bigted

I don't think either 50 or Kanye are gonna sell as much as they used to, a lot of people are tired of their egotistical tantrums at this point, but at least Kanye does put out some quality music in between to back up some of his talk, you can't really say that about 50 so that's why Kanye'll probably outsell him

Personally I don't have a problem with ghostwriting as long as the songs are hot

100,000 albums sold worldwide is impressive for an independent album, go Jazzy!! :wickedwisdom:

Ted you talk a lot of sense.. what you been up to, how's life? Life's good for me right now, been working a lot recently so I haven't had much time to come on here as much as I used to

Well I don't think Will's gonna lose any sleep over not being on this list, I find it wack that people care more about what rapper makes the most money than who puts out the most quality, that's why the rap game is the way it is right now :thumbdown:

K.Smith's rapping ability is... :thumbdown:

I would be very surprised if 50 wouldn't release anymore albums even if he gets outsold by Kanye

Bonds Breaks All-Time Home Run Record SAN FRANCISCO - Barry Bonds of the San Francisco Giants set the all-time home run record by belting No. 756 in the 5th inning of last night's game against Washington Nationals pitcher Mike Bacsik. The Nationals won the game 8-6. For one spectacular moment, Barry Bonds and everybody cheering him could forget about the controversy surrounding his chase and appreciate the phenomenal feat: 756. Nobody in the majors - not Hank Aaron, not Babe Ruth - has ever hit more home runs than the San Francisco star. On Tuesday night, in his home ballpark, it didn't matter how many of them might have been fueled by steroids or performance-enhancers. Bonds has the title of home run king all to himself, ending Aaron's 33-year reign. "This record is not tainted at all. At all. Period," Bonds said. And more than 43,000 adoring Giants fans, including his godfather, Hall of Famer Willie Mays, surely agreed. Bonds raised both arms over his head like a prize fighter in victory, fists clenched - and then he took off. It was over at long last. Bonds did it with a shot to the deepest part of the ballpark with one out in the fifth inning against Washington's Mike Bacsik. Bonds sent the 84-mph fastball arcing high into the night, 435 feet into the right-center field seats. And then, the celebration began in force - fireworks, streamers, banners commemorating the accomplishment, and even a party in McCovey Cove. Conspicuous by their absence were the commissioner and Hammerin' Hank himself. Though he was on hand for the tying homer three days ago, deciding to put baseball history ahead of the suspicions plaguing the Giants slugger, Bud Selig wasn't there for the record-breaker. Instead, he sent two emissaries, Major League Baseball executive vice president Jimmie Lee Solomon and Hall of Famer Frank Robinson. Selig also issued a statement. "While the issues which have swirled around this record will continue to work themselves toward resolution, today is a day for congratulations on a truly remarkable achievement," Selig said. Bonds also heard personally from the commissioner with congratulations. "I was very happy about that," Bonds said. As for Aaron, he said all along he had no interest in being there whenever and wherever his record was broken. He was true to his word, but he did offer a taped message of congratulations that played on the stadium's video board during a 10-minute, in-game tribute. "It is a great accomplishment which required skill, longevity and determination," he said. "Throughout the past century, the home run has held a special place in baseball and I have been privileged to hold this record for 33 of those years. I move over now and offer my best wishes to Barry and his family on this historic achievement. "My hope today, as it was on that April evening in 1974, is that the achievement of this record will inspire others to chase their own dreams." A woman who answered the phone at Aaron's home in Georgia shortly after Bonds' homer said that Aaron was asleep. "When I saw Hank Aaron that made everything," Bonds said. "We've always loved him. He's always the home run king." With a long, satisfied stare, Bonds watched as the ball sailed over the fence and disappeared into the scrum in the first few rows. Then he raised both arms over his head like a victorious prize fighter, fists clenched, and took off. "I knew I hit it," Bonds said. "I knew I got it. I was