Rapper/actor Ice Cube has joined forces with freelance artist Mark Sgarsbossa to feature a limited edition of autographed art pieces signed off by Cube himself.  The project is sponsored by RareInk, a company founded in 2010, which prides itself on being the first bona fide autographed art program for the music industry.  The pieces were unveiled on Wednesday, and are inspired by Ice Cube’s classics, “It Was A Good Day”, as well as some of his album covers including, Amerikkka’s Most Wanted and The Predator.

10% of the proceeds that come from this unprecedented enterprise will go towards benefiting the Minority AIDS project.  In the following clip, Ice Cube and Sgarsbossa talk a little bit more about the development of the project- for more information check out RareInk.com.

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After being away from the music scene for quite some time now, Fat Joe releases the video for his song “Drop A Body”.  Joey ain’t never lied.  Props for Fat Joe just wanting to be healthy, though – dropping 88-pounds may lead to dropping half of his name, now as well…possibly.

See the video here:

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It’s official!  Jagged Edge has returned to the game after a four year hiatus. The R&B sensation hosted their album release party last night at the LQ lounge co sponsored by 98.7 KISS FM with “c’mon son” himself Ed Lover as the host! Although the group has returned to the music scene, one member was not present at the release party and the others explained why:

“Kyle is locked up. It’s all good tho, he’s been there before. (chuckles) send him a prayer or something.”

So the current trio hit the stage and performed some of their top hit records over the year.They began their performance with “Walked Outta Heaven”, followed by other classics such as “Let’s Get Married (remix)”, “I Gotta Be”, and “Where The Party At”.  J.E. expressed to the largely female populated crowd how happy they are to be back singing, doing what they love.

“Man it feels good.  Seven albums? where they do that at?”

It was the same Jagged Edge that we all know, all matching in orange and navy blue, rocking a whole lot of ice. The group’s 7th studio album “The Remedy” is in stores now!

Look for more pictures after the break:

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Roc Nation artist, Santigold, covers the Summer 2011 issue of Paper Mag where she opens up about signing with Jay-Z, climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro, and more!  Look for it on stands June 22nd!

Santigold.com
Facebook.com/santigold
Twitter.com/santigold
Myspace.com/santigold

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Last night, MSDTV came out to S.O.B.’s for H-Town’s own Trae Tha Truth’s album release party for his 3rd solo project “Street King”, which will be released on June 28th.  The event was sponsored by Source Magazine, 2dopeboyz.com, Youheardthatnew, Ballers Eve Radio, and HoustonSoReal.  Opening acts included female unsigned artist, Angel Haze, New Orleans rapper Dee-1, and Anthem – in addition to a couple of special guest appearances from French Montana, Maino, Fred The Godson, Styles P., Jadakiss, and hip-hop pioneer DJ Kool Herc!

Look for more pictures after the break:

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Last night, MSDTV was on the scene live at the Samsung Center which hosted Allen Stone’s performance on behalf of the MBK Entertainment family.  The crowd was filled with his label mates as well as those wanting to see just what Allen Stone had to offer – and boy, did the crowd get what they were looking for…and then some.

At the tender age of 23, Allen Stone has a sound well beyond his years.  Signed to MBK Entertainment with CEO Jeff Robinson (the visionary who discovered and signed R&B sensation, Alicia Keys) – Allen Stone has a lot of people talking.  From Billboard to HITS magazine, Stone is labeled as the next big artist to keep your eyes on, as he is making a lasting impression amongst audiences everywhere he performs.   Unbeknownst to many, Stone released his debut album, “Last To Speak” back in September 2009 which reflects his eclectic ability to cover genres ranging from classic soul, pop, and most notably – hints of folk tied into pure R&B.   Allen Stone has an incredibly refreshing taste to his music despite his appearance – at first glance, he looks like your typical country boy, however, his voice and talent will convince you of otherwise by the end of his act.  Guaranteed.

