Real talk, this economic situation blows. How do we get out of this rut? Where is that change we can believe in? It's in the booth spittin' hot fire! The Commander in Chief gives you the economic lowdown in a format that all you MTV kids can vibe with. Bonus: peep Blago and Palin getting down! How did SNL miss this idea? (furthermore, how late am I to this party?) And while I get that Swine Flu is current and all - when did Sham-Wow become the second most name dropped reference in hip hop?
Were any of you even ready to handle MObama coming in at 3:03? I nearly lost it people. We're talking a near miss.
Oh BTW, I'm officially on educational leave as of 4pm today and headed to the sunny beaches of Folly Beach, SC. I'll see all your broke asses in a week! ESTOY DE VACACIONES!
So, Kanye West has two new sneaker collections coming this year. Really, how on earth could you miss it? First up is the Air Yeezy and then his collaboration with Louis Vuitton. After a couple months of waiting and blurry pictures, the Louis Vuitton price list has been revealed all I can really say is WTF - $1140 for a god damn shoe?! These things better increase my vertical leap by 3 feet and teach me how to moonwalk for that kind of money.
I am not the type of person to shy away from paying for decent gear. I buy chi-chi organic food. I have a thing for raw and selvage denim. I own 4 iPods and a macbook. I am a fan of shiny new shit. But, I also know a good deal when I see it. Things should have a decent use/price ratio - and I am afraid that luxury sneakers do not. I may buy a pair of Dunk SBs or Jordan I Low Phats this year, but those will cost like 1/6 of the cheapest kicks here.
Photo via NiceKicks, check out their full coverage!
You know how there are people who deny that The Holocaust ever happened? Kanye and Louis Vuitton are basically pulling the same shit with the recession. Honestly, who can rationalize spending $800+ on sneakers? I can not even fathom the type of person who would cop these. Am I making a big deal out of nothing? I know sneaker heads will do all sorts of stuff for the newest grip, but this seems like too much. Maybe I just don't know from sneakers...
And while I am clearly not a sneaker-head, how ugly are those Jaspers on the bottom? The words 'fresh', 'dope', and 'sick' do not come to mind. If I had to pick a celebrity sneaker right now, I would check out the 'Evolution of Air Pack' from the new Nike / Lance Armstrong Stages collection.
So after several weeks of bellyaching about DipSet, Nick emails me the other day to put me up on Camron's new joint I Hate My Job. I'm not even going to wait for the bottomline today: I dig it. Killa Cam re-achieves relevance with his best single since Down And Out (which was actually a guest spot). It's about the recession, money troubles, and how much it sucks to work a dead end job. Surely we can all relate at some level.
The beat is dead simple: knock and keyboards. It could be a little heavier (this is DipSet...) but it fits the track pretty well. I wonder if we're going to see a lot of YouTube freestyles over this one.
The video is fairly literal, and low budget - but isn't that exactly what a economically conscious video should be? Killa doesn't try to impress us with his acting skills either, he keeps it real. I totally buy that he doesn't really know how to conduct himself in a job interview. I also buy the idea that no one would give him any respect in a job interview, regardless of how polite he was.
And getting a job with a few priors? Cam knows it isn't easy.
I went in for an interview, for delivery
"Locked up, felonies?" now the dude's quizzing me
You working on my future, why you need to know my history?
All he did was Google me, no big mystery
Like I said, it isn't complex, but it is a good track. What IS a little more complex is the public's infatuation with Jim Jones.
In the last couple years, Jones' career has really taken off - but WHY? For some reason, guys like Yayo, Flav, Farnsworth Bentley, and now Jones - all former hypemen - get tons of airplay. And while I could sit here and philosophize about how I think he is aiming himself squarely at the frat demographic, instead I'll leave you with Jones' new video for Na Na Nana Na Na, which in addition to being the polar opposite of Cam's, just dropped as I was writing this post. (Jeebus, a Élan Luz Rivera cameo? She is just all up in my mindspace this week!) Enjoy.
Let me take you back a few months - 24 to be exact. Back to a time when the Tequila flowed down my gullet and coming in to work on Saturday was de rigeur. My five months in Monterrey, Mexico were the most gluttonous period in my life. I boozed, ate out, and ran wild pretty much every night with no regard for personal safety or well... anything. I lived richly since I was on the company dime for everything but food - and all I ate were tacos and Pollo Loco. It was also a period of time in which I was forced to discover new media and could not rely on such steady standbys such as MTV, VH1, Fox, or even streaming video sites! The cable at my abode was pretty crappy by any standards (except for UK hotel cable, talk about shitty!).
So, I branched out. I listened to the radio in the beat up company Jetta we drove to work. I spent time watching the D99FM music video channel. I've already told you about Belanova and how much I dig their track Rosa Pastel and Calle 13 / Nelly Furtado's cloyingly sweet yet saucy No Hay Igual. I discovered how much people in Monterrey love the Strokes and Robbie William's Rudebox. I also discovered Julieta Venegas.
Venegas' new album Limón y Sal was burning up the charts when I arrived. She doesn't really fall into the CFV category, as she is more pop than that. But her music is listenable, she makes a watchable music video - the eponymous lead single had one of those early 90s / REM style videos, and it kept me afloat in a sea of Shakira.
