Download: DJ Dave Dolla - "Best Of Nas: From ILLmatic To Legendary"

Can't have too many Best Ofs, right?! Check out DJ Dave Dolla's tribute to Nas, one of the greatest emcees to do it.

It has really been 20 years since one of the greats, Nas, released his first album Illmatic. After all this time, Nas has remained the humble monster that he is and put out constant work that made everyone realize why he is and will always be considered one of the best to ever do it.

Doing what he does best, while making sure each one is better than the last; DJ Dave Dolla constructed a mix of some of Nas' best material for you to vibe to. Check it out.



Tracklist:
NY State Of Mind
NY State Of Mind Pt 2
Ether
I Gave You Power
Small World
Project Windows (Feat.Ronald Isley)
Book Of Rhymes
Affirmative Action
Triple Beam Dreams
The World Is Yours
Money Is My Bitch
The Message
Warrior Song (Feat.Alicia Keys)
The Flyest (Feat.AZ)
Loco
Stay
Hate Me Now (Feat.Puff Daddy)
Shoot Em Up
Memory Lane
Revolutionary Warfare (Feat.Lake)
Nastradamus
Summer On Smash (Feat Miguel & Swizz Beatz)
Street Dreams
Nas Is Coming
One Mic
Lifes A Bitch (Feat.AZ)
If I Ruled The World (Feat.Lauren Hill)
Nas Is Like
Made You Look
Life Is What You Make It (Feat.DMX)

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What I'm Watching: Nas “The Don”

That boy Nasir is on a bit of a streak right now. Can an old nigga get money any more? Ha! Enjoy the video for The Don. Chea!

And if you missed it, peep Daughters.

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DJ Premier f. Nas, Apathy & The Berklee Symphony Orchestra - "Re:Generation Remix" (Produced by Apathy)

This joint is fire. A couple of Hip-Hop legends and a very dope emcee on production. Apathy is becoming a beast on the beats. Word up. DEFINITELY check this out!!!



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What I'm Watching ... Common and Nas - "Ghetto Dreams"

Two of Hip-Hop's illest to do it gets together to do it again with "Ghetto Dreams". Some of the few bigger artists we here at TMB don't mind posting. Haha. Check it.



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Elzhi with Will Sessions "Elmatic"

At this point in the day, I hope you've downloaded this joint already. But, if you haven't you're welcome in advance.

In the midst of a few other projects dropping today, Detroit's own Elzhi dropped Elmatic over at XXL. In what is a tribute to Nas' classic illmatic, Elzhi recreates the music with the help of Will Sessions, giving it a unique twist. The project is dope and creative and free (you can however order a physical copy). So heads with excuses on why they aren't downloading this are bitches. Yeah, that's right. Ha! Enjoy. Chea!



Download: Elmatic (Alternate)

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Take Three: Nas "It Was Written"

"There's one life, one love, so there could only be one king."

There are some things I find hilarious day by day. Take into account this fact: people were actually disappointed with this album. Granted, most of us hip-hop heads were spoiled by mad releases the year Nas came out with his sophomore album, It Was Written (Reasonable Doubt, ATLiens, Stakes Is High, Hell on Earth, Illadelph Halflife, I could go on and on...). But long gone was the raw and brash production on Illmatic, and its lyrical focus traded in well written street tales for more mafioso styled themes. Whether or not that was a good or bad thing depended upon how Biggie and Junior M.A.F.I.A. affected your listening habits. For those who listened closely though, the detail was never lost, nor was its knack for storytelling. Sure, we all hate the fact that Trackmasters and Dr. Dre (many people I know were still confused about Dr. Dre and Nas together, and were expecting WAAAAAYYY too much) gave a little bit more polished efforts on the production side, and many questioned Steve Stoute's involvement with Nas, which would later rear its ugly head shortly after Puff had issues with some controversial footage in "Hate Me Now" off the I Am... album. But regardless, this was still a stellar sophomore effort by all accounts, and a hell of a lot better than sophomore releases after it.

