Memphis Bleek

Jay-Z Protege Memphis Bleek Recalls First Meeting, Talks 'Decoded'

15 Nov 2010 16:25:14 EST

Bleek tells MTV News how the Marcy Projects alums teamed up and how an outsize lunch order nearly kept Memph off Reasonable Doubt.
By Steven Roberts

Jay-Z's career has grown and evolved in a number of ways over the years, but one constant has been the man at his side — whether onstage or off — Memphis Bleek. In Jay's soon-to-be-published memoir, "Decoded," he devotes much of the chapter titled "Honor Among Predators" to Bleek, who recently spoke to MTV News about their early introductions.

In the chapter, Hov recounts getting the opportunity to tour with Big Daddy Kane in the late 1980s and how much he learned from the veteran Brooklyn MC. When it came time to record his first album, Reasonable Doubt, Jay said he wanted to do a song that loosely paralleled that experience: a young pupil gaining tutelage in the street game and the music business.

"In the game there's always a younger guy who has an old soul and an understanding of things beyond his years," Jay writes. "An older guy will see a kid and think, 'Man, that kid moves differently from the rest. He's ready for this life.' They know that if they find the right kid, they can put him under their tutelage and he'll get it fast, step right into the rhythm of the life."

Jay-Z originally wanted rapper Shyheim (the Rugged Child) on the song, but when things didn't work out, he stumbled upon Bleek, then known just as Malik, walking across Brooklyn's Marcy Projects. Jay goes on to tell the story of how the track "Coming of Age" came together, remembering how "hungry" Bleek was.

Bleek told us last week that he was actually surprised that Jay remembered that initial meeting.

"The first time I told him I rhymed, he didn't believe me, so he gave me a paper which he had written on already, but it was so little I couldn't see [what was written on] ... so I had to re-write it myself," Bleek said. "And he was like, 'You have to memorize this in 24 hours. If you don't, then you can't make the album.' I'm like, 'Hey, this is my only chance of getting out the 'hood?' "

The young MC said he studied what Jay had written like it was homework, shocking both Jay and DJ Clark Kent when he came back the next day with the verse memorized. Before they went to record it, he shocked them again — with his lunch order.

"We ordered food and Jay thought I was trying to take advantage of him," Bleek explained. "He put a menu in my face and said, 'You could order anything you want.' So I asked him again, 'Anything I want, I can order?' He was like, 'Yeah.'

"I'm from the projects: When's the next time I'm going to eat again? I ordered six burgers, and he was like, 'You're going to eat them?' And I'm like, 'Watch me.' And he was like, 'No, you're going to eat them.' [I said], 'That's no problem.' Finished the burgers, went right in the booth, spit the rhyme and there it is, 'Coming of Age.' "

Jay's "Decoded" hits bookshelves on Tuesday.

What do you think of how Jay and Memph Bleek first met? Tell us in the comments!

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Lauryn Hill Reminds Us Of 10 Other Artists We Miss

20 Aug 2010 17:11:37 EDT

While anticipating L-Boogie's triumphant return, we can't help but reminisce on other artists who have dropped off the radar.
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Rapper G Baby Killed

15 Mar 2010 12:35:00 EDT

MC, signed to Memphis Bleek's Get Low Records, MC, signed to Memphis Bleek's Get Low Records, was killed Saturday morning.
By Shaheem Reid

New York rapper G Baby (real name: Gregory Brown), 22, was shot and killed in Queens, New York, early Saturday, a representative for the New York Police Department confirmed to MTV News on Monday (March 15). G Baby was signed to longtime Jay-Z associate Memphis Bleek's Get Low Records.

Bleek tweeted about G Baby Saturday, writing, "I'm in a mood I can't explain. I lost a real n---a 2day. R.I.P. to my n---a G Baby who was like a bro to me!! G. Baby ..." Before performing with Jay-Z in Atlantic City, New Jersey, on Saturday night, he tweeted again: "2nite goes out for the baby boy G. I got u my n---- see u on the other side! Thx to those who showed me love ... Get Low we to strong to break!!"

Other friends of the rapper's tweeted about his death as well.

