Freeway

Jay-Z Wasn't Always On Freeway's 'What We Do'

22 Sep 2011 17:42:24 EDT

Hov was only supposed to contribute an ad-lib, but he and Beanie Sigel ended up dropping verses, Free recalls on 'RapFix Live.'
By Rob Markman, with reporting by Sway Calloway

Freeway has quite a few gems in his catalog, one being the Jay-Z and Beanie Sigel-assisted single "What We Do" from his 2003 debut, Philadelphia Freeway. The trio trade vivid verses filled with sarcastic regret over a Just Blaze-produced soul beat.

While the track remains a fan favorite, Free admitted on Wednesday's "RapFix Live" that he originally planned for the song to be a solo affair. Freeway recalled recording the track at Roc-A-Fella's Bassline Studios in New York City. On any given night, the entire Roc roster would be milling about the studio, and the bearded MC often sought musical advice from his labelmates.

"It was always that family vibe that they said was around. So I can go like, "Cam, how this sound?" Or "Jay, how that sound?" " Free remembered.

While recording "What We Do," Philly Freezer asked Jay to record an ad-lib for the song. On the track, after Free spits the line "When the teeth stop showing, and the stomach start growling, then the heat start blowin'/ If you from the 'hood, I know you feel me," Jay jumps in and adds, "Keep goin'." But after hearing what Free had already laid down, the God MC decided to contribute an entire verse.

"So when I was recording "What We Do," I originally called Jay just to do the "keep goin'." So when he heard it, he sat down on the bench in Bassline and was just vibin' out," Free said before crossing his arms and nodding his head to mimic Jay's writing technique. "He sat there for 10 minutes, then he was like, "I got you. This sh-- crazy, I got you." "

The then-rookie rapper got more than he bargained for, because after Jay offered his verse, Beanie Sigel came in to complete the trifecta. "Beans came in and heard that, and Beans was like, "Oh no, I'm next. I'm getting on that joint," " Free said.

Would "What We Do" be the same without Jay and Beans? Let us know in the comments below!

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Freeway Recalls How Storied Roc-A-Fella Fell Apart

22 Sep 2011 13:41:52 EDT

'At one point in time, we were a family,' Freeway tells 'RapFix Live' of Jay-Z/Damon Dash era.
By Rob Markman, with reporting by Sway Calloway

Roc-A-Fella Records was once one of the most storied labels and rap crews in the business. Under the guidance of Jay-Z, Damon Dash and Kareem "Burke" Biggs, artists like Kanye West, Beanie Sigel, Cam'ron, Memphis Bleek and Freeway were able to carve out careers for themselves that would carry on even after the label disbanded.

On Wednesday's "RapFix Live" with host Sway, Free discussed the last days of the Roc, the separation that existed between the record label's subdivisions and how he was able to bounce back.

"At one point in time we were a family. The whole thing about Roc-A-Fella that they pride themselves on is the family structure," Freeway said of the label that was composed of a number of sub-crews like the Diplomats, State Property and Bleek's Get Low clique. Free then went on to describe how the once-united crews came to be divided.

By 2005, the Jay-Z/Dame Dash feud was dominating headlines, but for Free, the reality didn't set in until after he dropped his 2007 sophomore album. "It definitely was a point in time when I was like, 'Oh sh--, what am I gonna do?' " the bearded MC recalled, saying that it was former Roc-A-Fella A&R Lenny Santiago who broke the news to him and State Property. "I think it was the time when it was really over and everybody got dropped, after ['07's] Free at Last, probably like a couple of months after that, that's when we realized. Lenny S. came to Philly to talk to us.

"He was like, 'Look, man, it's gonna be some changes again; everything ain't how it was,' basically, 'It's over.' "

Without a hint of bitterness in his voice, the street-hardened MC described his mind-set. "What I did is go back to what I normally do," he told Sway.

According to Philly Freezer, when he first appeared on Jay-Z's "1-900-Hustler" in 2000, he wasn't actually signed to Roc-A-Fella: His deal came after a series of radio freestyles and battles in which Free proved himself. So when his deal with the legendary label dissolved, he went back to what he knew, grinding on the underground level. Free's 2010 Stimulus Package, produced with Jake One, helped cement his status as a formidable MC and should nicely set up his Diamond in the Rough LP coming later this year.

