Slick Rick

How Rock The Bells Tour Lineup Came To Fruition

23 Aug 2010 18:07:04 EDT

'It's something you see classic rock bands do,' tour organizer Chang Weisberg says of artists like Snoop Dogg playing their entire albums.
By Shaheem Reid

When you initially looked at this year's Rock the Bells Tour lineup, it seemed almost too good to be true. It's not like fans didn't have faith in the outing's promoters, Guerilla Union — they've delivered time and time again. Acts such as Nas, Rage Against the Machine, Jay-Z, Busta Rhymes and two of this year's headliners, A Tribe Called Quest and the Wu-Tang Clan, have all set foot on the main stage in the previous six outings of RTB. Still, the tour this year is more than historic. It's a once-in-a-lifetime epic, as the artists are performing their classic albums in their entireties.

Slick Rick has been performing his The Great Adventures of Slick Rick, Rakim does Paid in Full, Lauryn Hill does selections from The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill as well as the Fugees' The Score. Want more? KRS-One perform Boogie Down Productions' Criminal Minded, the Wu do Enter the 36 Chambers, Tribe do Midnight Marauders and Snoop Dogg closes it out with Doggystyle. To see all of those classics, all of those LPs, which could easily make up a Best 10 Rap Albums of All-Time list, be performed within a 12-hour span, is absolutely surreal. The tour kicked off on Saturday night in San Bernardino, California, and for many fans, it was like seeing the soundtrack to their lives right in front of their faces.

"This is something we had thrown around for a while," Chang Weisberg of Guerilla Union, the tour's organizer and promoter, said last week in Los Angeles. "We'd been talking about it for a while with the squad. It became a reality during last year's Smoke Out [festival]. Cypress Hill did Black Sunday in its entirety for the Smoke Out. It went over so crazy, that was the solidifying moment when we said we've definitely gotta do this for Rock the Bells. We talked to managers and artists immediately, seeing if people were really into it. Any time you're sitting around and talking about Rock the Bells, you're talking about what these kids are dreaming about. It's always a question, whose record is better? What's a top-five record? Who's the top-five MC? Then, when you throw it in all together and couple it with what are the most classic records of all time, it was undeniable.

"It's something you see classic rock bands do," Chang added. "Like, you see Pink Floyd do The Wall. Or outside of the hip-hop genre, it's something that might be a lot more common. Here, it's an opportunity to do a whole new reign. Kids are already saying, 'We wanna see Illmatic or Paul's Boutique.' People weren't thinking like that. As a promoter, I don't think I've asked artists 'Would you do this song?' as opposed to 'Would you do this whole record?' Fortunately, we were close enough to these camps that they knew we were serious and it would be an amazing thing if we could pull it off."

Snoop Dogg, who's the last act to perform every night on this year's tour, says he was excited to be a part of this event.

"I was a fan of KRS and Rakim and Eric B and Slick Rick. All the rappers that's getting down before me and whatnot. I'm thinking I'm opening up for them," Snoop, surrounded by Daz, Kurupt, Lady of Rage, DJ Battlecat, Warren G and RBX, said. "I grew up buying their records and being fans of theirs. It's an honor to be on the same stage with them. When [Guerilla Union] asked, I said I'm rolling. They told me what it was. I said I don't want to just get onstage and perform my album, I wanna make it an experience. I wanna bring out the theatrics to the album. Doggystyle is like a journey. I want people to see it and feel it and when they leave be like 'We seen a movie.' "

Snoop definitely goes hard in the paint with mini-movies, a live band and, of course, his crew from the album.

Probably the most surprising act for people to see is Lauryn Hill. For the past decade, her music releases and stage appearances have been kept at a minimum. Chang says he and his company were lucky enough to have close ties with the music legend.

"We were blessed in that we've worked with Lauryn for a number of years and we've stayed close with her and her camp," he explained. "Ultimately, she's in a space where she's excited about music. Her children are old enough where she can hit the road comfortably. We are very fortunate she decided to do it. We always hold Lauryn as one of the best MCs of all time. It was awesome when she said she would do it. She sat with it for a while. At the end of the day, we were fortunate she agreed to do it."

As huge as the talent pool of this year's Rock the Bells is, it originally had yet another timeless act scheduled for the tour.

