Lyrics. Flow. Power. Beats. Storytelling. Photogenic…

The post LLOYD BANKS Drops Socialize Visual as RESPECT. Looks Back Thru The Lens of Photographer JIMMY FONTAINE appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.

The Legends Fest: Hip Hop Edition

Hip-hop legend Scarface will be joined by some of hip-hop’s most honorable artists from the 80s and 90s, including KRS-One, MC Lyte, Roxanne Shante, and DJ Quik.

Chicago’s own, Twista, known for his chopper-style of rapping and chart-topping hits, performs in his hometown alongside hip-hop icons to cover fan-favorites and take concert-goers on a trip down memory lane.

Performances by the reigning queens of hip-hop, Roxanne Shante, MC Lyte, and Shawnna, will shut down the building with their legendary hits for the real hip hop lovers.

https://www.instagram.com/p/Bi_SbrsjCMZ/?hl=en&taken-by=mclyte

About The Legends Fest:

The Legends Fest is an annual event that honors music’s greatest icons. Past headliners include Busta Rhymes, Brandy, Monica, G-Unit, Da Brat, and many more.

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The post Scarface, KRS-One, MC Lyte and More are Headed to Chicago for the 2018 Legends Fest: Hip Hop Edition appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.

Mad Skillz may have hung his MC hat up for turntables, but the veteran emcee kicked off 2018 showing Uncle Murda why he’s listed as one of the most sought-after emcees in Hip-Hop.

For nearly twenty years, fans heavily anticipate the annual year-end “Rap Up” from Skillz which reflects over the previous year, over the last few years Uncle Murda among many others have “borrowed” Skillz concept to recreate their own. However, the G-Unit artist stepped into the crosshairs after he told Power 105.1‘s The Breakfast Club that he and Skillz were “arguing” online over the song.

“I told him, ‘I took your sh*t, homie. You know how Brooklyn do. I took your sh*t.’”

It seems as if Skillz was tired of giving passes because right before he addressed Murda he released the following screenshot revealing that the two were not “arguing.”

https://www.instagram.com/p/BdfhEQpnhML/?taken-by=skillzva

Not only did Skillz release the screenshot refuting the claim, but he also used the radio interview clip to open the lyrical thrashing dropping the diss right as DJ Envy asks what Skillz had to say and his response taking us back to 1998 to the Ruff Ryder/Rocafella/Murder Inc. collab “Murdergram.”

The opening verse alleges that in 2015, DJ Clark Kent contacted Skillz suggesting a collaboration between the two after hearing Murda’s version of the song; to which Skillz declined.

“I’m like, ‘Clark. You must be faded / Why the f*ck would I collab’ on some sh*t that I created?’ / Y’all jaded / If you don’t get the f*ck off my phone / And tell that old-faced-ass ni**a to leave me alone / Get gone.’ Clark you know I ain’t that dude/ yeah I done fell back from Rap but don’t get it confused. Shit lit my fuse/ Yiu wouldn’t call Hov and say 21 Savage wanna do 22 2s.”

The diss goes on stating that Murda signed to G-Unit 10 years too late and aims at his project  Respect The Shooter, which was released after Murda was shot. Skillz also drags the former Roc-A-Fella artist pointing out that he isn’t a Top 20 Brooklyn bred MC  before going on to list Brooklyn spitters M.O.P., Masta Ace, Joey Bada$$, Joell Ortiz, Skyzoo and Fabolous as all being the elite.

We are not sure where this will go, but one thing is for certain, it is great to have 2018 kick off with lyrics and a diss for the culture.

Check out the diss and the interview that triggered it below.

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The post Mad Skillz Kicks Off 2018 with “Murda Gram” Aimed at Uncle Murda For Copying “Rap Up” [Listen] appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.

Actor, rapper and producer Curtis ’50 Cent’ Jackson and sports and entertainment journalist Brandon ‘Scoop B’ Robinson. Photo Courtesy of Scoop Vision Media

50 Cent is probably one of the most brilliant minds you’ll ever meet. The creator of the Starz Network hit show, Power, 50 Cent’s brought you hits like: ‘In Da Club,’ ‘Wanksta,’ ‘Candy Shop,’ ’21 Questions,’ and a ton more.

Those songs are fan favorites, but one of the most underrated songs that 50 ever put out never went mainstream was ‘How To Rob.’

‘How To Rob’ was a single off 50’s Power of the Dollar album, 50 Cent’s first album.

Yes, his first album! Get Rich or Die Trying was 50’s second album. Power of the Dollar was originally set to be released in 2000 via Columbia Records.

It never dropped though because Columbia Records found out that 50 was shot nine times. Columbia dropped him, a huge mistake on Columbia’s part and a gain by 50 who went on to have a huge career with he and G Unit.

Quips at folks like late rapper ODB, hip hop legend Lil Kim, gospel singer Kirk Franklin, Bishop T.D. Jakes and other notables like Will Smith, Jada Pinkett-Smith and even late rapper Heavy D was 50’s way in the late ninetys/early 2000s that he was hungry and he was coming!

Heck, 50 let you know what time it was with lines like: 

The bottom line is I’m a crook with a deal. If my record don’t sell I’mma rob and steal. You better recognize, n***a, I’m straight from the street. These industry n***as is starting to look like something to eat.I’ll snatch Kim and tell Puff, ”You want to see her again? Get your ass down to the nearest ATM.

