Tupac Shakur

SEE ALSO: Mike Tyson’s ‘Undisputed Truth’ Reviewed

The late rap icon performed alongside former Death Row labelmates Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg at the music festival in Indio, California.

LIKE NewsOne On Facebook To Stay Up On Black News Worldwide!

During the festival’s first weekend closing set, the shirtless hip-hop legend rapped some of his best-known hits including “Hail Mary” and “2 of Amerikaz Most Wanted” with Snoop.

According to TMZ reports, the crowd went “insane” when Tupac appeared to rise from the ground and emerged standing on the stage. He stalked the stage, grabbing his crotch and doing a little Crip-walking like he probably did during his 1990s heyday. The rapper died in September 1996 after being shot multiple times by a gunman.

It’s easy to say that Tupac was the highlight of the closing set even though Dre and Snoop shared the stage with other big-name MCs such as Eminem, 50 Cent, Wiz Khalifa and Kendrick Lamar, according to MTV reports.

It was rumored that Nate Dogg was also going to appear at Coachella as a hologram. Perhaps Dr. Dre and Snoop are saving Nate Dogg for when they repeat their Coachella finale set this Sunday, April 22.

If they’re planning another hologram visit by Pac too, that show promises to be a gangsta party for the ages.

SEE ALSO:

Pay 500K For Entry Into Romney Inauguration

GOP Drowns Woes On ‘SNL’

GALLERY: Hip-Hop Behind Bars

Start Gallery

One hundred and eighteen years ago today, Smith was born in Chattanooga, Tennessee in 1894. She was raised in poverty and often ran away as a teenager to join traveling shows as a dancer.

Around 1912, she began singing in shows with another Black blues legend, Ma Rainey. Smith’s career took off in 1923 when she started recording her songs.

LIKE NewsOne On Facebook To Stay Up On Black News Worldwide!

Back in those days, it was a big deal for an artist to record their voice for it was the next step for an aspiring singer to take his or her career to a higher level. Smith signed with Columbia Records and her first recording was “Down Hearted Blues.”

This sista knew a thing or two about “the blues.” Her first husband, Earl Love, died just two years after they married. Her second marriage to Jack Gee didn’t work out, either. And like many talented artists of those days and today, Smith had a few issues with the bottle. On top of that, slavery ended just some sixty years before, so you know the racism was on, to take Kanye’s words, “on a hundred, thousand trillion.” But that didn’t stop her from becoming one of the best selling artists of her day.

What really separated Smith from many of her peers — and there were few — were her lyrics. She was certainly not a dignified, down home Southern Belle in the traditional sense. More conservative Black folks referred to her melodies as “the Devil’s music.” Take the first verse from Smith’s “Empty Bed Blues,” for example:

I woke up this morning with a awful aching head
I woke up this morning with a awful aching head
My new man had left me, just a room and a empty bed
Bought me a
coffee grinder
that’s the best one I could find
Bought me a coffee grinder that’s the best one I could find
Oh, he could grind my coffee, ’cause he had a brand new grind
He’s a deep sea diver with a stroke that can’t go wrong
He’s a deep sea diver with a stroke that can’t go wrong
He can stay at the bottom and his wind holds out so long
He knows how to thrill me and he thrills me night and day
Oh, he knows how to thrill me, he thrills me night and day
He’s got a new way of loving, almost takes my breath away
Lord, he’s got that sweet somethin’ and I told my girlfriend Lou
He’s got that sweet somethin’ and I told my girlfriend Lou
From the way she’s raving, she must have gone and tried it too

If that’s not freak music, then what is? So anyone who says that today’s artists are too sexual need to learn there history. There was certainly a historical precedent. Here is the audio to the song below.

One of Smith’s more memorable songs was “St. Louis Blues” recorded in 1929. The song was actually a tw0-reeler where Smith appeared on film for her first and only time.

Though she died tragically as a result of  injuries from a car accident on Sept. 27, 1937 at the age of 43, her legend lives on. She was inducted into the “Rock and Roll Hall of Fame” in 1989 and three of her songs, “Down Hearted Blues,” “Empty Bed Blues,” and “St. Louis Blues,” are enshrined in the Grammy Hall Of Fame.

Mrs. Bessie Smith, you are one of our all-time greats. What a fine sista’ and diva you were and continue to be.

Happy Birthday!

SEE ALSO:

Report Slams UC Cops for Pepper Spray

Florida Town Bans Dance Clubs, Skating Rinks

See Also: Should Pres. Obama Break his Silence on Gay Marriage?

The effort is supported by organizations such as the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and Planned Parenthood Federation of America. Although STD awareness is the main aim of the campaign, the push for HIV testing has also become part of the growing conversation.

MTV has sustained a strong commitment to challenging the stigma that prevents countless young people from getting tested for STDs and HIV,” said Jason Rzepka, Vice President of MTV Public Affairs, via press release. “We’re proud that GYT has helped drive notable increases in STD testing, but there’s no finish line in this race, and we will continue to do all we can to help our audience make responsible decisions about their sexual health.”

Sobering numbers from the CDC say that youth ages 15-24 account for nearly half of all new STD cases in the United States. Recent reports from the CDC say that Blacks and Hispanics contract STDs at a significantly higher rate than their white counterparts. One of GYT’s top objectives is to arm young people with the knowledge they need to combat the alarming number of infections.

When it comes to STDs, many of those at risk don’t know it or assume they would know if they had one,” said Tina Hoff, Senior Vice President and Director of the Kaiser Family Foundation’s Health Communication & Media Partnerships Program. “Through a combination of on-air, online, and on-the-ground messages, GYT is working to increase knowledge and remove the stigma of STD testing.”

For more information on the “GYT: Get Yourself Tested Campaign,” click here.

