President Obama Tells Jay-Z He Loves Blueprint 3

Allhiphop reports:

Jay-Z’s Blueprint 3 album has received its biggest endorsement via President Barack Obama. In a recent interview with BBC One, disclosed that the President loved the LP and was playing it during their recent phone conversation.

“Barack loves Hip-Hop, when I called him he was playing Blueprint in the gym,” he explained. “I've been invited to the White House a couple of times. Hopefully we'll keep him in for 8 years so I'll have time to get there."

Obama has been a self-admitted Hip-Hop fan for years, and first met Jay-Z in 2008 as part of his goal to help emcees use their art to spark critical thinking and bridge generational rifts.

Also, the then U.S. senator was hopeful to see Hip-Hop artists as a whole move away from the misogyny and materialistic slant that’s gripped the art form’s mainstream in recent years.

“I've met with Jay-Z, I've met with Kanye [West]. And I've talked to other artists about how potentially to bridge that gap. I think the potential for them to deliver a message of extraordinary power that gets people thinking [is great],"Obama told BET on the special What’s In It For Us? “There are times, even on the artists I've named, the artists that I love, that there is a message that's sometimes degrading to women, uses the N-word a little too frequently. But also something that I'm really concerned about is they're always talking about material things about how I can get something; more money, more cars.”

Jay-Z acknowledged the Hip-Hop nation’s potential political power, but rejected the notion that artists should tone down their messages. Instead, he insisted that artists have a responsibility to speak on the uncomfortable truths of society, and not relegate their art to propaganda.

"Sometimes there are hard truths in rap, they're not packaged with pretty ribbons. Sometimes the realities of the situations are harsh and they need to be told,” Jay reasoned to the BBC. “We're the poets of our generation! Those truths and those honesties need to be told and sometimes that will rub people the wrong way but that don't mean you don't tell them. I think when rap is done brilliantly it can inform you of a problem, things that are going on."

Even as the pro-Obama Hip-Hop songs slowed following the President’s January 2009 inauguration, Jay-Z has remained one of his strongest supporters.

The Brooklyn native spoke favorably of Obama throughout Blueprint 3, including the songs “What We Talkin’ About,” “On to the Next One,” and “Reminder.”

Today (February 19), President Obama will hold a town hall meeting at Nevada’s Henderson high school, followed by speaking engagements at the Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce, and the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority.

Judge Mathis Says Prisons Are Paying Inmated $1 A Day To Make Furniture/ Profiting Off Slave Like Work

Shout out to Judge Mathis for keeping it real for real. We need more men like you.

Jay-Z Speaks on We are the world

We Are The World 25 Official Video (Haiti Benefit)

Recorded on February 1st, 2010, in the same studio as the original 25 years earlier (Henson Recording Studios, formerly A&M Recording Studios) "We Are The World 25 For Haiti", in which Jones and Richie serve as executive producers and producers, was created in collaboration with executive producers Wyclef Jean, Randy Phillips and Peter Tortorici; producers Humberto Gattica and RedOne; and co-producers Rickey Minor, Mervyn Warren and Patti Austin to benefit the Haitian earthquake relief efforts and the rebuilding of Haiti.

Academy Award-winning writer-director Paul Haggis (Crash, Million Dollar Baby), whose own personal efforts as well as those of Artists for Peace and Justice have already saved countless lives in Haiti, filmed the private recording session to create the accompanying video and behind-the-scenes production, and serves as Film Director and as an Executive Producer with Jones, Richie, Jean, Phillips and Tortorici.

The 25th Anniversary recording features over 80 artists and performers. The recording of We Are The World 25 For Haiti embodied the same enthusiasm, sense of purpose and generosity as the original recording 25 years ago. Every one of the artists who participated, regardless of genre or generation, walked into the room with their hearts and souls completely open to coming together to help the people of Haiti.

Swizz Beatz Planning To Branch Out Into Films, Art, Clothing

FLFM-

Swizz Beatz has been around, making hits for years, but according to the producer, a lot of people don't know a whole lot about him and his body of work. But, he says its partly his fault, because he's been so against doing heavy press, and/or having a publicist. That's all gonna change though ... very soon.

In a recent interview with MTV, Swizzy said he plans on giving fans a more in-depth look into his resume, among other things. "What I'm doing this year, I'm doing a bio on Swizz Beatz. I'm doing a bio on Kasseem Dean," the producer told MTV. "Some people don't know 70 percent of the work I've done. They know the obvious stuff that I've done. I think that me being so anti-press, so anti-publicist, mentally, it kept me cool, but on the music level, it held me back. Simple things I see, like ... for people that think me and Bono hanging out was, like, weird, awkward, I know that's a lack of education of who I am. I've been working with rock and roll since way back when -- Limp Bizkit, all these different people from way back when." Swizzy also says he'll be launching a new website soon, which will help build his legal name (Kasseem Dean) into a name brand ... because he's planning to branch out into all sorts of other lanes outside of music -- including scoring movies, art, and even clothingThis year, I'm just graduating the whole Swizz Beatz brand. I'm going more Kasseem Dean, which is my government [name]," he explained. "Kasseem Dean is the guy that travels all around the world, that deals with art, that does all the philanthropic work, that's scoring movies, that's doing clothes with major designers. All those things fall under the Kasseem Dean category.

"Swizz Beatz is 'On to the Next One,' 'Transform Ya,' all the stuff you see in the video. From 2009 on backwards is Swizz Beatz. All my tracks, that could still be Swizz Beatz. Anytime it's something outside of beats, it's Kasseem Dean. It's important for me to graduate that brand," Swizz continued.