So after all that spiel, another installment of Take Three is taking place. Take Three is an attempt to choose 3 cuts to give to a listener who may not either be familiar with the work of an artist, or the specific releases of an artists. Without further dudes (Peter Griffin, can you dig it?) let's get this thing underway.

1. I Gave You Power

Seems like everytime I hear about Nas, or about the best Nas cuts ever recorded, there's always a few that seem to grab my attention (I heard someone once include "You Owe Me" in their top 10 Nas cuts ever, weird). I continue to be surprised by the omission of "I Gave You Power," because it was everything that rested in Illmatic brought back for one tune. One of the lone DJ Premier productions that made the album, Premier draws in stark piano notes, and hard-hitting drums, while Nas personifies himself as a gun and his travails as this weapon. It's rich in its depictions and detail, has a stellar yet fucked up ending (jamming in his owner's hand, and being elated about having control, until another owner picks him up), and all the while, Nas weaves this tale intricately about his owner's rise to fame, and the macabre mentions of his own melodramatic treatment recieved as the gun. If there's some reason this tune isn't in your "Best Nas Cuts Ever" list, well then, that needs to change.

2. The Message

You might remember hearing a piece of this tune in the video for "If I Ruled The World (Imagine That)" and being like "where the hell can I hear all of this?" Granted, upon first listen, its a trickster of a tune; a lot of people upon release of the record didn't think it was the strongest introduction to It Was Written, but once they saw the video for "If I Ruled The World (Imagine That)," folks that hearlded Nas in the Illmatic days thought he was going off. Hilarious how this song works, and the trick that was played. We were listening to the introduction to It Was Written that whole time and didn't even notice the correlation. Regardless though, this is still a strong introduction, not only for the shot it took at Notorious B.I.G., but once again, Nas's battle stance is unfazed, and every word is delivered as clearly and bravely as it could be.

3. If I Ruled The World (Imagine That)

This song probably got the most mixed reaction in the world when it was chosen as the single for It Was Written. Sure, Lauryn's on the hook, how come not a verse? What's with Nas and this positivity shit? In the grand scheme it was a smart choice, and very well written song, still is much better than "I Can", right? Digressions aside, using Whodini's "Friends" as a backdrop to think about the ways of the world and what would change if Nas ruled it makes for a great song. And damn it, if Lauryn's voice on the hook and breakdown isn't heavenly, there's something wrong with your ears.

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#STOPTHEVIOLENCE - R.I.P. Derrion Albert

If you saw in the news, there was a brutal beating of a young kid during a violent melee in Chicago. Here's more of the story....

MSN reports on the violent tragedy.

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

CHICAGO, Illinois (CNN) -- One of the suspects accused of killing an honor student in a beating captured on tape in Chicago has admitted to jumping on the victim's head after he was already lying on the ground, said a spokeswoman for the Cook County state's attorney.
Derrion Albert, 16, was beaten to death last week. His death was captured on video.

In the videotaped confession, 19-year-old Silvanus Shannon also said that the victim, Derrion Albert, 16, never struck him, said the spokeswoman, Tandra Simonton.

Three teens arrested in Albert's death -- Silvanus Shannon, 19; Eric Carson, 16; and Eugene Riley, 18 -- were seen on the videotape attacking Albert, and were charged with first degree murder and held without bail, Simonton said. Monday night authorities said they charged a fourth suspect, 17-year-old Eugene Bailey, with murder.

On Monday during the bond hearing, prosecutors described how the street fight escalated from a dispute between two factions at Albert's high school to a beating that left the honor student dead.

Prosecutors said Albert was an "innocent bystander" who ended up in the middle of a street fight between two factions of students at his school, Christian Fenger Academy High school, on Chicago's South Side.

When school let out at 2:50 p.m. on Thursday, Albert was on his way to the bus stop when two groups of students converged on the street, Simonton said.

The two factions, one that lived near the Altgeld Gardens housing development and one in an area known as "The Ville," began fighting after a shooting earlier that day that police called gang-related.

Albert was approached by Eric Carson and another unknown person, both members of the "The Ville" faction, Simonton said. Carson struck Albert in the head with a piece of a wooden railroad tie, and the second person punched him in the face, Simonton said.

