Posted in Hip Hop

Watch: Evidence – “Falling Down”

Evidence‘s Cats & Dogs was perhaps one of the most criminally underlooked records of 2011, alongside personal favorite Phonte‘s Charity Starts At Home. I guess I’m not incredibly surprised as the steadfast Rhymesayer’s rapper is usually fairly reserved in terms of getting his music out there to his loyal and extremely tightly-knit fanbase. The hip-hop purist/producer/MC recently unleashed a new set of respectfully dark, brooding visuals for “Falling Down” directed by Todd Angkasuwan. You can check it out below.

Odd Future Update: New OF Tape and More

2011 was a fantastic year for Los Angeles based hip-hop/skateboard collective Odd Future Wolf Gang Kill Them All with releases from Tyler the Creator, Mellowhype, Frank Ocean, The Internet and Mike G, and yet after all that it looks like the group still won’t be slowing down in 2012. Following last year’s Goblin, Tyler the Creator is set to release Wolf  sometime in the spring, which was described by him as a deviation from his previous releases. Duo Hodgy beats and Leftbrain are also releasing a followup Mellowhype album titled Numbers sometime in the summer.

The collective has also announced OF Tape Vol. 2, which features new music from Tyler, the Creator, Hodgy Beats, Frank Ocean, Leftbrain, Domo Genesis, Mike G, Syd the Kyd and The Internet. The tape is a followup to the crew’s 2008 debut outing The Odd Future Mixtape, which you can download for free over here. On top of it all, Tyler and gang will also be premiering their own “Jackass”-like sketch show, Loiter Squad, March 25h on Adult Swim.

Head over here to check out a limited edition t-shirt designed by Tyler the Creator that will be released through Qubic Store. The shirt was made in response to the collective being kicked out of the lineup for Big Day Out 2012 Auckland, and they are set to have their own show at the Auckland Powerstation January 19th instead.

All future releases will be released through the crew’s own Odd Future Records.

Listen: A$AP Rocky – “Celebration”

Everything seems to be going perfectly for A$AP Rocky, who in recent months has signed a huge record deal and released his first debut record, LiveLoveA$AP. He has just released “Celebration”, which is a solo version of his collaboration with Chicago MC Jon James. This song is a lot different from Rocky’s chill, dreamy Clams Casino–produced tracks and features the A$AP rhymer rapping over upbeat synths celebrating his recent success. Apparently this track might be a single for one of his upcoming projects. Listen to the song below. You can also download it here. Also, look out for the A$AP Mob album that’s planned to be released in February.

Listen: Azealia Banks – “NEEDSUMLUV”

20-year old Harlem native Azealia Banks, who released the fantastic “212” last year, has returned again with a new song titled “NEEDSUMLUV” via her Twitter. The song features Banks singing over a beat by producer Machinedrum titled “SXLND”, and, in her own words, is about “being a guy’s other girl. It’s about knowing that ur number #2, but still sticking around in hopes of becoming #1.” The two previously collaborated on another song titled “Grand Scam (Lyrical Exercise)” back in November.

Kendrick Lamar Announces ‘Good Kid in a Mad City’

Compton rapper Kendrick Lamar just announced to The Source that his new album is near completion. The album will be titled Good Kid in a Mad City. Kendrick stated that “it’s just going to have its own entity and its own space”, meaning that it will not be a sequel to Section.80, which was released last year to extremely good reviews by critics and was also our number 4 album of 2011. You should definitely check it out if you haven’t heard it yet. Section.80 was in between a mixtape and an album because it was released online, but Kendrick Lamar stated the new release would be his first proper debut album. Watch Kendrick’s interview with The Source below. Below that is also an interview with Drake‘s frequent producer/best friend, 40, where he talks about Kendrick Lamar’s involvement on Take Care.