Sunday, October 28, 2012

DOLCE & GABBANA SHOWCASES S/S 2013 COLLECTION – ARE SOME OF THE PIECES OFFENSIVE? YOU TELL US...


High fashion line DOLCE & GABBANA showcased their new Spring/Summer 2013 Collection this past weekend in Milan and let’s just say a lot of people were not pleased. The luxury brand used images of “Blackamoors” on many of the dresses and even had a couple of the models wearing “blackamoor” heads as earrings. Adding fuel to the fire was the fact that there weren’t any black models walking the runway for the collection…
Blackamoors are defined as “archaic a Black or other person with dark skin, usually from Africa.” They were very popular in 16th and 17th century Europe and were used in sculpture, jewelry, armorial designs and decorative art. Some of the images definitely correlate with the racist images of America’s past (Aunt Jemima, Black Mammy, etc). However, a few commentators on the Huffington Post said it is no big deal.
What is your take on some of these “2013″ looks? Are you offended? Check out a few more images below…




Original post on the Concrete Loop
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Natina Reed Of R&B Group Blaque Dead At 32


According to various sources, singer and actress Natina Reed of the R&B group Blaque was killed in a hit and run car accident in Atlanta. She would have been 33 years old tomorrow.
Reed was part of the R&B trio Blaque (Believing, Life, Achieving, Quest, Unity, Everything) and  was the cousin of former Destiny’s Child member Farrah Franklin. Natina was once engaged to rapper Kurupt of the Dogg Pound and they had one child together.
Reed starred in the 2000 film “Bring It On” as a sassy cheer leader. 
Reed’s group Blaque was signed to the label of the late Lisa “Left Eye” Lopez who also died in a car accident in Honduras in 2002











R.I.P. Natina Reed

Original post on The Urban Daily
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Thursday, October 25, 2012

Tunde Olaniran "Brown Boy" Futuristic R&B


Check out Tunde Olaniran's new single "Brown Boy" off his upcoming release, "The Second Transgression!"

Visit www.iampragency.com for info

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Tuesday, October 23, 2012

Mitt Romney Is An Old Dirty (Rich) Bastard [SPOOF]


In this latest spoof of Republican Presidential candidate Mitt Romney, the former Governor of Massachusettes is being hunted by the IRS for trying to hide his assets.  Not one to give in easily, Mittens channels the late ODB (R.I.P.) to plead his case to the American people.

 

Original post from The Urban Daly

Do you think O.D.B. would approve?
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Saturday, October 20, 2012

Serato Icon: Mix Master Mike



Mix Master Mike is undoubtedly one of the greatest DJs of all time, but also one of the most talented turntablists of this era. A beat conductor who plays the turntable, a DJ to inspire and challenge the best of the best.
Growing up in the San Francisco Bay Area, Mike was an avid music fan, listening to rock, jazz and blues records, but it wasn't until he caught a Herbie Hancock performance with DJ Grandmixer DST that he became inspired to forge his own unique musical path.
"There's drums, there's violins, there's guitars. I mean there's all kinds of instruments, but he was playing the turntable as an instrument. I was like wow, I'm gonna do the same thing but I'm gonna take it even further".
Mike's first foray into music production was a homemade improvised affair, but he laid the foundations to a style and technique that would forever influence his approach to making music and live performance.
"When I first started making music it was on two tape decks. I had all these cassettes full of all this music. I would make these drum loops. Drum loop 4 bars, 4 bars, until I had 64 bars. From there I would add sound effects and whatnot. It took a lot of time, a lot of patience, and it took a good tape deck with a great pause button. As I got turntables it was like "wow, now I can actually touch the music".

