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Nas and Game Head to Africa for MTV Awards
Queens
lyricist Nas and Compton rapper The Game have both been confirmed to perform at
this years esteemed MTV Africa Awards in Abuja, Nigeria.
The
idea to bring two of Americas most well known emcees to the Motherland began
with Zain, the multinational, mobile telecommunications company that now
services 22 countries in Africa and the Middle East.
According
to Zains Chief Marketing Officer Norman Mayo, the move signifies his companys
focus on using music to bridge gaps throughout the world community and further
illuminate the cultural influences we all have on each other, both directly and
indirectly.
The
idea of bringing an international rap star like Nas to the awards demonstrates Zains
willingness to always explore opportunities that will allow for cross-cultural experiences,
Mayo explained in a statement to the Nigerian
Tribune. The brand is most associated with music in Africa, [and] the
company will continue to contribute immensely to the development of music in
the continent.
Nas
marked 2008 with the release of Untitled,
his critically acclaimed opus on race relations and cultural identity. The
album debuted in July #1 on Billboard and was certified gold by the RIAA in
September.
This
past August, Game released his star-studded third and reputed final album L.A.X. The album debuted #2 on Billboard
and has also been certified gold.
The
Africa MTV Awards will be broadcast of Saturday November 22 through local
affiliates throughout Africa.
At
press time, MTV has not verified if all or portions of the award show will be
made available for the U.S. audience.
TRACKING SHOTS: Styles P
Whether it be promoting his latest project, Phantom Gangster Chronicles Vol. 1, bigging up the merits of juice bars, working on a book or assuring that a new LOX album is definitely on the way, Styles P gets it in. By now you should be at least a little familiar with the Yonkers product who always rides for his D-Block team and steadily disarms the uninitiated with his solid business sense and street sharpened intelligence. The bare knuckles bars don’t hurt either. The Phantom Gangster Chronicles is split between a CD of rare treats while the DVD finds SP in interviewer mode, building with individuals like Idris Elba (Stringer Bell from The Wire), E-40, Jim Jones and Baron Davis. Here we ask the questions and as per “Tracking Shots” policy we played Styles some joints and had him speak on their merits. The Ghost with the most didnt disappoint.Jungle Brothers Straight Out the Jungle (Idlers/Warner Brothers)Styles P: [rapping] Cause Im a Jungle Brother, a true blue brother, and I been to many places youll never discover.That just really reminds me of seeing somebody taking it to a different twist and throw culture on it. Back then I was like, Wow. ‘Cause everybody else was doing the gold chain, this that, this and that. Then you see somebody with the Africa emblem, the camouflage suits, ya know, talking that s**t. That album was crazy to me too. Straight Out the Jungle was bananas. AllHipHop.com: At that point where you thinking seriously about being an MC?Styles P: Definitely. Definitely at that stage. That meant a lot to me, my heritage. My moms from South Africa and all that so with me that just hit home. Herb Alpert Rise (A&M)AllHipHop.com: D-Dot obviously flipped that for Biggies Hypnotized while All About the Benjamins was also hitting around that time. What was that period like?Styles P: That s**t was almost like damn near a living movie for us, for me, Sheek and Kiss. You living the dream. You taking it somewhere that aint been took for people in your hood and somewhere you always thought about and what you worked hard to get to being. Bad Boy was like playing for the Chicago Bulls at the time. Three kids from Yonkers, who spit hard, been spittin for a minute, that was coming a long way. That was like saying, Yeah we know we talented, this is what we do. We know this is why we here. AllHipHop.com: Any particular memory of B.I.G. thats special to you?Styles P: The studio times I would say. Just being in the studio with B.I.G. Watching him work. To me B.I.G. was the ultimate classy gangster. It was just from the way he carried his self. It was certain s**t that he did and how he moved to me that made him so different from everybody else. I never seen him roll upsmoked like crazyI never seen him roll a blunt. I seen when everybody else is tired and passed, he just sittin there going in on the beat. He aint have no reason to treat our homeboys like they was cool, besides us. That was something that always stood out. He treated our mans, whoever was with us, like fam too. Thats a class act. The Lox f/ Mase & Puffy If You Want It (Bad Boy)Styles P: Steely Dan sample AllHipHop.com: Yeah, this record was playing everywhere when it dropped. This was one of yall first Bad Boy records right?Styles P: It was up there. It was definitely in the beginning. Yeah, you could say that. AllHipHop: Yall from Y.O. and spit hard but on this record, and others like “If You Think I’m Jiggy” it was toned down. Was that something hard to do?Styles P: I dont think it was hard to do because it was like, I mean I guess the word, I dont want to say that but its like we was using our swag back then. We was just cool using our style. Toning it down but getting fly with it. We was saying s**t that n****a wasnt saying. We was left field. We came in the game with our own rap style that f**king exists to this day. AllHipHop.com: Whats up with a proper Lox album? Its been since ten years since yall dropped We Are The Streets.Styles P: After Kiss’ joint. Just waiting for Kiss to finish up. We working and thats it. AllHipHop.com: Whats been the hold up?Styles P: Timing, label stuff and we just want to get it all set up right and proper. And money too. You gotta think we all got careers. For me to just up and say lets do The Lox joint while Sheek was doing his project would have been crazy for him to do ’cause he was in the middle of doing his s**t and getting his bread. Vice versa with me and vice versa with Kiss. So we said lets get all three of them out the way then after that we could sit there and focus on the Lox joint. So then we could all be on the road together too. Be able to catch a tour. Make sure all the music is crazy. The Lox If You Think Im Jiggy Video50 Cent Back Down (Aftermath/Shady/Interscope)AllHipHop.com: So this is the joint where 50 Cent gives The Lox a compliment [Im the hardest from New York, my flow is bonkers, all the other hard n****s, they come from Yonkers.]. How did you feel when sometime later hes beefing with yall?Styles P: [singing along] Its the business. I mean he came into the game doing that kind of s**t so, to me, whatever. Me, I never really look at anything with any rapper as far as taking it personal. Besides Beans. I think Beans is the only s**t that I probably ever took to heart. Other than that, its whatever to me. I never knew the dude. So when he did that [Back Down], that was cool. That was like, Aight. ‘Cause we liked the kid, he got style, he got character, he reppin for the hood, so thats what up.But when you get big, you get in a different position and you doing other s**t. You know how s**t goes. Its the business, man. Im from the streets. I done known n****s my whole life and had beef with somebody from down the block that I knew my whole life, thats just how s**t goes sometimes. You get hype at first, once you get over the ego part In the beginning you jump on it cause your egos in the way, but after that AllHipHop.com: Why was the beef with Beans personal?Styles P: We knew Beans. I liked Beans. AllHipHop.com: Yeah, when we spoke to Beanie Sigel about it he had nothing but respect for y’all and said steel sharpens steel.Styles P: I love Beans. Thats my n***a right now. The reason I said that was because he was the only person that I liked. As far as I knew him, I smoked with him, I chatted with him, that was my n***a. Back Down – 50 CentSoul II Soul Jazzies Groove (Virgin)Styles P: That was my s**t right there kid. That s**t be blowing every time I think about how she [DoReen Waddell] died. She was running across the street and got hit by a car. That just brings me back in time. That was one of the first [albums] I personally brought that wasnt Hip-Hop around that time period. It was coming into that s**t, like Guy, s**t like that. We still had good music other than rap that was still knocking that you could play in the car and on the