Videos of the Week October 20th

Bit of a slow week for videos, but that didn't stop the top five from rolling along. Rather than post the usual suspects, I went a little off script this week including the likes of Thundercat's Tiny Desk bass brilliance and a long form interview of Chance the Rapper's manager Pat Corcoran. There's a whole lot of soul baked into Thundercat's music and that fact was on full display with his stripped down performance at NPR. If you haven't read up on Chance's unique come up that has defied traditional super stardom in music, there's plenty to unpack in the hour long interview detailing how it all went down.

In the latest example of music, culture, and brands mixing, look no further than ZHU's collabo with Adidas. I will admit, as long as it results in new music, you can try and sell me anything you want to attach to it. If some real music videos is what you're after, I've got an EDM and Hip Hop favorite for the week. Afrojack and Hardwell need no introduction and their latest video shows how much fun they're capable of having on stage and on tour together. Man being a DJ sure seems like a fun occupation. Don't leave out Hip Hop, though, there are plenty of perks to being able to flow on the mic. I've been listening to Redman and Method Man for the greater part of two decades now and it's refreshing to know they haven't lost a step over the years. If Time is Money is about as dope as it gets from Red and Meth...#WuTang

Thundercat Performs at NPR's Tiny Desk

Chance the Rapper's Manager (Pat Corcoran) Speaks on Chance's Come Up

ZHU - Waters of Monaco (Adidas Campaign Video)

Afrojack & Hardwell feat MC Ambush - Hands Up (Video)

Wu-Tang - If Time is Money (Fly Navigation) (Video)

Photo Credit: YouTube

Videos of the Week September 8th

This week's top five was dominated by Odesza, which is no surprise considering their new A Moment Apart album just dropped today. With the album release this week came an album trailer and an unplugged in-studio performance of their music at a local Seattle affiliate KEXP. My goodness...if you don't get goosebumps listening to their unplugged version of Line of Sight around the 27:30 mark, then please stop reading. I haven't even done a full lap around the album and I'm already convinced it's somehow managing to be on par with their last incredible album.

If I were to pretend to forget about Odesza for a minute, I'd encourage you to check out the dope new Adidas and Von Miller co-signed effort from YG and Mike Will. Appropriately titled Heart of a Lion, the mix of studio cuts and weightlifting clips made for an impactful watch. Then there was the obligatory NPR Tiny Desk cameo of the week from Jidenna. Still seared into my memory from Moonlight was the scene of him rollin' in his candy colored lac bumping the screwed and chopped version of the track. The Tiny Desk version isn't quite a hard, but it gave a little more insight into the vocal abilities of Jidenna. And last, but never least, U2 came through with a decidedly anti-Trump rendition of Bullet in the Blue Sky on Fallon. It's not a huge surprise considering how openly political U2 and Bono are, but man they didn't mince words. If you're in need for an invigorating boost of rebellion, definitely give that one a watch...#BulletInTheBlueSky

YG and Mike Will Made-It Heart of a Lion Video for Von Miller's Adidas Commercial

Odesza Performing Music From a Moment Apart on KEXP

Video Teaser of Odesza's New A Moment Apart Album

Jidenna Performs Classic Man on NPR Tiny Desk

U2 Performs Bullet in the Blue Sky on Fallon

Photo Credit: YouTube

Videos of the Week February 24th

Despite not being as jam packed with excellence as previous weeks, there were a few gems in this week's top five thanks to our friends from across the pond. In case you missed it, which you probably did, The Brits were this week. Normally that wouldn't be of huge interest to folks in North America, but The Chainsmokers and Coldplay performed their new single live for the first time and Ed Sheeran debuted his upcoming remix of Shape of You with Stormzy. Both were as stellar as you'd hope for when hearing a track performed live for the first time.

