One artist that had a considerable amount of buzz before and definitely since SXSW has been the New Orleans MC Dee-1. Thanks to the strength of “Jay, 50 and Weezy” and his stellar project, I Hope They Hear Me Vol. 2, Dee landed himself on one of the hottest bills in Austin, the Vibe House. Read the rest of this entry »

It wouldn’t be false to say that Ice Cube’s last release, I Am the West, left more than just a bitter after taste in listeners’ and West Coast Hip-Hop fans’ mouths. It was a listless final product—coupled with whatever Snoop’s been doing recently—that affirms the opinion that the Left Coast’s elder statesmen have grown senile in their older, wiser years. Thus, balking at the thought of a new WC album wouldn’t be unreasonable. However, the former Westside Connection member’s latest LP, Return of the Barracuda, stomps out the idea that all of these veteran MCs have lost their swagger. Read the rest of this entry »

If music is the highway to the soul, consider this new cut from John West a four lane interstate with no traffic in sight. The arrival of the spring and summer months are normally associated with sights easy on the eyes and this Christian Rich produced cut, “Lonely,” is everything full bloom flowers and packed beaches represent, only in audio form. Read the rest of this entry »

DGB:

DJ Burn One just blessed us with this exclusive track as he closes in on 4,000 followers on twitter. Burn One says he has some video footage of him making this beat as well as Lito recording to it, Read the rest of this entry »

Khrysti Hill

Jimmer Fredette Is The Next Billy Hoyle [ETSF]

Chris Brown’s Circle of Celebrity Friends Hold Him Down Post Cunty Episode [C&D]

Justin Vernon Says New Bon Iver Album Due Out In June [Prefix]

Twitter Beef Round Dos! Ja Rule & 50 Cent Go @ It Again [Vibe] Read the rest of this entry »

For the last five years or so, I’ve been living the life of a vagabond, going from city to city in search of a big break or with halfway going to school. At every stop it seems like I land smack-dab in the middle of a crazy sporting event my new city rallies behind for good or bad. As the NBA playoffs are about to begin, I’m reminded of these insane moments that I was able to at least partially be a part of and witness. Read the rest of this entry »

After going to SXSW and registering so much material, there are about 100 other artists I could be posting about. But, truthfully, the only one I’ve been listening to since touching down is the one headed to the Eastside Motel in the sky. Read the rest of this entry »

“If I die today, it’d be a holiday.”

Luckily, I love Ricky’s “I’m Not A Star” because Wayne basically strong-armed Ross for it and revamped the tune, calling it “If I Die Today.” Read the rest of this entry »

Lakers/Celtics, Duke/UNC, Ohio State/Michigan, Yankees/Red Sox, the world/Cowboys, Cell/Rosado/myself, you know what they have in common? They all hate each other with an unabashed passion and, as fans, we wouldn’t have it any other way. Rivalries are a key ingredient to the giant recipe that is sports. Sometimes, however, those tug-of-wars occur between former teammates. Read the rest of this entry »

The hyper-minimalist white backdrop thrusts Aloe Blacc firmly into the forefront in “Loving You Is Killing Me”, leaving him no chance to avoid the spotlight. But, rising to the pressure, the man kills it. Showing off the charisma and skill that’s characterized his live performances in the past, Aloe Blacc controls the moment like only a true star can. Read the rest of this entry »

Big K.R.I.T. releases the Motion Family-produced visuals for his record “Dreamin,” off his new project Returnof4eva which drops for free download on March 28th. The clip is quite fitting considering the song’s title and words alongside K.R.I.T.’s portrayal as a janitor Read the rest of this entry »

Watching and listening to Skewby grow on wax gets better as the tracks accumulate. With each outing, he gets sharper as a writer, able to say translate thoughts to paper and communicate them clearly. Read the rest of this entry »

You may remember Nyle from a little while ago, back when idiots were calling Tha Carter III a classic album. Taking the concept and running it a little further with an innovative video, he rode the wave just as well as anyone of that given moment. Now that it’s 2011, the Eastern Standard timer is back on the Hollywood strip in the audio sense with Trailer, his new mixtape that he hopes to help him reclaim some of that acclaim he received some two odd years ago. Read the rest of this entry »

Let’s get the similarities out of the way: Childish Gambino is a rapper that is more well-known playing a toilet-tissue soft character on television. He also sings his own hooks. Yes, Gambino aka Donald Glover has a lot in common with Drake, and as soon as he blows up, we’ll hear the comparisons ad nauseam. But let’s get the most important commonality out of the way: Childish Gambino knows how to create great songs. Read the rest of this entry »

You will not deny the rhythmic power of the Beyonce experience or the captivating power of her gyrating hips in The Beyoncé Experience. Join or die. Read the rest of this entry »