"The first confirmation for Rock the Bells, it's no secret, it was Run-DMC," Chang revealed. "We had Run-DMC doing Raising Hell. It was going to be Raising Hell at Rock the Bells. It didn't work out, but fortunately [there were] enough other groups to pull off the vision that we felt comfortable with when we made our announcement."

Rock the Bells continued in San Francisco on Sunday night, and this Saturday, the tour stops in New York. The last day of the tour is on Sunday in Washington, D.C. Besides the pioneers on the main stage, the Clipse, Wiz Khalifa, Big Sean, Immortal Technique and Yelawolf are among the acts appearing on the "Paid Dues" stage.

What did you think of this year's Rock the Bells concept? Let us know in the comments!

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Nas Kicks Off Levi's 2010 Pioneer Recording Sessions With Slick Rick Cover

25 May 2010 14:41:15 EDT

'The song kind of helped me out when I was a young knucklehead,' Nas says of '88 classic 'Hey Young World.'
By Steven Roberts

For its Levi's Pioneer Sessions, the popular denim company called on a dozen musical acts to recreate some of the songs that helped shaped not only their careers, but the course of music over that last few decades. A lineup that includes John Legend, the Roots, the Dirty Projectors and She and Him makes up their 2010 Revival Recordings Program.

To kick things off Levi's approached one of the greatest MCs of all time, Nas, and asked him to re-craft a song of his choosing. The Queensbridge MC knew he wanted to go with a song that spoke to him when he was a "young knucklehead": rapper Slick Rick's '88 classic "Hey Young World."

"Slick Rick is one of the greatest artists — not just MCs — artists in the world, and I just really love his music," Nas told MTV News.

"Hey Young World," it just really spoke to me when I was young. What he was saying in the song kind of helped me out when I was a young knucklehead," he explained. "I just wanted to honor the song and honor Ricky."

Nas recalled hearing the song for the first time in his sixth-floor Queensbridge apartment. His crew would come over, huddling close to listen to a bootleg copy of Rick's debut, The Great Adventures of Slick Rick. The song's positive message — its uplifting chorus promising "the world is yours" became the title of Nas' classic gem — helped steer the budding MC from a bad path.

"It was a terrible copy, but everybody was surrounding the radio listening to this album, and when "Hey Young World" came on — it caught everybody," he continued.

"We were about to go outside, it was night time. I remember almost everybody was there, I remember it like yesterday ... I heard the song, and I [had gotten] into it with somebody earlier outside, and I didn't know how it was going to end. And when I heard the song, it kind of calmed me down from going further. It really did, it calmed me down."

Re-recording the track also brought Nas back to the late-'80s New York City of his childhood.

"There were car shows on 125th Street [in Harlem, New York], where no cars would hardly move. You would see people with Connecticut plates, New Jersey plates. The fashion was insane! There were street vendors outside selling knockoff Guess jeans on 125, Jamaica Avenue [shopping strip in Queens, New York], gold teeth, the snorkel jackets," Nas remembered, alluding to the fur-lined hooded coats. "New York had a way about itself that will probably never happen again."

The song is available for download at the Levi's Pioneer Sessions website.

What do you think of Nas' Slick Rick cover? Let us know in the comments!

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Rock The Bells 2010 Lineup Includes Wu-Tang Clan, Clipse, 'Special Guest' Lauryn Hill

25 May 2010 09:40:59 EDT

Rakim, Wiz Khalifa, the Clipse, Immortal Technique, Slick Rick and Street Sweeper Social Club also on four-city tour.
By Gil Kaufman

This summer's "Rock the Bells" tour will feature some of hip-hop's most legendary MCs and crews performing iconic albums in full. Among the acts on the lineup announced on Tuesday (May 25) on the tour's site are the Wu-Tang Clan, who will serve up their groundbreaking 1993 debut, Enter the Wu-Tang 36 Chambers; Rakim performing 1987's landmark Paid in Full; KRS-One doing 1987's Criminal Minded; and Slick Rick, who will run through his iconic 1988 debut, The Great Adventures of Slick Rick.

The tour announcement also mentions "special guest" Lauryn Hill, but does not elaborate on what role the former Fugees and solo star will play on the tour.