A pioneer of many of the most famous scratching tricks and techniques, Mike's inventive nature was always at the forefront, planning was not.
"My mom was banging on the door in my early days of DJing and telling me to turn it down, so I got up and tripped over the cord of the turntable. The record kind of cancelled out and it was like "rrrrrrrr" and I was like "wow that sounded cool". So that's how the tweak scratch was invented and born.
"Mistakes can become gems at times 'cause, you know they kinda catch you off guard. Your thought process changes when you make a mistake so you're thinking about automatic recovery and going onto the next. Through mistakes, through improvisation you learn to kinda go "ok, what's next?"."
Whilst Mike was cutting his teeth in competitive turntablism (and winning everything he entered) he was finding inspiration in the music of New York hip hop trio, The Beastie Boys and a chance meeting in 1994 between Adam Yauch (aka MCA) fulfilled a dream for Mike and changed his life forever.
"I was a huge Beastie Boy fan. They were like the Rolling Stones, The Beatles, the Led Zeppelin of hip hop. I wanted to be a part of that.
"Late night I used to leave these messages on his answering machine, "yo Adam check this out man, this is called the Reverse Octopus Scratch", put the phone down next to the speaker and cut it up. Then you know, following week "yo Adam what's up? This is Mix Master Mike, uhh I got this tweak scratch I wanna show you, check it out". Persistence. That's how it all started".
Heading into the studio, Mike recorded the multi-platinum album "Hello Nasty" with the Beastie Boys and became the group's resident DJ touring the globe together they formed lifelong friendships.
"To walk up onstage and perform in front of 200,000 people well it's just like, you can't explain that, it's like an ocean of people out there. It was just an amazing experience. I learned a lot being with the guys."
Family is a crucial ingredient to Mike's success and his relationship with those close to him pushes him to be better everyday.
"My family consists of me, my beautiful lovely wife Dianne, who is also my manager, she makes the wheels turn. We do everything together. And I have a daughter named Sadie Rose. She's 4 years old and she's an old soul, she comes from another place in our lives, and we're sharing this life together, which is awesome. They're my inspiration.
"In the past two years I lost some vital people in my life. My grandmother who raised me, my father-in-law, and just recently two months ago I lost my best friend. My best friend was like my sidekick, my co-pilot, he understood. You have these people all your life and now they're gone into the next dimension, and you still feel their presence. And I still feel my friend telling me "go get 'em Mike, go get 'em", and that's, that's what he used to tell me."
At the essence of Mike's approach to performance and music is the desire to move people to feel and communicate through the universal language of music.
"When you're up there and you got like 100,000 people jumping up and down, that's what the frequencies are capable of doing. If you could take somebody away with music, that's a gift man. It's kinda like an audio abduction. I wanna pick the audience up, and then drop 'em back off.
"It's honest expression, that's what it is. It comes straight from the heart. And for me, honestly expressing myself musically is just a gift. I'm glad to do that, that's my purpose here on earth, is to express myself through my music".
Check out the exclusive full length edit of Mix Master Mike's performance video below.
Please comment below or his us on twitter @soulexlive


Wednesday, October 17, 2012

Katt Williams Arrested For Brandishing Gun In Nightclub!!! Here we go again! (S.M.H.)


Actor/comedian Katt Williams spent the majority of his night somewhere he jokes about hating to go to–jail. Williams was taken into the LAPD’s custody after being identified as the man flashing a gun inside Los Angeles’ famed Supper Club. However, Katt Williams is claiming everything was a misunderstanding.
Police were summoned to the Supper Club around one in the morning. Witnesses said they saw a man in the club brandishing a gun. When law enforcement arrived, the man witnesses fingered as having the weapon was the comedian. Upon searching Williams, no gun was recovered. Police did find a gun in his vehicle. The “Money Mike” actor and two members of his crew were arrested when the gun was found in the car.

Katt and one member of his entourage were released without any charges being filed. Fate wasn’t so kind to the other member of Williams’ posse. The third man was booked on an unrelated traffic warrant. According to sources, the gun recovered from Williams’ car was unregistered and cops are in the process of figuring out who owns the weapon.
There was no further word from Katt Williams explaining how this situation was a misunderstanding.
Don’t worry, we are still wondering about that too.
Source

Original Post on The Urban Dialy

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Monday, October 15, 2012

Jay-Z’s “Road To Brooklyn: Down By The Yards” [VIDEO]




There is no doubt Jay-Z is still riding high off of the Barclays Center grand opening. While it is a huge achievement for the Brooklyn Nets part owner and the borough of Brooklyn, Jigga has decided to shed some light into what went on behind the scenes during the erection of the massive arena via his website Life+Times.
Along with the excitement of the new arena, the anger and frustration felt by many about the new Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York has been highly publicized. While long time residents are happy for the attention it’s brought to the downtown area of the borough that’s thorough, there are some who are very unhappy about the project for different reasons.
The first episode of Jay-Z‘s Life+Times web  series ‘Road To Brooklyn’: Down By The Yards, goes behind the scenes of  the community’s reaction to the building of the Barclays Center. Residents of  Brooklyn ranging from the famous to the regular, speak on  what the arena means for the borough and the city as a  whole.
See the video below:
Original post on The Urban Daily
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Red Bull Music Presents: "Clear Soul Forces: Sound & Vision 002"

Get to know Detroit Rap Group "Clear Soul Forces" in this documentary produced by Red Bull Music.  These brothers take you on a journey of they're hood and talk about they're musical and life influences.  Big shout to these brothers for putting out real hip hop music.  Check out the video below.

