Videos of the Week November 18th

This was definitely the week for new beginnings and reinterpretations. As far as reinterpretations are concerned, anytime The Roots and Fallon decide to go all acapella and schoolyard instrumental in the classroom, you know it will get some love on this internet property. This time they joined Metallica in a spirited, yet surprisingly accessible version of Enter Sandman. The energy of the track is the same, yet it sounds so different. Sticking with the remixes, I found myself in awe of Sarah Hyland's (of Modern Family) vocal abilities on her cover of The Chainsmokers' with Boyce Avenue. Coming close to Halsey vocally is no small feat and she more than held her own on the duet.

It's becoming routine, but I had to post The Chainsmokers new visuals for All We Know with Phoebe Ryan. They truly have a knack for not only telling stories through their music, but also crafting a matching story visual story that engenders a similar emotional reaction. Love the first person camera perspective of the video, it gave allows the audience to exist in someone else's shoes, if for only three and a half minutes. Switching gears to the new beginnings portion of the top five, meet Amine, a rapper from Portland who burst onto the scene with his recent viral hit Caroline. It was so buzzy that it got him a spot on Fallon and he crushed it! And last, but not least, we've got another (sort of) new beginning with Chocolate Droppa. Sure, it's really Kevin Hart, but he does his best R&B artist impression with the help of Trey Songz on Push It On Me. I'll admit though, I almost lost it when he coasted to a finish acapella in the video 😂...#ChocolateDroppa
The Roots and Metallica Sing Enter Sandman (Classroom Instruments Version)

Boyce Avenue feat Sarah Hyland (of Modern Family) Cover The Chainsmokers & Halsey's Closer

The Chainsmokers feat Phoebe Ryan - All We Know (Video)

Amine Performs Viral Hit Caroline on Fallon

Chocolate Droppa (Kevin Hart) feat Trey Songz - Push It On Me (Video)

Photo Credit: YouTube

Guetta's Dangerous Just Got More Dangerous

Here's another reason why David Guetta continues to have American pop music on the palm of his hand. Despite his latest album Listen being chalked full of hits it didn't stop him from doubling down and reaching wider audiences. He's been known to dip into R&B and out of all the tracks he could have picked on his new album, Dangerous is the most well suited for the duo of Trey Songz and Chris Brown chip in vocals. I really didn't think anyone could touch Sam Martin's vocals on the original, but Chris Brown came really close on the remix below. The original was great, but this is a rare case of the remix being just as good as the original...#DangerousPart2

David Guetta feat. Trey Songz, Chris Brown & Sam Martin – Dangerous (Part 2)

Videos of the Week November 21

Following a similar trend from last week, the top 5 features a healthy mix of Hip Hip and EDM with a splash of Fallon. The splash of Fallon came with the help of the legendary Roots crew as they did their best U2 impression. It must be nice to have the talent on board to cover for U2 when they cancel on you last minute. Most late night shows would be up a creek, but for Fallon it's an opportunity to channel his inner Bono.Update: Get well soon Bono.

On the EDM front, the TommorrowWorld After Movie clearly led the way. Thirteen minutes plus of festival highlights with all the colors, fireworks, and dancing had me hooked. Kudos to Absolut for the sponsored remix video of Magic!'s addicting track Rude that was redone by Zedd. Switching gears to Hip Hop, B.O.B. and Trey Songz finally came through with some visuals for their subtly cocky anthem Not For Long. They make a mean team when they get together. And last but definitely not least, Bruno Mars and Mark Ronson gave us all an in-your-face dose of throwback funk. I'm quite happy that everything from the outfits to the dancing matched the throwback sentiment of the track...#UptownFunk
Jimmy Fallon Playing Desire as U2

Tomorrow World After Movie

Bruno Mars feat Mark Ronson - Uptown Funk (Video)

Magic! - Rude (Zedd Remix) (Video)

B.O.B. feat Trey Songz - Not For Long (Video)

Photo Credit: YouTube

"If You've Got the Wrong Impression, Girl Not For Long"

The prospect of Bobby Ray releasing what sounds like a lead single from an upcoming album is downright exciting. The grown and sexy track featuring Trey Songz's vocals over cooled out synths found a way to hit the spot on first listen. Although the track is a full on easy-listening experience, the lyrics tell another story.

