Move.Meant: "Good Money" Video
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Pitbull feat. Lil Jon and Ying Yang Twins: "Bojangles"
Keeping his brand image alive and kicking, Pitbull's fierce bite is still killing competitors and luring in new loyal fans. His staple, Miami, Florida; let it be known. But since Pitbull's success continues to grow so does his national and international fame. The recipe for having longevity in the music business is that it's deeper then music, Pitbull says, you gotta be straight with relationships, able to keep them and you can't burn bridges. On top of that you gotta know how to put out hit records. Pitbull knew he was onto something great with the success of his debut release on TVT Records, M.I.A.M.I. (Money Is A Major Issue). Singles like 'Toma' and 'Culo' can still be heard in clubs all over the nation and beyond, and the crowd reacts like they have never heard it before. The energy rises, basses bump, asses shake, bodies grind and all the while 24-year-old Pitbull is just doing what he does best. Part of that comes from his upbringing. His parents, both first generation Cuban immigrants had him memorize the poems of legendary Cuban poet, Jose Mart when he was just a boy. This ritual instilled in him an early appreciation for the power of language, as well as the importance of his Cuban roots and looking beyond his own experience for inspiration. Pitbull explains, That's one thing people don?t realize about Miami -- we have all kinds of people down here. So early on I learned to appreciate different types of music." M.I.A.M.I. has surpassed expectations in the market. The album has been certified gold and Pitbull has provided a new face in hip-hop for the Latinos by becoming the most highly recognized Latino emcee since Fat Joe. Media attention keeps growing and Pitbull has already landed features in magazines like Latina, Rolling Stone, Maxim en Espanol, XXL and The Source to name a few. Not only does the media want to write about Pitbull but he himself writes a column for the NBA Espanol website. Pitbull understands that to stay on top you have to be on the grind constantly, "not everybody can stay on top -- there are more failed hustlers than there are successful ones." While a lot of Sunshine State rappers focus their hip-hop attentions strictly below the Mason-Dixon line, the teenage Pitbull's wide interests led him to classics like Nas "Illmatic" and G-Funk blueprints like "The Chronic" and "Doggystyle." Soon he was developing the freestyle skills that would later earn him fame, flooding the Miami streets with mixtapes (like his latest, "Unleashed Volume 5"). After missing connections with Irv Gotti - a chance meeting brought them into the same studio, but the planned recording session never happened - Pitbull turned to home base for his entry in the game. In the late 90s, he was tapped by bass music legend Luke to flow over his hit single "Lollipop". " I am grateful for him, not just because "Lollipop" did mad business all through the south, Pitbull says. But because he helped me learn the ropes of the business." music is a universal language.
?The intensity. The drama. The emotion. The colors. The darkness. The melodies. The anger. The honesty. The drive. The new. All of the above and more.? According to Stone Sour frontman Corey Taylor, those are the things that define Stone Sour?s passionately pulsing second album, Come What(ever) May (Roadrunner). Stone Sour?s first album in four years finds the band firing on all cylinders, and primed to capture the attention and the hearts of the rock ?n roll masses.Stone Sour?s self-titled debut was twice Grammy-nominated and RIAA Certified Gold. It was an eclectic album, propelled by the band?s busy tour schedule, the contemplative smash single ?Bother,? and a series of groovy, melodic metal numbers. In 2002 and 2003, Stone Sour established itself as a multi-faceted hard rock force of nature.While Taylor is one of the most recognized figures in rock music, thanks to his role as the frontman for Slipknot, a Grammy winning, multi-platinum act, Stone Sour is anything but a side project. It?s a full-time band that all members are fiercely dedicated to. Taylor spent much of 2004 and 2005 supporting his other band, but will spend 2006 and 2007 focusing on Stone Sour and Come What(ever) May. Also comprised by guitarist James Root, who does double duty in Slipknot, bassist Shawn Economaki, guitarist Josh Rand and new drummer Roy Mayorga, Stone Sour is armed with an album that expands beyond the palette of its predecessor. The band was afforded more time to craft songs, and it shows. The album, produced by Nick Raskulinecz (Foo Fighters, Velvet Revolver), is tight, crisp, and full of rowdy rockers and melodic numbers.?With Stone Sour, I loosen up and show more of myself,? Taylor reveals. ?As soon as the fans hear this new record, they?ll see it?s different than anything that we have ever done. It gives me a chance to do the singing that I love to do, the type of singing that I do when I?m walking around my house.? Taylor, a self-described extrovert, may be the mouthpiece for Stone Sour, but he insists the band is a truly collaborative effort, and that?s something he thoroughly enjoys. ?I?ve been able to blend into the background if needed, you know? You grow up thinking being