With more names to be added later, the current lineup also features Rage Against the Machine guitarist Tom Morello's side project with the Coup's Boots Riley, Street Sweeper Social Club, as well as Murs & 9th Wonder, Wiz Khalifa, the Clipse, Immortal Technique, Brother Ali, Jedi Mind Tricks, Supernatural, DJ Muggs with Ill Bill, Big Sean, Yelawolf, and DJ Rocky Rock.

The tour will hit four cities, kicking off on August 21 at the NOS Events Center in San Bernardino, California, then hitting Shoreline Amphitheater outside San Francisco on August 22, Governors Island in New York on August 28 and Merriweather Post Pavilion near Washington D.C. on August 29.

"This time of year is always filled with anxiety, excitement, and even relief," said Bells founder Chang Weisberg. "Rock the Bells fans have the craziest expectations, and the days and nights leading up to our initial announcement are surreal. Ultimately, our goal is to always present something that is historic. This year's show is the epitome of that tradition. Some things new and fresh, some things classic and legendary, and something that you've never seen or may never see and hear again. That's the formula. I am excited for this year's festivals and hope everyone is as hyped up as I am."

A portion of the proceeds from the four shows will go to Haiti relief efforts through the Hip-Hop and Hope for Haiti organization. The shows will also feature freestyle sessions and breakdancing performances.

Which Rock the Bells act are you most looking forward to? Talk about it in the comments.

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De La Soul, Slick Rick, Isaac Hayes To Be Crowned Rap Royalty At VH1 Hip Hop Honors

03 Oct 2008 20:39:00 EDT

'It's like the all-star game of hip-hop,' says Travis McCoy of Gym Class Heroes, who pay tribute to Cypress Hill on Monday's show.
By Steven Roberts

NEW YORK — It's that time of year again: The weather is getting colder, days are becoming shorter and legends of hip-hop are being honored.

The 2008 VH1 Hip Hop Honors 2008 VH1 Hip Hop Honors premieres Monday at 10 p.m. ET, and rehearsals were held Wednesday and Thursday at the Hammerstein Ballroom to make sure the honorees were recognized in style.

Those being honored this year include Slick RickSlick Rick, the late Isaac Hayes, Too ShortToo Short, De la SoulDe la Soul, Cypress HillCypress Hill and Naughty by NatureNaughty by Nature. This is the fifth class of legends to be nominated; past honorees include Snoop DoggSnoop Dogg, the Wu-Tang Clanthe Wu-Tang Clan, Run-DMCRun-DMC and RakimRakim.

Fellow hip-hop heavyweights Big BoiBig Boi, Wyclef JeanWyclef Jean and Public EnemyPublic Enemy came out to rehearse alongside newcomers like EstelleEstelle and the Gym Class HeroesGym Class Heroes.

"We're here to be a part of something historical," Gym Class Heroes frontman Travis McCoy told MTV News. "It's like the all-star game of hip-hop."

The group practiced their tribute to Cypress Hill with Mack 10Mack 10, Jim JonesJim Jones and Fat JoeFat Joe. The West Coast collective is notable for being the first mainstream Latino hip-hop group.

Another West Coast act being honored is Too Short, whose career has been anything but. The MC has been in the game for more than 20 years, spawning hits such as "Short Dog the Pimp" in the late '80s and a guest spot on Snoop Dogg's "Life of Da Party""Life of Da Party" earlier this year.

"Short to Oakland is like Jay-ZJay-Z to Brooklyn," Mistah F.A.B.Mistah F.A.B. said.

A video was played during the rehearsal in which Naughty by Nature recalled being accosted by New York crowds early on in their career because they were from New Jersey. They eventually grew to be loved, no matter where they performed.

"They're the anthem kings," Big Boi said of Naughty by Nature. "From 'O.P.P.''O.P.P.' to 'Hip-Hop Hooray''Hip-Hop Hooray' — every time they put out a song, they had an anthem that the whole globe was singing, man."

While Slick Rick and De la Soul rehearsed their sets, Wale, Busta RhymesBusta Rhymes, Spliff Starr, ?uestlove?uestlove, Bun BBun B and Biz MarkieBiz Markie mixed and mingled. The ballroom was more like a family reunion then a rehearsal.

The only non-rap artist being celebrated is Isaac Hayes, and while the late musician never spit a bar, his work helped inspire many MCs. From the Notorious B.I.G.'sNotorious B.I.G.'s "Warning""Warning" to the Geto Boys'Geto Boys' "Mind Playing Tricks on Me,""Mind Playing Tricks on Me," Black Moses had a lasting effect on hip-hop.

