Videos of the Week December 14

First and foremost, my thoughts and prayer go out to the families of the kids who lost their life today in Netwon, Connecticut. No music or entertainment could ever take away focus from something as truly despicable as what happened today. It's hard not to lose faith in mankind when acts like this occur, especially when something of this magnitude hasn't ever happened in the US before.

If you get to a point where you can let music and entertainment back into your life today, below are a few videos that I found entertaining this week. It's a little pop, a little Hip Hop, some reggae dance, house and even some new product placement brought to you by one of the kings of product placement, @s_c_. Tell people you care about you love 'em tonight, the world needs more love after days like today...#PrayForNewton

Skylar Grey feat Eminem - C'mon Let Me Ride (Video)

Major Lazer - Jah No Partial (Video)

Jay-Z Launches New D'USSE Cognac Line

The Cool Kids - Champions (Video)

Felix da Housecat feat Will.i.am - Burn the Disco Down (Video)

"Tell Your Girls You Leavin, I’ll Meet You in the Lobby, I’m So Cold Yeah I Need That Hot Toddy"

Woooow...all I gotta say is Polow you are a damn fool for this beat man. The subliminally bangin' bass that gives way to an upbeat, syncopated rhythm, which is just plain stupid and deserving of nothing short of a bow followed by some dap and a quick pound. The beat methodically bangs, but at times sidesteps, giving way to a little of @usherraymondiv's seductive harmony and eventually the show-stopping verse by Jiggaman. I don't wanna sound too cliche when I say this is as can't miss of a single as you can get, but damn, go ahead and try to poke some holes in this track...oh what's that? It's too awesome?? Yea that's wassup, this one goes balls deep and is subtly dark, yet undeniably sexy.

Like everything I over-analyze, let's get into the meaning of Hot Toddy for a cold minute. Answers.com defines it as "A drink consisting of whiskey, brandy, or other liquor mixed with hot water, sugar, and spices." Hmm...not too much of a stretch considering Hip Hop's affinity to the mystical wine with the water taken out, know as cognac to sophisticated folk and just Yak to anyone familiar with Hip Hop. After listening to Hov's verse a few times, at least he makes an attempt to tie the whole cognac reference to the song's underlying focus on women/sex...

I was born a God
I made myself a king
which means I downgraded to a human being
you was born a Goddess I made you my queen
which mean we upgraded to Louis the thirteen
Hot toddy her body like cognac

For all you uneducated greenhorns Remy > Henny with Courvoisier residing in between on most occasions, but clearly being dependent on age (VSOP vs VS), like anything alcohol related (age is good). The Louis the 13th referred to in the verse above is made by Remy Martin and sells for about $3000 a bottle and is made from 1200 eaux-de-vie, some more than a century in age, then aged in 100+ year old barrels or tiercons in its own cellar. In other words, good luck getting to taste this stuff, there's a great reason why rappers (who are some of the only people in world who can afford to drink it) talk about it.

Hot Toddy

Got a little derailed there on that cognac lesson, but I went through a phase where that was all I drank and let me tell you what...there is a direct correlation between drinking it and having fun...in more ways than one. Suggestive anecdotal personal evidence aside, I might be crazy enough to even mix some Hot Toddys when the temps start cooling down a bit...or at least until Usher's new Versus EP drops on August 24th...which by the way has at least four legit number #1 singles with this track, Stranger, his new single DJ Got Us Fallin' in Love and There Goes My Baby.

...til then this will continue to heat up my iPod and now Phone (yea thats wassup, ya boy finally stepped his game up i game up a bit becoming an i4 pilot). Feel free to bang this one out in the trunk or dance all freaky to it...or both?


Usher feat Jay-Z & Ester Dean - Hot Toddy (prod by Polow Da Don)
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