Thursday, May 31, 2012
Lupe's "Around My Way (Freedom Ain't Free)" debuts at #76 on the Billboard Hot 100 this week. With 54k sold it's also #27 on the Digital Songs chart.
Looking at previous singles, Kick, Push peaked at 78, Superstar also debuted at 76, The Show Goes On debuted at 57 and Words I Never Said at 89 on the Hot 100.
via Billboard
The video for the first single off "Food & Liquor 2" is going to be directed by Alex Nazari and will be shot at an undiclosed location on the west side of Chicago today.
Check some of Alex's previous work HERE
Wednesday, May 30, 2012
LF's F&L2 GARA: 1-2...then what??? I really wanna do COOLER...what y'all think? Hmmmm decisions x 2...The Cooler would be fresh though...guess we'll see...till then... #AroundMyWayHe also posted THIS pic and toyed with the idea of finally dropping his long anticipated triple disc project instead. So what do you think, The Cooler or LupE.N.D? Leave your thoughts in the comments below!
Tuesday, May 29, 2012
Monday, May 28, 2012
They all met backstage at the Soundset Festival yesterday. On a side note.. Lupe made it rain. - Pic via Rae
With Mike Dreams's Millenial project being just around the corner, the Minneapolis spitter gives us some visuals to his We The Ones single.
Also while we're on the topic of Mike, check out his newest single below as well:
Saturday, May 26, 2012
Lupe's first single off Food & Liquor 2 (Part 1) is now also available via Amazon, for all of you who don't fuck with iTunes. You can get it HERE
Here's another clip from the same FUSE interview in which Lupe gave us some details about F&L 2 and the release date of the first single. In this one he praises Pharrell and explains how the rapper/producer inspired himself, Kanye and Jay-Z.
Friday, May 25, 2012
After Lupe's Shade 45 interview yesterday, Pete Rock issued a 2nd statement about the remake of T.R.O.Y. ..Read it below:
Questlove talked to MTV about Lupe remaking "T.R.O.Y." for his new track "Around My Way" and he says that he thinks it's a good thing and he's glad that Lupe did it.
Thursday, May 24, 2012
After missing his flight yesterday and not being able to attend RapFix Live Lupe called in to SwayInTheMorning on Shade 45 today. He talked about this whole situation involving Pete Rock again... while we thought that it was all sorted out now... Lupe tells a different story in the interview.. check it out yourself.
PREVIOUSLY: Lupe Fiasco - Around My Way [Audio]
Wednesday, May 23, 2012
Lupe and A$AP are on RapFix Live today. Peep the live stream above and tweet your questions using the tag #rapfixlive to @MTVRAPFIX
UPDATE: Lupe wasn't even on the show. No idea what happened there.
Well, that was fast. Pete Rock just went on Twitter and said the following:
I just got off da phone lupe, we worked out our differences and we bout to get it in. Gonna be epic and we gonna give Troy and hev the proper respect they deserve and make history with lupe.
Hopefully a collaboration comes out of this sooner than later. Simonsayz, co-producer of "Around My Way", also took to Twitter and addressed the situation:
1st and last time I will speak on this... The interprelation of @PeteRock's Troy was never meant to offend. To be honest, it wasn't something that I asked or even jumped at the opportunity to do. I'm much happier to bring my own original ideas to the ears of music lovers, of which I have plenty coming out this year.
However, sometimes in this business it's hard legally to get clearance to utilize samples or original tracks. The record was written over the Troy beat and Lu's camp felt strongly that it needed to stay there. I thought what Lu wrote was incredible and relevant to this day and age and that it was a dope juxtaposition over such an iconic beat.
Lu and his camp are my family so when I was asked, not only did me and my partner say yes, We stepped up to the plate without an ego and painstakingly did our absolute best to stay true to the original without trying to flip or put our own spin. BTW, just saw Pete's latest tweet about call w/Lu... Glad u worked it out. Didn't know you had an issue with Lu, tho... Thought it was all on me and my partner!!! LOL.... Peace, Blessings and mad respect.
Tuesday, May 22, 2012
Yes, its a remake of T.R.O.Y, .... Yes, I did it. Me and my production partner DJ Simonsayz produced it.
It was something he wanted to do, and I thought his lyrics were cool. We did it with no samples, as per instruction, and it was pretty damn tough to pull off. I think we did a pretty good job. I did not know that Pete Rock would be so pissed..... Truth be told, I thought he was in the loop with it.. but no matter.
I certainly didn't intend to come out and shit on pete rock in any way. He's always been one of my biggest influences, and he's a hip hop legend. It feels kind of bad to have one of your idols come out and diss you. But I understand his perspective. I will say that the vast majority of kids I talk to have never heard the original, and maybe this will get them to go back and pay attention to the first record.
The legal issues with using the original made it pretty impossible from a modern major label perspective, My intent was to pay tribute in the best way I could and maybe make something cool and new, with an obvious homage to the original version.
I have tons of original beats, people that know me on here know that. Its not even the first time I've been asked to remake this track for someone. All in all I thought it came out pretty dope.
