VIDEO: KANYE WEST Previews "POWER"

Beautiful visuals grace Kanye West's preview of his new video for new single "Power". The visuals are done as a moving, surreal painting. This is brilliant video work and can't wait to see the entire piece.

VIDEO: ETERNIA Live at 33rd Rock Steady Crew Anniversary Concert

KALAE ALL DAY Needs Your HELP with Her Next Project

We all know that this business of music is a STRUGGLE. It takes talent, connections, persistence and DOLLARS to maintain. KALAE ALL DAY is one of the brightest new artists to emerge with a depth of talent and attitude to match. Kalae set up a page on KICKSTARTER.COM to request donations to help fund her next two music videos. Her debut album "AFROMATIKNEOHIPPIEROCK*SOLEMUZIK" is very dope. Kalae is working with Noisemaker Media to film and produce her next two videos. Since she is an independent, a helping hand of support for this very visual and creative performer is needed.

Check out the link for details at KICKSTARTER to see what your donation provides.

Here is Kalae's first video "O.G.LYRiKALBOOKBAGGER" ft. Homeboy Sandman



Here is the interview that she did for THEZROHOUR:

THIS WEEKEND! Rock Steady Crew 33rd Anniversary

TODAY July 31, 2010 - New York City

ROCK STEADY CREW 33rd ANNIVERSARY BATTLE

3pm-9pm. All Ages. Battles begin at 4pm.

The winning Crew and Soloist will be flown to London to represent the US & Canada at the Sony Ericsson UK B-Boy Championships World Finals.

Feat. DJs Skeme Richards, DV One, Ervin Arana & Renegade (UK)

FOR THE FUNK OF IT - Funk Styles Party
Hosted by Crazy Legs and D-Stroy featuring DJ Doc

SPY AWARD Presentation to MOY
Also a special award presentation to ELITE FORCE

$30 at the Door

The Altman Building
135 West 18th St.
(between 6th & 7th Avenues)
New York, NY 10011
http://www.altmanbldg.com

Trains: 1 to 18th St. or F, L, 2, 3, A, C, E, 4, 5, 6, N, Q, R to 14th St.

http://www.CrazyLegsWorkshop.com


Sunday, Aug. 1, 2010 - Newark NJ

ROCK STEADY FOR LIFE OUTDOOR PARK JAM

Held in Association with The Lincoln Park Music Festival

12noon - 9pm. FREE!!!!! All Ages!

Free Outdoor Concert & Food Drive featuring the REDBUTTAFLY 2011 new collection runway show plus DJ Eclipse, DJ Scratch, DJ JS-1, DJ Evil Dee, Big Daddy Kane, EPMD, Kurtis Blow, Black Sheep, Artifacts, Lords of the Underground, 9th Wonder, Immortal Technique, Mickey Factz, Dynasty,Eternia, Chill Rob G, Lakim Shabazz, Homeboy Sandman, Rakaa (Dilated Peoples), Bishop Lamont, Brown Bag AllStars and more! Host: End of the Weak

Lincoln Park
1 Lincoln at Broad St. & Clinton Ave.
Newark, NJ

From NYC: take any train to WTC, Christoper St., 14th, 23rd and 33rd St. to pick up a PATH train to Newark's Penn Station. Please visit http://www.panynj.gov for a map and schedule. Amtrak or NJ Transit trains can also take you to Newark's Penn Station.

From Newark's Penn Station, Take Buses: #70, #62 or #39 to
the corner of Broad & Lincoln Park. Cab fare to Lincoln Park from Penn Station is $4. Log on to www.njtransit.com or call NJ Transit for up to date 800.722.2222 bus, train schedules and more.

Enter The Magical Mystery Chambers: Wu-Tang Vs. The Beatles

Took me a minute to locate a download link for this. Likely drawing inspiration from Dangermouse's Grey Album mash-up of The Beatle's "White Album" and Jay-Z's "Black Album", British produer Tom Caruana dropped a project earlier this year fusing Shaolin's finest with beats derived from samples from The Beatles' catalog.

DOWNLOAD HERE

VIDEO: KANYE WEST Performs New Material at Facebook Headquarters

??? Yeah I said the same thing when I saw this trio of videos originally posted at WILLIAMYAN.COM Kanye straight kills it accapella while standing on a table in a small room. He performs an unknown track, "Mama's Boyfriend", and "Chain Heavy". A great preview of what is sure to be a killer fourth album- "Good A** Job".