Venegas recently, (as in, 6 months ago) recorded an Unplugged session for MTVTr3s and I think it is worth a listen. The first clip is the lead single Limón y Sal and the even more catchy Eres Para Mi. This isn't mindblowing the way that Shakira's Unplugged performance was mindblowing (seriously, it was probably the best thing she ever did) - but neither is it 'world music' a la Toto. Just watch:
San Pedro Garza Garcia - the neighborhood I lived in was full of rich things: expensive cars, expensive houses, expensive restaurants, expensive shopping, expensive nightclubs (that threw me out once), expensive stripclubs (that I never went to), expensive bars that served you drinks by the liter, hookah lounges, etc. It is the richest municipality in Mexico -- if not all of Latin America, and I'll always assosciate Venegas (and unfortunately Robbie Williams) with those images and months. So today, as I sit around depressed by the economy and my shrinking bank account balances, I plan on firing up some Venegas and pretending it's still Dec 3rd 2006 and that mom just hung up on me again for telling her how sunburned I was getting at the pool.
Usually, I don't bring my work life to the AS - but this economic crisis is really effin stuff up. Suffice it to say, things just went a little pearshaped for me and I'm not in the mood to write a music video review. (Ed. note: no, I did not get fired) However, while I was driving to work last night to print out some documents, I stumbled upon a little turd of a track by one Mr. Busta Rhymes. Am I the only one who hasn't heard Busta's new joint Arab Money?
I can't even begin to tell you how offended I am by this - both from a musical and cultural perspective - and I'm not even Muslim. I can't seem to find an 'official' video, so this YouTube 'video remix' will have to do. Seriously, autotuned Arabic? (it's not actually Arabic either btw) As if my day wasn't bad enough, I have to deal with this shit.
The dance instruction video is a bit apologetic and tries to explain it all away, but what the fuck? How do you even begin to reconcile this without going all Van Gogh? I'm sorry Busta, but if I am offended - something is wrong. Am I being overly sensitive? Is this not a big deal so much as a poorly conceived song? Either way, you need to get your act together Mr. Rhymes, because this is not acceptable.
I was raised in Pittsburgh; specifically Squirrel Hill. My sister and I both attended Taylor Allderdice High School and did normal Pittsburgh things like eat at Primanti's and the 'O'. So, it was both surprising and exciting when Nick told me about Wiz Khalifa - a rapper from Pittsburgh. According to Wikipedia, Wiz (or Cameron Jibril Thomaz) went to Allderdice too. What a coincidence!
The first Wiz Khalifa track I ever heard was Pittsburgh Sound and I dug it. Youngin' on his Grind was kinda ehhh and I believe Nick did not feel it either. I don't think Wiz is as inspired as JayZ or anything - but I like that he reps the 412, how he refers to PA as Pistolvania, and that he produces his videos locally on a small budget (or so it seems).
Now then, I currently live in PEORIA, ILLINOIS - hardly a hothouse of hiphop talent and certainly not a trendsetting market for music. Last week, I heard a new track that sampled that ridiculous Alice Deejay techno-pop song Better Off Alone. Imagine my surprise when the DJ came on and said "Hope you liked that new joint by Wiz Haleefa." I nearly crashed my car!
I raced home, flipped up YouTube, and briefly mourned upon discovering that DJ was in fact telling the truth. So, try to stay calm - I'll break it down for you with what I like to call: The AudioShocker Method
The Beat: I'm not sure what posessed Wiz to choose this beat - or why it is getting airplay. I know the economy is in the toilet - but listening to music from 1999 isn't going to reverse the recession. This track is not a viable economic stimulus package. In short: too much synth, too little knock. This is inline with last week's Usher video.
The Video: Like I said earlier, Wiz's videos always look really amateur. Whether that is a label issue or a personal preference is unclear - but I don't mind. I have a strong feeling this was taped in Pittsburgh. The tip off? None of these girls are good dancers, so they couldn't be professional video hos.
The 'around the world' concept was good - even if it was entirely green screened. I really enjoyed the part with the British Guard getting down. It rips off that Fergie video, but I'll let it slide. Also, the astronaut doing the moonwalk - PRICELESS! That sealed it for me.
My only real gripe is that in a city FULL of Indian women, the casting director couldn't find 4 for the India segment? I swear I saw a white chick in there somewhere. Or maybe that was for the Middle Eastern portion. Either way, poor casting.
The Content:Another song about making it rain on girls in the strip club? I'm really getting tired of this. Where are these strip clubs that have good looking girls? I ask, because Pittsburgh is not one of them. The chorus is weak and the verse is devoid of new slang or funny references (both extremely important in my book). I feel like I have already heard every joke and punchline in this song before. You know, in every one of those other songs about strippers and the rain dance.
The Vocals: Wiz doesn't have much in the way of a unique style. He lacks a distinct sound that you would immediately recognize and associate with him. Maybe he just needs more time in the game.
The Bottom Line: Wiz regurgitates tired thematic content over an ill-chosen beat and presents it with a rough around the edges - but entertaining video.
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