Common - Speak My Piece (Prod. by NO I.D.)

Common gives the streets another banger off his highly anticipated tenth solo project. Nobody Smiling set to drop July 22.

Busta Rhymes - Calm Down Ft. Eminem (Prod. Scoop Deville)

Busta Rhymes and Eminem goes bonkers on a Scoop Deville track with a vintage sample. It ain't safe no more with this lyrical spare.

9th Wonder presents.. Farwell to the Soul Man: A tribute to Bobby Womack

Producer and Hip Hop Historian, 9th wonder pays respect to late great soul man Bobby Womack with a mixtape of that features samples of his collection. This instrumental tape shows how influential Womack is to Hip Hop.

Punch (TDE President) - Untilted

Original member and President,Punch reminds the long time fans of TDE why he is still a force in the game. Check em out as he steps out the office to the booth. He is also featured on Ab-Souls "Dub Sac" off his new album These Days...

Columbusing (College Humor Video)

Columbusing- When white people "Discover" something that has already existed long before they were aware of it. 

Chuuwee-Friends

Buckshot & P-Money - Sweetest Thing Ft. T'Nah Apex

Brooklyn legend, Buckshot gives us boom bap banger featuring Pro Era's first lady T'Nah Apex. Buckshot & P-Money's Backpack Travelers out now.

Anthony Lewis - Candy Rain Ft. Sage the Gemini

LA's new R&B sensation, Anthony Lewis teams up with Bay Area New hit maker Sage the Gemini for this remake to the 90s classic.

T'mon - Good Girls Go BAD

Long Beach spitter T'moN paints a picture of Sistahz in our society.

Black Milk - What It's Worth

New music from the Detroit Rapper and Producer extrodinaire. Check out Black Milk's Introspective banger.

Jhene Aiko - To live and Die Ft. Cocaine 80s

LA songstress teams up with R&B collective Cocaine 80s (No I.D. & James Fauntleroy) for this smooth track.

The Lox - Salute A Gee

It's always good to hear new music from The LOX. Check out the legendary trio new joint.

Marsha Ambrosius - Stronger ft. Dr. Dre

Former Floetry songtress, Marsha Ambrosius is set to drop her second album Friends & Lovers July 15. In the meantime check out her new track that features an unreleased Dr. Dre verse. Hip Hop heads might know the sample.

Raven Sorvino - Like That (Prod. by Rubirosa)

Leimert Park MC, Raven Sorvino teams up with New York Producer gives her fans some fire with this new track on some LA dopeness.

MC Jin - 0-100 (Drake Remix)

Former BET freestyle champ, Jin adds to the list of rappers who spit on the drake track.

Shawn Chrystorpher - LAlien

LA rapper comes out of his cave to spit a freestyle over the Outkast "Elevators" track.

NameBrand - Suicide City

Long Beach Veteran Spitter Namebrand debuts his Epic Records latest single. G.R.E.A.T. Tape 2 due out in August.

Troy Ave-Your Style remix ft. Puff Daddy, Ma$e, and T.I.

New York Came Strong with this one and even added some Southern royalty to the remix to this banger.

OMG (Ice Cube's Son) - OMG (Prod. By Foreign Allegiance)

A few days after the annoucement of the NWA Biopic film Ice Cube's Son, OMG drops a banger. Over the production team Foreign Allegiance beat, OMG flips some bars showing he is a force to be reckon with. Check out below tell us what you think.

Mac Miller - Melt Ft. Schoolboy Q (Prod. Pete Rock)

In the midst of celebrating the one year aniversary of his sophomore album "Watching Movies With The Sound Off", he is dropping unreleased tracks. After previously giving us the "OG version" of 'Star Room', He premieres a Pete Rock produced track featuring one of his partners in rhyme Schoolboy Q.

Star Room (Prod. Earl Sweatshirt) 'OG Version'

Kaleidescope Dope: Meet Soulfood

With the resurgence of Long Beach rap (O.T. Genasis, Vince Staples,ETC...)it is good to say the "city by the sea" is on the move. Soulfood, the Long Beach, CA duo of T’moN and Zach Armand is the next group to get our official stamp-of-approval. With their original sound of music with the traditional Soulful Boombap sound, Soulfood has been doing their thing for years now. But it wasn't until a couple days ago that I heard a recent track that I had to share it to the world. Late pass in hand, I wanted to share their music as I'm sure I'm not the only one that miss that (Tired of that Cheeseburger and Fries) home cooked music.

