[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XzVTuLIy9PE]

Beyonce kicked off her world tour in Canada last night and pulled out all the stops. From donning a white gown (Bey-Z stans stand up!) to doin’ a cool cover for the hometown crowd of Alanis Morisette’s “You Oughta Know.” And there were no reports of her fallin’ or slippin’. Put a sock in it, haters!

XPd2SI_7wiE 

Props: RS

Here’s the second remix of “I Run”. This time around, it features Nipsey Hussle, E-40, and Yo Gotti. 

FYI: 40 assassinates the track. No bias. No Bull.

{mp3}i run remix{/mp3}

Props: Mr X

Extra Credit: Can’t forget where you came from. A Flock of Seagulls, “I Ran”

{mp3}i ran{/mp3}

Who says a day in court is stressful? The royal couple, T.I. and Tiny flee the scene. Every guy needs a down ass chick. Ha!

In this month’s XXL, Officer Ricky goes for the jugular:

“50 Cent is very cunning, and I’ll give him that, but, at the end of the day, he’s a human yeast infection…I have no agenda to end his career. His music is doing that. What I’m doing is speaking for the South and what we on. We not on that vibe….You gotta understand, in the South you go to the hood, niggas ain’t on laptops. Niggas don’t go to Worldstar.”

He’s right, they go to RapRadar. Ha! The May issue of XXL is on newsstands now.

Photo: Jonathan Mannion

[Felt like takin’ you back on the flick.]

Uh oh, here’s another studio recording that my homies at the New Music Cartel shouldn’t have gotten their dirty hands on. This sounds like an unfinished demo of a scrapped effort from the American Gangster recording sessions. Wonder if I should expect a text. Ha!

“Maybe” (NMC Tagged-Up Exclusive)

{mp3}nmc feat jay z – maybe{/mp3}

The price of lettin’ Puffy do your tracks? Them shits leak eventually. 

UPDATE: I reached out and Jay hit me back with some clarity. “Maybe” was a demo of a song he wrote for Puff. It was never his record. Or ever intended to be on American Gangster, the studio sessions from which it was recorded.

You wanna get it poppin’ with your ladyfriend this weekend, YN got cha playboy. Throw this in your stereo. Z100, here we come. This has hit single numero quatro written all over it. You can’t stop the new Nelly!

{mp3}07-flo_rida-be_on_you_ft._ne-yo{/mp3} 

Previous garbage. Hits!

“Right Round”

{mp3}05-flo_rida-right_round{/mp3} 

“Shone”

{mp3}04-flo_rida-shone_ft._pleasure_p{/mp3} 

“Sugar”

{mp3}12-flo_rida-sugar_ft._wynter{/mp3} 

Tramar Dillard runs rap. We’re just in denial.

UPDATE: Someone sent me an old gossip item that ran a year back about Flo Rida allegedly dating Ne-Yo’s baby mama. What the Jay-Z and Nas is this? Ha!

Here’s a new joint from Bow Weezy and his ghostwriter. Let’s hope Tip doesn’t spends his last 60 days of freedom doin’ horrible hand-out collabos like this. Ha!

{mp3}04 been doin this ft. t.i{/mp3} 

[vimeo http://vimeo.com/3876006] 

Mo’ goodness from the SXSW days. I played myself and went to the Big Boi show instead that night. I heard Free tore it down. Say it with me: I lost.

“First look at what’s coming from Free and Jake’s album “The Stimulus Package” dropping on Rhymesayers this summer.”

Props: Rain Drop Hustla via djnphared

Either this pic was was taken in 1986 or at Nick’s birthday party last year. Nevertheless, today is all about you. And in celebration of hitting the big 4-0, here’s a song FUBU. (Get it? “For U, By U”)  *crickets*

{mp3}mariah carey bday song{/mp3} 

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k4kFRSriE8k]

I was Music Editor at The Source back when The Firm mania took over hip-hop. Them damn meetings with Dave Mays and his “buddy” Commissioner Steve Stoute. Having to write a painful Sure Shot single of “Firm Biz.” The behind the scenes drama of the infamous split cover with Jay-Z when Dame and them making a lil house call. Ha! Too many stories.

Yeah, the final result from this rap supergroup didn’t live up to the tremendous hype that was created but I can now fondly look back on that time on my life and acknowledge this shit was pretty fun. Watch this and pretend you were part of it.

T.R.O.Y. assistance: Ice