#its also to celebrate 50 years of Hip-Hop

[rawstfish]

Oh these bitches getting mad at CoD for adding rappers literally shut the fuck up

[ausetkmt]

Bobby Carter is slowly changing the music industry, one genre-bending performance at a time. As the Senior Producer for NPR Music’s Tiny Desk Concerts, he’s brought on an increasingly-growing roster of emerging artists, big names, and icons to the company’s headquarters in Washington, D.C. to perform not only for the building’s employees, but for an audience of millions worldwide.

The St. Louis native’s journey has been long and arduous, but fulfilling, to say the least. “I’ve been at NPR for 23 years,” Carter tells ESSENCE. “But my route to where I am now was a bit unconventional; I started out as an intern in the summer of 2000. I was in the digital media space at the time, my job was to edit our content for the web stream. I spearheaded or managed our live streams – and this predated Tiny Desk.”

“I knew at some point I wanted to get involved with music at NPR, but that opportunity wasn’t there yet until NPR Music came along,” he continues. “I slowly started to drift over into the music space by writing pieces here and there, and contributing to our year-end content. In 2014, that’s when I produced my very first Tiny Desk concert, and three years later I was officially over with Tiny Desk in a formal role.”

Since his full transition to Tiny Desk in 2017, Carter has developed partnerships with Complexcon, and HBO’s Insecure, along with creating new initiatives to grow and diversify the program’s reach. He’s also known for further innovating the Tiny Desk Concert Series with artists such as Usher, H.E.R., Anderson.Paak, Jazmine Sullivan, Kirk Franklin, and more. The process of choosing musicians for the now-iconic performance platform has shifted from the time of its inception, but for Carter, he’s more hands on than ever.

“Well, early on it was a lot of us pursuing artists from our end and selling artists on what the concept is and getting them to come and play,” describes the Jackson State University graduate. “Fast-forward to now, it’s pretty much a two-way street. Tiny Desk, as you’re aware of, has become a phenomenon of sorts, where artists and labels know at this point that it’s a vehicle for promoting music and selling music.”

While many musicians feel that Tiny Desk is critical to promoting their music, Carter has found that the promotion of Black music has been equally as important. “I’m really passionate about helping to tell the story of Black music, because the story of Black music is the story of American music, if you ask me,” he says. With the month of June being Black Music Month, NPR has observed it by honoring Black music’s influence through various mediums, and highlighting its impact so that the story is told properly.

“You can’t tell the history of music without black people,” the veteran DJ says. “What we’re trying to do here at the Tiny Desk with Black Music Month is to really present that in a way that shows us in different lights. You have R&B, gospel, etc.; there’s just so many layers to black music that have made American music what it is today. It’s a story that isn’t told enough, it can never be told enough.”

Outside of jazz the only other true artform produced in the country is hip-hop, which celebrates its 50th anniversary this year. During his earlier days at the platform, Carter speaks about the “internal conflict” that he has dealt with to get people to recognize that hip-hop and artists like Gucci Mane also need to be heard in a space like NPR. 

“I think that there is a struggle to be sure that every single perspective is heard, and understand that whether or not a they’re a street MC or a trap artist or a neo soul artist, that they all belong, their perspective deserves to be heard at the Tiny Desk, as long as the performance is right,” he says. There were people who were uncomfortable with a Gucci Mane at the Tiny Desk, given his history and whatnot. But he served his time for his wrongs, and he has been the ultimate redemption story.”

The Atlanta rapper’s appearance on Tiny Desk altered the trajectory of what the concert series was, helping to catapult it to the successful platform that it ultimately became. “I think that Gucci Mane, that Tiny Desk was a big, big game changer for the Tiny Desk in terms of hip hop, because it showed other artists in his lane that, ‘We can come and we can do our thing here too,’” Carter states, before pausing briefly.

He continues by saying, “There is an internal fight, because a lot of times people want to feel comfortable, they don’t want to feel threatened by hip hop. But if you’re a little uncomfortable, that’s okay – maybe it’s just not for you, but it is for somebody.” After Gucci’s performance in 2016, Tiny Desk featured Chance the Rapper, Big K.R.I.T., Rakim, Lizzo, Megan Thee Stallion, and Trina, among others; bolstering the fact that the genre is still strong, and is here to stay.

Throughout the years, many legendary performances have taken place behind the desk of the All Songs Considered’s host Bob Boilen. Tiny Desk has risen to the heights of popularity, and is now a staple in today’s culture. Carter, who helped build it to what it is today, understands the task at hand, and knows how special this platform is. “I feel like it’s part of my duty to continue to do this,” he says. Not only continuing to push current stars and rising artists to the forefront, but also giving flowers to legends like El Debarge, Patti LaBelle, Charlie Wilson, Kenneth “Babyface” Edmonds, and more.

“I think that it helps to bridge that gap and it helps to bring the youth over to these legendary legacy artists, and to remind them of their greatness,” Carter explains. “I think a lot of times  when I bring some of the artists that I bring to the Tiny Desk, this should serve as a reminder of their status in music.”

“So, I feel the ultimate responsibility, from a cultural standpoint, is to show people and use our huge audience to spread awareness about these artists,” he continues. “To grow and continue to be a voice for black culture, and for diversity as a whole.”

[cyarsk52-20]

Willie Nelson, Missy Elliott, George Michael, and More: Here Are the 2023 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Inductees The outlaw legend, the rap queen, and few of this year’s inductees will perform at the ceremony, which takes place on November 3 at Brooklyn’s Barclays Center.

Read in Apple Music: https://apple.news/AB90kvpQXSA2fEnSoLwl1hg

Shared from Apple News

2023 ROCK & ROLL HALL OF FAME

Willie Nelson, Missy Elliott, George Michael, and More: Here Are the 2023 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Inductees

The outlaw legend, the rap queen, and few of this year’s inductees will perform at the ceremony, which takes place on November 3 at Brooklyn’s Barclays Center.

The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame has announced its 2023 inductees, which include a classic Motown act, a reclusive post-punk goddess, a militant agitprop alt-rock band, and, finally, a 90-year-old country and pop-culture titan. Willie Nelson, George Michael, Missy Elliott, Sheryl Crow, Rage Against the Machine, The Spinners, and Kate Bush will all officially join the institution and receive their well-deserved honors as part of the induction ceremony at Brooklyn’s Barclays Center on November 3.

In addition to these incredible talents, the Hall of Fame will also highlight several musicians and industry champions with additional accolades. The recipients of this year’s Musical Excellence Awards—for artists, musicians, songwriters, and producers whose originality and influence have had a dramatic impact on music—are the reigning Queen of Funk, Chaka Khan; prolific songwriter and longtime Elton John musical partner Bernie Taupin; and Al Kooper, the renowned multi-instrumentalist, producer, Bob Dylan collaborator, and Lynyrd Skynyrd discoverer. Hip-hop pioneer DJ Kool Herc and influential guitarist Link Wray will each receive the Musical Influence Award, designated for artists whose style has directly influenced, inspired, and evolved rock ’n’ roll and music impacting youth culture. The Ahmet Ertegun Award, a distinction for non-performing industry professionals, will posthumously honor Soul Traincreator and TV host and producer Don Cornelius, who passed away in 2012.

Explore essential tracks from some of the 2023 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductees below, and tune in to our live broadcast on Apple Music 1, where Apple Music radio hosts Ebro Darden, Rebecca Judd, Matt Wilkinson, Brooke Reese, and Kelleigh Bannen will be joined by Crow and Taupin to discuss their achievements and this year’s celebration.

