Year in Review: Top 10 Albums of 2010

Welp, that’s it. The year 2010 is over, and what a rollercoaster it was. We lost many great musicians (R.I.P. Guru, Teddy Pendegras, Jay Reatard, Gregory Isaacs), but just as many stood up to take their place as the leaders of the next generation (Justin Bieber, Jackie Evancho, Odd Future).  T.I. got out of jail, made a terrible album, and then went back to jail. Lil’ Wayne and Gucci Mane got out of jail, while Lil Boosie got invited to stay a little longer. Erykah Badu & Ke$ha got naked, and Miley Cyrus acted like a bitch. Justin Timberlake did some acting, and Joaquin Phoenix did some rapping. Don’t ask or tell about Lady GaGa’s dress. M.I.A. got in trouble for eating truffle fries, and Willow Smith suffered a neck injury. Kanye West had a busy year: he apologized to George Bush and Taylor Swift, then un-apologized to Taylor, never apologized to Matt Lauer at all, made a movie, showed his dick, and joined Twitter. Susan Boyle emerged from the depths of… somewhere dark… and Bruno Mars failed. Cee Lo said “fuck” a lot, and Jay Electronica drank Mountain Dew. Pomplamoose made commercials, and Earl was kidnapped/died/incarerated/no one is really sure. Taylor Swift sold 1 million (bad) albums in a week, Eminem sold 3 million in 52 weeks, and no fucks were given. Oh, by the way, Lil B looks like Jesus. Phew. Glad that’s over.

THIS Is How You Conduct An Interview

It seems that quality interviews have become a lost art, especially in the hip-hop community. However, the legendary Nardwuar was giving lessons during his recent interview with Yelawolf.

Best of the BET Awards Cyphers

Every year, the most talked about part of the BET Awards are the freestyle cyphers, and this year was no exception.

Top 10 Breakout Artists of 2010

I just wanted to share this article I recently wrote for TheRapUp. Special thanks to Rizoh for giving me the opportunity to write on his site. So with a short introduction from Rizoh, here is my list of the Top 10 Breakout Artists of 2010:

There’s been a rash of rising hip-hop artists on the verge of stardom this year. Despite the bevy of so-called future stars, only a handful of them will still be around to hold interest next year. Here’s a countdown of 10 hip-hop artists that made a big splash in 2010. – Rizoh

Songs of the Week (18 Jul – 25 Jul)

Check out our recommendations to get you through your Music Monday… Enjoy!

Smooth Summer Joint

Off her debut studio album, The ArchAndroid, Miss Monáe shows off her diverse talents on this fast-paced track. It’s the perfect song to take your mind off the scorching heat while you’re cruising this summer.

[listen] Janelle Monáe – Faster

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Speaking of Heat

Here’s a joint off of Curren$y’s latest album Pilot Talk. Mos Def does… whatever it is he does… and Mr. Elect adds a nice finishing touch over the smooth production. He may have one of the dumbest names in hip-hop, but Spitta is on top of his game right now!

[download] Curren$y – The Day feat. Mos Def & Jay Electronica

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From the Vault

Nickelus F is constantly underrated, Drake bars are rare these days, and we need more accordions in rap, so when you get all of those together on a track it makes for something special. There’s been a tagged up version of this floating around, so here’s the no-nonsense version.

[download] Nickelus F – The Grind feat. Drake

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Caught You Sleeping

While singles off his album like “Shutterbug” and “General Patton” have been getting a lot of praise, this is one song that seems to have been overlooked. André 3000 provides his partner with a thumping beat and Yelawolf continues to impress, utilizing an unorthodox flow to turn this one into some real trunk muzik.

[listen] Big Boi- You Ain’t No DJ feat. Yelawolf

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Throwback Track

It’s simple. You can never go wrong with The Temptations.

[listen] The Temptations - Get Ready

-Tycho