While the seasons have certainly been shifting in 2013, could we be in the midst of a Daft Punk climate change? The duo with the incredibly cool helmets quite possibly are having the best week of their lives with the release of their brand new album, Random Access Memories. While the duo hasn’t released an album since their “underwhelming” (according to critics) 2005 album, Human After All – a perfect storm of promotion and the perfect single have revitalized their career.

With electronic and house music on the rise, Daft Punk have seemingly found their place in history and according to early projections by Billboard, their album is scheduled to sell as much as 300K copies by the tracking week’s end – which would give it the year’s highest debut sales week behind Justin Timberlake’s The 20/20 Experience. The campaign leading up to the album has been brilliant, with the most funky cryptic ads aired on Saturday Night Live, which eventually lead up to the minute premiere of the song “Get Lucky” featuring Pharrell and disco-producer extraordinaire, Nile Rodgers.

After that promotional ad aired, the people demanded more. And by the next morning, YouTube (and even our own traffic) blew up with an incredible response to the single “Get Lucky.” Fake mixes had been created, remixes were played, and all before the single actually dropped. The people wanted it, and they wanted it now – and then the duo delivered.

Released to digitally later that week, the single shot to number one on the iTunes chart almost instantly – and hasn’t left the Top 10 since. The record instantly became Daft Punk’s biggest single to date, Pharrell’s biggest single in 7 years, and Nile Rodgers’ (who was part of the creation) biggest single in god-knows-how long.

“Get Lucky” has officially reached Top 10 status in the US, peaking at #1 in several other countries including the UK, France, Australia, Spain, Italy, Israel, and more. Their album Random Access Memories, which is in stores now, will be the group’s first 100K+ debut as well as their first #1 album on the main charts., and is critically-acclaimed across the boards. Forget Timberlake, forget Drake, forget Beyoncé, forget Kanye West – Daft Punk Domination is officially upon us.

Buddy is currently flying under everyone’s radar, but that’s okay – because the i am OTHER artist is continuing to prepare his mixtape Idle Time to show the world. After collaborating with the missing-in-action Asher Roth on his last record, he drops this solo record “Hypnosis” over this killer Tom Jack-produced beat. Listen below.

2 Chainz emerged in 2012 as one of the biggest rap artists of the year, landing on single after single and finally releasing his highly-anticipated debut, Based On A T.R.U. Story – which absolutely lived up to the hype considering it’s accolades (Grammy nomination and certified-plaque anyone?). Now the self-proclaimed “hair weave killa” already telling us to mark our calendars for his second album.

According to 2 Chainz, he’s decided to put destroying singles on the back burner in-order to focus on completing his second studio album. Last night on Twitter, he made the huge announcement.

FEATURES ON HAULT… NEW ALBUM ON THE WAY SEPTEMBER TENTH!!!!

— Tity Boi (2 Chainz) (@2chainz) May 24, 2013

2 Chainz on this second go-round has enlisted the help of Diplo, as well as a few other familiar faces on this second LP. Are you ready for more 2 Chainz?

We’ve already learned in the past few days that with Big Wilie back on the scene, he’s doing what he wants, where he wants, and stealing whichever mics he wants to in the process. In the process of his major promo run to promote his movie After Earth, he’s already graced us with an impromptu performance of “Summertime” on Letterman, and now he’s touched down overseas on The Graham Norton Show and doing even crazier sh*t.

A standard movie press interview went completely left once Will Smith and Jaden decided to drop some father-son raps, complete with a freestyle from Jaden and Will performing his 2005 hit “Switch.” Then, it got even more crazier. DJ Jazzy Jeff appeared to accompany Will, and even Alfonso Ribero (y’know, Carlton) joined in for a small Fresh Prince of Bel-Air reunion. It’s one of those things where it’s better watching it, than us attempting to sell this wild experience to you. See the video below.

We’ll be honest, we don’t have much knowledge about the Stafford Brothers except that they’re a production and DJing duo – but if they’re on Cash Money, that means that they’re now labelmates with the likes of Paris Hilton. The duo release the visual for their brand new single, “Hello” featuring Lil Wayne and the Cash Money debut of Christina Milian. The single has already peaked at #4 on the singles chart in Australia, can the obtain the same success in the United States? The song certainly has potential.

Mariah Carey’s duties on American Idol may be all but over, but she’s truly working to get herself back in the spotlight and what a better way to kick off her journey towards her new album than kicking off the Good Morning America Summer Concert Series. The diva hit the stage in front of a sea of people to perform “Always Be My Baby” and her 2005 chart-topper, “We Belong Together” and even her latest single “#Beautiful” featuring Miguel. Watch them all below.

Wardrobe Malfunction

Mariah Carey “Always Be My Baby”

“We Belong Together

“#Beautiful” w/ Miguel

Ludacris has invaded our iPods for the past five weeks, dropping off banger after banger with some of the hottest artists and producers in the game – and now, on the heels of his movie release for Fast & Furious 6, he releases his mixtape #IDGAF. The mixtape, which features Ludacris’ return to a much more banging, reckless, southern sound (Hopefully erasing any remnants of “Rest Of My Life” out of our heads), he teams up with Young Jeezy, French Montana, Chris Brown, Mac Miller, Meek Mill, Swizz Beatz and Pusha T for the 10 tracks. Produciton comes from Metro Boomin, DJ Mustard, Mike Will Made It, The Internz, Bangladesh, ID Labs, and Remo The Hitmaker. Press play below.

While the race on June 18th seems to be between J. Cole and Kanye West in the world’s eyes, Mac Miller is a very viable contender in his own right. Becoming the first independent chart-topper in over 15 years with his debut Blue Slide Park, he could very well come correct this time around. Early reviews have praised the growth on this album compared to the frat raps on the first LP, and he’s enlisted some of the finest lyricists out right now including ScHoolboy Q, Ab-Soul, Tyler The Creator, Action Bronson, and even a rare sighting from Jay Electronica. Peep the full tracklisting below.

1. The Star Room
2. Avian
3. I’m Not Real (feat. Vinny Radio & Earl Sweatshirt)
4. S.D.S.
5. Bird Call
6. Matches (feat. Ab-Soul)
7. I Am Who Am (Killin’ Time) [feat. Niki Randa]
8. Objects In the Mirror
9. Red Dot Music (feat. Action Bronson)
10. Gees (feat. ScHoolboy Q)
11. Watching Movies
12. Suplexes Inside of Complexes and Duplexes (feat. Jay Electronica)
13. Remember
14. Someone Like You
15. Aquarium
16. Youforia
17. Goosebumpz
18. O.K. (feat. Tyler, The Creator)
19. Claymation

[All Music]

Major Lazer graced us with the long-anticipated remix of their single “Bubble Butt” from their album Free The Universe – but they aren’t done making music. The collective add an amazing spin on the biggest single in the country currently, Macklemore & Ryan Lewis’ hip hop hit “Can’t Hold Us.” The remix features Swappi and 1st Klase and incorporates trap and reggae elements into the song’s mix, which just take it out of this world.

Robin Thicke has officially racked up the success once again. After the release of “Lost Without You” back in 2007, which carried his album The Evolution of Robin Thicke to platinum status, many questioned of the leader of the blue-eyed soul movement could reach the same success again. And for a long time, the answer was no. Since “Lost Without You”, no other single has even come relatively close to matching the crossover success, despite having relative success on the R&B charts with 3 Top 10 singles under his name. “Blurred Lines” has crossed the lines, and after an amazing week of performances on The Voice, on Ellen, and topping the iTunes chart – Mr. Robin Thicke – 6 years after “Lost Without You”, has emerged with his highest ranking hit to date.

Powered by it’s x-rated video, which has done gangbusters on the VEVO site and his promotion with Radio Shack’s Beats by Dr. Dre Pill device (which kind of makes them look like robotic dildos), Robin Thicke has arrived again and now his career will no longer be tainted with the talk of a “one-hit wonder.” With 206K digital copies moved this week, and 23 million YouTube views to date, we fully expect to bring this song back once it becomes a certified single.

A fun note, with major Robin Thicke comparisons earlier in the year with Justin Timberlake’s single “Suit & Tie”, “Blurred Lines” replaces Timberlake’s hit single on the R&B charts this week.

[Billboard]

Casey Veggies is one of the young artists from LA that we thought would make the XXL Freshmen cover for 2013, but that certainly isn’t stopping him by any means. Still riding high from the release of his mixtape in January, Life Changes – featuring the stellar record, “Faces”, he looks towards the future and with his debut LP on Epic Records. In a very cool sit-down with FUSE, he speaks on producing music, his deal with PUMA and who he’s seeking for his debut. Listen to his latest collaboration with Juicy J here. Watch the interview below.

Ludacris is currently about to kill the box office again with Tyrese, Vin Diesel, The Rock and more int he Fast & Furious 6 movie – set to drop tomorrow in theaters, and he swings on by Big Boy’s Neighborhood on Power 106 in LA to talk about the upcoming movie. In the lengthy discussion, he speaks about being one of the most underrated MCs, including a discussion with Jay-Z about the subject saying that it may be because of his over-the-top, humorous personalities/videos.

They also play a game related to Ludacris’ mixtape, which is dropping tomorrow, entitled “I Don’t Give A F**k.”

Jhené Aiko is continuing to work on her debut album Souled Out, due this year – and fans are certainly getting antsy in more information about the project. When will it drop? Who will be on it? What will it sound like? Ms. Aiko keeps her fans happy with the release of her No I.D. produced track, “Comfort Inn Ending.”

J. Cole is almost completely in album mode now, and why wouldn’t he be with his June 18th date rapidly approaching and all the ballsy moves he’s made over the past week. After gracing the Jimmy Fallon stage a few nights ago, he flies across the pond to London for BBC 1Xtra Big Weekend and stops by Charlie Sloth’s show on BBC 1Xtra to give some major details about his album.

Along with speaking on “Lost Ones”, the infamous Miguel Leg Drop, Paris Hilton signing to Young Money, he reveals that Chilli and T-Boz from TLC will appear on the album, as well as there are no other rap features on the record. No trying to reel in that Hov verse at the last minute.

Earl Sweatshirt, despite keeping a low profile the entire year when it comes to music, may have the most surprising album of the year. Doris, which has been praised by all of those who have heard it, is still scheduled for a 2013 release and has thus far spawned the singles “Chum” and “Whoa” featuring Tyler, The Creator. Now Sweatshirt teams up with Mac Miller on this hypnotizing, almost-screwed, record “Guild.” Both of their voices have been altered so much, it’s hard to tell who is who on the track – but we’ll leave that to you. Listen to the record below.

(SPOILERS) Mac first, Earl second.

[Fader]

Major Lazer definitely has a record for the summer, and it will be a shame if the two forces of Major Lazer and 2 Chainz don’t collide for Mad Decent this summer. After debuting the remix live at Coachella earlier this year, the official studio remix featuring 2 Chainz, Bruno Mars, Tyga, and Mystic surfaces and only adds that much more heat to this scorching record. According to Splash, we should be expecting the video pretty soon.

Eminem is serving up quite the tour this summer, which makes us incredibly excited for his forthcoming album – which too is supposed to drop before the year ends. While talk has been for new Eminem material to drop around the Memorial Day season (Memorial Day is Monday May 27th), nothing has even begun to surface as of yet.

But one thing that has been announced is his brief string of shows over in Europe, and he apparently isn’t coming alone. Along with the Shady 2.0 Gang, including Slaughterhouse (Royce Da 5’9″, Joell Ortiz, Crooked I, Joe Budden) and Yelawolf, he’s grabbing Plan B, Kendrick Lamar, and the duo of Earlwolf (Earl Sweatshirt and Tyler, The Creator). Could it get any cooler than this?

August 17, Slane Castle, Ireland
Plan B
Earlwolf
Yelawolf
Slaughterhouse

August 20, Bellahouston Park, Glasgow Summer Session
Kendrick Lamar
Earlwolf
Yelawolf

August 22, Stade de France, France
Kendrick Lamar
Earlwolf

[Eminem]

While Wale was previously looking for a good ol’ battle with J. Cole on June 25th, recent moves by the Roc Nation rapper has left MMG’s Wale a clear path for victory with the release of his third studio album, The Gifted dropping on June 25th. Despite the questionable album cover (we have to admit, the concept hasn’t totally settled in with us yet), the album is getting rave reviews from those who have already heard it citing Wale’s return to his DC roots as opposed to his very MMG-powered album Ambition.

Thus far, Meek Mill, Juicy J, Nicki Minaj, Rihanna, 2 Chainz, Wiz Khalifa, YG, and Dom Kennedy are confirmed from the album. Expect the tracklisting to be a bit more fleshed out as the date gets closer.

1. The Curse of the Gifted
2. LoveHate Thing (Feat. Sam Dew)
3. Sunshine
4. Heaven In the Afternoon (Feat. Meek Mill)
5. Golden Salvation (Jesus Piece)
6. Vanity
7. Gullible
8. Bricks
9. Clappers (Feat. Juicy J and Nicki Minaj)
10. Bad (Remix) (Feat. Rihanna)
11. Tired of Dreaming
12. Rotation (Feat. 2 Chainz and Wiz Khalifa)
13. Simple Man
14. MJ88
15. Black Heroes
16. Bad (Feat. Tiara Thomas)

* Hella (Feat. Dom Kennedy and YG) appears to be unlisted on the iTunes playlist, but was played in the official listening session at Atlantic.

[Rolling Stone]

Sevyn Streeter

As Sevyn Streeter prepares to release her debut album, she continues to rack up her pen game contributing to songs like Chris Brown’s Top 40 hit “Fine China”, Fantasia’s “End Of Me”, and Ariana Grande’s Top 10 hit “That Way.” Listen to one of R&B’s finest talents below. Buy the single on iTunes.

Spotted @ [DA]

Hot 97 is sure proving to be a much more reliable source for information these days, and after spilling some information early about the Kanye West album YEEZUS, it appears personality Peter Rosenberg has got a bit of the inside scoop on J. Cole’s album. Born Sinner, which according to iTunes is a staggering 21 tracks long, apparently features a track along the lines of “I Disappointed Nas.” Find out the story behind that track after the jump. Update: J. Cole reveals it’s not titled that, at all. Period. Video included.

As the story goes, told by Peter Rosenberg:

“Nas supposedly reached out to J. Cole after he heard “Work Out”, and said “Nah fam, I expected more than this.” And supposedly J. Cole gets really personal and has a whole song about how it felt to disappoint one of his heroes in music.”

J. Cole has always been an artist to perfectly channel his feelings about a pressing internal subject matter on his records, most recently letting us know his disdain for recording with Stargate for his debut album on “Cole Summer.” If this track does indeed make the album, which we hope it does considering the length of this LP, it’s definitely already high on the list of one of our must-hear tracks.

Angel Haze and Iggy Azalea, two of rap’s newest femcees up to the plate, are showing that girl power is absolutely real in the rap game. With both rookies looking to drop their respective debuts by the end of 2013, they release the live rehearsal audio from their freestyle over The Throne’s “Otis” that they performed in London a couple of weeks ago.

This is a public service announcement. The TDE Crew have managed to keep a strong name in hip hop, and with Kendrick Lamar’s good kid, m.A.A.d city album nearing platinum – they release a promotional video for the current good kid, m.A.A.d city world tour that’s currently making it’s US rounds before they jump to Europe and Asia. The Black Hippy Crew will be accompanying him on the US tour dates, and the quartet team up for a remix over Rocko’s “U.O.E.N.O.”

Paris Hilton has certainly been waiting in the shadows for her moment, and her moment of finally arrived. After several mixtapes of work, sold out tours across the nation, and a high demand for her brand of music on each and every radio station – the heiress to the throne has finally inked a deal with Cash Money Records. Ms. Hilton, who most recently appeared in Rich Gang’s video “Tapout”, is in the process of her recording the follow-up to her uber-successful album, Paris, released back in 2006.

ShowBiz411 reports:

“But the big news: this nightfly who is really a successful businesswoman is recording her second album of music right now. It will be issued by CashMoney Records and will feature many hip hop acts such as Lil Wayne. Paris told me Afrojack is producing it, and she hopes to have it out this summer.”

@birdman5star Thanks BO$$! Happy to be apart of the family. #PH❤YMCMB

— Paris Hilton (@ParisHilton) May 22, 2013

Ciara’s stock has certainly risen ever since her single “Body Party” became a certified hit on the Billboard Charts, and now as we get closer and closer to the release of her self-titled LP, she releases one of the most anticipated records off the album, “I’m Out” featuring Nicki Minaj. The record, which gives us a bit of “Birthday Cake” vibes in terms of the production, is another anthem for the ladies and it’s the intro to her record. Next single from the album? Possibly.

Ciara’s album, Ciara, is set to hit stores on July 7th.

CyHi The Prynce, for a long time, has taken on the role of the black sheep of the G.O.O.D Music clique. Originally debuting on the stellar My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy record, “So Appalled” – he stole the show with his interesting wordplay and has always walked on the fine line of street and consciousness. In his latest interview with The Source, he speaks on a few things coming up including an EP that he’s getting ready to release, his role on G.O.O.D Music, and whether or not he will appear on YEEZUS.

While also a small tidbit, he alludes to the fact that some brand new G.O.O.D. Friday stuff may be in the works. Hopefully this rumors doesn’t become as contested as the Cruel Winter stuff was, but we’re looking forward to it if it is indeed true. Watch the interview below.

