The latest Billboard 200 album chart saw a #2 debut for Tamar Braxton, the Severn, Maryland-raised singer heretofore known as one of ’90s superstar Toni Braxton’s less famous younger sisters. In August, another R&B singer who’d been kicking around the industry for years with little success, K. Michelle, also enjoyed a #2 chart debut. Both impressive sales figures would probably not have been possible without one common link: reality TV. WE’s Braxton Family Values and VH1’s Love & Hip Hop: Atlanta, which K. Michelle recently left the cast of, are both cable hits that raised each woman’s profile significantly over the past couple years, setting the stage for those sales coups.

Once upon a time, reality shows were only a career option for two kinds of musicians: hopefuls and has-beens. An unknown singer might become famous on American Idol, and a fading star might be able to collect a paycheck on The Surreal Life and raise their touring profile, but there wasn’t much opportunity in television to nourish a recording career still in progress and make hit songs. In recent years, that’s changed. The title track to Braxton’s Love And War has been one of R&B radio’s biggest and best hits of 2013, and K. Michelle’s “V.S.O.P.” has been climbing the charts since before her album Rebellious Soul started selling. They may have built their audience with reality TV antics, but now there’s a bona fide fanbase for their music, which they leveraged with Twitter followers buying up their singles and eventually getting them on the radio.

The rise of Braxton and Michelle comes at an interesting time for women in R&B, when there’s something of a stardom vacuum. Although Beyonce, Alicia Keys and Mary J. Blige aren’t going anywhere, they’ve all been on commercial declines for years, and no new female R&B artist has emerged in the last decade with any major staying power (save for Rihanna, a pop star whose biggest hits often aren’t even played on R&B radio). At the ripe age of 36, Tamar Braxton sold 114,000 copies of her second album (following a long forgotten 2000 debut) in one week, a better number than far more established artists like Ciara, Keyshia Cole, Fantasia or Kelly Rowland did with their latest albums. And it’s not just women – Love And War outsold new albums by John Legend, Jaheim and Raheem DeVaughn released in the same week.

Tamar Braxton could have made an album that follows through on the promise of “Love And War,” with lush, emotional ballads that show off how she has both her big sister’s sultry tone and a range that soars higher. And about half the time, she does, with equally impressive songs like “Stay And Fight” and “Where It Hurts,” which was co-written by longtime Toni collaborator Babyface. Unfortunately, there are also several half-baked, ill-fitting tracks that make the album feel muddled and confused. Halfway through the album, Braxton strains to sound sassy on the noisy, Diplo-produced “One On One Fun” and the ‘turnt up’ Rihanna-style track, “She Did That.” That each track runs less than two minutes long is just about the only good thing about them.

Where Braxton’s attempts at an edgier sound feel forced, K. Michelle is brazen in a way that feels true to herself. Rebellious Soul is the rare major label R&B album with an explicit lyrics sticker not earned primarily by guest rappers (the only MC on the album is Meek Mill, who barely curses at all in his brief verse). K. Michelle first gained fame a few years ago when she was mentored by R. Kelly, but the material he penned for her was a bit bland, lacking in the personality and X-rated sensibility of his own songs. Kelly didn’t work on Rebellious Soul, but it feels like she’s picked up a little more of his approach since then, singing about sex and relationships in frank, sometimes filthy terms.

Rebellious_Soul_album_coverThe week Rebellious Soul was released, #KMichelleSongTitles was a trending topic on Twitter, lampooning her ‘ratchet’ personality as seen on VH1 and occasionally in her lyrics. Ultimately, though, she’s not saying much that male R&B singers, from Kelly to more recent acts like The Weeknd and Ty Dolla $ign, haven’t been saying for ages. And Rebellious Soul would feel like merely an amusingly foul-mouthed novelty if not for the fact that K. Michelle can sing circles around many of her contemporaries. With not just a large vocal range but an extremely loud style of singing, she sounds a bit like if Jennifer Hudson had been raised in Memphis and cursed like a sailor. That she demonstrates that impressive ability on an interlude like “Coochie Symphony,” in which she sings in an operatic style about her broken coochie, could either be considered squandering her talent or simply applying it in an unusual way. That she puts those moments of levity alongside sincere (and explicit) songs about love and sex and family, all sung with the same conviction, puts her in a unique position in a genre where well-behaved women haven’t been thriving much lately.

