Hiphopdx // Current

Damon Dash Jaz-O Continue Jay-Z Feud

Jay-Z's Blueprint 3 won't hit shelves until early 2009 [click to read], but his former business partner and mentor are... more

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Alchemist Gets Animated For The Cookbook EP

With Thanksgiving a little over a week away, labels are hoping consumers back away from the holiday spread long enough to dish out... more

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Dessa Of Doomtree Cuts Hair For Locks Of Love Donation

Those who know about organizations like Locks of Love know that many people around the world give their hair to children who have... more

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Def Jam & Karina Give Back With High School Fundraiser

Island Def Jam has teamed up with New Rochelle High School in New York to put on the annual New Roc Rhapsody fundraiser event. ... more

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Wanda Sykes Protests Against Proposition 8

Some knew. Some did not know. Now, Wanda Sykes wants everyone to know for certain and she's making her point clear. She is... more

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Kanye West Addresses Latest Paparazzi Incident

Kanye West is not a fan of the paparazzi. This weekend, he had his second incident in three months related to paparazzi and their flashing lights. The photographer and West both spoke out publicly about the incident.

"[West] had four women around him," Terry Blackburn told the BBC. "As I approached the car which he was getting into, he ran around the back and I ran around the front to try and meet him around the side. Just as soon as I put my camera up to my face, that was it--he just pushed it in my face."

As is usually the case, there are two sides to the story, and Kanye gave his version through his blog at Kanyeuniversecity.com. In his post dated Friday, November 15, West wrote the following:

LET US NOT FORGET THE PAPS KILLED PRINCESS DIANA. WHEN WILL THERE BE A LAW PASSED THAT SIMPLY ENFORCES THAT SOMEONE HAS TO ASK TO TAKE A PHOTOGRAPH OF YOU. THAT WOULD SEEM LIKE COMMON COURTESY. RIGHT NOW THE PAPS ARE ABOVE THE LAW AND THE PEOPLE THEY SHOOT ARE BELOW IT. WHAT SHOULD BE ILLEGAL IS PICTURES TAKEN WITH THE INTENT TO SELL....LIKE DRUGS WITH THE INTENT TO SELL... OR CROSSING CUSTOMS WITH ENOUGH MERCHANDISE TO HAVE THE INTENT TO SELL. THE EXPLOITATION OF MY IMAGE IS THE PROBLEM. IT PRODUCES A "BY ANY MEANS NECESSARY" BEHAVIOR THAT CAUSE THE PAPS TO DRIVE RECKLESSLY ON FREEWAYS, JUMP OVER FENCES AND INVADE PRIVACY ALL IN AN EFFORT TO GET THAT "MONEY SHOT." YOU SHOULDN'T BE ABLE TO SELL A PICTURE OF ME WITHOUT MY PERMISSION. AFTER THIS LAW IS PASSED, WHEN YOU ENTER A PUBLIC PLACE LIKE A BASKETBALL ARENA ETC., THERE WILL BE A SIGN THAT READS..."ALL PHOTOS TAKEN HERE ARE PUBLIC DOMAIN AND CAN BE USED AT THE PHOTOGRAPHERS DISCRETION." OBVIOUSLY RED CARPET EVENTS WHERE PEOPLE SHOW UP TO BE PHOTOGRAPHED WILL ALSO APPLY. THE PERSONAL PROBLEM I HAVE WITH THE PAPS IS WHEN THEY TRY TO CATCH YOU BEING A REGULAR PERSON. I AM NOT A CELEBRITY. I'M A NORMAL PERSON THAT'S JUST FAMOUS. I REFUSE TO SNEAK IN AND OUT OF BACK DOORS AND KITCHENS OF HOTELS ETC....

I AM PROTECTING MY PERSONAL SPACE SINCE THERE ARE NO LAWS TO PROTECT THAT FOR ME.

I PUT MY HAND UP TO THE CAMERA IN SELF DEFENSE!

Read more of Kanye's Statements here.........
http://www.hiphopdx.com/index/news/id.8104Kanye West is not a fan of the paparazzi. This weekend, he had his second incident in three months related to paparazzi and their... more

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15 hours ago

The Roots Suspend Touring For TV House Band Gig

Hip Hop group The Roots are cutting their current tour short to possibly serve as the house band for comedian Jimmy Fallon's... more

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1 day ago

DJ Premier & Ludacris Collaboration M.V.P. Released

With the recent release of the the song "M.V.P." [click to listen] off Ludacris’ soon-to-be-released album Theater... more

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1 day ago

Katt Williams Hospitalized, Psychiatric Evaluation Ordered

In a bizarre turn of events, standup comic, actor and aspiring rapper Katt Williams [click to read] was required to undergo a... more

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1 day ago

Suge Knight Charged For Beating His Girlfriend

Suge Knight has been charged with three crimes in connection to the alleged assault of his girlfriend in Las Vegas, according to... more

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1 day ago

Young Jeezy Volunteers At Dallas Food Kitchen

Def Jam superstar Young Jeezy [click to read] volunteered this evening at the Tommie M. Allen Recreation Community Center. Held... more

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1 day ago

Common Tells DX He's Selling New Album For 99 Cents

Common [click to read] was recently speaking in North Carolina, where he caught up with HipHopDX. There, the Chicago veteran emcee talked about his forthcoming album Universal Mind Control. "I’m really excited about it and for me as long as I’ve been making music I always wanted to challenge myself. This album is a lot of free music, a lot of feel good music. I didn’t overthink the subject matters and made music you can dance too, ride out too, and have fun too. I wanted to give people something to smile about, enjoy, and let loose."

