There is nothing more satisfying than seeing great music used for a great cause. So when Gowhere NY heard that the 'Queen of Media', Perez Hilton was throwing a concert in NYC at the Hammerstein Ballroom, we were all over it. Aligned with Spirit Day, 100% of the ticket sale proceeds went to the GLSEN (the Gay Lesbian & Straight Education Network), an organization for students, parents and teachers focused on ensuring a safe environment in schools. The ballroom was packed with a lively crowd, eager to see what and who Perez had in store. Alot of big names were handpicked by Perez to show love on the red carpet and perform on stage for this epic night. The party jumped off when DJ Pauly D took the stage and had the crowd fist pumping to his dance-worthy playlist. It's safe to say the best singing performances were saved for last when Boyz II Men took the stage, followed by Mary J. Blige for the grand finale. Both acts were amazing as the crowd naturally sang along to the classics and closely tuned in to some new material.
Above is a brief interview with Boyz II Men sharing some details on their new album, Twenty (available now everywhere), their non profit organization "The Boyz II Men House", and some advice for upcoming R&B singers trying to make it in the game today. So check it out and see what the Boyz had to say for yourself. Special thanks to LFB Media Group for inviting us to the event and shoutout to the sponsors: OpenSky, Music Choice’s SWRV TV, Brita FilterForGood Music Project, SOUL by Ludacris, popchips, ZICO: Pure Coconut Water, TY KU, UV Vodka, Asahi Beer, and BlogAds.
The MVP came to visit his hometown Chicago for the Derrick RoseadiZero 2.0 event that took over the city. The day kicked off at the Adidas - Water Tower, where Rose met with hundreds of fans who were waiting for him to arrive since 6 A.M. Little did Rose know, he had hundreds more on stand-by at the State Street Foot Locker.
This event was nothing like I have ever seen before. The first 150 fans at each location were given wristbands to take a picture with the MVP, but it wasn't just any picture - Adidas designed a gladiator style back drop, with "Drose 2 - Designed for the MVP" printed across the bottom. Not only did fans get to take a picture, they received free, printed copies to take home.
Following the meet and greets, was a three-on-three tournament at a secret location. For those who were not following the Adidas-Rose Facebook Campaign, clues have been released all week for fans to guess where Rose would be. The fans who figured out the password, and arrived to the location, were given the chance to play in the tournament.
Check out the full video recap, and interview where Rose discusses his new shoe, the event, his favorite part about traveling overseas, and much more.
Here we are with another new interview today as we have another red-carpet talk: this time with Devin Hester of our hometown Chicago Bears. He talks with our own Jeff Barakaabout his basketball/football camp he conducted with Dwyane Wade (who was once again hosting the party the interview went down at) and of course, we couldn’t let him get away without telling us who his favorite pump up artist is before a game. It was an awesome experience as we briefly got to talk with, perhaps when it’s all said and done, the greatest kick/punt returner of all time (don’t believe me? click here) as Hester was a good guy with us after the interview. Watch the quick-hitting interview above (shouts 2 K-Max on the vid as well)!
Sgt. Tibs, Jen DeLeon, Devin Hester, & Jeff Baraka
Just a couple weeks back, we were able to chop it up with Mickey Factz in the studio on our GWHH Radio program. For those who missed one of our most entertaining segments yet, we have not only the full (and extended) interview above, but also Mickey’s ridiculous a capella freestyle, inspired by our discussion of art! The freestyle is filled with witty lines and historical references to some of art’s greats (like Picasso and Leonardo), which come natural to Factz – a lover of contemporary and street art. In fact (no pun intended), here is a small sampling of the dope lines that Mickey spits above:
“Imagery. Museum in Sicily, lookin’ for Mona Lisa in Italy,
No more writing my rhymes down, this is calligraphy,
When I’m done, ya’ll will cheer, who you know with this ability?”
“Life’s like art without an eraser, you better watch how you draw with it,
I do this per diem, cuz I been realer feelin’ like Ben Stiller spending nights in the museum.”
You will have to listen to the full a capella to also catch how he twists art references into movie references. Factz named all of his favorite artists in the discussion prior to the freestyle, in addition to two more interesting things you may not know about his personality. The interview was also primarily an extensive and informative talk about themusic as Mickey talked about the creative process on the I’m Better Than You mixtape, the reason for its delay, and what upcoming videos to expect from the project. Other topics include how he landed the Honda partnership, some initial details about the upcoming album, The Achievement, and the aforementioned conversation about art that you can now hear for the first time in the extended interview! So without further adieu, enjoy some quotables from the interview below and download that I’m Better Than You mixtape if you’re still sleepin’ on it as well. Enjoy!