With a few projects under their belt, Soulfood’s latest full-length release was early 2014’s Say Your Grace, which I've included for your listening pleasure below. Stand-outs include "The Lesson," "F.T.E.U.N. (From the East, up Norf)," "Fly Away Ft. Ca’Laura& Lou U" "" and "Wine & Dine Ft. Melziah Dia".

Check out their new recent banger The Citchen, venture back to their past work and show love!

Be on the look out for them

Teen opens world’s first pawn shop for $15,000 sneakers

High-end kicks are becoming the currency of choice in New York, and one 16-year-old is taking advantage of the trend — using his own five-figure stock of 45 mint-condition basketball shoes to open the world’s first sneaker pawn shop.

“Young kids don’t have jewelry. They don’t have cars,” said Troy Reed, dad of young entrepreneur Chase “Sneakers” Reed. “But what they do have is the thousands of dollars worth of sneakers in their house.”

Chase, a 10th-grader at Frederick Douglass Academy in Harlem, still marvels over pictures of the freshest sneaker designs online and waits in line for hours to add to his collection. Only now he and his father are also getting them from fellow “investors” who want quick cash.

They have all sorts of reasons for selling short. One pawned fancy footwear to pay for his brother’s funeral. Two teen girls liquidated their sneakers to pay for prom dresses. Another savvy ­investor flipped a pair of LeBron Crown Jewels and two pairs of Jordans and used the thousands in profit to pay for his move to The Bronx from Brooklyn.

The store’s priciest pawned pairs so far — those Crown Jewels — are commanding $1,400, more than five times the $270 sticker price.

“I don’t look at it like a business. It’s what I do. It’s what I breathe,” said Chase. “It’s an idea that’s right in front of your face. It’s just about bringing the idea to life.”


During school hours, his father and their sneaker-maven pal Rahsaan “Uncle Bless” Capers man the shop at Lenox Avenue and West 120th Street. They’re looking for “high-end sneakers or dead-stock sneakers” — pairs that are no longer being manufactured. If a prospective pawner’s kicks qualify, they give the shoes a whiff, check to see if they’re yellowing and examine the soles for excessive wear.

“After we evaluate it, we’ll give the kid, say, $100 for the sneakers. If he wants them back, he’ll pay the $100, plus $20 for storing the sneakers,” Troy said.
If someone makes an ­offer, the pawner is notified and has the right of first refusal, provided they can pony up the cash. If the sneakers sell for more, the pawner keeps 80 percent of the profit and the rest goes to the store.

A lightly worn pair’s value can jump exponentially compared to its initial retail price. A pair of Nike Air Yeezys — Kanye West’s signature sneakers — are currently selling for from $1,700 to $15,000 on eBay. Originally, they went for $263. Kanye’s own purported pair of Yeezys are going for $50,000.

Capers, who owns three pairs of Yeezys, said he has been offered close to $17,000 for the trio — a better profit margin than ­Apple stock.

 “I’m still not ready to bring them in yet,” he laughed. “I’m waiting for a sneaker expo first.”
The $30,000 in seed money for Sneaker Pawn came from Chase selling off his own collection — which peaked at 200 pairs.

He and his dad came up with the idea when Chase asked to borrow $50 spending money after waiting all night to dole out his ­father’s hard-earned cash on a new release.

“I was like, ‘Are you serious?’ I’m holding these sneakers until I get my $50 back,” said Troy Reed, who got his start in business making and selling documentaries about Harlem druglords like Alpo and Rich Porter.

But Chase didn’t just plant the seed for the idea or help raise start-up money. After school, he does homework and then stays up late custom-painting sneakers. Typically, he’ll earn between $150 and $250 for each custom paint job.

“Luckily when the store opened, school started slowing down,” he said.

STAY WITH IT, WE CAN'T WAIT TO SEE YOU MAKE YOUR FIRST BILLION!!!

