"Have your face set. I don't wanna end up just humping air."

After having my mind blown by Star Trek, I flipped over to the American Music Awards in time to see Jennifer Lopez’s comeback attempt performing a song whose name I don’t recall and am not inclined to look up.

While 1999-2000 really seems like just yesterday, the decade has, indeed, come to  a close and things are not what they once were, as evidenced by Lopez’s tumble after vaulting off the back of a dancer while wearing five-inch heels. She recovered from the tumble, gathering herself enough to ask the crowd (via lip-synch) “You miss me?” The resounding response seemed to be “Once upon a time.”

Now, I could go in on Jennifer Lopez about the tumble or the singing poorly and such, but I have to admit: When she fell I gasped. I clapped my hand over my mouth and actually felt bad. Seeing any performer stumble is cringe-worthy because it really is like dying a thousand deaths on stage, but this emotion had something more to it.

I imagine anyone who saw it thought to themselves “JLo woulda nailed that. Jennifer Lopez, mother of two out of the limelight for a few years, apparently cannot.” Watching great performers lose a step always kind of hurts a little.

A few more thoughts on the AMAs in no particular order:

- Adam Lambert has vocal talent, but I think seeing him perform last night proved that performing live in a concert setting takes a particular talent that plenty of people don’t nail their first time–if ever. As I watched him cavort about the stage as in his spiked suit get-up, face-humping dancers and, at one point, pulling at the crotch chain of a woman in leather underwear, I couldn’t help but think to myself, “This is one time when being gay is helping this dude.” There are things each group can get away with that other can’t e.g. Blacks and “nigga”; women and “see you next Tuesday”…and I feel like crotch-chain pulling is not something I could do successfully.

-Taylor Swift is a talented kid. I was aware of her Pre-Kanye and can say that she does her thing and moves units with pre-Napster-like efficiency. In the pop sense, she is the real deal. That being said, enough is enough. Her windfall from being the little (white) girl who had her moment stolen from the drunken (black) dude is without parallel. Her beating Michael Jackson at anything just looks terrible in the historical sense, but I frankly think it’s worse that she beat a living person by the name of Lady Gaga. This robbery was tantamount to whoever won the Best Supporting Actor Oscar over Val Kilmer for his role in Tombstone. Really. Twitterer @BlackCanseco summed it up nicely when he said, “Once again #TaylorSwift is gettin more sympathy/support than Rihanna. And dude neva laid a glove on her.”

-Gaga is a no-pants wearing beast. Just talented and terribly mesmerizing. Still, those who worship at her altar should keep in mind that she’s Cyndi Lauper with the benefit of the internet.

-HD doesn’t flatter anyone. That’s not even throwing shade; it’s a sad reality that really can’t help the ego of anyone who has cameras pointed at them all the time. Watching the various acts, I started subconsciously touching my own face and thinking “Damn, they’d see every possible ingrown hair scenario on my already big-looking head”. It’s just like one of those giant “Oh crap, I’m ugly!” vanity mirrors women have on their nightstands.

-Jermaine Jackson is eating this up. I’m sure he misses his little brother–I’m sure of it–but he’s eating this up.

-Whitney’s a cagey veteran who really does deserve credit for bouncing back as she has, but people who mention this should do so with a hint of context. Yes; she came back from the brink, but you’re not really ever on the brink brink when you’re a wealthy world-famous entertainer who wasn’t foolish enough to squander every dime you have and thus, have the resource to come back from whatever needs coming back from.

-No big deal Jay but…numbers lie all the time. In fact, they’re often skewed for the purpose of deception so…yeah.

-Eminem began “Crack a Bottle” announcing, boxer-style, his height and weight, then rattled off these statistics “17 rapes, 400 assaults and 4 murders.” Maybe I work too much in news and such, but I found that first part particularly Pelosi Face-inducing. In semi-related news, I’m convinced a lot of already-famous rappers are no longer interested in rapping altogether and are completely nonplussed at the prospect of having to do so live.

