Here’s your next episode of Konnected – where hip hop meets tech. Watch Raekwon and host Lauren Coleman chop it up about his latest projects and see what he thinks about the phone that is taking over – the Droid X. See it now:
Raekwon meets Droid XUploaded by Mediaempress. – Explore more music videos.
(AllHipHop News) Police raided the Georgia home of Atlanta rapper Waka Flocka Flame this morning, in search of drugs, and reports of prostitution. Waka’s mother, Debra Antney, told TMZ.com that a number of Henry County, police officers raided the rapper’s house and handcuffed Gucci Mane, who heads up the 1017 Bricksquad imprint. Antney said police were looking for evidence of gangs, drugs and have found marijuana and weapons. According to TMZ.com, Waka Flocka was not in the house at the time of the raid, but police will file an arrest warrant in a matter of hours if the rapper does not return to his home to submit to questioning. Gucci Mane was freed, but two men in the house were charged with possession of less than an ounce of marijuana. Police reportedly also confiscated a Kel-Tec .223 sub-machine gun and a .40 Caliber semi-automatic.
(AllHipHop News) Hip-Hop star DMX will end 2010 with a year-long prison term, as the rapper’s probation was officially revoked in Arizona today (December 16th). The Maricopa County Superior Court revoked the rap star’s probation from 2009, stemming from a conviction on fraud charges, identity theft, assault and a variety of other misdemeanor charges. DMX, born Earl Simmons, will be sent back to prison for a full year, after he was arrested on November 18th by officers who arrested the rapper for failing to check in with probation officers and abusing prescription drugs without a prescription. The rapper DMX tested positive for cocaine and oxycontin and admitted to using drinking alcohol, another violating of the terms of his probation. DMX will spend his time in Sheriff Joe Arpaio’s infamous Tent City jail, where inmates are forced to wear pink, stripped jail suits.His dislike for the jail is well documented. In February of 2009, the rapper lost his cool in the prison and threw a tray of food at a prison guard, resulting in an added assault charge against the officer.”They talk to you any kind of way,” DMX said of his At the end of the day, I am still a man,” DMX told Phoenix’s Fox News 10.The rapper has been arrested six times in Maricopa County, Arizona, alone and at least once every year, since 1999.
“Christmas In Harlem”
“The Message”
“Change”
“I Don’t Care Remix”
(AllHipHop News) Rap star 50 Cent is expanding his business portfolio with an investment in a new company that creates “digital performance eyewear.” According to FastCompany.com, 50’s latest business deal involves an optical company named Gunnar Optiks. The company specializes creating that are optimized for a sharper digital experience, in addition to reducing headaches, tired and/or dried eyes from viewing LCD screen for extended amounts of time. Additionally, the company develops fashionable, stylish 3D eyewear, which will retail between $70-$200, like the rest of the entire collection. 50 Cent became involved with Gunnar after turning down an endorsement deal, in favor of a stake in the company. FastCompany revealed that 50 Cent also has a say in the business direction of Gunnar Optiks as well. The rapper’s investment in Gunnar Optiks comes as manufacturers attempt to boost sales of 3D television, which currently has a slow adoption rate.
In the second part of our AllHipHop in Japan series, we examine the different moves and inspirations behind American B-Boys and Japanese B-Boys. It is clear hip-hop has had a resounding impact in the Japanese culture, especially in breaking and grafitti. But how did these art forms created here in the United States become so popular in Japan?In this piece you find answers to this question as one of the most famous B-Boys in Japan, Taisuke, explains his influences and style. While he finished in 2nd place at the 2008 Red Bull BC One and was unfortunately an early exit at this year’s battles, he has remained the torch bearer for Japanese breaking by setting the break-dancing benchmark for his fellow Japanese peers. Toshiki as well has been known to draw some attention from the world for his breaking skills, as Toshiki even knocked off American B-Boy Thesis in the first round at this year’s competition. Toshiki actually went further than Taisuke in this competition only to lose to one of the crowd’s favorite competitors Lil’ G from Venezuela.
As well in this part you get a chance to know American B-Boys Luigi, Gravity and Thesis who are known to be some of the top B-Boys in the world. They break down some of their moves, influences and music they like when they are getting down to the music. Definitely take note of Gravity, who gained notoriety for his once unprecedented double backflip. Since then there have been imitators, but he was the originator and has some other tricks up his sleeve in the making. He was also an early exit this year, but Luigi held it down for the US, finishing in the final four of the competition only to lose to Just Do It of the Netherlands.Its clear in the US we are more focused on emceeing, djing and producing than the other elements of hip-hop, but worldwide it almost appears they are as a whole slowly surpassing us in ability in several of the other elements. It is our hope that this content sparks some creative genius in the US, so that we too can pass the torch to younger generations that have love and respect for hip-hop in these art forms. Enjoy!