And:

I’ll rob Pun without a gun, snatch his piece then run/This nigga weigh 400 pounds, how he gonna catch me, son?

And a chorus that said:

This ain’t serious/Being broke can make you delirious/So we rob and steal so our ones can be bigger/50 Cent, how it feel to rob an industry n***a?

Did you know that Sirius/XM’s DJ Whoo Kid broke that record?

“You gotta imagine him just giving me that record and I’m like: ‘I gotta play this? Like you serious,” DJ Whoo Kid told me on Scoop B Radio. “And I’m like alright as long as you got my back.”

DJ Whoo Kid spinning records. Photo Courtesy of World Red Eye

Whoo Kid caught hell for releasing that track too!

“I was getting like threats, texts, you get like a phone call and then somebody hang up, like all kinds of craziness,” DJ Whoo Kid said.

Check Out DJ Who Kid and Brandon ‘Scoop B’ Robinson on Scoop B Radio

“Part of it, cause, like dealing with 50 Cent and remember, I used to DJ for like CNN, Capone-N-Noreaga before that and they went through like hell. Those guys were like killing and shooting and before that, I was with Juvenile. So I’m like super old school. I can’t even believe I even did all that s**t. But um rolling with Juvenile, he introduced me to the south and all the violence they do and white chicks, like I didn’t know what a white girl was until I met Juvenile because he had [the song] ‘Back That Ass Up.’

‘How To Rob’ appeared in a movie too.

Yup!

It was on the soundtrack for the film, In Too Deep, which starred Omar Epps, LL Cool J and Nia Long.

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The post Scoop B: DJ Whoo Kid Says He Got Backlash After He Released 50 Cent’s ‘How To Rob’ Record In The 90s appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.

Last week, Rapper 50 Cent went on instagram to announce that retired basketball players Kenyon Martin and Tim Thomas will fight in a celebrity boxing match.

50 stated:  “They really need to go ahead and get that shit off their chest.

Apparently that’s not the case, according to Billboard’s Carl Lamarre.

During a Q&A to promote Ice Cube’s BIG3 3-on-3 league that included NBA legends like Allen Iverson, Roger Mason, Jr., and Lewis, Martin replied to Lamarre’s inquiry saying:

Don’t be part of the circus, dog. You know what they say if you entertain clowns, right? If you entertain clowns, you become part of the circus. I’m a 39-year-old grown-ass man, dog. If that was going to happen, I would have took care of it seven years ago. I moved on. I got kids at home. I don’t got time for that. It’s childish. It’s just people reaching for something to talk about. I’m not gonna entertain that.

Martin and Thomas’ feud dated back to the 2004 NBA Playoffs. Thomas, a New York Knick at the time, and Martin, then a member of the then-New Jersey Nets got into it following a flagrant foul via Jason Collins caused Thomas to have a serious back injury and miss the remainder of the NBA Playoffs. After Thomas was released from the hospital, he expressed his frustration to the New York media, telling reporters that he would be looking to hit someone back when he returned to the court. When pressed by a writer on his stance on Kenyon Martin, Thomas replied: that Martin was a “fugazi,” a term popularized by former HBO original program The Sopranos which means ‘fake.’

Relive Tim Thomas and Kenyon Martin’s Moment Here

Martin would respond by cutting out the New York Post’s headline that read “Whiny Tim” and taped it to his practice jersey for all the media to see. Years later Martin and Thomas’ feud never died and the two have gone on to relive it in recent interviews.

In an interview with me on the Scoop B Radio Podcast last year, Thomas insists that he’d like to step into the ring and box Kenyon Martin with the proceeds going to a charity of Martin’s choosing.“Brother let’s get in the ring,” he said.

Check Out Tim Thomas On The Scoop B Radio Podcast

“I know you got some charities you can send the money to,” said Thomas. “I’ve got plenty of kids to help out, plenty of organizations. We could give it to charity. Or we can get some boxing promoters. I can call Floyd and we can get this off my chest once and for all. And the world will see what type of individual he is all at one time.”

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The post Kenyon Martin Responds To 50 Cent, Tim Thomas Boxing Challenge appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.

Seven years since the first installment was released, rapper Lloyd Banks is back with the follow-up, Halloween Havoc 2. Keeping the creepy vibe going, the mixtape holds 13 tracks with what looks like zero features. There’s no specific release date as of yet, but Banks assures fans it’s coming “in a few.”

Check out the tracklisting for Lloyd Banks’ mixtape Halloween Havoc 2 below:

The post Lloyd Banks Reveals ‘Halloween Havoc 2’ Tracklisting appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.

Fresh on the heels of his “How Many MCs” freestyle earlier this week, Lloyd Banks has ripped yet another instrumental. This time around, the Queens lyricist drops bombs over Raekwon‘s “Criminology.” With lines like, “Only n*gga in the top five holding two slots, the new me and the old me,” it’s clear that Banks is back in PLK mode.

While we await his Cold Corner 3, the G-Unit enforcer’s latest is sure to hold you over. Check out the track below.

The post New Music: Lloyd Banks – “Criminology” (Freestyle) appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.