Black History Month is here! Now would be a good time to press “pause” on the Waka Flocka mixtape and inject a little consciousness into your playlist. There have been millions of songs made about the African-American experience, so where to start? The obvious place would be with the revolutionary rhetoric of pro-black artists like Public Enemy or dead prez. And even today, James Brown’s 1968 classic “Say It Loud (I’m Black And I’m Proud)” is often remembered as the definitive anthem about black pride. But that’s just the tip of the iceberg. We dug in the crates for some less-obvious celebrations of blackness and came out with a diverse set of bangers. Check out our 5 favorite slept-on Black Power Anthems below…
Mos Def, alongside Placido Domingo, presented at the 52nd Grammy’s this past sunday, and the lack of chemistry between the two heavyweights was unbearable. They looked more uncomfortable together than Jamie Foxx and Miley Cyrus on the red carpet. At least the Brooklyn MC/actor looked comfortable in his dope outfit, which refreshingly stood out in the tuxedo-saturated mass of the music industry’s finest at the Staples Center. If you agree and want to get the sailor-meets-school-boy look the Renaissance Man pulled off so well, read on and see what we put together…
Left To Right: Mos Def, Bone Thugs, Corinne Bailey Rae, U-N-I, Miike Snow
Each day Complex scours the music blogs for 5 fresh songs that you should listen to in our 5 O’Clock Shuffle post. Instead of going crazy trying to keep up with your RSS feeds everyday, just head over to Complex.com to stay up-to-date on important leaks and releases.
The leaks were pretty light today. No big deal. We still came through with a handful of bangers good enough to hold down anyone looking for today’s best new music. Mos Def or Miike Snow, we got you. Listen to and download everything after the jump…
It’s weird going from a jam-packed 4th quarter where the game’s biggest stars are dropping new music videos almost every day, to the barren cold of January that extends beyond its literal implications into the climate of the music industry. It also seems like the right time for Mos Def and Talib Kweli to drop a new music video, and allow us to get a taste of the modern Black Star sound without it being overshadowed by anything else. Here’s their recent clip for “History” off The Ecstatic. The vid abides by a “less is more” mantra and it works surprisingly well. Now, how about a Mos Def & Talib Kweli are (Still) Black Star project sometime soon?
Tune in to Complex.com every morning at 8 AM for your daily “Wake N’ Watch” video.
You can never count out a hustler like Dame Dash. He’s already taken strides to make his name relevant in music again with the just-released, well-received Blak Rocproject, and he also seems to have something noteworthy bubbling with his new DD172 Gallery in Lower Manhattan that functions as part-studio, part-art compound. Some of our favorite artists have already taken a liking to the spot: The Cool Kids, Jim Jones, Mos Def, Black Keys, Jay Electronica, and Curren$y. The video above is a trailer for an upcoming film about the venture and it only reaffirms how legit this whole thing might turn out if all parties involved play it right.
Tune in to Complex.com every morning at 8 AM for your daily “Wake N’ Watch” video.
Left To Right: Jim Jones, Chip Tha Ripper, Drake, Sleigh Bells, Curren$y
Each day Complex scours the music blogs for 5 fresh songs that you should listen to in our 5 O’Clock Shuffle post. Instead of going crazy trying to keep up with your RSS feeds everyday, just head over to Complex.com to stay up-to-date on important leaks and releases.
As the week rolls along, the new music piles up. We’re certain you don’t have time to sort through everything, but we got you, as usual. Regulars like Jim Jones, Drake, and Curren$y had new stuff hit the blogs today, along with rising artists like Sleigh Bells and Chip Tha Ripper. Listen to (and download) it all after the jump…
We featured one of the songs from Dame Dash’s new music venture on our 5 O’Clock Shuffle last week. Our Shuffle selection, “Hoochie Coo,” can be heard in the video above and caught our attention with its catchy Mos Def hook and splashy verses from Jim Jones, but the high profile collaborations don’t stop there. It turns out that the Blak Roc Project is getting help from several more notable MCs (Raekwon, Q-Tip, and Pharoahe Monch to name a few) with production handled by rock band, The Black Keys. Things look promising and we really think Dame Dash might be onto something here, but we’ll know for sure when the album hits stores on Black Friday.
Tune in to Complex.com every morning at 8 AM for your daily “Wake N’ Watch” video.
Damn, the future of music is hard to predict. Back in December 1997 (on DMX’s birthday), journalist Touré assembled an all-star line-up of hip-hop’s hottest rookies for a roundtable discussion. Big Pun, John Forte, Mos Def, Canibus and Mic Geronimo—five MCs that everyone expected to usher rap into the post-jiggy era. Luckily, the Shades of Hip-Hop Video Mixtape was there to capture the event (including this spontaneous freestyle session) because the buzz didn’t last long for most of these once promising artists.
John Forte, in particular, hit on some rough times. Two and a half years after this video was shot, the former Fugees affiliate was arrested in the Newark Airport with $1.4 million worth of liquid cocaine and sentenced to 14 years in prison. But after being granted a pardon from Dubya, Forte finally has his life back—today his eclectic new EP StyleFREE comes out (click here to buy it for $4.99), his first release after seven years behind bars. And who knows, if enough people cop it, Forte will be back eating mangoes in Trinidad with attorneys before you know it.
We love women who are down for a cause. Especially when that cause involves going down for the cause. We keed, we keed, but when we saw Jessica Alba getting nailed (not that type) for defacing public property in Oklahoma City, with a save-the-sharks poster we had to tip our 5-panel to the hottie. Jess isn’t the first celebrity to give the big eff you to laws and institutions. Take a look back at five other celebrities who weren’t afraid to fight, for their right, to protest…
Time to dust off the ol’ Jansports, people! Mos Def and Talib Kweli are reuniting as Black Star for a one-time concert at the Nokia Theatre in NYC on Saturday night. Though each MC brings his own unique style to the Black Star sound, the Mighty Mos has always been the bigger star. That’s why Dante’s the one with the streetwear collabos, House roles and tell-all books from ex-stripper wives and all that. But we still fuck with you, Talib. No worries.
To commemorate the weekend show, UNDRCRWN is reintroducing its Mos Def x Dustin Canalin collection, which features a bunch of T-shirts and a track jacket. For detail pics and more info on today’s Buy It Now—two tees and the jacket— see below…
