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25 Arists That Need To Be Heard: Muhsinah [VIDEO]

The Urban Daily — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 21:20:11 +0000

Muhsinah is smarter than you. Well, at least your favorite singer. The alumnus of Howard University had the beautiful audacity to name one of her recent projects Oscillations: Sine and Triangle.

Explore Our Nation’s Capital

“I was in recording school and I wanted to be an engineer,” she says with a smile. “I was learning the inner workings of audio. ‘Oscillation’ is just another word for wave. There’s different kinds of waves; sine waves, triangle waves, sawtooth waves…I am a nerd to the core. I didn’t want to be a singer, I was just recording myself to learn the Pro Tools program, but the songs got really good.”

The D.C. native went on to record with The Foreign Exchange (“Daykeeper,” “House of Cards”) and Common (“Changes”), and has recently released a new double EP, the more modestly titled Gone.

In this exclusive to TheUrbandaily she talks about the “urban/suburban” mix of her music and what it was like opening for Jennifer Hudson in Aruba last summer.

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FACT OF THE DAY: Nas Was Born In Brooklyn

The Urban Daily — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 18:08:14 +0000

When you think about MCs from Queens,NY one of the first names that comes to mind is Nasir Jones. His style and lyrics were cultivated in the famous Queens Bridge Housing projects and for years he as served as a proud ambassador of the Q-Boro. Nas even returned to his old stomping grounds to record is latest video, “Nasty.” However, Nas wasn’t actually born in Queens.

Take A Tour Of Nas’ Birthplace

The prolific Virgo was born in Brooklyn Jewish Hospital on September 14, 1973. According to his father, Olu Dara, a young Nas cut his musical chops on the streets of BK.

“I thought that he would become a great trumpeter because he was playing to audiences in the streets of Brooklyn when he was three or four,” he told The Source magazine in an August 2004 cover story. “He used to draw a lot of crowds [on Eastern Parkway]. It was fascinating to me. But his lip was becoming distorted so I made him quit. I remember him being very disappointed when I told him to stop playing.”

Needless to say Nas has done ok without the trumpet. But maybe it’s something he’ll pass it down to his son, Knight.

More Black History Month content…

FACT OF THE DAY: Common Was A Bookworm At FAMU

Pop Culture Moment #1: Chappelle’s Show Premieres

Way Black When Honors: Leon Huff On Making The “Soul Train” Theme Song

Pop Culture Moment #2: Tony Dungy Wins Super Bowl With Colts

The Urban Daily — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 17:28:38 +0000

In a game where superstars of each generation set and break new records every year, it gets pretty tough to be the first to do anything, but not impossible. After all, black athletes may dominate the field but the coaching staffs (and the owner’s boxes) of the NFL have always been pretty slim on African American representatives. So when the Indianapolis Colts met up with the Chicago Bears in Super Bowl XLI, the NFL had the chance to fill in a few gaps and did so with style.

FACT: Dungy is the only NFL player since the AFL-NFL merger to intercept a pass and throw an interception in the same game

While the fantasy leaguers were harping over Peyton Manning VS Rex Grossman or that the Colts hadn’t seen the Super Bowl in thirty-six years (damn!) The fact that Colts coach Tony Dungy and Bears coach Lovie Smith became the first two African-Americans to coach in the Super Bowl kinda went under the radar. But when the final whistle sounded, the Colts were now the champions, Manning was now the MVP and a former un-drafted defensive back named Tony Dungy was now the first ever African-American coach to win a Super Bowl.

And even though the NFL has a lot of ground to cover as far as adding a bit more brown to the owners boxes, we’ve got to tip our hat to Tony for still finding and conquering another first.

Cymphonique Miller Honors Rosa Parks For Black History Month [VIDEO]

The Urban Daily — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 17:55:21 +0000

Black History Month is in full effect. Nickelodeon is participating by having stars of their shows recite poetry for influential figures in the Civil Rights Movement. How To Rock star and daughter of Master P, Cymphonique Miller honored Rosa Parks in her video clip. Cymphonique reflects on Parks on how Parks’ refusal to give up her seat in the front of the bus future generations.

Check out the video below. Is this a fitting tribute for Rosa Parks from the kids channel?

Cymphonique Miller (How to Rock)–A Poem for Rosa Parks from Jessica Wilson on Vimeo.

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Don Cornelius’ Ex To Pocket His Life Insurance Policy

The Urban Daily — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 16:00:57 +0000

Don Cornelius and his ex-wife, Viktoria Chapman Cornelius, did not end their union on good terms. Towards the end of their marriage, the late television icon was convicted of domestic abuse. She was also believed to have pepper sprayed him multiple times. Though the two finalized their divorce in 2009, Chapman will be the one who pockets from two of his life insurance policies totaling $300,000 in benefits.

