Buzz Track: Bizzle feat Jin - Forgive Me (prod by Boi-1da)

Not too many Christian rappers have the ability to get their music into heavy circulation on the blogsphere, but then again, you don't see many of them getting set up with beats by @boi1da. Enter Bizzle, aka The Christian Rapper. He recently released a mixtape in January titled Bizzle The Messenger 3, but you may know him more from when he took some shots a @s_c_ last year...

Pretty ballsy for a Christian rapper to aim for the top in voicing criticism about one of the best, but how else are you going to differentiate yourself from the masses? If you're wondering why he did it, below is a lengthy explanation of why @MyNameIsBizzle went in on Jigga, Kanye, Lady Gaga, Beyonce, etc..

"1. Why I did it? For a few reasons. To those who feel I did it for exposure; who am I? LOL! If you can't answer that, then I'm no good at advertising because I didn't even tell you the product or where you can go to find it. If I wanted exposure, I would have given out my myspace and twitter at the end. =) The truth is, I don't want to be famous, but after watching Christ be disrespected and learning about Jay-Z and a couple of others, I guess my emotions and Love for God got the best of me. I mean, most of you would defend your best friend if someone slandered their name, so I guess you can say Jesus is my best friend.

2. To those who have a problem with me using the N-Word; I apologize for any offense. But I did think it through before hand and decided to include it, because I'm not perfect and I use that word everyday. I felt it would be fake of me to leave it out of the record just so I could look like a better Christian. Being Christian doesn't mean I'm perfect. It just means I'm forgiven and I strive daily to be better and get closer to God.

3. Am I a Christian rapper or just a rapper that's Christian? I guess if there's a difference between the two, you would say I'm a rapper that's Christian. I'm not a Gospel rapper, though I am working on my music and moving in that direction. I'm sure you may hear some older records surface and maybe you should so that you can see how far I've come rather then seeing the word Christian and assuming where I should be.

4. Can Jay worship or believe in what he wants? Yes! This record is not about that. It's not a diss record. It's a "let you know the truth so you can make an informed decision on whether or not you still want to listen to him" record. LOL! It was for those people who heard the record and chose to delete him out of their ipods and jump off the boat when they found out what the destination was. I was also inspired by young singer/actress Tiffany Evans' heart to come out and make the statements she did about Satanism in the industry. It took a teenage girl to speak up when a lot of these so-called hard men in the game wouldn't.

One thing this song did that I didn't expect it to do, was let us know how far we are from Christ. I never expected to see so many "F God" and "F Jesus" comments. It hurt my stomach to read some of those. I'm sure a lot of us didn't know that so many of our peers felt that way. But never the less, God loves them all the same.

Once again, sorry If I offended some of you with the N-Word. I'll work on that. I may be a little rough around the edges but my heart was definitely in the right place. I appreciate all of the love. To my fellow Christians, in no way did I intend to set a bad example for the Kingdom. But people need to see that we too have flaws and that God will accept you with them. Love yall, and God Bless!!!"

Regardless of opinion on whether I think Bizzle was right in being critical, you gotta admire him for standing up for what he believes in despite it going waaaaaay against the grain. If he didn't have any talent no one woulda taken notice, but he went in on it and made a few people give a double take, in a sense reaching out and getting to quite a bit of Hip Hop fans with an equal admiration in his faith and beliefs. Can't personify his movement better than his t-shirt here...

Faith and history lesson aside, his new track with @AYOJIN and Boi-1da goes HARD! Found it interesting that it is self described as That "Change Your Life" Music by Jin on his blog. I've always been an admirer of Jin's lyrical abilities and his I Gotta Love track with @kanyewest will always be one of my favorite Hip Hop tracks. Maybe it's the vindictive side of me, but the perspective and tone Jin has on the track is awesome and is perfectly supplemented with the beat's heavy clap and high pitched sample delivered by Mr. West.

Don't let all the God talk scare you away, it's still quality Hip Hop...#TryItYouMightLikeIt

Bizzle feat Jin - Forgive Me (prod by Boi-1da)

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The Overnight Celebrity Visits the Island

Got another submission from The Friendly Giant this week, this time mashing @twistagmg and @kanyewest's classic Overnight Celebrity with @pendulum_music's The Island (Part 1).  Honestly had never heard of Pendulum prior to his submission, but I'm digging the electro rock vibe they've got goin' on with this track. Put it this way, you'd never usually hear Twista goin' in over a mid to uptempo beat like this one. The beat is heavy enough to blend with Hip Hop, but the elctro-synth element is what makes it unique.

Give a it a look and send some love to The Friendly Giant while you're at it...

Twista feat Kanye West vs Pendulum - Twisted (Friendly Giant Mashup)

"Girls Play the Victim So Well, Joan of Arc"

New track by R Les off his upcoming release Les is More, set to be released on July 4th. All things considered with his laptop being lost and then found in Germany after a cool million ransom was put up, it's great to hear the album is finally set to be officially released.

