EVE AND XZIBIT SIGN UP FOR GUMBALL 3000 RALLY

April 29th, 2010 | By

Hip-hop stars EVE, XZIBIT and BUN B are revving their engines as they prepare to drive across the world in the Gumball 3000 rally.

The rappers will join The Wire star Idris Elba and professional skateboarder Tony Hawk in the annual event, which sees 120 cars travel across continents.

The eight-day tour will kick off on 1 May (10) in London, before travelling to the Netherlands, Denmark and Sweden.

The group will then move to North America, visiting Boston, Massachusetts; Canada and New York City

Read more on New Kerala

Mr. Cee Drops Tribute to Guru

April 24th, 2010 | By

 It’s pretty sad that Mr. Cee has had to step up to do tribute mixes so often in the past year, but here we are again. This time around the Hot 97 DJ is honoring the ever-amazing Guru , and Cee’s new mix, ripped off the radio on April 20 by Rap Radar , is a fantastic introduction and remembrance of one of the greatest to ever do it on the microphone. In the …

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Guru of Gang Starr dies of cancer, say reports

April 20th, 2010 | By

New York rapper Guru has died following what is described as a long battle with cancer, according to reports by Allhiphop.com.

The hip hop star, whose real name is Keith Alam, was admitted to hospital in February after suffering a cardiac arrest. He lapsed into a coma and had to undergo surgery, but details of his illness were not fully published.

But a statement published today by Fact magazine and other hip hop sources describe the 43-year-old as having suffered from an aggressive form of cancer for over a year, something he had decided to keep private.

The statement also includes a letter purportedly written by Guru during the final stages of his illness:

“I, Guru, am writing this letter to my fans, friends and loved ones around the world. I have had a long battle with cancer and have succumbed to the disease. I have suffered with this illness for over a year. I have exhausted all medical options. I have a non-profit organisation called Each One Counts dedicated to carrying on my charitable work on behalf of abused and disadvantaged children from around the world and also to educate and research a cure for this terrible disease that took my life. I write this with tears in my eyes, not of sorrow but of joy for what a wonderful life I have enjoyed and how many great people I have had the pleasure of meeting.”

The letter then goes on to reference an “ex-DJ”, which it can be assumed refers to DJ Premier, with whom Guru formed Gang Starr in the 80s:

“I do not wish my ex-DJ to have anything to do with my name, likeness, events, tributes etc connected in anyway to my situation including any use of my name or circumstance for any reason and I have instructed my lawyers to enforce this. I had nothing to do with him in life for over seven years and want nothing to do with him in death.”

The rapper also wrote that he was most proud of his work on Jazzmatazz, a hip hop and jazz fusion project that he worked on in recent years.

Read the rest of this story at Guardian

No more relapses for Eminem, just a ‘Recovery’

April 15th, 2010 | By

DETROIT — Eminem had a relapse in 2009. He was going to have another this year, but his label says he instead decided to head for recovery.
Interscope Records says the Detroit rap superstar’s new album, called “Recovery,” will be released June 22. It will come out just over a year after his last album, “Relapse,” which debuted atop the Billboard Top 200 chart and eventually went platinum. Eminem initially planned to release “Relapse 2″ in 2010, but in the record company’s Thursday statement he says that as he worked and recorded with new producers, the idea of a sequel made “less and less sense.” Read more on Tulsa World

Def Jam CEO Kevin Liles on ‘Def Jam Rapstar’

April 15th, 2010 | By

Music games like Guitar Hero cannot technically transform you into a real-world guitar hero, but the upcoming Def Jam Rapstar can help launch your hiphop career.

The game, due this fall for the Microsoft Xbox 360, Sony PlayStation 3 and Nintendo Wii, lets you upload 30-second videos of you performing any of the more than 40 songs included in the game such as 50 Cent’s I Get Money and Kanye West’s Gold Digger. Once uploaded to the game’s website, they can be shared on social networks like Facebook and voted on. You can also create your own freestyle songs using built-in instrumental beats provided by some of hiphop’s biggest producers. “We’ll start to find all these great people that really would never have a chance in any other game to express themselves,” says Def Jam Enterprises president Kevin Liles.

Other announced songs in the game’s 40-plus tracklist:
I Get Around — 2Pac
Nuthing’ But a “G” Thang — Dr. Dre featuring Snoop Dogg
A Milli — Lil Wayne
Juicy — Notorious B.I.G.
Children’s Story — Slick Rick
Live Ya Life — T.I. featuring Rihanna
C.R.E.A.M. — Wu Tang Clan
Put On — Young Jeezy featuring Kanye West

Def Jam president and CEO Kevin Liles took time earlier this week to talk about the game, which is being developed by 4mm Games, Terminal Reality Interactive and Def Jam Interactive and co-published by Konami and Autumn Games.

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