Hip Hop
New Big K.R.I.T Mixtape
Five months after receiving great reviews for his mixtape, Return of 4Eva, rapper Big K.R.I.T. has just dropped another mixtape. The mixtape is called Last King 2: God’s Machine, which is a follow-up to his 2009 release, The Last King. The mixtape is presented by DJ Wally Sparks and DJ Breakem Off you can download the new mixtape for free here. Big K.R.I.T. does the production on a majority of the tracks and guests in the mixtape include Wiz Khalifa, Yelawolf, Pimp C, and more. Read more to see the tracklist.
Mixtape: The Weeknd – Thursday
The Weeknd makes his highly-anticipated return with the release of the second part of his planned mixtape trilogy, following up House of Balloons with the brand-newThursday. After mysteriously bursting onto the scene with his first mixtape, Toronto-raised Abel Tesfaye has been busy with October’s Very Own, working with fellow Toronto artist Drake and even performing with him at the OVO Fest. The nine-track mixtape can be downloaded at his website here. Alternatively, you can use thisMegaupload link as well.
Echoes of Silence, the final part of the mixtape trilogy, is planned for a release this fall.
Thursday Tracklist:
01. Lonely star
02. Life of the party
03. Thursday
04. The zone
05. The birds part one
06. The birds part two
07. Gone
08. Rolling Stone
09. Heaven or Las Vegas
Sid Sriram Covers The Weeknd
Sid Sriram has been on a roll recently, releasing a great cover of Frank Ocean‘s “We All Try” (watch that here). To follow up, he has released yet another fantastic cover, this time choosing to perform his take on The Weeknd‘s “High For This”. Complete with live instrumentation, Sid’s voice really shines here. You can download the song or watch the video below.
Listen: Gorilla Warfare Tactics – “Dark Saber Jedi”
After promising a new track on Facebook, Gorilla Warfare Tactics follow through and have dropped a brand new cut entitled “Dark Saber Jedi”. The new song is fairly raw sounding, but it definitely has an old-school vibe. As always, GWT drop some sharp rhymes over a smooth beat. You can download below.
Video: Common – “Ghetto Dreams (feat. Nas)”
Director Matt Alonzo gives Common‘s “Ghetto Dreams (feat. Nas)” the video treatment, releasing the official video earlier today. One of my favorite collaborations this year that doesn’t involve Kanye West or Jay-Z, this track has me really excited for Common’s The Dreamer, The Believer, out November 22. The black-and-white clip above really does the song justice, depicting the street life and ambitions of the two rappers. Bria Myles stars, as does Rick Ross‘s beard. You can purchase “Ghetto Dreams” on iTunes now.
Wale Releases “Ocean Drive”
No days off for Wale, especially not on #WaleWednesday. A few hours ago, the Washington DC based rapper just released a brand new song called “Ocean Drive” featuring collaborations from fellow MMG member Magazeen and long-time collaborators Black Cobain and Tre. The new song has a tropical vibe and includes a reggae hook. Since Wale made the switch to Maybach Music Group, the quality of Wale’s work has gradually improved and he drops some pretty smooth lines on this track, returning to his pre-Attention Deficit days.
MP3: Wale – “Ocean Drive (feat. Magazeen, Black Cobain & Tre)”
Once Wale reaches a million followers on Twitter, he’ll be dropping another 11 songs for us. If you aren’t already following him, you can do so here. Ambition, Wale’s second studio album, arrives November 1.
Video: ZAK! Downtown – “Poppin’ Pills”
Our friend ZAK! Downtown sent over this brand new video for “Poppin’ Pills!” earlier today, one of the standout tracks from his debut mixtape Stuck to the Sidewalk. Relying on a well-flipped sample by producer Astro Raw, “Poppin’ Pills!” is a feel-good track, even if the music is about, well, poppin’ some prescription pills. Stay away from the pills, y’all.
ZAK! is planning on releasing a 10 track mixtape of original songs in early September. In the meantime, he’s out promoting and playing shows with Chiddy Bang, Hoodie Allen, and potentially Big Sean. We’ll keep you updated.
Video: Sol – “This Shit”
Simple, but effective. That’s usually one of the best strategies, no matter what you’re trying to accomplish. Sol does just that with his song “This Shit” and the brand-new accompanying music video. One of this summer’s best and most chill songs, “This Shit” is the single from Sol’s Dear Friends, Vol. III EP. You can download both the song and the mixtape below and then check out the video after the break.
MP3: Sol – “This Shit”
Download: Dear Friends, Vol. III (Direct)
First Impressions: Jay-Z & Kanye West – Watch The Throne
Watch The Throne, probably one of the most hyped-up releases in quite a long time, has finally arrived. The work of rap superstars Jay-Z and Kanye West, the album reportedly took nine months and three attempts to create and fine-tune. Does it live up the hype? Is it the newest classic?
We decided to post our track-by-track impressions as each of us listened to the album for the first time. As we each finish, this post will be updated with our individual opinions. Right now, you can check out three sets of first impressions below. More to come soon!
Watch The Throne Snippets
A little less than three hours to go until the release of Kanye West and Jay-Z‘s collaborative album Watch The Throne arrives exclusively via iTunes. If you’re as excited as we are, you can help pass the time by checking out some song snippets below. The two trailers for the album, which reveal very little but are still pretty interesting to watch, can also be seen below.
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