The Hip-Hop Herald 11.26.09: You Ain't Nothing But A Boy, Boy Boy!

Posted by Patrick Robinson on 11.26.2009

This week, Canibus attacks Eminem, Jay-Z gets his first Number 1 and comes under fire from Beanie Sigel, Dre confirms Game and 50 on Detox, DMX facing more legal trouble, Triple C's go at KRS-One and Lupe Fiasco announces his upcoming projects!

So with a week to go before I'm done with study, it seems that everything is trying it's best to distract me. That and all the motivation to work on an assignment has virtually flown out the window. It's that damn complacency you get when you can see the end of something approaching, that and I'm wondering where the hell my other group member's parts are for the assignment. I can't exactly put the thing together and write the summary without their parts. Given its 5pm Wednesday afternoon as I write this, I can only imagine I will be going to bed at 4am Thursday morning having to stay up formatting this piece of crap. In other news, I love Borderlands and it has been a very effective stress reliever.

The News

Top Story

Beanie Sigel Continues To Attack Jay-Z



Philadelphia DJ Cosmic Kev premiered two brand new tracks by Beanie Sigel on November 21 during his radio show on Power 99 FM.
"Back down Jigga/put my nuts on that n**as neck," Sigel raps on the first, unnamed track.

On the second track, Sigel issued another harsh freestyle aimed at Jay-Z, this time dropping a verse over Cypress Hill's hit "How I Could Just Kill a Man" renaming the song "How I Could Kill Jigga Man." Sigel's opening lines make use of Jay-Z's signature battle song "Takeover," which was originally a diss record to Jay-Z's old nemesis, Nas and Mobb Deep.

"Take over/n***a the breaks over/fraud emcee/he Jay Hova" Sigel starts his verse. "Hey little soldier you ain't ready for the rude boy/quick to pull the tool boy."

"You ain't gonna say nothing boy?" Sigel says at the end of the song taunting Jay-Z. "Damn, I thought you was the boy, boy. You ain't nothing but a boy, boy boy. I ain't gonna stop boy."

Apparently 39 years old, almost 40 even, now classifies as being a boy. That and Beanie Sigel seems to have some kind of repetition problem what with being "nice" last week and all.

Next week Sigel will grace the cover of Hip-Hop Weekly. In the interview Sigel continues to air out Jay-Z, as well as his former business dealings with the former Roc-A-Fella CEO. In the Hip-Hop Weekly interview Sigel continues to hurl insults at Jay-Z, stating that the rapper is not "a camel but he is a snake."

And he also has a trout-like mouth making him some kind of strange amphibious mammal-reptile hybrid.

Sigel also claims in the interview that Jay-Z blocked collaborations with other rappers, further hindering his career.

"When I listened to Blueprint 3 it really hurt me to hear the subliminal shot on the album that Jay was taking at me, Peedi, and everyone at State Property," Sigel said in the interview with Hip-Hop Weekly.

Beanie Sigel is currently working on an untitled album, which he says will delve into his issues with Jay Z. Sigel is also in negotiations to sign a deal with Jay-Z's rival 50 Cent, who appeared on Sigel's last single "I Go Off."

At present time it is still unclear if Sigel's album will be released on 50 Cent's G-Unit imprint.

Because an association with 50 Cent has proven to be a life giving move to a stagnant career. Why just look at the excellent albums we had from Mobb Deep, M.O.P. and Mase! Oh wait, that's right, Blood Money was terrible and we didn't get anything from the others! Hahaha I'm always forgetting you know given how confident everyone is when signing to G-Unit.

In some more positive Jay-Z news though, on Thursday November 19, "Empire State Of Mind" became Jay's first Number 1 song on the Billboard Hot 100.

Jay had reached #1 before via cameos on Rihanna's "Umbrella," Beyonce's "Crazy in Love" and Mariah Carey's "Heartbreaker," but none of the songs from his albums had ever made it. Earlier this year, "Run This Town" came close to the Number 1 spot, reaching as high as Number 2.

