About.com Rap / Hip-Hop

10 Hip-Hop Artists to Watch in 2010

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 18:11:07 +0000

With 2010 now in full throttle, it's time to glimpse into the sounds and styles of the rappers geared to make a splash this year. From MIchigan to Minneapolis, these 10 artists are on a mission to conquer mediocrity. Ladies and Gentlemen, I give you 10 hip-hop artists to watch in 2010.

Photo � Henry Adaso/About.com

10 Hip-Hop Artists to Watch in 2010 originally appeared on About.com Rap / Hip-Hop on Tuesday, February 9th, 2010 at 18:11:07.

Permalink | Comment | Email this

Top 10 Sentimental Rap Tunes

Mon, 08 Feb 2010 17:55:58 +0000

*Sniff, sniff* Do you smell that? Ahh, the aroma of lurve is in the air. Cue the red roses, fancy candies, greeting cards, teddy bears, and the inevitable photos of Nick Cannon and Mariah Carey swapping spit. What other Valentine's Day cliches are we forgetting? Oh yes, sweet sweet romantic music that hits the V-Spot. Well, Valentine's Day isn't all about corny love songs and sentimental love. It's also a time to appreciate everyone around you: loved ones, lost ones, friends and family, your cat, life. If that sounds like your ideal Valentine's Day, then I've got the right playlist for you. Rock on with these 10 Sentimental Rap Songs.

Photo � Astrid Stawiarz / Getty Images

Top 10 Sentimental Rap Tunes originally appeared on About.com Rap / Hip-Hop on Monday, February 8th, 2010 at 17:55:58.

Permalink | Comment | Email this

National Museum of Hip-Hop Announces Hall of Hip-Hop Awards

Mon, 08 Feb 2010 17:23:13 +0000

The National Museum of Hip-Hop will hold its annual Hall of Hip-Hop award ceremony on April 6, 2010 at the M2 Ultra Lounge, 530 West 28th St, NYC. The event will be hosted by the legendary Chuck D of Public Enemy and none other than the Teacha himself KRS-One.

Event programming includes: Celebrity Silent Auction, Raffle, VIP Cocktail Reception, Live and Video Presentations, VIP Gift Bags, Graffiti Wall, Rapping, Break dancing and DJ performances, as well as an array of appearances.

The guest list reads like a Who's Who in Hip-Hop circa 1989: Russell Simmons, Mona Scott, Andre Harrell, Doug E Fresh, Whodini, Dana Dane, Ice T, Busta Rhymes, MC Lyte, Rakim, Red Alert, Pete Rock, Onyx, Melle Mell, Big Daddy Kane, Black Sheep, Chubb Rock, Brand Nubian, Kid Capri, DMC, Method Man, Redman, Raekwon, The RZA, Rock Steady Crew, Roxanne Shante, Grandmaster Flash, and many more.

The Hall of Hip-Hop event seeks to celebrate the four main elements of hip-hop: Emceeing, Breakdancing, Deejaying, and Graffiti.

Photo � Martin McNeil / Getty Images

National Museum of Hip-Hop Announces Hall of Hip-Hop Awards originally appeared on About.com Rap / Hip-Hop on Monday, February 8th, 2010 at 17:23:13.

Permalink | Comment | Email this

Game and Dre: Reunited and It Feels So Good

Mon, 08 Feb 2010 16:54:22 +0000

Hate it or love it, the underdog is back with the top dog. Or so it seems. I mean, what's better than having the good doc, Andre Young throw his weight behind you? Word on the street is that The Game and Dr. Dre have set their differences aside to work on the latter's eternally delayed, perhaps purely mythical album, Detox. And you know Game will sneak a few beats onto his own upcoming album, The R.E.D. Album (not to be confused with The Black Album or the other Red Album). Don't believe me? Hop on over to Ballerstatus.com to see a photo of Game rocking the Aftermath chain in four different colors.

Game and Dre: Reunited and It Feels So Good originally appeared on About.com Rap / Hip-Hop on Monday, February 8th, 2010 at 16:54:22.

Permalink | Comment | Email this

Chamillionaire Brings the 'Pain' on New Mixtape

Fri, 05 Feb 2010 14:43:50 +0000

Chamillionaire is one of only a handful of rappers whose mixtapes can rival their albums for quality. He rose to prominence on the shoulders of his famous Mixtape Messiah series. Cham retired that series last year. His latest mixtape, Major Pain, was originally planned as a mix of original beats and original rhymes a la Drake's So Far Gone, but label politics kept him from going through with that idea. At any rate, Major Pain is a solid holdover for Cham fans hungry for new music. His third album, Venom, is set for release in March.

Head on over to Chamillionaire.com for Major Pain.

Chamillionaire Brings the 'Pain' on New Mixtape originally appeared on About.com Rap / Hip-Hop on Friday, February 5th, 2010 at 14:43:50.

Permalink | Comment | Email this

Top 50 Rap Songs of the 2000s

Thu, 04 Feb 2010 22:07:35 +0000

Like the theme music to a good movie, these songs underscored a unique decade in hip-hop. Ladies and Gentlemen, grab your iPods! Cue the time machine! It's time to rewind the oughts and explore the Top 50 Rap Songs of the 2000s.