See Also:

Are You Supporting ‘Stand Your Ground’ And Voter Suppression?

Obese? Chance of Birthing Autistic Kid Jumps 67%

SEE ALSO: N.Y.C. Woman To Plead Guilty In Kidnapping

The star player who bowed out of baseball at the young age of 31 is currently promoting his forthcoming autobiography, “They Call Me Oil Can:  My Life in Baseball.”  Boyd, who pitched in the majors during the ’80s and spent eight seasons with the Boston Red Sox, revealed that his teammates knew about his rampant drug use.

All of them knew and the ones that cared came to me — the Dwight Evanses and Bill Buckners. It was the veteran ballplayers. Some guys lived it. They knew what you were doing, and the only way they knew was they had to have tried it, too.

Boyd admitted to using cocaine at “every ballpark” during his 10-year career:

There wasn’t one ballpark that I probably didn’t stay up all night, until 4 or 5 in the morning, and the same thing is in your system,” Boyd said in an interview with Jon Miller of WBZ radio in Boston. “It ain’t like you had time to go and do it while you were in the game. I have (done) that.

During his ball playing career, Boyd, 52, who also played with the Montreal Expos and Texas Rangers after leaving Boston, was known for having a standout personality that endeared him to fans.  Boyd’s nickname “Oil Can” originated from his beer-drinking days, when he was a youth in Meridian, Miss.  The southern town refers to beer as “oil.”

In a 10-season career, Boyd collected a 78-77 record with 799 strikeouts.  From 1983-85 Boyd won 31 games for Boston, with 15 victories in 1985.  Soon after these career highs, Boyd had three disappointing years with the Red Sox and became a free agent and left the team.

Boyd attributes his rather short-lived baseball career to not only drugs but bigotry in the league:

Shawn “Jay-Z” Carter

SEE ALSO: Happy Birthday To Legendary Detroit Producer J Dilla!

Proceeds from both concerts benefit the United Way of New York City and the Shawn Carter Scholarship Foundation of which his mother, Gloria Carter, is president and CEO. Ticket prices ranged from approximately $300 – $1000. Jay-Z first announced the concert series in December of last year.

Beginning the evening in a white Tom Ford dinner jacket and diamond Cartier pin sparkling on his lapel, he changed the line of one of his most recited rhymes, “Public Service Announcement,” in honor of the occasion, replacing “hat” with “tux”:

“Check out my tux, yo/Peep the way I wear it,” he rhymed as the well-heeled crowd adorned in tuxedos and strapless gowns nodded along to the music of the Black Pearl Chamber Orchestra — conducted by Jeri Lynne Johnson — which served as Jay-Z’s house band, along with the Illadelphonics, an ensemble featuring Questlove of the Roots and soul singer Bilal, reports the Times.

Hova went through his greatest commercial hits, such as “Izzo (H.O.V.A.)” and “Hard Knock Life (Ghetto Anthem)” to the Rick Rubin produced “99 Problems,” laying to rest the speculation that he had given up the “b-word” in honor of his daughter with wife and former Destiny Child front-woman, Beyonce Knowles.

Jay-Z gave his daughter a shout-out during the evening’s festivities, “Put one hand in the air for Blue! If there are any proud parents in the house tonight, make some noise for me,” while performing “Glory,” his emotional tribute to baby girl Blue Ivy Carter:

“I didn’t think I was gonna make it through that one,” he said at the song’s conclusion.

Alicia Keys joined Jay-Z to perform their NYC anthem, “Empire State of Mind,” which came after an interlude during which the orchestra and band played Gil Scott-Heron’s “New York Is Killing Me.”

Former arch-nemesis, Nas, joined him on stage to perform “N.Y. State of Mind.” Jay-Z let his guest shine alone on “If I Ruled the World,” accompanied by Keys.

Even with all of the pomp and circumstance, Hova kept it so BK. After changing into a black T-shirt and gold chain, he paid homage to his fallen friend, Brooklyn rapper Notorious B.I.G. by performing the ’90′s hit, “Gettin’ Money .”  He then segued into a medley of classics from his 1996 debut album, Reasonable Doubt, making good on the promise he made the crowd early in the evening:

“All those lines that divide us,” he said with confidence, “we gonna step on them.”

Hip-Hop pioneers, Afrika Bambaataa and MC Melly Mel were the first Hip-Hop duo to play Carnegie Hall in 1985. Wyclef Jean performed there in 2004, Mos Def in 2008.

SEE ALSO:

Democrats Score With Eastwood Super Bowl Ad

Happy Birthday, Bob Marley!

My daughters all like Nicki Minaj.  I don’t necessarily like the fact that they like her, but I figure that an appreciation of Nicki Minaj is not as bad as other habits they could have developed, like smoking crack or voting Republican.  Nicki might be a bit strange and might need to learn how to blink consistently, but she’s one hell of a rapper.

I was admittedly intrigued and somewhat confused by the recent decision by BET to ban Minaj’s new video “Stupid Hoe” from their channel.  Obviously, after hearing the title of the song, I was taken aback.  I wondered if being a stupid hoe was worse than being an intelligent hoe.  I also figured that BET had chosen to ban the video because the content was just as bad as the title.

So, like every other hip hop fan who hears that a video has been banned, I rushed online to watch it (getting banned is a great way to get media attention).  I watched the video, nearly went blind from all the odd colors and bright lights, and then sat there at the end, like a fat kid in a restaurant who was given a napkin and then abandoned by the waitress.

I wondered, out loud, what it was in this video that caused it to be banned.  Not to say that the term “stupid hoe” is the kind of thing we want to hear blasted on the airwaves, but it’s not as if BET hasn’t aired worse.  The standards of decency in hip hop have sunk so low that we no longer have the right to use the word “standard.”

