SilversparK - Crystal Entertainment

2012-04-26T00:57:00.001-07:00

Teflon Wear By DJ ROSS, Jay-Z | May 5th - Streets is Watching.

2012-04-26T00:56:00.001-07:00

Teflon Wear By DJ ROSS | May 5th - Streets is Watching.

2012-04-26T00:53:00.001-07:00

Teflon Wear By DJ ROSS | May 5th - Streets is Watching.

The Octuple Ross Shot

2012-02-22T13:31:00.001-08:00

The idea is to have the Ice Cream absorb the Latent heat from the Grapes as warm Yoghurt increases the temperature of the reaction. The Cream on top acts as a buffer creating a Snap Frost Sipping Experience. At the end, its like sipping Absolute Power. Ladies and Gentlemen, i present to you The Octuple Ross Shot | #Patent_Pending.

Mixtape Review: Rick Ross’ “Rich Forever”

2012-01-27T01:52:00.000-08:00

1.) Holy Ghost — — 4/5
2.) High Definition — — 3.5/5
3.) MMG Untouchable — — 3.5/5
4.) Yella Diamonds — — 4.25/5
5.) Fuck ‘Em — — 4.25/5
6.) London Skit
7.) Rich Forever — — 3.5/5
8.) Triple Beam Dreams — — 4.5/5
9.) Mine Games — — 2.5/5
10.) New Bugatti — — 3.25/5
11.) Keys to the Crib — — 3.25/5
12.) Last Breath — — 3/5
13.) I Swear to God — — 3.75/5
14.) Off the Boat — — 4/5
15.) King of Diamonds — — 3.5/5
16.) Ring Ring — — 1.25/5
17.) MMG The World is Ours — — 3.25/5
18.) Party Heart — — 2.75/5
19.) Stay Schemin’ — — 3.5/5

Track One: Holy Ghost feat. Diddy
The mixtape starts off with a track with Diddy?! Luckily there aren’t any verses by him. The beat does the song justice, as does Rozay’s ever growing lyrical talent. He’s came a long way since his Port of Miami days and it shows. Rick Ross does a magnificent job at putting you in his shoes. He paints quite the boisterous picture of himself and this song is no different. Ross puts some emphasis on the final word of each verse, which I thought was a good touch from the typically predictable rapper. The beat, like most Ross tracks, is bass heavy and thick – so it doesn’t disappoint. One of my favorites: “My teacher told me that I was piece of shit / Saw her the other day, drivin’ a piece of shit”

Track Two: High Definition
I really really really liked the intro with the Mike Tyson interview excerpt. Really liked. The beat doesn’t really hit me like a usual Rozay track. He manages to show off some of his best wordplay on the whole tape, but this isn’t a typical party atmosphere track, which honestly, was a downfall for the song. It lacks the giant chorus, bragging about an ungodly amount of money, instead it’s about killing people… I always enjoy rowdy ass songs, I just wish that this one had a beat to back it up. “Duct tapin’ niggas in the name of drug dealin’” and “Diamonds on my neck, call it the ghetto’s guillotine” are just two of the song’s awesomely violent lines. Again though, if this track had a beat that made me feel like Ross was capable of murder, I’d be so down for it. Did I mention that I liked the Mike Tyson intro?

Track Three: MMG Untouchable
The first thing that hits me with this track is definitely the beat, more specifically the bass. In a car, this shit hits very hard. The song is just a freestyle, no hook, no second verse, just an outro; an outro that requests the listener to raise the volume on our speakers. Noted. Ross has a few good lines, nothing mind blowing, but nonetheless entertaining, “Just beat another charge, made ‘em drop that case / My lawyers goin’ hard, a nigga versus the state.” Overall, the track is a bit short, but then again, it is just a freestyle.

Track Four: Yella Diamonds
The beat instantly makes me think of some of the more ridiculous Rozay tracks (“Free Mason”, “BMF”) and then I heard Birdman chirp in somewhere in the background during the intro and then I knew we had something special going on. Ross ends 32 bars in a row with the word “nigga.” This song gets so over-the-top at times, I can’t help but love it. One of my favorites, “You wanna live, make an offer, nigga” and my definite favorite four bars…

You know they talkin’ home invasion, nigga
Seeing your daughter scream can be very persuasive, nigga
First question, where the safe at, nigga?
All in your woman face, fuck up her make up, nigga
Track Five: Fuck ‘Em feat. 2 Chainz & Wale
Ughhhhhh, the beat has a definite dub step vibe and it’s good. Instantly found myself bobbing my head. And then the hook comes and I’m ready to start jumping people. And then I hear the best yell in the game right now… “Two chaaaaains!” This is the kind of track that I want to hear when I put on Rick Ross. There isn’t anything that screams conscious hip hop, but sometimes it’s better to just to sit back and be entertained. 2Chainz is as sophisticatedly ignorant as ever. Wale throws out some shoe, sports and jazz references. Fuck ‘em!

Track Six: London Skit
Nothing to review.

Track Seven: Rich Forever feat. John Legend
For the title track, Ross recruits Grammy winning R&B singer John Legend for the hook and a bit of an intro. After my first listen, the beat and the way Ross went about his verse reminded me of Drake’s “Thank Me Now.” The last few bars of the first verse, Ross changes up his flow and strays away from the typical drug trafficking, shit tons of money lines and trades them for women and shoes. The DVLP produced beat sounds a little conservative for Ross and a bit bland all around. What Ricky Rozay is saying though, I actually like a lot. The idea of being rich forever as opposed to anything else is something that most people dream of and it’s nice to hear a not so conscious rapper rap about it. Really though, everyone seems to be praising the hook by John Legend, as for me… It’s good but it honestly just sounds like every other hip hop hook that he’s on.

