Archive for September, 2010

LL Cool J Promises No “Pop Mash-Up Nonsense” On New Album

Posted: September 30, 2010 in Music News
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LL Cool J is putting everyone on notice to not expect his next album to have the pop stylings of today’s commercial Hip-Hop.

With 25 years in the music industry and 12 studio albums under his belt, LL Cool  J has lived through numerous trends in Hip-Hop culture. He admits that while working on his latest project, he attempted to style his sound to appeal to current radio sensibilities. However, LL found the pop experimentation ultimately unsatisfying and is now taking his time to come up with something creative and unique for his fans.

“I’m not gonna do some sort of repurposed, reprocessed, cookie-cutter, manufactured, pop mash-up nonsense,” LL declared to the UK’s Metro. “That’s why it’s taking so long, because I just can’t do that. The few times I’ve dipped my toe in that kind of murk, I just didn’t like it.”

LL Cool J’s use of the word “murk” is an apt description of how he views the creativity of today’s mainstream Hip-Hop. Instead of a vast palate of production, lyricism and content, LL Cool J sees artists celebrating conformity over artistic daring and progression. The result is a music that was once cutting edge, has now become uninspired.

“I’m not interested in just trying to fit in,” he affirmed. “When you listen to the radio I mean God, man, it sounds like everybody’s just trying to sound as close to the last thing that came out as they can because it’s safe – it gets really boring.”

At press time, LL Cool J does not have a name or tentative release date for the new album. Earlier this week, the accomplished emcee celebrated his second consecutive nomination for induction into the Rock n Roll Hall of Fame.

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So does this means the Ripper is set to make a return? You know its bad when LL is disgusted by what he’s hearing on the radio. For the majority of his career, Cool J has been successful in adapting his sound to the accessible radio stylings of the day, while balancing harder tracks to show his lyrical chops. So for him to not even want to be bothered with doing what passes as mainstream Hip-Hop these days says a lot.

On the good side, that means no auto-tuned-laced LL Cool J love songs, which is a blessing for everyone’s ears. With LL’s longevity, there of course have been some questionable moves and duds littered across the resume. But even in the 21st century, when LL is on, he is ON. Don’t be surprised if Cool J delivers some heat on the next project.

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David Haye Aims to Retire After 2011, Still Targeting Both Klitschkos

Posted: September 30, 2010 in Fight News
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After Audley Harrison, David Haye sees only two more bouts against the Klitschko brothers before he’ll hang up the gloves.

The WBA heavyweight champion will face former friend Audley Harrison on November 13 in what many see as a huge mismatch in Haye’s favor. If successful, Haye plans to defeat both Klitschkos in 2011 to cap off his career. Over the last year and a half, Haye has publicly sparred with the Klitschkos over who is the blame for their fights falling through at the negotiation table.

“I’m now getting close to achieving all my goals as a professional, and the final goal I have left to reach is unification of the world heavyweight titles,” Haye told The Telegraph. “I’ve already unified the world cruiserweight belts and now I’m hellbent on doing the same as a heavyweight. Once all that’s tied up, what left is there to achieve?”

Haye, who turns 30 next weekend, cites the careers of Roy Jones and Lennox Lewis as the basis for his decision. Jones was atop the boxing world and pound for pound lists after he defeated John Ruiz for a portion of heavyweight crown in 2003. Haye argues that Jones should have retired, but damaged his legacy but carrying on too long and suffering embarrassing defeats as his skills diminished.

“Roy Jones, Jr. should retired after beating John Ruiz in 2003 to win a world heavyweight title. He had won world titles in four divisions, was the pound-for-pound best fighter in the sport and had nothing left to prove,” Haye detailed. “Instead, pride got the better of him, he moved back down the divisions and ended up getting horribly knocked out multiple times. He’s still scrapping around today, trying to grab on to past glories. There are loads of other examples, too.”

On the other hand, former heavyweight champion Lennox Lewis retired with the title and the distinction of having defeated every man he’s faced in the ring. While tempted to meet Vitali Klitschko in a rematch, Lewis realized at age 38 he longer had the physical ability to compete at the sport’s highest level, and left millions of dollars on the table. It’s something other former champions like Larry Holmes, Muhmmad Ali, and Joe Louis failed to do late in their careers.