Moving along with Migos performance of their latest viral hit Bad and Boujee on Ellen. Maybe I'm late to the party, but I'm having a tough time getting on board with Migos. Totally grateful for Quavo, Takeoff, and Offset delivering us the Dab a few years back, but I'm still not sure why they're a "thing." One talent I'll never second guess is Snoop Dogg. He could take years off, jump back into rapping like riding a bike. Like for example his latest collaboration with Adidas on Original is Never Finished. Hot af, you can't question he's still got it. And last, but maybe least, I'd be remiss if I didn't give some sort of heads up that the Oscars are coming this weekend. In preparation for that, the Screen Junkies put together quite the montage of Honest Trailers to make sure you're up to date on all the movies that are up for nomination. Needless to say, hilarity ensues...#HonestTrailers
The Chainsmokers & Coldplay Performing Something Just Like This (Live at The Brits)

Ed Sheeran Performs Shape of You Remix with Stormzy (Live at The Brits)

Migos - Bad and Boujee (Live on Ellen)

Snoop Dogg - Original is Never Finished (Adidas Collabo)

Honest Trailers Pokes Fun at Oscar Nominated Films

Photo Credit - YouTube

"Might as Well Make a New Casket"

For those of you wondering whether Kanye's upcoming album is going to sound similar to his previous album, press play below and tell me if you think of Black Skinhead. The aggressive, industrial vibe of God Level intentionally as alpha-male as it gets lyrically. Because of that, I'm skeptical that it would be fitting for any soccer ad, but Adidas went ahead with the Messi dominated ad below...

The video snippet (above) is even shorter than the unfinished audio version of the track (below), but I'm betting the next week will bring a more finished version. I will say that the star-studded list of producers on the track is more than a little noteworthy with HudMo, 88 Keys and Mike Dean leading the way with Kanye on the beat. The real question remains, is anybody surprised that he released the this track on the day of his wedding?...#KanyeWedding

Kanye West - God Level (prod by 88 Keys, Kanye West, Hudson Mohawke, Mike Dean, Noah Goldstein)

Videos of the Week Friday March 8th

More entertainment than music on this week's round of videos. The LiteralMSPaint of Thrift Shop might be the early front runner for video of the year honors. You could watch that thing 10 times and still miss some really creative visual language, which is why it's deserving of such high praise. After watching @adidas's new @LeoMessi1987 commercial, I'm now eagerly awaiting @HudMo's new single, Monte Fisto. Here's to hoping Hangover 3 is more like the original Hangover, rather than the huge let down of Hangover 2. Cheers to @kendricklamar for winning MTV's Hottest MC in the Game and I'm not sure about you, but Will Smith's new Sci-Fi flick looks pretty interesting...#After Earth

@macklemore's Thrift Shop Literal MSPaint Version
Messi Adidas Commercial Feat @HudMo's New Single Monte Fisto

Hangover 3 Trailer

After Earth Trailer

Kendrick Lamar Finds Out He's the Hottest MC in the Game

Adidas Supports Free Hip Hop

I've written a few times about how much I enjoyed @bigsean's debut album Finally Famous. In an effort to re-create the experience, Big Sean's tour DJ (@djmobeatz) and @adidas Originals got together on a Finally Famous Originals compilation. The effort features new production from a lot my favorite producers like @IAMDRUMMA, @beimaejor, @KeY_Wane and Chiddy Bang's @XaphoonJones. Together, they all give an added element of freshness to tracks that were good to start with.

It's mixtapes like this that give me faith that the Hip Hop business model is evolving into something that I'm going to continue to support. Yet again, a well-known company felt like it was a good decision to get behind a mixtape in an effort to further their brand. The fact that it was a quality, but still free product makes me feel more inclined to give them dap and link to their Adidas Originals site. Call it respectful reciprocation that came about because they were nice enough to do me a favor in providing me a free link to the mixtape. That's the type of effort I feel like getting behind and if you're interested in other companies like Adidas who are getting on board to help shape the new Hip Hop business model read more here.

If you're still curious about why you should cop the mixtape and peep the promo video below. Or better yet, catch Big Sean and DJ Mo Beatz on tour...



Big Sean - Marvin & Chardonnay (Remix)(Prod. Xaphoon Jones)