Track Eight: Triple Beam Dreams feat. Nas
Rick Ross featuring Nas… I was definitely shocked when I first read that, but sure as shit, Nas rips right into his verse after the brief intro, not wasting any time. Nas shows off (When doesn’t he?… And why wouldn’t he?) on a few of the bars here. He definitely has no problem keeping up with Ross’ self painted Mafioso persona. I loved the alliteration on “Picturing piping out the seats of a Pathfinder / Powerful pursuit for pussy, cash to flash diamonds.” It’s safe to assume that Ross intentionally saved his best verse for this track. His subject matter may not change much, but what he’s saying remains entertaining. The beat wasn’t much, it certainly sat back seat to the verses and hooks; which was kind of surprising when I saw that J.U.S.T.I.C.E. League produced it. Oh well, I can’t expect Premier on every beat.

Track Nine: Mine Games feat. Kelly Rowland
Rozay gets a little serious on us with this track. So serious in fact, he says “On my R. Kelly, girl I’m ‘bout that foreplay” I don’t mind the switch up from drug kingpin to the gentle, affectionate Ricky Rozay, but its pretty apparent that Ross is out of his element. The song as a whole sounds cliché as shit. Kelly Rowland’s hook didn’t help out much. Actually, I really didn’t like her part. The hook felt disingenuous and she certainly didn’t sound like a great singer here; there was a reason that Beyonce was the breakout star…

Track Ten: New Bugatti feat. Diddy
He’s back for more! Bringin’ the extra hard Diddy for the track! Luckily Diddy was only talking about his bank account and not telling people he was going to catch bodies or anything truly unbelievable like that. I’ve never been impressed by Diddy’s flow, here it sounds (much like all of Last Train to Paris) like a straight rip off of Kanye West, who doesn’t necessarily have the best flow either. I had a tough time deciding if I liked the beat or not. There’s an undertone of it that I loved but I still ended up undecided because of the rapid drum cymbals that sound like a stock drum machine. As far as Rozay goes… He’s still ordering crab legs with heavy butter.

Track Eleven: Keys to the Crib feat. Styles P
I know he’s just giving his pal a shout out while rhyming, but the thought of Rick Ross in a Lotus is nothing but funny. During my first playthrough of this tape I had it on shuffle, and this was the second to last track I heard. Unfortunately, by that time I was a little burnt out on the tracks that didn’t really explain anything except how rich Ricky is. So I made an extra effort to go back to this song after a break to give it a proper judgment. Thought I thought the beat was a little lacking (blame The Inkredibles), Rick has some pretty good lines in his verses. “I’m a guru in the kitchen, whippin’ mass appeal.” It was great (and refreshing) to hear LOX vet Styles P who I thought outshined Ross and had some pretty cool lines, “Biggie on the stereo, seven digit flips / This is the scenario, something goes wrong, it’s a burial”

Track Twelve: Last Breath feat. Meek Mill & Birdman
Money, girls, ballin’, cars… Birdman needed to be a feature on this track. After the intro, Ross opens his verse with “I got a house around my neck”, highlighted with “Brother took all your clothes, whip, sneakers, and ice.” Meek Mill claims the second verse, once it was over, I completely forgot that he was even on it; sorry homie. Ross drops another 12 in between hooks before we get to the only persona in rap that actually contends with Ricky… Birdman. Nobody said Birdman was a lyricist, but what he does do is… What he does is… He manages to…

Track Thirteen: I Swear to God
I don’t know why, but I have a soft spot for Ricky Rozay any time he includes “God” in his hooks. Anyways, Beat Billionaire does his best to emulate a Lex Luger beat, but falls just short of doing so. (Really though, you MUST do this: Play the first ten seconds of this track and then play the first ten seconds of “Off the Boat”… Compare) Rozay’s hook brings the song’s value up by a lot. Ross’ ability to brag is miles ahead of most other rappers. It seems that in the majority of his songs, he boasts about a net worth, I would really like to know what his net worth actually is. Uh, anyways, this track is fun, it’s more of the same Rick Ross that you expect to hear. If Lex Luger did this beat and it didn’t sound virtually identical to “Off the Boat”, this could have been another banger.

Track Fourteen: Off the Boat feat. French Montana
Holy shit, yes! All of the elements to a successful Rozay song are here: the title, the out of hand intro, “Testify on my nigga, I’mma blow up your house”, Lex Luger production, and the best lyrical content imaginable. French Montana’s verse was on point, “I done counted a dollar, then I counted a million / Then I looked up to God, like what the fuck is this feeling?” Although French does a decent job, I may have preferred to have heard 2Chainz here. Ross drops a pretty standard Ross verse, I was hoping for an absurd amount of coke references, but instead we got only a few mixed with some money and guns, so I’ll take it. But apparently, Ross doesn’t drive on Thursdays.

Track Fifteen: King of Diamonds
Somebody call the Brinks truck. Repeat that a few times and you’ve got me ready to pull a Town on fools. That intro line, along with the beat got me so pumped up and ready to burgle, I was so excited to see how ridiculous the song could get. But the level of ridiculousness didn’t come back. Sure, there were some lines that were fun and boisterous, but nothing that matched the level of criminal outlandishness that the “Brinks truck” line offered. “I’m so rich, I mean I’m so rich.” If the song was more about armored car heists and less about the already established amassed wealth, this could have easily been my favorite track on the whole tape.

Track Sixteen: Ring Ring feat. Future
Yes! The voice behind “Tony Montana”! Future! This shit sucks. I wanted to turn the song off the second I heard Future’s mumbling ass gargle out the hook. Ross could be delivering some of his best lines but I’ll never remember them because of everything else that this track offers. Fuck you.

Track Seventeen: MMG The World is Ours feat. Pharrell, Meek Mill & Stalley
Ross’ verse was good! He was doing something that I’ve never heard from him before, but when it was over, I just wanted him to keep going. I took it as him telling a story of his come up but he just stopped at the second chapter. And he didn’t come back to finish it. As the features, Ross delivers us Pharrell, Meek Mill and Stalley. Each one of the feature verses sounded lazy to me. Meek Mill says, “Puffin’ purple getting stoned, trying to take the pain away” in the middle of a verse about how he’s made it… So… What pain does he speak of? Stalley’s verse actually got good about halfway through, but then petered out and went back to forgettable shortly after. If it were me, I would have had just Pharrell on the hook and Ross alone on the verses telling his story.

