"The Snow Ball Music Festival [in 2011] was chill, in more ways than one. Besides the expected below freezing temperatures Avon gets in early March, the atmosphere of the festival and attitude of the attendees were very relaxed. The tents were set up on snow instead of concrete, and so dancing the first night was no small fete as everyone was slipping on the ice. By the end of the weekend, any movement at all was unpleasant as people were standing in puddles of water, beer, and probably some bodily fluids or stuck to the ground in thick mud. The crowd left their clubbing attire at home and sported their neon ski coats instead as they drifted through the clouds of cigarette and marijuana smoke. Despite the cold weather and the impossible dance floor, most importantly, the music was good." [cause=time]

Early bird and holiday special passes are sold out but regular passes and tickets for the festival are on sale now. Don't forget your "Warm Jackets, hats, gloves, and snow boots."

Current lineup below...

Continue reading "Snowball Music Festival is outside in the Winter in Colorado (2012 lineup) "

Speaking of shows the Shins are playing...

"DeLuna Fest and Five Flags Tourism Group are excited to announce the performance schedule for this year's music festival taking place on the gorgeous sugar-white sands of Pensacola Beach, FL, on October 14th, 15th, and 16th. DeLuna Fest's five stages and waterfront hotels along Pensacola Beach will play host to over 80 bands..... Go to http://lineup.delunafest.com/schedule to see the full schedule for this year's outstanding line up for DeLuna Fest 2011 which includes Linkin Park on their only US Fall date, The Shins, Weezer, Cake, Jane's Addiction, Cut Copy, Big Boi, Matt & Kim, Girl Talk, Wanda Jackson, Bettye LaVette, Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue, Dirty Dozen Brass Band and many, many more.

Tickets are on sale now for only $189.95 for all three days, all stages and in/out privileges."

photos by Tim Griffin

James Blake / Kanye West

"Light sprinkles ushered in the first day of the tenth annual Austin City Limits Music (ACL) Festival, but it was a welcome reprieve from the humid heat that has been plaguing the area and the state. Music and festival fans came in droves to see their favorite ACL artists, and rumors swirled throughout the day as to who the main headliner of the evening, Kanye West, would share the stage with..." [Pegasus News]

Austin City Limits continues today, Saturday (9/17). You can stream it online. More pictures from Friday below...

Continue reading "ACL 2011 -- Day 1 in pics (Kanye West, Bright Eyes, Big Boi, Cults, Wild Beasts, James Blake, Kurt Vile & more)"

by Andrew Sacher

Kendrick Lamar

After an EP and a mixtape, Compton rapper Kendrick Lamar released his debut LP Section.80 last month via Top Dawg Entertainment. The album features contributions by fellow Black Hippy members and production by J. Cole on the epic closing track "HiiiPoWer." You can watch the video for that below.

Kendrick is also rumored to appear on Dr. Dre's Detox (if that ever actually comes out) and is on Game (formerly The Game)'s The R.E.D. Album, which after being delayed for about two years, was released today (8/23) via DGC/Interscope. He appears on the album's first full track, "The City," and absolutely kills it. Between Game's fury, Kendrick's breakneck lyrical flow, and Cool & Dre's production, the track is one of the album's highest points. Some other standout guests appear throughout the LP including Tyler, the Creator and Lil Wayne on "Martins vs. Goblins," Big Boi and E-40 on "Speakers on Blast", and Drake on "Good Girls Go Bad." You can stream those tracks below and order the album on Amazon.

Kendrick has a few shows coming up including one on August 31 at S.O.B.'s in NYC with Trav, Los, and Sim City. Tickets for that show are on sale now.

In related news, Smoke DZA is having an album release party for his upcoming LP Rolling Stoned on August 29 at S.O.B.'s with special guests Asap Rocky, Bun B, Va$htie and more. Tickets for the show are on sale now. You can catch DZA in NYC again when he returns as part of the Smokers Club Tour with Curren$y, Method Man, Big K.R.I.T, and others.