"Empire State of Mind" became the blockbuster that broke through with very high-profile performances on the MTV Video Music Awards, game two of the Yankees/Phillies World Series and the Bronx Bomber parade.

Jay said the record resonates with everyone, even if they aren't from NYC, because of the underlying message. "Really, 'Empire State of Mind' is about inspiration, it's about hope," he reiterated in a statement Thursday. "I think that's what connects with people."

Earlier this week, Alicia Keys debuted "Empire State of Mind 2" at the PC Richard & Sons Theater in the Big Apple. "I'm gonna play this for you, different than you've ever heard," she told the crowd.

It's hard to believe given how long Jay's been around and how many albums he's sold that he hasn't seen a Number 1 before now. Out of interest, Snoop Dogg's first Number 1 wasn't until "Drop It Like It's Hot" back in 2004, and Nas is yet to see a Number 1 song with "I Can" from God's Son being the closest he's ever gotten at Number 12!

Dr. Dre Confirms 50 Cent And Game On Detox



Dr. Dre has confirmed that 50 Cent and Game will make cameo appearances on his often delayed album Detox.

Just a quick interjection here. I was reading the announcement that Diablo III isn't going to be released until possibly 2011 or 2012 which has me annoyed, but what I found most amusing were some of the comments thrown around on message boards and the like. People complaining about having to wait FOUR YEARS (it first got announced in 2008) for a game, made me feel that none of them were hip-hop fans. How long have we been waiting for Detox? Oh that's right, almost TEN YEARS now (the first announcement was back in 2000 believe it or not). How long did we have to wait for a new Pharoahe Monch album? So you know, the next time you hear a friend complaining about a couple of years delay for a game, kindly smack them in the face with a picture of Dr. Dre on it with the tagline "Making hip-hop fans wait since 2000"

Dre made the revelation during a press conference for his Beats by Dre headphone line at Best Buy's Union Square location in New York on Thursday November 19.

A reporter for RapRadar.com queried the producer on the feud between the two artists, who are affiliated with his Aftermath imprint.

"Everything is good. Both guys are gonna be on my record," Dr. Dre revealed. "And you know, I'm just trying to put it back where it's supposed to be, all love."

Ah but he doesn't say they're going to be on the SAME track. I don't think 50 is stupid enough to refuse to be on Detox altogether if Game is also on it, despite what he says in a moment, because that album is going to be one of the biggest releases in whatever year it actually gets released. Possibly in 2012, one day before the world ends.

When asked about the release date of Detox, Dr. Dre could offer no solid date.

"The minute it's done and it feels right to me, that's when it'll come out. Hopefully in the beginning of the year," Dre said.

So…2010? Or what year? Crafty devil you are Dre.

While the Game and 50 Cent may make cameo appearances on Detox, the cold war of words between the two rages on. In a recent interview with MTV, 50 Cent proclaimed that he would never work with Game under any circumstances.

"I wouldn't do it," 50 Cent told MTV. "I'd be on a record, on a song, on the [Detox] album, but not on that record [with Game]."

Game replied to 50's comments in an interview with Complex Magazine. Although he had unflattering words for his rival, Game said he would consider working with 50 Cent in the future.

"I mean, I don't know what 50's problem is but I'm here," Game told Complex. "Whenever he wants to call me on the phone and talk about it, squash it or we can keep on going with this f**king child like antics. He can do it, I can do it and we can do it 'til we f**kin' die, it makes me no difference, man."

No, because as I mentioned last week, 50 Cent is doing this for the sake of anti-progress. When he came into the game and blew up like he did, it's because the hip-hop fans as a majority were looking for something new. We were looking to move away from the pop antics of Ja Rule and back into something a bit harder which was perfect for Mr. "I Got Shot Nine Times You Know". Since then hip-hop fans are beginning to tire now of the constant gun-talk from 50 because it's looking to be the ONLY THING HE KNOWS. If he showed some creativity or reached out to Game, then yes, I believe that he could easily put himself back on the top of hip-hop and if he put some effort into his album, as opposed to insulting everyone within arm's reach to promote it, I'd be a lot happier too.

