By Khaliq Muhammed, Staff Reporter

Transcription

1 Meek By Khaliq Muhammed, Staff Reporter A rift in the Philadelphia Brotherhood occurred when tensions arose between Maybach Music Group and the Larceny Family. Meek Mill released a diss track against Cassidy called Repo after heated twitter exchanges between the two in late December. Cass returned with R.A.I.D in early January, a 10 minute long denunciation of Meek as a pawn. Though not as relevant as he once was, Cassidy has done much for the culture as far as his music and his influence. He also gained notoriety for his lyrical prowess in his past battle with fellow Philadelphia artist, Freeway. Songs such as I m A Hustler, where he illuminated the familiar hometown hero - the street entrepreneur - and Innocent Man, where he unapologetically talks of defending his family in exchange for jail time, and others such as Hotel Feat. R. Kelly, where they invite the women for some excitement displays this. In Meek Mill s Repo, he pokes fun at a more recent song of Cassidy s called Condom Style, which draws on the material of a South Korean pop artist to promote sexual awareness. Meek Mill is in the limelight with his boss and former correctional officer, Rick Ross, as well as his label mates, Stalley and Wale. In Repo, Meek Mill boasts as an elitist whose battle strategy is concerned with reducing his fellow artist into a broke rapper. All this ice around my neck, I got a fridge on / body Cass, put em in a body bag / broke n****, we should put you in a body Cass cast / real n****, all I know I get a lot of cash. In the land of the free, being broke is equated with being a gap in the space time continuum. Was this a big bank take little bank battle? Pragmatically, Meek Mill may have used the right strategy in the current era of hip-hop. You have may have liked the aggressive delivery combined with his arrogant, sharp biting lyrics. Cassidy took a more taunting approach, treating Meek Mill as though he was his protégé in Philly. True to the bars, Cassidy s delivery intensifies as the beat alternates. Likewise, the selection of instrumentals was equally impressive. Cassidy strikes an MMG affiliate with this: Yup, this is what I m gon do to you / kill you in the battle, then Wale can say a poem at your funeral. Continuing his rave for 10 minutes, criticizing Meek s bourgeoisie admissions, and insulting his street credibility, Cassidy rhymes: B**** you really hyped, but you ain t even repping Philly right / you dug your own grave boy, that s what I made the song R.A.I.D. for / and Meek, how you gon wage war, when the G.D.s made M.M.G. shut down their paid tour? We should all know how intense rap battles can become and especially how often local rivalries become street conflicts. You may be swayed by the characteristically hard-hitting bars of Meek Mill. I you value lyrical content; you may swayed by Cassidy s crafty metaphors and punch-lines. Whatever your role in the now global, hip-hop culture, you remain the judge.

2 JT s Return To whom it may concern I think I M READY! This infamous tweet appeared on over 16 million fans timelines on the night of January 10. With a promo video and countdown attached, Justin Timberlake made sure he got the fans hyped about his return to the music world. So where has Justin been in his time during his hiatus from wooing the ladies with his sensual vocals? Do The Social Network, Bad Teacher, Friends with Benefits, and Shrek the Third ring a bell? The 32 year old Renaissance man has been busy acting, producing, and coowning MySpace so he s had plenty to do. He released his first single, in what seems like an eternity, shortly after the Twitter post. Suit & Tie is a sexy, mid-tempo record By Shaunda Brooks, Editor in Chief featuring no one but the great Jay-Z. He performed this new hit at the 2013 Grammy Awards. It s one of those songs that you had to listen to a few times before you decided that you actually liked it. I can admit that I was expecting more from him with this single but it s pretty catchy. Besides, who knows more about suits and ties than the clean JT? The 20/20 Experience is the name of his next highly anticipated album. He s only released 2 solo albums in a decade: Justified in 2002 and FutureSex/LoveSounds in 2006, so a new album is long overdue. It will be released on March 19 and as a huge fan, I am more than ecstatic for it.

3 up being just a corny rendition of the Bone Thugs- N-Harmony ode 1st of the Month. And Freedom, although not a bad song, sounds too similar to other album closers The Game has used in previous albums thus lacking originality. After listening to Jesus Piece, it is safe to say that The Game can still deliver when you least expect it.upon listening, expect to hear the typical The Game fashion: constant name dropping, a catchy single, and a quick jab or two at a celebrity. But also be prepared to listen to one of his best releases since The Documentary. 3.5 out of 5 Stars Beliebers Gone Wild By Brenee Colman, Staff Reporter On January 8, it was reported that Justin Bieber fans took it upon their selves to organize what they call Operation Cut for Bieber. According to fans, the purpose of this is to stop Bieber from smoking weed. It started off as a senseless joke, but soon turned into a Twitter phenomenon. Fans were seen uploading pictures of knives to their skin and cutting themselves due to his new found habit. Do you think that Justin s fans are taking it overboard? Do you think Justin should just continue to live his life? Or do you think he should stop smoking weed and set a good example to his fans? Many young people who have watched Bieber grow and mature over the years feel as though he s only 18-years-old and he s living his life, while others object and think he s setting a bad example to his younger audience. All in all, Bieber fans or preferably known as The Beliebers, are truly dedicated to seeing their pop star Bieber rise to the top and some continue to pray that he stops this habit. #CUTFORBEIBER