"R.I.P G BABY," Lloyd Banks wrote. "My boy*last time I seen u, we were mixing down [Banks' track] 'Beamer Benz or Bentley,' and u know who paid for everyone's food? Neva let me pay for sh--! That's the kind of n---a we lost."

"RIP 2 G Baby," Tony Yayo added.

"A! 1st and foremost RIP to the HOMIE G-BABY," Juelz Santana wrote. "We lost a good one. Everybody in Queens & Bklyn hold ya head. What up BAI!!!!"

"Life is not Promised ... Live Life to the fullest, & like there is no 2moro ... Lost a soldier in the field this morning ... R.I.P. G Baby," Fabolous wrote.

According to detective Marc Nell, a spokesperson for the NYPD, G Baby was shot multiple times in the torso by an unknown assailant at approximately 4:30 a.m. on Saturday on the corner of Archer Avenue and 143rd Street. He had been at Club Amazura, which is located just a couple of blocks away from the scene of the crime. When the authorities arrived, they found G and another black male shot. The other man, whose name is being withheld, was shot in the leg. Nell said it is still unclear whether the man was traveling with G Baby, was an innocent bystander, or was involved in the shooting. Nell said police believe that G Baby's shooting stems from an incident that took place at Amazura earlier in the night; Fabolous headlined a concert there that ended at around the time of the shooting. At press time, Nell said the investigation was ongoing and no suspects had been named.

G Baby's official MySpace page says the rapper was from the Tompkins Houses projects in Brooklyn's Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood.

G Baby had been a close confidant of Bleek's. Late in February, while speaking to MTV News, Memphis was very excited about jump-starting the careers of G Baby and other Get Low artists Calico and Proof.

"I been focused on a lot of things before I got focused on [my new] album," Bleek said. "I had to think of the release of when Jay [-Z] left Def Jam, 'What I'mma do with my career? Do I wanna still be under the umbrella or do my own thing?' So of course I came with the terms, I gotta do my own thing.

"I gotta do my own thing because I got a bunch of people behind me that's waiting for their shot," he added. "I got G Baby, my artists Cali, Proof that's been down with me for years. It's time to step out."

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Memphis Bleek

Jay-Z's NYC Show Will 'Shut Everything Down,' Memphis Bleek Says

01 Mar 2010 16:52:00 EST

Hov is returning to Madison Square Garden on Tuesday night.
By Shaheem Reid

By this time on Tuesday, Jay-Z and Memphis Bleek should be preparing to go on in their house. Hov's BP3 tour hits New York's Madison Square Garden that night — a place where the Jiggaman has astounded thousands of fans with a multitude of guest spots, surprises and even a "farewell" concert. While no one knows what Jay will pull out of his bag of tricks, Memphis Bleek — who always performs with Jay in concert — says to expect an evolution of sound.

"This run is gonna shut everything down, because everything is live now. No more playback. The band plays everything. You gotta come check it out," Jay's former neighbor in the Marcy Projects revealed.

Bleek also said that while Hov parades out an endless array of classics, there are some songs he himself wants to hear that didn't make the setlist.

"Now that's what I don't have," Bleek said about input on what Jay performs. "Jay, he don't be listening to me. He clips a lot of records, a lot of records Jay don't do that I be wanting him to do. If Jay did 'Imaginary Players' — you know what will happen in that building? 'Streets Is Watching,' records like that, they don't come on. That boy's hit catalog is crazy."

Over the weekend, Jay, Bleek and opening acts Young Jeezy and Trey Songz hit the Philips Arena in Atlanta. The sold-out crowd saw Jeezy bring out surprise guest Plies; Trey soothed the ladies and Jay threw knockout blows such as "D.O.A." and "On to the Next One."

Bleek says traveling with Jay from city to city is a lot different for him this time.

"For me it's a new movement," he said. "They ain't let me bring my bus out, my Gs out this time — they clipped my bus! They say I gotta ride on the G5 this time everywhere. Usually I'm stuck on the middle of the road, nowhere with my peoples. Now, I'm riding with the A group.