Albert was knocked unconscious by the blows for a short period, Simonton said, but gained consciousness and quickly tried to move from the escalating street fight.

"He gained consciousness and moved a few feet away, but as he was trying to get up, he was attacked by a second group," Simonton said.

* Beaten teen had 'different attitude' than other boys, activist says

That group, made up of five members from the opposing faction, then took their shots at Albert, Simonton said.

He was struck in the head by Riley with the piece of railroad tie, a rectangular piece of wood used as a base for railroad tracks, Simonton said.

Once Albert was on the ground again, Shannon was seen "stomping on his head repeatedly," Simonton said.

An amateur videotape shot by a witness, which has been broadcast nationally, showed the attack unfolding. A local TV station that received the tape turned it over to police.

The video shows that, as the attackers ran away, the person with the camera and several others approached Albert and carried him into a nearby building.

"Derrion, get up!" a female voice pleads on the video.

Albert was taken to Roseland Community Hospital and then to Advocate Christ Hospital and Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead, Simonton said.

Shannon and Riley do not have criminal records. Carson is on probation for a 2008 robbery conviction, according to Simonton.

On Monday, family and friends, some wearing shirts bearing Albert's photo, held a vigil in his honor.

Albert's grandfather, Joseph Walker, told CNN affiliate WLS-TV that his grandson was a good kid who didn't deserve to die.

"He was in Bible class this Tuesday night. Church on Sunday," Walker told WLS-TV. "I have no trouble out of my grandson whatsoever. This thing that happened to him is so horrific that we just don't know what we're going to do. We lost a really dear friend in my grandson. He was a blessed child."

Walker said the family was struggling to come to terms with why Albert was killed.

"I don't know where all this anger come from these people today," he told WLS-TV. "That's just too much anger for someone to have in their heart. All I can do is I'm going to pray for these people, I'm going to to pray for forgiveness." Video Rick Sanchez asks, "Are our young people salvageable?"

Albert's aunt, Rose Braxton, told CNN affiliate WGN-TV that the family was hurt again when a memorial in Albert's honor was burned down.

"To go and burn a memorial after such tragedy, then that just speaks for itself to what kind of people they are," she told WGN-TV.

Family and friends asked the community to turn in anyone they knew who was a part of Albert's beating.

"What kind of person, what kind of individual, has such rage and such anger and such madness?" the Rev. Michael Pfleger said. "We've got to get to the hearts of our children, because nothing, nothing, excuses or justifies the actions of an individual who would beat another individual. Nothing justifies that in this society. "

Pfleger said it was time to make a change, so children aren't afraid to go to or from school.

He said this kind of teen violence was not just an issue for Chicago, but from "Oakland to Newark."

Ron Huberman, CEO of Chicago Public Schools, said he had met with Albert's classmates.

"How do we make sure this event doesn't become another event?" he said. "Another vigil on another day."

Huberman said he will fight every day to ensure the safety of children in Chicago's schools.

"We can promise them and we can say that we we will absolutely remember Derrion," he said.
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Flanked by people holding signs with photos of a young child and the words "Don't shoot, I want to grow up," Pfleger pleaded for peace.

"It's time for guns, and it's time for two-by-fours to stop being the way we treat each other," he said.

This situation even hit Nas emotionally and he made an open letter to these kids in Chicago:

"Dear Young Warriors fighting the wrong wars! Killing each other is definitely played out. Being hurt from the lost of a love one was never cool.

Dear Young Warriors fighting the wrong war! I know that feeling, that frustration with life and needing to take it out on someone, any one. But....

We chose the dumbest things to go the hardest for. I remember seeing deaths over 8 ball jackets, Fila sneakers, and name plate chains. Deaths over "he say, she say"!!!!! "I'm from this block or I'm from that block", or "my moms n pops is f*cked up now the whole world gotta pay"!!!

I remember feeling like I was the hardest "n*gga" breathing. And I couldn't wait to prove it. But let's think. What are we really proving?? And proving what to who?? Everybody knows Chicago breeds the strongest of the strong but I just feel, me, being ya brother from another state feels your pain as if I grew up with you in ya very own household.

