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DMX To Headline Ambush 2.0 Tour After Prison Release

This summer, embattled multi-platinum star DMX is looking to put his recent non-music troubles behind him by headlining 2009’s Ambush 2.0 Tour.

 

The nationwide event will run from June through August, and then kick off an international leg from September through December 2009.

 

Confirmed opening sets for the tour include Beanie Sigel, Freeway, Rampage, and Rah Digga.

 

In addition, tour promoters are promising special surprise guests at every city on the tour.

 

At press time, set dates and locations for Ambush 2.0 are still being finalized. DMX, real name Earl Simmons, was sentenced to 90 days in jail last December for convictions on animal cruelty, theft, and drug charges.

 

In January, he was charged with assaulting a corrections officer due to an alleged verbal dispute over food.

 

Following the incident, X was restricted to 23 hour lockdown and limited to bread and water.

 

According to authorities, both stays were lifted on March 12. Before his incarceration, the Yonkers native had planned to release a Hip-Hop (Walk with Me Now) and Gospel (You’ll Fly With me Later) album on the same day.

 

However, during a reflective jail interview, the rap star also made known his intention to pursue a career in Christian ministry after completing his sentence.

 

At press time, DMX is scheduled to be released from prison on April 30.

Lauryn Hill Returns For Montreux Jazz Festival

Former Fugees member Lauryn Hill will make a high profile appearance at this year’s Montreux Jazz Festival organizers announced today (April 2).

 

Hill will join some of the world’s biggest stars during the 43rd Annual Montreux Jazz festival, which runs from July 3-18 and features 90 concerts and over 1,000 musicians.

 

Artists such as B.B. King, Herbie Hancock, The Black Eyed Peas, Susan Tedeschi, Soloman Burke Diane Reeves, Steely Dan, The Dave Matthews Band and others will perform during the event.

 

The festival will also feature a three-day tribute to Chris Blackwell, founder of Island Records, who signed reggae legend Bob Marley in 1972.

 

Hill has five children with Bob Marley’s son Rohan.

 

Despite selling millions of records with The Fugees and own her own with her hit 1998 album The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill, the rapper/R&B singer dropped out of the public eye around 2000.

 

Throughout the past eight years, Hill has made various controversial appearances, including a well publicized event at a 2003 Christmas concert at The Vatican where she criticized priests.

 

She has sporadically toured, but has been greeted with a chilly reception by fans, who claim Hill is notoriously late for concerts and delivers sub par performances.

 

According to Reuters, The Montreux Jazz Festival is one of the most respected musical events in all of Europe.

 

“It’s a festival like no other. You don’t have to buy a ticket to take advantage, there are lots of free events from noon to five in the morning,” festival founder Claude Nobs told Reuters. “Expect the unusual. The unions aren’t in charge and a concert finishes when it finishes.” he said.

 

Lauryn Hill will take the stage of the Stravinski Auditorium on July 11.

B-Hamp’s ‘Ricky Bobby’ Dance Goes Nationwide

Dallas rapper B-Hamp is set to take his track and dance “Do the Ricky Bobby” national via a new record deal with the CKB Entertainment/Malaco Music Group.

 

B-Hamp, born Brandon Hampton, recently signed with Malaco’s urban division off the strength of “Ricky Bobby.”

 

The dance and song is being played in numerous clubs throughout the south.

 

B-Hamp’s release is the first for Malaco’s new division, which is being headed up by industry veteran Lionel Ridenour, who has run the urban divisions for majors like Arista, Capitol, BMG and others.

 

According to Ridenour, Malaco is aggressively seeking new artists and labels to distribute.

 

“Our plan is to create a new home for established independent labels as well as provide guidance to new labels,” Ridenour told AllHipHop.com. “Our division is geared up and our team is ready to provide not only distribution but national urban marketing and promotion.”

 

Ridenour hopes to push B-Hamp’s southern hit nationwide, after the track and the dance instructions received more than 1.3 million views on YouTube.

 

B-Hamp created the track and accompanying dance just one day after viewing Will Ferrell portraying the character Ricky Bobby in 2006’s flick Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby.

 

“I took the first moves that came to mind when thinking about the movie Talladega Nights, B-Hamp explained. “You wave your arms in the dance like at a car race or driving a race car. The dip part in the dance is like rolling a wheel chair, like when Ricky Bobby was in a wheel chair, and I also wanted to make it easy so everyone could do it!”

