“i recorded the snoop joint that leaked around the time i was workin on MOTM, its a deleted scene that im including on Cudder. I DID NOT LEAK IT and i barely have a name for it so ill let u guys kno whats its really called as soon as i figure it out haha. By the time u hear it on the album it will be a bit diff with a better mix and some other shit added. Also, the homie Rashad “Ringo” Smith produced the record, NOT DR. DRE. if u got the record already cool. if not, if u can find it rock out. and remember WE SHININ WE ROLLIN WE SIPPIN WE SMOKIN WE LIVIN WE HAPPY THEYY MAAAADDDDDDD! F*CK EM peace and love from ur bud, cud” (Kid Cudi’s Blog)

“Here’s how I look at it, because the wording in there is kinda funny. ‘Impostor.’ I liken it to this: I’m a director as well as a writer. I choose different characters, I choose their direction and where I want to put them. So who I choose to put as the character is up to me. The character that I hired, he got paid for it…..Any cats that are coming to see me as a physical person, I can switch the [actor] any time. I’m not gonna play the part of that character every time. Like how [actors] changed through the Batman series, where it was George Clooney[and] it switched like five [other actors].”

Antonio L.A. Reid has found himself in hot water after being accused of mishandling many of his label’s biggest projects during the last year. The Island Def Jam CEO has reportedly been facing pressure from Lucian Grainge, the new Universal Music Group CEO, following his rampant spending and the incredibly low sales ofMariah Carey and Rihanna’s recent releases. Moreover, Reid’s recent efforts to sign Jennifer Lopez (who has not had a hit  record in years) have made him the target of serious media criticism.

Reid was scheduled to answer questions  from fellow industry moguls regarding the issue at the Billboard 2010 Music & Money Symposium at the St. Regis last week but failed to make an appearance after one of his sons mysteriously fell ill. To date, Carey’s ‘Memoirs of An Imperfect Angel’ has sold just short of 500k units since it’s release in September while Rihanna’s ‘Rated R’ has only shipped 2.5 worldwide compared to the 2.6 million that her ‘Good Girl Gone Bade’ album sold in the US alone.

Waka Flocka Flame called Shade 45 to speak with DJ Whoo Kid along with Vanessa Satten and Rob Markman from XXL Magazine about his songwriting techniques, surviving in the industry and the details on his recent shooting.

How did Waka Flocka get his wild rap name? Why does he say he doesn’t have lyrics, and why is having them a bad thing in today’s market? Who wrote Diddy’s verse for the “O Let’s Do It” remix? Why does he think mixtapes are better than albums? What special body parts does he think are hidden by his So Icey momager Debra Antney (who also manages Gucci Mane, Nicki Minaj and OJ da Juiceman)?

ystikal called in to Shade 45 last week to let Whoo Kid and Coach PR know he is prepared to be back on top in the music biz since his return from prison! “Things have changed, but they’re about to change again!”

Does he intend on working with Master P again? How are things between him and C-Murder? Why have fans been so important to him? Did his friends stand by him while he was away? Does he feel his sentencing was fair? How is he catching up with new technology? What are his feelings about Lousiana artists like Lil Wayne and Lil Boosie gaining success? Will he be dating anytime soon?

Rapper Lil Wayne arrived at Rikers Island in New York City on Tuesday to begin serving a one-year jail term on a weapons conviction.

Wayne, 27, whose real name is Dwayne Michael Carter Jr., chose not to speak at his sentencing on Monday, the New York Post reports. With good behavior, he could be out of prison in eight months.

After initially pleading not guilty to gun possession after a July 2007 arrest, Wayne changed his plea to guilty in October in exchange for a reduced 12-month sentence.

Wayne had had his sentencing postponed twice in the past month – once so he could have dental work done, and once because of a fire in the courthouse basement.

He recently tried to put his ordeal in perspective, telling Rolling Stone: “I look at things as ‘Everything is meant to be.’ I know it’s an experience that I need to have if God’s putting me through it.”

50 CENT – THE BEST OF 2009 from DJ SEMTEX on Vimeo.

There is no doubt that 50 Cent is one of the hottest artists of the last decade. Recently, i caught up with him to reflect on the best/worst moments of 2009.