For BET to ban Nicki Minaj after allowing for nearly every other sexist image imaginable is like a porn star telling her boyfriend that she doesn’t want to have sex till marriage.  It just doesn’t make any sense.  I sat and watched Wiz Khalifa on the BET show, “106 & Park,” as he told a room full of impressionable teenagers how he was a “Big joint rollin, Bombay sippin, No blunt smoking, Bad b*tch getting” typa n*gga.  He also told them how the gin had gotten him “drunk as f*ck stumbling out the bar,” looking for the keys to his car.

What’s so funny is that I didn’t even get to the good parts of the song, where Khalifa’s “mentor” Too Short talks about getting women high on drugs so he can have sex with them (“Cocaine, mushrooms, ecstasy, GHB, Marijuana.  She can suck it if she wanna”).   And we wonder where the most trifling among us learn creative ways to be even more trifling:  Nothing like positive reinforcement through the airwaves to convince a kid that behavior that might send you to prison is normal.

So, the network that has no problem with an artist going onto national television and doing a teen public service announcement in favor of drinking and driving and excessive drug use suddenly has an issue with a relatively mild Nicki Minaj video.

Give me a damn break.

I’m not here to say that the content of Nicki Minaj’s video is acceptable.  As I look forward to doing a public debate on the state of hip hop this month (Feb 23) at Brown University with Michael Eric Dyson, I admit that about 75% of what we hear in commercialized hip hop has become a wasteland for African American children. But the idea of banning one of a small number of successful female rappers, while allowing the men to hang their testicles to the floor is nothing less than a mind-boggling exhibition of blatant sexism.

So, if we are going to ban the “Stupid Hoe” video from BET, we need to do some serious hip-hop content reparations:  Maybe we can retroactively ban all the other videos that show women’s booties more than the artists’ faces, that glorify getting high whenever possible, that make it cool to go to prison, and that have turned ignorance into a fashion statement.

While some might question Don Cornelius’ decision to kill himself, the truth is that millions of us are committing suicide slowly by allowing ourselves and our children to absorb consistent messages that serve as nothing less than a recipe for self-destruction.   If BET wants to do the right thing, their leadership can confront all of the ills of hip-hop and find a way to clean up the toxic waste that has somehow disguised itself as “black culture.”

You can even say that we’re all a bunch of “stupid hoes” for allowing our culture to be degraded like this in the first place. Yep, I said it, so ban me.

Dr. Boyce Watkins is a Professor at Syracuse University and founder of the Your Black World Coalition. To have Dr. Boyce commentary delivered to your email, please click here.

From young cousins to two-steppin’ aunties, this list was compiled with everyone in mind. So whether you’re partying on a rooptop with friends or at the park with family, may this set of 16 Black barbecue favorites liven up your Labor Day.

1. DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince–Summertime

2. Montell Jordan–This Is How We Do It

3. Zapp and Roger–Computer Love

4. Bill Biv Devoe–Poison

5. The Sugar Hill Gang–Rapper’s Delight

6. Groove Theory–Tell Me

7. Eric B. and Rakim– Paid In Full

8. Drake–I’m On One

Here are NewsOne’s top 20 Black radio jockeys of all time, picked for their pioneering spirit and influence.

[DJs who made their name before becoming radio personalities have been excluded, but honorable mentions must go to folks like Steve Harvey, Rickey Smiley, and Yolanda Adams].

Related: Samples of History: Inheriting Prince’s Funk

1) Jack L. Cooper

Widely considered to be the first African-American radio announcer, Jack L. Cooper’s “All Negro” radio show aired in the 1930s on Chicago’s WSBC. Cooper was succeeded in Black Chicago radio by very important air personalities like Al Benson — who brought the blues and jazz to Chicago on WGES — and his colleague Herb Kent, who made his mark after his move to WVON, where he was a strong voice for progress during the tumultuous Civil Rights movement.

2) Jack “The Rapper” Gibson
Gibson got his start on the very first Black owned radio station, Atlanta’s WERD, in 1949. Embodying the fast talking style for which he was named, Gibson also went on to create one of the first Black radio trades, “Jack The Rapper,” and the infamous Black music convention of the same name.

3) Rufus Thomas
Rufus Thomas was the preeminent DJ of Memphis’ WDIA, the nation’s first radio station with an all-Black air staff. A triple-threat performer of song, dance, and comedy, Thomas’ nighttime show, “Hoot and Holler,” was an influential source of blues and R&B for a generation of white and Black listeners alike. Thomas also hosted amateur talent shows on Memphis’ famed Beale Street, premiering young talents like B.B. King, Ike Turner, and Bobby “Blue” Bland.

4) Jocko Henderson
A legendary disc jockey on the airwaves of Philadelphia and New York in the 1950s and 1960s, Douglas Wendell “Jocko” Henderson was a pioneer of the slick-talking, rapid-fire radio patter that influenced Black and White jockeys nationwide and laid a cultural foundation for “rap” music.

5) Petey Greene
Known as one of the original shock-jocks, Greene was a trailblazer of talk radio; and his influence was such that he has been credited with quashing the riots in Washington, D.C. in the wake of Martin Luther King Jr.’s assassination. Greene got an unusual start to his broadcasting career when he began DJing for the Virginia prison in which he was serving a five year sentence for armed robbery. Upon his release when he was hired to host his own show, Rapping With Petey Greene, at WOL in Washington D.C. His success led him to television where he hosted his own Emmy Award-winning show, Petey Greene’s Washington, on local WDCA-TV and BET.