Like only he can, @ryanleslie recorded and released the track all in one day. Unlike most artists, R Les fully understands the use of the internet as a tool for getting his music out and getting people to talk about his music. Not only did he create a web page for this track, it comes with some stylish cover art, fully lyrics and download link. Not much more you could ask for from my perspective and I feel like he deserves some dap for going with the grain in making it easily sharable and artistic for bloggers.

And don't think this is some throw away track either, it's a powerful track that attempts to put more accountability on women by shedding light on some females who enjoy playing the Joan of Arc role in being the victim. Not that it's a woman's fault for getting played on occasion, but some games bad women play on good dudes cross the line. For example, the voicemail at the end of this track or R Les talking about writing from a jail cell, filling the pages with a mix of spiteful rage and sorrow over the girl he once cared about.

In my opinion R Les is at his best when he goes hard on the verses and soft on the hook, like on the song below. Throw in a guitar sample over some synthesizers and you've got a noteworthy track worth a few listens...

Ryan Leslie - Joan of Arc

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Mickey Factz Goes In On Daft Punk's Derezzed

Seems like this whole Hip House trend is continuing with a lot of the new, up and coming Hip Hop acts taking on electronic house beats. On the freestyle below, @MICKEYFACTZ takes on Daft Punk's Tron flavored Derazzed and manages to keep up lyrically with the frenetic tempo. Pop culture is eating up faster paced music and in a reactive way, Hip Hop is segmenting itself by evolving it's own sound to include the shift in musical tastes. Being a fan of club, house, techno...really anything upbeat and danceworthy, I'm open to the trend continuing despite old school Hip Hop heads being resistant, making it a racial issue in saying that Hip Hop is somehow selling out by embracing music traditionally well liked by "white people". With artists @bostonsboy, @MacMiller, @asherroth, or @napalmlive breaking out, it's safe to say Hip Hop is becoming more open minded to assimilation of Caucasians and that's nothing but awesome because objectively, how else is Hip Hop going to expand to a larger demographic?

Little food for though on a Friday that is worth pondering over a speaker rattling mix of fast paced Hip Hop...

Mickey Factz - Distressed (prod by Daft Punk)

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Big Fan of Erin Christine Naked

I don't blame you if you haven't heard of @imerinchristine yet, but I'm bound and determined to end that by the end of this post. To get acclimated with her talent, I'd visit her YouTube channel or just click the embedded video below of her covering Beyonce's Halo..

Girl's got some pipes, which augment her ability to tickle the ivory and isn't pretty obvious she's got the looks to pull it off. Voices like this don't go unnoticed and I've got that feeling like it's only a matter of time before she gets a record deal and the chance to follow in some of her idol's shoes (Alicia Keys, John Legend, Stevie Wonder).

Below is a remix to Erin's newest single Naked featuring up and coming Hip Hop artist @xtothev. Serious dap is in order for the verse delivered by X to the V, with lines like:
"Just for me to say this to your face, I was waitin' two months, and if we break fast, I won't make it to lunch"
and
"But if you'd be my Harvey Dent, that's my better half, one day I'll put you in a ring like Everlast". The two make for a great and completely unexpected duo, but two artists I'm really looking forward to hearing more from.

If you like the track below, you'll probably like this one too with XV, Vado, CyHi and Erin all gettin' together on one track. Talk about a buzz track chalked with talent...

Erin Christine feat XV - Naked (remix)
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Indie Artist Spotlight: Two Door Cinema Club

Below is one of my favorite songs of the last couple months; it's a @PASSIONPIT remix to the song Undercover Martyn, by Two Door Cinema Club. Passion Pit has spent their time between records quite well, doing a handful of remixes for a variety of artists, including: Gaga, Bruno Mars, and OK Go, among many famous others.

Two Door Cinema Club - Undercover Martyn (Passion Pit remix)

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@tdcinemaclub, on the other hand, is a band from Northern Ireland, who gained much deserved notoriety when they opened for Phoenix on last year's U.S. tour.

They had a single that did some damage in the UK, called, I Can Talk, that is solid, but unspectacular, and far from my favorite on the record. To be honest, I much prefer Cigarettes in the Theatre, as it seems to better encapsulate the band's fun, festive mood, and it showcases the band at their best melodically.

Check it out...

Two Door Cinema Club - Cigarettes in the Theatre

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"Red Ralph Laurens, the Double R Sittin’ on a Hill Like Lauren"

This past week has all but quieted any sort of notion I had that Charles Louboutin needs the good Doctor to release a platinum worthy album. The ironic thing is, @drdre is mentioned in the production credits of 6 outta 19 songs *tentatively* on his upcoming album, but that's neither here nor there. Yea, you could say I've fully bought into the hype of his upcoming R.E.D. Album, first with his Jim Jonsin produced track with Yelawolf - Rough (which hasn't yet been confirmed on the final tracklist) and now below is the lead single on the album featuring everyone's favorite feature @liltunechi.

