Virgin

I found out about Wave Machines about 6 months ago when they released Keep The Lights On… I guess you can say my ears fell in love with them. The debut album, Wave If You’re Really There, is ready for release this month and after a buzz from their SXSW appearance, they’ve got loads of gigs lined up throughout the summer including the John Peel Stage at Glastonbury, Lovebox, Electric Picnic and Bestival, as well as forthcoming appearances at Liverpool Sound City and Dot To Dot festival. Creativity at its best and sub-disco lyrics is what set this band apart.

Enjoy…

Marilyn Manson and co. will be releasing their 7th studio album The High End of Low in late May with a appearance on the Mayhem Festival in the States this summer. He updated his MySpace picture which had him with less cosmetics then ever on…

Will his fans like the new change? And will he be able to make the same music that he made back in the 90s that made us all want to cross over to the dark side?

Who knows!?… But i’m tickled that now I wear more make-up than him… lol

www.myspace.com/marilynmanson

photo by Delaney Bishop

Noah Callahan-Bever said it the best: “Kanye West is performance art. He’s an idea. A brand. A mission. An inspiring, infuriating, over-the-top and constantly evolving contradiction of values that are articulated sometimes abstractly.”

The most influential hip-hop star in the world right now has teamed up with Nike to release what is the most anticipated spring sneaker this year. It’s called the “Air Yeezy”. It’s designer? Mister Kanye West of course.

For months we have been getting sneak peaks of the sneaker and it’s different colorways - going back to the 2008 Grammy’s and the Glow in the Dark Tour, where he first debuted the sneakers. The blogs were going crazy about the collabo between nikeXwest. It was almost inevitable that you got your hand on the latest details of the shoe.

Finally, after almost two years of not knowing when the shoe will release we now know the first 3 color ways and release dates for the shoe. April will be the first release date for the Yeezies followed by May, then lastly June. No prices have yet been released. But I’m sure it will cost a pocket full of coins to get your hand on these exclusive sneakers. They come in a variety of colors and the legit “Y’s” on the sneaker let you know you have the real deal.

So this Spring when Kanye is killing the festival scene make sure you cop a pair of the Yeezies to wear, I know I’ll have my pink and black ones on this summer…

Read the full interview with Kanye talking about the Yeezies with Complex magazine:

http://www.complex.com/SNEAKERS/Features/Air-Yeezy

Kid Cudi’s story is proof that there’s just no denying a good song. Day ‘N’ Nite was written years ago and the lyrics are so catchy it has hip-hop fans going craaaaazy!!! He caught the ears of the likes of DJ A-Trak and Kanye West which landed him a spot on GOOD Records which is founded by none other then Mr West. Cudi went from an employee at the Bape store to an artist to watch this Spring. After several remixes and constant radio rotation, the Day ‘N’ Nite track finally gets the visual treatment it deserves by Ed Banger representative and video director So_Me. The half animated video continues with the surreal, hazy, drugged out feel of the track. Ed Banger also directed Kanye’s Good Life video. Brilliant art!

He is already being called the next best thing in hip-hop. His energetic stage presence and fancy flows are proving that he is a force to be reckoned with. His mixtape had over a million downloads, but yet he remains humble. You can call him Kid Cudi, but he prefers the ‘Man On the Moon’. The Ohio native’s most recent interview with Eighty81 lets us in to the Man On The Moon’s mind. I’ve had the chance to meet this guy for about 10 seconds at a DC gig… let me just say he had me at hello ;)

If you haven’t downloaded his most recent mixtape A Kid Name Cudi, I’m sure after watching this interview you will have no other choice but to do so… sheer brilliance!

watch the Kid Cudi interview

Mister Kanye West released his fourth album back in November and I’m still trying to wrap my mind around the art that he has produced. Kanye is singing on every song on the album with a little help from the auto-tune. Soothing melodies that tell about heartbreaks, love and misery and moving on with life - this is what this CD is made of. Ending  with a 6 minute freestyle which he compares his life to the story of Pinnochio. Saying over and over again ‘I wanna be a real boyyyy.’ The song that connects with me most would have to be Robocop,which tells a tale of a  self-consicous woman who is snooping around on her man and becomes more like robot who commands orders. If you don’t already have this piece of brilliance pick it up. It shows a sensitive side to the formerly arrogant Mister West which is uncommon.

