According to Hits Daily Double, Mr. West will take the # 1 Spot on The Billboard Charts selling 518,775 Units his first week. While Nicki Minaj will take #2 with 371,049 units sold. Justin Beiber came in at a staggering 119,485 records sold. And Ne-Yo wasn’t far behind Justin with 117,800 Copies sold. Ke$ha came next with 72, 091, Lloyd Banks managed 45, 188 and Jay Z came in at 26, 044.
"Have you noticed how many would-be entrepreneurs have 50,000 different reasons why they can't achieve this and can't achieve that? The reality is, if they spent the same amount of time focusing on how they can achieve, their life would be far more rewarding". Charles Gordon
Leslie Neilson, the comedy cult hero and star of the classic ‘Naked Gun’ movies and ‘Airplane!’, has died, aged 84, at a hospital close to his Fort Lauderdale home. His death, yesterday, was peaceful, in his sleep. It came as the result of complications following pneumonia.
Neilson’s agent paid tribute to the man whose long and illustrious movie and TV acting career spanned more than 60 years. He was even funny in real life, according to his nephew, who called him a ‘naturally funny guy in day-to-day life’. He worked right up to this year and portrayed over 220 characters in more than 100 movies and 1500 TV programs. That’s quite some CV!
Lesley Neilson, who was Canadian-born, actually started his career in ‘serious’ acting, not the truly inspired comic bumbling which made him a household name around the world. He appeared in movie classics such as ‘The Poseidon Adventure’ and science fiction epic, ‘Forbidden Planet’ and has his own star in the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Leslie wasn’t also just busy on screen. He was married four times and is survived by his widow, Barbaree Earl, and his two daughters from wife number 2, Alisande Ullman.
Stars from both sides of the Atlantic have paid tribute to Neilson’s comic genius. Brit comedy actor Russell Brand tweeted: “RIP Leslie Nielsen. Shirley, he will be missed.”
Brand reminded us of a classic one-liner from ‘Airplane!’ there, but what is your favorite Lesley Neilson moment
Part-Time harajuku Barbie Nicki Minaj, Steps out of her Plastic Exterior to let the World see the the story and fuel behind the Budding Super Star. In a Candid Documentary MTV takes you through the daily life of Nicki and does an excellent job at humanizing the Rap Vixen. The one-hour documentary follows Nicki as she performs at the VMAs, records her Lil’ Kim Diss “Roman’s Revenge,” returns to her home of Trinidad, and hands her mother the keys to her own home.
With Keri Hilson's girl-powered sophomore album No Boys Allowed hitting stores Dec. 21, VIBE tapped the stunning songbird to grace her first VIBE cover to complete the ATL cipher (peep T.I. on the alternative cover). Check out the d*********-themed behind-the-scenes video here, and some more glamorous shots of Keri below.
Rap newcomer NICKI MINAJ served up a Thanksgiving treat for fans on Thursday night (25Nov10) when she brought her superstar pals RIHANNA, DRAKE and KANYE WEST out onstage in New York.
The Your Love hitmaker headlined Hot 97 radio's holiday concert with fellow rapper Fabolous, who entertained the packed crowd with a mix of songs old and new, including guest appearances by Lloyd Banks and Juelz Santana for the G-Unit star's catchy Beamer, Benz or Bentley.
The rapper continued to give back to her devotees and was joined by Drake for Moment 4 Life, fuelling rumours of a love affair by warmly embracing and kissing her Young Money Records labelmate as the track came to an end.
But she immediately killed any tabloid gossip of a romance between her and Drake, telling the crowd, "I still got my lipstick on! I know you New York, don't be startin' something!"
And Minaj saved her biggest surprise for last, sending fans into a screaming fit as West ran into the spotlight for their underground smash Monster. The Stronger star was repaying the favour for Minaj, who had joined West for his late night set in New York two nights earlier.
After the song, she told the audience, "See what I do for you New York? Only for my hometown!"
Minaj closed the show by signing T-shirts and throwing them out into the crowd. The rapper also took to her Twitter.com blog after event to thank all of her guests, writing, "Best nite of my life! Thank u busta, keyshia, rihanna, drake, kanye, hot97, New York & New Jersey!!!! Mmmuuuuaaaahhhh!!!!!!"
Swizz Beatz gives his take on DMX's personal problems, and dismisses beef with Jigga.
