Around third or fourth grade, my mission was to listen to every cassette tape my father owned. His music collection had always been a treasure trove of sorts and having already learned not to mess with his vinyl, the tape collection was the safest choice. Read the rest of this entry »

See, Kanye WOULD have had the best week ever. He linked up with Tip and Big Brother and showed the poise it takes to get rated Major on The Smoking Section–all before Turkey Day 2010. And Quincy Jones is really happy for you ‘Ye and he’s gonna let you finish your career but he just had to remind you that he’s the greatest of all time. Read the rest of this entry »

Even with a 4.5 Cig-rated album, the biggest buzz of his career and a hot new girlfriend, Kanye West still can’t lay claims to the producer’s throne just yet. That is, according to Quincy Jones. A man who has justified say-so in the matter. In a recent interview with US Magazine, the legendary maestro not only rejected any comparison to Mr. West’s accomplishments to that of his own, he basically copped a squat and shat on Hip-Hop as a whole.

Us: Kanye West is similar to you in that he’s the producer everybody wants to work with in the last decade …

QJ: How man? No way. Did he write for a symphony orchestra? Does he write for a jazz orchestra? Come on, man. He’s just a rapper. There’s no comparison. I’m not putting him down or making a judgement or anything, but we come from two different sides of the planet. I spent 28 years learning my first skill. I don’t rap. It’s not the same thing. A producer has to have some sort of skills that enable him to be a producer. It’s totally different to know what to do with 16 woodwinds you know from piccolos down to bass clarinet. It’s a whole different mindset. No comparison. None.

Of course that incendiary quote made Kanye’s countless studio hours for his recent project look like child’s play, so, Señor Jones took to his site for clarification:

“I’d appreciate it if people didn’t take my comments about Kanye West ( @KanyeWest ) or anyone else for that matter out of context to contrive a story. I have nothing but respect for my little brother Kanye and what he has achieved in his young career and I look forward to watching his evolution as an artist. There is a reason why we put him on the new We Are The World 25 for Haiti – he’s a great rapper. But having been in the music business for more than 60 years and having been fortunate to accomplish what I have over that time, it’s not unreasonable to put a comparison of Kanye at this time in his career and myself into the proper perspective. This is not dissing Kanye, this is simply trying to express that I’m not a rapper! I don’t need to take anyone else’s props away from them. Let’s all just try and keep the record straight.” – Quincy D. Jones – 11/22/2010

Sounds like half-baked backpedaling to me. QJ is the numero uno but he’s also up there in age, so you can guarantee that the filter on his words is thinning like his hair. Oh, why can’t they just let Kanye be great?

Spotted @ Stereogum

If you’ve ever had anyone tell you something was impossible, go right now and tell them Quincy Jones turned the Sanford & Son theme song into a legitimate banger. With assistance from The King and sweet Bobby Ray, the five-time Grammy-winner reaffirmed he knows way more about manipulating music than pretty much anybody Read the rest of this entry »

Item number 47 on my bucket list reads “meet Quincy Jones.” At this point in life, I write about music. Quincy, on the other hand, has been living it for the past Lord knows how many years. It’s not about asking for a job or an autograph, unless he’d be willing to supply both. What it would really boil down to is simply talking music with the guy. Read the rest of this entry »

Shteena

5 People You MUST Know In College [Coed]

Stacey Dash Must Have That “Good Good” [I Had Heard]

7 Celebrities That Are Fashionably Insane [Guyism]

Quincy Jones Talks Music, Life, Love At ASCAP Expo [AP]

Insane Two-Man Bicycle Kick [TRU] Read the rest of this entry »

Remember back a few months ago when word surfaced that JD was in studio working on a remix to “Secret Garden”?  Even with his penchant for remixes, the idea to dabble with such a classic song came totally out of left field.  Well, it turns out that his remix will have a home on Quincy Jones’ upcoming remix project Q: Soul Bossa Nostra.  Read the rest of this entry »

Creativity be damned.

