The Official Rap Thread

[daigong]

GET THESE!! some fresh tweets:



source: http://www.islanddefjam.com/artist/news_single.aspx?nid=6589&artistID=7405



01: Concrete Jungle [Unreleased Exclusive]
02: Revolution Music [snippet]*
03: Bring It Back (feat William Cooper) [Exclusive DYP Mix]
04: Don't Front [Unreleased Exclusive]
05: Snatching Pocketbooks*
06: The Grindz (feat RZA & Prodigal Sunn) [Exclusive DYP Mix]
07: Invade Ya Empire (feat Islord & Dom Pachino) [Exclusive DYP Mix]
08: Dark Room [Unreleased Exclusive]
09: Street Gems (feat Spanish Jose) [Unreleased Exclusive]
10: Dear R & B*
11: Shut Your Mouth
12: Outstanding (feat Tash Mahogany) [Unreleased Exclusive]
13: DJ Eclipse Interlude
14: I Will Rise (feat RZA, Anti-Social & Thea Van Seijen)*
15: Gotta Get This Money [Unreleased Exclusive]
16: Killa Machines (feat 60 Second Assassin) [Exclusive DYP Mix]
17: Top Secret (feat Akir & AR.Change.L)
18: Grandfather Flow*
19: You Ain't Hear (feat Stoneface) [Unreleased Exclusive]
20: Young Godz Pt. II (feat Shyheim)*
21: Cripple U (feat Dom Pachino) [Exclusive DYP Mix]
22: Down South [Unreleased Exclusive]

*From "Revenge of the 9th Prince" available Tuesday April 20, 2010

http://www.sendspace.com/file/h6wwi6

props to: http://illegitrecordz.blogspot.com/

[daigong]

from Kardinal Offishall's myspace. If you living in go check him on tour with Akon and friends!


pic from Kardinal's twitter

'Supafest 2010' Kardinal, Akon, and others (Australian Tour)
Body:    Australian Tour

Supafest 2010 (Formerly Jamfest 2010)

Akon, Kardinal Offishall, Kelly Rowland, Pitbull, Jay Sean, Sean Paul, Eve

Tour Dates:

13 Apr Wayville Showgrounds SA
14 Apr Melbourne Showgrounds VIC
15 Apr Acer Arena NSW
16 Apr Acer Arena NSW
17 Apr RNA Showgrounds QLD
18 Apr ME Bank Stadium WA

[thatonezombie]

It's funny that Kardi calls himself Mr. International when Talib has also called himself that 

[J-Triumf]

Speaking of Australia...I always thought this guy was cool, and I'm glad he's still making music.
Freaky video directed by Heath Ledger.

N'Fa, once known as Nfamas, formerly of 1200 Techniques. I hope I'm not the only one here familiar with them, although admittedly they did disappear fairly quickly after the second album.

[electric mole]

yup

[thatonezombie]

[Masa]

[Masa]

Album Preview: Nas & Damian Marley – ‘Distant Relatives’

Nas has come a long way since Illmatic. Nine solo albums, millions of records sold, and countless Grammy nominations later, he’s an esteemed hip-hop veteran. Damian “Jr. Gong” Marley is cut from the same cloth of greatness. After being the only Jamaican artist to garner two Grammys on the same night for Welcome to Jamrock, he’s well on his way to following in the legendary footsteps of his late father Bob Marley.

As a collective, Nas and Damian Marley grab from reggae, hip-hop, and dancehall on their joint effort Distant Relatives (May 18), an album paying homage to their motherland of Africa. The fusion of a man from Kingston, Jamaica, and another from Queens, New York, coupled with tribal drums and instruments, creates a mighty sound. With production by Damian and his brother Stephen, combined with appearances by Lil Wayne and K’Naan, the duo isn’t just making hits, they’re creating history.

Rap-Up.com walks you through Nas and Damian’s journey track by track as they bridge the continental divide.

1. “As We Enter”
Produced by Damian “Jr. Gong” Marley

Damian and Nas enter with a bang over a quick hip-hop tempo. Drums, keys, and percussion carry the banner. The two kings rule with an iron fist over the jumping beat, threatening death to all crimes after dropping a little bit of Swahili on the gentry: “Habari gani?/ Mzuri sana (How are you?/ Very well).”

