On today's vids!
Kanye & Cudi "Welcome you to Heartbreak, and the old T.I. is "Dead and Gone"!
Click the full story to peep the vids!
Kanye West feat. KiD CuDi - Welcome to Heartbreak
Do not attempt to fix your monitor! Leave it to Ye to try something fresh and new for his videos letting his artist direction persist. Kanye drops his latest video out of nowhere with the help of newcomer KiD CuDi. According to Wikipedia, the next single was "See You In My Nightmares", but "Welcome To Heartbreak" proved it wrong. This is one of my favorite joints off 808's & Heartbreak, and I thought it would be the ideal intro for the album. Anyways, check the video out. Its insane!
T.I. feat. Justin Timberlake - Dead and Gone
Clifford drops the seventh single off of Paper Trail, making it the fifth video from the platinum album! The JT assisted joint is an ode to people he's lost in the past, and the rebirth of T.I.. T.I. also has a current MTV show "Road to Redemption" which showcases Tip's last days before he does his year bid next month. Make sure you check the video out!
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
Seeing is Believing 2/17: New Kanye, T.I. & Timberlake Vid!
Wednesday, December 31, 2008
Polls Is Talkin': Album of the Year x My 5 Favorite Albums of '08
Happy New Years to all! Whatever you do tonight be safe. To bring '08 to an end, I'm posting what readers felt was the album of the year. Based off December's poll, the album of the year is...
Hit up the full story to peep the rest of the results and my top 5.
Poll Results:
1. Lil Wayne - Carter III - 17%
Tied with Kanye West - 808's & Heartbreak
Lil Wayne & Kanye west come in at number one of the polls. Ironically, the frequent collaborators had two entirely different expectations for their albums. Lil Wayne appeared on various tracks and made numerous mixtapes leading up to his highly anticipated album; Mr. West on the other hand, did his thing on features as well, but announced he's releasing an album two months before it's date. Although both artists first singles contributed to this year's autotune craze, the overall sounds of these albums were complete opposites. Carter III is this year's highest selling hip hop album, and 808's & Heartbreaks is officially platinum in over a month.
2. Other - 14%
While the poll consisted of over ten popular albums of 2008, there were other candidates that weren't listed. Therefore the "other" answer was available for those who chose otherwise. Here's nine other slept-on joints that potentially could've been the album of the year.
3. T.I. - Paper Trail - 11%
Tied with: Nas - Untitled
Nas' controversial Untitled album (originally titled Nigger) is tied with T.I. whose no stranger to controversy. While this year wasn't a good start for T.I. with his weapons charge and parole violation, Paper Trail turned out to be a success, and is still selling till this day. While the bold Untitled album didn't feature many radio friendly tracks, Nas' point with this album was to speak his mind and cover racial and political topics.
4. The Game - L.A.X. - 8%
Tied With: Q-Tip - The Renaissance
The last tie on the poll is the feature heavy L.A.X., and the jazzy Renaissance album from Q-Tip. Both were great albums, but had entirely different vibes. L.A.X. gave you a west coast feel and had guest appearances ranging from Ne-Yo to Ice Cube. The Renaissance stuck to the traditional A Tribe Called Quest sound, marking Q-Tip's comeback. The Renaissance received good reviews from critics and fans, but unfortunately it failed to reach gold status unlike L.A.X.
5. The Roots - Rising Down 5%
The Roots continue to deliver solid albums with their eighth effort Rising Down. The album was one of the more darker albums of 2008, but out shined a lot of the material that was released this year.
Runners Up:
Common - Universal Mind Control 2%
Ludacris - Theater of the Mind 2%
My Top 5 Albums of 2008:
Click the album title to read the review
1. Nas - Untitled
2. Q-Tip - The Renaissance
3. Gnarls Barkley - The Odd Couple (no review available)
4. Kanye West - 808's & Heartbreak
5. The Roots - Rising Down (no review available)
Sunday, December 28, 2008
My Top 10 Singles of 2008
Typically music artists select their best work as singles to help promote their albums. Seeing that singles are usually meant to blow, lets recap some of the hottest singles of the year. Hit up the full story to peep my 10 favorite singles of 2008.
