Posts belonging to Category 'News'

In the same interview with MTV‘s Jayson Rodriguez that Drake revealed that he’s put his R&B mixtape on hold to focus more on rapping, he also discussed the potential of a sequel to his Thank Me Later collaboration with Jay-Z, “Light Up”. Ironically, he says he would prefer for his next record with Jay-Z to be more of a musical song as opposed to going bar for bar.

“I probably wouldn’t title it ‘Light Up 2,’ but there could definitely be potential for a record where me and Jay just spit about life. I look forward to making that. I don’t think I’m ready to do it yet, though. If me and Jay do another record … I just want it to be a song. I don’t necessarily want it to be a life/time marker. I would love to do a song with Jay that hits radio. I’d love to do something that’s more musical, as opposed to all that rapping. And plus, I don’t feel like I’m in that veteran category. Like, now that I’m here six months later, after we did that song. Things happen pretty quick over here on this side, but I don’t necessarily want to reflect that in song.“

Timbaland has issued a public service announcement for everyone to know that he has officially hopped on board with social networking and joined the world of Twitter. Follow him @Timbaland007 and be notified when the special agent producer chooses to say something.

Those of you who prefer Drake’s raps over his R&B tunes can rejoice. Despite recently releasing the first single from his upcoming R&B mixtape, It’s Never Enough, Drizzy tells MTV that the project has been put on hold for an undisclosed period of time to focus on rapping. We can expect to hear the next track from the mixtape in November once his Light Dreams & Nightmares Tour wraps up. In the meantime, Aubrey reveals that he’s two tracks deep in the recording of his forthcoming sophomore set.

“I been rapping a lot lately. Me and 40 (Noah Shebib, his producer) have been doing some great rap music, so I sort of took a hiatus on the R&B for a second. It’s cool to do R&B, I love it, but it’s just hard for me to always commit to it. Because some nights, I get in there and 40′s beats, as melodic or R&B-driven as they may be, just have that right pocket that I just wanna spit. I did this song the other night; I’ve now completed the second song for my album. So I only had one song before for the new album; two nights ago, I did the second song. I’m loving it. I’m loving the sound. I’m excited again.“

During Kanye’s Q&A session following the premeire of his Runaway film, he tells Sway that his upcoming Watch The Throne EP with Jay-Z will now be a full length album. Hallelujah!

“We putting out a whole album now. We had done five [songs] so far, but then a few of them kind of were out there, and I put them on my album. Sorry, Jay. But we got some more, and we’re going to the South of France at the end of the month to just record new ideas. But we’ll probably be done with the album in a day.“

Evil is lurking upon Cudder in the last of the three limited edition promo posters for his upcoming album, Man On The Moon II: The Legend of Mr. Rager landing on shelves November 9th! Only 1,109 copies have been printed so purchase them here while they’re still available! A limited edition t-shirt and skateboard are also for sale!

Who Dat? His name is J. Cole, and he’s about to Blow Up! But first, Jay-Z’s protege will be in my neck of the woods to perform at The Intersection in Grand Rapids, Michigan November 8th! Come vibe out with the 2010 MTV Breakthrough Artist Of The Year nominee as we approach the undisclosed release of his highly anticipated debut album! After already rocking the stage with Jay-Z, Young Jeezy, & Trey Songz on The Blueprint 3 Tour, opening up for Jay-Z & Eminem at Yankee Stadium, and performing earlier this month at the 2010 BET Hip Hop Awards, this is certainly an opportunity you do not want to miss! Hit the jump for more info! See you there!

Eminem received no love from the pannel last year. However, the Cinderella Man recovered from last year’s absence on the list and righfully became this year’s Hottest MC In The Game!

“Everyone loves a comeback story, and in 2010, that’s what they got from Eminem. Even though Marshall Mathers sold 608,000 copies of 2009′s Relapse in its first week, the project was panned by critics and longtime Em fans. They said he rhymed in too many weird voices, that the production sounded dated and that the subject matter was too grim. The LP didn’t make enough of an impact, and there really wasn’t much buzz around Eminem to even warrant him making the Hottest MCs list last year. This year, however, was totally different. Eminem pretty much dominated 2010 from start to finish, and the MTV News Hip-Hop Brain Trust voted him the #1 Hottest MC in the Game.“ – MTV

Previously: Jay-Z | Kanye | Drake | Rick Ross | Nicki Minaj | Lil Wayne | Waka Flocka | B.o.B. | Ludacris

It came down to the wire, but last year’s Hottest MC In The Game had to eventually hand over the crown and placed second, this year. On to the next one.