ChartWatch for December 15, 2010
Welcome back to ChartWatch.
I feel like the title is pretty self explanatory so no need to go into
what we do here. This week we have a new
album entering the top of the Hip Hop charts and a couple of albums going gold.
Clifford Joseph Harris, Jr. better known as T.I. has the
number one album in Hip Hop this week.
His seventh studio album, No Mercy,
enters the charts at number four selling 158,110 copies.
He is followed by Nicki Minaj whose debut album, Pink
Friday, actually moves up two spots to number six. This week Pink Friday moves 80,667 copies
bringing its total sales to 558,062 and giving Nicki a gold plaque.
Rihanna also moves up a few spots, from 10 to 7, with her
fifth studio album, Loud. This week the Barbados born pop star sells
74,338 copies bringing her total sales to 276,992.
Kanye West falls out of the top ten, but not far, landing at
number 13. His critically praised album,
My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, moves
68,747 copies. To date MBDTF has sold
670,750 since its release 5 weeks ago.
Kanye has passed the gold mark and is well on his way to platinum.
Surprisingly, the Black Eyed Peas latest album, The Beginning, falls from 6 to 19 in
only the second week since its release.
I figured the listeners of horrible music would keep this in the top ten
for months, much like what happen with their last offering. Is the publics musical taste getting better?
Is this the beginning of the end for bad music (bad pun intended)? This week the Peas move 56,110 bringing the
albums total sales to 173,176.
Eminem moves up one spot and lands at number twenty five. The Detroit rappers seventh studio album, Recovery, moves 48,868 bringing its
total sales well over 3 million.
Lil Waynes I Am Not A
Human Being EP continues to stand at number 44. This week the New Orleans MC sells 27,314
copies pushing his total sales to 565,257.
Normally we dont go past the top 50 but there are a few
notables this week.
Redmans latest Redman Presents Reggie enters the charts at
number 100 by selling 10,000 copies.
He is followed by Soulja Boy, who drops from 79 to 120,
selling 8,000 copies of The DeAndre Way
and bringing his total sales to 21,000.
Rick Ross finally pushes past gold with his Teflon Don album. To date the album has
sold 506,000 copies.
Dropping This Week
Theres only one Hip Hop album dropping this week that Im
going to mention. Not because I like it but
because not too much else is coming out.
Diddy Dirty Money (you had to put Diddy in front of it, huh?) drops
their debut Last Train to Paris (Catch
the Review here). The album features
Grace Jones, Swizz Beatz, Usher, Chris Brown, Justin Timberlake, Bilal, Lil
Wayne, The Notorious B.I.G., Rick Ross, Trey Songz, T.I., Wiz Khalifa, Skylar
Grey, Drake ..and oh yeah, the two girls. This album is basically Diddys ego
in musical form but give it a listen…the girls are pretty decent on it when
you get a chance to hear them.
(The Grio.com) These days when Michael Vick sits down to talk about his life over the past few years, he’s looking back at a series of extremes — from star quarterback, to reviled dogfighter, to comeback kid — and now, mentor.
That last role is brand new for him. By his own admission, Vick had no interest in mentoring before, but he now spends much of his free time working with the Humane Society of the United States and talking to students about the ills of dogfighting. It is hard for some to comprehend that this once dogfighter is now trying to make a difference in the lives of kids.
“I do it because I want to,” he said in an interview with theGrio’s Mara Schiavocampo. “I think if I can help five or six kids daily, then I’m playing my position as a positive role model in our society. It doesn’t hurt to do it and it’s fairly easy. I tell a lot of people that it’s easy to do the wrong thing. It’s hard to do the right thing.”
The Eagles quarterback discussed his slow, but steady road to redemption, and he spoke about why he disregards negative comments from cynics who say he’s only mentoring because the courts are making him or to rehabilitate his damaged image.”Well first off, the court doesn’t make it an obligation for me to go out and speak,” Vick said. “It doesn’t make it an obligation for me to work with the Humane Society. I’m putting in the hard work to do it so it’s not for any personal benefit, it’s to help others.”
Vick has often expressed his love of all animals — not just dogs, and hopes that the court-ordered rule that prevents him owning a dog will one day change.
“I would love to get another dog in the future,” he told theGrio. “I think it would be a big step for me in the rehabilitation process. I think just to have a pet in my household and to show people that I genuinely care, and my love, and my passion for animals.”
