Posted: Tuesday – June 09, 2009 @ 9:37 PM

As a member of the Memphis collective Three Six Mafia, Juicy J can take credit for being one of the originators of the Hip-Hop sub-genre known as “Crunk music.”

But in 2009, Crunk has seen a steep decline from its previous early decade dominance.

Unlike other veterans that bemoan the sudden trend and stylistic shifts in Hip-Hop music, Juicy J states that Crunk is evolving along with the rest of the culture.

“I will never say its dead, it’s different,” Juicy J told AllHipHop.com during a tour of Germany. “The Crunk now is not like the hollering chants that we used to do back in the day. It’s not like it used to be. A lot of young cats – they do it a different way. I’m not mad at nobody. Get your money. God bless. This is our talent; if you making some money with it, that’s a blessing.”

Still, Juicy J realizes the importance of maintaining a distinct, signature sound in a market where innovations are quickly copied and appropriated.

To that end, he assures fans that his forthcoming sophomore solo Hustle Til I Die will be a return to the original Three Six Mafia sound.

“I just took it back to the old Three Six Mafia, the ones that the fans want to see,” Juicy J explained. “Its a lot of fans that wanted to hear a lot of the older stuff. This is not no major release – just an independent album – so I made it straight for the gutter, straight for the streets. I just took it back. I put a lot of work in this album. I got my subjects on there that I talking about, but its like the Three Six Mafia original sound.”

Juicy also praised the Internet as an essential 24/7 promotion tool, and confirmed that preliminary work has begun on a new Three Six album.

“Never [will I retire]. Even my Youtube channel – that’s hustling. I’m trying to make this the biggest Youtube channel.” Juicy J stated. “I stay hustling. I talk to them every day. Even if I’m at the bar, I might have my laptop with me and say, ‘I’m at the bar.’ I read the internet every day, because it helps me keep up. It’s cool. It’s getting bigger and bigger every day. The fans give me ideas every day. We’ve been working hard. We about to bring it back.”

Juicy J’s Hustle Til I Die will be released on June 16.

It features appearances from Gorilla Zoe, Project Pat, V-Slash, Webbie, and Gucci Mane.

Source: Allhiphop.com

Posted: Tuesday, June 09, 2009 @ 9:33 PM

Rapper Max B has swiftly responded to a murder conviction with an appeal of all charges, his lawyer said.

In a statement issued to AllHipHop.com, Gerald Saluti said, “Max B would like to first thank all his family, friends and fans that have supported him throughout this trial. Please don’t give up on him at this point. Although the jury has spoken and Max has been convicted of felony murder, kidnapping, robbery and conspiracy a swift and successful appeal shall follow.”

Saluti also expressed concern that the facts in the case were not properly addressed.

“It is inconceivable that a jury could convict Max under the facts presented by the State. Even Gina Conway the State’s own witness testified that Max knew nothing of a robbery,” he stated. “Ms. Conway, a jilted lover and proven liar, said so at the trial itself. Max said after the verdict was read that he is confident that justice will eventually be served and he will be free.”

Despite the conviction, more music will soon follow.

“Max intends to continue putting out music for his fans while the appeal process grinds along. Although shocked by the verdict, Max remained grateful,” Saluti concluded.

Prosecutors accused Max B., born Charly Wingate, of coordinating the robbery of two men at a Holiday Inn located in Northern New Jersey. He faces 25 years in jail.

Source: Allhiphop.com

Posted: Tuesday, June 09, 2009 @ 9:27 PM

Former Dipset member Max B. was found guilty of murder conspiracy and robbery charges today (June 9).

Prosecutors accused Max B., born Charly Wingate, of coordinating the robbery of two men at a Holiday Inn located in Northern New Jersey.

Max B.‘s ex-girlfriend Gina Conway testified that she and a stepbrother named Kelvin Leerdam were to rob two men of over $40,000 in cash during the robbery.

The plan went awry and resulted in the death of one of the robbery victims, David Taylor, who was shot at point-blank range in the face by Leerdam.

Conway testified against Max B. and Leerdam, in exchange for a sentence of 18 years on armed robbery and manslaughter charges.

Sources have told AllHipHop.com that Max B. was convicted on nine out of the 11 charges stacked against him.

Max B is scheduled to be sentenced July 30.

He faces up to 25 years in prison for his part in the crime.

Source: Allhiphop.com

Posted: Tuesday, June 09, 2009 @ 9:22 PM

As the first artist on DJ Khaled’s fledgling We Da Best imprint, Broward County, Florida native Ace Hood has been in the recording studio hoping to release what he has labeled a “classic” album.

A number of Florida’s best rappers are banding together to support Ace Hood with guest appearances on his new album, which is titled Gutta.

The album features cameos by Trick Daddy, Flo Rida, Akon and Plies, while Cool & Dre, The Runners, Danjahandz and J.U.S.T.C.E. League rounds out the album.

“This album is definitely gonna be a classic,” Ace said of the album. “People are expecting a lot out of me not only because I’m on Khaled’s label, but because everyone knows that the ace is ranked as the highest.”

Ace Hood, born Antoine McColister, signed with DJ Khaled, after he caught the attention of the popular Miami DJ during a performance at Khaled’s annual birthday bash.

According to Ace Hood, he didn’t think the opportunity to perform would lead to a full-fledged record deal.