 

“Do the Ricky Bobby” is the first single from B-Hamp’s upcoming album B Dash, which is due in stores May 5.

For Men That Don’t Hit Women, But Deal With Their S**t

**This Is Dedicated To Men That Don’t Hit Women, But Still Deal With Bird S**t**

This isn’t about Chris Brown and Rihanna – I promise. But the plight of the young lovebirds sure has got me thinking.

I am what I consider to be a good man.

I work very hard.

I provide.

I work hard.

I give.

And I still get s**t from my significant other – my “lady.”

Lets just cut any thing that resembles over-intellectualiizing this crap and get down to it.

Women f**k with men.

It doesn’t matter if the man is good or bad. The majority of American women straight-up f**k with men. The examples of this are innumerable, but let me focus on the good men. Let me focus on myself.

Like I said, I work hard. So, one day I decided to take some down time. Now, for me downtime entails playing with the kids, putting dinner on the table, doing homework with the kids, and all of the nuances that go along with being an adult in between time. Ms. Ladygirl comes in later that evening and puts the kids to sleep after some reading and whatnot (note: the easy part). Fact is, this is a typical day. There are some days when this scenario is reversed.

Now, I after all that was done, I opted to take some down time. Ms. Ladygirl decides to say something slick to me that comes out of nowhere. Something about dinner. OK. that gets addressed and we move on with the evening. Later, in the midst of my down time, she delivers another pointless, incendiary comment. Finally, as I am prepared to go to bed, there is another stupid remark. You know what? That’s when I let loose. I let it be known that Ms. Ladygirl was acting like a childish fool, acting as such for seemingly no reason.

The irony of it all, is I in turn ended up acting like a fool myself, but what I like to call a justified fool. That’s how I see it.

Here is more irony.

Women know. They know the good guy all too well.

They know that, they can push button after button after button after button and the worst they are going to get is cussed out and maybe some stuff gets thrown around the room. But, the fact is, these and most women know that they are NOT going to get “Chris Brown’d” by the good guy. They are certain of it, because over time, they have pushed farther and farther and farther. Barring something truly vicious like a knife attack, people like Ladygirl know people like myself are not going to respond to words with a hail storm of fists.

That is not to say that it doesn’t cross the brain.

Men are natural fighters and we are taught at a young age to deal with a number of things with our fists. Got a bully? Beat his a$$ to get him to leave you alone. Somebody talk about your mother? Beat his a$$ to get him to leave her alone. If somebody messes with your family? The rest of the fam shows up knuckled up. It is only with women that we are taught not to respond in the same way. Why? Simply because we are generally the bigger gender and big people shouldn’t beat down smaller, weaker people.

There is another side to this.

Most men don’t want to fight. Why? It hurts getting punched. You might lose. You might get embarrassed. Fighting is a big issue and that’s why boys used to do that shoulder-to-shoulder circle walk so much. When women are dealing with a good dude, many of them feel that they can SAY anything they want, no matter how inflammatory, disrespectful, childish or ignorant and – NEWS FLASH – there’s very little you can do as a man. (Men: Imagine going around picking fights with every guy that was bigger than you and KNOWING dude can’t do anything. You MIGHT be able to get away with it with a 2-time felon!) With women, everything is an abuse of power, but the true birdbrain gets off scott free.

What is the proper procedure for when a female is blocking the exit? What is the proper response to barbed words when your words will hurt more and any and all insults are resurrected in the next argument. What is the proper procedure when you are hit with fists or an object? Like Chris and Rihanna, the answers seem so simple until it is you that is in the situation.

I love my kids and I love Ms. Ladygirl too.

So, my moves and the moves of my fellow good guys must be wise. At best, and the preferred response, is the good guy that ignores the vengeful needling of a she-devil. That’s difficult. And lets not even talk about when the good guy attempts to remove himself from the negativity like…leave. Oh, then you are “abandoning” somebody or refusing to “talk.” This is even when there simply needs a cooling off period. Women don’t WANT you to cool off…they just don’t want you to hit them.

Now, I’m a grown man.