WYCLEF JEAN to run for President of Haiti

From ALLHIPHOP:

Sources close to Wyclef confirmed with AllHipHop.com that the rapper will announce his bid for the country’s highest office next Thursday, on August 5th.

The 37-year-old was born in Haiti, but immigrated to the United States at the age of 9-years-old, when he landed in Brooklyn, before settling in South Orange, New Jersey.
As a member of The Fugees and as a solo artist, Wyclef has sold millions of records, in addition to collaborating with artists like Paul Simon, Gloria Estefen, Destiny’s Child, Carlos Santana and others.

The rapper sprung into action on January 12th, when his native land was leveled by a 7.0 earthquake that left 300,000 people dead over a million others displaced. Even prior to the earthquake, Wyclef Jean’s Yele Haiti organization raised funds for the country, but after the deadly earthquake, the rapper helped raise over $10 million dollars in less than three months.

The rapper will make his official announcement just two days prior to the country’s August 7th deadline to submit his plan for running for President. Analysts are predicting that Wyclef Jean will easily win the race with his financial connections, influence among the Haitian youth and his political influence around the world. The news of his candidacy has stoked fears in opponents planning to run for the head office in November.

"I think if Wyclef is allowed to run he will have a straight victory," political leader and former presidential candidate Himmler Rebu told Reuters yesterday. Jean, who maintained his status as a citizen of Haiti, was in the country yesterday, where he was preparing for his upcoming campaign. The rapper/musician also has political clout in the country. His uncle, Raymond Alcide Joseph, has been the Haitian ambassador to the United States since 2005 and helped Wyclef’s drive to raise money and relief aid for victims of the massive earthquake.

Elections are slated for November 28th.

Congress Passes Historic Legislation to Reduce Crack/Powder Cocaine Sentencing Disparity

From the HUFFINGTONPOST:

By Jasmine Tyler

Today, the House passed legislation reducing the two-decades-old sentencing disparity between crack and powder cocaine offenses. The Senate passed an identical bill in March and the legislation is now heading to President Obama, who supports the reform effort.

This is a historic day, with House Republicans and Democrats in agreement that U.S. drug laws are too harsh and must be reformed. The tide is clearly turning against the failed war on drugs.

Before the changes, a person with just five grams of crack received a mandatory sentence of five years in prison. That same person would have to possess 500 grams of powder cocaine to earn the same punishment. This discrepancy, known as the 100-to-1 ratio, was enacted in the late 1980s and was based on myths about crack cocaine being more dangerous than powder. Scientific evidence, including a major study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, has proven that crack and powder cocaine have identical physiological and psychoactive effects on the human body.

The 100-1 ratio has caused myriad problems, including perpetuating racial disparities, wasting taxpayer money, and targeting low-level offenders instead of dangerous criminals. African Americans comprise 82 percent of those convicted for federal crack cocaine offenses but only 30 percent of crack users, and 62 percent of people convicted for crack offenses were low-level sellers or lookouts.

Advocates pushed to totally eliminate the disparity but ultimately a compromise was struck between Democrats and Republicans to reduce the 100-to-1 disparity to 18-to-1. The compromise also eliminated the five year mandatory minimum sentence for simple possession of five grams of cocaine (about two sugar packets worth). The repeal of that mandatory minimum is the first repeal of a mandatory minimum drug sentence since the 1970s. Overall, the compromise bill is expected to reduce the federal prison population by thousands of offenders and save an estimated $42 million in criminal justice spending over the first five years.

VIDEO: SKI BEATZ feat. MOS DEF- "Cream of the Planet"

RAS KASS feat. The HRSMN (Ras Kass, Killah Priest, Canibus, Kurupt) - "This Shit Right Here"

From the album A.D.I.D.A.S. available to download @ http://raskass.bandcamp.com

VIDEO: JOELL ORTIZ feat. JOE BUDDEN & NOVEL- "We Don't Believe You"

Jean Gregoire Sagbo Becomes First Black Politician Elected In Russia

Going outside the world of music for a moment, this news captured my attention and provided further evidence that the world is shifting in ways unseen. Hmmm...The Obama Effect possibly?

People in the town of Novozavidovo, Russia used to stare at Jean Gregoire Sagbo because they had never seen a black man. Now they say they see in him something equally rare – an honest politician. Sagbo last month became the first black to be elected to office in Russia. In a country where racism is entrenched and often violent, Sagbo's election as one of Novozavidovo's 10 municipal councilors is a milestone. But among the town's 10,000 people, the 48-year-old from the West African country of Benin is viewed simply a Russian who cares about his hometown.