Speaking of J. Cole, his debut LP, Cole World: The Sideline Story is set to be released on September 27 via Jay-Z's Roc Nation imprint. The video for the album's single, "Work Out," is below. He's set to kick off the 'Cole World: World Tour' on Tuesday (8/23) in Canada and continue touring internationally through mid-December. The tour hits NYC on October 25 at Best Buy Theatre. Tickets for the NYC show go on sale Friday (8/26) at noon with an AmEx presale starting Wednesday (8/24) at 10 AM and an internet presale starting Thursday (8/25) at 10 AM.

All dates and videos below...

Continue reading "Kendrick Lamar, new Game, Smoke DZA & J.Cole -- new albums, dates, videos & stuff"

photos by Andrew St. Clair, words by Andrew Sacher

Fast-talking Alabama rapper Yelawolf was set to release his debut LP Radioactive on September 27 via Ghet-O-Vision/Shady/DGC/Interscope. A recently issued press release announced that the release date has been pushed back to October 25. The album features guest appearances by Big Boi, Eminem, and others. Producers include SupaHotBeats, Justice League, The Audibles, and Diplo. He released the first single from the album, "Hard White (Up in the Club" ft. Lil Jon on August 8. You can stream the track below and purchase it on iTunes. Expect a video soon.

Yelawolf is going on tour in support of the album this September and October with Rittz and DJ Craze. That tour (all dates below) hits NYC the day of the album's new release date, October 25 at Irving Plaza. Tickets go on sale Friday (8/19) at 10 AM.

Yelawolf recently finished up a run on the Warped Tour. Check out a belated set of pictures from both the Nassau Coliseum & Monmouth Park shows, along with all dates and the song stream below...

Continue reading "Yelawolf releasing 'Radioactive', touring (dates, new song stream & belated Warped Tour pics)"

Big Boi at Governor's Ball (more by Chris La Putt)

Hip-hop artist Antwan "Big Boi" Patton faces several drug charges after Miami police arrested him Sunday, according to booking information posted on the Miami-Dade jail website.

Patton was charged with illegal possession of Viagra and Ecstasy pills, MDMA powder and drug paraphernalia with intent to use, the website said. Bonds totalling $16,000 were set, the site said.

His lawyer, in a statement provided to CNN through his publicist, said Patton was re-entering the United States when the contraband was found.

"While Big Boi was traveling with his group and friends, a small amount of contraband was found in the collective luggage," attorney Daniel Kane said. "I am confident when the entire facts are aired Big Boi will be completely exonerated."-[CNN]

In related news, Rapper Killer Mike (who has appeared on records by Andre 3000 and Big Boi) recently was interviewed by CNN and spilled the beans on new Outkast (we'll believe it when we see it) and Goodie Mob LPs on the way. Not many details other than their possible eventual existence.

"Paul Simon, Lee Scratch Perry and Jimmy Cliff play blinding sets at Glastonbury Saga stage. All over 70 Tony Benn oldest at 95 !" - James Osborn

"Best thing musically I saw at Glastonbury was probably SBTRKT on the Friday night ...quality stuff." - Joshua Saunders

Glastonbury 2011 (via Glastonbury.fm)

Glastonbury Festival took place in Worthy Farm in Pilton, England this past weekend. Tons of artists from all different backgrounds played the festival. The festival featured guest appearances, secret sets, and other interesting occurrences. Here are a few of the highlights.

Headliner Beyonce played a hits-heavy set with some pretty interesting cover song choices (King of Leon's "Sex on Fire," Etta James' "At Last"). But more even more interestingly, Tricky joined her on stage for a pretty inexplicable guest appearance on "Baby Boy." The trip-hop pioneer took a mic and uttered some sparse vocals as Beyonce and her backup singers belted the song. Video of the performance is below.