Track Eighteen: Party Heart feat. Stalley & 2Chainz
Background music for when the party is over. That is exactly what I think when I hear this track. The synths are cool, but for Rozay? Ross does his standard excessive bragging, but I’m still raising an eyebrow at “Me and Meek bone the same chicks.” Stalley gives a forgettable verse, 2Chainz has some lines in his verse that I’m almost positive that he didn’t even understand. I wasn’t surprised at all when I found out that Chuck Inglish produced this track, as he’s usually pretty good at making background music. And really… What the fuck is with this hook? I hope Ricky Rozay the drug overlord decides to axe this type of shit from his next album, God Forgives, I Don’t.

Track Nineteen: Stay Schemin’ feat. Drake & French Montana
The “dawg” in the hook doesn’t help out and the knock off Kid Cudi-esque “Stay schemin’, niggas tryna get at me” (which is apparently a sample from an unreleased Nas track?). Hook aside, it’s obvious that this track was intended to showcase Drake. Who is rumored to be taking shots at Common. I won’t lie, I dug some of the lines, especially the opener “It bothers me when gods get to acting like broads” but really though… Come on… I am a Drake fan and I really wish he’d knock this shit off. Is rolling around with “Oliver North” supposed to intimidate Common? The flow on his verse really isn’t bad, but after listening to Take Care, I can’t take verses like this serious from Drizzy. And oh yeah, French Montana has a verse at the end of the track.

I ranged from hating to loving parts of this mixtape. One thing that I love about Rick Ross is his ability to get you feeling his lifestyle. There are times on some of the tracks where he really made me feel like I’m in a robe, on a boat smoking a cigar with a duffle bag full of coke on the floor. And of course, what is a Ross release without the mass amount of hate he gets from the usual hip hop head? When I look at it, or listen, I relate it to films. Where a Nas or MF Doom release could be a Best Picture nominee, Rick Ross could be more like Die Hard or Heat. Ross to me is a drug kingpin that is the ideal antagonist for the plot of an action movie. This tape isn’t all good however; obviously I hated Future and disliked Kelly Rowland. If there were five less tracks and maybe just two tracks that don’t focus around Ross’ wealth and more about actual acts of crime, I would be addicted to this shit. But hey, this is a mixtape… An introduction, if you will, to his next LP, which if he trims the fat and has a few more focused tracks could be the best “action album” of the year.

Final rating: 8/10.

Wiz Khalifa Signs Female Rapper Lola Monroe

2011-11-01T05:59:00.000-07:00

Wiz Khalifa has added a female component to his Taylor Gang label imprint with rap artist Lola Monroe.
“We got it in with Taylor Gang. We Taylored now,” the 25-year-old former model told DJGreg Street of Atlanta radio station V-103. “Wiz is like a positive free individual that’s about his business and that matches everything I’ve created on my side. When he reached out, he was like, ‘I feel as though our movements represent the same thing, so I want you to rep Taylor Gang.’ And I agreed, so it’s only right.”
Monroe has been on the scene as a rapper for years after abandoning her career as a model named Angel Lola Luv.
She was renown for having a huge backside.
Monroe expects to release a pair of new mixtapes.

Jay-Z Announces Brooklyn Nets; New Colors, New Marketing Campaign

2011-09-27T09:15:00.000-07:00

Hip-Hop mogul Jay-Z held a press conference this morning (September 26th) in Brooklyn, New York, where he officially announced that the New Jersey Nets are now The Brooklyn Nets.

The rapper held a press conference at Atlantic Terminal to make the announcement, in addition to revealing he would open the new Barclay's Center that will house the Nets, with a series of concerts.

"I'm going to open the building with a couple of concerts, maybe like eight," Jay-Z told reporters, according to MyFoxNews.

"Biggie had a line 'spread love that's the Brooklyn way. It's a deep love we have for our heroes. We walk around with that," Jay-Z told reporters.

According to Jay-Z, the Brooklyn Nets will sport all new colors, although the rapper refused to divulge anymore details.

Today's announcement kicked off a major marketing campaign surrounding the Brooklyn Nets, who are expected to play in the 2012-13 season.

Jay-Z who owns a 1.7% percent stake in the company, is also the face of a massive marketing campaign promoting the new team.

“Jay-Z will be the face of the team’s fourth-quarter campaign” to sell 4,400 “All-Access” premium seats at the rapidly rising 18,000-seat arena," CEO Brett Yormark told the New York Post.

For the marketing campaign, the Brooklyn Nets are planning on distributing 250,000 coffee cups to local stores, in addition to placing billboard ads throughout New York, along with telephone booth ads and ad placements on taxicab tops.

T.I. Released From Federal Custody; Sent To Halfway House

2011-09-17T03:05:00.000-07:00

T.I. has been released from federal prison and sent to a halfway house, almost two weeks after he was accused of improper behavior, by leaving the Forrest City, Arkansas prison on a luxury tour bus.

The rapper's lawyer Steve Sadow told TMZ.com that they proved to officials that T.I. did not intentionally violate the conditions of his transfer to the halfway house.

"We have good reason to believe that this favorable result was reached because of the proactive and assertive approach taken to protect T.I.'s rights by providing B.O.P. officials and the media with reliable and accurate information and that T.I. did not intend to violate his transfer furlough or any other B.O.P. rules en route from the prison facility in Arkansas to the halfway house in Atlanta," Steve Sadow told TMZ.com

In related news, T.I. has teamed with HarperCollins to release new book titled "Power & Beauty."

The work of fiction tells the tale of two friends who grew up in Atlanta. The book, which was authored by T.I. and co-writer David Ritz, is due in stores in October.

