Quick update for ur Labor Day here… def feelin’ Lloyd on the hook on the song w/ P$C (T.I.’s group) rapper, Big Kuntry King. U also got Juelz spittin’ over the recent T-Pain & Kanye collabo (yes… I guess Khaled also..) and a couple trax by Ace Hood and the Pussycat Dolls (only posted b/c of the Timbaland/Danja production, haha!) Hopefully back later in the evening.. enjoy!
So we got an interesting track sent over 2 us 2day, that if others got it, they prolly skipped over, but I was initially attracted because Brandon Lloyd (B. Lloyd) is a WR I’ve followed since his days at the University of Illinois and now he plays for my hometown Bears. Turns out B. Lloyd is an aspiring rapper, and he showcases some nice flow on his 1st single w/ respected R&B singer, Bobby Valentino on the hook! I always find tracks by athletes very interesting, doubling as a big sports fan, and while most of them are below average, I think I might be bumpin’ this B. Lloyd / Bobby Valentino track well into the near future! Check out more info on B. Lloyd and the track below and check him out on MySpace HERE:
It is not often that a person has the opportunity to have, and fulfill, 2 separate and distinct career dreams but Brandon Lloyd aka B. Lloyd (if ya nasty) may just be one of them. Now a Wide Receiver for the Chicago Bears, Brandon Lloyd, who knew he wanted to be in the NFL since kindergarten, was a 4th round draft pick to the San Francisco 49ers back in 2003 and also played for the Washington Redskins before finding his home in Chicago. Living out a career as a pro athlete might have been enough for most but Brandon’s musical alter ego, who fell in love with Hip Hop after hearing Will Smith and DJ Jazzy Jeff’s Nightmare on My Street, also wanted to make music of his own.
A phone call to his agent by Still Hustlin’ Records owner and fellow artist and long-time friend, Renegade Foxxx gave B. Lloyd the label home, and the shot, he was looking for. With a first single that features the old school crooning of Bobby Valentino called “She All Mine” that is making all the right moves at radio (Corpus Christi, Lexington, Shreveport, Jackson, Baton Rouge, Gainsville, Tulsa, Biloxi, Augusta et al), it seems that Brandon has every chance of pulling off a career with his 2nd love. She All Mine is B. Lloyd’s musical reflection back on the dating escapades of he and his wife and he wrote it while the two were vacationing together.
“She All Mine is about a man who feels that his relationship with his lady is about more than the lovemaking.” he shares. “I knew Bobby Valentino’s voice would be a perfect fit for the song and he blessed me by being willing to grace the song of an up-and-coming artist. Not everyone is willing to do that.”
What drives this young man to not only pursue with equal fervor 2 very challenging career paths, but to offer himself up to the derision that often accompanies sports figures who try to break into music? The youngest of 7 children, Brandon Lloyd gives all of the credit for his incredible drive to his parents.
“I knew I wanted to be in the NFL when I was in kindergarten.” Brandon remembers. “I once got sent to the principle’s office for saying I wanted to be a professional football player in class when the teacher asked us all what we wanted to be when we grew up. The teacher said it was an ‘unrealistic goal.’ My Mom and Dad had always told me I could do anything I wanted. Just give it 100% and I can attain it.”
From where Brandon Lloyd is sitting right now, it looks like they might just be right.
There’s also some trax below 2 DL featuring a bunch of big names like Lil’ Wayne, Ne-Yo, Busta Rhymes, & much MORE! The theme of the trax below is that many of them have great beats, by big name producers nonetheless, yet for whatever reason, I’m not really into the track. It’s lacking that something special I suppose, but that doesn’t mean some of these won’t grow on me. Check ‘em out below and enjoy (Shouts 2 Urban Music for some of the exclusives!)
It’s here! Chip Tha Ripper’s long awaited mixtape (thx 2 DJ E-V, Kev, Chip for everything) and it’s a great representation of all the hard work Chip has put in lately. It really shows Chip’s growth compared to some of his old stuff and he’s only gettin’ better. The mixtape release party is THURSDAY out in Cleveland - at the Grog Shop, so if ur in the area, head out there where they will be handing out physical copies of the mixtape and t-shirts (and I’d assume a performance from Chip himself..!). Don’t forget that 2day is Mixtape Messiah day as well - as you gotta head over 2 Chamillionaire.com2 purchase the mixtape! (Watch the video below for more reason to do so.) Also check out tracks and vids featuring the Gym Class Heroes, The Game, Crooked I, Danja, & MORE! Enjoy!