150-160,000 is a far cry from what he's seen in the past. Surely, somewhere in that bullet ridden head of his is the realization that he has to change SOMETHING and that he can't blame others for ever. When the OFFICIAL numbers come out, expect more ruckus to be caused.

Fabolous Possibly Involved With Lamborghini Theft



Police are investigating Fabolous and his connection to a luxury car stolen from an upscale hotel in Atlanta. According to Channel 2 Action News, Atlanta police claim men in Fabolous' entourage stole a rare 2008 Lamborghini Gallardo Spyder.

The vehicle, which was one of only two brought into the United States, was taken on January 31 and was recently located by the Atlanta Police Department. Surveillance video shows two men in Fabolous' entourage approach a bellman at the Intercontinental, received the keys to the Lamborghini and left as if it was their property. Fabolous and the rest of the group allegedly followed behind the Lamborghini in a minivan.

Police investigated the theft and have confirmed that Fabolous knew the men, but no charges will be filed, since the vehicle was located.

"We were informed by the Atlanta Police Department that detectives gained information regarding the location of this vehicle by promising counsel for Fabolous that if he told them where the vehicle could be found, the State would not pursue charges," Fulton County District Attorney Paul Howard said in a statement. "The District Attorney was not a party to this agreement. We have never spoken with this individual [Fabolous] or anyone connected with him, including his counsel. We were only made aware of this agreement by APD after they located the vehicle."

Howard cited investigators attempts to violate the agreement they reached with the party who provided information that led to the recovery of the Lamborghini, by pursuing criminal charges in regards to the theft.

"After discovering the vehicle, the police, in direct contradiction to the promise that was made, asked our office to assist them with this criminal investigation by obtaining certain Grand Jury testimony," Howard said. "To ask my office to participate after the promise was made, in my opinion, directly violates the agreement made to the party who provided the information. I believe the integrity of the promise was more important than pursuing suspects, particularly since the vehicle was located. Integrity demonstrated by prosecutors and law enforcement, is not only of utmost importance - and what the community demands - to our office it is everything."

Wow, so you promise a guy leniency/immunity for help, then turn around and try and press charges? It's no bloody wonder people think that those involved in law enforcement are crooked. Still, it's good to see someone TRYING to uphold the original promise.

Meanwhile the vehicle's owner, Eric Vargosko, is suing the Intercontinental over the loss of the Lamborghini.

"The InterContinental Buckhead Atlanta has accepted responsibility for this unfortunate incident from its inception and has always been willing to provide fair and reasonable compensation for the damages caused to the vehicle by the incident," said Caroline Counihan in a statement to Channel 2 Action News. "We hold the safety, comfort and well-being of our guests and employees as our top priority and concern. We have taken several measures, including heightening security, so that a repeat of this incident does not happen."

Yeah that has to suck. Can you imagine going up to the valet to get your keys only for the guy to return with NOTHING? If that was me, I probably would have crapped my pants, thrown up, crapped my pants again, and passed out.

DMX Being Sued For Backing Out of Fight



DMX is the subject of a new $1 million dollar lawsuit for backing out of a celebrity boxing match scheduled to take place in December in Birmingham, Alabama. DMX was originally scheduled to fight boxer/actor Eric Martinez during an event titled "Alabama Pride," promoted by Thunder Promotions.

DMX was scheduled to box Martinez for three rounds but backed out of the fight when Thunder Promotions allegedly refused to fix the fight or guarantee DMX's safety. DMX's abrupt cancellation left promoters scurrying to find a replacement.

