New Video: "Workahol" - Copywrite

After recently cracking the Billboard “Top 100” chart with his latest release, “God Save the King” Copywrite delivers his latest video, “Workahol”. The track is produced by Stu Bangas.

“God Save The King” was released nationally on 2-28-2012 via Man Bites Dog Records. Purchase your copy on iTunes.

New Video: Mac Miller Interview With Bootleg Kev

Mac Miller recently sat down with Bootleg Kev for this interview where he discusses Billboard predictions for his 'Blue Slide Park' album, how he remains an indie hip hop artist and more. 'Blue Slide Park' is available now on iTunes, Amazon and everywhere you can buy music.

Billboard Publishes New Article Covering 'The Economy of Mixtapes'

On September 16th, Billboard.com published an interesting article entitled "The Economy of Mixtapes: How Drake, Wiz Khalifa, Big K.R.I.T. Figured It Out". The article covers topics such as past raids on mixtape DJ's, as well as the music marketing strategies behind some of today's hottest rappers in the music industry: Drake, Wiz Khalifa and Big K.R.I.T.

Read the full article here: "The Economy of Mixtapes: How Drake, Wiz Khalifa, Big K.R.I.T. Figured It Out"

Big Sean Sits Down For Exclusive Interview With Billboard

Big Sean is blowing up everywhere you look. In this exclusive interview with Billboard, Big Sean talks his recent chart climbing success in the rap music business, his future projects and the possibility of being added on to Kanye West & Jay-Z's Watch The Throne tour.

Consequence Premiers New Video "Public Eye" on Allhiphop.com & Interview With Billboard

A few days ago, Consequence premiered his newest video "Public Eye" on Allhiphop.com. "Public Eye" is a track fresh off Cosnequence's Movies On Demand 3 project. Check out Consequence in this indepth interview with Billboard Magazine

Tech N9ne Interview On BootlegKev.com [Video]

Tech N9ne is the only indie hip hop artist to debut number 4 on the Billboard, having no video or radio rotation. Take notice people, because this is how its done! In this great interview by Bootleg Kev from BootlegKev.com, Tech N9ne discusses his new album, the progression of his career and his success as an indie rap artist in the music business.

Nicki Minaj Lands On The Cover Of Billboard Magazine

The First Lady Gaga of Hip Hop? Wow. The way Nicki Minaj gets press and publicity, she defintiely getting First Lady treatment.

Nicki Minaj Sets New Billboard Record For Female Rap Artists

Nicki Minaj recently made it on the Billboard wit her first number one. Now, the extremely popular female rap artist is setting the bar to new heights. Nicki Minaj has just set a new record for the most Billboard entires with 7 songs currently listed on the charts.

The Billboard chart entries include: her single “Your Love” as well as her guest features on Luda’s “My Chick Bad”, Lil Wayne’s “Knockout”, Trey Songz’ “Bottoms Up”, Usher’s “Lil Freak”, Sean Kingston’s “Letting Go (Dutty Love)”, and Jay Sean’s “It Ain’t The End”.

The amazing part is this female rap artist has not even released a debut album yet and is currently receiving much acclaim with a bunch of chart topping singles. Nicki Minaj's "Pink Friday" is the debut album which will be officially released on November 23rd.

New Billboard Magazine Issue Outlines Top Methods Of Exposure For Hip Hop Artists

Recently, Billboard magazine published an interesting article which outlines the top methods of gaining exposure for a hip hop artists. This outline shows some of the ways that can make or break an artist's career in the rap music business.

Nicki Minaj Talks About Her Number One Single On Billboard With MTV

MTV Shows

Nicki Minaj takes time out to do this short interview with MTV. In this quick discussion, the female emcee talks about her track reaching the number one rap song on the Billboard charts.

What do you think about Nicki Minaj being the first female rapper with a number one record since Missy Elliot's "Work It" over 8 years ago?