Willie Nelson

THE BRAIDS, THE smile, the trusty guitar named Trigger, the impassioned activism, the unabashed passion for all things cannabis (and his song about it, “Roll Me Up and Smoke Me When I Die”)—there’s a lot to love about Willie Nelson, and fans all over the world can give you several reasons why they’re still showing up to see him sing well into his 90th year. He may have gotten his start singing country western tunes in the ’50s and ’60s, but Nelson hit his stride in the ’70s when he bucked the conventions of Nashville’s Music Row to make the stripped-down country music hewanted to make, the sort that sounded much more at home in a crowded honky-tonk than the Grand Ole Opry. Then, he found kindred spirits in Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings, Kris Kristofferson, and other artists who became the founding fathers of outlaw country, and now he’s mentored and played with younger generations of musicians who keep the outlaw spirit alive in their own way, like Margo Price, Jason Isbell, and Sturgill Simpson. At 90, Nelson’s voice may be a bit more gravelly than it was in his Red Headed Stranger days, but he’s still strumming Trigger with abandon any chance he gets.

George Michael

GEORGE MICHAEL ROSE to fame in the ’80s as one half of the feather-haired duo Wham!, who churned out some of the catchiest radio hits of the decade—namely the jubilant “Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go,” the bittersweet modern holiday ballad “Last Christmas,” and “Careless Whisper,” the sultry single possessing one of the most memorable sax solos of all time. His velvety tenor, boyish charm, and melodic instincts as a songwriter secured his pop star status in Wham!’s heyday, but Michael’s star went supernova with 1987’s Faith, his debut solo album. The title track is one of his eight singles to hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart; the other seven include his duet with Aretha Franklin, “I Knew You Were Waiting (For Me),” and a version of Elton John’s “Don’t Let the Sun Go Down on Me” that features both Michael and the Rocket Man himself. In 1998, Michael came out as a gay man, and he was a vocal advocate for the LGBTQ+ community and HIV/AIDS prevention efforts throughout his career. Fans were stunned when Michael passed away unexpectedly in 2016 at the age of 53, but his songs—and his legacy—endure.

Missy Elliott

THERE HAS NOT been a woman rapper in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame—until now. “Get Ur Freak On,” “Pass That Dutch,” “Lose Control,” “Work It”—there was a stretch in the early 2000s when Missy Elliott’s beats and bars were inescapable. Her music videos—especially the clip for 1997’s breakthrough single “The Rain (Supa Dupa Fly),” in which she transformed a trash bag into an unforgettable ensemble—were in constant rotation on MTV. Her songs were omnipresent on radio, and earned her a collection of the industry’s highest accolades (including four Grammys and several MTV Video Music Awards). She’s an exceptional rapper, as well as a production genius and lauded songwriter (and one who’s been officially honored by the Songwriters Hall of Fame). She’s collaborated with some of the most beloved hitmakers in R&B and pop at large: Aaliyah, Jennifer Hudson, Jazmine Sullivan, Ciara, Nelly Furtado, and many more. In short: Missy Elliott is, and has been, a force to be reckoned with, an MC who can do it all with infinite crossover appeal. And now, to top it all off, she’s making history.

Sheryl Crow

IT’S BEEN NEARLY 30 years since the release of Tuesday Night Music Club, Sheryl Crow’s debut album, and yet its tunes—“All I Wanna Do,” her first single; the frank and fed-up “Can’t Cry Anymore”; the sparse and stunning “Strong Enough”—remain some of the most beloved in her catalog. That says something, given how busy Crow’s been since: 10 albums followed, as have several songs as beloved as that first batch, from the snarling “If It Makes You Happy” and the profound “Everyday Is a Winding Road” to “Prove You Wrong,” her country-rock anthem featuring Stevie Nicks and Maren Morris. Her writing has always drawn as much from classic rock and folk as it has the licks and conventions of country, and as such she’s carved out a place entirely her own with one foot firmly planted in each genre: She’s as much at home in the studio with Chris Stapleton as she is with Justin Timberlake, and her songwriting chops—not to mention her crystal-clear voice—soar beyond the confines of genre. 

Rage Against the Machine

RAGE AGAINST THE Machine has been previously nominated for entry into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame four times, but the fifth time’s the charm for the righteously deafening rock mainstays. Since forming in 1991, the four-piece has made heavy protest tracks their calling card, with 1992’s unfiltered breakout track “Killing in the Name” and subsequent singles—like “Bulls on Parade,” “Guerilla Radio,” and “Sleep Now in the Fire”—all speaking truth to power while shining a glaring spotlight on the myth of American exceptionalism. Read Rage Against the Machine’s statement regarding their induction in full here:

It is a surprising trajectory for us to be welcomed into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. In 1991 four people in Los Angeles formed a musical group to stand where sound and solidarity intersect. We called ourselves Rage Against the Machine.  A band who is as well known for our albums as we are for our fierce opposition to the US war machine, white supremacy and exploitation  A band whose songs drove alternative radio to new heights while right wing media companies tried to purge every song we ever wrote from the airwaves A band who shut down the NY Stock Exchange for the first time in its history A band who was targeted by police organizations who attempted to ban us from sold out arenas for raising our voices to free Mumia Abu Jamal, Leonard Peltier and other political prisoners  A band who sued the US State Department for their fascist practice of using our music to torture innocent men in Guantanamo Bay A band who wrote rebel songs in an abandoned, industrial warehouse in the valley that would later dethrone Simon Cowell ’s X-Factor pop monopoly to occupy the number 1 spot on the UK charts and have the most downloaded song in UK history  A band who funded and organized delegations to stand with Mexican rebel Zapatista communities to expose the Mexican government’s war on indigenous people A band whose experimentation in fusing punk, rock and hip-hop became a genre of its own Many thanks to the Hall of Fame for recognizing the music and the mission of Rage Against the Machine. We are grateful to all of the passionate fans, the many talented co-conspirators we’ve worked with and all the activists, organizers, rebels and revolutionaries past, present and future who have inspired our art.

The Spinners

“I’LL BE AROUND,” the immediately recognizable hit from R&B and soul crooners The Spinners, is a groove with with a unique cultural footprint. You can’t hear the subtle drums and telltale chords without humming the chorus in your head: “Whenever you call me, I’ll be there/Whenever you want me, I’ll be there/Whenever you need me, I’ll be there/I’ll be around.” The Spinners are one of a few Detroit soul groups who truly found their groove by leaving Motown. On that label they hit with Stevie Wonder’s “It’s a Shame,” but it took a hook-up with Philadelphia maestro Thom Bell to bring out their best. Bell’s smooth and sumptuous productions were the blueprint for Philly soul, and The Spinners’ Philippe Wynne had the voice to match. Lightly funkified love ballads became their trademark, but they could also draw from gospel on “Mighty Love” and do social commentary on “Ghetto Child.”

Kate Bush

THOUGH FANS OF Kate Bush have been blasting Hounds of Love and the rest of her greatest hits for decades, the reclusive British singer-songwriter saw an unlikely resurgence when her 1985 single “Running Up That Hill” was worked into the supernatural plot of Netflix’s hit series Stranger Things last summer. It’s hardly surprising that younger audiences connected with its driving drums and synth-laden, discordant chorus, nor is it shocking that Bush’s robust voice continues to stun listeners when they encounter her signature song—or “This Woman’s Work,” or “Wuthering Heights,” or anything else in her repertoire—for the first time. The list of famous Bush fans is long, and it counts everyone from Adele and Björk to ROSAL��A and Solange, not to mention several artists previously honored by the Rock Hall (like Stevie Nicks, who considered recording her own version of “Running Up That Hill” before realizing she “can’t really do that song better than Kate Bush did”). 

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Congratulations 🍾🎉🎊🎈 to this year’s 2023 rock and roll hall of fame!

