I have no explanation why I woke up with this song in my head. The music junkie’s brain processes memories to the forefront rather strangely. Regardless, it got me charged; hearing the those thunderous 808s blare from whatever contraption Organized Noize developed them from. It’s also funny how an ambiguous pairing of Mystikal and Outkast could thread the lines of squeaky clean-Dirty South funk.

On paper, you’d think Mystikal would’ve got destroyed, ripped to shreds. Although he had finally emerged as his own man after his enlistment on No Limit Records, this was Outkast at the height of their media darling takeover. MC Mystikal still earned a ribbon with his own lyrical branding, especially with the line “I wash ‘em up/ring ‘em out and throw ‘em in the dryer!!!”

Of course The Brothers Stankonia bodied the track. Big Boi ran laps around the beat like his name was Michael Johnson (the metaphor works for the song’s timeframe) and Dré…well…I mean…you hear it.

Snag this and turn it up LOUD. Picturesque lyricism in abundance.

Download — Mystikal Feat. Outkast - “Neck Uv Da Woods”

Assuming this is a leftover that didn’t make the album. *Shrugs* I’m adding it to my folder anyways, then to the iPod. Direct from 9th Wonderful via his Twitter.

If they aren’t stocking the album in your area, Wale says to holler @ him so he can holler @ them people. Guess I got lucky because I went to “the other side of town,” copped with no problems and have no understanding of the shenanigans others speak of.

Download — Wale - “Beast” (Prod. by 9th Wonder)

The nod: DDot

“Black, my family thick, like they’re striped molasses/Star, on the rise, in the eyes of the masses/Black is the color of my true love’s hair/Star’s are bright, shining, hot balls of air..”

Straight swiped the pic from Va$htie’s abode. No particular reason except I saw it, liked it and the only thing I could hear once I saw it (read that again) was Kweli’s lines from “Astronomy.” I <3 imagery in all its forms.

She wears Cookies so she’s okay by me. The fresh is respected.

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Weathermen - The Conspiracy

9th Wonder - 9th Invented the Remix

Reks - Grey Hairs

Atmosphere - God Loves Ugly

Wu-Tang Clan - Acapella Album

Atmosphere - Leak At Will

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GZA - Pro Tools

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For those of you plotting out your plan of attack for next week, Gizmodo published “Black Friday Deals: The Only List You Need,” running down a variety of available steals and deals on electronics for you diehard deal finders.

Moi? I’m too lazy and none too fond of crowds to deal with Black Friday. And even the deals come with one too many stipulations that make it a borderline hoax, to which CNN agrees and suggests that some of the best buys are available online now if you’re observant.

So, have your fun. I’ll be @ home sleeping in. But if you’re feeling gracious, I’ll send my list by one of you.

Even though it didn’t beat the buzzer, KG’s 75-feet heave-shot was remarkable in Thursday night’s game against the Warriors.

[Dime]

Ghost fans might want to add this to their action figure and imitation golden eagle bracelet. As part of their Originals series, Adidas put out a Ghostface version of their Stan Smith sneaker including details on the heel, ankle and his mug on the tongue, reminiscent of Jam Master Jay’s shelltoe.

Conceptually, I was game for these, but I’m not really feeling the color scheme. Maybe they should hit up Raheem DeVaughn and ask for a “Do Over,” without me trying to attempt to sing the hook.

Swiped from Sneaker Files

Racing games, for many, aren’t user friendly outside of Mario-Kart. Sim-racing franchises like Forza and Gran Turismo are popular with car nuts and basement dwellers alike. Still, they mostly boast unapologetic learning curves that push newcomers away. It’s refreshing that Forza 3, the latest Xbox 360 exclusive from Turn 10 Studios, manages to walk the fine line between realism and ease of use. But does it take first place or stall out midway in the race? Read on and find out.

Forza 3 comes with a gang of options to tailor your racing experience. You’ll start your career with the game’s guide, fully equipped with a British accent, asking you if you’re a casual, regular or experienced driver. After that you take part in a “diagnostic” race of sorts. Then the game sets up a number of aids and assists based on your performance on the track. From there, you take part in a series of races each season, get paid (exceptionally so for podium finishes), rank up, buy and get rewarded with cars. The career formula isn’t wildly different from prior installments outside of the yearly set up. The hook is the guide , which explains menus clearly across all modes. For instance, the diagnostic race is nothing new in the genre. But after that you all too often find yourself on your own. It can be off-putting to rookies: especially those not familiar with cars.  Forza 3’s assistant is helpful in showing new jacks around and it allows you to shut the assistant off once you figure things out.

All this is fine and dandy but it doesn’t mean anything if the game spins out on the track. Thankfully isn’t the case in Forza 3. The handling model is the smoothest, most merciful system I’ve ever seen in a sim. Games like these are often chastised for making cars fresh off the lot feel more like boats. This forces racers to grind with stock parts until they upgrade them towards a more manageable ride. Most of the stock cars feel great when you drive them and they’re still upgradeable. They all handle differently and some are more unyielding than others. But that’s more due to how they’re made rather than the game arbitrarily making them a hassle to drive.

For instance, rear wheel drive cars are notorious in sims for having ridiculous over steer effects. In Forza 3 this is on a car to car basis. A stock Porsche 911 GT 2 is RWD yet it’s one of the smoothest cars in the game as it’s one of the slickest rides in real life. Meanwhile a stock Ford GT, also RWD, is a lil’ chunkier around the corners. They have over steer issues from time to time but they’re manageable with a bit of practice. On top of that, you can ride with the assists on and barely feel any control loss. Then again, in classic Forza fashion you get much bigger monetary bonuses when you race with them off. Its open ended racing model is a welcoming environment, yet long time fans can still satiate their hardcore fix if they choose.