radio. It was R&B, it was UK, but it was f**king Hip-Hop to the death.Soul II Soul – Jazzie’s GrooveAllHipHop: So, Phantom Gangster Chronicles, why this current mixtape CD/DVD project now?Styles P: The DVD mixtape. It aint mainly for the mixtape, its mainly for the DVD. Its important to find other avenues, find other lanes. I think whats even more important in this day and age is for people to get real information. I felt like an artist can ask another artist some s**t maybe he dont want to answer to another dude, he might be able to get into a little more depth. Like, I want to do your job too. It intrigues me whats going on in an MC’s mind and how an artist lives cause being an artist I know the s**t is difficult. Its difficult being a dad and an artist, s**t gets real. Im just finding other angles to pinpoint and ask artist s**t. And besides that, show the youth that artist think differently. Some people always want to portray the artists as gangsta, rich, a star, whatever. Like you coming with some different s**t. It aint the same, Yo, whats up with your new Benz?! That s**t is corny. N****s pulling out guns on DVDs, we dont want to see that. Im asking s**t like, Whos your gansta influence in your life, whos a positive role model in your life, whos a negative role model in your life, what made you you today, what are you doing after you drop your kids off? Just far left s**t. AllHipHop.com: So what would you say is your biggest influence in your life, in general?Styles P: I think my biggest influence in life is the struggle. The struggle of man alone, that my biggest influence in life, to make it. For those who were my influential people; Malcolm X, Nelson Mandela, the average busdriver, the average mom, the average MC trying to make it. My influence in life is struggle and just trying to persevere and maintain and get over and hold you and yours down. Thats what influences me every day to get up and make rhymes and try to do better myself. My whole s**t revolves around struggle. AllHipHop.com: With the economy moving the way it is now, how do you see things going? Styles P: I think everything goes in cycles. I think itll go up, I think itll go down. I think itll be good times, I think itll be bad times. I think maybe its meant to be bad times cause there aint no good music. I think different. With me its how the big man plays it. Its the chemistry of the earth. Therell be good angels floating around, therell be demons floating around. Its how you choose to see it. Use your third eye and move on s**t. It goes back to what I said; struggle. I think struggle will bring people closer. I think struggle makes good music come out. I think struggle makes people get sharper. I think struggle makes the young people come out to vote. We giving a f**k on whats going to happen in the future. When we was coming up we knew it was going to be Reagan or Bush, it just was what it was. We aint give a f**k to go out and try to switch it up, but now you see a big difference.
The Last Word: Beyoncé Jacks Leona Lewis, Talks Wonder Woman, George Clinton Goes Country/Cloning, and Salma Hayek is Addicted to Breastfeeding?
Whats the deal, true believers? Its been a slow five and
Im ready to get on with my weekend after hearing rumblings of a government
bailout for the auto industry and Obama and family getting oriented with the
White House and his Presidential duties from an outgoing president Bush.
Condolences go out to South African singer/activist Mama
Africa Miriam Makeba, who died Monday (Nov. 10) and Jimi Hendrix Experience
drummer Mitch Mitchell, who died Wednesday (Nov. 12). Shout out to all the
veterans who served and sacrificed for our country as well as those currently
serving in the military, and the sounding boards for making it a better place
to be for you and me.
Well my friends let me introduce you to the Last Word for
the week ending Nov. 14, 2008: The Hero Takeover.
1. Beyoncé Plays Hero and Villain with Wonder Woman
Desires and Stolen Leona Lewis Song
With the success of Iron Man, The Incredible Hulk and
The Dark Knight, its a
no-brainer that superhero films are box office gold as entertainers voice their
desire to save the world on the big screen. Enter Beyoncé, who is making it
known that she wants to bring one of DC Comics iconic heroes to life.
I want to do a superhero movie and what would be better
than Wonder Woman? the singer told the Los
Angeles Times, adding that she met with
representatives of DC and Warner Bros. to express her interest in portraying
the Amazonian princess. It would be great. And it would be a very bold choice.
A Black Wonder Woman would be a powerful thing. It’s time for that, right?
With all the talk about turning White superheroes Black, it
wouldnt be too much of a stretch for B to take up the mantle. But she may want
to calm down Simon Cowell, whos not too happy she got her hands on a song that
was originally written for his protégé Leona Lewis.
Media sources report, the track, which is called Halo, was
written by One Republic frontman Ryan Tedder. According to insiders, Cowell and
Tedder had agreed to let Lewis sing the song for her second album, but Beyoncé has
since recorded the track for herself and plans on including it on her
forthcoming album I AM Sasha Fierce.
In light of plans that call for Lewis album to hit stores
in 2009, Tedder decided to peddle the song elsewhere.
Leona’s diary is so rammed it didn’t look like she could
record it until next year, said a source at SonyBMG. Ryan didn’t want to hang
around, so he gave it to Beyoncé.
Sounds like some diabolical trickery going on here. Maybe
they should get Wonder Womans magic lasso to see what the real story is with
all this. As far as Diana Prince goes, if Beyoncé isnt your choice, who do you
think should portray the heroine when DC and Warner finally get the Justice
League members film off the ground?
I nominate Meagan Good, Scarlett Johanssen and Kerry
Washington. What say you?
2. George Clinton Goes Country with Sheila E; Subscribes
to Human Cloning
First, it was Bobby Brown and Sisqo. Then it was Jermaine
Jackson. Now, we got George Clinton and Sheila E. making a musical switch as
the newest cast members for the CMT reality show Gone Country.
The pair will join singer Taylor Dayne, American Idol first-season runner-up Justin Guarini, actor Richard
Grieco, Monkees lead vocalist/drummer Micky Dolenz and former Miss USA Tara
Conner for the third season of the series. Gone Country centers on a group of contestants who spend two
weeks working with songwriters on a country song. At the end of the two weeks,
the shows host, John Rich, will decide which celebrity is most prepared to
impress a country audience. Afterwards, the winner will record and release
their single to country radio.
And while seeing Clinton bring the P-funk to country music
lovers will make for interesting TV, the most interesting thing right now for
music pioneer proved appears to be the idea of cloning human beings, which
Clinton says has been practiced for years.
Cloning we got generations of that s***, the
Parliament Funkadelic frontman told Details
magazine. The pyramids? They was for cloning. That’s why embalming lasts so
long. Get the DNA and pull em back. So somebody been cloned already, but not
me. Not yet.
Ive got my DNA stashed in the bank. And I got 14 kids,
continued Clinton, who is open to being cloned one day. So theres plenty of
volunteers to take my DNA. Its funky but they take it.
Not that I dont believe that human cloning is taking place,
but George Clinton, what the funk are you talking about? It seems like all the
rappers have taken your DNA to make classic hits. Calling Dr. Dre.
3. Former and Current James Bonds Picture Obama among
Black 007s
A few Words back, I mentioned that Marvel Comics founder
Stan Lee was open to casting Will Smith as the first Black Captain America for
the red, white and blue Avengers forthcoming film. That depended on whether or
not Barack Obama would be elected president.
Now that the election is over and Obama is our
President-Elect, the opportunity seems right to give iconic characters a new
look. According to WENN, James Bond himself, Daniel Craig, believes the Chicago
senators historic victory has opened the door for the possibility of a Black
007.
I think the role could easily be played by a Black actor,
because the character created by Ian Fleming in the 50s has undergone a great
deal of evolution and continues to be updated, said the actor and Obama fan,
who will reprise his role as Bond for the upcoming film Quantum of Solace.
