Saturday, July 30, 2011

Diggy Simmons- Copy, Paste (Official Video)



In case you didn't catch the video on BET's 106 and Park (you probably didn't if you're over the age of 18), here is the video for Diggy Simmons first single "Copy, Paste". It has been done for weeks but made premiered to the world today.

Wednesday, July 27, 2011

J. Cole- Can't Get Enough featuring Trey Songz




When J. Cole and Trey Songz get together, of course, they're gonna talk about the ladies. Unfortunately, it's not quite as wonderful as I imagined a collaboration between these two would be.

Four notable veterans headed to free agency

 
Today the Ravens announced that four key veterans of the past few season will be released to free agency. Wide receiver Derrick Mason, running back Willis McGahee, tight end Todd Heap and defensive tackle Kelly Gregg will all hit the open market this Thursday.

Each player has at one point topped the depth chart at their position and left pleasant memories in fan's minds.

At age 36, the game has usually caught up with an NFL player, they themselves have physically slowed down and he finds himself incapable of competing at a top-notch level. Mason does not fit in this category. He finished last season with 802 receiving yards, a number that may signify a decline to the average eye, but is actually a testament to how undeniably good his route running and catching skills still are. In an offense where Anquan Boldin and Todd Heap competed with Mason for passes from Flacco and Ray Rice dilligently ran the ball and caught passes from backfield, a decrease in yardage from the previous year could have been just as much a sign of more equal distribution of the ball as it could have been a decrease in production. Regardless of what you want to believe, there will be a market out their for the veteran once he officially hits the market.


The Ravens signed Willis Mcgahee in 2007 as a replacement for the departed Jamal Lewis. In his debut as a Ravens, Mcgahee ran for over 1200 yards and score a rushing touchdown in seven consecutive weeks of the season. Never again did he tally up that many rushing yards in a single season but he did score 12 touchdowns in the 2009 season as one-third of the three headed monster, made up of fellow backs LeRon McClain and Ray Rice. Mcgahee's release was not a surprise to many since most of his reps have been taken by Ray Rice and his return would have costed the Ravens about $7 million.

Todd Heap's release, however, took me for surprise. Heap is the Ravens' all-time leader in touchdown catches and second all-time leader in receiving yards, behind Derrick Mason. Heap has proven to be a tough, resilient athlete during his tenure. He suffered several injuries during the 2010 season but remained a reliable target, finishing the season with 40 catches, 599 receiving yards and 5 touchdowns. During the first three years of his career, Joe Flacco often looked in Heap's direction for a bailout when in trouble. At times it has led to drive saving first downs and other times game-changing mistakes. Number 86 has forever cemented his name and number in Ravens lore as a consistent receiving tight end and good locker room player.

For almost 10 years, Kelly Gregg has been known as a big stud holding down the Ravens offensive line. The 320 pounder was never a great pass rusher but always gave opposing run offensive trouble. The Ravens have remained a top-run defense for as long as Gregg has been around. Pairing up Gregg with 2006 first-round draft pick Haloti Ngata ensured the Ravens a sturdy presence up the middle.

The ironic thing is any of these four players could be signed back if he is willing to accept a lighter paycheck. These men were cut not simply cut because of their ages but because they are costly to keep. The organization has rookies to sign and free agents they are targeting; these players cost money.

Thursday, July 21, 2011

Wale- Globetrotter featuring 2 Chainz



When Wale joined the Maybach Music I knew he'd collaborate southern rappers he's never worked with before but a song with 2 Chainz aka Tity Boi wasn't on my radar. "Globetrotter" isn't Wale's most meaningful or conscience track but works well because his and 2 Chainz's deliveries differ so much.

Wale's sophomore album "Ambition" is set to be released on February 2nd 2012; we'll see if this makes the cut.

Wednesday, July 20, 2011

DJ Khaled- It Ain't Over Til' It's Over featuring Fabolous, Jadakiss and Mary J. Blige



DJ Khaled's We The Best Forever compilation album hit stores yesterday so it's only right that his label (Cash Money Records) release another video to further promote the project. This time New York/New Jersey is represented by rappers Fabolous and Jadakiss and the "Queen of Hip Hop Soul" Mary J. Blige. Fab and Jada's names were never know to be acronyms but if you ever wanted to hear a meaning or comment pinned to each letter in their abbreviated names, you're in luck.