Shortly after it was announced that DMX would be pulling out of the fight, Thunder Promotions signed up Coolio to face off against Martinez in the ring on December 12th. According to Coolio, he has no plans to fix the fight or to even lose the contest.

"I've been doing martial arts for 18 years...somebody [is] gonna get knocked the f**k out," Coolio exclaimed to radio host Angela Yee during an interview last week. "Coolio don't take a** whoopin's well. I'll tell you what, if I get into trouble, you gonna know because it's gonna go from boxing to f**king wrestling and choking because I hate to lose."

Coolio needs to start talking in the third person NOW. The sheer hilarity of this situation would be amplified if he started talking like that.

Thunder Promotions filed the $1 million dollar lawsuit against DMX in Birmingham County Court on Friday November 20th. Thunder Promotions claims DMX's cancellation has caused them hundreds and thousands of dollars and damages. The lawsuit is the latest financial setback for DMX, who also owes $1.5 million in back taxes to the IRS.

I don't know if it would have been THAT bad. It's not as if DMX is extremely high profile anymore (then again, neither is Coolio) and they managed to find someone pretty damn quickly (again, someone as obscure as Coolio) so did they really lose out that much? I suppose some people were going to tune in to see X get his ass kicked, but I think the same amount of people are going to tune in to see what Coolio can do.

Still, it's a breach of contract but I don't know if it's "hundreds and thousands of dollars" worth of damages.

Triple C's Attack KRS-One And The New Boyz


Rick Ross affiliates Triple C's have took aim at KRS-One and the New Boyz in response to what they deem are hypocritical critiques of their style of Hip-Hop. In a recent interview for rollingout.com, the 3 man group resurrected the 3 year old debate Nas started with his 2006 Hip-Hop Is Dead album, and launched criticism at KRS-One in spite of the Bronx veteran dropping an album in early 2007 entitled Hip-Hop Lives.

For them, Hip-Hop's health is based on the fact there is still money being made, and not the stance of some fans and critics that the genre has seen a downward spiral due to the lack of creativity from certain artists.

"You notice it's the people that always say ‘Hip-Hop is dead,' they ain't got no money," argued Torch. "And to top it all off, it's like Hip-Hop is dead but when they had their run, the same people that say these things, they be in pictures with AK's, they forgot all that now. You need to do your track record, do your homework and the record that people are pointing their fingers, you gotta realize, every time you point your finger, the other four are pointing right back at you. You gotta understand what's going on. So at the end of the day, I ain't with the finger pointing and the other four pointing back at you, but at the end of the day, music is music. You stay in your genre of music whether its backpack, dancing, and let us stay in ours. We make real music."

I don't know how you can point one finger and have the other THREE FINGERS AND ONE THUMB pointing back at you unless you're trying to throw up some weird gang sign that looks more like a chord for a guitar than anything else.

To accentuate Torch's point, rapper Gunplay dismissively shouted out Boogie Down Productions' landmark debut Criminal Minded while a picture of BDP's politically charged and Malcolm X-inspired cover for By All Means Necessary flashed on screen.

That's the BIG difference though. Those albums were POLITICALLY INFLUENCED. There was a reason for brandishing the guns. It's also important to note that these albums dropped more than 10 years ago and since then, KRS-One has MOVED ON and developed himself as an artist. The genre has moved on and grown. If Triple C's are implying we should take things back to the way they were, I'm all for it. Bring back the sense of pride that isn't associated with money. Bring back the sense of lyricism that involved stringing more than 4 words together and repeating them to create a hook. Bring back the times when artists made ALBUMS and not singles with an album attached to them.

Also, the difference here is that those albums actually SOLD as opposed to Triple C's album that went Wood. Now I'm not one to lay any emphasis on sales, but if you're going to do the same thing that someone else has done in the past, and can't get it right, then perhaps there IS some merit in the whole "there is a lack of creativity in hip-hop" you know?

Triple C's then turned their attention to teen group the New Boyz, implying the duo were gay due to their choice of clothing.