While Craig believes Obama has opened the path for a Black
Bond on the big screen, former 007 Pierce Brosnan is confident that the
President-Elect could easily carry on the legacy of the fictional adventurer.
He’s cool enough, Brosnan told People magazine. He’s definitely got the walk and the
talk, yes, but I think he’s going to make a greater President.
I’m not sure if Barack could take time out of running the
country to get his license to kill, but Wesley Snipes could use always use the
paycheck.
4. Salma Hayek Confesses to Breastfeeding Addiction
Within her 42 years of existence, Salma Hayek has
accomplished a lot as an Oscar-nominated actress, director, producer and
activist. But the most important accomplishment for Hayek comes with raising
her 13 ½-month old daughter Valentina Paloma, a feat that includes
breastfeeding.
To hear her tell it, Hayek is in no hurry to wean Valentina
off the natural food source as she admits that nursing is a very powerful
thing that she does not intend to give up breastfeeding anytime soon.
Im like an alcoholic, Salma told the Times Online. Its like, I dont care if I cry, I dont
care if Im fat, Im just gonna do it for one more week, one more month, and
then, when I see how much good it is doing her, I cant stop.
Despite her love of nursing, it was anything but for the
actress, who revealed how difficult it was when she first started breastfeeding
her newborn. It’s tough. You dont know what pain I’m in after two hours.
And if youre wondering if talk about breastfeeding helping
women lose weight is true, think again. Salma deads what she called the myth
by saying that its sooo not true as she grabbed her stomach during her
interview. It’s like, Please, everyone, can you stop telling me I look really
well?
In Other Words
Some people may look good when playing a good game of
whatever, but Rihanna is looking good while supporting a worthy cause. The
singer has joined forces with Gucci to appear in a series of ads for the
brands fourth annual campaign to benefit UNICEF. According to reports, Rihanna
will model luxe goods from Guccis Tattoo Heart collection. Ads for the
all-white Tattoo Heart line are slated to hit magazines in December.
* Fans of Jamie Foxx will have another collection of tunes
to enjoy from the Oscar-winning actor. Media sources report that Foxx is set to
release his third album Intuition.
Contributors include Timbaland, Ne-Yo, Sean Garrett, Salaam Remi, Carlos
McKinney and T.I. who is featured on the lead single Just Like Me.
Look for the album to hit stores Dec. 16. Those wondering
about Foxxs other job can catch the entertainer on the big screen when he
teams up with Robert Downey Jr. for the upcoming movie The Soloist, which hits theaters March 13.
* Kevin Rudolf may strike some as strictly a rock n roller,
but he maintains a strong desire to incorporate elements of other genres in his
music. According to the Cash Money Records vocalist in an upcoming AllHipHop
Alternatives interview, a trendy mash-up of previously recorded material cant
replace a natural collaboration between talented musicians.
To tell you the truth, I really don’t like rap and rock
together so much. To me when I do
my album I do more like a fusion, Rudolf told AllHipHop.com Alternatives. I
try to take what’s authentic by Hip-Hop and what’s authentic about rock and
combine them. Doing stuff like
peanut butter and jelly, let’s put rap with rock, let’s sit this with that,
they do that like it’s a gimmick. Let’s put a rock band with a rapper and it’s
fresh and new.
I got some crazy sh*t in my album, Rudolf continued about
his forthcoming project In the City. We
got Nas on the album, Rick Ross on the album, BirdMan, and they’re not mashups.
They are honest collaborations with great rappers and good music and it’s a
real thing, you know? It’s not like, Slap them together. To me, this is my
world, so it feels natural, you know what I mean?
As music fans await the follow-up to Nina Skys
self-titled debut album, one half of the hitmaking duo is making waves in the
world of fashion. Natalie Albino is gearing up to join forces with designer
Erin Magee for an exclusive MadeMe Holiday 08 tee. The **NA SKY tee, which was
inspired by Albinos musical background, will feature the companys logo
written in graffiti style musical notes.
Shoppers can purchase the tee, which will be released in
black, white and purple, by visiting www.mademeclothing.com. For Albino, the
clothing illustrates her love of graffiti since shes been tagging Astoria,
Queens with **NA SKY for years. Musically, the singer and her sister Nicole
are putting the finishing touches on Nina Skys sophomore album The Musical, which will feature production from Salaam Remi,
Ryan Leslie, and Cool & Dre.
* Everybody wants to get into the superhero business. Now,
BET wants to put itself in the mix with its upcoming animated series The
Black Panther. The show, which is adapted
from a 2005 six issue Marvel Comics Black Panther limited series written
by former BET president Reginald
Hudlin, will feature Amistad and Blood
Diamond star Djimon Hounsou as the voice of
the title character.
With his latest role, Hounsou considers it a blessing for
African Americans and minorities to have a superhero they can identify with.
* Samuel L. Jackson is gearing up to ride the buzz he
created with his surprise cameo as S.H.I.E.L.D. head Nick Fury in Iron Man. MTV reports the entertainer has his sights set on
playing Fury in Iron Man 2 with
hopes of bringing the character back for the string of Marvel Studio films that
set the stage for 2011s The Avengers.
They sorta gave me a master plan about how they want it to
work…[But] I’ll do every movie they wanna do. I’m down.
Most heroes arent looking for any reward for their work,
but Sam looks to get more than his slice of the million dollar pie for his
role. Crime may pay, but its the good guys that will finish first in this,
with plenty of chump change to spend.
Inside The Life & Mind of Jim Jones (Play Review)
One of the most common avenues of publicizing a forthcoming release is by having the ever popular album listening party. The current sovereign of Harlem MCs, Jim Jones along with Damon Dash and J. Kyle Manzay took it one step further and channeled his fourth album, Pray IV Reign (Columbia) through an off Broadway play entitled Hip-Hop Monologues: Inside The Life & Mind Of Jim Jones.
Yes you read correctly, Mr. Capo showcased his acting chops on stage to a packed auditorium of attendees including Dame, video vixen Melissa Ford, supermodel Elle McPherson, Kareem Biggs Burke and others.
Held at the 37 Arts Theatre in New York City, the scene was set to present day Harlem, 110th Street, complete with citizens of the community: neighborhood boosters, school kids, working men and women, a game of dice off to the side and everyones favorite, the begging crack-head.
Chronicling Jims life via E True Harlem World Stories, the show began with shots being fired and when fired back, Jim is immediately taken into custody for questioning. Pleading his case over Pull Me Back one of the first performances from the album, he soon finds himself speaking with the judge played by civil rights icon Dr. Benjamin Chavis.
He is ordered to complete community service including talking with school children through How To Be A Boss and attending a sex addiction meeting proclaiming Pu**y Is My Medicine as his defense. Things on the home front became shaky as his girlfriend kicks him out due to his conniving ways. The audience, very attentive, took it all in with amazement on how well Jim and his fellow thespians performed.
Prior to the start of the next scene, Jim took a little tumble to the floor on stage left which was only noticed by those in the first two rows. However he handled things smoothly and proceeded onto the stage with Shawty Wants To Be A Lawyer. Video snippets from his soon to be released documentary intervened; which touched on CamRon as well as a remembrance of the late Stack Bundles with My My My.
Several other songs were reenacted included Frenimies, Precious, Reign and the play ended with the current single Pop Champagne as the cast members and Juelz all did it up on stage bringing the performance to a close.
Many will dismiss Jim as a salty rapper who hasnt quite popped off like his former cohorts, but you have to give the Bird Gang general credit for a well executed presentation.
Hip-Hop Rumors: Kanye West Arrested! Rare Cassidy Vid, Lil Jon In Court!