5 music stars: *****

Old Enough is taken from the new Raconteurs album Consolers Of The Lonely. Known for their deep lyrics and employment of a variety of instruments, this video is something they have never done before. Everyone that knows me knows that I am a nature lover, so this video hit me on the right spot. I love the concept and how spiffy the guys look too… enjoy :)

We all know what Britney Spears has been through in the past 2 years. From the media frenzy around her publicity stunts to her nasty divorce and child custody court visits, it’s a understatement to say the odds are against her. But have no fear Britney Spears is not making a comeback, she claims to never had left…

In her most recent interview with Rolling Stone Magazine the pop star said she’s the happiest she has ever been. “I never felt that I left, I just felt that I was making myself better.” She also goes on to say “I feel like an old person now, I do! I go to bed at, like, 9:30 every night, and I don’t go out or anything.”

Britney went on to end the interview by saying “I’m sick of being mocked and the laughing stock on the gossip blogs.”

With her newest album Circus set for a December 2 release, her faithful fans and her caring and supportive family who knows… Britney might just have the last laugh.

Born: Harlem, New York… on his way to Hollywood…

Rapper, mad music scientist and Sonic The Hedgehog are just a few of the adjectives used to describe Charles Hamilton. With his self-produced mixtape Outside Looking hosted by Green Lantern he has been praised by the likes of Pharrell and Eminem, Kanye West, Andre 3000 and Timbaland. Iovine’s newest signee, Charles Hamilton produces and writes all his own music and plays multiple instruments at the tender age of 20.

If you are a hip-hop head then this post is for you. Charles Hamilton is slowly emerging as one of the more notable undeground artist. As an artist he’s talented, no arguement there. But people in the industry are still not sure about him. He is a great rapper with a sick flow, but can he sell records and connect to a broad audience?

Check his site: www.iamnotcharleshamilton.com

I sometimes have a hard time figuring out whether fashion or music has helped me enjoy life even more. Is it that favorite Marvin Gaye record my grandmother use to play while I was a child? Or is it that hot summer in 1997 when i got my first pair of Chuck Taylor Converse? Both have changed my life in its own way… the two landscapes always connect back to each other if you ask me.

When fashion trends are made, they are made to be followed. When music is made it is made to be played over and over again. So since I couldn’t quite figure out which one is more important to society as a whole, I took to the streets of my nation’s capital, Washington DC, and did a fun questionnaire that I made up in 10 minutes… lol.

I gave my questionnaire to 10 random people - a lawyer, a business man, a fashion student, a homeless person, a McDonald’s worker, a nurse, an artist, a hustler, a 13 year old… and my mom!

1. Q: A FREE CONCERT or a SHOPPING SPREE?

A: 60% SHOPPING, 40% CONCERT

2. Q: Burn your CD COLLECTION or burn YOUR SHOE COLLECTION?

A: 70% CD, 30% SHOES

3. Q: MICHAEL JACKSON or MICHAEL JACKSON’S GLOVE?

A: 95% GLOVE, 5% MICHAEL

4. Q: Dinner with COCO CHANEL or dinner with ELVIS?

A. 50% COCO, 50% ELVIS

5. Q: IPOD or DESIGNER BAG?

A. 97% IPOD, 3% BAG

6. Q: AMERICAN IDOL or AMERICA’S NEXT TOP MODEL?

A. 60% AI, 40% ANTM

7. Q: GREASE or BREAKFAST AT TIFFANY’S?

A. 90% GREASE, 10% BREAKFAST AT TIFFANY’S

…………………………………………………………………………

From these results it is still hard to determine what people really care more about. Everyone is split in half.

Anyway I had so much fun walking the streets of DC doing this questionnaire…

Thank you to all the participants who I promised would remain anonymous, except my MOM :)

Energy can sometimes leave a band that’s been around a fair while, but that isn’t the case for one of the greatest bands of all time - AC/DC. They still have it. With a new fan base, as well as dedicated fans from the very beginning, their winter gigs are sure to be a sell out.

Don’t miss the Rock N Roll Train! choo*! choo*!

The video is awsmazing! Check it out on YouTube.

I think some people take life too seriously. Whenever you feel like letting go just blast this on your iPod. I’m sure you will shake all those negative vibes off. NERD knows how to make the crowd go wow and I have had the pleasure to see these guys live. When I say amazing - I mean A-M-A-Z-I-N-G.

Here’s s a vid of NERD playing live at the 2008 Bape Show.