like, phew, finally." His 17-year-old batboy son, Nikolai, was already bouncing on home plate as Dad rounded third and ran the final 90 feet to make it official. After a long embrace, the rest of the family joined in - his mother, two daughters and wife. And then there was Mays, who removed his cap and congratulated his godson. Bonds saved his most poignant words for last, addressing his late father, Bobby. "My dad," he said, looking to the sky and choking back tears. "Thank you." Bonds had wanted to break the record at home, where he would be assured of a friendly crowd. They were all right, unlike in San Diego where some fans held up signs with asterisks. Bonds has always denied knowingly using performance-enhancing drugs. After doubling and singling his first two times up, Bonds hit a solo home run. Bacsik put his left hand to the back of his head as soon as Bonds connected. "I dreamed about it as a kid, but when I dreamed about it, I was the one hitting the home run and not giving it up," Bacsik said. "I didn't really want to be part of history as a bad part, but I am," he said. "I'm OK with it." Bacsik later spoke with Bonds and got an autographed a bat from the Giants star. Bonds took his position in left field to start the sixth, then was replaced and drew another standing ovation. The Nationals won the game, 8-6. A fan wearing a Mets jersey wound up with the historic ball. Matt Murphy of New York emerged from the stands with the souvenir and a bloodied face, and was whisked to a secure room. Even with Bonds at the top of the chart, fans will surely keep debating which slugger they consider the true home run champion. Some will continue to cling to Aaron while other, older rooters will always say it's Babe Ruth. "It's all about history. Pretty soon, someone will come along and pass him," Mays said before the game. Aaron held the top spot for 12,173 days after connecting for No. 715 to pass the Babe on April 8, 1974. "This is the greatest record in all of sports," Giants manager Bruce Bochy said. "We are all fortunate to witness it. It's awesome. This road to history has been a lot of fun." Bonds homered exactly three years after Greg Maddux earned his 300th victory at the same ballpark. It's been quite a week of baseball milestones - over the weekend, Alex Rodriguez hit his 500th home run and Tom Glavine won No. 300. A seven-time NL MVP, the 43-year-old Bonds hit his 22nd home run of the year. Bonds broke Mark McGwire's single-season record by hitting 73 in 2001 and while he's no longer such a force, opposing pitchers remain wary. Bonds and Giants management bickered in the offseason over contract issues. This big night was the main reason owner Peter Magowan brought back the star left fielder for a 15th season in San Francisco, signing him to a $15.8 million, one-year contract. Bonds' once-rapid quest for the record had slowed in recent years as his age and balky knees diminished his pace. He hit 258 home runs from 2000-04, but has only 53 since then. While steroids have tinged Bonds' pursuit, it was race that was the predominant issue when Aaron broke Ruth's mark in 1974. Aaron dealt with hate mail and death threats from racist fans who thought a black man was not worthy of breaking the record set by a white hero, the beloved Babe. Bonds was destined for stardom at an early age. The son of All-Star outfielder Bobby Bonds and the godson of one of the game's greatest players, Bonds spent his childhood years roaming the clubhouse at Candlestick Park, getting tips from Mays and other Giants. "I visualized him playing sports at a high level. He was 5 when he was in my locker all the time," Mays said. In a matter of years, Bonds went from a wiry leadoff hitter with Pittsburgh in 1986 to a bulked-up slugger. That transformation is at the heart of his many doubters, who believe Bonds cheated to accomplish his feats and should not be considered the record-holder. There are plenty of fans already hoping for the day that Bonds' total - whatever it ends up - is topped. Rodriguez may have the best chance, with his 500 home runs at age 32 far ahead of Bonds' pace. Bonds said he hadn't yet thought beyond 756. He plans to play in 2008. "I'll tell you one thing: I'm going to hit a lot better from now on," he said after a champagne celebration in the clubhouse.

Public Enemy always bring quality, there's no question I'm gonna get this CD asap

I think Kanye'll probably outsell 50 at this point, G-Unit's just about dead

:yeahthat:

DMX "Slippin'"(1998)