recognized all the time will be sweet, but sometimes you just want to be one of the guys. I think I balance it fairly well, without killing people.?Guitarist Josh Rand, who ran 3-5 miles a day during the recording process to clear his mind for each day?s highly creative atmosphere, believes that the diversity of Come What(ever) May, which features guest appearances from The Wallflowers? Rami Jaffee and Godsmack drummer Shannon Larkin, will be what hooks fans, and what keeps them. ?This album?s content will fit any mood you may be in,? the guitarist says. ?If you?ve had a shitty day at work, you could crank ?Hell And Consequences.? If you need a little optimism, you could listen to ?Through Glass.? If you are feeling depressed, you could listen to ?Zzyzx Road.??Obviously, Come What(ever) May is a sensory experience, encompassing a wide spectrum of emotions. ?30/30-150? and ?Reborn? are bruisers that?ll get the blood coursing through listeners? veins, while the first single, ?Through Glass,? takes up real estate in your brain for days at a time, thanks its unforgettable melodic twists and chorus. Try and purge your brain of Come What(ever) May?s melodies, and you?ll fail miserably. Taylor concurs, ?So many bands are so genre-specific these days. No bands cover the middle ground. If they try, it?s lifeless and limp. Our album has such a pulse. The cool thing is that when we write stuff, it turns out catchy whether we want it to or not. It?s just something that we do.? He?s right. Crafting melody and mixing it with metallic maelstrom is definitely something that Stone Sour does better than most.Jim Root, who contends that ?life? itself influenced this album and who claims he consumed nerve-shattering, tooth-staining amounts of coffee during the recording process, sees Come What(ever) May as a necessary evolution in the band?s sound. ?We?re taking every aspect to the next level. As an artist, no matter what you do, you must evolve. That?s very important to me. Some people fear change. I embrace it. This record is a testament to where I am at, musically and spiritually. Life is a learning experience and so is song writing. As with everything I try to improve. I can sit back and listen to these songs and know that I have.?Taylor understands that as his career goes on, he will be less and less understood and he likes it that way. ?I?ve lost a little sleep over the fact that people don?t get what I do and how I do it. I do everything I can to entertain, educate and infuriate the status quo. If I give the mainstream a headache once in a while, that works for me.? It?s that attitude that attracts the disaffected youth, the kids, the anti-conservative thinker, as well as the casual rock fan to Stone Sour. ?I have a conscience,? Taylor says about his songwriting style. ?I have a respect for the music and I have an agenda. I have an individualistic mind to botch the ?product? mentality, and I am not out to further myself in a spotlight that knows no favorites. This could all be gone tomorrow. If all you?re doing is trying to build your Q points, what are you going to do when no one wants to see you anymore? At least I?ll be happy about the music I left behind.?The songs and music on Come What(ever) May ensure that Stone Sour?s legacy will endure for a long time to come.
Pop Levi has led what one might describe as a melodic life. From childhood his life has been steeped in music. He took up piano at age 3, joined a gospel choir at 7, and started record collecting at 9 just prior to writing his first song. It was a precocious start for an artist who has proved to be a prodigious talent. This English born, LA based multi-instrumentalist was a founder member of avant-garde rock collective Super Numeri before embarking on a global roller coaster ride as bassist with electro pioneers Ladytron. All the while he?s been perfecting his modern spin on rock and soul, releasing two singles on the ?Trons Invicta Hi-Fi label', and carefully crafting his debut solo album. August 2006 sees the release of his first EP on Counter Records. Drawing inspiration from such luminaries as Van Dyke Parks, Jimi Hendrix, Marvin Gaye and Syd Barrett, Levi creates his own brand of gloriously funky alt-rock, meticulously piecing together his kaleidoscopic sound from recordings he?s compiled over a ten-year period. The roar of a motorcycle and the Bolan-esque swagger of title track Blue Honey, kicks off this five track EP. Track 2 (A Style Called) Crying Chic sees Levi pay tribute to the sun drenched sounds of 60's west coast America before he struts his stuff on the Zeppelin-heavy guitar riffs of Mournin Light. Penultimate song Baby Again (Midnight Version) has a looser, more experimental feel, prior to more close-vocal harmonising and finger clicking beats from Levi on an alternate recording of album track Skip Ghetto (Echo Park version). The album, The Return To Form Black Magick Party, described by Levi as a truly bizarre whirlwind of classic sounds has been mixed by Thom Monahan, Devendra Banhart's producer, and produced by Pop Levi himself. It is due for release in the New Year. Meanwhile Levi and his band have been astounding audiences with their soulful vocals and guitar pyrotechnics both at home and here in the UK and plan a return trip to the UK in August for a clutch of dates to be announced shortly.