1. “Tuscan Leather”

OPENING TRACK. Here’s what a lot of people already know about Tuscan Leather: It's a fragrance by Tom Ford that, per some, smells like cocaine, and so that’s supposed to be why this song is called “Tuscan Leather.” But here’s what a lot of people don’t know, which leads to what the song is actually about:

Two years ago, Drake was in a car accident. It happened late, late, late one night outside of Nova Scotia. You didn’t read about it because it wasn’t reported by anyone and that’s exactly how Drake’s camp wanted it. But here’s the thing: The accident was serious. REAL serious. Drake was pinned under the steering wheel. He couldn’t move. So when the car eventually caught fire all he could do was sit there and scream and watch the skin from each of his thighs get burned off. It was totally traumatizing.

And so but when they took Drake to the hospital, Drake was still Drake, which is to say that he didn’t opt for regular skin grafting like a normal human because Drake most assuredly is not a normal human. Drake chose a leather graft, which is just like a regular skin graft but except instead of skin doctors use leather. DRAKE WANTED LEATHER THIGHS. He’d wanted them since he was a kid. It was the most luxurious thing his brain could imagine. So, presented with the opportunity, that’s what he got as replacements because when Drake says shit then shit happens. Leather thighs. What’s more, he wanted ITALIAN leather thighs straight from Tuscany, because fuck your tacky American leather thighs. This ain’t Walmart, bro. Italian leather thighs is a little thing called having some true class.

Now, I get it: This is an odd, unbelievable bit of information to process. But, I mean, think on like this: Drake should’ve definitely already had a few naked selfies leak out onto the Internet, right? Like, that’s the most Drake thing for Drake to do. There’s no reason that that shouldn’t have happened 50 times over. But he never has. There are zero Drake peen pics anywhere. And that’s because, while he’s mostly fond of his new thighs, he understands that they look a little odd (basically like those Swiss Rolls snack cakes). He’s very self-conscious about them. And so that’s actually what this song is really about: The cognitive dissonance of knowing that you are in possession of the type of luxury that’d bow a king’s spine, but being too insecure to show it. Best line: “Tufted leather thighs, girl. Jewel-encrusted heavy sighs, girl. Secretly feel that luxury on my thighs, girl. But recognize the pain in my eyes, girl.”

2. “Furthest Thing”

This song isn’t actually a song, it’s a four-minute apology from Drake about the past five years of Lil Wayne’s career. “I know the saying,” a noticeably somber Drake begins. “Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me. But release Rebirth and then I Am Not A Human Being* though and OH MY GOD I AM SO SORRY ABOUT THAT I DON’T KNOW WHAT WAS GOING ON.” Wayne pops in for a moment. Drake asks him if he wants to say anything. Wayne comes on just long enough to make some half-warmed cunnilingus reference (“I wear your legs like a hat, your butt cheeks are a visor, I lick that puddy-wuddy cat, yo’ pussy lips be like, ‘Hi, sir’”) before Drake grabs the mic away and then apologizes again. Poor Drake. #ripLilWayne

I Am Not A Human Being II
Lil Wayne

*Question: Who’s the guy that said, “Oh, oh yeah, definitely, Wayne. What rap really needs is I Am Not A Human Being 2. That’s what the game needs. Shit’s hot fire, son!” Because FUCK that guy.

3. “Started From The Bottom”

You know this one already. Skip.

4. “Wu-Tang Forever”

I listened to the whole Wu-Tang Forever double disc album prior to listening to this song because I wanted to be able to catch even the most impossible-to-spot reference or hat-tip that Drake laid out there in the song. In the end, do you know what I got? A great, big boner in the butthole, is what. IT DOESN'T HAVE ANYTHING TO DO WITH WU-TANG. He makes a U-God joke, but that's it. And, I mean, fucking EVERYBODY makes U-God jokes.

5. “Own It”

Note: Drake is far too complex for just regular words all the time. That’s why there’s no commentary here, just a selfie that I was inspired to take while listening to this song, which I guess is actually just a different sort of commentary.


-Me, lying on a fancy rug almost crying, realizing that someone else has just walked in the room as I’m taking selfies lying on a fancy rug almost crying, listening to “Own It”

6. “Worst Behaviour”

“Worst Behaviour” is a theme track. It’s just a bunch of brags about hoodrat shit Drake does with his friends, like how he spells “behavior” as “behaviour” and “honor” as “honour” and “flavor” as “flavour” and so. That’s basically it. It’s okay, I guess. Or, rather, it’s oukay. Best line: “I spell all kind of shit wrong, I got a disease. Color like c-o-l-o-r? Nah, gimme the U, too, please."