T.I. is also working on a new reality show on VH1 that will follow this post prison activities.

Lil Wayne's "Tha Carter IV" Nears Platinum In Its First Week

2011-09-06T20:56:00.000-07:00

Lil Wayne has earned a platinum plaque thanks to the first-week sales of his latest album Tha Carter IV.

According to Hits Daily Double, Weezy sold 1,000,690 copies of his newest offering since hitting stores last week. The album previously broke the iTunes record for most digital albums sold within the first four days of its availability.

His 2008 release, Tha Carter III, achieved the same accomplishment as its successor, moving 1,005,545 units in its first week.

Drake Is "80 Percent Done" With "Take Care," Talks Recording In Toronto, Canada

2011-09-06T20:44:00.000-07:00

Drake is currently gearing up for the release of his sophomore album Take Care, which he claims is “80 percent done.” Speaking with Hip Hollywood, Drizzy explained that he’s the “most confident I’ve ever been” with the album, which benefitted from him recording in his native Toronto, Canada.

“I’ve been in Toronto the longest time since I started my career, I’ve been there for four months. The album is a genuine reflection of my life past and my life present, and I have a line on the album where I say, ‘I feel like I was numb to it last year, but I think I feel it now more than ever,’” he said. “That’s the best way I can paint the picture for you for this album. I got to reconnect with a lot of people I haven’t seen in years, I got to see my family a lot, it stirred up a lot of emotions that I probably wouldn’t have had if I’d been on the road traveling everywhere. It’s almost there. I got some great things, I’m very excited. I’m most confident I’ve ever been, including So Far Gone, including any mixtape.”

Survivin' the Era of Terror: How 9/11 Missed Hip-Hop

2011-09-06T20:38:00.000-07:00

September 11, 2001 is a day that will never be forgotten. On that day, an event happened that will effect the lives of generations for decades to come; socially, politically and economically. No, I'm not talking about the attack on the World Trade Center, 9/11/01 was also the day that Jay Z released The Blueprint...

This week, when many people reflect on what they were doing the moment the Twin Towers fell that faithful Tuesday in '01, most won't admit that they were standing in line trying to be the first person on their block to get the new Jay Z CD but that pretty much sums up the collective attitude of Hip Hop during a 10 year period known as the "Era of Terror." It can be argued that The Blueprint had more of an impact on Hip Hop than the attack on the World Trade.

While the 9/11 attack sparked a "War on Terror" that would have a major impact on nations around the planet for decades to come, the effect on the Hip Hop Nation has been minimal, at best.

But was this a matter of apathy or fear?

Maybe the streets just didn't care. For residents of the hood who were constantly trapped between gang wars and crooked cops, 9/11 was just another day in the neighborhood. One more problem to add to the 99 others that we faced on a daily basis. As long as it didn't mean that cable would get cut off or the club would shut down for the weekend, it was what it was.

The fear factor probably played a greater role, especially among the rappers, themselves. And who could blame them? Historically, Uncle Sam has never taken too kindly to being dissed in front of the world.

Dr. Martin Luther King did not really start catching major heat from the Feds until he spoke out against the Vietnam War and Muhammad Ali got his world championship belt snatched because he refused to fight a bunch of Vietcong who "never called him a **** ."

Rappers weren't the first artists to punk out when the price of Freedom of Speech got too high. During the 60's even outspoken artists such as The Beatles and Bob Dylan were accused of abandoning the anti-war struggle to either smoke dust or start making nonpolitical, country music. Not much different than the rappers of today who would rather smoke blunts and go jewelry shopping than fight the power.

We have to remember that the period immediately following 9/11 wasn't the best time to attack America's domestic policies as the general public was out for blood and George Bush was playing an international game of "Who Shot Ya." If the good ol boys would call for the heads of the Dixie Chicks for chin checkin' G-Dub, imagine what they would have done to the brothers on the block?

Although, not totally clear on the legal ramifications of the Patriot Acts, rappers were pretty clear that political Hip Hop was deemed illegal in at least one of them. Nobody wanted to be seen as part of Bush's Axis of Evil. Spending a few months on Riker's Island was one thing but nobody wanted to wind up in a cell in Guantanamo Bay, never to be heard from again.

Remember, we saw how the face of terrorism could change overnight from "Middle Eastern" to a young black male in the hood when back in 2006, seven black men in Liberty City Florida were brought up on trumped up charges of plotting to blow up the Sears Tower in Chicago.

So most in mainstream Hip Hop decided it was best to keep quiet in the immediate aftermath of 9/11. (Unless, you count Petey Pablo doing his ultra-patriot USA remix to "Raise Up. Making him the first rapper to raise his hand when Bush threw down the mandate "you are either with us or against us.")

A few artists did speak out against America's foreign policies. The usual rap revolutionaries like Public Enemy, Paris and a few others continued to do what they did best; challenge the staus quo. Also, relative newcomers like Immortal Technique began to make their fans think that there was more to the story than what they were seeing on the news. In the mainstream, fueled by the popularity of documentaries like Fahrenheit 9/11 and Loose Change, a few mainstream artists such as Eminem and Jadakis began to either literally or figuratively accuse Bush of "knocking down the towers." Also, a new group named the Black Eyed Peas asked "Where is the Love" but perhaps the most hardcore hate letter to the Prez was penned by Fredwreck and the STOP Movement.

The period has not been without it's random Sister Souljah moments such as KRS's "chickens coming home to roost-like " statement at a New Yorker Magazine panel discussion or the infamous Kanye West post- Katrina revelation that "George Bush doesn't like black people,"

However, these were exceptions to the rule of a Hip Hop "culture" that has been increasingly more obsessed with producing materialistic, Maybach music instead of message music. Instead of dealing with serious issues it is safer and easier just to simply pretend that they do not exist and the world is no bigger than the block on which one lives.

For the most part over the last decade, Hip Hop has remained mostly apolitical and detached from reality. A great escape to a mystical land where the champagne is always flowing and the strip clubs never close. Even when the rest of the world is at war.