I'll put it this way, it takes a lethal mix of audacity and confidence to walk into a room and successfully step to a woman without regard for whether she's single. Not For Long puts into perspective the type of game Hip Hop artists possess and seek to instill in every listener. I've always found Hip Hop as a whole to be a great way to learn how to talk quick or at least walk with enough swagger to end up on the winning team by the end of the night. If you're wondering what exactly I mean by that, you should give this one a listen as you join me in hoping that it means more music from B.O.B. to come...#NotForLong

Videos of the Week March 14th

Lots of variety to chew on for this week's top five videos. The best of which was BANKS video for Brain. The hauntingly seductive visuals matched the aura of the track perfectly. I really hope more people start catching on to her creativity as an artist.

Beyond that, Asher took a trip to the skating rink, showing a fun Indie side to his musical repertoire. Despite the terrible tragedy at SXSW this week, shows did go on and there was a tremendous amount of hype surrounding Kanye and Jay Z's performance. I'm a big fan of concert intros, which is why H.A.M. was my favorite of the amateur videos shot. If you're in the mood for a sexy workout video with plenty of hard bodies and washboard abs, you'll appreciate Trey Songz new one. Finally, I'm more than a little excited for James Brown's life story to be told on film. Mostly because Tate Taylor (director of The Help) is directing it, but also because James Brown is an interesting dude....#GetOnUp
BANKS - Brain (Video)

Asher Roth - Tangerine Girl (Video)

Kanye West & Jay Z Performing H.A.M. at SXSW

Trey Songz - Na Na (Video)

James Brown Biopic "Get On Up" (Trailer)


Photo Credit: YouTube

Videos of the Week July 19th

I decided to go 100% Hip Hop on this week's video post. It seems like it's video season for Hip Hop and you can expect a lot more of that to come with Jay-Z, Kanye, and Drake having singles on the horizon. Dap is order for Juicy J who managed to avoid the strip club scene in his video for Bounce It, which is undoubtedly on repeat at your local gentleman's club. I thought the video was pretty classy and well done by Benny Boom.

I'm just as surprised as you that 2 Chainz got to a point in his career where he could demand 100k per feature. Who knew 100k would include video girls? In other news, Jay-Z took over Pace Gallery in NYC and performed Picasso Baby for six hours straight. Oh to be a fly on the wall for that marathon of a day...#PicassoBaby
Juicy J feat Wale & Trey Songz - Bounce It (Video)

Lil Wayne - God Bless Amerika (Video)

2 Chainz Charges 100k Per Feature

Wiz Khalifa - Paperbond (BTS)

Jay-Z - Picasso Baby (BTS)


Photo credit: YouTube

"She Can Get the Lay Up...All Night"

First off, shame on me for missing the original version of the track below by @MeekMill. I really don't have a good answer for why the @KaneBeatz produced track slipped through the cracks. For those of you that missed it like me, the original version of Lay Up was on Meek's debut album Dreams and Nightmares.

This one reeks of an unofficial remix because Meek Mill isn't even on the track. Still I keep finding myself singing the @TreySongz hook and vibing out to the pristine Kane beat. No joke, if water hitting crystals needed an instrumental, I'd suggest this one because it's so damn clean. I'm just saddened that it took @s_c_'s cameo verse to get my attention...#MyBad

Rick Ross feat Jay-Z & Trey Songz - Lay Up (Remix) (prod by Kane Beatz)
|iTunes

Videos of the Week November 23rd

Straight Hip Hop and R&B this week with a wide range of strange and psychedelic videos from some of the most unique artists in the game. Between @NickiMinaj's symbolic, black and white to color video and the two trippy, otherworldly videos from @ducidni and @BigBoi, artistry is on high this week. To top it all off, how about a Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas parody from @liltunchi?...#MightAsWell

Nicki Minaj - Freedom (Video)

WZRD feat Desire - Teleport 2 Me Jamie (Video)

Lil Wayne feat Detail - No Worries (Video)

Big Boi feat Kelly Rowland - Mama Told Me (Video)

Trey Songz - Never Again (Video)

Videos of the Week August 24th

Usually when you think of a video girl, the first thought that comes to mind is a raunchy makin' it rain Rap video. Well, it would appear @diplo took that stereotype and flipped it on it's head with a stunning video that showcases the female form, but in a graceful and more artistic way. Sure my view is extremely skewed because what man doesn't enjoy women cascading down a stripper pole in all sorts of postures, but on the salacious scale, this one has to rank on the lower end. I'm I off base on that one ladies?