In light of Swizz Beatz' latest "Monster Mondays" release, "Y'all Don't Really Know," featuring DMX and Busta Rhymes, the Ruff Ryder producer sat down with VladTV.com to discuss DMX's highly-publicized struggles.
"X is forever my brother. Whatever he wanna do, I'm with it, as long as it's the right thing," explained Swizzy. "X has been X since day one. It's just that now, people see another side of X that they didn't see before. X been goin' to jail. His first song was 'Born Loser.' He's been in and out of group homes. He's been had this trouble in his life that nobody care about when he wasn't successful. Then he got successful, and some of those elements leaked out. People didn't embrace it - they shouldn't have to embrace it, by the way - I just pray for X a lot, man, because I remember people couldn't even follow-up after his performances. Period."
"At the end of the day, you can't help somebody if they're not willing to help themselves," he added.
Swizz also addressed DMX's recent outburst, where he said "F*** Jay-Z" during a concert in Arizona. "There's no problem with DMX, with Jay. X is gonna address that in a certain way. It's 2010. All that fake beef, and all [those] ignorant tones against each other...I don't get involved in that."
The well-timed leak of his new single yields dividends as "Kush" sells 45,000 copies in two days.
On 2000’s “Forgot About Dre,” Dr. Dre rhymed, “Give me one more platinum plaque / and f*** Rap you can have it back.” And although it’s taken him over a decade, the legendary co-founding member of NWA is getting a headstart on that last plaque with his single “Kush.” The song has debuted at the number 48 spot on Billboard magazine’s Hot 100 chart, which ranks the country’s most popular singles based on sales and radio airplay. While Dre was credited as a producer and co-writer on Eminem’s 2009 single, “Crack A Bottle,” the debut of “Kush” marks the first time a Dr. Dre single billed as a solo effort has appeared on the Billboard charts since “The Next Episode.”
After an unmastered version of the collaboration with Snoop Dogg, Akon and newcomer Sly hit blogs and other music sites, Aftermath quickly posted a mixed and mastered version to Dr. Dre’s official site and made the single available for purchase via iTunes on November 18. Despite being released mid-week, the single sold 45,000 copies.
Various reports have stated a video to “Kush” has already been shot, with veteran music video director Joseph Kahn at the helm. While Detox has been delayed by rumored unofficial leaks, Dre maintains his Hip Hop swan song will finally be released in February of 2011.
According to popeater.com, Angelina Jolie refuses recognize Thanksgiving because of what the white settlers did to the native Indians, the domination of one culture over another.
"While everyone is preparing to give thanks tomorrow, one of America's most famous families, the Jolie-Pitts, have decided to sit this Thanksgiving out.
"Angelina Jolie hates this holiday and wants no part in rewriting history like so many other Americans," a friend of the actress tells me. "To celebrate what the white settlers did to the native Indians, the domination of one culture over another, just isn't her style. She definitely doesn't want to teach her multi-cultural family how to celebrate a story of murder."
Angelina has been filming her directorial debut, about a Serbian man and Bosnian woman who fall in love during the Bosnian War. Angie, always extremely sensitive to the suffering throughout the world, is filming in English and the native languages.
"Angelina gets so grossed out by Thanksgiving that she has made sure her family will not be in America this year on Thursday," an insider tells me.
And although Brad Pitt recently told 'EXTRA,' "We'll whip up a turkey somewhere," he certainly hasn't shared that plan with Angelina. A family friend tells me, "If Brad wants turkey, he will have to cook it himself. For Angie, it will be another day when America tries to rewrite history."
Swiss fashion watch and jewellery maker SWATCH presents The Swatch New Gent Collection. Ten trendy models in understated wintery colors The new collection takes the classic Swatch Gent—creative, inventive and full of stylish fun—and transforms it into a bigger, bolder, positively provocative statement. Designed for the active man or woman with an eye for the big new trends in accessories and art for the wrist.
Link to buy: http://bit.ly/swatchng $65 each!! Check after the jump for each description…
SUOB702 BLACK REBEL
Blacker than night, a classic timekeeper for casually elegant or perfectly formal occasions. The solid black silicone strap and loop of this striking New Gent lead the fashion-conscious eye from the buckle to the case, both fashioned of solid matt black plastic. The sun brushed black dial presents slim tone-on-tone black hour indexes and a tone-on-tone black day/date window at 3 o’clock. Black hour and minute hands with tone-on-tone black highlights and a slim black seconds hand mark the time of day.