-Timbaland’s fatal mistake wasn’t coming on stage looking like he’d started Thanksgiving a few weeks early; his error was in going from round to fit to rounder. You just can’t do that. If you’re going to stay round, people will notice your expansion, but won’t think much of it unless you become morbidly rotund. If you get swoll and take pictures in just smediums and clearly want it to be known you’re getting it in physically, you have to stay somewhere in that range. You cannot come out looking like you just ate Rick Ross with a side of Jazze Pha. For good or ill, those are the rules.

-I don’t pretend to really, really know what happened between Alicia Keys and Swizz Beatz, but I’m disinclined to think it was on the level and feel funny whenever I hear her singing love and relationship songs. On a semi-related note, has any woman gotten to skate more on something as egregious? I’m thinking her only competition of famous famous people is Angelina Jolie and even she didn’t break up a home with a kid in play. Lots of women have tried to tread this ground before and ended up like the first dude who tried to find the grail in The Last Crusade.

H-Town. I don’t have any urge to ever go there but for some reason I am obsessed with the rap scene. It’s not the usual stuff I listen to and it is in no way lyrically above the rest or even close to that but for some reason I’m in awe of the tracks that Houston artists put out. Whether it’s music about the hood, drugs, fly honies, rims, cash, or purple syrup I can’t help but give all my attention and leave my ears wide open. I think its the swagger that Houston artists have mixed with decent lyrics that keep them forever present in the rap game. I have been listening to H-Town rap since I was a kid and the Geto Boys were on and since then I have never felt that the scene fell off or was performing subpar as has been the case in the Bay and even NY. No matter how you feel about H-Town rap, as compared to other rap scenes and sub-genres, the music is great, the lyrics are catchy, the MCs tell the story well, and the tracks are consistent as hell. Much love H-Town.

The Come Up Crew Podcast Vol. 12: H-Town Tribute (Week of 11.02.09) – Click to Download

Tracklisting:

1. Lil Flip – Pass Da Swisha
2. Paul Wall – That Fire feat. Trina
3. Slim Thug – Wood Grain Wheel
4. Lil Keke – I’m A G feat. Birdman
5. Paul Wall – Sittin Sideways
6. Chamillionaire – Ridin
7. Yo Gotti – Gangsta Party feat. Bun B & 8Ball
8. Mike Jones – Like What I Got
9. Bun B – Damn I’m Cold feat. Lil Wayne
10. Compton’s Most Wanted – N 2 Deep feat. Scarface
11. Scarface – Guess Who’s Back feat. Jay-Z & Beanie Sigel
12. Slim Thug – Like A Boss
13. Slim Thug – Problem Wit Dat
14. Lil Troy – Wanna Be A Baller
15. Mike Jones – My 6-4
16. UGK – Stop-N-Go feat. Jazze Pha
17. Scarface – Fuck Faces feat. Devin The Dude, Too Short & Tela
18. Geto Boys – Gangsta (Put Me Down)
19. Lil Flip – Sunshine feat. Lea
20. Mike Jones – Flossin
21. Geto Boys – Mind Playin Tricks On Me

I forgot to post these yesterday, but over a few days, a couple Usher tracks leaked off his upcoming album Raymond vs. Raymond (which is his last name). Production ranges from RedOne to The Runners, no features though on these.

Raymond vs. Raymond is scheduled for release December 8th.

Usher – Blockin’ (Prod. by Tricky Stewart & Jazze Pha)
Usher – Rockband (Prod. by RedOne)
Usher – Hey Daddy (Daddy’s Home) (Prod. by The Runners)
Usher – More (Prod. by RedOne)

Download Lil` Gavin Feat. Jazze Pha & Yung Joc – Twitter Her

Vezi:Lil` Gavin/Jazze Pha/Yung Joc .

Via: @JazzePha .

Keith Murray cu Lloyd (?) , asta nu credeam ca voi vedea vreodata , cum am mai spus , repet , ca sa detii un hit iti trebuie un artist R&B sa`ti cante refrenu` , trec cu vederea si ma prefac ca tema melodiei l`a cerut pe Lloyd , Me & U se numeste piesa si este produsa de Jazze Pha` .