7. “From Time”

REALLY EXCITING. What Drake does is take a bunch of clips from that movie The Land Before Time and splice them together and malibooyah: SONG OF THE YEAR. It’s really remarkable. Best line: “Drizzy got the hoes, dark to darker like soot, yo’ girl give me that long neck, call her rap game Little Foot.”

8. “Hold On, We're Going Home”

You know this one already. Skip.

9. “Connect”

3:18 seconds of someone crying. Like, that's all this is. There’s no intro. There’s no accompanying music. There’s no explanation. There’s no nothing. Just sobbing. It’s soft crying, mostly; the cry that happens a few moments before THE BIG CRY. I’m not sure what’s going on. Maybe someone was watching What Dreams May Come? I don't know. I just know that that movie is fucking brutal. “Oh, I know, let’s start the movie by showing a happy family and then let's immediately kill the kids. And then right after that, the husband dies by getting squished by a car. And then after that, the wife kills herself and goes to hell where they have a ground made of human faces and you have to step on them to walk. That’ll be a good movie.” WTF BRO NO IT WON'T IT'LL BE A HEARTBREAKING MOVIE AND IT'LL MAKE ME SO SAD THAT I THROW UP ALL OVER MY OWN SADNESS BONER.

10. “The Language”

-Here’s me sitting under my desk almost crying, listening to “The Language”

11. “305 To My City,” feat. Detail

This one was produced by Terio from those Vine videos. What a sad bit of commentary that whole situation is. I guess I just don’t understand why everyone thinks it’s so funny and cool that a kid is so massively overweight and barely capable of movement and. Fuck you, fuckers. I hope when you get to heaven the guy behind the camera for Terio videos is there going “OOH KILL ’EM KILL ’EM” as God does that Terio Molly dance right before he opens the trap door and sends you freefalling towards hell.

12. “Too Much”

GIF of Tom Hardy crying while holding an English bulldog because, I mean, come on.

13. “Pound Cake,” feat. Jay Z / “Paris Morton Music 2”

If you thought this was a song where “pound cake” was a euphemism for getting money then you were wrong and if you thought this was a song where “pound cake” was a euphemism for mashing on vaginas then you were wrong, too, but if you thought this was a song about real, actual pound cakes then congratulations. THIS IS A SONG ABOUT REAL, ACTUAL POUND CAKES. Jay Z does his old man staccato flow: “I got pound cakes, they’re round cakes, I found the cakes, it’s mounds of cakes.”

Go buy the album. Drake is the king.

Can't get enough Drizzy? Get hyped for his upcoming Would You Like a Tour? tour (featuring Miguel and Future) with this mix.

Album Rate
8.7/10

High energy bootleg remix of Macklemore & Ryan Lewis’ “And We Danced” by new Dutch duo Jaggs. Enjoy the free download!

Polokwane has been brewing for decades with a throng of talent, capacitated by the willingness to spread ones wings across the southern hemisphere. The dream of standing upon the shoulders of giants with revere, to become a reputable artist and a legend, is one taken on by the gutful.

Molapo “Darque” Malatji at now 21 years old has begun his journey to greatness from the age of 16 as a budding producer and DJ. The love of music comes relative to anyone who is surrounded by quality music, which was awe inspired by locals, when he began playing music for those who required enlightenment.

For a hard-pressed 5 years he put his ear on the ground for only the best music, ranging from jazz to international deep house music. Forging his technical and audio proficiency the old fashioned way, by playing almost every weekend and producing music to satiate his appetite as well as for ground breakers like Jaguarpaw, Demor and Dj Terrence, he’s now ready for the world.

As alias Darque In Your City, he creates magic beats and exploits his talents at Deepforest SA as head A&R. He has produced a working rapport with the likes of Andy Compton, Kaylow, Kojo Akusa, Da Capo, Hennings Project, Reelsoul, Black Coffee and the myth defiant Robert Owens.

His music has busked major compilations such as Music Box 6 by DJ Terrence, Deepforest Sessions 1 by Jaguarpaw, House Blendz by Dj Malankane and Jungle Fever Vol 1 by Wishingsoul. Now this is his long awaited album REE’s that features artists like Kaylow, Robert Owens, Sun Singleton, Black Coffee, Darryl D’Bonneau and Paul Randolph.