2. “Deadly Equation (Tribal War)” featuring K’Naan
Produced by Damian “Jr. Gong” Marley

The duo explains that scattering natives from the motherland has broken people up into warring sectors. The song has a jungle-like, Lion King feel to it, which features a tribe of hollow drums. While Nas describes the separation anxiety from the “real” home, K’Naan breaks down how brothers end up fighting against brothers, and Damian ties it in by describing the battles over land and gang colors, not with old-fashioned “knuckle” or “kung fu” fighting, but by drive-bys, missles, and shuttles.

3. “Strong Will Continue”
Produced by Damian “Jr. Gong” Marley

Damian shines in the beginning of this song about survival of the fittest and creating your own destiny, but Nas has a trick up his sleeve. Electric guitar, bass, and cello support Damian’s strong warning: “Now you’re starring in your own movie/ Playing by the role you choose.” After a long interlude, Nas jumps in with a surprise verse, explaining his candid thoughts about his ex-wife Kelis. This track will give fans of the Queensbridge MC some answers they’ve been waiting to hear.

4. “Leaders” featuring Stephen Marley
Produced by Stephen Marley

This song is one of the more laggard on the album, synthesized to be a non-danceable slow jam. Nas vaguely describes the characteristics of who he believes is a leader: “Jake hate him/ Snakes could not violate him/ Pimps memorize his lines verbatim/ He reps NY, yo/ Gives C-notes to winos.” Jr. Gong says he wants to be like his leader who he treats “as a father,” and wants to grow up to be just like him.

5. “Friends”
Produced by Damian “Jr. Gong” Marley

“Good friend better than pocket money” is an old Jamaican proverb, and it does well to describe this tune’s sense of camaraderie. Over a slow, tribal beat, Nas iterates how male friends have a sense of understanding, with “No question/ No jealousies…no female tendencies,” while Damian values loyalty: “Your real friends are there for all the wins and losses!”

6. “Count Your Blessings”
Produced by Damian “Jr. Gong” Marley

All that’s needed is a full band and a soul, electric-funk guitar to build upon a newfound Marvin Gaye spirit, but Bob Marley’s values are channeled through Damian’s tears of joy: “I got love and assurance/ I’ve got new health insurance/ I’ve got strength and endurance/ So I count my blessings!” Nas shouts out his blessings—the birth of his first son on 7/21/09—and calms all troubled spirits that aspire to be him, but don’t have the means: “There can only be one Nas, yo!” is his shrugging retort.

7. “Dispear”
Produced by Damian “Jr. Gong” Marley

Sounding like a warrior version of “Stand by Me,” this tune plays on the words “despair” and “this spear” in war. While Damian breaks down its use on the battlefield (“This spear nah make friends”), Nas gets back to survival tactics: “Must survive anyhow you have to/ Despair, desperation/ But I have no fear/ When I hold this spear.” The sound effect of a spear hitting its target can be heard throughout the song.

8. “Land of Promise” featuring Dennis Brown
Produced by Damian “Jr. Gong” Marley

A mid-tempo groove combined with a heavy reggae bass guitar are the underlying components to Damian and Nas’ take on what the promised land would be if it were in Africa. The two imply that Africa would surely be a first-world country had they not been robbed of their people and goods. “Imagine Ghana like California with Sunset Boulevard… Somalia like New York,” Jr. Gong ponders on the track.

9. “In His Own Words” featuring Stephen Marley
Produced by Stephen Marley

10. “Nah Mean”
Produced by Damian “Jr. Gong” Marley

More contemporary reggae holds together a lighter track, which features heavy patois wordplay. Damian boasts that he is more gangster than the Gambino family and that his pockets are “green like Spirulene,” while Nas wishes all the violence would stop: “Don’t want to see another soldier drop.”

11. “Wisdom”
Produced by Stephen Marley

This song is of a slow tempo, and takes a sample from Mali duo Amadou & Mariam called “Sabali.” Damian pillages over the injustices of the world, like having the ability to fly to the moon and still not being able to “feed starving tummies.” Nas breaks free from the injustice, saying people can try to hold him back, but he has “a real big spirit.”

12. “My Generation” featuring Lil Wayne
Produced by Damian “Jr. Gong” Marley

This is arguably the “We Are the World” of the album. The young choirs of L.A.’s Sunny Brae Elementary School and Oakwood School provide the background vocals as Damian, Nas, and Lil Wayne lift up the youth with their verses. Damian praises his generation for staying the course, rhyming, “Because we rising up despite of the economy/ And then we a star the show like the astronomy/ And how we keep on breaking through is an anomaly.” Nas proves that we can break generational curses, while Lil Wayne rhymes that “change starts with the man in the mirror.” Multiple versions of the song will be released, including one with Joss Stone.

