Tupac Amaru Shakur has been called a poet and a thug. He was neither and both of those things, an artist who struggled to find his voice and tenuous place in the world. Most rappers who rhyme about guns and sex don't turn around and spin beautiful pieces celebrating the importance of mothers as Tupac did.
Tupac was shot in Las Vegas on Sept. 7, 1996; he died 10 years ago today. His death at 25 guaranteed a life for his legend that shows no sign of burning out.
There might have been better rappers, but no rapper has had the influence on the game that Tupac has had. Tupac is Hip Hop Elvis Presley, In that we mean people still feel he is alive and well. Ten years later, we continue to dissect Tupac's music. We debate his legacy. We wonder what kind of music he would have produced had his life not been cut short. His murder, still unsolved, continues to prompt questions: Who shot him? Why? Did rap culture contribute to his death? A few conspirasts still float the theory that Tupac is still alive. Tupac's death, which has inspired movies, conspiracy theories, investigations, documentaries and Web sites. They have, so far, proved nothing, other than a key suspect, who also is now dead.
We don't know who pulled the trigger as Tupac sat in a car on the busy Las Vegas Strip on Friday, Sept. 7, 1996. His art may never escape the shadow of the mystery. R.I.P Tupac Shakur www.diggmagazine.com
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WEEKLY SOUNDSCAN REPORT 9/13The numbers are in! This weeks urban soundscan rounds out with "THE B - GIRL" HERSELF, MS. BEYONCE with her sophomore album "B-DAY" debuting at #1 with 545,000 units sold in its first week's release, making her album certified GOLD in just one week!!! A lot of people was skeptical of her album sales at first but, whether it's better than her previous album or not is only left to be determined. Congrats to Beyonce and the Urban Sony Staff. This is the second biggest first week sale of 2006.In other soundscan news, DANITY KANE continues to thrive! The came in at #4 this week on the top 200 Soundscan Album Sales, with 82,000 units sold, bringing their Albm Sales total to 434,000 albums sold in less than one month of its Bad Boy release date! Very Impressive: Gold Sales are right around the corner! Shout Outs to the whole BAD BOY & MTV STAFF! Diddy proved a lot of haters wrong with this one!Other soundscan notables:
This week / Total Sales
#12 OUTKAST IDLEWILD 49,451 324,111
#13 YOUNG DRO BEST THANG SMOKIN' 46,013 150,056
#14 ROSS*RICK PORT OF MIAMI 39,799 406,494
#17 PUSSYCAT DOLLS PCD 35,703 2,116,634
#22 METHOD MAN 4:21 THE DAY AFTER 30,436 92,718
#24 CHERISH UNAPPRECIATED 30350 198,686
#28 YUNG JOC NEW JOC CITY 27,041 690,813
#32 ROOTS GAME THEORY 25,699 86,920
#38 LETOYA LETOYA 21,698 378,725
#40 RIHANNA GIRL LIKE ME 20,662 957,382
#57 CASSIE CASSIE 15,306 199,339
#64 KELIS KELIS WAS HERE 14,464 90,075
#72 PHARRELL IN MY MIND 13,102 294,662
#91 DMX YEAR OF THE DOG AGAIN 10,307 242,125
#93 BUSTA RHYMES BIG BANG THE 9,808 535,735
#102 CHAMILLIONAIRE SOUND OF REVENGE 9,266 1,176,438
LeToya Luckett
CD REVIEW www.diggmagazine.com
It was always clear that Beyoncé Knowles would be the Destiny’s Child set for solo world domination. Then, with B’s management and a couple of solo hits under her belt, next in the pecking order would be Kelly Rowland; it was all so predictable. So isn’t it a great feat over assumption when an underdog enters the scene?Six years after a humiliating dismissal from Destiny’s Child, LeToya Luckett has surprised all with a spectacularly strong return to the music industry with her debut solo album, the modestly titled ‘LeToya’, which has secured her place as an R&B starlet in her own right. After two years in the making, nearly four million copies of the album were sold in the US alone, after its debut at No.1 on the Billboard charts.
