electro music blog

Timbaland Working With Jay-Z, Picturing A Chart Showdown With Dr. Dre

2007-09-27T05:24:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago, Timbaland was making predictions about the whole 50 Cent vs. Kanye West chart battle. Now that the numbers are in, he would like to see more Super Tuesdays — and he even has an idea about who he would want to be up against on record-store shelves.

"I gotta go against my daddy," he said Friday from the ABC studios in New York, where the super-producer is filming a guest spot for the soap opera "One Life to Live." "I call [Dr.] Dre my daddy. To make it be some talk, I gotta go against my big brother. He's my big brother. [Who are] the two quarterbacks? Peyton Manning and Eli? When they have to go against each other, it's like, 'Do I really wanna go against my big brother?' Dre is my mentor. That would drive people to the stores. Like, 'Oh snap, Tim and Dre!' That would be big. I asked Jay-Z who he would go against. He said, 'The only person I would go against is my other homeboy: my friend Eminem.' "

Tim says Jay has approached him about working on his American Gangster album (see "Jay-Z As The 'American Gangster': Does Hova's Life Compare To The '70s Drug Kingpin's Story?"). Jay is looking for a follow-up to the Pharrell-produced lead track, "Blue Magic."

http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1570571/20070926/timbaland.jhtml

Beirut Bring French Pop, Gypsy Tunes To NYC

2007-09-27T02:49:00.000-07:00

A former church turned humanist gathering place — New York’s Society of Ethical Culture — was the location on Monday night for a band from Albuquerque (by way of New York) that sports a Middle Eastern name, was single-handedly responsible for exporting Balkan music to the blogosphere a year ago and has now gone all Gallic on us — our favorite accordion-mandolin-ukulele-horn-playing octet, Beirut, led by the globetrotting prodigy Zach Condon.

The performance was part of New York’s ongoing “Wordless Music Series,” dedicated to bringing together — and breaking down the artificial barriers between — classical and pop musicians. So, after two openers — a spare, hypnotic set by French experimental player Colleen and five songs from the classical duo of Katya Mihailova and Colin Jacobson — it was time for the main event. Those seated in the dark wood pews of the Ethical Culture’s concert hall went from respectful to raucous.

http://yourhereblog.mtv.com/2007/09/26/globetrotting-beirut-bring-french-pop-and-gypsy-tunes-to-nyc/

Yung Joc And T-Pain Involved In London Club Brawl -- But Joc Still Has Bling Intact

2007-09-26T23:37:00.000-07:00

His name is Yung Joc, he has the most talked-about piece of jewelry in rap, and no, he has not been robbed of it.

Joc phoned in to the MTV offices on Wednesday (September 26) to talk exclusively about a big rumor going on in hip-hop. The word on the Net and radio is that he got ganked for his eye-catching Hustlenomics "H" pendant and giant rope chain during a recent brawl in a London club after he and T-Pain fought off some rowdy fans.

"The craziest part of about this is I've never seen so much hype about a piece of jewelry except when [NBA star] Kobe [Bryant] bought that ring for his wife [after he admitted to cheating on her]," Joc said, laughing off the rumors.

http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1570628/20070926/yung_joc.jhtml

Ministry's Al Jourgensen Also Planning To Close The Lid On Lard, Other Side Projects

2007-09-26T02:28:00.000-07:00

While some of us don't even know what we'll be doing next week, Al Jourgensen has the next two years of his life all mapped out.
Last week, Ministry's final studio opus, The Last Sucker, the scathing third installment in Jourgensen's trilogy of LPs attacking President Bush's administration, landed in record stores. In March, he'll hit the road for the last time with Ministry, the band he's fronted since he formed it in 1981, for a tour that will last five months. But before that, he has to hit the studio and record Got Co--?, the studio-album swan song from his side project the Revolting Co--s. In October, the Co--s will head out on what will be their goodbye tour, with openers Prong and Mob Research, the latest signing to Jourgensen's label, 13th Planet Records.

http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1570433/20070924/ministry.jhtml

Debunking Popular PC Gaming Myths

2007-09-25T23:29:00.000-07:00

Ever get frustrated at how nobody besides PC gamers actually understand PC gaming? Well, so was ExtremeTech, who debunks five popular myths. Here's the one about console games outselling PC games: First of all, it's a stacked deck. The PC is one platform, the Xbox 360 is one platform, the PlayStation 3 is one platform, the Nintendo DS is one platform, etc. If you make a game for the PS3, it doesn't magically run on the 360 any more than it magically runs on the PC.

http://ve3d.ign.com/articles/news/34472/Debunking-Popular-PC-Gaming-Myths

R. Kelly's Case Has Done His Career Little Harm, Say Fergie, Lupe Fiasco, Chris Brown, Lloyd, Others

2007-09-24T23:48:00.000-07:00

Apparently, everyone wants to be in business with R. Kelly. In a not-very-scientific sampling, an overwhelming number of artists agree: Not only would they work with the hitmaker — who faces 14 counts of child pornography — they'd love to.
"We actually were in talks to do something," Fergie said.
"R, if you're listening, I want a track from you!" Three 6 Mafia's DJ Paul told us.
And why wouldn't they? In the five years since the R&B singer was indicted on child-pornography charges, the radio bans have lifted, the protests have died out, and the outrage has dimmed. Though his criminal trial was slated to start this week (only to be postponed, with a new date to be determined possibly as soon as his next hearing on September 28), career-wise, Kelly is bigger than ever before.

