Lloyd Banks has unleashed The Gift, the latest installment of his V6 series. Guest spots are supplied by Jadakiss, School Boy Q, Vado and Young Chris. The production features regular collaborator Don Pesci, Cardiak, Automatic, A6, The Beat Butcher and many more.
This song sounds a lot better in the hands of upper echelon emcees. Pusha sets this off right and Kanye follows suit. The momentum isn’t as strong from Keef’s verse forward, but it’s doubtful you’ll list this remix amongst things you “don’t like.”
CHIEF KEEF X PUSHA T X KANYE WEST X BIG SEAN X JADAKISS “I DON’T LIKE (REMIX)”
Swizz Beatz takes listeners down R&B and Hip-Hop memory lane with this remix to Estelle’s “Break My Heart.” Those who grew up on the East Coast, particularly in the Tri-State area, will be reminded of the 90s R&B/Hip-Hop mashups found on that era’s mixtapes. The beats range from Zhane’s ”Sending My Love” to KRS-One’s ”The Bridge Is Over” to Audio Two’s “Top Billin’.” If it’s a remix, you know Busta Rhymes will end up on it.
ESTELLE X JADAKISS X BUSTA RHYMES X SWIZZ BEATZ “BREAK MY HEART REMIX”
“Still there after all that I put her through…”
Jadakiss’ next foray on the mixtape circuit will be a dedication to his fans called I Love You: The Mixtape. The track gives a nod to older listeners by interpolating Al B. Sure’s classic chorus from “Night and Day.” Although there are hints of the past, the production, courtesy of newcomer Duane DaRock, is modern in its synth arrangements without being a retread of what we hear all day on the radio. After the jump, listen to Jada and DaRock discuss their future plans.
JADAKISS “HOW I FEEL”
“I even went and got the live band…”
When people criticize the fall in quality of Hip-Hop albums, they usually cite the loss of the one artist-one producer format. That practice has been resurrected over the last few years not just for art’s sake, but because budgets have dried up and its become a necessity for cost-effectiveness. One artist I’ve always thought would benefit most from this is Jadakiss, whose never had problems with hot 16s, but always seems to falter when it comes to delivering a hot 16 songs. The latter isn’t a problem here, as we’re dealing with a focused Jada delivering a N.E.R.D. song remake of all things with “Lil Bruh.”
N.E.R.D. fans will recall this beat from the song “God Bless Us All.” Pharell has taken his far share of hits for some of his recent production, particularly the lead tracks for Game’s R.E.D. album. They were so poorly received that Game’s LP has remained in purgatory for over a year. But with his N.E.R.D. projects, Pharell is just a little more daring and free creatively. The pressure of crafting that contrived, radio-friendly single is not there. This beat has the things that we loved about the Neptunes/Pharell: catching melodies and easy-going choruses. The music is something you can easily envision The Clipse rhyming over, particularly circa their first album.
Far as the lyrics, Jada goes with the original song’s motif of schooling a young boy on the rules and pitfalls of the game. The first verse has you thinking he’s talking about the music business. By the second it becomes evident the advice is about more illicit activity. It’s Jada, so you can excuse the D-Block founding member for not speaking much on an exit plan besides “save your money.”
Do I think Pharrell is the one producer Jadakiss needs? It’s hard to say. A lot of his recent work hasn’t set the world on fire. But with the Clipse, he has a track record of showing he can deliver quality production with emcees in the vein of Jada’s style. And Pharrell’s name is known enough for Jada’s label, Def Jam, to allow it. We know him linking up with a Premier or Pete Rock is not happening.
JADAKISS X PHARRELL “LIL BRUH” [TAGS]
The joyous atmosphere of the 2010 holiday season was shattered amongst music aficionados yesterday (December 26), when news broke on the death of Teena Marie. Today, I take a look back on Teena’s legendary career, and her enduring influence in the world of Hip-Hop.
Born Mary Christine Brockert on March 5, 1956, Marie’s vocal stylings, even as a child, reflected a significant influence from her predominantly black neighborhood of Oakwood, located in westside Los Angeles, California. By her early 20s, she drew the attention of Berry Gordy, who signed her to Motown in 1976.
After floating around with several producers, she linked up with Rick James and guitarist Paul C. Saenz. James would become a lasting musical influence and mentor, and the popular funk singer picked young Teena over working with label superstar Diana Ross. Their early collaborations resulted in her debut Wild and Peaceful, which reached the Top 20 of Billboard’s then Black Albums Chart. The cover is notable for not including any pictures of Marie, for fears that black audiences would not be receptive of her music if it was discovered she was white.
Those fears proved unfounded on her 1980 follow-up Lady T. With her face displayed prominently on the cover, the LP was still a hit due to burning dance floor numbers like “Behind The Groove,” and other production contributions from Richard Rudolph, husband of the late Minnie Riperton. She dropped another well-received album in Irons in the Fire that same year, and struck on her own for the first time as lead producer. This album would also be the earliest LP to catch a Hip-Hop producer’s ears with the disco number “I Need Your Lovin’”. In 1981, early Hip-Hoppers Lovebug Starski and the Harlem World crew used the song for the jam session joint “Positive Life.” In 2008, Jadakiss and Ne-Yo used its template for “By My Side.”
TEENA MARIE “I NEED YOUR LOVIN’”
JADAKISS FEAT. NE-YO “BY MY SIDE”
LOVEBUG STARSKI & THE HARLEM WORLD CREW “POSITIVE LIFE”
In 1981, Marie would record her last album for Motown, It Must Be Magic. It turned out to be her highest-selling Motown offering, and a project that yielded her most enduring sample for Hip-Hop fans. “Square Biz” would become one of her signature hits, and receive mileage well into the 90′s courtesy of high-profile artists like The Firm and Mase. The song featured Marie rapping, something that showed foresight and a willingness to embrace the fledgling culture of Hip-Hop. That cannot be said of many early 80s R&B stars, who held the music in contempt.