Definitely one of the more dope intros to a song in recent memory by @COOLANDDRE who take the Kernkraft 400 Zombie Nation sample and flip it into a slowed down, rolling, percussion-fest that sets the table for @thegame to go IN on a 4 minute pro-Blood, 2011-style-as-close-as-we're-gonna-get-to-gangsta-rap track. From procliaming he "Made the letter B more famous than a Red Sox fitted", to holding down the Cincinnati Reds, to shouting out Su-Wu on the track, it's pretty clear he's still got a whole lotta pride in what color he reps. But I guess that's why it's called The R.E.D. Album and whatever expectations you have for the final album, you should probably reconsider them after seeing production from @jonathanrotem, @PolowDaDon, @timbaland007, @kanyewest, @imadeitinc, @realdjpremier, @MAESTRO, @eminem to name a few...and that's on top of 6 @drdre tracks with 3 @COOLANDDRE tracks. Did I mention Drake, Gaga and Big Boi are *tentatively* on the album too? JFC, is this the album to end all Hip Hop albums?

Whether it be mid or late 2011, I've got this circle in RED marker as my pick for the Hip Hop album I'm most excited about this year...

Game feat Lil Wayne - Red Nation (prod by Cool N Dre)

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"They Can’t See Me, But They Feel Me, I’m Basically Braille"

Chalk another (soon to be) hit up for British rapper @chipmunkartist, this time enlisting the services of the beautiful @MissKeriBaby on his new made for radio track In the Air. Between this and his collabo with @chrisbrown on Champion, it's safe to say he's one of the few British artists who have been able to seek out top notch US talent and as a result, appeal to a greater audience. He's young, he's got the ability to connect with noteworthy Hip Hop/R&B mainstays and there's something so different about his accented flow that intriguing and different, which adds a whole novelty to his music. Sometimes it can pay to be a trail blazer (just ask Greg Oden) and that's exactly what Chipmunk is turning out to be with the singles he's released so far.

What remains to be seen is if he can sell records in the US? Jury is still out with In the Air hitting iTunes yesterday, but the real question will be if his upcoming album album Transition, due out on April 18th,will get some SoundScan love. Hopefully his A&R step up the promotion on theses two solid singles, which (by American Hip Hop standards) already qualifies his upcoming album as a noteworthy effore (sadly).

Better hitch a ride on the bandwagon, it's about to get a lil' crowded if some of these Chipmunk tracks start circulating on US radio. Lookin' forward to his new track with @treysongz titled Take Off....#StayTuned and give the homie some love on iTunes.

Chipmunk feat Keri Hilson - In the Air (prod by Harmony)
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"So Tonight Let All of Your Pain be Champagne"

I'll admit, I was curious as hell when I saw the picture above of @thegame, @yelawolf and @iamjimjonsin kickin' it in the studio about a month ago. Mostly excited at the the prospect of two really talented Hip Hop artists coming together on a Jim Jonsin beat, but honestly hoping the collabo would be lyrically meaningful since the aforementioned artists can drop some really thought provoking stuff when they decide to.

What the track ended up being didn't disappoint, with Jayceon concocting one of the more forceful and creative verses in recent memory. To be fair, I'm a big Game fan because his voice is one of the most powerful in Hip Hop when he chooses to write and deliver verses like the one below. To me, there is no middle ground with his work, it's either quickly passed over or excellent in ever way. This represents the latter, feel free to follow the word-play by-play on the 2nd verse...

"The living, the dead
These Dre beats, my head
My life, featuring Wayne
That was Jayceon, this is Game
Adjacent to the fame aint chasing a damn thing
So tonight let all of your pain be champagne
I cant tame my killers but I can tell them chill
I might give you a pass depending how I feel
The bi polar bear
They said the end of the World is comin I know it’s here
Cuz California cold this year
Detox, R.E.D
MC’s dead
Kill them softly like Lauren Hill
Skin heads goin K-K-Krazy cuz a n-gga in a foreign wheel
We all born to die, some of us born to kill
If that don’t wake you up I hope tomorrow morning will"

While the track is dominated by Game's aggressive delivery and creative wordplay, I was initially hooked by the sample on the beat. It sounded so familiar, like one of those classic piano samples everyone has heard and hums every time it comes on, but I couldn't put my finger on it. Turns out Jim sampled Pearl Jam's timeless track Black (below)...

Cool how it all came together, but even more that Game touched on Drake and Bieber getting shafted at the Grammys (like he did when Missy beat him out years ago). Also found it interesting to hear Yelawolf speak on his newfound fame and how it feels to go from being relatively unknown to everyone wanting your autograph. Sounds like to me, he's one guy you know won't be changed one bit by fame because of what he's come from. Kinda cool and easy to relate to, which is why it's hard not to root for someone like that to succeed. Only a matter of time, maybe an album or a @Eminem collab or two and he'll be a household name. You can take that to the bank, as well as this one being in heavy circulation on any and all playlists I make...

