The Rap Up

You know what this is? *rubs thumb and forefinger together* It’s the world’s smallest violin playing the world’s saddest song just for Beanie Sigel.

A TRU tipster sent me this jewel of a video which showcases the earliest forms of the famed “moonwalk” dance. Michael Jackson perfected and popularized the moonwalk, notably on his Motown “Billie Jean” performance. But variations of the moonwalk already existed prior to that performance, thanks to the likes of Fred Astaire, Bill Bailey, Buck [...]

One glance at Mary J Blige’s Twitter page and you’d swear Fantasia was proofreading her tweets. Yep, there’s plenty where this one came from. Mary, you can do better than this. I believe in you. Please get it together.

You want Dre to spend less time selling soda and headphones and spend more time on Detox, right? Well, the good doc has heard your prayers. While introducing “Club Beats” last night at the NYC Union Square Best Buy, Dr Dre was asked several questions, including the million-dollar question, “Where is Detox?” Here’s the Q&A [...]

For a while there, it seemed as if Wale was destined to soar for an eternity. With all the planetary bodies aligned in his favor, Wale’s buzz would surely catapult him to unfathomable heights. His mixtape was the talk of the town. MTV tapped him as a musical host for the VMAs.

LeBron James recently proposed a league-wide retirement of Michael Jordan’s No.23 jersey. James says he’ll start by ditching his own No.23 in favor of a new jersey number (6) next season, which inspired last week’s post about the 12 Most Memorable Jersey Changes in NBA History. As you might expect, MJ has been asked to [...]

For a while there, it seemed as if Wale was destined to soar for an eternity. With all the planetary bodies aligned in his favor, Wale’s buzz would surely catapult him to unfathomable heights. His mixtape was the talk of the town. MTV tapped him as a musical host for the VMAs.

Download: Gil Scott-Heron – “Where Did the Night Go” I was told that I’m no longer allowed to call myself a hip-hop head if I don’t post this awesome video of GSH performing “Where Did The Night Go.” So I threw in the mp3 to be sure. Scott-Heron’s first new album in 16 years, I’m [...]

♣ 15 Funny Star Wars Disney Ads [Gamma Squad] ♣ The 5 dumbest criminals who were foiled by Facebook [Guyism] ♣ Star Trek Alternate Pilot [Pajiba] ♣ 10 Things You Should Never Say to A Gamer Girl [Asylum] ♣ J. Cole & Wale Freestyle, Cure Munchies At Denny’s (Video) [Prefix] ♣ 5 Things We Learned from the Miss [...]

Sleep on the masked one at your own peril. In this promo clip for Unexpected Guests, DOOM warns of “total annihilation” to anyone who sleeps mix album, out now on Gold Dust. Seriously, has anyone heard this yet? Is it worth the bother or should I go ahead and risk annihilation?

Paul Mawhinney’s holds the unofficial record for the world’s largest record collection. In this video, Mawhinney says that 83% of his material is unavailable on CD, “Eighty-three percent of the music that I have on those shelves you can’t buy at any price, anywhere!” Amazing. Mawhinney is trying to sell his collection of 1 million [...]

XXL has unveiled a list of the Best 100 Hip-Hop Sites and guess who made the cut? TheRapUp.com. Hey, what’s a puppy med site doing on a hip-hop list? All kidding aside, it’s an honor to be mentioned alongside the cool kids. Thanks, XXL. Eskay posted the entire list, so hop over to Nah Right [...]

In his Geto Boys days Bushwick Bill dropped some of the most disturbing lyrics hip-hop has ever witnessed. He was a walking horrorcore genre. The little big man says he’s now walking with Christ and has a gospel album to show for it.

Rihanna returned to the stage in London last night to showcase tracks from her new album, Rated R. Some of her collaborators Young Jeezy and Jay-Z joined her at the listening party. Jay and Rihanna performed “Run This Town” and bla bla bla… Jump in to see what you really came for – teh concert [...]

It’s only a matter of time before 50 officially adopts Ross’ kids.

