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Closed Sessions Vol. 2 was recorded from May, 2010 through January, 2012 and features a collection of artists that help to shape Hip Hop music and culture during that time period. Closed Sessions Vol. 2 presents Hip Hop fans with new music, as well as a candid look into the creative process of many talented artists. We’re happy to release this full album today as a free download. Download the album below. Enjoy it. Share it. Tell a friend to tell a friend. And look for more releases from Closed Sessions coming soon. If you’re in Chicago, come to our release party tonight at Reggie’s Rock Club on their rooftop deck. We’ll have free wings, DJs Manny Muscles and YungGroupon, plus some physical copies.
Thank you to everyone that participated in this album and documentary series, and everyone that has supported it. Special thank you to Tony Shane.
Hip-hop mogul Chris Lighty died Thursday morning after apparently shooting himself in the head in his Bronx apartment, sources told the Daily News.
Lighty, 44 — a longtime manager of 50 Cent, Diddy, Ja Rule and Mariah Carey — was found dead inside his South Riverdale apartment about 11:30 a.m., police sources said.
It appeared he died from a bullet to his head, sources said. A gun was recovered next to his body.
Law enforcement sources said Lighty — who divorced his wife, Veronica, last year — may have been dealing with financial struggles, including owing about $5 million to the IRS.
Presented by LRG and Complex Magazine, Life Colors from legendary DJ Jazzy Jeff is a sonic representation that thinking differently and aiming to change the status quo is something that never goes out of style. Harnessed over 40 tracks that spans both the old and new – including tracks from the likes of Kanye West, Jay-Z, Dr. Dre, Santigold, Slum Village, J Cole, the Pharcyde and many more – the iconic DJ serves as a willing tour guide to bridge the gap between black and white thinking and a colorful renaissance.
Enlisting Danedra Rowell on vocals, yU eschews the new age boom-bap that got him noticed for something closer to all of our heartstrings. Featuring no rapped bars, “Dreams” is a bittersweet ballad that is less literal than emotive. It captures that late-night, pensive feeling us music heads are very familiar with. yU is able to craft a sound that is universal and hyper-local, breaking new ground for himself musically. The drums sound like they could be on any Diamond District-related project but the melody and chords don’t sound too far from something that could find its way onto radio.
"The idea behind Jansport Strings is not based on it being literal, but more so in the figurative sense. As a kid in NY, the strings on your Jansport bag were a sign of power and presence. Kids would steal the strings off of each other's bags and burn the tips to prevent getting robbed of them once they got them. The song is a 3 minute auto-bio of me as a kid in Brooklyn and seeing more than my friends and I had bargained for. In essence, my Jansport strings tied it all together, seeing what we all saw and what it made us. The ending is a clip from Video Music Box, the legendary NYC video show run by DJ Ralph McDaniels. This episode in particular was the debut of Chi-Ali's 'Age Ain't Nothin But A Number'. Seeing that video that day on this episode of VMB made me start rhyming. This clip was literally the moment that changed my life." -Skyzoo
The Black Opera launched its first mission last year with Overture. The 7-track audio demonstration was the first glimpse of the secretive conglomerate of artists and musicians that act as counter-cultural operatives. Hidden in plain sight, Overture turned heads with production from 14KT, Apollo Brown, Rhettmatic, SlopFunkDust, J-Rell, and Nick Speed. Mello Music Group is providing the people with this introduction, Overture, free in an effort to recruit more people to the movement.
To promote the album, Murs and Fashawn will tour cross-country as members of the Rock the Bells lineup in New York, San Francisco and Los Angeles this summer. Proud to be a part of such a prestigious event, Fashawn exclaims, “It will be a great stage show. You have two MCs that love performing. It will definitely be a very spontaneous set.”
Their live shows will cement the fact that there is no generational gap on This Generation. Despite their varying ages and life perspectives, Murs and Fashawn have come together to create an energetic, passionate, and thoughtful work that is sure to please music fans worldwide.
"Nice little mini mix that I did for Mello Music Group around the time Apollo Brown's album The Reset had been released. It ended up not coming out until now. Apollo was making his waves as a new producer coming from Detroit so I made the intro to this mix a reflection of that going back from Motown leading up to Detroit hip hop and then to the rising of a new name in the Detroit hip hop community: Apollo Brown." -DJ Soko
