Like many of her peers, Melanie Fiona can’t get enough of Drake’s “Started From the Bottom.” The Canadian songbird, who grew up with Drizzy in Toronto, covers his anthem in a new YouTube video. She logs onto her computer, puts on her Toronto hat, and harmonizes to the song.
“Toronto stand up!” said Melanie, who is currently working on her third album. “Long Overdue. Back on my cover game.”
It’s a brand new Snoop. The West Coast icon sheds his gangsta ways and spreads a message of non-violence on “No Guns Allowed” featuring Drake and his daughter Cori B. The peaceful record, produced by Major Lazer and Ariel Rechtshaid, was inspired by recent tragedies and contains additional vocals by Angela Hunte and Snoop’s wife Shante Broadus.
“I just felt like I had got to the point in my career and my life where I didn’t need guns in my life because I didn’t project that energy,” Snoop told Piers Morgan. “I felt like I was positive and peaceful. At the same time, I kept hearing about all these school shootings and these people getting guns in their hands and not knowing what to do with them and just going on a rampage, so it really touched me and affected me to where I wanted to say something.”
Drizzy recounts a tragic shooting involving a friend, dedicating his verse to those he’s lost. “Bullets do not chose a victim, it is the shooter that picks ‘em,” he raps.
The reggae song will appear on Snoop Lion’s album Reincarnated, due April 23.
Drake doesn’t hold back on “5AM in Toronto,” produced by Boi-1da and Vinylz. The Canadian MC took to Twitter late Wednesday to unleash the introspective record, on which he spits some real and rapid-fire rhymes from the heart. He addresses his position in hip-hop and gives the middle finger to those who underestimate his movement.
“I’m the only ni**a still known for the music/ I swear, fuck them ni**as this year/ I made Forbes list, ni**a/ Fuck your list, everything’s looking gorgeous/ Without me, rap is just a bunch of orphans,” raps Drizzy, who was ranked #5 on MTV’s “Hottest MCs in the Game” list.
Prior to the release of his debut album Thank Me Later in 2010, Drake dropped “9AM in Dallas,” proving to the doubters that he’s here to stay.
Did Drake murder the track? Check his brazen bars below.
Money ain’t a thing for Drake. The Young Money Millionaire stormed a strip club in Charlotte, North Carolina, and let the dollar circulate—$50,000 worth. While at Cameo Nightclub, he opened a cardboard box and distributed stacks of dollar bills, throwing them up and watching it all fall to the floor.
TMZ has obtained pics from Drizzy’s wild night out with his OVO crew. Dancers shed their clothes while basking in the $50,000 rainstorm. There was so much cash that it eventually piled up on the floor.
Kendrick Lamar narrates a tragic love story in the cinematic video for “Poetic Justice,” his collaboration with Drake. The West Coast’s new king takes it back to the streets of Compton, where he falls in love with a girl in his neighborhood. But their budding romance is quickly shattered by gunfire that breaks out in the crowd.
We’re left wondering who’s been hit as Drake calls Kendrick’s girl to leave a voicemail while sitting in a bedroom with a chick waiting for him. The camera cuts back to a bullet-riddled K. Dot, who is seen lying on the floor protecting his girl as an ambulance rushes to their rescue.
The song, which samples Janet Jackson’s ’90s hit “Any Time, Any Place,” appears on Kendrick’s acclaimed debut good kid, m.A.A.d city. He pleaded for the pop icon to appear in the video. “This is a young boy that looked up to you for years. Please, yeah, video, Janet Jackson ‘Poetic Justice.’ It’ll only be right,” he told MTV News in December.
Watch Kendrick put it all on the line in the name of love.
Emeli Sandé has been winning over fans and critics alike with her acclaimed debut Our Version of Events. During her U.S. tour, Rap-Up TV caught up with the breakout British sensation at her MySpace ChapStick Sessions concert at the Key Club in L.A. The 25-year-old, who is nominated four times at the BRIT Awards, spoke about the transition from the U.K. to the U.S. and writing for superstars like Rihanna and Alicia Keys.
Emeli penned “Half of Me,” which appears on the deluxe edition of Rihanna’s album Unapologetic. “When I heard it, you can really feel that she has connected to the track. I love how she’s interpreted it and made it completely her own,” said Emeli, who met the pop star during a visit to L.A. “She was really sweet, really cool.”
She also ended up writing with Alicia Keys after opening for her at Royal Albert Hall in London. “She’s such a big inspiration,” said Emeli, who co-penned “Brand New Me” and “Not Even the King.” “That was a dream come true. We really connected as people as well as musicians, so it just worked and it doesn’t always work like that.”
The U.K. darling is already plotting her sophomore album and plans to hit the studio after touring in May. “I think about the next record every day. Can’t wait to get back and write again.”
She also shared her love for American rappers including Kendrick Lamar, Kanye West, and Drake. “His lyrics are mind blowing. I really love how he words everything,” she said of the Young Money MC.
Right now, Emeli is basking in her four BRIT nominations. “The hard work this year has paid off and to have that acknowledgement feels wonderful.”
Drake took over Houston during NBA All-Star Weekend. After attending the Slam Dunk contest and “Two Kings” dinner with Jay-Z and LeBron James, the Young Money MC capped off his Saturday evening at Drink Houston nightclub.
He got on the mic with 2 Chainz to perform their hit “No Lie.” After telling the crowd to put their Hs in the air, he delivered his new single “Started From the Bottom” for the first time live, while 2 Chainz threw in some ad-libs.
“I want to dedicate this next song to everybody that came to Warehouse Live and used to bump ‘November 18th,’” said Drizzy before delving into the So Far Gone mixtape cut.