To let Freeway tell it, the transition from being under the Roc umbrella was relatively easy. "When the whole breakup came, I just went back to what I know," he said. "It was actually better for me because I already had a name established from the Roc-A-Fella brand."

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Big Boi, Freeway, Pill Encourage Prayers For Troy Davis

21 Sep 2011 19:26:32 EDT

'It's just too much doubt,' Outkast MC tells 'RapFix Live' of Georgia death-row inmate's scheduled execution on Wednesday at 7 p.m. ET.
By Rob Markman

With the planned execution of Georgia death-row inmate Troy Davis set for Wednesday (September 21), Big Boi and Freeway are asking people to pray.

"The best thing to do is you gotta pray," Big Boi said on Wednesday's "RapFix Live" via Skype from Atlanta. "Anything is possible; we're looking for a miracle right now."

In-house "RFL" guest Freeway agreed with the Outkast rapper. "I think Big Boi said it the best: The best thing people can do is pray for him, man. The power of prayer is unbelievable, man."

Davis' lawyers have been fighting for a last-minute appeal on his behalf, hoping to be granted a clemency ruling that would spare him the death penalty after he was convicted in the 1989 killing of Georgia police officer Mark MacPhail, a crime Davis claims he did not commit.

Big Boi has been supporting Davis' family. And when he Skyped into "RapFix Live" at approximately 4:30 p.m. ET, just hours before the inmate's scheduled execution, he told host Sway that he was at a rally outside the prison in Jackson, Georgia, where Davis is being held. "It's a lot of support, a lot of people," Big said of the rally. "They got over a million petition signatures saying they should commute his sentence or grant him clemency, so it's an injustice for everybody right here, right now."

Pill, who first helped shed light on Troy Davis' situation by flashing a "Justice for Troy Davis" poster in the video for his 2009 single "Trap Gon Ham," also spoke his piece. "I think it's an injustice," the Maybach Music rapper told Sway via Skype. "I feel like somebody like Martin Luther King marched for things like this not to happen and it feels like it was pointless."

Atlanta-based Pill went on to compare Davis' case with the controversial Casey Anthony verdict earlier this year. "He's an innocent man, how can you kill an innocent man," Pill questioned, "and you let a woman who you know killed her daughter walk free? That's messed up."

Big Boi was a bit more measured with his words, pointing out that Davis' lawyers have argued that new ballistics tests disprove the prosecution's case and that seven of the nine original eyewitnesses changed all or part of their testimony in later proceedings. For the Outkast rapper, there just isn't enough evidence. "It's just too much doubt, all the way around it's just too much doubt," he argued.

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Freeway Hits The 'RapFix Live' Couch Wednesday!

19 Sep 2011 19:27:28 EDT

Philly MC will talk his post-Roc career and State Property reunion at 4 p.m. ET on MTV.com.
By Rob Markman

After celebrating the one-year anniversary of "RapFix Live" in grand fashion, MTV News' live hip-hop show returns for year two with Freeway on Wednesday.

Last week, Lloyd Banks, Maino, Diplomats capo Jim Jones, Consequence, the Outlawz, Reek Da Villian, Superstar Jay and DJ Love Dinero all crashed the couch and toasted to "RapFix Live" and the year that was. Now, Philadelphia MC Freeway will set off year two. In 2003, Free dropped his debut album on Roc-A-Fella Records and, in the label's heyday, stood as one of the Roc's most loyal soldiers. Through his career, Philly Freezer has earned a rep as one of the game's most-skilled spitters, going head-to-head with rappers like Cassidy and Jaz-O.

Post-Roc-A-Fella, the State Property MC carried on, releasing his sophomore album, Free At Last (though the record technically came out on the Roc, Jay-Z and Damon Dash had long disbanded), as well as a number of critically acclaimed independent projects like The Stimulus Package with producer Jake One.