http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1570344/20070921/kelly_r.jhtml

Akon Raves About Working With Michael Jackson, Madonna, Whitney Houston

2007-09-21T04:07:00.001-07:00

Akon's melodic thuggin' on the airwaves has helped turn records by superstars like Gwen Stefani into harmonic hits.
Now the singer is moving into the realm of three of music's most iconic legends: Madonna, Whitney Houston and Michael Jackson.
"Ooh, don't even say his name twice," 'Kon joked recently in Miami, referring to Jackson. "I'm not supposed to be talking about this!"
Although he wouldn't disclose the specifics of his collaboration or collaborations with Jackson fearing the cold, swift sting of a slap from the King of Pop's signature gloved hand (or, at least, legal action), he did let MTV News in on the experience.

http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1569970/20070918/akon.jhtml

Dave Matthews Band Hit The Stage Hard Down In The Bayou

2007-09-21T02:02:00.000-07:00

Drink up your sweet tea and break out the “y’alls” because the Dave Matthews Band are heading South. DMB hit the stage at the Walnut Creek Amphitheatre in Raleigh, North Carolina, on Tuesday night, and they sure hit the stage hard!

Opening with “Louisiana Bayou,” Dave and his band played an awesome set list. This was the second Dave concert I had been to this summer. I wanted to see the difference from seeing him in his hometown and then elsewhere. I thought to myself that there was no way on earth that the Dave Matthews Band could play a better show than he did in Virginia, but oh I was wrong.

DMB could definitely feel the energy, from what I predict to have been close to 30,000 men, women, and children. At one point in the show Dave had done something I had never seen before. During “Jimi Thing,” Dave stopped playing three or four times mid-song and stood still as a statue, with this big silly smirk on his face and wouldn’t start playing again until the crowd really got into it!

http://yourhereblog.mtv.com/2007/09/20/dave-matthews-band-hit-the-stage/

Britney Spears Must Undergo Regular Drug Testing

2007-09-19T04:00:00.001-07:00

This week is shaping up to be another tough one for Britney Spears. On Monday alone, the singer parted ways with her lawyer and her manager — right in the middle of her battle for custody of her children. That battle is now requiring Spears to undergo random drug testing and counseling, court papers reveal.
Ever since the singer's VMA performance on September 9, Spears has been caught in a freefall. With her "comeback" a backfire, she's left trying to set up her yet-untitled next album (due November 13) as she fights ex-husband Kevin Federline for custody of the couple's two children, Sean Preston and Jayden James.
That fight isn't going well — Spears suffered a series of setbacks in her child-custody dispute during a closed hearing at Los Angeles Superior Court on Monday, when Commissioner Scott Gordon found that "there is a habitual, frequent and continuous use" of controlled substances and alcohol, and ordered the singer to undergo twice-weekly random testing. The results of the drug tests, which are to be conducted at Spears' expense, are to be filed under seal and will not be made public. But both Spears and Federline were ordered to abstain from alcohol and nonprescription medication during and for 12 hours immediately preceding any period either has the children in his or her custody.

Full version: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1569958/20070918/spears_britney.jhtml

50 Cent Comes Alive

2007-09-19T02:34:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago Fiddy rounded up the G-Unit posse - Tony Yayo, Young Buck and Lloyd Banks, to name a few - and took over the Times Square Hard Rock Cafe. Watch their whole blazing set, only on MTV Live.

http://www.mtv.com/overdrive/?id=1568992&vid=173914

Swizz Beatz Offers Some Investment Advice At NYC Birthday Bash

2007-09-18T22:45:00.000-07:00

NEW YORK — Happy born day to Kasseem Dean! The producer more commonly known as Swizz Beatz celebrated his 29th birthday (again — Swizz held a star-studded soiree during VMA weekend too) on Thursday night.
"The Virgo crew is strong out there," Swizzy said as the night began to blur into early morning, sitting inside a quiet room at the Martin Lawrence Art Gallery (not the Martin "Marty Mar" Lawrence, in case you were wondering).
"We are heartfelt people," Swizz added, referring to himself and his celebrity friends, such as Nas, Ludacris and Beyoncé, who all share the same zodiac sign. "Genuine people."

http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1569860/20070917/swizz_beats.jhtml

Ask the Readers: Best music for studying?

2007-09-12T22:39:00.000-07:00

Your upstairs neighbors sound like they're rearranging the furniture and your roommate's clipping her toenails across the room. How do you drown out sound to study?

http://lifehacker.com/software/ask-the-readers/ask-the-readers--best-music-for-studying-198284.php