DISCLAIMER:
All content within this section is pure rumor and generally have no factual info outside of what the streets have whispered in our ear. Read on.
TODAY’S RUMORS!
THE DAILY TWO CENTS
OK, so here is the deal today. I didnt do a lot of rumors today, because there wasnt much to say. Also, I didnt feel like it. What I did to was take what I was given and flip it. So I am going to be updating the rumor page throughout the day. If you have anything, send it over and that can be what you saw, heard or read. Check out what I have and I will be adding new stuff sporadically through the day so come back and see whats new.
If you see something, say something [email protected]!
ILLSEEDS QUICKIES
I heard a crazy rumor that Lil Wayne
had cancer. I totally dont feel there is anything to that rumor.
All the Obama
jokes are really getting played out. Nobody played the Beverly Hillbillies
theme when Bush left the ranch for the White House. Kill em!
I heard Shawty
Lo just said something about T.I .more on that in a few.
JIM JONES PLAY- MORE INFO THAN YOU EVER EXPECTED!
I am hearing the Jim Jones is probably going to make this
Play thing into a DVD. I heard there were cameras at the first show recording
the whole thing and he also brought out his own son on stage. His son didnt come
out in the second show. The demand is very high for this event and I think they
may do more runs since a lot of people didnt make it in the last show.
KANYE WEST ARRESTED!
I didnt have time to retype this, but check it out from the
AP:
Rapper Kanye West was arrested after a fracas outside a nightclub
but released without charge, British media reported Friday.
The Press Association
news agency and others reported that that the 31-year-old rapper was detained
early Friday after an incident involving a photographer outside the Tup Tup Palace
bar in Newcastle, northern England.
Police said only that
a 31-year-old man had been arrested on suspicion of assault after an incident
at a nightclub. They said he was later released without charge. British police
do not usually identify suspects who have not been charged.
The Tup Tup Palace
said West visited the club after his gig in Newcastle Thursday but could not confirm the
arrest.
A spokeswoman for West
did not immediately return a call seeking comment.
West was arrested last
month at Los Angeles
International Airport
after he was filmed struggling with a paparazzo. He was not charged.
West is playing dates
around Britain
as part of his Glow in the Dark tour.
RARE CASSIDY VIDEO
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REGISTERING TO VOTE =
JURY DUTY ASK LIL JON!
I heard a good one. You all know that voting officially
makes you eligible for jury duty, right? I know in Hip-Hop nobody wants to talk
to the cops or appear in a court. Well, I heard Lil
Jon had to do some jury duty down in the A. I heard Jon was looking pretty
inconspicuous but some people noticed him. The dark shades and big hat didnt hide
him very much. Anyway, at least he is serving his country in a positive way,
right?
JIM JONES’ PLAY TAKES NY BY STORM
A few people I know went to the Jim Jones play last night. Here are some notables. The women in the play are thicker than pancake batter in the winter. I heard Liris Cross was one of the leads in the play, but all of them were tight. I heard Jim Jones has a song called “Frenemies” where he thoroughly addresses Max B. I heard there was a mention of Cam’ron in a around about way. Jim called himself the future leader of the Diplomats. He seems to be the now leader. Juelz was there as well. And I heard Dame Dash was partly behind this masterful move in marketing music. Seriously, I heard it was good. Peep the video in Shelz’s section below.
I was looking at the twitter tweets of some people and they said Jim has started a new slang where he substitutes the N-Word for “My Obama.” So now instead of saying “what up my n—a?” you would say, “What up, my Obama?” Obama wasn’t at the play, but Dr. Ben Chavis was there as the minister and also the jail warden.
Jim’s CD is called “Pray For Reign,” but I heard all they got was rain. It rained all night and day in NYC.
LIL WAYNES BABY MOMS
If this is something that you care about, here is some information that somebody sent me on Lil Waynes new baby mother. I didnt make this up:
She is 21, graduated from Lakota West High School outside of Cincy in 05..Her name is Sara Blue…I talked to my sister in law who is friends with her…She is half vietnamese half white, Very quiet in school though, not very popular with the girls…Worked at a nail salon after high school and takes some classes at Univ of Cincinnati, probably doesnt work anymore she said..Did some modeling after HS is probably how she met Wayne…I talked to a couple of her friends to and they all confirmed this..Said a bunch more, but this is all 1000 percent true…I know you probably get alot of bulls**t but this is all facts….Lakota West is a very upscale school, very upscale suburb in Cincy (town is West Chester)…
COMMONS SAYS NO SEX BEFORE MARRIAGE
Recently Common stopped through Philadelphia and chatted with my homegirl Radio Host Kendra G (100.3 The Beat). Kendra G has started an initiative called “Abstinence is Kool” where she has agreed to give a sex for a whole school year in hopes of getting middle school and high school girls to do the same. Well Common happily endorsed the idea and has agreed to give up sex until marriage!! Well, not exactly, just watch the video!
I love how Kendra says “school year” and not real year!
ILLSEED’S QUICKIES
Click here for the weirdest remix video of Kanye West’s “Love Lockdown.”
It looks like 50 Cent is still trying to sell his sprawling home in Connecticut. Why is it that his house payment over $100k per month? Why cant I be a gangsta rapper?
Super woman Lil’ Mo has signed a two album deal with Global Music Group. Not a rumor.
Can anybody answer this: what is the cause of the beef with Dame Dash and the NY Daily News?
SIGNS THE WORLD IS COMING TO AN END
Here member how after 9/11, all the rage was having a federal air marshal or two on your plane? Here are the records of a few air marshals that could be on your plane, compliments of ProPublica.
Shawn Nguyen smuggled cocaine and drug money onto flights across the country, boasting to an FBI informant that he was “the man with the golden badge.”
Michael McGowan used his position as an air marshal to lure a young boy to his hotel room, where he showed him child p###, took pictures of him naked and sexually abused him.
And when Brian “C#####” Phelps wanted his ex-wife to disappear, he called a fellow air marshal and tried to hire a hit man nicknamed “the Crucifixer.”
Since 9/11, more than three dozen federal air marshals have been charged with crimes, and hundreds more have been accused of misconduct, an investigation by ProPublica has found. Cases range from drunken driving and domestic violence to aiding a human trafficking ring and trying to smuggle explosives from Afghanistan.
It was always my understanding that these dudes should be more like Rambo or James Bond with a shining spirit, but they are often more like a drunken neighbor some of them. Yet 18 air marshals have been charged with felonies, including at least three who were hired despite prior criminal records or being fired from law enforcement jobs. A fourth air marshal was hired while under FBI investigation. Another stayed on the job despite alarming a flight attendant with his behavior.
We might just need an Air Marshal for the Air Marshals!
REALLY? BARACK OBAMA = THE JEFFERSONS?
NIPSEY HUSSLE
Just when you thought gangsta rap, here comes Nip Hussle. Hes got a style that reminds me of a new version of Snoop Dogg. Peep this joint.
To be real, Im kind of too mature to be talking about shoot that n***a, but thats me. Hes dope.
SHOUT OUT TO NIPSEY RUSSELL
What yall know about Nipsey? R.I.P.
HERE YOU GO SHELZS RUMORS
Guitar Hero Weezy
Yes, Wayne was on the Country Music Awards the other night. However, he was well just there giving his best impression a guy who can’t play a guitar, holding a guitar. He appeared with Kid Rock and strummed inconspicuously while KR belted out some song I’ve never heard before. The point? Don’t know. Maybe music awards show producers just need him there for ambiance or something.