Other than that, it appears @liltunchi made some waves with his anti-New York opinion. I'd probably not like the state I had to spend a year in jail in either if I was him. Sure, there are much better reasons for his opinion, but to garner comments from a http://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/23/nyregion/malcolm-smith-demands-apology-for-lil-waynes-insult-to-new-york.html? C'mon MAN!!

Diplo feat Laserdisk Party Sex - Set it Off (Video)

Hit Boy feat Kid Cudi - Old School Caddy (Video)

Lil Wayne Doesn't Like New York

B.O.B. feat Nicki Minaj - Out of My Mind (Video)

Trey Songz feat Lil Wayne & Young Jeezy - Hail Mary (Video)

Videos of the Week March 23

Some high profile videos flew across the radar this week with @lanadelrey's Blue Jeans video leading the way. By far, the most entertaining watch for me this week was hearing @royceda59 recount @SLAUGHTERHOUSE's past week on tour. Just the SXSW story alone was worth the watch because you rarely hear an artist openly admit that they were worried another legendary artist was going to upstage them. That's gotta be a baaad feeling when you're headlining, about to go on stage, and @kanyewest plays two or three tracks that ignite the crows and make you go SON OF A BITCH, HOW ARE WE GONNA TOP THIS?? It's that type of down to earth real talk that makes me respect the hell out of them individual artists and as a group. Now if they could only hit Philly on a night besides this Tuesday, I'd really be pumped...#WishfulThinking

Lana Del Rey - Blue Jeans (Video)

Slaughterhouse Vlog Episode 2

Game feat Kendrick Lamar - The City (Video)

OnCue - Kinda Late (Video)(prod by Just Blaze)

Trey Songz - Sex Ain't Better Than Love (Video)

"Keep My Shades on Medusa Couldn't Seduce Me"

Infuse an already bangin' track by @BEIMAEJOR and @JColeNC with @Wale, @TreySongz and @tpain and what do you think the results will be? The common thread on this track is an ability to go R&B and also be able to spit on the mic. All of the aforementioned artists excel at that and don't sound out of place on either side of the fence, making this a starting five that is not to be trifled with.

I'm still waiting to hear a firm date on Bei's debut studio album titled Making Up that's due out sometime in 2012. I'd imagine Trouble will eventually land on that album, but you never know with the amount of mixtapes he's been able to churn out. I've always been a big fan of anything and everything Bei touches, so I'm really hoping he can put together a solid debut so that more people can become aware of all that he has to offer Hip Hop. Simple put, dude is talented and more people need to know about him, that's what I'm sayin'...#GetWithTheProgram

Bei Maejor feat Wale Trey Songz J Cole T Pain - Trouble (Remix)

|iTunes

T.I.'s New Mixtape is Studio Album Quality

No matter what field you're in or who you interact with, it's universally known that making a first impression can go a long ways. After one lap around @tip's F*uck Da City Up album mixtape that dropped today, it's pretty clear he wants to make the first big Hip Hop statement in 2012. I'm a firm believer that production is the key to success in Hip Hop, so you could imagine what I thought when I saw that T.I. hooked up with legendary beatmakers on the mixtape like @DRDRE, @djtoomp, @producertminus, @manniefresh, @HitBoy_SC and to top it off, @JustBlaze. It's hard to get one single from one of those producers on an album, let alone a whole free mixtape worth.

For starters I'm posting a track that may get overshadowed by other high profile collabos on the mixtape like the title track he did with Jeezy. The track below, Oh Yeah, is low key track stashed at the back of the mixtape with @TreySongz on the hook and @JustBlaze on the beat. It's got a feel good vibe to it and gives plenty of room for T.I. to show off a little lyrical vitality on the mic. Somehow the Megatron Don always seems to concoct inspirational beats with his use of strings on every beat. While Oh Yeah won't exactly make you jump out of your seat like other beats he's done, it's sufficiently head nod worthy and a standout track on a mixtape that would put some of the best studio album releases in 2011 to shame. Something tells me I'll be posting a lot of favorites from this mixtape this week...#KeepItLocked

T.I. feat Trey Songz - Oh Yeah (prod by Just Blaze)

Bonus: Feel free to stream the whole mixtape below or download it from the link below off datpiff...