While a Roc reunion is highly unlikely, Freeway and his State Property brothers came together for a concert this past July and are now planning a comeback project. "When we got together, we had our meeting, our initial conversation about doing what we thought was necessary for us and for music, for everybody's careers as State Property the group and solo careers," Beanie Sigel said when he appeared on "RapFix Live" in July.

Tweet questions for Freeway @MTVNews with the hashtag #RapFixLive.

Catch Freeway on "RapFix Live" on Wednesday, September 21, at 4 p.m. ET on MTV.com!

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Allen Iverson Gets Some Brotherly Love From Philly MCs And DJs

07 Dec 2009 19:27:00 EST

Beanie Sigel, Freeway, DJ Drama and others celebrate A.I.'s return to the 76ers.
By Shaheem Reid

Allen Iverson is suiting up Monday night (December 7) and returning to the Philadelphia 76ers. The city's hip-hop community has nothing but brotherly love for A.I. after two seasons away from his original team.

"We still know A.I. is a great player," Philly native DJ Drama said. "I look for him to really come back and ball. I think, at this point in his career, his main goal is to get a championship ring. I think the city is excited to have him back. I see him flourishing, having a great year with the team."

Young Chris said Iverson will take his hometown team back to the championship series and win a ring. "What does it mean to the city of Philadelphia to have Allen Iverson back on the 76ers? Leadership, loyalty, success as a family. It's about more than just basketball," Chris declared.

"You couldn't give a ticket to the game away before; now it's sold out," Philly's DJ Omega noted of Iverson's return. "It's great for the city. I feel Allen Iverson represents Philadelphia, in a sense that we have a swagger to ourselves that it's us against the world. It's beautiful that somebody who has such an influence on us could leave and come back. It's going to be a good look."

"It's a good thing," Freeway said of Iverson's return. Free has tickets for Monday's game, but due to a show in Detroit, he won't be able to go. "A.I. is a good baller. [His return] is going to elevate not only the team, but the city. He's gonna elevate the city. I know I ain't been back to a Sixers game since he ain't been playing. It's gonna be good for Philly. He's bringing positive energy back to the city. I'm glad he didn't retire. It's perfect for him to be back. Philly is where he really did his thing and put his stamp down. This is the perfect place for him to retire. He might as well get in and get a ring and keep it moving."

While Free said he's going to make it to future games, Beanie Sigel said he'll be at the Wachovia Center on Monday when #3 takes the court. Iverson's current squad goes against his old team, the Denver Nuggets.

"That was hurtful," Beanie Sigel described about Iverson getting traded from the Sixers to the Nuggets two years ago. "You didn't know if he was getting traded because of the franchise or if he wanted to leave. When you think of Philly, that was it right there. When A.I. was here, the city was good. A.I. was connected to the community. He wasn't the type of person you would have to go to the game to see him. After the game, you could go to see him at Friday's bustin' a grub. Or go to any local club and catch him with his people. When A.I. was in the city [the first time], he was from Philly. He'd be at any spot a normal person would go to. It's a good thing now. The nights seem good. People will start coming out to see the boy."

Iverson played 11 seasons with the 76ers — 10 as an All-Star and as the MVP in 2001 — before being traded in December 2006 to the Denver Nuggets. A.I. was traded from Denver to the Detroit Pistons last November, where his play was limited due to injuries and his unwillingness to play in the role of a non-starter. Before this season started, Iverson signed with the Memphis Grizzlies but soon left the team because of his limited role. Several days ago, the Virginia native announced that he was retiring, only to re-sign with the team that drafted him out of Georgetown in 1996.

An emotional Iverson was brought to tears as he expressed how pleased he was to not have to give up the sport he loved.