Through the years, I have dealt with women of all backgrounds, social upbringings, incomes and mental levels. MOST (not all) ladygirls I have dated or been serious about have these common bird themes in varying degrees of horror. Furthermore, the other good guys I know deal with the same BS…like “How did I get here, in this muck of wackness? Is it PMS? Are there other factors? Do you have a pre-existing condition that I don’t know about?”

The stress of day to day living is already a lot, so why do so many women in American seem to specialize in creating unnecessary idiocy just to add to the strife. I thought this would interest you for closure purposes. After the evening of bickering, I ended up sleeples for several hours and got absolutely no down time. The sad thing, is I am truly in a situation where I am VESTED for the rest of my days on this polluted Earth.

And the Ladygirl knows it…LOL, SMH AND WTF all rolled into one.

While, I’ll never Chris Brown a broad, I…ahhhhh…nevermind…you wouldn’t understand unless you’re a good guy.

Boyz N Da Hood Accused Of Stealing ‘Table Dance’

An R&B singer in Dallas, Texas has filed a lawsuit against Sean “Diddy” Combs’ Bad Boy Entertainment, claiming Boyz N Da Hood stole one of his songs.

 

Troy Hicks, who performs under the name “Rhythum,” claims to perform a style of music he labeled “street R&B.”

 

He alleges that the group lifted his 2007 track “Private Dancer” from his album Tha Truth, released by independent label Real Life Entertainment.

 

The lawsuit accuses the group of stealing “Private Dancer” for their track “Table Dance,” which features superstar rapper/producer T-Pain.

 

The track was the second single off of the group’s album Back Up In Da Chevy, which hit stores in 2007.

 

Also named in the lawsuit is Atlantic Recording Corp., Block Entertainment, and Boyz N Da Hood. Hicks seeks an unspecified amount of damages.

TOP 5 DEAD OR ALIVE: Cam’ron

When talking about rappers, one must always make reference to the ego, the bravado and the machismo of its esteemed participants.

Cam’ron has always offered a certainly cool and cocky swagger that would suggest that he’d never own up to naming his favorite rappers. But, lo and behold, Cameron Giles has no qualms about naming his Top 5 rappers, even if he’s had major beef with them.

This is going to be fun.

The Notorious B.I.G

“As for Big, I met Big about two or three times through Ma$e, you know Ma$e took me to his house, I rapped for him. That’s kinda how I got my deal because after he passed away like he had told Un [Lance Rivera] about me and Un signed me after that.”

Tupac Shakur

“I kinda appreciated ‘Pac after he died. You know, they always say stuff like that but I got the Makaveli album soon as he died. I was like, “Yo this album is crazy” and I started going through the archives of his old stuff and I was like, “Wow.” I wasn’t into him like that when he was alive, but after he died I started listening to all his s**t.” And, I was like wow this dude is amazing.”

Nas

“As far as Nas is concerned, I grew up listening to Nas before we even started beefing. You know I wouldn’t say his latest stuff is my favorite even though I like a couple of things on there but you know like “NY State of Mind,” representing first album was one of the classics Illmatic.”

Jay-Z

“Jay-Z’s first album also you know I liked his first two or three albums um as far as “Can I Live” stuff like that, you know vintage vintage Jay-Z definitely. He’s (comparable to) Big, Pac of course they are two of the greatest. If somebody is rappin’ or plays basketball or whatever and says somebody’s better than them, they don’t even need to compete.”

Cam’ron

“With me, my word play is great. I could rhyme with anybody. It’s like I did a song with Mariah Carey then next week with Ol’ Dirty Bastard or I could do a song with Bone Crusher and do a song with whoever you know, John Legend. I think that’s what makes me different also and then at the same time I been  South like when I lived in Atlanta. I lived in Chicago. I lived in Ohio. I lived in Englewood, California for a couple years so me being throughout the United States you begin to see different things. I’ll be in Ohio and I’ll do a song with some people that you’ll probably never hear the song and never get to meet them but they take that like, “Wow we did a song with Cam.” Then on top of that, I’m just like a fly n***a too. Like you know my swag is a million like far as jewelry, clothes, anything. All that combined I think that makes me who I am.”

Lil Wayne: Honorable mention

“Right now, (If I have to pick somebody other than myself), I would say Wayne, Lil Wayne. He gotta lot of versatility and a lot of stuff that he does, he rhymes off the top of his head. You know a lot of times people rhyme off the top of they head, but it doesn’t really make sense. They just rhyming of the top of they head. I think he’s one of the better artists that could rhyme off the top of they head and still make sense of what he’s talking about.”