Top 10 Hip Hop/R&B Albums On Billboard Charts (As of October 1st)

1. BluePrint 3 - Jay-Z
2. I Look To You - Whitney Houston
3. So Far Gone (EP) - Drake
4. SuperBad: Return Of Boosie - Lil Boosie
5. Man On The Moon: The End Of Day - Kid Cudi
6. Ready - Trey Songz
7. Only Built For Cuban Linx Pt. 2 - Raekwon
8. BLACKsummer's Night - Maxwell
9. Finally Famous: Born A Thug, Still A Thug
10. The E.N.D. (Energy Never Dies) - Black Eyed Peas

Synopsis:

To no one's surprise BP3 continues to reign at the top, while Whitney Houston's new album is a close second and Drake's debut EP stays in the top three. Kid Cudi's album, well received is currently slotted at number 5, while Raekwon's OBFCL2 falls to seventh. Trick Daddy cracks the top 10 landing at number 9 while the Black Eyed Peas extremely successful album stays on the list for another week after all these months.

Hip Hop Continues to Dominate the Billboard Top 10

Yes yes ya'll ! It's just another week of hip hop domination on the Billboard hot 100 charts, as yet again the top 10 singles are primarily hip hop (approximately 80%). Here's the list..

Billboard Top 10 (As of June 7th/09)

1. "Boom Boom Pow" - Black Eyed Peas *

2. "Poker Face" - Lady GaGa (yes STILL !!!)

3. "I Know You Want Me (Calle Ocho)" - Pitbull * (club banger of the year so far)

4. "Birthday Sex" - Jeremih *

5. "Blame It" - Jamie Foxx feat. T Pain *

6. "Halo" - Beyonce *

7. "Knock You Down" - Keri Hilson feat. Ne-Yo and Kanye West * (watch out for this joint, it's hot right now, bump it).

8. "Day N Nite" - Kid Kudi * (Crooker's Remix still tearing up the club scene)

9. "Fire Burning" - Sean Kingston *

10. "Love Game" - Lady GaGa

Again, the *'s mark the 8 hip hop tracks on the top 10. That means the top 10 is currently divided up by 80% hip hop/r&b music and the remaining 20% is being held down by Lady GaGa with two songs in position's 2 and 10. She's having a good year for sure.

Not surprisingly the Black Eyed Pea's continue to see success from their hit single which is currently number one. Pitbull moves up two slots to 3rd as his club hit continues to climb the top 10. Jeremih's "Birthday Sex" rose from 9th to 4th but the big airplay gainer and hot joint out right now is "Knock You Down" by Keri Hilson featuring Ne-Yo and Kanye West. This track is being requested like crazy on radio stations all across the continent, believe me.

Interestingly enough, sales of "Black Out 2" (Redman and Method man and "Back On My B.S." (Busta Rhymes) have come to an almost screeching halt. Although I'm positive these albums are being bootlegged by millions of music fans worldwide, so the digital music downloads must be through the roof.

As far as albums on the Billboard charts go, "Black Out 2" has dropped from 7th to 18th while "Back On My B.S." plummets from the 5th to 22nd spot. "Relapse" by rap artist Eminem continues to be the current highest selling album over all.

Still, it amuses me to see that hip hop is being broadcasted in more then a healthy dose of current mainstream music. What do you think ? Too much, or not enough quality hip hop to represent the genre ? Do you see any patterns in the success of these recording artists and their songs ?

Leave your piece.
Peace.

Marketing Strategy, Eminem at the MTV Awards

Every year, the MTV Awards show entertains millions worldwide, featuring an all star line up of popular celebrities who are involved in skits, song performances and hilarious TV moments. Needless to say the expectations were high for the 2009 MTV Awards, so did they deliver ?

Well that is all up for debate in my honest opinion. I found what little of the awards show that I did watch to be quite entertaining. However, I did note an interesting "stunt" which coincidentally involves rap artist Eminem, whom I've mentioned in my posts a lot recently (mainly because of the hype garnered behind his highly anticipated Relapse album which just dropped on may 19th).

If you saw the MTV Awards, then you know exactly what I'm talking about. If you didn't catch it, or hear anything about it in the media then let me break it down for you. Sacha Baron Cohen who is a writer/comedian/actor (famous from his "Ali G" Show and "Borat" characters) unveiled his newest character "Bruno" during the MTV Awards. "Bruno", suspended from the catwalk by cables, was lowered down onto the stage, before what appeared to be a malfunction. Cohen landed directly on top of the rap superstar in quite the revealing position.