[The Source]

but fuck it, eye’ll just make this announcement. My “Summer Knights Ep” drops June 12th. good day

— oG $wank. (@joeyBADASS_) May 22, 2013

Fans who have been riding with B.o.B from the beginning know the large spectrum of this man’s talent. The once underground superstar was applauded for his ability to do more than just hip hop, more than just heavy drums and 808′s, being able to tell a story with a great melody, play the piano, play the guitar – most things your standard hip hop artist couldn’t do. “Nothin On You” was released, and B.o.B truly never looked back from the crossover success he gained from that chart-topping single. “Airplanes” would follow, then on his sophomore album he’d continue the ride with “So Good” and his Taylor Swift collaboration, “Both Of Us.” Now it’s that same sound that has gotten him in a heated discussion with Hot 97 about his lack of love for the hip hop side of the pond.

T.I. came up a few months ago, and they spoke briefly on B.o.B’s sound and how he hasn’t necessarily been working towards garnering a hip hop sound. A response that was met with pretty much, “we’re working on it.” The work has been put in and now “We Still In This Bitch” featuring T.I. and Juicy J, produced by Mike Will Made It is swelling on the charts and now his follow-up “HeadBand” featuring 2 Chainz follows in the same lane. B.o.B and his team confront Ebro and Peter Rosenberg about their comments a few months ago, and the discussion of Top 40 B.o.B vs. hip  hop B.o.B gets quite heated when it comes to “loyalty.” Watch it below.

B.o.B’s getting ready to release his album Underground Luxury later this year, and the luxury he has had has always been that he can dabble in both worlds. B.o.B can make a believable Top 40 records, a hip hop record for the clubs, and even dabble in an alternative genre – while still creating a solid work. But it was obvious that the balance wasn’t there, specially coming off of his first album and going into his 2nd. None of his singles released from the album matched the crossover success of “Nothin On You” or “Airplanes”, and his only single to reach within the Top 10 – ironically enough was the hip hop single “Strange Clouds” featuring Lil’ Wayne.

His moves now, releasing “We Still In This Bitch” and “HeadBand”, more than ever seem like a ploy to garner back an urban fan-base after leaving them high and dry for so long for a much more “Top 40″ sound, which is Hot 97′s beef with B.o.B and his team – with B.o.B denying it.

While “Nothin On You” or “Airplanes” were built as hip hop records with the intent of crossover success, from the interview they agree tha the featured guests on the records were really the one that pushed it into the pop lane – which gave B.o.B as “Top 40″ appeal.  Just make music B.o.B.

J. Cole’s live game has always been correct, so it’s been a mystery why it’s taken this long to finally work “Power Trip” on the late night circuit – but better late than never. Cole’s second Top 20 single is brought to life on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon with a little help from The Roots. The Fayetville native, St. Johns alumni, has decided to push his album Born Sinner up to June 18th to compete with Kanye West’s ‘YEEZUS’ on the charts. Watch the performance below.

How unstoppable has Maroon 5 been on the charts? It’s almost a year since they dropped their platinum album, Overexposed and they’re only on their fourth single from the LP – which is a much more methodical pace than how hip hop is moving currently. The most popular pop band out right now delivers an artistic outlook in the video to their song, “Love Somebody.” Watch as the band members come to life through paint below.

While J. Cole leaves his initial June 25th date for a June 18th release, this leaves the lane absolutely clear for Wale to dominate. Wale is set to release his third studio album The Gifted on June 25th, and while the feature-less tracklisting emerged yesterday (we’ll post it when the features show up), Rick Ross has decided to unveil one of the features on the album. According to the MMG head honcho, Rihanna will be on the remix to Wale’s Top 10 single, “Bad” – which originally features newbie Tiara Thomas.

CONFIRMED: The remix of @wale ‘s track ‘Bad’ will feature @rihanna on Wale’s upcoming album ‘The Gifted’ I stores 6/25!!

— Mastermind (@rickyrozay) May 22, 2013

There were rumors that Tiara Thomas initially wrote the record for Rihanna’s album, but those were quickly dispelled when Tiara Thomas herself confirmed that she wrote the song for herself. Considering the image of the Bajan superstar, “Bad” is certainly a fitting record for her to hop on.

Wale previously featured Rihanna’s vocals on his Attention: Deficit debut, on a song called “Contemplate.” But this will be the first time that the two Roc Nation-managed artists will collaborate officially on a song together.

Kelly Rowland has talked the talk, now it’s time to walk the walk. With June 18th seemingly testosterone-powered, Ms. Rowland is representing for the ladies with the release of her fourth studio album – Talk A Good Game. The album, which has been in the works for years, features quite a few guests on the bill including the Taylor Gang representative Wiz Khalifa (“Gone”), the extremely talented singer-songwriter Kevin Cossom (“Talk A Good Game”), the dope boy Pusha T (“Street Life”) and her Lights Out tour-mate  The-Dream (“Sky Walker).”

A Destiny’s Child reunion is also in order for the album as the three girls have reunited once again this year for the soulful ballad “You Changed.” View the entire tracklisting below and support on June 18th. Pre-order here.

1. Freak
2. Kisses Down Low
3. Gone (Feat. Wiz Khalifa)
4. Talk A Good Game (Feat. Kevin Cossom)
5. Down on Love
6. Dirty Laundry
7. You Changed (Feat. Beyoncé & Michelle Williams)
8. I Remember
9. Red Wine
10. This Is Love
11. Street Life (feat. Pusha T)
12. Stand In Front Of Me
13. Sky Walker (feat. The-Dream)
14. Put Your Name On It
15. #1

XODUS reps Washington Heights (not the TV show, we think) of NYC, and in the midst of working on his full-length project – he releases a brand new single from the aforementioned effort, the extremely relate-able “Go Away.” Produced by Paulie Monster, the song was inspired by an event in his life almost 10 years ago.

XODUS tells us, “I’ve always been in a rush and I felt like if I kept spending time out in the street, there was no way I was going to find myself in time to do something great. So, I was literally locked away in a basement, in a long-term, long-distance relationship, and struggling with my own brain chemistry—trying to learn the key to my own happiness so I could begin the pursuit. I brought on my own introspective depression and Go Away was probably all I would have had the energy to mutter if I could have personified pain and exchanged words.”

Listen to the record below.

Hours before Miguel became a nearly killed a chick with his guillotine leg drop at the Billboard Awards on Sunday, he spoke about his future music – despite Kaleidoscope Dream continuing to be amazing, and briefly reviving Mariah Carey’s music career with his contributions to her latest single “#Beautiful.” Thos who have been anxious for brand new music from R&B’s it-kid, will be happy to know that he’s gearing up to release the next series of Art Dealer Chic EPs this summer.

According to Erika Ramirez of Billboard:

While on the Billboard Music Awards blue carpet on Sunday (May 19), the singer told Billboard that he plans to release the first of three EPs in July, the second in August and the third in September. The three-EP series will be free and available for download online, as like the first “Art Dealer Chic” volume was.

By the way, if you’re wondering whatever happened to that fan he destroyed, she’s a-okay.

Photo Credit: Timothy Saccenti Direction+Photography

This one might be one of the best project releases of the year, beyond the ThisGoesINDIE scope. Sophisticated, repping the Foreign Coalition, releases his full length project VXXIXCIII. And if you’re not quite sure of this staggering piece of Roman Numerals, it represents 5/21/93.  Mixed by producer Angel M, the record features appearances by Joey Cuervo, King Sinatra, Paul Gee with production by ZELDUHHLOVE, Sir Meelf, FVCKxS0CI3TY, Qweezy and more.

As our first official introduction to Sophisticated, his abstract and – for lack of a better term, sophisticated flow intrigues us. Despite enlisting a multitude of different producers for this album, he has managed to capture a cohesive, consistent sound. Looking at the tracklisting for Sophisticated’s VXXIXCII, it feels like you’re about to walking into an art gallery. Each artistic piece, whether it be a painting, sculpture, design is breathtaking, and piece has a story behind it. And each story, no matter how abstract the piece may look, is an extension of the artist. Sophisticated’s latest project is art, from top to bottom – so listen to and download it below.

Chris Brown and Tyga haven’t gone wrong in the past (pointing to their Grammy nomination for “Deuces”), so why would they now? Tyga strips the hard, heavy street beats for something more smooth for the ladies in the single “For The Road” featuring Chris Brown. The video, which was evidently ‘All White Everything’ themed (including a live white wolf) features Tyga and Chris Brown pouring their soul out in their lonely mansion. The Colin Tiley clip is definitely up there in Tyga and Chris Brown collaborations. Fan of A Fan 2 anyone? Hotel California is available right now.

DOWNLOAD (Right click, save as) via ILLROOTS

When you’re Will Smith, you don’t need any reason to act like it’s the summer of 1992 again. The “After Earth” rapper turned actor stepped onto The Late Show with David Letterman and with the jazzy, smooth vibes of his 1992 iconic summer time smash, “Summertime” playing from the live band – he instinctively hopped back on the microphone. The song which turned 21 years old next month, is still played at barbeque’s to this day.

Just yesterday, he talked about getting back in the studio with Kanye West a couple months ago and said, “he might get the bug.”

Kanye West and 50 Cent waged war in one of the biggest album battles in hip hop back in 2007, with the simultaneous release of Graduation and Curtis – which the end resulted in Kanye West besting his aggressive adversary by quite a large margin. Since then, no one has even attempted to challenge the domination of Kanye West – who despite no official press, always manages to do gangbusters on the chart. No one until J. Cole.

J. Cole, who has been preparing his sophomore album Born Sinner for quite some time now, may know he isn’t going to get that top spot again – considering he’s going up against one of the most prominent men in hip hop, or even in music in general right now, but he’s certainly out here for the respect. J. Cole spoke to Billboard with a certain level of tenacity saying, “It’s a definite statement about how I feel about my album, which is confident.”

While some would argue the shift from the easy June 25th date to June 18th is crazy, it’s one of those moves that as crazy as it sounds – is a fantastic idea for J. Cole.. Kanye West’s album release is going to be one of the biggest releases of the year, and he’s determined to be a part of history instead of a footnote a week later.

“I’m not going to sit [here]… I worked too hard to come a week later after Kanye West drops an amazing album. It’d be like, ‘Oh and J.Cole dropped too, a week later.’ Nah. I’m going to go see him on that date. He’s the greatest. So it’s like, I’m a competitor by nature so it was instant, it wasn’t even a thought.”

A competitive statement by J. Cole, with an air of pugnacity for sure. J. Cole has grown into one of the biggest names of the new era, and while many question his decisions – like not flooding the internet with waves after waves of music, his decisions come from being both a master and student of the game. Cole has admitted in interviews before that before he was on, he was the one watching the music blogs, the GRAMMYS telecast, picking up albums on the first day of releases – he was as much of a spectator as any of us were. From being a fan similar to the fan base he stands before now, he knows what the people fan want and with his knowledge now behind the scenes of the whole process, he knows what the peoplewill respond to.

No doubt, the world would’ve reacted to J. Cole’s release on June 25th – but now the hip hop world will anticipate three stellar albums on June 18th, and without a doubt look to support the creativity and quality of all artists whether it be Kanye West, J. Cole, or Mac Miller. June 18th started as solely a date of Kanye West’s album release, now it’s an event.

Pharrell is certainly catching a wave that can only be compared to his domination of records more than 10 years back, and with two of the summer’s hottest records thus far on everyone’s iPod – he crafts a quite jubilant record for the Despicable Me 2 soundtrack. The 40 year-old producer is set to have three original songs on the soundtrack, and “Happy” is certainly a lively record worthy of a few spins.

Despicable Me 2 hits theaters on July 3rd, is there anything stopping Pharrell’s resurgence now?

While Robin Thicke has certainly been racking up with his latest single “Blurred Lines”, which hit the top of the charts on iTunes, and could have another potential winner with “Give It To Me” featuring 2 Chainz and Kendrick Lamar, he gets back to basics on this smooth, suave, grown and sexy number “4 The Rest Of My Life.” The record, which undoubtedly is dedicated to his wife Paula Patton, is certainly one that could be played at summer weddings to years to come.

The story of how the two souls became a couple will be available on iTunes on May 28th, listen to the single below.

Fabolous continues to trek on in his massive album return, and with “Ready” still swelling on the charts – it appears he’s pushing the record his album back to make sure it’s done right. Rap-Up TV sat down with one of Brooklyn’s most reputable MCs to talk about Loso’s Way 2 which he says might drop in late July. The album was originally scheduled for June 18th, but with Mac Miller, J. Cole, and Kanye West heading out that day – seems like the right move to give Fab the right change. Check the interview below for the brief, yet candid, talk of the veteran’s latest album.

And as the summer continues, the push backs continue. Juicy J, who’s album Stay Trippy was scheduled for a July 2nd release, is also reporting that his album will be pushed back. In an interview with Karmaloop TV’s Carissa Rossi, he gives her the low down on the process in recording what will no doubt be his biggest solo album to date, including recording 80 songs and holding a hit under his belt for now – which is the reason for the push back.

“Well, it’s supposed to drop in July, and they want to let the single grow because they think the song is very, very super-hot. I think the song is hot myself, but I’m not gonna call a song a hit until it’s a hit.

Juicy J mentions that the Taylor Gang LP will drop after his solo LP, so that’s something else we’ve got to look forward. Juicy’s Taylor Gang syndicate includes Wiz Khalifa, Lola Monroe, Chevy Woods, Berner, and more. Check out the interview.

After premiering the extended snippet a few days ago, one of the most anticipated collaborations from The-Dream’s upcoming IV Play album surfaces in the form of “Turnt” featuring Beyoncé and 2 Chainz. King B, whose other Dream collaboration “Grown Woman” leaked yesterday, exudes absolute sex on this single and 2 Chainz continues to bring his brand of “turnt up” rhymes to the record which fits in quite nicely on the track.

IV Play will be available on May 28th. Listen to his entire album for free here.

Nipsey Hussle keeps his promise of brand new music after 2,000 more followers – and after returning with the “Smoking With My Stylist” track a couple days ago, we wake up to the 9th Wonder-produced, “Face The World.” Listen to the record below.

It’s been a minute since we’ve heard anything from Lupe Fiasco, but he steps forward again with this brand new song “Animal Pharm,” rapping over “Ingenue” by Atoms For Peace. Earlier this year, he announced that his fifth studio album will be called, Tetsuo and Youth. When that will be released? No idea. But let this record ease it’s way into your collection.

Bonus: Interview:

Happy Birthday to Hit-Boy! The Grammy-award winning producer turns 25 today, and to kick fof his birthday right – he releases the video to one of the singles from the latest HS87 project All I’ve Ever Dreamed Of. The visual sees the G.O.O.D. music producer falling in love with the photographer of his video shoot, while 2 Chainz adds some great energy with another one of his winning verse. This song was picked as one of our Potential Show Stealing Summer records. Watch the clip below.

The-Dream and Kelly Rowland are certainly gearing up for their joint “Lights Out” tour, getting ready to hit every city this summer through the releases of both their respective albums. With The-Dream’s IV Play album dropping on May 28th – the pair landed on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno to perform “Where Have You Been.” The pair seemingly have a ton of fun on stage while gliding through this love ballad.

[Yardie]

Nothing says stunt like releasing a record solely to promote an upcoming summer tour. T.I. and Lil Wayne announced a few months ago that the two would be embarking on a major summer tour, entitled the America’s Most Wanted tour. To get the world ready for the festivities, Weezy and TIP release their new single “Wit Me” – accompanied by a visual. Watch the hip hop heavyweights do what they do best in this video below.

The most unorthodox way to hear a Beyoncé premiere, but we’ll take it.  With Beyoncé combating pregnancy rumors and tearing down the stage each and every night overseas, finally – one of her most anticipated cuts debuts in full today. The Timbaland-produced was co-written by The-Dream, and can be heard accompanying Mrs. Carter in her Pepsi ad that premiered quite a few months ago. She even breathed life into the tribal rhythms of the record by adding it to his Mrs. Carter World Tour set.

Listen to the record in full below.

“The news is worse than the blogs,” said Ebro – Program Director of Hot 97. It’s a sad day in history when E! News, a reputable brand and network, decided to go out of their way to get information and it’s STILL false. We questioned over the weekend whether Beyoncé was pregnant or not, but apparently Ebro got the answer after Jay-Z simply responded via email. The Program director who has established many relationships over the years cites he was sending Hov an email to congratulate him, and Jay-Z sent one back (and probably CC’d Oprah who would’ve easily sent over another truckload of books), that Beyoncé is not pregnant.

So what’s holding up the single Bey? Watch it below.

Could a new Will Smith album be upon us? Not likely, but as seen last summer – the former Fresh Prince, now box office phenomenon has been in the studio with Kanye West – listening to his new work. Will Smith, who’s currently promoting his brand new movie After Earth – set to drop next Friday (May 31st) in theaters, speaks briefly about “getting the bug” messing around with Kanye West in the studio.

Will Smith hasn’t released a record since 2005′s Lost and Found, which produced the Top 10 record “Switch.”

[Hip Hollywood]

The-Dream and Kelly Rowland are making magic with one another, and it was proved by the incredibly emotional creation “Dirty Laundry” for Ms. Rowland’s upcoming album, Talk A Good Game. On the flip side of things, the two link up for The-Dream’s IV Play album on the duet “Where Have You Been” – a song from the male and female perspectives about working things out.

The two are set to perform this record on Jay Leno tonight, and IV Play will be hitting stores on May 28th.