“We was outside the radio station not even trying to get a deal, just hoping to perform at his birthday bash,” he recalls. “We just figured we’d try and perform. He had a contest going on where you had to give a certain amount of reasons why you should perform at the birthday bash. So I was going to rap for him on camera and show him why I was worthy. Although he had to go to a meeting, he came out, looked at me and said ‘I love his image.’ We handed him a CD and once we did that he listened to it and called my manager that night. He said ‘I love his swag, I hear starvation in his music and I want to take a meeting with him.’”

DJ Khaled signed Ace Hood shortly after the meeting and has been promoting the rapper ever since.

Ace Hood’s latest single is titled “Cash Flow,” which features T-Pain and Rick Ross.

“Once I played the song for Rick Ross he loved it and he put his whole swag to it” explained Khaled. “The song was pretty much done but we felt to make it more of a hit record, get somebody like T-Pain who’s running the game right now, on the hook to make it go that much further.”

Ace Hood’s Gutta is due in stores June 30th.

Source: Allhiphop.com

Posted: Thursday – May 28, 2009

[ratings id="503"]
Whenever I hear someone say “that guy is back on his bullshit,” I usually think that person is doing what they usually do. Maybe it’s what they’re good at. So when I first heard Busta Rhymes was renaming his album to Back On My B.S., I thought I would be hearing an album in the same vein as The Coming or Extinction Level Event because he had two singles called We Made It featuring Linkin Park and Don’t Touch Me. I thought we were in for another Busta Rhymes classic. Then I heard the single Respect My Conglomerate. Now don’t get me wrong, it’s a hot song. The way Busta flows and the video (rappers seem to really want to be in a mob) was tight. But this is not the Busta people want to see.

What a lot of people liked about Big Bang was, for the first time, Busta Rhymes gave a little incite about his life that he never did before on the track Been Thru The Storm. I thought this was going to be a new trend for him. When rappers get older, sometimes they become a little more introspective. This was not the case on Back On My B.S. Nothing really works on this album, from the cliche features with T-Pain and Ron Browz to the empty sounding production. This heavily featured album seems to not know what direction it was trying to take. For instance the song We Want In sounds like a remix of Pop Champagne without any of the original rappers.

There is no problem with trying to keep up with the times, but it should not influence your music this much. Now on tracks like Kill Dem, where he does his Jamaican flow, and Don’t Believe Em with Akon and T.I., Busta seems like he’s redefined. This is where his flow, his style, features, and production is on point. The song Decision, although needing three superstar singers and Common, Busta Rhymes comes with that introspective feel that is nice to groove to, backed by pianos. This is where the album shines. But it is songs like Shoot For The Moon, Hustler’s Anthem 09, and Give Em What They Askin For, that really dulls the album back to average.

What this album really lacks is replay value. A majority of his songs are forgettable. And the tracks where he reaches for humor, such as I’m A Go and Get My, are just not funny. Then like I said before, there is nothing wrong with trying to keep up with the times, but tracks like Arab Money just have way too much Auto-Tune to tolerate. The reason why Big Bang worked was because everything seemed to mesh well. Nothing on it seemed forced. This isn’t the case for Back On My B.S. For anyone who thought Don’t Touch Me was a hint as to what Busta Rhymes was going to offer us, you will be sadly mistaken. What we have is a confused record and maybe a confused artist who needs to find his niche again. There comes a time when the elite rappers may have to gracefully bow out; maybe Busta’s time is coming soon.

- By Hakim Hill

Source: Yoraps.com

Posted: Tuesday – May 26, 2009

★★★★★
DJ Drama aka Barack O’Drama presents audiences with round two of his Gangsta Grillz series and presents on this album undertones of political issues and the daily politics of hoes, dough and keeping fresh all while having time to watch the news.

While it’s seemingly impressive that the hip hop world is taking notice of the press for their newsworthy reports, Drama also gets points for staying true to his underground background. With artists such as La The Darkman and Willie The Kid making noise on the album, they prove that their presence on the tracks is definitely kin of being mainstream worthy.

Willie The Kid, accompanied with the likes of Ludacris and Busta Rhymes on We Must Be Heard, is an example of the aforementioned. Talks of dealing with war tragedy, being clad with medals, stripes and ski masks and preparing for change are the central concepts of the track.

Love For Money is a highlight on the album. Trey Songz provides the catchy melodic chores while an all-star collaboration of mainstream’s Flo Rida, Yung Joc, Bun B and Gucci Mane do work. Keyboards and synths heavily populate as we listen about the lavish things in life that money can acquire us to have.

Nothing like exposing how much one can possibly make a woman sweat in areas where it’s questionable to even think that the clear residue is sweat than on a track appropriately called Sweat. Ray J covers the singing and sexiness while Fabolous and La The Darkman have the task of enlightening audiences with their flow. This R&B-esque track is another highlight on the album.

Gangsta Grillz: Vol 2 is a great showcase of maintaining a balance of pleasing the mainstream and underground audiences of hip hop. Being able to get Nas and Scarface on a track together is pretty dope. What’s even doper than that is reuniting B.G. and Juvenile. So DJ Drama, I support you and approve of your message sent via Gangsta Grillz: Vol 2.

- By Jeremy Carmona

Source: Yoraps