This week in hip hop vol. 1

Jay-Z celebrates 10-year anniversary:
Jay-Z will take the stage June 25 in New York to celebrate the 10th anniversary of his debut release, Reasonable Doubt, an album considered to be a hip-hop classic.
Jay-Z, the current president of Def Jam Records, will perform the songs from the disc in their entirety for the first time at New York's Radio City Music Hall.
"Reasonable Doubt" peaked at No. 23 on The Billboard 200 and has sold 1.4 million copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan.
Jay-Z stopped releasing albums under his own name after 2003's The Black Album but has appeared as a guest on numerous tracks since then. Rumors persist that he's plotting a new studio project.

D-Block to release new DVD:
D-Block Records / KOCH Records announces the release of the "D-Block CD/DVD Mixtape," a new CD/DVD by one of New York's most respected cliques, D-Block. The label D-Block was created by Sheek Louch with lifelong friends, Styles P and Jadakiss,who are the three core members.

So much for news...now for some of the other features...

Upcoming artist of the week:
Lupe Fiasco.Doesn't sound like your typical mainstream rapper name.Well,Lupe is not your typical mainstream rapper.Hailing from the city of Chicago that gave us the legendary Common and the cocky yet talented Kanye West.You might have heard his verse on the "Touch the Sky" track on Kanye West's sophomore album "Late Registration".Lupe shows a combination of lyrical wisdom and street charisma that almost reminds one of the old Jay-Z from the "Reasonable Doubt" era.But Lupe's style is very unique.He rocks both street anthems as well as those introspective songs that make you rewind liek "Whoa!Did he just say that?"Although his album has been leaked on the net,he's gone back to the lab to record afresh instead of complaining about net piracy.One of the advantages of the leak has been that fans have been able to see what to expect.And what is that?Lines like these:
"He said it was something so appealing,
He couldn't fight the feeling,
Something about it,
He knew he couldn't doubt it,
He couldn't understand it,
Branded,just a first kick flick,he landed,
Labelled a misfit,abandoned,
His neighbours couldn't stand it,
So he was banished to the park,
Started in the morning,wouldn't stop till after dark,
When they said it's getting late in here,
So I'm sorry young man,there's no skating here,
And the way he rolled,
Just a rebel in the world with no place to go,
So come skate with me,
Just a rebel looking for a place to be"
With a delivery and mic charisma that matches his rhymes,Lupe Fiasco's new album could be the one to look out for this year.
Limewire downloads u must have:Muhammad Walks,Kick Push,Conflict Diamonds.

Throwback Track of the week: Wu Tang Clan-Protect Ya neck
An all time classic,the less said about this track the better.My words cannot possibly do justice to this all time great.All i can say is shut the fuck up and check this track out if you're ignorant enough to have not heard it yet.And if you have it,pump up the volume bitch!

Qoute of the Moment:
"Now tell me who's supposed to have your best intrests,
When shit ain't looking up,you start having less intrest,
Trying to leave the hood but the slugs keep coming,
Keep chasing the buck but the buck keep running,
I don't trust nobody,I don't love nobody,
I don't fuck with nobody but me,
I can't lose,moods will be funny,
And I never let my self down,
Why so?I don't expect much from me"-Joe budden

More to come next post....