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— by Shaheem Reid, with additional reporting by Rahman Dukes and SuChin Pak
Artist: DJ Kay Slay
Mixtape: Let the Games Begin 3
Representing: Harlem, New York
Joints To Check For
- "I'm a Hustla" remix - It's worth it just to hear Cassidy reference Blade himself. "Seeing me without grams on the grind is like seeing Wesley Snipes in a tanning salon." The early word on Cassidy's new LP is that he's keeping his music deep in the streets like manhole covers. Here he raps about hustling again, and Mary J. is cheering him on, yelling, " 'Cause you hustle, 'Cause you hustle." MJB even raps in a Nelly-like sing-song flow of her own.
- "Sharades" by Papoose - He may not be the best speller in the world, but Poose is an MC with his thinking cap on. Hearing him rap "Give me the keys to Shyne Po's handcuffs/ Give me the keys to Lil' Kim's handcuffs/ ... So I can tighten them and let the cell slam shut" will make your eyes bug out, but you have to listen to his whole rap. He's actually talking from the perspective of the hip-hop police. With "Sharades" and "Monopoly," which dropped a few weeks ago, Poose has proven that he's way more than a spitter. He has a message.
- "Eyes of the Beholder" by Cam'ron featuring Hell Rell - Well, Cam is an equal opportunist. He yelled "Get Em Girls" last year, now he has the ladies screaming for him to "Get 'em daddy!" He answers back, "Daddy got 'em." Say what you want, the Dips rap about what they want with no regard for what is going to sell, who is going to feel it and, in some cases, if it even makes sense.
Don't Sleep: Other Notable Selections This Week
- DJ Wreck & P-Cutta's True Hustlas
- Big Mike and Big Stress' R&B Jumpoff #15
- Beanie Sigel and Clinton Sparks' SP2: The Movie Mixtape
- Clinton Sparks and Dame Dash's Beanie Sigel SP2
- Cutmaster C's Hostage
- DJ Mello's Dip Musik, v. 1
- Moreno's I'm Dat Deal
'Hood's Heavy Rotation: Bubbling Below The Radar
- Tony Yayo - "Live by the Gun"
- Papoose - "Sharades"
- Ja Rule featuring Mary J. Blige - "Streets Done Raised Me"
- Doo Wop - "I'm Spanish"
- Foxy Brown - "Art of War"
- Trina featuring Lil' Wayne - "Don't Trip"
Celebrity Favs
Will Smith, hip-hop trailblazer and Hollywood kingpin, has nothing but good things to say about Kanye West. He even says Kanyeezee inspired him. "I just think Kanye is the truth," Will said. "I spent some time with him, and he'll make whatever he wants. I just love that he doesn't put parameters or boundaries on his creativity. That really sparked me."
The Streets Is Talking: News & Notes From The Underground
We told you a while back that the Ruff Ryders were working on volume four of their compilation series. Well, here's a little bit more scoop: The album is just about done and should be released independently in July. First single "Funk Sh--" features DMX and newcomer MC Kartoon from Rialto, California. Originally "Funk Sh--" was produced by Dr. Dre and had Busta Rhymes on the hook and second verse, but the Ryders said label red tape required them to make a remix, and the version of "Funk Sh--" we'll hear on the album will have a new beat by Scott Storch, and Jadakiss will replace Busta.
Besides X and Kiss, volume four features contributions from the other Double R staples Styles P, Sheek, Drag-On and Swizz Beatz. Eve, of course, is now down with Aftermath and nowhere to be found on the album. The Ruff Ryders have doubled up with two new females in light of the departure of their "pit bull in a skirt." There's a singer named Aja Smith who is keeping it extra gully on a solo record called "Stupid Bitch," and there's a lady rapper by the name of Scarlett who's on "What Ryders Do." You may remember Scarlett from being down with the G-Unit — she's the girl in the "Wanksta" video with the words "G-Unit" embroidered across her butt. On the production end, the Ruff Ryders are leaning heavily on their in-house beatmakers, Neo — who did the beat for Juelz Santana's "Mic Check" — and Devine.
A couple of more tidbits coming out of the Ruff Ryders camp: DMX has banged out a few tracks already with Swizz Beatz and is in Miami recording his new LP with Dame Grease. And the LOX are thinking about putting out a group album in the fourth quarter, but first we'll hear Styles P's Time Is Money, which does not have a release date yet. Sheek's After Taxes is also just about done, and Jada is working on his third solo LP.
Murder Inc.'s Black Child said despite all the rumors, he's still down with his crew. In fact, Black, who just put out the mixtape The Art of War with his side clique Hoodstock, said his official album debut is going to drop this summer. He's not sitting on his hands in the meantime — Black Child has become an actor. Seems like he caught Ving Rhames' eye after he appeared on the "Beef II" DVD a few months ago. Ving asked him to play a thug in the upcoming film "Animal," and after B.C. smashed that role, he was given a recurring role as a patrolman in Rhames' "Kojak" TV series.
Black's prison record kept him away from the first four shows of the season, because "Kojak" films in Toronto, and Canada has strict rules about allowing felons into the country. With all his paperwork straight, Black Child is finally up and running and even expects to make it into the series' next season if it gets picked up.
For more on the role of mixtapes in the music industry, check out the feature "Mixtapes: The Other Music Industry."
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Photo: MTV News
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