On having highly publicized beefs with Nas and Jay-Z, but still respecting their skill:

“Is Kobe Bryant mad he gotta play Lebron James tonight? You know what I’m sayin? I’m not one of them people that’s beefin’ or battling with people and not gonna say who’s hot. That’s just a hater. Like if you think about like I said, not sayin that there stuff isn’t good now or whatever, but the vintage Nas and Jay’s first two, three albums was crazy. So definitely I would say (they are my favorites). It doesn’t bother me at all but I’m not gonna hate.

THE SIDEBAR

AllHipHop.com needed to know from Cam’ron, why he loves Chicago so much:

“I fell in love with Chicago. To be honest, I grew up watching “Good Times” so when I ever went to Chicago I was like I gotta go to them “Good Times” projects man. They called Cabrini Green and they actually tearing them down now. I went there and Chicago – I been around the whole world – and Chicago is the only city I would say that’s identical to New York. What I’m saying is Chicago’s kinda identical to New York as far as subways, as far as L-trains, as far as projects, as far as tenements. The Southside is like Brooklyn, the West side is like Harlem. The people (of Chicago) have a little more hospitality. They don’t have as much as that rough edge as New York got. Don’t get it twisted, people will die out there and there will be crime . I just get a real homely feeling with Chicago and the same thing with Ohio.”

Keelay & Zaire: Ridin High (Album Review)

 

6/10

 

 

Producers come a dime a dozen these days. It is the advent of the internet. It has allowed anyone to grab a program that allows someone to harmonize with instruments. For most, this allows them to try and usually fail however for those who have the ability to stick with it, they can gain enough ground to catch the ear of any artist. The internet has also allowed those with a like sound to click together and pull both sounds together. Keelay & Zaire have used that tool to put together Ridin High.

 

From the first cut, the influence of the sample is very apparent. Keelay & Zaire seem to be disciples of the school of Pete Rock, with tracks such as “Wake Up”, led by Emilio Rojas, capture a sound that is as smooth as it is conscious. For much of this album, they keep the tempo down and let samples and heavy handed instrumentation to create their sound.

 

Throughout the disc are rhymes of underground culture of Hip-Hop. The artists range from the New West Coast luminary Blu (“The Times”), venerable veterans like Tash (“I’m On Swerve”), and underground mainstay Supasition (“Trapped”). It creates an atmosphere that pours a smooth grove through the speakers.

 

However, there are a few bumps in that very groove. “I Used To Ride” is extremely out of place. Its brash sample mixed with its lyrics full of impetuous sixteens do not mesh well with the rest of the albums tracks that make their mark on a slower, cooler tempo.

 

Also accompanying this disc is a rare slip up by Little Brother alum Phonte. The North Carolina emcee feels like he phoned it in and it leaves the average fan wondering why he routinely gets involved in “hottest rapper out” conversations.

 

For all of the artists and the smooth sounds this album offers, at the end it isn’t very memorable. Most of the sounds cruise into each other, and without to much distinction at that. The end product is an album that can sit in the car, however, after a few spins, this one goes to the back and will probably never come back out.

 

Keelay & Zaire Featuring Blu, Fortlive and Nino Moschella

“The Times”

Tale Of The (Mix)Tape: Fabolous shows us the Fabolous Life

Welcome back. Tale of the Tape is here once again to give you the idea of just what you can expect off this mixtape grind.  As you know, anyone can put out a mixtape, and trust me, through these honorable ears I am saving you from inner Hip-Hop damage. When you aren’t getting those cold shakes from wasting your time putting something on your MP3 player, no need to thank me, just keep it honorable by checking out the column.

 

 

This week we get started with German producer Shuko’s The Foundation. Afterwards we follow up with Fabolous, whose gives us a look at his Fabolous Life. Jim Jones gives us a tour of his own life with Heron 3:16. Newcomer Outasight gives us an idea of what to expect getting us From Here To There.  Ending this week is DJ Greg Street , who is definitely Sertified Worldwide.  Let’s go, word to Diddy.

