hip hop music

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2 Hip-Hop benefits for Gaza

Enraged by the news about Gaza?

Come out on MLK weekend to find strength, community, and the will to challenge our government’s unconditional support of Israeli's actions.

Musicians, hip hop artists, poets, and visual artists concerned about the ongoing attacks on Gaza come together for two public performance events this Sunday, January 18th

Two Sister Events:

HANDS OFF GAZA: Excerpts from the documentary “Peace, Propaganda, and the Promised Land," performance, poetry, and video messages from Palestinian musicians Shadia Mansour and DAM. 5-7 pm, Alwan for the Arts, 16 Beaver St, 4th floor (between Broad and Broadway), Manhattan. $20 suggested donation… no one turned away.

I (HEART) GAZA: A night of hip hop, dancing, and artistic resistance.
9pm- 4am @ Sugarland 221 N 9th St (between Driggs Ave & Roebling St)
Williamsburg, Brooklyn. 21+ (bar) $10 ($5 if you go to HANDS OFF GAZA)

Confirmed performers include:
HANDS OFF GAZA: Immortal Technique, G.O.D, M1 from Dead Prez, Aalikes, Rebel Diaz, Remi Kanazi, Tahani Salah, Khalil al Mustafa, Hasan Salaam, Marcel Cartier, Sabreena Da Witch, and DJ Johnny Juice (Public Enemy)

I (HEART) GAZA: DJ Unconquer'd, Rebel Diaz, DJ K-Salaam, Remi Kanazi, Koba, Queen Godis, Sabreena Da Witch, DJ Oja, Donny Goines + projections: Art and Resistance

The events will be “bridged” by a Subway Freedom March leaving Alwan for the Arts at 7:30pm and ending at Sugarland in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.

**100% of the money raised at the events will be donated for Humanitarian aid to Gaza through MAP UK and Anera.org.

Saigon and Joe Budden are both good emcees, and I'm all in favor of battling if you keep it on wax on mp3. But I don't think it's a good look for Saigon to take these cheap shots and Joe Budden's girl in his new dis aimed at Joe budden, "Underachiecer," and especially the shots Saigon takes at his son. Saigon should have learned from Jay-Z's mistake when he went after Nas with the shots about Carmen and "leaving condoms in your baby seat." Some things are too far out of bounds, and just make you look like the smaller man. Especially when you are an artist who aspires to be righteous.

Video/audio below for Saigon's Joe Budden diss track "Underachiever." Hopefully this is just his warmup round and he'll come stronger in the next round, if there is one. And again, please keep it on "wax." If I want to see some sloppy fighting video I'll get a bootleg stream of the next UFC.

Q-TIP - New Music Video - Man Woman Boogie

Our friend Q-Tip's new one with our friend Amanda Diva, Man Woman Boogie. Directed by our friend Rik Cordero. Let's all be friends!

Damn, damn, damn. Over $20 mil doesn't seem bad though, and I'd guess BIG fares better in the per-screen average.

'Mall Cop' weighs in at No. 1, Over Biggie Biopic "Notorious"
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Clint Eastwood found his "Gran Torino" surrounded by the good, the bad and the ugly at U.S. movie theaters this weekend.

Box Office Mojo said estimated gate receipts showed "Gran Torino" slipped to No. 2 with $22.24 million in ticket sales as Kevin James's security cop comedy, "Paul Blart: Mall Cop," took over the top spot with $33.8 million in sales.

"My Bloody Valentine," a horror thriller directed by Patrick Lussier, opened at No. 3 with $21.9 million in sales, followed by "Notorious," which depicts the real-life story of slain rapper Notorious B.I.G, with $21.5 million, and "Hotel for Dogs," a comedy about kids turning a vacant house into a kennel, at $17.71 million...

Wait, what? I guess I should wait to hear it (and confirm that it's actually happening) before I hate.

Phoenix begins new career as rapper
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Joaquin Phoenix says his first foray into the U.S. music scene as a rapper allows him to fully express himself in a way acting didn't.

Phoenix, who officially retired as an actor in October, said in Las Vegas Friday that rapping gives him a chance to communicate his feelings directly to people, People.com reported Saturday.

"After all the years of reading scripts and reading lines, this is my chance to do something straight from the heart and put it out there," he said while in Vegas for a concert at the LAVO nightclub.

After performing, the 34-year-old Phoenix spoke about the anticipated backlash he will receive for leaving Hollywood.

"Are there people out there who think I'm a joke? I'm sure there will be," the actor of "Gladiator" and "Walk the Line" fame told People. "Are there people who think it's going to suck? Probably, but I can't worry about that."

Okay, I see the video now. Nevermind, forget I brought it up. Hopefully this is just his way of working some things out, or an elaborate joke he's playing on the tabloid media?

Interesting to see how these events reverberate in local scenes:

History in air at Hip Hop Summit
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“...I voted for the first time ever this year,” said Daniel Boskind, a local rapper known as Question?. “When Jay-Z is telling you to vote, you go vote.”

“...We're witnessing history. People are excited, and now politicians have to start paying attention to us — the hip-hop generation — if they want to win elections,” he said.

But artists must realize that they have such an influence, said Houston rapper Paul Wall, a panelist who said he sold his first CDs to a San Antonio record store. “Anything that we do, we're influencing people,” Wall said. “Hip-hop is the No. 1 form of marketing in the world. It's like our news....”

...That was music to the ears of Phillip Hodge, a certified nurse's assistant at the Audie Murphy VA Hospital who raps under the name Thuggizzle.

“There's way more hope this year in the community, and hip-hop is being promoted better,” said Hodge, 24. “This event helps me have a vision — maybe I can be the next one to make it.”

Why this great day only means more work to do.