While Biz Markie played a sample of one of Hayes' songs, a cipher featuring Mos DefMos Def, Busta Rhymes and others broke out. The Biz playfully stopped the beat, interrupting the freestyle session causing participants to yell, "Yo, keep playing that!"

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Slick Rick Pardoned By New York Governor Thanks To 'Exemplary' Record

23 May 2008 17:50:00 EDT

The formerly flashy rap star has earned back his freedom after more than a decade.
By Joseph Patel

Hip-hop pioneer Slick Rick was given a full pardon Friday (May 23) by New York Governor David Patterson, most likely ending a deportation threat that has hung over the rapper for 11 years. According to The New York Times, Governor Patterson delivered the pardon to prevent the MC from being deported to England, where he was born and lived until the age of 11.

In 1991, Slick Rick (Ricky Walters) was convicted of attempted murder and weapons charges after he shot and injured his cousin and an acquaintance. Rick served five years and 12 days in prison before being paroled in 1997, but a law that threatens to deport immigrants convicted of aggravated felony or weapons charges had always loomed large.

In 2002, Slick Rick was arrested aboard a docked Caribbean cruise ship — by the INS, who had been fighting for his deportation since 1995. He spent a year in an immigration detention center in Bradenton, Florida, before a judge ruled he could go free in 2003. (MTV News spoke with him shortly after his release.)

In administering the pardon, Governor Patterson noted that Slick Rick had served his sentence, had earned an "exemplary" record while in prison and on parole, and had lived in the community without incident for over 10 years. He also cited Slick Rick's community service and the fact that deportation would separate Rick from his wife and two teenage children, who are all American citizens.

Slick Rick was 25 years old at the time of the incident and one of hip-hop's biggest — and flashiest — stars, recognizable as much for his immeasurable amount of jewelry as he was for his iconic eye patch (he's blind in his right eye as a result of an injury as an infant).

Technically, Slick Rick is not completely free of the threat of deportation. He still must get approval from immigration courts for an "adjustment of status" that would remove the threat, but the chances of it being granted have increased dramatically with the governor's pardon. Immigration courts originally decided to adjust his status in 1995 but vacated the decision due to a technicality.

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Legendary Rapper Slick Rick Pardoned By New York State Governor

23 May 2008 15:54:00 EDT

Possibility of deportation had hung over British-born MC for years.
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Hip-Hop's Royalty Show Off Their Crown Jewels In 'Bling Bling'

18 Aug 2005 00:28:00 EDT

Book looks at both the old school (Slick Rick, Chuck D) and new (50 Cent, Lil Jon).
By Jennifer Vineyard

Diamonds are more than a rapper's best friend — they're a billboard telling the world so many different things, primarily that you've made it, or that you're spending like you have and you're about to lose it all. Whatever the message or the motive, it's a primary form of communication in hip-hop that's now getting its own decoder book.

Former MTV News scribe Minya Oh (also known as Hot 97's Miss Info) chats up rappers from 50 Cent and Lil Jon to Chuck D and Slick Rick in her book, "Bling Bling: Hip Hop's Crown Jewels" (out next week via Wenner Books), which explores the bling phenomenon from back in the day to present day, with everyone rocking their most choice ice.

(Click here for photos from "Bling Bling: Hip Hop's Crown Jewels")

"People want to sparkle," Oh said. "Everyone wants to stand out, none more so than rappers. They were struggling to find their place in both music and the larger American culture, and went from struggling minority to legit millionaires. They're living out champagne wishes and caviar dreams, and then we follow suit by getting our own little personal piece of glamour. There's never been more rhinestones on the least jewelry-related products. We're seeing bling bling in banking ads, chewing gum ads, hundreds of products. It now translates to all types of people, because it makes you more glamorous than you were."

Some bling seems purposely designed to make you seem less glamorous, though — like Lil Jon's pimp cup and ODB's gold fronts. The problem with wearing your bling in your mouth, though, is that it can be quite painful. Slick Rick had a diamond put onto his gold tooth against his jeweler's recommendation (never mind his dentist's!), and he couldn't talk. Baby tried to avoid the pain factor by having his metal mouth permanently bonded. "He can eat anything, even if it's scalding hot," Oh said — not that she recommends this, of course.

