When The Money Goes...

Mr. Hova himself appears in a video that he only did the hook in!?

If you heard this song when it was first leaked, you wouldn't be surprised that Jay is in the video. (*Shall I Break It Down!?) I'mma break it down... This song was one of the earlier leaked songs from BP3 in the first quarter of this year. In June, I heard the remix of this song, which was Then FEATURING Fabolous, who dropped a nice verse. But NOW, the song has become Fabolous', featuring Hov... interestiiing. That's one thing we are strangely kept in the dark about as fans. We listen to songs, and automatically assume that these are original cuts from our favorite artists. But that's quite on the contrary! The music industry is very political, and these songs are passed from artist to artist, and some have been completely duplicated. (*For example: Sterling Simms wrote, and recorded a hand-full of BANGERZ last year. THEN, Lloyd [a more well known artist] needs songs to finish "Lessons in Love", next thing you know, all those cuts were re-recorded the EXACT same way Sterling Simms cut them. So, most people have still Yet to know WHO STERLING SIMMS IS... "The Future!")
With that said, back to the video... I am not a fan of rap videos. They're copy-n-pasted concepts the have been recycled for more than a decade now. BUT, with the Hova cameo, and the simple, yet Real concept to this video... I dig it. One day you're "Living The Life", but if your foundation is soft and white, the Feds WILL come and chop that shit up and make you disappear!

MAESTRO KNOWS: San Fransisco

Honestly, what would you rather do, than go to San Fransisco to eat, shop, and chill!? THEY HAVE SOME OF THE BEST OF ALL THREE! WHAT ELSE DO YOU WANT?!

HOLLYWOOD ARISTOCRATS...

ALIFE is hosting a screening for Levi Maestro, a Los Angeles creative who has directed and produced content for several major corporate brands such as Moet Chandon Hennessy, Nike and New Era Caps, and also musicians and artists. OBVIOUSLY Maestro is becoming a more known cat about town with this online show.

This screening of Maestro Knows was held at ALIFE Hollywood, yesterday. Maestro Knows is Maestro’s online show which showcases his work experiences and relationships with other creatives. For this event, DJ King Solom on IRAK NYC was spinning, there was also amazing Alife giveaways.

NYLE "LET THE BEAT BUILD"

THIS IS AMAZING!

Peep the violinist gettin buck in between notes.

The Girlfriend Experience [Trailer]

"Watch it with someone you ****"

This movie was shot in NYC over 2008. Directed by Steven Soderbergh (think: Oceans 11, 12, & 13. Dude is LEGIT!), and starring Sasha Grey ***The Porn Star***. This film was first seen in the Sundance Film Festival, but it was a uncut version. The director mentioned Red Desert and Cries and Whispers as influences to the movie.
First-time actor and real-life blogger Glenn Kenny (of the blog "Some Came Running") plays the cameo role of a blogger and adult services reviewer.

MAESTRO KNOWS!!

WHO SKATESBOARDS IN UNRELEASED YEEZY'S AND SCUFF'S THEM UP WITH A SMILE ON THEIR FACE!?!?!?! Maestro MUST know something we don't. How the heyl does he continually get these joints early?? "HE MUST'VE HAD A BLESSIN' FROM PASTOR MASON!!"

Maestro Knows

TRAILER

Maestro Knows is an online show based around Levi Maestro's day to day life. Taking place primarily in Los Angeles, Maestro shows you LA through his eyes.
"Showing the people I don't know, all the things I do know." - MAESTRO!! Great moto =o)

In episode 5, Maestro rolls around with Dom. Kennedy! (Looove "Watermelon Sundae" & "Still Lookin")

Kennedy, who grew up in Leimert Park—an area considered a staple of Los Angeles’ black community for its rich traditions—popped up on the L.A. music scene two years ago, and released his debut mixtape, The 25th Hour, in March of 2008.

“The 25th Hour was my attempt to make a CD now that sounds like and feels like things that I grew up on and that people played for me,” - Dom

Already one mixtape deep into the fray, Kennedy is currently working on his next mixtape and is in talks to do a collaborative project with L.A. trio Pacific Division and Houston rapper Carter, but is certain not to lose sight of the bigger picture.
The west coast is on the come up...? Perhaps. Maybe not on the level of ATL, but on the level that Chi-town did... I think so. Update your knowledge in Dom Kennedy, Diz Gibran, Shawn Jackson, and of course... U-N-I.

Episode 5 - Dom Kennedy

"SOME OF US GOT JOBS
BUT I GOT 16s!!!"

I LOVE MY PEOPLE!!!

I like how they ran through a bunch of the Youtube videos of the dance.
ALL MY PEOPLE!
Ellen LOVES black folks

This made me laugh kinda hard.

Curren$y "Modern Day Hippie" LIVE @ SXSW

"HOT-SPITTA ON ANY BEAT
THATS A FATALITY!"