⭐️George Michael

⭐️Sheryl Crow

⭐️Willie Nelson

⭐️Missy Elliott

⭐️Kate Bush

⭐️The Spinners

⭐️Rage Against the Machine

⭐️Chaka Khan

⭐️Al Kooper

⭐️Bernie Taupin

⭐️DJ Kool Herc

⭐️Link Wray

⭐️Don Cornelius

[reasoningdaily]

For Catherine Morris, the founder and executive director of the Boston Art and Music Soul Festival, Franklin Park is a sacred ground of sorts. The site is home to Elma Lewis Playhouse in the Park, an open-air performance venue that has hosted Black artists since 1966. The park's tie to Black history is one of the reasons Morris decided to host BAMS Fest there. “Franklin Park is ground zero for us because of Elma Lewis,” she says. “I stand on her shoulders.”

Lewis, a famed Black Boston arts educator and organizer, created Playhouse in the Park in the 1960s to serve marginalized communities in Boston. BAMS Fest is a festival that continues the tradition set forth by Lewis — taking up space in one of Boston’s central locations to celebrate Black people and Black art. “We need to think about how our people experience a green space, as Black and brown bodies,” Morris says. “It's fertile ground. It's native ground. All those things we need to be in tune with.”

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These concepts shaped what would become the first annual BAMS Fest in 2018, where two stages featured musical acts at Franklin Park. The festival also had vendors, street artists, resource tents and more. Around 2,200 people attended the first BAMS Fest. Five years later, the festival is expecting close to 15,000 people.

In the past, BAMS Fest has been a free, one-day experience. This year, that will change. “What's been remarkable is the decision to scale, going from one day to basically three days,” says Morris. “We start with the inaugural BAMS CONX conference, centering Black imagination, entrepreneurship, connection and unity at the Berklee College of Music.” Patrons can expect to hear discussions on topics like equity in music, songwriting, sneaker culture and more. The conference will feature creatives and industry leaders, including drummer and composer Terri Lyne Carrington and journalist Dyana Williams, co-creator of Black Music Month.

“We have chefs. We have food trucks. We have a dedicated kids' zone, which is called 'Kids Play.' We have Black and brown face painters; we have dance,” Morris says. “We have a vendor market. We have over 50 Black and brown nonprofits and businesses. And we added a job fair this year.” To celebrate the 50th anniversary of hip-hop, Grandmaster Flash will close the festival, followed by an afterparty at Chez-Vous Roller Skating Rink.

One other marked difference from years before is the addition of a tiered ticketing system. Buying the BAMS Fam Access Pass at $225, for example, gives visitors access to the entire lineup of events offered during the festival, along with priority seating at Saturday’s events. The new ticketing model was an important decision as the fest moves toward an end goal of expanding and offering more to patrons.

“As a nonprofit organization, as a cultural movement that started from zero to get to where we are, the tiered ticketing model allows for people to support,” Morris points out. “The sustainability of continuing our tradition requires investment. It requires investment from the business community, from the local community, from the arts community.”

However, “there will always be a portion of this that will remain free to the public,” Morris says. Patrons who cannot buy a tiered ticket can always register for free to experience the music, art, vendors and more at Saturday’s festival at Playstead Park. At the end of the day, Morris wants visitors to feel free: “Feel free to take off your shoes. You should feel free to be able to run. You should feel free to be able to do a cartwheel. You should feel free to dance."

One of the musicians taking the stage this year on Friday night is Tim Hall, a Boston-based musician. He’s been playing the saxophone since he was 9 years old and now teaches other musicians at Berklee College of Music as an assistant professor in the professional music department. He's also the co-owner of the digital media company HipStory.

Hall has played on a multitude of stages and at many shows but his upcoming performance at BAMS Fest will be his largest to date as a featured artist. "It's very emotional to now find myself performing, not as a sideman, not a session musician for somebody else, but to do my own music at the festival," Hall says. "It's been an emotional experience."

Hall worked at BAMS Fest in different roles between 2015 and 2021. Although he’s no longer working with the nonprofit on the business side, he still feels BAMS Fest is essential for musicians like him. Not only does the festival offer an opportunity to play on one of its two stages, but "there is an educational component to working with artists. It wasn't just like 'Submit your art or submit your profile,'” says Hall. BAMS Fest sought to create active platforms for artists to develop professionally.

But both Hall and Morris point out that the city is still lacking major music venues and spaces that allow for expansive expressions of Black music and culture. Because hip-hop is included in the festival, Morris says she's run into barriers like insurance companies refusing to cover it. “There is a level of tension or trepidation with law enforcement about a potential, you know, gang affiliation.” The festival pays a higher premium because of assumptions about hip-hop. “It's something we have to deal with every single year,” says Morris.

The question of whether or not Boston is hostile to hip-hop has been raised again and again by musicians and festival organizers like Morris. WBUR's Amelia Mason reported in 2018 that hip-hop artists, DJs and event coordinators faced heightened difficulties when trying to book acts or ran into roadblocks when trying to execute hip-hop themed events.

For Morris, it makes the work BAMS Fest is doing even more important. “We're more than a festival,” she says. “Everything from challenging our city government around the permitting process, how Boston police are involved in the permitting process. There are a lot of us giving our lives to the work so that future curators and producers and organizations don't have to go through what we are experiencing right now.”

Despite the hurdles, the outcome is worth it. As Morris says, BAMS Fest is more than just a festival — it's a movement. “Doing a multidisciplinary intergenerational festival that feeds people, gives them nourishment, something they can be proud about starts to change the attitude about what's possible and will hopefully inspire the next generation to go bigger,” says Morris.

[freeworldallahmbaclass]

Well it is official I got an invite from the King and Queen you know my two leading ladies from Hip Hop that is my arm pieces that is a given they gave that to me for me being a sincere fan of those ladies truth their husbands or boyfriends would step aside and gesture me to those Queen ladies those the ones I'm trying to get with , my ladies and women friend one from Trinidad Nicki and the other from the Bronx see here there she look like Cardi B Meagan wow what is it going to be like working for them and with them that is a lot of books to learn from also and audio and video to do research from I'm feeling real optimistic about the future my personal training no eyes there please alot of pounds to lose and make something something of myself just a joke I'm happy so happy my life turned out good I hope I don't flop or be a disaster and not go meet them they called for me asked for me and invited me the King and Queen of the British empire that is big I'm amazing I do it from the weirdest places then again I'm the first of my kind a comeback and alot of people don't really mess with me no more they not into like a person getting a second chance at a good life so I gotta go it alone then turn around and hire them like their my star employees that I gotta draft then train them and teach them how to do the job that is funny so I'm coming back from alot alot of things like wow darn you gotta love it , thanks I love you so much its been one wild ride in my time here on earth . I'm gone got to go do my training in a private location and go to business school and a step by step normal life see you soon I hope . I must let you know that I gotta struggle to get there the top of the world I'm royalty a king true how do I say this baby I'm the man from New York City and I run it without a job but I'm black listed because of my politics not about race because I'm not racist it means even my own community won't celebrate the fact of all I do for the hood so that is what I mean even my own like shun neglect to help me and try to leave me in the dumps and won't help me get off the ground in life and I run it mean not like how gang members run it I respect them they got their own lane and where at the same table and got a mutual friend 50 Cent were different though and we're cool and to intelligently explain how I am my priorities are mixed up and I used to have poor job skills but I'm learning I get mines from books I don't drink or do drugs and yes I did legalize marijuana weed but as soon I did a year later I Quit smoking myself and I still stand by it legalize it and hopefuuly city law enforcers like politicians leave it alone and put no restrictions on weed sales or locking people for possession for simple as marijuana or the sale of it something as harmless as marijuana I do say that people that use it or sell it need to be more responsible because drugs are quote unquote dangerous and alot of other crimes happen because of drugs while under the influence of a narcotic like while working and your high don't that's dangerous and selling around kids be careful man no good parents bug out over that they don't want their kids doing drugs they want them have a future to them whatever and chill when you do you aight don't like act up you caught get them put more restrictions on it but I'm asking them to take the restrictions of off my law I passed with the Governor on March 31st , 2021 before he left office I did it for the public you got it and yeah I got to complete my job then I'm off to do me so do you and be an responsible and mature person whatever you do and good luck . So close eyes and watch me do it I'm red hot and good at everything touch so far has been a success and yes curing HIV Aids in Africa will be my biggest accomplishment I want in on that , the miracle man how much miracles I gotta do in front of you dude I'm the guy that legalize marijuana weed that is like wow where they do that at in New York and so much other states now following so my track record is good I'm good and feeling real great right now .

