Brother Ali

New Brother Ali track titled "Us". Just a snippet but classic Ali sound. Look for his next album also titled Us available september 22nd.

Eminem

If you have heard "Obsessed" by Mariah Carey, then you will want to hear this.

Eminem went off, "You gonna ruin my career you better get one."

Weirdest NBA players

Funny rundown of the 8 weirdest players in the NBA.

Brett Favre

A couple months ago, I wrote that Favre would be a Viking. I was convinced he was not done playing and wanted revenge on Mike McCarthy and the Packers. News broke today that he is indeed not coming back. I was wrong. 

At first, I was not thrilled about Favre playing for the Vikes but as Favre's indecision lingered(no surprise there) I began to warm up to the idea. Suddenly, I was thinking about Favre handing the ball off to Adrian Peterson and throwing swing passes to Percy Harvin out of the backfield. I was beginning to think that the Vikes would be unstoppable with Favre. He knew our offense and had a good relationship with OC Darrell Bevell. He also knows Green Bay's system and is familiar with all the teams in the NFC North. As Much as I didn't want a former Packer to lead us to the promised land, I thought that he was going to.

We know now that this won't happen. I have to say I am a bit relieved. If the Vikes would have gone 12-4 and made it to the NFC Championship(or further), all anyone would have said was, "You only made it there because of Favre," especially those cheese eating drunks from Wisconsin. Now the Vikings need to move forward. Accept the team that you have and try and win with those guys. The Vikes won the division last year without Favre, who is to say we can't do it again? We have added more weapons and hopefully our quarterbacks will make better decisions. I like the team the Vikings have assembled, even without Favre. It is time for Minnesota, the team and the people of Minnesota, to not dwell on this. We didn't get Favre...who cares. We still have a very competitive team that needs our support.

"Run This Town"

Run This Town  Jay-Z featuring Rihanna and Kanye West.

Jay came weak as shit on this. 

Think LeBron plays high?

So Lebron James smoked weed in high school. I guess I will stop liking him because he is obviously a bad person. 

MLB top 100

Good article on Top 100 baseball players in the majors.

Hoop Dreams

Good story by Seth Davis about the classic documentary, Hoop Dreams.

09 British Open

Damn I wanted Tom Watson to win, all 59 years of him. What a story. Oldest man to win a major was 48. If Watson would have won he would have been the oldest to win a major by 11 years. Can't explain how much I was rooting for him as was my 57 year-old dad and I am sure many other elder statesmen. Hats off to Stewart Cink though. He played well and deserved it.

Chrisette Michelle

I am a sucker for some good R&B music. Nothing like sittin' back and listenin' to some heartfelt love songs. Call me fragile, I don't care. If you like R&B, listen to Chrisette Michelle's Epiphany including "What You do" featuring Ne-Yo. 

J.Cole

Someone hit the lights please, this man is turnin' hip-hop on again. Think Nas's classic 90's sound and Jay's wordplay and you got J.Cole. I realize that is saying a lot but just trust me. A graduate of St John's in New York, the North Carolina product grew up listening to Andre 3000, Nas, Jay-Z, and Cannibus. You can hear their influence in his music and his appreciation for them cannot be overlooked. If hip-hop wants to get back to the glory days, rappers need to appreciate those that came before them and pay homage to them, something J.Cole has no problem doing. Being the first signee to Jay-Z's label ROC Nation isn't bad either. Download his Warm-Up Mixtape here. A very articulate and intelligent rapper,a rarity in hip-hop, J.Cole gives a good interview.

Drake Download

Drake had released some new songs on yet another mixtape, Heartbreak Drake Pt. 2. Hopefully this is his last mixtape before his debut album, Thank Me Later. Enjoy!

Michael Jackson

In honor of the passing of MJ, I thought I would share my opinions on my favorite Jackson albums.

1.) Off the Wall: Michael's first album, post Jackson 5, and in my opinion his magnum opus. Recorded and released in 1979, Off the Wall blends disco, pop, soft-rock and jazz. It was the first collaboration of MJ and the legendary Quincy Jones. One of the best partnerships in the history of music, they would later collaborate on Jackson's album's Thriller and Bad. Off the Wall set the benchmark for Jackson's career and contributed heavily to the anticipation and success of Thriller. Best songs: It's the Falling in Love, Don't Stop 'til You Get Enough. 

2.) Dangerous: The birth of Michael Jackson as an individual artist. Of the 14 tracks, Jackson produced or co-produced 12 of them. This was also the first album Jackson did not work with Quincy Jones, who urged Jackson to change his approach to music and recommended Teddy Riley and his revolutionary New Jack Swing sound. MJ also wrote 12 of the 14 songs, letting his voice be known as opposed to previous albums where the songs were written by other artists such as Paul McCartney and Stevie Wonder. Best songs: Who is it, Give in to Me, Why You Wanna Trip on Me.

3.) Bad: Originally intended to be a duet between Jackson and Prince, Bad is MJ's third solo studio album. Jackson wrote 9 of the 11 tracks and Quincy Jones handled the production, Bad being the last collaboration between the two. Building on his previous album Thriller, Jackson continued his pop chart dominance by debuting, for the first time in his career, at number one on the Billboard Top 200 and remained there for 6 weeks while amassing 30 million records sold. Best songs: Man in the Mirror, Dirty Diana, The Way You Make Me Feel.

Billie Jean is my favorite MJ song of all time but the rest of Thriller just isn't that good with throwaways like Baby Be Mine and The Girl is Mine. This being the reason that Thriller did not make my top 3, top 5 definitely, but not top 3. I wish there were more MJ albums on the way but sadly this is not the case.