Maybe I shouldnt even be speaking on this, but there it is. Redoing it gave me a new appreciation for Pete's original production and how intricate and complicated it was. I dont blog and I'm not active on twitter, so I figured Id put this here.
Anyways, you can hate me now. I'm just trying to get over like the rest of yall though.
Peace, B
More below:
Lupe Fiasco talks with WGCI's Tony Sculfield and the Morning Riot about Food and Liquor 2, Pete Rock, the youth movement in Chicago rap, and lessons he's learned from speaking his mind.
The good folks over at RapGenius come through with the lyrics for Lupe's new track and explanations to every line, as usual. Check the lyrics HERE
PREVIOUSLY: Lupe Fiasco - Around My Way (Freedom Ain't Free)
Along with A$AP Rocky, Lupe will be on the RapFix Live couch tomorrow at 4PM ET. Sway never lets MC's leave without spitting a few bars first, so be sure to tune in!
Around My Way (Freedom Ain't Free) just dropped a few hours ago and we can already report that there will be a video for it, shot in Chicago. Stay tuned.
Props: RH
Monday, May 21, 2012
And here it is, your first official taste of Food & Liquor II, produced by Simonsayz & B-Side . Click HERE to grab this from iTunes!
Food & Liquor II: The Great American Rap Album pt.1 - 9/25/12
Lupe held a conference call hosted by Whoo Kid earlier on to discuss his new single and the upcoming Food & Liquor 2 album. One thing he revealed was that disc 1 won't have any rap features. Check an excerpt below:
Jay-Z and other features on the new album:
“It’s Food & Liquor 2: The Great American Rap Album Part I. Part I, which “Freedom Ain’t Free” is the single off of, is coming in the next few months. It really ain’t got no features on there. It got a few people on the hooks and stuff like that, but no other real features other than myself. But that’s part one. It’s a double album. We’re probably 80% finished with part 2, which is going to come out a little later. It’s not finalized. You don’t know who’s going to be on it… Part 1 is done and there ain’t gonna be any features on there, but part 2, it maybe somebody coming at the last inning to drop a verse. We’ll see.”
Read more HERE
The folks over at CD Universe uploaded a 30 second snippet of the first taste off Food & Liquor 2. No details on the producer yet, but the track samples Pete Rock & CL Smooth's "T.R.O.Y". Make sure to tune in tomorrow to 107.5 WGCI at 5 PM Central when DJ Timbuck2 will premiere the full song!
UPDATE: Song will hit iTunes at midnight.
Sunday, May 20, 2012
Saturday, May 19, 2012
Check out this new track from the Rap-A-Lot Records 25th Anniversary compilation. Twista, Killa Kyleon and Lupe present their version of the Bun B classic. No idea how this stayed under the radar for so long. Props to the shoutbox folks for pointing it out.
Friday, May 18, 2012
Lupe was just added to the line-up of "Canada's Hottest Beach Festival." He will take the stage on August 3rd. You can find more info's about the festival HERE
We had a little report about this on here yesterday, now check out a few more pics of Lupe's performance @ Cornel West's Retirement Celebration. - More below!
Thursday, May 17, 2012
We're not sure which track(s) Symbolyc One has produced for Lu but he just tweeted that they did something together. S1 produced "Power" for Kanye previously.
@LupeFiasco They aiint ready for what we have in store fam! LETS GOOOOOO!!! :) S1
Singer and activist Harry Belafonte, rapper Lupe Fiasco and funk musician George Clinton gathered in McCarter Theatre on Wednesday to celebrate the retirement of African American studies professor Cornel West GS ’80.
Fiasco said the title of his sophomore album, “The Cool,” was inspired by a conversation the two had in which West spoke of the importance of altering societal perceptions of what is ‘cool’ and what isn’t. His third album, “Lasers,” stands for "Love Always Shines, Remember to Smile,” which he also said was inspired by West’s thoughts.
Furthermore, his forthcoming album — which will be called “Lupe Fiasco’s Food & Liquor 2: The Great American Rap Album” — references West directly.
The lyrics of one song, called "It’s Hood Now," read, “The Ivy League was running really well; then they slipped up and let Cornel in. It’s hood now.”
via The Daily Princetonian // Photo via Christine A. Scheller
Superstar performance video below!
Here are 2 left-over Lasers promo clips that weren't released. You might remember the vignettes that were used during Lupe's Remember 2 Smile concert in Chicago 3 years ago, that's where those 2 clips come from. Looking back at it now, you can tell that Lasers was going in a whole nother direction back then.
Check out the 2nd one after the jump!
Tuesday, May 15, 2012
Lu just revealed the artwork to the first taste of Food & Liquor II via his twitter account. Thoughts?
Around My Way (Freedom Ain't Free) drops May 22nd!
Lecrae sits down with Hard Knock TV's Nick Huff Barili for an in-depth interview. Lecrae starts the interview off by addressing being labeled Christian hip hop instead of just a hip hop artist and preconceptions people have about him because he raps about Jesus.