Larry Johnson and His Lady Problems
Larry Johnson of the KC Chiefs is being sued by another woman for being generally hateful. The chick he spit on and threatened to kill is taking it to the judge. And no, this isn’t the one he mushed in the face. I think she sued him too though. Worst club luck in the world or woman hater? I don’t know. He might just need to get a DVR and develop a relationship with CSI.
Do you Really Want to Go Inside the Mind of Jim Jones?
If so, here’s your chance.
It’s here. We made it. Friiiiday, baby. And guess what tomorrow is? Love me some Saturday. Y’all take care and I’ll catch ya in two .
For more, go to illseed.com.
OBAMA, WE LOVE YOU!!!
They keep us talking, but if we stop talking about them then they should worry!
-illseed
WHO: illseed.com
WHAT: Rumors
WHERE: AllHipHop.com, MySpace.com/TheIllseed
HOW: Send your rumors and ill pics to illseed at [email protected].
– allhiphop rumors
Diddy Launches I am King Fragrance; Links Scent With Barack Obama
With the launch of his newest mens fragrance on the horizon, Sean Diddy Combs is utilizing president-elect Barack Obama to promote the scent, in an effort to redefine the perception of African Americans.
The Wall Street Journal reports the rap mogul will appear in a black-and-white ad for the new I am King fragrance.
The ad will be featured in magazines and on billboards across the country in December.
Dressed as a black James Bond, Combs wears a white dinner jacket as he is seen on jet skis, in casinos and aboard a yacht on the French Riviera.
Although the ads could come across with being out of touch with the current economy, Combs maintains that the promotion is reflective of what he labeled as an affordable indulgence.
Everything on the market isnt going to be attached to the bad economy, he said. With Obamas historic victory over Republican rival John McCain, Combs believes the time is now for marketers to shift their perception of the urban black male from the stereotypical person with lots of bling, to one of successful black men such as himself and Obama.
Its a new America and its our time, the 39-year-old executive and avid Obama supporter told the Journal, adding that he plans to connect I am King and the president-elect, while promoting the scent on a series of TV talk shows.
As Obama prepares for his inauguration as the nations 44th president in January, talk among ad executives has centered around how the election could change advertising to and about African Americans.
I am King follows Combs previous fragrance Unforgiveable.
The scent, which debuted in 2006, has gone on to join the moguls Sean Jean clothing line as a popular brand among consumers.
To date, Sean Jean generates annual retail sales of about $525 million.
Priced at $57, Combs I am King fragrance will be sold at Macy Inc. stores, just in time for the holidays.
Big Daddy Kane Celebrates 20 Years Tonight In New York
Big Daddy Kane is extending an open invitation to New Yorkers to come help him commemorate his 20-year Hip-Hop career tonight (November 14).
The Brooklyn legend and New York entertainment firm Lyrics To Go are organizing a star-studded event that will include a rare live performance by Kane himself.
The event will be held at B.B. King Blues Club and Grill and will be hosted by comedian and Kiss FM on-air personality Talent, with sounds provided by guest DJs Mister Cee and Biz Markie.
For his actual performance, Kane will reunite with Connie Price and the Keystones, the live band with which he toured in 2007, as part of the Scion Live Metro tour.
Big Daddy Kane also promises several celebrity surprises during the performance.
The celebration comes just a few months past the 20th anniversary of the June 1988 release of Kane’s Cold Chillin’ Records debut Long Live The Kane.
The album, which yielded the hit single “Ain’t No Half Steppin’,” was proclaimed one of the top 20 albums of 1988 by Spin Magazine and one of the top 100 Best Rap Albums by The Source.
Long Live The Kane, which was produced entirely by Marley Marl, has been sampled and referenced by a multitude of pioneering artists in their own rights including Pete Rock & CL Smooth, AZ, Gang Starr, the Beastie Boys, RZA, The Notorious B.I.G. and Nas.
The following year, Kane released his biggest commercial success to date, It’s a Big Daddy Thing, which included the hits “Warm It Up Kane,” “I Get The Job Done,” and “Smooth Operator.”
Four more studio albums came before the 1998 release of his last album to date, Veteranz Day.
Kane, who celebrated his 40th birthday in September, returned to the world of touring and recording following his inclusion in the 2005 class of VH1 Hip-Hop Honors.
This career milestone will mark another surge of public activity for Kane, possibly culminate in the release of a new album.
“They haven’t heard from me in a while,” Kane told AllHipHop.com in a statement. But I will be back on the big screens doing bigger and better things so definitely keep watching.”
Homosexuals & HipHop: In Conflict?
The views expressed with in this editorial don’t necessarily reflect the views of AllHipHop.com or its staff.It seems that AllHipHop, via its Trick Trick interview has
caused a bit of a stir. It probably
couldnt have been timelier in light of the current war over proposition 8 and
the fight for marital rights of homosexuals. A perfect time, in fact, to
address this issue, particularly as it pertains to this music and culture.
In the Black community, we have a fractured sense of
masculinity. Our history in this country has been one of familial forced
disintegration, political, economic, and social emasculation. As we progressed our model of manhood and
masculinity somehow got linked to our sexuality, which in itself comes with an
inordinate amount of projection and its own set of issues.
If youre a slave and you cant protect your family,
and you cant marry who you wish, and you cant be a provider, and you dont
determine when you eat, sleep, operate, etc., then all traditional definitions
of manhood become obsolete.
As a consequence our manhood came to be defined as the
one thing that was seemingly irrepressible in the minds of the masters: our
sexuality. In a nutshell, two factors of male identity, both gender roles and
sexual identity, are incorrectly rendered synonymous. Our sexuality defines us
as men. So how, with that paradigm of sexual prowess equating to manhood, do
you reconcile homosexuality? How much of
a man are you if you dont do the one thing designated to men?
So we come to Hip-Hop.
You get a culture that is unmistakably Black in origin, and a music that
is highly competitive and combative in nature and at the center of it all is
the expression and projection of masculinity and machismo. How do you degrade
your competition? You take away the one
thing that we have been able to maintain throughout our time here in
America-our (flawed) sense of manhood.
As time has gone on, especially taking into account the perception of
Black men varying from the imagery of Flavor Flav to the pageantry of Barak
Obama, our idea of Black manhood and the images that define it are constantly
in flux. The truth lies somewhere in
between.
As we go further unto the 21st century, as
we begin to become a more heterogeneous society with racial and gender
paradigms shifting, I think its important to properly frame the Hip-Hop versus
Homosexuality debate in its proper context. They are not diametrically opposed.
There is an increasing number of homosexual and lesbian emcees that embrace the
Hip-Hop aesthetic. On a cultural level,
we must begin to look at our model of masculinity. This miscasting of manhood is the source of
Hip-Hops discontent. We should work to realize that deeds not the d**k make
the man. As a side effect we may even be able to curtail the projection of
hypermasculine supern***rs that glorify prison culture and promote criminality
as a Black male rite of passage.
Everyone is entitled to their opinion. Sometimes that
opinion is uninformed. Most hateful opinions are born of ignorance and mistrust
and general lack of experience. Many rappers express sentiment similar to Trick
Trick. Many others hide what they are for that reason. It runs counter to our
general understanding of what a man is, mistaken or not. There are gay rappers,
rapping about regular things.