Game feat Yelawolf - Rough (prod by Jim Jonsin)

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Free Hip Hop With a Bow On It

Tis the season for Mixtapes and what better way to start than a much anticipated release from Cleveland native @chip216. With the whole tape produced by 1/2 the @coolxkids with @chuckisdope behind the boards, the level of quality Hip Hop throughout is assumed. Every beat will have you nodding your head and admiring the *fresh* as you listen to Chip methodically flow with his his in your face, but cool as a summer breeze delivery.

Between as the Twitter chatter and blog and merchandise love Gift Raps is getting, it's no surprise this has over 26,000 downloads in datpiff in less than two weeks. As far as this week is concerned, it's only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to Mixtapes. You've got @ITSPACDIV - Mania (10K downloads), @macmiller - Best Day Ever (61K downloads), @dopeitsdom - Original Dom Kennedy (4K downloads, @BEIMAEJOR - Throwback (3K downloads) and to top it all off the other half of the Cool Kids (@sirmichaelrocks) is releasing The Rocks Report on Monday. Put it this way, plenty of homework to do for bloggers and Hip Hop heads alike when it comes to sifting through the heap of free music we've been provided this week.

Below are my two favorite tracks from Gift Raps, the first with co-prod credit from the Blended Babies. If you've been admiring the @charliesheen saga unfold, you'll get a chuckle out of the tweet below as it relates pretty well to the motto on Plural...

Chip Tha Ripper - Plural (Prod by Chuck Inglish & Blended Babies)

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As far as best beat on the mixtape is concerned, easily the absolutely bangin' Everyday Chillin beat that has Chuck's paw prints all over it. Love the simplistic, heavy sound all over the track...

Chip Tha Ripper - Everyday Chillin (prod by Chuck Inglish)

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Feel free to stream the whole tape below or download it here...

A Mashup Worth the Price of Admission

For the second straight week, 17 year old mashup artist known around the blogsphere as The Friendly Giant has mashed two completely different songs with polar opposite tempos from two different genres. This week, it's one of my personal favorite club bangers of 201, @WakaFlockaBSM's No Hands getting put in a blender with @TAIOCRUZ's Higher.

Prior to listening, it's easy to doubt that the two tracks would be able to mesh together like some basketball shorts, buuuut don't judge prior to listening, you'll end up bein' that guy everybody hates because he likes the original so much, he can't conceive it being mixed into a more likable track. Please someone point out to me the seams on this, I'm having a hard time with each listen finding a place in the track it doesn't match up. Great way to resurrect two independently awesome tracks that had lived out their shelf lives.

S/O to Eli, good look on the track, keep the creativity comin' man...

Waka Flocka feat Roscoe Dash & Wale vs Taio Cruz - Hands Up High (Friendly Giant Mashup)
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"Life's Hard And it Feels Like Diamonds"

When @LUPEFIASCO's long awaited album Lasers (Love Always Shines Everytime Remember 2 Smile) finally found it's way onto iTunes this past Tuesday, it was received with a lot of negativity. After a few listens of the album, I feel like the frustration and negativity surrounding the album is mostly justified, but given the circumstances, the expectations shouldn't have been as high as his first two albums. From the dispute with his record label Atlantic that caused the huge delay between albums, to the way Lupe keeps claiming he hates his new album, to the different (heavily electronic) sounds and controversial lyrics, there hasn't been a shortage of opinions on his newest release.

But, if we've learned anything in the past week with @charliesheen, we now know it's abundantly clear that any publicity is good publicity. Case in point, Lupe being on track to sell over 200k in the first week, which will surpass both his previous debuts, which were (presumably) much more coherent and quality releases. Selfishly, I was hoping Lasers would go double glass so that Lupe could be released from Atlantic and get back to guiding his own spaceship and making his brand of original music. Don't get me wrong, I like his two pop anthems on the charts right now as much as the next person, but we've got tons of other artists that fit the radio mold, who are incapable of making music that is as deep as what we heard on Food & Liquor and The Cool.

Unfortunately, barring some unforeseen event that would cause his contract with Atlantic to terminate, Lupe is now probably going to continue to be used as a cash cow for a record company he hates and subsequently forced into making more music that he doesn't personally like, but will sell. If you're a Lupe fan and are expecting storytelling tracks like The Cool (below), then you're going to hate his new album and the 180 he did with his new album's "manufactured" sound. I'm tellin' you, lower your expectations prior to listening to his album, it's best for all involved...

Alright now that you're in the right frame of mind with expectations back in the ballpark, below is my favorite track on the album. This track, All Black Everything and Letting You Go represent the only glimpses of the artistry that I really admired on his past two albums. The sythesizer gives the track a dreamy feel, which meshes well with the harsh, somber lyrics Lupe bleeds on the track. Fitting for the struggle he went through in making the album...

"There’s only two ways, out, of, here,
If you’re too late you’ll be trapped here, forever.
There’s only two ways out of here,
One’s through the door, the other’s through me"

Lasers isn't what you should expect from Lupe, he admitted it himself. Sadly, iTunes and SoundScan don't always reward quality and a few hot singles can salvage just about anything. I hate the trend, but it's the climate we live in now, so take what you want from Lasers, just make sure it's with a grain of salt...