Within Universal Mind Control, Common says he has a song that really embodies the political climate America witnessed earlier this month in his home city. "I have a song called 'Changes' [click to listen] and it’s a reflection of what I see in the future, it’s changes going on right now. The youth really have a opportunity due to the fact we have Barack Obama in office. It’s due to the fact that people of all colors can see a black men, with his black women, and family can really do something powerful and lead this country. I wrote it probably five or six months ago, and it really fitting for the climate of the world right now."

Lastly, as artists ranging from Mos Def and 50 Cent have traded fourth quarter releases for a much less crowded 2009, Common explained his own push-back. "I originally was starting this album as an EP which was like a six song collection of songs. It was called Invincible Summer and I wanted to bring it out during the summertime. I did this film Terminator Salvation and I couldn’t finish the album in period I wanted to. I said, 'Man Universal Mind Control is the perfect title for the sound of the music. UMC fits the theme of what the album is about. That sounds like something from back in the days to something futuristic. Check me out on the website Zune.net, y'all can get the whole album for 99 cents the day the album is released, y'all can't beat that, my music is priceless. [Laughs]"

Read it all here........
http://www.hiphopdx.com/index/news/id.8096Common [click to read] was recently speaking in North Carolina, where he caught up with HipHopDX. There, the Chicago veteran emcee... more

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1 day ago

Kanye West expresses his designer side, talks family

With three albums under his belt and another on the way, it’s obvious that music has been Kanye West’s best way of... more

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4 days ago

50 Cent album pushed back to '09

Although 50 Cent was hoping to release Before I Self Destruct (an album he has repeatedly stated was essentially finished over a... more

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4 days ago

Murs talks Midnight Club: LA, Sweet Lord coming to CD

This Sunday, in honor of Rockstar Games' XBox Live event for their new Midnight Club: Los Angeles, the team has included... more

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4 days ago

Cassie: the rebirth

A lot has been said and written about Cassie. When the former model’s first single hit the airwaves, it was quite an instant success on the radio. When her Bad Boy debut dropped and the video was played, there was a lot to of criticism. That only got worse due to a series of less than impressive live performances on national television. Radio jocks, bloggers and, well, everyone was quick to exclaim that she was all beauty and no talent. Even Cassie got in on it by releasing a statement saying, "I am aware that my live performances have been pretty bad."

But, it wasn’t just about the live shows. Others speculated that her first single, “Me & You” was actually about felatio. This only heightened the scrutiny and darkened the image of a promising young star.

But, Cassie is aware of all of this. After all, she ended that statement by noting, “I'm not a whore or a bitch, which is what people have been making me out to be. I'm a 19-year-old girl, I'm single, and I'm working my ass off.”

Well, she’s older now. She’s still working and she’s still facing those same challenges that plagued her debut. But, in this interview with HipHopDX, Cassie let us know that she’s ready to take on those who doubted and those who hated. With growth and help from major producers, she’s trying to redeem and reform her image to prove there’s more than just beauty to this rising star.

HipHopDX: Obviously there’s been some growth since the last album. How did you experience the growth and what can fans expect to hear from you now?

Cassie: I think with any experience and with time, change happens. So, I went through a lot on that first, I don’t know what you want to call it, round of being an artist and having my first album out, my first and second single and stuff like that. There was some bad with it, too.

So, I grew from that and just meeting different people and traveling all around the world, it influenced me and the album I’m working on now.

DX: There was a lot of criticism that you faced the last time around. How hard was that for you to go through that in front of everybody? How were you able to overcome it?

Cassie: Being a human being, it’s definitely embarrassing. There’s no way around that. But, you kind of just have to get up and dust off and keep it moving. Otherwise, it just going to become a burden and that’s what people associate you with. That’s definitely what I don’t want is for that to be the constant for that to rest of my career. "Oh, she messed this up so this is how it’s going to go for her." I have bigger plans for myself and I have already set myself up in certain situations to where I won’t have to deal with that ever again. I’ve worked really hard. I’ve been in studio working on this album, working with my vocal coach and choreographer and busting my ass as much as possible so that I can prove to everyone that I deserve to be where I am right now.

Read the whole interview here ...

http://www.hiphopdx.com/index/lifestyle-features/id.1262A lot has been said and written about Cassie. When the former model’s first single hit the airwaves, it was quite an instant... more