LunchBox Beats

With new material from the project recently leaking, Nas is reportedly preparing to release his highly anticipated N*gger album this July.

While previous reports anticipated the album would be released in April, N*gger is now expected to drop on July 1^st, according to his rep. As his album title continues to draw controversy Nas shows no indication of any plans to change the album’s highly controversial title. A new song from the project, “Be A N*gger Too” recently surfaced online.

Continuing to reflect his flair for social awareness, the song makes references to Islam, the NAACP, Eminem’s N-word slip up and the recent murder of South African reggae artist Lucky Dube. Among Nas’ choice lyrics for “Be A N*gger Too” include the following chorus:

“I’m a n*gga/ he’s a n*gga / she’s a n*gga / we some n*ggas / wouldn’t you like to be a n*gga too?“

Despite the controversy surrounding the title, many fans are okay with his title. In a recent survey conducted by SOHH, out of 1,899 respondents 85.27% said they were not offended by Nas’ decision to name his album N*gger, while only 14.73% of those polled said they were.

Of the of respondents, 48% said the album title made them curious about the album’s content, while 41% said the title had no affect on their interest level and 10% said the title made them less interested in the album.

In addition to weighing in on the Nas album, the poll also reflected some social attitudes toward the N-word, with 80% responding that all races should not be able to use the N-word equally and 19% saying they should. More than half (56%) of respondents also felt the N-word could not be empowering, compared to 43% who felt otherwise.

Nas’ album N*gger is due in stores July 1^st via Def Jam Recordings. Link

I don’t know if I’m late with this one but, the Star and Buc Wild show is back in New York. Just in time because I don’t know how much longer I could stand Ms. Jones in the morning on Hot 97 or the Ed Lover morning show on Power 105.1. Star and Buc Wild are now on in the mornings on Pulse 87.7fm. I don’t think I will be listening to there regular programing but I will definatly be checking out the Morning show.

REAL BARS!!!!!

I was just searchin’ Youtube for Freestyles and I came across my man Sean P. It’s not that new but its definitely a classic Freestlye worth checking out. Freestlye 101 with “The God” – Class is now in session!!!

Super-producer Timbaland took home the Songwriter of the Year Award last night (April 9) at the 25^th Annual ASCAP (American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers) Pop Music Awards in Los Angeles, CA.

Over 1,800 songwriters, recording artists, industry leaders and members of the music community gathered at the historic Kodak Theatre yesterday to honor the top songwriters of today.

Timbo won the coveted Songwriter of the Year award for his contributions to nine award-winning songs, including “The Way I Are” featuring Keri Hilson and DOE, “Give It To Me” featuring Justin Timberlake and Nelly Furtado, Omarion’s “Ice Box,” Fabolous‘ “Make Me Better,” Furtado’s “Say It Right” and JT’s “My Love,” “Summer Love/Set The Mood “Until The End of Time,” and “What Goes Around…Comes Around.”

This marks the third time Timbo has been recognized by ASCAP. He was honored twice as Rhythm and Soul Songwriter of the Year. Link

So one of my Professors was telling me about these new monitors that he just got, made by M-Audio. I was blown away by these damn things, so I figured that i would share the info.

Here’s a little background info from M-Audio on the EX66’s

The M-Audio EX66 monitor is the culmination of years of research developing cutting-edge high-definition active reference monitor technology. Our midwoofer-tweeter-midwoofer (MTM) design yields a wide sweet spot while minimizing room reflections. The unique low-frequency drivers and custom titanium high-frequency driver deliver exceptional smoothness and transparency across the entire audio band, without resonant peaks—and the drivers are impervious to environmental conditions such as heat, humidity, and sunlight. Onboard DSP handles cabinet resonance tuning and crossover optimization to round out an incredibly accurate frequency response. Digital inputs compatible with up to 24-bit/192kHz signals and high-impedance balanced analog inputs insure that your signal path is entirely pristine. Both the specs and the sound are unrivaled at any price, let alone this value. Sold individually, the M-Audio EX66 represents a new high-resolution standard for both 2-channel and multichannel applications. Link

Wayne Frost, a hip-hop pioneer known as Frosty Freeze whose acrobatic performance with the legendary Rock Steady Crew in the 1983 hit movie “Flashdance” set off a worldwide breakdancing craze, died Thursday. He was 44.

Frost died at Mount Sinai Medical Center after a long illness, said Jorge “Fabel” Pabon, senior vice president of the musical group where Frost made his name as a B-boy or breakdancer.

Frost was known for his original style, including acrobatic and fearless dance moves. He toured the world with the Rock Steady Crew and other hip-hop artists, including Fab 5 Freddy, Futura 2000 and Kool Lady Blue. Link

Back in the 90’s it seemed that in order to be somebody you couldn’t possibly do an album without the legendary DJ Premier stamping his trademark production. From Nas to Jay-Z and everyone in between, a DJ Premier track made every artist worth talking about official. These days, those calls have dwindled as the younger crop of emcees have opted to go another route while Premier nurtures a new batch of emcees.

But there’s one person that needs that extra punch to make his comeback official and he picked up the phone to make that call…

Marshall Mathers aka Slim Shady aka Eminem

“I just got a call from Eminem,” Primo revealed exclusively to HipHopDX.

The song, titled “Keys To The City,” will indeed be on Eminem’s upcoming album (possibly leaked as the street single) and will be the first time Slim Shady will put his signature flow over a DJ Premier backdrop.

“It’s a song that he actually produced and he wasn’t crazy about the track,” Premier says as he recalls the conversation between he and Em. “(I told him) as long as I can strip it clean and do what I do with your vocals it will be dope,” and the final result according to Premier?  “It’s dope!”

The former Gangstarr producer explained that he thought the initial song Eminem did with his own production was great but Eminem called, wanting that “DJ Premier sound.”

But how exactly will the two sound together?

 “Man…Eminem is back,” Premier continues. “He attacked the track with a new style, just fucking ridiculous, kind of like how he came with ‘The Way I Am’ but even more lyrical like the old Eminem.”

With a legend like DJ Premier saying that the song is “ridiculous” what more can you expect? Be on the lookout for “Keys To The City” off of the as-yet-titled Eminem album dropping this year. 

Link