***UPDATE: Added some Ne-Yo Trax 2 this post real quick…!
Above is a brand NEW track from Chip himself, presumably on his upcoming Can’t Stop Me mixtape, and it’s a fresh one featuring Kid Cudi! The verses are all on point over a beat that both rappers excel on and is also my type of beat. Chip shows his versatility as he spits over a more laid-back beat compared 2 the hard bangers I am personally more accustomed 2 and it works for the better. Not 2 mention his overall flow is better than I’ve heard in previous trax, which goes with a catchy chorus that I can see myself singing along 2. I’m excited 2 see how the rest of the mixtape develops now, which should be coming soon according 2 his MySpace. Enjoy the exclusive above as well as the myriad trax below… starting with Jay-Z jumping on “Put On”, as well as Jeezy spittin’ some NEW verses. Gotta had it 2 Jay-Z (who I was never a big fan of) but he killed it here. Hmm, more hits than misses in the trax below.. I’m really diggin’ the Rhymefest track, but mainly because of Chamillionaire’s beastly verse and incredibly clever Lauren London reference which made me chuckle on 1st listen. Another nice reference occurs in the Busta Rhymes / Jadakiss collabo as a Shaq in Miami and Phoenix NBA reference caught my attention (as does any NBA reference, haha!) Just a bunch of hip hop and some R&B trax below! I’m sure u’ll find somethin’ u like so comment on what u do (and don’t!). Enjoy!
Here’s a couple of cover arts I stumbled upon recently for upcoming singles that I have really been lovin’ - “Green Light” & “Miss Independent”! Update ur iTunes artwork if u like and DL the songs if u don’t have them already below!
Finally the VIDEO PREMIERE for “Disperse” by Consequence f/ GLC & Really Doe has arrived! As said earlier, this was one of my favorite trax of ‘07 and the video really does the song justice. They illustrate the story that all 3 rappers touch on in their verses and are just havin’ fun, especially Lu and Cons throughout the vid, haha. All the while, everyone’s lookin’ pretty fly. Definitely a MUST-SEE video above so don’t sleep. The track is off of Don’t Quit Your Day Job, which is in stores now!
A bunch of trax below that u can DL, not a lot of special ones, but definitely check out a couple good hip hop trax from the Minneapolis MC Muja Messiah f/ Black Thought of The Roots, which fans of The Roots will enjoy as well as the Guru feature track where Guru spits it pretty nicely (unfortunately his verse is interrupted by a lil’ shout out, ugh!). Mainly hip hop trax below but also some R&B w/ One Chance & Donnie Klang! Enjoy!
CONTEST:
Head over 2 lupethefiasco.blogspot.com for a brand NEW contest for all the VIDEO DIRECTORS out there! Basically, direct a creative music video for a Lupe Fiasco song and you could WIN an autographed copy of Lupe Fiasco’s The Cool as well as have ur video featured on Lupe Fiasco’s OFFICIAL Blog! CLICK HERE for the FULL details!
A bunch of hip hop for ya’ll 2day on this Sunday with Joe Budden & Obie Trice sounding off on the industry and their situations in some pretty deep trax. Budden just goes off on the 5+ minute track, still going as the beat fades out, and he shares some details on the industry that he can see through the artist’s eyes and name-drops plenty of fellow rappers 2 paint a clear picture. It’s straight up ridiculous. Obie comes thru with a solid track describing the fallout after his breakup with Shady Records. Busta Rhymes releases his version of “A Milli”… before u hate.. I didn’t mean that exactly b/c he simply grabbed “A Milli” producer Bangladesh 2 create a similar beat for an original song that could grow on me, but I know many ppl will enjoy on first listen. You can also peep the rest of the trax below with a Kardinal Offishall banger, Lil’ Wayne, Trey Songz, Day26, & MORE! Enjoy!
Damn, how can u dislike the song above? Now that the video is out, you may like it even more, associating T.I.’s deep first-person experiences with a straight-forward video that further illustrates T.I.’s emotions in the song. The video is solid, the song is even better as the recent charges and conviction of the ATL rapper may just bring the best out of him. I hope for some more heat in the coming months as Paper Trail’s tentative release is just right around the corner (August 12th). Thankfully, there will be a boom of Nas comin’ up as his album, Untitled is due out in just a few weeks on July 15th. Nas is rightfully considered one of the all-time great lyricists and rappers overall and I’ve been impressed with all of his recent records. He’s not losing a step over time and “Fried Chicken” below is further evidence. The song was released by Mark Ronson a couple weeks ago, but it was the clean, LQ version w/ Mark having no choice but 2 shout over the track. Well 2day, the full, dirty version has leaked and u can DL it below. 2gether with another old, unreleased freestyle from Kanye West and w/ T.I.’s video above, the lyrics are at a high level and if ur in the mood 2 just sit back and listen, no better place than 2 start than right here. And 2 contrast it, take a listen 2 Ludacris’ freestyle over the Rick Ross/T-Pain hit “The Boss”. I’m a fan of Luda, but he sounds pretty weak on this, just rappin’ about his wealth and assets… same ol’ same ol’. I’ll stick 2 “Runaway Love” for my Luda fix. Anyway, enjoy!