The new (offline only) rewind feature is yet another olive branch to those green to racing sims. Messed up a turn? Just press the back button and the game will do that good Casper slide reverse to the moment before you screwed up. You can’t control where the game places you but it does a good job of resetting your car to a manageable point. If you’re still not satisfied, you can rewind further until the game forces you to stop. Once again, it’s not a brand new innovation but it’s a welcome addition to a genre known for its unrelenting difficulty.

My time with Forza 3 has been quite enjoyable, but I there are some questionable design choices in an otherwise buy-worthy game. First off, online multiplayer still only supports eight racers. This has been a standard since the first Forza so I hoped the franchise would graduate to a field of 16 or more for the bigger tracks. Tracks like Le Mans that, in real life hold 50 cars, feel flat out vacant with just eight at most. Additionally, the new matchmaking system currently omits many car classes, game modes, tracks and options found in private lobbies. The devs said the playlists will change and evolve over time but it’s pretty bar bones right now. If you’re planning on racing online with a variety of modes you might want to beef up your friends list and set up your own games. Matchmaking isn’t a game breaking feature but so far it doesn’t fit for a game that’s so option rich.

So what else is there to say that hasn’t been said? Obviously the game is jaw dropping, has a good sense of speed and it’s one of the best looking games I’ve seen on the 360. The storefront is pretty dope as well. You can buy and rate custom made tuning setups, car designs and vinyls made by the dedicated Forza community. Hell, you can even make your own designs, vinyls, and tuning settings and upload them for sale. Players can also view and upload pictures and replays as well as swing buy the auction house for user made deals on new and used automobiles. Let’s not forget the game already comes with over 400 cars and 100 tracks. So many games these days aren’t worth $60 but there’s enough here to warrant the asking price. It’s one of my favorite games of the year so I encourage cats to give it a test drive whenever they get the chance.

The motorboatable Marie Blanchard

Five Things We Learned From The Miss Universe Sex Tapes [Gunaxin]

If Wonder Woman Comics Were More Honest [Cracked]

15 Creative Anti-Smoking Ads [Uncoached]

Salute Your Shorts: The Golden Age of Television [Paste]

Sony Wants To Take On iTunes [Hypebot]

Wesley Snipes Appeals 3 Tax Convictions In Georgia [AP]

50 Hottest College Basketball Dance Teams [Manofest]

14 Manliest Things In The Universe [Top Cultured]

Oprah’s Blackest Moments [The Root]

Top 50 Music Video Girls Of The 2000s [Complex]

Oh Mary, You Make It Too Easy [TRU]

The Lakers Are The Best Team In The League For A Reason [Hardwood Paroxysm]

Father Murders Son For Molesting Daughter [HHW]

TSS Shirts For $11 [TSS]

He’s on fire! © NBA Jams. NY seems to have done wonders for our favorite NO emcee, given the recent tracks that have hit the net showcasing his sharp wit and tongue. Reading the chatter between Spit Vicious and Cannon, it looks like Smokey Robinson is in the can. Early early today, he fired off the Mos-produced “Breakfast” into the ethers. Then with the audios released over the past few weeks, it’s all Candyland around this motherfucker.

Really, there’s only one thing left that would make me happier and it looks like it’s on the way.

Jea. A new episode of Mythblazers, that pioneering internet series crafted by North Tower & TSS and featuring Spitta. Truth be told, I think Spit mentioned it first, handing me the gauntlet in front of the A3C crowd. With schedules and stoner tendencies that circulate through all of us, it’s been more than a challenge getting motivated to make it happen but it’s about time. Now, I’m sending you all through to get him started and get these filmed while he’s in NY.

Hi, Curr!

If you’re Twittering, go through and let that man know (@CurrenNSy_spitta) you’re in support of the idea. Then tell your friends to do the same. Tell’em to bring Wiz too.

Download — Curren$y - “Breakfast (In & Out)” (Prod. By Mos Def)

Touring isn’t what it used to be. I told you that they weren’t letting anyone backstage @ the BP3 show and J. Cole spoke on how there weren’t any groupies gettin’ their back out as far as he could see. Bummer. I think we all grow up having wet dreams where floozy after floozy in countless city comes through…well I ain’t tellin’ you my dreams.

We all have a romanticized perception of what the life of an entertainer is supposed to be composed of. In most cases, I assume it’s still made up of those things, otherwise Gucci wouldn’t be risking violating his parole, chasing the checks and the lights of the night life. Same for Boosie, word to anal-pill-insertion, I mean because you can’t get that type of action out of no regular bitch from the city. But this was Mr. Carter’s ship and it’s a tightly run affair. So what do you do after tearing down the stage in front of packed crowds?

If you’re Wale & J. Cole, you kick a freestyle @ Denny’s while UCB keeps the beat.

And regardless of what these fuckboys tell you, this is why both of these guys have my support. Don’t let random Twittering or some pulled quote from an interview let you get the game twisted. These guys are just as authentic as the ashiest-elbowed trap rapper you can imagine and their love for the art is true. And the future of rap is in safe hands.

[YN's Crib]

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El Prez x DJ Printz x Eazee St Present Feature PREZentation

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