SUOW701 WHITE REBEL
Simply elegant, white and fashionable for all occasions. The solid white silicone strap and loop of this superb New Gent match the solid matt white plastic case and buckle. The white dial features slim tone-on-tone white hour indexes and, at 3 o’clock, an elegant white-on-light grey day/date window. In the absence of all numerals, white hour and minute hands with white superlite highlights and a slim white seconds hand mark the time of day.
SUOR701 RED REBEL
A bold, dynamic timepiece plays with the primary colour of passion. The solid red silicone strap and loop of this positively provocative New Gent complement a matching transparent red plastic case and buckle. The sun brushed red dial presents slim white indexes at all hours and a black-on-white day/date window at 3 o’clock. In the absence of all numerals, shiny metal hour and minute hands with white superlite highlights and a slim white seconds hand mark the time.
SUOR702 BURGUNDY REBEL
This stylish piece takes a trend-setting colour from the fashion labs and runways to the wrist. The matt silicone strap and loop of this gorgeous New Gent wrap the wrist in solid burgundy. The transparent burgundy plastic buckle and case match and complement the strap. The sun brushed burgundy dial features slim pink indexes at all hours and a black-on-pink day/date window at 3 o’clock. In the absence of all numerals, shiny metal hour and minute hands with white superlite highlights and a slim, bright pink seconds hand mark the time of day.
SUOG701 PETROL REBEL
Sunlight falling on the sea brings fascinating colours to the surface. This captivating New Gent features a solid petrol blue silicone strap and loop with a complementary transparent petrol blue plastic case and matching buckle. The case frames a sun brushed petrol blue dial with slim orange indexes at all hours and a bright white-on-orange day/date window at 3 o’clock. In the absence of all numerals, shiny metal hour and minute hands with white superlite highlights and a slim orange seconds hand mark the time.
SUON700 BLUE REBEL
An elegant and evocative design uses colour for mood and atmosphere. This fascinating New Gent presents a solid blue silicone strap and loop with a complementary transparent blue plastic case and matching buckle. The sun brushed blue dial present slim green indexes at all hours and a contrasting black-on-green day/date window at 3 o’clock. In the absence of all numerals, shiny metal hour and minute hands with white superlite highlights and a slim, bright green seconds hand mark the time of day.
SUOG700 OLIVE REBEL
Olive green sets the tone for a fashionably elegant occasion. The solid olive green silicone strap and loop of this elegant New Gent nicely complement the transparent olive green plastic case and matching buckle. The case frames a sun brushed olive green dial with slim acid yellow indexes at all hours. The day/date window at 3 o’clock presents black numerals on an acid yellow ground. In the absence of all numerals, shiny metal hour and minute hands with white superlite highlights and a slim acid yellow seconds hand mark the time of day.
SUOC700 BROWN REBEL
A wry design subverts a sober and distinguished look with a playful touch of pink. This handsome New Gent presents a solid brown silicone strap and loop with a transparent brown plastic case and matching buckle. The case frames a sun brushed brown dial with slim pink indexes at all hours and a brown-on-bright pink day/date window at 3 o’clock. In the absence of all numerals, shiny metal hour and minute hands with white superlite highlights and a slim pink seconds hand mark the time of day.
SUOM702 WARM REBEL
A casually elegant yet sporty look for the fashion-conscious professional. This smart New Gent presents a solid warm grey silicone strap and loop with a complementary transparent warm grey plastic case and matching buckle. The sun brushed warm grey dial features slim orange indexes at all hours and a striking white-on-orange day/date window at 3 o’clock. In the absence of all numerals, shiny metal hour and minute hands with white superlite highlights and a slim orange seconds hand mark the time of day.
SUOV702 PURPLE REBEL
A trendy colour on the runways, this rich purple sets the wearer apart from the crowd. The solid purple silicone strap and loop give this eye-catching New Gent an enviable presence on the wrist. The transparent purple plastic case frames a sun brushed purple dial. Slim blue indexes mark the hours, and a purple-on-blue day/date window appears at 3 o’clock. In the absence of all numerals, shiny metal hour and minute hands with white superlite highlights and a slim blue seconds hand mark the time.
The “Love Knocks You Down” hit duo come together on Keri’s newest jawn “Pretty Girl Rock”.
Kanye West definitely adds his lyrical touch to the situation. Another great collabo!