6) Melvin Lindsey
Almost twenty years after his death, WHUR jock Marvin Lindsey’s “Quiet Storm” playlist remains an inspiration for imitators at radio stations across the country. Lindsey started out interning at Howard University’s WHUR, and got his first break filling in for a DJ who couldn’t make it in. The positive response for Lindsey’s impromptu show led WHUR station manager (and now Radio One founder) Cathy Hughes to give him his own time slot. Christening the show “Quiet Storm” after a hit single from Smokey Robinson, Lindsey’s smooth soulful playlist was an instant success, and may well have influenced the growth of the “smooth Jazz” sector of the music and radio business.

7) Dyanna Williams
Dynanna Williams is one of the earliest and most influential female air personalities in Black radio. Using the name “Ebony Moonbeams,” Williams started her career in broadcasting in 1973 when she was hired at Howard University’s WHUR. Two years later, Frankie Crocker hired Williams at WBLS-FM in her hometown, New York City. In 1978 she became the first African American woman rock DJ at WRQX-FM in Washington DC. In 1990 Williams launched the Association of African American Music Foundation to promote African American musicians, and currently hosts a weekly broadcast, “Soulful Sunday,” on Radio One’s 107.9 WRNB in Philadelphia.

8) Chuck Leonard
Leonard, another pioneer of Black jocks’ move into the mainstream, was the first African-American disc jockey on landmark pop station WABC-AM, where he stayed for 14 years doing late-night shifts before moving through a string of New York stations like WRKS, WBLS, and WJUX. Leonard caught the radio bug in college as program director of University of Illinois station WPGU.

9) Frankie Crocker
Crocker first became a household name on New York’s Black station, WWRL. But after becoming one of the first Black jocks to “cross over” into more mainstream radio (as one of WMCA’s “Good Guys”), Crocker crossed back when a Black-owned consortium hired him for a new FM station in New York called WBLS. Crocker assembled a huge, multiracial audience, and had a great influence on the mainstreaming of disco. Though resistant to rap, he played some of the first hip-hop records and hired hip-hop’s first legendary radio jock, Mr.Magic.

10) Mr. Magic
When John “Mr. Magic” Rivas created “Disco Showcase” in 1979 on a small pay-for-time FM station in New York called WHBI, he didn’t know he was starting what would become the very first rap radio show. A few years later, Magic took his “Rap Attack” to commercial station WBLS, and fostered the careers of producer Marley Marl, and artists like Biz Markie and Big Daddy Kane. Mr. Magic brought the first rap show to commercial radio on New York’s WBLS.

11) Red Alert
New York rival 98.7 Kiss-FM answered Frankie Crocker’s hiring of Mr. Magic when they asked Kool DJ Red Alert to craft his own rap show on weekends. Self-effacing where Magic was brash, Red Alert became a beloved figure of listeners and rappers alike. Red Alert fostered the careers of acts such as KRS-One and Boogie Down Productions, Jungle Brothers, Queen Latifah and A Tribe Called Quest.

12) Greg Mack
Mack was already a successful air personality in Houston when a small AM station in Los Angeles called KDAY hired him to be disc jockey and music director. But Mack’s aggressive programming of rap music made KDAY the first station to embrace rap as a core part of its programming, and helped launch the L.A. rap scene. Mack gave the first airplay to now legendary acts like the LA Dream Team, Egyptian Lover, World Class Wreckin’ Cru, Dr. Dre, Eazy E, Ice T, Ice Cube, NWA, Tone Loc and dozens more.

13) Tom Joyner
In 1985, Tom Joyner earned his stripes as “The Hardest Working Man In Radio,” juggling two top-rated shows in separate cities over a thousand miles apart. For eight years Joyner would do a weekly morning show at K-104 in Dallas, and fly to Chicago every weekday afternoon for a show at WGCI. In 1994, “The Fly Jock” became the one of the first nationally syndicated Black DJs when was hired to host his own program, the Tom Joyner Morning Show, which spread to 29 stations. In 1998, Joyner became the first African-American inducted into the National Radio Hall of Fame.

14) Russ Parr
Russ Parr began his career as a stand-up comedian in California, and got his start in radio on Los Angeles’s famed KDAY. In the mid-1980s Parr also recorded with his band “Bobby Jimmy and The Critters.” In 1996, he became the second African-American giant of syndication in 1996 when his Russ Parr Morning Show on Radio One’s WKYS-FM became the base of operations for a network that eventually reached more than 3 million listeners daily on over 40 radio stations.

15) Robin Quivers
As the long-running Black female sidekick of white shock-jock Howard Stern, Quivers has held her own in a predominately male atmosphere for thirty years. Part cohost and part cosigner, Quivers has maintained a precarious and controversial role as foil for Stern’s arguably racist rants: Does her presence give Stern a “pass,” or does she keep him in check? Either way, Quivers has become one of the most recognized female radio personalities in the country.

16) Wendy Williams
Referring to herself as the “Queen of All Media,” Wendy Williams’ trademark mixture of oversized personality and merciless celebrity gossip created a new radio archetype and captured millions of fans. After college, Williams started her career in radio as an intern for Kiss 108 in Boston, and made the move to New York City’s Kiss-FM, where she eventually landed her own air shift; and then on to New York’s Hot 97. Williams was Billboard’s Best On-Air Radio Personality in 1993, and became the second African-American woman inducted into the National Radio Hall of Fame in 2009. Williams currently hosts her own daytime TV talk show.

17) Electrifying Mojo
Broadcasting first on WGPR in Detroit, Mojo challenged ideas about the role of a radio jockey. His unbridled and unusual music selection inspired legions of fans in Detroit, and Mojo is recognized for having introduced listeners to a number of artists that include Prince, The B-52’s, and Kraftwerk. Mojo was well known for his habit of playing lengthy recordings without interruption, and was hugely influential in the formation of the Detroit techno scene.