Follow them on twitter @clearsoulforces #salute






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Sunday, October 14, 2012

NBA TV’s ‘The Association’ Spotlights The Brooklyn Nets



Where Brooklyn at? All over the place it seems. A little over a week after Kings County’s own Jay-Zshut down the Barclays Center, the team that will be playing basketball in the newly opened arena,The Brooklyn Nets, will have their training camp documented by NBATv’s ‘The Association’.
The series, which has chronicled the Denver Nuggets and Boston Celtics in the past, introduces viewers to the Nets and its new home, with personal insights from Brooklyn natives such as actressRosie Perez and hip hop artist Fabolous, as well as former Brooklyn Dodgers Ralph Branca and Joe Pignatano.
The Nets, picked by many to finish as one of the top 4 seeds in the Eastern Conference, have gotten a lot of press for the signings of All-Stars Joe Johnson and Gerald Wallace, the re-signing of floor general Deron Williams, their new logo and colors, and the close proximity to the rival New York Knicks. It is also the first professional sports franchise in Bucktown since the Brooklyn Dodgers baseball team left for the West Coast in the late 1950′s.
Biggie would be proud.
Original post on the Urban Daily
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Wednesday, October 10, 2012

Trey Songz Announces "Chapter V World Tour", Miguel and Elle Varner to Support


Trey Songz is ready to take the promotions for his fifth studio album, Chapter V, to the international level with an accompanying world tour. Announced today, the worldwide trek, presented by ooVoo, which supports Songz’s #1 Billboard 200 release, will also feature Miguel & The Kaleidoscope Dreams Experience and hot newcomer Elle Varner.

The trek will kick off November 17th at the Fox Theatre in Atlanta, GA and make several stops across the U.S. footprint before wrapping in Houston, TX at the Reliant Arena on December 31st; the tour then head overseas for a string of European dates slated to begin on January 5th.

“As I enter this next chapter of my life, what better way than to celebrate with the very people who have made me who I am today: MY FANS and my Angels. They are continuously there for me and as we embark on the Chapter V World Tour, I plan on giving them the experience of a lifetime,” states Songz in a statement. “I can’t think of anyone else I would rather share my stage with, than two artists who are at the forefront of our genre, Miguel and Elle Varner. We’re moving R&B forward and I look forward to touching so many cities and countries over the coming months.”

Miguel, who released his sophomore album, The Kaleidoscope Dreams, on October 2nd is excited about the trios diversity. “The juxtaposition of sounds and styles between the three of us gives this bill a great dynamic. It’s an amazing opportunity to educate our audiences about the different sides of R&B, which is my favorite part,” he says.

Elle Varner adds: “I’m thankful that Trey has given me this opportunity and I am so excited to be on a tour with two of the dopest artists in R&B. As the only lady on the tour, I’ll be sure to keep the boys in line!”

Tickets for the U.S. leg of the “Chapter V World Tour” go on sale starting October 12th. Stay tuned to www.treysongz.com for latest ticket and tour information.

Trey Songz – “Chapter V World Tour” Dates

NOV
17 Atlanta, GA Fox Theater
18 Baton Rouge, LA River Center
21 Las Vegas, NV Orleans Arena
23 Oakland, CA Coliseum
24 San Diego, CA Sports Arena
25 Los Angeles, CA Nokia Theater (L.A. Live)
30 Saginaw, MI Dow Events Center

DEC
1 Chicago, IL Arie Crown Theatre
2 Milwaukee, WI Milwaukee Theater
5 New York, NY Theatre at Madison Square Garden
7 Detroit, MI Fox Theater
8 Nashville, TN Municipal Auditorium
9 St. Louis, MO Fox Theater
13 Washington, D.C. Constitution Hall
14 Charlotte, NC Bojangles Coliseum
15 Hampton, VA Coliseum
16 Baltimore, MD 1st Mariner Arena
27 New Orleans, LA UNO Lakefront Arena
28 Birmingham, AL BJCC Arena
29 Southaven, MS Landers Center
30 Dallas, TX Verizon Theatre
31 Houston, TX Reliant Arena