SPAZZZZZZZZZZZ!

Rapper Wale from Washington DC has just signed with Interscope. He is the next best thing in hip-hop with a debut album to be released Spring 2009. His mix-tapes are wonderful and I often listen to his music when I need that signal of hope. Jay-Z, Mark Ronson and Lily Allen have already worked with him and with production on his debut album by Kanye West we are sure to be in for a treat.

People - just watch the video and remember this artist!

(interview by Hip-Hop Official)

The mastermind of our times, Kanye West, has just released his second single from the highly anticipated album 808 and Heartbreaks. Heartless describes a woman in a relationship that has broken a man’s heart and doesn’t seem to be affected by it at all.

The animation is amazing and even shows a glimpse of Mister West California house. Kanye took to his blog and stated: “This video was rotoscoped, we recorded real people and then had 65 animators in Hong Kong draw over every cell.”

Kanye has also said that his album should not be under a “hip-hop/RnB” genre when it hits shelves. He said: “It should be under “pop-art” or whatever catergory Pink Floyd is in.”

The album is slated for a November 24 release.

Well let’s start off with the fact that they all have chart topping singles out right now…

You know record labels want to make few extra coins this holiday season - with the economic crisis in America taking away a lot of business profit. So Island Def Jam is making a bold move - they are moving the release date forward of The Killers’ Day & Age, Ludacris’ Theater of the Mind and Kanye West’s 808s & Heartbreak.

The albums were scheduled for release in both physical and digital formats on Tuesday November 25th, but they will now be seeing a Monday the 24th date.

Many fans are excited about the new early releases, but the question is: will it make any difference?

Kanye West’s Love Lockdown hit #3 on the Hot 100, The Killers’ Human scored #6 on Billboard’s Modern Rock, and Ludacris’ One More Drink with T-Pain is a still #34 on Hot R&B/Hip-Hop. I’m grabbing all 3…

A few friends at school told me to look up The Cab so now I want to say a big thak you to those guys because The Cab beyond amazing. Definitely an artist to watch…

Here they are performing ‘Bounce’ live at the House of Blues in New Orleans, and by the sound of things at the end of the night there was a couple of sore throats and deaf ears… enjoy :)

One word. No description needed.

TALENT.

“I’m not a Business man..im a BUSINESS mannnnnnnnn”- Jay-Z

The Blueprint 3 is the eleventh album by American rapper Jay-Z. This will be his last album with record label Def Jam before he begins recording with Live Nation - when he will become his own boss. Production will be done by Kanye West and producer Timbaland. I’ve been a Hova fan since Reasonable Doubt (best album he ever released) so I’m more then excited to see what Mr Carter will stir up this time.

His first released single Jockin’ Jay-Z is already a big radio hit in the US and is blasting on everyone’s iPod.

Catch this YouTube clip of the new song which he premiered in NewYork City at Kanye’s Glow In The Dark show.

Since I started blogging on music.virgin.com I get alot of messages on my MySpace about what I should post about and what artists to watch for. I also get emails from several people who visit our blog and they asked me why there aren’t any rap music reviews. Okay folks I have read your emails and I agree that music is all about diversity.

American rapper T.I. will be releasing his album on September 30, 2008. The album’s title, Paper Trail, comes from T.I.’s decision to write down all of his lyrics on paper. About 50 tracks have been recorded during production, including a collaboration with Fall Out Boy on a track called ‘Out in the Cold’.

Special guest appearances include Justin Timberlake, Rihanna,Usher, John Legend, Lil Wayne and Swizz Beats. Production from Kanye West and Just Blaze has been confirmed as well.

Critics are calling Paper Trail T.I.’s best work thus far. I’ve already have heard the album and I’m giving it 5 stars - it’s amazing!

Check out his MySpace.

Santogold, an American songwriter, producer and singer, cannot be easily categorised. I really enjoy her music and her style can’t be put into words. She straddles indie rock, dub, new wave, punk rock, psychedelic rock, art rock, electronic, synthpop… But she has been compared to the Yeah Yeah Yeahs and M.I.A. and has said that she is inspired by 1980s pop music also citing Blondie, Grace Jones and James Brown as influences.

She’ll be supporting Coldplay for most of the stops on the North American leg of their tour. I think thats more then a big deal eh?

Whatever your sound taste is I’m sure she can accommodate you in some way… that’s why I’m naming her as an artist to watch…