 Common returns to his roots with his first album in three years, The Dreamer/The Believer. The rapper-actor’s ninth effort, due December 20, was executive produced by No I.D. and features appearances from Maya Angelou on “The Dreamer,” Nas on “Ghetto Dreams,” and John Legend on “The Believer.” “It’s hip-hop music, good music,” Common told Rap-Up TV. “It’s just hip-hop at the essence, soul hip-hop. Because [No I.D. and I have] both grown as artists, now you’re getting songs at a higher level where they can appeal to more people, but it’s still hip-hop rooted.” See the 12-song tracklisting below per No I.D. Read the rest of this entry » Posted in Common, Tracklistings | Permalink |   T-Pain is ready to shoot. After a few delays, the Tallahassee-born singer unveils the star-studded tracklisting for his fourth album rEVOLVEr, available December 6. The follow-up to his 2008 platinum-plus-selling album Thr33 Ringz is loaded with guest appearances from Lil Wayne, Pitbull, Wiz Khalifa, R. Kelly, Bei Maejor, E-40, and two songs with Chris Brown. “rEVOLVEr is drawn from seven albums’ worth of material,” explained T-Pain. “There are so many different things on this album. I couldn’t settle on what I wanted to include, but the final result I think will really hit all of my fans and different audiences.” Check the 17-song deluxe tracklisting below. Read the rest of this entry » Posted in T-Pain, Tracklistings | Permalink |  Rihanna has a lock on the charts with her dance smash “We Found Love,” which remains No. 1 for a second week. Now the pop superstar is readying “You Da One,” the follow-up from her forthcoming album Talk That Talk (Nov. 21). Produced by Dr. Luke, the song will premiere Friday and hit iTunes on Sunday at midnight. RiRi smokes a cigarette on the black-and-white cover art. Described by VH1 as “the dirtiest pop record we have ever heard,” RiRi’s sixth album includes contributions from Bangladesh, No I.D., The-Dream, Ester Dean, Stargate, Hit-Boy, and more. Jay-Z is the only featured guest, appearing on the Stargate-produced title track. See the deluxe tracklisting (via iTunes) and production credits below. Read the rest of this entry » Posted in Rihanna, Single Covers, Tracklistings | Permalink |  Yelawolf rolls out the tracklisting for his Shady Records debut Radioactive. The Alabama MC enlists his mentor Eminem for “Throw It Up” with Gangsta Boo, Fefe Dobson for “Animal,” Mystikal for “Get Away,” and Kid Rock on the single “Let’s Roll.” Hitmakers Diplo, The Audibles, SupahotBeats, and J.U.S.T.I.C.E. League contributed to the 15 tracks. Find out what you can expect from the country boy come November 21. Read the rest of this entry » Posted in Tracklistings, Yelawolf | Permalink |  Rihanna has yet another album in the can. The pop superstar celebrated the completion of her sixth LP Talk That Talk by unveiling the tracklisting on Facebook. In the black-and-white candids, RiRi poses alongside a sheet of paper with the 15 tracks written down and toasts with her collaborators in Europe. In addition to her No. 1 single “We Found Love,” the album will include tracks such as “Roc Me Out,” “Drunk on Love,” and the sweet “Birthday Cake.” Unlike her previous efforts, there will only be one surprise guest this time. “One feature on the album! And we got the best!!!!!” tweeted RiRi. Find out what you can expect come November 21. Read the rest of this entry » Posted in Rihanna, Tracklistings | Permalink |  Robin Thicke stares out with piercing blue eyes on the illustrated cover of his fifth album Love After War, due December 6. The project, described as his most raw and honest yet, features the singles “Love After War” and the Lil Wayne-assisted “Pretty Lil’ Heart.” It will be available as a 17-track standard and 20-track deluxe edition. Check the tracklisting below. Read the rest of this entry » Posted in Album Covers, Robin Thicke, Tracklistings | Permalink |  Drake is getting a hand from his superstar friends on his sophomore album Take Care. Despite initially wanting to keep features to a minimum, the Canadian superstar couldn’t turn down guest spots from Rihanna, André 3000, Nicki Minaj, Rick Ross, The Weeknd, and Lil Wayne, who fill out the 19 tracks. Drake’s Young Money sister spits a verse on the current single “Make Me Proud,” while Weezy makes three appearances. After Drizzy’s contribution to her No. 1 single “What’s My Name?” Rihanna returns the favor by adding her vocals to the title track. And Drake’s quest to get André 3000 on a record appears to have finally worked out. The OutKast member joins him and Wayne on “The Real Her.” See the tracklisting in advance of the album’s November 15 release. Read the rest of this entry » Posted in Drake, Tracklistings | Permalink |  On Fear of God II: Let Us Pray, the follow-up to his Fear of God mixtape released earlier this year, G.O.O.D. music signee and Clipse member Pusha T doesn’t stray far from the formula that made him one of Kanye West’s go-to rappers. Enlisting 10 producers, including Hit-Boy, The Neptunes, and Bangladesh, and 11 guest MCs, Pusha’s penchant for vocal inclusiveness belies the rapper’s own lyrical cleverness and ability to command an album. But then again, if West, Rick Ross, Young Jeezy, Diddy, and Tyler, the Creator all wanted to hop on your project, you probably wouldn’t refuse them either. Fans of the original Fear of God may get déjà vu, as five of the 12 tracks are culled from the original mixtape. Still, Pusha creates a cohesive whole worthy of its official album status. Rap-Up.com previews Fear of God II ahead of its November 8 release. Read the rest of this entry » Posted in Album Previews, Pusha T | Permalink |  It’s been 17 years since Mary J. Blige released her breakthrough album My Life. Ten albums later, she picks up where the story left off on My Life II… The Journey Continues (Act I). Rap-Up.com got a first listen to the Queen of Hip-Hop Soul’s highly-anticipated sequel at a listening in Los Angeles. The 15 tracks include a mix of club bangers, ballads, mid-tempos, and plenty of superstar guests. MJB duets with fellow diva Beyoncé on the female empowering “Love a Woman,” falls for “Mr. Wrong” on her Drake-assisted single, and gets deep with Nas on the hip-hop throwback “Feel Inside.” Mary experiences the ups and downs of love, sharing her most vulnerable moments (“Irreversible”) and finally finding her strength (“The Living Proof”). My Life II features contributions from hitmakers including Rico Love, Jim Jonsin, Danja, Jerry Wonda, Eric Hudson, and Rodney “Darchild” Jerkins, who produced a dance floor-ready cover of Rufus & Chaka Khan’s “Ain’t Nobody.” Rap-Up.com has an exclusive track-by-track breakdown of what you can expect come November 21. Read the rest of this entry » Posted in Album Previews, Mary J. Blige | Permalink | |
