Category Archives: Music

Single: Drake – “Headlines”

August 9, 2011Audio, MusicDrake, Single, Take CareScott Meisner

Drake drops his latest single off his upcoming sophomore album Take Care and raps, “I had someone tell me I fell off, ooh I needed that/ And they want to see me pick back up, well where’d I leave it at?” Upon first listen it may not sound like a solid lead single, but it definitely gives the vibe Drake wants to give off with the album. “The whole process has been about slowing life down andreally pinpointing emotions,” he told Rolling Stone in a recent interview. Listen to the cut in the YouTube embed above; download it for keep at iTunes.

[Via RapUp]

OK Go teams with dance troupe & Google to get interactive in latest music video

July 28, 2011Images, Music, Technology, Videodance troupe, Google, HTML5, music video, Of the Blue Colour of the Sky, OK Go, PilobolusScott Meisner

Viral video masters of alt-rock band OK Go have gone the distance (yet again) to create a masterful music video. And this time it’s interactive! OK Go has partnered with dance troupe Pilobolus and Google to form a music video for “All Is Not Lost,” a cut off their 2010 studio album Of the Blue Colour of the Sky. The four-piece band and the dance troupe have created a visually memorizing clip in which they dance around in synchronized fashion atop a glass, see-through surface. If you watch the regular music video in YouTube, you’ll see the bodies contort into all kinds of shapes and letters. If you’ve got Google Chrome installed, however, you’ll want to watch the interactive version of the video from within that browser. Thanks to the power of HTML5, viewers can type in a message prior to watching the video and during it you’ll see the contortionists perform the message! Additionally, the video will play in a myriad of open browser windows and they will move around and open and close at will; the experience is not unlike Arcade Fire’s experimental video “The Wilderness Downtown.”

Click here to initiate the interactive version of “All Is Not Lost.” Browse the gallery below to check out some behind-the-scenes pictures from the set.

[Images via NYT]

Music video: Diggy – “Copy, Paste”

July 28, 2011Music, VideoDiggy, Diggy Simmons, music video, SingleScott Meisner

Here’s Diggy’s first official music video for “Copy, Paste,” the first single off the rising rapper’s debut album. In the Phil the God-directed clip, Diggy is hooked up to wires as young female lab technicians attempt to copy copy paste his DNA. In the middle he breaks down and shows off some fancy dance moves. Like I’ve said before, this kid’s got potential (and certainly the pedigree) to make it big. Look out for his album coming later this year.

Fallon, Timberlake & The Roots perform “History of Rap Part 2”

July 28, 2011Music, Television, VideoHistory of Rap, Jimmy Fallon, Justin Timberlake, late night, Late Night with Jimmy Fallon, LNWJF, medley, performance, rap medley, The RootsScott Meisner

Man am I glad that the rap medley performed by Jimmy Fallon, Justin Timberlake, and Late Night house band The Roots is certain to become a regular segment on Fallon’s variety show. Just when you thought the original “History of Rap” posted last October couldn’t be topped, version 2.0 rolls around and it is guaranteed to knock your socks off. Mash play and take a journey through hip-hop; the rapping duo tackle classics from N.W.A.’s “Express Yourself” and Cypress Hills’ “Insane in the Brain” to modern hits like 50 Cent’s “In Da Club” and DJ Khaled’s “All I Do Is Win.” And that’s exactly what this is: pure win.

2011 MTV VMA nominees announced, Katy Perry leads the way with 9 nods

July 28, 2011Music, News, Television2011 MTV Video Music Awards, award show, awards show, MTV, MTV Video Music Awards, MTV VMA, MTV VMA nominees, nods, nominees, VMAsScott Meisner

With the MTV Video Music Awards airing exactly one month from today, now’s the best time to read up the 2011 nominees list. As revealed in the post title, Katy Perry leads the pack with nine nominations. Perry’s sensational single “E.T.” is up for Best SFX, Best Editing, Best Direction, Best Art Direction, and Best Collaboration (with Kanye West). “Teenage Dream” is up for Best Cinematography, “Last Friday Night (T.G.I.F)” might be the Best Female Video, and “Firework” is vying against Adele’s “Rolling in the Deep,” Beastie Boys’ “Make Some Noise,”Bruno Mars, “Grenade,” and Tyler, The Creator’s “Yonkers” for the coveted Video of the Year. Adele and Kanye West managed to score seven nominations each; “Rolling in the Deep” and “All of the Lights” are fan favorites. West’s “Power” scored two nominations for Best Art Direction and Best SFX. Check out the full breakdown of nominees organized by category after the break. MTV announced that Adele, Lil Wayne, and Chris Brown will perform at the ceremony this year; expect more artists to make the cut before the show airs live on Sunday, August 28 at 9PM.

