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AHH Stray News: Em Crowns FowL King; Slim Thug Show Canceled; Savage’s New Album

(AllHipHop News) Rap star Eminem and veteran producers The Alchemist and Mr. Porter have crowned a new freestyle champion, as part of Eminem’s Red Bull Emsee: The Road to 8 Mile” contest. The national freestyle rap battle was created by Eminem, to find the best freestyle rapper in country. The winner is Saffal Tall aka FowL. The rapper beat San Francisco rapper Nocando in round 1, North Carolina’s Killer Chris in round two and New York rapper DNA in the final round, which took place at St. Andrews Hall in Detroit. FowL, who is 18, has been rapping for the past decade and has opened for artists like Wiz Khalifa, Chip Tha Ripper and others. FowL is attending Michigan State University on a scholarship. A concert featuring Houston, Texas rapper Slim Thug planned for tonight was canceled in Bay City, Texas. According to promoters, the concert featuring Slim Thug was nixed due to lack of ticket sales. “It just didn’t come together,” said Steve Coppler, President of AdoreAble Promotions. “There were very few tickets sold.” Fans who purchased tickets to the event are being offered refunds from the outlets where they were purchased, according to Coppler. Popular Australian Hip-Hop label Dawn Raid Music has entered into a three-year exclusive distribution deal with SMC Recordings/Fontana and will release a new album by platinum-selling rapper Savage. The rapper’s album, Savage Presents The Tribal Council, is set for an October 5th release date. The two-disc album will feature top artists from the South Pacific region, alongside U.S. rappers like Pitbull, Baby Bash, E40, Talib Kweli, Bobby Valentino and Akon, who landed his first ever #1 single as a guest on Savage’s track “Moonshine.” Additionally Savage’s track “Swing” from the movie Knocked Up, has sold over 1.8 million units in the United States. Savage is currently promoting his new single “Twerk,” which was produced by Twice as Nice.

Game Review: Mafia 2

Developer / Publisher :  2K Games / 2K CzechPlatform: XBOX 360Players: 1Rating: 8 out 10Popular culture has always had a soft spot for organized crime. On screen interpretations like The GodfatherGoodfellas, and The Sopranos only made our infatuation with the mob that much deeper. So it is no surprise that three piece suits and tommy guns have made their way into the world of video games. The problem is that previous attempts of translating that life into an enjoyable video game have for the most part failed. The bar has definitely been raised with Mafia 2(2K Games / 2k Czech).Based in the fictional Empire Bay in the 40’s and 50’s, you assume the role of a poor Italian American Vito who wants to escape a life of poverty. His only way out of a life of hardship is to descend into the underworld of organized crime.  Accompanied by your childhood friend Joe, you start off with low level jobs like petty theft and shaking down small businesses on your journey to being a made man.The world of Mafia 2 is great. The graphics are very sharp and the overall presentation really puts you in the world of mob. Vintage cars blaring classic oldies, the lingo used is spot on and the overall setting in the game seems to be on par to any bustling city during that time period. Additionally the voice acting is impressive and adds a real authenticity to Vito’s world.Where Mafia 2 really shines is its story. The storyline is very robust with twists, turns, guns, booze, backstabbing and more importantly very well done plot and character development. The cut scenes add even more depth as they give this game a great Martin Scorsese feel. It doesn’t hurt that the protagonist Vito is a great character who is at times cruel and conflicted at the same time.At its core the game play can provide some great gangster moments, Mafia 2 does have some gaps to fill to really enjoy the open world of Empire City. The action is stellar though. The missions range from the standard car chases to the super intense assassination plots. There are plenty of gun fights to be had all anchored by a traditional duck and cover system. What does take away from the overall experience is the title’s very linear layout.Empire Bay feels like a big place but outside of your storyline there isn’t much to do there. You don’t have any real productive interaction with any of the civilians and the lack of side missions makes the world of Mafia 2 seems very limited. Also there is no multi-player which takes a bit off the excitement of being mobbed up.Mafia 2 is a well told mobster tale. It might not deeply immerse you into its world like other sandbox titles, but the action and story is well worth the purchase. While it isn’t the video game equation of Don Corleone, this is an offer that shouldn’t be refused.

Mos Def Sued Over Canceled Show

(AllHipHop News) Rapper Mos Def is the latest rapper accused of bailing on a gig, just 24 hours prior to show time, causing what the promoter called a “$57,000 hit.”According to the documents, which were filed August 26th in L.A. County Superior Court and obtained by TMZ, Mos Def  was given an advance payment of $12,500 to perform at Kool Haus in Toronto, on February 25th earlier this year.REMG Entertainment claims Mos suddenly backed out of the concert and failed to pay back the $12.500 deposit.  REMG claims it went another $45,000 in the hole for “lost customers, sales, and goodwill,” causing REMG to sue Mos and his crew for at least $57,500.  Mos Def is recently filmed the Danny Glover directed film “Toussaint,” which is about the revolutionary leader of Haiti, who led a successful slave uprising, leading to its independence as a country.