Last Night Kanye West took the stage @ The Bowery to perform a plethora of hits off his Newly released album My Dark Twisted Fantasy. Performing to a sold out crowd who all paid about $110 a Pop to see The Louie Vuitton Don, Kanye was no disappointment bringing out Pusha T, Rick Ross, Swizz Beats, Teyana Taylor (seen here on background vocals) and Nicki Minaj. Kanye’s latest musical gift is set to take #1 on the Billboard charts next week, already selling over 500, 000 Copies.
Our Homie Necole Bitchie was on deck, camcorder in hand to catch the moments on video. *High Five* Necole!
"A Stanford MBA named Roy Raymond wants to buy his wife some lingerie but he's too embarrassed to shop for it at a department store. He comes up with an idea for a high end place that doesn't make you feel like a pervert. He gets a $40,000 bank loan, borrows another $40,000 from his in-laws, opens a store, and calls it Victoria's Secret. Makes a half million dollars his first year. He starts a catalog, opens three more stores and after five years he sells the company to Leslie Wexner and the Limited for four million dollars. Happy ending, right? Except two years later, the company's worth 500 million dollars and Roy Raymond jumps off the Golden Gate Bridge. Poor guy just wanted to buy his wife a pair of thigh highs". Sean Parker from the 'Social Network' movie
Hip-Hop super producer Dr. Dre has revealed that he is hanging up the microphone after the 2011 release of his highly anticipated album Detox.
According to reports, Dr. Dre's long awaited album Detox will land in stores in February, although that release date has yet to be confirmed by Dre's label Aftermath, or its distributor, Interscope/Universal.
In the upcoming double December/January issue of XXL Magazine, Dr. Dre explained that he spends five to six days in the recording studio, sometimes for up to 16-hours a day.
And as Dr. Dre prepares to celebrate his 46th birthday and almost 30-years in the music business, Dr. Dre is ready to slow down.
“The only part that has been pushing me back is just the fact that I’m getting older, and certain things to talk about," Dr. Dre told XXL Magazine. "I can incorporate other artists, new artists with this record [Detox], to say some of the things I won’t say. It’s been a little tussle in that area also, just because of age and being able to identify with the younger audience.”
In the interview, Dre revealed that although he would continue to work with new talent, Detox will indeed be has final full-length album.
"As far as me going into the mic booth, that s**t is over," Dr. Dre revealed. "I’m always going to talent scout and try to find new artists to work with. But, yeah, that’s it. I don’t see myself doing it the way I’m doing it now…"
Kanye West takes the cover the December/January 2011 issue of Complex magazine. The publication also spoke with the contributors for Yeezy’s album focusing on their roles in their Project: Runaway feature. Below is an excerpt from Pete Rock:
“I know one of Kanye’s bodyguards, and he told me that Kanye was looking for me. I just grabbed this bag of discs—these discs hold at least 50 beats apiece—and went to Hawaii. [Laughs.] That was my first time ever going to Hawaii, so I was blown back by the weather and the beach. It’s a beautiful environment to make music in. I immediately said to myself, ‘This is why he’s here!’ No one bothers you and you’re free as a bird; an important part of being creative is being able to be free in a good environment where you can make music and there’s no interruptions or disturbance or anything. When I got there, Kanye was in the chair in the studio getting his hair cut. He played the ‘Power’ song from before he even put the lyrics on it and he was spittin’ the lyrics to me. I’m real critical of emcees, but when I hear Kanye spit, it opens me up like a flower, man. I used to hear him spit my name in his own records before he even got with me, and I used to say to myself, ‘Damn, he says my name in more than two or three records! Maybe he’s trying to let me know he wants to work with me.’ The studio kind of reminded me of back in the days when I used to work on three or four projects at once, doing it all in the studio. That’s what he was doing—running back and forth from room to room to room to room. He had Kid Cudi upstairs, he was working on his album downstairs, then doing a mix on another record, and it straight reminded me of what I used to do back in the ’90s. He played ‘Runaway’—and as soon as I heard the drums come in, I just started laughing. He used my drums from Mecca and the Soul Brother! I used these drums in an interlude before this record called ‘The Basement,’ and those drums come on before the song. I never heard anybody make a song the way he made it out of those drums. I thought that was genius.”
After the jump are a few pictures by Nabil Elderkin that were captured in Hawaii, while the LP was in its formulative stage.
Reflecting on the past, Ginuwine sums up a relationship that he regrets letting slip through his fingers. The titled track is called “What Could Have Been”.