Trey Songz Says He Would Like To Collaborate With Drake For A Full-Length LP

2011-08-23T21:01:00.000-07:00

Trigga Trey says the resulting album would be "very authentic."

With Jay-Z and Kanye West recently conquering the charts with their collaborative LP Watch the Throne, Trey Songz says that he would love to collaborate with Drake in the same capacity. Speaking with TheSource.com, Trigga Trey explained that the musical chemistry is there and that the results would be “authentic.”

“When thinking along the lines of that, Drake is the first person that comes to mind that I am that musically comfortable with in that space,” he said. “He is a friend of mine as well, and I think we can pull something off like that could sound very authentic.”

Like with Jay and ‘Ye, he said that he couldn’t force a collaborative LP, and that it would have to come organically.

“I mean, you got to look at (Kanye and Jay-Z) and see how long it took them to do it, you know? So it has to be organic in whatever way it happens. It can’t be a business decision and you can’t look at it in a way of making it lucrative. I think it has to be something that you are definitely going into for music’s sake. It has to be something real, because if it’s not authentic you can hear it.”

Rapper K'Naan Visits Somalia At The Height Of Its Devastating Famine

2011-08-23T20:47:00.000-07:00

K'Naan pays a visit to Mogadishu during famine, meets with malnourished children at a local hospital.

At the height of a deadly famine, Somali-born rapper K’Naan took time off to visit his native country which has been ravaged by a famine brought on by drought and the inability for aid to reach those most devastated because of militant groups.

Forbes.com reports that the rapper, who now resides in Canada, visited Mogadishu and the city’s Banadir Hospital on Sunday (August 21).

"I came to Somalia to see the situation here and give any donation I have to the people and anything else available," said the rapper, according to Forbes.com. "I will do all I can to help my people in Somalia."

K’Naan’s visit over the weekend marks his first visit to Somalia in over two decades.

A report by MSNBC on August 5, 2011 states that 29,000 children under the age of five have died as a result of the famine.

Kanye, Jay-Z Get Involved With East African Drought Relief Effort

2011-08-16T23:00:00.000-07:00

Rappers Kanye West and Jay-Z are putting their newest video “Otis” to good use, beyond the typical marketing promotion for their new album Watch the Throne.

Reps for the rappers have confirmed that the vehicle used in the “Otis” video will be going up for auction.

Proceeds from the sale of the customized, flame spitting Maybach that is featured in the video will be donated towards the East African drought disaster.

Due to constant war and the worst drought in decades, over 2 million people have recently fled their homes in Somalia.

Over 12.4 million people have been affected by the East Africa drought and famine, which is affecting countries like Somalia, South Sudan Djibouti, Ethiopia and Kenya.

"What is happening in the Horn of Africa is the most severe humanitarian emergency in the world today, and the worst that East Africa has seen in several decades," U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said in a statement, after revealing the U.S. was donating an additional $17 million to the nations around the Horn of Africa, bringing the U.S.'s aid contribution to over $500 millions dollars.

In related news, a Watch the Throne Pop-up Gallery Open House opened on Mulberry Street in Manhattan today (August 12th).

The Pop-up Gallery will be open until 10:00 PM today and will open tomorrow and Sunday at 11:00 AM.

REVIEW: Jay-Z and Kanye West's Watch the Throne

2011-08-07T22:07:00.000-07:00

Rating: 9/10

Watch The Throne, the first full collaborative effort from Jay-Z and Kanye West, has been deemed by many as an instant classic and others as an overly hyped product by two vets. But, the fact is, most opinions are rooted in baseless or biased opinions, having little to do with the actual music. Most people tend to love or loathe Mr. West and Mr. Carter with very few gradients of gray. Watch The Throne is the most ambitious effort the pair have joined forces on and the world awaits to hear it. The dynamic duo do not disappoint.

The album jump starts with “No Church in the Wild” which features Frank Ocean crooning a contagious, thoughtful hook, over production by Kanye West and 88-Keys. Ocean sings: “What’s a king to a God? / what’s a God to a non-believer?” and suddenly Jay-Z goes into a first verse that delves into philosophers, thinkers, and religion. Jigga raps,“Tears on the mausoleum floor, blood stains the coliseum doors / lies on the lips of the priests, Thanksgiving disguised as a feast.” Then, Kanye graces the first track off Watch the Throne with his presence. Ocean croons as wild animal noises chirping and screeching in the background.

Beyonce owns “Lift Off,” an epic anthem that grabs hold of the listener from the first few chords the heavy synths. Beyonce starts off the song with an operatic chorus. Kanye spews the song’s first verse, as he switches between straight raps and some melodic singing of his own. Jay comes in next and compliments his cohorts well. The song closes with an actual voice counting down a lift-off sequence and then “N***as In Paris” begins, a Southern-styled bouncy track. However, there is just a certain level of musicality to this track that feels light-years beyond the average rap songs of the day. The beat, which induces heavy head-nodding, officially drops halfway through Jay’s verse. Kanye comes through: “Prince Williams ain’t do it right if you ask me / If I was him I would have married Kate and Ashley.” The track then breaks down a Blades of Glory movie reference before concluding with a slowed-down crash reminiscent of the 80’s instrumentalists Art of Noise.

“Otis,” has Jay and Ye in more traditional territory than the aforementioned songs. The Kanye-produced song samples Otis Redding's “Try A Little Tenderness.” After a soulful intro, Jay and Kanye trade verses over a very classic Roc-A-Fella days type of record. Both sound like they’re having fun with lines like: “Photo shoot fresh, looking like wealth / I’m bout to call the paparazzi on myself,” and “can you see the private jets flying over you / Maybach bumper sticker read ‘what would Hova do?’” Some have expressed concern over the materialistic content, but the vibe of "Otis" doesn't last for long on Watch The Throne.