Download Mixtape 

Videos of the Week

I can't remember a week that had this many high profile videos. From @drake to @thegame to @Rihanna, there were a lot of attention grabbing videos that found their way onto YouTube. Love the Bay Area setting for The Motto and Game's Martians vs Goblins was just as creepy and weird as you'd expect from the title. Nothing creepier that @fucktyler having a striped cat on his shoulder throughout his verse? Anybody else, that probably would be out of the ordinary. Like the @liltunchi image below...

Good luck reeling in those last minute gifts today and tomorrow y'all. Lord knows I'm gonna be busy like a bee no honeycomb...#DrakeQuote minus #TheMoneyTrees

Drake feat Lil Wayne & Tyga - The Motto (Video)

The Game feat Tyler, The Creator & Lil Wayne - Martians vs Goblins (Video)

Rihanna - You Da One (Video)

Asher Roth Performing G.R.I.N.D. in Chicago

David Guetta feat Sia - Titanium (Video)

Lloyd feat Trey Songz & Young Jeezy - Be The One (Video)

"Shawty Thick, Got Cleveland Cavs"

I wrote about the original version of this track like four months ago when I hyped it up as the best @ryanleslie produced track since You Be Killin Em. My opinion hasn't changed over the past four months and when you add in @JColeNC, @Wale and @treysongz, while keeping the same dope beat, I'm going to take the time to hype it up all over again. Even better, @RedCafe even chips in a new verse on the track with even more creative one liners (as the title of the post points out).

Anybody else think the picture above is funny as hell too? With J Cole's "I'm with stupid gesture" and Wale looking completely rigid like he's a frozen block of ice. To be fair, we've all taken pictures where we just look like absolutely retards because of the timing, so I'm not gonna put him on blast too much.

On an unrelated, but related note, I'm still salty that Ryan Leslie's new album Les is More keeps getting pushed back. Now it's slated for a 2012 release, which is a little longer than the few weeks away he promised back in October. I'll be interested to see if that milli he's getting sued for over not ponying up on the ransom for his laptop comes to fruition. Not sure how that works, but if you are on camera offering rewards then I'm not sure how you can get out of that...#Settlement

Great collection of talent below, all remixes should be as good as the one below...#WishfulThinking

Red Cafe feat Ryan Leslie, J Cole, Trey Songz, Wale - Fly Together (Remix) (prod by R Les)

Videos of the Week

It's about time @avicii did a video for Levels. It might be the strangest video I've seen since @lmfao's banana hammock infested Sexy and I Know It video. Interesting seeing @drake's three part homecoming series and hearing him reflect on a lot of issue including his recent collabo with Rihanna. I'm still loving every bit of Shady 2.0 too. They're taking over for 2012...#BelieDat...

Avicii - Levels (Video)


Trey Songz feat Fabolous - What I Be On (Video)


Drake The Homecoming (Part 1)


Drake The Homecoming (Part 2)


Drake The Homecoming (Part 3)


The Shady 2.0 Boys (Yelawolf, Slaughterhouse & Eminem) Live


Kanye & Jay-Z Perform Niggas in Paris at Victoria Secret Show


Ludacris feat Wacka Flocka - Rich & Flexin (Video)

Videos of the Week

Lots of @JColeNC in the videos this week, which is always a good thing. Is it just me or is anybody else absolutely memorized by @araabmuzik every time he touches an MPC? Dude is a beast and I was happy to hear he iscoming to Philly soon so I can see that magic in person. As a sidenote, I'm still salty over the end product of Flo Rida's Good Feelin'. Let the beat free @Avicii!!! Either that or put your own track on iTunes dude! I digress...have a good weekend y'all!

Beyonce feat J Cole - Party (Video)

Flo Rida - Good Feelin' (Video)

Mac Miller - Party on 5th Ave (Video)

J Cole - Lost Ones (Video)

Ne-Yo feat. Trey Songz & T-Pain - The Way You Move (Video)

araabMUZIK Metal MPC Solo (Video)

Videos of the Week

Lots of Kanye this week on the videos, including him bringing out his whole G.O.O.D. Music crew out to perform All of the Lights. Pretty cool to see Cudi and Big Sean join him on stage...

