Yung Joc "Coffee Shop" feat. Gorilla Zoe (Audio)

Exclusive Audio
This naagaa been on the lo for a minute playa, but shawty when I heard this is was like "Whoa". Good stuff mane, peep game on this new track by Yung Joc called "Coffee Shop" featuring Gorilla Zoe. Hey it's real fyahh. Mane, I can't wait for that new album "Hustlenomics" to drop in a few months!

"Coffee Shop" (click to listen)

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T.I. "Big Shit Poppin'" (Audio)

Posted at 6/02/2007 08:23:00 PM

Exclusive Audio
Word up, I heard this track on the 'net earlier today and pimpin' I had to put you on to this. This selection is by T.I. called "Big Shit Poppin'". I like this track and it's gonna be on his upcoming album T.I. vs. T.I.P. Hey, keep it pimpin'.

"Big Shit Poppin'"
(click to listen)

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JDP "Like A Skateboard" (Audio)

Posted at 6/02/2007 05:41:00 PM

Exclusive Audio
Just in peoples, I just wanted to introduce you to a new playa named JDP. He's a Chicago underground artist and he wanted to debut his lead single "Like a skateboard" on HHR. Fair enough, cause we all about the movement. Yo, this 20 year old MC is aiming on becoming a force on the music scene. The song is already spinning all over the country, so hit up the myspace page, and get to know the future.

"Like A Skateboard" (click to listen)

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50 Cent "Amusement Park" (Video)

Posted at 6/02/2007 02:33:00 PM

Exclusive Video
Yeah, I know. If you haven't seen this video by 50 Cent called "Amusement Park", then watch it here. It's pretty dope, but word is there's supposedly some shit brewing between 50's camp and Jim Jones because this track uses the same beat that was used in JJone's song "Your Majesty" from a previously released mixtape. Stay tuned for more on this!

"Amusement Park" (click to view)

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Friday, June 01, 2007   MUSIC |  VIDEOS |  INTERVIEWS  | NEW ARTIST  | HOME

"10 Shots With J.Wells" Exclusive Interview w.Flo Diggy

Posted at 6/01/2007 09:26:00 PM

Hey, we're steadin' making moves mane. Check it, big homie Flo Dirt just sat down with up and coming producer J.Wells whose reppin' The Chi and L.A. Yo, he's responsible for having produced the most sought after West Coast-created/congratulated mixtape ever called, J.Wells Presents: The Wolfpac Mixtape which featured Kurupt, The El Debarge fam, J.Ro, Tash, and Prodigal Sunn. Oh and by the way, he's also produced tracks for Goodie Mob, Keisha Cole, Snoop Dogg, and tracks that have been featured on The Sopranos, Six Feet Under and...get this...EA Sports Fight Night 3. Damn! Quite a feat for such a young cat. Well, if that isn't enough J dub just dropped a new Collaborative album with Kurupt called Digital Smoke which features Kokane, Goodie Mob, Tha Liks, & Roscoe. Got that, well see more as Flo get's familiar in this latest edition of "10 Shots with Flo Dirt"...

J Wells: Yo, where you callin’ from?

Flo Dirt: Hey, I’m calling from Arizona man!

J Wells: Oh. What’s going on out there?

Flo Dirt: You know! The temperature is heatin up already. We’re at 100 degrees homie.

J Wells: Y’all got some good bud out there, huh?

Flo Dirt: (Laughs) You know about it!

J Wells: That’s what’s up!

Flo Dirt: All right homie, let’s get it!

1. What’s that “Digital Smoke” like and was it grown from the seeds of the Chronic?

J Wells: Yeah man, it’s basically the new Chronic. It’s me and Kurupt’s interpretation of what we do. Definitely in the same ballpark. I have a newer sound. Quik gave me the name Digital Master a while back. That’s why I came with the whole “digital” scheme. Digital Smoke is just me and Kurupt. Kurupt is the king of the smoke. He’s an original Chronic member. He was on The Chronic. That’s how we came up with the that. The whole album is about smoking and having a good time and party music; you know, lowrider music.