Lupe Fiasco feat MDMA - Beautiful Lasers (2 Ways)

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Hip Hop Fans Indulge in Sam Adams

After looking at the picture above, you wouldn't be crazy if you did a double take and thought @BostonsBoy and @MACMILLER were somehow related. I'm sure that's not the first time someone has made that obvious, skin deep comparison, but it is interesting how many white rappers are coming out of the woodwork these days. To be fair though, Sam Adams has been on his grind a little longer at the ripe age of 22 and doesn't have the support of a label mate to carry the torch like the 19 year old MM.

You may have heard when he blast onto the scene with his remix of @AsherRoth's I Love College or when his debut album outsold Lil Wayne and Rick Ross on first week sales on iTunes amid rumors of the hype being manufactured. To clear the air, below are a few facts you may not know about Sammy...

FACT: Sam Adams is a descendent of John Quincy Adams
FACT: Sam Adams is NOT named after the beer (despite both being from Boston)
FACT: Sam Adams used to go by the nickname Wiz (real name is Samuel Adams Wizner)
FACT: Sam Adams went to Trinity College in Hartford, CT and was captain of the soccer team

As an intro to his music, check out the video for one of his more well-liked tracks, titled Driving Me Crazy...

The track above was off his debut album Boston's Boy, which was the center of controversy and had everyone scratching their heads due to the sales it had without any label backing. As a sidebar, who really cares if he did purchase albums to create a buzz for himself? I don't because if you don't put your mouth where your money is in Hip Hop, people aren't gonna listen anyways. Case in point, his newest mixtape Party Records (below brought to you by @DJWHOOKID & @DEEJAYjCASH), which has a track on it that caught my ear when I heard it on Shade 45 this week.

It's called Summer Techno and it sounds exactly like the title says. The beat is marked by a fast paced, electro, Hip-House rhythm with a sugary hook that serves as the icing on the cake. Easily a standout track as I made a note driving to go and cop it, which you should too since he's offering the album FREE! Consider this a warning shot, jury is still out on whether I'm a buyer, but I'm diggin' this track (even though it dropped 6 months ago)....

Sam Adams - Summer Techno

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Oh by the way...if you're in the Lehigh Valley area, you should go and check him out with @Wale and @IAMKNAAN at Lafayette college on April 14th...

"It Go Green Light, Go Weezy Go, I Like to Taste That Sugar, That Sweet'N Lo"

It seems like now more than ever, regardless of how hardcore or gangsta rappers may claim to be, none of them are above dropping a hot (and seductive) 16 over a slow jam. Blame that on the Hip Hop leaders and their penchant for gettin' in where the $$$ lives and realizing that sometimes it takes goin, in on a soft, syn laden pitter patter beat to get some love on iTunes/the radio. Find me two better at it right now than @liltunechi and @drakkardnoir, the only argument I'd even listen to is for @TIP or @MYFABOLOUSLIFE to be in the discussion.

Oh yea, it helps that everyone is still infatuated with the sounds comin' out of @iamjimjonsin's keys too. Can't hate, I still have yet to hear a Jim Jonsin beat that hasn't eventually ended up in the hands of someone who could turn it into a hit. I'd say this puts a bow on a pretty damn impressive upcoming album from @kellyrowland, although it's odd to see a artist release four singles before the albums hits shelves. Commander was a classic track though, and I really thought Grown Ass Woman shoulda gotten a little more love than it did, especially from women who it had the power to inspire. By my count that's three rock solid singles if you count the track below, which is more than most albums nowadays.

Even if you're not an R&B fan and this isn't your cup of white tea (#MoreAntioxidants #StepYourGreenTeaGameUp), it's always fun to hear Weezy F in his element, methodically spittin' swagger dripped seduction bar after bar...#LLWeezyF

Kelly Rowland feat Lil Wayne - Motivation (prod by Jim Jonsin)

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Dungeon Fam's Aleon Craft

Does anybody else miss the Dungeon Family as a collective? Like that sound you'd hear on Even in Darkness, with plenty of Organized Noize, a healthy serving of soulful hooks by @theladykilla & @sleepybrownatl that glued together verses from the likes of Three Stacks, @bigboi and @mike_bigga. I know I know, we've gotten glimpses of the soulful undertones from the likes Bubba Sparxxx, Knarles Barkley, Cee-Lo and Big Boi, who have represented the click to the fullest (individually), but collectively...I miss tracks like White Gutz below that were so cot damn chalked full of rhythmic drum and bass mixed with ATL soul that it was hard to fully appreciate at the time...

Why does all that matter, because we've got a newcomer to add to the family, @aleoncraft. Below, you'll find a new one off his newest mixtape Mothership Decatur, due out April 7th. Similar to White Gutz above, the track has all the elements that make Trans DF Express run. The epicenter of southern Hip Hop is Atlanta and when I think of the ATL, the members of Dungeon Fam are who come to mind when I think of the catalyst to it becoming what it is now. Aleon fits right into the fam with his otherworldly lyrics and fast paced, enlightened flow. Don't discount the beat either, which was orchestrated by @smka and fits into the Dungeon Fam sound like a size 22 on Shaq.