Overall, this is a fairly good video. The only thing I could have done without were the color scenes/visuals mixed in. It threw the video off just a little.
Special shouts out to the homie Lamar J. Ballard (pictured above) who appears in the video as the prospective groom that is about to marry Ginuwine’s past soul-mate, played by Malinda Williams.
Diddy & Dirty Money hit the 2010 American Music Awards looking pretty FLY! I’m not the biggest fan of the leather attributes on the ladies dresses but overall not a bad look for the trio.
The talk of the town is this candid interview between Nicki Minaj and Angie Martinez about her career and the ‘beef’ between her and Lil’ Kim. Peep The Video, these are the key phrases that stuck out to me…
“I remember I ran into Foxy, and Foxy said ‘Why you keep on giving props to Kim—> she don’t like you’ She was like the girl be dissin’ you, you know in conversation”.
-Foxy, that was Messy.
“You know what scares people? Success. When you don’t make moves and you don’t climb up the latter, everybody loves you because you’re not competition”
-I totally agree, if Nicki was not oozing with success, nobody including Kim would care. It’s her over all popularity that’s driving these chicks crazy.
“When you see Gaga you see Madonna, but Madonna never hated on Gaga”
-I’ve been saying this from the jump, there is no doubt that Nicki’s style has traces of Kim’s influence all over it. As can be said for Trey Songz and R.Kelly, as can be said for Beyonce and Tina Turner. It’s natural for you to pull from greatness and spin it your own way. As long as the respect is there you can’t help but be gracious and keep being great. Accept that you’ve been great enough to have someone pull from you, it’s natural for you to be slightly annoyed, but the feeling that your great enough for someone to copy should over rule that feeling. A Queen is a Queen, and a King is a King. Period.
Nicki Minaj stopped by "The Wendy Williams Show" on Wednesday (November 17) to talk about her debut LP Pink Friday, but ultimately hinted at the target of the song "Roman's Revenge."
"When you put out records, only the guilty ones feel like you're talking about them," Minaj said. "If you have nothing to worry about, if you never came out saying stuff, if you never came out saying your ungrateful bullsh--, then you wouldn't worry about it."
On "Roman's Revenge," featuring a rowdy verse from Eminem as Slim Shady, Nicki embodies her Brit character, Roman Zolanski. "Word that b**** mad 'cause I took the spot/ Well, b****, if you ain't sh---ing, then get off the pot/ Got some n---az out in Brooklyn that'll off your top," Minaj rhymes on the track.
Many hip-hop fans assumed Barbie was talking about Lil' Kim, even the Brooklyn MC herself. While Nicki initially said that she was "talking about everyone who has been in interviews talking," her chat with Williams hinted that she was aiming for a certain Queen Bee.
Still, Nick seemed like she was tired of the topic.
"I don't get into that. ... I feel like my music, my fans know everything that's going on," she told the talk-show host. "Every time I talk, every time I spit raps, my fans know who I'm talking about, what I'm talking about. I don't have to sit up here and detail it. No. For what?"
Also during the interview, Nicki got personal, admitting that her father burned down her family's house when she was a child.
"He did burn the house down. ... And my mother was in the house, and she had to run out the last minute," Nicki revealed. "But she had a dream the night before that the house was gonna be burned down, so me and my brother weren't in the house. She had us sleep at a friend's house. At like 3:00 that morning, they were like, 'You gotta go down to your house, 'cause something's happening.' We were young, so ... we ran four or five blocks, and we just saw smoke."
Nicki also added that her parents are still together, before acknowledging that her crazy characters evolved naturally.
"When I first started rapping, I felt like I had to be someone," she admitted. "Everybody was telling me, 'Be this way. You're from Queens, be hard.' But, that wasn't really me, that's not who I wanted to be. When I changed the people who were around me, I just started being free, and I was like, you know what, I've always been animated, I've always been crazy." MTV
Check out the trailer for the new movie "13" which stars Alexander Skarsgard, Jason Statham, Mickey Rourke, Ray Winstone, 50 Cent and Michael Shannon.
For those of you hating on remakes, here's one you might want to give a shot. Why? Well, it's based on a French film called 13 Tzameti, which was notoriously hard boiled, and this remake is sure to keep its teeth because the same director is behind the camera for both!
This week's episode is about two up and coming producers, Gabryelle Mcketney and Heedi Blacc, who are currently putting together thier first production in a movie titled, Waves. This film is loosely based around the 1970'sclassic flick, Grease, starring a then up and coming actor name John Travolta. Listen in as Gabryelle, and Sticcy from Flip Boys describe the film making process and their inspiration to take on the project.