TMZ reports that there’s a provision in their settlement agreement that says Don has to make Viktoria the beneficiary of both of his life insurance policies. And under Cali law, if the policyholder commits suicide within two years, the company can void payment. Don passed that mark, as per the agreement, it’s Viktoria’s money.

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Bow Wow ft. Lil Wayne – “Sweat” [VIDEO]

The Urban Daily — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 15:45:57 +0000

When Bow Wow signed to Young Money plenty of people assumed he languish on the shelf. His latest single, “Sweat,” is here to prove those naysayers wrong. Lil Wayne and Bow Wow gallavant in a futuristic city with women while rapping singing about getting those ladies to sweat when they’re in the bedroom. “Sweat” will appear on his upcoming album, Underrated, which is due to hit the streets March 13th.

Check the clip out below. Is this the record and video to restore Bow Wow’s rap cred?

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Is Mariah Carey Too Legendary For ‘The X Factor’?

The Urban Daily — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 14:19:47 +0000

The moment people found out Paula Abdul and Nicole Scherzinger were fired from their judging duties on the American version of The X Factor, speculation began about who was going to take their spots. Nicki Minaj and Kelly Rowland’s names were tossed around. But one name had the internet going nuts. Mariah Carey was said to have been taking a seat at the judging table, however, Nick Cannon believes his wife is too legendary to do such a thing.

Cannon gave a quote to EW, saying:

“Like Nicole Scherzinger, my wife is not a fan of judging people. Nicole actually did say that she is used to performing, and the judging thing is not really natural for her. I really think that a lot of entertainers feel that way and I think these shows are really good shows, but when you get someone of status, or just big-time, career-wise, to do these shows, I personally think it’s a step down.”

“Why would would my wife want to be on a show like that? For somebody who has a legendary career, I don’t know why they would do that.”

Mariah Carey has hit legendary status. She does have more number ones than any artist except The Beatles. On the other hand, Mariah’s last few albums haven’t performed as well as others. So being in everyone’s homes on a constant basis might boost sagging sales. Would you watch The X Factor if Mariah Carey became a judge on the show?

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25 Artists That Need To Be Heard: Wyldfyer

The Urban Daily — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 12:20:21 +0000

When producer Wyatt “Wyldfyer” Coleman says he started making beats in “the lab,” he’s not just tossing around industry jargon. Before he brought the world beats like Jay-Z and Nas’s “Black Republicans” or Kendrick Lamar’s “Kush and Corinthians,” the Philly native was pioneering the mobile studio—sort of.

“Black Republicans”

“We would be at the Spelman computer lab, me and my homeboy Chris. Spelman always had the better computers because they had the Cosbys funding them,” says the Morehouse and Georgia Tech alumnus of his humble beatmaking beginnings.

“Kush and Corinthians”

“I didn’t have a laptop so I had Fruity Loops on a 100MB ZIP disk. I had to install it each time. I’d bang away for a few hours and then delete the program from the computer. It was a demo and with the demo you could export the project but you couldn’t save it. So when I made my beats I had to finish ‘em up, bruh. I had to finish the beat or I’d never hear it again. Low budget? I’ve been there.”

Thanks to that kind of hustle Wyldfyer now holds the distinction of being the only producer (thus far) to have had Jay-Z and Nas on the same track–twice. He programmed the slaps for Ludacris’ “I Do It For Hip-Hop” featuring Nas and Jay-Z and the aforementioned “Black Republicans.”

“God is my manager, bruh,” he says. “Me and NO ID were joking around one time cuz he did “Success” and we were saying ‘we’re the only ones that had Nas/Jay-Z collabos.’ I don’t know what made Luda get Nas and Jay-Z so that was just a blessing.”

Currently Wyldfyer is at work submitting tracks for the next Nas album and is sitting on some unreleased Biggie vocals that could make his career if he wanted to. He submitted two remixes to the Biggie Duets album that weren’t used, but he still has the acapellas.

“It didn’t make the album so it would be an unreleased Biggie song that no one’s ever heard,” says. “It’s the slow flow Biggie. It might just be a verse, which is probably why [Puff] didn’t put it out. But I’m not that thirsty to put it out there and ruin my career.”

Follow him on Twitter @Wyldfyer

FACT OF THE DAY: Common Was A Bookworm At FAMU

The Urban Daily — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 12:19:16 +0000

Long before battling rappers on wax and cowboys on the screen, Common aka Lonnie Lynn Jr. was attending Florida A&M University on scholarship majoring in Business Administration.

Where Presidents Play and Writers Find Their Muse

The rapper formerly known as Sense had a strict three-hour-a-day studying regimen, but his mind was still on rapping. In his book One Day It’ll All Make Sense, he wrote that he recorded “A Penny For My Thoughts” while in school by listening to beats that producer NO ID would leave on his outgoing answering machine message. “I’d call in and compose my raps like that.”