Darque is officially In Your City, with no less than Rare Earth Elements. Below are the featured tracks:

Danity Kane is officially back! Following months of rumors, the platinum girl group has announced their reunion.

Four of the five members—Dawn Richard, Aubrey O’Day, Shannon Bex, and Aundrea Fimbres—are on board. D. Woods decided not to return.

They made the announcement on their official website DanityKane.com and also released a series of new photos. The group has been in the studio working on a new album and hinted at the title of their upcoming single by tweeting #Rage.


DK will appear at Sunday’s MTV Video Music Awards, where they will make the live announcement at 8:15 p.m. EST.

In an interview with Rap-Up TV, Dawn spoke about getting back together with her groupmates. “I’m having a blast with having them back in my life,” she said. “We’re back at a place where we can speak to each other and hang with each other. It’s been a long time since we just sipped some wine and been like, ‘What up girl?’”

Danity Kane was formed by Sean “Diddy” Combs on MTV’s “Making the Band 3.” They went on to release two No. 1 albums on Bad Boy Records including their platinum debut and 2008’s Welcome to the Dollhouse before they were disbanded by Diddy the same year.

Glenn Fiasco has been said to be so deep underground, he is on his own. Glenn Fiasco, known for his underground deep and soulful house music is back with some tight production illustrious of his over 10 years experience in the music industry. In 2005 he started producing deep and soulful house which characterised most of Mofunk Records music until 2009. After some deep sleep he comes back with bangers which will be released in his EP series dubbed Ungerground Shakers. He music reverberates in underground clubs around the world!! Glenn Fiasco is indeed back. He is back at Mofunk Records with his touch of uncompromising deep and underground that sees many dancefloors worldwide earthquake to his beat. Dangerously rocking beats. Not for the faint hearted. #AnotherMofunkRecordsDelivery

Contact: Nyandenil@yahoo.com

Youtube Channel: Mofunk Records

Soundclouds: Mofunk Records

Facebook: Mofunk Records – South Africa

One of the featured tracks can be sampled below:

Glenn Fiasco ft Aubrey – HouseHead Theme (Angifuni Main Mix)

Following the release of her debut mixtape ‘Will You Go With Me‘ last month, and the video for her buzz song “More To A Kiss,” the Bay Area bred singer/songwriter returns with her new single “It’s The Weekend” featuring B.o.B.

The title says it all, Netta turns up for all her girls on the bouncy, party anthem, with a rap/sung style. It’s 9AM Friday, but F it, mays well get the weekend started!

Take a listen below:

Self Made Vol. 3 dropped Sept. 17!

1. Lil Snupe Intro (Lil Snupe)
2. Gallardo (Gunplay ft. Trina, Rick Ross & Yo Gotti)
3. The Plug (Meek Mill ft. Omelly)
4. Levels (Meek Mill)
5. Lay It Down (Rick Ross ft. Young Breed& Lil Boosie)
6. Stack on My Belt (Rick Ross ft. Wale & Birdman)
7. Black Grammys (Wale ft. Rockie Fresh, Meek Mill & J. Cole)
8. Coupes/Roses (Stalley)
9. Know You Better (Omarion ft. Fabolous & Pusha T)
10. Say Don’t Go (Omarion)
11. What Ya Used To (Rockie Fresh)
12. The Great Americans (Rick Ross ft. Gunplay, Rockie Fresh & Fabolous)
13. Kilo (Meek Mill ft. Louie V Gutta, French Montana, Yo Gotti & Torch)
14. Poor Decisions (Wale ft. Rick Ross & Lupe Fiasco)
15. Bout That Life (Meek Mill ft. French Montana)
16. God Is Great (Rockie Fresh)

Mi Casa is a band with unique individuals who bring their explosive talent together to create a unique and original sound. The band members (Dr Duda-Producer and club dj, J-Something – vocalist and guitarist and Mo-T – Trumpeter) blend their musical talent to create a soulful sound which incorporates soulful vocals, the guitar, keys and the trumpet. The music industry is nothing new to Mi Casa, the band producer Dr.Duda has been in the industry for over fifteen years, producing and DJing alongside the likes of DJ Fresh, Dj Mandla, Dj Mbuso and making hit tracks featuring talented vocalists such as RJ Benjamin, J-Something and Zodwa amongst many others