He promises to revive the impoverished, garbage-strewn town where he has lived for 21 years and raised a family. His plans include reducing rampant drug addiction, cleaning up a polluted lake and delivering heating to homes. "Novozavidovo is dying," Sagbo said in an interview in the ramshackle municipal building. "This is my home, my town. We can't live like this."

"His skin is black but he is Russian inside," said Vyacheslav Arakelov, the mayor. "The way he cares about this place, only a Russian can care." Sagbo isn't the first black in Russian politics. Another West African, Joaquin Crima of Guinea-Bissau, ran for head of a southern Russian district a year ago but was heavily defeated. Crima was dubbed by the media "Russia's Obama." Now they've shifted the title to Sagbo, much to his annoyance.

"My name is not Obama. It's sensationalism," he said. "He is black and I am black, but it's a totally different situation."

Read more at the original post on the HUFFINGTONPOST.COM

VIDEO: RAH DIGGA- "This Aint No Little Kid Rap"

RAH DIGGA is back baby! I premiered this song on THEZROHOUR podcast S06E19. Support the ladies of hip hop!

MUSIC TECH: Spectrasonics Trilian has all the bass you’ll ever need

If there’s any other instrument or element in popular music styles that has a profound of an effect on the over feel of the tracks as the drums do, it’s gotta be bass! A great bass riff, bass line, or bass part can take a track to the next level….gives it that thump baby! Honestly, when it comes to virtual bass sounds, one name usually comes up pretty much every time.

Spectrasonics.

Their first product ever, was Bass Legends, a sample cd dedicated to the bass. Then some years later they produced Trilogy the first virtual instrument that was specifically made up of acoustic, electric, and synth bass sounds. That set the bar and Trilogy became the “go to” plugin for all your bass needs. Those with the computer power, and memory to take advantage never looked back.

Enter Trilian. The successor and evolution of Trilogy.

Quick Specs

* Content: 34gb core library
* Format: AU, VST,RTAS
* Price: $299

How does it sound?

Real. Fat. Deep. Huge. Live. Amazing. Thick. Round. Smooth. Harsh- yeah..I could keep going. Honestly, words really can’t describe it, you really have to hear it.
There are things that you may not even realize are missing from your bass sounds/instruments, until you play with Trilian!

Seriously, the detail in these instruments is beyond comparison, and I’ve heard/tried quite a few bass libraries in my days. Take the acoustic upright bass for example, when I heard it…man, I promise I thought I could smell it! It sounds that real. And let me be honest here, I’m no bass player, I have friends that are, and I’ve heard enough live bass in my years to know what one sounds like. It’s like I can actually hear and FEEL the strings vibrating, I feel like I’m actually playing the instrument.

The electric basses are the same thing, everything just sounds so authentic to my ears, from nice and smooth, to hard and harsh, the use of the fx in Trilian allow you to pull up a sexy fender electric and then pull up a harsh, trashy, heavy metal bass right after.

The fingered Clean Fender is amazing, based on the Fender J-bass, the character is just so useful. Thing is, after listening to these samples, it’s hard to even look at anything else, I hit the keys and I’m confident I can feel the strings vibrating, really…AND I can hear them. It’s not just a bass tone, I’m convinced they somehow trapped tiny bass fairies into the software that hit real bass strings every time I send them a midi message…true story. I also liked the muted Chapman Stick…and the picked Hip Hop bass from the Trilogy library, has a nice deep, boomy tone. Of course those are just a few of the many I loved.

Cool, so you expect good realistic bass right…how about the synth bass section?

Man it’s like a freakin museum of synths known for producing fat, throbbing, floor shaking bass! Seriously, Moog, SE-1, Roland, Access Virus, Waldorf, Dave Smith…if these names mean anything to you, then you know what type of treasure awaits. Not only that, but they sampled and reproduced some stuff I had absolutely NO idea ever existed, quirky limited run synths and modules, stuff only a true fanatic would know about. I was happy to see this stuff too.

READ MORE at the original post HERE

MUSIC TECH: Motu BPM beatmaking first look and first beats

I just got Motu BPM last Friday. Bought it from someone that wasn’t using it, hadn’t even been registered yet. I had to check it out for myself.

I plan to have a full review of it, but just like I did with Native Instruments' Maschine, I want to spend some more time learning it. I just wanted to show a few quick tracks and some features I liked about it so far.

Originally posted HERE