The Monster Tour

Eminem & Rihanna are teaming up this August for “The Monster Tour.” Em tweeted:

 

In addition to Em’s tweet he also confirmed this tour in a recent interview with XXL Magazine.

There are some shows coming up with Rihanna. It’s a three-city tour: New York, L.A., and Detroit coming in August. The Monster Tour.

I’m excited that the show will be coming to NYC and out of all the festivals and what not happening this summer I really want to snag a ticket to see this. I saw Rihanna in concert last March (click here for my review) and it was an AMAZING set. These two have great chemistry with their collaborations and I know that the show is a MUST SEE!

Their track, ‘The Monster,’ is currently #5 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs and R&B/Hip-Hop Streaming Songs charts, and #2 on Hot Rap Songs & Rap Streaming Songs. Eminem’s album, The Marshall Mathers LP 2, is still holding tight at #1 on Rap Albums, #3 on Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums, and #12 on the Billboard 200.

Then & Now Thursday (V.6) — Rihanna

HAPPY 26th BIRTHDAY RIHANNA!

In celebration of Rihanna’s birthday this Then & Now Thursday will highlight Rihanna’s career through music and fashion. I’ve discussed a little bit about the progress of her career in my _ post, but I wanted to take it a step further.

Over the course of nearly a decade Rihanna has consistently released albums and has steadily climbed the charts with 53 singles released. Since her debut in 2005 with Music of the Sun, Rihanna has released a studio album every year except 2008. She has 7 studio albums under her belt along with 2 compilation albums and 2 remix albums.

Throughout her first two albums she stayed true to the Caribbean sound. Her first #1 single, S.O.S. (A Girl Like Me) really took her mainstream on the radio waves beyond the urban market.

Rihanna’s performances early in her career needed work as far as the repetitive choreography and the set not being as tight as one would expect on a live show. Yet with growth and popularity Rihanna kept rising to stardom and is on the fast track to even bigger success beyond music. She’s become a trend setter and even has her hands in the beauty industry with the deal with MAC Cosmetics and her own perfume.

Never on million years did I expect Rihanna’s career to be at the peak it is. The turning point was her track ‘Umbrella.’ If she was not known globally by then that track took her there. From there on Rihanna has continued to put out radio hits, ballads and dominate the charts solo and through collaborations.

One of her early collaborations was with Sean Paul for the track ‘Break It Off.’ Now she has long list of collaborators including: Jay Z, Shakira, Eminem, Drake, Maroon 5, Kanye West, Coldplay, David Guetta, Nicki Minaj, Wale, and more.

Unapologetic revealed Rihanna’s life as an artist: the growth, pain, and insecurities. She put a little but of everything which describes what she’s prostrated throughout her career. At 25 years old Rihanna received a well deserved Icon Award at the American Music Awards. Her work ethic is not to go unnoticed and she gives her all and has worked hard to be where she is. I can’t wait to see what else she has in store musically and beyond.

NEW MUSIC — Beyoncé x Jay Z x Kanye West, ‘Drunk In Love (Remix)’

I can’t wait to hear this remix on the radio waves. I love when Kanye adds his flare to a track and what better way than for him to team up with the fan. I also like the cute little segue between Bey’s ‘flashing lights’& Kanye’s. There’s not much difference than that of the original except for Ye starting off with the song. I could’ve used another verse from Jay, but I can’t wait to hear this one on NYCs Hot 97 / Power 105.1. It’ll be up come Monday.

Video Review: J. Cole, ‘She Knows’

First off props to J. Cole on not taking the traditional approach with the making of the video. At first I was a bit confused about the concept, but after another glance I understood. First you have to listen closely to the lyrics. In a nutshell it’s about Cole cheating and doing what he does even though he’s in a relationship and although she sticks around, she knows what he’s doing.