"Catch me after tour, I might be acting different," he added with a laugh. "I'm moving up. I might act different: They say when you blow up, you act different."

After the BP3 tour finishes in Los Angeles late this month, Bleek said he wants to embark on a solo tour to promote his upcoming album, The Process.

"We gotta get the music out first," Memph determined. "Once we get the music out, the shows will come. I turn down a lot of shows because I don't want to perform old records. I'm tired of singing 'Is That Your Chick,' 'Do My ...' I been doing that. I need to add to the catalog. That's what The Process is gonna do."

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Jay-Z Toasts Barack Obama At 'Eve Of Change' Concert

20 Jan 2009 09:04:00 EST

Hov and Young Jeezy reprised their 'My President' remix; Beyoncé and Mary J. Blige also appear.
By Shaheem Reid

WASHINGTON, D.C. — With George W. Bush all packed up and out of the White House, and Barack Obama ready to move in, hip-hop has never felt more patriotic. And the huge theme for Obama's inauguration weekend has been Young Jeezy's "My President." On Monday night, in the town nicknamed "Chocolate City," Jay-Z drove his audience wild with his new verse for the song's remix.

The show at the Warner Theatre was billed as the "Concert on the Eve of Change," but the crowd welcomed a very familiar Hov game-plan: knock 'em with his own hits and those of his big-name guests.

After "Brooklyn Go Hard," Jay informed D.C. that he was ready for a long night.

"I really wanted to do the show to party with y'all," said Jay, who wore a black T-shirt with Abraham Lincoln's face on it. "I feel fantastic. ... I hope y'all brought your lunch pails, 'cause I can go three, four hours — nine, 10 hours."

The Jigga Man also said that he brought extra clothes with him and could rhyme all the way until it was time to go the inauguration.

With a live band, dynamic light show and can't-miss-the-action screens, Jay got on a roll that never really stopped all night. Most of the audience was on their feet for the duration.

"Can I Live," "Dead Presidents" and "Swagga Like Us," incited the onlookers to drown the venue with the scream of "Hohhhhhhhhh-vahhhhhhhhh!" "Blue Magic" came and so did its derogatory reference to the 43rd president, George W. Bush.

Young Jeezy arrived onstage moments later for "My President."

"Bush robbed all of us; does that make him a criminal?" the Snowman asked rhetorically. Images of newspaper front pages made up the montage on the screens, while the MCs recited the current hip-hop national anthem: "My president's black, my Lambo's blue."

Jay then rapped the verse for the remix he'd performed the previous night with Jeezy: "My president's black, but his house is all white." Immediately the cheers drowned out his next few words. Major props for a rap sicker than salmonella poisoning.

"Red, white and blue flag, wave for me baby," Jay added. "I was hot before Barack, so imagine what I'm gonna do ... / No more white lies, my president is black."

In the minutes following, Jay went to the well for one of his hits off the Black Album, but didn't like the music that was being brought in.

"Hold up," Jay said. "The president was brushing his shoulders off to that sh--, you just don't throw that on." Of course "Dirt Off Your Shoulders" was the next selection.

Later, one of Jay's most heralded partners in crime, Mary J. Blige, danced out for the ageless "Can't Knock the Hustle."

"I know y'all feel real good right now. Can we have some fun?" she asked going into "Real Love." Jay rapped the lyrics of his homie, the Notorious B.I.G. that laced the remix.

"Are y'all looking at what's happening right now, what's taking place?" the mighty Queen of Hip-Hop Soul asked. MJB also declared that Tuesday's ceremony marked the end of bad times.

"Everybody is here tonight for Barack Obama, and Michelle," the singer boasted. "Is it getting better, or do you feel the same?"

Jay's other surprise (not counting an unannounced Memphis Bleek, who's usually at all his friend's concerts) put the show in official he-shut-it-down-again territory: Beyoncé.

B came from behind a skinny screen that lit her silhouette. As she walked to the front of the stage, "Single Ladies," rang out, signaling a full-on performance by Mrs. Carter. No background dancers — she was captivating enough on her own.

