Metal Lungies

President Bush will continue to make a jackass out of himself when he tries to speak coherently; Stuart Scott’s glass eye will continue to look fucking creepy (click with caution); and T.I. and Ludacris will continue to never get along. As first reported yesterday by Just Blaze, and later by MTV, T.I. and Luda’s manager got into an altercation at an event organized by Kevin Liles (who I’m sure is very happy right now). So, one haircut and one split personality disorder self-diagnosis later, the T.I./Ludacris beef appears  to be back at square one.

To think, if T.I. had won the Grammy for Best Rap Album for King (which he should have) instead of Luda winning it for Release Therapy, probably none of this would’ve happened. I can’t help but think that the Grammy committee knew that their actions would have led to this — Mos Def was right, old white men ARE running this rap shit (though, I’m sure you already knew that).

And, ‘less we forget, T.I.’s new album will be in stores next week. Since Luda doesn’t really have anything to promote right now, does that mean T.I. won this round by default?

By reviewing an album that came out 2 months ago, I guess I’m ultimately admitting that I slept on it. However, I figure that if I slept on it, someone else must have, too. I doubt that the Lifesavas crew will really mind the recognition.

Hailing from Portland, Oregon (home to many famous musicians though not exactly a “rap haven”), MCs Vursatyl and Jumbo the Garbageman (who also produces) and DJ Shines first emerged on to the scene with ’03’s Spirit In Stone. Having seen them live a couple of times prior to the album’s release — once opening for Zion I, another time for Del The Funkee Homosapien — I had high expectations for their debut, and came away impressed. Though Spirit In Stone helped them settle amongst underground favorites like labelmates Blackalicious, Gutterfly is Lifesavas’ attempt to emerge to the forefront of the scene. One need look no further than the album’s cover (particularly Jumbo’s glasses, word to Bootsy Collins) and the narrative on the album’s intro to catch the vibe that Gutterfly conveys, as explained on Lifesavas’ MySpace page:

“Gutterfly‘s narrative includes 14 tracks with a thread of interludes, and traces the fictional deeds of a trio of ghetto superheroes – Bumpy Johnson (played by VURS as if his life depended on it), Sleepy Floyd (a character wholly inhabited by JUMBO) and Jimmy Slimwater (personified by SHINES) – who fight their way out of the perilous confines of a mythologized Portland, Razorbade City, in a way that’s reminiscent of the creation myth behind many a great hip-hop partnership in the history of the genre (from Outkast to Tribe Called Quest). Inspired by an obscure, long-forgotten film project from the ’80s of the same name, Gutterfly draws its source material not only from Baraka Feldman’s original concept but also from the blaxploitation films of the ’70s, such as “Coonskin” and the Zatoichi series of Japanese cult films, and the desire to shatter fans’ expectations about what Lifesavas represent.”

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Expect teenage shooters, old violinists, and exotic birds to keep it equally gully in DISAPPEARANCES.

Hiphopsite is a site that I try to check weekly just incase I’ve missed some new releases or reissues for that matter. Well with the music industry sales down, and hurting even more in hip hop specifically, HipHopSite decided it wasn’t viable to operate in its current ways and it was time to close up shop.

With the 5-year lease for HipHopSite’s retail store ending next month, we were at a crossroads. Do we renew the lease for another 5 years and continue to face the steady decline of the music retail industry? Or do we take things in a bold new direction?

The decision we have come to is this. HipHopSite will be re-launched in the coming weeks as a 100% exclusive DIGITAL DOWNLOAD site (yeah, you will be able to download stuff for your MP3 player). In the meantime, you can still come here to get your usual news, reviews, and interviews like always, but we are phasing out the mail order retail end of it completely.

But in order to do that, we’ve got to clean this place out – and we need your help! So, starting NOW, all orders placed online and all walk-in customers to our Maryland Parkway store, will receive 30% off their entire order (before shipping).

We will not be bringing any new stock in or restocking old items, however in the coming weeks we will be adding plenty of used vinyl to the online store catalog (that is, the stuff that doesn’t sell out locally in this huge sale). Any backordered items, TBA’d items, or out of stocks will be credited back (including all backorders for J. Dilla’s “Jay Love Japan”). Please note, when checking out, your order total on your HipHopSite invoice will appear as normal, but the 30% will be taken off the total before shipping when your credit card is charged.

Thanks for your support all of these years, and we look forward to serving you DIGITALLY in the next movement. Peace.

– HipHopSite Crew

In a panic I dropped about $140, on some DJ Qbert dvd’s, a Main Source Japanese Import amongst other goodies. I’m kind of pissed that I’m about 6 days late to their firesale, especially considering I was on the site about 4 days but didn’t notice the notice at the top, I guess that’s what I get for not subscribing to their e-mail blasts. Remembering all the reissues that were on my to get list (Masta Ace, Kool G, ect), but long gone by today, I probably would’ve spent maybe triple of what I spent tonight.

RIP HipHopSite.

The next time you go out magazine shopping, or you find yourself near a newsstand with time to kill, be sure to check out the latest issue of Complex for a joint interview with Wu-Tang mastermind The RZA and all-around funny guy Seth Rogen. Complex‘s website offers a preview of the article, which is unfortunately short, but just long enough to compare Method Man’s “torture” skit from Enter The Wu-Tang: 36 Chambers to Seth and Paul Rudd’s “Know how I know you’re gay?” schtick from 40 Year Old Virgin.