"When I saw that, I was crying with him," Beanie said. "I was crying with him. I looked at A.I. and I looked at myself with the connection with Philly. When you from Philly and this is the city you love ... and when they support you, there ain't no feeling like that. I know what it's like for him to be away from Philly. It's a connection. It's hard for me to leave this city. People say, 'You gotta get out this city.' Where I'mma go? I don't live in the inner city, the 'hood. I don't sleep here, but I gotta be here every day. Got to. Even with me, that's where my music comes from: the city. I gotta be out, connected to the street for my music to come out the way it do. I can't just watch the news. So I know how A.I. felt when he's going back to a place where people genuinely respect and love him here. He's gonna bring so much revenue to the city besides him just playing every night. The whole city should support him. They should give him his own street: 'Iverson Boulevard.' "

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Freeway's 'Love Is A Battlefield' Addresses Jay-Z/ Beanie Sigel Conflict

02 Dec 2009 12:46:00 EST

Former Roc-A-Fella artist raps about beef over the classic Pat Benatar song.
By Shaheem Reid

Freeway is using Pat Benatar to give his point of view on the Jay-Z/ Beanie Sigel rift. The former Roc-A-Fella artist just put out a new record lightly touching on the public falling-out of his onetime team members. Wednesday morning (December 2) on her Shade 45 satellite radio show, host Angela Yee debuted Free's "Love Is a Battlefield."

"I ain't saying n---as left us in the 'hood, but we ate our little food, did the dishes cleaned the plates up," he raps over a sample of Benatar's classic '80s song. "You was eating steak while we was eating Steak-umm/ But I never complained/ Dapped you up and tipped the waiter. ...

"I can't get the president on the phone, I'm fine," Free continues. " 'Cause I got the evidence in my home/ The plaques/ Freezer body tracks."

Free ends the record telling everyone that they will get a more in-depth account of how he feels about the Jay/Beanie saga on his album The Stimulus Package, which is due early next year.

When he called in to Yee's morning radio show on Tuesday, however, Freeway didn't pick sides.

"I talked to him before all this stuff went on," Free said about Jay. "But he's cool. I ain't got nothing against him."

He also said he was unsure if or how Hov would address the conflict.

"I don't know, man. Knowing Jay, if it was anybody else, I'm sure he probably would have been responded," Freeway explained. "But it's a touchy situation, being as though everybody was so tight at one point. So I don't know what he's gonna say."

The bearded wonder also said Memphis Bleek was still cool with him and that Beanie is his "brother." They were just in the studio together. "That's my man for life," Free said. "We're good friends, plus we're Muslim."

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State Property Are Back Together Because 'Collectively, We're Way More Powerful'

30 Sep 2008 08:03:00 EDT

'We've been sprinkling songs out there and letting people know the best is yet to come,' Beanie Sigel says.
By Shaheem Reid

NEW YORK — Beanie SigelBeanie Sigel and the Goodfellas are all back together at the table breaking bread — well, except for maybe Beans himself and the man to his left.

"It's a beautiful thing," FreewayFreeway said, as he passed on the endless plates of food from Italian restaurant Macelleria in Manhattan's Meatpacking District.

Free and Sigel were fasting due to Ramadan, but most of the State PropertyState Property crew (save for Oschino and Neef Buck, whom everybody insisted were still down despite their absences) were eating lunch before a late-night performance at S.O.B.'s. The collective has been together making music for the past several months but has only now decided to come up to the surface and speak about it.

Here they are again, world.

"We all been doing this together for a minute," Free said, as he watched Peedi Crakk devour some fries. "When we get together, we make good music. It's strength in numbers. We gonna put something on the streets for y'all real soon."

"This what they been wanting," said Young Chris, who sat at the head of the table. "People been wanting it for a long time. Due to the Roc-A-Fella split, people thought State Property split up. But we been all good. Been like that since day one. Everybody is neutral. We all here, man."

"This is perfect timing," added Omillio Sparks, the most charismatic and slept-on team member. "Even though it's the recession with the economy all twisted, you need music like this back in the streets to make the people feel like it's some sense of hope. Barack the vote, and we're back."

As of now, the State Property soldiers are free agents. They've been making dozens of records — some of which have been intentionally leaked online — out of their own pockets. Beanie is still very much the leader of the organization and said he's weighing his options for the family.

"The plan right now is to make sure ... the State Property project gets finished up," Beanie said. "Find a home for that and make sure everybody's individual projects be set up properly, so we can move forward from there. The State Property album will be good to put things back in perspective and showcase us as artists. At the same time, we got Chris working on his solo project that's long overdue. Peedi's working on his solo project. Sparks, Freeway, me ... we wanna make sure we line up our ducks in order so when this State Property thing pops off, and pops off the way we expect it to, everybody can come right behind it and not miss a beat. We've been sprinkling songs out there and letting people know the best is yet to come, but we're not missing a beat."