10. The Game feat. Lil Wayne - My Life
The Game linked up with his fellow blood brother Lil' Wayne for his third single off of L.A.X.. While most tracks that were featuring Wayne included a verse, The Game used Lil Wayne to sing on the hook. The Game drops powerful lines about life and death over a mellow Cool-n-Dre produced track.
9. Jay-z - Jockin' Jay-z
Eventhough the Blueprint III didn't see the light of day this year, Jockin' Jay-z was still a solid song from Hov. While it did receive some criticism and it didn't take off like some of Jay's past singles, it still served its purpose of keeping Jigga active and letting listeners know that the Blueprint III is coming. Blueprint 3 is now scheduled for a February 2009 release.
8. Ron Browz feat. Jim Jones & Juelz Santana - Pop Champagne
"Pop Champagne's" late release doesn't prevent it from making it to the top singles list. The single came through just in time to heat up the clubs this cold Winter. Originally the song belonged to Ron Browz, but it's now Jim Jones song featuring Ron Browz and Juelz. The "Ether Boy" also produced and appears on Busta Rhymes' "Arab Money", N.O.R.E.'s "Rotate", and Fat Joe's latest single.
7. Young Jeezy feat. Kanye West - Put On
Young Jeezy dropped the first single for his third album The Recession with a random, but impressive auto-tuned Kanye feature. The city anthem gained a huge buzz resulting in numerous artists freestyling over it and a Jay-z featured remix.
6. Q-Tip - Gettin' Up
Q-Tip dropped The Renaissance, his first album in almost ten years. The first single "Gettin' Up", stuck to the traditional Tribe Called Quest rhythm with Q-Tip rapping over a melodic, piano instrumental. While it didn't blow up like the club banger "Vivrant Thing", Tip released one of the best singles of '08.
5. Rick Ross feat. T-Pain - The Boss
T-Pain was featured on various tracks this year, and one of the most notable appearances was "The Boss".Rick Ross started 2008 off right with his first single off of Trilla, where him and T-Pain rip an insane JR Rotem instrumental.
4. Kanye West - Heartless
When Kanye announced his album will be complete auto-tune and feature little to no rapping, fans pondered if quality will be as good as Mr. West's prior work. When "Love Lockdown" released, reviews were mixed, but what saved it was the follow up single, "Heartless". The song stuck to the albums love theme, but still managed to be radio friendly. Not to mention, the video was dope as hell.
3. Gnarls Barkley - Who's Gonna Save My Soul
The rapper/producer duo Gnarls Barkley's third single "Who's Gonna Save My Soul" was indeed dope. The Grammy nominated music video was from left-field, but interestingly good. The Roots drummer ?uestlove premiered this track, and since then has been used by Jay Electronica & Kid Cudi. I would love to hear Nas or Scarface rap over this. If you haven't heard The Odd Couple, it's definitely worth the listen.
2. T.I. feat. Jay-z, Kanye West, & Lil Wayne - Swagger Like Us
Four of hip hop's heavyweights collaborated on the massive Swagga Like Us. With the late success of "Paper Planes" by M.I.A., Kanye sampled one of her lines for the hook of SLU. When Swagger Like Us first made it's way to the net, many people thought it was a rumored track, but turned out to be an official song. The song appears on T.I.'s Paper Trail, and since "Jockin' Jay-z" wasn't jocked like it was supposed to be, it led to Jay-z labeling "Swagger Like Us" as his first single. For this song to not have a video, it was highly popular and received heavy radio play.
1. Lil Wayne - A Milli
Easily one of the most memorable songs of 2008. Love him or hate him, it was Wayne's year. "A Milli" had to be one of the most rapped over instrumentals of this year. As soon as the song started catching on, the industry began to rape the beat. Jay-z, Jadakiss, Bow Wow, and even R&B'ers Chris Brown and Ne-Yo got on the repetitive instrumental. In the end, Wayne did the beat justice making it one of the best songs on Tha Carter III and 2008.