I dont particularly think that an emcee could come out
rapping about sucking d**k and be taken seriously. However just as Eminem and Big Pun proved
that you could have competent high caliber non Black emcees, sooner or later
you will have an openly gay rapper whose talent will supersede his sexual
orientation. The key is to treat that
difference not as a novelty, but as a source for inspiration and strength.Take care and be well-Bill
ODB’s Mom Talks About Son’s Legacy; Speaks Out Against Wife, New Book
On the anniversary of Wu-Tang co-founder Ol Dirty Bastards death, his mother Cherry Jones is speaking out about the infighting and controversy that continues to surround her son, even in death.
In an exclusive statement to AllHipHop.com, Mrs. Jones sought to dispel the numerous reports that have appeared about the care of ODBs children since his untimely death in 2004.
According to the grieving mother and concerned grandmother, the majority of the fallen rappers children have been disregarded as a result to poor money management at the hand of her daughter-in-law Icelene, who was married to Dirty at the time of his death.
Her actions, Jones says, have left the impression that Ol Dirty Bastard, born Russell T. Jones, did not make the proper provisions for his many children.
My son loved every single one of his children and every single one of their mothers and provided for them all the best he could when he was alive, Mrs. Jones told AllHipHop.com. My son was an extremely generous soul. I am upset by the way the other children Rusty had fathered and cherished are not being taken care of properly. I am also outraged that it appears Icelene has been diverting money away from the other children and taking out personal loans against estate assets.
Mrs. Jones further alleged that Icelene, with whom she has not had the most cordial relationship, has taken numerous legal actions to block the release of Ol Dirty Bastards final album.
The recording, which Dirty was working on at the time of his fatal collapse in a Manhattan studio, was to be his first release via Roc-a-Fella records, and will now be released via Koch records.
Proceeds from the album would go to the rappers estate, which would then distribute the funds to his children.
Mrs. Jones also revealed that Digging for Dirt, the new biography penned by writer Jaime Lowe, was not authorized by the family.
She claimed that the family had specifically asked Lowe to omit information gathered during an interview with ODB, shortly before his death.
After my son passed, this author, who knew my son for only a few hours, decided to write a book and asked [us] to take part in it, recounted Mrs. Jones. We declined and asked that she not write about any of the interview that was not published in the [Village] Voice. I am asking all of Dirty’s fans to boycott this book as none of the proceeds are going to the children and this authors motives and intention seems to be in the vein of disgracing my sons legacy.
Ol Dirty Bastard was pronounced dead around 6:30 pm on November 13, 2004, approximately one hour after collapsing at the old Wu-Tan Clan studio on West 34th Street in New York City.
He had been complaining of chest pains.
An autopsy report released a month later revealed that he had suffered an accidental overdose due to a lethal mixture of cocaine and the prescription painkiller Tramadol.
He would have celebrated his 40th birthday today (November 13.)
Rapper Bump J. Arrested For Chicago Bank Robbery
Chicago rapper Bump J. has been arrested by federal officials in Carbondale, Illinois, for allegedly robbing a Chicago-area bank in 2007.
Bump J., born Terrance Boykin, was arrested and taken into custody following a routine traffic stop earlier this week.
Police accuse Bump J. and another associate of robbing a Chase Bank branch at gunpoint in January 2007.
The pair entered the bank, announced a robbery was in place and emptied the bank of more than $100,000 dollars.
No one was injured in the robbery, which was captured on surveillance cameras.
Bump J. was indicted on one count each of bank robbery and violation of federal firearms statues.
He is currently being held without bond at the Carbondale Police Department, awaiting extradition to Chicago.
Bump J. was discovered by Chicago producer Xtreme Beats, who introduced him to Kanye Wests former manager Phil Edwards and music industry executive Free Maiden, who inked the rapper to his Free 4 All imprint.
Soon after, a deal with Atlantic Records followed, and Bump released several mixtapes but his full length album, which was titled Nothing To Lose, never materialized.
Bump J. eventually landed Best Midwest Mixtape Rapper Award during Justos Annual Mixtape Awards ceremony in 2005.
The mixtapes was helping me grub, but at first, I was used to getting that fast money, Bump J. told AllHipHop.com in 2005. It [money] had started coming in really slow for a while, so it was definitely difficult staying away from the streets.
He even admitted to growing so impatient in his rap career, that he and his crew, the Chicago-based Goon Squad, gained their buzz in a most peculiar manner.
We would go to different clubs and beat up whatever rappers were in there. It was just making a statement. If a rapper was there talking crazy or looking crazy, we’d beat they ass. However it go. People started saying, Don’t f**k with them Goon Squad n***as! They’ll f**k you up! Whatever we could add on to my buzz, we were doing it.
Bump J., who has worked with artists like Kanye West, Keyshia Cole, Trey Songz, Rhymefest and others, now faces up to 20 years in prison if he is convicted.
His most recent mixtape release is named Dinner Time, while his latest single is titled Chevy Fresh Out.
The other man who participated in the robbery remains at large.
Ruste Juxx: Indestructible (Album Review)
For those not in the know, a jux is slang for robbery. You add some rust to it and that would imply an extra dose of foulness to an already dirty deed. Simply put thats exactly what Duck Down Records affiliate and long time collaborator Ruste Juxx is putting down with his debut album Indestructible (Duck Down). But what else would you expect from a Brooklyn MC cosigned by Heltah Skeltahs own Sean Price?
Off top Ruste goes hard on the opener Wipe Off Ya Smile as he validates his gun aim over cascading pianos. Things move onto an ode to the whip game with System On Blast. Ruste makes his love of big sounds clear as he details how the speakers in the car make him the main attraction on the block.
Juxx offers a change of pace with Morgue Truck. Even though the tales of him waiving the hammer are still ever present, his speedy double time flow found on this track keeps things interesting. Additionally he briefly sheds his hardcore exterior to mourn his late sister Blaze on Blaze My Fire.
The pain of his loss is evident through some poignant heartfelt lyrics: Levaughn I apologize for everything I said that hurt you / Never meant to dessert you or cause you pain / All the fallouts we had kept us distant for a minute / But I couldnt stay mad at you we love without a limit.
While Ruste is no slouch on the microphone, the album suffers from subject matter generally limited to gunplay, blunts, and hustling. He expresses his undying love of marijuana on Machine Gun Skunk but the track is unoriginal to the say the least. With Grave Digga Ruste incessantly lays down the murder game for three minutes straight but doesnt inject enough creativity to keep the listeners attention past the first couple of bodies he catches.
Overall Indestructible has its moments, but isnt as durable as the title may allude too. Truly Ruste represents the gangsters, which is fine, but the music has to be a precise shot rather than just spraying everywhere hoping to land your target.
Ruste Juxx
“Wipe Off Ya Smile”
Gay Rappers Respond In Droves To Trick Trick Comments
Members of the Gay and Lesbian Hip-Hop community have responded in droves to rapper Trick Tricks recent unprovoked verbal attack.
Like many others, they were surprised by the inflammatory comments made by the Detroit artist regarding their lifestyle on his latest album.
During an interview to promote the album The Villain on Tuesday (November 11), Trick Trick shared his disdain for the homosexual lifestyle in a statement that referred to gays and lesbians in several derogatory slurs.
The statements were perceived by many as a publicity stunt, especially since they did not seem to be provoked by any one particular incident.
Los Angeles-based actor/ rapper and self-proclaimed H### Thug Deadlee was not phased by Trick Tricks taunts, nor threats.
