"We Set the Roof on Fire, We Set the Roof on Fire"

There's only one way to listen to Rae Sremmurd's music and that's all the way turnt up. To be clear, you have to have at least a few drinks in you to be able to get into their music. I can count on one hand songs I like of theirs and when I'm in to the mood to hear those songs, they're my favorite. Feel free and add Set the Roof to that playlist with others like with No Type and Come Get Her.

Before you start testing the high end of your speakers with the track below, let me point out one thing. A great deal of the awesomeness of this track can be directly attributed to Mike Will AND DJ Mustard. Both are stellar in their own right, but when they combine forces, it's GAME OVER. Shoot, you might even get a little nostalgic with all the Lil Jon can and response screams on the hook. Hopefully this one finds you in the right state of mind and you're able to crank it on your commute home...#SetTheRoof

Rae Sremmurd feat Lil Jon - Set the Rood (prod by Mike Will & DJ Mustard)

Videos of the Week July 24th

Downright strange is what the top five videos brought to the table this week. Other than Pharrell's inspiring video for Freedom and Timeflies' adorable video for Worst Things Than Love, there wasn't much normal about this week's offering. Starting off with Dillon Francis's short movie that satirically documents his life as a doughnut. And no I can't make this stuff up, it's literally a fun filled fifteen minutes about Dillon being a doughnut.

If you've seen the movie Trainwreck, you got a recent refresher on Judd Apatow's crude, dead-pan delivery humor. Evidently he's getting back into stand-up, which is good news for all of us because he showed off his recent act on Fallon this week. Don't expect the world, but the Bill Cosby impression at the end is pretty damn funny. And last, but definitely not least, how about a new Flosstradamus video where a motivational speaker leads a turnt up rally. There's nothing quite like seeing people dressed up in nice clothes wildin' out, smackin' asses like they won the lottery...#PrisonRiot
Dillon Francis Exit Through the Donut Hole (Short Movie)

Timeflies - Worse Things Than Love (Video)

Judd Apatow Does Stand Up on Fallon

Pharrell - Freedom (Video)

Flosstradamus feat GTA & Lil Jon - Prison Riot (Video)

Photo Credit: YouTube

"What Spots My Eye? A Cutie Pie"

It's been entirely too long since we've heard a Crunk club anthem from Lil Jon. Now, before you get too ahead of yourself thinking you're getting another "Get Low", pump the breaks a bit. My Cutie Pie is loud, dirty, and catchy as hell. The best part about the track? Uncle Snoop and T-Pain joined the party this time, which kicks the track up a few notches. You might think the beat is incredibly similar to a lot of his other hits and you might also be right. But so what? When it's worked before and you haven't heard it for years, sometimes it'd fun to take a fresh trip down the memory lane. Feel free to bang this one out at that summer kickoff party this weekend...#MyCutiePie

Lil Jon feat T-Pain, Problem & Snoop Dogg – My Cutie Pie

Christmas is Coming, Time For Some OWSLA Eggnog

Now that OWSLA has firmly cemented themselves as one of the top EDM labels in the business, it's only fitting that they put out the first (of presumably many) Christmas compilations. Prior to listening to the track below, I had not heard of Ghastly or Mija, but talent seems to hang out with each other, so commander Skrillex's co-sign definitely helped. What ensued was a whole lot of wobble and futuristic house vibes. The Lil Jon feature is only a sample, so don't get too excited (or let it prevent you from listening). Where house tends to be chill and funk filled, the brand of house on Crank It is much more of the party starter variety. Overall, it's an interesting track that tore at the corners of what I thought I knew deep house was supposed to sound like...#Eggnog

Ghastly & Mija feat Lil Jon - Crank It

"Bend Ova Make Ya Knees Touch Ya Elbows"

When I think of people reinventing themselves, I think of baseball pitchers who may have lost a few MPH on the fastball and need to be crafty to succeed in the twilight of their career. C.C. Sabathia comes to mind as a pitcher who sees the end of the tunnel coming and is being forced to use new tricks to get hitters out. What does this have to do with a new Lil Jon song you ask? Well, after the Crunk movement died down over the past decade, he has more or less faded into the background. Now, all the sudden, trap music is becoming huge, which has kicked open the door of opportunity for the King of Crunk. Now, his style of yelling over hype beats fits again and he's finding a way to jump back into the limelight.