18) Star & Buc Wild
Star (Troi Torain) and his stepbrother Buc Wild (Timothy Joseph) started their radio journey in March of 2000 hosting the morning show on Hot 97 in New York City. Their aggressive and culturally mixed personas quickly surpassed Howard Stern for the number one spot among young listeners. Though often contentious, the show continues to capture new supporters while proving to be at the forefront of today’s changing media landscape. Star & Buc Wild currently host the morning show on Philadelphia ’s 100.3 The Beat.

19) David “Davey D” Cook
A nationally renowned pioneer blending hip-hop, radio and community activism, David Cook moved from the Bronx to the Bay Area shortly after the dawn of the hip-hop era. Cook eventually landed a radio show on Berkeley’s KALX. With his Bronx Science high school colleague Kevvy Kev Montague over at Stanford’s KZSU, and a number of other important DJs and shows at college and community stations across the Bay, Cook eventually became the ringleader of the Bay Area Hip-Hop Coalition, the first rap radio deejay collective in the world, with more hours of hip-hop on air than in any area of the country. When local pop station KMEL started playing hip-hop aggressively, Cook pioneered a new kind of prime time community affairs program, blending music with activism.

20) Sway
Sway Calloway, along with his partner King Tech, became the first to host a hip-hop radio show on a pop station when his Wake Up Show debuted on San Francisco’s KMEL-FM in 1990. The Wake Up Show eventually became internationally syndicated, reaching more than 20 different markets in five countries. Sway himself became the morning personality on KMEL-FM, and then was hired by MTV as an on-air host and journalist. Sway now hosts the morning show on Sirius satellite radio’s Shade 45.

Related: Top 9 Black Television Talk Show Hosts

Related: 25 Reasons We Love Arsenio Hall

On the extended version of his 1988 single “I Wish U Heaven,” Prince sang “Take this beat / I don’t mind / Got plenty others / and they’re so fine!”

Apparently a few hip-hop producers got the message and began mining Prince’s catalog for samples!

Here are a few of our favorites!

Kanye West “Big Brother”

DJ Toomp produced Kanye West’s ode to his “big brother,” Jay-Z. The song replays a riff from Prince’s “It’s Gonna Be Lonely” from his 1979 self-titled album.

2Pac “Heartz Of Men”

Taken from the last album Tupac released before he was murdered, “Heartz Of Men” samples the end of Prince’s “Darling Nikki,” that creepy backwards bit that probably scared Christian parents all over the country.

2Pac “What’z Ya Phone #”

The raunchy closing song on disc 1 of 2Pac’s All Eyez On Me album is built off of a loop from The Time’s “777-9311.” The Time was formed by Prince as an outlet for his funkier material. Prince produced, wrote, and performed most of The Time’s material with his friend Morris Day handling vocals.

Jay-Z & Beyoncé “’03 Bonnie & Clyde”

The Jiggaman launched The Blueprint 2 album with this Kanye West produced single featuring his then-girlfriend Beyoncé. The song features Beyoncé singing lyrics from Prince’s 1987 classic “If I Was Your Girlfriend.”

MC Lyte “Paper Thin”

MC Lyte’s classic “Paper Thin” features a sample from Prince & The Revolution’s “17 Days” which was the b-side of “When Doves Cry.”

Share this post on Facebook! CLICK HERE:

His Royal Badness

Start Gallery

Here are some songs you might know that have sampled Afrobeat records!

Missy Elliott “Whatcha Gon’ Do”

Taken from Missy’s 2001 album, Miss E… So Addictive, “Whatcha Gon’ Do” finds Missy flowing over a loop from Fela Kuti’s “Colonial Mentality.” This Timbaland produced track was also included at the end of the video for Missy’s “4 My People” video.

Fela Kuti “Colonial Mentality”

Mos Def “Fear Not Of Man”

Produced by Mos himself, “Fear Not Of Man” opens his classic debut solo album, 1999′s Black On Both Sides. The song features a replayed sample of Fela Kuti’s similarly titled “Fear Not For Man.”

Fela Kuti “Fear Not For Man”

Common “Heat”

Produced by the late J Dilla, Common’s “Heat” was featured on his 2000 album, Like Water For Chocolate and features a sample from Tony Allen’s “Asiko.”

Tony Allen “Asiko”

Share this post on Facebook! CLICK HERE:

Start Gallery

Led Zeppelin is considered by many to be one of the greatest bands in the history of rock music, but their roots clearly lie in the tradition of the blues.

Their blues influences got the best of them on a few occasions during their run in the late 60s and 70s. In 1972, the band was sued for copyright infringement by Arc Music, the music publishing company that handled the catalog of Chess Records, one of the premier blues record labels. At the center of the case were two Led Zeppelin songs, “Bring It On Home” and “The Lemon Song.”

Arc Music claimed that the intro to “Bring It On Home” borrowed liberally from Sonny Boy Williamson’s song of the same name written by Willie Dixon, and that “The Lemon Song” borrowed from Howlin’ Wolf’s song “Killing Floor.”

Compare the songs below:

Sonny Boy Williamson’s original version of “Bring It On Home” vs Led Zeppelin’s “Bring It On Home.”

The Electric Flag’s version of Howlin’ Wolf’s “Killing Floor” vs Led Zeppelin’s “The Lemon Song”

The case was eventually settled out of court for an undisclosed amount of money. Ironically, Dixon himself didn’t receive any money from the settlement until he sued Arc Music over royalties and copyrights.

Dixon sued Led Zeppelin himself in 1985 in regards to another song he felt infringed on his copyrights, claiming that Led Zeppelin’s “Whole Lotta Love” ripped off lyrics from his song “You Need Love.” Again, a settlement was reached out of court, and Dixon was given credit as co-writer of “Whole Lotta Love.”

