Common Releases His 11th Studio Album, "Black America Again"
Multiple Grammy, Golden Globe, and Academy Award-winning Chicago rapper, actor, social activist, and philanthropist Common releases his 11th studio album, BLACK AMERICA AGAIN, on ARTium/Def Jam Recordings.
Coinciding with the new album release, VEVO has premiered a powerful long-form video for the project, produced by Ava DuVernayand directed by Bradford Young, acclaimed director and cinematographer respectively of the award-winning film Selma. Watch it HERE.
In turn, Common’s anthem “Letter To The Free” featuring Bilal (another track on BLACK AMERICA AGAIN), serves as the end-title track of DuVernay’s powerful new documentary ‘13th.’ Centered on race in the United States criminal justice system, ‘13th’ is named for the Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, which theoretically outlawed slavery. DuVernay makes the point that slavery, in spite of the Constitutional amendment, is being perpetuated through mass incarceration. “Letter To The Free” has already been nominated for a 2016 Critics' Choice Documentary Award for Best Song in a Documentary.
Themes of race and justice run deep throughout BLACK AMERICA AGAIN and its title track single. "I wrote this song in March,” Common said of “Black America Again” recently, “and unfortunately it was as relevant then as it is now. As it could have been in the 1960s or 1800s or any era that we have existed in this country. ‘Black America Again’ is centered in the injustices that black people have experienced and endured since we arrived on the shores of America. ‘Black America Again’ is a call to action. It is a song about black love, black strength, black justice, black resistance, black resilience, black empowerment, and black people.”
“Black America Again”’s socially conscious message resonates with scorching yet uplifting power, akin to Common’s groundbreaking 2014 single from the Selma movie soundtrack, “Glory” (with John Legend) for which they received Oscar, Grammy®, Golden Globe, and numerous other awards.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bURKiygUPow
The Boy Illinois releases "Memories" from upcoming project Home Court Advantage
The Boy Illinois might be on tour with Lupe right now, but that's not stopping his creative process! He just dropped off a new joint called "Memories" and it's of the same quality you now expect from The Boy Illinois.
Memories is laying the groundwork for Illinois forthcoming release "Home Court Advantage". Bringing a classic lyrical fun feeling that has been lost in hip hop. Illi creates a story, placing the listener in a setting where you can visualize everything he spits, from riding the "L" (CTA Train), to not making money yet creating opportunities. A short song with a plethora of lessons and life combined, Memories takes you back to dope punch lines like "Hit a lick like I never had a PayPal." With a catchy hook & mid tempo flow, The Boy Illinois effortlessly states his claim of being righteous but all about success, money, being the best and coming up with his team from day one.
NFL Players Banned From Wearing Yeezy Cleats
Just a week after Adidas introduced the Yeezy Boost cleat, they have been banned from the NFL. The league announced that the cleats violated their dress policy, citing a rule that cleats must be "one dominant base color". They then sent DeAndre Hopkins a $6,000 fine for wearing a pair in the Texans week 1 win over the Bears. This controversy has drawn plenty of comparison to the infamous "banned" black and red Jordan 1s.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BKItc9EA5eY/?taken-by=deandrehopkins&hl=en
This couldn't be better PR for Kanye West, especially after DeAndre Hopkins announced he would wear the Yeezy cleats again "if Kanye agrees to pay the fine". For West, $6,000 is a steal for this kind of exposure compared to traditional advertising. Adrian Peterson and Von Miller also received their own pairs of Yeezy cleats which they shared on twitter, but opted not to wear them during their games. Kanye could also just release them in a solid color, making them perfectly legal. Baseball will be the next sport to get Yeezy cleats, the Pittsburgh Pirates Andrew McCutchen has already expressed his desire for a pair.
Officially released on September 15th, the Yeezy "Turtle Dove" 350 cleats retail for $250, and sold out immediately.
https://twitter.com/adidasoriginals/status/775801264747737089
Black Eyed Peas Ask "Where Is The Love?" Once Again
Thirteen years after releasing their “Where is the Love?” single, the Black Eyed Peas release an updates remake of the song. The group released the video to “#WHERESTHELOVE” this week with over 60 appearances by celebrities and musicians. The video shows visuals of police officers, victims of police brutality, and air strike attacks on children in the Middle East.
Notable celebrities with lines in the song include Diddy, The Game, DJ Khaled, A$AP Rocky, Justin Timberlake, and Usher. Celebrities outside the realm of music include Kendall Jenner, Kris Kenner, Von Miller, Lindsey Vonn, and Russell Westbrook.
The update version of the song touches upon similar topics we face as a society such as terrorism, violence, and war. The 2016 version focuses is on the police with Diddy rapping “Over seas yeah they try to stop terrorism/O`ver here in the streets the police shoot the people but the bullets in them.” The song echoes the same tone as the 2003 version, asking where the love is in this sometimes-hateful world.
In a seperate video, the Blake Eyed Peas discussed the idea behind remaking "Where Is The Love". "I remember when the Paris attack happened, people would say, we need 'Where Is The Love?' again," will.i.am explained. "And then Belgium happened. And then Turkey, and then Orlando, and then Philando, and Alton before him, and then Dallas. Everyone was calling on us, like, 'we need that song again.'" Heres to hoping the love returns.
The Simpsons Hip Hop episode to air
2016 will go down in history as the year of The Simpsons hip hop episode. It has been revealed that the enduring yellow family will air an hour-long hip hop special in January 2017.
The Simpsons hip hop episode, “The Great Phatsby,” will also be an ode to The Great Gatsby.
In the episode, tyrannical millionaire Mr Burns gets conned into bankruptcy by a music mogul suspiciously similar to Terrence Howard’s character from "Empire."
In order to get his money back, Burns enlists the help of rapper Jazzy James (played by Keegan-Michael Key, of comedy duo Key & Peele), the mogul’s ex-wife (played by Howard’s wife on Empire, Taraji P Henson), and, because they have to be part of it, Bart and Homer.
Executive producer Matt Selman explains the story behind the special episode. “This was just going to be a regular episode, but the table read went so well. In a fit of passion and excitement and ambition and excess, we decided to supersize it." He added that "we haven’t done a huge amount of stories in the world of hip-hop and rap culture, so we just went for it”
The Simpsons 28th season will include the special episode. It will also include the show's 600th episode.
The show’s executive producer, Al Jean, made one quip about the hourlong special. "I just pray it won't be the last thing people see before a Trump inauguration."