Not sure why the official YouTube clip got pulled down with a notice saying “UMG Filed A Copyright Claim” on it, but hopefully UMG isn’t standing in the way of Kendrick and TDE running things the way they want. I’m pretty sure the success and classic music they’re releasing proves they know what they’re doing without major label meddling.
Anyway, enjoy this one until it gets taken down too…
Following up on his interview with J. Moore and I from our Summer Jam a few months ago, Kendrick stopped by the Sound Session studios this past week while out in Seattle for a show.
We talked all about his new album, Good Kid, M.A.A.D. City, which drops tomorrow. He spoke on his approach to the record considering it’s not his first project but his first on a major label, how he wanted it to act as an introduction to the rest of his music, whether or not the label influenced him creatively, his favorite song on the album, and more. We also touched on his early days as a rapper, getting in front of a mic for the first time, how his Top Dawg Entertainment crew compares to the other cliques in the game, and some other random topics.
Be sure to cop the album tomorrow and support one of the best artists we have in music right now!
Here’s the video Joe, Royce, Crook, and Joell shot for “Hammer Dance” while down in Austin for SXSW. The Shady showcase where 50 did all of Get Rich Or Die Trying was probably the best show I caught while down there (shout to K.R.I.T., who killed that one by the way), so I’m happy to see some footage from Slaughter’s performance included here.
We’ll be airing my interview with these fellas on tonight’s Sound Session, tune in!
I figured I’d follow J. Cole’s “Lost Ones” with a track that represents another possible outcome to that unfortunate scenario. While Cee Lo’s addition to the record doesn’t seem necessary to me (and there’s a little too much Coolio in “Gangsta’s Paradise” happening for his visuals), I hope it helps the song get the notoriety it deserves.
Artists take note: this is the kind of emotion you should put in your music. And you also shouldn’t have kids until the situation is right. But you already knew both of those things…right?
The same day that I chopped it up with Wiz Khalifa, his co-star for the Waken Baken Tour, Yelawolf, stopped by the studio to kick it as well. We discussed his official debut album Trunk Muzik 0-60, how it continues where his last mixtape left off, his nervousness/excitement during the BET Awards Cipher, his history working every odd job imaginable, being homeless in Seattle, and more.
Not only is Wolf a cool, down to Earth dude…but his album and style are both really fresh. Hip-hop needs his presence and music right now, so do yourself a favor and check out the project if you haven’t already.
If you prefer to just listen to the audio, here you go:
It wouldn’t surprise me if this was real home video of Pharrell…must be a nice life. Minus points for the blatant Beats By Dre product placement (are we really doing that for EVERY Interscope video for the past 3 years?) and poor audio syncing to the video. No excuse for that with the production budget. This is actually one of my least favorite records on Nothing, but it’s cool. 20′s. 50′s. 5′s. 10′s.
The long awaited visuals for Wale’s lead single have finally leaked and I think the clip came out pretty nice. Definitely crisp and I dig the track, though the blatant M.I.A. swagger jacking from GaGa’s hook still seems a little weird to me. I’m sure Cool & Dre or someone ran it by M.I.A., but I’d be curious to hear what she feels about the hook.
Anyway, hopefully this single will catch on and Wale can join the ranks of Asher, Cudi, and Drake as the only new cats to actually get a crossover hit. One of my old workplaces, KIIS in LA, has already added it so that’s a great sign.
Here’s another new video from Wale and Rik Cordero for “Family Affair” while we’re at it:
Seattle folks: Wale will be performing at Bumbershoot this year…don’t miss it…
On December 13th, the legendary Common Sense made his 4th appearance on Sound Session here in Seattle. Since we just talked to Com in September (check it out here), we wanted to do something a little different instead of our traditional interviews. With help from our good friends at Interscope/Geffen/A&M we threw a listening party for his new Universal Mind Control album with 50 lucky winners, some customized Microsoft Zunes, and other assorted goodies.
In the video recap, you can watch Com talk about the creative process for every track on the album and what it was like to work with the Neptunes, Mr. DJ, Kanye West, Cee-Lo, and more. Be sure to watch both parts of the video and enjoy them in HD on the HyphenTV Vimeo Channel courtesy of Organic Digital Videomedia.
Since the entire interview lasted about an hour, I’ll be posting up the full audio for all you die hard Common fans sometime in the next week. As dope as the video clips are, there’s even more interesting tidbits about UMC‘s creation in the extended interview (the reason why the “Announcement” video was pulled, the story behind the original mix of “Punch Drunk Love,” etc.).
Stay tuned for that and hit up Com in the blogosphere over at his new site, ThinkCommon.com. Be sure to go cop Universal Mind Control in stores now and still available at Zune.net for 99 cents! It makes a great last minute Christmas present…