SOHH Exclusive: Rhymfest Takes Will Smith's Spot, Talks New Kanye TV Show Friday - July 6, 2007 by Anthony Roberts Rhymfest doesn't just have two new albums on the way, he recently revealed to SOHH that he and Kanye West are working a TV show, and he wonders why former production head Mark Ronson is acting "brand new." Apparently, Blue Collar wasn't just the name of Rhymefest's 2006 debut. The Windy City wordsmith has been hard at work since releasing his first disc and plans to flood the streets with two albums dropping only months apart -a collaboration with DJ Jazzy Jeff entitled I'm The DJ, He's The Rapper, and his sophomore set, El Che. "With Jazzy Jeff, you're working with a real producer," he told SOHH. "Whenever I get in the studio with a real producer who just loves music, it's like the chemistry and the sparks fly, you know? It's like he sets up the face and I put the eyes and the smile and frown and paint the picture. He said to me that I'm the closest he's been to with any rapper, like working with Will Smith again. So, you take the run that somebody like Will Smith and Jazzy Jeff has had and you get that same person saying that this is the closest since, that means something great is about to happen." Hoping to release the nostalgic, light hearted collaboration with Jazzy Jeff in December, the Grammy award-winning MC will follow it up with his more aggressive, sophomore J Records release El Che in April 2008. El Che features the Lil Jon produced "Angry Black Man On A Elevator," of which he shot a comical "Making of" video which takes viewers into the studio as the pair crafts the single. Fest is also quick to point out that this album will not be a sequel to Blue Collar. "The people who already know about Rhymefest will be like, 'Damn, this is what I've been waiting for him to do. This is Rhymefest grown up, this is the maturity of my favorite artist and I'm glad I'm here to witness it,'" Fest said. "The people who may not know me that well are going to hear this album and be like 'Oh my God, I didn't know.' And it's going to give all the people who did know a chance to finally say, 'I told you.' It's going to be another wake up call that says you can do authentic hip-hop and still be successful." While he's keeping a tight lip on which MC's will be joining him on the record, he did confirm Cool & Dre, Animal House, Lil Jon and Kanye West, who he is currently working with on a new show for Comedy Central, will be lending beats to the album. "Yeah, Kanye and I are working on a pilot for a TV show," he said. "Right now we really don't have a name for it. It's like 'In Living Color' meets the 'Muppet Show.' So it's like a sketch comedy involving puppets but we involve the live guests and they'll interact with the puppets. We're about to go to LA and start working on the pilot in about a month," he continued. "I know it's concerning TV, but I don't know how much outside of music [the show] is because the characters are going to be heavily music based and I'm going to be writing rhymes for a lot of the characters." With several collaborations on the horizon, one person that Fest won't be working with is former producer Mark Ronson. "Mark is doing, like, Amy Winehouse and he has some other artists and it was kinda like, after Blue Collar, Mark disappeared," Fest said. "When I was trying to get DJ's to play my stuff and trying to really make it pop, I couldn't find him. I wanted to do some stuff with him on this album and he's got a manager and his manager was calling my manager like 'we'll schedule some days' and it never happened." "He kind of bailed on me," Fest continued. "At the end of the day, every man gotta take care of himself as a man and I don't expect no man to take care of me so I ain't tripping but...it kinda threw me off. If anybody out there sees Mark Ronson, tell him to give me a call, my number ain't changed."

Lauryn Hill to finally release new album? 06/29/2007 2:00 PM, Yahoo! Music courtesy of NME.com Lauryn Hill is getting close to finally releasing a new album, according to reports. Hill is set to release a new song, "Lose Myself," which is featured on the soundtrack of forthcoming animated film Surf's Up. Representatives have said that the singer has gone back into the studio with the goal of making a new album. The album is said to feature material from her vaults and the new material which will "probably" feature some collaborations. Hill has not released any new studio material since 1998's The Miseductaion Of Lauryn Hill. She released the album MTV Unplugged No. 2.0 in 2002. The Fugees reunited briefly initially in 2004, but despite a new album to be rumored, member Pras said this year that the reunion was "straight dead" and that Hill had "some issues she needs to deal with," reports MTV News. Hill will also play a number of live dates across the world, including a sole U.K. date on July 7.

It's really hard for real artists like Rhymefest to get airplay on major stations but that don't mean they shouldn't fight to get there and let the wack artists continue polluting the airwaves so I feel Rhymefest there. I also feel Jazzy Jeff's point too that really it's a waste of time to worry about trying to go platinum and really concentrating on making great music should be the main emphasis.