Ludacris, a new millennium Hip-Hop star, found inspiration from another single on the album entitled “Portuguese Love.”
TEENA MARIE “SQUARE BIZ”
MASE FEAT. BILLY LAWRENCE “LOVE U SO”
THE FIRM “FIRM BIZ”
TEENA MARIE “PORTUGUESE LOVE” (VOCAL SAMPLE 5:55-6:00 MARK)
LUDACRIS FEAT. NATE DOGG “CHILD OF THE NIGHT”
In the mid-80′s, Marie delivered her most commercially successful album in Starchild. The project was fueled by the smash hit “Lovergirl.” But it wasn’t that chart-topper that caught the attention of Hip-Hop producers. It was the beginning melody on ”Out On a Limb.”
TEENA MARIE “OUT ON A LIMB”
PASTOR TROY “LICENSE TO KILL”
MAX B FEAT. FRENCH MONTANA “SEEN IT ALL”
Teena Marie’s last big sample contribution to Hip-Hop came off her 1988 album Naked to the World. The soulful and whimsical “Ooo La La La” was one of her biggest singles, and the only one to hit #1 on the US Black Singles Chart. Those who grew up in the 90s will recall a young Lauryn Hill beautifully interpreting Teena’s chorus work for The Fugees’ own monster single ”Fu-gee-la.” Grand Puba also tried his hand singing the chorus.
TEENA MARIE “OOO LA LA LA”
THE FUGEES “FU-GEE-LA”
GRAND PUBA ”FAT RAT” (SAMPLE AT 1:08 MARK)
Teena never stopped making music. She dropped her last album, Congo Square, in 2009. Back in 2004, she had reintroduced herself to younger fans with the Cash Money album La Dona, which charted #6 on Billboard.
Known affectionately as the Ivory Queen of Soul, Teena Marie leaves behind a musical legacy that spans 30 years, and is a testament that music quality, not skin color, can determine an artist’s success.
Beats, Boxing & Mayhem salutes the life and music of Teena Marie. Rest in peace…
TEENA MARIE DISCOGRAPHY
Wild and Peaceful (1979)
Lady T (1980)
Irons in the Fire (1980)
It Must Be Magic (1981)
Robbery (1983)
Starchild (1984)
Emerald City (1986)
Naked to the World (1988)
Ivory (1990)
Passion Play (1994)
La Dona (2004)
Sapphire (2006)
Congo Square (2009)
Sheek Louch’s Def Jam LP Donnie G: Don Gorilla is dropping on December 14. For those of you who heard Sheek’s mixtape from a few months ago, it appears that the least celebrated Lox member is in the zone. Truth be told, Sheek is normally is more consistent when it comes to solo albums that his more talented partners in Styles P and Jadakiss. Next week’s release will be his first solo on a major, so congrats to Sheek on his grind. And it’s also nice to see Statik Selektah getting some major label placements.
SHEEK LOUCH ”NITE FALLS” (PRODUCED BY STATIK SELEKTAH)
The French always had a a way with art. Bilal teams up with French director Mikael Colombu for a highly symbolic video for the song “Robots.” The Election Day timing is impeccable, as the clip displays a surreal world overrun with political intrigue, corruption, and despair. In this type of world, do you take a stand, or are you simply a robot to be controlled by others?
CELPH TITLED X BUCKWILD X R.A. DA RUGGED MAN “MAD AMMO”
Congrats to Celph Titled and Buckwild for debuting #10 on iTunes with their throwback offering Nineteen Ninety Now. The entire project is composed of beats Buckwild had made back in the 90′s, so to say it captures the sound of the era would be an understatment. The guys splice their latest single, “Mad Ammo,” with a “I Love the 90′s” discussion, which is a clever reworking of VH1′s “I Love the 80′s” series. Take note of R.A. the the Rugged Man’s flow on this one.
araabMUZIK VISUAL TREATMENT PART 3
araabMUZIK is going to play an instrumental role in whether the Dipset reunion is a success or failure. We’ll get a glimpse of if he’s up for the task courtesy of his work on Duke Da God’s November 23 album The D.I.P. Agenda, which features Cam’Ron, Jadakiss, Lil Flip, Sheek Louch, Hell Rell and J.R. Writer. Duke Da God cites it as his best work and music all Dipset fans will enjoy.
“This is the best album I’ve ever done. I’ve been away for so long that I took my time to really perfect it,” Duke Da God explained. “It’s my graduation album. This is all brand new music so it’s like a new Dipset album. If you like Dipset you are gonna love this album.”
This third installment of araabMUZIK’s Visual Treatment series may be a taste of what to expect.
Sheek Louch has his Def Jam debut coming in December. In the meantime, Jadakiss is busy with collaborations (like the 50 Cent featuring “Dump”) and working selections from his The Champ Is Here, Part 3 mixtape. P Cutta directs this street video for the D-Block showcase “Coach of the Year.” Is Jewelz Champaign the first lady of D-Black? Can’t recall them having a female on the roster before. Jadakiss and The Lox are on tap to have new albums out for Def Jam in early 2011. Sheek Louch’s Donnie G: Don Gorilla drops December 7.
J. Cole
J. Cole promised fans another mixtape, Villmatic, before dropping his debut album sometime next year. This track will likely be on it. No productions credits as of yet. It’s more commercially accessible than Cole’s last session with Fashawn and Omen, but still enjoyable. No word yet on a release date for the Villematic mixtape.
J. Cole “I’m On It”
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.