In the crowd, watching along with the screaming fans, were Jay's longtime friends Bun B (Hov gave Pimp C a special tribute during "Big Pimpin' ") and D.C. Mayor Adrian M. Fenty.

"You know its a new day, when mayors are at rap concerts," Jay laughed. "I might stay here a month."

"Encore" ended the night and Jay had no problem with the audience replacing their chants of "Hohhhhh-vah! Hohhhhhhh-vah!" with "O-baaa-ma! O-baaa-ma!"

"Look forward to a beautiful tomorrow, a beautiful eight years," the mic icon advised.

And what better way to celebrate hope than with a champagne toast? Jay's staff brought out a bottle of Ace of Spades the size of small toddler. They passed out glasses and let the crowd pass the bottle among themselves.

Watch "Be the Change: Live From the Inaugural" online now, and come back Thursday for the full performances from Kanye West, Kid Rock and Fall Out Boy. Stick with us for wall-to-wall coverage of the inauguration and of the scenes in Washington, D.C., New Orleans and Kenya.

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Kanye West And Jim Jones Paying Tribute To Jay-Z Online, Thanks To Dame Dash? It's Odd, No Doubt

15 Oct 2007 20:37:00 EDT

Dash and Kareem 'Biggs' Burke recently slipped out Beyond a Reasonable Doubt on their new social-networking site.
By Shaheem Reid

NEW YORK — Dame Dash and Kareem "Biggs" Burke laughed on Monday (October 15) when they came up with a new crew name on the spot: "Block-A-Fella." The "Block" in question refers to their new social-networking Web site, BlockSavvy.com, which has also served as a platform for Dame to blog and, maybe most significantly, resurrect Roc-A-Fella Records material from when Dash and Burke were tight with Jay-Z.

They were so tight that a few years ago, Dame wanted to pay tribute to his onetime inseparable buddy by having several artists on the label remake some of Hov's tunes from his various albums. The project was called Beyond a Reasonable Doubt.

"We made this a while ago when [we still co-owned] Roc-A-Fella," said Dame, who later formed the Dame Dash Music Group with Burke after the three principal players sold their remaining 50 percent stake of the label to its parent label, Island Def Jam, in December 2004.

"We got Juelz [Santana] ... Young Gunz ... Rell, Jimmy Jones, Kanye West, Beanie [Sigel]," Biggs added of the Beyond a Reasonable Doubt collection.

(Hear the tribute tracks for yourself! Check out reworked versions of the Reasonable Doubt cuts "Politics as Usual," "Regrets" and "Can I Live," as well as a new rendition of the In My Lifetime, Vol. 1 song "You Must Love Me.")

"At the time, I was looking for platforms to showcase the artists," Dash chimed in. "This was my [mental] state three, four years ago. I was always looking for projects to showcase the artists and move as a team. We had the talent. Cam'ron did a record too. Everybody did renditions of Jay songs. Some from Reasonable Doubt, some from other records."

The entire project was sparked by the original Reasonable reaching a milestone, its 10th anniversary, last year.

"Honestly, Reasonable Doubt was very important to us — despite the fact that people are paying homage to it without us, and I'm seeing stuff on television," Dash said, referring to the "VH1 Classic Albums" episode that broke down the making of the classic Jigga debut. "[But] we're not getting interviewed, which is cool.

"It's a piece of us. It's the only thing we still own that has anything to do with Roc-A-Fella," he continued. "So back then, and being a part of the DNA of Roc-A-Fella, I was always trying to figure out a way to celebrate it. I knew the 10th anniversary was coming up. I said, 'Let's do an album with all the relevant artists doing a rendition of Jay records.' But Jay said he didn't like it, so we scrapped it. ... You know what it was, he said the best record was Jimmy's, so he didn't want to put it out."

Although there aren't any current plans to release the album conventionally in stores, the duo have posted the project up on their Web site.

"We felt like we might as well, why not?" Dame shrugged. "I don't know, I'm living more on the virtual/digital side."

When he thinks back a decade, to the making of Hov's first LP, Dame tells the story of how a couple of decisions and maybe one or two missed studio sessions could have changed history.