Kanye West & G.O.O.D. Music Perform All Of The Lights (Heineken Red Star Access)

J.Cole feat. Trey Songz -Can’t Get Enough (Video)

Afrojack, Dimitri Vegas & Like Mike and Nervo - The Way We See (Video)

Big Sean – Marvin Gaye & Chardonnay Feat. Kanye West & Roscoe Dash (Video)

B.O.B Performs New Track Strange Clouds at Syracuse

Behind the Scenes on Rhymefest feat Kanye West - Alligator Boots (Video) with Kim Kardashian 

Behind The Scenes on Tinie Tempah feat. Wiz Khalifa - Till I'm Gone (Video)

Asher Roth feat. Akon - Last Man Standing (Video)

Videos of the Week

Lot of Cudi this week and if you're not in the mood for a Steven Segal esque, me against the world beat down, then his new video for Mr. Rager may not be for you. I still love that Skylar Grey track and top 5 beat of 2011 by Alex da Kid on Invisible. Oh yea, that new J Cole is dope too, I might just have to go see him in Philly when he comes around in about a month...

Skylar Grey - Invisible (Video)

Kid Cudi - Mr. Rager (Video)

The Knux feat Kid Cudi - Run (Video)

DJ Drama feat Big Sean, Trey Songz, 2 Chainz - Oh My (Remix) (Video)

J Cole Performs New Song God's Gift Off New Album in Toronto

Travis Porter - You Don't Know About It (Video)

The Cool Kids feat Maxine Ashley - Summertime (Video)

Videos of the Week

Interesting week with respect to videos with a lot of randomness (Donald Trump co-signing Mac Miller, Anne Hathaway Rapping?) mixed in with some interesting live performances and music videos. Thanks again @s_c_, every time you decide to bottle pop and spend hundreds of thousands of dollars promoting your champagne, people find their way to my site because of this pic...

@JColeNC - Workout (Video)

DJ Drama's Oh My (Remix) Behind the Scenes

Anne Hathaway Raps on Conan

Game Apologizes to Sherriff's Department for Tweet

The Donald Co-signs @MacMiller as the "New Eminem"

Nicole Scherzinger - Wet (Video)

Jay-Z Poppin' Ace of Spades Bottles While Dropping' 250k in Miami

Kanye's Autotune Freestyle in Tivoli, Denmark

@kreayshawn Performs Gucci, Gucci at the Highline Ballroom in NYC

"I Can't Get Enough of What You Got, Good God, You Hit the Spot"

I'd imagine September 27th is going to be a big day for @JColeNC with the release of his debut studio album Cole World - The Sideline Story. When it comes to artists in Hip Hop, there aren't many more artists that I have more respect for talent wise. I say that because you're more likely to find a Surge or a Crystal Pepsi these days than an artist who produces, writes and delivers his material on a studio album. I don't know J Cole from the next man, but listening to interviews and tracks paint a clear picture to me of someone who is determined hell or high water to make the world familiar with his underdog story about how he did it his own way by blazing his own trail.

I'll admit though, I wasn't really a big fan of Work Out. To me it felt like a misfire kinda like @liltunchi's How To Love. Lead single aside, I'm still excited as hell to see what Cole is capable of putting together with the likes of Danja, @The_Real_BKidd and No I.D.. If No I.D. can add as much to Cole's album as he did @bigsean's then it should have no problem living up to the lofty expectations that the year+ of anticipation has created.

The new one below feat @treysongz is they type of unique sound I've learned to look forward to from J Cole. The beat is bouncy, almost Timbaland-esque and it provides a head nod worthy backdrop for three well crafted verses. The hook doesn't really sound like Songz Yuuuup!, but it's a sufficient placeholder that bridges the gap between the meat of the track. This will presumably be on Cole World and will hopefully set the standard for what to expect because it's an easy listen that comes off as feel good track the more you listen to it.

60 days til it drops, keep it locked, much more to come...#ColeWorld

J Cole feat Trey Songz - Can't Get Enough