We started on the best album, then we kinda got stuck on the ‘beef’ issue, specifically the Jay-z & Beans situation. I really wanted to get into this, but I ran out of time.

What do you think is the situation with Fif and Game the same as Beans and Jay-z?

I don’t think it is. You would have heard about Game one way or another via Dre. 50’s done so much damage to other artists, what he did to Ja Rule is actually historic. I dont think people are that concerned if someone attacks 50. Its his field, his speciality, its kinda what the people expect from him/comes with the package.

50 is like Genghis Khan when it comes to Beef, so when he got into it with Game, people were skeptical, some people still think it was all a publicity stunt.

Regardless, 50 is a unique artist. There wont be another story like his for a long time.

NAS & DAMIAN MARLEY INTERVIEWS | DISTANT RELATIVES from DJ SEMTEX on Vimeo.

Nas and Damian Marley at Rock the Bells in L.A. They talk about their forth-coming ‘Distant Relatives’ project.

*The concept of Distant Relatives.
*How they hooked up.
*Working in the studio.
*K’naan gets the ultimate co-sign.
…..and more.

The Nas footage isnt the best, but thats how it goes when you get 10 minutes with one of the hottest rappers in the game in his tour bus, 12 minutes before he hits the stage.

There wasn’t enough room on the tour bus for my camera crew.

Sidebar: this was shot before the Blueprint tracklist leaked.

MOS DEF | OFFICIALLY JOINS THE GORILAZ [3 of 3] from DJ SEMTEX on Vimeo.

Part 3 of 3.

Mos Def announces that he is officially the 5th member of the Gorilaz.

The group that inspired 50 Cent to create the G-Unit concept has a new member called ‘SunMoonStars’ [Mos Def].

Mod Def talks on:

*His involvement in the Gorilaz project.
*Working with Damon Albarn.
*Kanye West.

…..and more.

It’s the seasoning of giving and Wyclef has done so through international channels.
Known for his humanitarian work in Africa as well as his homeland of Haiti, the former Fugees front man Wyclef Jean partnered with Western Union to bring Christmas cheer to the unfortunate children of Haiti.

Yesterday, Wyclef boarded a plane from Miami international airport to Haiti where he gave out gifts to its unfortunate children. Before taking off for this special occasion Wyclef took to twitter to express his thoughts.

He states:

When looking back @ my past it makes me believe that there is a force greater then me that is Governing the Universe.@ times when I go to haiti I ask myself what would have happen if I never made it to America what would I be doing right now?
–What if I never became Wyclef n wyclef was getting on the plane today to Come to haiti to bring me Food n Christmas Gifts how would I feel. When I Reflect of such things it makes me Understand that to live for others is the Non selfish way to live.

@ times we R so caught up with R selves that we forget about those around Us. some say they can’t help the needy because they have no money to give to the poor I say know one gave me money n the hut they gave me Hope. A man once said 2 me wyclef giving hope is not enuff da hungry can’t eat Hope, da hungry can’t eat hope but hope Can lead da hungry to food. The Good teaches Us that when Christ showed Up n the clubs,da church, the streets the First thing he Bought with him was the Word! N the beginning was the Word! Words R powerful, words Can bring a since of Hope to those that need it right Now!

I could not agree more with Wyclef. Hope is a trait we all share despite our struggles and differences in life. This generous act by Wyclef and Western Union will impact the lives of many.

Eminem has reportedly agreed not to perform any anti-gay songs in order to appear at the Wireless Festival next summer.

The festival was said to be concerned about protests from gay groups such as OutRage! over some of the rapper’s lyrics.

The UK-based gay rights group has been vocal in protesting against homophobic singers, most recently Jamaican stars Buju Banton and Beenie Man. It last protested against Eminem in 2001.

But when a deal was struck between all three parties was made to ensure there would be no anti-gay lyrics or protests, the singer agreed to sign up for the summer event.

According to the Evening Standard, a festival insider said: “This is a huge signing for Wireless and it will be the hottest ticket this summer.

“The organisers were afraid campaigners could potentially ruin the event. So there was a lot of to-ing and fro-ing and Eminem only agreed to sign up when assurances had been made that there would not be any protests.

“It was very touch-and-go but he has finally agreed to appear. Any kind of demonstration against him could have been disastrous.

“He will be bringing a huge entourage of security with him but there is still the risk that protesters may picket the hotel he stays in.”

