I love Melanie Fiona. I told her I’d admit it. I hope one day we get married just to say…nevermind you know the rest. No lie though, I was this close to using a picture of the gorgeous songstress, but decided to give Stephen Marley his just due. Later this year, Marley’s Revelation Part 1: The Book Of Life will complete the next chapter in the constantly evolving biography of one of music’s most storied families. “No Cigarette Smoke (In My Room)” is a relaxing audio massage of vibes heaven sent to cure the stresses of the day. The combination of Steve’s charisma and Fiona’s buttery soul make this an instant addition to the iTunes library and one that will continue to get play for awhile.

No cigarette smoke is allowed in the room, but I can think of something else that will be sparked because of this collaboration.

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Stephen Marley Feat. Melanie Fiona – “No Cigarette Smoke (In My Room)”

Respect: YK2

Badu’s back with a Flying Lotus-directed treatment for “Gone Baby, Don’t Be Long,” while wait on part dos of the “Turn Me Away” joint. Return Of The Ankh still continues to get major play and it wouldn’t hurt to see a majority of the songs receive a visual. Read the rest of this entry »

The Nike Zoom Kobe VI East LA’s won out in the sneaker version of The Bachelor, after I initially swooned over the 3Ds when pics released. Seeing the East LA’s at the “Mamba” event won me over. Sure, they look like Smurf jizz but the Drenched Blue is deep and damn near undeniable. Read the rest of this entry »

With an infinite amount of artists to discover and only 24 hours in a day, it becomes extremely hard to keep up. One song, music video and overall experience we missed this past summer is Breakbot’s “Baby I’m Yours.” For his first single from Ed Banger Records, this bearded, one-man dance factory from France enlisted Parisian soul singer Irfane for a recorded romp resembling both Earth, Wind & Fire and Empire Of The Sun. Read the rest of this entry »

Ever since starting my day job last February, my work homeboy and I have continually had water cooler conversations about Jon Connor. Since he’s from his hometown and I’d seen the Flint, MI native perform locally a number of times, we stumbled upon our affinity for Conner’s Buick City brand of inspirational bangers during casual lunch conversation. Read the rest of this entry »

A new track from any one of these guys is a cause for celebration. Two on the same cut? Absolutely amazing, and unheard of at this point in time. But Blu, Freddie Gibbs, and Homeboy Sandman all on one track? The mysterious poet from Cali, the gangster from Gary with the effortless flow and tremendous lyricism and a true rising star from the New York City underground? Damn, this is the kind of lineup I’d dream up when fantasizing about imaginary posse cuts. Read the rest of this entry »

They said if you’re good at something, never do it for free. The name June Summers will ring bells due to his past collaborations with the likes of artists such as AZ, Nipsey Hussle and Smoke DZA to name a few. Coming soon, Summers will be out for self with the release of Hookman For Hire. Read the rest of this entry »

Our friends at Governed By Loyalty & Baller’s Eve will be dropping new material from our other friend Grip Plyaz later this week to trumpet his return to NYC. Just to warm things up, we’re letting lose this “in the studio” clip of “Damn Vans,” Read the rest of this entry »

To most people, dreams are the sign of a solid night’s sleep. To others, dreams are what fuel sleepless nights holed up in the studio & then going straight to you’re 9-5 in an effort to keep the bills paid. Miami newcomers Blood Type fall in the latter category with their dreams of making it big in the Rap game. To keep it one hunnid, the “Feat. Big K.R.I.T.” played a big part in me even checking this out…and it worked. Read the rest of this entry »

Jeezy and his minions are betting it all on black with the CTE campaign and Decatur Dan has visual proof of the occasion. The buzz might be questionable but money ain’t a thang for the Corporate Thugs. Whether they’re in suits or sweats, best believe they’re strapped and ready to sweep the streets. Read the rest of this entry »

Like Granny’s Sunday morn’ breakfast with fixings and what not, Donnis has good taste in the ingredients that hit his seat at the table. Next up to top the butter on his bread is “Blackberry Molasses,” a filling, country rap tune that revisits the spread laid by Bobby V’s former group and updated by Crada. Read the rest of this entry »

Here’s one for the irony books: two Chicago emcees spitting about sub-zero conditions. What they know ’bout that? GLC’s Love, Life & Loyalty may have got the cold shoulder in terms of critical fanfare but there were plenty of noteworthy selections on there…and left off, apparently. As you probably can speculate, Classic Rock catalogs aren’t worth as much as they used to be, and if you want to sample their goods, Read the rest of this entry »

That Tila Tequila sure knows how to give award-winning interviews, doesn’t she? Word on the web is that she’s been firmly holding on to her 15 minutes with a new series of vegetarian videos, but you’ll have to search for those in your own time. Read the rest of this entry »

Words by C. Paicely

As if it wasn’t dope enough hearing Talib rip through a Beastie Boys classic on his own, it seems your favorite rapper’s favorite rapper found a young gun that can keep pace. CyHi’s been eating up features like Skittles – particularly on mixtapes – and that’s to be expected. But opening up a bass-bangin’ remix to an already wicked Kweli single reveals the man’s bravery and lyrical ambitions. Read the rest of this entry »

Residents of Miami and surrounding locales, we want to send one of you and a friend to check out Curren$y’s “Florida Pilot Talk Tour” when it stops at EVE in downtown Miami on Saturday. The prize pack consists of two tickets plus one Last Rights’ ¥€$ Hoodie, both going to one lucky winner. Read the rest of this entry »