My first thought is to get crazy and warn him that this f**got will kick his ass — but I am so on Cloud 9 with Obama winning, and the way he did it,” Deadlee told AllHipHop.com. “Obama was called a terrorist, unpatriotic, and the entire time kept his cool, I so wish I was like that. I know who I am and my self worth that I really don’t give a f**k who or what a Trick Trick has to say. There is still a lot of hate against gays, and a Trick Trick just perpetuates the hate so if Trick Trick really does plan on putting an AK to my head/I ain’t going out like that! Trick Trick will be the only b***h that ends up dead!
Trick Tricks words were issued just one week after the state of California famously passed Proposition 8, a ballot initiative which amended the state’s constitution to specifically define marriage as a union between a man and a woman.
Arizona and Florida passed similar bans on Election Day.
It’s most peculiar that a straight man has so much time to be focused on us other folks yet alone a group of people he so called hates, said Tori Fixx, commonly recognized as ‘The God Father of Gay Hip-Hop.’ Thank you, Trick for keeping us in the limelight. We are apparently important enough to write songs about, so I thank you for that. But I surely hope no same gender loving person supports this record.
Melange Lavonne, a Palm Springs-based rapper who will host an upcoming Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender Hip-Hop Reality Show titled Urban Raiders, noted that tens of thousands of couples had their rights taken away as a result of the Gay Marriage bans.
It is unwise for him to add fuel to an already lit fire that is getting even bigger, Lavonne told AllHipHop.com. Trick Trick can spew all the hate he wants, but Gays are not longer perceived as punks, sissies or wimps. We are fighting for equality and if that means that our life is on the line then so be it. We are willing and ready to die for our cause, I hope with his hate and anyone who supports and backs him, that they are willing to die for theirs. These are not the days of sit down and shut-up anymore, but a national movement that is bigger and more motivated than his small feeble minded thinking could’ve ever imagined.
The LGBT movement did celebrate a victory yesterday (November 12), when the state of Connecticut performed its first legally recognized same-sex marriages, the result of a court decision passed in October.
Connecticut became only the second state, after Massachusetts, in which same-sex couples are now legally allowed the same rights as heterosexuals.
Khalil Amani, author of the book Hip Hop Homophobes, took aim at some of the chatter Trick Tricks comments have sparked on AllHipHop.com and throughout the world.
Some of these no-brainer Internet thugs/geeks are cosigning himusing the Bible as their moral compass, Amani scoffed. Listen to them! You know da Bible says it’s against Gawd’s law What scripture? Shut-up, because most of y’all have never read the Bible! You’re just parroting some s**t you heard Rev. Chickenfoot preach.
Camilo Arenivar, founder of OutHipHop.com, an LGBT Hip-Hop blog site, was also tour manager for the ground breaking HomoRevolution Tour.
“I really can’t get past the fact that Trick Trick calls himself that name, joked Arenivar, producer of Urban Raiders. With all of the homework he did on Rosie’s cruises and gay adoption, he should have found out that a “trick” is a word heavily used in the gay community to describe what a gay hustler turns to make a buck.
At press time, Trick Trick was not available for further comment.
Illa J: Reppin’ Dilla for Life
Cruising down East 7 Mile Road in Detroit, the sharp thuds and jolts from potholes drumming the tires of your ride is unpreventable. Some would shrug it off as a consequence of being so cold in the D. But to an innovator such as the late underground producer/MC James Dewitt Yancey better known as J Dilla, this was a melodic muse characteristic of Motor City living. Consequently for his younger brother, John Yancey, riding shotgun has affected the way he carries on his pedigree in the family name. Two years after Dillas passing from complications from Lupus, his little bro, also known as Illa J, continues the next chapter using the same cuts of the cloth that made Slum Villages first beats. His debut, Yancey Boysreleased on the Delicious Vinyl label which housed Dillas early work on the Pharcyde’s Labcabincalifornia album 13 years agoreads like Illa Js thoughts amidst his brothers timeless sound. Although he would never go through great lengths to separate himself from such legendary lineage, now living in L.A., Illa J wants to prove he can take the inheritance to another level. AllHipHop.com: What’s good, how have you and your family been doing?Illa J: They’re all good man, I talk to them every now and then and they’re doing good, that makes it easier so I can do my thing. AllHipHop.com: I actually heard your mother has been battling complications with Lupus and having some financial problems. How is she holding up?Illa J: Oh, she is a soldier. That’s where I get a lot of my strength from and something and something of mine. She always told me to be strong so everything is good.AllHipHop.com: It has been over two years since your brother passed. Certainly your life and your family will never be the same. Did your brothers death give you any apprehensions about continuing through this music thing? Illa J: First off, I always knew I would do music since a very young age. A lot of that has to do with being in my household already surrounded by music, my brother making music, my dad was a song writer, he played up-right bass and piano, my mom she sings opera and my sister writes and sings. Pretty much that whole environment growing up. Also being from Detroit, I know a lot of my friends and their families are really into music and stuff. With hobbies other than hooping, we would just be sitting around making up songs and stuff. So the music was always around and I knew I would always do it, I just didn’t know when. After my brother passed that’s when I decided I was. Because that was like a big moment in my life. At that moment, I felt like life is short and I am going to do what I love. From that, I learned my whole mission and purpose for receiving this gift so I could shine my light and inspire others when my brother passed. Also when I went over to Europe for the first time in 2007 and I saw how many people my brother touched with his music, they didnt even speak English and they knew all the words and songs. That touched me a lot and gave me a whole other perspective on why we even do this music thing. Not even for us, in a sense it’s bigger than us because it’s like lifting each other up. J. Dilla Wont Do VideoAllHiphop.com: Do you remember the first time you realized he had a significant impact on Hip-Hop? Illa J: Because I was always surrounded by musical people in my family, because it’s in the blood, it was kind of normal that he was doing it. Like I had a cousin in Kool & The Gang, I have family all into music. So in a sense it was normal, I was geeked about it I know when I was back at home and I remember watching the “Drop” video because my brother did that track. I started to know a little bit when he did the track with Janet, like, “Okay that is Janet Jackson, he’s really doing some stuff.” Honestly the whole time before until I went to Europe and realized the music he was making in the basement in Detroit actually it was touching people all around the world. When he passed and I went to Europe is really when I saw the impact he was making on music. I knew he was good at what he did because if that is all you do pretty much its natural that you’re going to be good at it especially when you put in the practice and work ethic. It never really surprised me but what really did surprise me was the actually impact overall from making music. AllHipHop.com: Since Dilla is now immortalized and honored, how do you feel you can sneak out from under his shadow to establish yourself apart as anindividually legitimate artist?Illa J: As far as establishing myself as an artist any time I am at the piano, that is me at the piano. Eventually people will get it. At first any artist that comes out especially doing something quite different, people are going to look at you weird at first. At the end of the day Im not going to worry about that, what I worry about is staying on my craft, sticking to be the best at what I do and eventually people will catch onto it. Its not like people got my brother right away. Theyre so called Dilla fans; they werent fans until way after. Im not discrediting anyone who listens to my brothers music; Im just saying the critics used to kill him in the little magazines. But now theyre like, Oh, his beats are the best. Everybody has to go through that it would be weird if every single person likes my music then it would be weird it has t o be some balance. I feel like each day I am doing my music, I am doing myself and people will eventually catch on. Even if my brother was here right now, he would be like, At the end of the day, do you.Illa J R U Listenin? Behind The Scenes VideoAllHipHop.com: Lets talk about the Yancey Boys album. Since you already have people looking at you because of your brother, talk a little about it.Illa J: In a sense, you can feel my transition from Detroit to L.A. If you listen to any of my older tracks, Im more of a songwriter so all the tracks you have heard before I was just putting some songs together. I grew a lot with this album, when you hear it; youll hear my growth as an artist. First coming out of Detroit when you first hear my tracks a lot of them are very aggressive because at that time I didnt all the way live out here yet. I was still trying to get out the box. After I got out here you can start to hear me relax a little bit in my music. Another thing about this album as with any of my brothers albums, its definitely going to bump in your system and the crazy thing is all the tracks were made between 95 and 98, so this was all ten or thirteen years ago, which was crazy to me. At the time, my brother was doing stuff for Pharcyde and doing remixes with Delicious Vinyl. It bugged me every time I listen to that album it brings you back to 95 when I was sitting on the couch watching the Drop video. I didnt know some beats he made during that time I would end up making my first album to them thirteen years later. Im sure he would still laugh at it too. Mike Ross has had them since then and didnt know what to do with them. I hadnt heard any of those tracks before that even happened. AllHipHop.com: On Timeless you talk about your process in making the album. How did it feel going into writing for an album where all the beats were made over a decade ago yet the sound was still timeless?Illa J: Its just like everything has come full circle, like the stuff my brother did for the Pharcyde got him out the hood, start helping out the family, that was like the start point. When he was doing stuff with Q-Tip and then Runnin came out that was a big boost for our whole family, it really inspired me a lot to see my brother do that at such a young age. It also inspired me to instill the strength in myself that I could do whatever I wanted to as long as I put my mind to it. Regardless of what anybody says I am honored to keep his legacy going even though I want to branch off as my own artist, I will always rep my brother no matter what. I rep Dilla for life. The Pharcyde Drop Video (Produced by Jay Dee)
50 Cent To Perform at Spike Video Game Awards
Mogul 50 Cent is set to promote both his new album and video game next month at Spike TVs sixth annual Video Game Awards.