“My main inspiration is Lennox , as he was a guy that just about managed to get out in time, with a title to his name and his faculties still together,” Haye lauded. “He retired on top, as world heavyweight champion, and with nothing left to prove.”

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I had high hopes (still do) when David Haye first moved to heavyweight. I felt he had the cocky, brash attitude and boxer-puncher style that would breathe life into the heavyweight division. Unfortunately, injuries and the contract issues with the Klitschkos have really stifled his momentum. And of course this latest bout with Audley Harrison isn’t going to do him any favors.

There is still time to make amends. Should he face and beat both Klitschkos in 2011, all will be forgiven. But if that happened, could he stick to his word? He’ll be showered with praise and viewed as the savior of the heavyweight division. Could Haye, who loves the spotlight, simply walk away from all that?

He isn’t the first fighter to impose that “retire at 30 years old” deadline, either. Oscar De La Hoya said the same thing throughout his 20s, only to hang around half a decade longer until he was 35.

This may be a moot discussion because defeating one Klitschko, let alone two, is a daunting task that no fighter has ever done. But I can’t wait to see David Haye try…

The RIAA Still Doesn’t Get It

Posted: September 30, 2010 in Hip-Hop Editorial
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I woke up this morning to a nice copyright infringing notice from the RIAA (Recording Industry Association of America). The issue for them was last week’s Blue Friday song from Lloyd Banks. The track is part of Banks’ free song campaign to promote his upcoming Hunger For More 2 album. Apparently, the RIAA didn’t get the notice, because they informed me that I wasn’t authorized to post a free, promotional song. See below.

We have learned that your service is hosting the above web sites on your
network. These sites are offering direct links to files containing sound
recordings for other users to download by the artists known as A-Ha,
Lloyd Banks, Hot Chip, Young Jeezy, and Kylie.  These recordings are
owned by our member companies and have not been authorized for this kind
of use. We have a good faith belief that the above-described activity is
not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent, or the law.  We assert
that the information in this notification is accurate, based upon the
data available to us.

In good faith, I don’t think the RIAA knows the difference between its right and left hand. I’m almost positive they have no idea that Banks is doing this to build interest for an actual album that would generate some revenue for the RIAA. They simply saw an artist’s name they have a stake in, and couldn’t even fathom for a second the artist could be deliberately releasing free music as a “thank you” to his fans.

But since they don’t know, I’ll take this opportunity to educate. I’ve sent out correspondence on the matter, and I’ll let you know when and if I get a response. We should all take this as another reminder that the dinosaur that is the RIAA will continue kicking and screaming until the very end.

 

Kanye West Cancels This Week’s G.O.O.D. Friday Over Hacker Leaks

Posted: September 30, 2010 in Music News
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Due to hackers releasing unfinished tracks off his new album, Kanye West has announced the cancellation of this week’s G.O.O.D. Friday song.

This afternoon, blogs began posting unfinished leaks of ”Lost in the World,” “All of the Lights,” and “Touch It.” Early reports state that an unidentified hacker obtained the tracks and then bids from blog sites who wished to have the tracks first.

West took to Twitter to express his immense disappointment with the hacking. For over a month, Kanye has been releasing free music every week featuring high-profile guests like Jay-Z, Rick Ross, Mos Def, Nicki Minaj, Charlie Wilson, John Legend, and Pusha T. Earlier today, Lloyd Banks gave fans a heads up that he would be on this week’s G.O.O.D. Friday, which may also feature Nas. That song’s release is now in doubt.

“Due to blogs leaking unfinished songs from my actual album I’ve decided to pass on G.O.O.D. Fridays this week,” Kanye stated. “It’s messed up that one hacker can mess everything up for everyone. I love to take a year to finish my songs and deliver them to you guys in there most completed form.”

West further detailed the work he has put in daily to make sure fans received high quality every week for G.O.O.D. Friday. The G.O.O.D. Music founder also has been juggling time for his Watch the Throne EP with Jay-Z, an upcoming special performance for Saturday Night Live, and completing a 40-minute film for the song ”Runaway.”

“It would have seemed like since I give free music every week, even the lowest form of human being would respect that enough not to leak unfinished songs from my real album,” he continued. “I’m in the studio or editing suite every night to 3AM finishing the film and the album or practicing for my SNL performance. We’ve got four engineers mixing the album to finish it as soon as possible.”

At press time, Kanye West has not canceled next week’s (October 8) G.O.O.D. Friday edition.