How did it come out? Take a listen to “Penny For My Thoughts” from Common’s debut Can I Borrow A Dollar?

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Way Black When Honors: Leon Huff On Making The “Soul Train” Theme Song

The Urban Daily — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 19:09:08 +0000

In a recent interview with TheUrbandaily about his new album Groovy People, legendary songwriter and producer Leon Huff shared how he and his partner Kenny Gamble came to create the “Soul Train” theme song:

Exploring The Sound Of Philadelphia

..It was a dance show and he[Don Cornelius] was very excited about it. He had everything in place, the only thing missing was a theme song. When he came to us he called Gamble, they communicated and he flew into Philadelphia. He talked about the concept…we didn’t have any ideas but I said me and Gamble will come up with something quick. We always rise to the occasion when it comes to a song.

Seven Memorable Soul Train Moments

[But] we went into the studio the first night and nothing really clicked. So Don Cornelius got a little nervous and I said, “Don’t worry. We don’t force creativity. Let’s come back tomorrow.” It was on a Friday, I’ll never forget it. The next day Saturday me and Gamble went back into the studio with the musicians and we grooved all day with that “dun dun dunnununua.” He was very happy. Everything turned out great. The MFSB orchestra and Three Degrees put it out as “T.S.O.P (The Sound Of Philadelphia) and it went #1. Their album and the single were #1 at the same time. Plus his show was red hot. So it was win-win for everybody.

Don Cornelius coming up with that Black concept show to expose Black R&B artists was right on time.

While Gamble & Huff’s theme song is the most recognized, it was not the first or only theme song “Soul Train” would have. Take a look at the list of Soul Train’s opening theme songs.

Soul Train used various original and current music for theme songs during its run, including:

1971-1973: “SoulTrain (Hot Potato)” by King Curtis (Curtis Ousley) and later redone by the Rimshots as “Soul Train, Parts 1&2″. [The original 1962 version Curtis recorded 9 years before the show was named "Hot Potatoes (Piping Hot)"]

1973-1975: “TSOP (The Sound of Philadelphia)“, composed by Gamble and Huff and recorded by Philadelphia soul studio group MFSB with vocals by the Three Degrees. Released as a single, this song became a pop and R&B radio hit in 1974 and the show’s best-known theme.

1975-1976: “Soul Train ’75″ by the Soul Train Gang, which was later released as a single for the newly formed Soul Train Records

1976-1978: “Soul Train ’76 (Get on Board)”, also by the Soul Train Gang

1978-1980: “Soul Train Theme ’79″, produced by the Hollywood Disco Jazz Band with vocals by the Waters
1980-1983: “Up on Soul Train”, first by the Waters and later by the Whispers, whose version appears in their 1980 album Imagination.
1983-1987: “Soul Train’s a Comin’” by R&B artist O’Bryan^[18]
1987-1989: “TSOP ’87″, a remake of the original “TSOP (The Sound of Philadelphia)”, composed and produced by George Duke
1989-1993: “TSOP ’89″, a remixed version of “TSOP ’87″, also by George Duke
1993-1999: “Soul Train ’93″ (Know You Like to Dance)” by the hip-hop group Naughty by Nature with a saxophone solo by Everette Harp
1999-2006: “TSOP 2000″, with rap vocals by hip hop artist Samson and music by Dr. Freeze, and again featuring an Everette Harp saxophone solo. However, a portion of “Know You Like to Dance” was still used in the show’s second-half opening segment during this period.

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Ciara Hangs Out At Super Bowl Media Day

The Urban Daily — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 14:30:59 +0000

R&B singer Ciara is working on her first record for Epic Records. Being the sports fan she is, Ciara took a break from recording to hit Indianapolis for the Super Bowl’s Media Day. The “Oh” singer tried her hand at reporting and did a little corresponding. She even got a chance to interview Patriots wide receiver Deion Branch. We can’t wait to see her interviewing skills.

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Drake To Present At The Grammys

The Urban Daily — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 14:20:16 +0000

Aside from being nominated for four Grammy awards this year for his collaborations including: Nicki Minaj’s “Moment 4 Life,” Rihanna’s “What’s My Name?,” and DJ Khaled’s “I’m on One.” Drake has been tapped to present at the ceremony!

“Happy to announce that @Drake will be presenting at the 54th GRAMMY Awards Feb. 12th on @CBS! #GRAMMYs,” tweeted the official Grammy account.

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Way Black When Honors: Lenny Williams

The Urban Daily — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 05:36:52 +0000

Even if you don’t know his name, you know his music. Lenny Williams’ classic ballad “Cause I Love You” has been sampled by everyone from Kanye West to Scarface and remains one of the most well-known love songs of the past thirty years.