This production is loosely based off the 1976 musical "Grease", with a college spin to it. Two college students, named Melanie and Javier, met each other over the summer at a BBQ and havent seen each other since, until the Spring Semester. Melanie, who is a sorority girl with ambitioin, has a thing for Javier which doesnt bode well with her sorority. Javier is a ladies man on campus and has a passion for Hip-Hop. He, too, has an eye for Melanie. The two face obstacles within thier inner circles. For more info about this film contact the following:
An'jel Jones
Waves The Movie, Publicist
Phone: 917.681.1215
Twitter: Wavesthemovie
In this exclusive excerpt, the notoriously private megastar and businessman offers a rare and honest glimpse into his life, from growing up in Brooklyn to building an empire.
My father was crazy for detail. I get that from him. Even though we didn't live together after I was nine, there are some things he instilled in me early that I never lost. He'd walk my cousin B-High and me through Times Square -- this is when it was still known as Forty Deuce -- and we'd people watch. Back then, Times Square was crazy grimy. Pimps, prostitutes, dealers, addicts, gangs, all the s--- from the seventies that other people saw in blaxploitation flicks, Manhattan had in living color. Kids from Harlem and Hell's Kitchen used Times Square as their backyard -- they'd be out there deep, running in and out of karate flicks, breakdancing -- but for Brooklyn kids, like me and B-High, midtown Manhattan might as well have been a plane ride away.
My father would take us to Lindy's and we'd get these big-ass steak fries. We would sit in the restaurant looking out the window onto the streets, and play games that exercised our observational skills. Like my pops would make us guess a woman's dress size. There was nothing he missed about a person. He was really good about taking in all the nonverbal clues people give you to their character, how to listen to the matrix of a conversation, to what a person doesn't say.
For my pops it was just as important to take in places as people. He wanted me to know my own neighborhood inside out. When we'd go to visit my aunt and uncle and cousins my father would give me the responsibility of leading, even though I was the youngest. When I was walking with him, he always walked real fast (he said that way if someone's following you, they'll lose you) and he expected me to not only keep up with him but to remember the details of the things I was passing. I had to know which bodega sold laundry detergent and who only stocked candy and chips, which bodega was owned by Puerto Ricans and which one was run by Arabs, who taped pictures of themselves holding AKs to the Plexiglas where they kept the loose candy.
He was teaching me to be confident and aware of my surroundings. There's no better survival skill you could teach a boy in the ghetto, and he did it demonstratively, not by sitting me down and saying, "Yo, always look around at where you are," but by showing me. Without necessarily meaning to, he taught me how to be an artist.
That same kind of close observation is at the heart of rap. Great rappers from the earliest days distinguished themselves by looking closely at the world around them and describing it in a clever, artful way. And then they went further than just describing it. They started commenting on it in a critical way. Rap's first great subjects were ego-tripping and partying, but before long it turned into a tool for social commentary.
It was kind of a natural move, really. The 1970s were a time when black art in general was being used as a tool for social change, whether it was in the poetry of people like the Last Poets or in the R&B of Marvin Gaye or Donny Hathaway or in movies like "Shaft." And politics had a real cultural angle, too. The Black Panthers weren't just about revolution and Marxism, they were also about changing style and language. Jesse Jackson recited poems like "I Am Somebody" to schoolchildren of my generation. Art and politics and culture were all mixed up together. So it was almost obligatory that any popular art include some kind of political message. Some early rap was explicitly political, like Afrika Bambaataa's Zulu Nation movement. But other rappers played it safe and nonspecific:They'd throw in a line about peace, or supporting your brotherman, or staying in school, or whatever. It took a while before rappers as a whole really sharpened their commentary, but, again, it was hard not to -- there was so much to comment about if your eyes were open to what was going on around you.
There was the general squalor of the ghetto, which got aired out in early songs like Run-DMC's first hit, "It's Like That," or "The Message" by Melle Mel. But over time, rappers started really going in on specific issues. Crooked cops were attacked by groups like NWA. Drug dealers were targeted by KRS-One. Drug addicts were mocked by Brand Nubian. Ice Cube called out Uncle Toms. Groups like Poor Righteous Teachers denounced shady churches with bootleg preachers. Queen Latifah was pushing back against misogyny. Salt-N-Pepa were rallying around safe sex. Public Enemy recorded manifestoes on their albums addressing a dozen different issues. You could name practically any problem in the hood and there'd be a rap song for you.