[Necole Bitchie]

We’ll take any opportunity to get some brand new Childish Gambino, and Mr. I-Still-Get-More-Money-Than-Most-Rappers-From-My-Day-Job re-emerges on this brand new DJ Reflex single “Body So Tight.” The 808- heavy, dubstep sweat maker will be available on Reflex’s debut EP out later this year. Can we get some more Gambino?

Usher’s not sure where anyone has gotten the idea he’s fallen off, especially with a Grammy under his belt from “Climax” and a host on NBC’s hit show The Voice, but he’s sure addressing that as the newest superstar up to “U.O.E.N.O.” idol. Usher hops on the version with Future and 2 Chainz for a neat R&B twist, but of course the Ursh had to do some mild stunting and get some things off his chest. Usher on a rap song, we ain’t een know it. Usher’s currently in the studio working on his follow-up to the 2012 album, Looking 4 Myself.

Wale’s “Bad” has been another hit single for the MMG star, and now he prepares to give the world the second release from the upcoming album The Gifted. Continuing with the soul influenced hip hop sound, he returns with “Love Hate Thing.” An introspective joint about his current life in-terms of aspirations, dreams, goals, and everything that comes with heading towards them. Does this one strike a chord? Listen to the track below.

J. Cole has certainly left his mark on us in the last couple of months, releasing his Top 20 smash “Power Trip” featuring Miguel as well as back to back Truly Yours EPs, featuring all original music. But June 25th is squarely on the brain, and with four weeks until the release of his sophomore album Born Sinner – we get a sneak peek of what could be the artwork via New Zealand’s iTunes. Thanks J. Cole Nation.

Born Sinner is still set to drop on June 25th, but we’re getting word that it could be coming sooner than that. UPDATE: Cole World. June 18th.

Kanye West is one of the greatest artists of our generation.

— J. Cole (@JColeNC) May 20, 2013

Which is exactly why I’m moving my release date up.

— J. Cole (@JColeNC) May 20, 2013

June 18th instagram.com/p/ZifUmYFc8m/

— J. Cole (@JColeNC) May 20, 2013

T.I. and Lil Wayne are about to conquer North America on their America’s Most Wanted summer tour, kicking off in July, and to get fans prepared for the hip hop heavyweights – T.I. premieres his brand new single “Wit Me” featuring Lil Wayne, following their last collaboration “Ball” from his latest album, Trouble Man: Heavy Is The Head. The two trade back and forth machine gun like bars, and the song will be available on iTunes tomorrow (available to pre-order here) and the video will premiere in full tonight.

[Miss Info]

via X

In case you were living under a rock, or just don’t have Twitter, the 2013 Billboard Music Awards were the talk of the town tonight and while it featured some of the most obtuse nominations and winners, such as Rihanna sweeping the R&B category and PSY being nominated for Best Rap Artist, it did feature some fantastic performances from the best talent in music today. Every artist that took the stage had an amazing year on Billboard including artists like Chris Brown, Nicki Minaj, Bruno Mars, Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, Taylor Swift, Justin Bieber, will.i.am, Jennifer Lopez, Miguel, Selena Gomez, and the list goes on and on. Check out the performances from the major show, and duck when you see Miguel coming your way.

Bruno Mars “Treasure”

Chris Brown “Fine China”

Miguel “Adorn”

Macklemore & Ryan Lewis “Thrift Shop”

Justin Bieber “Take You”

Will.i.am & Justin Bieber – #thatPOWER

Pitbull & Christina Aguilera “Feel This Moment”

Taylor Swift “22″

Jennifer Lopez & Pitbull “Live It Up”

Nicki Minaj & Lil Wayne “High School”

Prince

[Yardie]

The night we’ve all been waiting for since it was announced a month ago. It’s been a bit over twenty four hours since the premiere of his brand new video “New Slaves”, and we’re just a few hours removed from the announcement of the album’s title, Yeezus – and he finally serves up his brand new records live. Let May 19th be the day Yeezus was first brought upon us.

Kicking things off, Kanye West delivered a major rocker/rap vibe with his debut performance of the record “Black Skinhead.” The record, which upon first listen seems to sample Marylin Monroe’s “Beautiful People”, saw the Chi-town rapper donning a leather jacket while screaming his lyrics in an almost primal fashion.

Returning for his second performance was a much more tame, but equally as passionate performance of his new international record “New Slaves.”

After quite a long absence, after delaying his TM3: Victory Lap until seemingly the end of time, Nipsey Hussle finally returns back with a brand new solo record entitled, “Smoking With My Stylist.” The West Coast emcee was planning to release the third album in his Marathon series in December of 2012, but it has thus far been pushed back to TBD status. However, this new record definitely gives fans a ray of hope that the long-awaited project could be coming sooner than we think.

Download (Right-click, save as)

Are you ready? Finally? We’ve all known that Kanye West’s album has been coming for a while, but it looks like the confirmation has finally been made and we will indeed get his sixth studio album on June 18th. What will the bold, daring, new chapter in Kanye West’s music be called? Yeezus.

Rap-Up.com confirmed the title and the official date just hours after the radical promotion for his new video, “New Slaves” – being projected on buildings within 66 cities around the globe and hours before he takes the stage tonight on the season finale of Saturday Night Live.

The new era of Yeezy begins tonight. Are you ready?

[Rap-Up] + [Virgil Abloh]

Is she? or Is she ain’t? That is the grammatically incorrect question. Rumors have been flying for quite some time about the status of Beyoncé, as fans wonder if she’s pregnant or not. It all started with a photo that surfaced a few weeks ago of Beyoncé on her Mrs. Carter World Tour, with a noticeable belly in her blue bodysuit. From there, the rumors began a snow ball effect and it has essentially led up to E! News confirming (from multiple sources), that Beyoncé is going to be a mom again. But even with this huge declaration by this huge news telecast, there’s yet to be actual confirmation from Bey herself of the baby.

via Urban Islandz

E! News reported:

That’s right: Superstar supermom Beyoncé is expecting her second child with hubby Jay-Z, multiple sources exclusively confirm to E! News. The news follows rampant speculation that the “Countdown” songbird was pregnant, even as the couple remained tight-lipped about their ever-growing family.

The speculation is certainly there, with Beyoncé banning press photos from being taken at her show as well as her canceling her show on Tuesday – even though the reason given was because of “dehydration and exhaustion.”

Sources are now reporting that Beyoncé has lashed out against these sources for these claims in an Instagram post that was deleted shortly after putting it up.

Of course, Beyoncé is going to be protective of her privacy – just as she has been for almost her entire career, but she didn’t necessarily deny the news either. We’ll know eventually, whether she decides to announce the big news at a major awards show or cancel the rest of her World tour – which is scheduled to conclude in Brooklyn, NY on August 5th.

Janet Jackson may or may not be joining the elite cast of artists returning to the music scene in 2013, but she has confirmed one thing – that she is working on brand new music. Billboard caught up with the singer to talk about the 20th anniversary of her groundbreaking album ‘janet.’, who’s legacy is captured through it’s choreography, bold sexuality, and influential videos, and she spoke on her influence on some modern day records as well as working on a brand new album.

There are musical references and direct samples of janet. songs all over the place now, most notably on Kendrick Lamar’s “Poetic Justice.” Have you heard most of these re-interpretations (Moon Boots’ “Sugar,” which samples “If,” How To Dress Well’s cover of “Again,” MNEK’s “That’s The Way Love Goes” etc?) And how does it feel to see your work have such impact on new artists?
I have listened to the music that is out there and I love Kendrick’s “Poetic Justice.” There are artists, true performers that have come before me who have been a big inspiration to me. I hope I do the same for others.

Several of the songs on janet. and their accompanying videos were groundbreaking at the time for their overt sexuality. Why was it so important for you to express that part of yourself in your work, and how did you convince others around you at the time to let you take those risks?
Like I said before, I write about my experiences or things that touch me deeply. I was really beginning to get in tune with my sexual self. This is what I wanted to express so I did. The decision to move forward in an artistic way is mine. I didn’t need to convince anyone.

Many artists cite you as a role model and a huge influence on their career and image. Which artists today do you admire?
I’m flattered that other artists consider me a role model. I’m really enjoying what Bruno Mars and Adele are doing, a lot of artistry there.

It’s been five years since your last album, and nearly four since your last single. Have you been working on new music, and when can we expect it if so?
I am working on a new project now. We are creating the concept and initial thoughts on the music. I am excited about the direction we are taking. I don’t want to rush it… I don’t want to put a time constraint on the creative process.

For the full interview, head over to Billboard.com.

Travi$ Scott has been keeping his brand new tape, Owl Pharaoh from the world for a long time – but after releasing the single “Upper Echelon” featuring T.I. & 2 Chainz not too long ago, he gives the world another indication of it’s release by letting go the final tracklisting for the project. Owl Pharaoh, scheduled to drop on May 21st, will feature Meek Mill, A$AP Ferg, Bon Iver, Toro Y Moi, James Fauntleroy, Theophilus London, Paul Wall and some “surprise” features. Stay tuned.

1. Medow Creek
2. Bad Mood / Shit On You
3. Upper Echelon (Feat. T.I. & 2 Chainz)
4. Naked (Feat. Bon Iver)
5. Chazz Interlude (Feat. Toro Y Moi)
6. Uptown (Feat. A$AP Ferg)
7. Hell Of Night
8. Dance On The Moon (Feat. Theophilus London & Paul Wall)
9. M.I.A.
10. Drive Paris (Feat. James Fauntleroy)
11. Quintana
12. Chapels
13. Bandz (Feat. Meek Mill)

Jennifer Lopez’s return is kicking off, and she’s certainly “living up” to the superstar status that she’s garnered over the past 15 years in music. Jenny From The block heads from the runway to the beach in her brand new video “Live It Up” featuring Mr. Worldwide, Pitbull. Massive choreography from the 40+ diva over tremendous synths and she’s even showing off that million-dollar booty in her red bodysuit. Watch Jennifer Lopez’s brand new video here.

Luke James is nothing short of an amazing vocalist, and it’s quite evident considering he’s been on tour with Beyoncé for the past few months – kicking ass in the Eastern Hemisphere. As part of SBTV, he delivers an intimate performance of his Grammy-nominated single of “I Want You” while also putting his spin on Janet Jackson’s “I Get So Lonely.” Watch it below.

In an age where a video cameras are everywhere, Juicy J wastes no time giving us the video to his record “Boss Ni**a”, which he released earlier this week. Featuring performance shots and shots from his Stay Trippy tour featuring A$AP Ferg, the video is pretty straight-forward. The record is certainly more lyrical than his strip club anthems, and we’re not mad about that. Watch Juicy J boss up in his new video.

Stay Trippy comes on July 2nd.

Diamond, who was seemingly left out of the Best Female Hip Hop Artists (lottery) nominations  at the BET Awards this year, is getting ready to put out a brand new project in Evolved. Her first release “Me”, is certainly back to her boss ways captured on her 2012 project, The Young Life. With all this potential, it would be a shame if she didn’t get in the right situation for it to be handled correctly. Listen below.

Kanye West has been secretly plotting his return for a long time, and while it looks like the initial talks of June Eighteen has been wiped from the world (recently deleting his tweet), he emerged with a new tweet just 24 hours before he takes the SNL stage revealing his new song “New Slaves” and quite possibly the most unorthodox premiere of the video to date.

“NEW SONG AND VISUAL FROM MY NEW ALBUM BEING PROJECTED TONIGHT ACROSS THE GLOBE ON 66 BUILDINGS, LOCATIONS @ KANYEWEST.COM,” tweeted Kanye. And it was absolutely true as on a map, he pinpointed several cities across the gobe where he’s premiering his video on the side of a building. His creative partner Virgil Abloh tweeted shortly after, “YEEZY SEASON. NEW SLAVES VIDEO PREMIERE. NO YOUTUBE. LIVE IN THE STREETS IN 66 COUNTRIES AROUND THE WORLD. TONIGHT.”

The first Vine videos have emerged from the event via KanyeToThe and the YouTube clips will inevitably follow.

K. Roosevelt’s newest record has absolutely captured our ears, and he absolutely capitalizes on the record with the stellar, vivid visuals to his brand new single “Do Me Now” featuring Hit-Boy. The record, which originally can be found on his mixtape Rose Gold, is now available on iTunes and the visuals is filled with gorgeous women and breathtaking landscapes. We named this song one of our ‘Potential Show Stealer of the Summer’, have you become as captivated with it as we are? Listen.

With only a few weeks away until the official start of summer, you already know we’re getting our summer playlists ready for the sweltering heat and the records that come along with it. While the official song of the summer hasn’t been found yet with a few new major releases still set to drop, a few potential bangers have emerged in the spring season that could potentially find some success on your blazing hip hop & R&B radio. While some of the major records have yet to be released, here are a few that could essentially steal the show.

Bridget Kelly – Street Dreamin (Feat. Kendrick Lamar) (LISTEN)

Bridget Kelly has been bubbling for quite a minute, and while she lost the battle with “Thinkin About Forever”, she definitely got some praise with her next major follow-up, “Special Delivery.” But with the days of waiting for her mailman to come, she’s moved onto the hip hop influenced sounds of “Street Dreamin.” With the hottest rapper in the game providing assistance to this street love anthem, reminiscent to the days of What’s the 411? by MJB, she could deliver a breakout record of the summer. Add this one to your rotation.

K. Roosevelt – Do Me Now (Feat. Hit-Boy) (LISTEN)

K. Roosevelt’s been under our radar for a long time – mostly for his production, and while we weren’t too crazy about him formally introducing himself as an artist, we were sold on one record “Do Me Now.” The record gives us enough of a reason to heat things up in the bedroom as the temperature rises outside, with it’s lusty, quite-forward lyrics. Backed with a groovy backdrop, catchy melody, and a winning guest verse by Hit-Boy – the song has already began picking up steam on the west coast, ride the wave and take this one national.

Hit-Boy – Fan (Feat. 2 Chainz) (LISTEN)

HS87 is out to win in 2013, and while Hit-Boy experienced much of his success in the past two years as a power producer, he’s slowly, but surely, stepping it up as an MC. His first few records were shaky at best, by “Fan” is a winner on all cylinders from refined flow and delivery, to it’s fun-yet-hard beat. The producer-turnt-rapper also enlists help from a man who currently can’t miss with a hot 16, 2 Chainz to add an even more lively element to this imminent club banger. Look out for Hit-Boy and the rest of HS87 this summer.

ScHoolboy Q – Yay Yay (LISTEN)

After a slow start, “Yay Yay” – the introduction to ScHoolboy Q’s debut album Oxymoron, has found itself a permanent residence in our daily rotation. Boi-1da and Q create a lively, catchy anthem that can only be described as “completely Q.” The bucket hat hippy has more heat under the hood for the debut album, and word is he’ll be releasing the official remix to the record featuring the hood’s hero – Young Jeezy. Might as well let this record rock in your rotation, it’s not going anywhere.

Elijah Blake – X.O.X (Feat. Common) (LISTEN)

If there’s any R&B artist you need to get hip to by the summer, it’s certainly Elijah Blake – whose accolades and songwriting credits we’ve listened enough times already. After letting Bijoux 22 settle in our playlists for a bit, his first major look will apparently be the Common-assisted, “X.O.X.” The hip hop, soul track will hopefully find it’s way to your local radio stations soon – and as we’ve said before, it’s yours and his perfect introduction as an artist.

Kid Cudi – Girls (Feat. Too $hort) (LISTEN)

Let’s face it, Kid Cudi needs a massive radio hit to continue to push the Indicud album, and while the record doesn’t follow necessarily the same conventions as the records in frequent radio rotation – has Cudi ever been one to play by the rules? Hip hop’s rebel is taking his first stand on his own without the G.O.O.D Music machine behind him, and what a better record to strike gold with than the ode to ladies “Girls” featuring Too $hort. We can just visual an extremely trippy visual for this one if he chooses to push it – but either way, let this one rock for the summer – you won’t be disappointed.

Kendrick Lamar – Money Trees (Feat. Jay Rock) (LISTEN)

Alright, Kendrick has certainly been having his fun jumping on umpteen different records and releasing a ton of certified singles – now it’s time to give one of the real winners of good kid, m.A.A.d city a chance. “Money Trees” has been sitting on the sidelines for too long, and it’s gotta be the next one up for success in this era of winning for Mr. Lamar. Along with adding “Ya Bish” to your daily vocabulary, this one bangs in the trunk and can certainly give fellow hippy member Jay Rock the right push into the limelight with his fuckingamazing/10 verse.

Robin Thicke – Blurred Lines (Feat. T.I. & Pharrell) (LISTEN)

We might never look at Beats by Dr. Dre’s Pill again after this commercial, but Robin Thicke has finally came through with an absolute winning single after years of being unable to follow-up “Lost Without You.” If you aren’t completely sold on this this record which has begun to top charts around the world and garnered nationwide exposure for a Radioshack commercial, let the unrated video make everything clear. Could Pharrell be back? We think so.

Mariah Carey – #Beautiful (Feat. Miguel) (LISTEN)

This one is just right for the summer, entirely. While many question of Mariah Carey could craft another hit, she’s gone the less obvious route of a hip hop backed anthem or over-the-top/incredibly dreary ballad and just made a fun record. Miguel has been on one since his Art Dealer Chic series last year (which he’s revisiting again this year), and Kaleidoscope Dream sent him to an entirely new level of popularity, now his MC connection will undoubtedly send him into a new stratosphere of popularity depending on the success of this single. It may be a much lower tempo than the standard choices for summer singles, but it’s that very element that may allow it to seep through the competition of heavy 808′s or power dance synths.