"Nas and AZ was supposed to be on 'Bring It On,' they kept not showing up," Dash recalled. "That's when we wanted to put out the Firm. They didn't show up. We was meeting and they was saying, 'Yeah,' but they wasn't showing up. We would be waiting and we would be getting offended. So we brought Sauce [Money] and [Big] Jaz on the song."

"Jay didn't want to rap over that beat," Biggs offered of "Can't Knock the Hustle," "but I called him and said he should rap over the beat, because it would come out hot regardless."

"He didn't want to do it, so I had to get Mary J. [Blige], and [I] gave her 10 grand out of a paper bag," Dash added. "She did it for us. I knew her when she was young."

Some of the tracks on Beyond a Reasonable Doubt feature Cam'ron rapping over "Show You How" — which appeared on The Blueprint 2: The Gift & the Curse — while another has Beanie Sigel redoing In My Lifetime, Vol. 1's "Where I'm From" and Freeway taking on "Politics as Usual."

"It was so ill, because he was talking about struggles in the street," Biggs said about the Jay-Z original. "We did that song before Jacob [the Jeweler] was out. Remember the line, 'to Tito in the district'? When we really started buying jewelry, we would go to Tito. Everything about Reasonable Doubt was [the] reverse of what you think. Like 'Can't Knock the Hustle' — he wasn't talking about hustling, he was talking about the music business [being] the hustle. He was talking to everybody else like, 'Don't knock us.' 'Cause that's the new hustle. That's why it's so funny — people don't understand the genesis. It was representation of us and our life together. 'Regrets' was my favorite song on the album. I liked 'Regrets' and 'Cashmere Thoughts.' He wasn't gonna put 'Cashmere Thoughts' on there — he only put it on there 'cause it was my favorite."

" 'Dead Presidents II' was mine," Biggs said of his favorite Reasonable Doubt track.

Biggs and Dash's post-Roc life, as you know, has also involved fashion and films. Their most current project is "Mr. Untouchable," an upcoming documentary on the life of Harlem, New York, drug kingpin Nicky Barnes that arrives in theaters October 26.

But as far as music goes, it's still up in the air how many more albums Biggs and Dash will put out. They don't see the biz being lucrative anymore.

"We got heat. Nicole Wray's album [Lovechild] is hot, ODB's album [A Son Unique] is hot," Dash said of the label's two LPs, which have been kicking around for quite some time but haven't been officially released. "Everybody acts like they doing us a favor by putting it out.

"We got deals everywhere," he added when asked about a recent deal he struck with Koch Records to distribute his music. "It's not about the deal, it's about the frustration and hassle. We turned into real business men. We're here to make money, and it seems like the money ain't there."

You can hear the entire Beyond a Reasonable Doubt LP on www.BlockSavvy.com.

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Mixtape Monday: Snoop Fought To Work With Dre; Bleek Hates On The Haters

29 Jan 2007 06:01:00 EST

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Jay-Z's Most Loyal Soldier, Memphis Bleek, Finally Has His Own Desk

26 Jan 2006 20:46:00 EST

Bleek stepping out with clothing line, plans 'classic' new album.
By Shaheem Reid

If your friend declared in front of the world that he was going to make sure you'd be a millionaire for the rest of your life, you, like most people, might be content to just fall back and sit on all that money. Memphis Bleek, however, wants to step out on his own. It's time for Bleek to be like his benefactor, Jay-Z, and think beyond rap.

"Who would have thought? I ain't see this vision last year," M Extra Money said recently in New York while sitting at a desk in his office. Yes, his office — as part owner of the clothing line I.M.I., Bleek finally has a nine-to-five (well, he usually gets in at 11 a.m., but you get the point) that he goes to every day.

Bleek, who signed to Roc-A-Fella over a decade ago at the age of 16, stumbled into doing a clothing line. Through a mutual friend, he came across the original I.M.I. owners, who also worked with Jay-Z and Dame Dash to help get Rocawear off the ground several years ago. Since the relationship was already there, Bleek worked out a deal to come aboard as a shot-caller for the line.