Honorable Mentions:
Common - Universal Mind Control
Estelle feat. Kanye West - American Boy
The Roots - Get Busy
Busta Rhymes - Arab Money
Nas - Hero
Charles Hamilton - Brooklyn Girls
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
Seeing is Believing 10/28: New T.I. & Ace Hood Vids!
T.I. feat. Rihanna - Live Your Life
The second main single off T.I.'s near platinum Paper Trail. Now that the video is out, I'm sure it'll surpass platinum status.
Ace Hood feat. Rick Ross, Juelz Santana, & Trey Songz - Ride (Remix)
The remix to "Ride", Ace Hood's second single off his upcoming Gutta album due out Nov. 18th.
Saturday, October 4, 2008
Kanye Performs New Single & Sets Nov. 25th Release Date!
Last night at the Key Club out here in LA, Kanye made an appearance at T.I.'s Paper Trail Album Release Party. Here's some footage from Consequence showing Ye & T.I. perform "Swagga Like Us". Afterwards, Kanyeezy performs "Love LockDown" and debuts his next single "Heartless". I guess he serious about the autotune, but the joint sounds nice. 808's & Heartbreak has been pushed up to November 25th!
Thursday, October 2, 2008
Album Review: T.I. - Paper Trail
Last October, T.I.'s career was being questioned due to his arrest from gun possession. Many wondered if it would cause Tip to go on a hiatus or would he still remain relevant while he is locked up. Since T.I. was proven guilty, he was issued 1000 hours of community service, and has to do a year in jail. Since T.I.'s jail time is delayed until community service is complete, it gave him more time to focus on his music and bring his latest effort Paper Trail.
The album's predecessor, T.I. vs. T.I.P. was an thematic attempt for T.I. to show his more creative side with an "alter ego" style album which received average reviews. With Paper Trail, T.I. went with his typical album formula; hard bass beats, club friendly tracks, and a couple of joints that appeal to the ladies.
The albums opener "56 Bars", T.I. hooks up with longtime collaborator DJ Toomp, dropping 56 lines straight with no hook. While the song sounds reminiscent to the "Trap Muzik" album, T.I. names who he feels is the best and on his level when he says: "Ranked up there with Benjamin/Who? Andre 3K, B.I.G., Jay-Z, UGK, Scarface, Makaveli the great/Wayne, Common, Kanye andLupe/So fuck what you say". T.I. continues to show his confidence in his music with the follow up track "I'm Illy" (not to be confused with the "A Millie"), and "Ready For Whatever".
While the first three openers appeal more to the streets, Paper Trail starts to lean towards the commercial side in the beginning to middle of the album. The "from-nothing-to-something anthem" "Top Of the World" features an unlikely feature by former rival Ludacris, and newcomer B.O.B.. T.I. also links up with Rihanna on "Live Your Life", a Just Blaze produced track that has crossover potential. Other tracks like "Swing Ya Rag", "Porn Star", and the lead single "Whatever You Like", also add to Paper Trail's mainstream appeal.
The post summer smash "Swagga Like Us" which features heavyweights Kanye, Hov, and Wayne is one of the albums biggest gems. The M.I.A. sampled hook features a dope beat by Mr. West, and an impressive verse from not only Jay-z but T.I.. T.I. shows his lyrical growth on "S.L.U." spitting lines like: You know see Weezy for the wordplay, Jeezy for the bird play/Kanyeezy for diversity and me for controversy/I'm a verse that's picture perfect, only spit to serve a purpose/You ain't livin what you kickin then you worthless/Lookin from the surface it may seem like I got reason to be nervous/Been observant, work to see if my adversity was worth it".
The album slows down towards the end with the nostalgic "Slide Show", the behind the walls dedication "You Ain't Missin Nothin'", and the final track "Dead and Gone" which features Justin Timberlake. Not only is JT on the hook, he also shows off his production skills on the track. "Dead and Gone" serves as a tribute to lost ones and also T.I. starting a new beginning; bringing the album to a close. In conclusion, Paper Trial is much better than T.I. vs. T.I.P., and it also shows T.I.'s growth as an artist. T.I. proves that no matter how much pressure and problems he experiences, he still manages to make above satisfactory music.