[cyarskj1899]

As hip-hop prepares to turn 50 in 2023, US rapper Nas wants to make sure the world understands its history, relevance and influence.

Lifestyle

US rapper Nas is leading hip-hop’s 50th anniversary celebrations

10 December 2022, 3:36 AM  |

Image: ReutersRapper Nas poses for a photo at Sweet Chick restaurant in Los Angeles, California, US, February 9, 2022.

As hip-hop prepares to turn 50 in 2023, US rapper Nas wants to make sure the world understands its history, relevance and influence.

Through his company, Mass Appeal, the native New Yorker is spearheading numerous events leading up to the anniversary. On August 11, 1973, Clive Campbell, also known as DJ Kool Herc, played at a New York City block party and was credited with starting the music genre.

Tributes will include a series of documentary films produced in conjunction with TV network Showtime, as well as 10 EP soundtracks produced by Swizz Beatz, The-Dream, Hit-Boy and others.

“Hip-Hop was never just music,” said Nas, adding it has always included elements of deejaying, dancing, fashion and other art forms.

It has been a “voice for the voiceless,” he said.

“Now more of the voiceless have a platform, and the people feel like they can be a part of it.”

Mass Appeal CEO Peter Bittenbender said they wanted to create something to make people recognize how impactful hip-hop culture has been globally.

Hip-hop was born in the south section of the New York City borough of the Bronx in the late 1970s. The dancing, rapping and deejaying elements grew out of an inner-city environment but it has since evolved into a multi-billion dollar part of mainstream global culture.

When asked where he thinks hip-hop is going in the next 50 years, Nas was optimistic.

“I hope that it’s still thriving and staying innovative,” he said. “And people are united through hip-hop and awaken about the things that are wrong in our societies through the words of hip-hop.”

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[novumtimes]

American Music Awards 50th Anniversary Special Announce Additional Performers

The American Music Awards’ 50th Anniversary Special has unveiled its star-studded lineup. On Thursday, Oct. 3, CBS and Dick Clark Productions announced the music artists who will be presenting and performing at the anticipated event on Sunday, Oct. 6, which is being held in place of the annual award ceremony in honor of the milestone year. Newly announced performers for the grand special include three-time AMA winner Nelly, Sheila E. and Nile Rodgers & CHIC. The “Hot in Herre” singer will take the stage with Chingy, J-Kwon and St. Lunatics for an homage to ‘hip-hop anthems,” while Nile Rodgers & CHIC will perform their hit song “Le Freak” and Sheila E. will sing “I’m Every Woman” with the already announced performer Chaka Khan. Nelly in Inglewood in June 2022. Paul Archuleta/Getty The broadcast will also welcome special appearances by Reba McEntire, actor Samuel L. Jackson, Kate Hudson, Backstreet Boys alum AJ McLean, Cedric the Entertainer, *NSYNC member Lance Bass and Smokey Robinson. Last month, it was announced that the special will feature performances by Brad Paisley, Gladys Knight, Green Day, Jennifer Hudson, Kane Brown, Mariah Carey, RAYE and Stray Kids. Paisley is set to honor the late country singer Charley Pride, who won the first AMA for country male and country album. He will also perform his new single “Truck Still Works,” which he debuted at the 2024 People’s Choice Country Music Awards. Brad Paisley performs during the 2024 People’s Choice Country Awards. Mickey Bernal/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Additionally, Gladys Knight will perform “Midnight Train to Georgia” in honor of performing at the first-ever AMAs in 1974, and Green Day will perform their new hit “Dilemma.” Jennifer Hudson is set to honor Whitney Houston with a tribute performance; Kane Brown will perform a mix of “classic and current hits,” and Mariah Carey will celebrate 20 years of her record The Emancipation of Mimi. Singer-songwriter RAYE is set to perform “It’s a Man’s Man’s Man’s World” by James Brown, following a retrospective on the American Music Award of Merit, and K-pop group Stray Kids will honor the legacy of boybands. Additional special guests announced in September include 17-time AMA winner Carrie Underwood, Gloria Estefan, Jennifer Lopez, and five-time AMA host Jimmy Kimmel. Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE’s free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.  According to the press release, the evening will “serve as a tribute to the past 50 years and feature dazzling new performances, heartfelt artist interviews, legendary special guests, and exclusive never-before-seen footage from DCP’s extensive archives, highlighting iconic moments that have defined the awards show and shaped pop culture.” American Music Awards’ 50th Anniversary Special airs on CBS and streams on Paramount+ at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT on Sunday, Oct. 6. Source link via The Novum Times

[drinkchamps]

Drink Champs: Where Hip-Hop Meets Candid Talk

Drink Champs is a blockbuster podcast and media platform that has carved out a unique space in the world of Hip Hop and entertainment. Launched in 2016, the show is co-hosted by the legendary rapper N.O.R.E. (formerly Noreaga) and the well-known Miami-based DJ EFN. They bring an unparalleled blend of experience, charisma, and authenticity, creating an engaging and entertaining environment for their guests and listeners. This duo capture some of Hip Hop’s best untold stories from their guests as they sip slow on the most renknowned liquor and champagne brands on the market. 

Origin and Concept

The genesis of Drink Champs lies in the mutual belief N.O.R.E. and DJ EFN share in celebrating and preserving the rich culture of Hip Hop through candid, unscripted conversations with some of the most influential figures in the industry. The concept was simple yet powerful: bring together Hip Hop artists, producers, and other notable personalities over drinks and let the conversation flow naturally. This informal, party-like setting often leads to revealing and heartfelt discussions, giving fans a rare glimpse into the lives and minds of their favorite stars.

Unique Format

What sets Drink Champs apart from other interview-based shows is its distinctive format. The show is known for its relaxed, convivial atmosphere, which is enhanced by the presence of alcohol. The hosts and guests often partake in drinks throughout the episode, which helps break down barriers and encourages open, honest dialogue. This format has proven to be a hit with both guests and audiences, as it fosters a sense of camaraderie and authenticity that is hard to find elsewhere. Drink Champs as N.O.R.E. says on the show is the media outlet for giving artists across Hip Hop their flowers while they can still smell them.

Diverse and Star-Studded Guest List

Over the years, Drink Champs has featured an impressive roster of guests from various facets of the entertainment world. While the primary focus is on Hip Hop artists, DJ’s and producers, the show has also welcomed actors, athletes, comedians, and other celebrities. Some of the notable names who have appeared on Drink Champs include Snoop Dogg, Nas, DMX, P. Diddy, Lil Wayne, Ice Cube, Kanye West, 50 Cent, and many more. These high-profile guests often share stories and insights that have never been heard before, making each episode a must-listen for fans.