You have the ability and mindpower to change they way we are looked at. Look who's watching us young warriors, look who's throwing us in jail constantly, look at the ignorance in the world. Look at the racist dogs who love to see us down. Loving to bury us in the ground or in jail where we continue this worthless war on one another.

Young warriors.... We are WASTING more and more time. We gotta get on our jobs and take over the world. Cuz this movie left the theaters years ago, Juice, Menace, Boys n the Hood , Blood n Blood Out, Belly!

When we see each other why do we see hatred? Why were we born in a storm, born soldiers, WARRIORS....and instead of building each other up we are at war with each other.. May the soul of this young person find peace with the almighty. I'm with you young warriors. You're me and I'm you. But trust me! you are fighting the wrong war."

Tha Lady Blogga Asks...Where's Hip Hop?

Given the recent events in the music industry, we can't help but realize that the hip-hop culture is on a rapid downward spiral. We lost the King of Pop, Vibe magazine folded, XXL featured a cover full of shiny suit rappers. What the hell is going on with hip-hop? It needs to be revived and quickly. We have been bombarded with parties and bullshit, bling and swag, titties and asses (thanks, Drake), but no talent. Where did it all go?

Pandora Internet radio has become a necessity in my Blackberry. While mainstream radio caters to the artists that pay the most for spins per day, Pandora gives you a mix of stuff you want to hear. I can't stand listening to mainstream radio anymore. Every hour, the line-up is the same...and it's a shitty line-up at that.

So, here I am jammin' to my Pandora "Nas" station, listening to Nas, Jay-Z, Tupac and then it plays Ma$e? WTF is this? Ma$e? Where did this come from? How does he fit in here? He doesn't and that's the problem. I can't deal with the shiny suit rapper. I can't do it. So then I got to thinking, where did hip-hop go wrong? When did we lose it to talentless gimmick promoters with expensive cars? First I thought it was Puffy and his shiny suit movement. But then what about Hammer? And who the hell gave Vanilla Ice a record deal?

The new age of rappers is coming equipped with everything but talent. I mean, it's one thing to have a sales pitch or a certain image but you have to have talent to back it up. I am not even knocking the use of auto-tune. I was rocking to "Computer Love" and it was all good. If artists were saying something worth listening to, it wouldn't matter if it was auto-tuned or not. Having to listen to the likes of Soulja Boy, Hurricane Chris, New Boyz and other talentless "Hip-Hop" acts makes it difficult for the real Hip-Hop acts to shine through. In my opinion, their music isn't considered "Hip-Hop", it's just noise. Soulja Boy will never live down the fact that he lyrically compared himself to Nas! Nas is a rapper, Soulja Boy is not. So for him to compare himself to a lyricist such as Nas, he deserves to be smacked.

Not for nothing, I think Drake is lyrically inclined and has potential to be something special, but he is allowing himself to be pushed in that bullshit artist direction and that isn't a good move. He is going to lose a lot of fans because of that. He really needs to think about staying true to himself and his talent and not following behind the likes of Kanye West. Honestly I think Kanye just wanted to kill his competition a little bit so he created that video to put Drake on hold for a second. Drake created a buzz without tits, ass and jewels. He can continue to make moves sans that crap in his act.

We have always had underground rappers. The underground movement in the Hip-Hop culture was real serious at one time but now all the real Hip-Hop artists are being pushed into that category. We need to start moving in a direction to bring back Hip-Hop as we knew it. Supporting bullshit music is a problem. We have to start supporting real music and stop helping these "lucky" mediocre artists who knew the right people get ahead. We have new rappers emerging with ridiculous talent and they deserve to be heard on a mainstream level. How awesome would it be to turn on the radio and hear tracks from Diamond District, or Tanya Morgan, some Marco Polo & Torae, or how about "Queens' Anthem"? That would be a revitalizing breath of fresh air. I wouldn't have to cringe every time I turned on the radio or kill my Blackberry battery listening to my Pandora Internet radio.