Look for more pictures from his performance after the break:

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Jay-Z has released a new tell-all book called Decoded – comprised entirely of a collection of essays and stories told primarily from Jay’s perspective as a rap artist.  Decoded is not just a personal memoir, but rather an honorable representation of what pure lyricism is, according to one of the most prominent MC’s in the game; who arguably, has perfected its art form.

In Hov’s own words:

When you’re famous and say you’re writing a book, people assume that it’s an autobiography–I was born here, raised there, suffered this, loved that, lost it all, got it back, the end. But that’s not what this is. I’ve never been a linear thinker, which is something you can see in my rhymes. They follow the jumpy logic of poetry and emotion, not the straight line of careful prose. My book is like that, too.

Decoded is first and foremost, a book of rhymes, which is ironic because I don’t actually write my rhymes–they come to me in my head and I record them. The book is packed with the stories from my life that are the foundation of my lyrics–stories about coming up in the streets of Brooklyn in the 80′s and 90′s, stories about becoming an artist and entrepreneur and discovering worlds that I never dreamed existed when I was a kid. But it always comes back to the rhymes. There’s poetry in hip-hop lyrics–not just mine, but in the work of all the great hip-hop artists, from KRS-One and Rakim to Biggie and Pac to a hundred emcees on a hundred corners all over the world that you’ve never heard of. The magic of rap is in the way it can take the most specific experience, from individual lives in unlikely places, and turn them into art that can be embraced by the whole world. Decoded is a book about one of those specific lives–mine–and will show you how the things I’ve experienced and observed have made their way into the art I’ve created. It’s also about how my work is sometimes not about my life at all, but about pushing the boundaries of what I can express through the poetry of rap–trying to use words to find fresh angles into emotions that we all share, which is the hidden mission in even the hardest hip-hop. Decoded is a book about some of my favorite songs–songs that I unpack and explain and surround with narratives about what inspired them–but behind the rhymes is the truest story of my life.

Well said.  For a quick glimpse at the video for Decoded, you can see it here:

Credit goes to Roc4Life.com

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Representing Brownsville, Brooklyn – Maffew Ragazino is another rap artist just trying to make it big in the game.  As one of the front-runners for the independently owned Cash In Cash Out Records LLC, Ragazino teamed up with ATF member Mayor to take you through a visual tour of some of the most exclusive kicks ever in one collection.  The video is featured on Youtube, and is a cut taken from Hot97′s own, Peter Rosenberg’s “Rare Gems-The Collection” – bonus edition.

Check out the video, here:

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In an earlier post, MSDTV reported that amongst the line-up for BET’s 2011 Awards ceremony taking place on Sunday, June 26th, are major artists – Chris Brown, Jill Scott and Alicia Keys.

The list of key performers does not end there, however.

BET just announced that YMCMB members Lil’ Wayne and Drake are scheduled to perform!  Weezy is expected to drop his ninth album, “Tha Carter IV” this summer, as he has received nominations in the following categories:

Best Collaboration

Best Male Hip-Hop Artist

Video of the Year

Coca-Cola’s Viewers’ Choice

Also making an appearance on behalf of Young Money is rap sensation, Drake, who is actually going head-to-head with his friend and mentor Lil’ Wayne for nominations in, Best Collaboration, Best Male Hip-Hop Artist, and Coca-Cola Viewers’ Choice .

Hosted by comedian Kevin Hart, the highly anticipated 2011 BET Awards will definitely be something to look forward to, as we all can definitely anticipate many more surprises to come.

MSDTV will keep you posted…

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The Board of Administration’s Tiara Thomas has been keeping herself very busy, lately.  Between doing shows for Black Cobain, in light of his street release for “Young, Gifted, and Black” last week, Tiara Thomas is on the move to offset her own career in music.

And fashion.

Tiara recently did an advertising campaign with American Eagle to combine both outlets – fashion intertwined with good music.   This is not your typical commercialized, watered down production for outerwear clothing – but rather, a collaborative effort as she teams up with Nashville singer Rayland Baxter to give American Eagle some…flavor.

Check it out, here:

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