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Jay Electronica Says He May 'Never See The Value Of A Grammy' In Respect: Mixtape Daily Year-End Awards

Posted 12/15/10 7:00 am EST by in Mixtape Daily

Jay Electronica might be hip-hop's underground — and Erykah Badu's — darling, but he's also been chosen as our Firestarter for MTV News' Mixtape Daily Year-End Awards.

Beginning his reign on the rap Internet boards, the New Orleans MC who recently signed with Jay-Z's Roc Nation broke into the mainstream with the release of his "Exhibit C." The aforementioned track, which was proceeded by "Exhibit A," nabbed larger-than-life production from super-producer Just Blaze.

Jay recently sat down with Respect, a photo-driven hip-hop magazine, and spoke to Editor-In-Chief Elliott Wilson about the rap world and what executives, including Universal Republic's Monte Lipman, attempted to woo him onto their label rosters.

" 'Exhibit C' magnified everything. Everybody was coming at one time. Read More...

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Lil Wayne Confirms 'Carson Daly' Performance With Nicki Minaj

Posted 12/14/10 12:39 pm EST by in Music News

Tuesday (December 14) isn't just a Tuesday, it's also a day rife with Twitter hacking, claiming Lil Wayne as a victim.

During a call with the Shade 45 morning show with DJ Drama and Karen Civil, Lil Wayne said that he will tape a performance alongside Nicki Minaj for the "Last Call With Carson Daly" on Thursday (December 16), however someone broke into his @liltunechi account and announced that he'd be doing a live show in New York City.

"I was just mad that somebody went on my Twitter, like that’s my personal Twitter," the MC said.

Rap fans know that following his arrest in the Big Apple in 2007, which later landed him in Rikers Island for eight months, Lil Wayne vowed not to perform in New York anytime soon. But the rumor wasn't the only thing that upset the MC. Read More...

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DJ Drama Says 2010 'Was The Return Of The Mixtape': Mixtape Daily Year-End Awards

Posted 12/14/10 7:00 am EST by in Mixtape Daily

By Hillary Crosley, with reporting by Jayson Rodriguez

This year, RapFix screamed "Big Meech" while going "Hard In Da Paint" and grooving to "Kid Frankie" as we drove a "Beamer, Benz or Bentley" — OK, maybe not that last part but — frankly, we couldn't have been happier.

Now, after careful consideration, a bit of arguing and a lot of shrewd choices, the MTV News Hip-Hop Brain Trust presents our Mixtape Daily Year-End Awards for the Top Mixtape DJs of 2010. Check out MTVNews.com for the official list as well as the video at the top of this post.

RapFix is celebrating the awards with a behind-the-scenes interview with comeback kid DJ Drama about getting back into the groove — both he and the mixtape game in general — in 2010.

"Naw, I can definitely feel that in a way. It may've started like mid-last year," Drama said of people who said the DJ reign reignited recently and the tide began. "I remember even coming into 2010, the two first tapes I dropped were Cam's Boss of All Bosses 2 and I think the Yo Gotti. I remember a blog had done post like 'Gangsta Grillz is back, DJ Drama is back.' I kinda felt [like] I didn't know I went anywhere but I understand from the outside looking in." Read More...

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Ja Rule And 50 Cent Trade Barbs On Twitter: Fans React

Posted 12/13/10 6:23 pm EST by in Music News

Is it just us, or is 2010 the year of rappers heading to — and leaving — jail?

On Monday (December 13), Queens MC Ja Rule joined a select group, including Lil Wayne, T.I. and The Geto Boys' Willie D, headed to a correctional facility. Rule reached a plea deal with prosecutors in a Manhattan courtroom that will see the rapper serve two years in prison. The charges stem from a gun bust in July 2007, when both Ja and Lil Wayne were arrested separately following a concert performance.

The Murder Inc. star pleaded guilty to attempted criminal possession of a weapon, a class D felony in the second degree.

Of course, as soon as the news hit, Ja's arch enemy and fellow Queens MC 50 Cent began heckling the Murder Inc rapper.

"Damn da homie Jah Rule gotta do two years," 50 Cent tweeted. "Tell him I said don't worry I got him when he come home. Lol ... Jah came out the court room yelling who the f--- canceled Christmas. Lol."

Ja Rule responded to the G-Unit general with his own 140 characters in kind. Read More...

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Ja Rule Protests Gun Violence In The Face Of Weapons Charges

Posted 12/13/10 5:17 pm EST by in Music News

By Hillary Crosley, with reporting by Rahman Dukes

Ja Rule himself called the events on Monday (December 13) — where he was sentenced to two years in jail — a "minor setback to a major comeback" via Twitter. Let's hope so.

In 2009, MTV News spoke to the Murder Inc MC during a rally, somewhat ironically now, against gun violence where he joined forces with T.I., Reverend Al Sharpton and his National Action Network following the tragic fatal shooting of 17-year-old Corey Squire.

"I think it's important for a voice like myself or a T.I. who actually have gun issues to be the ones to speak out guns and putting the guns down and gang violence," Ja Rule said. "I think we're the perfect voices to be talking about this, not to say that other voices aren't. Kids relate a little more when they know you've already been done that road and you know what they're going through and you can relate to them."

Ja Rule pleaded guilty to attempted criminal possession of a weapon, a class D felony in the second degree and was sentenced to two years in jail. The charges stem from a gun bust in July 2007, when both Ja and Lil Wayne were arrested separately following a concert performance. Similarly, T.I. reported to a federal prison in Arkansas on November 1 for violating his parole, stemming from gun charges for which he'd already served one year away. Read More...