But for a lot of the rappers Oh spoke with, their bling also had a personal meaning. Snoop Dogg, for instance, wears different pendants to represent different homes, "Like a dog with a new collar," she said, "going place to place." For 50, who accuses other rappers of wearing fakes and not admitting it, his bling represents honesty: He admits to wearing duplicates of his real jewelry, which he keeps in a lockbox for safekeeping. "He knows he can afford the real thing, and for him it's common sense," Oh said. "Plus, he's rough with his jewelry, and had to Krazy-Glue his diamonds back into his chain. It's better to wear replicas. It's good business [sense]."

But other approaches work too. Ghostface relates how he told his label to give him the marketing budget for his album, and he would market himself — but ended up blowing it all on a huge gold eagle to wear on his wrist. "For any normal person, that is the stupidest thing you could do," Oh said. "But you can't argue that his strategy didn't work. Everyone talked about it, and no one will forget it."

After boasting about their collections of chains or ice, some of the rappers also opened about how they couldn't really afford what they bought, or how they felt pressure from their fans to maintain an image they couldn't keep up. They talked about the jealousy involved, about being threatened, being robbed and being hurt. And their regret is palpable. "If anything, the book shows the good, the bad, the ugly, and then the sad," Oh said. "They're chasing these gold dreams, but what happens when you put too much value in your chain? If you spend all your money on your ring and then you go broke? It's not an advertisement for jewelry."

Be sure to check out "The Bling Report": "Bling Bling" author Minya Oh interviews Mike Jones, Paul Wall and others, and gives a sneak peek at what the stars will be wearing on the VMAs carpet. Look for it August 28 on Overdrive.

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Hip-Hop's Old School Rules Again At Fresh Fest — Nick Cannon, Redman In Da House

15 Aug 2005 17:20:00 EDT

Whodini, Slick Rick, Doug E. Fresh, Nice & Smooth, others take the stage — but Big Daddy Kane doesn't.
By Shaheem Reid, with additional reporting by Sway Calloway and Andrew Millard

NEW YORK — There might never have been an Anger Management 3, a Rock the Mic or even a Survival of the Illest Tour if it weren't for Fresh Fest.

Some 21 years ago, Run-DMC, Kurtis Blow, Whodini and the Fat Boys were among the groups participating in the trek, which was the first hip-hop road show to gross heavy box-office numbers.

On Friday night, the Fresh Fest returned with a lineup of hip-hop legends ready to resuscitate the tour, armed with a catalog of timeless music from the '80s and early '90s.

"We'd be able to go on the road, do four nights a week — sometimes five — for three to four months straight," Jalil Hutchins of Whodini said Friday night at the Hammerstein Ballroom. "[We'd] pull up in your town, hit the hotel, go do some radio, go do a soundcheck, come back, eat, do the show, go to the afterparty. [We'd hook up with] a couple of chicks, and then hit the road and come back and do that again and again and again. Now I do one show, kiss a chick and I'm through."

Whodini, Slick Rick, Doug E. Fresh, Dana Dane, Biz Markie, Nice & Smooth, Chubb Rock and former members of the Sugar Hill Gang all took the stage for the kick off of what promoters say will be a 20-city tour.

"I think the world has gotten nostalgic," Slick Rick said. "Hip-hop is pushing 40, but the older generation is not being catered to at all. We're hoping that we can open up a market that can push for this older, mature hip-hop tip."

"There's definitely an audience that wants to hear it," Big Daddy Kane said. "I think what's more important is the support. As long as radio is supporting it and making it seem like the big event it is — but if they trying to pass it off like it's some old-school show, and categorize cats and plant in the young generation's mind that 'That's the past,' [it's not cool]. But if radio and media support it, and instill in the younger generation that's this is where it comes from and this what you need to keep it alive, then it can be effective."

As it turns out, Kane was one of the show's main headliners, but he left a little before his showtime because of a dispute with the show's promoter over payment. A spokesperson for the promoter, Blackberry Entertainment, said the company did not have the full cash payment that had been agreed upon with Kane on hand, and the rapper refused to accept a check. Kane could not be reached for comment at press time.