Speaking of things related to Massive Attack and Glastonbury, UK DJ Nick Warren, who would regularly DJ for Massive Attack in the '90s, said "My Highlight of Glastonbury Festival was James Blake live." James's set included the track "CMYK" off the 2010 EP of the same name in addition to tracks off his 2011 self-titled album. Some might say James's set was even explosive:

James Blake at Glastonbury

Festival attendees who were not part of the 75,000 watching Beyonce may have ended up at The Streets' set which took place at the same time. The show was apparently one of the Mike Skinner's last, who recently announced a breakup. Unfortunately, The Streets recently cancelled a trip NYC, but maybe they'll reschedule before saying their final goodbye. Video of The Streets' Glastonbury performance below.

This year's secret shows included UK Glastonbury vets Pulp and Radiohead.

It was Pulp's fourth Glastonbury appearance but their first for nine years and as they came on stage, frontman Jarvis Cocker told the crowd: 'We couldn't think of anything to get you so we brought the sunshine.'
After their set, which included some of their biggest hits including Disco 2000 and Common People, he added: 'Thanks Glastonbury, obviously it's been a very important place for us. When we played in '95 things took off for us and we went in a strange orbit around the earth, and now we're back home in one piece.' [Daily Mail]

Radiohead brought Portishead drummer Clive Deamer as a guest to play with Philip Selway. Their setlist was almost entirely made up of The King of Limbs and In Rainbows tracks, and recent non-album material, except for Amnesiac's "I Might Be Wrong." They also surprised fans of their earlier work by playing "Street Spirit (Fade Out)" as an encore. Video of "The Daily Mail" and "Bloom" and setlist below.

Cee Lo, unlike at Coachella, showed up on time for his set, which included a mix of his own material and Gnarls Barkley stuff. He also covered Black Sabbath twice. Big Boi got lost in London, but also ended up showing on time for his set. Like Cee Lo, he still embraces past projects and included a good amount of Outkast material. Big Boi-collaborator Janelle Monae played the festival too. Video of her performance of "Tightrope" below. Catch her and Cee Lo (but not Big Boi) for free at Afro-Punk in August.

Battles brought Matias Aguayo on stage to sing "Ice Cream," the song he recorded lead vocals for on their recently released Gloss Drop. Video below.

British folk/jazz legends Pentangle, who reunited in 2008 but have not been very busy since then, played the festival. Their lineup includes Bert Jansch who is currently a Drag City-recording artist and released The Black Swan on the label in 2006, over 30 years after Pentangle originally broke up. Lauren Laverne of BBC 6 interviewed the band. They talked about the resurgence of folk music and how Bert is a fan of Fleet Foxes (who also played Glastonbury). Video of the interview below.

SBTRKT at Glastonbury 2011 via facebook

SBTRKT, who visits NYC for the first time in July, played a live set (pictured above). His Young Turks labelmate Jamie xx (of The xx) played a set too. Jamie's "Far Nearer" single is on sale now. Pressings are limited. Check out a soundcloud stream of the track below.

Another UK post-dubstepper Jamie Woon played the festival. 3AM writes, "During my bum breaks, I caught Jamie Woon's set and it was fantastic. I've heard a lot about this chap, but haven't listened to his stuff before. Sitting in the middle of a field with a pounding head and cider was the perfect way to be introduced to Jamie's chilled but strong, powerful tunes."

Speaking of dubstep crossover, UK singer Katy B brought her dubstep-leaning pop to Glastonbury as well. She plays a private show in NYC tonight (6/27). It will be her first.

Little Dragon wowed the crowd, according to VH1 anyway:

For the UK at least, this performance of their new song "Ritual Union" is a real coming-out party for the band, who absolutely deserve to be heard on a much wider scale. It's really difficult to make smooth music work in the middle of the day at a big outdoor festival, but Little Dragon pulls it off in style.

UK anti-folkie Emmy the Great covered The Pixies' classic "Where Is My Mind" with help from Tim Wheeler of the punky brit-poppers Ash. Full setlist below.

On a more negative note,

A senior member of David Cameron's Tory constituency has been found dead in a portable toilet at the Glastonbury festival.

Christopher Shale, the chairman of West Oxfordshire Conservative Association, suffered a heart attack, sources believe.

His body was found in a portable toilet in the backstage area, where many celebrities and performers stay.

