The Audacity of Dope

The official song of the 2010 World Cup gets a more universal remix and a dope video from Nabil Elderkin.  I wish I was headed to South Africa, but I’m already scheming on Brazil 2014…

Fresh off the Winter Olympics, ESPN.com has jump started my anticipation for the world’s next big sporting event (March Madness isn’t quite international) by posting up their Top 50 Players of the 2010 World Cup.  Peep the article for a breakdown of each player, but here’s the list:

NO.     PLAYER
1     Lionel Messi, Argentina
2     Cristiano Ronaldo, Portugal
3     Wayne Rooney, England
4     Kaka, Brazil
5     Xavi, Spain
6     Didier Drogba, Ivory Coast
7     Andres Iniesta, Spain
8     Fernando Torres, Spain
9     Steven Gerrard, England
10     Michael Essien, Ghana
11     David Villa, Spain
12     Franck Ribery, France
13     Samuel Eto’o, Cameroon
14     Luis Fabiano, Brazil
15     Iker Casillas, Spain
16     Cesc Fabregas, Spain
17     Gianluigi Buffon, Italy
18     Dani Alves, Brazil
19     Nemanja Vidic, Serbia
20     Wesley Sneijder, Netherlands
21     Maicon, Brazil
22     Frank Lampard, England
23     Andrea Pirlo, Italy
24     Carlos Tevez, Argentina
25     Robin van Persie, Netherlands
26     Gonzalo Higuain, Argentina
27     Diego Forlan, Uruguay
28     Thierry Henry, France
29     Sergio Aguero, Argentina
30     Michael Ballack, Germany
31     Julio Cesar, Brazil
32     Arjen Robben, Netherlands
33     Gerard Pique, Spain
34     Miroslav Klose, Germany
35     Lucio, Brazil
36     Javier Mascherano, Argentina
37     John Terry, England
38     David Silva, Spain
39     Carles Puyol, Spain
40     Nicolas Anelka, France
41     Ashley Cole, England
42     Patrice Evra, France
43     Marek Hamsik, Slovakia
44     Karim Benzema, France
45     Yoann Gourcuff, France
46     Daniele De Rossi, Italy
47     Philipp Lahm, Germany
48     Yaya Toure, Ivory Coast
49     Giorgio Chiellini, Italy
50     Landon Donovan, United States

I’m glad to see my favorite players (van Persie, Cesc, and Didier Drogba) all well represented, but overall, I think this list is surprisingly solid.  David Silva should definitely be higher and some of the bigger names aren’t as good as they used to be, but ESPN did a pretty good job.  What do you think?

Ok, I tried to hold out.  I watched the opening ceremony for the Winter Olympics and aside from a few cool moments, I concluded that it was far inferior to Beijing’s pageantry a few years earlier (though my Canadian friend astutely pointed out, “at least ours was real“).  I thought the lack of an electric superstar that the summer games seem filled with wouldn’t hold my attention.  And while Kanye is probably constructing a blog post about the figure skating outfits as we speak, it’s safe to say us sports lovers don’t usually get too involved with ballet on ice.  Besides, with it being NBA All-Star Weekend, Valentine’s Day, and my birthday all rolled into one, there was no way that I’d get wrapped up in the Olympics, right?

Wrong.

Even if the sports are questionable at times (curling is actually really interesting…for about 20 minutes) and even if the weather isn’t cooperating, there’s still something incredible about the Olympics.  These athletes spend every waking moment of their lives working towards one moment, and to see them either thrive or fail with such high stakes at play is riveting.  Plus, I know a lot of sports fans cringe at the “puff pieces” that NBC packages with the Games, but eff it, I like ‘em.  If you watched the report on Alexandre Bilodeau’s handicapped brother and didn’t root for him to win Canada’s first gold on home soil, you have no soul.  His run in the moguls was the most exciting, and fulfilling, part of the whole weekend, hands down.  Well, aside from this week’s Sound Session of course.

Check out the latest episode featuring new music from Cypress Hill, Nas & Damian Marley, Erykah Badu, Janelle Monae, Nneka, B.o.B, El Prez, and more, plus a special Throwback for those who may not have had the Valentine’s Day they were after.  Enjoy:

Show #246 (2-14-10)