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I think in 2010 most artists have come to the realization that they’re albums will leak at minimum a week before the actual release date. But I don’t think any of them can ever be content with the idea of their art being disseminated all over the net while they’re still in the creative process.

Unfortunately, it’s going to be some time (if ever) before journalism ethics becomes normal Hip-Hop blogger protocol. These days the concern for many is simply being the first to report news or a new song instead of being the one who gets the story right. Because of that disturbing reality, we gets cases like this with everyone falling over themselves to post an unfinished song hoping for a few extra site hits.

Kanye has a great thing going with G.O.O.D. Friday. It’s a perfect example of how an artist should mobilize his fanbase. So I sincerely hope he doesn’t let this latest nonsense deter too much from his vision.

New Music: A Doctor Enlists Budden/Kweli/Sean Price, Janelle Monae on DWTS, Nottz & Black Milk, Boog Brown Finds Her Love

Posted: September 29, 2010 in Music News
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Producer Doc Ish Gets Busy

The name Doc Ish is not registering with you? You’ll get familiar very soon. The Dallas producer already has a Grammy under his belt for his work on Eminem’s “We Made You.” Even with the success of having a lead single of double platinum album, Doc Ish is poised to make a lot fo noise on the underground scene. His debut album Doc Ish Presents: The First Treatment features appearances from Kool G Rap, KRS-One, Crooked I, Saigon, Red Cafe, Termanalogy, Joell Ortiz and many more.

To kick off the project, Doc Ish brings together Joe Budden, Sean Price and Talib Kweli for “Is It a Dream.” Doc Ish’s debut will be available on October 26.

Doc Ish feat. Joe Budden, Sean Price and Talib Kweli “Is It a Dream”

 

Janelle Monae On Dancing With the Stars

Janelle Monae recently made a stop on the popular series Dancing With the Stars to perform The ArchAndroid’s lead single “Tightrope.” Monae continues to be slept on by the masses so its great to see her get this type of exposure. The album’s latest single, “Cold War,” was released last month.

 

Nottz and Black Milk Have a Black

Detroit’s Black Milk just dropped his own Album of Year project recently. So when Virginia native Nottz was looking for a partner to rock over some boom bap arrangements, recruiting Milk was a no-brainer. Both emcees/producers, the pair had no issues building chemistry.

“I felt like Black Milk was the right person for the job for a real ‘bring the boom bap back’ type record,” Nottz said. “Something for the new generation to hear.”

Nottz’ You Need This Music album has a release date of October 26.

Nottz feat. Black Milk “Blast That”

 

Boog Brown Finds Love

 

Boog Brown’s latest single from Brown Study is “My Love,” which showcases soul singer Poodie The Byz on the chorus. What you’ll notice right off the bat is it’s not the sappy, synth-saturated love tracks that the radio has been fond of promoting these days. That’s not an accident, as Brown explains she wanted to approach the topic of love with maturity.

“Trying to find that balance with romance in this type of industry that I am in can be difficult,” Boog said to Beats, Boxing and Mayhem. “I wanted to write a true love song that wasn’t all cheese.”

Brown Study is completely produced by Apollo Brown and available now on iTunes.

Boog Brown feat. Poodie the Byz “My Love”

 

 

Former World Champion Laila Ali Expecting Second Child, Speaks on Father’s Love of Children

Posted: September 29, 2010 in Fight News
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Former super-middleweight and light-heavyweight champion Laila Ali has announced today that she and husband Curtis Conway are expecting their second child.

Ali confirmed the news today via a video message on People magazine’s website. The couple’s first child, Curtis, Jr., was born in 2008. They will wait until birth to confirm the baby’s sex, but Laila verified that she is hopeful for a girl this time. In addition, she praised her father and boxing legend Muhammad Ali for the attention he gives his current grandchildren.

“I am pregnant again! I’m three months, and I’m so excited, my family is excited,” said an all-smiles Ali. “I’m hoping it’s a girl this time!…My dad is an excellent grandfather. He loves kids. He loves to kiss them to death.”

Now 32 years old and several years removed from her boxing career, Laila Ali revealed that weight control has become a concern. With this pregnancy, she is being more mindful of her monitoring her eating habits and fighting pregnancy cravings.