We need to bring it back and it's going to take a lot of work, but...it can be done.

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MOS DEF proposes "The Battle in New Orleans"

So I get a message from @OneAndOnlyKema on twitter hitting me up on the info about MOS DEF talking about doing a friendly competition styled battle in New Orleans. According to this YouTube video (shout out to @Knowledgium for posting the link), he was previously recorded candidly and unknowing the video would get out, speaking on a few artists that proclaim that they're the greatest rapper alive. He spoke on one artist in particular. That artist is Jay-Z. His point is that he doesn't see much sense in calling yourself the greatest without really ever having to defend that claim. Especially when a Slick Rick who, quoting Mos Def, is still very alive and well, and Rakim as well. He doesn't like the fact that someone in his circle leaked the video but at the same time, he's not backing out.

It seems that in all honesty, he's just defending some of the pioneers that are still able to put it down on the mic. No beef. And in a friendly competition to showcase these MCs talents, they can get a chance to prove their claim. Personally, I think it's a very, very great idea and would probably do so much good for hip hop. Maybe with the state of music this game is in, some of these artists should consider it. Tell me you wouldn't watch a battle featuring Morgan State vs Grambling for the Battle of the Bands, Kid Capri vs Biz Markie for DJs, Kanye vs Swizz for the Battle of the Beats, the Battle Royal is a 5 man team which he says he'd be a captain for that consist of Black Thought, Jay Electronica, MF Doom, Nas, and Jay-Z could put his team together for a $10 million dollar pot. Why would you turn that down? Unless.........you can't back it up.





Regardless, I should start campaigning to get this event started. Somehow. Someway. I'm keeping my fingers crossed and marking my calendar! You ready? The BOOGIE MAN is! Haha.


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Throwback Thursday...Nas - Street Dreams ft R. Kelly

I felt like bringing it back. Listening to an old mixtape (yes, cassette) by DJ Doo Wop and it has some old hot joints. Thought about this song real quick. Wasn't on it but it got me thinking....I need to start something on the blog. And here we go. Throwback Thursday. Enjoy.



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Things that Make You Go Hmmm

Here are a few moments from this week that made me say ... Why should I care?!


I HATE YOU SO MUCH RIGHT NOW: Anybody catch that big story about Nas and Kelis splitting up? Riiiight. Who cares?! I know they've been together for a minute and are among the big couples in music but so what! They're getting divorced like 41% of Americans who get married. Now I guess she'll go back to using her milkshake to bring boys to the yard (and feed that new baby on the way) and hopefully Nas will get focused and create another album like Illmatic (but don't fall in that auto tune trap tho). Sucks she's expecting a baby in July but next story, please.


LEFT THE BAND: Flipping through the channels and could hardly believe it when I saw The Rise and Fall of Danity Kane, Making the Band Special. I paused for a moment in disbelief. Are you serious?! Wait, when was their rise? Yeah, I know the group debuted two albums at number one and had the hit "Damaged", but yet I still question MTV for running this special (okay, I actually question MTV for a lot of their programming decisions). Isn't this a behind-the-music-E-true-hollywood-story-too-soon? These girls broke up in the fall of last year and are beginning solo projects and now we're hearing about their rise and fall through a special? Why? I guess some teenage girls were just curious and wondering about the reunion album, so MTV had to cater to their fans and put some more money in Diddy's pockets. Thanks MTV. Maybe in six months MTV will do, "Danity Kane, where they are now". Can’t wait or I can.


ROCK BOTTOM: Why did they give this chick Daisy a show?! I'm convinced that Vh1 is simply trying to beat out their last horrible show. The Vh1 execs need a serious intervention before things get worse. Daisy of Love is rock bottom for a channel that I thought had already hit rock bottom with its programming (well unless they do a spin off show with that dude Dropout that got booted on the first episode of Daisy of Love). For those that don't know, Daisy was on Rock of Love Season 2 and according to Vh1, "she is back by popular demand this time staring in her own show." Popular demand?! Damn. Vh1 should stop. Please stop giving folks airtime with this garbage. Remember when music channels played music videos?