Busta Rhymes – Twerk It (LISTEN)

Pharrell really put his foot into another record on this list, and if this one doesn’t become a hit for Busta – no matter how long it takes, he should certainly go back to the drawing board. With the heavy influx of twerking in 2013, Busta Rhymes has crafted himself a possible anthem for the summer – especially if he can come correct with the visual for the record. Don’t just wait for this record to ring off in the clubs to add it to your rotation, keep this one always.

Bruno Mars – Treasure (LISTEN)

It’s like Bruno Mars couldn’t make a dud if he tried. He’s got 5 number one singles under his belt, two of those from his latest album Unorthodox Jukebox – and he could very well go for the hat trick. “Treasure” is a perfect summer record to shake off the despair of “When I Was Your Man” featuring all the right funky, disco, pop elements. It’s not as ambitious as some of the other tracks on the album, but when you think of a clear cut winner for the summer – you think of “Treasure.”

Theophilus London – Rio (Feat. Menahan Band) (LISTEN)

This one has been stuck in our heads all week upon the release of the video, and what other record exudes the tropical flavor of Brazil. Theophilus London isn’t someone we keep a heavy tab on, but when he’s on – he’s on. “Rio” just brings a smooth flavor to this playlist, and it could very well be a strong addition to yours.

Miguel – How Many Drinks? (Feat. Kendrick Lamar) (LISTEN)

Miguel has had by far the strongest year of his career, and reeling off of his record-setting chart-topper “Adorn”, he releases one of the smoothest singles of the year with “How Many Drinks?” Almost exclusively for when the sun sets, the record sets the perfect mood for alcohol-influenced festivities. This one smooths out the evening quite easily for the playlist.

Daft Punk “Get Lucky” Featuring Pharrell (LISTEN)
Pharrell is featured at least three times on this list, whether it’s for his contribution on the record or production. Hell – you’d think it was the summer of 2002. Daft Punk’s new record “Get Lucky” immediately struck a chord on release, with his retro disco vibe and feel good melody – it’s an instant contender for song of the year, much less song of the summer. This is just one of those songs you simply can’t ignore.

Jay Sean has been attempting to prepare his sophomore release on Cash Money Records for quite some time, with several failed start-up attempts. This one could be a winner. Stepping left from the sound that made him a US star, he releases a much more smooth, R&B laced single – reminiscent of his early days, in the single “Mars.” But what would a Cash Money record be without a feature? Rick Ross, the biggest boss, adds his input to the mix. Sounds pretty good. His forthcoming album is now entitled, Neon – and should be coming sooner than later.

Some new Ludacris is always appreciated and considering it’s Friday I think we all knew it was just a matter of time before we heard something new today. Continuing with his #IDGAFFriday series, Luda gives us the 5th installment to the series. The record follow several heavy hitting bangers from the ATL singer that’s leaving his David Guetta single of 2012 way back in the rear-view mirror as we head on the road to his album Ludaversal. The record was produced by Bangladesh, and it will appear on his upcoming mixtape DTP Presents: I Don’t Give A Fuck – which will be dropping next week on May 24th. Listen.

American Idol is coming to an end, and what a better stage to perform on than the 12th season finale. After premiering her new single earlier this month, Mariah Carey finally hit the stage in a pre-taped performance (taped last night and aired today) of her performing a medley of her hits, including her first single “Vision of Love” as well as “Make It Happen”, “Hero”, “My All”, and “We Belong Together.”

She concluded the medley by performing a solo rendition of her newest single, “#Beautiful” – which kicked off with a major debut on Hot 100 at #24.

It’s been a while since we’ve got some official new music from The Weeknd, and with him going certified gold for the release of Trilogy last year, we expect some major things from the Canadian crooner in 2013. With Kiss Land on the horizon, The Weeknd’s first major release is the title track from the album – a bit of a departure from his incredibly moody music for this midtempo number. The second half of this record includes the full version of his record “John Carpenter.”

Kiss Land, coming soon.

Yes, over-the-top video entrances haven’t been left in the 90′s. Two weeks shy of releasing his fourth studio album, IV Play, The-Dream releases the sepia-toned visual for the single “IV Play.” Director X directed the clip, and with three sexy ladies in tow – The-Dream comes through with a solid video for the cut. Skip the talking, and watch IV Play – right now.

Has the genre finally found it’s triumvirate of saviors? Late last year the collective of TGT (Tyrese, Ginuwine, Tank) signed a deal to Atlantic Records to release their album, and now they’ve officially released the visual for their first single “Sex Ain’t Never Felt Better.” As opposed to a visual of these three 90′s R&B staples sexing down some incredibly gorgeous chicks, they entice a sold out room of females with a sensual, intimate, live concert. The three R&B vets are set to release their album 3 Kings on July 23rd.

Juicy J has been garnering some talk for Wiz spilling the beans on a recent collaboration with Justin Timberlake in the studio, and now Sway finally gets Mr. Stay Trippy to talk about it. In the hot seat, Juicy J answers a fan question about a collaboration with Justin Timberlake and Timbaland for the album – and he actually confirms they’ve done “a couple of records,.” Whether they’ll make Stay Trippy or The 20/20 Expeirence (2 of 2) remains to be seen, but the world is hoping for it.

Birdman and Lil Wayne aka Team Like Father Like Son, visited RapFix last week – and along with the thousands of other projects they talked about releasing including new Lil Wayne albums, RichGang albums, etc – Birdman revealed there would be a new Big Tymers album coming out. Initial interest on the project was peaked in those few seconds following it being announced, as many anticipated Birdman and Mannie Fresh to reunite in the studio. However, that concept was crushed when Birdman revealed the “new” Big Tymers will be a collaborative effort between himself, Lil Wayne, and Drake.

Mannie Fresh swings through RapFix this week, via Skype, to give his feelings on the situation – giving a relatively cool, calm, and wise rebuttal to the announcement ending with, “You can call it whatever you want to call it, but you can’t call it a Big Tymers album.” Watch it all below.

Classic “Still Fly”

Kanye West is on that performing tip, and just two days before he officially premieres music on Saturday Night Live stage, Cartoon Network’s Adult Swim held a show at the Upfront in NYC and he gave the world a one hour set including Yeezy classics and brand new records (“Yeezy Season”, “Awesome”). Of course amidst the performance – he goes on his standard Yeezy rant, talking about his run-ins with the paparazzi and his upcoming appearance on SNL.

“I ain’t no muthafuckin celebrity… There’s one thing about me, I’m a terrible, terrible terrible celebrity. I don’t know if you really know there’s one thing about me but I’m the worst kind of, the worst kind of celebrity. All I do is make real music. All I do is sit in the studio and make real shit. And that’s it. And that’s muthafuckin it. That’s muthafuckin it!

So I don’t want no people runnin’ up on me with cameras, trying to like sell pictures and shit to magazines, asking me dumb ass questions, throwin’ me off my focus and shit. Harrasin’ you all muthafuckin day. I ain’t no muthafuckain celebrity.

It’s so funny. Somebody asked me, ‘when you do SNL, are you going to do a skit about the paparazzi and shit. And like humanize yourself? I ain’t hear to apologize to no muthafuckas man. It ain’t about me humanizing myself. At one point did I become un-human where I had to turn myself back. Or maybe I was demonized, or maybe I was treated inhumane and not human in that type of situation. I ain’t no muthafuckin celebrity. I ain’t runnin’ for office. I ain’t kissin’ nobody’s muthafuckin babies. I drop your baby and you muthafuckain sue me and shit. I’m trying to make some music that inspires people to be the best that they can be. And I don’t want nobody else to ask anything of me! Don’t ask nothing else of me.

Muthafuckas chasin you down, about to make you crash and shit. And all they want is for a nigga to laugh and shit. Hell nah, I ain’t doin no muthafuckin SNL skits. This is my Goddamn life. This ain’t no muthafuckin joke.

via MissInfo

Listen to the new music here below:

via Erika Ramirez

Ciara introduces the world to the “Body Party (Remix)” and she invites a few more friends for the festivities. Enlisting her boyfriend Future and ATL native B.o.B for the remix, Ms. CiCi brings a little more uptempo flavor the the bedroom jam – speeding up the Ghost Town DJ’s “My Boo” sample. “Body Party” has become a Top 40 hit in the US for Ciara, and her self-titled album will be dropping on July 9th featuring the likes of Nicki Minaj and Future.

While the world is focused on the high-end fashion of Balenciaga and Martin-Margella inspired clothing, Drake is standing completely on his own with his fashion choices as of lately (even though he’s come into his own sort of thing within the past two years). He’s stepped onto the set of DJ Khaled’s “No New Friends” aka “Started From The Bottom (Remix)” and all the attention is on him. Down below, Drizzy shows off his all white (ivory?) Timberlands and up top he brings back the 90′s fashion brand Dada. Frankly, both options seem to cost less than what the high-end fashion lines are pushing heavy, maybe Fubu, Karl Kani, Phat Farm will make returns? Check the photos below.

Photo Credit: Instagram

Wale had something going on with his single cover for “Bad”, but I think most of us can agree that he’s totally lost us with this cover. As the June 25th date continues to loom in, Wale releases the album art for the said album and it features money, cars, religion, women, jewelry looming in the background of a solid statue of Folarin himself.

Despite the cover, we’ve heard some great early reviews of the album thus far – especially concerning the integral part that live instrumentation plays and quite a few appropriate records. Once again, The Gifted is set to drop on June 25th.

The Lonely Island have certainly found their place in the world, whether they’re f*cking on a boat, f*cking your mother, or f*cking in a three way. The intercourse journey continues on their newest slow jam, “I F*cked My Aunt” – the second release in their weekly series, Wack Wednesdays. The quite awkward, yet humorous record, features “I’m On A Boat” collaborator - T-Pain. Listen to their song, and watch their previous video for “Spring Break Anthem” from their forthcoming The Wack Album due on June 11th.

Spring Break Anthem

For those who have been wondering about the whereabouts of soul singers Musiq Soulchild and Syleena Johnson, you’re absolutely not alone. Both stars are neo-soul staples, and apparently they’re bringing their respective talents together for a joint project. Today, the pair released their official single “Feel The Fire” from the forthcoming album, 9INE and it’s sonically a place where neither artist have traveled before. The reggae-influenced single, produced by Kemar McGregor, was initially for the producer’s compilation album but the collaboration eventually great into a full length project.

via Billboard

According to Syleena Johnson, the album title 9INE is influenced by numerology considering the pair recorded 9 tracks in 9 days with McGregor, while both artists were born in September – the 9th month of the year. “We’re having fun and putting something together for the fans to love,” she said. “[The album] is about love, happiness and peace.”

Elijah Blake has been buzzing for a long time, and now he is getting ready to fully step from the shadows of songwriting into the limelight of superstardom – and he does so with his first music video, “X.O.X” featuring Common. The record originally featured on his well-received EP, Bijoux 22, is given life through visuals as he battles his heart who’s trapped on a past love while being involved with someone new. The record is available on iTunes.

For a second, Kelly Rowland’s brand new album Talk A Good Game was looking like a return to her crossover sexual innuendos of her “Motivation” era back in 2011 – but after back-to-back tongue-and-cheek singles, she pours out her heart on her latest release, “Dirty Laundry.” Not only does she talk about a past abusive relationship, but also a period in her career where her relationship with Beyoncé went sour. It’s some pretty heavy stuff.

A great introspective record, albeit a tad too slow for my taste. The world has been wanting to know the real behind Kelly Rowland’s career and she has seemingly flung open the doors for everyone to talk about it, a great move before the release of her album Talk A Good Game on June 18th.

The music video for the record is expected to drop, but until then – let this one rock.

If iTunes is any indication where Robin Thicke’s new single “Blurred Lines” is heading (and it is), then we could see his biggest single since his “Lost Without You” days. With the rising success of his single, striking the top spot in several countries as well as garnering national buzz from it’s explicit music video and placement in the latest Radio Shack/Beats by Dre Pill commercials, Robin Thicke, Pharrell, and T.I. take it to The Voice for their first major performance of the single.

The performance was every bit as fun as the video was, and now the single has peaked within the Top 5 of the iTunes charts.

The Weeknd has this trend on records where instead of just singing the hooks, he takes over the first quarter of the record – and you forget it was ever someone else’s record. He did it to Wiz Khalifa, he did it to Juicy J, and now French Montana. The leader of the donkey calls, French Montana, finally has his third single from Excuse My French released to the world and it certainly doesn’t disappoint. A massive side step from his feature heavy, club singles like “Pop That”, “Marble Floors”, or “Freaks” – this one just sounds so sonically different. Positive reviews have been coming in from listening sessions about French’s album, will it live up to the hype? Listen to the single below.

via Atrilli

We already saw the NSFW lyric video for the record, but now B.o.B is gearing up to release the official thing next week. “HeadBand” featuring 2 Chainz appears to be the first major single off of his third studio album, Underground Luxury due this summer. The DJ Mustard-produced record could potentially take over the clubs this summer, what do you think? Listen below.

B.o.B’s been a pop-crossover success already, but it didn’t appear to resonate too much with his core fans on Strange Clouds like it did on The Adventure of Bobby Ray. Records like “We In This Bitch” and “HeadBand” are attempts to cater back to his urban audience, and honestly, it’s working. The former has been a minor success on the charts and in the clubs while the latter could potentially be bigger.

A$AP Ferg dropped the major posse cut remix last night to “Work”, originally a solo song but now grabbing help from A$AP Rocky, French Montana, Trinidad James, and ScHoolboy Q. Now, Lord Fergenstein premieres the official video for the record featuring all five members of the new school including cameos from Wale, Danny Brown, Onyx, Bone Thugs-N-Harmony and more.

Ferg’s official mixtape, Trap Lord is expected to drop around Memorial Day. Look out for it.

We haven’t heard any new Aaliyah material since, well since her 2012 collaboration with Drake on “Enough Said” – so this is, certainly interesting. Chris Brown hinted at a major collaboration for his second single in interviews, but now it looks like he’s telling the world that he’s got never-before-heard vocals from Aaliyah on his second release, “They Don’t Know” from his album, X.

The sounds of the record may be a mystery, but not entirely the concept, as they shot the video in LA last weekend in the hood. Even more interesting. “[I'm] bringing both worlds together and trying to uplift the poverty side of the community and show them where I’m from. I’m from Virginia, but everybody comes from a broken home or being broke—I remember when I was,” he explained at the BET Awards press conference.

Chris Brown’s sixth album X has a tentative release date of July 16th, and Nicki Minaj and Kendrick Lamar have been confirmed for the project thus far.

[Rap-Up]

It’s almost that time for the most hilarious night on Twitter, that’s right – the BET Awards, and they’ve managed to stack up the nominations this year and even added a new twist to old categories. For the first time ever, the award show will acknowledge the pop genre with the addition to the R&B Awards – labeling them as Best Female/R&B Pop Artist and Best Male R&B/Pop Artist. Drake leads the pack with a staggering 12 nominations at this year’s show, landing 5 out of the 10 nominations in the Video of the Year Category for “No Lie” with 2 Chainz, “F*cking Problems” w/ A$AP Rocky, 2 Chainz, Kendrick Lamar, “Poetic Justice” w/ Kendrick Lamar, and for his own videos “HYFR” and “Started From The Bottom.”

Kendrick Lamar and 2 Chainz, who are nominated multiple times in that category as well, earned 8 nominations, A$AP Rocky has 5, and Justin Timberlake, Miguel, and BET Award favorite – Kanye West, pick up three.

Announced performers thus far are Chris Brown and R. Kelly, while Chris Tucker will play the host for the award show airing on June 30th live from the Nokia Theater L.A. Live. See the full list of nominations below.

