What the Hell Just Happened in Music This Week?

YMCMB revives Big Tymers. Well, sort of.

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Image via Complex Original
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Yeezy Season is in full effect, but you probably already knew that.

This week, while Kanye West was taking the spotlight, Birdman, Lil Wayne and Drake revealed themselves as the new Big Tymers. The only problem is, there's no Mannie Fresh. The other problem is, well, Birdman just needs to encourage his artists to create some new franchises—no we don't want IANAHBIII and please don't call Nicki's next album Pink Friday: The Pink Sequel to Pinkprint. And is it really that difficult to just call yourselves Rich Gang, still? Confusing.

Speaking of Drake, he wore Dada. Yes, Dada. And white Timberland boots. Before that, Daft Punk's Random Access Memories leaked and the Interwebs went crazy. Meanwhile Lauryn Hill performed at Williamsburg Music Hall, even though she's going behind bars pretty soon. Tim Dog may have not actually died, and Rock the Bells is trying to create "virtual representations" (AKA HOLOGRAMS) of ODB and Eazy-E. All that and more in this week's edition of What the Hell Just Happened in Music This Week?

RELATED: What The Hell Just Happened in Music During The First Quarter of 2013?

The Daft Punk Album Leaked, Instead of Sounding Futuristic, It Sounded Like a 70s Porno Movie Soundtrack

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The Daft Punk Album Leaked, Instead of Sounding Futuristic, It Sounded Like a '70s Porno Movie Soundtrack

Date: May 13

Maybe it was the robot helmets, or that fancy Pitchfork cover with the fire and stuff, or the fact that we really liked that Kanye song back in the day, but for some reason we were all really looking forward to the Daft Punk album. What were we thinking? These Parisian disco DJs are damn near 40 years old. How the hell are they supposed to make cutting-edge dance music in 2013? EDM is a job for young men—with the possible exception of Bass Nectar. So why were we surprised when Random Access Memories sounded like some old Herbie Hancock album cuts, or the soundtrack to a bad '70s porno? Like the Who once said, "We won't get fooled again." —Rob Kenner

Lauryn Hill Performs in Brooklyn Before Going to Jail

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Lauryn Hill Performs in Brooklyn Before Going to Jail

Date: May 14

Lauryn Hill had to report to jail, so she performed one last concert in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. Tickets were $85 (and up) in advance, and $100 at the door. She released her first new track in years, a noisey, messy cavalcade of doubletime raps and righteous political anger directed either too specifically or too broadly to be all that useful. She has an erratic track record, and hasn't released a full LP since her critically-maligned Unplugged record. Attendees had no real reason to be hopeful.

Then she put on the show of a lifetime. One great way to justify charging your fans out the ass for a show is to give them a hell of a show, and Hill pulled it off like her life depended on it. Maybe it was the drama of her impending jail time, or perhaps it was years spent honing her craft. Maybe it was the presence of her son in the balcony, or the energetic backing band. Any way you slice it, Lauryn Hill transcended expectations. Sure, she still had her eccentric moments, and the sound engineer looked like he or she probably had a rough night trying to keep up with L-Boogie's on-the-fly volume adjustments. But damn if it wasn't worth it for the rest of us. —David Drake

RELATED: Reviewed: Lauryn Hill's Last Performance Before She Heads to Jail, as a Re-Education in Lauryn Hill

Ja Rule Emerges From Jail, Looks Like He's Finally Ready to Fight 50 Cent

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Big Tymers Is Now Lil Wayne, Drake and Birdman

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Big Tymers Is Now Lil Wayne, Drake and Birdman

Date: May 15

Last week, we heard Birdman announce the resurrection of the Big Tymers, one of Cash Money’s staple groups during its formative years as a label. However, instead of Birdman linking up with producer Mannie Fresh, he instead suggested that the group would be reformatted, replacing Mannie with Lil Wayne and Drake. The announcement was met with a mixed reaction. As a commenter on the site pointed out, “Why ruin a perfectly good Drake album?”

Finally, Mannie Fresh checked in with MTV’s RapFix this week to offer his response to the announcement. The legendary producer offered some simple logic for why the new lineup for the Big Tymers could not be a new iteration of the group. "It's kinda like doing a Jackson 5 album with Boyz II Men," he pointed out, before going on to emphasize that he has no issues or beef with Birdman or anybody else at YMCMB. While quite exaggerated, Mannie does have a good point.

Furthermore, Birdman already has his Rich Gang project with Nicki Minaj, Weezy, Mack Maine, and Future. And wasn’t there a plan to release a sequel for Like Father Like Son with Wayne? Between those two projects, a possible solo album, making gigantic sports bets, and of course, rubbing his palms together, it seems as if the head honcho of YMCMB already has too much on his plate. Either that or he's losing track of the various projects he has in the air. Geriatric Money! —Dharmic X

RELATED: Mannie Fresh Says Drake & Lil Wayne Are "Not Big Tymers"

Drake Flourishes in Dada on the Set of "No New Friends

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ODB and Eazy-E Will Perform as "Virtual Representations" at Rock The Bells

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Diddy Does "Downton Abbey" His Own Way

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Tim Dog May Have Faked His Own Death

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The Weeknd Drops "Kiss Land"

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The Weeknd Drops "Kiss Land"

Date: May 16

Between March and December of 2011, Abel Tesfaye, aka The Weeknd, blessed the world with three essential, game-changing albums that he gave away for free. Last November he bundled them together, tossed in a few new joints, and offered them for sale as The Trilogy, moving over 250,000 units. The release of any new music by The Weeknd is an event, so "Kiss Land," the eight-minute title track from his first full album for Universal Republic, set the Internets ablaze. A return to familiar themes of sex and debauchery (second line: "When she put it in her mouth, she can't seem to reach my [insert sound of female scream]/Ballin's not an issue..."). If this first song is any indication, Kiss Land is gonna be one seriously sexy album.—Rob Kenner

RELATED: Listen: The Weeknd "Kiss Land" 

Kanye West Premieres New Music All Week

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