A story in the Mail on Sunday contained leaked sections of a strategy document Shale had drafted for David Cameron, in which he said the party can be perceived as "crass" and "always on the take".

Avon and Somerset police confirmed that the body of a man in his mid-50s had been found in the backstage area. A woman was seen being comforted by officers.

His body was found at 8.45am. An area between the Pyramid stage and the Other stage has been cordoned off. [Guardian]

Videos, soundcloud streams, setlists, and other stuff below...

Continue reading "Glastonbury 2011 happened (highlights, video, setlists, Tricky, SBTRKT, Radiohead, Pulp, Beyonce, Janelle Monae & more)"

photos by Chris La Putt

Governors Ball concluded big on Saturday (6/18) with sets by Outkast's Big Boi, Empire of the Sun, Girl Talk, and Pretty Lights. Pictures from earlier in the day are HERE and HERE. The final set of pictures continues below...

Continue reading "Governors Ball in photos (part 3)"

The schedule has been revealed for the Governor's Ball Music Festival taking place at Governor's Island on June 18. The festival has artists performing on two stages (Big Apple Stage and Gotham Stage), but with no overlapping sets. The two stages means no long changeovers either though. You can run and back and forth and catch all of everyone. Das Racist have been added since the initial lineup announcement, though they go on pretty early. Tickets are still available. Check out the schedule, and a video interview with Girl Talk, below.

Continue reading "Governors Ball updated lineup & set times"

The 10th Anniversary ACL Festival line-up is on the books. Stevie Wonder, Arcade Fire, Kanye West, Coldplay, My Morning Jacket, Fleet Foxes, Alison Krauss and Union Station, Nas & Damian "Jr Gong" Marley and Cee Lo top the bill of the over 130 bands. Bright Eyes, Social Distortion, Empire of the Sun, Santigold, Pretty Lights, TV On The Radio, Skrillex, Big Boi and Randy Newman are also on tap to rock September 16-18.

Continue reading "Austin City Limits 2011 festival lineup is here, tickets on sale"

The Outside Lands Festival, which runs from 8/12 - 8/14 in Golden Gate Park in San Francisco, released their 2011 lineup in April (and now it's May, so consider this a catch up post). Tickets are on sale.

This year's fest will appearances from The Shins, Muse, Arcade Fire, Arctic Monkeys, The Black Keys, Phish (two sets), !!!, Erykah Badu, Big Audio Dynamite (who played Coachella and are also playing Lollapalooza), Girl Talk and many more. The full lineup is below.

Continue reading "Outside Lands 2011 lineup"

"Founders Entertainment are proud to present the inaugural Governors Ball Music Festival (www.govball.com), a one day event to be held June 18 on New York City's Governors Island. Girl Talk, Pretty Lights, and Empire of the Sun are joined by Big Boi (of Outkast), Neon Indian, People Under The Stars, Mac Miller, Miami Horror, Passion Pit (DJ Set), Reptar, Outasight and other artists to be announced over the coming weeks. Closing out the festival will be Pretty Lights, whose rising popularity will be complimented by his brand new state of the art production.

The Governors Ball promises to be a massive mid-summer dance party of epic proportions. Performances will take place on two stages without overlapping sets, and feature stunning views. The artists appearing at the inaugural Governors Ball are diverse in scope and sound, spanning indie rock, dance, electronica, and hip hop, but the common theme and guiding force behind the festival is music that gets people of all walks of life moving, dancing and having a good time." - PR

The closest thing we've seen to this on Governors Island is HARD Fest that took place with M.I.A. in July. This lineup, with more than one artist on the bill who can headline multiple nights at Terminal 5, is bigger though.

Meanwhile Girl Talk kicks off the next leg of his Winter Tour at a sold out Terminal 5 on 2/24. His last area show was at Wellmont earlier this month.