Tuesday, July 19, 2011

Chris Brown trying his hand at rapping... again

Is there another dimension to Chris Brown? He has already done a good job returning from a dark period in his career. He is arguably, the best singer/dancer in mainstream music once again. Brown began a series called "Real Hip Hop Sh*T" back in February but has come back with the third and fourth installments this week. Even though I don't want to admit it, his verses are rather impressive. Of course, he has the majestic instrumentals of 9th Wonder to rely on but it doesn't take away from his lyrical performance, only adds. Below are the third and fourth parts of his rap series:

Chris Brown- Real Hip Hop Sh*t Part 3 (Produced by 9th Wonder)





Chris Brown- Real Hip Hop Sh*t Part 4 featuring Kevin McCall (Produced by 9th Wonder)
 

Prepare for the lockout to be lifted



Besides updates on the efforts to lift the lockout, this summer has been full of overly saturated stories about  rudimentary details like James Harrison's disparaging remarks about quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, Rashard Mendenhall's comments about the killing of Osama Bin Laden and guestimates of where various soon-to-be high profile free agents will land. Obviously, the media has had no free agency or offseason trades to discuss so they have been left to argue over minor occurrences but if the lockout ends this week, as some are predicting, many of the activities that usually occur during the long eight months of down time will happen in quick succession.

DJ Khaled- Future featuring Ace Hood, Big Sean, Meek Mill, Wale and Vado



Songs by a collective of upcoming artists is neither new nor foreign to DJ Khaled's fan. Each of Khaled's last three albums have featured rappers with enough buzz to disqualify them from being underground but enough obscurity to keep them from collaborating with the likes of Lil' Wayne and Ludacris; "Future" is no exception. Each featured artist is a celebrity in their regions but none is such at a nationwide level, except maybe Big Sean whose debut album just sold over 87,000 copies in the first week. Their lack of widespread fame is by no means correlated to their talent, in fact, each has a potential to be hip hop's next A-lister.

Ace Hood should be excluded from this company because he's prepping for the release of his third album in the latter part of the summer. He has not become a prominent rapper in the rap world and probably never will. His appearance on this track can only be explained by his relationship with DJ Khaled. The rest of these artists have either yet to release a formal debut or have only released one. Regardless, this cut is definitely a bright spot on DJ Khaled's We the Best Forever project released today.

BTW: I don't why J. Cole is no where to be found but he belongs in this group.

Thursday, July 14, 2011

The Making of Common's "Ghetto Dreams"


A look into "Ghetto Dreams" w/Common&Nas - B.Kyle from B.Kyle on Vimeo.


I am usually not a fan of videos chronicling the making of a certain song or video but this video explaining how "Ghetto Dreams", performed by Common and Nas and produced by No I.D., came about held my attention for the entire duration. The mutual respect the two legendary rappers display when describing how highly one thinks of the other is captivating.

Monday, July 11, 2011

Should I purchase Big Sean's album?

 
In today's society, music fans have a choice of doing the honest thing and buying music or resorting to the more deviant route of illegally downloading. I try to make it a habit of purchasing my favorite artists’ recent work and I consider Big Sean to be one of my favorite commercial rappers of the moment. Despite my motivation, is his debut album, Finally Famous: The Album, worth buying in the store?

Obvious by the superfluous number of times it’s played on the radio, the album's lead single "My Last" is doing exceptionally well on the radio; it was the fourth most-played song on nationwide radio market during the week of June 27th through July 3. Sean and Chris Brown had the opportunity to perform the song at the 2011 BET Awards. "Marvin Gaye and Chardonnay" featuring label head Kanye West and Roscoe Dash is set to be the second single. I enjoy both tracks and wouldn’t mind hearing "Chardonnay" on the radio a few more times.

Critics criticize Big Sean's affinity to change his style to seemingly accommodate the guest feature on the song as a lack of identity. Music critic Jesal 'Jay Soul' Padania of Rap Reviews wrote, "there is no consistent narrative voice, as Big Sean modifies his own voice to accommodate his guest, or adapts to the original tone of the song's influencing artist.” I disagree because what he may consider lack of identity, I call diversity. The subject matter and delivery in "Don't Wait for Me" are different than those of "Dance (A$$)".

The production from No I.D, The Neptunes and others give Sean a great platform exhibit his talents.

My other concern is the brevity of the album. There are only twelve songs on the basic copy, 16 on the deluxe edition. Even if the disk is $9.99 in stores, I’m still wary about whether or not I will be getting my money’s worth.

Nonetheless, I am feeling propelled to do my part as a fan. Physical album sales are declining while digital sales are increasing. I’d rather be part of the solution than the problem. Plus, it’s nothing like having an ink-covered plastic disk and decorative case in your hand.

Thursday, July 7, 2011

Raekwon- Rich and Black featuring Nas (Official Video)



"Rich and Black" is the second single from Raekwon's Shaolin vs. Wu-Tang album. It features QB legend Nas trading verses with The Chef; this track is being considered one of the best hip hop singles in more recent history. Although the video is unsophisticated, it's good to see the camaraderie between two of hip hop's most respected MC's.

Wednesday, July 6, 2011

Donnis- All I Need




Even though Donnis' most recent mixtape Southern Lights is still playing perpetually on my iPod, he has apparently moved on to this pop sounding song about the possessions he desires. The track is produced by Japanese producers Nippon Sounds. Can't say this is one of his better songs but it's different.