Download Keith Murray Feat. Lloyd – Me & U

Direct Download:
http://rapidshare.com/files/275249648/M1RRLWJPSS.rar

Aufgrund eines Fußbades an den Schreibtisch gefesselt, bleibt mir nun nichts anderes übrig als noch einen Blogeintrag zu schreiben und weil mir im Moment partout keine neue Girlband einfällt, muss ich eben eine erfinden werde ich eine meiner Lieblingsgirlbands vorstellen. Manche Leute mögen mir Steine an den Kopf werfen, dass ich die jungen Damen als “classic” bezeichne, aber für mich sind sie nun mal eine der besten Bands, die meine Generation kennt. Abgesehen davon ist man nach zwei Alben definitiv kein Backfisch mehr…

Name: Cherish. Wie soll ich sagen? Aufgrund meines fortgeschrittenen Wissens im Bereich der Girlbands habe ich mich schon an bescheuerte Namen gewöhnt. Immerhin gehört Cherish zu einem der erträglicheren und fährt eine ähnliche Schiene wie Destiny’s Child, indem nichtgreifbare Konzepte (Schicksal respektive Wertschätzen) esoterischerweise auf eine Konstellation junger Mädchen angewendet werden.

Musikalische Nische: Die musikalische Nische von Cherish dürfte der harmonische R’n'B ohne große Stimmakrobatik oder Produzentenspielereien sein. Ein bisschen Synthies, ein bisschen Pop – locker-luftig, irgendwo zwischen Jazze-Phas smoothen Brisen und tanzbarem Atlantasound.

Entstehungsgeschichte: Es waren einmal eine Frau und ein Mann, die zeugten vier Kinder. Sie hießen Farrah, Neosha, Felisha und Fallon (letztere zwei sind Zwillinge) und irgendwann beschlossen sie zu singen. Oha! Hier haben wir es mit der wohl am organischsten gewachsenen Band der ganzen Kategorie zu tun! Geschwister sind die vier und wenn wir an Nina Sky, Tegan & Sara, Boomkat oder The Pierces denken (oder an Elli und Nelli von unserem donnerstäglichen Lieblingsformat…), dann wissen wir, dass Geschwisterbands zumeist eine feine Sache sind.

Image: Oh, das ist schwierig und wird sicherlich nicht objektiv! Vier Ladys, die nicht überfrech sind, sondern sich durch Songwriting und Harmoniegesang hervortun, mehr Wert auf ihre Songs als auf Gerüchte legen und ein bisschen wie die netten Mädchen von nebenan wirken. Gleichzeitig ganz im Stil der Independent Ladies, ohne Schimpfwörter, ohne zu großen Hiphopeinfluss… Also ich mag Cherish ja sehr.

Musik: Ah, erwähnte ich den Harmoniegesang schon? Die Mädels können ganz toll singen. Ihnen fehlt vielleicht die Knowles’sche Leadsängerin, aber sie harmonieren perfekt, haben tolle Stimmfarben und überzeugen durch rundherum runde Songs. Viel Midtempo, ein paar schnellere Sachen und dazu textlich aussagekräftige Mörderballaden wie das unten aufgeführte Amnesia. Unappreciated und The Truth sind zwar nicht makellos, aber sie sind purer R’n'B mit einer großen Portion Schmerz. Die Alben tun sich außerdem durch ihre Konsistenz hervor, d.h. man kann sie in einem Stück runterhören, ohne dass das Grundfeeling des Albums sich ändert. Sowas ist wunderbar! Harmonie! Harmonie!

Rollenverteilung: Sehr harmonisch. Jeder darf mal ran und weil es Schwestern sind, gibt es natürlich auch keine Streitereien, sondern nur Gerüchte über ein neues Album am Ende des Jahres.

Sympathiefaktor: Hoch – und voller Harmonie! Destiny’s Child haben es nie geschafft, The Writings on the Wall zu toppen. Das haben dafür Cherish mit beiden Alben geschafft, spätestens aber mit The Truth, das unglaublich erwachsen und vom Herzschmerzfaktor dem DC-Zweitling sehr nahe kommt.

Was sagt der Rest der Welt: Gutes. Was sonst. Harmonisches vielleicht noch.