Read the full article here

Common-Kingdom (Full Length Version) Ft. Vince Staples

This video Primiere of Common's powerful track 'kingdom' ft. Long Beach label mate Vince Staples. The Chi-Town Legend enlist Director Hype Williams for his single off his highly anticipated Def Jam/Atrium (No I.D.) debut, Nobody Smiling Out July 22.   

GQ-All Falls Down Ft. Problem & Bad Lucc (Produced by 9th Wonder)

Oakland MC GQ recruits West Coast vets Problem and Bad Lucc for the second single for the highly anticipated, Rated Oakland. Set to drop June 24 via Jamla Records.

9th Wonder and his camp is cooking up heat(no pun intended)

Lupe Fiasco-Next To It Ft. Ty Dolla $ign

Went on my twitter and see it bombarded with mentions of this song. Chi-Town legendary DJ Moon Dawg premiers Lupe Fiasco new single, Lupe teams up with Ty Dolla $ign again for a nice bounce track.

Testuo & Youth is set to drop this summer.

Scarface says collab album with Nas 99% chance of happening and more

Scarface chopped it up with DJ Whookid’s Whoolywood Shuffle to talk about multiple topics. After Whookid tries to clarify a rumor, he notes that he is considering the idea of retirement but for now remain going for the gusto.When the topic of Scarface & Nas’s much talked about potential collaborative album was brought up face replied that:

“99.9999999995 it’s gonna happen”. He does somewhat clarify that “it’s 99.9% that it CAN happen, and it probably will happen, but where and who puts that shit out is the debate”, “it’s not even a money thing wit it”.

This is every Hip-Hop Heads dream.

“We been talking about this shit for 10 years”. He concludes.

Listen to the full interview below

Ab-Soul Ft. Lupe Fiasco & Nikki Jean- World Runners

With two weeks away from his latest album These Days…, TDE MC Ab-Soul drops another single “World Runners”. The Tae Beast produced track features the beautiful voice of Nikki Jean (Hip-Hop Saved my life, etc.) and the Chicago lyrical assassin Lupe Fiasco.

These Days coming out 6/24

NWA Biopic Casts their Dr. Dre, Eazy E, and Ice Cube

This year has been big year for Biopic films. With creation and planning of films like Crazy, Sexy, Cool: The TLC Story, Gabby Douglas Story, Aaliyah: Princess of R&B, Get on Up (James Brown) and Whitney Houston this genre has been a fan’s favorite. According to sources, after more than five years, several writers and a tough-to-please trio that holds cast and script veto power, Universal's N.W.A biopic "Straight Outta Compton" is finally getting the green light.

Media Sources say the studio has assemble its leading group members to tackle the roles of Ice Cube, Dr. Dre and the late Eazy-E. The three parties with approval - Cube, Dre and Eazy-E's widow Tomica Wright - have signed off on the actors who will play the core members of the Legendary rap group.

There is without a doubt Lead MC, Ice Cube has been lobbying for his son, O'Shea Jackson Jr., 24, to be cast as the teen version of his father, and it is happening.

The team went with a surprise pick in Marcus Callender for Andre Young (Dr. Dre). He beat out a million of would-be rappers and Dr. Dre”s personal choice Michael B. Jordan, but the actor is about to take on a Fantastic Four reboot at Fox. Callender has some screen credits, including the pilot for Steve Zaillian's Criminal Justice on HBO, as well as bit parts in the CBS series Blue Bloods and Elementary.

The next vital role will be Jason Mitchell, who insiders say landed the film's lead role of Eazy-E after an out-of-the-park screen test. The New Orleans-based actor has played small roles in Broken City and Contraband.

In 2012, F. Gary Gray film director (Friday, Set it Off, The Negotiator, and The Italian Job) became attached to the project, reviving its prospects. And in late 2013, Jonathan Herman did a major script overhaul, which got the studio excited. Then, in the spring, Universal shot a sequence in Los Angeles in order to qualify for California's film tax credit, which is set to expire. With the film technically underway, Universal had to find its cast. Sources say Wright was the final holdout, but she has finally given her stamp of approval, paving the way for principal photography to begin in less than two months.

For You- Tony Casa'Nova Feat. Rapheal Pollard (B.LoveProduction)

New music from the Bay Areas very own Tony' Casa'Nova. Smooth production from B.Love, feeling this simple video. Some chill sounds to kick off the summer.

