Rashad - The Truth

The Weeknd - Echoes of Silence

Last in the balloons trilogy, and end of an epic year for The Weeknd...

Download here: The Weeknd - Echoes of Silence

The Roots - UNDUN

The Roots pushing boundaries again... Visual sampler to their new album 'UNDUN'.

The Weeknd - The Knowing

First official video from The Weeknd. If you don't know The Weeknd please educate yourself before you get left behind.

From the album House of Balloons.

Drake - Take Care (Album Stream)

Album of the year. OVOXO

DOWNLOAD HERE.

Kid Cudi - Mr. Rager

Good to see visuals for the best Cudi song on MOTM II. Nice to see the man's still active...
    

The video see's Cudi battling with his mind and eventually the darker side of himself winning - pretty strong stuff, cool vid for sure.

Christopher Wallace

"At last I'm literally loungin' black, sitting back counting double digit thousand stacks."

The Weeknd - Thursday

No words to describe The Weeknd.. Just waiting on Drake and J. Cole and this years music will be complete.

XO till we overdose.

Download Here.

Kanye West and Jay-Z - Watch the Throne (Album Stream)

It's finally here... and they have not disappointed - Salute to the biggest two in the game, wow!

SHAOLIN JAZZ - Album Cover Design Contest

Okay this is something special right here. Firstly I want to set the record straight and say I don't advertise for people/peoples on my blog unless I am thoroughly impressed by the ideology of the project - and hope no offence is taken to those I have turned down - to those, no qualms.


With this being my mindset, I was bowled over by the Shaolin Jazz project. Personally recieving an e-mail from Gerald Watson who has collaborated with DJ 2-Tone to create 'Shaolin Jazz - the 37th Chamber' mixtape. In this creative and unique musical offspring they have combined the vocals of Wu-Tang Clan and combined them with Jazz instrumentals. The outcome is fire. (DL is at the end of post).


Adding to the buzz of the project the combination of Gerald and 2-Tone have created an album cover design contest for aspiring deisgners...

The SHAOLIN JAZZ - Album Cover Design Contest is a month long competition (Wednesday July 6th - Monday August 8th), whereby participants can submit designs or "graphic remixes" of the album cover with the winner receiving footwear courtesy of VANS OTW and apparel courtesy of Staple Design.  The winner will be announced Wednesday August 10th.

Rules/Guidelines:

1. Designers can submit up to two (2) album cover designs only
2. A design collective can only participate as one (1) designer - submitting only two (2) designs
3. Size specs: 8.3 x 8.3, 72dpi
4. Acceptable file formats: jpg, png, pdf not to exceed 2mb
5. Deadline for submitting work - Monday August 8th
6. Submit work to art_vs_commerce@yahoo.com
7. To see the album cover click here
8. Watch background video about SHAOLIN JAZZ (above)

Entries will be judged on the following criteria: originality and creativity, usage of typography, and connectivity to the theme of SHAOLIN JAZZ.

Eligibility: the competition is open to everyone worldwide

Prize: the winner will receive footwear courtesy of VANS OTW and apparel courtesy of Staple Design

Questions: art_vs_commerce@yahoo.com

DOWNLOAD LINK: Here

Big Sean - Finally Famous

For all the Big Sean followers, take a listen to the highly anticipated Finally Famous.

Easy listening hip hop, nothing serious that's why we all love Big Sean. Hopefully the fame doesn't swell his head even more and turn him into a shit rapper. Kanye - being the egotistical maniac he is - claims that the GOOD music rapper is as hip hop as it gets and see's the future with Big Sean...

On first listen an overall solid debut album, decent instrumentals with decent lyrics with decent collaborations. Nothing that's gonna make me listen to it 24/7 hopefully after a few listens my opinion changes. Can't see this being better than than Finally Famous Vol 3. But good to see Sean sticking to what he does best and that's delivering quick, witty metaphors with a good flow.

Album drops 28th June.

Takashi Murakami

I have always been a fan of visual art, but post-modern art is something that has been alien to me until I discovered Murakami.

His influences have no doubt come from Japanese Anime but it's his technique and the way he innovatively applies this to popular culture which makes him such a success in the art industry.