Jimmy Page, guitarist for Led Zeppelin, commented on the band’s use of classic blues songs in an interview with Guitar World magazine.

I always tried to bring something fresh to anything that I used. I always made sure to come up with some variation. In fact, I think in most cases, you would never know what the original source could be. Maybe not in every case — but in most cases. So most of the comparisons rest on the lyrics. And Robert [Plant, lead singer of Led Zeppelin] was supposed to change the lyrics, and he didn’t always do that — which is what brought on most of the grief. They couldn’t get us on the guitar parts of the music, but they nailed us on the lyrics. We did, however, take some liberties, I must say [laughs]. But never mind; we did try to do the right thing.

Years later, many hip-hop artists would find themselves in a similar position as Led Zeppelin as the laws surrounding sampling became more strict, ultimately changing the sound of the genre forever.

Share this post on Facebook! CLICK HERE:

Legends of the Blues

Start Gallery

Today marks the 68th anniversary of the birth of one of black music’s greatest songwriters, Curtis Mayfield.

His work with his group The Impressions, as well as his solo work continues to live on in today’s music through sampling. Having been sampled by artists ranging from Mary J Blige to Kanye West, his music has been exposed to an entire new generation of listeners!

Here are a few of our favorite Curtis Mayfield-sampling songs!

Kanye West “Touch The Sky”

Built off of a generous loop of Curtis’ classic 1970 single “Move On Up” from his debut solo album, Curtis (hello 50 Cent), Kanye created one of his most popular singles which was accompanied by a hilarious video!

Mary J. Blige “Be Happy”

The lead single from Mary J Blige’s second album, My Life, samples Curtis’ “You’re So Good To Me” from 1979′s Heartbeat album.

Ice-T “I’m Your Pusher”

Ice-T’s first taste of mainstream success came with the release of his second album, 1988′s Power, which featured the hit single “I’m Your Pusher.” The song was a reworking of Curtis Mayfield’s classic “Pusherman” from his essential soundtrack to the 1972 blaxploitation film Superfly. Ice-T would hook up with Curtis a few years later to record a song for the soundtrack of the 1990 sequel, Return Of Superfly.

Beyoncé “Resentment”

Beyoncé sampled Curtis’ guitar instrumental “Think” from the soundtrack of Superfly for this song from her 2006 B’Day album.

Monica “A Dozen Roses” / Edgar Allen Floe “The Righteous Way To Go”

In 2006, Monica’s “A Dozen Roses” hit the radio airwaves with a sample from Curtis’ 1970 ballad “The Makings Of You.” A few years earlier, hip-hop producer 9th Wonder flipped the same song for Edgar Allen Floe’s “The Righteous Way To Go” giving it a totally different feel than the Monica song.

What are some of your favorite Curtis Mayfield songs? Let us know in the comments!

Share this post on Facebook! CLICK HERE:

Essential Curtis Mayfield Records

Start Gallery

American music has always been, at base, African-American music. Gospel, minstrelsy, vaudeville, jazz, blues, rhythm & blues and rock n’ roll — it’s all basically Black, no matter the color of the artist who performs it. But until the 1960s, Black people did not much control their culture, much less profit from it. That all changed with the emergence of Detroit’s Motown Records in 1960, and its legendary founder, Berry Gordy. Gordy’s Motown remained the largest Black-owned business in America for decades, until Reginald Lewis bought Beatrice Foods in 1987.

But Gordy did something even more significant. He was the first Black entertainment entrepreneur to cross his roster into the American mainstream, making Motown the sound of all young America. In creating this powerful crossover, in which both white and Black youth felt comfortable, Gordy set the cultural stage for the emergence of the multiracial society that elected a Black man, Barack Obama, as the 44th President of the United States.

Berry Gordy, Jr. was born November 29, 1929 in Detroit, Michigan. The seventh of eight children, Gordy became a high-school dropout with dreams of becoming a professional boxer. After serving in the Korean War, Gordy returned to Detroit to open a record shop, which failed. After working in the local Lincoln-Mercury auto plant, Gordy fell in with a local singer named Jackie Wilson. Gordy began writing songs for Wilson, and their partnership ultimately resulted in a Top 1-0 R&B single, “Lonely Teardrops.”

After discovering Smokey Robinson and The Miracles in the late 1950s, Gordy borrowed some money from his family and started his own record label, Tamla, in 1959. The next year, he incorporated it as Motown. The 1960s had begun.

With an acute ear for catchy tunes, and a spit-and-polish work ethic, Gordy transformed a small recording studio into “Hitsville U.S.A.,” and launched the careers of Diana Ross and The Supremes, Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder, The Temptations, Smokey Robinson, The Four Tops, and the Jackson 5, among many others. Gordy’s glossy production sound stood in stark counterpoint to the “gut-bucket” southern soul of Stax and Atlantic Records. But Gordy’s insistence on punctuality, rigorous stage training and even charm school for his performers created an aura around Motown artists of impeccable, Black royalty — a roster that inspired young Black Americans and seduced a generation of young white Americans. The artists and producers of Detroit’s Motown Records provided much of the soundtrack to the 1960s and beyond.

Motown’s influence waned somewhat in the 1970s, and dissipated altogether by the mid 1980s, with the aging of its roster and the emergence of the new sound of young America, hip-hop. But Motown’s influence is felt to this day in the election and inauguration of Barack Obama. When one looks back at how America’s racial attitudes changed in the 1960s, when one looks back at the birth of the modern Black business — both changes bringing us to this powerful climax in 2009 — one must see, and salute, Mr. Berry Gordy.

