Will Smith to return to Rap

By The Hip Hop Writer
Hip Hop Vibe Staff Writer

Many forget Will Smith actually began his career as a rapper. Hailing from Philadelphia, he rose the ranks of the rap game. In 1991, his career received a major boost with "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air." The show was a legendary classic and helped Will Smith make the jump from the small screen to the big screen.

For nearly twenty years, Will Smith has been one of Hollywood's leading men. While he has dominated the movies and even executive produced a sitcom, music has been on the backburner. Last year, he got back into the game when his daughter, Willow Smith, landed a record deal with Roc Nation.

Perhaps all of the recording with Willow got to Will. He has decided to dust off his mic and release a comeback album. Smith last released an album in 2005, Lost & Found. The album produced his crossover hit, "Switch." The song was a major hit and the album was successful. However, following the release of the album, Will Smith went back to the movies.

On his next album, Will Smith says he is working with Ashanti, T.I., and he said Mario invited him to record on his mixtape. For Will Smith, the invites are lining up rather quickly. Will Smith is also working on a new movie, High School, with Snoop Dogg and Wiz Khalifa.

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Ja Rule to reunite with Ashanti for New Song

By The Hip Hop Writer
Hip Hop Vibe Staff Writer

Ten years ago, Ja Rule and Ashanti recorded "Always on Time," one of the biggest records of the last decade. The song was on the top of the Billboard Hot 100 for a number of weeks from January 2002 until June 2002. From that point forward, Ja Rule and Ashanti were the biggest hip hop/R&B tandem.

Following "Always on Time," Ja Rule and Ashanti recorded several other hits. In 2003, they followed with "Mesmerize," before being decimated by feuds. By 2004, things were back on track for Ja Rule. Alongside R. Kelly, he and Ashanti recorded another top five hit with "Wonderful." But, legal issues with Murder Inc. led to the end of everyone's career.

Ja Rule finally took matters into his own hands and landed his comeback. He has scored a minor hit with "Real Life Fantasy" and he is buidling his fanbase back. For years, he has promised to reunite with Ashanti. Lloyd brought Ja Rule and Ashanti out for one of his performances and allowed Rule to perform "Real Life Fantasy." Now, Rule has finally been able to reunite with Ashanti on one of his new tracks. Produced by Ja Rule, himself, the song "LOL" will feature Ashanti.

The only hard part for Ja Rule is deciding which album it will be on. Next month, Ja Rule plans to release two albums, Pain is Love 2 and The Renaissance Project on June 7, 2011. Ja Rule is having a hard time deciding which album to put "LOL" on.

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