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Common And James McAvoy Cover Our June/July Issue

That’s right, we invented the flip-cover steeze. Yesterday, we whet your palette with our Grace Park cover (fyi, her flicks are sending the blogosphere ablaze). So now we’re pleased to present the other side of our new issue: James McAvoy and Common.

The duo plays a pair of tough guys who kill at will in this summer’s criminally minded blockbuster Wanted, which is based on Mark Millar’s ruthless 2003 comic book. Expect to see the seasoned Chicago MC break out as a respected actor in this greasy role. Scottish actor McAvoy is no slouch either, already boasting a Golden Globe nod. To get into the minds of Common and McAvoy and to see how well the co-stars know each other, read the feature from our June/July issue right HERE.

Popularity: 84% [?]

rap sheet

Common Goes Electro On “Universal Mind Control”

Can Common do it without Kanye? After Be and Finding Forever resurrected his career, that’s the question that the Chicago vet is facing. A lot of rappers would sound great if they had an album full of ’Ye beats, but can Com’s individual talent still translate after all these years?

On his new album Invincible Summer (does he know that k.d. lang already used that name?), Com is ditching the soulful sound that personified his last two efforts. Instead of Kanye, he’s working exclusively with The Neptunes and Outkast producer Mr. DJ. DJ Skee and Reflex just leaked the first joint, “Universal Mind Control,” and it definitely makes good on Com’s promise to use a more “electro-tinged” sound. For the video, we can already see him controlling the crowd in a crazy Afrika Bambaataa robe and viking helmet. Listen to the song below.

Popularity: 85% [?]

Events | Hip Hop | Web Video

Common Rocking ‘After Dark’

While down in New Orleans this past weekend on a NBA All Star jaunt, we stopped by ESPN’s ‘After Dark’ Party on a free drinks seeking expedition. Not only did we get a chance to imbibe on their dime, but we also caught a performance by Chi-town’s conscious thinking rapper Common. He performed some hits with a live multi-piece band, including this “Finding Forever” intro, but unfortunately—in our less than optimal state of thinking—we forgot to recharge our batteries, only capturing two minutes and change worth of footage.

Popularity: 20% [?]

Booze

Smirnoff Remixs Vodka With Rappers

Smirnoff takes its mantra, “Mix Well, Drink Responsibly” to another level with their new music campaign. This February, the spirits brand known for a flavorful range of vodka, enlists Just Blaze, Cool and Dre and DJ Premier to remix classic material by Common, Q-Tip and KRS-One for the Signature Mix Series. With each collaboration, a new drink will be created, aptly named after it’s ingredients, like “Blueberry Abstract,” Just Blaze’s interpretation of Common’s “The Light.” Click SmirnoffSignatureMixSeries.com to download the songs for free.

Popularity: 17% [?]

Hip Hop | News

Rap Sheet: Prodigy Claims Clean Bill of Health

• Healthy: Prodigy maintains he’s not sick despite reports by his lawyer. And although the judge delayed his incarceration for a 2nd time due to so called medical conditions, the rapper claims he’s fine. Ouch, someone’s getting into trouble.

• Sound off: Common, KRS-One, and Q-Tip are remixing their classic tracks in a new campaign with Smirnoff with the help of some legendary producers, “Just Blaze is remixing Common’s 2000 song “The Light,” DJ Premier will work on KRS-One’s 1988 hit “I’m Still #1,” and Cool & Dre are remaking Q-Tip’s 1999 party track “Vivrant Thing.” They will all then perform live at a launch party for the vodka maker on February 26, and the tracks will be available for download on Smirnoff’s website.

• Innocent: Marvin Bernard aka Tony Yayo has been found innocent of slapping the shit out of Jimmy “Henchman” Rosemond’s 16-year-old son.

• Flying colors: Swizzy got down with the Gap and their “Sound of Color” campaign. Basically each artist was assigned a color and they created an original song for it. The mega producer and Kidrobot partner did a song called “Candy Green.”

Popularity: 10% [?]