Minnesnowsta Jada

Minneapolis is one of the most underrated hip-hop scenes in America. Atmosphere, Brother Ali, Hierospecs and many others claim Minneapolis. Fans are everywhere, including here. Watch the first video. The big girls love Jada!

Kentucky

The Kentucky Wildcats will win the National Championship. John Calipari is God. John Wall is the next Derek Rose. Use any hyperbole to describe the 2009/10 Kentucky WIldcats and you just might end up being correct. This team might win the National Championship. Coach Calipari might one day be mentioned in the same breath as Adolph Rupp and Rick Pitino. John Wall very well could be the next Derek Rose, if you don't believe me youtube him. If i were a Kentucky fan, I would consider myself very lucky. You are getting the most charismatic and passionate coach in college basketball (sorry Jay Wright) and you are getting all the players he had coming to Memphis. Along with Wall, Demarcus Cousins (scout.com # 2 C), Daniel Orton (scout.com #4 C), Eric Bledsoe (scout.com # 6 PG) will be attending Kentucky this year. Combine this class with Patrick Patterson and Kentucky is on the rise. Early prediction: Kentucky wins National Championship.

Atmosphere

Slug and Ant are back in the studio and have come out with a 7 track EP titled "Leak At Will." Atmosphere fans clear some hard drive space and download here.

Lebron got dunked on...maybe.

Apparently Bron got dunked on at his basketball camp. However, Nike confiscated the tape. This begs the question, "If bron got dunked on but no one sees it, did it really happen?"

Lupe Mixtape

Lupe Fiasco, one of the most lyrically gifted MC's out, just released a new mixtape titled "Super Fiasco Bros." His albums "Food and Liquor" and "The Cool" are certified classics. If you have a datpiff account download here. If you don't download here. Enjoy!

Until Gwen

"Until Gwen," a short story by Dennis Lehane, starts out, "Your father picks you up from prison in a stolen Dodge Neon, with an 8-ball of coke in the glove compartment and a hooker named Mandy in the back seat." This got my attention. Told in second person, it is the story of a man without an identity with a villian for a father and a race for an elusive diamond. Short stories do not get any better than this. And like "Mystic River" and "Shutter Island," this Lehane story is also being made into a movie. It is only like 20 pages so even if you don't like to read, i recommend checking it out.
 

Wale

If you don't know about Wale, I feel bad for you. Like Drake who I mentioned earlier, this guy is the future of hip-hop. This is his website. Make sure to download his mixtapes, "Back to the Feature," "100 Miles and Running," and "The Mixtape about Nothing," which is an ode to Seinfeld. The D.C. product has got some heat and producers like 9th Wonder and LV and Sean C are on his debut album, Attention Deficit. 

Some Sporting News

If you are reading this, you probably know me. If you know me, you know I love sports. That being said, here are some thoughts.

NBA: The Lakers just acquired Ron Artest. The rich get richer. A lot of people are saying why would you give up Trevor Ariza when you just won a championship with him? Simple answer: Ron Artest is a better player. He can do more things on the court and will have the drive to get his first ring. The Lakers wanted him last year but couldn't get a deal done. People remember him for his knucklehead antics, Malice at the Palace anyone? Truth is, he is a great teammate with a big heart. Him and Kobe are friends, off the court, and respect each others competitiveness. If Phil Jackson can handle Dennis Rodman, he can handle Ron Artest.In-depth answer: Trevor Ariza is not as good as you think he is. He was a system player. A product of his environment. He thrived on defense and hit wide open threes when teams were doubling the incomparable Kobe Bryant. He was never any good before he got to L.A. and I have a feeling he won't be so good in Houston. Also, why was he demanding so much money? He should have been happy to sign for whatever L.A. offered him. They made him a world champion when before he barely got off the bench. Now he will fade into obscurity. At least he got paid. 

Dennis Lehane

I just finished reading "Shutter Island" by Dennis Lehane. If you don't know already this book is being made into a movie by the great Martin Scorcese (possibly the greatest director of all time). It stars Leonardo Dicaprio, Ben Kingsley, Michelle Williams and Mark Ruffalo. If it is anything like the book, which movies normally aren't, it will be great. Here is a link to the IMDB. Other books by Lehane are Mystic River(also a movie, directed by Clint Eastwood) and Coronado, among others. This man can write and if you are interested in great fiction, check him out.

More Sad News...

Just days after the King of Pop overdosed, Steve Mcnair is now dead. This is tragic. I would mention Farrah Fawcett but...I never really cared about her. Call me insensitive. What really gets me is the incline in MJ music sales after he died. So people have to wait for someone to die to listen to their music? I been listenin to Mike for years and will still be groovin to "Off the Wall" 20 years from now. I can't stand how people are glorified after they die but ridiculed while they are alive. When Michael was alive he was a skin-dying pedophile but now that he's dead he is made out to be some hero. I can't watch the news now without hearing about Debby Rowe and whats gonna happen to the kids...who gives a shit! This man is the greatest performer ever who influenced everyone from Justin Timberlake to that dumb group who covered "Smooth Criminal." We need to appreciate these people while they are alive, then maybe they wont resort to drugs and die. As for Steve McNair, all i can say is if you are gonna cheat on your wife, be a little more careful.

R.I.P.

Drake

For the past month or so the only thing in my CD player is a dude named Drake otherwise known as "Mr. Best I Ever Had." Complex magazine just listed his mixtape "So Far Gone" as the 3rd best album out this year...a mixtape! He is from Toronto and just signed with lil' wayne and Young Money. Don't sleep on this man. Oh yeah, if there are any Degrassi fans out there he played wheelchair Jimmy.