Music Matters Daily: Big Sean Drops 'Blessings' With Kanye West, Drake
Plus K. Michelle asks Rebels to pick her next ABWBH single.
1 / 20
Big Sean Drops "Blessing" With Kanye West, Drake - 2015 may be shaping up to be the year of Big Sean. Currently No. 1 on the charts with his first single "IDFWU" from his forthcoming album Dark Sky Paradise, the Detroit native is planning a complete takeover with his new song. Dropping "Blessings" last night with two of raps biggest names, Kanye West and Drake, Sean has amped up the buzz for the Feb. 24 release of his thrid album. The trio offer braggadocios rap puns all while giving thanks for how far they’ve come. Listen to it here.–– George Chapman, Jr.(Photos from Left: Jason Merritt/Getty Images for iHeartMedia, Michael Buckner/Getty Images For BET, Ian Gavan/Getty Images)
2 / 20
K. Michelle Needs Your Help - Calling all K. Michelle fans. The "Love 'em All" songstress is asking you to help her choose her next single off Anybody Wanna Buy a Heart? The former reality TV star has already released three singles from the album, which have been doing well digitally. A balllad, an uptempo track? The choice is yours. Choose wisely, Rebels!(Photo: K Michelle via Instagram)
3 / 20
Jessie and Kendrick Lamar to Hit the Stage at Wireless Festival in London - Want to see Jessie J live? How about Kendrick Lamar? Now, how about the two of them together? Well, now you can. The two Music Matters vets are slated to perform at the Wireless Festival at Finsbury Park, London. The entire event will take place over the July 4 weekend with Drake as one of the other headliners. Tickets go on sale Tuesday, Feb. 3.(Photos from left: Neilson Barnard/Getty Images, Christopher Polk/Getty Images)
4 / 20
Drake Wishes J. Cole a Happy Birthday - Nowadays, no birthday is complete without long Instagram dedications from your close friends. So in the spirit of friendship, Aubrey Graham took to IG to wish his fellow rap homie Jermaine a Happy 30th Birthday. Read the kind words here. Caution: remember the Kleenex, if necessary. (Photo: Johnny Nunez/WireImage)
5 / 20
Vic Mensa and Kaytranada Collide for "Drive Me Crazy" - While Vic Mensa is working on some magic in the studio with legends like Kanye West, he's still delivering fire for the listeners. He's teamed up with his homie Kaytranada for a second time. The two dropped their new song, "Drive Me Crazy," and it's everything you'd expect. The trippy beat provides the perfect foundation for Vic to spit his bars rhythmically and sing on the chorus. Listen to it here.(Photo: HW&W | XL Recordings)
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6 / 20
Macklemore Creates His Own Recording Studio - We can imagine that where you record your music is just as important as the music itself. So Macklemore and partner Ryan Lewis took taking precaution to the next level. Teaming up with Vicoustic, the pair created their own state of the art recording studio. Lewis spoke on the new venture, saying, "One of the huge advantages to having Vicoustic set up our control room is that when it’s silent and treated, you’re able to listen at lower volumes." Watch Lewis and Macklemore talk specifics in their announcement of the news. (Photo: Theo Wargo/Getty Images for Clear Channel)
7 / 20
Tiara Thomas Is More Than Just a Singer - Tiara Thomas tried to warn you about her many talents on her first single, 'One Night,' from her upcoming project. Now she's back flexing her lyrical best. The singer/songwriter released the short video "Fly as Hell," which samples Mos Def's "Ms. Fat Booty. Check it out here.(Photo: Interscope)
8 / 20
Janelle Monáe Honored at the Trumpet Awards - Janelle Monáe, Jamie Foxx, The Isley Brothers and many more were honored at this year's coveted Trumpet Awards held in Atlanta. The awards that celebrate the achievements of African-Americans and those who support in film, music, politics, law, medicine and a slew of other professions was started in 1993 by Xernona Clayton. Monáe, best known for her larger than life energy and unique personal style, said in her acceptance speech, "I decided through fashion and music that I would challenge the status quo and redefine what it meant to be a Black female artist."
9 / 20
Joey Bada$ Sees Promising First Week Sales - Joey Bada$ can talk the talk and his fans can clearly walk the walk. First week sales for the Brooklyn rapper's debut project, B4.Da.$, totaled over 58,000 copies, earning him the No. 5 spot on the charts with 94% of sales coming from online sales. He also outsold the ever controversial Lupe Fiasco by close to 28,000 copies. Congrats, Joey. (Photo: Daniel Boczarski/Getty Images for BET)
10 / 20
Elle Varner to Perform on Late Night With Seth Meyers - Elle Varner is hitting up the late night talk show circuit with an upcoming performance on Late Night With Seth Meyers. The R&B songstress will appear on the Feb. 2 taping with Kid Ink.(Photo: Andrew H. Walker/Getty Images)
Photo By Photo: Andrew H. Walker/Getty Images
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11 / 20
Jessie J, Hozier and Allison Lennox to Hit the Grammy Stage Together - The Grammys are good for mashing up artists from across genres to create music magic on the stage year after year. This year is no different. The Grammy board has announced a few of the on-stage collaborations for this year's awards. Expect a dream team union of Jessie J, Allison Lennox and Hozier for a vocal slaying when the show airs live on Feb. 8. (Photos from Left: Alex Huckle/Getty Images, Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images for Victoria's Secret, Kevin Winter/Getty Images for NARAS)
12 / 20
J. Cole Says He Wanted to Sign Kendrick Lamar - J. Cole and Kendrick are now both fans of each other, but before they met, Cole had his A&R ear tuned into K Dot. During his recent visit to The Combat Jack show, the North Carolina rapper said, "I didn’t know he was with Top [Dawg] ... But in my mind, he was the first person I ever found. … I remember tellin’ everybody like, ‘Yo, I’m tryna sign this kid.” Listen to more of the podcast here.
13 / 20
D.M.C. Says Kendrick Lamar Is a 'Superhero' - K Dot is proving to be your favorites' favorite. Run-D.M.C.'s Daryl "D.M.C." McDaniels praised the Cali native for his bravery in speaking about the issues that aren't necessarily radio-friendly. "What most do is just make a record about partying... But he’s not celebrating alcoholism. He’s seeing it as a problem, but not being so obvious," he said. That’s what real MCs do; he’s a superhero doing it.”This comment comes on the heels of Stevie Wonder calling Lamar a "genius" in GQ. Read more of D.M.C.'s interview here.(Photos from left: Chance Yeh/Getty Images for Long Island Music Hall Of Fame, Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images)
14 / 20
Macklemore Gets His Own Baseball Card - Macklemore, 50 Cent and Biz Markie will soon have a lot more in common than just the music. The three rappers are slated to be the face of their own official baseball cards as part of the 2015 Topps Series 1. The 15 card set will commemorate all the ceremonial first pitches of 2014. The "Same Love" singer threw the first one at the Seattle Mariners game back in June.(Photo: Otto Greule Jr/Getty Images)
15 / 20
J. Cole Has Always Been an 'Activist' - J. Cole made his long-awaited stop on The Combat Jack Show to talk being socially aware, his new album, and his tumultuous relationship with a certain type of programming. "I remember when Flavor of Love came out, the whole reality TV wave started. I was the one in school saying, 'Why are yall watching this s**t, don't yall know this is evil?!.'" Listen to the rest of the two-hour podcast here. (Photo: The Combat Jack Show)
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