"I said, 'If you really want to set it off and put it where it needs to be, put me as a partner,' " Bleek explained.

Jay-Z did check into the situation and made sure everything was on the up-and-up before Bleek signed on. But Jay has no dealings with the company — Bleek is doing it on his own.

"Jay basically tells me, 'Make sure you go over the paperwork, the invoice sheets, the sheets going to the store,' " Bleek said of the advice he gets from S. Carter. "[He tells me] to have meetings with the buyers. I used to go to Dr. Jay's [clothing store] just to get sneakers, now I talk to the manager like, 'I need my line to get in front of the store.'

"My whole life, everything I did was dedicated to Jay," Bleek said. "Jay do Roc-A-Fella, I was there. Jay does S. Carters, I wear them all the time. If I don't have that on my feet, the only thing you gonna see is Air Force Ones or Timbs. I feel maybe if I would have took a little bit of time to care a little bit about something on my own, I could have been bigger than this. But hey, everything happens for a reason. But I'm gonna still be 100 percent behind all Jay's companies."

So far Bleek has signed boxer Zab Judah, basketball players Jameer Nelson and Jamal Crawford, and NFL star Larry Fitzgerald to do endorsement deals.

Bleek is still focused on music, though. He says that when he leaves the I.M.I. offices each day he then goes over to Def Jam. Bleek wants to put his next album out this year and is getting ready to begin recording soon. He admits that he's been performing below expectations.

"I want to do an album that's through the roof," he said about his next project, which he's thinking about naming The Inauguration. "I want to do a classic album. I feel that if this album I'm not recording is a classic, I'm not even gonna put it out. I have to do it bigger than anybody has ever done it. I have to make a good record this time, not just talking-junk records. It has to be deep. I want people to pick my album up and learn something."

Diddy and singer Gerald Levert both have told Bleek that they have hits waiting for him. Memphis also wants to work with Swizz Beatz, Kanye West and Just Blaze.

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Memphis Bleek Prepares To Hit The Rap Battlefield With Jay-Z

20 Sep 2005 20:04:00 EDT

Rapper says other factions are jealous of the Roc.
By Shaheem Reid

NEW YORK— Memphis Bleek says it's time to fade to black once again — he's hitting the battlefield with Jay-Z.

Last week Hov went on New York radio station Power 105.1 and said he was declaring war on some rappers who have been sending jabs his way and would address them during an October 27 concert (see " 'I Declare War!' Jay-Z Says He's Going To Air Some Rappers Out Onstage"). On Monday Bleek said he would be right there beside Roc-A-Fella's general.

"Yeah, it's war," said Bleek, wearing a baby-blue shirt and matching cap. "This is the last day you gonna see me in something colorful. From here on out it's all black. They think we ain't got the Smack DVD, the [On the Come Up at the Source Awards] DVD. Remember, Jay is in the president's seat, Bleek is in the streets. We see everything. When I see it, he sees it. We're coming. Like Jay said, 'Be our friend.' "

Memph was tight-lipped about which artists Jay is planning to air out at the upcoming concert, but he said other rap factions throw barbs at the Roc out of jealousy.

"I think it's because people try and try so long to outdo us instead of just doing them," he said. "Maybe if they just try to do them, they would be bigger than us. They gotta understand this is not a fad here. We ain't going nowhere. No matter how much the game changes, I am the game. I change with it. You see certain artists, when the game changes, they outta there. You know what that is: The lies run out and so does their career."

Bleek is already taking the next step in his own career, working on a new album. His 534 dropped earlier this year (see " 'Retired' Jay-Z Releasing New Track Via Memphis Bleek LP"), coming and going with just one single and meager sales. Bleek says it was because he didn't fully express himself.

"I really didn't get my point across on the grit and the grain," he said. "I ain't express [myself]."

"The music is still aggressive," he said of his next album, which he wants to drop in early 2006. "I had to take it back to the old Bleek. I ain't gonna lie: They had me confused for a minute. I had my smooth face — I had my game face on for the ladies. Now I gotta thug them out too."

