Biblical Beef: Pusha T v. Tunechi

After releasing the track last week, I wasn’t sure whether this beef would actually materialize into anything. Pusha T was quoted as saying it wasn’t related to Weezy, to me that’s enough to leave it alone. If I was Lil Wayne, I would have let that sleeping do lie, god knows that G.O.O.D. has more traction with tastemakers than YM does right now. However, when Weezy dropped the “Goulish” freestyle in response to the suppposed diss, we all knew the switch was moved into the “on” position. If I was a sports analyst slash Vegas bookie, my odds would favor Weezy still, his history with beef, let alone his ability to ride his fans into a campaign significantly outweigh the ability Pusha T has to make himself worthy of media hype without something as absurd as Kanye jumping on a track with him. Tag team though, Kanye and Pusha T versus Drake and Tunechi? That would potentially extend the predictably short shelf life of hip hop beef, here’s hoping that doesn’t happen. 

Oh, for those of you wondering about the actual biblical significance, Exodus 23:1 reads : ”Do not spread false reports. Do not help a wicked man by being a malicious witness.”

God, smh, always stepping in and causing shit between gangster rappers.

 posted at the 301 view mark

Happy F. Birthday Weezy

28 years ago today, a little bastard of a star was born. To a certain extent, this star has changed the game. Our great grandchildren will remember Dr Carter like we remembered Dr. Jonas Salk. #rescuethegame

This Is The Carter

ZIF Video Of The Week: Young Money: Roger That

Lil Wayne, Nicki Minaj & Tyga – Roger That

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For those of you who enjoyed the last few posts, you’re probably wondering, why is this is ZIF video of the week? Well, for starters, I like Tyga, I think he’s ill and will be around longer than Young Money. Having said that, I am guilty of the pleasure that is Nicki Minaj, and I think her verse is somewhat ill on this track. Weezy is the captain of this vessel, leading these youngsters to money land, I have nothing else to say about Weezy F. Baby. Other things to take into consideration: the lack of a Drake verse, whether or not Nicki is ghostwritten for by Weezy, and if Chase and Status should remix this track(like they did with Saxon).

The Proverbial Money and Mind Connection

Lil Wayne – Money On My Mind

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As if any of us would have thought that Snoop rapping about cash on his brain back in the Murder Was The Case days would be a message perpetuated to this day by contemporary rappers. With success mind you!

Video Download: Lil Wayne – Money On My Mind

Friday Free Joints

Download: Adad – Sky [Prod. by Exile]

Download: Camron ft. Gucci Mane – Cuffin’

Download: Empire – Boom N Pound (The Return Of The Boom Bap)

Download: Freeway – She Makes Me Feel Alright [Produced by Jake One]

Download: Joe Budden – Keep On [Prod. by J Cardim]

Download: King Magnetic – Around Me

Download: Lil Wayne ft. Pharell – Smackdown

Raging Dr. Weezy

Speaking of return-worthy gifts, several copies of Lil Wayne’s Rebirth must have been on-top of Santa’s sack (pause) and maybe when his sleigh was encountering turbulence, they fell to earth. A copy indeed fell into my lap. Okay, the opening sentence is not entirely fair; while a plethora of the internet is dubbing Wayne’s foray into rock music a ridiculous cacophony, I’ll step out and say the the album isn’t as bad as it’s being made out to be.

Initially, I thought Rebirth was merely going to be rock instrumentals with Wezzy rapping over them; hearkening back to the days of Limp Bizkit and Korn. Instead, Wayne actually attempts to sing, as would his rock idols; I think there’s certainly a BIG case to be made  to say that Wayne’s attempts to emulate Cobain and Corgan make the album pathetic. However, personally, I think this makes the album more likable than if he merely rapped like a meth-addicted redneck from Bakersfield.

Another element of the album, certain to be divisive is the fact that he swims through several genres of rock including metal, grunge and even Ska with the track below.