"This is gonna be the best State Property album," Peedi promised. "Everybody had time to grow individually. After the last album, we had a good two or three years apart, and we've all been independently putting out mixtapes and trying to create the most we can on our own time. Collectively, we're way more powerful. Nobody is a weak link."

The release-date order as of now goes Young Chris' Now or Never at the top of the year (he just got out of his Def Jam contract but is still signed to Jay-ZJay-Z's Roc-A-Fella imprint); Peedi Crakk's A Night in the Life on Amalgam Digital probably in March; then everybody else from there. Beanie and Freeway are both signed but are unsure of their status with Roc-A-Fella. They are sure of their disappointment over the way their last solo LPs were promoted.

"It's like being on a team with Jordan and you don't get a chance to make it to the championship, you don't even get a chance to play in the game," Sig said about the commercial failures of his The Solution and Freeway's Free at Last under the watch of former Def Jam President and CEO Jay-Z. "That's how I feel. It's like we're mechanics that helped get a car started up and pushing, somebody gets in the car and just pulls off on you, leaves you on the side of the road. That's how it feels."

Still, Sig harbors no harsh feelings for Jay-Z and even dreams of a Roc reunion.

"Its no fault to nobody, I guess, but it's just frustrating," he continued. "You got that within yourself, those expectations. We love Jay. We love him. Jay don't owe nobody anything, but it's frustrating because the public got questions, and they want answers. When they start asking questions, you can't answer or you don't wanna answer honestly. What can you say?"

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Don Vito's Fate In Jury's Hands; Plus Tony Yayo, Jay-Z, Kanye West, Pete Wentz, Britney Spears, Madonna, Linkin Park & More, In For The Record

31 Oct 2007 01:48:00 EDT

Yayo trial to begin in January; Jay joins 'Ye onstage in Boston; Fall Out Boy bassist breaks foot (but tour goes on).
By MTV News staff

Vincent "Don Vito" Margera's fate on two counts of sexual assault is in the hands of the jury. Tuesday saw the presentation of closing arguments, during which Pamela Mackey, an attorney for Margera -- Bam's uncle -- argued that he had been in his "goofy, outrageous and vulgar" persona during his August 2006 Colorado mall autograph signing, during which he is accused of having groped three young girls. ...

Tony Yayo will stand trial beginning January 10 in connection with the case in which he is alleged to have roughed up the 14-year-old son of Game manager Jimmy "Henchman" Rosemond in March. According to Yayo's lawyer, Scott Leemon, the judge combined the cases of Yayo (born Marvin Bernard) and a man known as an "honorary" member of the G-Unit, Lowell "Lodi Mack" Fletcher, who was also allegedly involved in the assualt, but whose relationship to Yayo Leemon declined to discuss. ...

Big brother and little brother teamed up Monday night: Jay-Z made a surprise guest appearance at the TD Banknorth Garden in Boston during Kanye West's set at the JAMN 94.5 Monster Jam Concert. Kanye also brought T-Pain — who played his own set earlier in the night — for "Good Life." Lil Wayne, Fabolous, J. Holiday, MIMS and Akon also performed at the concert. ...

Fall Out Boy's Pete Wentz broke his foot during the band's performance Sunday night at the Voodoo Music Experience festival in New Orleans. Wentz uploaded a gory close-up photo of his severely bruised and swollen foot to his profile page on FriendsorEnemies.com. "For anyone who was at the Voodoo Fest in New Orleans, you got to see me jump around," he wrote. "Ended up breaking the bone that connects my shin to my foot; no shows will be cancelled. I am currently trying to get a 'rocker' boot so I can have a walking cast. Currently, my foot is the size of a small car. If you see me at a show, come sign my cast." ...