***Boogz just dropped yet another old, unreleased track from Lupe Fiasco. Seriously, all this old Kanye & Lupe can make an album, its ridiculous, haha. But hey, can’t complain, and this Lupe track has a unique, choppy beat as Lupe goes at it pretty hard and I love the way he delivers the words in this track. Anyway, I just added it below (bout half an hour after the orig. post time), so DL and listen for urself!
“Hold your horses, like Trojan forces.”
- Lupe Fiasco “4 Real” (hah, that line just jumped out at me on 1st listen!)
30 Sec. Snippets Of Every Track On The Album! *Tibs Fav.
N.E.R.D. - Seeing Sounds - Tracklist:
Intro/ Time For Some Action
Everyone Nose (All The Girls Standing In Line For The Bathroom)
Windows
Anti Matter
Spaz
Yeah You
Sooner or Later
Happy
Kill Joy
Love Bomb
You Know What
Laugh About It
Above are the 30 second snippets of all the tracks off N.E.R.D.’s upcoming album, Seeing Sounds! A lot of the beats are captivating on first listen and they are all included on an mp3 that is about 5+ minutes long! Below u can find some NEW music from Chris Brown (2 tracks that will be on the re-release of Exclusive), T-Pain, & a dope Lupe Fiasco Interview with NBC Chicago! Couple quick CB notes… never was really high on “Picture Perfect” and the RMX doesn’t really add much IMO, but I do love CB’s new 3rd verse. And 2, I believe “Heart Ain’t A Brain” was included in the rush of trax that followed Exclusive after its original release in November… from the DJ Babey Drew leaks. This version is supposedly the full version that will be appearing on the re-release - Exclusive: The Forever Edition in stores next Tuesday, June 3rd! Oh also, if u’ve noticed, we haven’t been posting any of those fan-made videos on the Glow In The Dark Tour… well, we will post official videos, including the first one below as Kanye West addresses the Chicago crowd on 05.23.08, courtesy of MTV News. Hopefully a DVD will be coming well after the tour concludes! Enjoy!
Producer: J. Lack - FULL, CDQ, Here I Stand Bonus Track *Tibs Fav.
A bunch of NEW trax for the middle of the day, including more USHER! Haha, prolly the last we’re posting of his material from the latest album but if this is the quality of the BONUS track on Here I Stand, then we’re shaping up for a great album. I really like the vibe 2 the track above and its just captivating all around - beat, tempo, lyrics… judge for urself above. Below you can find a bunch of NEW trax f/ T.I., Nas, Yung Berg, and many MORE! But ya’ll should scroll a lil farther down and get that Kenna/Lupe Fiasco RMX and the first track leaked off of Common’s upcoming (Kanye-less) album, Invincible Summer. Both those songs are ridiculous and u gotta hear Common spit over a high tempo Neptunes beat. Pretty sweet and could def grow on me even more! Enjoy!
Producer: StarGate - FULL, CDQ, Track off upcoming album, Here I Stand, in stores May 27th!*Tibs Fav.
Here I Stand leaked out 2day and above are a couple trax that have interested me since seeing the official tracklist due 2 prolly my 2 favorite producers on the boards - Danja & StarGate! Both songs do NOT disappoint and if the rest of the album contains a quality mix of the uptempo beats and slow jams like this, then Usher has another surefire hit album 2 add 2 his long list of achievements. Usher displays what many consider the best voice in R&B in “What A Man’s To Do” while also singing and telling a great story through his lyrics over a nice beat similar 2 other StarGate produced songs - Chris Brown “With You” & Ne-Yo “Go On Girl”. Prolly my favorite of the 2 if I had 2 choose and will definitely be one of my favs of the album, once I hear the whole thing next Tuesday (gotta wait… :D) Below, u can check out a few more NEW trax, most notably the well-timed Nas drop of “N.I.G.G.E.R. (The Slave & The Master)”, in light of the news that he will be changing his album’s controversial title from Nigger 2 a yet 2 be determined name. Enjoy!
Oh yeah, almost forgot… make sure 2 cop The Cool Kids - The Bake SaleEP album on iTunes! Just purchased my copy there since I believe it is only being released digitally… lemme kno if u see it in stores!
Big Kuntry King “Love You The Right Way” f/ Lloyd - MORE