Best Female R&B/Pop Artist
Beyoncé
Tamar Braxton
Alicia Keys
Rihanna
Elle Varner

Best Male R&B/Pop Artist
Chris Brown
Bruno Mars
Miguel
Justin Timberlake
Usher

Best Group
Macklemore & Ryan Lewis
Mary Mary
Mindless Behavior
Slaughterhouse
The Throne (Kanye West & Jay-Z)

Best Collaboration
2 Chainz f/ Drake – “No Lie”
A$AP Rocky f/ Drake, 2 Chainz and Kendrick Lamar – “Problems”
French Montana f/ Rick Ross, Drake and Lil Wayne – “Pop That”
Kendrick Lamar f/ Drake – “Poetic Justice”
Justin Timberlake f/ Jay-Z – “Suit & Tie”
Kanye West f/ Big Sean, Pusha T and 2 Chainz – “Mercy”

Best Male Hip Hop Artist
2 Chainz
A$AP Rocky
Drake
Future
Kendrick Lamar

Best Female Hip Hop Artist
Azealia Banks
Eve
Nicki Minaj
Rasheeda
Rye Rye

Video of the Year
2 Chainz f/ Drake – “No Lie”
A$AP Rocky f/ Drake, 2 Chainz and Kendrick Lamar – “Problems”
Drake – “Started From The Bottom”
Drake f/ Lil Wayne – “HYFR”
Kendrick Lamar f/ Drake – “Poetic Justice”
Macklemore & Ryan Lewis f/ Wanz – “Thrift Shop”
Miguel – “Adorn”
Rihanna – “Diamonds”
Justin Timberlake f/ Jay-Z – “Suit & Tie”
Kanye West f/ Big Sean, Pusha T and 2 Chainz – “Mercy”

Video Director of the Year
A$AP Rocky & Sam Lecca
Benny Boom
Director X
Dre Films
Hype Williams

Best New Artist
Azealia Banks
Joey Bada$$
Kendrick Lamar
Trinidad Jame$
The Weeknd

Best Gospel Artist
Deitrick Haddon
Lecrae
Tamela Mann
Mary Mary
Marvin Sapp

Best Actress
Angela Bassett
Halle Berry
Taraji P. Henson
Gabrielle Union
Kerry Washington

Best Actor
Don Cheadle
Common
Jamie Foxx
Samuel L. Jackson
Denzel Washington

YoungStars Award
Gabrielle Douglas
Jacob Latimore
Keke Palmer
Jaden Smith
Quvenzhané Wallis

Best Movie
Beasts of the Southern Wild
Django Unchained
Something from Nothing: The Art of Rap
Sparkle
Think Like A Man

Subway Sportswoman of the Year
Gabrielle Douglas
Brittney Griner
Candace Parker
Serena Williams
Venus Williams

Subway Sportsman of the Year
Victor Cruz
Kevin Durant
Robert Griffin III
LeBron James
Ray Lewis

Coca-Cola Viewers Choice Award
A$AP Rocky f/ Drake, 2 Chainz and Kendrick Lamar – “Problems”
Drake – “Started From The Bottom”
Kendrick Lamar – “Swimming Pools (Drank)”
Miguel – “Adorn”
Rihanna – “Diamonds”
Justin Timberlake f/ Jay-Z – “Suit & Tie”

Centric Award
Tamar Braxton – “Love and War”
Fantasia – “Lose To Win”
Miguel – “Adorn”
Nas – “Daughters”
Charlie Wilson – “My Love Is All I Have”

Best International Act: Africa
2Face Idibia (Nigeria)
Toya Delazy (South Africa)
Donald (South Africa)
Ice Prince (Nigeria)
R2Bees (Ghana)
Radio and Weasel (Uganda)

Best International Act: UK
Marsha Ambrosius
Estelle
Labrinth
Rita Ora
Emeli Sandé
Wiley

Eve’s been making her rounds around the media circuit to promote her brand new album Lip Lock, which is in-stores right now, and one of the most anticipated collaborations from the LP surfaces in the Dawn Richard collaboration, “Keep Me From You.” The record, which was produced by JukeBox (“She Bad Bad”, “Whip My Hair”) & Van Der Waal, certainly has single potential. Make sure you cop Eve’s independently-released album Lip Lock on iTunes. Listen below.

Stream Eve’s Lip Lock album here.

Bobby V has plagued his career for many years by not only singing about the same subjects, but essentially keeping the exact same sound for the past 8 years. We appreciate the mild switch up on this record, as today he releases the newest single off his upcoming Peach Moon EP, “Back to Love.” The groovy R&B single features plenty of live instrumentation that should continue to keep R&B purists grooving to the ATL singer. Listen to the record below.

While the promotion on The-Dream’s forthcoming album hasn’t been heavy, the cast of superstars that are on the final tracklisting could very well sell the album and one of the most anticipated cuts gets released today in the form of a snippet. The-Dream enlists 2 Chainz and Beyoncé for his record “Turnt”, a collaboration that rose because Terius couldn’t get the sample cleared for his original Beyoncé collaboration. It’s every bit The-Dream like we thought with Beyoncé even talking about getting it “beat up til she blackout.”

The-Dream’s IV Play drops on May 28th featuring Big Sean, Pusha T, Jay-Z, Kelly Rowland, and more.

Seems like the formula for the year has been to take a perfectly good song, add Kendrick Lamar on it – and make it better. Can’t argue with results, huh? Solange Knowles has been having quite a year herself with the release of the True EP, and now her new single “Looks Good with Trouble” has been released officially with the west coast’s finest MC. Cop the single on iTunes. Kendrick gets his Andre 3000 on this record. Not mad.

via HHNM

A$AP Ferg has been pushing this heavy duty remix to his insane record, “Work” – and now he finally delivers. While the video is expected to premiere tomorrow, the record hits the web tonight – featuring A$AP Rocky, French Montana, Trinidad James, and ScHoolboy Q.

Ace Hood caught a major wave with Bugatti, landing his biggest single to date as well as his first ever certified gold plaque. But with those days firmly behind him, he sets himself up with what could be another major look with his new single, “We Outchea.” With his fellow YMCMB brethren Lil Wayne featured on this Lee On The Beats-produced records, the duo rival their “Hustle Hard” collabo on this joint.

Ace Hood’s Trials & Tribulations will bang through your speakers on July 16th.

via X

It’s like 2013 just continues to get better and better. In November of 2012, we posted up an article about Danity Kane - refreshing the world on their whereabouts 7 years after the group initially formed and over 4 years since their official disbandment. It’s safe to say the world responded as it has become quickly one of the most viewed articles in the site’s history, ever.

However, the separate routes of the girls seemed to have converged one more time – today in Los Angeles. TMZ, who apparently has people everywhere at every waking minute, caught four of the original members Aubrey O’Day, Shannon Bex, Dawn Richard, and Aundrea Fimbres out grabbing lunch – and the publication says they were meeting up with a new manager. Nonetheless, they are in the same place – at the same time, it could potentially be real.

TMZ questions if the girls actually own the name Danity Kane, despite Dawn Richard coming up with the name shortly before the release of their first single “Showstopper” back in 2006. And when the camera man mentioned Diddy, the girls (we’re thinking Aubrey) responded, “Who’s That?”

All females are fully capable of earning solo success in their own lanes, as Dawn Richard has, but the return together as one of the most in-demand groups could further propel their solo stars if they do it right. If you ask me, the group should plan a 10 city tour built on their two albums (as well as solo stuff) and then if that becomes a success, begin working on an album. Watch the clip above.

Even Flo Rida had to get in on this Future phenomenon that’s currently taking over hip hop. Future’s landed on more than a handful of singles in 2013, but this has the potential to be the biggest hit to day. Flo Rida, who’s album to move singles by the million with his smart concepts for hit singles, enlists Future for his new single “Tell Me When You Ready.”

No details have been announced on Flo Rida’s new album, but this one’s Top 10 bound for sure. Listen to the single below.

We’re almost sure Kanye West has a documentary of his own of his entire life, from top to bottom, and he sits on his home theatre and watches it every weekend and to “I Am A God” playing in the background. But for those who aren’t lucky enough to view that copy, a fan made compilation of Kanye West’s career from his College Dropout days to his My Beautiful Dark Fantasy days has surfaced, and it’s entitled ‘Where The Lonely Kids Go When The Bell Rings.’

The 45-minute documentary features Kanye footage performing at shows, behind the scenes and more. Props to James Workman who created the clip, watch it all below.

[Complex] [Kanye To The]

Daft Punk have joined the elite set of artists garnering huge buzz for their return this year, and after knocking it out the park with their first single “Get Lucky” featuring Pharrell (landing a Top 20 hit in the States and a chart-topping hit in the UK), the anticipation for their album only continued to grow and grow. With a week left until it officially drops, the masters of this digital/viral promotion decide to let the entire thing go for free a week early via iTunes. Borrowing a concept used by JT for The 20/20 Experience, iTunes allows us to stream the album in it’s entirety from top to bottom – featuring appearances by Pharrell, Julian Casablancas, Paul Williams, Todd Edwards and Panda Bear. Stream the album below.

1. Give Life Back to Music
2. The Game of Love
3. Giorgio by Moroder
4. Within
5. Instant Crush (feat. Julian Casablancas)
6. Lose Yourself to Dance (feat. Pharrell Williams)
7. Touch (feat. Paul Williams)
8. Get Lucky (feat. Pharrell Williams)
9. Beyond
10. Motherboard
11. Fragments of Time (feat. Todd Edwards)
12. Doin’ It Right (feat. Panda Bear)
13. Contact

STREAM: Daft Punk – Random Access Memories

Note: Click “View in iTunes” and then proceed to click on the cover art.

Jeremih suffered an unfortunate leak last week with “Ol Skool Pontiac” featuring Big Sean and Paul Wall, but it looks like we’re getting some more official stuff from his forthcoming album Thumpy Johnson. The Chicago crooner gets some west coast love from Game on his new record, “Let Loose.” T.I. is currently looking to acquire the singer to his Hustle Gang/Grand Hustle imprint, but expect his new album on Def Jam. Listen and download below.

After serving us a slice of the Birthday Tape a couple of weeks ago, Rockie Fresh turns his attention back to his major releases mixtape Electric Highway for his latest visuals. Grabbing Rick Ross, Nispey Hussle and DRE Films behind the lens, he gives the record “Life Long” an appropriate clip. We’re still convince Nipsey Hussle absolutely killed this shit, but judge it for yourself and watch the video below.

After garnering praise from listeners, and us, for his last joint “Nolita” featuring Active Child - the LA Leakers decide to liberate another track from his forthcoming project, PRAY. Raak is behind the boards again for his brand new record, “Anigma.”

For those wondering when they can expect his project, PRAY – it will be available on May 15th. Listen to the record below.

When Gucci Mane is in-between jail sentences, he releases music – and after snatching up Chief Keef to join his 1017 Brick Squad label, he releases a new record of his own “Use Me” featuring 2 Chainz. The heavy trap record, produced by Honorable CNote, could very well be featured on his forthcoming mixtape Trap House 3. Two ATL vets on a strong collaboration.

Kendrick Lamar’s newest single “Bitch Don’t Kill My Vibe” is consistently rising on the charts, on par to be another certified single for the rapper and now he premieres the video for the good kid, m.A.A.d city cut. The video builds upon the opening, set in a heavy church with all characters in all white – featuring appearances by Juicy J, Mike Epps and Beats My Dre Pill. Death to Molly.

Director’s Cut

It’s no secret Waka Flocka has always had somewhat of a disconnect with the rap music industry, at one time wanting to quit entirely, as well as engaging in several beefs – including his most recent with his former mentor, Gucci Mane. So it’s not surprising that he’d want to “spread his talents” much further than the genre, and tap into uncharted territory for the Atlanta native. When speaking on his music he says, “I do hip hop, but I’m not a hip hop fan. I couldn’t even tell you where hip hop originated to be honest.”

In terms of what he wants to accomplish this time around – Waka Flocka says, “I want to tap into house, electric, EDM, everything. I don’t want to be stuck in a refrigerator.” He would then follow up saying he’s been in the studio with Diplo and Flosstradamus. He lists multiple ventures he’s currently get involved with in this interview after the jump.

Note: Flockaveli 2, Waka Flocka’s 3rd studio album, was inaccurately reported as in stores since January 2013 – while it has not come out yet. So much for good journalism.

While “Work It Out” is officially her first single gon’ solo, the solo stardom of Beyoncé didn’t truly arrive until the release of “Crazy In Love.” Released 10 years ago this week, the single – produced by Rich Harrison stood for a long time as Beyoncé’s most successful record to date until it met the likes of “Irreplaceable”, which was then arguably trumped by “Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It).”

But when you talk about the summer of 2003, no other record stood above the fierce horns of “Crazy In Love.” No other record that year prompted such an instant reaction for women to rush to the dance floor to pop their booty in unison to the infectious “uh-oh” dance, getting everyone from the clubs to awards show to join in on the crazy festivities. It’s go-go, retro vibe was like nothing seen in the millennium R&B world at the time, depending on heavy, powerful live instrumentation while still possessing those pop crossover elements and even maintaining it’s urban vibe through it’s catchy lyrics.

Jay-Z’s addition to the record was just the icing on the cake to an already smash-in-the-making record. Holding no pop punches, delivers one of most memorable guest verses to date for it’s witty nature and technical skill, flaunting his then platinum crossover to one of the biggest rappers out – while still managing to slide in some wise talk from the streets (“I sling tho, if anything I bling tho”). What’s even more “crazy” is that he managed to think up his verse in a mere 10 minutes before heading into the booth and knocking it out.

“Crazy In Love” may still be the most important record of Beyoncé’s career. While she was winning either way coming off her Destiny’s Child run, if she didn’t pick this single – who knows what would’ve happened? “Work It Out” didn’t do as well as many thought it could’ve, possibly questioning the star power of the lead singer to produce a smash hit, but “Crazy In Love” knocked it out the park and still stands strong as a track in Bey’s hefty arsenal.

The record, which has sold over a million digital copies to date, lead the Bey de force Summer into the release of her most successful album to date, Dangerously In Love which has sold 5 million copies in the US and 11 million worldwide. Her career would continue to blossom as a solo artist, releasing 3 more multi-platinum albums after and becoming one of the most iconic entertainers of the modern era. As we await her 5th studio album, skim through memorable “Crazy In Love” moments throughout the years from the making of the video, to it’s premiere, to her showstopping performances.

MTV Making of the Video: Crazy In Love

Official music video:

Beyoncé “Crazy In Love” (BET Awards 2003)

Beyoncé “Crazy In Love” (Super Bowl 2013)

Facts about “Crazy In Love”.

01. The b-side of the record in the UK & US to the record was “Summertime” which featured P. Diddy, but we prefer the version featuring Ghostface Killah.

02. “Crazy In Love” was the first Beyoncé and Jay-Z collaboration as a couple, the two also shared their first dance after being married in 2008 to this song.

03. The song spent eight weeks on top of the Billboard Hot 100 in 2003, and became the only song that year to top the charts in both the UK and the US.

04. Producer Rich Harrison wrote the record hung over from the night before, but it wouldn’t be their only collaboration – he would reunite with the duo on their B’Day single, “Deja Vu”.

05. While the song had numerous covers, it’s most recent comes 10 years later on The Great Gatsby Soundtrack with Emeli Sandé doing a jazzy cover to the record. Listen here.

After letting us into his ATLien world with his record, “Great Escape” - Pule links back up with J.O.N. and Craig Macs once more for his newest joint, “Homicide.” An absolutely chill record for the ladies with the record with the simple hook, “You killin these hoes baby, homicide.” Another great joint, knocked out the park by the duo of Pule and J.O.N. Listen below.

After premiering his single “Elegant” exclusively on ThisGoesIN a few months ago, and dropping his mixtape Defy: Dream to Reality – Brey steps forward with the official visual to the single. Shot in Philly, directed by Chris P – his energy flows through the record as they capture him performing and having fun on the streets of brotherly love. Download his mixtape here.

Cam’ron’s samples will always take you back to a much simpler time in life, and this record is absolutely no different. Releasing this new record out of the blue tonight, he drops off “Golden Friends” which samples Cynthia Fee’s “Thank You For Being a Friend” – you know, The Golden Girls theme. I’m ready for a new Cam album, are you?

via X

Raekwon and Estelle just SOUND like a good mix. And when you put Jerry Wonda on the backdrop, who has worked with Estelle extensively in the past, you just know you have a solid record on your hands. While the original version appeared on Funkmaster Flex’s mixtape, like the other joints, it has surfaced entirely liberated of bombs or drops in single form. Raekwon and Estelle get busy on this groovy, hip hop influenced, throwback kind of record. Listen below.

Casey Veggies loves his fans and loves this rap thing, despite the unfortunate situations that occur in the business. After getting fans excited for his joint tour with Travi$ Scott, out of the blue it appears that the tour has been cancelled – even though he promises a few dates in June. How does he make it up? Music of course. “Money Don’t Buy Time” comes out of the blue, produced by Lee Bannon, and it samples Usher’s 2012 record “What Happened To U”. “Some people fuck with me heavy and there’s some people that hate me / One thing they got in common, is that none of them made me.”

Casey Veggies also signed a deal with PUMA, joining Rockie Fresh as one of it’s representatives. A good look if there ever was one. Maybe those two should be the ones going out on tour. Listen to the record below.

Hudson Mohawke, the newest member of G.O.O.D Music signed under the production umbrella – Very GOOD Beats, decided to give the world something amazing at the Free Form Festival over the week where he premiered two new records from Kanye West. The sound sounds like Yeezy’s continuing to evolve musically and sonically wise, if this is the final version of the record. It’s very lyrical if you’ve been wondering, so his material doesn’t appear to be dripping back into the 808′s & Heartbreaks sound and it sounds like it’s more building off his My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy.

Kanye West could perform one of these records on Saturday Night Live next week (May 18th) when he takes the stage to perform new music.

T.I.’s been absolutely on one since the shackles of Atlantic Records’ 10 year long deal have been broken, and the man has simply been on a stunt-a-thon, stunting throughout the entire nation – selling himself to the world as the hottest free agent in rap today, and who’s to say he isn’t? In two separate interviews, telling two separate stories, he breaks down the brand that is T.I. – one as “a multi-media company” and another as the coach to one of the baddest teams in rap, Hustle Gang.

T.I. stopped by Hoodrich Radio earlier in the week to promote the new G.D.O.D mixtape, and while introducing the members of the Hustle Gang – he talks about a few people he has been in talks with to join the brand including West Coast bubbler Problem and the ever underrated, Jeremih, among others. While stopping by Streetz 94.5, he says that he will not sign to a major record label for less than 8 figures. And it’s not like he’s just arrogantly throwing it out there, he’s backing it up with facts. Stunt hard my brother.