 

Shuko

The Foundation

Peep It

 

For those who refuse to look past their own pavement, Hip-Hop has spread from the streets to New York to all over the world. Because of that, there are Hip-Hop artists, producers specifically, from the international market getting some burn by some of your favorite artists. German producer Shuko happens to be one of them. Having tracks from a differing range of artists from Talib Kweli & Rakim (“Getting Up Anthem Remix”), Skyzoo (“Strung Out”), and Big Noyd, Phil The Agony, and Krondon (“All Out”), there is a good selection here.

 

 

Fabolous

Fabolous Life

Peep It

 

You know the reason why Hip-Hop fans can’t spell fabulous right? F-A-B-O-L-O-U-S should ring a bell.  Even if the name isn’t spelled right, we rock with him anyway because the tommy gun flow he displays at will. For those listeners who need a primer before his album, Loso’s Way, hits stores, look no further than Fablous Life. Contained is almost every single radio appearance that he has had over the years, and there is a lot. From older tracks such as “Super Woman” to newer tracks like “I Luv Ya Girl”, this is a solid listen.

 

 

Jim Jones

Street Religion Heron 3:16

One & Done

 

The trudge to the spotlight has been a rather long one for Jim Jones. Since appearing as that odd guy in Cam’Ron’s “Horse & Carriage” video, he has slowly taken a little bit more shine until finally crafting a hit in “We Fly High” in 2006. Through that, he secured a major label deal with Sony and began working on his latest album Prey IV Reign. With such a title, one could only wonder how he could lose….right. Well, Street Religion Heron 3:16 Jones really doesn’t really impress anyone. “Na Na Nana Na” no thanks.

 

 

Outasight

From There to Here

Heavy Rotation

 

Outasight isn’t your usual Hip-Hop artist.  At first glance, he looks more comfortable on the cover of a Hollister ad than mixtape cover. However, once you uncover the music, you find that he has got some good stuff to spit (“Fame & Fortune”). “People Places Things” off his upcoming album sounds quite interesting with his harmonic 16’s. As usual, Mick Boogie gets up with another artist and crafts one of the best mixtapes of the month. No surprise here.

 

 

Greg Street

Sertified Worldwide

Heavy Rotation

 

Dj Greg Street is never one to shy from the limelight. To catch some more of it, he has recently released Sertified Worldwide. This one has plenty of remixes that feature some of your favorite artists such as Lil Wayne, T-Pain, and Keri Hilson (“Turnin Me On”), Lupe Fiasco, Wale, and Kardinall Official (“Dope boyz”) and Yung Joc (“Drop It Down Low”). This has plenty of listen to, and only a few dim spots (“Old School Chevy” specifically). This one can stick in the rotation for a while.

 

Tale Of The (Mix)Tape:

Tale Of The Tape 04.w1.09

Former JMJ Friend/Murder Suspect Pens 50 Cent Diss

Randy Allen, best friend of Jam Master Jay and a former suspect in the murder, has released a diss record aimed at fellow Queens native 50 Cent.

Entitled “P*ssy Man,” Allen performs the track under his rap name MDR, which he retained as a member of JMJ’s group Rusty Waters.

According to Allen, the issues with 50 Cent arise from the mogul’s new JMJ documentary The Life and Death of Jam Master Jay.

The project, which premiered in January at the Sundance Film Festival, is 50’s first feature under his motion picture company Cheetah Films.

Allen alleges that much of the information 50 used to complete the film was taken from unnamed fraudulent sources, and compromises the relationship shared between Allen, 50, and Jay before the DJ’s murder.

“When Jay was alive he dealt with me and Jay. Now he’s stepping out of the circle of what he know[s] about into a bunch of ‘I hate Randy Allen’ and he’s supporting it,” Allen recently explained. “Why would you go to them and promote something they’re doing without even talking to me about it and finding out if that’s what it is? Anybody doing that is p*ssy.”

When asked why he didn’t reach out to 50 before recording the diss track, Allen states he was met with too many buffer sources to facilitate a productive meeting.

“I shouldn’t have to go through all that. So why not just put it on a song and express how I feel?” Allen stated. “Yo n*gga, wake up. What you doing is some p*ssy sh*t.”

In October 2002, Jam Master Jay was shot and killed execution style in his Jamaica Queens studio.

Although there have been numerous promising leads and several named suspects, to date the murder remains officially unsolved.

At press time, 50 Cent could not be reached for comment.