“I’ve noticed I’m putting on weight faster this time, I started showing sooner,” she explained. “Staying fit is a challenge, even if you are a former world-class athlete such as myself, because you just don’t have the energy that you used to have. Also, I have to hold myself back because I want to work harder than I’m able to…Pregnancy isn’t ‘I can eat whatever I want,’ because you have to remember you’re going to be stuck with a lot of that weight afterwards that you need to try to get off. So I don’t recommend grubbing.”

Laila Ali competed as a professional boxer from 1999-2007, and became the most popular woman in the sport. Although she retired with an unblemished record of 24-0 (21 KOs), she’s faced criticism for not facing contemporaries like Ann Wolfe and Leatitia Robinson.

Laila Ali’s child is due in April 2011. For all the latest news, visit her personal website
http://www.lailaali.com/

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Congrats to Laila Ali and her family on this joyous occasion. I actually got the chance to see Ali in the ring back in 2005. A lot of people forget that she had real talent: good strength, athleticism and coordination that many females in her division lacked.

Unfortunately, her career didn’t bring women’s boxing mainstream like many had hoped. And that can be tied to the big fight that never materialized between her and Ann Wolfe. For those who were following women’s boxing at the time, that was THE FIGHT everyone wanted.

Hmmm, looks like I’ve nailed down my next post for the Mythical Matchup section…

IBF Blocks Wladimir Klitschko-James Toney Title Match

Posted: September 29, 2010 in Fight News
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The IBF is citing “inactivity” as the reason James Toney will not receive a shot at their title on December 11 against Wladimir Klitschko.

Since making his heavyweight debut seven years ago, Toney has campaigned in the press for a shot at either Klitschko, referring to them by insulting nicknames like “The Bitchko Sisters.” Several fight talks have fallen through before, and this time Toney lays the blame solely at the feet of Wladimir, claiming that the Ukrainian champion has enough leverage with the title organizations to push the fight through.

“You know the Klitschkos run these sanctioning bodies and this is Wladimir’s way of not fighting me once again,” Toney told FightHype.com. “I definitely feel like I’m being blackballed. You put your life on the line in this sport and these are the thanks you get?”

Toney currently holds the fringe IBA heavyweight title, but has not fought since scoring a 2nd round KO over journeyman Michael Greer in September 2009. The 42-year-old veteran was written off by many as a legit contender following his rematch loss to Samuel Peter in 2007, and later posting lackluster split decision wins over lower-level opposition in Danny Batchelder and Fres Oquendo.

Wladimir Klitschko holds both the IBF and WBO heavyweight titles. He’s made six joint defenses since 2008, winning five by knockout.  His last was a mandatory defense against #1 contender Samuel Peter, who he dominated and TKO’d in 10 rounds on September 11. Although Toney is not currently ranked by either the IBF or WBO, there is a possibility that Wladimir Klitschko can still move forward with the fight as a voluntary defense, or non-title match.

At press time, Wladimir Klitschko could not be reached for comment.

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Most fighters balk at being told anything by the boxing sanctioning bodies. But the Klitschkos are very anal about holding onto those championship belts. Between them, they hold every major title except David Haye’s WBA strap. So unless Wladimir can get a potential Toney fight sanctioned as a title match, the likelihood is he’ll pass.

Part of me doesn’t want to see this fight happen (for Toney’s sake), but I’d understand. It’s essentially a stay busy fight for Klitschko, and there’s no other top fighters out there to face on such short notice. Bouts with David Haye and Alexander Povetkin already fell through this year. Tomasz Adamek has his own tune-up bout in December. And other aging names like David Tua don’t offer much interest considering their performances in recent bouts. Toney can still sell a mismatch to the public, as evidenced by the interest he garnered for his doomed MMA venture against Randy Couture.

I still think this fight may come off, and if it does I hope Toney isn’t embarrassed in there. It would be quite sad to see a once great defensive fighter, who’s never been knocked out in his 21 year career, slowly beaten down by Klitschko jabs and right hands before being stopped.

Rick Ross’ Video Shoot for Next Single “I’m Not a Star”

Posted: September 29, 2010 in Music News
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“Aston Martin Music” is scheduled as the next official single for Rick Ross, but that isn’t stopping Rozay from hitting fans with a video for his Teflon Don intro “I’m Not a Star.” This behind the scenes clip courtesy of Spiff TV and www.57thave.com features footage of Cash Money co-CEO Baby and Gunplay of Triple C’s. Nine weeks after dropping, Teflon Don sits at #26 on Billboard’s Top 200 with over 360,000 copies sold. Look out for the “Aston Martin Music” video to drop early in October with Chrisette Michele and a verse from Drake.

