To my ‘Nati readers, you probably saw this coming. They’ve come to Cincinnati a lot: Kweli performed that free concert at Fountain Square. Expect Black Star to be releasing an album next year. Talib Kweli confirmed that on mtv.com
“I am working to put out a Black Star project for people to buy sometime next year.”
Big question is what will it sound like? If you a fan of music from the Stones Throw label, this album may be for you.
Me and Mos [Def] are focused on independence and quality of sound. We’re really into a Madlib/Dilla thing right now. Anything you hear from us is probably going to be that type of sound. And it’s about independence, so we are trying to find out the right mediums to get the songs out.
Will switching to Maybach Music Group, as his label, give Wale the chance to be in the ranks with Lil Wayne and jay-z?
Wale has had an interesting ride since I first discovered him, in 2007. I first heard an underground track called “chillin”, which was produced by Cool N Dre. If you told me then that Lady Gaga would be on the track, you’d have me in Denial. Thanks to social media and working with people like gaga, Wale has had a good start to his career.
Fast forward to the present, where now Wale is with Maybach Music Group: Rick Ross’s label. He says he’s been marketing his music to the wrong demo, and figures signing with maybach will lift his career. His latest Album, “Ambition”, is his first one off of Maybach Music Group.
Ambition Tracks:
Wale has a good balance between street and mainstream hip-hop. While you’ve probably heard ambition already, you gotta check out chain music. The production by Tone P was sick, and Wale is on point with his flow. While this may seem like a flossy track, he easily balances it out with a conscious track like DC or Nothing.
Wale has a lot of R & B guests on this album, like Lloyd, Miguel, and Ne-Yo. I don’t have to tell you about “that way”, featuring Jeremih which has been a hit, and I have it on repeat too. White Linen is my favorite track. Had it been released earlier, this would’ve been the white party anthem this summer. Next year, you’ll hear this track the next time you go to a white party.
To sum it up :
Wale has changed his flow since the beginning of his career, and it was for the better on this album. He’s changed how he usually raps and you can get a feel for the songs on this album. Catchy hooks, great lyrics, just overall a strong album. For it being a second album, Wale has found his niche quick.Maybe going to Maybach music was a good idea after all.
Rated 4 out 5
Will you buy the album today? Have you already bought it? What are your favorite tracks? Let us know your thoughts of Wale’s new album by posting your comments below.
Bought the new Ambition album yet? I have and I’m slowly giving my critique on the album. I’ll say this, if he thinks going commercial and aligning with Maybach Music will help him move forward, it looks like its working. However, I still think he can be the next Talib: have a long career but stay hovering below mainstream. Anyways, check out people’s tweets about their favorite Wale lyrics.
Director Michael Rapaport takes viewers on a behind-the-scenes journey – chronicling one of the most commercially successful and significant musical groups in recent history.
Actors: Phife Dawg, Ali Shaheed Muhammed, Q-Tip, Michael Rapaport, Jarobi White
Most fans of hip-hop music during the 90’s can agree: A Tribe Called Quest is one of the most influential and groundbreaking musical groups in hip-hop history.For those who grew up with the group remember listening to Award Tour, Bonita Applebaum, or Check the Rhime. They also remember the heartbreak come 1998 when Q-Tip, Phife Dawg, Jarobi, and Ali Shaheed Muhammed parted ways.
Fast-forward to 2008, where Tribe fans got their wish as the group reunited and performed to sold-out shows across the country. Director Michael Rapaport documented their tour and got an in-depth look at group’s relationships with each other.
The movie is a biopic going back to when Phife and Q-tip went to the same church together. During this movie, you not only get a history of how “tribe” got together, but you get a look how they grew up in the boom era of hip hop. Rapaport helped take you back, as he shows old photos, video clips, and the group members going back to their old neighborhoods.
The movie goes through each album, and how it went into place. The way they “story-tell” each album really make you appreciate the creativity and individuality “tribe” put out there.
Besides going through each album, Rapaport documents the rocky relationship between Q-tip and Phife.You hear a lot of testimony from Phife accusing Tip of hogging the spotlight and making the group just about him. Q-Tip denied that, claiming he helped Phife when he was diagnosed with diabetes.
The disappointing part about this movie is that it goes from a documentary to a “docudrama”, as you see the feuding between Phife Dawg and Q-Tip. Whether you’ve never heard of a “a tribe called quest” or are a die hard fan, just watch halfway through and appreciate one of the greatest hip hop groups of the 90’s.Stop halfway through because Rapaport turns the documentary into an ugly reality show drama between Phife and Tip.
This could be the best duet collaboration, even better than Jay-Z and Kanye West. I just got off of hiphopdx.com and i just found out news that these two will be releasing a collaboration album very soon. You’ll need to hang on though because Common and Nas will be releasing their albums first.
If you’re looking at what to expect from this collaboration, check out “Ghetto Dreams“. After you listen to it, you’ll feel like its 1994 all over again.