Heads up in a month when the tape drops, I gotta feelin' between Battlefield LA, Paul and Aleon, this next month is gonna be taken over by the extra terrestrials...

Aleon Craft - Look Twice (prod by SMKA)

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Drake, I'd Like You To Meet Jack Johnson

Have you heard that new track where Drake, Kanye, and Lil Wayne rap over a Jack Johnson, (yes, the singer-songwriter), produced instrumental (If I Had Eyes)??

Well, only in the world of mash-up's is something like this possible, and the end result is flawless. Thanks to fellow blogger The Friendly Giant, we can now imagine what it would have been like if @jackjohnson was in the studio when those great dudes put together the monster collaboration, Forever.

Jack Johnson vs Drake - Forever (Friendly Giant Mashup)

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Shady Records 2.0

Consider this the first of many great collaborations between @EMINEM and new hires, @S1AUGHTERHOUSE & @yelawolf. Any questions about whether or not Em & the lyrical wordsmiths of Slaughter would mesh have been long answered on previous tracks like the Recovery bonus track Session One and the Microphone (Remix). Honestly, it's a no brainer chemistry wise since all five lyricists consistently try to raise the bar lyrically on every verse with lines that make witty sound like an underwhelming description.

That leaves one question, will Catfish Billy's unique delivery and zoned out content blend? On the first effort below, he does stand out style wise as different from everyone else on the track, which doesn't help the continuity of the track, but I'm far from a point where I feel comfortable passing judgement. All I can say it I'm excited as hell that this track is the starting point and it's only gonna get better from here on out.

Couple Quoteables:

Royce (@therealroyce59)

"Quick devour polish it, politics, by the way I’m higher than the Eiffel tower tip
I like writing but I will stick this pencil in your ass before I write ya shit"

Joell (@joellortiz)

"Nickel, I just picked up a Phantom, look how it Rolls, Royce!
Even if I want to quit, I ain’t got no choice
Verses keep coming, I should invoice my own voice"

Budden (@joebudden)

"My men think in sync, roll with the best crew
Move to the beat of the same drum without Lex Luger"

"Need results from my actions, mistakes I’ll exonerate
I’m Martin King staring at a picture of Obama’s face"

Crook (@therealcrookedi)

"Tell me when and I’m there
Not only heir to the throne, but my chair is suspended in air
Stay fly like a limited fare
You got us pegged wrong, my circle don’t fit in with squares"

YelaWolf (@yelawolf)

"In an old ’89, no piece if you pay me
Gimme peace sign on my grill, no Mercedes
I’m getting paid for these shows that I throw lately
Same shows a year ago woulda broken most of you crazies"

Eminem Slaughterhouse & Yelawolf - 2.0 Boys

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Photo Credit: XXL

Slow Jam of the Month: Kevin McCall feat Chris Brown - Rest of My Life

It's safe to say @kevinmccall1 & @chrisbrown have a good thing goin' with their success on Deuces, which lead up to their recent mixtape together Un-Invited Guests, hosted by @djdrama & @deejayillwill. Safe to say this is the best cut off that mixtape and a solid chance for top BMM playlist addition this month. Feel free to stream the mixtape below...

Kevin McCall feat Chris Brown - Rest of My Life

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"For All We Know We Might Not Get Tomorrow, Let's Do it Tonight"

Is there any doubt that whenever Pitbull wants to, he can make a top 10 club hit? Last year's formula of employing @iamjimjonsin to lay the groundwork for his tracks on Armando, now he's upping the ante on his new album Planet Pit with the likes of @PolowDaDon, @davidguetta, @only1darkchild & @djafrojack. It's almost like he conquered all of the club sample tracks with Jim Jonsin, now he's moved on to producers that are going to maintain his reputation for hype club music, but with a different sound.

Kinda like the one below where 23 yr old Dutch prodigy, electro house producer @djafrojack laced the beat with audio cocaine. Add to the beat a show stealing hook by @neyocompound and the vocals of @nayer_music and it's hard to bet against this one. Not to diminish Pitbull in any way, but dude is surrounding himself with so much great talent, it's not a fluke he's been consistently making great music. It helps that last year David Guetta permeated pop music with a European house sound, which allowed tracks like the one below to be born. The American club-goer has developed a thirst for upbeat Hip Hop, which is why this track is a shoe in to be played this Spring and into the Summer.

Shouts out to @PLANETPIT on the cover art, there aren't many fan sites and twitter that can compete with what y'all put out on a daily basis...

Pitbull Ft. Ne-Yo, Afrojack & Nayer - Give Me Everything (Tonight)

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Concert Review: Flogging Molly

You may not have one, but I have a concert bucket list, #HowClicheForADJ (right?). A few names on that list include Rage Against the Machine, Daft Punk, B.O.B., J. Cole...all have varying degrees of liklihood I would see them, with http://www.ratm.com/ (obviously) being the rare dinosaur I may never get to see because they do like one concern every other year and it's almost always in Chicago at Lollapalooza. With all that being said, I'm proud to say I was proactive enough to seek out tickets to attend one of the more difficult, rare birds on my bucket list last week in Flogging Molly at the Electric Factory. They have always proved elusive to me as I had a chance to see them at TOSU a few years back, but had been regretting that decision after realizing the infrequency they tour the US.