"We don't knock nobody's hustle because we don't want anyone to knock ours, because we might knock your head off," stated Breed. "If your jeans tighter than my b***h's, hey, we're not knocking your alternative lifestyle. It's on you if you want to wear sparkling beat chains. But don't [criticize] when we talk about our sticks, bricks, when we're doing our thing because we're going to feed the streets regardless. We talk about what we know."

Well, I hope they are talking about small streets because the proceeds from their album won't last that long.

Canibus Attacks Eminem



Canibus released a new diss track earlier this week on November 23 aimed at Eminem. The track, titled "Air Strike (Pop Killer)," was released on Warlab Records and features Canibus and label mate DZK airing out Eminem over a number of issues.

Canibus and DZK insult Eminem for just over five and a half minutes, making fun of his feud with Mariah Carey, in addition to Eminem's addiction to pain killers and his troubled past with his parents. Right before Canibus' verse starts, he taunts Eminem with a clip of his own words in regards to rap battles.

"If you're an MC and you mention my name in the wrong way, you draw first blood, I'm gonna come back," Eminem says in a sample, taken from an interview with Tim Westwood in 2002.

"You ain't know Hip-Hop messiah/You a b***h cause you dissed Mariah/s**t like that is supposed to be private/I'ma fry you on behalf of Mariah and Michael/Put you back on the drugs, make you suicidal," Canibus raps.

As much as I love Canibus, this is kind of digging up really old news. I thought that they agreed to a cease fire of sorts and just stopped throwing lines at each other. Plus the whole Mariah thing stopped once Eminem released "The Warning" and we all got over it. Except Nick Cannon who promised us he'd come out of retirement.

The disrespectful lines get worse as the track moves on, referencing the infamous incident in which Sacha Baron Cohen's landed in Eminem's face at the MTV Music Awards in May. According to Eminem his beef with Canibus started in 1998, before he was signed to a record label.

During an interview with Tim Westwood, Eminem explained the beef started after LL Cool J released his track "The Ripper Strikes Back," a response to Canibus' diss record "Second Round K.O." Originally, Canibus and producer Wyclef believed that Eminem wrote the lyrics to the track for LL Cool J, an allegation Eminem denied. Despite Canibus' attempt to squash the beef, Eminem continued to diss him in interviews and on his 2002 album, The Eminem Show. On a track titled "Square Dance," he referred to Canibus as "Canib**ch."

"Let's see you Square Dance now/Let's see you hold your bladder," DZK raps. "Let's see you fire back Em/where's the fire at/it's suicide hotline time/go dial that/put on that ‘8 Mile' hat and a file track/Get at some people who can actually diss you back."

Personally, Eminem and Canibus are two names I'd LOVE to see go at each other in an organized competition in the spirit of the genre, because you KNOW they're two of the best battle rappers to step to the mic, but the whole painkillers thing is pretty personal. It's the kind of beef that can get really ugly if someone doesn't step in. But hey, if this is the catalyst Eminem needs to get back up and drop that ridiculous accent on Relapse 2, then I'm all for it. Just don't let it turn violent.

Busta Rhymes To Release The Chemo



Busta Rhymes, revealed plans to release a new album next year, called The Chemo. In an interview with Billboard.com, the emcee spoke on the album, the title, and why the industry may need his help to recover.

"I called the album 'The Chemo' because it seems like the industry and music overall is dying slowly," he said. "The cancer that's stricken the business is killing the music, not only from a business standpoint, but also the value of the content and the creativity behind it. I just want to start the first stage of chemotherapy treatment that needs to take place and hopefully inspire others to do their part and contribute to different stages of the cure," he noted.

Expect the name of the album to change seven or eight times before it gets released.

Busta also added that he was pleased to see fellow artists like Jay-Z and Jadakiss release noteworthy albums in 2009.

