“Cole under pressure, what that make? Diamonds”

As the world waits, Cole continues to warm up heading towards the release of his Roc debut and the trend continues with the delivery of “Return Of Simba.” Read the rest of this entry »

“If you ain’t first, you’re last.”

Long before said manifesto came to define Talladega Nights, my ninth grade history teacher ironically preached the same premise. Second place is never celebrated and playing to win is the only way to approach any obstacle in life, especially sports. Read the rest of this entry »

Frank Ocean takes everyone on a Sunday afternoon spin and delivers his first official visual that I’m aware of. Pretty sure the track comes from The Lonny Breaux Collection collection, which have been floating around for several months now Read the rest of this entry »

Staying with the Mello Music theme, another extension of Diamond District, Oddisee, just released Odd Seasons, the compiled version of the heavily acclaimed series of separate seasonal EPs that released over the course of a year. All four seasons have been mixed, mastered, refined and polished for retail. Read the rest of this entry »

A while back, yU, one-third of Diamond District, released his solo effort, Before Taxes to critical acclaim. At that time, Gotty described the man’s music like this: “When I listen, I don’t hear ‘what’s next’ when he rhymes. Instead, there’s traces of “what was” and that is well-crafted rhymes, founded on some semblance of intellect.” Sounds about right to me. Read the rest of this entry »

Waka’s “Grove St. Party” gets bumrushed by the Taylors, who turn it into a “Reefer Party.” Read the rest of this entry »

Before the roaches of George Kush da Button could cool off, Smoke DZA — Hip-Hop’s beloved, chain-smoking Harlemnite — has sparked the next one, The Hustler’s Catalog. It’s another adventure filled with head thumping production, several stellar guest features and of course endless tales of the friendliest of leaves. Read the rest of this entry »

This time of the year, I judge music by cookout standards. Would it get played in the first place? And if so, at what point does it come on? Of course it’s odd, but it’s something I’ve been doing for years mainly because I love cookouts nearly as much as I love music; if not more. Estelle’s tag team collaboration with Rozay, “Break My Heart,” feels as if it would be better suited Read the rest of this entry »

As far as my musical leanings go, I’m pretty one dimensional and rarely venture off into reggae. However, all rules have exceptions. Every so often, I wake up on the wrong side of the bed and find myself popping Damian Marley and Nas’ 2005 masterpiece, “Road to Zion” in the deck. Read the rest of this entry »

On last night’s SNL finale, host Justin Timberlake, musical guest Lady Gaga and Andy Samberg did a wonderful digital short to clarify the guidelines of a ménage à trois, specifically when there’s two guys and only one girl. When in doubt, just remember the golden rule, Read the rest of this entry »

Not too far removed from the bus returning him to the free world, Prodigy uses Twitter to uncuff a track full of thug love bars over Frank Ocean’s “Novacane.” Read the rest of this entry »

On to the summer blockbusters! Check Ryan Reynolds as Hal Jordan in the newly released trailer for Green Lantern, currently playing in theaters before Pirates Of The Carribean 4. Read the rest of this entry »

Photo: eiknarf

– The world seems to be in working order, but we still want those questions answered. While you’re at it, the BET Awards ones too. Read the rest of this entry »

No need to fear, weirdo rap’s been here since forever and Dante gives an interpretative breakdown for the last installment of Hip-Hop History 101. According to Ross, “Ghostface Killah gets a all-time ‘Weirdo Rap’ plaque…He might have been on the only weirdo rapper in a triple X shirt.” Read the rest of this entry »

Well, obviously there’s more to the equation, but sky’s the limit for LeBron and the Swoosh if the Heat capture the Larry O’Brien trophy. One region set to create a huge sales boost China, where LBJ’s star power will only surge with a title, according to Bloomberg. Read the rest of this entry »