That was a dope interview :signthankspin:

:yeahthat:

I think that this song overall is weak, you could tell LL don't really sound motivated since he's working with rappers that ain't on his level, Kool G Rap's verse was the only thing that stood out in the song

That was a great article, a lot of these sucker mcs need to get their act together

Rappers Eve and Queen Latifah Record Track For Upcoming Series 'Bridging The Gap' By Nolan Strong and Nia B. Date: 6/1/2007 1:45 pm Rappers/actresses Eve and Queen Latifah will be featured on the first episode of Bridging The Gap, a new reality series coming to VH1 which pairs two established artists together with similar passions for music. The two rappers/actresses recently recorded an untitled song for the series, which is being produced by Eve's manager Troy Carter and Charles Alston from the Coalition, an entertainment company Carter formed in 2005 with Tony Davis and Julius "Jay" Erving. In each episode of the half-hour series, two artists that have mutual respect for one another discuss their lives and music during the span of a day, while creating a new song, which is crafted by various producers each show. 'She’s [Queen Latifah] such a dope person and so real," Eve told AllHipHop.com. "She's never changed herself to make it into Hollywood and she’s still been nominated for Oscars and stuff. She’s just an amazing person." Queen Latifah's influence can be heard on Eve's upcoming fourth album, Here I Am, which features guest appearances by Robin Thicke and Mary J. Blige and production from Cool & Dre, Scott Storch, Pharrell, Timbaland and Swizz Beatz. According to Eve, Queen Latifah's encouragement persuaded her to do something even her label Geffen could not accomplish - sing more often. "Recently, she [Queen Latifah] pulled me to the side and she said, 'you better start singing now. Don’t be scared of who you are,'" Eve revealed. "So on this album, I’m singing a whole song. My record label has been trying to get me to sing, but I wasn’t really into it. I ended up doing it and it turned out to be my favorite song on the album." Here I Am is due in stores Aug. 7., while VH1's Bridging The Gap has no listed air date as of press time.

:signthankspin:

Yeah he pretty much summed it up, MP3s are really popular now but CDs won't be going out of circulation anytime soon

Well I posted on the XXL forum there, on the most part there's good feedback I notice

Hey scyhigh, it's been awhile man, I read that on espn.com recently too, that's dope