Bleek just recorded a bevy of freestyles and has handed them out to DJs Clue and Kay Slay. Jay-Z's "I Declare War" show will be held at the Continental Airlines Arena in East Rutherford, New Jersey.

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Chappelle, Banner, Memphis Bleek, Saigon Bring The Healing To NY

20 Sep 2005 18:26:00 EDT

Show's proceeds will go toward hurricane relief.
By Shaheem Reid, with additional reporting by James Montgomery

NEW YORK — It was brief, rare, to the point and for a righteous cause: Dave Chappelle got onstage at B.B. King's at around 2 a.m. Tuesday and encouraged fans to support the victims of Hurricane Katrina.

"Thank you, everybody," he said after one of the event's organizers, Dead Prez's M-1, introduced him as a comrade. "I just want to tell you guys real quick: I got back from Mississippi today. All these images you see on the news — don't let it desensitize you. Things are real. These people are real. Don't forget why we are here. We love the music, but we love these people. Don't forget them, because they're gonna be suffering for a long time unless you do something."

The comedian, who has made very few public appearances in recent months, was in town before picking up his fall tour (see "Dave Chappelle Is Back Onstage"). He was part of a myriad of mostly hard-core rap acts who were called upon by M-1 to perform at Monday night's concert, including David Banner, Memphis Bleek, Saigon, Styles P from the LOX, Q-Tip, Remy Ma, Dead Prez, Smiff N Wessun and the Beatnuts. All the show's proceeds will be donated to hurricane relief.

"It's only right," Bleek said. "In a time of need, the hip-hop community are the first ones there, but we the first ones who get ridiculed in the media. It's only right we show we got a heart."

"I wasn't even on the bill — they just called me 45 minutes ago," said Saigon, who has risen to a measure of mainstream popularity since his recent appearances on HBO's "Entourage." "I was in the midst of doing something else, but I made a U-turn and came right down. It helps our people. It shows that in the worst of times we're there for each other. A lot of times, people don't see that. It's sad that it takes tragedy to make it happen, but better late than never."

"We came to rock for the serious cause," Styles P said. "I said, 'Count me in.' It shows that despite everything, when it's a serious cause, people can get together and take care of their own."

Styles had an especially gripping set, highlighted by the anthem "I'm Black." Bleek stuck to his street and club bangers like "Is That Your Chick," and Remy Ma garnered "oohs and ahhs" with her freestyles.

Chappelle's stint onstage was brief. After he spoke, he stayed to watch Dead Prez perform, then hopped himself right out of the building. He had remained in his dressing room for most of the night prior to hitting the stage. Backstage was busy, though: You could see people like Lords of the Underground's Doitall shaking hands with Jeru the Damaja while David Banner took pictures with the Beatnuts.

Banner has been especially engrossed in relief efforts over the past few weeks. On Saturday in Atlanta, his Heal the Hood Foundation spearheaded a charity concert in Atlanta where acts like Young Jeezy, Nelly, T.I., Jermaine Dupri and 112 performed for 10,000 people at the Philips Arena (see "David Banner, Nelly, Busta Call On Atlanta Crowd To Heal The Hood"). Proceeds from that event go to Katrina victims as well.

"[The South] is home for me," T.I. — also known as the King of the South — said on Saturday in Atlanta. "But even more important, I felt obligated to get involved. Me being the king and putting that title on myself, I should be the first in line to do the most."

"It's more or less a unity thing," Nelly said Saturday in the ATL. "I think everybody wants to do something. Nobody knows exactly what to do, so everybody is doing a little bit of everything."

On Monday night, Banner was reflecting on his surreal experience with the hurricane-relief efforts.

"September 17 will go down as one of the proudest moments of my life. The Heal the Hood concert: 17 major artists. This is probably one of the biggest urban relief concerts of our time. Whether it was a small part or a big part, it's a blessing to be a part of it. To see all them people out there, I was losing my breath. I know people are hurting right now, but we have to be proud of ourselves. To say that we are urban artists and we pulled something together with no help from corporations — come on, that's something to be proud of."

To find out what you can do to help provide relief to victims of Katrina, head to think MTV's hurricane relief page.

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