Footage from a recent show @ FIU in Miami. Luda kicks a few lines then gives way to Jaycee, who proceeds to cut, scratch & spin his way through things.
*Insert your Eargasms pleas in the comments section*
Salute to AJ @ DTP for the assist.
As part of my J-school work, I have to do research on Chicago-area food processors. While doing my research, I stumbled upon this little piece of Hip-Hop history.
There are too many moments of hilarity in this video to name. But I’ll list off a few: Read the rest of this entry »
As you may have figured, I catch hell about once a month for constantly bringing in shopping bags and having the UPS man stopping by the crib a couple of times per week. But maybe if I tell the lady I’m buying these to contribute to the fight against ball cancer, she may give me a break. I was already beastin’ for the Lunar AM1′s, now…swooning for the Everyday’s. Equipped with Nike’s Lunarlite technology, complete comfort and cushioning matched with guaranteed fresh.
Hit the jump for more pics. Read the rest of this entry »
Fourteen years, zero albums.
You know the familiar tale of Dominick Whitfield, better known as Crooked I. Yet, the futility of the second stat should be overshadowed by the achievement of the first figure. Lasting relevancy in this fickle game of rap politics and fleeting celebrity ain’t no joke.
On a March evening, Crooked is recording at Premo’s studio in midtown Manhattan. No, he’s not at work on his debut, but rather the upcoming album from Royce Da 5’9′, another sublime lyricist suffering from major-label shelf woes. In fact, the commonalities are shared by all the members of Slaughterhouse, the rest of whom—Joey and Joell—will arrive later. But before the group lays down another lyrical massacre worthy of its namesake, Crooked chops it up with the Crew’s Devin Chanda to talk Death Row to Detox, Long Beach to New York and Muscle Records to Slaughterhouse collaborations.
TSS: So how many tracks into the album so far?
Crooked I: With Slaughterhouse? Basically man, the Slaughterhouse shit—we got a lot of tracks in. We just been leaking shit. I don’t know if we officially started an album. It’s like we just workin’.
TSS: Getting the chemistry down…
Crooked I: Yeah, just workin’ man and havin’ fun because that’s the thing about the business—the business is so shady sometimes that you can’t have fun anymore. And right now, we just find it fun to record records together. So we doin’ that right now. I think our first move might be an EP—just something for the collective, about 7 crazy joints, and working with producers who are actually producers. They gonna come in there and say, “Hold on, we gonna put the hook right here, we gonna do this right here.” I think the EP is really gonna set the standard—change the standard—of ’09 music.
TSS: What’s the standard right now?
Crooked I: If you ask me—what I hear on the radio, what I see on video—if I had to say out of the 100% of Hip-Hop that’s out there, I gotta say at least 87% is garbage. That’s not balance. We need balance restored to the game. Back in the day, it was like you had your steak, potatoes, green beans—you had everything you need. Now, it’s just like a bunch of sides—you ain’t got no main course no more. So we definitely trying to restore some sort of balance.
I’m not mad at rappers who make songs about dances. But the thing about it is back when Kid N’ Play did it, they actually knew how to rap, knowhatimsayin’? When Shock G. said, “Do The Humpty Hump,” it was funny—it was all fun and games—but Shock G. knew how to rap. It’s different now. People make up dance songs and they don’t how to rap.
It’s crazy, because more and more people are sinking. It’s like we not rapping no more. It’s like ever since Lil’ Wayne did “Lollipop,” which was a good song—huge success for him and I’m sure the bank account is on happy status right now—but since he did “Lollipop,” then T.I. came with “Whatever You Like” and Kanye came with 808′s, that’s three of the top emcees in the game right now—singing.
It’s not no knock towards them because they do what they do—I got respect for all three of those dudes—but I wanna hear them rap. As a fan, I don’t wanna hear them sing. So, I think what we gonna do is make people wanna jump back on that mic like, “Nah, fuck that. Put a beat on, nigga. I still know how to do this,” that type of shit.
TSS: As niggas who can rap, will you guys have any dance records then?
Crooked I: No, no records about a dance (Laughs). That’s strictly off-limits. We’re not having no records about dances, but we’ll have joints that people can dance to because that’s what it’s all about. It’s not like we trying to be super-hardcore dudes who don’t wanna have fun and make music that people enjoy. We wanna give these fans—this new era of fans—the same kind of feeling that we had when we was growing up 10,11,12,13 listening to Hip-Hop. We wanna give them quality emcees that they can debate all day and night about who’s the best. We wanna give them that feeling. I don’t think they really got that feeling. They almost there, but they not quite there.
TSS: As a youth, who did you debate about? Read the rest of this entry »
No hook or chorus, all quotables. Chino goes in. Read the rest of this entry »
Raekwon & Busta tag team a funky guitar into a quick submission.
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Raekwon Feat. Busta Rhymes – “Death Wish”
Props to Alex of Killer Beez Promotions
“…Hella Rich, never have to sell a brick again
Must I tell a b*tch again
The b*llshit I’m addressing, check I’m on some next level shit
Never been f*cked in the game, I’m celibate Read the rest of this entry »
Previously Posted — “The Reason” – Review Of Saigon & Statik Selektah’s All In A Day’s Work
Pretty Face Fridays With Karina Flores
Oklahoma Will Not Accept Money From Courtney Paris [The Big Lead]
The Karmaloop Story [New Era Cap Talk]
Royce Da 5’9″ On Relapse [2DB]
More About What Newspapers Aren’t Learning From The Music Biz [Pop Matters]
Termanology Speaks The Language [Boston Globe]
YouTube and Universal To Launch Premium Music Site [Yahoo]
Video: Mobb Deep – The Prequel [Nah Right]
Key To Explosive Calves: Mounting A Dude [Sporting News]
Click To Enlarge
You ridicule the idea of paying for mp3s, you rebels you. Yet, we forget that not everyone is as savvy to the ways of thievery as you innernuts. But Apple isn’t going anywhere any time soon with this type of predicted dominance. Read the rest of this entry »
It’s quite obvious I’m pullin for Pill for his Grind Time affiliation. But when you listen to his music, he jacked a few beats & put together a mixtape that almost brings you back to the other side of Atlanta, before it was a major player on the rap scene. A place with a lot less jewelry & shine. Less partying, more struggling to come up. Still in the trenches with grittier content but with a swift delivery that provides the light, making it worth a listen. Atlanta’s own Bodie Broadus of the mic. Read the rest of this entry »
These two dudes go unheralded & almost confused because of some of their more pop confections (See: “Sick Of Being Lonely” and “So What” with cousin Ciara). Personally, I liked both of those joints (“Annnny other nighhhtttt…”) but favored 613: From Ashy to Classy more due to the still rugged edges to their image & sound. Now they’re coming back just in time for spring with two solo mixtapes to get listeners reacquainted with the duos roots. Hit the break. Read the rest of this entry »
^ Obligatory posting of a video announcing the return of David Brown and his upcoming mixtapes. Who cares that he cried? If Officer Ricky can overcome, Buck can too! Get’em Buck!
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For all you 90′s era petitioning types out there, you can finally stop kneeling to your Def Jam 2000 alter night after night. For what was clearly a decade in the making, Red & Meth are reunited to try and put some spark back in the NYC movement. Read the rest of this entry »
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