The How Fly boys are back together again. After leaving us hanging for quite a long time, Wiz Khalifa and Curren$y dropped the stoner’s soundtrack Live in Concert on iTunes a couple weeks ago on 4/20, and now they’re dropping visuals for the record. With the smooth, jazzy backdrop, Wiz and Spitta release the video for “Toast.”

Pusha T has always managed to keep a cool composure around people, a relatively cool composure. Never one to act crazy, never one to say anything too wild for attention, just a cool – kinda sarcastic, but still cool guy. Until he hears the final version of “Numbers On The Boards”, and loses his f*cking mind. Karen Civil managed to grab some footage of Pusha T’s initial reaction after hearing “Numbers On The Boards”, in which the record’s video premiered yesterday”, and for a full minute – he goes absolutely mental on the phone with Kanye West.

This should literally be the television promo for the album. Now flash, My Name Is My Name is in stores July 16th on the screen. Watch below.

Tyler, The Creator is an infinite source of comedy – and it’s not just because of his sketch comedy show on Adult Swim, Loiter Squad, the man has no filter and it’s amazing. While visiting the Power 106 LA studios, he sits down with J Cruz and Justin Credible of #LiftOff to play the game of F*ck, Marry, Kill with Taylor Swift, Lindsay Lohan, and Pharrell. We’ll let the rest play itself out, head after the jump and click play.

He also mentions he would “I would f*ck Selena Gomez like there’s no tomorrow, but we don’t get along – she don’t like me.”

Ludacris is certainly keeping up with his promise, delivering a new joint every single Friday for his #IDGAFFriday series, and the fourth song is a Mike Will Made It-produced record entitled, “Speak Into The Mic.” Are the records getting you any more amped for his forthcoming mixtape, DTP Presents: I Don’t Give A Fuck and his forthcoming album, Ludaversal? Listen to the track below.

Solange Knowles has been killing it with this new True EP, releasing possibly the best music of her career and it’s certainly gotten the same positive reception from critics and fans alike. After a while with no official visuals, we’re graced today with the Alan Del Rio/Refinery 29 directed clip for “Locked in Closets.” The hue is bright, the video is fun, the song is amazing – and everything just feels right about this one. Watch the mini-music video below.

One of the most beautiful songs of the years is met with an equally as lovely video. Lana Del Rey, who has the extremely vintage cinematic lane on lock, releases the video for her newest single “Young and Beautiful” from The Great Gatsby Soundtrack – which is in-stores right now.

Most recently, Lana Del Rey has earned her first gold certified-plaque for the single, “Video Games.”

It’s one of Mariah Carey’s most unconventional takes at a first single, at least lately. Avoiding the over-the-top theatrics, Ms. Carey crafts one for the summer with the release of her single “#Beautiful” featuring the coolest guy in R&B, Miguel. The 43 year-old diva flaunts her youthful frame for the came and Miguel while riding on the back of his hog. The single debuted on the Billboard Airplay charts at #44 this week off of radio spins alone, will this one be an instant Top 10 smash for the singer?

After we thought “Girl On Fire” would never die, it feels like it’s flame has been extinguished and we’re ready to move on. Shortly after releasing the videos for her records “Fire We Make” and “New Day”, Alicia Keys makes a major performing appearance on American Idol to give fans a performance of her brand new single, “Tears Always Win” off her certified gold album, Girl On Fire.

The single, which will be sent to radio on May 21st, was co-written by Bruno Mars, The Smeezingtons, and Alicia Keys.

Mac Miller’s musical evolution continues, and he began to let us into his world of silent movies with his single “S.D.S” produced by Flying Lotus, and now he continues the journey with the release of another record “Watching Movies.” For those who prefer a much more serious Mac as opposed to the goofy Malcolm you can catch in the video for his new single, you’ll love this one.

Watching The Movies With The Sound Off, complete with naked album cover, will be available on June 18th.

Curren$y crafts another one for the Jet Life subscribers, and still keeping the vibe alive of his mixtape New Jet City - he shoots the video for the title track, “Net Jet City.”While we’re sure Curren$y is working on his new album (as he’s always working on new music), you can also check out his joint EP with Wiz Khalifa, Live In Concert. Jet Life till the next life.

Why not, right? Just 24 hours after Gucci Mane revealed that Chief Keef is the newest member of the 1017 Brick Squad label, the pair release a brand new record entitled “Darker.” The 808 Mafia-produced record will appear on his forthcoming project, Trap House 3 coming on May 21st. Listen and download below.

After quite a bit of anticipation after announcing it yesterday, The-Dream has finally unloaded a major track from his forthcoming album IV Play – and it features none other than his Grammy-award winning parter, Jay-Z.

IV Play is set to be released on May 28th and will feature tracks from Beyoncé, Kelly Rowland, Pusha T, Big Sean, 2 Chainz and more.

MMG’s long beard of the law, Stalley has been quiet since releasing his criminally underrated single “Swangin’” featuring Scarface, but he’s not out. As he continues to prep his forthcoming debut album under the Maybach Music Group umbrella, he keeps his buzz strong with the release of his brand new single “White Minks & Gator Sleeves” – produced by Cardo. This one’s got a nice modern, yet 90′s vibe to it.

Music is consistently changing, and a few years ago the digital age of music considerably started to pick up which prompted changes within the way the industry did things. Not too long ago, Billboard implemented the change of adding online streaming as a heavy part to their ranking formula – and it has certainly changed things immensely in terms of success on the charts. Today, another monumental change comes as The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) announced the integration of streams to it’s historic Gold and Platinum Program. Well what does this mean? It means that outlets like YouTube, VEVO, MTV, Yahoo! Music, Rdio, and other outlets will become part of a formula in record certifications.

Among the on-demand streaming services the RIAA will accept are MOG, Muve Music, Rdio, Rhapsody, Slacker, Spotify, Xbox Music and others. In addition, video streams from MTV.com, VEVO, Yahoo! Music and YouTube will also count. Under the new formula, the RIAA will distribute awards to 56 new titles, including 30 Seconds To Mars’s “This Is War,” Emeli Sandé’s “Next To Me,” and Cher Lloyd’s “Oath,” Thursday night at the National Association of Recording Merchandisers’ annual Musiz Biz conference in Los Angeles.

“For the RIAA, deciding that on-demand streams should be recognized was the easy part. The hard part was in figuring out how many streams should be equivalent of a single sale. The group agonized for more than a year over that question,” said RIAA Chairman and Chief Executive Cary Sherman.

The formula they came up with was, for every 100 streams of a song – it would count as one digital sale. This has changed things quite a bit as now Lana Del Rey’s “Video Games”, Emeli Sande’s “Next To Me”, 30 Seconds To Mars’ “This Is War” will obtain certifications.

Billboard.biz | HHNM

While Eminem himself is setting up to possibly have a great year, it looks like the supergroup of rap Royce Da 5’9″, Joell Ortiz, Joe Budden, and Crooked I, collectively known as Slaughterhouse, are gearing up for a strong year of their own. While they dropped their album Welcome to: Our House last year – which didn’t do too impressive number wise, they’re already gearing up things for their new studio album under Shady. While this record was initially under Funk Flex’s Who You Mad At? Me Or Yourself, it has surfaced with no tags. Let this settle until their season begins again.

In what should essentially be the theme for the NBA Playoffs, Pusha T premieres the video for the latest record, “Numbers On The Boards”, off his forthcoming album My Name Is My Name. With a simple, gritty, dark theme – Pusha T keeps the intensity in his bars.

My Name Is My Name is scheduled to drop on July 16th.

Just the title alone makes this quite a worthwhile article to read. Ms. Badula Oblongata aka Erykah Badu sits on the other side of the looking glass for once and she sits down to interview one of the most in-demand artists of the year, Kendrick Lamar. Ms. Badu, with her own insight into being a massive artist, asks some worthwhile questions including the situation he’s in now, the weight of his success, the females that come with the game, his favorite MCs, and more. The interview is a pretty solid read, check out a few excerpts below.

BADU: The first time I saw you was on BET’s Cypher. I didn’t know who you were at that time, but you stood out. What do you think your secret weapon is as a lyricist? What do you think that “thing” is that makes you stand out?

LAMAR: Oh, man . . . That’s a good question. You know, I studied people I looked up to: Jay-Z, Nas, B.I.G., Pac . . . But early on, I didn’t really have my own sound. I had a passion for it, but me actually rapping the way they rapped is what got me into doing my own thing. I think me being that intricate and studying songs line for line—I probably spent more time listening to albums than writing songs. But I think that gave me all the tricks in terms of wordplay, from how I pronounced my words to the actual delivery. I’m very intricate about that stuff when I go into the studio—it has to sound the way I heard it in my head. So that’s probably one of the biggest things that separates me when I’m working in the studio—just how I hear certain things.

BADU: Is there an MC who influenced you or whose level of excellence you feel that you will never reach?

LAMAR: [laughs] That I feel I’ll never reach? I’ll have to say Jay or Eminem. Jay for sure—just off the simple fact of his longevity. That, to me, is probably one-in-a-million for rappers. A good career for a rapper is five or six years, so I think Jay still being relevant and having the skills he has—it’s really unmatched. I hope I get to that level and keep my work ethic up and strategically think of certain things. But there will probably only ever be one Jay. He’ll probably go down as the greatest to ever do it. Pac also could’ve had that, but due to his passing, we’ll never know if he’d have reached that.

BADU: Outside of hip-hop, what other kinds of music do you listen to?

LAMAR: Indie or alternative stuff. Sonnymoon and Quadrants are a couple of bands that really inspire me in terms of the melodics of things and certain tones and just what feels good. It takes me back to the type of music that I grew up on in my household. We played a lot of gangsta rap, but we also played a lot of oldies, and I think that mix is part of what inspires my sound. My pops and my mom started playing Marvin Gaye and the Isley Brothers and all these people, but at the same time, they always had Snoop on right behind it in the same mix.

BADU: Okay, let me ask you this: How do you choose chicks from backstage?

LAMAR: How do I choose chicks from backstage?

BADU: Yeah, what is the protocol?

LAMAR: I try not to. [laughs] I’m too scared. Anybody who knows me knows that I’m probably the most scared person when it comes to that because I’m so caught up in the act of sex, of something going crazy, going out of my control. I’m too paranoid.

BADU: [laughs] So you just pass?

LAMAR: I’ve got to because I’ve seen a situation where it got totally out of hand, where something seemed so innocent, and now this person has got allegations on them. It spooked me. This was before my career really started, though—before any “Kendrick Lamar.” And that right there? It changed my whole perception about certain things. I’ll always keep that in the back of my head.

Read the full article here.
Photo Credit: Robbie Fimmano

In slow news day news, it looks like Kanye West has become newest superstar to join the stellar cast of cameos Anchorman 2. Hollywood.com reported that Kanye West was seen with Paul Rudd and Christina Applegate filming a scene on a roof in downtown Atlanta. This has got to be a dream for Kanye West considering he’s a major fan fo Will Ferrell movies if you haven’t picked up from his records already. He sampled ‘Blades of Glory’ for the uber-hit “Ni**as In Paris”, refers to a quote in Step Brothers for his Beyoncé and Big Sean-assisted track, “See Me Now”, and is just a fan of his comedies. See the photo of Yeezy on set below.

With a career day appearance, a few jail sentences for attacking fans, and dropping mixtapes and splitting from once protege Waka Flocka Flame – Gucci Mane has had quite a year, but this could possibly be his biggest move of the year yet (as if there was competition). Gucci Mane took to Twitter today to announce that Chief Keef has officially made the move as the latest member to 1017 Bricksquad.

“@gucci1017: Chief Keef newest member of Bricksquad1017 bmg gbe mpa #turnup twitter.com/gucci1017/stat…” SQUAD

— BigGucciSosa300 (@ChiefKeef) May 8, 2013

Chief Keef, who was recently released from prison after violating his probation a few months ago, hasn’t gotten nearly the same buzz than he received before he entered – so this could be quite a lucrative move for him. Veteran trapper Gucci Mane could slide some knowledge to the young boy, who released his debut album Finally Rich late last year.

Now let’s hear how the music sounds.

One look at this cover, and immediately, “I need an adult” comes to mind. With a little bit over a month until the release of his sophomore album, Mac Miller releases the album art for his forthcoming album Watching Movies With The Sound Off – and nothing’s more awkward than a naked Mac Miller sitting at a table, luckily with the Parental Advisory sticker covering up the nether regions (what happens with the clean version of the album).

The album has spawned the single,  “S.D.S” produced by Flying Lotus and while guests haven’t been confirmed too much, we expect the likes of ScHoolboy Q, Earl Sweatshirt, Gucci Mane and more on the album. He’s also embarking on a 38-date tour with Earl Sweatshirt, Chance The Rapper, Action Bronson, Vince Staples, and more for his The Space Migration Tour. The summer of Mac might be upon us.

Rich Gang seems to be making some waves with their new single “Tap Out”, and what a better way to show off their wealthy living by inviting MTV into their crib for the latest episode of MTV RapFix. Birdman and Lil Wayne sit down with Sway to talk about the Rich Gang, as well as the first ever Big Tymers album since 2003, featuring new members Lil Wayne and Drake as opposed to Mannie Fresh. While nothing’s been recorded, it’s certainly been set up.

They also talk about their upcoming joint album Like Father Like Son 2, which they already have tons of music for, as well as his album of love songs ‘Devol.’

Gilbere Forte’s absolutely new to us, but he’s certainly gaining some ground with his most recent work – and that gave us all the reason to give Epic Records’ newest star a chance. Today he releases the Raak-produced single, “Nolita”, a haunting track reminiscing of a lost love with their future crushed by events in the past. Vocalist Active Child only accents the track with his haunting vocals to further add a touch of despair to the track.

The track will be available on iTunes next Tuesday (May 14th), but listen below.

With all the big acts in 2013 that are scheduled to hit, who would’ve thought that the two independent artists Macklemore and Ryan Lewis would be killing them all? After scoring a chart topper with their single “Thrift Shop” earlier this year, setting records for the highest selling single of the year, they return to the top spot with their adrenaline-pumping follow-up, “Can’t Hold Us” featuring Ray Dalton. The song captures the top spot from Pink and Nate Ruess’ “Just Give Me A Reason” which held the spot for 3 weeks, and makes history – all at the same damn time.

According to Billboard, Macklemore and Ryan Lewis is the first act to drop 2 back-to-back number one singles since Lady Gaga in 2009 with “Just Dance” and “Poker Face.”

Jennifer Lopez has developed and mastered a winning formula, and why mess with success? She leads off her brand new album, scheduled for a release later this year, with the sizzling summertime single “Live It Up” featuring her go-to-partner, Pitbull. The single is the pair’s third lead single, following up “On The Floor” from her 2011 album Love? and “Dance Again” from her 2012 compilation, Dance Again…The Hits.

It’s as dance, pop, EDM as the previous two singles are – has she scored another worldwide smash? Listen below.

Female rappers? Bonding? What kind of alternate dimension have we stepped in? It’s incredibly frequent in this day and era to see female MCs at each other’s throats (especially when one of those MCs is name Azealia Banks) but it looks like Iggy Azalea and Angel Haze are repping girl power all night long. The first female to grace the XXL Freshmen cover and the second female joined forces on stage in London at Scala to perform a remix to Jay-Z and Kanye West’s ‘Watch The Throne’ single, “Otis.”

As the show moment comes to an end, Angel Haze lets the world know that they’re the two new queens of hip hop. Watch these two queens ride the throne in this performance.

[Dope Avenue]

Capitalizing off his XXL Freshmen fame, and becoming the newest artist to sign the dotted line to Def Jam, Logic drops off the third installment in his Young Sinatra series, Young Sinatra: Welcome To Forever, and he’s certainly got some new friends to add into the mix. Def Jam certainly represents on the tape in the form of guests Jhene Aiko, Trinidad James, and Elijah Blake while also enlisting Castro, Kid Ink, & more. Need a reason to get hooked on this kid? Listen to this mixtape below.

DOWNLOAD: Logic – Young Sinatra: Welcome To Forever

Hustle Gang is representing hard, and they certainly want their clique to be as reputable as the rest with their latest mixtape, G.D.O.D (Get Dough Or Die) – hosted by DJ Drama and DJ MLK. Filled with heavy original music, the tape features the Hustle Gang players including T.I., Young Dro, Trae Tha Truth, B.o.B, Iggy Azalea, Shad Da God, Chip, Travis Scott. It also features outside appearances from Young Jeezy, Problem, Meek Mill and more. Listen to it in full below.

DOWNLOAD: Hustle Gang ‘G.D.O.D.’ | Alt. Link

Jeremih continues to be one of the most slept on acts in the R&B world, and as he’s working on his third studio album Thumpy Johnson – a new record surfaces, featuring quite the tandem of Big Sean and Paul Wall. While the song has no home, it’s certainly right up there with the quality of work that the crooner is used to putting out. His latest single “F*ck You All The Time” featuring Lil Wayne is still rocking on iTunes, but let this one abuse your sound system.

[Fake Shore Drive]

Game isn’t exactly through after releasing his extremely solid album, Jesus Piece late last year and he’s stepping back in again with the forthcoming mixtape, Operation Kill Everything. He tweeted the mixtape is almost completed, and in response releases his freestyle over Kendrick Lamar’s latest single “Bitch Don’t Kill My Vibe.” Game goes in. Applaud him and listen.