Despite a lackluster turnout (the house was approximately one-third full), show-openers Nice & Smooth brought the energy like they were playing in a sold-out stadium. Their set was highlighted by Gregg Nice's spastic dances (he wore a T-shirt that said, "Rehab is for quitters") and outbursts like "Whop-bababloo-bop-a-bop-bambu." For "How to Flow," Nice got his Farnsworth Bentley on, dancing with an umbrella and yelling, "Make it rain, brother!" Smooth Bee might have had the stage prop of the night though: a guitar, which he pretended to play for "Sometimes I Rhyme Slow."

The prize for surprise guest of the night went to the Bronx duo: They didn't have Guru on hand when they performed "Dwyck," their collab with Gang Starr, but they did have Joeski Love come out to perform his 1986 hit, "Pee Wee's Dance."

After Chubb Rock delivered a brief set, Dana Dane entered the stage for hits like "Nightmare" and "Delancey Street." He too had a couple of tricks up his sleeve, bringing out Kwame for "The Rhythm" and D-Nice for "Call Me D-Nice."

Whodini might have been the night's show stealers, handling their business with showmanship like it was '88 all over again. The group was actually the first rap act to have dancers for their performance. "At that time it was costly to bring dancers on the road with you," Jalil explained earlier in the night. "We kept it because we felt hip-hop was rapping, scratching and dancing. We used to slay a lot of crews with that. Then we turned around one day and everybody in the game had dancers. It was crazy."

Back in the day, Whodini were also known for pulling disappearing magic tricks during their concerts (á la Harry Houdini), driving mopeds onstage and holding their DJ up in the air while he scratched records. The group members didn't pull those tricks out of their bag, but they kept the small crowd moving with records like "Freaks Come Out at Night" and "One Love."

Slick Rick and Doug E. Fresh closed out the concert, with Doug starting out with Lil' Vicious for "Freaks." Slick Rick made his grand entrance for "The Show," and then took a break from performing to take off his platinum jewels and throw on his gold chains and Kangol. Slick, who has slimmed down considerably, looked almost like he did back in the day while hitting the audience with "Children's Story."

"It was good, you know," Slick said after the show outside the Hammerstein. Nick Cannon, who could be spotted in the venue all night dancing and rapping along with the records, pulled up to the Ruler and shook his hand. Busta Rhymes, Jin and Redman were also in the audience.

"[It was] old-school cats just having fun, people reminiscing the good old days, good vibes. The crowd likes to see the two of us doing our thing," he added about himself and Doug E's headlining stint. "It's always magic."

Promoters for Fresh Fest say they have a 20-city tour planned with the lineup that hit the Hammerstein on Friday, but have not yet released any more dates.

For more sights and stories from concerts around the country, check out MTV News Tour Reports.

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Hip-Hop Generation Gathers To Find Its Voice; Wyclef, Akon, Slick Rick Perform

21 Jun 2004 15:06:00 EDT

National Hip-Hop Political Convention brings estimated 4,000 people to Newark, New Jersey, between Wednesday and Saturday.
By Adam Hootnick

NEWARK, New Jersey — It's safe to say neither the Republican nor Democratic conventions this summer will look anything like the National Hip-Hop Political Convention, which brought an estimated 4,000 members of the "hip-hop generation" to Newark, New Jersey, between Wednesday and Saturday. And that's exactly why the hip-hop convention was organized.

The primary goal of the convention, according to national co-chair Baye Adolfo-Wilson, was to plan ways to channel hip-hop's cultural dominance — in music, movies, clothing and language — into a unified political voice that can influence elected officials at the local and national level. Among the artists who turned out to perform and show support at the event were Wyclef Jean, Slick Rick, Doug E. Fresh, Black Moon, Akon and MC Lyte.

After attending many of the convention's 50-plus workshops and discussion sessions — topics included inner-city education, the legacy of Tupac Shakur, the prison-industrial complex, environmental degradation, and navigating today's job market — 700 local representatives met first by state (representing 16 states and Washington, D.C.), then en masse to hammer out and vote on an agenda that articulated the position of the hip-hop community on the political issues it sees as most pressing. The delegates — all of whom qualified to participate by having registered at least 50 voters in their home communities — began a dialogue they hope will lead to concrete results both in the 2004 election and in the future.

"The most important thing that has changed," delegate Brandon Terry, 20, said, "is that there are people with education and that there are people with money" who are recognizing the potential for hip-hop to become a political force. "Now that we know what's wrong, what is the concrete policy proposal that we want, and how can we implement that?"