With ass and balls in face, a disgruntled looking Eminem seemed to be very pissed off, leaving his seat and storming up the aisle. But, was it all staged ? Originally the media portrayed it to be an "accident". However, a few days after the dust has settled, it is now being reported by various sources that the incident was actually a unique and unconventional method of promotion for both parties involved (Eminem and Sacha Baron Cohen).

While Em's latest studio album "Relapse" continues it's reign on many of the top album spots on Billboard (such as the number 1 album of the top 200, the top selling digital album online, and number 1 hip hop/r&b album) does the album/artist really need any more promotion or marketing ? Probably not, but it definitely only helps sales and does not hurt them.

This promotional stunt continues to gain plays on YouTube, as everybody who missed it is clicking to see what happened while others who witnessed it are still having a laugh. Looking back on the clip, it's easy to realize that the whole thing was rehearsed and staged. All I have to say on the matter is, well played.

Sacha Baron Cohen earns some media hype for his upcoming film which features his newest character creation "Bruno". While rap artist Eminem gains some extra publicity for himself and his album as it continues to be the top selling album out right now. This is an excellent marketing strategy that keeps both celebrities relevant in the media's eye during the promotional campaigns of their projects.

Anyone remember a few years back at the MTV Awards when there was a little bit of a stint between Eminem and Triumph the Insult Comic Dog ? What do you think ? Are balls in the face a good way of staying in the publics eyes and ears ?

Big Week for Hip Hop On The Billboard

HIP HOP AIN'T GOING ANY WHERE !

At least that's what I yell at anyone who questions hip hop's future, or rap music's successful status in the music industry. You can't argue with the stats when they come out, so here it is, this week's top 10 on the Billboard hot 100 charts...

1. Black Eyed Peas - "Boom Boom Pow" *
2. Lady GaGa - "Poker Face" (yes, still !)
3. Jamie Foxx featuring T Pain - "Blame It" *
4. Pitbull - "I Know You Want Me (Calle Ocho)" *
5. Kid Cudi - "Day N Nite" *
6. Beyonce - "Halo" *
7. 3OH!3 - "Don't Trust Me" ~
8. Flo Rida featuring Wynter - "Sugar" *
9. Jeremih - "Birthday Sex" *
10. Soulja Boy Tell em featuring Sammie - "Kiss Me Thru The Phone" *

The *'s mark the 8/10 songs on the top 10 that I think are hip hop/urban music. That's a pro dominant 80% of hip hop presence in the top 10 ! What I also got from this was learning of a new music duo from Colorado.

I had to look up the 7th listing, "Don't Trust Me" by 3OH!3 on YouTube just to hear the track for the first time. It wasn't half bad actually it was pretty f'in hilarious when I watched some of the video while listening to the song. Check it out for your self and let me know what you think. I thought it was decent enough.

Anyway the whole point of this rant is hip hop continues to run shit in the main stream music sector. It's the most competitive genre during these times in my opinion, due to the fact that hip hop culture is fun and right now during rough times everyone can use some fun. Music is fun that's why there are so many hip hop/rap artists today as the number continues to sky rocket (believe me, I've dug deep into the depths of the million of hip hop producers and rap artist's MySpace pages).

Everybody wants to rap, live breath and love hip hop, it's a fun culture. It is a permanent fixture of entertainment, in our movies, TV shows, mags and video games. Plus if you are talented or even an entertaining artist that can be related to by millions, you can build a profitable music business.

That's the beauty of the hip hop world, I think, it promotes self improvement, success and good quality of life. At least that is the impression that I get when I look at a Billboard top 10 that is pro dominantly 80% HIP HOP MUSIC ! We aint going anywhere baby, HIP HOP WE IN HERE !

Hip Hop's Billboard Dominance

Check out this week's Billboard Hot 100 Charts, specifically the top 5. What do you notice ?

http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/charts/chart_display.jsp?JSESSIONID=XMw9JhvPGJpByp51n1HQ0dS13f6nnmfhDl5ppfQhGvf8Jy02pkjJ!654684368&g=Singles&f=The+Billboard+Hot+100

HIP HOP'S DOMINATION !!!