It is safe to say that Vick once found himself making all the wrong decisions when it came to the care of the dogs. But he claims outside influences enabled his dogfighting hobbies years ago.
“I hate to use our culture as an excuse, but it is what it is and that’s what happened and that’s the way I thought about it growing up,” the quarterback said. “This is just the way we were brought up.”
The Eagles player says he has changed his outlook on many things after his prison stint, telling the students he mentors, “without going to prison I would have never changed as an individual and as a person. And coming out of prison I was a totally different person.”
How is he different now?(Click here to continue reading.)
(AllHipHop News) A “listening session” for Sean “Diddy” Combs and his group Dirty Money almost went up in flames, when a model’s hair caught on fire during the packed celebration. Combs was celebrating the release of his album Last Train to Paris on Tuesday (December 14th) at the London Hotel in Manhattan. According to The New York Post, Combs the London Hotel’s managers that about 20 people were expected to attended a private party for the album, but over 200 people showed up. A variety of scantily clad models frolicked around the room, as comedian Kevin Hart emceed the party. But disaster almost struck when one of the women leaned over a bathtub with a lit candle, which set her hair ablaze.”I’m still giving the interview [when the fire happened]. I didn’t register the information yet. I said and our s### is fire, cause this is what we do. I turn around to see a full fledge flame go out. Before the flame went out, she went under [the water],” Kevin Hart said jokingly. “At that time I was in panic, it was a difficult situation.” Rappers Fabolous and Trey Songz sat next to the woman, who screamed and dunked her head in the bathtub water. The New York Fire Department was eventually called to the scene and allowed Diddy’s celebration to continue, although sources told The New York Post that Combs is no longer welcomed in the hotel.
Young Money’s Harlem MC, Jae Millz, puts out his hot new video “Green Gobblin” featuring Chris Brown which is themed after the John Singleton movie “Dead Presidents,” so let the heist begin.
(AllHipHop News) Los Angeles Lakers star player Ron Artest has launched a new independent record label Artest Media Group, which will be distributed by San Francisco based label, SMC Recordings. According to Ron Artest, his new label is looking to sign established Hip-Hop acts, while developing the talent currently associated with the label, Artest’s second such venture since launch the Tru Warier imprint in 2002. “I am really happy to partner with SMC, this will be my first real shot of getting the music of myself and my new artists out,” Ron Artest said. “I love music and I love my fans so I am looking forward to sharing this with them.”Artest Media recently finished its first major project, which was the launch of www.ronartest.com, which is a multimedia website that highlights all of Ron Artest’s entertainment businesses. “Partnering with Ron Artest and his Artest Media Group puts us in an incredible position for acquiring new artists,” said SMC Records’ CEO, Ralph Tashjian. “Ron’s passion for the music and entertainment business, as well as his incredible reach to already established Hip Hop acts, makes this a perfect marriage.”Ron Artest will announce artists signed to the roster in early 2001.
(AllHipHop News) Rap star 50 Cent has been hit with a copyright infringement lawsuit by an aspiring rap artist from Atlanta, Georgia, who claims he owns the original license for the beat to the rapper’s biggest hit single, “I Get Money.”Tyrone “Caliber” Simmons, 28, claims he purchased an exclusive license for all the rights to use, record, publish, re-produce and perform the “I Get Money” instrumental beat, which was produced by William “Apex” Stanberry. The lawsuit, which was filed in the United States District Court, Eastern District of New York, claims that 50 Cent, Aftermath Entertainment, G-Unit and Shady Records knowingly infringed upon his instrumental track, which was included on 50 Cent’s third album The Massacre.”The misappropriation of copyright-protected material is an endemic problem in the music business, and particularly in the genre of hip-hop/rap This is one such case,” said Louis D. Tambaro, an attorney at Red Bank, N.J.-based Marks & Klein, LLP, one of the firms representing Simmons. “Our client was granted exclusive rights to the ‘I Get Money’ instrumental and was unceremoniously cut out of the loop when the defendants realized they had a huge hit on their hands.””I Get Money” also spawned a variety of remixes, including a popular “Forbes 1-2-3 Billionaire Remix” featuring Jay-Z, Sean “Diddy” Combs and 50 Cent. “This type of infringement is simply not fair and will not be tolerated,” added Kevin B. Legreide, an attorney at Legreide & Ceres, Toms River, N.J., which also represents Simmons.
“6’7”
“Philly Sh*t Remix”
“Can’t Turn Back”
“Runnin My City”