Share this post on Facebook! CLICK HERE:

100 Newsmakers

Start Gallery

MTV VMAs 2010: The Red Carpet

Start Gallery

Check out our Top 9 Music Videos of the 2000s.

50 Cent “In Da Club”

Bionic super rapper gets reconstructed in a lab foreshadowing his industry takeover. Who knew?

Beyonce f/ Jay-Z “Crazy In Love”

If you were at a party and didn’t see a group of girls doing that “uh oh” booty bounce, you were at the wrong party.

Outkast, “Hey Ya”

Three Stacks clones himself in this Beatles-inspired throwback taking the phrase “One Man Band” to new heights.

Missy Elliot “Get Ur Freak On”

From her head snaking off of her shoulders to spitting a loogie at long distance into her dancer’s mouth Missy defiantly answered the challenge: “What could she possibly do next?”

Ludacris, “Stand Up”

As if his rhymes weren’t colorful enough Ludacris went to every length to make his point in this clip. Case in point, he literally had a man hanging from his necklace.

Kanye West “All Falls Down”

Stacy Dash running in slow-motion through an airport with her headlights on. Having your whole body in a metal detector because of a plate in your jaw. Kanye wins.

Jay-Z “99 Problems” (2004)

The metaphorical death of Jay-Z was a defining moment of The Black Album and who else could coordinate a step show in the middle of the projects?

D’Angelo “Untitled”

This clip still stands as a testament that if you have a great song with a great artist you literally don’t need anything else–even clothing– to make the clip compelling.

R. Kelly “Trapped In The Closet”

Technically this is more than one video–it’s 22–but that’s what made it so good. For the first single on TP3 Reloaded R.Kelly constructed a musical soap opera that had fans glued to their TV and radios for the next installment. Before the word “viral” became a video marketers crutch Kells had written the manual one crazy chapter at a time.

R.Kelly – Trapped In The Closet
Uploaded by marcdee541. – Music videos, artist interviews, concerts and more.

Share this post on Facebook! CLICK HERE:

It goes without saying that Kanye West, who celebrated a birthday yesterday, is one of hip-hop’s greatest producers.

Taking a cue from the Wu-Tang Clan’s RZA, Kanye’s early work featured a lot samples from classic soul records from the 1970s. Artists from Jay-Z to Janet Jackson used Kanye’s soul sampling beats.

Here are a few of our favorite Kanye productions, and the sweet soul records Kanye sampled for them:

Alicia Keys “You Don’t Know My Name”

Built around a few samples from The Main Ingredient’s “Let Me Prove My Love To You,” Alicia Keys got her third top 10 single in the US with this song from her second album.

Slum Village “Selfish” (feat. Kanye West & John Legend)

T3 and Elzhi of Slum Village teamed up with Kanye and John Legend on this track that samples Aretha Franklin’s classic piano ballad, “Call Me.”

Twista “Overnight Celebrity”

Kanye gave this beat to his fellow Chicago hometown hero, Twista. “Overnight Celebrity” uses a sample of Lenny Williams’ “‘Cause I Love You.”

Scarface “Guess Who’s Back” (feat. Jay-Z & Beanie Sigel)

Kanye produced this single from Scarface’s critically acclaimed 2002 album, The Fix. The song samples Motown’s vocal group The Originals and their song “Sunrise.”

Kanye West “Spaceship” (feat. G.L.C. & Consequence)

Kanye’s tale about being a disgruntled employee at The Gap features a sample of Marvin Gaye’s classic balad “Distant Lover.”

Janet Jackson “I Want You”

This single from Janet’s Damita Jo album features a sample of B.T. Express’ cover of The Carpenters’ AM radio staple “(They Long To Be) Close To You.”

Nas “Poppa Was A Playa”

Although credited to Kanye’s mentor, Deric Angelettie (aka The Mad Rapper), Kanye actually ghostproduced this track from Nas’ The Lost Tapes album that samples Eddie Kendricks’ “The Newness Is Gone.”

Share this post on Facebook! CLICK HERE:

Start Gallery

RELATED: The Heart & Soul Of Black Music

RELATED: 2Pac, Kanye West & Jay-Z Sample Prince’s Funk

Here are our top 9 music videos of the 1990s.

9. The Roots “What They Do”
The Roots’ perfectly skewered the fantasy world of hip-hop music videos in their 1996 clip for “What They Do,” but found themselves at odds with The Notorious B.I.G. who, according to Roots drummer ?uestlove, thought the video was retaliation for a line in his “Flava In Your Ear” remix verse that many perceived to be a dis towards the group. Big Poppa passed before both sides could set the record straight.

8. The Pharcyde “Drop”
Directed by famed video director Spike Jonze, The Pharcyde were able to pull off the backwards “Drop” video by learning the song in reverse, and shooting the video in reverse. Hands down one of the most creative music videos in hip-hop, and one of the first videos we wrote down when putting this list together.

7. The Notorious B.I.G. “One More Chance”
Not since the classic Kid & Play film had a house party been captured on film so well that everyone who watched it wished they had been in attendance. Sporting cameos from everyone from Heavy D & D-Nice to Mary J. Blige and Aaliyah, “One More Chance” was an instant classic.

6. Snoop Doggy Dogg “Doggy Dogg World”
Snoop’s final video from his debut album took everyone back to the 1970s with cameos from The Dramatics, Pam Grier, Rudy Ray Moore, Ron O’Neal, Fred Williamson, Fred “Rerun” Berry and Antonio “Huggy Bear” Fargas. This was definitely another one of those video shoots we wish we had been at.

5. TLC “Waterfalls”
TLC’s special effects heavy video for “Waterfalls” earned the group the 1995 MTV Video Music Award for Video of the Year. The video features cameos from actors Ella Joyce and Bokeem Woodbine plus Wu-Tang affiliate Shyheim.