Flo Dirt: 2. The West Coast has always been here making classics. What’s it going to take for us to get the crown back?

J Wells: I think unity. Everybody coming together and being on the same page. Stop all the hating on one another. That’s what I think really stops the West Coast from being the strongest front. But at the same time, you always gotta realize that everybody has their time to shine. If you look at history in any aspects, you’ll see that there’s always change. The South right now is shining and it’s their time to shine. It will come back around it’s just evolution. Everything evolves. I think the West Coast is still very prevalent. You got Ice Cube who came out and did a great record. The Game and Snoop Dogg… I really don’t think we ever left. Hip hop has just evolved so much. You got so much coming out of the South, the East Coast. There’s much more music; much more of a choice now.

Flo Dirt: 3. J. Wells has been doing his thing for a minute, with incredible associations and partnerships with Tha Liks and Tha Pound. What’s the common bond that keeps that love spreading and how can you make that contagious?

J Wells: Me, I kind of came in to the game with both of them so… I hooked up with J-Ro in high school and he was a mentor to me, teaching me about hip hop in general. He was like a hip hop historian to me. He taught me about the break beat records and going to the record store to find those records and the original breaks; just hip hop in general as far as the history of hip hop. That was like the hip hop side. A lot of stuff I didn’t know, as far as learning from the Likwit Crew… the show and the performing aspect and being on tour with them. When I met Kurupt, I met him on the Puff Puff Pass tour because the Liks were on tour with Snoop on that tour and Kurupt was on the same bus as us. My music was always melodic and a lot more, I guess, gangsta if you want to call it that. I still had those elements from being around the Likwit Crew like the East Coast drums. That’s what Quik used to tell me. Kurupt too. He was like, “Your drums! Your drums!!!” That’s like the mix I got from both and from being around Kurupt and doing the type of records we were making, the fun records, smoking and everyone talking shit; talk shit records. Mixing the two, I think that’s why I came up with that whole sound that was different from the normal West Coast producer. As far as rapping, I was influenced by both as well. I had the emceeing of the Likwit Crew and Kurupt was always encouraging me to rap. I learned a lot from Kurupt as far as the commercial aspect of making records. Making stuff unorthodox and just making it to point where people could listen to it. Radio records, you know what I’m saying?

Flo Dirt: My personal opinion… Kurupt is like me in that we both believe that Rakim is the greatest. He’s a lyrical monster. Taking notes from him? J-Wells is pretty good on the mic!

J Wells: Thank you, man!

Flo Dirt: 4. As a producer and not just a beat maker, what’s been the most rewarding experience for you in the studio?

J Wells: To work with an established artist of great respect and actually have them ask you for feedback and really respect you as a young person and let you produce them. A lot of times, working with new artists is harder because they don’t listen to you as much as a Snoop or a Kurupt. These guys want to be produced and they want ideas. When I worked with Rakim, that was one of the problems he had with producers. They didn’t want to guide him and give him ideas.

Flo Dirt: You think they’re intimidated though?

J Wells: Probably, you know? But that’s been my most rewarding. Coming up with these records with these artists of great respect. Like the Goodie Mob record I did “Play Your Flutes” a couple years back. I always loved Goodie MoB and what they stood for. Getting into the studio and recording and then I went back and replayed all the instruments live. We brought in a flute player, bass, guitar. It was fun! Really making a real record with a real session and real analog tape. Stuff like that was rewarding. Being able to work with a group or artist you grew up listening to and put your impression on them is very satisfying.

Flo Dirt: 5. Since you’ve already worked with some legendary cats, from Kurupt and Tha Likwit Crew, to Goodie Mob and even Chuck D., who are the Top 5 people you haven’t worked with yet but want to?

J Wells: 1. Ice Cube 2. Dub-C 3. UGK 4. Redman!
I love Redman

Flo Dirt: Me too!!

J Wells: Was that 4? Ok! Noreaga.

Flo Dirt: I like that list man. That’s dope!

J Wells: I love Noreaga, man!

Flo Dirt: 6. Who’s the dopest emcee we haven’t heard of yet and do you look for new talent to work with ever?