Bonnaroo (June 9-12 in Manchester Tennessee) has announced the 2011 lineup (slightly early), and like the rumored Lollapalooza lineup, Eminem is among the headliners. Bonnaroo also has Grammy winners Arcade Fire and the Black Keys, in addition to Lil Wayne, Mumford & Sons, the Strokes, The Decemberists, Florence & the Machine, Girl Talk, Beirut (haven't seen them in a while), and many more. Full list below...

Continue reading "Bonnaroo 2011 lineup is here"

Big Boi @ NYU in September (more by Lauren Monaco)

Hip-hop heavyweight Big Boi brought the house down [the other night at Moogfest] with a set of Outkast hits and stand-out tunes from his hot new album, Sir Lucious Left Foot: The Son of Chico Dusty. Highlights of the set included "Rosa Parks," "Ms. Jackson," "So Fresh, So Clean," "Shutterbug" and "General Patton." A powerful live rendition of "Follow Us" featured Kyle Lucas of Vonnegutt singing the hook. And during "The Way You Move," Big Boi invited a group of ladies on stage to dance as he rapped the refrain: "I like the way you move / I love way you move."

While his Outkast collaborator Andre 3000 was missed, Big Boi was backed by a ferocious posse of live musicians and singers that included a drummer, guitarist, horn section and super hot female bass player wearing knee high black leather boots. He was also armed with a gang of choreographed backup dancers and hype-men that added to the visual spectacle.

During the live rendition of "Daddy Fat Sax," the sound turned distressingly towards metal-rap for a moment, but mostly Big Boi rode a deeply funky and danceable Dirty South groove. [Mountain Xpress]

Big Boi's last NYC shows were at Brooklyn Bowl and NYU.

Shout Out Out Out also played Moogfest in North Carolina over the weekend and will be in NYC this week.

photos by Lauren Monaco

Outkast is gone but not forgotten. Or maybe it's forgotten but not gone. That's more like it, actually. The group - perhaps the most important in Southern rap history, and certainly the most popular - doesn't cast the shadow it did 10 years ago, or even 5. ...Big Boi insisted from the stage on Monday night at Brooklyn Bowl: his partner is in the studio working on his album. And yes, there will be more Outkast to follow thereafter...

In the now, though, Big Boi is in a liminal place, somewhere between flamekeeper and nostalgia act.

Not that you notice during his performance, which is slick, reliable and impossibly fun... Hearing Big Boi perform only his half of Outkast's hits was a reminder of what modes he was responsible for in the group: pugnacity, salaciousness, street savvy. -[NYTimes]

Dr. Dog will hit the road in October to team up with Here We Go Magic for a string of dates that do NOT include NYC. Big Boi doesn't have any more NYC-area shows coming up, that we know about, at the moment either

Videos and pictures from from the NYU show, continue below...

Continue reading "Big Boi & Dr. Dog played NYU (pics & video) "

Big Boi @ Brooklyn Bowl Monday night

"Yeah. Big Boi was really fun and he played almost all the Outkast and solo hits you could think of... but it was too short, and it really seemed like there should have been an encore. People stood around cheering for like 10 minutes and the house lights went down but, nothin." [panopticon]

And as reported, Big Boi will play a 2nd NYC show TONIGHT (9/7) for lucky NYU students who will also get a DJ set by The Knocks and a co-headlining live set by Dr. Dog who recently played a public show at Governors Island and who go out on tour with Here We Go Magic in October. The show is the annual NYU "Mystery Concert" (no longer a mystery) and is only open to students.

Big Boi's other upcoming dates include Vegas and Moogfest. Videos below...

Continue reading "Big Boi played w/ Yelawolf, plays w/ Dr. Dog @ NYU tonight"

by BBG

DOWNLOAD: Big Boi - "Shine Blockas" (MP3)

Big Boi at Pitchfork 2010 (more by Kate Gardiner)

Forget all of that Purple Ribbon All-Star stuff and the fake-me-out "solo album", Sir Lucious Left Foot: The Son of Chico Dusty is Big Boi's first bonafide solo LP and out NOW via Purple Ribbon/Def Jam. Dig on one of those tracks, "Shine Blockas" available for download above.

