance my career. Thanks!
Check out video from Days 1-3 of “Beast of the Beats”, including an in-studio session with Yelawolf in Atlanta:
(AllHipHop News) Former rap mogul James “Jimmy Henchman” Rosemond and six accomplices have been indicted for the murder of a man close to 50 Cent and G-Unit.
James Rosemond was officially indicted for the murder of Lowell Fletcher, who was gunned down in the Bronx in September of 2009.
Lowell Fletcher, aka Lodi Mack, had served almost two years in prison, for striking Rosemond’s young son, James Rosemond Jr.
The assault happened at the height of a bitter feud between 50 Cent and Game, who was managed by Rosemond’s company, Czar Entertainment.
Authorities claim Rosemond arranged for the murder as retaliation for the assault on his son, which occurred in front of the offices of Violator Management.
At the time, Rosemond’s Czar Entertainment and Violator Management were both located on 25th street in Manhattan.
During Rosemond’s cocaine distribution trial, violent acts
were not introduced as evidence against the mogul.
But testimony indicated that Rosemond purchased a cache of weapons and delivered them to Queens.
Once there, two associates, Brian McCleod and Torae Jackson, allegedly carried out the murder, in exchange for a few kilos of cocaine.
In related news, James Rosemond, who was convicted of cocaine distribution earlier this month, is facing a life sentence in prison.
Rosemond was found guilty of running “The Rosemond Organization,” a cocaine-based operation that imported hundreds of kilograms of he drug from the West Coast.
The gang then distributed the drugs
throughout New York City while funneling the proceeds back West and through Czar Entertainment.
Philly rapper Meek Mill lives life on the wild side, but it’s usually on his own terms. Last night, the rapper Instagramed that he almost had a near death experience. The MMG rapper has been taking tons of private planes lately, even taking one just to go to LIV on Sunday. Unfortunately, today the rapper ran into some bad luck when his private plane almost ran out of gas in mid-air. Yikes! Check out his Instagram below:
That’s some scary stuff. Be careful out there, Meek!
That fool is going to spend the rest of his days in JAIL. Good for him. Shame it took so long for him to finally be found and fully exposed. Too bad his acts tarnished forever the greatness of Penn State football. Anyway. Jerry Sandusky has been found guilty on 45 of the 48 charges against him. Good for the jury, who came back with a verdict a short time ago. I don’t think they even announced it, but dude was lead away in CUFFS and that can only mean one thing. You SHALL DIE IN JAIL, BUDDY! he allegedly abused 10 boys during his lengthy tenure at Penn State under the rule of football giant Joe Paterno. Paterno was like “F**k this s**t. I’m out.” He died earlier this year at the age of 85. Trust and believe the scandal sped up his death. Anyway. Justice has been served and yet and still IT HAPPENED. A sign that the world is slowly but surely coming to an end!
(AllHipHop News) Rapper Jay Electronica took to Twitter earlier today and threatened Ben Goldsmith, the soon-to-be ex-husband of Rothschild heiress Kate Rothschild.
Jay E. took to Twitter to address reports that he is having an affair with Kate Rothschild, who runs Roundtable Records, a UK-based label.
Goldsmith, who is the son of billionaire Sir James Goldsmith, married Rothschild in 2003.
But the pair announced they will divorce today, after allegations of infidelity from both sides.
Earlier in the year, Goldsmith was
arrested and cited for assault for slapping Rothschild at their mansion.
The New-Orleans rapper, who is currently living in London, was the aggressor via Twitter.
“@BJGoldsmith: ‘ben you need to stop going to the press w these b******t stories. Dont be a f***ing hypocrite. I’ll come see you.,” Jay Electronica Tweeted. “you wanna go public, i’ll go public and you ain’t gonna like it. stop acting like a b####.”
Kate Rothschild also defended herself via twitter and implied that her husband had cheated on her several times.
“Our marriage went bad a few years ago and none of you have any idea what I went through along with my husband,” Rothschild tweeted. “My husband is a brilliant and incredible man… relationships can go wrong. This is the darkest time of my life.”
(AllHipHop News) Rap collective La Coka Nostra has announced the release of a new album titled Masters of the Dark Arts.
The album is the follow-up to the group’s 2009 debut release, A Brand You Can Trust and features original group members Slaine, Ill Bill, DJ Lethal and Danny Boy.
Former group member is absent from the new album, something that pushed the group to work harder to produce Masters of the Dark Arts.
“I think we approached Masters Of The Dark Arts with a chip on our shoulder and really took it back to our original mission of hardcore Hip-Hop amidst all the circus b####### that is so prevalent in the current landscape of the genre,” group member Slaine told AllHipHop.com in a statement. “We are aware of the perception that somehow the group has suffered a loss we can’t recover from and in response we made an album that is the most conceptually focused and hardest hitting soundscape in the group’s history.”
Masters of the Dark Arts features guest appearances from Sean Price, Thurston Howell, Sic Jacken, Vinny Paz, while production is handled by DJ Premier, Statik Selektah, DJ Lethah, Ill Will and others.
Masters Of The Dark Arts in my opinion is the quintessential La Coka Nostra sound, It has both bark and bite like true hardcore Hip-Hop should!” says Danny Boy.
“As conceptually and musically dark as this album appears to be, there’s also a flip side layer to it that you may not notice until you listen to it a few times,” Ill Bill added. “Masters Of The Dark Artsis a storm before the calm and a celebration of the good things in life that can only be achieved by walking directly into the heart of darkness and facing your inner demons head on.”
Masters Of The Dark Arts is due in stores on July 31.
Check out the track list below:
1.) “My Universe” f/ Vinnie Paz (produced by Statik Selektah)
2.) “Creed Of The Greedier” (produced by Sicknature)
3.) “המוסד” (produced by DJ Lethal & Scott Stallone)
4.) “Mind Your Business” (produced by DJ Premier)
5.) “Electronic Funeral” f/ Sean Price (produced by Beat Butcha)
6.) “The Story Goes On” (produced by DJ Lethal)
7.) “Letter To Ouisch” (produced by ILL BILL & DJ Lethal)
8.) “Snow Beach” f/ Thirstin Howl the 3rd (produced by Jack Of All Trades)
9.) “The Eyes Of Santa Muerte” ft/ Sick Jacken (produced by ILL BILL)
10.) “Murder World” (produced by C-Lance)
11.) “Coka Kings” f/ Vinnie Paz (produced by C-Lance)
12.) “.38 револьвер” f/ Big Left (produced by Sicknature)
13.) “Malverde Market” (produced by ILL BILL)
14.) “Masters Of The Dark Arts” (produced by DJ Lethal)
