Future speaks on Debut Album

By The Hip Hop Writer
Hip Hop Vibe Staff Writer

The year of 2011 has been a renaissance for hip hop, as a whole. It has been a great year for the West Coast, New York has been on the comeback trail, as has Atlanta. Future is among the new talent from Atlanta. He rose to fame back in May with his "Tony Montana" single.

Future quickly became one of the hottest rappers in the game and he is using this to his advantage. With L.A. Reid joining Epic Records, he is focusing back on the hip hop market. Future was among the first artist L.A. Reid signed to Epic Records.

Before he was signed to Epic Records, Future was pushing his own mixtapes in the streets. His Streets Calling mixtape led to his successful "Tony Montana" single, which led to his deal. Future is living up to his name, as he has started his debut album.

Naming the album Pluto, Future said it will bridge the gap from his first mixtape to his last mixtape. One new track from Future is "Magic." The song gained fame when T.I. jumped on the remix. DJ Drama, an affiliate of both, helped this remix come together. Regardless of how it happened, Future is glad it did, as even more people are waiting on more music from him.

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Outkast moving to Epic Records

By The Hip Hop Writer
Hip Hop Vibe Staff Writer

The writing has been on the wall for Outkast with Jive Records for the past few years. Fans of the duo have been waiting on a new Outkast album for nearly five years. However, label issues have held the album up.

Both Andre 3000 and Big Boi said things changed for them at Jive when L.A. Reid left. Big Boi signed a solo deal with Def Jam, while Reid was the head of the label.

Since leaving Def Jam, L.A. Reid is now the head of Epic Records. The past few years have been rough on the label. Reid was brought in to return the label to its former glory.

Reportedly, L.A. Reid's first move was adding Outkast to the label. Reid originally signed Outkast to their deal with Jive Records. However, since L.A. Reid left, things have not been going so smoothly for the duo, evidenced when Big Boi released his solo album with Def Jam. Now, the duo is headed over to Epic and they intend to release both a new Outkast album and solo albums with the label in 2012.

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No I.D. named Def Jam executive VP

By The Hip Hop Writer
Hip Hop Vibe Staff Writer

Known for producing hits for Kanye West, Common, and Jay-Z, only to name a few, No I.D. has taken on a bigger role. Since Jay-Z's 2008 departure from Def Jam, the label has been reconstructing. Currently, their biggest stars are Kanye West and Rick Ross.

With L.A. Reid leaving Def Jam earlier this year, the label needs more front-office people. Last night, No I.D. announced he was a new executive VP for Def Jam. Of course this went unnoticed with all of the attention on the 2011 MTV Video Music Awards.

Speaking on his VP role with the company, No I.D. said he will continue to do what he does. However, now he has the backing of Def Jam. No I.D. said Def Jam is the staple of the culture he has been a part of for the past twenty years. To No I.D., it is important the new executives of the label know its history and take it to the next level, as he will do.

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Simon Cowell says Nicki Minaj will have a "Phenominal" year

By The Hip Hop Writer
Hip Hop Vibe Staff Writer

Simon Cowell has been in the middle of the hip hop news because of his new show, "The X Factor." Already, the former judge on "American Idol" has made waves. L.A. Reid, the longtime executive of Def Jam, left his position to be a judge on the new show.

Rumors suggested Young Money rapstress, Nicki Minaj, would also join the show. Following days of rumors, a story broke that confirmed Nicki having discussions with Cowell. Soon, Simon came out and denied the story. Yesterday, Nicki Minaj revealed she would not be a part of "The X Factor."

While Simon Cowell will not have the chance to work directly with Nicki Minaj, he believes she will have a long career. Even if he does not have Nicki on any of his other projects, Simon Cowell believes she will have a phenominal year in 2011.

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Nicki Minaj announces Surprise Collaboration

By The Hip Hop Writer
Hip Hop Vibe Staff Writer

Earlier this month, Nicki Minaj said she would not be doing collaborations for two years. The only way she would work with another artist was if it was Britney Spears. But, only weeks later, she announced she was going to be on Tha Carter IV.

Nicki Minaj will also be featured on Lil' Twist's debut album, along with new releases from Drake and Bow Wow. Aside from this, her next album is likely to be star-studded. Now, Nicki Minaj is even talking about her collaborations.

She has yet to reveal who she will be working with, but Nicki promised the collaboration would turn heads. Nicki Minaj has already worked with nearly everyone in the game. Outside of music, she may end up working with L.A. Reid.

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Shyne prepares "Gangland" album on Def Jam

By The Hip Hop Writer
Hip Hop Vibe Staff Writer

Things are finally coming together for Shyne, as he is preparing to release his first album since 2004. Titled Gangland, the album is his first release as a free man. Shyne began his career in the late 1990s on Bad Boy Records.

Upon being released from prison, in 2009, a small bidding war ensued over Shyne. Rumors pointed him to Roc Nation and to rapper, Game's Black Wall Street imprint. In the end, Shyne remained with Def Jam.

While working on new music, Shyne was deported and sent back to Belize. Currently, the Brooklyn rapper has converted into Islam and lives in Jerusalem. Still, he feels he can take the rap world by storm one more time.

Shyne is currently wrapping up his Gangland album. Earlier this week, he released "King David" as the first single off the album. After blasting Def Jam and L.A. Reid, Shyne was able to land a secure release date. His third studio album will be released on May 17, 2011.

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Shyne disses Def Jam and wants Cash Money deal

By The Hip Hop Writer
Hip Hop Vibe Staff Writer

Ever since he was released from prison, almost exactly one year ago, Shyne has been involved in multiple label rumors. The last time Shyne spoke on his label situation, he announced he was with Def Jam. He said the deal was much better than the one he had at Bad Boy Records and better than other offers.

While the deal appeared to be good, a year has passed and there has not been any music coming from Shyne yet. Tired of all the games, Shyne said he wants to leave the label because the chairman, L.A. Reid, does not care about hip hop. Shyne accused Reid of not knowing what he is doing up there.

Shyne only has a distribution deal with Def Jam, so it will not be extremely difficult for him to get out of his deal. Once everything is squared away, Shyne said he wants to head over to Cash Money Records to join forces with Lil Wayne and the crew. He said he may just allow Cash Money to distribute his music because he is in business for himself, so he can deal with the company of his choice.

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