OutRage! spokesman David Allison said: “We have a condition that he does not use lyrics that encourage or incite hatred against gay people.

“He is free to express his views on gay people, as long as he stays off the violence and hatred. He has got plenty of other lyrics to choose from. In recent years he has become quite well-behaved.”

In a song titled Criminal on his second studio album. The Marshall Mathers LP, Eminem’s lyrics include: “My words are like a dagger with a jagged edge/ That’ll stab you in the head, whether you’re a fag or lez/ Or the homosex, hermaph or a trans-a-vest/Pants or dress? Hate fags? The answer’s yes”.

His lyrics have had an unlikely defender in the form of Elton John.

John reportedly helped Eminem recover from painkiller addiction and has performed on stage with him.

The gay singer said: “I honestly don’t think people will go out and start beating and killing people because of this album. It appeals to my English black sense of humour.”

Kid Cudi was held at gunpoint by police in Los Angeles Tuesday (Dec. 21), in a case of mistaken identity that occurred just one week after the rapper left his opening slot on Lady Gaga’s Monster Ball tour.

Cudi, whose real name is Scott Mescudi, was in the midst of a photo shoot for NME magazine when he and his entourage were pulled over on Fairfax Avenue by police offers in search of suspected robbers.

NME reporter Emily Mackay later blogged about the incident, describing a dramatic scene that included “an angry, shaven-headed American policeman screaming, ‘KEEP YOUR TWO HANDS VISIBLE’ while pointing a gun at the back your head through the rear window.”

According to reports, Cudi and his entourage were ordered to exit three vehicles and kneel on the ground, where they were handcuffed. Police soon released the group, however, upon realizing that they had detained the wrong party.

“Such is life, apparently, when you roll with Kid Cudi and his crew,” added Mackay.

On Dec. 18, Cudi’s representatives announced that he was leaving Lady Gaga’s Monster Ball tour after playing just a few dates on the trek “in order to balance his schedule surrounding the recording of his next album and acting commitments.” The announcement came shortly after the rapper was criticized for punching a fan at a tour stop in Vancouver.

Los Angeles’ Beat Club is the latest in a line of venues that claim MF DOOM sent an imposter to perform in his stead.

“It’s hard to see here but you can catch glimpses of him.” Explained a concert viewer who posted a video of the perfomance (shown below). “It was obvious that he was an imposter since he never once laid his hand on a microphone and just played his new tracks on a laptop.”

When asked for comment by consequenceofsound.net, the rapper’s label, Stones Throw – which does not handle his booking – said it was “obvious that he wasn’t going to show up at a venue that fits only 200 people when his performance fee requires venues about 10 times that size.” It should be noted that the label did not explicitly confirm nor deny that the perfomance was an imposter’s.

In the past, DOOM has explained that the allegations were the result of his being unrecognizable due to massive weight loss. He was also called out for the alleged practice by The Cunninlynguists’ DJ Kno in an open letter.

The dream year for T.Dot native Drake continues to get better. After being named MTV’s 3rd hottest MC in the game, MTV has named his latest mixtape So Far Gone the mixtape of the year.

Some will dispute it being named mixtape of the year but the things accomplished with this mixtape is incredible. So Far Gone featured multiple songs featured on the radio at one time or another including the hits “Brand New” & “Successful”. So Far Gone was later released as an EP and has garnered the latest Young Money signee two Grammy nominations.

His debut album, Thank Me Later, is tentatively set to be released in March 2010.

As if Lil Wayne’s “Rebirth” wasn’t shaping up as planned before, a pre-order blunder has seriously marred its release even moreso today. Amazon accidentally shipped around 500 copies of the oft-delayed album to pre-order customers this week — even though the release date was pushed back to February.

Universal Motown and Cash Money Records have claimed they needed more setup time on the set; speculation also indicates that the famous hip-hop artist had yet to settle on a final tracklist after initial impressions of leaked tracks and first single “Prom Queen” came back mixed. The retailer nor the label had no comment to Billboard when the error was discovered.

The release date for the rock-and-rap experiment has moved at least six times this year, most recently from Dec. 22 to Feb. 1. The new single “On Fire” has only recently began building in sales through digital retailers.

Not that we condone it, but: Look for a leak of the Amazon version on an Internet near you.