4 A LBUM R EVIEW By Jelani Darling The Game Jesus Piece Within the past year or so, the west coast has been making resurgence back into the hip hop game. Acts like Odd Future and Dom Kennedy have been gathering quite a following while underground-veteran-turned-mainstream-rookie Kendrick Lamar has arguably positioned himself as the new King of the West. As a result of this, West Coast veteran The Game has found himself a bit further back from the spotlight than he has been a few years ago. However, through releasing a dope track every Sunday (Sunday Service series) for a month or two, he has ultimately garnered a lot of anticipation for his newest album Jesus Piece. And he doesn t disappoint. The Game fires on all cylinders right on the intro Scared Now. Lines like those below show that his wordplay is still there: What if I told y all I know who killed Biggie dog? / I ain t no snitch but if I did it ain t no biggie dog / Cause that s Biggie dog / All that s coming out the mouth of the n***a you used to know as being 50 s dog / But I got tired of being 50 s dog / Had to break my chain and cut that n***a 50 off This intensity is maintained through the rest of Jesus Piece hinting that The Game made this album feature-heavy for a reason. Unlike R.E.D. Album where it seemed like he was using other artists as crutches to remain relevant which led to him being outshined (i.e. The City) The Game enlists some of hip hop s hottest MCs for Jesus Piece to prove he can compete with them. Tracks like the 2 Chainz tag-teamed Ali Bomaye and Common-assisted title song among a few songs that The Game really stands out on. On top of the wordplay, The Game keeps Jesus Piece interesting by making several references to the Christian religion. Songs like Pray, which features a flawless performance by J. Cole, uses the reference to touch on social issues with women. While the Trey Songz and King Chip-assisted Church will have you wondering if comparing a stripper s thickness to the Bible is even appropriate to listen to. The Game later goes on to question that himself in Can t Get it Right, a track that shows the battle between his addiction of living in the fast lane and his urge to repent for his sinful ways. As great as this album is, however, it is not without its flaws. Songs like Heaven s Arms and See No Evil are interchangeable while Hallelujah falls short as the Jamie Foxx-assisted chorus tries too hard to fit the general theme of the album. Celebration, the album s lead single, ends

5 DEGREES OF SEPARATION SERIES. Each song on this playlist is related to the one before it (i.e. same artist, same producer, samples, etc.). Tune in and enjoy this smooth midday mix! CHECK OUT CLOUD XM FOR MORE! DEGREES OF SEPARATION SERIES. Each song on this playlist is related to the one before it (i.e. same artist, same producer, samples, etc.). Tune in and enjoy this Too Turnt up(ttu) mix!

6 by Courtney Larry, Fashion Editor The 55th Annual Grammy Awards show aired, February 10th, and the show definitely did not disappoint. The Grammy Award is the one of the biggest awards that a musician could take home; after a year of touring, releasing albums, and other attempts for the public to notice their artistry. The Grammy Awards was full of highlights. The night kicked off with a performance from Taylor Swift, singing We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together, complete with a circus theme, featuring flamethrowers, men on stilts, clowns, and Swift as the ringmaster. One of the most anticipated performances of the night were from Frank Ocean, Justin Timberlake, a Bob Marley tribute and fan favorite, Miguel. Ellen DeGeneres and Beyonce both introduced Justin Timberlake to the stage and his long awaited arrival back to the music scene. Timberlake sang his new single Suit and Tie featuring Jay-Z, with a classic big band feel. Viewers watched, as their televisions suddenly became black and white, Timberlake sing and dance like he never left the music scene. He then performed his next single Little Pusher Love Girl and our televisions were in color again. The performance was flawless as Justin s backup singers and band stayed on point. This was one of the best moments of the evening, and the Grammy Awards wouldn t be complete without a few disappointments. One of the biggest awards of the night was for Best Urban Contemporary Album and two of the nominees were fan favorites, Miguel and Frank Ocean. Miguel s album Kaleidoscope Dream has had the music industry abuzz for months now but it couldn t stand tall to the winner of the evening, Frank Ocean s Channel Orange. However, Miguel did win a Grammy that night for his song Adorn, Best R&B Song. One of the biggest songs of 2012, during the summer, was Fun s We Are Young. This song earned them a well-deserved Grammy for Song of the Year. The Bob Marley tribute featured Bruno Mars, Sting, Rihanna, and Marley s sons, Damian and Ziggy. The Marley tribute was so anticipated that it did not meet expectations. Only two Bob Marley s songs were performed, which is terrible when you think about how extensive his catalog is. The tribute was shorter than expected and this caused major disappointment, especially with Marley fans. There were more tributes that evening. One tribute was dedicated to deceased musicians or record label execs that once made contributions to the music industry in a big way. The other was dedicated to the victims of the Sandy Hook tragedy. That tribute featured a performance from legends Elton John, Mavis Staples, and newcomer Brittany Howard, of the Alabama Shakes. Prince made a grand appearance on the Grammy awards; not to perform, but to present the award for Record of the Year. Before announcing the winner, Prince complimented the winners by stating that he liked the song. The winners of that award were Gotye for the song Somebody That I Used To Know. While accepting their award, Gotye complimented Prince and he nodded to acknowledge them. The performance of the night that had mixed reviews was by Frank Ocean. Ocean performed on stage behind a screen which showed him running, while he sang Forrest Gump from his award winning album. Forrest Gump is one of Ocean s, if not the most, controversial songs. Some fans thought that he showed great bravery performing the song, live, on national televisions. Other fans were disappointed and found that his performance was lacking. Some complained about his pitch and flat notes, and others just didn t know what to expect from him. These were some of the most memorable moments of the evening. More winners of the evening included Adele Best Pop Solo Performance, The Black Keys Best Rock Performance, Beyonce Best Traditional R&B Performance, Jay-Z and Kanye West Best Rap Performance and Drake Best Rap Album. Over 80 Grammy awards were given out that night, even though every winner wasn t shown. If the Grammy Awards had to be rated out of 10, the final result would be a 7/10. The disappointments outweighed the good this time around. The Grammy Awards have one year to get it right before viewers tune in again. Let s just hope they score better next time.