J Wells: Yeah I do. I got a couple cats that I really put their name out there for the longest like Stylistic Jones.

Flo Dirt: Yup, dope!

J Wells: I think he’s dope. Glasses Malone is dope, Bishop Lamont, then you got Tristar. I think those guys are tight. One cat I just heard, Problem, I think he’s pretty dope too.

Flo Dirt: 7. Being from the Chi, do you still have roots there and how do you incorporate your Midwest experiences into your lyrics and production?

J Wells: I just think that being from out there was always different, the way I saw music. Coming from Chicago, I used to listen to a lot of like bass music out there, house kind of bass scene. I had a lot of East Coast type records as well as West Coast records. I think that where you’re at and what you see influences how you think and how you perceive the music. I think I had a different twist on my sound and the way I did things. But LA is in me, baby!!

Flo Dirt: 8. What’s after Digital Smoke and will we see another Wolfpac mixtape?

J Wells: Wolfpac mixtape is probably going to be a classic! You will see my solo album calle The Inebriated LP. That’s going to be my rap solo album executive produced by E-Swift of Tha Liks and J-Ro. I’m really getting back and getting down with my Likwit Crew family.

Flo Dirt: Speaking of Tha Liks, I’m a die-hard Likwit Crew fan to the heart and I thought Firewater was dope. Was that the last we’re going to see of Tha Liks?

J Wells: I don’t think so.

Flo Dirt: I hope not. If you can pass that along and let them know…

J Wells: I don’t think that it will be. They need the time to do their own things. J-Ro is over in Sweden doing a lot of great things in hip hop over there. A lot of people don’t realize that hip hop is just as big in these other countries as it is over here. One thing about the United States, once you’re finished in the public’s eyes, that’s it but in these other countries, they still love you. They still embrace you and there is still so much great work there for you to explore. Especially with the time now and what type of music that is really in the forefront. Some of the records that Tha Liks would make would probably be more accepted in some of these other countries, you know? Tash is doing his thing. He’s coming with a solo album. E-Swift has been producing for a bunch of people. Eventually they’ll come back together and bang one out. ‘Til then, they really got behind me and push me to keep this Likwit thing going.

Flo Dirt:I’ll be looking for that Inebriated LP.

J Wells: Yeah and then we got Digital Smoke 2 and then Digital Master Vol. 2. Digital Master 1 was basically about me showcasing the producer. With The Inebriated album, I’ll have different producers on there like E-Swift, Battlecat, my boy Maestro who’s down in the South. It’s gonna be a party album with a lot of bass and bringing it down to that straight party shit. It’s gonna have my own twist on it.

Flo Dirt: 9. Label execs, to me in my opinion… I’m not in the industry like you are so tell me if I’m wrong but label execs now seem to only want to work with artists that have groomed themselves and do all the work themselves. Do you think that’s beneficial to the game and if so, what about the starving artists who don’t have the same opportunities?

J Wells: Well, I mean you always have to look at it from a business aspect. We’re losing more stores every year than we ever have lost in the history of selling records. You got Tower Records…

Flo Dirt: Done.

J Wells: They just went out of business and that was 10% of the market. Sales are falling every year in cds. You have to be careful. I own my own label, Bonzi Records. That’s what the Digital Smoke album is on. I’m an executive myself and I’m very careful on what’s spent and what we spend money on. You gotta play safe numbers with music now. You never know what’s gonna come out and what’s not gonna flop. If you have an artist that’s proven themselves through Soundscan or through a buzz or whatnot, it enables the label to make sound decision. At the same time, it’s probably better that way because if you’re hustling hard and you’re dope, then people in your area should know about you and you should be getting out there and making a buzz for yourself. So it’s almost like it’s own quality control. If people wanna hear it… A lot of people get caught up in what they like, but I understand the music from what everybody likes. I might not like it but I know that there might be 10 million kids that do like it. I look at things from that point. Everything is not for me. I listen to John Coltrane, Miles Davis and Marvin Gaye.

Flo Dirt: We’re supposed to though, man!

