Lil' Kim is Twitter's most-popular Rapper

By The Hip Hop Writer
Hip Hop Vibe Staff Writer

Five years have passed since Lil' Kim last released an album, but she has been very popular this year. Out of all the rappers using Twitter, it has been Lil' Kim getting the most attention. Even with 50 Cent posting his taunts at Ja Rule for going to prison, Lil' Kim is still the "queen bee" of the Twitter game.

One reason Lil' Kim has been so popular has been because of her beef with Nicki Minaj. When Nicki started being featured on multiple hits earlier this year, she completely replaced Lil' Kim. For years, rap fans were hoping Lil' Kim could lead a comeback for female rap. A comeback was led, but it came from Nicki Minaj.

Ever since Nicki Minaj's rise, Lil' Kim has been dissing her every chance she has gotten. Each form of media she has, Lil' Kim has used it to diss the newcomer. While she has had a few television spots, nothing is more direct than Twitter now-a-days. Because of this, most of Lil' Kim's tweets have been used to insult Nicki Minaj and people love controversy.

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Talib Kweli's New Album Release Date Set

by Mark "D" Thomas
Hip Hop Vibe Senior Staff Writer

Talib Kweli is readying his fifth and sixth solo LPs, called "Gutter Rainbows" and "Prisoners of Conscious" respectively. Earlier this year, Kweli reunited with Hi-Tek for a second critically acclaimed "Reflection Eternal" album. The Brooklyn emcee will get back on the solo path, as he prepares his first solo albums since 2007’s "Eardrum." "Gutter Rainbows" is set to be released on January 25th, 2011.

Talib was recently touring in the UK where he sat down with SoulCultureTV and discussed his next two albums. "I have a new project called Gutter Rainbows, which I’m putting out completely outside the music business. But people still need to see it and feel it," Kweli said. When pressed for more details, he revealed the second album in the works. "Gutter Rainbows is an album, it’s a Talib Kweli album. I’ve been working on this album called Prisoners of Conscious, and that album is not ready. There’s a lot of music and statements I want to make on that album that I’m still working on but I still feel the need to put music out. So Gutter Rainbows is almost like the early outtakes of Prisoners of Conscious, but just embellished upon."

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Throwback Video of the Day: Eminem - "Superman"

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Lil Wayne talks Ja Rule and "Tha Carter IV"

By The Hip Hop Writer
Hip Hop Vibe Staff Writer

Three years ago, Lil Wayne was rapidly rising to the top of the game and he was helping Ja Rule re-emerge. Everything appeared to be going well, as he and Rule performed on stage in Harlem. Their performance was well-received and they also filmed the "Uhh Ohhh!" video during the same period of time.

Indeed, there was a celebration that night, but it was delayed when the rappers were arrested for having guns and drugs. The two spent the night together in jail and the next day in court. After going their separate ways, Lil Wayne went on to put together Tha Carter III and Ja Rule's comeback fell to pieces.

Last year, Lil Wayne was sentenced to one year behind bars and was released early. Ja Rule has recently been tried and he was sentenced to two years of prison. Lil Wayne said he feels Ja Rule is being treated unfairly, but told him to keep his head up. Even though he tried to sound positive for Ja Rule, Lil Wayne said he knows it is a very tough pill for the Murder Inc. star to swallow.

Outside of legal issues, Lil Wayne has already started promoting for Tha Carter IV even though the singles from I Am Not A Human Being are still climbing the charts. Lil Wayne is halting everything regarding his last album to begin promoting Tha Carter IV. He recently recorded and released the album's first single, "6'7," and he said the full album will soon follow in February 2011. The single features Cory Gunz and the video will be produced by Hype Williams.

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Album Preview: Saigon - "The Greatest Story Never Told"

By The Hip Hop Writer
Hip Hop Vibe Staff Writer

Since Dr. Dre is finally making arrangements to release Detox, Saigon feels he has to finally give the fans what he promised them. Saigon wanted to redefine the game with his album. That was one reason he named the album The Greatest Story Never Told.

After years and years of delays, it appeared as if the name was fitting. Because the album was continuously pushed back, Saigon considered retiring. Tired of the lies, Saigon gained his freedom back when he decided to leave Atlantic Records. It was the executives who continued to delay the album.

Finally free, Saigon has teamed up with Just Blaze, Kanye West, Buckwild, and many more major names for production work. For the actual guest appearances, Saigon has called upon Jay-Z, Q-Tip, Fatman Scoop, Swizz Beatz, Devin The Dude, Layzie Bone, Raheem DeVaughn, and Marsha Ambrosius. The album is currently slated for a February 15, 2011 release date.