Common promises us an EP, mixtape, and an album – all this year, and while he hasn’t delivered – can’t say he isn’t giving us the feeling that he isn’t putting himself out there. After kicking it over Jay-Z’s “Open Letter”, Common returns with a verse over Chris Brown’s latest record “Fine China.” It’s not your standard verse on a beat however, DJ Dummy and 9th Wonder play a part in reworking the beat for a neat MJ breakdown while Com gets busy. Are you ready for some new Common in your ear?

[Rap-Up]

While French Montana’s hosting his album listening session tonight, he releases the heavy street clip to his latest single off his forthcoming, Excuse My French, “Ain’t Worried Bout Nothin.” Riding through his hood in his yellow lambo, the video also features cameos by his dual bosses, Diddy and Rick Ross.

Excuse My French will drop on May 21st via Bad Boy/MMG/Interscope, and the visual for his next single “The Gifted” featuring The Weeknd should be premiering soon. Watch the video below.

Kelly Rowland’s fourth studio album is called Talk A Good Game, and she’s certainly got people talking (and ogling) with her bold album cover. Revealing the official cover today, the former Destiny’s Child songstress dons a completely sheer top with her hair covering up the right places. Joining Mac Miller and Fabolous, Kelly Rowland’s new album will be dropping on June 18th – lead by the single, “Kisses Down Low.”

She’s also embarking on a joint tour with The-Dream this summer which kicks off May 24th and will run straight through to the release of the album. Watch her latest video below.

That highly anticipated, independent album isn’t exactly going to sell itself, so it looks like Mac Miller’s heading out to do work. After the release of his single, “S.D.S” and the announcement of his album release, Watching Movies With The Sound Off on June 18th - Mac Miller gears up for full-blown 38-city North American Summer tour, and he’s not going alone.

The Spance Migration Tour is set to kick off on May 10th, and he’ll be heading out on the road with fellow underground buzzing artists Chance The Rapper, The Internet, Vince Staples, Earl Sweatshirt, Action Bronson, REMember Music Artists – along with Njomza, Dylan Reynolds, The Come-UP, Hardo, Choo Jackson and Primavera Vills. Mac Miller spoke briefly on the tour saying, “I’m excited that we figured out a safe way to bring a large group of people to a different planet. After hundreds of years of research, our team has developed a safe and reliable form of transportation that will bring tourists to a world of discovery and opportunity.”

RULE is FREE. Just as one famous rapper from the late 90′s go in, another one comes out – and it was revealed that Ja Rule was released from Brooklyn’s Metropolitan Detention Center earlier today after serving his sentence for – you guessed it, tax evasion. This was tacked onto the 2 year sentence for illegal gun possession. Rapper N.O.R.E. (or P.A.P.I) was the first to reveal the news.

Ja Rule’s last album Pain Is Love 2 was released back in February of 2012 during his sentence, and it debuted at 197 – becoming his weakest selling album to date. Can Rule create a formidable comeback to music?

Just spoke to @ruleyork everybody tell him welcome home!!!

— P.A.P.I. (@noreaga) May 7, 2013

Continuing to make Brooklyn proud, Harry Fraud squeezes in some more new music after releasing his full-length mixtape, Adrift just two months ago. The newest project, High Tide is certainly the follow-up to that project, and the five-track EP sees appearances from Tech N9ne, Action Bronson, French Montana, Troy Ave, Earl Sweatshirt, Smoke DZA, Chinx Drugz and more. Listen below.

Leon Marin keeps on with the brand new content, and he’s giving you nothing less than the real on absolutely 100%. Kicking with with production from Ryan Harrison, he paints the picture of the world around him on this new record “The Ghetto”, which samples a favorite of ours – Elijah Blake’s “Everything.” Leon Marin is currently working on his project dropping before the end of 2013, support and listen to the record after the jump.

We couldn’t not give Brooklyn a pass, obviously. Theophilus London has captured our hearts with his breezy, live record entitled “Rio” – and after letting it settle on our iTunes, he steps through with the official video for the clip. The rapper / model / producer is backed by the Menahan Street Band in the clip where he serenades his lady. Watch below.

While those who attended the show saw Rihanna rock it for 7 days straight in 7 different countrys for her 7th studio album, Unapologetic – it was a totally different story for the journalists involved. Earlier tonight on FOX, Rihanna’s 777 Tour Documentary finally aired for the world to see, and it involved the very polarizing looks at the excitement from Rihanna’s team and diehard fans and the absolute torture from the journalists set to cover the event without a look at Rihanna beyond the stage for 6 full days. Watch it all go down.

Ace Hood has reached new career heights with his single “Bugatti” – which recently struck certified gold for the sales of over 500,000 units since dropping earlier this year. So of course there has to be a remix, right? Khaled wouldn’t allow anything less. A whole new cast of players wake up from their slumber in a bugatti, and it’s an all too similar cast. Wiz Khalifa, T.I., Meek Mill, French Montana, 2 Chainz, Birdman lace the track with verses.

Ace Hood’s Trials & Tribulations is set to be released on July 16th.

John Legend’s new single “Who Do We Think We Are” hasn’t gotten much burn on our iTunes since it’s initial premiere, but the G.O.O.D Music crooner finally premieres the song’s visual to give us a second chance at exploring this record. John Legend croons in a room full of lovely ladies at this swanky event, and Rick Ross commands attention with his verse.

Love In The Future is set for a release later this year with production from Hit-Boy, No I.D., Hudson Mohawke, & more. Watch the video below.

“Funny how money changes situation, miscommunication leads to complication,” Lauryn Hill opened with on her ‘Miseducation’ classic “Lost Ones” and it’s certainly as true today as it was back in 1998. Despite managing to cover $900K of her $1.8 million dollar tax debt, the former Fugees star was sentenced to 3 months in prison for tax evasion.

The 3-month sentence is far less than her initial projected sentence, which would’ve totaled up to a minimum of 3 years. The 37 year-old told the judge, “I needed to be able to earn so I could pay my taxes, without compromising the health and welfare of my children, and I was being denied that.
I was put into a system I didn’t know the nature of. … I’m a child of former slaves. I got into an economic paradigm and had that imposed on me. I sold 50 million units … now I’m up here paying a tax debt. If that’s not likened to slavery, I don’t know what is.”

Before the sentence, she signed a new deal with Sony to help pay off the debt – which prompted the release of her new record, “Neurotic Society” last weekend. She’s scheduled to report to prison by July 8th.

You may have been searching for that good ol’ summertime soul, well Jaheim is certainly here to deliver. After taking quite a lengthy hiatus after his 2010 album Another Round, and shortly becoming an internet meme to Black Twitter in his now infamous purple suit, he returns back with another winner of a single in “Age Ain’t A Factor.” It follows relatively the same formula has his other singles, but if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. The single will strike iTunes tomorrow, but listen to the single below.

The Fast and Furious franchise have a reputation for producing reputable material on their soundtrack, classics like “Area Codes” and “Tokyo Drift” immediately come to mind – could this one be another added to the mix? The high-octane, thrilling movie enlists 2 Chainz and Wiz Khalifa for the first single off the forthcoming soundtrack, “We Own It (Fast & Furious)”.


The Fast & Furious 6 soundtrack hits stores on May 21st and will feature the likes of Ludacris, Usher, T.I., Lil Wayne, Don Omar, and more.

Last minute album changes are all part of the job when it comes to releasing an album, and it looks like The-Dream just had a major one in the final minutes of the fourth quarter. With The-Dream’s forthcoming album, IV Play scheduled for a May 28th release – one of the most highly anticipated tracks was the collaboration with Beyoncé entitled, “Fire.” However, after being unable to clear the Culture Club sample, he did some mild switching around and it looks like we’re going to finally hear what a Dream, Bey, and 2 Chainz collabo is made of.

“There was a clearance issue with the sample, so we’re gonna move her from one record to another that was just created,” he told Rap-Up.com. And now that new record is called, “Turnt” and it’s already looking like one of the biggest cuts off the already star-studded album.

IV Play is expected to feature Jay-Z, Kelly Rowland, Mary J. Blige, Big Sean, and Pusha T. Look for it on May 28th.

After weeks of the record buzzing throughout the web, Mariah Carey has finally released the lead single from her highly-anticipated follow-up to her 2009 album, Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel, scheduled to release later this year. “#Beautiful”, the guitar-driven, breezy laced single features the current it-man in the world of R&B, Miguel, who co-wrote and produced the duet. The teaser for the video was released not too long ago, but it looks like we’ll get a full look at the Jospeh Kahn-directed visual this Wednesday on American Idol when the Idol judge premieres it herself.

Until then, get whisked away by Mariah’s ‘beautiful’ new single.

On the cusp of revealed that his second album in six months, The 20/20 Experience (2 of 2) will be released in September – it looks like he’s going to give all his new material a good strong run with the now official, The 20/20 Experience World Tour. While he’s already set to take over the globe with his “Suit & Tie” brother Jay-Z on ‘The Legends of Summer’ tour, he’ll be hitting the road again on October 31st – with the tour flying through the first bit of 2014. While additional dates will be announced, check the schedule below.

Oct. 31 – Montreal, QC – Bell Centre
Nov. 13 – Raleigh, NC – PNC Arena
Nov. 15 – Nashville, TN – Bridgestone Arena
Nov. 16 – Columbus, OH – Nationwide Arena
Nov. 18 – Memphis, TN – FedEx Forum
Nov. 19 – St. Louis, MO – Scottrade Center
Nov. 21 – Tulsa, OK – BOK Center
Nov. 29 – Las Vegas, NV – MGM Grand Garden Arena
Dec. 2 – Phoenix, AZ – US Airways Center
Dec. 4 – Dallas, TX – American Airlines Center
Dec. 5 – Houston, TX – Toyota Center
Dec. 11 – Indianapolis, IN – Bankers Life Fieldhouse
Dec. 12 – Cleveland, OH – Quicken Loans Arena
Dec. 14 – Pittsburgh, PA – Consol Energy Center
Dec. 15 – Louisville, KY – KFC Yum! Center
Dec. 17 – Atlanta, GA – Philips Arena
Dec. 19 – Orlando, FL – Amway Center

2014

Jan. 13 – Edmonton, AB – Rexall Place
Jan. 17 – Seattle, WA – Key Arena
Jan. 22 – Denver, CO – Pepsi Center
Feb. 7 – Fargo, ND – Fargodome
Feb. 9 – St. Paul, MN – Xcel Energy Center
Feb. 10 – Omaha, NE – CenturyLink Center

Tickets are set to go on-sale on May 13th at 10AM.

[Rap-Up]

Iggy Azalea’s “Work” single has already become a success overseas, and she’s already begun capitalizing with the follow-up. “Bounce”, produced by The Invisible Men / Reeva & Black” is Bollywood themed, filmed on the streets of Mumbai India. There’s not as much twerking from the Aussie rapper as her last clip, but she certainly shows that she can exude that international flavor with this single. Riding elephants, dancing in saris – it’s all amazing. Watch her video below.

Remember those 6-7 long, languishing years we had to wait for another Justin Timebrlake album after FutureSex/LoveSounds? Remember the moment The 20/20 Experience was announced, and the pure feeling of elation that we would be getting new music from pop’s most requested artist? Well, after previously anticipating the follow-up project in November, Mr. Timberlake reveals via his Instagram that we can expect the second part to the experience on September 30th.

The first installment of The 20/20 Experience was an instant smash, debuting with nearly a million sold the first week and easily holding onto the title as the biggest selling album of the year with 1.7 million sold to date. An interesting tidbit, the release date of The 20/20 Experience (2 of 2) comes on the last day to qualify for the 2014 GRAMMYs. Could we see both of Justin Timberlake’s albums qualify for GRAMMYs next year?

Justin Timberlake is set to embark on tour with Jay-Z for the Legends of The Summer tour, kicking off July 17th.

Rich Gang certainly have gotten the formula down pat for their new song, and now they’ve scored with a winning video for the clip. Birdman, Nicki Minaj, Lil Wayne, Future, and Mack Maine all make appearances in this Hanna Lux Davis-directed clip, as well as cameos from Paris Hilton, Kimora Lee Simmons, Bow Wow, DJ Khaled, and Christina Milian. Watch the video below.

Lauryn Hill revealed to the world in an open letter earlier this week that she would indeed be making a return to music after signing a deal with Sony Worldwide to release a couple brand new records. Per her agreement, she was legally require to release this song immediately – which she admits isn’t the most ideal scenario, but the message certainly is still there.

“Neurotic Society (Compulsory Mix)” is nowhere near the sound captured on her now classic album The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill, with the soul and hip hop seemingly stripped and turned into almost a spoken word over a beat. Listen to the record and her description of the track via Tumblr below.

Hello All:

Here is a link to a piece that I was ‘required’ to release immediately, by virtue of the impending legal deadline. I love being able to reach people directly, but in an ideal scenario, I would not have to rush the release of new music… but the message is still there. In light of Wednesday’s tragic loss (of former label mate Chris Kelly), I am even more pressed to YELL this to a multitude that may not understand the cost of allowing today’s unhealthy paradigms to remain unchecked!

- MLH

[Tumblr]

We’re only 10 days away from Eve releasing her first album in 11 years, Lip Lock – and while she’s doing it independently this time around, she’s still getting those major looks. Sliding through Late Night with Jimmy Fallon, she performs her brand new single “Make It Out This Town” featuring Gabe Saporta of Cobra Starship, backed by her Grammy award-winning buddies, The Roots. In a bonus performance only seen on the web, Eve performs for a second time, this time her second Grammy award-winning single, “Let Me Blow Ya Mind.”

Lip Lock, which features Claude Kelly, Dawn Richard, Missy Elliott, Snoop Dogg, Juicy J, Chrisette Michele, and Pusha T, will be in-stores on May 14th.

ScHoolboy Q’s bucket hat bars continue to keep our anticipation peaked for his major label debut, Oxymoron – scheduled to drop later this year, and the TDE’s most valuable hippy decides to preview some brand new music in his home state of Cali. The Observatory in Santa Ana got a treat with Q dropped a brand new record, tentatively called “Gangsta” (considering it’s said about 50 times throughout the record), and it sounds like an absolute banger.

[Its The Daily]

Well, this is certainly surprising news. Rapper Kreayshawn, who has largely been out of the spotlight since the release of her debut album Somethin’ Bout Kreay, dropped some heavy news today on Instagram this morning. Keeping a relatively low profile, with no new singles from the album, she gives us a reason we can all feel good about as she announced her pregnancy via IG. “Everyone’s been wondering why all my pics have been neck up. WELL here’s a neck down one! IM GONNA BE A MOM!”. says the Oakland MC. Congrats to Kreay! See the baby bump below.

Omg thank you guys so much for the love! +++ I’m so happy!

— ♥Kreay Saint Kreay♥ (@KREAYSHAWN) May 4, 2013

Can we take a trip back in time for a second? Just slam the breaks on the present, put it in reverse, and slide back about 6 years or so? Kanye West has always been an innovator of the art, and whether that makes it a hit or a miss (usually it’s a hit) it’s different, it’s refreshing, and it’s completely different than anything anyone in hip hop is doing – and at a much higher quality. But while he’s currently on this dark trip (ever since 2008), let’s ride the DeLorean back to some relatively early Ye’ with “Touch The Sky.”

Who else would dress up in a motorcycle jumpsuit, name themselves Evel Kanyevel and create a video completely based in the 70′s? A better question, who COULD pull it off and still retain the essence of the record and his credibility as an artist? This gem of a video that may have been lost in the archives, but still remains one of the best videos of that year – by far. Directed by Chris Milk.

THE TRACK ITSELF

First of all, the track is just amazing. Late Registration still stands as one of my favorite Kanye West albums (even though all of them are just amazing), and “Touch The Sky” was really one of the songs that just popped. You go through the “Wake Up Mr. West Intro” and then the tame piano-driven “Heard Em Say” then suddenly – HORNS, HORNS EVERYWHERE. Those triumphant Just Blaze horns falls in so appropriately and gives you brand new life.

THE STAR-STUDDED CAMEOS

Kanye West wasn’t afraid to add stars to his visuals (Stacey Dash, Anna Nicole Smith, Jamie Foxx, Adam Levine) and “Touch The Sky” was another clip featuring a star-studded clip. Playing the lead female role, one of the most memorable women of the 90′s, Pamela Anderson – who gives her best performance as an actress since the days of her bouncing on a beach in slow motion to slow-burning rock music. Not to mention the hilarious appearances from the bitter broads themselves, Nia Long and Tracee Ellis Ross – the latter who delivers the line of the video, “I told you – when he get on he gon’ leave ya ass for a white girl. What you want a barbie? What about all of this? You just want the tits? What about the ass??!”

THE INTRODUCTION TO LUPE FIASCO

It’s hard to believe in 2013 now, that there was a time when Lupe Fiasco wasn’t one of the most hated rappers in the country. Now known as the outspoken, somewhat volitile, rebellious rapper, “Touch The Sky” saw the introduction of one of – at that time, one of the most promising MCs of the late 00s. A quite different Lupe Fiasco saunters onto the stage than the man we see now, and perhaps it was the politics of the music industry that stripped away layers, but he looks as pure as we’ve ever seen him. The look that Kanye West gave Lupe Fiasco in that video certainly helped, and the man hasn’t stopped giving looks to the people of his own city. While in 2007 it was Lupe Fiasco, 5 years later, it’s Chief Keef.

THE 70′s THEME

Chris Milk certainly captured this 70′s theme down to a tee, and at some point – it almost feels like you forget you’re watching a music video as opposed to a short film. The slightly grainy with the now shitty visual effects of the 70′s work extremely well in this video. Come on, they probably could’ve added some massive CGI explosions to the end of the video when the rocket crashes – but that wouldn’t be too accurate (and not nearly as funny). Can you believe this video cost a million dollars to make?

