"UNDERGROUND 2 MAINSTREAM" Your NEW Source For Hip Hop Entertainment!!! |
| Kanye, Nelly, Jim Jones Set To Perform For All Star Weekend Posted: 13 Feb 2009 07:53 PM CST Rap stars Kanye West, Ludacris, Jim Jones and others have been billed to perform at a variety of NBA All-Star Weekend events beginning Friday (February 13). West coast veteran Snoop Dogg will help kick-off the festivities. On Friday, Snoop Dogg will be at Club Rain, Jazzy Jeff and Fabolous will be at the W Scottsdale Hotel, Chamillionaire will be partying with the Playboy Playmates at Barcelona Scottsdale and Amare Stoudemire will be throwing a party at his restaurant, Stoudemire's Downtown, to celebrate the launch of his record label, Hypocalypto Records. (Black Voices) Ye and others are billed to perform tomorrow night. Kanye West and John Legend will perform Saturday night at Axius/Radius in Scottsdale; Cedric the Entertainer and the Suns' own Shaquille O'Neal will perform Saturday at Celebrity Theater. For as little as $50, you can see hip hop artist Ludacris at Sugar Daddy's on Saturday. (KTAR News) In light of the recent controversy over Chris Brown and Rihanna, Nelly will also appear. Brown was set to host two separate parties in Scottsdale, Arizona this weekend for the NBA All-Star festivities -- "was" being the key word -- because Brown was just officially replaced with rapper Nelly. (TMZ) Helping close out the weekend will be Byrd Gang's Jim Jones. Responsible for one of the most popular songs of 2006, "We Fly High," and trademarking the term "ballin'," Jim Jones has continued not only producing but making hits such as "Pop Champagne," which is currently playing on hip-hop stations. See Jim Jones live. For age 21 and older. Part of Power 98.3's NBA All-Star week. VIP tickets include immediate entry. Tables for six or more are available for $200. Tickets must be picked up by 6 p.m. on the day of the event. |
| Twista Ft Busta Rhymes "Billionaire" Posted: 13 Feb 2009 07:48 PM CST Billionaire (feat. Busta Rhymes) thenetworkblast.blogspot.com - Twista This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Diddy, Russell Simmons Win NAACP Image Awards Posted: 13 Feb 2009 06:01 PM CST Sean "Diddy" Combs and pioneer mogul Russell Simmons were Hip-Hop's biggest winners at the 2009 NAACP Image Awards. The taped event was broadcast last night (February 12) from the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles. Combs picked up Best Actor in a Television Movie honors for his work in the well-received, 2008 adaption of Lorraine Hansberry's timeless play A Raisin in the Sun. Combining a talented cast of actors in Phylicia Rashad, Sanaa Lathan, Sean Patrick Thomas, and Audra McDonald, the film brought in an audience of 12 million for its initial February 2008 airing. Simmons took home the coveted Vanguard Award, which is given to those "whose ground breaking work increases understanding and awareness of racial and social issues." Through the non-profit Hip-Hop Summit Action Network, Simmons utilizes the uniting force of Hip-Hop culture to advocate education, financial literacy, and social empowerment for young people. "Russell is deserving of this prestigious award because he has used the power of Hip-Hop to reach and inspire our nation's youth," stated Clayola Brown, NAACP Image Awards Chairwoman. "Combined with his ongoing commitment to strengthening relations between ethnic communities and his generous charitable spirit, Russell was a natural choice to receive the honor." The 40th annual NAACP Awards was hosted by Halle Berry and Tyler Perry, and also marked the 100th anniversary of the organization. |
| Posted: 13 Feb 2009 05:51 PM CST This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Posted: 13 Feb 2009 05:45 PM CST |
| Lil Cease, Ft Busta Rhymes & Fabolous "Talk Go Through Us" Posted: 13 Feb 2009 05:42 PM CST Talk Go Through Us - Lil Cease & Fabolous This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Posted: 13 Feb 2009 05:39 PM CST This Is A Heater Right Here Blow The Horns - M.O.P. This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Posted: 13 Feb 2009 05:14 PM CST                Get That Lunch Money Together For Your New All Star 2009 Gear!!! |
| Air Jordan Six Rings Kicks: Supersonics, Lakers, & Jazz Editions Posted: 13 Feb 2009 04:58 PM CST    |
| Off The Subject (But Not Really) How The Grinch Stole Valentines Day Ft D.Woods Of Danity Kane Posted: 13 Feb 2009 04:27 PM CST |
| Eminem, Dr. Dre, & 50 Cent Start 2009 Takeover With #1 Billboard Spot Posted: 13 Feb 2009 04:03 PM CST Top 10 Singles on the Hot 100: 1. Eminem - Crack a Bottle feat. Dr. Dre & 50 Cent 2. Kanye West - Heartless 3. Lady GaGa - Just Dance feat. Colby O'Donis 4. Kelly Clarkson - My Life Would Suck Without You 5. Beyonce - Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It) 6. The All-American Rejects - Gives You Hell 7. Taylor Swift - Love Story 8. The Fray - You Found Me 9. T.I. - Dead and Gone feat. Justin Timberlake 10. Jason Mraz - I'm Yours |