  1. "Station Identification (Intro)" feat. Fatman Scoop
  2. "The Invita Saigon" feat. Q-Tip and Fatman Scoop
  3. "Come On Baby" feat. Swizz Beatz and Jay-Z
  4. "War"
  5. "Enemies"
  6. "Friends"
  7. "The Greatest Story Never Told"
  8. "Clap" feat. Faith Evans
  9. "Preacher"
10. "It's Alright" feat. Marsha Ambrosius
11. "Believe It"
12. "Give It To Me" feat. Raheem DeVaughn
13. "What The Lovers Do" feat. Devin The Dude
14. "Better Way" feat. Layzie Bone
15. "Oh Yeah (Our Babies)"
16. "Bring Me Down"

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Beanie Sigel calls Dame Dash out

By The Hip Hop Writer
Hip Hop Vibe Staff Writer

Last year around this time, Beanie Sigel was in the middle of his feud with Jay-Z. He shed light on the publicized Roc-A-Fella breakup and admitted to siding with Dame Dash. But, despite the song he was singing last year, Beans has a different story this year.

Beanie Sigel said there is not any loyalty between he and Dame Dash. He said his lawyer discovered that his former boss owes him $11 million. Dame Dash is currently filing bankruptcy, so there is nothing that can be done.

Not only did he call Dash out over him owing him money, he also said he has never supported him. In 2004, Beanie Sigel was sent to prison and it appeared as if Dame Dash was supporting him with his visits. Beans says that was nothing more than a fascade and smoke and mirrors.

It appears as if there is no love lost or found with the old Roc-A-Fella Records camp.

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Joe Budden discusses Upcoming Projects

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Diddy tries to Broker Peace between Nicki Minaj and Lil' Kim

By The Hip Hop Writer
Hip Hop Vibe Staff Writer

The hottest feud in hip hop came from the females this year, as Lil' Kim has laid into Nicki Minaj. For the past five years, there has been a lack of female rappers in the game. Before the release of her album, Nicki Minaj revived the subgenres. Her features, alone, had fans excited.

Despite Nicki Minaj getting fans interested in female rap again, some people had issues with this. From the start, Nicki Minaj said she admired Lil' Kim. This did nothing to stop Lil' Kim from dissing her. Kim felt she was not getting enough props from the girl who stole her style.

At the time, there were rumors of Diddy dating Nicki Minaj and Lil' Kim even dissed her former manager. Things were getting so out of hand that Drake stepped into the feud. But, things cooled down and Lil' Kim apologized to Diddy, Drake, and Nicki Minaj. Despite the peace that had finally been reached, Nicki Minaj dissed Lil' Kim on "Roman's Revenge."

The gloves were off after that diss and Lil' Kim's taunts have become more abundant. The feud has been out of hand for a while and male rappers have had suggestions. Ja Rule said Lil' Kim and Nicki Minaj should collaborate because they would sound good together. Lil' Kim then suggested Ja Rule should collaborate with his rival, 50 Cent. Diddy is not coming into things as cocky as Ja Rule, but he does want peace. He is a friend of both women, so he feels his opinion will matter more.

Diddy has refused to take sides in the beef because he feels that both women are special in their own ways, he is hoping his words can lead to peace. Because of the history, Diddy said he will love Lil' Kim no matter what she does. However, at the same time, Nicki Minaj is his artist and Diddy said he is always looking out for her best interest. He said he never gets upset with Lil' Kim when she works with other label heads and producers. Plus, he continues to work with Nicki because she is positive about the situation.

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Ja Rule suffers Bad Day, reignites 50 Cent feud

By The Hip Hop Writer
Hip Hop Vibe Staff Writer

For the past few years, Ja Rule has been trying to put together a comeback. However, he has run into all kinds of blocks ever since he returned three years ago. In the middle of his comeback attempt, Ja began a friendship with Lil Wayne. The friendship quickly grew and during July of 2007, the two were arrested for guns and drugs.

Late in 2007, Ja Rule and Lil Wayne appeared alongside Remy Ma and Busta Rhymes in court. With the exception of Busta Rhymes, all of the rappers ended up doing time in prison. Lil Wayne's prison stint was the most notarized, as he was released just last month. Ja Rule had hoped for a break, but he will be in prison for two years.

After the news broke, Ja Rule's rival, 50 Cent, began poking fun at him via Twitter. He told Rule to be strong because he only has to serve over 700 days, then called him a little punk. Once he read the posts, Ja Rule replied to 50 Cent, saying his comments were fucked up. Sensing he did take things a little too far, 50 Cent issued an apology to Ja Rule.

Some fans thought the enemies communicating could possibly lead to them ending their feud which has lasted over ten years. This seemed possible when Ja Rule seemingly made tweets about him hating Irv Gotti and asking 50 Cent why he ended his career. As the tweets continued, Ja Rule said he wanted to sign with the rival G-Unit Records for years. Fans soon began tweeting Ja Rule to see if he was alright. It quickly became clear his account was hacked and Ja Rule logged back in to blast 50 Cent for hacking his account.

There is no doubt that his account was hacked, but there is no proof that ties this to 50 Cent. One thing that is clear is that Ja Rule is nowhere near close to ending his feud with 50 Cent. Until someone comes out as the culprit, he is blaming 50 Cent for the meaningless tweets.

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Hot Weekend Video

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