13. “Africa Must Wake Up” featuring K’Naan
Produced by Damian “Jr. Gong” Marley

Strings over a reggae beat parlay an ode to Africa as Damian portrays, “Yesterday we were kings/ Can you tell the young ones who we are today?” The cry for help is strengthened by Nas, who pleads for disease and AIDS to fade, and K’Naan sings in Somali: “Oo daacad niinki damcay/ Waadinka dooxee (When one attempts to tell the truth, aren’t you the ones to cut him down? The ancestors will surely be stirred).”

14. “Ancient People” featuring Junior Reid (Bonus Track)
Produced by Damian “Jr. Gong” Marley

http://www.rap-up.com/2010/04/16/album-preview-nas-damian-marley-distant-relatives/

[daigong]

AW SHIT. What up L? Props to X.



DL:  http://www.multiupload.com/NRLXHFSWSE
 

[thatonezombie]

Might not be the final version but still dope

B.o.B feat. Lupe Fiasco - Past My Shades
http://usershare.net/cbrc8vvrzbzu

[daigong]

^ FUCK I was waiting for dat!

u'd dig this zomb:


from Talib Kweli and Hi-Tek’s upcoming Revolutions Per Minute, dropping May 18th.

[thatonezombie]

^ That DMX driver's license line fucked me up 

Em's pen is on fire

B.o.B. – Airplanes [Part 2] (Ft. Eminem & Hayley Williams)

http://usershare.net/srb737ljimqd

[Masa]

^ Hayley Williams

[Masa]

Guru of Gang Starr dies of cancer, say reports

Hip-hop sources claim the rapper Guru has died following a long battle with cancer that he had kept private

New York rapper Guru has died following what is described as a long battle with cancer, according to reports by Allhiphop.com. The hip-hop star, whose real name is Keith Alam, was admitted to hospital in February after suffering a cardiac arrest. He lapsed into a coma and had to undergo surgery, but details of his illness were not fully published. But a statement published today by Fact magazine and other hip-hop sources describe the 43-year-old as having suffered from an aggressive form of cancer for over a year, something he had decided to keep private.

The statement also includes a letter purportedly written by Guru during the final stages of his illness:

"I, Guru, am writing this letter to my fans, friends and loved ones around the world. I have had a long battle with cancer and have succumbed to the disease. I have suffered with this illness for over a year. I have exhausted all medical options. I have a non-profit organisation called Each One Counts dedicated to carrying on my charitable work on behalf of abused and disadvantaged children from around the world and also to educate and research a cure for this terrible disease that took my life. I write this with tears in my eyes, not of sorrow but of joy for what a wonderful life I have enjoyed and how many great people I have had the pleasure of meeting."

The letter then goes on to reference an "ex-DJ", which it can be assumed refers to DJ Premier, with whom Guru formed Gang Starr in the 80s:

"I do not wish my ex-DJ to have anything to do with my name, likeness, events, tributes etc connected in anyway to my situation including any use of my name or circumstance for any reason and I have instructed my lawyers to enforce this. I had nothing to do with him in life for over seven years and want nothing to do with him in death."

The rapper also wrote that he was most proud of his work on Jazzmatazz, a hip-hop and jazz fusion project that he worked on in recent years. A US representative was not available to respond to the Guardian at this time.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2010/apr/20/guru-gang-starr

R.I.P.

[Masa]

Guru of Gangstarr Dies, Writes Letter To Supporters

(AllHipHop News) Legendary Gangstarr artist Guru has succumbed to cancer after a lengthy bout with the disease.

The artist, born Keith Elam, died on Monday April 19. He was 43 years old.

Solar, Guru's partner, expressed sadness over the loss.

"The world has lost one of the best MCs and Hip-Hop icons of all-time -- my loyal best friend, partner, and brother, Guru," Solar said in a statement. "Guru has been battling cancer for well over a year and has lost his battle! This is a matter that Guru wanted private until he could beat it, but tragically, this did not happen. The cancer took him. Now the world has lost a great man and a true genius.

Guru, a Boston native, rose to fame in the 80's as one half of Gangstarr, the iconic rap group with DJ Premier.

The group released six highly regarded albums in their tenure until 2003 when they broke up. After his successful run with Premier, Guru founded 7 Grand Records with producer Solar.

Solar went on to tend to the rapper as he fell ill, seemingly controlling the flow of information and access to Guru. Many of his family members complained that they were denied their right to see him.