The Neptunes-produced “Gotta Have It” is pleasant, but the real gem is “New Day,” a song Jay and Kanye pen to their fictional unborn sons. It shows both as vulnerable and honest, backed by RZA and Kanye’s production. Kanye starts, “And I’d never let my son have an ego, we gon, be nice to everyone wherever we go / I mean I might even make him be Republican, so everybody know he love white people.” Jay vows to his son, ”Promise to never leave him even if his momma tweaking / Cause my Dad left me and I promised never repeat him.”

“Who Gon' Stop Me” is a song tailor made for the big cars with the big systems. With its heavy synths, deeply monophonic bassline, and dubstep roots, this song thumps. Over a sample of Flux Pavilion’s “I Can’t Stop,” Kanye, Sak Pase, and Mike Dean produced a true “banger.” Jay brags: “So many watches, I need eight 8 arms / One neck, I got eight charms.” The verses are cut in and out with the chorus of “who gon stop me now?” Kanye goes back to the speakerphone rap as the beat begins to morph and change in the background. In the best way possible, this one will do some damage to your speakers. (The co-writer of this piece, Jigsaw, deemed this his favorite track in the WTT preview last month.)

"Welcome To The Jungle," which almost didn't make the album, explodes onto WTT as one of the best songs on the album. Jay-Z is more emotive on this song than we've seen from him in a long time. “My uncle died, my daddy did too, I’m numb from the pain, I can barely move. My nephew gone, my heart is torn. Sometimes I look to the sky, ask why I was born," he sulks. But in the same song the self-proclaimed Black Axel Rose spews, "I look in the mirror, my only opponent." That’s My B*tch is a pretty cool frenetic record that borrows a lil' Public Enemy and a dash of Justin Vernon. Its quite possible that this song could unwittingly get play in the club.

Against a soft-electro and piano-laden beat, Jay tells the success story we’ve heard many times before on "Sweet Baby Jesus," one of transforming from the corner to a mogul. It is a very “if we made it so can you, but you have to work for it” kind of song. Ocean sings: “Sweet King Martin [Luther King, Jr.], sweet Queen Coretta [Scott King] / Sweet brother Malcolm [X], sweet Queen Betty [Shabazz] / Sweet Mother Mary, sweet father Joseph / Sweet Jesus, we made it in America / Sweet Baby Jesus.” The song is special and introspective. Still, Ye takes a bit of time to stunt after reminiscing over the early days with his mother and mentor NO I.D. He raps, “N***as hustle everyday for a beat from Ye / What I do? Turn around, give them beats to Jay / Now I’m rapping on the beats people supposed to buy / I guess I’m getting high on my own supply.” The song oozes soul and, with his second appearance on the album, Frank Ocean’s inclusion alone proves he is a force to be reckoned with.

“Why I Love You,” which features G.O.O.D. Music's Mr. Hudson, offers a pleasing return the worldly musings offered throughout Watch The Throne. The song chorus repeats, “Ooh, I love you so, but why I love you, I never know.” Jay handles the first verse and most of the second with lines like: “Charge it to the game, whatever’s left on it / I spent about a minute maybe less on it / Fly pelican fly, turn the jets on it / But first I shall digress on it.” Before the verse is over Kanye joins and weaves lines in and out of Jay’s. They continue this pattern for most of the third verse amidst the elevating beat and violins. All to soon it ends and Watch the Throne comes to a screeching close.

“Why I Love You,” is a fitting finale for Watch The Throne. Jay-Z and Kanye have taken a creative position where its impossible not to care. Love and hate are close relatives and both can succumb to emotional notions in fans and critics alike. This album is a creative victory at worse and at its very best, a paradigm shift for Hip-Hop. Now, it is time for the listeners to contend with their real feelings towards Watch The Throne.

Click here to purchase Watch The Throne, exclusively on iTunes.

Watch the Throne Tracklisting (Deluxe Version)

1. No Church in the Wild (Feat. Frank Ocean)
2. Lift Off (Feat. Beyoncé)
3. Ni---s in Paris
4. Otis (Feat. Otis Redding)
5. Gotta Have It
6. New Day
7. Prime Time
8. Who Gon Stop Me
9. Murder to Excellence
10. Welcome to The Jungle
11. Sweet Baby Jesus (Feat. Frank Ocean)
12. Love You So (Feat. Mr Hudson)

Bonus

13. Illest Mother----er Alive
14. H*A*M
15. That’s My Bi---
16. The Joy (Feat. Curtis Mayfield)

Jay-Z Talks Watch the Throne; His Relationship With President Obama

2011-08-02T20:05:00.000-07:00

Rapper Jay-Z stopped by Hot 97 yesterday (August 2nd), where he discussed a number of topics, including reports surrounding his upcoming album with Kanye West, titled Watch the Throne and his relationship with President Barack Obama.

During the interview with Angie Martinez, Jay-Z addressed growing reports that he and Kanye West were feuding over details of the upcoming Watch the Throne tour, which is slated to kick off September 22nd in Detroit, Michigan.

"We have a healthy respect for one another and I know exactly where he's [Kanye] coming from," Jay-Z said. "It's always about the art and you have to respect that. And again, I've said that people who don't respect that, don't enjoy being pushed in that way."

Jay-Z also addressed criticism surrounding the pre-release of Watch the Throne, which angered a number of independent record stores across the country, who believe they will lose out on physical sales due to the Internet.

“As far as making this album, we took eight months," Jay-Z continued. "We should be able to release it the way we like, without everybody being up in arms. The real reason behind it is that we didn't want it to leak. We wanted to present it to the people in its entirety."

As for Watch the Throne leaking, Jay-Z said that would not happen.

According to Jay, the album has been guarded tightly since the initial recording sessions began.

Jay-Z also discussed his relationship with President Barack Obama, who he has met on several occasions.

Jay-Z detailed a trip to Washington D.C. , where he dined with Mayor Adrian Fenty and then headed to the White House, for a meeting with the Commander in Chief, of the United States of America.