On the delay of I’m Better Than You:
“It was supposed to drop August 24th and my laptop got stolen August 17th. And all my raps and all my final drafts of the songs and some of the beats were on there. If I didn’t get that laptop stolen, I wouldn’t have done “Diamond Dust”, I wouldn’t have done “Melodic Nightmares”, I wouldn’t have done “Inner Love”. I did have somethin’ on there that didn’t make it, which will probably come out on another mixtape before the album drops, which nobody knows about ’til now.”
On The Achievement:
“I want it to be somethin’ that will resonate with people not just me being successful, but people just enjoying the successes and aspirations of life… It’s not really gonna be my full on story, it’s gonna be the conclusion to The Leak series.”
Yesterday, Maks, Tibs, and I spent the afternoon at Joy of the Game in Deerfield, IL with Chicago Bulls all-star, Derrick Rose! This was Rose’s second annual summer camp where he helped teach kids the fundamentals of basketball as they scrimmaged, played Knock-Out, and more. Rose would walk around all of the courts and provide tips to the young kids, help run drills, and even play in their games!
Check out our interview where Rose first tells us about the daily routines of the camp. We talk more basketball as Rose shares what things he has learned by recently training on Team USA and how he will be applying the mindset for the upcoming season with the Bulls. Of course, we had to ask Derrick Rose who some of his favorite artists are to listen to during workouts and what pumps him up before a game! Who might they be??
And oh yes, he also shared how it felt to lose to one of his campers in a game of Knock-Out! We captured the game in the beginning of the video, appropriately set to Kanye West’s “Power”! Special thanks to D-Rose, who is a real cool and humble person to talk with, and we look forward to him leading the BULLS this season and beyond!
This weekend we got the opportunity to meet and interview one of the greatest athletes of all time, none other than the legendary Bo Jackson! You may remember Bo as a multi-sport athlete who played professional football in the NFL and Major League Baseball simultaneously, while also being named an all-star in both sports - accomplishments that have never been met to this day. Bo was so popular that Nike launched a Bo Knows campaign in the '90's promoting the first ever multi-sport trainer shoe: the Nike Trainer SC. When the shoe came out it immediately became the most popular shoe on the planet, as you could use it to train for any sport. Bo himself played almost every sport possible in those shoes going head to head with stars like Michael Jordan on the court and even Wayne Gretzky on the ice. Just check out some of the classic Nike commercials below and you'll see what I mean.
Now after 20 years, Nike revamped and gave rebirth to the all time classic Trainer SC. In our interview Bo Jackson talks about how transcendent that shoe was when it was originally released and also gives a nice comparison between the 1990 Nike Trainer SC to the 2010 re-release. Lastly, we couldn't let Bo leave without asking him, Does Bo Know Hip Hop? Find out in the interview above and be sure to get your pair of Nike Trainer SC's while you can not only for your collection but for your multi-sport training.
We feel very blessed to have meet a living legend who has forever impacted sports and to have heard him drop some words of wisdom at his Elite Sports facility outside of Chicago. Take a look at the video below of Bo giving advice to young athletes who now have the ability to practice all year long thanks to his indoor sports complex. Also be sure to check out the slideshow below to recap some highlights from the day. Not only was Bo Jackson there, but we were blessed to see legendary hip hop and sports writer Scoop Jackson as well as Chicago Bears defensive end Alex Brown! Stay tuned for more amazing interviews to come. Big shouts go to Cindy, thanks Nike! Enjoy!
GWHH back again with another exclusive interview as Sgt. Tibs sits down with Grammy-nominated R&B singer, Trey Songz! We discuss details on Trey Songz’ upcoming album,READY (in stores August 4th), the concept and inspiration behind the album’s current single, “I Need A Girl”, more information on Songz’ new group with the likes of Jermaine Dupri, Nelly, and Johnta Austin: Ocean’s 7, and Trey Songz’ favorite part about Chicago. Definitely a MUST-WATCH for any fan of music to get to know one of the most talented artists doin’ his thing today. Trey Songz doubles as one of my top 5 artists ever and it was a great thrill for Max G. and I to meet and talk to him so candidly. We would like to thank Trey Songz once again for all his cooperation along with Bobby Fisher and a special thanks toNicole Pierce for setting it all up!