“Good music stands the test of time. Just ask Jay-Z. The Roc Nation chief spent the better part of 2010 riding the wave of success from 2009′s The Blueprint 3. Songs like “Empire State of Mind,” “Forever Young,” “On to the Next One” and “Run This Town” kept BP3 on the Billboard albums chart for 56 weeks, well into 2010. Jay racked up awards for Best Rap Solo Performance for “D.O.A. (Death of Auto-Tune)” and Best Rap/Sung Collaboration and Best Rap Song for “Run This Town” at the Grammys. He won CD of the Year for BP3 and Best Live Performer at the BET Hip-Hop Awards. He toured the country on the BP3 Tour (which yielded him a reported $1 million a show) and split Home and Home dates in Detroit and New York with Eminem. All that was more than enough for the MTV News Hip-Hop Brain Trust to crown Jay-Z the #2 Hottest MC in the Game this year, down one slot from last year’s list, where he held down the top position (he was #2 in 2008 and #7 in 2007).“ – MTV

After originally placing fourth, MTV agreed with Kanye, and came to a consensus that he is a Top 3 Hottest MC In The Game. No one man should have all that power.

“Some artists are so hot, they can make up for almost a full year out of the spotlight in just a few short months. Well, at least Kanye West can. Even though he was featured on popular songs like “Forever,” with Drake, Eminem and Lil Wayne, and Jay-Z’s “Run This Town,” ‘Ye essentially went into hiding after his infamous run-in with Taylor Swift at the 2009 VMAs, traveling to Europe to intern at Fendi and, later, Hawaii to begin recording his forthcoming LP, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, due November 22. While he resurfaced with the anthemic single “Power” in late May and its accompanying “Portrait of Power” art installation in early August, it was really the oddest of things — his joining of Twitter — that signified Kanye was ready to get back in the mix. To that end, perhaps his Twitter apology to Taylor Swift in early September was the moment when he officially shrugged off the cobwebs and said, “OK, let’s do this.” Since then, it’s been ‘Ye Day every day, to the point where the MTV News Hip-Hop Brain Trust has voted him the #3 Hottest MC in the Game, up one position from last year’s list and down from his #1 bow in 2008.“ – MTV

MTV chose to thank Drake later, rather than sooner for his debut effort, bumping him back one slot from last year and placing him as the number four Hottest MC In The Game. October’s Very Own was initially ranked a spot higher, but what seemed to be a treat quickly became a trick.

“In 2009, Drake dropped the instant-classic mixtape So Far Gone (which sold upward of 70,000 units its first week when it was released as an EP last September) and appeared on songs with Jay-Z, Fabolous and Mary J. Blige, among others. He was the industry’s new “it” guy, nominated for two Grammys after only a mixtape. His clout was reflected on last year’s Hottest MCs in the Game list, with the MTV News Hip-Hop Brain Trust ranking him #3. What more did Aubrey Graham really have to do? Well, for one, he needed to drop an actual album to prove he was more than just a fly-by-night sensation. He also needed to hit the road and show he was a dynamic performing artist who could fill an arena. And, finally, he needed to make up for some past flubs like the poorly received “Best I Ever Had” video. He did all that and more this year, which led the Brain Trust to vote him the #4 Hottest MC in the Game of 2010.“ – MTV

Rick Ross parks the Aston Martin in the number five spot on MTV’s Hottest MCs list for the second year in a row. This calls for a celebration! Rozay, anyone?

“In hip-hop, the streets do the talking. And in 2010, the streets anointed Rick Ross their savior. Not only did his fourth LP, Teflon Don, debut at #2 on the Billboard albums chart in July with 176,300 sold its first week, but Ross had the undeniable street anthem “B.M.F. (Blowin’ Money Fast),” which sold more than 100,000 copies despite being available on the free Albert Anastasia EP. What’s more, he was still fighting off criticism from being outed as a corrections officer and beefing with 50 Cent. But good music can’t be stopped, and Ross supplied plenty of it this year, so the MTV News Hip-Hop Brain Trust voted him 2010′s #5 Hottest MC in the Game, the same ranking he received last year.“ – MTV

Immediately following Kanye’s premiere of his Runaway film, he sat down with Sway for a Q&A session to discuss the thought provoking film, his upcoming album, and even answer some questions from folks on Twitter. Watch the rest of the interview after the jump!

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While the album’s lead single “Just A Dream” is currently positioned at No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100, feast your eyes on the album cover artwork for Nelly’s upcoming album 5.0 (partly named after his favorite car), cruising into stores November 16th! It would certainly appear as though Cornell took care of all the album’s artwork in just one photo shoot.

UPDATE: Hit the jump for the updated tracklist!

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Mr. West has crafted more than just a handful of witty rhymes in his career. Kanye tells MTV that his favorite eight bars he’s ever written lie in “Lost In The World”, which will be appearing on his November 22nd release, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy!

“‘You’re my devil, you’re my angel/ You’re my heaven, you’re my hell/ You’re my now, you’re my forever/ You’re my freedom, you’re my jail/ You’re my lies, you’re my proof/ You’re my war, you’re my truce,’ and the last line is, ‘You’re my stress, you’re my masseuse.’“

KiD CuDi has an entirely new galaxy behind him in the deluxe version, than in the regular cover of his upcoming sophomore venture into space. The deluxe edition will also be packaged together with a 30 minute Documentary DVD of the Moon Man and his many journeys. Hit the jump for the album’s official tracklist, complete with production credits. Man On The Moon II: The Legend of Mr. Rager lands in stores November 9th!

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