The show will feature 50 performing Get Up, the Scott Storch produced official first single from Before I Self Destruct.
During the song, 50 is scheduled to utilize exclusive video footage and choreography from his upcoming second video game release 50 Cent: Blood in the Sand.
Last month, the game was in danger of cancellation due to its original publisher Activision, Inc merging with Blizzard Entertainment.
However, international developer THQ picked up project and plans have been finalized to release the title by Christmas or early 2009.
The game is powered by the Unreal Engine 3, most recognized for its use in the popular X-Box Gears of War series.
Blood in the Sands playable character list includes Lloyd Banks, Tony Yayo, and DJ Whoo Kid. Former G-Unit member Young Buck is also set to appear, but it has not been confirmed in what fashion.
The Spike TV Video Game Awards premiers live December 14 at PM.
For a list of the all the nominees and to vote, visit VGA.Spike.com.
50 Cents fourth studio album Before I Self Destruct hits stores December 16, and showcases production credits from Dr. Dre, Timbaland, DJ Toomp, Swizz Beatz, Sha Money XL, Rich Harrison, J.R. Totem, and Play-n-Skillz.
Confirmed vocal guests at this time include Akon, Eminem, and Dr. Dre.
Immortal Technique Hosts Benefit Concert For Afghanistan Children
Rapper Immortal Technique will host a benefit concert in San Francisco to benefit displaced children of war in Afghanistan.
Immortal Technique is hold to the show to raise money for Omied International, a human rights advocacy group in the final stages of constructing the Amin Institute in war-torn Kabul.
The institute/medical center will make full scale rehabilitation programs available to the 2 million orphaned children, over 60,000 of them homeless.
In addition to hosting the benefit show, Immortal Technique is putting up $10,000 dollars of his own money towards the Institute.
The rapper will also travel to dangerous region to ensure the final stages of construction are completed to meet the grand opening date, which is slated for March of 2009.
“My people this was not brought to you by some corporate sponsor, nor was it manufactured by some organization that takes 60% of the $ donated for ‘administrative’ purposes, Immortal Technique told AllHipHop.com in a statement. I am not a millionaire. I am not a movie star or a charity organization. I am just a man that heard the call and responded.”
The region is still one of the most dangerous in the world and also has the highest refugee population on earth, with over 5 million refugees displaced since the fall of the Taliban in 2001.
Just today (November 13), a suicide bomber killed at least 11 people and wounded 74 others in an attack aimed at a U.S. military convoy.
The blast occurred in the Bati Kot District of Nangarhar, when a bomber driving a small passenger car exploded himself near a passing coalition convoy.
A number of children have been confirmed dead, as a Bazaar was taking place where they were attending a nearby school.
Just yesterday (November 12), a suicide bomber drew a truck of explosives into a provincial government compound in the Kandahar province and killed six people and wounding more than 40.
The Benefit for Afghanistans Children of War with Immortal Technique takes place Thursday, November 20th at the DNA Lounge in San Francisco, CA.
N.O.R.E. Lands Post Merger Sirius/XM Show; New Lineup Listing
Fans of the off-color antics from Noreaga and DJ EFNs Militainment Crazy Raw Radio will now get to hear the program in a bigger outlet, as AllHipHop.com confirmed the show has been picked up as part of the Sirius/XFM merger.
Subscribers of both Sirius and XFM satellite radio will be able to hear the broadcast, which has now been extended to two hours.
Co-host N.O.R.E. was relieved when the news broke, since many shows have not survived the merger due to budget constraints and limited timeslots.
I was so happy, excited, and scared at the same time when I heard about Sirius and XFM merging, Noreaga explained to AllHipHop.com. I just got the news of the merger and when they said they were not only keeping my show but also they were expanding it to 2 hours I was overwhelmed and happy.
The show will now air on Thursday nights from 12:00 am – 2:00 am on Hip-Hop Nation, and features Noreaga, Miami mixtape king DJ EFN, Hazardis Soundz, and DJ K-N-S.
A number of other shows have carried over as a result of the merger, was made official in February and created a $13 billion dollar enterprise.
The new company has streamlined both services to feature 69 commercial-free music channels, although each services channels have different programming.
Below is Hip-Hop Nations (XM 67 and Sirius Channel 40) new schedule:
Monday: Envy- Leo G- Celo And Nina 9 with DJ Green Lantern 10:00 pm – 12:00 am DJ Ideal 12:00 am – 2:00 am Tuesday: Violator Radio 10:00 pm 12:00 am DJ Jamad-Afromentals 12:00 am-2:00 am Wednesday: Hoodrich Radio With DJ Scream 10:00 pm – 2:00 am DJ E-Freezy Grind Time Radio 12:00 am – 2:00 am Thursday: Ali Shaheed Muhammad/DJ Rasta Root 10:00 pm-12:00 am Militainment Radio With N.O.R.E 12:00 am – 2:00 am Friday: DJ Bee 10:00 pm-12:00 am DJ Premier Live From HeadQCouterz 12:00 am- 2:00 am Saturday: DJ Skee Streets Of LA 10:00 pm – 12:00 am The Sixth Sense Show 12:00 am- 2:00 am Sunday: Monie Love 6:00 pm until 7:00 pm Grandmaster Flash The Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame DJ 7:00 pm until 9:00 pm Zulu Beatz With Afrika BamBaaTaa, Mick Benzo The Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame Manager and CutMan L.G. 9:00 pm 10:00 pm Subqsonic the Progressive HipHop Show 11:00 pm
Chamilionaire Ft. Ludacris
“Creepin’ (Solo)”
Tony Yayo Ft. Uncle Murda
“Shooters For Hire”
Response Ft. Red Cafe
“Learned The Game”