2K Sports today announced the soundtrack for NBA 2K8, which will feature 23 tracks, including three produced by late producer, J Dilla ( a.k.a. Jay Dee). Common, Talib Kweli, Madlib, and Q-Tip, all of whom had previously worked with J Dilla before his death early last year, contributed vocals for the tracks.

“J Dilla was one of the industry’s greatest talents,” said Q-Tip. “This recording is reflective of his legacy and of the wonderful body of work that he left behind.” (more…)

Salt -N- Pepa, Nelly Furtado, Ne-Yo, KRS-One The Teacha, Jermaine Dupri, Grandmaster Caz, Nelly, Mos Def, Kool Moe Dee, Grand Wizzard Theodore and The Chief Rocker Busy Bee will take the stage along with the honorees at the fourth annual “VH1 Hip Hop Honors.”

VH1 will once again pay tribute to the hip hop luminaries who broke new ground and pioneered the genre into a true cultural phenomenon. Hosted by Tracy Morgan, this year’s honorees include A Tribe Called Quest, Snoop Dogg, WHODINI, Missy Elliott, the film Wild Style and Teddy Riley and Andre Harrell for New Jack Swing. (more…)

After coming under intense scrutiny for being nothing more than a showcase for music videos that some people consider demeaning, BET is in the midst of trying to alter its image.

The network is still taking heat for the likes of “We Can Do Better” (formerly known as “Hot Ghetto Mess”), “Baldwin Hills,” which shows that black teen life can be as simultaneously idyllic and stupefying as the white teen life depicted on MTV’s “The Hills,” “Laguna Beach” and “Maui Fever,” and “S.O.B.: Socially Offensive Behavior,” which has a terrible title but turns out to be a pointed, “Punk’d”-style reality-TV take on race and racial assumptions. (more…)

  Rating:
  Review Date: September 23, 2007
  Website: Core Rhythm Website
  Label: Spitmatix Music

Core Rhythm “Nat Turner Reloaded” Album Review
My parents named me Nathaniel. But as far back as I can remember, everyone has always called me Nat. Now the problem with having the name Nat is that motherfuckers can’t ever seem to pronounce it correctly. No matter how many times I’ve explained that my name is Nat (which rhymes with FAT), people always call me Nate (which rhymes with HATE). And to be honest, I find it disrespectful that cats can’t even remember a simple obvious pronunciation difference. (more…)

A hip-hop celebration hits the road.

For the last three years, music network VH1 has been honoring hip-hop legends with a night of music. The annual VHI Hip Hop Honors program matches old school acts with new millennium stars. Overseeing the entire event is The Roots drummer ?uestlove, who acts as the show’s musical director. (more…)

Legendary Amityville producer – and father of a 4-year-old daughter – Prince Paul is currently working on “Baby Loves Hip-Hop,” his contribution to the well-known series of CDs that includes “Baby Loves Reggae,” “Baby Loves Rock” and “Baby Loves Disco.”

“My goal is to make a hip-hop record for kids that’s not corny,” Paul said last week by phone. “I listen to some of this children’s stuff and I think, ‘Oh, my god.’” (more…)

Sebastien Elkouby wants to empower the youth. But unlike others with the same goal, he uses hip-hop as the tool. Sebastien is the creator of the Urban Youth Empowerment Foundation, a Los Angeles organization created to address the education crisis affecting more than 50% of inner-city middle and high school students.

In an attempt to provide a new method for reaching at-risk students, the Urban Youth Empowerment Foundation offers several empowerment courses, including job training classes, teen parenting classes, and global awareness through hip-hop classes. (more…)

  Rating:
  Review Date: September 18, 2007
  Website: Kanye West Website
  Label: Roc-A-Fella Records

Kanye West “Graduation” Album Review
My apologies for posting the featured review late this week, but I had to let Kanye West’s “Graduation” marinate for a couple days. In that time, one of Kanye’s verses from Everything I Am kept jumping out at me: (more…)

Three words personify M-1 of Dead Prez in view of his performance during the WaPi (Words and Pictures) gala at the British Council on Saturday: Revolutionary but Gangster! The monthly event is a platform that celebrates graffiti artists, poets, writers, spoken word artists, creative artists and progressive musicians.

Flanked by Umi, a like-minded affiliate of his larger hip-hop outfit, (P.O.W)/RBG family, M-1 gave Kenyan hip-hop fans a rare experience of an electrifying live show by an internationally acclaimed underground hip-hop group. Their characteristic raps laced with radical messages of cultural, social and political revolution, inspired many of the young fans in attendance with a need to raise their consciousness. (more…)

MTV asked Nas about the Bill O’Reilly thing again, and DAMN! Nas publicly challenged Bill O’Reilly to a debate and called him ignorant! I would love to see a Nas vs. O’Reilly debate. FOX News needs to get on that for real!

Punk ass O’Reilly needs to get off his high horse and realize how ignorant he is, and if anyone can show him, it’s Nasir Jones homie! Peep Nas’ statement below: (more…)