Looking at it now, getting these guys together seems like a no-brainer. For those who watched 40 Year Old Virgin with a keen eye, you may have noticed Seth’s character “Cal” sporting a t-shirt with the cover to The GZA’s classic album Liquid Swords screened on the front, and if you’ve gotten around to seeing Knocked Up as well (which I suggest you do if you haven’t yet), then you surely recall what song was playing during the opening credits — something about liking things “raw” or something. Meanwhile, the Wu have often flexed their skills in the realm of comedic acting, with real-life cousins RZA and GZA proving to be quite the formidable tag-team. Below, check out their classic “Wu-Tang Financial” sketch from Chappelle’s Show, as well as their scene with Bill Murray in Coffee & Cigarettes.

thaFormula.com – Sales wise were you satisfied with how “Game Theory” ended up doing for you guys?

Black Thought – You have to be. Like you have to accept that and shit. Happy or not happy, what the fuck does that matter? Like the record came out, it was lauded the way it was lauded and all you can do is keep it moving. I never made a cent from record sales ever. In all of my career since 1987 to 2007, my shit has never been about making a quarter from selling a record because I haven’t. I have never made a record sale royalty ever. Never, ever, ever! So that’s how much of a fuck I give about royalties. I don’t give a fuck. I don’t make albums to sell records. I make albums so I can continue doing shows and getting work and doing what I do to make money. I need to sell a fucking billion records to make a dollar.

thaFormula.com – You never made a dollar off of one record?

Black Thought – Not 50 cents. I never made 20 cents off record sales. I make money from my records being played. I make money from royalties and shit, I make money from publishing and writing my songs, but mechanical record sales royalties, nah that’s a fucking fantasy. Yeah that’s how the industry is.

from theformula.

So that’s coming from a guy that’s 9 albums deep into a successful career. Looks like the current business model (for the artist) is a bit flawed eh? RIAA is for the artists, right??

In other words, don’t be like these guys. Instead, be more like these guys…

Download: Run-D.M.C. & Aerosmith – “Walk This Way”

Download: Boogie Down Productions – “Dope Beat” (sampling AC/DC – “Back In Black”)

Download: Public Enemy & Anthrax – “Bring The Noise”

Download: Body Count (Ice-T) – “Cop Killer”

Download: Sublime – “Doin’ Time (Remix)” featuring The Pharcyde

Download: Ice Cube – “Fuck Dying” featuring Korn

Download: Busta Rhymes – “This Means War!!” featuring Ozzy Osbourne (sampling Black Sabbath – “Iron Man”)

Download: Jay-Z – “Takeover” and Mos Def – “The Rape Over” (both sampling The Doors – “Five To One”)

Download: Big Pun – “Still Not A Player” featuring Incubus (from Loud Rocks)

It’s like a dance party in there!

In this clip from QD3’s The MC – Why We Do It DVD (and on permanent loan from Nah Right), Kanye flips an old Shirley Bassey record into a beat so infectious, he can’t stop himself from getting down. It’s assuring to know that me and Kanye share the same dance moves.

I would assume that this clip was edited well and that Kanye can’t really put a beat like this together in under 5 minutes. But, if that’s not the case, then we need quicker turnaround time on the release of his albums — I’m talking 2 new Kanye albums a year, at least. How about we move the release date for Graduation up to next week, and A Good Ass Job by the end of the year? Then, Promotion and Marriage in ’08, First Born Child and Divorce in ’09, New Hot Young Wife and Early Retirement in ’10, Boredom and Another Good Ass Job in ’11, Old Age and Death in ’12, and Afterlife and Reincarnation in ’13. And after that, if there are any more records left to sample, start over again.

UPDATE: Turns out that Kanye beat was used on Do Or Die’s 2005 album D.O.D. on the track “Paid The Price”, which also features Kanye. Kudos to the one of 20 people who actually heard that album for pointing it out. Since I’m stuck at my jay-oh-bee and can’t hook up an MP3 link, here’s the video for the single from that album, “Higher”, which is also produced by and featuring Kanye.

The Kings may have hired “Reggie Theus” but the man will always be Bill Fuller to me, from:

God that show was that Saturday tv crack for me. As well as City Guys…C-I-T-Y you can see why these guys the neat guys smart and streetwise.

It looks like the Sean Price mixtape isn’t nearly the only thing Duck Down has up their sleeves, read:

Over the next few months, Duck Down will be releasing a host of new projects; including Sean Price’s “Master P” mixtape, Steele’s (of Smif N Wesson) “Hotstyle Takeover” mixtape and Boot Camp Clik’s “Casualties Of War” which will be released on 8-14-2007 (Casualties Of War is not the latest “official” Boot Camp Clik LP, but a collection of tracks recorded for The Last Stand and various solo-projects from Boot Camp Click members solo-projects that were not previously released). While Heltah Skeltah continue to work on their forthcoming LP and even as rumors swirl about Sean Price being courted by major labels, Sean will begin working on his next solo-LP, Mic Tyson, the projects slated to arrive in the fall of 2007 are LP’s from Smif N Wesson, a still untitled collaborative LP from Sean Price, Black Milk and Guilty Simpson (which all three members are currently in Detroit finishing) and the highly-anticipated Buckshot and 9^th Wonder sequel The Formula (their official follow-up of Chemistry).

While the Duck Down name, its history and artists are widely renowned and branded throughout the Hip-Hop landscape, the label is branching out to begin to distribute and promote artists from those outside the typical Boot Camp Click artist structure and negotiations are already under way with a few up-and coming artists and iconic rap legends; this change signifies a major transition in the label, as it becomes a home to develop and market artists of all flavors. The first such project of this transition will be Special Teamz (EDO. G’s collective group, which consists of EDO. G, Slaine and Jaysuan) debut “Stereotypez,” which is currently slated for a 9-25-07 release date and will include production from DJ Premier, Pete Rock, Marco Polo, Jake One and Ill Bill and guest appearances from Sean Price, Buckshot, Devin The Dude, Ill Bill and Jamie Jasta of Hatebreed among others.