Music Wake N’ Watch: Mos Def f/ Talib Kweli ‘History’ Music Video

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.

Events BBQ Claims The Hamptons Ain’t Cool

Talib Kweli and DJ D-Nice at the Hudson Terrace

This year’s “The Hamptons Ain't Cool” party'a get together that channels old-school downtown NY steeze'was recently held at The Hudson Terrace, where partygoers enjoyed food, music and booze.

The BBQ-style jam called awareness to NYC OGs who’ve been displaced due to the increased cost of living, while poking fun at the swanky Long Island weekend getaway. Food was provided by La Esquina chefs, and drinks were served up by Tanqueray and Pepsi (other sponsors included Blacksmith, Epiphany, and Complex). In addition to solid food and drink, Pete Rock spun hits on the ones and twos and the night was capped off by a performance by the BK MC himself, Talib Kweli. Check out some flicks from the event after the jump.

Music Rap Sheet: Staying Ahead of the Game

• Versatility: Talib Kweli on how Hip Hop has changed, “It's a different competition these days: Who is the best businessman? Who's got the best swagger? Who can be the coolest? At the time I came in, it was almost about not being cool. It wasn't about looking the part. It was really about bringing it. The best MCs, like Lil Wayne, aren't the best because they can rap; it's because they understand that.”

• Therapeutic: Erykah Badu spoke to a crowd in Tel Aviv, Israel and announced her support for Palestinian Hip Hop. Rocking an ‘Out of Iraq’ t-shirt, the singer expressed why she admires about it, “They use (hip-hop) as a form of liberation, as a form of pre-resistance, as a form of therapy,” she said.

• L’chaim!: On the stranger side of Rap news, Pharrell was driving past an orthodox Jewish wedding in Miami and ended up stopping to take pictures. Guests then invited him to join the service and bless the groom. Then he played this card, “He kept asking people: ‘Don’t you know who I am? You don’t know (hit song) ‘Drop It Like It’s Hot?’ But he was having fun.”

• Taxing: Fat Joe claims his monies are in order in light of reports that he owes back taxes, “I definitely pay my taxes, I’m straight upwith it. The first thing I ever learned in the entertainment business is you gotta pay the IRS. First thing. Before I take a dollar, before I buy me a bag of potato chips, I pay those people.”