I discovered Takashi Murakami when I found out he designed the Kanye West - Graduation album cover (seen below) along with the famous design for the Kayne West bear, and from this I began to unearth a whole new concept of popular media. I like the way Murakami doesn't limit himself in terms of projects he attempts. Evidence of this can be seen when he collaborated with Louis Vuitton for a collection of prints to be designed on the usual Louis Vuitton luxury items such as bags, purses etc. (Regularly you see this print being sported by chavs who purchase fakes - although they don't know how this print was created and how stupid they look wearing them because it's quite expensive - #facepalm). Murakami was along The Times top 100 most influential people! The only visual artist in the list.

Murakami x LV print.

Here's a few of my favored Murakami pieces, his vivid use of colours and dreamy landscapes along with a character of some sort are consistently imagined by Murakami... Yay for creativity and for Kanye West who introduced me to this love of mine.

The next two are from a recent gallery in Hong Kong and shows signs of maturity in Murakami's work.

Although I confessed that the Must Cop! list is strictly for clothing this is my blog, and my Must Cop! wishlist therefore meaning I am allowed to put art in too...

Must Cop! rating - 10/10

This being exclusive artwork along with the thousand's of pounds of value means this is another Must Cop! that must be saved until I start sneezing Pound coins...

Frank Ocean

Frank Ocean is the singer from OFWGKTA (Odd Future Wolf Gang Kill Them All) a new hip hop collective that is extremely experimental but still feature the vintage hip hop taste we all love. Good flow and metaphors etc...

Frank Ocean however, is on a different level. The singer-songwriter has been signed to Def Jam and apparently wrote songs for Justin Bieber (?!) along with a number of different artists but after being ignored a number of times joined the OFWGKTA. It's took him around two years to finally establish himself and create his own EP - Nostalgia, Ultra.

He has a vast array of influences that range from Coldplay, MGMT and Radiohead - and refuses to pigeon-hole himself to a single genre of music. Following his uprising he has begun to work with Nas on his new album and worked with Pharrell Williams.

After hearing his EP I expect nothing other than big things from him, catchy beats with complex (and obviously well thought) lyrics. Amazing talent like this can be slept on.

 

Notable Tracks:

Frank Ocean - Novacane

Frank Ocean - Swim Good

Frank Ocean - Songs For Women

Drake - Dreams Money Can Buy

Oh gollygosh...

Is this off Drake's new album? Hope so... Since discovering Drake a few years back it's been so exciting to see him get the recognition he deserves. Definitely one of the best out atm.

New Drake obviously sporting my blended beard look.

Don't know who produced this track but they certainly know their shit from sampling the Jai Paul BTSTU track for this new Drake song - take a listen to both...

Jai Paul - BTSTU

Drake - Dreams Money Can Buy

Don't know which is better but I know I can't wait for Drizzy's next mixtape/album.

Nas and Damian Marley - Distant Relatives

"Doorsteps of Bob Marley smoking cubans; herb with Jnr. Gong". First sentance of this documentary explains it all.

This is an insight to the two artists/revolutionists collaborating on the Distant Relatives album Nas and Damian Marley. They are both individually so epic to their own genres of music and both believe in a bigger divine meaning to life which makes this collaborative album so successful.

No rapping about money, hoes and clothes... Please watch if you appreciate real music and real people. 'Real recognise Real.'





One of the best tracks off the album is Patience - only recently started listening to this but the lyrics are on another level to anything i've heard in recent years... D. Marley and Nas I salute you - video must have been shot by the same people as Kanye West's - POWER.



Lyrics (Must read).

Nardwuar Interview with Lil Wayne

Nardwuar is so stupidly ridiculuous but his interview style is really unique and penetrative. Considering he interviews some really big ego's he's got a big rep in the States and you can see why because he clearly is a smart guy.

You don't get much bigger ego's than Weezy in the music industry and for me it's Lil Wayne's character that appeals to me and makes him likeable (See his documentary if you get the chance) - not a huge fan of him musically although Tha Carter III was ridiculous.

It's a cool watch.