According to Jay-Z, President Barack Obama is the “second coolest person in the world…," next to himself, noting that he received a "positive reaction" from the President.

"It's very humbling, it's weird, but I love it," Jay-Z said.

Game Says He Will Sign With Cash Money Records After Interscope

2011-07-27T00:16:00.000-07:00

Game has revealed that he is considering signing with Cash Money Records after his Interscope Records contract is fulfilled. With only one more album left on the plate following the August 23rd release of R.E.D. Album, the Compton, California native explains that he plans on abandoning Interscope and signing with the house that Birdman and Slim built.

"We been playing with the idea of going over to Cash Money or trying to marry that and Black Wall Street,” he told XXLMag.com. “So, we’ll figure it out before the end of the day. I definitely think that’s where I’ll probably end up. Cause they winning, they want to win and I been winning and want to continue to win.”

Game, who explained that his relationship with Birdman dates back to before he dropped his debut The Documentary, has collaborated with Cash Money's Lil Wayne several times throughout his career. On an unreleased track from R.E.D. Album titled "All I Know," Chuck Taylor speaks on the label proposal.

Wiz Khalifa Earns Gold Certification For "Rolling Papers"

2011-07-27T00:10:00.000-07:00

Wiz Khalifa has earned gold certification for his debut album Rolling Papers, released March 29, 2011. The Taylor Gang leader celebrated crossing the 500,000 units mark with a celebration at Rostrum Records and Atlantic Records.

So far, Wiz has several platinum plaques thanks to the success of the album. His smash “Black and Yellow” has been certified triple platinum for sales of over three-million units, while his follow-up “Roll Up” earned platinum status in June.

Rolling Papers bowed at No. 2 on the Billboard 200 with 197,000 copies sold in its first week.

2Pac's "Greatest Hits" Goes Diamond Status

2011-07-27T00:00:00.000-07:00

It's been 15 years since his murder, but Tupac's legacy continues on. Just weeks after his 40th birthday anniversary, which featured a performance of Meek Mill and Rick Ross's "Tupac Back," the late Shakur gets another victory, with his Greatest Hits album reaching Diamond status on the Billboard charts.

Earlier this June, the RIAA announced that the two-disc collection sold another million copies, pushing its total sales since its 1998 release to 10 million. The album has ultimately edged-out '96s All Eyez on Me to become Shakur's biggest selling album and marks his first time reaching Diamond status in his career.

Greatest Hits is noted for featuring four previously unreleased tracks from the legendary rapper and a number of re-edited versions of previously released songs. The album's single "Changes" also helped earn Pac the first and only posthumous Grammy Award nomination since for Best Rap Solo Performance.

The song "God Bless the Dead" is particularly well known for a lyric in Pac says, "Rest in peace to my motherfucker Biggy Smallz." While many misinterpreted to be a reference to former foe Notorious B.I.G., who passed after Pac's death, the lyric was actually a reference to an assoicate of Stretch of the Live Squad, who was featured on the very song.

Jay Z Teases Journalist with "Watch the Throne" Private Listening Party

2011-07-12T00:46:00.000-07:00

Jay-Z and Kanye West are finally ready to let heads into their proverbial Throne Room. A listening session for their collaborative album Watch The Throne—easily one of the most anticipated albums of the year, regardless of genre—is going down for select media tonight at a secret location in New York City. I will be there on behalf of MTV News to get a first listen in on the project that Yeezy and Hova have been working on for a good minute, keeping fans and media alike wondering what the final product will sounds like.

As for the visuals, the album’s artwork—created by Givenchy designer Riccardo Tisci—was revealed over the weekend. Rumors that circulated previously saying the album would be released over the July 4th holiday proved to be suspect, but the album will be shipping on August 2, 2011. That’s the date given to customers who have already chosen to pre-order the album, which comes in a standard and deluxe edition. Also, there is no solid tracklist that has been made available, yet.

While Jay-Z and Kanye are the epitome of Hip-Hop cool with plentiful hits between them, you can’t help but feel that the pressure is on to deliver a grand slam with Watch The Throne. Jay-Z’s star power has only escalated through the years, eluding the usual trajectory of the older rapper whose luster and skills, and fanbase, has faded over the years. As for Kanye, he’s gone from being the Roc’s go-to producer with rapping aspirations to becoming one of music’s biggest stars.

Considering that Watch the Throne morphed from an EP to a full on album, then took longer than expected to get a legitimate release date, the two marquee Hip-Hop artists are keenly aware only exceptional music will be tolerated. Even Yeezy’s protégé Big Sean, who didn’t make the cut (neither did Pusha T), is saying that “the intro is like, damn!" Jigga also appears to be taking special care on the business side of the project, too. He raised eyebrows by opting to forgo iTunes with this release.

So will this Hip-Hop dream tandem live up the stratospheric hype? Stay tuned to MTV RapFix and on Twitter at @MTVRapFix as I will be relaying a play by play (who made the beat, who drops a guest verse, etc) of the long player the good Hov and Yeezy are set to deliver. Keep watching.

Eminem Becomes First Artist To Sell 1 Million Digital Copies In U.S.

2011-07-05T20:45:00.000-07:00

Detroit rapper Eminem has become the first artists ever, to sell 1 million digital copies of an album in the United States.

Eminem's latest album Recovery has sold over 1 million copies since being released in June of 2010.

The Grammy award-winning album debuted at #1 on Billboard's Top 200 charts upon its release.

Recovery is now the best-selling digital album of all time.

His latest album Hell: The Sequel with Royce Da 5'9 as Bad Meets Evil, also debuted at #1 when it was released in June of 2011, making Eminem the first artist in the past five years to score two #1 albums, within a 12 month period.

"Recovery selling one million digital albums is an incredible achievement by an incredible artist," added Interscope Records' Vice Chairman Steve Berman. "I have had the pleasure of working with Eminem throughout the course of his career, and I'm delighted to be a part of yet another milestone on his amazing journey."