A moment of silence, please. Cam’ron has officially declared the end of Dipset, a group he helped pioneer in the early 90s. “To keep it 100, Dipset is Dipset, but it’s over and they got to get over it.” Despite the growing public clamor for more in-fighting among Dipset members, Cam has decided to put the [...]

♣ Ladies of All Ages, Shapes and Sizes Still Love Chris Brown [Houston Press] ♣ So This Perfume Commercial Is Gonna Win An Oscar, Huh? [Film Drunk] ♣ First 10 Minutes Of Lil Wayne’s The Carter Sundance Documentary [Real Talk NY] ♣ Funny: Little Potty Mouth Girl [College Humor] ♣ The $250,000 Double-Bird [With Leather] ♣ The Hottest Football Rivalries [...]

Directed by X I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, “I Wish I Knew Natalie Portman” is one of the best rap songs of 2009. The video treatment is lo-fi, but it’s creative nonetheless. Say it with me, “Less is more.”

Shakira hypnotizes Weezy with her hips, while Timbaland mans the board.

Without DJ Screw there would be no Houston hip-hop. Period. There’s a good reason we call it Screwston. It all started with Robert Earl Davis Jr. and his desire to slow the world down. He propelled a simple art form to unfathomable heights. Screw died 9 years ago today, but he left an indelible mark [...]

The Memphis Grizzlies announced has terminated Allen Iverson’s one-year contract with the team in what it called a mutual agreement. Iverson took an indefinite leave of absence on Nov. 7 after playing only three games with Memphis. The two sides have agreed to terminate his contract and Iverson is expected to be placed on waivers [...]

“Call me uncle. Uncle who? Uncle Cam. Like Uncle Sam, I tax ‘em.” – Cam’ron I’ve already picked my favorite hip-hop albums of 2009, but I have 2 more spots up for grabs. The Thornton brothers are making a strong case for one of those spots, with Till the Casket Drops set for Dec.

50 Cent was recently photographed hanging out with Rick Ross’ son and ex-girl. 50 dazzled Ross’ erstwhile baby mama Tia with assorted bling and fancy vitamin water. What kid would pass up an opportunity to hang out with his 50 Cent and Money Mayweather? Practically none. According to various sources in the G-Unit camp, a music [...]

Hey kids, there’s this Aussie actor named Heath Ledger. Heard of him? He once directed a music for an Australian hip-hop artist, whose name you probably can’t say without a pronunciation cue. Rapper Nfamas Forster-Jones has now decided to post this video dubbed “Cause and Effect” on the tubes for your enjoyment.

Remember Dock Ellis, the 70s Baseball star who pitched a no-hitter while tripping on LSD? Ellis was so disoriented from the LSD-fueled bender that he forgot what day of the week it was. Now there’s an animated video to help us visualize Ellis’ unique performance. The video was created by James Bladgen of the No [...]

♣ Say it ain’t so! Teachers are swapping ideas online for dinners [NY Times] ♣ How Megaupload is kicking Facebook’s mega ass [Forbes] ♣ Best of the 2000’s: The Top 10 Women’s Style Trends [Complex] ♣ 50 Cent launches important iPhone app [Woooha] ♣ Juiced Game Console Undresses Hot Girl [Wii Hotties] ♣ 10 Best NFL Jobs: Where do I [...]

Floyd Mayweather was seen displaying the cash prize he won after betting in favor of Pacquiao last night. Spotted alongside Mayweather at a post-fight party in Las Vegas were Mario Lopez, Jermaine Dupri, Ray-J, and Diddy. Mayweather told reporters that his goal was to impress Diddy with his betting skills.

Welcome to Soundbites, a wrap up of some new music that have been making the rounds online lately, including Keri Hilson’s flirty “Like A Stripper” and Slum Village’s brilliant “Dope Man.” MP3 goodness awaits you under the hood. Pop the lid. ♫ Wale – Center of Attention [Attention Deficit Bonus Track] This bonus cut from Wale’s [...]

LeBron James announced last night that he’s considering changing his jersey number. James told TNT’s Craig Sager that he will likely ditch No. 23 and switch to No. 6 (his Team USA number) as a way of honoring his idol Michael Jordan. This made me think of other great players that have changed their jersey [...]