DJ EFN FEAT. MC EIHT, BLU & KAM – SOUTH-WEST (K-DEF REMIX)
Even though DJ EFN’s Another Time is already out, the remixes keep coming. This one is of the Kam, Blu and MC Eiht collaboration “South-West,” which gets the K-Def treatment.
WATCH ACTION BRONSON’S SHORT DOCUMENTARY FOR MR. WONDERFUL
As if the anticipation for Action Bronson’s “Mr. Wonderful” hadn’t reached the highest of highs, this ridiculous rap mockumentary just set the bar that much higher.
RAPSODY – THE MAN
Fresh off of blessing Kendrick Lamar’s album with her beautiful verse on “Complexion,” Rapsody drops the video for “The Man” from her “Beauty & The Beat” EP. A ode to the young men who grow up without fathers, “The Man” is a excellent set of black and white visuals with an exceptional impact.
JOEY BADA$$ EXPLAINS THE STORY BEHIND “CURRY CHICKEN”
While at SXSW, Joey Bad$$ and Statik Selektah took some time out with Beats By Dre to discuss the story behind “Curry Chicken.”
MAD SKILLZ – THE SKY AIN’T THE LIMIT (PRODUCED BY BINK!)
Sometimes people forget that Mad Skillz is more than just the “Year End Rap” guy. With world travels and experience under his belt, Skillz gets some soulful production from Bink! to discuss how pleased he is with success on “The Sky Ain’t The Limit.” Off of Bink! and Mad Skillz’ “Made In Virginia” album.
JOEY BADA$$ BREAKS DOWN HIS VERSE FROM PAPER TRAILS
Power 106 catches up with The Pro Era emcee to get a break down of his verse from “Paper Trails”
ACTION BRONSON, JEAN GRAE, A$AP FERG & OTHERS WATCH VIRTUAL PORN
The good folks at Complex got their hands on some VR porn devices and decided to try them out on the likes of Action Bronson, Jean Grae, A$AP Ferg, The-Dream and others. The results are pretty damn interesting.
DJ PREMIER EXPLAINS HOW HE ALMOST TRASHED THE “NAS IS LIKE” SAMPLE
DJ Premier appeared on the LA Leakers show and told the story of how he nearly threw away the sample that eventually became the foundation for “Nas Is Like.” It’s an interesting story of how one man’s trash eventually becomes another man’s treasure.
EASY MO BEE TALKS NOTORIOUS B.I.G., TUPAC AND MORE ON THE JUAN EPSTEIN PODCAST
Easy Mo Bee appears on Peter Rosenberg and Cipha Sounds podcast to discuss his relationships with the late Tupac and Notorious B.I.G. as well as his relationship with Diddy and more.
RAPSODY EXPLAINS HOW HER FEATURE ON TO PIMP A BUTTERFLY CAME ABOUT
Kendrick Lamar surprised the masses with the release of To Pimp A Butterfly but many were also pleasantly surprised with the appearance of Rapsody on the song “Complexion.” Her stellar verse added much needed depth to the song that discusses colorism and Complex caught up with Rapsody to discuss how the collaboration came about.
When did Kendrick first reach out to you?
Initially, when he and 9th [Wonder] talked about it was the day after the “Control” verse dropped. I was in New York for the She Got Game listening, which you came to. And after that, I went to Premier’s studio to shoot a video. So 9th was talking to Kendrick about the “Control” verse and he hit him and was like, “Yo, I have an idea for my next album. I want to reach out to Rapsody for it.” So 9th was like, “That’d be great or whatever. Just let us know.”You know, time goes by. He’s been touring. I didn’t think too much of it. Working with one of those artists, you have different ideas when making music. But, he reached back out on Jan. 11 [of 2015]. I was on my way to Toronto, and he hit 9th. He told him he was gonna send him something to get on. That was when he reached out.
Did he send you a skeleton of the song?
I didn’t hear his verse. He sent me the part that I rapped on, so from the part where the beat switches? That’s all I got. I called him and he told me the song is “Complexion.” That was pretty much it. We didn’t talk in-depth about what direction to go in, but he told me complexion. You know, African-American, black people in America. I knew kind of the thought process behind it. I was in D.C. and I wrote that verse that day. 9th drove up, and we went into the studio and recorded it that night.I was telling 9th, this is my first time hearing the song in its entirety. When I heard the song all together, I told 9th, “Wow that’s crazy.” I hadn’t heard his verse, and it is dope that we had similar subject matter about slaves and about blue eyes. And the 2Pac thing. I didn’t know 2Pac was at the end of the project. So it is dope how it all came together.
What would you say is the message of “Complexion”?
Basically, [it’s] the whole idea of colorism and how much of a problem it’s in the black community. Light skin versus dark skin. It goes all the way back to slavery where you had the dark skin blacks. You know, they were called the field niggas. They were working in the field. And then you had the house niggas who were the light skin ones. Having that separation, it created the vibe, which we still see today and it still affects us. The dark skin would think, you know, “Oh, the light skin think they’re better being in the house.” And vice-versa. That’s just what it is all about. That’s the beauty of all humans. We all come in different shapes, colors, and sizes. But the way we look on the outside, our color doesn’t make anyone better than the next. We are all beautiful in our own right. So it is just appreciating the variety within the black community. Whether you are red bone or black as chocolate, you are beautiful and embrace that.
You can read the rest here.