Blue collar gigs will never be the same with one of these.
The Peek promises to be the mobile e-mail device for everyday people, but we just think the money is better spent on a multifunction handheld.
Altec Lansing BackBeat Plus UHP206
Although Altec Lansing's BackBeat Plus 206 earbuds may be a slight step down from the BackBeat 326 earphones, they offer very good sound for the money.
Natalie Walker. Urban Angel. Biography. Born and raised in Indiana, vocalist Natalie Walker is an artist whose lilting, melodic voice and lyrical reveries reflect a life journey of determination and self-discovery. With musical influences ranging from Alison Krauss to Portishead, Jewel to Lauryn Hill, Beth Orton to Bjork, the former lead singer of downtempo electronic group Daughter Darling now delivers her own unique, haunting sonic landscape that is at once organic, ethereal, elegant and entrancing. ?Creating music is my outlet,? says Natalie. ?I was born to sing. When I don?t, I feel empty. When I do, I feel fulfilled. It?s that simple.? Urban Angel, her solo album debut, was co-written by Natalie and two-man production team Stuhr. ?I worked with two really great producers out of Brooklyn, Dan Chen and Nate Greenberg. They?d send me the rough copy of a song and the music would just evoke emotion,? she explains. ?Its like fitting pieces of a puzzle together. When you?re in the studio recording its all very raw and real. I try to make a song new each time I sing it. I want it to be unforgettable. My producers are amazing. They forced me to develop my real voice. I?ve improved my vibrato and my tone. Stuhr delivered exactly what I asked of them. It couldn?t have happened more perfectly.?
Director Garry Tutte directs DL in this dance-centric club clip for Verbalerity,the second single off Life's A Collection of Experiences. DL looks pretty comfortable in the room of muted burgundy, gold and chocolate, rocking a white track jacket with popped collar and making eyes at the lady at the bar. He's entitled to be feeling pretty good; Life's A Collection was Juno-nominated and his next LP, Organic Music For A Digital World is due March 2006. - MuchMusic
Project Vector: "Out of the Closet"
Rock/techno artist Project Vector debuts in the realm of video with "Out of the Closet," a self-shot and self-edited video. With neither the time for extensive on-location shooting or the budget to hire a professional video production company, Project Vector's Dave Gastambide dived in with almost no experience in video and produced what many are calling a surprisingly good clip for a first try. "I basically just shot most of the footage in front of a green screen and used a lot of compositing and digital effects to try and create some interesting visuals," Dave elaborates. "I didn't really know what the heck I was doing, but it was fun." "Out of the Closet" is the opening track on REALITY SHOW, Project Vector's debut CD released earlier in 2005. The album has gradually been winning PV an enthusiastic following who dig the unusual stylistic hybrids and the willingness to intelligently explore controversial subjects.
Diverse (featuring RJD2 and Lyrics Born): "Explosive"
From the mailroom to "Move," to "One A.M." and beyond, Diverse innovates. A self-described poet, his rhymes are true. Shunning the pseudo-hard stance taken by some emcees in favor of everyday human experience, Diverse consistently ups the ante. Over the course of numerous releases and collaborations, his rhymes have shown that flash and substance don?t necessarily have to be adversaries. "Move" was released on Chocolate Industries in 2001, receiving a strong response from critics and listeners alike. A collaboration with Mos Def on the first installment of "Urban Renewal Program" followed soon thereafter; "Wylin? Out" would go on to dominate college radio airwaves for the better part of the summer. The "Certified/Build" 12" was enough to keep heads happy for a minute, but soon the pressure would be on. Diverse?s debut full-length "One A.M." dropped in the latter part of 2003 to critical acclaim, featuring collaborations with Jean Grae, Prefuse 73 and Madlib among others. The tour appearances and showcases that followed packed venues, seeing fans channel the same charismatic energy that keeps our guy in the studio late at night. With a grueling tour schedule and verbal delivery that would make UPS envious, Diverse has still found time to collaborate with other artists and work on fresh releases of his own. Be on the lookout for the next full-length, "Round About," in your area sometime next year.