After just 3 weeks on the charts, Flo Rida's newest single"Right Round" has peeked at the number 1 spot, jumping from 58th last week. "Dead and Gone" by T.I. featuring Justin Timberlake has jumped from the 9th spot to 2nd overall during it's 11th week on the charts. The momentum of "Crack A Bottle" by Eminem featuring Dr.Dre and 50 cent has slowed considerably, dropping from the top spot to number 3 in it's 5th week on the Billboard. Still hanging on in the 4th spot is "Heartless", the follow up single to "Love Lock down" by Kanye West, which has been on the charts for 15 straight weeks now.

Aside from Lady GaGa's catchy dance hit "Just Dance" featuring Colby O'Donis which in it's 28th week and currently sits at number 5 on the Billboard charts, the top spots are all being held by hip hop/rap artists. That's pretty one-sided, don't you think ?

Now I am hip hop/rap music through and through, that's my preference. Although thinking about it, something is seriously wrong in the music business (which we have known for quite some time already). While the Billboard charts show us which songs are the most popular, most played and earn the most money, the variety of the Billboard's music pallet seems to be lacking even more then usual.

On a side note, this has been a great week for the label Atlantic Records. This is the third time in the label's history that they have been able to simultaneously secure the top 2 spots on the Billboard charts. (Flo Rida's "Right Round" and T.I. feat. Justin Timberlake "Dead and Gone").

Peep both of these tracks/videos...

"Right Round" - Flo Rida
http://www.musicloversgroup.com/flo-rida-right-round-lyrics-and-video/
"Dead and Gone" - T.I. feat. Justin Timberlake
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ENpeiakUnu4

Leaving labels, legal troubles and more leaks !

Album leaks actually a good thing? Huh...who knew!

Over the years the number of albums that have leaked has increased exponentially. As the Internet has never discriminated on leaking music from any genre, this has become a problem for many musicians and recording artists. Or has it ?

My last post discussed a little bit about Eminem's "Crack A Bottle" which skyrocketed to the number 1 downloaded song on iTunes shortly after a "rough version" prematurely leaked over the world wide web. Not only did Em's most recent single hit number 1, but it set a new digital record by selling about 418,000 copies in it's first week. Not too shabby for a song that you can find anywhere on the net for free.

After just 2 weeks on the Billboard charts, (http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/charts/chart_display.jsp?g=Singles&f=Hot+Digital+Songs) "Crack A Bottle" has landed Eminem on the top spot, but has now dipped down to 2nd.

In other news....


Dogg lets himself off of the leash ?


Snoop Doggy Dogg has bounced out of the Dogg House! That's right, the Doggfather of rap music has left Interscope/Geffen Records (Universal Music Group) after over ten years of a working relationship. Snoop has reportedly signed a 360-model deal with MTV (Viacom), the specifics unclear at this time. "Dogg After Dark" premiered Tuesday February 17th which is a MTV program featuring Snoop and celeb friends chillin' out after hours, Doggystyle (well I'm sure if Paris had her way) <- Oh, that's not right lol.

Snoop has got some ground to cover though, because his last show on MTV his payment was refused by the network. Viacom, cheap ? No ! As a record label though I gather Snoop will hire some of the best to handle the very involving services of a record label such as; distribution, marketing and promotions. I have no doubt that anything Snoop releases will get picked up by somebody.

Chris Brown will probably get BEAT DOWN for this one.

By now we have all been exposed to the "rumour-turned-scandal" incident involving R&B/Pop recording artists Chris Brown and Rihanna. I'm not even going to comment on what I heard or read, because nobody really knows as the official investigation is on going. The victimized Rihanna is co-operating with the authorities, as well as gathering support from fellow celebs and millions of loyal fans.

Way to go Chris, you effed it all up ! I just saw some interview with Chris Brown on ET not too long ago and they compared him to Michael Jackson. For real, Michael Jackson? I don't know. What I do know is that any publicity is good publicity. UNLESS you're target demographic is young females and you're being allegedly charged with then like I said Chris, you effed up.

It's hard to defend yourself when the victim's picture is released and it looks like this...
http://board.rapmusic.com/audio-emcee-hook-ups/1142428-picture-rhianna-after-incident.html