[Via EW-MusicMix 1, 2] Continue reading 2011 MTV VMA nominees announced, Katy Perry leads the way with 9 nods →

Kanye West & Jay-Z release “Otis” single, announce ‘Watch the Throne’ release and tour dates

July 28, 2011Image cache, Music, Newsalbum release date, collab album, cover art, Jay-Z, Kanye West, Single, single art, tour, Watch the Throne, Watch the Throne single, Watch the Throne tourScott Meisner

It’s all coming together now.

Last Thursday Kanye West and Jay-Z released the second Watch the Throne single “Otis” onto the ‘Net. Preview it at Kanye’s website and download it at iTunes. The soulful single (featuring a classic Otis Redding sample) follows the previously released regal symphonic piece “H*A*M.” Check out the cover design by Ricardo Tisci of Givenchy after the break.

And now we know exactly when the collaborative album is set to release. Watch the Throne–both the standard set and the deluxe version containing 4 additional tracks–will release digitally on August 8. You can preorder the digital copy at iTunes today. The album will release in physical form four days later on August 12. But read the fine print: the physical standard set releases everywhere on the 12th, and the physical deluxe version will release exclusively in Best Buy stores on that same day. The deluxe version will will be sold everywhere else starting later in the month on August 22. Got it? Good.

To add more excitement to the mix, the rap king and his mighty apprentice are readying a Watch the Throne tour to promote the upcoming album. Together ‘Ye and Z will be known as “The Throne” and the tour is set to kick off September 22 in Auburn Hills, MI. Though a tour schedule has been released, due to overwhelming demand the duo has decided to add additional shows to the tour; once the updated schedule is released on Monday, August 1 check back here to see if they’ll be visiting your city. The presale date is August 2 at 10AM location time (the password is WWT) and public sales begin the following Monday, August 8. Tickets will be made available through TicketMaster and LiveNation.

So the countdown to Watch the Throne begins. Eye the tracklist here. Continue reading Kanye West & Jay-Z release “Otis” single, announce ‘Watch the Throne’ release and tour dates →

Barenaked Ladies perform ‘Big Bang Theory’ theme song on set

July 18, 2011Music, News, Television, VideoBarenaked Ladies, CBS, music video, syndication, The Big Bang Theory, theme song, TV theme songScott Meisner

To celebrate the syndication launch of the CBS hit The Big Bang Theory, Canadian alt-rock band Barenaked Ladies crashed the set of the nerdtastic show to perform the insanely catchy theme song. The band plays the song smack dab in the middle of Leonard and Sheldon’s spacious apartment. The tune was conceived back in 2007 when BBT co-creators Chuck Lorre and Bill Prady asked Barenaked Ladies frontman Ed Robertson to pen a theme song for the series as a “sort of history of everything … in about 32 seconds.” The music video features never-before-seen behind-the-scenes footage of the show’s table read, rehearsals and episode taping, and don’t miss co-creator Chuck Lorre handling a guitar. Don’t be shy, sing along! Our whole universe was in a hot dense state…

Oh, and if you’re interested, The Big Bang Theory debuts in syndication September 18, simultaneously on TBS, the Fox Television Stations and broadcast stations across the country, and will air five nights a week. Season five premieres Thursday, September 22 at 8PM on CBS.

Watch the Throne tracklist & behind-the-scenes photos

July 18, 2011Images, Music, Newsalbum production credits, behind the scenes, collab, collab album, collaboration, Jay-Z, Kanye West, production credits, tracklist, tracklisting, Watch the ThroneScott Meisner

The Kanye West/Jay-Z collab album is almost upon us, or so we think. Although an official release date has yet to be announced, the rap protege and his apprentice have leaked out the official deluxe tracklist and super-duper behind-the-scenes photos from the making of the album. The album includes 12 tracks and 4 bonus tracks, two of which are the previously outed single “H*A*M” and G.O.O.D. Friday freebie “The Joy”. ‘Ye and Z brought along Frank Ocean for two tracks, and Beyonce, Otis Redding, and fellow G.O.O.D. Music artist Mr Hudson are also featured on the album. Eye the tracklist below:

1. No Church in The Wild (Feat. Frank Ocean)
2. Lift Off (Feat. Beyoncé)
3. Niggas in Paris
4. Otis (Feat. Otis Redding)
5. Gotta Have It
6. New Day
7. Prime Time
8. Who Gon Stop Me
9. Murder to Excellence
10. Welcome to The Jungle
11. Sweet Baby Jesus (Feat. Frank Ocean)
12. Why I Love You (Feat. Mr Hudson)

Bonus
13. Illest Motherfucker Alive
14. H*A*M
15. That’s My Bitch
16. The Joy (Feat. Curtis Mayfield)

Check out the aforementioned photos in the gallery below. Preorder the album here; the rumored drop date remains August 2.

