David Banner goes to Occupy Wall Street [VIDEO]

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David Banner - "Swag"

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David Banner speaks on "Tha Carter IV" and working with Lil Wayne

By The Hip Hop Writer
Hip Hop Vibe Staff Writer

One of 2008's most-pleasant surprises was David Banner, who had been away for three years. David Banner returned to the game in shape and with a new state of mind. The music from Banner's 2008 released helped to redefine Southern hip hop.

David Banner also formed an alliance with Lil Wayne during this time. Banner produced the popular song, "La La," featuring Brisco and Busta Rhymes. For his own album, he even sampled Lil Wayne's "Lollipop" for his "Shawty Say" single.

Three years later, Tha Carter IV is in the works. Following the success of his last Carter album, Lil Wayne has called upon Banner again. David Banner will be producing a new track for Lil Wayne in the near future and he said he hopes it will become the next single off the album. His last song, "La La," built a large following, but was not officially released to radio.

David Banner said he has a select number of tracks he holds for Lil Wayne only. Banner compared Wayne to current NBA superstar, Kobe Bryant, because of their similar competitive natures. Both are considered among the best in their respective arenas.

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David Banner - "Swag"

One year since his last release, David Banner is back working on new music. Yesterday, his new song, "Swag" leaked online.

Listen to "Swag" by David Banner below:

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Lil Wayne packs surprise in "Tha Carter IV"

By The Hip Hop Writer
Hip Hop Vibe Staff Writer

Three years ago, Lil Wayne promised he would take things to the next level. He said he wanted to experiment on his next few albums. After his test albums, he would give the people what they want, Tha Carter IV.

Lil Wayne said Tha Carter IV would be the album everyone was going to like. But, he said the albums that will come before it might not have the same reception. To a certain extent, he was right.

Nearly three years since he first announced Tha Carter IV, it is less than a month away. The album will feature several guest appearances, as Lil Wayne re-establishes himself. Wayne has worked with David Banner, among other artists.

Following his "MTV Unplugged" performance, Lil Wayne announced he had a secret suprise for his fans only. While Wayne was vague on what the surprise would be, he promised the fans they would not be disappointed over it.

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David Banner considered quitting the Rap Game

By The Hip Hop Writer
Hip Hop Vibe Staff Writer

For years, David Banner has been growing upset with the rap game, so he changed his style. Banner used to be one of the typical Southern rappers before becoming more concious. While Banner has changed for the better, he has said, numerous times, hip hop has changed for the worst.

David Banner has been making moves, outside of rap, for some time in the business world. Through his different business ventures, Banner has made strong profits. The profits are so much that he does not have to rap in order to receive profits. David Banner has had to re-assess things over the past few years.

With the way hip hop has been going down and his businesses taking off, David Banner was forced to choose. No longer interested in making music, Banner admitted to almost quitting the rap game. But, in the end, he decided to stick around and create more music. In 2005, David Banner had helped out with the victims of Hurricane Katrina and still no one offered to help him in his career, so he almost quit.

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David Banner, Estelle, and Daley - "Benz"

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Mack Maine says "Tha Carter IV" is Complete

By The Hip Hop Writer
Hip Hop Vibe Staff Writer

For nearly three years, Lil Wayne has been talking about releasing Tha Carter IV. Following the success of 2008's Tha Carter III, rumors suggested the next Carter album would be released in October 2008. Instead, the announcement for 2010's Rebirth came.

In 2009, Lil Wayne planned to release Rebirth early in the year and Tha Carter IV later in the year. But, due to delays from the head label, Universal, Lil Wayne decided to release We Are Young Money in 2009. Early in 2010, Rebirth was finally released.

Later in 2010, Lil Wayne released I Am Not A Human Being from behind bars. Immediately following Wayne's release from prison, he began working on Tha Carter IV. Promotion of his rising single, "Right Above It," ended and all of the focus was on the new album. Finally, after over two years of discussion, Tha Carter IV is on the way, according to Mack Maine.

Mack Maine said David Banner is coming in to help Lil Wayne complete two more tracks and the album will be ready to go.

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Big Boi analyzes the game

Yesterday, David Banner gave his diagnosis on the death of hip hop and he has sparked another discussion. After David Banner gave his opinion of what has gone wrong with hip hop, Big Boi plans to deliver his. Much like Banner, Big Boi is trying to prove himself to be one of the best rappers in the game. He wants his debut album to be one of the best of the year.

Big Boi said hip hop has lost its essence because it has become too commercial. In the old days, rappers used to come off of the top of their head and do a freestyle. But, now rappers such as Drake write their freestyles and then recite them. Big Boi said the game is not about that. People are supposed to come with their own styles and come off of the top of their heads.

Like many other rappers, Big Boi has realized the game is changing, but he does not like the direction. His statement was similar to the one made by David Banner, yesterday. While the game is currently lost to him, he feels as if the game can be changed back to its original form. Big Boi plans to begin this change with his album, as does David Banner with Death of a Pop Star.

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David Banner says mixtapes Killed Hip Hop

David Banner has drastically changed his style from what it was when he came into the game. He has had many reasons for the changes he has made. For starters, he lost a lot of weight because of his health and he decided to build muscle. With a new image and a new lease on life, Banner decided to hone his mic skills. Now, he finds himself among some of the best rappers in the game.

However, Banner is unique from most rappers in the game. It has been said that rappers need to step up and take accountability. Many rappers have agreed, but few have stepped up. David Banner has been among those few. One of his first appearances in years was his appearance on BET's "Hip Hop vs. America." On that program, Banner proved how wise he actually was.

The changes he made during his hiatus spread over into his music. His last album, released in 2008, shows multiple differences from the album he released in 2003. Now that he has a wise voice in the game, David Banner often delivers his opinions to hip hop outlets about the state of the game. In 2006, Nas made the delcaration of hip hop being dead. Ever since he released the album named after the death of hip hop, many rappers have given their opinion on the situation.

Recently, David Banner gave his opinion and he said the reason hip hop died was because of mixtapes. The top rappers in the game are focusing more of their energy on the mixtapes as opposed to the albums. In the early days of hip hop, rappers poured all of their emotion into their albums. But, now with the popularity of mixtapes, rappers place their true feelings in the mixtapes. On the albums, rappers are being more contained and as a result, mixtapes are receiving better reviews than the albums.

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