Lil Wayne-Get a Life

Weezy & Eminem Drop the World On’em but No Gems

I’m not sure what Weezy had in mind when he revealed he’d be following up The Carter III with a “Rock album,” but I definitely wasn’t expecting whatever classification you’d ascribe to “Drop the World.”  It’s spacey and atmospheric, but most striking is the lack of a single guitar until the last verse.  In fact, it’s more or less what you’d expect from Southern, anthemic synth-pop.

But you didn’t flip this track on for the beat.  To no one’s surprise, Em’s (who spits the last verse) flow is immaculate, but I never thought he could pull off these 80 BPM, bleeding-heart joints.  Weezy does a better job of it by keeping things simple (payback for “Forever,” I guess).  The track is full of introspective “substance,” but I feel like we’ve heard this song (done better) by both of them many times before.

Unfortunately, “Drop the World,” as a leak, is noteworthy more because of its implications for “Rebirth” than the quality of the music.  But I’m sure you’ll check it out anyway.

Lil Wayne feat. Eminem – Drop The World

Scared Money Don’t Make No Money

The majority of rap enthusiasts I converse with are under the impression that the era of ATL cocaine rap is done, kaput, finito. This genre would also include Lil Wayne for these purposes, considering he became famous by vicariously purporting the ATL steez, it’s only appropriate that his fate be sealed with those he co-opted. Personally I think that there isn’t enough logic to support the notion that Weezy & Jeezy are spent, in fact, the industry is still hurting and money talks, especially within the context of the global economic crisis. What does the money specifically do to keep these guys on life support? Well, just like a hospital, it keeps the power on and the medicine pumping, in the rap game that means beats, savage beats from the best producers. If production flows into the swimming pools of money that these rap heavyweights have, and they choose accordingly, they’ll be making radio music and mixtape classics for a while. First step, Jamaican born, T-Dot raised, Boi-1da, and that’s a damn good selection.

Young Jeezy ft. Lil Wayne – Scared Money (Produced by Boi-1da)

Men Who Stare at GOATs

If you’ve been reading this blog for a while, you know I dig the never-ending argument as to which rapper is the greatest. Souls of Mischief recently sounded off on their opinion. While I am a Souls fan, I disagree with almost everything they say in this piece. I have absolutely no gripe with them excluding Jay-Z, Nas and Lil Wayne from their personal lists but I just don’t think their claim that these guys have unequivocally failed to contribute anything original to the genre is not all that valid. Nevertheless, the video is definitely worth a scope.

And, as in any argument about the G.O.A.T., Soulja Boy gets his obligatory fulmination. He also, supposedly, went onto Youtube and ripped the Souls’ remarks on the comments board. However, those comments had been removed last time I checked.

Lil Wayne Deployed To Mexico To Save The Drug War!

What makes this “news” clip from The Onion so absurd, hence, funny, is the fact that the plan may actually work somewhat. I mean if Weezy set up shop down there for a few years, just using and spending his money on yayo, don’t you think some traffic may stay inside Mexico that was otherwise headed for U.S. border towns in Texas and California?

In reality, I think President of Young Money Entertainment, Mack Maine, is the one that’s really been hitting the white girl lately. Watch him spew garbage about how legendary the Young Money roster is. Granted, I like Drake and Nicki, but legendary they are not. You have to excuse Mack’s suspect judgement sometimes, he went from placing 16th in an MTV freestyle competition to running the affairs of a multimillion dollar label breaking records during a recession. Give him time, I’m sure he’ll turn into the next Russell Simmons soon enough.

Peep the legendary roster on YM after the jump.

Carter Bootleg

If you’re a Lil Wayne fan, this is pure YouTube gold, some bootleg footage of Weezy during a session in the Big Apple. It’s filled with little Weezy idiosyncracies like his search for his “drank” and his propensity to surround himself with grand instruments which he cannot play. If you’re not a Lil Wayne fan, the lovely lady introducing the YouTube clip is worth the 15 seconds. Viral marketing man, it’s really not that difficult, get hot girls to introduce your product, that’s half the battle.