Make no bones about it, his new single featuring Tyga and production from DJ Kronic will be a huge hit. It has an unabashed energy about it that sucks you in from the rowdy beginning. The yelling is just catchy and repeatable enough to embed itself in your brain. Sometimes I toss around the term "summer anthem" lightly, but Bend Ova is about as sure of a bet as Brazil or Argentina making the world cup final...#BendOva

Lil Jon feat Tyga - Bend Ova (prod by DJ Kronic)

Vidoes of the Week May 23rd

Really interesting and diverse group of videos this week with the SNL season finale leading the way. Simply put, Andy Samberg is hilarious and anytime he hosts SNL, you better have your DVR set. His parody of EDM DJs teasing the drop is one of the better skits he's ever done, which is saying a lot. Despite the whole Solange elevator drama, Jay Z and Beyonce raised the bar for tour promos with On the Run. Between the two fan bases, they shouldn't have too much trouble selling out arenas.

It was really cool to see the MJ hologram perform his new track Slave to the Rhythm. It's never the same as the real experience, but modern technology does a good job of pretending. DJ Snake and Dillon Francis did a solid job of showing how to make it rain while showing folks how to dance horizontally. Last but not lease, the Bells Whiskey tv ad was by far the best video of the week. You want to talk about telling a compelling story to get people to empathize with your product. Tip of the cap to Bells for showing everyone how to sell the "why" of a product in a creative way...#BellsWhiskey
When Will the Bass Drop? SNL Short with Andy Samberg

Jay Z & Beyonce Run Tour (Trailer)

Bells Whiskey TV ad

DJ Snake & Dillon Francis - Get Low (Video)

Michael Jackson - Slave to the Rhythm

Photo Credit:YouTube

Turn Down For What Gets a 2nd Hip Hop Makeover

Now that Lil Jon has channeled his crunk energy toward EDM and more specifically Trap music, he's trying his best to bring Hip Hop with him. First, it was the Turn Down For What remix with Juicy J, 2 Chainz and French Montana that got a lot of attention around Hip Hop circles. Now, Lil Jon has upped the ante by getting Luda and Pitbull to go in on everyone's favorite party track.

The only real question is, how much play can you really give one hit track? I really appreciate this whole connection between EDM and Hip Hop with Trap, but can't we start fresh with a new track? I'm being critical, but I will say this remix is leaps and bounds better than the first Hip Hop remix. Luda did work and showed out, carrying the 2nd mix. You better believe Miami clubs are going to eat this alive...#TDFW

Lil Jon & DJ Snake feat Ludacris & Pitbull - Turn Down For What (Remix)

Fire Up the Loud for Christmas

It was only a matter of time before Lil Jon's energy bled over to trap music. He was one of the few artists in Hip Hop whose personality and yelling was borderline too much for the genre. Over DJ Snake's uptempo, bass heavy instrumental, The King of Crunk sounds right at home, though. There's enough build ups and drops on Turn Down For What to make any EDM fan smile. If you're like me, you're getting more than a little bit tired of hearing Mariah's All I Want For Christmas. Consider this a shot of Coco Cafe to the otherwise decaffienated green tea that is contemporary Christmas music...#TDFW

DJ Snake & Lil Jon - Turn Down For What

Videos of the Week October 26th

A little bit of everything in this week's round of videos, mixing entertainment, music and even a little bit of Dubstep beatbox. Yea you heard it right, @iknowdavecrowe is about as filthy as it gets when it comes to making electro, robotic symphonies. Maybe I haven't been paying attention closely, but I haven't seen many YouTube videos that have 118,000 likes. It's one of those you have to see it to believe it, so if you're at all curious, that's the video you need to watch this week...#NoveltyItem

Pitbull feat TJR - Don't Stop the Party (Video)

Dave Crowe Dubstep Beatboxing Legend

Iron Man 3 Trailer

T.I. - Ball ft. Lil Wayne (Video)

Steve Aoki – Emergency ft Lil Jon & Chiddy Bang (Video)

"If God Was One of Us, He’d Probly Drink Vodka"

"In this forest, I’m a lonely tree, my limbs are covered in tattoos and my roots, they run deep"

Ah yes the lead single off Radioactive from ya boy from Gadsden, @Yelawolf. No need to glamorize this one, it'll punch you square in the nose, kick you while you're down and spit in your face. It's been more than a minute that @LilJon has produced a high profile single, but he's back with his own brand of crunk rock.