Videos: Weil die Mädels am besten sind, wenn ihnen das Herz blutet, hier die beiden besten Balladen, Nummer 1 (Unappreciated) aus Album Nummer 1, Nummer 2 (Amnesia) aus Album Nummer 2.

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Brick & Lace

Album: Beat’n Down Yo Block [Deluxe Edition]
Year: 2006
Quality: GroupRip

Gracias a los chicos de HipHopIsRead podemos disfrutar de estos kits de producción de productores/grupos/mc’s conocidos. Y, ¿qué es eso de ‘kit de producción‘? Pues básicamente es una compilación de kicks, snares, claps… usados por ciertos artistas. No sé si los kicks, snares y demás son los originales, es decir, si han recopilado los ’sonidos’ del programa original que usaron los artistas, si han extraido el loop de la instrumental o si lo han conseguido por otros métodos, pero lo cierto es que hay bastantes loops para usar. Para muestra un botón, a continuación os muestro el hat, el kick y el clap de ‘Till I Collapse‘ de Eminem y después el track completo.

Audio: Hat de ‘Till I Collapse‘ – Eminem

Audio: Kick de ‘Till I Collapse‘ – Eminem

Audio: Clap de ‘Till I Collapse‘ – Eminem

Audio: ‘Till I Collapse‘ – Eminem

Ahora que ya sabéis lo que es (si ya lo sabíais os habéis tragado todo lo anterior para nada, jaja) os dejo los enlaces de kits de producción:

Yo no tengo todos los kits descargados así que si alguno dejara de estar disponible no lo podría subir, es decir, si hay problemas (enlances que caducan y demás…) tendremos que esperar a que lo arreglaran en HipHopIsRead.

Si añaden más kits los podré en el blog.

Kells wants fans to ‘name it themselves based on what they feel listening to the music.’

If you buy an album, you can call it whatever you want — at least R. Kelly thinks so. In February, Kelly partied in Atlanta club the Velvet Room with Jazze Pha, DJ Infamous and others and told the crowd that his new album didn’t have a name.

“ATL, what’s up? I got my little brother right here, Jazze Pha,” he said, standing in the VIP balcony. “I’m out here working on the mutha—-in’ album. I’m working on a new album, and I’m calling that mutha—-a Untitled. Y’all call it what y’all want.”

On Monday, the Pied Piper of R&B told MTV News why he decided to go the Nas route when titling his LP.

“I’ve been in the biz 17 years, so everyone is used to me naming my records,” he said. “So I wanted to mix it up a little. I want whoever listens to the record to call it what they want, name it themselves based on what they feel listening to the music.”

This week, Kelly drops his first-ever mixtape, The Demo Tape. “I took it all the way back to when I first started; all I had was my demo,” he said of the street project. “It’s a way to start fresh, be humble. It’s like being a new artist. This is my demo tape for my fans.”

continue reading from MTV.com By Shaheem Reid

Ciara har holdt seg lenger i rampelyset enn døgnflueetiketten “the first lady of crunk & b” skulle tilsi. Men hun har alltid vært bedre på hits enn helhetlige album.

Nå er Ciara tilbake med sitt tredje album, Fantasy Ride. Det har jeg ikke rukket å høre ennå, men jeg er ganske sikkert på at det er “fra grusomt til groovy”, som VG skriver. Slik var også hennes to første album. Førsteplata var (selvsagt) best.

Ciara
Goodies
Sho’nuff-MusicLine/LaFace/Zomba/BMG 2004
4/6

Sensasjonell debutsingle, ok album.
I sommer dukket 18 år gamle Ciara Harris fra Atlanta opp fra intet med sensasjonen ”Goodies”. Hun dyttet Terror Squads ”Lean Back” ned fra førsteplass i USA, og holdt unna angrep fra giganter som Alicia Keys & Usher og Nelly & Jaheim.

Med en frekk og morsom tekst, rapping av Petey Pablo og ekstrem synth-minimalisme fra årets mann i USA, produsent Lil Jon, ble ”Goodies” den naturlige oppfølgeren til ”Yeah!” av Usher (også Lil Jon-produsert). Låten er fortsatt på topp 10 i USA, og Ciara blir nå kjørt frem som dronningen av den nye genren ”crunk & B”.