Update: DDotOmen.com has managed to get their hands on full list of production credits for the album. Click here to sneak a peek.

[Via Life+Times]

Music video: Paramore – “Monster”

July 18, 2011Music, Videomusic video, Paramore, Single, Transfomers: Dark of the MoonScott Meisner

Paramore’s got a new music video out and it’s for the Transformers: Dark of the Moon single “Monster.” It’s the first song conceived by the rock band since brothers Zac and Josh Farro dropped out. But who needs ’em? The song is quite good and the music video is even cooler. Frontwoman Hayley Williams stars in this cinematic and rather eerie clip; the shot of the band mates in the water is neat and very reminiscent of Minority Report‘s precogs. Well, go on and rock out to the Transformers-less “Monster.”

Kanye West & Jay-Z’s collab album ‘Watch the Throne’ available for preorder

July 4, 2011Image cache, Music, Newsalbum art, album cover, collab album, Jay-Z, Kanye West, preorder, preorder album, rumor mill, rumors, Watch the ThroneScott Meisner

After months of rumors today we finally get some solid information coming directly from rap overlords Kanye West and Kay-Z concerning their upcoming collab album. If you head over to Kanye and Jay’s blogs you’ll be presented with the album artwork for Watch the Throne; the gold metallic cover is designed by Givenchy creative director Riccardo Tisci and it’s pasted above. Clicking the album art at either site brings you to www.WatchTheThrone.com, a site designed by label Island Def Jam. There you can preorder the album in a variety of formats: Deluxe CD ($16.99), Standard CD ($13.99), Deluxe MP3 ($14.99), and Standard MP3 ($11.99). After completing your order an email receipt lists an August 2 drop date, but this information has not been confirmed. Sources say that the standard version will pack ten tracks, and the deluxe will add four bonus songs on top of that. West, Jay-Z, Swizz Beatz, No ID, and Lex Luger are all expected to receive production credits. And finally, it’s rumored that Beyonce and Bruno Mars will lend their voices to a track called “Lift Off.” Expect the followup to H.A.M. to drop within the next few weeks. According to fellow G.O.O.D. Music artist Cyhi Da Prynce the album is near completion–the songs are recorded, and ‘Ye is adding his final touches before the final master ships. Happy fourth of July!

Weird Al is back, this time with “Party in the CIA”

July 3, 2011Music, VideoAlpocalyse, Miley Cyrus, music video, parody, Single, Weird Al YankovicScott Meisner

Weird Al Yankovic’s thirteenth album Alpocalyse is packed with catchy, smart parodistic tunes. Check out his followup single to “Perform This Way“; it follows Miley’s beat and it’s called “Party in the CIA.” The animation is phenomenal.

Pusha T & Cyhi Da Prynce headline Heineken Red Star Access concert (images + video)

June 29, 2011[experience-it-all], Images, Music, Videoconcert, concert stills, concert videos, CyHi Da Prynce, G.O.O.D. Music, Heineken, Heineken Red Star Access, impressions, Pusha TScott Meisner

On Tuesday June 28 the newest members of Kanye West’s music label G.O.O.D. (Getting Out Our Dreams) headlined the Heineken Red Star Access concert in New York City. The private concert was invite-only and it was located at Santos Party House. Hot 97’s DJ Camilo spinned the beats before the main guests arrived. Adrienne Bailon of 3LW fame introduced Cyhi Da Prynce who performed eight songs from his Royal Flush mixtapes. After his too-brief stint on stage, main attraction Pusha T was showered with cheers as he performed a bunch of songs ranging from classic Clipse tracks to more recent tracks off Ye’s My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy and the Fear of God mixtape. P confirmed that his next mixtape Fear of God 2 is complete and it will be released later this summer in August. Also, fans can anticipate his first studio album to hit stores on Black Friday (that is late November).

The concert was a raging good time. Thanks to Heineken’s sponsorship free beer was flowing all night, and the speaker setup inside the venue was phenomenal. Standing literally inches from Cyhi and Pusha T made the experience all the more engaging, though I could have done without the onslaught spit and sweat that came my way. Check out pictures from the concert below (please excuse the poor quality, only had iPhone in hand) and jump after the break to find a collection of the night’s performances in video form.

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