As an added treat for Trey Songz and new fans alike, make sure to hit the jump for the Top 5 *Tibs Favs.™ for Trey Songz RMXs. Songz seemingly jumps on every hot instrumental, showcasing his versatility and his talented rapping skills. If you don’t have those tracks andthe current single, “I Need A Girl”, simply scroll below for the FREE downloads. Enjoy!
Reppin’ Limited G, from left 2 right: Max G, Trey Songz, Sgt. Tibs
Yes Swizz, you shoulda put Trey on this one. Songz flips the iconic Swizzy lines into some of his own that u can’t help but sing along to: “Chillin’ in the Rover, listenin’ to Hova…”
Jeremih’s “Birthday Sex” gets the RMX treatment for another clever interpretation from Songz. Highlights include Trey crooning “Beat It” like MJ and allusions 2 recent hits from Jamie Foxx & The-Dream.
Interesting how the top 3 are Kanye West productions, (hmm…) The first line is delivered with an unmatched amount of swag in the history of swag: “Who you think could do it like I does it, let’s discuss it, G’s respect him worldwide and the women wanna f*** him?”
This is a perfect illustration of Trey Songz’ growth as an artist, more specifically as a rapper. Songz seemingly fails to take a breath in the last 2 minutes with break-neck raps and a ridiculous flow to match. He blows away some of his already solid efforts back when he started the mixtape tracks back in ’07 with an interpretation of Pharrell’s album, In My Mind. Throw on some chilling background vocals to Kanye’s original for the first couple minutes and I can’t even touch the original anymore.
Songz’ interpretation of Lil’ Wayne’s “Comfortable” narrowly edges “Bad News” for the cake. The production is a perfect compliment to his voice as Trey Songz creatively sings some rhymes and croons different choruses throughout to tell a very relatable story… and u get a clever ‘Family Guy’ reference 2 boot.
GWHH back again with another exclusive interview as Sgt. Tibs sits down with Grammy-nominated R&B singer, Trey Songz! We discuss details on Trey Songz’ upcoming album,READY (in stores August 4th), the concept and inspiration behind the album’s current single, “I Need A Girl”, more information on Songz’ new group with the likes of Jermaine Dupri, Nelly, and Johnta Austin: Ocean’s 7, and Trey Songz’ favorite part about Chicago. Definitely a MUST-WATCH for any fan of music to get to know one of the most talented artists doin’ his thing today. Trey Songz doubles as one of my top 5 artists ever and it was a great thrill for Max G. and I to meet and talk to him so candidly. We would like to thank Trey Songz once again for all his cooperation along with Bobby Fisher and a special thanks toNicole Pierce for setting it all up!
As an added treat for Trey Songz and new fans alike, make sure to hit the jump for the Top 5 *Tibs Favs.™ for Trey Songz RMXs. Songz seemingly jumps on every hot instrumental, showcasing his versatility and his talented rapping skills. If you don’t have those tracks andthe current single, “I Need A Girl”, simply scroll below for the FREE downloads. Enjoy!
Reppin’ Limited G, from left 2 right: Max G, Trey Songz, Sgt. Tibs
Yes Swizz, you shoulda put Trey on this one. Songz flips the iconic Swizzy lines into some of his own that u can’t help but sing along to: “Chillin’ in the Rover, listenin’ to Hova…”
Jeremih’s “Birthday Sex” gets the RMX treatment for another clever interpretation from Songz. Highlights include Trey crooning “Beat It” like MJ and allusions 2 recent hits from Jamie Foxx & The-Dream.
Interesting how the top 3 are Kanye West productions, (hmm…) The first line is delivered with an unmatched amount of swag in the history of swag: “Who you think could do it like I does it, let’s discuss it, G’s respect him worldwide and the women wanna f*** him?”
This is a perfect illustration of Trey Songz’ growth as an artist, more specifically as a rapper. Songz seemingly fails to take a breath in the last 2 minutes with break-neck raps and a ridiculous flow to match. He blows away some of his already solid efforts back when he started the mixtape tracks back in ’07 with an interpretation of Pharrell’s album, In My Mind. Throw on some chilling background vocals to Kanye’s original for the first couple minutes and I can’t even touch the original anymore.
Songz’ interpretation of Lil’ Wayne’s “Comfortable” narrowly edges “Bad News” for the cake. The production is a perfect compliment to his voice as Trey Songz creatively sings some rhymes and croons different choruses throughout to tell a very relatable story… and u get a clever ‘Family Guy’ reference 2 boot.