It Ain’t My Birthday But…

This cake–at its core level–is hilarious. What makes it even more hilarious, and odd, is that this birthday cake is for Alec Baldwin’s 14 year-old daughter. I wonder what the creative process was like for this cake. I wonder if Alec, Ireland(Alec’s daughter)* or the bakers had heard “Stuntin’ Like My Daddy” where Wayne says “It ain’t my birthday but I got my name on some cake” and decided to concoct a literal version of that play on words.
To some extent, I kind of hope that nobody down that chain of command had heard that song. I hope that little Ireland is just a Lil Wayne fan and this cake happens to be a perfect example of life imitating art.

Furthermore, props to the bakery. Licorice for dreads? genius!

*Honestly. Would it kill famous people to not name their kids ridiculous shit?

Ode to Mixtapes

Mixtapes don’t get their due. At this point, we take the charming little clusterfucks for granted. But, in truth, they’re tenacious little beasts. Mixtapes have served as vital cat-posts for many genres of music–mainly rap– where fledgling artists can sharpen their claws; some of the best material to be yielded by the likes of Lil Wayne, Joe Budden and Wale* have emerged on mixtapes. Albums are a formality these days but mixtapes are what keep a rapper’s enigma nourished.

Mixtapes have also created a new compartment in the rap economy for visual artists. Some of the best rap cover-art has adorned the fronts of mixtapes; the solar system is the limit when it comes to ridiculous covers, from Wayne laughing at T.I. beyond hauled off in a police cruiser to Gucci Mane cackling in a movie theater.

Now, with the holidays nearby and everyone swimming in their couches to pay the water bill, mixtapes can be cheap, yet simultaneously (and perhaps erroneously) heartfelt gifts. And, if you want to not only be stingy with your money but also with your time, you can make one tape and send it to multiple people. Wired Magazine just listed some spots you can upload your tape for the masses.

*Though, for over two years mixtapes have essentially been the only carrots to come out of Wale’s garden

Props to BET (Once In A Decade)

I’m not sure how many people BET expected to tune into this year’s award show, but they were certainly lookin to make bloggers’ heads turn with their three-part “Cyphers” interludes.  Considering that BET’s been almost unwatchable since Big Tyga left “Rap City’s Tha Basement” earlier this decade (there’s not a lot of room for credibility when you’re the poor man’s MTV), it’s great to see them extend an olive branch to some people who really deserve it.  Beyonce, Lil Wayne, Ne-Yo, and M.I.A. were the “big winners” of the night, but DJ Premier, Mos Def, Black Thought, Eminem, Buckshot, Nipsey Hussle, and Joe Budden actually made the ceremony remarkable.

Granted, I didn’t actually watch the award show (the NBA started tonight; whoever planned that one over at BET should be shot), but this will go down in the memory banks as the one that featured Mos Def, Black Thought, and Eminem going verse for verse.  When the Hip Hop nerds have heated arguments in their dorm rooms tomorrow over who came the hardest (pause), I would put my money on the exit polls favoring Slim.  Thought, with all his talk of being underrated and unappreciated (he is in Hip Hop and of the three), stole Cypher #3, but if we’re going to be real, Joe Budden ran away with it, overall.  Peep the other two Cyphers after the break and tell us who you think spit it best.

Lil Waynezer

It’s Sunday morning so there’s a good chance that while I’m writing this, most of you who’ll read this, are not awake. And, while you sleep, you may be having tumultuous alcohol-infused dreams/nightmares. It being Halloween next week, I’m posting this song because it has the makings of a very weird and slightly nightmarish collaboration for the conscious world. It’s Weezer featuring Lil Wayne and the track was co-produced by Jermaine Dupri and Polow Da Don. It’ll be on Weezer’s forthcoming Raditude.

Weezer feat. Lil Wayne “Can’t Stop Partying”

Download “Can’t Stop Partying”