With the accolades piling on and Big Boi getting more shine than the ropes around his neck, the Outkast-er will play Brooklyn Bowl on September 6th. Tickets go on sale on Friday 8/13 at noon.

The Brooklyn show is one of two Big Boi will play in NYC that week. The second takes place one day later at NYU (details TBA).

Total, Big Boi only has a handful of upcoming dates (that we can find at the moment). One other is a performance at Moogfest which is taking place on Halloween weekend in Asheville, NC...

AC Entertainment is excited to release the (still expanding) lineup of MoogFest 2010! As previously announced, this extraordinary three-day festival, celebrating the innovative vision of sonic pioneer, Robert Moog, will take place Halloween weekend, October 29-31, in Asheville, NC. Costumes are welcome. . . and clearly treats will be in abundance!

The MoogFest 2010 weekend kicks off on Friday with performances by the previously announced MGMT and Big Boi, plus Girl Talk, Panda Bear, RJD2 and others. Artists joining Massive Attack, Thievery Corporation and Jonsi for Saturday at the festival will include Four Tet, Caribou, Emeralds, and Matmos. The festival?s final day will be a Halloween party like none other, with performances by Hot Chip and Pretty Lights topping the bill.

Continue reading "Big Boi playing Brooklyn Bowl, NYU, Moogfest (2010 dates)"

photos by Kate Gardiner

Major Lazer @ Pitchfork Fest Sunday

"The tempo picked up again with Major Lazer at 6:15 p.m., and--hallelujah!--it stayed at a pretty high level through the end of Pitchfork 2010...

...Though Young is missing from the [Pavement] reunion, Stephen Malkmus and his bandmates were musically concise, tight, and focused, and they delivered many of their best songs--"Range Life," "Frontwards," "Greenlander," and "Unfair" among them--in versions that were every bit as strong as they were back in the day, and better in some cases than that last stage of the group. Since the music always seemed timeless, there was less of a taint of nostalgia here then with, say, the Pixies reunion, though to be sure, the motivations probably were very much the same, and mostly colored green... [Jim DeRegatis]

Continue reading "Pitchfork Fest 2010 in pics & setlists (Day 3 - Pavement, Big Boi, St Vincent, Major Lazer, Lightning Bolt & more) "

Big Boi's solo debut album, out July 6th via Def Jam/Purple Ribbon, is streaming now at MySpace (which means occasionally it will pause until you figure out which window/tab you have it open in and click the annoying ad). Full tracklist with list of guests below...

Continue reading "Big Boi's Sir Lucious Left Foot out soon, streaming in full "

Modest Mouse @ Terminal 5 in March 2009 (more by Chris La Putt)

Modest Mouse will join Faith No More and Nas & Damian Marley (tickets) as one of the acts set to play at Williamsburg Waterfront in Brooklyn this summer. Their Friday, July 23rd show will be ticketed/non-free (like the others mentioned). Tickets go on sale Friday at noon (which is when the just-added Faith no More show goes on sale too).

Modest Mouse's Brooklyn show is a week after they play the Pitchfork Festival which recently updated its lineup. New acts playing the Chicago fest include Big Boi, Major Lazer, Neon Indian, Beach House, Free Energy, Local Natives, Robyn & more. Check that out in full below. Single day tickets are still on sale.

UPDATE: Modest Mouse's Brooklyn show is one day after they play one in NJ.

Modest Mouse will be reissuing their third album, The Moon & Antarctica, on vinyl for its 10th anniversary, on Record Store Day - this Saturday, April 17th. "The album features restored original artwork and replicates the infinite lock groove found in the original vinyl pressings of 2000. The new vinyl reissue includes a download card for the album." All dates the the P4K Fest lineup, below...

