There’s a right and a wrong way to start off a Monday. Spilling coffee on your shirt before you make it to work or school would be wrong. Watching and listening to Monica’s new video for the Missy Elliot-produced track, “Anything,” would be the right way. Read the rest of this entry »

What’s even crazier than Biggie Smalls’ fingerprints being all over this track is the fact that Monica is only 30 years old. Has 15 years really passed since first hearing “For You I Will” on the Space Jam soundtrack? That’s crazy. Regardless, Shannon Brown’s leading lady is currently putting together the pieces on her forthcoming album New Life. Read the rest of this entry »

They don’t make them like they used to. Over the years, Missy “Misdemeanor” Elliott has proved to be an innovator, musical prodigy, trendsetter and game changer, thrice over. She was a key component in unifying the lines of Hip-Hop and R&B for the cause of making good music, building up urban artists to become megastars in their own right, redefining a woman’s image in pop culture and all that was before her first LP. Read the rest of this entry »

Kysn

Anwar al-Awlaki: The Next Bin Laden [GQ]

Blogger Jailed Over Critical Restaurant Review [Tapei Times]

5 Ways Methamphetamine Can Make You a New Person [Cracked]

“Whitey” Bulger Had $500,000 Stash [CNN] Read the rest of this entry »

While cruising the mall yesterday, “Can We” came through the speakers in one of the fine urban establishments that blares local radio to the point where communication between shoppers and sales associates becomes impossible. My first thought was “man, this joint was a jam back in ’97.” Then my second thought, “damn, remember when Missy used to be the Lil Wayne of features?” Read the rest of this entry »

Kimbella

Prince Sued by Law Firm for $700,000 Over Unpaid Legal Fees [GOT]

Donald Glover To Host 2011 mtvU Woodie Awards [Buzzworthy]

Rihanna Posing Nude For Nivea Ad Campaign [TUD]

8 Signs You’re Being Scammed on Craigslist [Naked Law] Read the rest of this entry »

Timbaland will be presenting his new weekly series, Timbaland Thursdays, and he brings in his old PNC Missy to assist in kickstarting the show. The key word here is “Ur” and not “Our.” None of us wants to see these two disrobe. Read the rest of this entry »

If you can’t beat ‘em, you might as well join ‘em and that’s how Reek Da Villian is presenting you with his new effort. Until Busta Rhymes figures out how he wants to attack the second half of his career, he’s giving Long Island his energy on the street album, mixtape thingamajig The Gift. Loud beats and contributions from Waka Flocka Flame, Fizzy Womack and that ill ass “Mechanics (Remix)” stamped with a big red bow is how we’re closing out 2010 with The Conglomerate. Read the rest of this entry »

Missy Elliott has never been my favorite artist. Then again, I’ve never had a disdain for her either. I did, however, harbor a sense of remorse for her following Aaliyah’s passing because it was clearly evident to see how much that tragedy affected her. Losing a close friend never gets any easier, regardless of time. Read the rest of this entry »

Maybe I’m alone but listening to Missy and Timbaland’s songs are all about who’s featured on the track. Both artists are talented musicians and create hits, but their music is a wee too bland for my consumption. It always takes something extra to convince me to add any of their tracks to my listening rotation. Unfortunately for Missy, this Wayne feature doesn’t do much for me and, even though this version is quite unfinished, I don’t think a final product is going to do much to change that. Read the rest of this entry »

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The nineties called and they want their Ginuwine/Timbo/Missy collabo back.

Tapemasters Inc. just dropped this leak from the same ol’ G’s upcoming album A Man’s Thoughts and it features pretty much the whole crew (minus Magoo). I hate to say it, because Read the rest of this entry »

So it turns out auctioning ice is the next big cash cow.

On October 1st, if you have long money and happen to be on the East Coast, you can try your luck at obtaining some of Hip Hop’s most coveted jewels at Phillips de Pury. Lil’ Jon’s Guiness Book of World Records’ certified monstrosity will be one of the pieces for sale along with some more historical gems from the likes of 50, Missy, Tupac and Biggie. Read the rest of this entry »

It’s always good to see a talented artist finally catch a break. While I can’t say I fully understand Missy’s role in this video, I’m glad she’s gotten behind Jazmine because it’s about time someone did.

I can remember falling for Jazmine when I heard her version of “Resentment” (go back to 2006 yo). So in the past few weeks & months, as her buzz has grown & I’ve been seeing her name popping up on other sites & in magazines, I’m not resentful (pun intended lol). It’s good.

Too often, music people like to hoard & cradle an artist’s material as if it were their child, scared that when others get ahold of it, it won’t be “new” any more or worried that a label might put their dirty hands into the mix & make the sounds impure. Honestly, I never really thought Jazmine would blow. Then again, I thought there were only so many even following her until recently. R&B artists who don’t sell sex seem to never make it to the forefront, but cultivate a loyal following that supports their work, heralds it often & to as many as possible. It would be a disservice to label JS as neo-soul because when that happens, as that seems to punch their ticket to purgatory for an R&B artist. Read the rest of this entry »

A sickness of the bubonic mediocre strain has descended on the houses of Hip-Hop and TSS. In the case of Hip-Hop, artists are chronically regurgitating albums slightly better than listenable, and in the case of TSS… well… TC is forcibly bleeding the lot of them of their 3 Cig just desserts.

A plague on both our houses.

To brighten team morale, the TSS crew opened a discussion of albums worthy of the perfect 5 Cig rating. We tried to stay away from the conventional Illmatics and Aqueminis of the world, and dug into our visor CD-holders to pull out OUR top picks (Read: Personal favorites). These are the albums that deserve all the superlatives we could muster, all the accolades we could award and all the “yadamnrights” we could hurl in defense of their excellence.

Ladies and Germs…

Crew Love: The 5 Cig Edition

Chris “Preach” Smith

D’Angelo – Voodoo (2000)

Few artists can follow up a great debut album with an even stronger sequel. D’Angelo succeeds with this album, running the gamut from sensual love ballads (“Untitled/How Does It Feel”) to head-nodding Hip-Hop infused songs of reflection (“Devil’s Pie”), to wistful odes to the Motherland (“Africa”) all with an ease of a master showman. From the Zora Neale Hurston inspired album covers to D’s impeccable smoky voice, Voodoo is an album that lives up to its name literally and figuratively.

Contraâ„¢

Soprano – Puisqu’il faut Vivre (2008)

Language barriers aside, Puisqu’il faut Vivre is everything to expect from a Hip-Hop album today. Instead of succumbing to the trends set by Booba and other 50 Cent-like, anger-management-needing rappers dominating the scene, Soprano stayed true to his definition of what an artist should be, resulting in a heartfelt, intellectually stimulating, insightful, exciting and enjoyable chef-d’oeuvre. He exhibits unparalleled cadence, especially on the profound intro to “Tant Que Dieu (Remix)” and outstanding thematic consistency in every single track, earning each and every cig that this album gets, and setting the bar extremely high for his sophomore effort. I doff my hat to you Mr. Soprano, and congratulations on the birth of the little one.

Darius Sinclairâ„¢

John Legend – Get Lifted (2004)

Telling the truth never worked for me in relationships. But considering the awesomeness in writing and real-life storytelling on Get Lifted, I can keep on lying because this is telling it all. An excellent raconteur, John Legend (and co.) put together a comprehensive fuse of rhythmic soul and quiet storm sounds with love lyrics that would make Marvin two-step in his grave. Impeccable production and a variety of sounds make for an impressive debut, and a timeless display of rhythm and blues at its best. Read the rest of this entry »