The interview continues with him explaining the meaning behind the track Chase That and after performs a verse from it. When asked who he is currently listening to he mentions Lupe, Kendrick Lamar, J Cole and Big K.R.I.T saying he appreciated rappers with substance because radio these days just has people feeling like life is just about the club.
Lecrae goes on about not having positive male role models growing up and now wanting to be that person for others as he is working with youth and kids in prison. Part 1 of this interview ends with Lecrae talking about Jeremy Lin who listens to him before the game.
PREVIOUSLY: LeCrae - Church Clothes [Mixtape]
Monday, May 14, 2012
Lupe performed at the Schaeffer Eye Center Crawfish Boil on May 5th. Check out this clip of him performing "Kick, Push" courtesy of ChasingSquirrelz. In the middle of the track Lupe dedicates his set and the song to Beastie Boy MCA.
Sunday, May 13, 2012
In the past people been asking where to get some of the Japanese Cartoon merch, now that the AllSabotage site is down. Here's the answer: You can get your fix right HERE ..also check out some of the other merch on the site.
Saturday, May 12, 2012
Carroll Hall Shelby, who was an American automotive designer and racing driver, passed away on May 10th at the age of 89. As the car fanatic that he is, Lupe took to Twitter to thank and remember him.
R.I.P. Carroll Shelby Thanx For The Cars!!! Carroll Shelby was an American race car driver who went on to innovate street cars and race cars to the highest degree.
The Ford Mustang GT500, the legendary AC Cobra Roadster, the Dodge Viper and with the assistance of Pete Brock the amazing Daytona Coupe!!!
Carroll Shelby is a legend and his legacy will live on through what he did best...hands down some of the most extraordinary cars on earth!
Pictured above: Lupe's Daytona Coupe
According to The Glacier, Lupe is set to perform at this year's B96 Pepsi Summer Bash on June 16th at Toyota Park in Bridgeview, IL. Tickets available HERE
Friday, May 11, 2012
.@LupeFiasco's new single so crazy! May 22nd. #FNL2
— Atlantic Records (@AtlanticRecords) May 11, 2012
Universal Studios Florida just announced the first acts for their Summer Concert Series 2012 and Lupe will perform at the Music Plaza stage on July 7th. - More infos HERE
Lupe's featured on MTV's Act [Every Action Counts] site, where they shine a light on his philanthropic endeavours.
Read the article HERE
Thursday, May 10, 2012
Kotaku just posted this article about "Geeks" and "Gamers" in Hip Hop. Here's a small excerpt:
Acts like Lupe Fiasco resemble Peter Parker, embody the stereotype of the geek, the nerd. We're typically portrayed as the sensitive types, the outliers who are searching for acceptance.
The paradox with the Peter Parker type is to be at once meek and still be able to don a costume for heroics.
Players: stereotypically reserved, shy until we pick up a controller, until it's time to save the world. Should the apocalypse ever occur, or if a zombie outbreak happens, the assumption is that we'd thrive, yeah? Backpack rappers, meanwhile, have an eye for the things that are wrong with society. They carry in their chest an idealism that wants to change the world."
Read the full article HERE
Wednesday, May 9, 2012
QuESt decides to release visuals for the first official single from his critically acclaimed project "Fear Not Failure" entitled "Gambler". Directed By David Helman & Crooked Engine, "Gambler" takes you into the mindset of standing for what you believe in at any and all costs no matter what the consequences may be. Enjoy!
Tuesday, May 8, 2012
Monday, May 7, 2012
After getting some Food & Liquor 2 news today, Sky just went to Instagram to remind us that his and Lupe's SNDCLSH EP is coming soon as well. Stay tuned.
Check out another track off the debut EP "Beats 2 Break Up 2" by 4x Grammy Award Winning Singer/Songwriter Poo Bear (MDMA). EP drops May 14th.
PREVIOUSLY: Poo Bear (MDMA) - Alone
Lupe performed at the Schaeffer Crawfish Boil in Birmingham, AL on Saturday. He dedicated the night to Adam "MCA" Yauch, of the Beastie Boys, who passed away on May 4th (R.I.P.) and he brought out a boy on stage, who's battling cancer, to perform "The Show Goes On" with him.
Check out a few videos of Lupe's set below!
Saturday, May 5, 2012
Friday, May 4, 2012
Thursday, May 3, 2012
Come and support The Lupe Fiasco Foundation and Skill Up Chicago May 17, 2012 at the Coup d'Etat in Chicago as we work to send Chicago teens to Ghana in June 2012! We hope to see you at our upcoming fundraiser "Ghana Must Go" hosted by the lovely and ultra talented Ugochi Nwaogwugwu and Friends!!
- Lupe Fiasco Foundation
Wednesday, May 2, 2012
Azad Right drops some visuals over his "Alone" record off his most recent project. If you haven't caught on to this guy yet, then what are you waiting for??? Click the link above and listen/download the project!
Jupiter Jim and JO are here again, check out the official music video for the first single from their mixtape Hello Forever.
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