On par, the show sold out a few weeks leading up to the show and I had never seen the Electric Factory so packed to the brim before. I can now understand the capacity of the warehouse as there wasn't a non-crowded standing place in the house. As far as the warm up acts are concerned, The Drowning Men and Moneybrother were decent in their own right, but not quite attention grabbing enough for me to run home and cop their album. You may like them more than me, but they're not really my cup of tea.

You may be curious and wonder, @GWDJ, you're a Hip Hop fan, why @_floggingmolly? Simple, I'm half Irish, so naturally the instrumentation and dialect evoke a sense of pride and familiarity...oh yea did I mention it's great drinking music? Man, if you can listen to a Flogging Molly album and not wanna go VietHAM, you need to let loose a bit and reconsider how you take life too seriously. My expectation for the clientele that would be at the show was something like what you'd expect to see at a metal show, except wearing kilts and looking like they had Guinness in their baby bottle and subsequently, grew up in a pub.

When I got to the show, I realized my expectations weren't entirely true as there were quite a bit of older adults 40+ who were avid fans and seemingly had their shit together a deep appreciation for the band. Since I was with wifey, I did not subject myself to the crowded mess that became the pit, which was fairly tame (not even close to as violent as a metal show) and looked like a bunch of high schoolers actin' a damn fool (since when do people throw shoes in the air in the pit?). Instead, I opted for a nice birds eye view, centered with the stage, with no visual obstruction and a the perk of having a few feet of personal space.

Like most concerts the fans were rabid, incessantly chanting for the band to come onstage. When they did it was like a 0-100 mph acceleration as they sped through one of the new tracks off their upcoming album Speed of Darkness. Here was a clip I caught off top of their new track Speed of Darkness.

A big surprise came from me when they broke out Devil's Dancefloor not even halfway through their set. I had always thought of it as an encore type track since it is their most noteworthy hit (I thought), but again I'm more of a casual fan, which didn't really fit in with the majority of the crowd who had already seen them live.

Flogging Molly - Devil's Dancefloor

Somethin about the ol' tin whistle in that track does it for me man. Definitely makes me want to visit Ireland...

Much to the chagrin of the rowdies that live in the pit, midway through the set, Flogging Molly broke out into a 4 song acoustic set that was more like a string of lullabys than crazy drunken Irish music. To me it was a really cool contrast because I can appreciate slow acoustic banjo tracks like the one below, If I Ever Leave This World, which end up turning into echoing, wall shaking sing-alongs. Again, the tin whistle blends well and is a match made in heaven with the banjo, two instruments rarely used in American music.

Flogging Molly - If I Ever Leave This World

After the pit woke up from the nap, it was pedal back to the metal with more uptempo, jig inducing, accordion laced songs that ignited the crowd with energy. That's probably the biggest thing I noticed at this show when I took a second to step back. It's really hard to find live music that injects the crowd with endless energy the way Flogging Molly does. As the show continued on nearing the second hour of the set (AWESOME!), there was never a let up and I began to feel a sense of pride in myself that I had chosen to put them on my concert bucket list. They really were worth waiting for and missing all those years because they are an absolute blast to see live. No better way to show that than on their rendition of Rebels of a Sacred Heart...

Flogging Molly - Rebels of a Sacred Heart

Ended up being a great seat since I was bumped minimally, didn't have anything spilled on myself and got a great view of the stage (which isn't easy considering I'm under 6 ft tall) that allowed enough personal space to move around and stretch when needed. I'm really looking forward to their new album coming out in 2011 and if you have a chance to see them live, you'd be a fool to not heavily consider it...and consider it early because their shows ALWAYS sell out. While I'll never consider myself a hard core fan of their music and know every song by heart, there's definitely a uniqueness that goes along with their energetic, positive music that is unquestionably alluring, which is the ultimate reason why I have so much respect for their music.

"Man, If Life Was a Bicycle I'd Say That I'm Tryin' To Get My Pedal On"

This whole meshing of Indie and Hip Hop is a great thing. To me, Indie music is basically like saying an artist's style is original and different than all the other music that gets keyholed into genres. To be Indie, you almost have to have at least a mix of two different types of music or be nothing like anything you'd hear on the radio. Confusing enough of an explanation? Hopefully you get where I'm going with this as I try to set up a track originally done by @coldwarkids of their newest single Mine is Yours (obligatory iTunes link). I'd characterize it as a soft rock track where Cold War Kids lead singer Nathan Willett manages to croon you into a trance vocally over a soft piano laden backdrop. Real easy listening...