Definately looking forward to getting this album, btw check out this new KRS interview from allhiphop.com: KRS-One: Classic By Omar Burgess A quick trip down memory lane will remind even the most casual of Hip-Hop fan, that at one time commercial endorsements were taboo. The popular commercial of a bankrupt MC Hammer elicits laughs now, but last decade he was virtually shamed out of the industry after pitching everything from soda to buckets of fried chicken—of course, the “genie pants” sure didn’t help things either. In 1995 the self-proclaimed “true heads” cried foul when KRS-One teamed up with Nike to recreate Gil Scott Heron’s classic “The Revolution Won’t Be Televised.” If “The Blastmaster” could pitch Prince Be off of a stage and pitch shoes for Phil Knight within the same three-year span, was it okay for Hip-Hop to get involved with major corporations? In today’s era of copyrighted ringtones, where even C-List artists and backpackers keep track of their Soundscan numbers, no one is asking that question anymore. In fact, when a Nike commissioned collaboration with Kanye West, Nas and Rakim debuted on this very site and others like it, the Ill Community had virtually all positive feedback. Was the “The Teacha” a hypocrite or merely ahead of his time? Scroll down to find out from the man himself—just watch out for the ads. AllHipHop.com: The “Classic” collaboration has your name making headlines again. How did this come about? KRS-One: I’d like to start with my man Dru Ha [co-CEO of Duck Down Records]. According to the legend they were asked by Nike to put this project together and a couple of names were thrown around. I don’t even think my name was one of the first mentioned, but after the argument ensued and things happened I guess it fell to myself. Kanye was first, then Nas, then myself and then Rakim. I guess it happened out of an argument of, “Who should be on the track?” Dru Ha fought for me and said, “Yo, I think KRS should be on this,” and obviously Dru Ha won his argument. KRS was on the project. Here’s the icing on the cake, another executive at Nike was DJ Clark Kent. We were at the concert, and at this point, I’m already in. I had signed the contract and accepted the check. I went in the studio and voiced my piece, and now I’m at the concert that we did on 34th Street. I asked him why did they chose me, and he looked at me with that look like, “C’mon man you can’t be serious,” and he just walked away. I said, “Alright…f**k him [laughing] let me get the answer from Nike.” I had to know why they wanted KRS-One. I don’t have no records out, I’m not a video guy, I’m not platinum, and as a matter of fact, I’m pretty controversial. I’m that guy, so why would a white bread company like Nike wanna work with me? That’s when all these answers started coming in. Obviously Dru Ha went to bat for me. AllHipHop.com: Did you guys get to record the vocals together? KRS-One: I didn’t get to record with any of the artists personally. I did get to rehearse for the concert with Kanye, and Rakim and I did another show about two months later for a separate show with Doug E. Fresh. AllHipHop.com: You caught a lot of heat for your Nike ad in 1995. Was there any hesitation on your part? KRS-One: Once I found out it was for Nike, I grilled everyone—Nike, Cornerstone, Dru Ha—on Hip-Hop and what this project really means to Hip-Hop and what it’s all about. Of course it’s Nike, so the money was there, and the promotion was there. We did the thing for MTV live and the crew was there. I was more interested in how the project benefits Hip-Hop since that’s my stance on everything. AllHipHop.com: That’s a win-win, but it’s not like this was done for free, right? KRS-One: After talking to Dru I realized that this was beneficial to both Hip-Hop and KRS-One. I obviously need the promotion from two different angles, both as KRS-One and on behalf of The Temple Of Hip-Hop. My angle is the promotion and the money, let me not front on that. We were definitely compensated and treated with respect and it was dope. We got free gear—me my kids, wife and the whole family. To be in the company of Nas, Rakim and Kanye was humbling in and of itself. I had to get on that. If they said the record was free, I would have still participated because that was a moment of emceeing. When you have Kanye, Nas and Rakim, what am I gonna do, say, “No”? The fact that we are all on a joint, regardless of the money or the promotion, is what drew me in. Me and Rakim have been talking about this for 20 years; every time I see Rakim we’re both like, “When are we getting in the studio?” Finally we get a chance to get this close to each other. I love Rakim’s rhyme when he says, “Uptowns we call em upppies when they on divas/probably wear ‘em when KRS-One teaches.” Rakim did his thing by incorporating us all into his rhyme, knowing that he was going to be the last to rhyme. There was a lot of emceeing mastery behind the scenes that we’ll get into later. AllHipHop.com: Your album is Hip-Hop Lives. Did you and Nas get into the debate over whether Hip-Hop is dead or not? KRS-One: As a matter of fact, Nas ran up on me and said, “Let me tell you what this is gonna be about before it even comes out,” and I cut Nas off. I said, “Don’t explain anything, because your [album] cover revitalized Hip-Hop.” Sometimes we don’t know what we got until it’s gone. What Nas did was declare Hip-Hop dead, so everyone went, “No it’s not; it can’t be!” That now is the statement that helps it to live. Before Nas said Hip-Hop is dead, it was dead. Everyone was blinging, drinking, smoking, f**king, sucking and doing whatever they wanted to do. And they were teaching it to our children at the same time. You can believe Hip-Hop was dead. Now that Nas declared it, it came back alive because no one wants to see it die. Nas invited me to a party that Kelis was throwing him about a week later. I checked my schedule and I couldn’t make it, but I