OOOOOW That's my joint!!
FAST TIMES AT RIDGEMONT FLY!

Keri Hilson -n- Kanye -n- NeYo

"KNOCKS YOU DOWN"

"HOW COULD A GODDESS ASK SOMEONE THAT IS ONLY AVERAGE FOR ADVISE?!

'O.M.G. YOU LISTEN TO THAT BI---?!?'

WOE IS ME. BABY THIS IS TRAGIC.

CUZ WE HAD IT. WE WAS MAGIC..."

Ebrahim: D'Angelo, Lupe Fiasco, & Joni Mitchell FREESTYLE Blend

A soulful, young, indie artist on the come up: EBRAHIM.
No unique story for him. He's just a talented lover of music, who's waiting on his turn. Obviously a very talented True artist who has mastered 12 instruments. Skimming through his songs, I Honestly could not find One I did not like. He's got a gift, and a passion to perfect his craft. I can appreciate that. Take the time to check out his Myspace, and LISTEN to his music. My personal favorite songs: "Irrelevant" & "Family Tree"

Myspace & Blog

P.O.S. - Drumroll

Didn't like this song until I watched the video. DOPE.
I bet they could run Ghostface's "Run" over the video, and it would go perfectly.

The Cool Kids "Pennies"

Geeeeeez bruh! I've been waiting too see this video for the Longest. I saw an interview of them on the set of this video innnn... I'm gonna say August. It could've been July, but it was definitely in the summer. What was the hold up...? iono.... BUT I'm glad to see the finished product.
If you run with that 2K9, you're prolly sick of hearing this song. I'm a fan... and I'm not gonna lie. I'm on the edges of being a lil tired of hearing it.
Take the time to peep chuck rockin these overalls in such a '93 sorta way NAH-MEAN

Bambu "Seven Months"

I Love This Song(.)

Lykke Li @ The Granada Theatre on Feb. 18th

Li Lykke Timotej Zachrisson, better known as Lykke Li, is a Swedish indie pop/alternative singer.
She released her first album, Youth Novels on LL Recordings in the U.S. in May. The album was produced by Björn Yttling of Peter Bjorn and John, and Lasse Marten.
You can tell she has a different aura about herself. Feels as though it comes from deep within. It could stem from her artsy background; mother's a photographer & her father is a musician, who was kind of a big deal in Sweden. Don't sleep on the Swedish artists! They're doing something right.

"And for you I keep my legs apart...
And forget about my tainted heart."

Lykke Li MTV Music

This video is sick!

Nas "Queens Get The Money" = Monumental

If you have the time, take it to peep the video. You can really get a feel for the emotions of an entire era. There was a movement happening there that have revolutionized Today.
I wish I could be apart of something that powerful.

N*E*R*D "Sooner Or Later"

"A Nightmare just ate up your dreams!"

"WAMU WHO!?"

Such a satirical video, but so OnPoint!! Its relavancy is something like a revalation! To appear on Wall Street, causing chaos and emphasizing their verse that "sooner or later... it all comes crashing down." Something we are all very familiar with; whether thru heartbreak, or now witnessing the stock markets value PLUMMIT and watching people literally living out the lines of this song. A revalation, turned anomoly thru song...

VIDEO: MGMT - (The Making of: "Electric Feel")

“Electric Feel” is the second single from MGMT’s first joint, “Oracular Spectacular”. It was released on June 23rd, 2008. This song is about a woman who comes from the Amazon rain forest who has the power to shock people with the electricity that runs through her veins. The song has also been remixed by the French electronic duo, Justice.
The song’s video is BA-NA-NAS! The music video features an appearance by the Rock-afire Explosion (Created by a fellow named CHUCK E. CHEESE). The RAE was an animatronic animal band that played in Showbiz Pizza Place in the 80s n 90s. The music video was also nominated for Best Art Direction in a Video at the 2008 MTV Video Music Awards. I think it’s the Dopest video I’ve Ever seen. Most definitely in a time where it is heavily publicized that “videos are dead”, I do believe this joint the “messiah” for music videos, and this was the “second coming”.
There's also an interactive version of the video, in which you can choose your own backgrounds, over at the band's website. Download HERE.

^Making of the "Electric Feel" video^

VIDEO: Kanye West "Heartless"

High quality animated video, directed by Kanye & Hype Williams (of course). When I watched this for the first time, I said to myself, "Damn. This cartoon doesn't just look like 'Ye, but moves EXACTLY like that dude too. Hmm. How they do dat?" Essentially it IS Kanye. Hype Williams uses a method called Rotoscoping: It’s an animation technique in which illustrators trace over live-action film movement and turn it into animation. Originally, before technology advanced, pre-recorded films were projected onto frosted glass panels and re-drawn by an animator, but now it’s all computers. So, the video looks a little choppy, and that's because they took pieces of other videos, but this technique allows the animators to emulate his mannerisms down to the T. And the whole video was inspired by the movie American Pop.