Cultural Impact

Drink Champs has made a significant impact on both the podcasting world and the broader Hip Hop culture. The show's success has demonstrated the power of podcasts as a medium for in-depth, long-form interviews and has inspired countless other creators to start their shows. Additionally, Drink Champs has played a crucial role in documenting the history and evolution of Hip Hop, preserving the stories and experiences of the genre's pioneers and current stars for future generations.

Expansion and Multimedia Presence

In addition to the podcast, Drink Champs has expanded its reach through various multimedia channels. The show is available on multiple platforms, including YouTube, where viewers can watch the full video versions of each episode. Drink Champs also has a strong presence on social media, with active accounts on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook, where they engage with fans and share behind-the-scenes content, highlights, and updates.

The Drink Champs website (https://drinkchamps.com/) serves as the central hub for all things related to the show. Visitors can access the latest episodes, browse through an extensive archive of past interviews, and stay updated on upcoming guests and events. The website also features exclusive content, such as articles and special promotions, making it a one-stop destination for fans of the show.

Community and Fan Engagement

A significant aspect of Drink Champs' success is its strong community of fans. The show has cultivated a loyal and engaged audience that actively participates in discussions, shares content, and supports the hosts and their guests. This sense of community is further strengthened by the interactive elements of the show, such as live broadcasts, fan questions, and social media interactions.

So Why check out Drink Champs?

Drink Champs stands out as a trailblazing podcast that celebrates Hip Hop culture through genuine, unfiltered conversations. Its unique format, star-studded guest list, and cultural impact have cemented its place as a beloved and influential platform in the entertainment world. As the show continues to grow and evolve, it remains dedicated to honoring the legacy of Hip Hop and providing fans with unparalleled access to their favorite artists and personalities. If you haven’t yet, go check out an episode of the show today www.drinkchamps.com.

[ragingrainbow]

The Rise and Shine of Hip Hop Jewelry

Hip-hop jewelry has experienced a tremendous increase in popularity over the last few years, so much so that it is almost easy to forget that the phrase hip hop originated learn more from the music scene rather than from the fashion or jewelry scene.

Bling jewelry is distinctive in its extravagant use of diamonds, and hip hop jewelry is sometimes referred to as bling jewelry or even bling-bling jewelry.  Its one distinctive feature is the impression of sheer extravagance and success that emanates from the 'iced up' appearance of diamond encrusted pieces, and the sparkle and sheer lavishness of it.

The reason that hip hop jewelry or bling jewelry has become so incredibly popular in recent years is as a direct result of the many well known celebrities that have adorned themselves with extravagant jewelry, most of whom come from either the hip hop music scene or the rap music scene.  Some of the most well-known hip-hop and rap musicians or celebrities are 50 Cent and Eminem, both of whom are instantly recognizable if for no other reason than the fact that they are adorned in a tremendous amount of large, chunky jewelry which takes on the appearance of being encrusted with a wealth of diamonds.

Children and young people are always keen to emulate the styles and fashions of their idols, particularly from the world of music.  With hip-hop and rap musicians helping to celebrate the bling style of jewelry, many children and young people are keen to emulate this style and fashion.  Of course it isn't easy to be able to replicate the style of a pop star, when a pop star can afford contemporary or bling jewelry costing many thousands of dollars.

However, the fashion industry has responded by being able to produce a wide range of hip hop jewelry and bling jewelry at a tremendous range of prices that involve smaller and fewer diamonds and other stones.  This has resulted in the enormous range of fashionable jewelry items for young people that are extremely affordable.  For those who can afford more elitist jewelry, then there are plenty of bling bling jewelry items and accessories available which are every bit as expensive as they seem.

Some of the most popular hip hop jewelry items include rings, necklaces and bracelets.  Typically many of these items are referred to as iced out, which effectively means that the jewelry is designed to give the impression of many dozens or even hundreds of very small diamonds paving large sections of the jewelry.  At the top end of the hip-hop jewelry market these diamonds become increasingly larger, and as prices drop they become smaller, but more numerous.  That is because a single two carat diamond is far more valuable than twenty small diamonds of .1 carat each.

Another very popular item of hip hop jewelry is the watch, and these come in many different styles for both ladies and gentlemen.  In keeping with the general style of bling bling jewelry, these hip-hop watches are large, chunky and usually covered in diamonds, or at least designed in a way which gives this impression.  Just as with the popular items such as bracelets and necklaces, these bling watches are also available as both very affordable items of fashion jewelry, all the way up to lavishly expensive designer watches.

The main appeal of bling jewelry and hip-hop jewelry is the fact that it gives a very clear, distinctive and unmissable message to anyone who happens to see, or even glance at, the individual wearing the items.  No one can fail to notice somebody who is wearing such jewelry.  Many of the rap and hip-hop celebrities, such as P. Diddy or Sean Combs wear such a tremendous amount of hip hop jewelry that it would be hard to imagine how they could adorn themselves with any more, and many young people are keen to achieve the same effect, whilst not spending vast amounts of money.

[lizzygrantarchives]

Billboard, August 22, 2019

With her new album, 'Norman Fucking Rockwell,' the singer makes her most adventurous and candid music yet -- and leads Billboard's list of the 38 most-anticipated things about music this fall.

YOU’VE GOT TO CLIMB THE HILL BEHIND the Chateau Marmont to get to the office where I’m meeting Lana Del Rey, which feels appropriately on the nose on this early-August day: The hotel is Hollywood’s ultimate nexus of glamour and doom, the keeper of 90 years of celebrity secrets that touch everyone from Bette Davis to Britney Spears. It shows up in the homemade visuals for Del Rey’s breakout single “Video Games” and in the lyrics of songs like “Off to the Races.” She lived here while writing her Paradise EP in 2012. Sharon Tate and Roman Polanski lived here, too, in Room 54, before moving to Cielo Drive where — exactly 50 years ago, as of midnight tonight — the Manson Family arrived.

But these kinds of connections are standard in the Lana Del Rey multiverse, where nods to Bob Dylan, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Elton John and Henry Miller can coexist in a single chorus and not feel overdone. (No, seriously: Play her 2017 duet with Sean Ono Lennon, “Tomorrow Never Came.”) And if the Lana of five years ago radiated significant Sharon Tate circa Valley of the Dolls energy, the 34-year-old singer-songwriter has more of a Summer of Love thing going on now. The songs she has previewed from her fifth album, the exquisitely titled Norman Fucking Rockwell, are far more Newport Folk Festival than femme fatale — meandering psych-rock jam sessions and slippery piano ballads that shout out Sylvia Plath. The narrative thread throughout all of this can lead listeners down an endless rabbit hole of references, but you can sum it up like so: The music Lana Del Rey makes could only be made by Lana Del Rey.

That means songs like the nearly 10-minute-long “Venice Bitch,” the most psychedelic tune in her catalog, or the title track, a ballad rich with one-liner gems like, “Your poetry’s bad, and you blame the news” — songs that represent the best writing in her career yet have almost zero chance of radio play. Norman Fucking Rockwell, out Aug. 30, is a “mood record,” as Del Rey describes it while perched barefoot on a velvet couch in the new office of her longtime management company, an airy pad way up in the Hollywood Hills with platinum plaques scattered about that no one has gotten around to hanging up yet. There are no big bangers, just songs you can jam out to during beach walks and long drives. This is not exactly a surprise: Del Rey’s only top 10 hit on the Billboard Hot 100 was a raving Cedric Gervais remix of her song “Summertime Sadness.” But in the streaming era, when success often means getting easily digestible singles on the right playlists, making an album that’s meant to be wallowed in for 70 minutes isn’t just inspired — it’s defiant.