In related news, Bad Meet Evil recently released a new single titled “LEighters,” featuring Bruno Mars.

Eminem has become the first artist to sell one million digital copies of an album in the United States with his 2010 release Recovery.

With his collaboration Hell: The Sequel with Royce Da 5’9 hitting the top of the charts in its first week, Em also became the first artist in five years to have two No. 1 albums within a 12-month period.

“Recovery selling one million digital albums is an incredible achievement by an incredible artist,” said Interscope Records’ Vice Chairman Steve Berman in a statement. “I have had the pleasure of working with Eminem throughout the course of his career, and I’m delighted to be a part of yet another milestone on his amazing journey.”

“We are thrilled to congratulate Eminem on the history-making digital sales success of Recovery,” added Em’s manager Paul Rosenberg. “Over the years we've made a concerted effort to engage Em's online fan base so this achievement is especially rewarding. Eminem made an amazing album with Recovery and the fans responded in record numbers."

Jay-Z Partnering With Soccer Player Ashley Cole To Open 40/40 Club In London, England

2011-07-05T20:41:00.000-07:00

Jay-Z is planning to expand his 40/40 franchise, partnering with soccer player Ashley Cole to open The 40/40 London next year.

The multi-million pound deal, brokered by the NVA Entertainment Group, will be the first of several ventures between Hov and Cole. "London is one of the most vibrant and exciting cities in the world and the perfect location for our new venue," Jay-Z said in a statement. “I'm excited about working with Ashley and NVA Entertainment Group on a range of new projects and The 40/40 London is going to be the hottest place in town."

The new 40/40 club will feature an American-themed menu for its restaurant/bar, with a location to be announced in August. Jay and Cole will hold a grand opening party for the latest addition to the franchise, which already includes establishments in five U.S. cities.

Lil Wayne, Eminem Go Into Guinness World Records on Social Media Day

2011-07-03T21:34:00.000-07:00

World famous rappers Lil Wayne and Eminem have made the Guinness World Records, the company announced today (June 30th), to coincide with Social Media Day.

According to Guinness, Lil Wayne's Facebook page has the Most "Likes" on a Facebook Item.

The rapper's fans posted 668,198 comments, in response to a post made on February 15, 2011, challenging the previous record set by Oreo cookies.

Lil Wayne's fans took the award away from the iconic cookie brand by posting over a half-a-million comments, in less than 24 hours.

Eminem's official page is in the Top 5 pages on Facebook, with 42.5 million "Likes," alongside major brands like Facebook's own page, YouTube.com, Zynga and pop artist, Lady Gaga.

While these records were impressive Guinness world records is community manager Dan Barrett said that more records would be broken over the next five years.

"There's still a world of possibility in the social media space for new records as services emerge and existing ones increase their penetration," Barrett told AllHipHop.com in a statement. "There are a few landmark figures which will surely be passed in the next few years, who will be the first Twitter user to amass 100 million followers? Which Facebook page will be the first to reach 100 million likes? Whoever it is, you can be sure that Guinness World Records will be there to recognise all of these milestone achievements."

50 Cent Talks His Relationship With Eminem And Dr. Dre, Nicki Minaj's Ass

2011-07-03T21:31:00.000-07:00

50 Cent speaks on his mentors and discusses Nicki Minaj's infamous backside.

In a recent interview on "Big Boy's Neighborhood" on radio station Power 106, 50 Cent discussed a gamut of topics, including the other two parts of Aftermath's "three-headed-monster," Eminem and Dr. Dre.

"You don't really expect to have someone come into your life... that you know has nothing but good intentions," said 50 of Eminem. "He made so much money selling records that he don't really have interest in a lot of the other stuff... So for me, they'll be asking me questions...about the deals I do away from music. For Dre, the big thing was the 'Beats,' the headset."

50 also touched on Dr. Dre, with whom he had a brief spat about becoming a potential competitor with Dre's headphone line. "I love Dre...Without 'In Da Club' and Dre's guidance on the first record...none of those other things would've happened!" explained Fif. "That's the biggest record of my career still! Dre can be difficult at times, and not intentionally. He can be on his own and in his world...like the [headphone thing], we had to clear that up face-to-face, me and Dre, personally." 50 stopped short of saying he was surprised that he was not included in the "Beats by Dre" headset line, but he did point out that Diddy was given an opportunity to get involved, which may appear odd as he is outside of the Aftermath family.

The Queens emcee was also asked about Nicki Minaj's ass, and whether it was the real deal. "I don't know. Does it matter?" he asked, before opining that many in the industry were guilty of getting butt implants.

J. Cole Talks Touring With Rihanna, Jay-Z And Kanye West's "Watch The Throne"

2011-07-03T21:30:00.000-07:00

The Roc Nation artist explains how touring has helped him grow, as well as his mentor's collabo album with Kanye.

While Hip Hop fans await J. Cole's debut, Cole World: The Sideline Story, the North Carolina rapper has been busy on tour.

"I felt like they had me on the road too much," said Cole in an interview with Billboard.com."I was getting frustrated because they didn't have me in the studio as much as other artists. I was working every chance I could, but I was also on the road so much."

Cole explained that Jay-Z changed his opinion of touring. "But Jay said, 'you need to be on the road, because that's when you're going to get the best material. Just living and being on tour, experiencing all these different cities and seeing what works.' And he's right, that's how 'The Blow Up' came [about]."

J. Cole has been the opener for Rihanna's "Loud" tour, a spot previously held by Cee-Lo, who had to give it up due to other obligations. "It's amazing. Every night I'm performing in front of a ton of people who've never heard of me and have the opportunity to win a lot of people over."

And, as rumors heat up about Jay-Z and Kanye's Watch the Throne, Cole could offer little more than, "I don't know a date, but I asked him [Jay-Z] how it was and he just had that look on his face like it was fucking crazy."

J. Cole's Cole World: The Sideline Story is due in stores September 27.