WILL WE EVER SEE THIS KANYE AGAIN?

Will we ever see this kind of visual again from Kanye West? Maybe….but probably not. Considering where he was from those Late Registration/Graduation days – his music has gotten noticeably darker, a lot more artsy, with a lot more focus on the production. While of course none of the videos from an album like 808s & Heartbreaks would follow the cinematic, humorous visual like this one – there wasn’t one to be found on My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy – which we should perhaps blame on the title as well. And according to reports, his next album continues with the dark feel to it – so there goes that. “Touch The Sky” won’t be replicated again, but in Yeezy’s vast videography – it’s surely a standout. It’s crazy how so much change change in 7 years, and it’s probably a bit sad that we’ll never see this side of Kanye West again – but we’d probably be a lot more angry if 7 years later he was still making the SAME music.

Watch Kanye West & Lupe Fiasco’s “Touch The Sky”

While rookies like Rockie Fresh garnered an endorsement last week, scoring a huge Puma deal, another major rapper gets canned over their controversial lyrics and this time it’s Lil Wayne. Mountain Dew has officially severed ties with the superstar MC after his distasteful lyrics about Emmett Till.

After the lyric “Beat the pussy up like Emmett Till” on Future’s “Karate Chop”, the rapper recieved backlash from fans and the family of Till’s, which eventually prompted the label to change the lyrics. Most recently, a statement was made by Lil Wayne himself in an open letter apologizing to the family – but it wasn’t enough.

“I was not impressed,” said Airickca Gordon-Taylor, a cousin of Till’s. “I think that he’s kind of been pressured or he’s been admonished to make a statement to the family because of the ongoing negative publicity and attention and the pressure we’ve put onto his endorsement with Mountain Dew.”

The result saw PepsiCo, Mountain Dew’s parent company, dropping the ‘I Am Not A Human Being II’ saying, “offensive reference to a revered civil rights icon does not reflect the values of our brand” while Lil Wayne’s publicist Sarah Cunningham cited “creative differences.”

While the decision by PepsiCo is understandable, Mountain Dew certainly benefited a lot from Lil Wayne’s name. The rapper is a bona fide superstar and they created quite a memorable campaign with their DEWeezy commercials not too long ago. Mountain Drew was a sponsor for Lil Wayne’s upcoming America’s Most Wanted Music Festival set for this summer.

[Rap-Up]

B.o.B’s “We Still In This Bitch” has been an absolutely underrated problem since it dropped. With B.o.B, T.I. and Juicy J on the original track – it managed to kill in the clubs, and now just days before Hustle Gang’s upcoming mixtape, G.D.O.D. the remix premieres to continue to rattle through your speakers. The Hustle Gang veteran grabs Young Jeezy, Young Dro, and Yo Gotti – the YoYoYo Brotherhood for this remix on this Mike Will Made It smash.

Every round Tyler, The Creator just keeps getting better and better and now that the dust as finally cleared, not only was WOLF a creative success but a commercial success – debuting with almost twice the amount as his previous album Goblin. To commemorate it’s monumental release, Tyler, The Creator talks to RapRadar and Respect Magazine’s Elliot Wilson exclusively in a live sit-down interview discussing quite a few subjects.

On the subject of why he spent the majority of time on Twitter saying that WOLF sucked leading up to it’s release, he says he didn’t want to get weighed down by expectations. “When you have expectations for shit, you’re disappointed and you probably won’t even give it a chance to say that shit is tight, because you thought it would sound like this,” he explained.

In the second part of the interview he touches on his family, speaking on Mountain Dew accepting who he was and actually going through with his commercial, “Finally someone looked past the rape, or the devil-worshiping, or the immaturity – and they actually gave me a chance and be 7 years old with their product.”

It’s Friday again, and Ludacris continues to stay true with his releases for his #IDGAFFriday series. After coming through with “Raised In The South” featuring Jeezy and “If I Ain’t F**ked Up”, this time he grabs Que and French Montana for this new record, “9 Times Out Of 10.” Another catchy hook, on an all too similar beat however. Produced by Metro Boomin.

Ludaversal is still on track for a 2013 release, but look out for his IDGAF mixtape coming soon.

With the recent release of King Remembered In Time, Krizzle sat down with Ambrosia to speak on his most personal effort to date. Big K.R.I.T. speaks on what he believes his purpose as an artist is, why exactly he named his mixtape after himself, gun violence that allowed an amazing track like “The Banana Clip Theory” to come to light. Watch after the jump and make sure to download King Remembered In Time if you haven’t so already. Big shouts to Ambrosia for this one.

While Mac Miller’s party/frat rap bars garnered him a major win in 2011 with the release of his successfully independent debut, Blue Slide Park, many are wondering if young Malcolm can do it again. Since the release of his debut album, and the strong follow-up mixtape – Macadelic, he has been working on his sophomore LP – which is receiving rave reviews from those who have listened, citing growth from the Pittsburgh MC.

Mac Miller has announced officially that Watching Movies With The Sound Off will be hitting stores on June 18th, which should set him up nicely against Fabolous and possibly Kanye West on the list of summer releases. Peep the first single “S.D.S.” below.

Kids are getting suspended from school for twerking, but that doesn’t mean the craze is dying by any means. After teasing the single earlier this week, Busta Rhymes and Pharrell deliver with the full version of their brand new single, “Twerk It.” Pharrell’s one-of-a-kind production is meets once again with Busta Rhymes’ jamaican patois for a record that’s certainly a summer hit, bona fide. Listen below.

With under a month until French Montana’s album release, he continues to churn out material – and by far the most surprising with his newest joint, “Trouble” featuring ‘Stay’ singer Mikky Ekko. The record, which will not be making French Montana’s MMG/Bad Boy debut, came as quite a surprise to us considering the step left from his usual “turn up” content, that something would have a much deeper meaning. A day after, he accompanies the record with the visual. Watch it here.

French Montana’s Excuse My French drops on May 21st.

A monumental year for Hot 97 as 2013 marks the 20th anniversary of quite possibly the mecca of all hip hop stages, Summer Jam concert – and they’ve certainly stacked it from top to bottom with artists that can deliver on the main stage. While the pre-show Festival stage will feature the likes of Action Bronson, Joey Bada$$, A$AP Ferg, Vinny Cha$e, Smoke DZA, Bodega Bamz, Troy Ave, Kid Ink and Radamiz – the main stage features future legends, current superstars, and hip hop icons from New York.

Chris Brown, Wu-Tang Clan, Kendrick Lamar, 2 Chainz, Fabolous, A$AP Rocky, Wale, Miguel, Joe Budden, French Montana and MORE will be performing on the mainstage. Are you ready for June 2nd at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey?

The line-up, while filled to the brim with talent, features quite a few similar acts from last year’s show – and they’re acts who didn’t do too well on the main stage. Chris Brown’s live performance always kills it, Kendrick Lamar (pending if he brings his live band) will give a fantastic performance, Miguel’s live show is always rocking, and 2 Chainz’s energy is always on 10. Wu-Tang, no matter what, the nostalgia factor and just notoriety of the group – and the fact they’re also celebrating THEIR 20th anniversary – should get the crowd going. The rest, not too sure about. Tell us what you think.

Carly Rae Jepsen’s follow-up single success hasn’t even come close to the success of her debut single, “Call Me Maybe” – but she could have a potential strong follow-up on her hands. Ms. Jepsen adds a bit of crossover flavor on the track as she recruits Nicki Minaj for the remix of her latest single, “Tonight I’m Getting Over You.” Jepsen’s manager, Scooter Braun, revealed, “Nicki killed the verse, and it’s great. When Carly Rae and Nicki get together, they make songs about getting over guys. Whenever girls do songs about getting over men, they seem to do really well.” Listen to the verse below.

Rick Ross continues to keep an ear to the streets in his latest video, “Box Chevy” – the first major release off his forthcoming album, Mastermind due this summer. He resurrect the record through a short 10 minute film, directed by DRE Films and starring Tyrin Turner (Kane from Mennice II Society) and Dennis L.A. White (D-Roc from Notorious) to show off his mastermind ways in this visual. Watch the clip below.

While Future Vandross was crooning about heading to “Rehab” (word to Amy Winehouse) on the Black Woodstock Soundtrack, the mixtape emerged another stellar standout – and certainly another one for the ladies. “Hands On You” stays in the same lane as his records designed for the female audiences like “No Matter What” and “Neva End”, and this one was produced by DJ Spins and Kalam Ali. It’s been liberated without tags and available for download.

via X

Could Ciara’s time finally be upon us? After quite a few false starts in the journey to her fifth studio album, featuring a couple missed passes like “Sorry” and “Got Me Good”, but her brand new single “Body Party” feels like a sure-fire hit. The single saw little movement after it was released digitally and to radio, but with the premiere of the video, in conjunction with Billboard’s new charting-formula to include streaming services in their criteria, Ciara’s new single parties her way up the chart.

Ciara’s “Body Party” becomes this week’s Hot Shot Debut on the Billboard Charts, debuting at #35 – becoming her highest debuting single to date, as well as her highest charting single since 2010′s “Love Sex and Magic” with Justin Timberlake. The single also becomes her 12th Top 10 record on the R&B/Hip Hop songs chart, leaping in at #8 with ease.

This record, and quite a few other sessions with now boyfriend Future, has inspired a change for the album and since last month. The album’s name has been changed from One Woman Army to simply the self-titled, Ciara. The album, which will feature appearances from Nicki Minaj and Future, is scheduled to hit on July 5th. Can Ciara hold onto her momentum?

While we’ve heard many records drip from the highly-anticipated The Great Gatsby Soundtrack, this is by far the most anticipated cut of them all. Beyoncé and Andre 3000 are just two of the many star-studded names on the soundtrack’s tracklisting, and the pair covers Amy Winehouse’s “Back to Black.” As opposed to keeping the jazzy, dark, soulful elements of the original  Andre 3000′s abstract flow almost seeps through the track, which lays in stark contrast to Beyoncé’s almost seductively sinister delivery on this downtempo EDM track.

The Great Gatsby Soundtrack is set to land in stores on May 7th, and will feature appearances by Lana Del Rey, Jay-Z, Florence + The Machine, Fergie, will.i.am, Gotye, The xx, and more.

Any new Jay-Z music is fine with us. Weeks after releasing his impromptu record, “Open Letter” – he returns with one of the most anticipated tracks from The Great Gatsby Soundtrack, “100$ Bill.” The record stays within the lane of the classy, upscale tracks that have been featured on this track – but Hov certainly does do well in keeping his strong presence all over the track. While the snippet leaked a few weeks ago, the full version is available here. Stream the entire soundtrack on NPR, right here.

The Great Gatsby Soundtrack will be available in stores on May 7th, and the movie will be in theatres on May 10th.

via HHNM

Kanye West is the master of promoting with extreme levels of ambiguity, and the guy has reeled us in once again. The announcement of his performance on Saturday Night Live on May 18th certainly got the world buzzing, wondering what kind of new record – if any new record, would Yeezy pull out of his bag of tricks. The follow-up report of the new album being “done” continued to push us in the direction that a new record would be coming soon, possibly even before the SNL date.

So what does this tweet mean? Kanye West’s tweets nowadays are few and far in-between, but this morning he tweeted, “June Eighteen.” While it could mean a couple of things (Kim’s due date), the fact that it’s a Tuesday leads us to believe that it’s certainly a release date, either for a new single or a new album. Stay tuned for more updates.

Update: According to YN, Def Jam has confirmed it is indeed a new album.

Update 2: LOL no. Not yet at least.

June Eighteen

— KANYE WEST (@kanyewest) May 2, 2013

Chris Atlas at Def Jam confirmed. Kanye West. New album. 6.18.13.

— Elliott Wilson (@ElliottWilson) May 2, 2013

Once again: Kanye West album release date is NOT confirmed. Don’t know for sure what his tweet means. Apologies for false info.

— Elliott Wilson (@ElliottWilson) May 2, 2013

Chris Kelly, who some may remember vaguely as “Mac Daddy” of the popular 90′s rap duo Kriss Kross has died, according to CNN. The 34 year-old was found unresponsive in his Atlanta home, and while the police are investigating the death as a drug overdose according tot he Atlanta Journal, an autopsy will be performed today.

Chris “Mac Daddy” Kelly and Chris “Daddy Mac” Smith experienced major success in the 1990s with their single “Jump” – which dominated the Billboard singles charts for eight weeks. So So Def founder Jermaine Dupri discovered the duo, and he took to Global 14 to comment on the death of Daddy Mac – who performed at the So So Def 20th Anniversary Concert back in February.

It didn’t hit until the opening rapid guitar riffs of this record that this combination makes absolute sense. Trinidad Jame$ hasn’t found the same success “Females Welcomed” that he did with “All Gold Everything”, but Juicy J adds a very necessary piece to the record which could further garner it some critical acclaim. Mr. Stay Trippy adds a very credible piece to the puzzle, listen to the final product below.

via HHNM

Pro Era won’t stop until their domination is complete, and the hip hop clique featuring Freshmen front-man Joey Bada$$ release their brand new video, “School High” off the PEEP: The aPROcalypse mixtape. The concept is clear in the repetitive hook, “Y’all went to high school, I went to school high.” Watch the combination of Joey Bada$$, Nyck Caution, Dyemond Lewis and Kirk Knight in their brand new video.

Janelle Monáe’s music videos are always events, and this one is no different. Stepping into the future with this visual, she gives us another awesome groovy visual to her lead “experience” “Q.U.E.E.N.” featuring Erykah Badu (Badula Oblongota). Ms. Monáe surprisingly takes a step away from her many suits and into a tight fitting black-and-whtie dress, complete with pixie cut.

“Q.U.E.E.N.” is the first experience from her forthcoming album The Electric Lady.

As Chris Brown’s album continues to creep closer and closer, the R&B star is keeping his name out of the tabloids and in people’s iPods with the second joint in three days, and just a few days shy of his 24th birthday. Ladies, add another one to your Bedroom Breezy playlist. Listen below.

With The Breakfast Club interview, it’s usually the three host that exude the most personality in the hot seat – trying to get the most entertaining interview out of you. Well DJ Envy, Angela Yee, and Charlamagne Tha God have finally met their match, and her name is Lil Mo. With absolutely no filter, nothing to lose, and everything to gain from her upcoming reality show, R&B Divas LA – she gives us quite possibly the most entertaining half-an-hour on The Breakfast Club all year.

Running back in history over 10 years, she reveals that she has yet to get a single check from Murder Inc – even though she was a part of Ja Rule’s smash records “I Cry” and the legendary 106 & Park record, “Put It On Me.” She’s getting ready to join the ladies Kelly Price, Chante Moore, Claudette Ortiz, Dawn Robinson, and Michel’le Toussaint for the show set to drop this summer.

She also touches on her fellow R&B peers, namely Keyshia Cole who she believes should’ve stayed quiet concerning the entire SuperBowl situation. “Why are you trying to come at her? She’s at the Superbowl – BITCH you ain’t there!” Great interview.

Robin Thicke is certainly lining up some incredible starpower on his new album, and after the release of his infectious single “Blurred Lines” featuring Pharrell and T.I. – he combines the world of R&B and EDM on his brand new single, “Give It To You” and invites the top two ‘Hottest MCs in the Game’ – Kendrick Lamar and 2 Chainz along for the ride.

The single sounds like a major departure from what we’re used to from Robin Thicke and certainly seems more poised to attack the radio this time around, especially after the lack of response for his last album Love After War. We’re feeling “Blurred Lines” a bit more, but this ain’t bad at all. Sway In The Morning with the premiere. Radio rip.

Just when you thought Fantasia was out, she proves once again to be a winner in every sense of the word. No question the last few years has been hard on the singer. Documented in the Behind The Music series on VH1, she was plagued by bad press after being involved with a married man and failed suicide in an attempt to escape the madness, but she’s back and she’s a winner.

Side Effects of You, her fourth studio album, debuts at #2 on the Billboard Hot 100 with 91,000 – mirroring the rank of her previous Grammy-nominated album Back to Me which sold an impressive 117,000 in it’s first week. The album has spawned the single “Lose to Win”, which pushed to #15 on the Billboard R&B Songs chart this week and the follow-up single “Without Me” featuring Kelly Rowland and Missy Elliott is being prepped as we speak. Also floating in the Top 10 is Justin Timberlake, P!nk, Kid Cudi, will.i.am, and more.

1. Michael Buble -”To Be Loved” ~ 195,000 (DEBUT)
2. Fantasia – “Side Effects Of You” ~ 91,000 (DEBUT)
3. Justin Timberlake – “The 20/20 Experience” ~ 74,000 (1,674,000)
4. Pheonix – “Bankrupt!” ~ 50,000 (DEBUT)
5. Fall Out Boy – “Save Rock And Roll” ~ 36,000 (190,000)
6. Blake Shelton – “Based On A True Story” ~ 36,000 (421,000)
7. Rob Zombie – “Venomous Rat Regeneration Vendor” ~ 34,000 (DEBUT)
8. Kid Cudi – “Indicud” ~ 32,000 (168,000)
9. will.i.am – “#willpower” ~ 29,000 (DEBUT)
10. P!nk – “The Truth About Love” ~ 29,000 (1,430,000)

[ATRL]