Earlier this year, Busta added more on the meaning behind the title of his new album through his blog.

"We're coming to kill the cancer in music. I ain't trying to offend anybody... We gotta re-establish the understanding that the perspective of Hip Hop is to make music that always felt undeniable and unprecedented and we set a standard. And we always made sure we supplied the demand of being the ultimate cutting-edge form of entertainment that we always have and will always be. We always did a good job at doing that," he said when letting fans know of the album title.

You notice that Busta's post was properly formatted and had correct spelling and punctuation? Then you go and read a Soulja Boy ‘gem' and you can see the difference in the level of verbal (and as a result, lyrical) comprehension skills.

Chris Brown, Diddy and Wyclef are all set to be guest stars on the album. In a recent entry in his blog, Busta let fans know that they can send beats in to be featured on the album, also.

Well it will be a lot cheaper than hiring the Timbaland's, Akon's and Dre's of hip-hop won't it?

His album, The Chemo will be released on Flipmode/Universal Motown in the first quarter of 2010.

Lupe Fiasco To Release THREE More Albums



Lupe Fiasco's new album was supposed to be his last. After all, he left his previous effort by saying he had "one more to go, L.U.P.End." Now, it seems there's a lot more coming from Fiasco and he recently spoke about this in an interview with MTV.

After being left off the network's "Hottest" list, Lupe noted that he was out to prove a point.

"The last six months, it's been like, 'I gotta really, really go out there and show that I'm nicer than all of them,' " he said. "It's like, 'Alright, so be it. If it takes three more albums to do it, then so be it.' That's what I got left with Atlantic. Three more after Lasers. I'm already done with two. The mixtape is coming Thanksgiving. It'll be another mixtape after that and an album after that. It's really to get that status and lock it in and [and have people] be like, 'Look at this positive dude, the underdog. The positive one who came and murdered all these dudes. And he's there, and he's good.'"

Well I'm definitely not going to complain about the fact he's been inspired to release more music, but did it really take MTV to get him there? You know because MTV plays all that music all the time.

"I'm finnin' to house every single mode and arena I can get into. If y'all had somewhere where it's live performances, I'm finnin to have the best live performances. If it's mixtapes, I'm finnin' to have the best mixtapes. If it's albums again, it's gonna be the best verse. If it's the best dressed, I'm going hard as well."

Just don't go strange on us, like Andre 3000 "I'm only going to sing now" strange. Because that was what happened after all the strange fashion choices. Wait, Lupe isn't involved with Erykah Badu is he?

He went on to say this mixtape will feature instrumentals used by others and that there isn't a title for the tape just yet.

This is great news. My friend and I were actually talking the other day about how it sucks Lupe was only going to be releasing LupE.N.D. and then he'd be done, but now it looks like I was thankfully, wrong. Best news I've heard all week (the 50 Cent news was last week after all).

Sales Figures

50 Cent managed to debut in the Top 5 this week, coming in at Number 5 with 160,000 copies of Before I Self Destruct sold. Other debuts this week saw Rakim sell 11,000 copies of The Seventh Seal. Felt's latest, Felt 3: A Tribute To Rosie Perez sold 7,000 copies.

Blueprint 3 still has a fair amount of momentum, selling 29,000 copies for a total now of 1.3 million sold. Wale's Attention Deficit sold 8,700 copies for a total now of 37,000. Tech N9ne's latest, K.O.D., sold 4,500 copies with a grand total of 51,000 now. Rounding out this week is Lil Boosie's album which sold 3,000 copies for a total of 110,000.

Next week, how much of a drop will 50 Cent see? Will Rihanna take out Number 1 and how will Birdman's album sell?

The Signoff

That's all for another week in the world of hip-hop! I'll catch you all on Saturday where I will be quite happy that I'll only have ONE EXAM left to do before I'm out of college forever! Unless I decide to go back and study in 2011 if the whole Real Estate thing turns out to be a giant middle finger to my life.