We're only three months into 2013 and it's already been an insane year. Beyoncé performed at the Super Bowl, Gucci Mane starred in Spring Breakers, Justin Timberlake sold a million albums in a week, Lil Wayne almost died, and Kanye West started wearing masks. The scary part? This year's not even close to being over.
In order to make at least a little sense of it all, we've recapped exactly What The Hell Just Happened in Music During the First Quarter of 2013. If the beginning of the year is any indication, these next nine months are going to be a wild ride. We can't wait.
Written by Lauren Nostro (@LAURENcynthia)
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Macklemore and Ryan Lewis' "Thrift Shop" Goes Platinum
Macklemore's "Thrift Shop" Goes Platinum
Date: January 3
Two white dudes started rapping about thrift stores/used clothes, and their support of gay marriage. It was cool and all but it was hard to ignore that Macklemore sounded just like Slug from Atmosphere. "Thrift Shop" got almost zero radio play on the East Coast but hit No. 1 on the charts for weeks, and people went crazy for Macklemore.
Azealia Banks and Angel Haze Exchange Diss Tracks
Azealia Banks and Angel Haze Exchange Disses
Date: January 3
Azealia Banks had even less chill entering 2013, beefing with Angel Haze, Perez Hilton, Diplo, Bauuer, Rita Ora, and others. Problem is, she can spit on the mic, and while her Twitter wars get more press than her music at times, she is pretty damn entertaining. But when she waged war with New York's Angel Haze, private text conversations were exposed making Banks look pretty dumb. Haze won this war with "On The Edge", but diss tracks flew between the two for a few days.
Big Baby Gandhi Retires From Rap
Big Baby Gandhi Retires From Rap
Date: January 5
Big Baby Gandhi's heartbreaking departure from hip-hop went down. Rest assured though, he'll be a damn good pharmacist one day.
Justin Timberlake Announces A New Album
Justin Timberlake Announces a New Album
Date: January 10
The world stopped breathing. JT announced a comeback after a 6-year hiatus; a new album was on its way. Days later, his single "Suit & Tie" dropped with a Jay-Z feature, and a mature JT singing about being in love. It was a new year and a new JT.
Kriss Kross Reunites
Kriss Kross Reunites
Date: January 16
A reunion that the world never expected-Kriss Kross reunited for a February performance, without the backward jeans, of course.
So So Def Reunited on "Celebration"
The Rest of So So Def Reunites, Too
Date: January 16
Jermaine Dupri, Jagged Edge, Da Brat, Dondria, Fresco Kane and Bow Wow all teamed up for "Celebration". It was the So So Def reunion that no one expected and everyone fucking loved. The sounds of "My Boo" flooded offices everywhere in anticipation, and remembrance of, So So Def.
Master P Releases New Music
Master P Returns With New Music
Date: January 16
Master P was back with his Al Capone mixtape, in January and again, in February with the Louie V Mob comprised of Alley Boy and Fat Trel on New World Order.
Chief Keef Was Sentenced to Two Months in Chicago Youth Center
Chief Keef Gets Sentenced to Two Months in Chicago Youth Center
Date: January 16
A sad day for Keef, his camp, Kay Kay, and fans—his departure was sudden. Fans wrote letters to him in prison, and he missed the Pope resigning, among other things.
Gunplay Was Freed From House Arrest
Gunplay Is Freed From House Arrest
Date: January 17
About the time Keef went in, Gunplay came out of house arrest.
Wale and Jerry Seinfeld Are Working on "The Album About Nothing"
Jerry Seinfeld Says He's Working on Wale's The Album About Nothing
Date: January 18
Jerry Seinfeld teamed up with Wale after learning about his music from his wife and they announced via video that they'd be working together on Wale's upcoming album.
Hudson Mohawke Signs With Kanye West
Beyonce Lip-Synched The National Anthem, Then Didn't, Then Sang It Live
Beyonce Lip-Synchs the National Anthem, Then Sings It Live
Date: January 22
Bey was accused of lip-synching at the Inauguration. But don't worry, she handled it like the King she is and proved she can, actually, sing.
Kanye West Briefly Returns to Twitter
Date: January 25
Out of nowhere, Yeezy came back on Twitter, tweeted a few inspirational words and left the world wondering what the hell kind of acronym they could make out of his tweets.
Daft Punk Announces New Album
Daft Punk Announces a New Album
Date: January 28
It's been eight years since Daft Punk dropped a solo project and we cannot wait for this one. They defined the sound of the '00s—and will most likely do the same this year.
Lil B and Joey Bada$$ Beefed
Lil B Beefs With Joey Bada$$
Date: January 29
We still can't believe that Joey Bada$$ responded to a Lil B diss but we know he's not that based these days.
Gucci Mane Attends Career Day
Date: January 30
We can make jokes about Gucci Mane being a great role model but that's just not true. But him at a middle school's career day was probably the best photo of 2013, even though we're only three months into the year.
Drake Drops "Started From The Bottom"
Drake Drops "Started From The Bottom"
Date: February 1
The memes, the jokes, the punchlines, the tweets—Drake is back and he's got his whole team fucking here.
The Harlem Shake Was No Longer "The Harlem Shake"
The New "Harlem Shake" Goes Viral
Date: February 2
You thought the Harlem Shake was that awesome dance that originated in Harlem and was a violent version of shaking your shoulders, didn't you. Well that all changed this year when Bauuer's "Harlem Shake" video inspired countless fans, sports teams, and animals to take part in the craze. Harlem residents were not pleased, either. The track hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 due to its viral success.
My Bloody Valentine to Release Their First Album in 21 Years
My Bloody Valentine Announces Their First Album in 21 Years
Date: February 2
And you thought Daft Punk had a long hiatus? Look at My Bloody Valentine and relish in the awesomeness of their return.
