-Not that it’s the first time I’ve noticed this sort of plagiarism, but, there’s something unethical about jacking another person’s piece word for word. I’m talking about these guys jacking this article. He eventually agreed to add the source.

-Will.i.am says he was nervous when he first met The Game. Duh, he jumped Ras Kass by himself. Who wouldn’t be? s/c

Speaking of JT…

-He won’t drive Maybachs or wear button-ups, but he sure looks awkward on this cover of the November XXL.

-You know the world is coming to an end when folks like Michael Jackson are getting dropped from their label. What’s the word on that Method Man rumor by the way?

-Gnarls Barkley takes the “if it ain’t broke…” approach on their second album. (Update: They’re no longer sure if there’ll be a second Gnarls Barkley album.)

-I was just about to exhale a sigh of relief at the sight of this headline before realizing that The Boondocks comic strip won’t return anytime soon. Let me find out Aaron McGruder has joined Dave Chappelle in Africa.

-Bumpy Knuckles takes a break from dissin’ Nah’Right.com posters to beef with Rakim…of all people.

-Shots fired atJim Jones concert, two men arrested.

R.I.P. Etta Baker

I’d be surprised if Esco drops earlier than the first quarter of 2007. Apparently, Def Jam wants us to pretend that Reggie is dropping an album anytime soon.

• Redman
  Red Gone Wild
  October 3

• Shareefa
  Point of No Return
  October 24
• Lady Sovereign
  Public Warning
  October 31
• Bobby Valentino
  Special Occasion
  November 14
• Jay-Z
  Kingdom Come
  November 21
• Young Jeezy
  Thug Motivation 102: The Inspiration
  December 12
• Nas
  Hip-Hop Is Dead…The N
  December 12

(PSst: These things change by the minute, so I’ll try to keep you posted, depending on how often UMG updates their shit.) Updated.

Contrary to popular belief, “It’s a Love Thing” is a Pete Rock & CL Smooth throwback that first appeared on PR’s Soul Survivor 2. I know you don’t buy records, so I had to clarify that.

As far as American Me, Corey Penn’s Soul Food kitchen is still open for business. Of course, it’s nowhere near Mecca & The Soul Brother, but CL’s spit game is still as smooth as ever. I’ll have a review on it later. For now, listen to these three songs and let me know if it’s ‘yay’ or ‘nay’.

C L Smooth – American Me Track Listing
1. “American Me [Intro]” (Mike Loe)
2. “American Me” (Produced by Rsonist [Heatmakerz])
3. “I Can’t Help It” (Produced by Mike Loe)
4. “Call on Me” (Produced by Kaygee & Tramp for Divine Mill)
5. “Black Heart Radio [Interlude]” (Produced by Mike Loe)
6. “CL Smooth Unplugged” (Produced by Squarta)
7. “Warm Outside” (Produced by Rsonist [Heatmakerz])
8. “Terrorism [Interlude]” (Produced by DonJoe & Del)
9. “Gorilla Pimpin’” (Produced by Kaygee & Tramp Divine Mill)
10. “The Impossible” (Produced by Mike Loe)
11. “It’s A Love Thing (Produced by Pete Rock)”
12. “Smoke in the Air” (Produced by Mike Loe)
13. “Travel Sometime [Interlude]“
14. “The Stroll” (Produced by Rsonist [Heatmakerz])
15. “American Me [Outro]” (Produced by Mike Loe)
16. “All We Ever Know” (Produced by Mike Loe)
17. Heaven Is Watching You (Produced by Kaygee & Tramp Divine Mill)

Release Date: October 31, 2006
Label: Shaman Works Recordings

See Also…
-Top 10 Rap Releases for October 2006

Daz Dillinger has quietly dropped a CD laden with “some West Coast G’d Down South flavor” (his own words), and managed to sell 23,000 units so far. Don’t be No. 23,001, get it here for free on this west coast edition of the Weekly CD Contest.

Same rules as before.

1) What’s Daz’s real name?
2) Daz is Snoop Dogg’s cousin. True or False?
3) 2Pac’s “Got My Mind Made Up” was produced by Daz originally for _________.

Good Luck!

Visit The Rap Up Forums

In case you didn’t know, The Rap Up message board has been up and running for about four years now. That’s where I honed my craft prior to the whole blog thing. We don’t do Cd contests there, but you’re welcome to add to our collection of celeb mug shots and wack album covers.

JD, who recently turned 34, was seen celebrating his birthday at Hennessy Paradis in L.A. This showcase is nothing compared to Nas’ birthday party in terms of hip-hop celeb turnout.

While you were busy googling that fake Kingdom Come tracklisting, the album art & tracklisting for Hi-Teknology 2 stealthily invaded the ‘nets. I already love this album on paper.

Hi-Teknology 2: The Chip Tracklisting

1. “The Oracle (Intro)”
2. “The Chip”
3. “Keep It Moving” (feat. Dion, Q-Tip & Kurupt)
4. “I Think I Got a Beat” (feat. Lil’ Tone)
5. “Can We Go Back” (feat. Talib Kweli & Ayak)
6. “Josephine” (feat. The Willie Cottrell Band, Ghostface Killah & Pretty Ugly)
7. “March” (feat. Common)
8. “Where It Started At (NY)” (feat. Dion, Jadakiss, Papoose, Talib Kweli & Raekwon)
9. “1-800-Homicide” (feat. The Game & Dion)
10. “Money Don’t Make U Rich” (feat. Strong Arm Steady)
11. “Baby We Can Do It” (feat. Czar*Nok)
12. “Let it Go” (feat. Dion & Talib Kweli)
13. “People Going Down” (feat. The Willie Cottrell Band)
14. “So Tired” (feat. Dion, Bun B, Devin the Dude & Pretty Ugly)
15. “Music For Life” (feat. J Dilla, Nas, Common, Busta Rhymes & Marsha)
16. “How We Do It” (feat. Snoop Dogg, Talib Kweli & Slim Thug)
17. “Time is Now” (feat. Reflection Eternal)
18. “We Get Down” (feat. Mos Def, Raphael Saadiq & Bootsy Collins)

Release Date: October 17th

Good to see Slim back doing videos, but you already know how much I love the song. Seriously, how do you go from “Locked Up” and “Ghetto” to “Smack That”?