recorded an exclusive song for him mixtape style. Marley Marl produced this track and we gave it to Nas as an exclusive for his party. I think Marley leaked the record to the Internet, so it’s floating around out there somewhere. One of the lines on that record is, “Nas Hip-Hop can’t be dead/you brought it back with the words you said.” Nas is Hip-Hop, and as long as he is walking the earth Hip-Hop cannot die. Just to go a little further and end that, Marley and I did an album called Hip-Hop Lives—obvious title. That’s a project in and of itself: 20 years from 1987 through 2007. AllHipHop.com: So The Bronx and Queensbridge come full circle? KRS-One: Exactly, and let me show you the karma of it. Nas is from Queensbridge. Why is it at this stage that Nas drops the Hip-Hop is Dead album? We’re dealing with death, from 1987 through 2007. Scott La Rock was killed in 1987 as well. It was Scott’s death that brought the Hip-Hop community together. It was actually after Scott’s death that we realized we were a community because people were shocked that a rapper could actually be killed. This was the first time that it ever happened. So, you look at that, and in 1987 we’re dealing with death and rebirth. Out of Scott’s death KRS-One is born. Out of that battle situation, a guy who would be the advocate for peace in Hip-Hop is born. Imagine the advocate for peace coming out of battles, intense violence, shootouts, fights and who knows what else we were involved in back then. That’s all ’87 and the karma of that, but Hip-Hop grew for those 20 years. Now we’re in 2007, miraculously, me and Marley get together. It’s got nothing to do with Nas, [MC] Shan, [Roxanne] Shanté, none of them or even Queensbridge in general. It was just the fact that we are recognizing the 20th anniversary of Boogie Down Productions. We thought it would be a cool thing if Marley Marl did the whole KRS-One album. It was not only for historic and karmic purposes, but also for Hip-Hop and cultural purposes. These two guys who were rivals, because to this day our history is one of being rivals in that sense, were coming together. It’s like Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier—you only want to see them beating each other in the ring—but, in real life, I’m quite sure he must’ve paid Muhammad Ali’s rent a few times. They get down like that. Me, Marley, Shan, Shanté and Kane have all been like that for the past 20 years on a personal level, not just emceeing. I helped Kane move to his house in Brooklyn some years ago. It goes on and on. Hip-Hop Lives, the new album by Marley Marl and myself drops May 22. I bring that up because that album is a part of everything that’s going on. Is it a coincidence that just as I’m about to release my May 22 album with Marley Marl producing it, on the 20th anniversary of Boogie Down Productions, now Nike wants to come up and do this record? This gives me free promotion. There are people out there who don’t know who I am? No doubt. These people are into Hip-Hop, that may be almost impossible, but…There are those out there who are into Hip-Hop and will tell you, “Hey, I’m into Hip-Hop,” but their reference point is Chingy or Lil’ Wayne. I don’t knock that at all. I’d rather go live in the South, which I did, where Hip-Hop is still alive and people are walking around like it’s the ‘80s. It gets kind of aggravating sometimes because the South can be really slow sometimes, but on the other hand, you kind of need that slowness. That’s what everybody is crying about. Where’s the Hip-Hop from the Golden Age? Go to the South [laughing]. You got people who are still playing cassettes and it’s 2007, dog! AllHipHop.com: Another artist that instantly comes to mind when you think of this project and karma is Nelly. It’s kind of ironic that you two had a battle and he did the “Air Force Ones” song, yet Nike chose you for this campaign. KRS-One: It was me, Clark Kent and Kid Capri and I pulled Clark Kent to the side and asked him, “Why me and not Nelly?” Nelly did a full song called “Air Force Ones.” Nike has a variety of shoes, and Nelly did a million dollar video and advertised the Air Force One. You know what Nike said? Nike was like, “So.” I felt bad, I felt guilty, like, “Wow. You did a whole song, promoted their sneaker for a year and that sneaker is part of your musical catalogue. You have to sing about that sneaker for the rest of your life and Nike said, ‘So. He’s not special to us right now. He’s not important.’” This is the biggest…I mean, Nelly is Nelly. I’m not dissing him at all because we squashed our little thing. Big up to Nelly, and I hope he has success for the rest of his career. I’m not saying that out of sarcasm, but I seriously mean it. I hope he goes on. But, when I look at this…You did the “Air Force Ones” song, video and everything. And now with the Air Force One 25th anniversary and everything Nike doesn’t even consider you. AllHipHop.com: One of the quotes that came out during your battle with Nelly was that you thought there wasn’t an equal platform anymore because people in Corporate America, radio, etc. didn’t recognize your contributions to Hip-Hop. KRS-One: I’ll tell you this. Hip-Hop heard it. I’m experiencing a breath of fresh air right now. I’ve been doing my thing on the so-called underground since 1997. I make a very good life and I don’t complain. I stay away from radio, television and all that s**t because I think it’s the devil. But, I cannot deny the truth. KRS…actually Rakim, X-Clan, Poor Righteous Teachers, The Coup, Public Enemy all of us are experiencing a rebirth. Something came out in The New York Times. One of the biggest Brazilian Hip-Hop artists in the world [Guiné Silva] is doing a Hip-Hop workshop. The person was quoted as saying, “We don’t want Puff Daddy, we want someone like Public Enemy.” This all speaks to that breath of fresh air coming up. Our children are growing up and our movement was successful. They did get it.