Andre Berto to Defend WBC Title November 27 Against Freddy Hernandez

Posted: September 29, 2010 in Fight News
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After remaining idle since April , WBC welterweight titlist Andre Berto (26-0, 20 KOs) will face Freddy Hernandez (29-1, 20 KOs) on November 27.

Berto had been deadlocked with HBO over the last several months to find an acceptable opponent. Shane Mosley was the preferred opponent, but Mosley balked when Berto demanded a 50-50 split of the purse. The pair was originally signed on to fight in January, but Berto withdrew after losing nine family members in Haiti’s devastating  January earthquake.

With the welterweight divison losing Miguel Cotto, Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather, Berto is the only name fighter in the division that holds a title. His short list of potential opponents included the aforementioned Hernandez, Jo Jo Dan and Sebastian Lujan.

The 31-year-old, 5’10 Hernandez raised his profile considerably this year with knockout victories over DeMarcus Corley and Mike Anchondo. He’s competed as high as middleweight, but has fought his last four bouts at welterweight.

The fight will take place on HBO’s undercard for Juan Manuel Marquez vs. Michael Katsidis.

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This is a decent fight which is right where it belongs on the undercard. Berto’s been a pro for six years and made four defenses of the welterweight title. If he ever wants to make a name for himself, the time is now.

Earlier this month Berto called out Shane Mosley and Miguel Cotto as potential next opponents. At this point he needs them more than they need him. Berto’s been treading water career-wise for some time and essentially wasting his prime years fighting overmatched opponents.

Freddy Hernandez isn’t going to do much to dispel that stigma. After this fight, Berto better swallow his pride and push hard for a Mosley or Cotto bout, even if that means moving up to junior middleweight. He’s in desperate need of a big name fight, because as of now he’s become an afterthought when discussing the top guys at 147 and 154.

BET to Name Top 10 Rappers of the 21st Century

Posted: September 29, 2010 in Music News
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There’s nothing like a spirited debate. BET must have learned this by observing the immense feedback MTV receives annually for its Hottest MCs in the Game list, and what Vibe got for its Best Rapper Alive tournament. Next month BET will air its own version with a unique show titled “BET’s Top 10 Rappers of the 21st Century.”

The criterion for consideration is that every rapper nominated must not have had their debut album any earlier than 1999. That means normal all-time list stalwarts like Rakim, Jay-Z, Nas, KRS-One, and other legends cannot be selected. The panel included AllHipHop.com co-founder Chuck Creekmur, So So Def founder/producer Jermaine Dupri, Tony Neal of Core DJs, producer Boi 1da, DJ Greg Street, DJ Timbuck2, DJ Vlad and Vibe writer Chloe Hilliard.

The list of nominated artists are 50 Cent, Drake, Eminem, Eve, Fabolous, The Game, Gucci Mane, Jadakiss, Kanye West, Lil Wayne, Ludacris, Nelly, Rick Ross, T.I. and Young Jeezy.

The show airs on October 15 at 8PM. Below is the trailer video.

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Even though I normally disagree with the selections, I love these type of shows. It brings the corner, barbershop and message board arguments fans have to the forefront. And it also gives you a better idea of how industry experts view some of your favorite artists.

What I don’t like is that most of the time the debate centers around album sales over quality of work. You can already see that when someone like Lupe Fiasco, who’s released two of the better Hip-Hop LPs this decade (Food & Liquor, The Cool), didn’t even get a nod. But you have guys on the list like Jadakiss and Fabolous, who in my opinion don’t have any standout albums on their resumes.

It’ll be very interesting to watch how this panel makes its decisions. As far as the artists included on this list, my #1 would be Kanye West. Aside from his own catalogue, I give extra points for his production work. On just lyrical ability Eminem would be #1, but Slim Shady shouldn’t even be on the list. Is BET really going to act like his debut album isn’t 1996′s Infinite (which by the way, had some decent tracks)?

Be sure to check this out. I’m positive they’ll be moments where you nod your head in agreement, shake it in disgust, and flat-out laugh at what you hear.

The show debuts Friday October 15 at 8PM ET.

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