JAN
5 Stockholm, Sweden Annexet
6 Oslo, Norway Sentrum Scene
7 Copenhagen, Denmark VEGA
9 Hamburg, Germany GroBe Freiheit
10 Berlin, Germany Columbiahalle
12 Oberhausen, Germany Turbinenhalle
13 Mannheim, Germany Maimarkt Club
14 Munich, Germany Tonhalle
17 Lyon, France Le Transbordeur
18 Toulouse, France Le Bikini
20 Marseille, France Le Dome
23 Paris, France Zenith
24 Brussels, Belgium Ancienne Belgique
25 Amsterdam, Holland Heineken Music Hall
26 Amsterdam, Holland Heineken Music Hall
28 Birmingham, UK LG Arena
29 Bristol, UK Colston Hall
30 London, UK Hammersmith Apollo
31 London, UK Hammersmith Apollo

FEB
1 London, UK Hammersmith Apollo
2 London, UK Hammersmith Apollo
4 Manchester, UK Apollo
5 Glasgow, UK Academy
6 Glasgow, UK Academy
 

Jay-Z To Release ‘Live In Brooklyn’ EP on October 9th



When you make history why not create an album out of it?
To commemorate the closing night of his historic sold-out 8 (eight) show run opening Brooklyn’s Barclays Center, Jay-Z is releasing “LIVE IN BROOKLYN”, a live 8 (eight) song audio/visual optic EP. “LIVE IN BROOKLYN”, filmed and recorded during the Saturday, October 6th concert will be available Tuesday, October 9, 2012 exclusively on iTunes.

Pre-order it here.
Original post on The Urban Daily
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Saturday, October 6, 2012

The RZA Says Two ODB Films In Development



In an interview with The PlaylistThe RZA revealed that there are not one but two projects currently in development about the life of the late Ol’ Dirty Bastard.
The RZA explained: “There’s ‘Dirty White Boy,’ [starring Micheal Kenneth Williams] which is about the manager of ODB, and his last two years. And there’s another one with a working title called, ‘Dirt: One Word Could Change The World,’ that his family is more involved with. His mother is involved with ‘Dirty White Boy.’ I’m involved with both, anything about his life, I want to help out with any capacity.His mother told me I should come in and help.”
Dirty White Boy will tackle the later years of the Wu-Tang rapper’s life while Dirt will be more of a coming of age story.
RZA added on the latter project: “Me and [ODB] ran through this city, man, cutting school, stealin’ pretzels from the hot dog stand, being vagabonds, sleeping on the trains, drinking ’40s on the back of the A Train, rapping, getting chased by the police. It’s a coming of age story that me and him and a few of our cousins went through, Then it goes on into finally becoming Wu-Tang, going through that hell. And then it takes on his side of it, not my side.”
Original post on The Urban Daily
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Tuesday, October 2, 2012

Chi-Ali Returns To The Mic On Skyzoo’s “Jansport Strings” Remix [AUDIO/VIDEO]


Brooklyn MC Sykzoo brings things full circle by having recently freed MC Chi-Ali join him on the remix to his track “Jansport Strings.” Sky name drops Chi in the original version and sites him as one of his lyrical influences. Chi-Ali, who got his start in the 90s with the Native Tongues,  served a 12-year sentence at Sing Sing Correctional Facility for the shooting death of Sean Raymond. He was released this summer.

Check out behind the scenes footage of Skyzoo and Chi-Ali in the studio making the song and stream the full version after. Sky’s second solo album A Dream Deferred is in stores tomorrow. (props to Nahright)

http://soundcloud.com/skyzoomusic/jansport-strings-remix-feat



Original post on The Urban Daily
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Watch The Barclays Center Get Built In A 2.5 Minute Time Lapse [VIDEO]


It took four years to build the Brooklyn Nets new arena, The Barclays Center. But you can watch get it slapped together in just a little under three-minutes thanks to this awesome stop motion video using an EarthCam.
As wonderfully artistic as this looks, can’t help but wonder…
what else are they filming up there? (Props to YouHeardThatNew)



Original post on The Urban Daily
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Monday, October 1, 2012

DJ Drama addresses the "Rick Ross & Jeezy" Shovin' Match "Uhh!" Yeeeaaaah!"

Check out the 1st video as DJ Drama took to the radio to explain the altercation between Rick Ross and Young Jeezy at the BET Hip-Hop Awards!