For Terry, who is a Harvard University student, AIDS activist and rapper, "what's wrong" isn't just an academic question. He came of age in a working-class Baltimore neighborhood that was racially diverse when he was born, but had virtually no white faces by the time he reached middle school because of "white flight." Two older brothers, who grew up in a crime-ridden inner-city neighborhood, have spent much of their lives in prison for drug convictions. And he's watched friends — kids on the honor roll, with parents on the PTA — get caught up in selling drugs because they think that's the fastest route to cars and bling.

Whether or not the convention's agenda — which calls for changes in the nation's educational and economic policy, criminal justice and health-care systems, and proposes a Truth and Reconciliation Commission to examine human-rights violations committed by the U.S. government throughout its history — will influence the Democratic and Republican platforms remains to be seen. But with delegates registering 5,000 voters just in Ohio, widely expected to be a pivotal swing state in the 2004 presidential election, the potential for hip-hop to take a seat at the political table is obvious. As conference participant and DJ Davey D put it, "To see a 20-something-year-old cat with his hat backwards and a throwback on, sitting there in intense conversation ... really trying to engage the issues — this has never been done before."

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For The Record: Quick News On Tom Morello, Solange, Jet, Slick Rick, Randy Rhoads, Morrissey, Vince Neil & More

01 Mar 2004 17:30:00 EST

By MTV News staff report

Audioslave guitarist Tom Morello is gearing up to protest at the Irvine, California, headquarters of Taco Bell by performing there on March 5 with his side project, the Nightwatchman. Morello and others will be protesting the restaurant chain's perceived exploitation of farm workers. At the event, Morello will take the stage with the Coup rapper Boots Riley, who will also perform solo ... Meanwhile, Morello's grassroots political organization, Axis of Justice, has scheduled a benefit concert that will take place March 31 in Los Angeles and feature acoustic performances by the Nightwatchman, Riley, System of a Down's Serj Tankian, ex-MC5 guitarist Wayne Kramer and other special guests. ...

Beyoncé Knowles' little sister Solange has beat her to the altar. The 17-year-old singer/actress married college football player Daniel Smith in the Bahamas last weekend in a ceremony attended by her sister, parents and Destiny's Child's Kelly Rowland. "I am excited about this new phase in my life," Solange said in a statement Monday (March 1). "I am very happy and feel truly blessed to have the unconditional love and support of my parents and my entire family." ... If you've got dreams of Diddy, a fancy for 50 or want to be like Wyclef, Diddymite might have your ticket. A hip-hop music and talent school founded by Ms. Dynamite, Diddymite is scheduled to open in England in June, with classes to be held on weekends and holidays for students age 7-19. Despite the name, P. Diddy and Bad Boy have no affiliation with the school. ... Big Tigger, host of BET's "Rap City," will serve as main-event MC in the upcoming boxing video game "Fight Night," due in the spring. Tigger is also a playable character that can be unlocked by virtual pugilists. ...

Former Black Crowes singer Chris Robinson and Public Enemy rapper Flavor Flav will be among the artists to play this year's Jammy Awards on March 16 at the Madison Square Garden Theater in New York. Other artists scheduled to perform include Slick Rick, Dr. John, Dickey Betts, Gov't Mule, Soulive, the Disco Biscuits and the String Cheese Incident. Awards will be handed out between artist jams. Voting is open to the public at jammys.com, jambands.com and relix.com. ... Jet will join the Who, David Bowie and others at this year's Isle of Wight festival, which will take place June 11 to 13 at Seaclose Park in Newport, England. Other acts on the bill include British Sea Power, Snow Patrol, Groove Armada, the Electric Soft Parade, the Manic Street Preachers and the Charlatans UK. ...

Randy Rhoads, former guitarist for Ozzy Osbourne, is being inducted posthumously into Hollywood's Rockwalk, the sidewalk gallery on Sunset Boulevard. His induction takes place March 18 at 1 p.m. and is open to the public. ... Mötley Crüe's Vince Neil, who lost his daughter Skylar in 1995 to stomach cancer, is holding his annual charity golf tournament in her name on May 6 in Malibu, California. Proceeds benefit the Skylar Neil Memorial Foundation, which donates funds to organizations that help children suffering with cancer, AIDS, Down Syndrome and leukemia. ...