J Wells: You know what I’m saying! But there might be some kids out there and all they like is “Laffy Taffy” and “Lean Wit It, Rock Wit It.” So, I think that if you look and you say, hey these records are selling like crazy in these areas, then you gotta put some money behind it. To me, I’m independent so I believe in the whole independent structure. If you getting out there and you’re an artist and you hustle and sell your cds and make a name for yourself, I respect that! That’s what it’s all about. The days of just sitting around and somebody coming up and handing you a record deal and saying “Hey, you’re the next guy” are over. It’s not that type of game anymore. People aren’t spending that type of money anymore. They’re spending smart money, not scared money.

Flo Dirt: No doubt. So, side question. We talked about “Lean Wit It, Rock Wit It” and “Laffy Taffy” which were two big singles for groups that didn’t sell their albums. In comparison, take yourself out of the executive role for a minute. As an artist, how do you feel with Digital Smoke? I listened to it and it’s a solid, good album. It’s an album that I’d go out and buy. There’s a difference between a quality album and a quality single. Do you think that’s a new industry standard to just push singles on us?

J Wells: Ummm.

Flo Dirt:That was a loaded question!

J Wells: It’s definitely a game that’s become a machine. It’s not about content as much. It’s about drawing people in, throwing something on the wall, throwing a bunch of money behind it and seeing what it does. Back in the days in the Motown era, they actually cultivated these artists and they made these albums that were timeless. Even coming up a little forward, but even GangStarr’s Hard to Earn, these albums were quality. Songs after songs on there! Even some of Too $hort’s older albums, there were just songs after songs. I just think that sometimes the labels don’t even give the artists time to make quality records. Interscope Records is signing singles deals now. They sign an artist for one single and they put money behind one single. If the single pops, they do the whole album and if not, they’re on to the next. I think that it comes back down to the stores and the internet and records not selling and people not going out to that store and buying 4 albums. Record labels aren’t putting much emphasis on that. They’re putting more emphasis on what they can sell. If they can sell one single and the single can sell an album… They’re not really worried about longevity like people hearing your album and saying, “That sucked” or “I didn’t like that album but I liked the single.” Next time, they’re not tripping because they probably dropped the artist by then and the artist is on an independent label and the label is on to the next artist. If you notice, a lot of these artists come out, they do good and they end up on an independent label. The record label, the machine is on to the next.

Flo Dirt:That’s the story of hip hop man. That’s the trend!

10. What’s the one thing you would change about hip hop if you were pulling all the strings?

J Wells: I would first of all, we got to get away from these records that are fabricated with 10-15 different producers. We got to sign artists, groups and talent where the artist/producer make the record. Get videos that are full of content instead of the same video with girls and cars. It’s the same thing over and over. We need more content. Sometimes the girls and cars is cool but sometimes we need to tell a story and we need to put more emphasis on selling these records in the digital medium. Cds are becoming obsolete in the next 5-10 years. There won’t be much if any cd sales. I would focus on internet and digital forms of selling music. That’s really where it’s going. You know?

Flo Dirt: Cool man. That’s all I had for you. I appreciate your time, man. You got anything else you want us to know about?

J Wells: I want everybody to know that the album is coming out June 5th. You can check it out at www.myspace.com/jwellsmusic. I always send a big shout out to the Latin community. They support West Coast music, J Wells, Dogg Pound and the Likwit Crew. Digital Smoke album wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for the love and support they showed me on the street when I used to sell my cds out the trunk of my car. That’s one thing I always have to put out there and let people know I’m sincere about.

Flo Dirt: J Wells, thank you for your time. I wish you nothing but luck and believe me I’ll be first in line to buy the cd cuz I still buy cds! (Laughs)

J Wells: I appreciate it. Thank you. Tell about 20 of your friends.

Flo Dirt: All right then, peace.

J Wells: Peace!

Yo, as usual we'd like to say thanks to J.Wells and his peep for giving me and the HHR to interview him and yo, definitely go get that album Digital Smoke when it drops on 6/5. It's gonna be a classic.