All this, and on the day that Lil Wayne got more bad news: it was announced that he’s due in court on Feb. 9 for sentencing in his gun possession conviction. He faces a year in jail as part of his plea bargain.

Idle Warship is the electro rap group captained by rapper Talib Kweli. With first mates Res and Graph Nobel, the trio have been making music together for years. As their first mixtape, Party Robots sees the group striking out toward new frontiers. While the band is all about bringing the noise, there’s an old school quality to the music: lots of old synthy sounds and vocoders without a lot of the standard electro things like repetitive beats that spiral into massive breakdowns.

“Metro” is a great example of that. The Berlin original is already frantic and energetic like the movement of a bullet train, but they haven’t gone overboard with it, instead gradually shifting things up to create an even more kinetic experience. “World on Wheels” musically is like faintly techno old school Afrika Bambaataa. Plus, Saul Williams’ bit adds an angry club version of some David Byrne sing-screaming. “The Warship” blends parts of Edwin Starr’s “War” and Black Sabbath’s “War Pigs” into a militaristic call for action that commands head-nodding galore. It’s a completely older Kweli song without a lot of the dance and electro tinge to it. “Steady”, which samples the Eurythmics’ “Sweet Dreams”, is a impactful example of the sonic representation of their aim; it’s spun from a pretty dark song into something sort of elegant and sinister and mechanical before winding down, complete with the record skipping off into oblivion.

Kweli has always been known as a conscientious rapper, but with this album he learns to have fun while still being insightful and having depth. “Screamin’ “, featuring MC Chris, is a party record about abandoning reason for a hedonistic club experience; having a king of nerdcore brings a new perspective to the closed-off nature and social standards of hip-hop in general. Same goes for “Girls on the Dancefloor”. It’s less of a condemnation and more of this darkly poetic, intriguing look at the whole culture in the same way as American Psycho glorifies the yuppie culture; there’s an underlining wave of faceless and meaningless abandonment. “Party Robots” is another example of the dual existence; all about having fun and being a slave to the rhythm, it’s also a critique on the mindlessness of much of the club/party scene.

Worry not, though; despite the depth, the album’s full of lots of numbers that rumble with the sound of Prince-tastic beats processed through computers and the menacing movement of heavy drums. “LA Famous” is a banging example of the kind of disgusted worship of all that is shiny and fake. It’s built like some top 40 female pop goddess number with a posh synth line and lots of buzzing noises and predictably funky drum machine. It’s hard to tell if it’s a legitimate satire or celebration. Graph Nobel’s much more intense and real and less of the dainty pop queen that is portrayed in the song. It totally blurs the line of their insightfulness and total abandonment.

And speaking of Nobel, consider her a wellspring of female fury from here on out. “Bedroom Lights” shifts between a vocodered Nobel calling out from the dark to her Wonder Woman-esque accusations, separated by Kweli’s verse of a gameless man over a chirp-heavy DIY bedroom beat ripped from an arcade machine. “Fyah” is arguably where the voice of Nobel really shines. It’s the utter sweetness and vulnerability and emotional richness that would make Gwen Stefani circa Tragic Kingdom feel like weeping. But she also shows a tougher side with a verse in “Screamin’ “. It’s a straight-up rhythmic assault that flows like a streetwise seraphim. Undoubtedly part of what lets her step up is having to match wits with a legend like Kweli. One of the more interesting ways Nobel stands out is the seemingly insecure touches. “Black Snake Moan” finds the man and woman in a duel of overt sexiness. Graph totally wins by thrusting her heels into the ground and pulling him into her perverted den: a new spin on the whole gender dynamic of hip-hop, set to the sounds of some old roadhouse blues explosion.

While the idea of Kweli moving toward the clubbin’ direction may be a sign of the apocalypse for some, this is an album of balancing acts and of mining the past and braving the future.

idle Warship on Myspace

Rihanna has a crush on Megan Fox, and would love to film a lesbian scene with the ‘Transformers’ actress.

The singer was asked if she would ever consider taking on movie work in the future, to which she replied: “Hopefully – we are working on that idea right now.”

As for what kind of storylines and roles the ‘Russian Roulette’ star would take on, Rihanna revealed: “I’d love to be an assassin. Either that or a lesbian.”