1. Emilio Rojas ft. Styles P & Asher Roth – “Bold & Arrogant (Remix)”
2. Method Man, Ghostface Killah, & Raekwon – “Our Dreams”
3. Cypress Hill – “It Ain’t Nothin’”
4. Madlib & Guilty Simpson – “American Dream & Future (OJ Simpson Remix)”
5. Kooley High ft. Median – “Solitude”
6. El Prez – “Burger Time”
7. Nas & Damian Marley – “Strong Will Continue”
8. Freeway & Jake One ft. Raekwon – “One Thing” (Local Music)
9. Blue Scholars – “Michelle Malkin” (Local Music)
10. Marv Won – “The Way It Goes”
11. Sean Price – “Figure Four”
12. No Clue – “Ima Mash” (Local Music)
13. Consequence – “Sounds G.O.O.D. 2 Me”
14. B.o.B – “Down For Y’all”
15. Erykah Badu – “Window Seat”
16. AB ft. Black Milk – “Reppin’ For You”
17. Rhymefest ft. Phonte – “Say Wassup”
18. Janelle Monae ft. Big Boi – “Tightrope”
19. D’Angelo – “One Mo’Gin” (Throwback of the Week)
20. H.O.P.E. – “Me&Her”
21. Nneka – “Come With Me”

Link to download the mp3 of the show – http://www.mediafire.com/?mn4ydhkcymt
(back up / streaming link – http://www.zshare.net/audio/72622761dc9efd99/)
(2nd back up – http://usershare.net/wo3lbiqbi3vb)

If there are any problems with the links or if you’d like to be added to our weekly email list to receive the playlist and download links after every show, just shoot me an email, DJHyphen@gmail.com.

Those of you who know me in real life have probably heard me talk (at length) about a style of working out called crossfit.  Ever since the homey Dru introduced it to me, I’ve been a fan.  In short, it focuses on simple movements performed at a high level for short periods of time.  It’s way more efficient and challenging than simply lifting weights and I would recommend everyone check it out, regardless of your level of fitness.

Seattle people should come check it out tomorrow at the grand opening for Dru’s new space.  Foundation Crossfit has been around for a few years, but come check out the new spot and find out about these workouts that will change your life.  Tomorrow’s schedule is as follows:

See you there.

Shout to Smoking Section for reminding me of this play from the last NFL weekend.  I still remember the first time seeing high school footage of AP and realizing he just ran differently than anyone I had ever seen.  Wow.

Sidenote, I believe “Gay” is one of the “potentially offensive” words that’s banned from being used in customized NFL jerseys.  Laughable really, especially if you’re William and you want to press up some jerseys for your family.  WTF.

That said, pause @ William Gay and “maybe this guy can play both ways” in the same sentence.  Just sayin’.

Honestly, this video is a little bit of a hot mess.  Hype’s shots just seem so boring these days, the performances aren’t anything special, and the clips from LeBron’s movie just make it all look odd.  Definitely would have been better served to not appear on the soundtrack and perhaps have a little more creativity with the scenes.  With my day job involving music videos, I see 10 cooler clips than this a day…which is pretty sad when you think about all the major players that were involved with this project.

That said:

“she insists she got more class…WE KNOW“

is one of the hardest lines of the year.  Drizzy!

Fast forward to 3:13 to see the build up for a truly incredible goal from the big homey Didier Drogba.  Everything about it – Ashley Cole’s long ball, Didier’s first touch, his strength and balance, and perhaps a lucky bounce after Corluka’s tackle – combined to make this a flawless moment from yesterday’s 3-0 win by Chelsea over Tottenham.  The Blues are not only looking like the team to beat in the EPL, but they could quite easily be the best in the world.

The scary thing is that Spurs actually played pretty well…and still got hammered.  Despite the lopsided scoreline, it was a great match to watch.  Top notch football at its best.

Sidenote, your boy has been playing well recently too.  Dropped in 2 goals and 2 assists in a game yesterday FTW…

Sure, it’s lost some of its luster after Fed was upset in the finals, but this shot from over the weekend was still absolutely incredible.  Great stuff.

Shout to The Smoking Section for finding the clip online.

I absolutely love this track off The Kid Daytona’s Come Fly With Me project (download here).  The homey 6th Sense murdered the beat and Tona’s flow is so ill on it.  Shout to Three/21 Media and Derek Pike on the direction for the visuals too.  Great job all around.

Some words from the director Derek Pike:

Last week I shot the “Air Born” video for The Kid Daytona featuring Bun B. The beat which is produced by 6th Sense has this real mellow floaty vibe to it so I knew I wanted to shoot the majority of this video with someone or something floating in midair. Since shooting in outerspace wasn’t in the budget, I had to settle for NYC. Luckily, Daytona knew someone here on earth that could defy gravity for us, EBCstar Africa. We shot the whole video at a little park downtown, no permits. Aside from having to work around screaming kids at camp, and a basketball leagues scheduled game everything went surprisingly smooth. Daytona and Bun B are two of the nicest and most laid back artists I have ever worked with. Shout outs to the Three/21 fam Rik, Nancy and Steve, Jamal, Owen, Jordan at Sneaktip, Dan, Evan, and of course Daytona, Bun B, 6th and Africa.
-Derek Pike

That was to tie it, and this was the winner in injury time:

I see you Didier.