”Goodies” var en debutsingle som kan bygge opp en karrière, men hva med resten av albumet? Lil Jon er fraværende på resten av albumet, for Ciara er protesjeen til den undervurderte Atlanta-produsenten Jazze Pha (Angie Stone, Cash Money Millionaires, Ludacris). Han står for brorparten av musikken her; en fin miks av funky klubblåter og tradisjonelle ballader. Selv om Ciaras stemme i lengden kan bli litt pregløs, står hun støtt på egne ben når regnskapet gjøres opp – uten at gjester som R. Kelly, Ludacris eller Missy Elliott stjeler showet.

Ciara
The Evolution
LaFace/Zomba/SonyBMG 2006
4/6

R&b-prinsesse snubler videre.
«One hit, can’t quit,» synger Ciara, men refererer neppe til seg selv som noe «one hit wonder». Med «Goodies», «1, 2 Step» og «Like a Boy» har hun satt fyr på radioer og dansegulv, og andrealbumet The Evolution toppet salgslistene i USA. Atlanta-piken klarer å levere kjapp tilfredsstillelse, men juryen er fortsatt ute når det kommer til hennes varige verdier.

Hvis Beyoncé er dronningen av r&b, så kjemper Ciara mot Amerie, Brooke Valentine, Teairra Marí, Cassie og Rihanna om kronprinsessetittelen, og hittil er det nok hyperaktive Rihanna som leder popularitetskonkurransen.

Ciara har mange tøffe låter, men albumet lider av manglende retningssans. Her er futuristisk funk, intense hevnfantasier og heftig crunk-pop, men også 13-på-dusinet-ballader, et forutsigbart 50 Cent-samarbeid og slappere versjoner av den urbane popen til Justin Timberlake og Gwen Stefani, krydret med hinsides pinlige monologer.

Opprinnelig publisert i Aftenposten og Bergens Tidende.

Artist: Birdman
Album: Baby aka the #1 Stunna
Year: 2002
Quality: VBR V0

Tracklist:

01 – Bird Lady Talkin’ [Intro]
02 – Looks Like a Job 4…
03 – Fly in Any Weather (ft. Jazze Pha)
04 – Ms. Bird Pageant [Part 1]
05 – Ms. Bird (ft. Mannie Fresh)
06 – I Got To (ft. Lil Wayne)
07 – Never Had Nothin’
08 – Baby You Can Do It (ft. Toni Braxton)
09 – Ms. Bird Live from Superdome
10 – What Happened to That Boi (ft. Clipse)
11 – On the Rocks (ft. The D Boys, Jazze Pha)
12 – How It Be (ft. Jermaine Dupri, TQ)
13 – Heads Up (ft. The D Boys)
14 – Hustlas, Pimps and Thugs (ft. 8Ball, Jazze Pha, TQ)
15 – Fly Away
16 – Say It Ain’t So (ft. Boo & Gotti, Keith Murray, Mikkey)
17 – Ms. Bird Pageant [Part 3]
18 – Do That… (ft. Diddy, Mannie Fresh, Tateeze)
19 – Ice Cold (ft. TQ, Jazze Pha)
20 – Ms. Bird Pageant [Part 4]
21 – Ghetto Life (ft. Lil Wayne, Cam’Ron)
22 – Keeps Spinnin (ft. T.I., Petey Pablo, TQ, Mannie Fresh, Stone, Wolf, Bizzy, Gillie, Mikkey)

depositfiles.com

Bryonceknows.com reports:

The Dream’s ex wife Nivea was spotted at an R&B showcase for her new artist management group Avalon Music group, showing off her Weezy Jnr in the making!

She made sure we got a glimpse of that ring on her wedding finger, but who’s it from? Last time I checked, Lil’ Wayne was dating Shanell Woods! Help me out somebodaay! Please tell me Nivea didnt go shopping for a wedding ring on her jack jones!?! SMH.

One more for ya – Battle of the Bumps: Nivea and Jazze Phizzle…