The hip-hop generation never gets credit for it, but those songs changed things in the hood. They were political commentary, but they weren't based on theory or books. They were based on reality, on close observation of the world we grew up in. The songs weren't moralistic, but they created a stigma around certain kinds of behavior, just by describing them truthfully and with clarity. One of the things we corrected was the absent-father karma our fathers' generation's created. We made it some real bitch s--- to bounce on your kids. Whether it was Ed O.G. & Da Bulldogs with "Be a Father to Your Child," or Big mixing rage with double entendre (pop duke left ma duke, the f--- took the back way), we as a generation made it shameful to not be there for your kids.
I'M TALKING BOUT REAL S---, THEM PEOPLE'S PLAYIN'
Artists of all kinds have a platform and, if they're any good, have a clearer vision of what's going on in the world around them. In my career I've never set out to make songs that function as public service announcements (not even the song "Public Service Announcement") with a few exceptions, one of which is the song "Meet the Parents." But in honoring the lesson of my father -- to pay attention -- and the lesson of hip hop -- which is to tell the truth -- I've been able to create my own kind of social commentary. Artists can have greater access to reality; they can see patterns and details and connections that other people, distracted by the blur of life, might miss. Just sharing that truth can be a very powerful thing.
The question for Michael Jackson's latest posthumous single -- "Hold My Hand" -- isn't whether it's actually the star who's singing. It's how much of his singing do we get?
The song, created with the African-born pop star Akon, features Jackson on much of the first verse, then shunts him off to a backup singer status for most of the rest.
Akon, who wrote and produced the number, dominates the final version of "Hand," which serves as the first official single off the forthcoming "Michael," CD, arriving December 14th. On three quarters of the piece, Akon leads the verses and choruses. While Jackson can be heard whoo-hooing and offers a ballet series of runs throughout, they're essentially accents to Akon's starring role.
It's not hard to figure out what likely happened here. The song -- which Akon started working on with Jackson a few years back only to shelve it shortly after -- probably had the outlines of a usable vocal from Jackson, along with lots of vamps left over. Those bits wound up becoming the bulk of Jackson's contribution, pieced together to approximate a duet.
Genuine duets, constructed with both the singers' full participation, show real chemistry between the singers -- at least ideally they do. This feels every bit as padded and pieced-together as it must have been.
The structure of the song encourages that. It's more a suggestion of a song than a fully developed piece: a forced anthemic chorus hog-tied to a rote verse.
The brightness of Akon's vocal, and mere presence of Jackson, may get the song significant airplay. But, like the two other songs released so far from the vaults, "Hold My Hand" feels Frankensteinian, an uncomfortably stitched-together, and vain, attempt to bring the dead back to life.
Keri Hilson gets her glamour girl look on in the latest edition of Jones Magazine.
Ms Keri Baby talks about the importance of being a roll model for young black girls.
"Young girls can see a representation of themselves and what they can become," she said "It's empowering to see us in the fashion world where we have been omitted for so long."
They're comparing themselves to the defending champion Los Angeles Lakers but is that too much too soon? Can they release the type of music to back that up? That is a huge statement to say with all the competition that is out there with the likes of Young Money, G Unit, Dipset, etc. The jury is still out to see if Roc Nation could live up to all the hype.
While a number of people were ecstatic that Jay Electronica made a pivotal move in his career and signed to Jay-Z’s Roc Nation record label Friday, Diddy was reportedly upset and aired out his grievances with the rapper over Twitter.
Jay Elect and Diddy were known to have a close relationship, with Jay mentioning Diddy in a number of his raps and the pair collaborating on his track “The Ghost Of Christopher Wallace.”
Adding to the all-too obvious drama between the mogul and the rapper was the mother of the New Orleans rapper's baby, Erykah Badu, who tweeted to Diddy, “I'm sorry.”
Pharrell Williams is featured in the November 2010 Issue of Paper Magazine.
Skateboard P has emerged as one of the male trendsetters in this here world of Fashion. He alongside Mr. West were hugely responsible for changing the way we view male fashion among Hip Hop and Rap Stars …
New York, NY - The first official single from the forthcoming Michael Jackson album MICHAEL will be released globally on Monday, November 15th at 12:01am EST. The song entitled “Hold My Hand” will be unveiled on www.michaeljackson.com and for sale digitally thereafter.