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Raekwon Hints At Eminem, Nas Collaborations On Shaolin Vs. Wu-Tang LP

Posted 12/13/10 11:30 am EST by in Music News

Wu-Tang veteran MC Raekwon recently released "Butter Knives," a teaser track for his forthcoming LP, Shaolin vs. Wu-Tang, tentatively slated for March 2011. But don’t worry Wu fans, the Chef says he’s got plenty coming up in the meantime, including an official single and maybe even collaborations with two of hip-hop’s best.

"I can’t give you all that information right now," Raekwon said, with a laugh, at rumors spouting that Eminem and Nas may appear on Shaolin vs. Wu-Tang. "You already know, overall it’s a very very colorful album, it still has that grittiness of course. But at the same time it has a glossy feel to it and overall people are going to enjoy it."

Though "Butter Knives" hit the web first, the MC says the track was just a warm-up.

"The first one was a frisbee just to get ya’ll excited and the next one will be the throw down," Raekwon said. "At the end of the day it’ll be great things in a couple of weeks, but I want to keep it under my hat."

As for the LP, which the MC says that he’s already completed, the Chef says it’s a mixture of two worlds. Read More...

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Fabolous, J.Cole And More MTV News' Mixtape Daily Year-End Songs

Posted 12/13/10 7:15 am EST by in Mixtape Daily

By Hillary Crosley, with additional reporting by Jayson Rodriguez, Rahman Dukes, Steven Roberts and Richard Sancho

This year, RapFix screamed "Big Meech" while going "Hard In Da Paint" and grooving to "Kid Frankie" as we drove a "Beamer, Benz or Bentley" — OK, maybe not that last part but — frankly, we couldn't have been happier.

Now, after careful consideration, a bit of arguing and a lot of shrewd choices, the MTV News Hip-Hop Brain Trust presents our Mixtape Daily Year-End Award for the top mixtapes of the year and the standout cuts from each project. Enjoy!

Lloyd Banks' V5

» "Rather Be Me." "My record is gonna sound like that. How it's put together from top to bottom and ends like a movie," the Punch Line King said. "That's the route I wanna take my album. 'Rather Be Me,' is a deep record. It's one of the joints. I didn't let nobody hear it when I was recording it. I was in the zone. It felt like a movie to me. It's crazy, because a lot of people think I'm talking to somebody in particular, but it's not. It's talking to anybody that's a coward. If you don't stand for something, you'll fall for anything. When you hear the little funny things like, 'Banks doesn't want to be G-Unit.' N---a, I am G-Unit. This [tattoo] been right here on my hand. Before anybody was signed, it was me, Tony Yayo and 50 Cent. To take that away from me is like taking away my legacy, to a certain extent. We worked too hard for somebody to tell me to drop my G-Unit." Read More...

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DJ Premier Drops Get Used To Us LP, Introduces MC Nick Javas

Posted 12/10/10 7:20 pm EST by in Music News

On Tuesday (December 7), DJ Premier released his DJ Premier Presents Year Round Records: Get Used To Us LP, a compilation comprised of songs from different artist signed to his Year Round Records indie imprint. RapFix chatted with the legend about his project and why he decided to schedule the work for December.

"Fourth quarter is real dangerous to drop unless, you’re really hot, or have some type of a buzz to make people think about buying music for Christmas," DJ Premier said. "So, I said 'You know what? Let me just take a little piece of all the projects I plan on putting out next year and make a compilation album so we have something to stall us. I’ll put my name on it and just change it to DJ Premiere Presents Year Round Records. 'Get Used to Us' is actually a line that Shabino of NYGz always says, so I was like, 'That’s a perfect title' and I told him I owe him a check for that. And all these other projects that are coming out next year are just little pieces and bits of that, all compiled into that compilation."

Primo also introduced us to his newest artist, an MC named Nick Javas, who's included on DJ Premier Presents Year Round Records: Get Used To Us. Read More...

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Nicki Minaj Celebrates Birthday With Lil Wayne In Las Vegas

Posted 12/10/10 3:42 pm EST by in Music News

On Wednesday (December 8), hip-hop's reigning queen Nicki Minaj celebrated her birthday at the nightclub Tao. Cash Money-Young Money captains Lil Wayne, Birdman and Mack Maine were in attendance along with the Barbie's favorite friends Cassie and Amber Rose. Check out our photo gallery of the event!

Dressed in a flesh-toned bodysuit decorated with pearls, the MC was presented with a tiered pink traditional cake as well as another dessert in the shape of a barbie sitting in a pink car.

Earlier this week, we asked the Barbz on Twitter what they'd like to give Ms. Minaj for her birthday and her are a few of the best ideas.

"We'd go visit her grandmother's grave. I don't know if she's been there lately but with all her recent success it would be good to go there," said @TeamMinajPink. "Maybe a lifetime supply of cranberries and almonds? Lol."

"The only idea I have in mind would be to give her a 'Regeey Bear,' a teddy dressed nicely, looking like he could be Regis," said Ranoey. Read More...

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Dr. Dre, Snoop And Akon's 'Kush' Video: Fans React

Posted 12/10/10 1:29 pm EST by in Music News

On Friday (December 10) Dr. Dre released his long-awaited "Kush" video featuring Snoop Dogg and Akon to the blogosphere. The clip, directed by Joseph Khan who's also led clips from T-Pain, Chris Brown and Britney Spears, features a freeze-frame style where all of the background models are stuck in the midst of an action. On the other hand, the good Doctor, Snoop and Akon glide through the set.

After waiting so long to see something — anything!!! — from Dr. Dre, especially after his Home And Home Tour performance alongside Eminem in September, we checked in with fans to see what they thought of the highly-anticipated clip for "Kush."

"Awesome video. Sooo f--kin' epic, that the #DETOX is finally droppin'!" @RichardDiNozzo tweeted.

"WESTCOAST IS BACK!!!" CaliIsStat added. Read More...

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