Don't expect to see Britney Spears gracing the cover of Maxim anytime soon — the magazine has ranked her #5 on its list of the Five Unsexiest Women Alive. One slot ahead of her is Madonna, who Spears seems to be emulating these days, and they're followed by Sandra Oh, Amy Winehouse and the list-topper, Sarah Jessica Parker. ... Some people might not find Madge too sexy these days, but according to a new tome, "Madonna: Like an Icon," Tupac Shakur was more than just hot for her in the past — they actually dated. The book's author, Lucy O'Brien, claims the Material Girl dated 'Pac for one year in her mid-30s before the rapper's untimely death. O'Brien quotes a friend close to the singer, saying ultimately, the rapper's friends quashed the fling. "She was going out with him," one of Madge's friends said. "But homegirls were saying to [2Pac], 'I can't believe you're going out with a white girl.' " Madonna was then subsequently dumped, according to the book. ...

Linkin Park's outreach project, Music for Relief, has set its sights on a new challenge: helping Southern California recover from the devastating wildfires. The band has contributed $50,000 to Direct Relief International — a Santa Barbara nonprofit that has been providing medical supplies to victims — and the donation was matched by SanDisk Corporation, a flash-data-storage-card company. "The wildfires are an unfathomable tragedy," LP bassist Dave "Phoenix" Farrell said in a statement. "Being able to help victims of a natural disaster like the wildfires is exactly why Music for Relief was founded." The band is also encouraging its fans to make their own contributions through the Music for Relief Web site. ...

Common's still riding strong with his latest album, the recently released Finding Forever, but while he's looking forward, his former label is looking backward with a new compilation of early cuts. ThisIsMe Then: The Best of Common, being issued by Relativity/ Sony Legacy, compiles 15 songs from 1992-'97 — but the enhanced disc has four video extras too: for "Take It EZ," "I Used to Love H.E.R.," "Retrospect for Life" (featuring Lauryn Hill) and "Invocation." It's set to street November 27. ... The Roc is in the building: Freeway hosted a listening session at S.O.B.'s in New York Monday night for his sophomore set, Free at Last, due November 20. The Philadelphia rapper previewed collaborations with 50 Cent, Rick Ross and Jadakiss, before Beanie Sigel hit the stage with him to perform their Just Blaze-produced classic, "Roc the Mic." ...

Reggae singer Beenie Man was released from a Kingston, Jamaica, jail on $21,000 bail on Monday after appearing in court on tax-evasion charges, according to The Associated Press. Authorities say the singer (born Anthony Moses Davis) owes about $661,000 in overdue taxes in Jamaica. He's due back in court December 3. ... The estate of late rapper Notorious B.I.G. filed a federal court motion on Monday claiming that prison inmate Waymond Anderson, who once implicated a former police officer in the killing of the rapper, was lying when he recently recanted his testimony. AP reports that the motion seeks access to phone and prison visitation records for Anderson, who is serving a life sentence for murder in a separate case. In an August 20 deposition Anderson said he lied about the alleged police involvement as part of a scam involving the slain rapper's family members and attorneys to win a monetary settlement from the city. The estate argued in its filing that the records will discredit Anderson's story and reveal who was behind his "wholesale assault on the truth." ...

A 20th-anniversary edition of the A Very Special Christmas album — featuring performances by No Doubt, Wyclef Jean, Sting, Run-D.M.C., Jon Bon Jovi, Stevie Wonder, Sheryl Crow and U2 — will be released November 20. The package benefiting the Special Olympics will also feature the first-ever DVD collection of videos in the series' history, including performances from the 1998 and 2000 Christmas at the White House specials. ... Two anti-poverty groups co-founded by Bono, the ONE Campaign and Debt AIDS Trade Africa, will merge their operations in the U.S. to create a single organization that will be known as ONE. Reuters reports that the organization will continue to focus on poverty-relief efforts in Africa and the U.S., according to a statement from Bono, in which he said, "ONE and DATA are two organizations with the same outrage: Extreme, stupid poverty in the 21st century makes no sense when the resources and technology exist to do something about it. ... What makes sense is to harness these two forces into a single organization and redouble our efforts. One goal. One team." And in yet more U2 news, National Geographic Cinema Ventures will release a new film, "U2 3D," in late January. The movie will play in 3-D only, in select theaters worldwide. Filmed in South America during a series of U2 concerts on their Vertigo Tour, the film is the first live-action movie ever shot, produced and exhibited in digital 3-D, and strove to capture the intimacy between the band and its audience. ...