The Smalls Family (Living Biggie Smalls' Lyrics)

Story telling at its finest. R.I.P to Notorious one of the best lyricists to do it. 

Black Women Run Hollywood (funnyordie)

 A funny look at who really runs Hollywood and the reasons why black women get small roles in movies. Honestly I wish this could be a show Its great to see all of these great actresses together. Click the pick to see the full video.

kaleidescope Dope: Kap G-Like A Mexican

Meet Kap G, a College Park, GA (Ludacris, Young Joc, 2 Chainz, etc)native who is currently on rotation on iTunes playlist. With Atlanta being the hip-hop “capital” of the south with cats like Migos, Rocko, Gucci Mane, Future, Rich Homie Quan, etc… you can hear the influence in his music with putting his Mexican American culture in it.

Hip-Hop has always had respect for Chicano rappers in the game (A Lighter Shade of Brown, Kid Frost, Psycho Realm, B-Real, etc…), but often forgotten. In 2013, Kap G released a classic Like A Mexican that featured repetal vets (Pharrell, Jeezy, Fabolous), that shows his buzz and respect in the game. Check it all out and be sure to be on the look out for him in the future.

Ab-Soul-These Days (Cover Art&Tracklist)

Like most TDE followers I have been looking at my calendar! We’re just about a week away from the release of Ab-Soul’s highly anticipated album These Days…June 24th! With a few tracks being released it looks to be one of the top albums of 2014.

Here go the title track and the official track listing.

01 God’s Reign f. SZA (prod. Purity Ring)

02 Tree of Life (prod. Curtiss King)

03 Hunnid Stax f. ScHoolboy Q (prod. Kenny Beats)

04 Dub Sac (prod. Dave Free & Tommy Black)

05 World Runner’s f. Lupe Fiasco & Nikki Jean (prod. Tae Beast)

06 Nevermind That f. Rick Ross (prod. The Kathy)

07 Twact f. Jinx & Short Dawg (prod. Dync3)

08 Just Have Fun (prod. Like & Blended Babies)

09 Kendrick Lamar’s Interlude (prod. Terrace Martin)

10 Closure (prod. Sounwave)

11 Sapiosexual (prod. J. Cole)

12 Stigmata f. Action Bronson & Asaad (prod. Rahki)

13 Feelin’ Us f. Jay Rock & Ravaugn (prod. Skhye Hutch)

14 Ride Slow f. Danny Brown & Delusional Thomas (prod. Larry Fisherman)

15 W.R.O.H. f. JMSN (prod. Tae Beast)

Check out the Title track These Days ft. The O’Mys

Teck-Zilla-Son of Sade: An Ode (Mixtape)

Teck-Zilla, Montreal raised producer drops off a Sade Inspired FreEP titled Son of Sade: An Ode. The Nigerian producer pays homage to the 30-year career of Sade. True, Many artist and producers have sampled and remixed her catalog, but Teck-Zilla blends boom bap with classic pieces from the Nigerian songstress.

The Game-Bigger than me

Jayceon Taylor is back with a verbal Assault! This time he takes shots at several members of the XXL Freshmen list.

Dilated Peoples - Good As Gone (Official Video)

The Los Angeles Trio is back with a Primo track. The single will be off their new album Directors of Photography, which drops August 12th.

Busta Rhymes-Oh God ft. O.T. Genasis &Raekwon

Busta Rhymes been doing work spitting remixes with his Conglomerate crew. He links up with his protege Long Beach's O.T. Genasis and legend Raekwon the chef on this remake of Brand Nubian classic.

Jamla Records & W.A.R. Media Presents...A Tribute to Black Dynamite (The Unofficial Mixtape)

The fine folks of Jamla Records and W.A.R. Media created an unoffial mixtape for Cult classic Black Dynamite animated series. The mixtape features Jean Grae, Pharoahe Monch, Skyzoo, and more.

GQ ft. Nipsey Hussle & Big Pooh-Count'em Up (Prod. by 9th Wonder)

GQ, Oakland MC and former UNC Hoop star teams up with Nipsey Hussle & Big Pooh for a banger. The Jamla artist album Rated Oakland is set to drop June 24th.