Yet it’s an approach that has worked for Del Rey: Her songs, even the long, weird ones, easily rack up tens of millions of streams, and overall they have amassed a solid 3.9 billion on-demand streams in the United States, according to Nielsen Music. Collectively, her catalog of albums has sold 3.2 million copies in the United States, and all of her full-length major-label studio albums have debuted on the Billboard 200 at No. 1 or No. 2. The first of those, 2012’s Born to Die, is one of only three titles by a woman to spend over 300 weeks on the Billboard 200. (The other two: Adele’s 21 and Carole King’s Tapestry.) Born to Die also has spent 142 weeks on Billboard’s Vinyl Albums chart — more than Prince’s Purple Rain, tied with Michael Jackson’s Thriller and just behind Fleetwood Mac’s Rumours. It’s an indication that, as broad as her fan base is, it also runs deep, with a ratio of hardcore devotees to casual ones that even stars with inescapable radio hits might envy.

Credit Del Rey’s strong aesthetic and singular throwback sound that, as it has moved away from its initial pop and hip-hop influences, has kept young fans interested and allowed them to grow up with her. “When we sign [an artist], it’s not necessarily what everyone was listening to, but they had real vision,” says Interscope chairman/CEO John Janick. “Lana’s at ground zero of that. There have been so many other people who’ve been inspired by Lana. She’s massive, she has sold millions of albums, but it always has been on her terms.”

This has been Del Rey’s deal from the jump. “Some people really are trying to get in the mix of the zeitgeist, and that is just not my MO — never cared,” says Del Rey, cradling a coffee with sky blue-painted fingertips. “My little heart’s path has such a distinct road that it’s almost taking me along for the ride. Like, ‘I guess we’re following this muse, and it wants to be in the woods. OK, I guess we’re packing up the truck!’ It’s truly ethereal, and it’s a huge pain in the ass.”

Del Rey’s instincts are what led Interscope to sign her to an international joint-venture deal with U.K. label Polydor in 2011 and what compelled her managers Ed Millett and Ben Mawson to create their company, TaP Music, with Del Rey as their first client in 2009. “It was at that moment of peak piracy when no one in the music business was making money, so labels just weren’t taking risks,” recalls Millett. “You’d play one of her songs at an A&R meeting, and they’d be like, ‘You know what’s selling at the moment? Kesha.’ But we were lucky with Lana because she knew exactly who she was. Our job was about making sure everybody understood that.”

That battle for understanding has followed Del Rey for much of her career. “People just couldn’t believe she could be so impactful without some svengalis behind her. I still think there’s a tinge of misogyny behind all that,” says Millett, referencing the endless debates about Del Rey’s creative autonomy. “She realized very quickly, being at the center of that storm, you’re not going to win.” So she went deeper into her own weird world, and somewhere between her third and fourth records — the haunted jazz of 2015’s Honeymoon and the new-age folk of 2017’s Lust for Life — it felt like people finally got it. Or, at least, the people who were meant to get it got it. After all, Del Rey never had intended to make popular music, even if she now headlines festivals. It just kind of happened that way: a poet disguised as a pop star.

In many ways, Norman Fucking Rockwell feels like a fulfillment of the groundwork she has spent nearly a decade laying: She is now free to be Lana, no questions asked. “People want to embrace her lack of formula,” says Millett. “And now she can do whatever the hell she wants because people have accepted that, well, she’s brilliant.” Though she has sold out arenas in the past, the North American leg of her upcoming fall tour has her playing amphitheaters and outdoor venues that feel especially suited to the style of her music. And if her songs feel lighter, it’s because Del Rey does, too.

“I mean, God, I have never taken a shortcut — and I think that’s going to stop now,” she says, feet kicked up on the coffee table. “It hasn’t really served me well to go by every instinct. It’s the longer, more arduous road. But it does get you to the point where, when everyone is just copying each other, you’re like, ‘I know myself well enough that I don’t want to go to that foam rave in a crop top.’ ”

Although that does sound kind of dope, now that she’s thinking about it. “Yeah, never mind,” she says, laughing. “Google ‘nearest foam rave.’ ”

IN PERSON, DEL REY’S VIBE isn’t noir heroine or folk troubadour so much as friend from college who now lives in the suburbs. Her jean shorts, white T-shirt and gray cardigan could’ve easily been snatched off a mannequin at the nearest American Eagle Outfitters. A couple of times in our conversation, she lets out a “Gee whiz!” like a side character in a Popeye cartoon. Between the tour announcements and Gucci campaign shoots, her Instagram consists mostly of screenshot poetry and Easter brunch pics with her girlfriends. For the most distinctive popular songwriter of the past decade, she appears disarmingly basic.

“Oh, I am! I’m actually only that,” agrees Del Rey, eyes gleaming. “I’ve got a more eccentric side when it comes to the muse of writing, but I feel very much that writing is not my thing: I’m writing’s thing. When the writing has got me, I’m on its schedule. But when it leaves me alone, I’m just at Starbucks, talking shit all day.” Starting in 2011, when her nearly drumless, practically hookless breakthrough single “Video Games” blew up, the suddenly polarizing singer found it hard to move through the real world unbothered. But something changed a few years back; she’s not sure if she chilled out or if everyone else did. In any case, she’s happiest among the people, whether that’s lingering in Silverlake coffee shops or dipping out to Newport to rollerblade. “I’ve got my ear to the ground,” she says with a conspiratorial wink. “Actually, that’s my main goal.”

Somehow this only makes Del Rey weirder and cooler: the high priestess of sad pop who now smiles on album covers and posts Instagram stories inviting you to check out her homegirl’s fitness event in Hermosa Beach. You could feel the shift on Lust for Life, which enlisted everyone from A$AP Rocky to Stevie Nicks and traded the interiority of her early songwriting for anthems about women’s rights and the state of the world. She even seemed down to play the pop game a bit, though by her own rules: She worked with superproducer Max Martin on the title track, even as it quoted ’60s girl groups and cast R&B juggernaut The Weeknd as the long-lost Beach Boy.

Among those entering Del Rey’s creative fold on Norman Fucking Rockwell is Jack Antonoff, the four-time Grammy Award-winning producer who has become a go-to collaborator on synth-pop heavy hitters for the likes of Lorde and Taylor Swift. Enlisting Big Pop’s most in-demand producer doesn’t seem like a very Lana Del Rey move, and she knows it.

“I wasn’t in the mood to write,” she admits. “He wanted me to meet him in some random diner, and I was like, ‘You already worked with everyone else; I don’t know where there’s room for me.’ ” But when Antonoff played her 10 minutes of weird, atmospheric riffs, Del Rey could immediately picture her new album: “A folk record with a little surf twist.” In the end, Antonoff wound up co-producing almost the whole project, alongside longtime collaborator Rick Nowels and Del Rey herself.

Most of Norman Fucking Rockwell follows similar whims — or, as Del Rey puts it, “Divine timing.” Though artists like Billie Eilish and Ariana Grande have taken the creation of pop music to a more informal and impulsive place — Eilish recorded her debut album with her producer brother Finneas O’Connell in his childhood bedroom, while Grande wrote most of Thank U, Next in a weeklong blitz — Del Rey’s approach seems even more casual. “She doesn’t follow any kind of plan beyond what she feels is right, and it works every time,” says Millett.

That includes the cover of Sublime’s sleazy 1996 hit “Doin’ Time” — essentially the “Summertime Sadness” of the Long Beach, Calif., ska band’s discography — recorded out of pure fandom, yet somehow a perfect complement to the album’s beach bum vibe. “We were involved in executive-producing the [recent] Sublime documentary because their catalog is through Interscope, and Lana was talking about how big a fan she was,” says Janick. As it happened, her earliest producer was David Kahne, who had worked with Sublime in the ’90s. “So she ended up doing that cover, which turned out amazing. But then she felt like it fit the aesthetic of the album.”