Slayer and Halloween are a match made in hell, and this year the metal titans have partnered with MySpace to spook fans into buying their new concert DVD, "The Unholy Alliance - Chapter II: Preaching to the Perverted," which also features performances by Lamb of God, Mastodon and more. One of the clips from the DVD, Slayer's performance of their Grammy-winning song "Eyes of the Insane," will stream all day on MySpace TV on Wednesday. ... SoLow.com, which rewards visitors for making the lowest unique bid for prizes it offers, is giving one lucky fan a chance to spend Thanksgiving with the Osbournes. The winner will also get tickets to Ozzy Osbourne's concert in San Diego, as well as a few hundred bucks in cash and a hotel room in Los Angeles. ... Tom Cruise, meet the Sex Pistols. The actor and the notorious punk-rock legends are both slated to appear — and perform, in the case of the Pistols — on "The Tonight Show With Jay Leno" on Tuesday night (October 30). Republican presidential hopeful Representative Ron Paul rounds out the odd lineup. ... Forbes has released its list of the top-earning dead celebrities, and Nirvana's Kurt Cobain no longer sits at #1 — that spot now belongs once again to Elvis Presley — the King's estate generated $49 million in the past year, while Cobain's name doesn't even make the list. At #2 is John Lennon, whose drew $44 million in 2007, while fellow Beatle George Harrison takes #4 with $22 million. Other musicians on the list include Tupac Shakur at #8 with $9 million and James Brown at #11 with $5 million. Bob Marley is at #12, having made $4 million this year. ...

In the end, nobody at the University of Florida got zapped. Andrew Meyer, of "Don't tase me, bro" fame, will not face any criminal charges for disrupting an appearance by Senator John K

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Mixtape Monday: Jay-Z Explains Jadakiss' Roc Deal; Lil Wayne Has The 'Craziest Song' For Eminem

29 Oct 2007 08:00:00 EDT

Also: DJ Khaled bites back at Young Buck, claiming he's been spreading false rumors.
By Shaheem Reid and Jayson Rodriguez, with additional reporting by Rahman Dukes and Brennan Williams

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Kanye West And Jim Jones Paying Tribute To Jay-Z Online, Thanks To Dame Dash? It's Odd, No Doubt

15 Oct 2007 20:37:00 EDT

Dash and Kareem 'Biggs' Burke recently slipped out Beyond a Reasonable Doubt on their new social-networking site.
By Shaheem Reid

NEW YORK — Dame Dash and Kareem "Biggs" Burke laughed on Monday (October 15) when they came up with a new crew name on the spot: "Block-A-Fella." The "Block" in question refers to their new social-networking Web site, BlockSavvy.com, which has also served as a platform for Dame to blog and, maybe most significantly, resurrect Roc-A-Fella Records material from when Dash and Burke were tight with Jay-Z.

They were so tight that a few years ago, Dame wanted to pay tribute to his onetime inseparable buddy by having several artists on the label remake some of Hov's tunes from his various albums. The project was called Beyond a Reasonable Doubt.

"We made this a while ago when [we still co-owned] Roc-A-Fella," said Dame, who later formed the Dame Dash Music Group with Burke after the three principal players sold their remaining 50 percent stake of the label to its parent label, Island Def Jam, in December 2004.

"We got Juelz [Santana] ... Young Gunz ... Rell, Jimmy Jones, Kanye West, Beanie [Sigel]," Biggs added of the Beyond a Reasonable Doubt collection.

(Hear the tribute tracks for yourself! Check out reworked versions of the Reasonable Doubt cuts "Politics as Usual," "Regrets" and "Can I Live," as well as a new rendition of the In My Lifetime, Vol. 1 song "You Must Love Me.")