Solar also said that Guru wrote a letter to fans and sent it out through a press agency.

"For the fans that reached out with love and support, I can't tell you how much that meant to Guru and myself. Guru prepared this letter (read below) while he was in the hospital for the fans," the producer continued. "I hope now that Guru has moved on to a better place."

In the letter, seen below, the rapper explains his illness, expresses gratitude to supporters and offers some parting words for DJ Premiere.

I, Guru, am writing this letter to my fans, friends and loved ones around the world. I have had a long battle with cancer and have succumbed to the disease. I have suffered with this illness for over a year. I have exhausted all medical options.

 I have a non-profit organization called Each One Counts dedicated to carrying on my charitable work on behalf of abused and disadvantaged children from around the world and also to educate and research a cure for this terrible disease that took my life. I write this with tears in my eyes, not of sorrow but of joy for what a wonderful life I have enjoyed and how many great people I have had the pleasure of meeting.

My loyal best friend, partner and brother, Solar, has been at my side through it all and has been made my health proxy by myself on all matters relating to myself. He has been with me by my side on my many hospital stays, operations, doctors visits and stayed with me at my home and cared for me when I could not care for myself. Solar and his family is my family and I love them dearly and I expect my family, friends, and fans to respect that, regardless to anybody's feelings on the matter. It is my wish that counts. This being said I am survived by the love of my life, my sun KC, who I trust will be looked after by Solar and his family as their own. Any awards or tributes should be accepted, organized approved by Solar on behalf myself and my son until he is of age to except on his own.

I do not wish my ex-DJ to have anything to do with my name likeness, events tributes etc. connected in anyway to my situation including any use of my name or circumstance for any reason and I have instructed my lawyers to enforce this. I had nothing to do with him in life for over 7 years and want nothing to do with him in death. Solar has my life story and is well informed on my family situation, as well as the real reason for separating from my ex-DJ. As the sole founder of GangStarr, I am very proud of what GangStarr has meant to the music world and fans. I equally am proud of my Jazzmatazz series and as the father of Hip-Hop/Jazz. I am most proud of my leadership and pioneering efforts on Jazzmatazz 4 for reinvigorating the Hip-Hop/Jazz genre in a time when music quality has reached an all time low. Solar and I have toured in places that I have never been before with GangStarr or Jazzmatatazz and we gained a reputation for being the best on the planet at Hip-Hop/Jazz, as well as the biggest and most influential Hip-Hop/Jazz record with Jazzmatazz 4 of the decade to now. The work I have done with Solar represents a legacy far beyond its time. And we as a team were not afraid to push the envelope. To me this is what true artists do! As men of honor we stood tall in the face of small mindedness, greed, and ignorance. As we fought for music and integrity at the cost of not earning millions and for this I will always be happy and proud, and would like to thank the million fans who have seen us perform over the years from all over the world. The work I have done with Solar represents a legacy far beyond its time and is my most creative and experimental to date. I hope that our music will receive the attention it deserves as it is some of the best work I have done and represents some of the best years of my life.

AllHipHop.com sends its deepest condolences to the family and friends of Keith Elam.

http://www.allhiphop.com/stories/news/archive/2010/04/20/22177912.aspx

[electric mole]

r.i.p

[Masa]

^ That's prolly my fav Gang Starr joint

Here's another classic:




R.I.P. Guru!

[J-Triumf]

"I do not wish my ex-DJ to have anything to do with my name, likeness, events, tributes etc connected in anyway to my situation including any use of my name or circumstance for any reason and I have instructed my lawyers to enforce this. I had nothing to do with him in life for over seven years and want nothing to do with him in death."

W...T...F...

Nevertheless, this is a big loss. RIP



I've always loved this track and Guru's verse on it:

[Masa]

Coming this weekend:

http://forum.jphip.com/index.php?topic=1638.0

One of the most memorable Gang Starr music videos:

Moment of Truth still sounds mad fresh 12 years after its release


Man.... Deck was a fucking beast back in the 90s!

W...T...F...

That part was prolly written by Solar

[thatonezombie]

Hell no Guru said that about Premiere. Wackness.

CHANNELZEROTV.COM presents "The High School Graduate", exclusive behind the scenes footage of super-producer Kanye West in his New Jersey home studio working on demo tapes for himself and Rhymefest in early 2002. This clip contains unreleased material from chicago hip-hop veteran Rhymefest. Filmed by: Danny Joe Sorge