The album title was just something she came up with when she randomly harmonized the name of the American illustrator while recording “Venice Bitch,” though she recognizes that she and Rockwell — an idealist whose cozy depictions of Boy Scouts and Thanksgiving turkeys graced magazine covers for half the 20th century — have both explored big questions about the American dream in their work. And then there’s the artwork she has been using for the record’s singles: bizarrely casual iPhone photos that feel a bit tossed-off because, well, they are.

“Every time my managers write me, ‘Album art?,’ I’m just like, send!” she cackles, pantomiming taking a selfie. “And they just send the middle-finger emoji back to me.”

THE WEEK OF OUR INTERVIEW, JUST a few days after two consecutive mass shootings took place in El Paso, Texas, and Dayton, Ohio, Del Rey recorded a song called “Looking for America.” She hadn’t planned to write it, but the shootings affected her on a “cellular level,” as she phrased it in an Instagram preview, which also included a sharp disclaimer: “Now I know I’m not a politician and I’m not trying to be so excuse me for having an opinion.” Over Antonoff’s acoustic guitar, she sings softly, “I’m still looking for my own version of America/One without the gun, where the flag can freely fly.”

The quiet protest song is a move you can hardly imagine her making five years ago. It wasn’t until Lust for Life, she acknowledges, that she felt brave enough to have an overt political opinion. “It is quite a critical world, where people are like, ‘Stick to singing!’ ” she says. “They don’t say that to everyone, but I heard that a lot.”

With that sense of permission has come a kind of peace and an acceptance that evaded Del Rey in her early career; she has never indulged her critics, but it’s nice to be understood. “Sometimes with women, there was so much criticism if you weren’t just one way that was easily metabolized and decipherable — you were a crazy person,” she marvels, noting a shift in the perception of female pop stars that happened only recently (one catalyzed in large part by her own career arc). She recently recorded a song for the soundtrack to the upcoming Charlie’s Angels reboot with Grande and Miley Cyrus — stars who also have faced criticism for the ways in which they don’t conform to the expectations of women in the spotlight.

Her newest songs are some of her most personal, particularly the album closer, “hope is a dangerous thing for a woman like me to have — but i have it” (a title only Del Rey could pull off). It also hovers anxiously on the margins of the #MeToo movement, though never in such broad strokes. “It was staggered with references from living in Hollywood and seeing so many things that didn’t look right to me, things that I never thought I’d have permission to talk about, because everyone knew and no one ever said anything,” she says in a tangle of sentences as knotty as the lyrics themselves. “The culture only changed in the last two years as to whether people would believe you. And I’ve been in this business now for 15 years!

“So I was writing a song to myself.” She exhales deeply, sinking back into the sofa. “Hope truly is a dangerous thing for a woman like me to have, because I know so much.” Del Rey pauses. “But I have it.”

Del Rey has been thinking a lot about hope and faith lately. She has been going to church every Wednesday and Sunday with a group of her girlfriends; they get coffee beforehand, and it has become something to look forward to. She likes the idea of a network of people you can talk to about wanting something bigger — just another extension of her fondness for pondering the mysteries of the universe. (Fittingly, she studied metaphysics and philosophy at Fordham University in New York.) “I genuinely think the thing that has transformed my life the most is knowing that there’s magic in the concept of two heads are better than one,” she says.

That has crept into her music, too. Del Rey says she hadn’t realized until recently how isolating her creative process had been for so long. These days, studio sessions feel more like cozy jam sessions, according to Laura Sisk, the Grammy-winning engineer who worked closely on the record with Del Rey and Antonoff. “Something I love about Norman is how much of the energy of the room we’re able to record,” says Sisk. “We often don’t use a vocal booth, so we’re sitting in a room together recording, usually right after the song was written and the feeling is still heavy in the room.”

Even the cover of Norman Fucking Rockwell, Del Rey says, was designed to cultivate a sense of community. For the first time in her discography, she’s not pictured by herself. She’s on a boat at sea, one arm wrapped around actor Duke Nicholson (a family friend and grandson of Jack), the other reaching out to pull the viewer aboard. As she explains the idea, Del Rey rifles through her sizable mental rolodex of quotations and offers this one from Humphrey Bogart by way of Ernest Hemingway: “ ‘The sea is the last free place on earth.’ ” A place, in other words, where you can finally just be you.

Del Rey says her album covers tend to be self-fulfilling prophecies — whatever energy she puts out tends to shape the next chapter of her life. She’s eager to see how this one, with its open arms and sense of adventure, manifests itself. “We’re going somewhere,” she says with a mysterious grin. “I don’t know where we’re going. But wherever it is, my feet are going to be on the ground.”

Originally published on billboard.com with the headline Lana Del Rey on Finding Her Voice and Following Her Muse: ‘I Have Never Taken a Shortcut’, and in the August 24, 2019 issue of Billboard with the headline Lana Del Rey Speaks Her Mind.

[jcmarchi]

Cover Reveal – Apex Legends

New Post has been published on https://thedigitalinsider.com/cover-reveal-apex-legends/

Cover Reveal – Apex Legends

Apex Legends is a game that has been growing and changing in continually exciting ways since its surprise launch in 2019.  Featuring a fully released game on our cover is atypical for Game Informer, but Apex Legends continues to enamor players daily, which is why we jumped at the opportunity to visit Respawn’s studio in Vancouver, Canada to dive deep into the game’s history, and look ahead to what’s coming next for the game on the horizon. As it readies to celebrate its five-year anniversary, Apex Legends is prepared to initiate some of its biggest changes yet, and we got a chance to speak with the team and play with its new modes and more.

To pull off this cover story, we decided to send in an expert: Jason Guisao. Jason is a former intern-turned-editor here at Game Informer, who also spent time at Bungie as a franchise editor, and is a devoted Apex Legends fan who has even played the game competitively at a Top 500 level. Jason, alongside video producer Alex Van Aken (a competitive Apex player and fan in his own right), visited Respawn in Vancouver to chat with the team, discuss its history, and go hands-on with what is changing for the game.

Alongside the Apex Legends cover story, you will also find a massive 26-page feature covering the 50 games and expansions we are most excited about in 2024 and beyond. It sets the stage for what we suspect will be another exciting year for video game releases. You can also read a big feature on the history of hip-hop in video games, the upcoming Fallout TV show adaptation, learn about Night School, the developer of Oxenfree and its sequel, read about Unicorn Overlord, and more. We also have reviews for Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown, Tekken 8, and much more!

Here’s a closer look at this month’s cover:

You can also try to nab a Game Informer Gold version of the issue. Limited to a numbered print run per issue, this premium version of Game Informer isn’t available for sale. Our Apex Legends Gold issue (seen below) features a completely different cover. To learn about places where you might be able to get a copy, check out our official Twitter, Facebook, TikTok, Instagram, BlueSky, and Threads accounts and stay tuned for more details in the coming weeks. Click here to read more about Game Informer Gold.

Print subscribers can expect their issues to arrive in the coming weeks. The digital edition will be available later this week, February 2, for PC/Mac, iOS, and Google Play. Print copies will be available for purchase in the coming weeks at GameStop.

[rad-review-of-gigs]

U-Roy, Yellowman, Winston Reedy and Dennis Alcapone; O2 Indigo Arena, 28.07.12

There are no surprises at the Indigo’s latest instalment of the Jamaican fiftieth anniversary celebrations, as more of Jamaica’s reggae’s aristocracy skank into “London Town”. There’s much talk of “back in the day” and predictable dialogue about racism and freedom. Dennis Alcapone might say he’s “shocking and electric”, but in truth he looks more like an Iranian Barry White. And of course it doesn’t matter how much he toasts he’s Alcapone not Scarface, Al Pacino’s chainsaw wielding mobsters belong to yesteryear. 