| Wal Mart To launch Russell Simmons Clothing Line Posted: 13 Feb 2009 04:00 PM CST As most apparel retailers announce job cuts and store closures because of sluggish sales, it is a precarious time for any of them to launch a new brand. But on Feb. 15 Wal-Mart Stores (WMT) will roll out a new line of men's clothing designed by hip-hop entrepreneur Russell Simmons in 350 stores, about 10% of its U.S. outlets, and on its Web site. The launch will come less than a week after the world's largest retailer announced that it will move buyers in the apparel division from its Bentonville (Ark.) headquarters to New York to increase the focus on fashion. For a company whose financial performance has trounced rivals such as Target (TGT) in recent months by focusing on lower-price essentials rather than more expensive discretionary items, the move seems surprising, especially as Wal-Mart flopped famously in its previous efforts to sell more fashionable, pricier clothing. One such effort was a women's line designed by Mark Eisen, which alienated the store's core customers. "Fashion is tricky," says retail consultant David Lockwood of Mintel Research. "This is not macaroni and cheese or over-the-counter vitamins, which they know really well." But as Wal-Mart slows its store expansion, it needs to sell higher-profit items to continue generating growth—and apparel is one segment that can still draw new customers. Priced to Sell… This time around Wal-Mart is keeping a tighter rein on the price and the trendiness of new clothing items. Simmons' American Classics line will be priced between $9.99 and $29, with about 80% of the clothes at $15 or less. Simmons, who launched the Phat Farm clothing label in 1992 and another brand in 2008 called Argyle Culture, sold in Macy's (M), says his new focus is the "urban graduate," whom he describes as 25-to-50-year-old men such as Will Smith, Adam Sandler, and Barack Obama, who grew up with hip-hop clothes but as professionals can no longer don baggy pants and shirts sporting oversize logos. American Classics' first season has a heavy focus on purple, navy, and white and includes jeans, sweater vests, casual sports shoes, and woven and knit shirts. Wal-Mart made a bigger push into trendier clothing this past fall when designer Norma Kamali, known for her jersey dresses, launched a line for women. With American Classics, Wal-Mart is not only launching a new line but pursuing an audience it has not targeted as specifically before. It is also changing apparel displays in stores. Full outfits will be hung together in racks, so that a mother shopping for her son or husband can get ideas for which shoes go with which sweater and find them in the same area instead of having to pick out the shoes in one section and then rifling through piles of sweaters in another division to find a match. The chain is also installing flat-screen televisions in many stores showing Simmons describing the brand. (Simmons says it took months of haggling to get the TVs because the retailer frowns on pricey frills.) …But Will It Sell Right Now? Still, the new line's timing could not be worse, some analysts say, since Americans have chopped discretionary spending so dramatically. Yet others such as Kelly Tackett from retail research firm TNS Retail Forward contend that Wal-Mart has a chance to attract shoppers from rivals such as Target, which became the "cheap chic" pioneer when it signed flamboyant designer Isaac Mizrahi in 2003. "It is a great time for Wal-Mart to take advantage of the weakness of other retailers, lure first-time or first-in-a-long-time customers, and get their current customers to spend more," Tackett says. In 2008, nearly a quarter of American households spent the majority of their clothing budget at Wal-Mart, according to Columbus (Ohio)-based TNS. While Wal-Mart took out ads in Vogue the last time it waded into fashion, it is moving much more quietly now and won't discuss the changes. Consultants say Wal-Mart has learned from its previous errors and won't broadcast a strategy unless it's successful. "If Simmons doesn't work, they will try something else," says Lockwood. |
| Posted: 13 Feb 2009 03:53 PM CST Posted February 5th, 2009 by nimbit staff It's true—our economy has seen better days. Though its taken a hit on a lot of Americans' jobs, luckily, as a musician you may be exempt from that. It's a known fact that even during serious economic hardship that there are a few things that people will always find money for—one of which is entertainment. Still, making a living just selling music is neither simple nor easy. The good news is today it is actually more feasible than ever, providing you can arm yourself with some knowledge that makes the difference between just hawking some songs and actually generating a sustainable income. How and where your music is sold and distributed is a major component that determines your earning potential as a musician. Know the facts about how the mechanics really work, and you'll start to make the right decisions. Electing to go the route of a labels deal or distributing via iTunes are not always the best deals. Through this arrangement, the artist generally only receives about a ten percent cut for the music they sell, depending on the deal (wired.com). What's critical to understand is that just being on iTunes does nothing to help you sell more music, or promote your talent to the market; there are many other artists with bigger budgets behind them that will get the limited front page exposure you seek. More importantly, you are left in the dark about who is buying your music, and why—a key piece of marketing data that retailers are not willing to share, keeping you from profiting through re-marketing to those customers. Turns out, this is the key to your success and the reason why a different approach is in order. There's a clearly superior alternative: marketing and selling your music direct to your fans. What's the advantage of this approach? For starters, you receive the lion's share of the profit per song sold (can be a much as 80% or more,) and set your own prices. Lower prices means even frugal customers are more likely to buy. With direct selling, you have the option of lowering the cost of your product to increase sales or even bundling additional products together, and will likely still see more money at the end of the day because of it. Cheaper songs and better value means people are more likely to invest in your music, even as an artist who may be under the major market radar. What else can this approach do for you? By selling direct you can collect critical marketing