Top 50 Rap Songs of the 2000s originally appeared on About.com Rap / Hip-Hop on Thursday, February 4th, 2010 at 22:07:35.

Permalink | Comment | Email this

Freeway and Jake One Spotlighted on iTunes

Wed, 03 Feb 2010 14:27:37 +0000

Freeway and Jake One have cooked up a batch of fresh hip-hop tunes worthy of repeated listens. The duo's "Know What I Mean," off the Stimulus Package LP, has made its way to iTunes' Indie Spotlight (redirects to iTunes) column. It's well worth your five minutes.

Freeway and Jake One Spotlighted on iTunes originally appeared on About.com Rap / Hip-Hop on Wednesday, February 3rd, 2010 at 14:27:37.

Permalink | Comment | Email this

2010 Grammy Rap Winners

Mon, 01 Feb 2010 12:38:10 +0000

Did you watch the Grammys last night? I did and I want my two hours back. It was just as predictable as last year's show. And the year before. And the one before that.

The sole bright spot was seeing two of the best hip-hop albums of the last 5 years, The Ecstatic and Renaissance, get nominated. Also, seeing Jay-Z nab three awards, including one for "D.O.A." wasn't too bad.

And will someone please inform CBS that "world" is not a bad word? I waited all night to see Drake, Eminem, and Lil Wayne close out the award show and all I got was a performance completely wrecked by CBS' 30 seconds of silence.

OK, I'm done ranting about the Grammys. Here are your Rap Grammy Winners.

2010 Grammy Rap Winners originally appeared on About.com Rap / Hip-Hop on Monday, February 1st, 2010 at 12:38:10.

Permalink | Comment | Email this

Hip-Hop Round-up: The Buzz on Game, Lupe, 50 Cent and more

Sat, 30 Jan 2010 14:20:45 +0000

News and notes on hip-hop movers and shakers.

8-Ball and MJG will drop their new album, Ten Toes Down, on T.I.'s Grand Hustle label on April 6, 2010. Eightball says that, "'Ten Toes Down', in my opinion, is one of the best Eightball and MJG albums ever. It's a heart-felt, soul-filled portion of the lives of Eightball and MJG. Eightball and MJG sounds and feels like Eightball and MJG on this album fa sho." I'll believe it when I hear it.

Lupe Fiasco spent as much time debunking rumors of a relationship with Jessica Biel as he did trying to solicit help for Haiti. Which begs the question, "Why do people still get paid to speculate on celebrity romance?" After denying the rumor, Lupe sort of left the door open in case opportunity comes calling in the future: "She definitely surprised me as far as how good and honest of a person she is. I do rock with her." Well played, Lu.

The Game has had his own issues with guns, but that didn't stop him from scolding Washington Wizards' Gilbert Arenas for bringing firearms to the locker room. Pot, meet kettle.

50 Cent's Before I Self Destruct has finally reached gold status, even though it only sold 372,000 copies to date. The RIAA is weird like that.

Hip-Hop for Haiti shows rap culture's power in numbers. I applaud Jay-Z, Rihanna, and co for stepping up big on "Stranded (Haiti Mon Amor)." I can tell that they whipped it up in 10 minutes, rehearsed it once at Jay's loft and debuted it the next day. It's the thought that counts, right?

Ludacris had everyone excited when he announced he would battle female rappers on his new album, Battle Of The sexes. Then we found out he was battling Nicki Minaj and Ciara. It's typical of Luda to pick the battles he's capable of winning.

Now that I've heard Nas and Damian Marley's "As We Enter," I'll go out on a limb and state that Distant Relatives probably exists.

Hip-Hop Round-up: The Buzz on Game, Lupe, 50 Cent and more originally appeared on About.com Rap / Hip-Hop on Saturday, January 30th, 2010 at 14:20:45.

Permalink | Comment | Email this

No Sign of 9th Wonder on Little Brother's Final Album

Wed, 27 Jan 2010 00:19:18 +0000

The duo of Phonte and Big Pooh (Little Brother) are putting finishing touches on their final album, LeftBack. Little Brother's last outing, GetBack, marked the beginning of the end of the group. It was LB's first album without co-founder 9th Wonder steering the production ship (he only produced one track on GetBack). Instead, the group downsized to a duo and turned to others like Krhysis and Denaun Porter for production. Both guys return to man the boards on LeftBack.

Other collaborators include: Zo!, Symbolyc One, J. Bizness, and King Karnov. On the vocal end, Torae, Truck North, and Jozeemo all feature prominently. 9th Wonder is noticeably absent from a Little Brother album for the first time.

Tay and Pooh claim they're putting the lid on Little Brother following their 4th group album, but I wouldn't be surprised if they decide to blow the lid off after a brief hiatus.

No Sign of 9th Wonder on Little Brother's Final Album originally appeared on About.com Rap / Hip-Hop on Wednesday, January 27th, 2010 at 00:19:18.

Permalink | Comment | Email this