“Maybe both! Hey, a gay assassin, there’s nothing hotter than that.” Ri joked. “Megan Fox would play my girlfriend – hands down. She’s yummy. She’s hot.

“All humans are born with the ability to be attracted to both sexes. I mean, I could see myself in a relationship with a girl.”

Back in 1999, Eminem was best known as the slightly screwy, bottle-blond protégé of Dr. Dre. Ten years — and millions of albums — later, he’s about to be known as the best-selling artist of the decade.

On Tuesday (December 8), Nielsen SoundScan — which tabulates the Billboard charts — released their lists of the best-selling artists, albums and songs of the ’00s. And let’s just say the past 10 years have been very good for Mr. Mathers.

Em sold more than 32.2 million albums in the 2000s, edging out the Beatles to claim the title of top-selling artist. The Beatles ended up with the decade’s best-selling album (they sold nearly 11.5 million copies of 2000’s greatest-hits comp 1,) besting the likes of ‘NSYNC’s No Strings Attached (11.1 million copies sold) and Norah Jones’ Come Away With Me, (10.5 million). Eminem was the only artist to place two albums on the list; his The Marshall Mathers LP and Eminem Show records landed at #4 and 5, selling 10.2 million and 9.8 million copies, respectively. Interestingly, of the top 10 albums of the decade, the most recently released is Usher’s Confessions, which came out in 2004.

Top Selling Albums Of The Decade

The only areas in which Eminem or the Beatles didn’t dominate the decade were songs and radio play. According to Nielsen — which began keeping track of digital sales in July 2003 — Flo Rida’s “Low” was the decade’s top-selling digital song, having been downloaded more than 5.2 million times. It bested the likes of Lady Gaga’s “Just Dance” (nearly 4.7 million downloads), Jason Mraz’s “I’m Yours” (4.6 million) and the Black Eyed Peas’ “Boom Boom Pow” (4.3 million).

And there was none of that funny downloading stuff when it came to the decade’s most-played radio songs (generational divide, anyone?) a list topped by Nickelback’s “How You Remind Me” — which was spun more than 1.2 million times since being released in 2001 — and featuring names like Train (whose “Drops Of Jupiter” was racked up more than 1.1 million plays), Lifehouse, 3 Doors Down and Lee Ann Womack.

Nielsen Soundscan created the decade lists using data collected from January 1, 2000-November 1, 2009, and though figures might rise through December 31, they won’t alter the rankings.

The top-selling albums of the decade, according to Nielsen SoundScan:

1. The Beatles, 1,11,499,000 units sold
2. ‘NSYNC, No Strings Attached, 11,112,000 units sold
3. Norah Jones, Come Away With Me, 10, 546,000 units sold
4. Eminem, The Marshall Mathers LP, 10,204,000 units sold
5. Eminem, The Eminem Show, 9,799,000 units sold
6. Usher, Confessions, 9,712,000 units sold
7. Linkin Park, Hybrid Theory, 9,663,000 units sold
8. Creed, Human Clay, 9,491,000 units sold
9. Britney Spears, Oops! … I Did It Again, 9,185,000 units sold
10. Nelly, Country Grammar, 8,461,000 units sold

The top-selling digital songs of the decade, according to Nielsen SoundScan:

1. Flo Rida feat. T-Pain, “Low” 5,214,000 units sold
2. Lady Gaga feat. Colby O’Donis, “Just Dance,” 4,690,000 units sold
3. Jason Mraz, “I’m Yours,” 4,619,000 units sold
4. Timbaland feat. OneRepublic, “Apologize,” 4,439,000 units sold
5. The Black Eyed Peas, “Boom Boom Pow,” 4,349,000 units sold
6. Soulja Boy Tell’em, “Crank That,” 4,315,000 units sold
7. Lady Gaga, “Poker Face,” 4,200,000 units sold
8. Coldplay, “Viva la Vida,” 4,140,000 units sold
9. Taylor Swift, “Love Story,” 4,005,000 units sold
10. Katy Perry, “Hot N Cold,” 3,945,000 units sold

More Tiger Woods, Nivea, Sammy Sossa, Keisha Cole, Baby and Myself! Edited by the phenomenal Weggie Jackson!

50 Cent talking with Westwood about Tiger Woods & Jay-Z Part 1