Now check out the footage from backstage at the BET Hip Hop Awards as Rozay and Jeezy GET IT IN!!!  Rick loves taking off his damn shirt too, smh, #fail ;0(



Original post on Vladtv.com
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Vertu x Italia Independent | By Lapo Elkann




A gossip column regular and an heir to Italy’s Fiat Automotive empire, Lapo Elkann went about realizing his definition of Italian sportswear with Italia Independent, a clothing label best known for its vibrant blue palette. In addition, the label employs Elkann’s vast network of contacts for one-of-the-kind collaborations, such as these ultra premium mobile phones from Vertu. Bedazzled in that brilliant blue Italia Independent is so famous for, the collection comprised of Constellation Quest Blue, a QWERTY cellphone, and Constellation Blue, a smartphone with a large touchscreen display. Similar to all other Vertu creations, these phones are extremely limited with only 77 Constellation Quest Blue and 777 Constellation Blue be available for purchase. Fortunately for scions and heiresses alike, Parisian boutique colette are making both available for pre-order now.
colette
213 Rue Saint-HonorĂ© | Map 
75001 Paris, France

Original post on www.freshnessmag.com
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Serato Icon: DJ Jazzy Jeff

One of the few DJs that could be considered a household name, DJ Jazzy Jeff has worn a few different hats throughout his career. From DJing to producing and then all the way back to DJing, his enjoyment and passion for all things musical is obvious in his own reflection of his persona.
"Jazzy Jeff is a music lover, a DJ, a producer, songwriter, music collector, vinyl junkie, gadget fanatic and all around lover of life and happiness."
Growing up in West Philadelphia, it was the summer afternoon block parties where Jeff gained his love for music and the happiness it could bring.
He's extremely proud of where he's come from and it's this pride that pushes him to be the best.
"I grew up in west Philly, Philadelphia has always been a hard town.
You try as hard as you could to make people in your home town proud of you.
Philly has put that fire inside of you, that you just always want to do a good job.
"You know, you kinda waited for those summer Saturdays that someone blocked the street off and you just pulled some big speakers out and some turntables and just played music for people.
"I remember looking at the guy playing music so passionate that I had someone hold my bike while I danced with a girl and I just wanted that kind affect on people."


One of Jeff's most recognizable and known roles, was ironically one he never enjoyed being known for. These days, he takes comfort in the knowledge that it's not about how you know or where you heard about him, it's all about the experience you take away from his shows.
"I used to not like the association with the television show and it wasn't until a girl walked up to me and said... 'I never knew you DJ'd'... you know, and I'm saying 'wait a minute, it started with Jazzy Jeff and The Fresh Prince' making music.
"And it made me say from that day 'I don't care why you know, once I get you in that building my job is to convert you to a fan'."
From DJing West Philly block parties, to producing platinum selling albums with Will Smith, it's now DJing in Las Vegas and around the world where Jeff has been busy.
Going back to where it all started. Coming full circle.
"Everybody comes to Las Vegas to have a good time. Right now I have a residency at The Palms. You can really get away with a lot in Vegas.
You know, it kinda like I come out here to just lose all control over everything that I have, so you can sometimes push the envelope and play stuff that you may not normally play.
"I think DJ's are producers and they don't know it. You know, your job is to basically produce a night, or produce a two hour segment and make it enjoyable. We're producers on the fly.
"I think the music industry sucks... It has never been set up to be... um... fair to the artist. Starting to DJ again kinda put so much stuff back in perspective. It was a very big change for me, and I couldn't stop laughing cause it started with two turntables and a mixer, it was just me coming full circle.




 New technology and looking to the future for inspiration is what drives Jeff these days. With access to a much wider world of music, the capability for artists to make and share music so much more easily and with the tools available for DJs and producers now, it's easy to get lost and miss the boat.
Jeff never wanted to be that guy.
"Never in a million years did I think we'd be DJ'ing off of a computer. It still trips me out to say I'm going to make a mix and I'm gonna post it online and in fifteen minutes you get a response back from someone is amazing.
"You have to kinda stay up with technology or you'll be lost, you know, and I never wanted to be one of those people that... um... just didn't know how to do something.
"A lot of my inspiration now comes from the youth, you know, you always have to be a student. It's amazing that my twelve year old son teaches me probably more than anybody else, and I think that's... you know, who you really kinda need to turn to and just listen."
At this stage of his career, Jeff, rather than being reflective, is looking forward to what's around the next corner. He's enjoying himself, whether it be in the club, behind the controls in the studio or at home with his family. It's what truly makes him happy.
"This is probably the happiest that i've ever been. I get a chance to make people happy with music and then I get to come home and have a wonderful life with my wife and my kids. One of the most comforting things in the world for me and my job is I never foresee us living in a world without music, so just the way that we give it to people, the way that they get it just has to change, but we will not live in a world without music. I'll just let it drive me crazy..."



 
 
 Original post from www.serato.com
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