Morrissey's first studio album in seven years, You Are the Quarry, is set to drop May 18. The former Smiths frontman worked with producer Jerry Finn (Blink-182, AFI) on the project. ... Gary Jules, who recently scored the #1 single in Britain with a cover of Tears for Fears' "Mad World," has set a March 23 release date for his latest album, Trading Snakeoil for Wolftickets. The Los Angeles singer/songwriter will promote the record with an eight-city tour including a March 19 show at South by Southwest in Austin, Texas. ...

02.27.2004

Michael Jackson has had another run-in with the law — this time for wearing a ski mask and worrying store officials. The pop star entered a Wal-Mart in Glenwood Springs, Colorado, Tuesday morning with his head covered, accompanied by another man with a hat pulled down over his eyes, and when he was asked to remove the mask by managers, he refused. Police were called, but the two men had left the store by the time officers arrived. Police later pulled over their black SUV, at which point Jackson removed the mask. Officers described it as a routine call. ...

Pharrell Williams has decided to give acting a try — and no, we're not just talking about his direct-to-DVD flick, "Dude, We're Going to Rio," which hits stores Tuesday. He's signed on to work on a short indie film titled "The Ecology of Love," which should hit the film-festival circuit this summer. ...

Like he did with his last album, David Banner will release a "Chopped & Screwed" version of his most recent full-length, MTA2: Baptized in Dirty Water. It'll be out in stores on March 23. Universal Records has had such a good response to these slowed-down remix albums that it plans to issue "Chopped & Screwed" versions of all its major Southern hip-hop releases, including LPs from the Big Tymers and Lil' Wayne. ... Thanks to a back catalog that sold like hotcakes last year, not to mention the 1.5 million copies of St. Anger picked up by fans, Metallica are hanging with the big boys (and girls) at #5 on Rolling Stone's list of the top moneymaking musicians of 2003. Metallica's $39.1 million puts them behind leaders the Rolling Stones ($84.1 million), Bruce Springsteen ($81.7 million), Eagles ($62.9 million) and the Dixie Chicks ($39.8 million). Further down the list are Robbie Williams, Christina Aguilera, Jennifer Lopez and Dave Matthews. ...

Continuing to support their third album, Welcome Interstate Managers, Fountains of Wayne have lined up a spring tour of the U.S. Following the conclusion of a two-week European jaunt on March 10 in Madrid, Spain, the power-pop quartet will launch a brief string of dates beginning April 22 at Rutgers University in Piscataway, New Jersey. ... Wu-Tang Clan headmaster RZA will release a live performance DVD, "The RZA Live in Germany," on April 13. That's the same day the second installment of "Kill Bill," which RZA scored for director Quentin Tarantino, hits theaters. ...

Jadakiss was previously scheduled to appear as himself in a February 16 episode of "Eve," in which Eve's character, Shelly, enlists his help to get her friends into a club; the episode will now air March 1 at 8:30 p.m. ET on UPN. ... Dax Shepard from MTV's "Punk'd" is trying his hand at acting. Shepard appears on Friday's (February 27) episode of "Life With Bonnie" as a young commercial director who is looking for something other than the title character's wholesome image to sell soup, the product she's set to endorse. The episode airs 9:30 p.m. ET on ABC. ...

Classic rocker Eric Clapton will present the three-day celebration Crossroads Guitar Festival in Dallas' Fair Park from June 4-6. The charity event will begin with guitar seminars and showcases, and will end with an all-star jam at Cotton Bowl Stadium, which will feature Clapton, Buddy Guy, Eric Johnson, B.B. King, Brian May, Steve Vai and many others. Proceeds will to go the Crossroads Centre, an addiction treatment center founded by Clapton in 1997. ... The artists of indie-rap label Def Jux will embark on a six-week tour starting March 21 in the label's hometown of New York. Aesop Rock, RJD2, Mr. Lif and a half dozen others will tour the country in support of Definitive Jux Presents III, a compilation album of music from the label due out March 23. The road trip wraps up May 1 in Cambridge, Massachusetts. ...

Jewel has extended her tour through June, when she will play a series of dates on the West Coast. The tour launches on March 11 in Bozeman, Montana, and now runs through June 21 in Bend, Oregon. Jewel continues to tour for her 2003 album, 0304, which hit shelves last June. On March 23, she will release the live DVD "Live at Humphrey's by the Bay," which was recorded during her 2001 tour. ...

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