For all questions and inquiries for Flo, hit him up at this link or visit his myspace page.

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Go cop The Best of Chappelle's Show Uncensored: Top 25 Sketches

Posted at 6/01/2007 08:32:00 PM

I’m sure you couldn’t get enough before, so here’s more Chappelle for you to enjoy. That’s right, Dave Chappelle is back with a new DVD, The Best of Chappelle’s Show Uncensored: Top 25 Sketches. All your favorite episodes on one disc; including Mad Real World, Making The Band 2, and of course the Rick James episode. This DVD is a must have, and a definite classic. View the link below for a quick look into the DVD.
Don’t forget to get your copy of The Best of Chappelle’s Show Uncensored: Top 25 Sketches, in stores June 5th.

Clip (click to view)

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Thursday, May 31, 2007   MUSIC |  VIDEOS |  INTERVIEWS  | NEW ARTIST  | HOME

"Introducing Teflon" Exclusive Interview with Queen Princess

Posted at 5/31/2007 05:43:00 PM

What it do peoples! Hey, your favorite home girl, Queen Princess, just got off the phone with up-n-coming, super producer Teflon. Who is he and what's his track record? Well, he's a young cat (26 to be exact) out the Bronx that got started in the music biz at the age of 18 under Ruff Ryder label. During his time, he was able to producer several tracks for DMX and Eve while working aside label mates Swizz Beats and RR Ceo, Darrin Dean. This experience led to a hit single by Eve called "Who's That Girl" produced by yours truly, Tef diggy. He went on to work with some big hitters from Tom Jones (yeah that's right) all the way to Donnell Jones. Currently, he's got projects in the works with 50 cent, Ja Rule, Jadakiss, Gucci Mane, and alot more that I can't mention at this time. Anyways, now that you know a little by this playa's pedigree, now find out how he's livin now, in this new interview with him and our own, Queen Princess....

Queen Princess: Hey what’s good Teflon, how are you?

Teflon: I’m good

Queen Princess: Okay, let’s get into it. So how old were you when you discovered that you had it in you to become a producer?

Teflon: Umm, at age 16.

Queen Princess: And how did you discover your talent?

Teflon: My dad always had music around him so it kind of grabbed my attention. I always wanted to go to the studio and be involved with whatever they were doing, so that’s really how I got started.

Queen Princess: Oh okay, after you discovered your talent, how did you put yourself out there? In other words how did you make it so people began to notice you?

Teflon: Umm, one day after school I was talking to a friend of mine and he introduced me to the CEO of Ruff Ryders and the CEO believed in me so that’s where it all started.

Queen Princess: You eventually signed a deal with Ruff Ryders right?

Teflon: Yeah

Queen Princess: Okay, how old were you when that happened?

Teflon: I was 18. As soon as I turned 18, they signed me.

Queen Princess: Aight, that’s crazy. Did you feel pressured to put out the best that you had and were you able to be free with your production?

Teflon: I felt like I was under pressure because I had a lot of big people that I had to compete with and I was the youngest in the crew. It was like I had a lot to prove so I felt the brunt of the pressure.

Queen Princess: Who was the first big artist that you were able to work with?

Teflon: The first big artist was Eve. The title track was “Got it all” and it featured Jadakiss made for the Ruff Ryders part II compilation.

Queen Princess: Okay, that was the first big artist, but as of now, who’s the most recent artist that you’ve worked with?

Teflon: There’s a couple ummm, Jim Jones and LL Cool J.

Queen Princess: Alright. I know that many producers say that they always hear beats in their head. What’s your method of getting them out, do you have to hurry up and go to the studio?

Teflon: I just put myself in my own state of mind and let it be free. I just let it work through my ears. I pretty much just play what I want to hear on the keyboard. Once I’m in my studio I just catch a vibe and execute it like that.

Queen Princess: Are you usually with a bunch of people in the studio or do you work better by yourself?

Teflon: Sometimes I have a bunch, but sometimes I like to be by myself so I can get more done and concentrate more, but sometimes when I have a bunch of people with me I can vibe from them. I