Lil Mama: Slow Burn

 Lil Mama has been fairly invisible to the Hip-Hop community since the fiasco with Jay-Z, Alicia Keys and a poorly timed leap on stage. But, since then, the “Lip Gloss Queen” has kept it moving in TV and music. Right now, she’s working with some Hip-Hop heavies to make sure her return is successful. But, Lil Mama also reveals some of the reasons she’s seen her trajectory to the top bow a bit and how she plans to change that.

Here is the quick convo.AllHipHop.com: Hey whats going?

Lil Mama: Hey, how are you?

AllHipHop.com: I’m good, how you been?

Lil Mama: I’ve been good.

AllHipHop.com: Good,good,good. I know you’re very busy these days. So what have you been up to since the *”Lip Gloss”* movement?

Lil Mama: A lot. I’ve been doing my thing on “Americas Best Dance Crew,”which has been so much fun, and a great experience.

AllHipHop.com: No doubt, that was a very good look,you’re representing the female Hip-Hop movement in a big way,we’ll get to that later, we want to know whats up

with the music, when are we going to get that next single?

Lil Mama: Well. I’m currently working on music for my new mix-tape, but,because i take my craft very seriously ,and am very dedicated

to my career,I wanted to take my time with this project

and write about the things that I have been going through. There have been so many changes that have taken place,and also

alot of growth,so I’m making sure that all of this is going to be reflected

in my new material.

AllHipHop.com: Absolutely,cant wait till it drops,do you have a date for that yet?

Lil Mama:I haven’t set a date yet,but you should be hearing from me within a

month or two.

AllHipHop.com: OK cool, so will you be dropping any singles or will it all be

collectively at one time?

Lil Mama: Oh yeah, I definitely have some singles that i will be hitting

y’all with,again, i just want to release the right music at the right time

ya know?

AllHipHop.com: I can dig it. Well,I’m not sure if you know this, but there is a lot of anticipation

for your music, so naturally I have been hearing things, and word is that you

have some pretty heavy hitters on this project,care to go into detail about

that at all?

Lil Mama: Well I don’t want to give too much away, but I am working with

Swizz Beatz and Timbaland, so if that’s any indication of whats about to

drop, then there you have it.

AllHipHop.com: Nice. So how would you describe the feel of your mixtape, compared to your

last album,is it something different or on the same level?

Lil Mama: well the character of this project is definitely not the same feel as from before,ya know different things have come my way,I’ve grown and experienced different things,this project is a voice that will speak for

itself.

AllHipHop.com: Very well spoken.

Lil Mama: Thank you.

AllHipHop.com: So, it seems that you are staying very busy these days, are you

venturing out of music and working on any or projects?

Lil Mama: Oh absolutely, I’m taking things day by day and will be looking

into exploring more television and film opportunities all the while

continuing to remain a real woman of Hip-Hop.

AllHipHop.com: And that you are, but speaking on Hip-Hop and the entire movement of

the female MC, there seems to be a huge difference compared to what it was

just a few years prior. I know for me, I remember a time when it was Lil Kim, Foxxy,Eve, Da

Brat, but that doesn’t seem to be the situation now, what do you

attribute  to the more than significant change in the female hip hop

movement?

Lil Mama: Well,at the time that I dropped the “Lip Gloss” record, I was the

only female mc on the scene,and its been like one at a time ever since. But I know,just from my own experience that being a female in a

male dominated industry, means that you are going to have to work that much

harder than your male counterparts,and I mean there are other things that

contribute to the situation as well.

AllHipHop.com: Like what?

Lil Mama: For instance, when “Lip Gloss” dropped, there were a number of great

artists and producers that reached out to me like “Mama get on this

record”,but because I was dealing with my own personal issues, the death of my mom and a few other things, not realizing that everyone goes through

these things,it makes staying in the game even harder,because your mind is

in so many places at one time, trying to figure it all out and make it work. That’s my story, but i know that there are many more who can

relate.

AllHipHop.com: I see, so how do you propose we go about finding a solution to this

issue?

Lil Mama: I think its something that will have to be addressed by

fans, musicians,and the industry alike, however as artists,we can facilitate

change by supporting each other instead of using each other to come up.

Jay-Z Inks Deal With The Yankees For Clothing Line; Hitting NYPL For Appearance

(AllHipHop News) Hip-Hop mogul Jay-Z is cashing in on his hit single “Empire State of Mind” with a new line of clothing with the New York Yankees.The rapper will team with The Yankees to produce a custom line of Jay-Z branded New York Yankee hats, T-Shirts, hooded sweatshirts that will go sale this Monday (August 30th). The merchandise, which includes clothing for men and women, are being produced by Majestic and New Era 59/50 with the album logo from Jay-Z’s The Blueprint 3. Jay-Z’s line of Yankees clothes has been created to commemorate the Yankee’s first official stadium concerts on Sept. 13th and Sept. 14th when Jay-Z and Eminem co-headline a concert in the Bronx, following their performances at Detroit’s Comerica Park on Sept. 3rd and Sept. 4th. In related news, Jay-Z will speak at the New York Public Library this Fall, to promote his upcoming memoir, Decoded. The rapper will appear at the library as part of the Live From the NYPL series, which will also feature high profile artist like Rolling Stones’ guitarist Keith Richards, Toni Morrison and Zadie Smith. Jay-Z will appear at the New York Public Library this Fall.