Instead of taking that approach he did it from a child’s perspective; well a teenager. The boy is stealing money from his parents, skipping school, running from cops, smoking drinking, etc. and he thinks he has everything under control, everything under raps. When returning home he walks in to see his mom in the bedroom with a dude (J. Cole) and he rushes out. He thought that he had his secret so sealed and nothing phased him until he saw that. It goes in parallel with the track of the dude having his fun and the lady sticking around, but doing the same thing. The video showed the kids outlandish behavior, but his mother was just outlandish as he was. I’m pretty sure his parents have some instinct of his actions and from the scene at the end the father senses something, but doesn’t speak on it leaving the end up to the viewers imagination.

MMF Flashback — Kanye West, The College Dropout

The Louis Vuitton backpack wearing producer by the name of Kanye West released his debut album, The College Dropout, on February 10, 2004. Who ever knew that he would be who he is today. With 7 albums (8 if you count Cruel Summer) and 21 Grammys under his belt there’s no denying that Kanye has become a musical genius in his own right.

The College Dropout was a recording process of 4 years and his first single, ‘Through The Wire,’ a Chaka Khan sample, was released in September of 2003. He followed up with hits ‘Slow Jamz’ (with Twista & Jamie Foxx), ‘All Falls Down,’ ‘Jesus Walks,’ and ‘The New Workout Plan.’

It has been named by Time and Rolling Stone as one of the best albums of all time. It’s also his best selling album with 3.1 million sold in the states and over 4 million sold worldwide.

He received 10 Grammy nominations at the 47Annual show (2005) and won _ of those two of which were for Best Rap Album and Best Rap Song, ‘Jesus Walks.’

As for the sound of Kanye over the years he’s always been an artist to push limits and has been a controversial figure for years. People have their negative thoughts about Kanye, but I respect the fact that he just does not care what people think. Yes at times he should think before he speaks in public settings, but as an artist its a shame that those two side of him conflict with each other.

As for Kanye’s work post-The College Dropout my favorites are a tie between Graduation and Yeezus. If I had to pick ONE of those I’d go with Graduation.

Here’s my top 5 from Kanye’s, The College Dropout:

Yes two of those tracks aren’t ‘songs,’ but Kanye’s skits throughout the whole album (and his future albums) is as real as it gets. To be a recent college grad it’s like you went to school to get a degree, but now you have nothing to show for your ‘success’ and you’re working under someone who never went to college. Oh the circle of life. 10 years later I see and can understand why it’s album is a staple for any Hip-Hop head and beyond.

Check out Billboards story, Kanye West’s ‘The College Dropout’: An Oral History.

Kanye West Covers Interview Magazine

For the full interview & photos click here.

Yeezus Goes Platinum

Since it’s June 2013 release, Kanye West’s Yeezus has gone platinum. This is his 7th album to go platinum including Watch The Throne with Jay Z. 7 platinum+ albums since his first album release in 2004 is pretty darn genius to me.

CONGRATS YEEZY!

Rihanna ‘Viva Glam’

Rihanna and Mac team up again this time for ‘Viva Glam.’ She follows behind other celebs with this campaign such as Lady Gaga, Ricky Martin, and Nicki Minaj.

Just like the previous Viva Glam campaigns all portions will be going toward the Mac Aids Fund which supports people directly supported by HIV/Aids.As for the lipstick / lip gloss the color is nothing spectacular. The packaging for the new campaign is not different than that of the others either, which is a good thing. You can purchase the lip pies NOW before they sell out.

Rihanna’s, RiRi Hearts Mac, collection has been selling out left and right with popular lipsticks, ‘RiRi Woo,’ ‘Heaux,’ and ‘Talk That Talk’. The collection spans beyond lipsticks/lip glosses to mascara lip/brow liners, eyeshadow, blushes and brushes PLUS the AMAZING packaging.Click to see what you can snag out of the RiRi Hearts Mac Collection for the Fall and Holiday. [You can also check Ebay/Amazon, BUT they are way overpriced.]

To learn more about the ‘Viva Glam’ campaign, click here.