information about who is buying your music. If you pay attention to who is buying your music and what they like about it, you can give 'em more of it. Let's face it-- the reason larger corporations don't want to do this is because it gives you more individual selling power and control over your product. This, of course, is what you want and need: the ability to play strategic offense in your music sales. To make a living off your music, you have to take on an active role in promoting your own product, just like any other smart businessman. Selling direct also offers clear benefits to your customers. It gives them the opportunity to buy a good product directly from its source, making the entire purchasing process simple and effective. If a fan feels satisfied that they got what they wanted for a good price, and that the website was effective and simple to use, then they are likely to repeat the process. The best part of them having a good buying experience is that they are more connected to you, the artist, the source. Fans feel like you appreciate them, that they are contributing to your success, when they buy your music from you. Selling direct is about patronage-- this allows you to re-market your music and receive the repeat business of your fans. Imagine the response you would get if you rewarded people who bought from you in the past with an exclusive, free track from your latest album before it's released. Chances are, when the full album comes out, they will purchase it. Even better, they will tell their friends. Ok, this is all great but where do you get the time and resources to properly set up and manage a complete direct sales program such as we just described? Good news here as well. There are a few online companies that provide tools and services that can help you do this, from online commerce to fulfillment and marketing tools that are designed to help you sell and market direct. With platforms like Nimbit, Topspin, Reverbnation and others, you can market and sell from many different channels that you control; you can publish storefronts on whatever website you want to sell from—your myspace, facebook, official website, and the like. These companise take a very artist-friendly approach that is distinctly different from that of traditional music companies, who are focused on accumulating corporate profits. The fact that a company will let you sell direct, and reap the benefits, (sharing in revenue when you succeed,) demonstrates in and of itself that their interest is aligned with yours. This means more people can access your music, and you have the opportunity to promote yourself and get involved with how your music is sold. Too often, when artists take a passive role, these terms are dictated for them and they end up waiting around for a few royalties instead of building a business doing what they love. By knowing your audience and gearing your efforts towards making them not only a fan but a repeat customer, you will maximize earnings and build sustainable income that is entirely under your control. Don't let money-hungry corporations take advantage of you. Direct selling will let you take back your power as an artist, and put music sales revenue back where it belongs: in your pocket. The revenue you will gain using this approach will allow you to more quickly invest profit back into your career, and expand your reach. Your growth potential as an artist is exponential when you have power over your own profitability. |
| My Valentines Day Pick: Lauryn Hill "Ex Factor" Video Posted: 13 Feb 2009 02:52 PM CST This Video was sent to me by a friend, & I decided that this was my Valentines Day Anthem. Happy VTines Day to all those in true love!!! This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Sirius XM Prepares For Bankruptcy, Eminems Shade 45 Future Unknown Posted: 13 Feb 2009 02:48 PM CST With a potential bankruptcy looming, Sirius XM, home of Eminem's Shade 45, may become one of the largest entertainment casualties of the current credit squeeze. According to reports Sirius XM, the satellite radio company, is preparing for a possible bankruptcy. Sirius XM has hired advisers to prepare for a possible bankruptcy filing, people involved in the process said. It is unclear how a bankruptcy would affect customers. Service is unlikely to be interrupted, but the company might have to terminate contracts with high-priced talent like [Howard] Stern or Martha Stewart. (NY Times) As a result of the news, Sirius stock dropped drastically. Shares of Sirius XM Satellite Radio Inc. (SIRI) dropped 31% in morning trading Wednesday on reports that the company could be close to filing for bankruptcy protection. The shares were down 3 cents at 8 cents. The stock traded in the $4 range two years ago. (CNN) The US radio giant was formed in July of 2008 when former competitors, XM and Sirius, merged. Sirius and XM completed their merger after winning a lengthy battle with regulators over concerns about market competition. The new company formed by Sirius Satellite Radio's buyout of XM Satellite Radio, will be called Sirius XM Radio Inc. The combined company has more than 18.5 million subscribers, making it the second-largest radio company, based upon revenue, in the country. (AFP) The station's hip-hop uncensored channel, Shade 45, was created by rapper Eminem. SIRIUS launched Shade 45, the uncensored, commercial-free hip-hop music channel created by Eminem, Shady Records, Interscope Records and SIRIUS in October 2004. The channel also features other high profile figures in the world of hip-hop. 50 Cent oversees G Unit Radio. (TopSatelliteRadio.com) |
| Reece Steele "Spend It On Me" Video Posted: 13 Feb 2009 01:59 PM CST This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
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