DJ Still Life-Str8 West Coastin 2014 Summer Kick-Off.

DJ Still Life and the fine folks of 2dopeboyz gives a nice West Coast playlist to get ready for the summer. I can already smell the BBQ.

Str8 West Coastin' Summer 2014 Kick-Off (Meka & DJ Still Life) by Dj Still Life on Mixcloud

Iconic Actress and Activist Passes at age 91

Ruby Dee, the award-winning actress, screenwriter, journalist, and Civil Rights activist, has passed at age 91. She died peacefully at her New York, home on Wednesday.

Dee, Often with her late husband, Ossie Davis (d. 2005) was Black Royalty being a force in both performing Arts and the Civil Rights Movement. She was a dear friend with both Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X along with being a member of the Congress of Racial Equality, NAACP, and Delta Sigma Theta Sorority.

The seven-decade Iconic Ruby career most notable roles include Spike Lee classics Do The Right Thing and Jungle Fever. Amongst plenty of Emmy and Grammy awards, Dee earned an Oscar nomination for her performance in critically acclaimed filmed American Gangster starring Denzel Washington. During the 1960s, the pioneer actress also starred in the classic film version of A Raisin in the Sun.

The Cleveland, Ohio Icon career started in New York in the 1940’s, but her role in the 1950 film “The Jackie Robinson Story” brought her national attention.

In 2009 she received an Honorary Degree from Princeton University.

Hawk House - Chill Pill (Experiment 2)

There is always good to hear new dopeness. The trio from the UK bringing back that Golden-era boom-bap. Available for Stream and Download below.

A little more elbow room

Madlib-Black Dreams

Legendary Producer and music genius Madlib gives the folks a taste from his new anticipated album. Rock Konducta, a collection of original experimental hip-hop breakbeats with Rock twist to it. Album set to drop July 15th.

Ab-Soul-Hunnid Stax Ft. ScHoolboy Q & Mac Miller

As said by the boss, The Black Lip Pastor release a single with Fellow TDE cohort Q and Mac Miller on the hook. #TheseDays Out June 24th!

Successful Black Youth-The stories media won't air

If you think about most of born in the 80s and 90s, the creative school projects consisted of macaroni, paper mache, or the typical volcano. Now that we have progressed in the information age of technology, the creativity and ingenuity of our next generation is something unheard of. Here are a couple names that should be blasted through media for there greatness.

At age 7, Zora Ball made history becoming the youngest person to create a full-version mobile game application. Ball, first grader who attends Harambee Institute of Science and Technology Charter School in Philadelphia, presented her invention at University of Pennsylvania’s “Bootstrap Expo” To prove any doubters wrong at the event; Zora reconfigured and explained her application upon request.

This is a story from early 2013. Unfortunately stories like these aren’t the National headlines. Many black youth today are making strides despite the social stigma. These are a few stories.

For example, there is a 9 year old kid named Joshua, who founded his own foundation (Joshua's Heart Foundation)to “stomp out hunger” that fed over 7,000 people. To date, Joshua's Heart Foundation has distributed over 400,000 pounds of food to those in need and they coupled that assistance with teaching some recipients how to prepare healthier meals.

There is also the story of Leanna Archer, who became the CEO of her own hair product line (From her great grandmother’s secret recipie); Leanna Inc. She became the youngest entrepreneur to ever open the NASDAQ.

Another name to remember is Tony Hansberry II. This 14 year old invented a surgical technique. Under tutelage from Dr. Brent Siebel, an Urogynecologist, Hansberry developed a stitching technique that can be used to reduce surgical complications, as well as the chance of error among less experienced surgeons.

4 year-old Anala Beevers, who hails from New Orleans, Boast an IQ of 145 and an invitation to join MENSA, the international organization fro people who score in the 98th percentile on intelligence tests. She knows the location and capital of every state in the U.S., and a few countries.

Unfortunately, Most of these stories happened as far as five years ago. Media would rather bombard the world with visions of blacks being savaged, hyper sexualized, Uneducated, and all entice by the hood. The names listed above are a small group of youth that are making moves in a world who expect them to do the opposite. So let these stories be told to our own youth who are told that the only way out is entertainment and sports. We are much more than what society throws at us. CHANGE WILL COME, and we must mold our youth to make that change.