When Swizzy will be launching this new website, or what domain name it will be located at, was unknown at press time.

"Away From Home Tour Dates"

A complete list of dates and schools for the "Away From Home Tour" is as follows:

4/6 - Charleston, IL @ Eastern Illinois University
4/7 - Columbus, OH @ Private Location
4/9 - State College, PA @ Penn State University
4/10 - Boston, MA @ Private Location
4/11 - Lock Haven, PA @ Private Location
4/14 - East Lansing, MI @ Michigan State University
4/15 - Rochester Hills, MI @ Oakland University
4/16 - Morgantown, WV @ West Virginia University
4/21 - Orlando, FL @ University Central Florida
4/22 - Greenville, SC @ Furman University
4/23 - TBA
4/24 - New Orleans, LA @ New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival
4/26 - Kansas City, MO @ University of Missouri – Kansas City
4/27 - Lexington, KY @ University of Kentucky
4/29 - Lowell, MA @ University Mass Lowell
4/30 - Syracuse, NY @ Private Location
5/01 - Boston, MA @ Private Location
5/01 - East Rutherford, NJ @ Bamboozle Festival
5/04 - Worcester, MA @ Holy Cross
5/05 - Towson, MD @ Towson University
5/06 - Cheney, PA @ Cheyney University
5/07 - Ithaca, NY @ Private Location
5/08 - Plymouth, NH @ Private Location

Drake Gears Up "Away From Home Tour"

Drake's first solo tour ever kicks off in 2010!

Drake announced this week that he will be embarking on his first ever solo tour, which will be hitting colleges beginning in April.

The "Away From Home Tour" is set to begin on April 6 in Charleston, Illinois, and continue through early May hitting universities in Ohio, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Massachusetts, and New York -- 25 in all.

Drake will be joined by fellow Canadian rapper K-OS and New York City-based band Francis & The Light.

In partnership with The Campus Connection Tour, Drake will promote the use of green technology through the use of biodegradable materials on his tour bus, as well as backstage at his shows. Drake has also vowed to create a tour rider contract that would be eco-friendly.

Two major performances on the tour will be at the New Orleans' Jazz & Heritage Festival, and Bamboozle.

To keep up with everything Drake, bookmark his official blog at OctobersVeryOwn.Blogspot.com.

Lil Wayne Filmed Nine Music Videos Over The Past Week

Lil Wayne got a little breathing room when his sentencing was delayed this week until March, but he made the best of what was to be his last week of freedom. He spent it working ... very hard. According to MTV.com, Weezy's been in overdrive, reportedly filming nine music videos in Miami over the past weekend. Director David Rousseau of Creativeseen said the rapper and his crew began filming at 9AM on Friday (February 5) and wrapped at 8AM on Super Bowl Sunday (February 7). He reportedly shot videos for "Da Da Da," "Knockout" and "Get a Life" from Wayne's recently-released rock album Rebirth, and an unreleased song from Wayne's forthcoming record, Tha Carter IV. "There isn't a title for it," Rousseau said of the unreleased song. "Honestly, I can't tell you too much about it. That was a complete secret. We had to kick everyone off the set for it. No photography, even their official photographer had to leave. That's under wraps. The album is still under production. It's a crazy song. "We shot some sh** from the [We Are Young Money compilation] album, we shot something from Tha Carter IV. Some stuff from Rebirth," he continued. "We knew what our deadline was. We're trying to get maximum coverage for Wayne. Most of the time we only shot Wayne's verses -- we'll finish the rest of the videos off in the next couple of weeks." Rousseau, who worked with Wayne in the past, said he was contacted by Cash Money Records' CEOs, Birdman and Slim, and given the task. Their mission is to keep the rapper visible while he's incarcerated, instead of him disappearing during the prison stint. "Cash Money said, 'This is our deadline. This is a hard deadline.' It was basically a 'Mission: Impossible' [scenario]: This is your mission if you choose to accept it. Everybody is on board because everybody knows what's at stake," he explained. "Unlike T.I. and some of these other guys that's disappeared while they were in, the point is to keep Wayne [visible] on TV and everything for whatever time he's in. There was a plan in action. Slim and Baby really could foresee that. He's at the height of his career, you can't let that momentum slip." In addition to the visuals shot by Rousseau, Wayne recently shot four in Los Angeles, one in Dallas, and has reportedly "been shooting" in Atlanta, too, said the report. In addition to the Cash Money/Young Money family, celebrities such as Juelz Santana, Yo Gotti and boxer Sugar Shane Mosley came out for the shoots. With an extension to his sentencing, Wayne might kick his work schedule into high gear, so don't be surprised if he shoots even more visuals.

Lil Wanye Grabs The Number 2 Spot

The top spot of this week's Billboard 200 is held by country singer Lady Antebellum, but Lil Wayne debuted right behind her with Rebirth ... while Grammy winners saw a sales boost.

In at no. 2 was Lil Wayne's latest, Rebirth, selling 176,000, a far cry from his last solo album, Tha Carter III, which opened with 1 million sold in 2008.

However, the rock album did better than initially projected, reports Billboard, who estimated sales being somewhere around 125,000 to 150,000.

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Lil Wayne Stands Tall For New Orleans

"I think it's amazing what's been done for Haiti," Wayne said, gazing out at the assembled reporters and cameramen in a tent just outside the Jim Henson Recording Studios in Hollywood as he stepped off a stool and lowered the microphone. Then, raising the mic to his iced-out grill once more, he added, "But I also think it's amazing what hasn't been done for New Orleans."

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