Don't get too distracted by the raucous beat either cause Catfish Billy takes no prisoners with his ferociously out there verses. I'll even throw out a crazy comparison and say I haven't heard anyone with a delivery as grimy, but creative as Yelawolf since the likes of ODB (#RIP). I'll let that maronate a lil bit...September 27th, circle that on your calendar...#Radioactive

Yealwolf - Hard White in the Club (prod by Lil Jon)

|iTunes

Drake feat Lil Wayne - Miss Me (prod by Boi-1da)

I've been waiting patiently for the Dirty/CDQ/NO DJ version of this and now that it finally dropped, it's been worth every bit of the wait. Add in an on point verse from Mr. Carter and add in about a minute cool down where it takes shape into more of a "Mastered" track that "fits" into place on an album and you find yourself reclaiming whatever exciting may have been lost...at least the casual Drake fans who appreciate him more for his Hip Hop and close proximity to Lil Wayne.

What's even more intriguing about Drake's style is his signature production by Boi-1da. Needless to say there's good reason why 1da is getting opportunity after opportunity to make his name household. When I think about it, a lot of truly great artists have never been a product of their production, it's been more the other way around. Boi-1da is making a name of producing for Drake, sort of like DJ Toomp got his due when T.I. came up .

My guess is most people will latch on to the abundance of one liners like:

"I will have a model wife your b-tch is as hot as ice, every time you see me I look like I hit the lotto twice"

"Drake just stand for D.o R.ight A.nd K.ill E.verything"

"I love myself because I swear that life is just not as fun"

"no I’m not that thuggish not that ruggish but I do pack Bone"

"I’m sticking to the script like lint on denim"

Still has a long way to go in my mind toward living up to the hype, but I've already tempered my expectations...not because I don't think Thank Me Later will live up to the hype, but because on first listen it I predict everyone will hate on it and bash it as a fall through. After reading Drake's interview in the latest XXL issue I understand more where he's coming from and empathize for his privileged, yet slightly inauspicious position that immediate fame has put him in. This quote sums it all up:

"I'm one of the biggest rappers in the world, but this is my first album, and I haven't proven myself yet,
so on what mind level do me and the listener meet?"

That quote right there brought my unrealistic expectations of his upcoming album spiraling back down to earth after gaining a more palpable understanding for the amount of pressure he's under. It's kind of nuts how so many of his tracks on this album has noteworthy stories like when Drake hand wrote a letter to Beyonce asking for her permission to use the Kanye written Fireworks on his debut album or even past his new album where he confirmed that he's already recorded a track with Eminem and Dr. Dre. So many rumors, stories, myths, legends...is it June 15th yet?

Drake feat Lil Wayne - Miss Me (prod by Boi-1da) CDQ Dirty

Sample Justice? DJ Felli Fel feat. Three 6 Mafia, Lil Jon & Fatman Scoop - I Wanna Get Drunk vs Van Halen - Jump

Did They Do the Sample Justice?
Van Halen - Jump

VS.
DJ Felli Fel feat. Three 6 Mafia & Lil Jon  - I Wanna Get Drunk

When I first heard this track, I just shook my head as a truly classic rock track had clearly been bastardized into a modern club anthem. I love me some Three Six, don't get it twisted, but this was a little over the top even for me. I've never been a fan of Fatman Scoop and his yelling over tracks, in fact I prefer Lil Jon's ad libs over his...which isn't saying much. Needless to say, having both on one track is waaay too much.

100% chance this is going to become some sort of a bar/party anthem because of the well known sample and fun, get drunk theme of the track. Found it pretty funny how DJ Paul talks about dollar beers and Bud Light on his verse. When was the last time you heard a rapper talk about cheap beers?...or light beer for that matter? Who knows, maybe product placement and reaching a more targeted demographic is becoming a financial consideration for rappers nowadays?

GWDJ Verdict: Take it for what it's worth, it's a pretty ignorant and harmless party anthem. If you're slammin' shots back and goin' Ham, this would be on the playlist. As far as sample justice, there's no way in hell they did the original justice My only question is, did Van Halen clear this sample and why? Never hurts to make some extra royalties I guess??

DJ Felli Fel feat. Three 6 Mafia, Lil Jon & Fatman Scoop - I Wanna Get Drunk

Van Halen - Jump