Cold War Kids - Mine is Yours (original version)

Seems like a whole lotta people seemed to feel the same way as other notable Indie acts like @PASSIONPIT and @OddBlood both took swings at the mellow out track. Not sure which I like better, but I'm leaning toward Yeasayer's synthesizers over Passion Pit's 80's sounding mix. You be the judge, both are 180s from the original and I don't think either fully did the original justice...

Cold War Kids - Mine is Yours (Passion Pit Remix)

Cold War Kids - Mine is Yours (Yeasayer Remix)

If you were wondering, I am saving the best for last because the Blended Babies mix of the original (without question) pulled off the best mix. Adding in some deep bass, a few well executed verses by @sirmichaelrocks, but still keeping the original hook was a great decision. When it comes to alternative Hip Hop, it's hard to do much better than the final product below, it's fresh on so many levels.

Cold War Kids feat Mikey Rocks - Mine is Yours (Blended Babies Remix)

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"That’s How it's Supposed To Be, Living Young and Wild and Free"

While I wouldn't consider this in the same ballpark as their first collaboration (That Good) off the upcoming High School Soundtrack, it's still noteworthy considering the crazy chemistry the two habitual blunt smokers have. Consider it a care-free spring anthem that is every bit as mellow as it is unapologetically rebellious, perfect for a movie about High School.

What I'm wondering is whether or not Rolling Papers (March 29th), Doggumentary (March 29th) and High School (April 20th) being released within a month is a good or bad thing. With @SNOOPDOGG now on studio album 11 and @REALWIZKHALIFA on his 3rd studio album, there's enough experience to give confidence in the quality of all three, especially given their new school Cheech and Chong brotherhood they've got goin on (big fan of Snoop's hat above...goes without saying). Remains to be seen, but if you're feelin' particularly rebellious and don't really GAF, you may take a liking to this fun sing along that's probably going to become more than a few teens' favorite song here in a few weeks...

Snoop Dogg & Wiz Khalifa - Young Wild & Free

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WRIB? Wye Oak vs Rod Lee - Dance My Pain Away

It's not often that you get the chance to hear an indie artist cover a hip hop artist, but such is the case when Baltimore natives Wye Oak covered fellow B-More native Rod Lee.

Wye Oak - Dance My Pain Away
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The song is called Dance My Pain Away and it was a hit in east coast clubs early last year. It wasn't until recently that I heard it though, and credit @wyeoak with the assist. Their take on it is much more melancholy, forcing you to take notice of the sadness in the lyrics that sometimes escape you when you hear @DJRODLEE sing.

DJ Rod Lee - Dance My Pain Away
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It's not that the emotion isn't fully apparent in the original, it is. It's just masked slightly better by the catchiness of the instrumental surrounding it.

All in all, I'd say it's everything you could hope for in a cover. A different, equally great rendition, that shines light on an artist that Wye Oak fans might not have otherwise known about, while also paying homage to a fellow artist from the same town. #Bmore

Great job guys!

As a bonus, check out one of Wye Oak's other tracks I'm a fan of, My Neighbor...

Wye Oak - My Neighbor
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Kevin Cossom is a Name You Should Know

In a week, I'd consider myself fortunate to find one track produced by Danjahandz, Boi-1da and The Runners. They're three of the best producers in Hip Hop and R&B and when artist go to them for tracks, their sights are usually on a top 10 single on iTunes that will be the basis for why people will want to buy their album. I say all this because three tracks, all sung by @KEVINCOSSOM flashed across the radar. The one below prod by Danja gets top billing with the @boi1da produced demo Change Your Mind coming in a close second. And now that I listen to @therealrunners produced track My Love, I'm starting to have reservations about my rankings because that's a hot track too.

Oh and if you missed it last week, Kevin's new video with @iamdiddy @MYFABOLOUSLIFE made plenty of waves on MTV. Check the video below and iTunes for the track if you were late to the party...

I'm hoping some of the above mentioned tracks aren't all demo tracks and that he uses the to put together an epic debut album. No word on a release date, but we can all hope for 2011 being the year when Jive puts some backing behind one of the most talented up and coming R&B artists.

Kevin Cossum - On & On (prod by Danjahandz)

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Videos of the Week

Eventful week with plenty of entertaining videos, like the short film video from @drdre of his new single I Need a Doctor. Seems like between this one and all of Kanye's latest films (with a bit of music in between) are continuing a trend of creating a deep, engaging plot. Can't hate on the value added drama on the storylines or the blatant product placement from the likes of Ferrari, HP and Gatorade...#ShamelessButLucrative.

Appreciated the tribute to the late Eric Wright (Eazy E) with him visiting his grave site at the end of the video with plenty of N.W.A. clips scattered throughout...

We also got a @liltunechi cameo on the remix of @mikeposner's formerly underrated Bow Chicka Wow Wow track...

Finally, do you remember that movie that came out last year? Somethin' about a Vegas trip and bachelor party? Yea, the Wolfpack is back this Memorial Day with The Hangover 2 in Thailand with Stu getting married this time. Can it top the first? HELL NO! The sequel is never as surprising or good, but does it have the potential to be hilarious like the first?...#UBetchaSweetAssItDoes