“Hold My Hand”, a duet with Akon, is a song they recorded in 2007. A handwritten note from Michael belonging to his Estate indicated his desire that “Hold My Hand” be the first single on his next project. However, in its unfinished state, the song leaked out in 2008. Akon recently completed the new and final production of “Hold My Hand.”
Akon comments, “The world was not ready to hear ‘Hold My Hand’ when it leaked a couple years ago. We were devastated about it. But its time has definitely come; now in its final state, it has become an incredible, beautiful, anthemic song. I’m so proud to have had the chance to work with Michael, one of my all time idols.”
On December 14th, Epic Records in conjunction with the Estate of Michael Jackson, will release the much-anticipated new album MICHAEL. The album contains ten tracks, produced by an esteemed group of producers along with Michael Jackson. While primarily focused on songs that Michael worked on recently, there are also earlier compelling tracks.
MICHAEL is the first release in nine years of new material by one of music’s most beloved icons whose artistry continues to touch new generations of fans. The album marks another release under the new agreement between the Estate of Michael Jackson and Sony Music announced in March that continues the label’s 35-year relationship with Michael and his music. During that time, Michael sold hundreds of millions of records, had 13 #1 singles and released the pop culture phenomenon “Thriller,” which remains music’s all-time bestselling album with more than 100 million copies sold worldwide.
Official Tracklist For Micheal Jackson's New Album MICHAEL.........Peep Track 5
MICHAEL ALBUM TRACKLISTING:
1. Hold My Hand (Duet with Akon)
2. Hollywood Tonight
3. Keep Your Head Up
4. (I Like) The Way You Love Me
5. Monster (Featuring 50 Cent)
6. Best Of Joy
7. Breaking News
8. (I Can’t Make It) Another Day (Featuring Lenny Kravitz)
9. Behind The Mask
10. Much Too Soon
By now, it's no secret that Kanye West is a big fan of Lloyd Banks and vice versa. Their mutual admiration might be odd, considering that G-Unit General 50 Cent and 'Ye were embroiled in a rivalry of sorts back in 2007, when their respective LPs, Graduation and Curtis went head-to-head in a release-date showdown. Fif has continued to throw jabs at Kanye over the years, calling his music "safe."
Still, that hasn't stopped the two from working together on 50's upcoming LP. Earlier Thursday (November 11), when Lloyd Banks chopped it up with Sway on "RapFix Live," he said he hadn't heard any new music but confirmed the two are definitely collaborating.
"I know that's gonna happen," he said. "It's sweeter when there's something to wait for. If it happens immediately, there's nothing to wait for. Better late than never."
Banks claimed that the reason 50 is able to work with Kanye now is because their beef was never that deep in the first place.
"If you notice, like, 50 says it all the time: They never would have been able to stand and do the Rolling Stone cover and things like that if there were any kind of tension in a personal way," he said. "This is a competitive sport. It's a vocal sport. So things are documented and you hold onto it. You gotta ask yourself: What did they say before the hype happened? As we grow older, man, you feel kinda stupid sitting next to somebody, you end up in the same venue five years later, knowing that you dissed me, I dissed you because we all had the rapper thing going on."
To hear Banks tell it, one of the reasons why he hasn't heard 50's work with Kanye thus far is because the G-Unit members typically work on their respective LPs separately then play them for each other when they're nearing completion.
"All three albums [50's] never really been there through the recording process," he said. "We're excited to hear it when it's done. I love when 50 comes to my house and he can play me 14 records straight. Then I get a chance to be a fan at the same time. 50's the same way. He respects what I do to the point where he'll just come in at the tail end of the album, where I might have 14 songs done and I'll play it for him, and he can hear it mixed down and mastered and say, 'I like this one.' "
Banks said 50 has the ability to identify which songs of his will be the best ones to release as singles.
"He's always picked the sweet spot, like, 'That's my joint,' " he said. "When I brought him 'Beamer Benz or Bentley,' it was already mixed and mastered. I wanted him to hear it like that. You know what he said? 'Push the button. Get on the phone with iTunes, let's get it linked up, push the button tomorrow.' He financed the situation all the way through."
The Burlesque star and legendary singer Cher covers the December 2010 issue of Vanity Fair! With a pair of red bottoms in tow, Cher rocks a sexy black leotard, fish-net stockings matched with blinding accessories in which you would need a pair of Ray Bans to stare at them.