On this unveiling, we are not only introduced to LeToya’s lush diva vocals but also her song writing talents: all but one of the songs on the album is written by the self proclaimed ‘H-Town chick’, who sings about the common experiences of many young woman, from relationships and lovers to going out with your girlfriends. This, paired up with refined production from industry heavyweights such as Jermaine Dupri, Jazze Pha and Scott Storch guarantees that this album is not short of potential hit singles.Clearly set on following on from her success with DC, LeToya kick starts the album with the upbeat ‘You Got What I Need’. This summery Just Blaze production is a simple ode to her beau over a playful tinkering melody and is a catchy feel-good track relating the age old message of love. Continuing the theme of appreciating your man, ‘So Special’ is classic R&B on top form, with its laid back hook, “All my ladies hear me out, if your man’s here point him out/Got a good man make it official, all my ladies say he's so special.â€The lead single off the album, the Teddy Bishop-produced ballad ‘Torn’ is reminiscent of Mary J. Blige’s ‘Everything’ and showcases LeToya’s impressive vocal range at its best; it is no doubt one of the strongest cuts off the album. This mid-tempo R&B flows until half way through the album and shows the singer in the zone through her vocal confidence and clever lyricism.However, when LeToya starts to venture into Hip Hop, things start to work loose. Jazze Pha’s Hip Hop/ R&B hybrid ‘Dance With Me’ featuring fellow Houston native Bun B, no doubt an intended club crunk joint, is a weak attempt to show versatility to LeToya’s image. The lyrics, “I don’t hate ‘cos my wrists on freeze… got my girls with me/ looking pretty in VIP†stoop to a level of cliché inconsistent with the rest of the album as the music clashes heavily with LeToya’s voice.There is redemption after this low point with ‘All Eyes On Me’ featuring a slurry couple of verses from Paul Wall. With its ethnic drums and Latin horns, this track is obviously drafted to become the lead club banger on the album. Then, with its bass-bumping laid back vibe and Southern vernacular, ‘Gangsta Grillz’ plays worthy homage to her Houston roots. The album finishes with a couple of unmemorable ballads, which are neither good nor bad.
So apart from the odd inconsistency, LeToya has delivered a generically good R&B album which is palatable the whole way through. If this release is anything to go by, the future for this Southern chick looks promising.
IDLEWILDI don’t know what I expected from this all-star African-American extravaganza. I was hoping I’d get more than a glorified music video showcasing Outkast’s new album. I got more than I had hoped for.The story follows childhood friends Percival (Andre Benjamin) and Rooster (Antwan B. Patton) growing up in fictitious 1930’s Idlewild, Georgia. Naturally, a juke joint and moonshine abound, along with a full cast of colorful characters.There aren’t any brand new storylines here: Two friends, one on the straight-and-narrow , the other one on the outskirts of the law; the old conflict of child and overbearing, alcoholic parent; a cheating husband with the proverbial devoted wife and children waiting at home; and of course, there’s boy-mess-girl. In a nutshell, it’s pretty predictable.Except it is a musical, visual, feast for the eyes and ear. In between shoot-outs car chases and romance, there are some of the most explosive dance sequences I’ve ever
witnessed. The wardrobe, hairstyles and choreography are superb.The actors are polished and utterly believable. Although Spats (played by Ving Rhames) exits too soon for my taste, we get plenty of Terrence Howard as the delightfully evil Trumpy. Cicely Tyson and Macy Gray make small but memorable appearances, and a fresh face, Paula Patton is breath of fresh air as our heroin Angel Davenport.The movie can get long in spots, but spots, but I wouldn’t change a thing. This is the kind of cinematic era many of us have missed out on without even knowing it had existed. Idlewild is essential, a must seeReview by
Lucky Lanai
[email protected]..
Jay-Z Makes It Official He Is Coming Back!!!In the upcoming edition of Entertainment Weekly, Def Jam President Jay-Z will finally break his silence about his new album. In the cover story titled “Jay-Z Returns,†the Brooklyn rapper-turned-exec gives details about coming back to music after retiring three years ago. “It was the worst retirement, maybe, in history,†Jay tells EW. “I believed it for two years.†Jay’s new album Kingdom Come, rumored to be in stores this November, will feature production from Dr. Dre, Timbaland, Kanye West and Coldplay’s Chris Martin. Entertainment Weekly’s Fall Music Preview issue will hit stands on Friday, September 15. www.diggmagazine.com
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