To Sum It Up In One Word: FlyPaper
Monday, September 8, 2008
2008 MTV VMA Performances!
...well some of em. It's been hard keeping these active since they've been getting yanked left & right. There's no telling how long these joints will be up so enjoy them while you can.
Rihanna - Disturbia
Lil Wayne (With Leona Lewis & T-Pain) - DontGetIt, A Milli, & Got Money
T.I. feat. Rihanna - Whatever You Like & Live Your Life
Kanye West - Love LockDown (World Premiere)
Tuesday, September 2, 2008
Seeing is Believing 9/2: New G Malone, Swagger Like Us, & More!
I've been slacking with the vids, but now I'm back on my grind. Here's a couple of joints on the net right now.
G Malone feat. Lil' Wayne & Birdman - Haters
Second single off The Beach Cruiser due out Oct. 21st.
Swagger Like Us (Fan Made)
Not the official tissue but a fan made video (a good one at that) of the track that leaked a couple of weeks ago.
It's So Cooold In The D
I dont know why I'm posting this so late, but it's been stuck in my head for a minute. I know you're thinkin' too bad for me. It's supposed to be a serious track but I couldn't help but laugh at this.
Saturday, August 23, 2008
Dope or Nope 8/23: New T.I. feat. Jay-z, Kanye West, & Lil' Wayne!
T.I. feat. Jay-z, Kanye, & Lil Wayne - S.L.U. (Swagger Like Us)
Nope is out the question, this shit goes hard! This breakthrough track will appear on Paper Trail which drops Sept. 30th. Another hot beat by Mr. West and contains a sample from M.I.A.. What a fuckin collabo! Click the link below to peep it.
Friday, August 8, 2008
Dope or Nope 8/8: New Luda & TI, and The Game
I'm a day late on updating my joints, but what can I say I had to handle some biz. Here's some new tracks that just hit the net. Peep em!
Ludacris & TI - Wish You Would
The two ATLiens reconciled their differences to bring you this track. Similar to Nas and Jay, these two both took blatant shots at each other on wax (and kept it on wax), but later on set aside their issues and make music. This will be featured on Ludacris' new album Theatre of the Mind in stores Oct. 21st and it is produced by DJ Toomp.
Ludacris & TI - Wish You Would
The Game - Superman
New track from The Game produced by Just Blaze off of You Know What It Is Vol. 5 (unfortunately it won't appear on L.A.X.).
Click Here to Peep the Full Story!
Wednesday, August 6, 2008
Seeing Is Believing 8/6 - New N.E.R.D. T.I., Bun-B, & Lil Wayne Vids!
N.E.R.D. - Everyone Nose Remix feat. Kanye & Lupe (CRS), and Pusha T
I've been bumpin this joint for a minute. This beat and video is too sick for its own good. I'm hoping Child Rebel Soldier eventually drops an album. It'll be insane!
T.I. - Whatever You Like
I posted this track a while ago in the Dope or Nope section,and here is the video for the official second single off Paper Trail coming Sept. 30th. Reagan Gomez (Zaria from Parent Hood) is still bad!
Bun-B feat. Rick Ross, David Banner, & 8ball & MJG - You're Everything
Lil Wayne feat. Jay-z & Freeway - Mr. Carter
Aiite, so it's not the official video, but this shits funny (especially the Freeway part). Peep it.
Thursday, July 31, 2008
Dope or Nope 7/31: New Maino - Hi Hater Remix
Maino feat. Swizz Beatz, Fab, Plies, Jadakiss and T.I. - Hi Hater (Remix)
You can't deny this hook is catchy as hell. Fab goes in on this remix! Check the link below to listen/download.
Sunday, July 20, 2008
Dope or Nope 7/20: New T.I. Single
T.I. - Whatever You Like Click Here to Peep the Full Story!
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