Fact: Lenny Williams won a BMI Award With Kanye West for Twista’s “Overnight Celebrity”

The Arkansas-born California native was once the lead singer of the group Tower Of Power and has had much success as a solo artist. Now, thanks to Young Jeezy, a newer generation of music fans are being exposed to his music.

On TM103 Young producer M-16 samples Williams “Let’s Talk It Over” for Jeezy’s latest hit “I Do,” The original song was released as a single in 1979 on MCA Records.

“I thought it was going to be my follow-up to ‘Cause I love you’ and I was trying to do a similar song,” says Williams of the track. “But we ended up doing it a little faster than I wanted to at the end. So I couldn’t get my talking on. It’s a good song, I always felt it was kind of wasted and here it is all these years later and Jeezy found it. It’s exciting to see what touches people. It’s gotta be thirty years later and they found it. Their version has a lot of nice strings. They got me humming in the back. I love it.”

“I Do, I Do”

So with two of his songs anchoring hip-hop hits is there anything else he feels could get the sample treatment?

“I always wondered why nobody ever sampled ‘Choosing You’,” he says. “Especially the New York rappers. ‘Choosing You’ was a #1 hit in New York on WBLS. It’s an uptempo song with the strings. I think Ray Parker, Jr. is playing on it and the guys from Lakeside are signing and playing on it.”

“Choosing You”

In addition to his considerable catalog from the 60s and 70s, Williams has been recording new music as well. He released an album in 2009 called Unfinished Business with the hilarious “Sorry I Didn’t Know That Was Your Momma”, which he says is based on a true story.

“I was at a club one night with the band and I was walking around on a break and I saw this table of ladies,” he begins. “I walk over and holla and you see they look like a certain age. But one of the girls at the table said ‘hey don’t be talkin like that to my momma.’ It’s interesting because momma had the little tattoo, the nose ring, earring, tongue ring…They dress like Beyonce and want you to treat ‘em like Eartha Kitt.”

With stories like that it’s easy to see why Lenny Williams will have more music coming in 2012. In the meantime hit him up on Twitter @LennyWilliams

Pop Culture Moment #1: Chappelle’s Show Premieres

The Urban Daily — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 23:10:02 +0000

On January 22, 2003 Black television changed forever. Comedian Dave Chappelle premiered his late night sketch comedy show on Comedy Central filling a void in late night television that had been vacated by the likes of “The Aresenio Hall Show” and “In Living Color.” But Dave’s irreverent humor was in a class all its own.
Fact: The Clayton Bigsby character was based on Dave’s own grandfather

The D.C native’s affinity for hip-hop and fearless approach to sensitive topics made him an instant hit. Whether it was “The Racial Draft” where Tiger Woods became Black or the classic Charlie Murphy’s Truth Hollywood Stories with the late Rick James Chappelle took made sketch comedy feel like oral history. In fact, mere phrases from the show (“I’m Rick James, bitch!” ) have become ubiquitous, embedding themselves into the American lexicon.

Add performances from some of hip-hops best like Kanye West, Erykah Badu and Snoop and Chappelle’s Show was must-see TV. Sales of season 1 and 2 on DVD made it one of the most successful of all time, beating out The Simpsons in 2005.

Unfortunately, Chappelle would take his talents back to Ohio and Season 3 never officially materialized. Fans still pine away for the return of Chappelle to TV and Chris Rock recently hinted that the two may tour together. In any respect we need him back.

“He was the new generation Eddie Murphy,” says DJ Rob Flow, who walked away with a jar or Pomade and a pack of Newports after winning the “I Know Black People” contest on Chappelle. “Every generation has a black comedian that expresses a particular type of angle on the culture. In ’70s we had Richard Pryor. ’80s we had Eddie Murphy. He was definitely a part of hip-hop culture and he loved conscious artists. He was important to the culture for that. He ended up really pushing the racial lines and that’s what freaked everybody out. It got really popular and he realized white people aren’t laughing with us. That’s my theory. I think that’s why he left. But he needs to come back and finish the thought. Get white people to laugh with us, not at us.”

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Throughout the month of February TheUrbanDaily.com will be celebrating 25 of the biggest moments in pop culture, sponsored by Gillette.

D’Angelo “Live” Mixtape [FREE DOWNLOAD]

The Urban Daily — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 20:39:34 +0000

DJ/producer Sam Champ has compiled live versions of your favorite D’Angelo songs for this D’Angelo Live mixtape. It’s one hour and twelve minutes long, so listening to this is like experiencing a live D’Angelo show without the visuals!

Take a listen to D’Angelo Live by streaming the audio below, or download it by clicking the link.

Download D’Angelo’s “Live” Mixtape HERE!

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