Common said it was originally going to be a mixtape, called “Nas dot com”, but he thought it would be better if it was made into a full album.
To hear more about this upcoming album, check out the video below.
The Grand Hustle DJ recruits his mixtape regulars, today’s hitmakers, and some fresh faces to produce another album that’s worth checking out.
-By Chad Ashmore
When you think of popular mixtape DJ’s, you think of Funkmaster Flex, DJ Green Lantern, and of course DJ Drama. Drama has done a lot of work over the years, being the go-to guy to produce mixtapes. While he releases mostly mixtapes, DJ Drama puts out a full, quality, album you can hear from beginning to end. Drama’s latest release, “Third Power”, is one of those albums.
Young Jeezy, Gucci Mane, and Yo Gotti have worked with DJ Drama before. Like every Drama album, however, he leaves some room for new acts to break out. Some new artists, certainly new to me, you may not heard before are French Montana, Talia Coles, and Future.
Third Power Songs
After hearing the album, I can conclude one thing: Some of these hooks will crawl into your head and stay there. For this album it’s a good thing especially with the lead track, “OH MY” featuring Roscoe Dash, Fabolous, and Wiz Khalifa. It was perfect that this track was placed first because it gets you excited for the whole album.
The best part about this album is the REMIX, featuring Trey Songz, 2 Chainz, and Big Sean. While Trey Songz makes the hook smooth to listen to, Roscoe’s hook will make you remember it forever. Both tracks fare equally well.
From street bangers to hook-up anthems, this album has it all. “Undercover” gets big points, which includes J. Cole and Chris Brown. The ladies will like the “Never See you Again” featuring Wale and newcomer Talia Coles. When you hear the track, you might ask yourself if this is Talia or J-Lo, because she sounds eerily similar to her.
One song was a disappointment was locked down with Ya Boy and Akon. It was nothing new, just another track with Akon that involves “locked” in the title. Even the beat to this track seemed recycled. This track almost reminded me of a track Akon did with 50 cent off 50’s “Curtis” Album. There’s nothing exciting about this track.
To Sum it up
Some of these tracks are hit-makers, while some are just there to fill the void. While drama’s previous albums broke out artists that have successful careers, I don’t think Montana, Future, or Talia Coles will gain any fame from their tracks on this album. While DJ Drama doesn’t fall short with this release, it still doesn’t match well with his “Gangsta Grillz” series . It’s nothing special, you’ll play it a lot, and then you’ll forget about it.
3 out of 5 stars
Will you buy the album today? Have you already bought it? What are your favorite tracks? Let us know your thoughts of DJ Drama’s new album by posting your comments below.
What do you get when you put Boots Riley of “the coup” and Tom Morello of Rage Against the Machine in the same room? You get an awesome funked out group called Street Sweeper Social Club. This is called Promenade. You will not be disappointed by this, trust me!
Throwing a show in one of New Orleans’ biggest theatres, the 2100-capacity Municipal Auditorium, on Mardi Gras night — after the entire city has spent the day downing bloody marys and beers — is a dicey venture.
That is, unless the city is celebrating the homecoming of its once and possibly future great hip-hop hope: Mystikal, the former No Limit and Jive Records recording artist who completed a six-year jail sentence less than two weeks ago.
The night’s lineup was old-school and hometown, and read like a yearbook of 90′s New Orleans rap. The Ghetto Twiinz did a set, as did No Limit artists Fiend and the vicious lyricist Mia X, who ran through an a capella version of her 1993 feminist screed “Da Payback.” The 20-year-plus reigning king of local party music DJ Jubilee warmed the crowd up with his local club hits until finally, from backstage, came that unmistakable rasp: “Who y’all want?”
Mystikal appeared in a royal purple shirt, knit cap, and a glittering medallion with the logo of his new indie label, Big Truck. The venue was barely at half capacity, but they went nuts to welcome the hometown boy back for a tight thirty-minute set of classics.
Six years in the pen seems to have only honed his chops; he still raps at an unearthly speed with that trademark weird, guttural vocal bark, and though we didn’t get any of the new tracks he’s been allegedly working on day and night since his release (he’s been camped out at former No Limit head producer KLC’s Baton Rouge studio for the past two weeks), the Carnival crowd was there for the hits, and they got ‘em — plus lots of thank-yous and a little trash talk.
“Thank you for all them cards, and all the letters,” he said at one point. “I been gone six years, listening to all the fools on the radio, watching all the fools on TV. I want them to know the competition just got stiff.”
After a standing ovation for “Shake Ya Ass,” he was out after a set that seemed far too short.
But Mardi Gras wasn’t over yet: the Lil Stooges Brass Band took the stage and re-did the song street-parade style, as the crowd second-lined back out into the night for another drink.
SET LIST:
U Would If U Could
Y’all Ain’t Ready Yet
If It Ain’t Live It Ain’t Me
Tarantula
Still Smokin
Move Bitch
Danger (Been So Long)
Shake Ya Ass