Nevertheless reggae is musically fascinating and its bass led rhythms irresistible, from Bob Marley’s early dark notes of struggle to the dub experiments of Augustus Pablo. And in the same way that a certain ceremony the previous day, whose name dare not be spoken for fear of the marketing stasi, was a cliched exercise, Jamaica 50 is inevitably too. In its defence the music of the assembled  preserves the genre’s essential earthiness. Mixes, or in dub parlance, versions, abound, from Yellowman’s takes on fifties classics like ‘BLUEBERRY HILL’ and Elvis’ ‘IN THE GHETTO’ to country standards such as John Denver’s ‘COUNTRY ROADS’ and even ‘I’M GETTING MARRIED IN THE MORNING’. While the toasters come and go though, the backing band is relatively unchanged throughout.

“Jamaica team come with we. We are them security,” says Yellowman, dressed in combats and doing his utmost to emulate the gymnastics at the five rings event taking place across the consumption strip in, what is for the next three weeks, the North Greenwich Arena.  Skanking across the stage like he’s on strings there’s been no relaxing in his energy over the years. All this despite having a cancerous tumor excavated from his jaw in the mid ‘90s, which permanently disfigured one side of his face.  So called because of his albinism, in 1981 Yellowman was the first of the reggae dancehall artists to be signed by a US label, spending a large part of the eighties boasting of his sexual prowess until, belatedly, developing more socially conscious preoccupations in the nineties. Both are in evidence in his set here. As he removes his shirt to show off the washboard stomach that shows no sign of subsiding, simulates sex and performs press ups he also pokes mischief at the police.

In contrast, U-Roy has the gentle, wise and enlightened air of the ancient Kung Fu master. Although he’s the godfather of toasting, the chat over an instrumental riddim to which hip-hop owes a huge debt, his blend of mellifluous tunes, like the archetypal ‘SOUL REBEL’, form the evening’s only straight songs.

Sadly The Indigo is only half full as reggae no longer commands a young, black coterie. Nevertheless it remains a far and welcome cry from the soulless, corporate surroundings of the former Dome and is a reminder of the true values of popular music. A gig that, if not metaphorically offbeat, never feels downbeat.

[journalistorian]

For Atlanta Journal-Constitution, spoke with co-founder Jason "J." Carter about bringing the Black music festival to its largest venue to date and celebrating hip-hop turning 50 [Published Oct. 17, 2023].

[heavyhittas]

Lauryn Hill has announced a global tour to celebrate the 25th anniversary of her legendary 1998 debut solo album, "The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill." The Fugees, reuniting for their first tour in years which includes stops across the U.S., Australia, and Canada. During a surprise appearance with Nas at the hip-hop 50 concert in Yankee Stadium, she publicly recognized the album's 25th anniversary for the first time. Citi Bank, the tour's official cardholder, offers exclusive presale access to its members. Ms. Hill is infamous for arriving late to shows, leading fans to hope for a more dependable performance from her this time around. The tour begins on September 8th and marks a historic reunion and a tribute to one of the most influential albums in hip-hop, is poised to be an unforgettable celebration of music and culture. Citi cardmembers will have access to presale tickets beginning Wednesday at 10 a.m. local time until Thursday at 10 p.m. local time through the Citi Entertainment program. For complete presale details visit www.citientertainment.com. Public onsale for the tour begins this Friday at 10 a.m. local time. Tickets are also available to buy on resale sites such as Stubhub, Vividseats and Ticketmaster.

[amdialect]

Dedication to Hip-Hop: Celebrating 50 Years of Cultural Revolution

In the vibrant landscape of human expression, few phenomena have transformed the world's cultural tapestry as profoundly as Hip-Hop. As we commemorate the 50th anniversary of this revolutionary movement, we journey back to the gritty streets of the Bronx in 1973, where a spark ignited amidst the backdrop of a nation undergoing seismic social, economic, and political shifts.

The Bronx of that era was a place of paradox. Amidst the urban decay, poverty, and rising crime rates, a resilient spirit flourished. It was within this crucible of adversity that the pillars of Hip-Hop were born. The economic struggles, exacerbated by the abandonment of the South Bronx, led to a fertile ground for innovation. The pulsating energy of block parties and the birth of DJing by pioneers like Kool Herc, who looped and extended breakbeats, provided an avenue for self-expression and communal celebration.

Against the backdrop of political turmoil, civil rights movements, and economic disparities, Hip-Hop emerged as a resonant voice for the voiceless. Its poetry and rhythms bore witness to the struggles of marginalized communities, echoing the broader call for justice. MCing, the oral tradition, became a vehicle for storytelling that elevated the experiences of the dispossessed. Graffiti, too, became a powerful visual medium, reclaiming spaces and affirming identity in a world that sought to erase them.

Breakdancing embodied the physical rebellion against oppressive norms, while the DJ's auditory prowess created a canvas for fusion and innovation. And within this mosaic, the pillar of Knowledge served as the foundation, promoting the value of self-education, enlightenment, and the preservation of cultural heritage.

Contrary to popular misconceptions, Hip-Hop is not synonymous with rap. It's a multifaceted culture that encompasses these Five Pillars: MCing, DJing, Breakdance, Graffiti, and Knowledge. The distinction is significant – while rap is a subset of Hip-Hop, Hip-Hop itself represents an entire way of life. The words of KRS-One reverberate: "Rap is something you do. Hip-hop is something you live."

Indeed, from its humble origins, Hip-Hop has risen to become a global phenomenon. What began as an outsider's voice is now an inescapable force in mainstream culture. Its influence transcends borders, languages, and backgrounds. Hip-Hop's evolution is a testament to the power of authenticity, resilience, and the indomitable spirit of communities who dared to turn adversity into art.

So, on this auspicious occasion, let us celebrate the 50th anniversary of Hip-Hop – a culture that defied the odds, birthed from the heart of struggle, and evolved into a symphony of voices, rhythms, and stories that resonate across the world. As we honor the pioneers and creators who shaped this movement, may we also recognize Hip-Hop's ongoing journey of empowerment, unity, and transformation.

#FreemanReLoaded

#ThinkAbundantly

#AMDialect

[kickmag]

Chuck D Partners With MLB As Music Ambassador & Content Generator For Yearlong 50th Anniversary Of Hip-Hop Celebration

Chuck D is working with MLB as a music ambassador and content originator to celebrate the 50th anniversary of hip-hop. The Public Enemy co-founder and frontman will be MLB's special correspondent at the Hip Hop 50 Live At Yankee Stadium concert on Friday. He is collaborating with MLB throughout the year to create content, stories and music. The programming includes MLB's social, MLB Network and videos centered on the relationship between hip-hop and baseball. Chuck D expressed his gratitude for the partnership in a press release. "As a longtime baseball fanatic, I am beyond honored to be the first Hip Hop artist to work with Major League Baseball in this exciting new way - connecting sound and culture to the stories of the game. Thank you to MLB for adding me to the lineup...and the pitch is on the way."

MLB launches its yearlong partnership with Mass Appeal's Hip Hop 50 this Friday, August 11 with Hip Hop 50 Live At Yankee Stadium. The location is an acknowledgment of hip-hop's beginnings in the Bronx. Chuck D's coverage of the event will be for all of MLB's platforms including @MLB, @MLBLife social handles, MLB.com, MLB.TV and MLB Network. MLB will also have merchandise and giveaways through 2024. Earlier this year Chuck D was the executive producer and developer of Fight the Power: How Hip-Hop Changed the World. The four-part series aired on PBS.