"At the time, I was looking for platforms to showcase the artists," Dash chimed in. "This was my [mental] state three, four years ago. I was always looking for projects to showcase the artists and move as a team. We had the talent. Cam'ron did a record too. Everybody did renditions of Jay songs. Some from Reasonable Doubt, some from other records."

The entire project was sparked by the original Reasonable reaching a milestone, its 10th anniversary, last year.

"Honestly, Reasonable Doubt was very important to us — despite the fact that people are paying homage to it without us, and I'm seeing stuff on television," Dash said, referring to the "VH1 Classic Albums" episode that broke down the making of the classic Jigga debut. "[But] we're not getting interviewed, which is cool.

"It's a piece of us. It's the only thing we still own that has anything to do with Roc-A-Fella," he continued. "So back then, and being a part of the DNA of Roc-A-Fella, I was always trying to figure out a way to celebrate it. I knew the 10th anniversary was coming up. I said, 'Let's do an album with all the relevant artists doing a rendition of Jay records.' But Jay said he didn't like it, so we scrapped it. ... You know what it was, he said the best record was Jimmy's, so he didn't want to put it out."

Although there aren't any current plans to release the album conventionally in stores, the duo have posted the project up on their Web site.

"We felt like we might as well, why not?" Dame shrugged. "I don't know, I'm living more on the virtual/digital side."

When he thinks back a decade, to the making of Hov's first LP, Dame tells the story of how a couple of decisions and maybe one or two missed studio sessions could have changed history.

"Nas and AZ was supposed to be on 'Bring It On,' they kept not showing up," Dash recalled. "That's when we wanted to put out the Firm. They didn't show up. We was meeting and they was saying, 'Yeah,' but they wasn't showing up. We would be waiting and we would be getting offended. So we brought Sauce [Money] and [Big] Jaz on the song."

"Jay didn't want to rap over that beat," Biggs offered of "Can't Knock the Hustle," "but I called him and said he should rap over the beat, because it would come out hot regardless."

"He didn't want to do it, so I had to get Mary J. [Blige], and [I] gave her 10 grand out of a paper bag," Dash added. "She did it for us. I knew her when she was young."

Some of the tracks on Beyond a Reasonable Doubt feature Cam'ron rapping over "Show You How" — which appeared on The Blueprint 2: The Gift & the Curse — while another has Beanie Sigel redoing In My Lifetime, Vol. 1's "Where I'm From" and Freeway taking on "Politics as Usual."

"It was so ill, because he was talking about struggles in the street," Biggs said about the Jay-Z original. "We did that song before Jacob [the Jeweler] was out. Remember the line, 'to Tito in the district'? When we really started buying jewelry, we would go to Tito. Everything about Reasonable Doubt was [the] reverse of what you think. Like 'Can't Knock the Hustle' — he wasn't talking about hustling, he was talking about the music business [being] the hustle. He was talking to everybody else like, 'Don't knock us.' 'Cause that's the new hustle. That's why it's so funny — people don't understand the genesis. It was representation of us and our life together. 'Regrets' was my favorite song on the album. I liked 'Regrets' and 'Cashmere Thoughts.' He wasn't gonna put 'Cashmere Thoughts' on there — he only put it on there 'cause it was my favorite."

" 'Dead Presidents II' was mine," Biggs said of his favorite Reasonable Doubt track.

Biggs and Dash's post-Roc life, as you know, has also involved fashion and films. Their most current project is "Mr. Untouchable," an upcoming documentary on the life of Harlem, New York, drug kingpin Nicky Barnes that arrives in theaters October 26.

But as far as music goes, it's still up in the air how many more albums Biggs and Dash will put out. They don't see the biz being lucrative anymore.

"We got heat. Nicole Wray's album [Lovechild] is hot, ODB's album [A Son Unique] is hot," Dash said of the label's two LPs, which have been kicking around for quite some time but haven't been officially released. "Everybody acts like they doing us a favor by putting it out.

"We got deals everywhere," he added when asked about a recent deal he struck with Koch Records to distribute his music. "It's not about the deal, it's about the frustration and hassle. We turned into real business men. We're here to make money, and it seems like the money ain't there."

You can hear the entire Beyond a Reasonable Doubt LP on www.BlockSavvy.com.

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