Reaffirming the term “nothing is sacred” like a rapist reiterates birth control, Janet Jackson’s ex is telling MTV that he’s covering Quincy Jones’ classic R&B posse cut, “Secret Garden (Sweet Seduction Suite).” Read the rest of this entry »

Although the words “donate,” “Haiti” and “help” are no longer on the tip of every newscaster’s tongue across the planet, the crisis that left the Caribbean country in ruins is still an ongoing ordeal. There’s plenty of charities and movements out there for every able participant to contribute to in some form or fashion, and tonight unveiled the regurgitation of one the most popular ones ever created. Read the rest of this entry »

You know why people hate Simon Cowell? No, not because he talks like a pretentious Mr. Belvedere, but because he does shit like this.

The “American Idol” judge and music exec recently coordinated an all-star single to benefit Haitian earthquake victims. Now he’s ready to take on his next challenge: ensuring that his production of R.E.M.’s “Everybody Hurts,” featuring Susan Boyle, Mariah Carey, Miley Cyrus and many others, outsells Quincy Jones’ new star-studded rendition of “We Are the World.”

Re-he-he-eally? © Ace Ventura

If this tight-tee-wearing, double-chinned old-lady-puncher thinks he’s in the right by publicly admitting his initiative to stomp out Quincy’s “We Are The World” remake in order to turn out a better profit – instead of them working side-by-side towards the cause – then he shouldn’t have made one at all. Having competitive drive is fine, but sometimes you’ve got to hit the breaks. Just because you’re Usain Bolt, doesn’t mean you’ve got to blow past the kid with Down Syndrome at the Special Olympics. Just because you can rep 350 lbs, doesn’t mean you have to break your little brothers arm when he playfully asks you to arm-wrestle. Just because…ah, you get it.

Taking lead from good ol’ Mel Gibs, Simon’s an ass.

To conclude, I was going to say that I hope “We Are The World” destroys Cowell’s Miley-Cyrus-infested REM-remake, but that’s not true. That’s not the point. In all actuality, I hope they both sell outrageously and combine to help Haiti get back on it’s feet.

What I do hope for, however, is that an isolated earthquake completely decimates the American Idol judge’s Los Angeles mansion. And when he sees the lone person coming to help from the distance, it’s an extremely hard-working Haitian fellow who walks up and simply says, “My earthquake was bigger,” and then struts away casually as Simon stumbles, falling through the cracks towards Hell.

Simon Hopes His Song Beats ‘We Are the World’ [MSNBC]

Last week was a weird week for me.

First of all, I had no desire to listen to any rap music.  I had to clear my head (||) so to speak.  Gotty™ always spoke about it, but I just figured it was one of his OMG rants.  Yet, I spent the week listening to Jazz.  I came across Quincy Jones’ cover of the classic song “Along Came Betty” while waiting for the airport McDonald’s® to tell me they didn’t have milkshakes for the 59th consecutive day.  To my surprise, they finally hired someone who had higher than (or wasn’t working towards) a high school diploma and figured out that some part was in backwards.  Milkshake in tow; I pulled into a parking space, turned up the volume, turned off the work phone and sat quietly listening, enjoying the moment and the music.

With Hubert Laws leading the way on flute, The Dude updates and loosens up  the Big Band era sound that gave him his first shot in the game.  And to tell you the truth, this was the closest I came to hearing words on a track all week.

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Download — Quincy Jones – “Along Came Betty”

Vanessa Nina Like Whoa

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After Spinna’s Sade mix went up, Incredible Hawkes hit me up via email with this beauty. Read the rest of this entry »

Words By Jesse H.

I try my hardest not to be one of those folks who endlessly cries foul about the state of pop music. But sometimes on old jam comes on and you find yourself wondering where all the effort went in modern pop records.

Case and point — one of the catchiest pop songs of the year, Kanye’s “Paranoid” seems to have all of the essential elements of a good pop tune; instantly catchy, extremely danceable and sing-alongability to the stars. I’ll take a wild guess and say “Paranoid” probably took Kanye a few hours, maximum, to create. It’s a simple melody with a minimal loop of repeating synth chords and some whipping drums. Add Auto-Tune and that’s about it.

Now compare the thin weave of “Paranoid” to the density of a song like Michael Jackon’s “Girlfriend.” Listen to the way Read the rest of this entry »

Directed By Hype Williams

A fitting star studded video for one of the hottest songs on the planet. Count the cameos and hit the jump for more of that 80 proof. Read the rest of this entry »