Beyonce and Destiny's Child Reunite At Super Bowl
Beyonce and Destiny's Child Reunite at the Super Bowl
Date: February 3
The only person who didn't enjoy this was Keyshia Cole—but otherwise, the world was watching the trio grace the stage, and Beyonce kill her solo material, at this year's Super Bowl. They released "Nuclear" in mid-January, but this was their moment of the year.
Beyonce Announces "The Mrs. Carter Show" World Tour
Beyonce Announces "The Mrs. Carter Show" World Tour
Date: February 3
She wasn't done after the inaugration, she's going on a world tour and is taking over 2013.
Eminem Expected to Release Album This Year
Eminem's Return to Music Is Revealed
Date: February 8
While we were all celebrating, and feeling old, about the 14th anniversary of Eminem's The Slim Shady LP, Paul Rosenberg says a new album from Eminem is expected to drop this year.
Toni Braxton Announces Her Retirement From Music
Toni Braxton Retires From Music
Date: February 8
She said her heart wasn't in music anymore while simultaneously breaking all of our hearts at the same time.
Jay-Z, Kanye West, and Drake Win All the Rap Grammys
Jay-Z, Kanye West, and Drake Win All the Rap Grammys
Date: February 10
We know that the Grammys have made plenty of hip-hop mistakes in the past, but this year, Jay-Z, Kanye and Drake dominate the Rap Grammys. Don't worry, Kanye West wasn't even there.
Justin Timberlake and Jay-Z Perform "Suit & Tie" at the Grammys
Justin Timberlake and Jay-Z Perform "Suit & Tie" at the Grammys
Date: February 10
It was the comeback of the year-Justin Timberlake took the stage and was joined by Jay-Z, both sporting suits, to perform JT's No. 1 hit single "Suit & Tie."
Riff Raff Is Working With Drake and A$AP Rocky
Riff Raff Says He's Working With Drake and A$AP Rocky
Date: February 13
As if Riff Raff didn't get enough buzz off of being an inspiration behind the Spring Breakers movie, rumors that he's working with Drake and A$AP Rocky were really in his favor.
Kanye West Disses the Grammys and "Suit & Tie"
Date: February 23
Just when you thought everything was all good in the industry, Kanye was all like, "Fuck the Grammys," and said he wasn't feeling "Suit & Tie." He also wore a phenomenal mask recently.
Method Man Says New Wu-Tang Clan Album Will Drop This Year
Method Man Says a New Wu-Tang Clan Album Will Drop This Year
Date: March 3
Because Wu-Tang is for the children and the children really need this.
Gucci Mane Changed His Name to "Guwop" for 10 Minutes
Gucci Mane Changes His Name to "Guwop" for 10 Minutes
Date: March 4
Was Gucci Mane trolling? It was his year, until he got arrested for assault. Come on Gucci, we can do better.
Ciara Made Her Comeback
Ciara Makes Her Comeback
Date: March 4
Ciara dropped the Mike WiLL Made It-produced "Body Party" with a great "My Boo" sample. It's a great track that shows she's still got it. Did we mention that her and Future, who wrote the song, are dating? Did we also mention that they are the greatest couple on Earth-and Pluto?
Mobb Deep Reunites for 20th Anniversary Tour
Mobb Deep Reunites for 20th Anniversary Tour
Date: March 6
The drama is behind Prodigy and Havoc, and the rumors are true: They're reunited and going on tour this year.
Justin Timberlake "The 20/20 Experience" Drops
Justin Timberlake Drops The 20/20 Experience
Date: March 15
The time was finally here. Two months after annoucing its release date, The 20/20 Experience streamed a week before its release. It was everything we wanted to hear from JT-mature songs, a lot about love, and production that will be perfect on his Legends of the Summer tour with Jay-Z later this year.
Lil Wayne Almost Dies
Lil Wayne Almost Dies
Date: March 15
Wayne admitted to having epilepsy, which caused his serious seizure just weeks ago. He's fully recovered, he says, but he was rushed to ICU, and thanks to sites like TMZ, fans believed that he was being read his last rites.
Beyonce's New Song "Bow Down/I Been On" Dropped
Beyonce Drops "Bow Down/I Been On"
Date: March 17
All Hail King Bey. On her latest track, she's re-claiming that throne and repping her hometown of Houston, making us even more excited for her upcoming album.
Justin Timberlake Confirms Sequel to "The 20/20 Experience"
Justin Timberlake Confirms Sequel to The 20/20 Experience
Date: March 18
You thought he was done after his latest album? No way—Justin Timberlake will be releasing the sequel to The 20/20 Experience in the fall. Get it? 20/20—2 albums.
Jay-Z Jumps on Kendrick Lamar's "B***h Don't Kill My Vibe" Remix
Date: March 18
Jay-Z co-signed the young Kendrick Lamar on this remix and killed his verse, just like he has numerous times in the past.
Then Lil Wayne Drops "IANAHBII" And It Is Hilarious
Lil Wayne Drops His New Album and It's Hilarious
Date: March 26
He gets rushed to the hospital (twice) due to seizures, he's reported to be on his death bed, and a week later his I Am Not A Human Being II drops. His rhymes are so outrageous we realized Wayne's work ethic hasn't gone anywhere just yet.
The Diplomats Reunite For 10th Anniversary Concert
Dipsets Reunites for 10th Anniversary Concert
Date: March 25
The Diplomats reunited for the 10th anniversary of Diplomatic Immunity this month and packed the Hammerstein Ballroom.
Tyler, the Creator Drops "Wolf"
Tyler, the Creator's Wolf Leaks
Date: March 27
It's been two years in the making, and while he's still rhyming outrageous lines, Tyler, the Creator's latest effort is filled with neo-jazz sounds and amazing production.