4. Wu-Tang Clan “Triumph”
Wu-Tang Clan kicked off their second album with the “Triumph” video which featured the clan (and some Wu-Tang killer killah bees) invading New York City.

3. Busta Rhymes “Put Your Hands Where My Eyes Can See”
Director Hype Williams parodied Eddie Murphy’s classic 1988 film Coming To America for Busta’s 1997 video for “Put Your Hands Where My Eyes Can See.” Williams’ unique style of direction became synonymous with music videos in the 1990s.

2. Michael Jackson “Remember The Time”
Boyz N The Hood director John Singleton shot the second video from Michael Jackson’s Dangerous album, “Remember The Time.” The video takes place in ancient Egypt and stars Eddie Murphy and Iman as the pharaoh and his queen. Magic Johnson, Tom “Tiny” Lister, and Imani from The Pharcyde also appear in the video.

1. Missy Elliot “The Rain (Supa Dupa Fly)”
Missy Elliot’s reign as queen of weird music videos began with this Hype Williams directed clip. The oversized garbage bag suit, the fish eye lens, the distorted mouths and eyes… “The Rain” proved that hip-hop videos could be more than just a bunch of dudes mean-mugging the camera.

We racked our brains trying to come up with a list of the greatest music videos of the 1980s. While some of our picks are painfully obvious, there are a few that we felt flew under the radar.

9. Public Enemy “Night Of The Living Baseheads”
More effective than any D.A.R.E. class you were forced to sit through, Public Enemy’s “Night Of The Living Baseheads” video managed to both make you laugh, while scaring you away from the evils of freebasing cocaine. “Night Of The Living Baseheads” was a rather unorthodox video, cleverly interrupting Chuck D’s performance scenes to a mock newscast (Flavor Flav as co-anchor? Genius!).

8. L.L. Cool J “I’m Bad”
LL Cool J’s girl gets kidnapped while posting anti-drug flyers on the street. LL assembles his posse who take out the bad guys (who all just so happen to be rich white guys… MESSAGE!). The video’s narrative, coupled with LL’s iconic performance scenes make this one of the best videos of the 1980s. “Gimme that walkie talkie!”

7. Prince “When Doves Cry”

Is there a more iconic moment in a music video than a camera passing through two stained glass doors into a room with flowers scattered about the floor and doves flying around while a man sits in a bathtub? Prince & The Revolution’s “When Doves Cry” music video is one of the few truly memorable videos that the Minneapolis genius ever released, not to mention a hell of a song.

– When Doves Cry
Uploaded by tressage. – Music videos, artist interviews, concerts and more.

6. Run DMC “King Of Rock”
Two black men wearing all black leather and white adidas walk into the Museum of Rock N Roll and are told immediately as they enter that they “don’t belong in here.” Run DMC’s “King Of Rock” video served as a powerful statement of hip-hop’s arrival and intent to takeover mainstream American culture. 22 years after this video’s release, the first rap group, Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five, were inducted to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, with Run DMC to be inducted 2 years later.

5. Janet Jackson “Pleasure Principle”
The public had already fallen in love with Janet Jackson by the time her “Pleasure Principle” video debuted. We all knew that Janet could had some moves, but it wasn’t until she flipped the light switch at the beginning of this video that we all learned that Michael’s little sister could give him a run for his money.

4. Janet Jackson “Rhythm Nation”
The black-and-white “Rhythm Nation” video was a dancer’s wet dream. The tightly choreographed military-inspired dance routines coupled with the song’s message helped establish Janet Jackson as an artist whose music video releases became events, just like her brother.

3. Michael Jackson “Beat It”
The red jacket. The knife fight. Need we say more?

2. Michael Jackson “Billie Jean”
If anything planted the seed for Michael Jackson’s almost superhuman persona, it was this video. Only a man that was 100% magical could dance like Michael did, not to mention cause the sidewalks to light up with each step he took.

1. Michael Jackson “Thriller”
In the 80s, the music video experienced a period of rapid growth and innovation as musicians pushed the limits of what could be done in the span of a three and a half minutes, or in the case of Michael Jackson’s Thriller, fourteen minutes. There’s a reason why “Thriller” often takes the number one spot on lists of the greatest music videos of all time. To repeat these reasons would be overkill. All it takes is one viewing to know that this was a monumental moment in music and film history.

Share this post on Facebook! CLICK HERE:

The Urban Daily Noise Makers

Start Gallery

Click Here to Vote in our Greatest Black Sitcom of All-Time Competition!
Related: 25 Reasons We Love Blaxploitation Films!
Related: Top 9 Music Videos of the 1980s!

T.I.’s album cover for King Uncaged features the ATL rapper seated next to a lion, drawing an obvious parallel between the recently-released-from-jail rapper and the king of the jungle, as well as a fleeting nod to a classic 70’s soul album from Minnie Riperton.

Released in 1975, Minnie Riperton’s third album, Adventures In Paradise didn’t make much of a dent in the mainstream music scene in comparison to her previous album, but it’s remained a classic for those in the know.

Sixteen years later, A Tribe Called Quest would introduce Adventures’ hidden gems to a new generation on their classic album, The Low End Theory. The single “Check The Rhime” featured a sample of “Baby, This Love I Have. On their next album, 1994’s Midnight Marauders, ATCQ dug into the album again. “Lyrics To Go” used a loop from the keyboard solo in “Inside My Love.”

Wonder if T.I. had any mishaps similar to Minnie’s on the photoshoot…

Click Here to Vote in our Greatest Black Sitcom of All-Time Competition!
Related: 25 Reasons We Love Blaxploitation Films!
Related: Top 9 Music Videos of the 1980s!