Continue reading "Modest Mouse playing Williamsburg Waterfront, the Pitchfork Festival (updated full lineup) & other tour dates"

DOWNLOAD: Big Boi f. Gucci Mane, "Shine Blockas" (MP3)

In theory, she was an artist you want to root for-- all these ideas about art and celebrity and a flair for the dramatic. But the first few singles made the Lady Gaga project feel so presumptuous, her artsy entitlement overwhelming her songs' occasional strengths. "Bad Romance" was the moment where the music didn't just live up to the (self-inflated) hype, but surpassed it. The track is epic in construction-- by the time she gets to the bridge, more than three minutes in, the realization that there are hooks yet to come is thrilling. It helps that RedOne's production matches the songwriting's torrential drama; the churning, earth-shifting low-frequency synths are a programmatic reflection of the singer's unsteady, perhaps unwise, infatuation. But it's Gaga's performance, the wholly unapologetic fools-rush-in carnal energy, that commitment to emotional bravery in a context of increasingly twee chart pop, that makes "Bad Romance" feel so necessary. --David Drake [39. Lady Gaga "Bad Romance"]

Neon Indian is also on there twice, which is the the same amount of times they're playing Mercury Lounge (Tuesday and Wednesday night).

The video for the 21st best song, below...

Continue reading "Pitchfork's Top 100 Tracks of 2009"

by Black Bubblegum

DOWNLOAD: The Cool Kids - Gone Fishing Mixtape (ZIPPED MP3s, Megaupload link)

Cam'ron cancelled!

For those heads in search of those elusive Japan-only Dunks in the green-and-purple checked colorway, prick up your ears, this is a show for you.

Sneaker Pimps is the worlds largest touring sneaker hip-hop lifestyle exhibition featuring over 1500 pairs of rare, limited edition, vintage, celebrity signed, artists collaborated sneakers and a collection of sneaker inspired artwork, fashion and photography. The tour also features live street art installations, live skateboarding demonstrations, street basketball competitions and live hip-hop and rock performances by some of the world's foremost recording artists.

This has has nothing to do with the trip hop band from the 90s, so why are we reporting on a shoe exhibition? The show will also include a band of hip hop noteables including Big Boi of Outkast (with Sleepy Brown?), Clipse, The Cool Kids, Wale, and the only man cool enough to get away with a pink Range Rover, (Killa!) Cam'ron!

UPDATE: Cam'ron is no longer on the NYC bill, but Ninjasonik, Team Facelift, and "CO HEADLINER TBA" are.

Cam'ron's new album, Crime Pays, is out now. Check out a fascinating interview with Killa Cam where he reveals his status with the Dipset, his thoughts on hip hop beef, and much more. Check that out here.

Big Boi's looooong awaited solo project Sir Luscious Leftfoot: The Son of Chico Dusty, will be released "soon" now that a label dispute with Jive Records has been resolved.

Clipse will be in greater NY this weekend, as the duo has also scheduled an appearance at the EastWest store in Westbury, as well as a show at Club Loaded in Farmingdale. Tickets are still available.

The Cool Kids released their new mixtape, Gone Fishing, a few weeks ago. Get that above. The pair will ALSO be semi-in-the-neighborhood this weekend, as they are slated to appear at the B.O.M.B. Fest in Waterford, CT on June 13th. They are also scheduled to be part of NXNE.

DC's own Wale is about to hit the road, but recently dropped the video for "Chillin" featuring Lady Gaga... who will be touring with Kanye West soon. Check that out below...

Continue reading "Big Boi, Clipse, Wale & the Cool Kids playing Sneaker Pimps in NYC & other shows "

by Black Bubblegum

Nas @ Rock The Bells 2008 in Jones Beach (more by villageslum.com)

OK, so it's not as much a big bang as last year (A Tribe Called Quest reunion) or the one before (Rage Against The Machine reunion), but Rock The Bells 2009 does have some interesting artists on the lineup. Besides a welcome reunion (Reflection Eternal) (Talib Kweli & Hi-Tek), one suspect one (House of Pain) and some great repeat offenders (Nas, RZA, Raekwon, MOP, Sage Francis, Slum Village), this year's Rock The Bells also boasts an Outkast (Big Boi), a windy city fave (Common), and a true sicko (Necro). The full lineup is:

Continue reading "Rock The Bells announces 2009 hip hop fest/tour lineup"