DJ Pooh To Work with 404 Gaming

Kotaku comments on the news that DJ Pooh will be senior executive writer for a new "Hip-Hop massively multiplayer online game" from 404 Gaming.  When K. mentioned "Polo shirt-wearing suburbanite programmers," I rechecked the entry for mention of Kanye West!  Silly me.  DJ Pooh has writing credits for the movie Friday and the game Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas.

Radical Marketing

Adrants reports that a Champaign, Illinois hip hop label paid students to deface their billboard ad.

Getting Up: Contents Under Pressure

Ooh, like a spray can! Actually, spray cans are pretty cool. I was at a benefit for SF's Dope Project the other day and a woodcut looking picture of a Krylon can was getting mad attention!

But this is the Mark Ecko game and there's a press release and a blogger with snarky commentary.

The Game: The Documentary

Tomorrow is the official release date for The Game's debut album The Documentary on Interscope/Aftermath but, by the time I'd added it to Hip Hop Albums, I'd heard so much about it I thought it had already been released.

The Documentary has production credits and/or guest appearances from such superstars as Dr. Dre, Eminem, Kanye West, Mary J. Blige, Nate Dogg and Timbaland. Advanced press ranges from MTV to BallerStatus.net to the Chicago Sun-Times

Preview The Documentary at MTV's The Leak.

Available from Amazon:
The Game - The Documentary.

Hyphy in the News

The Bay Area's hyphy sound is getting more attention as the possible successor to crunk.

Multimedia Business News from AllHipHop.com

Mixtape Awards founder Justo Faison has a mixtape documentary in the works.

Talib Kweli will do the voice of Trane in the new Atari videogame by Marc Ecko.

Lil' Jon & The East Side Boyz will appear, without doing sex scenes, in upcoming adult flicks from Vivid Entertainment.

QD3 has another hip hop documentary out soon called The MC: Why We Do It.

Andre Harrell is set to produce a drama for HBO called Fabulous based on the life of  hip hop moguls.

Hot Trax Production Magazine has launched as a dvd magazine focusing on production and beatmaking.

Samuel L. Jackson, Hip Hop, Coach Carter

Samuel L. Jackson has been taking a strong stance against working with untrained actors, a stance which he has taken for many years. Since Mr. Jackson is a famous black actor, that means his path through Hollywood intersects with hip hop artists who have been offered roles because of their celebrity rather than their acting talent. If Mr. Jackson were white, he might be saying the same thing about rock stars turned wannabe actors. So let's not get it twisted. Jackson is rightly attacking celebrities who f*ck up his groove by not being able to act. And that's not an attack on hip hop, by any means.

Samuel L. Jackson stars in the recently released Coach Carter, in which Ashanti debuts. A. O. Scott of the NY Times makes Coach Carter sound ok. However good it is, it was no. 1 this weekend.

I'll be reviewing the soundtrack fairly soon over at Hip Hop Logic. It's chock full of hip hop songs (Amazon affiliate link).

Bill Zwecker of the Chicago Sun-Times has 5 question for the real Coach Carter.

'05 Predictions Plus Age Gaps in Hip Hop

Hashim Warren has been on a tear at Hip Hop Blogs with a post-game analysis of his 2004 predictions, "more adventurous" predictions for 2005 (with bonus ProHipHop link) and some discussion of age gaps in hip hop taste.

Off Topic: Ukrainian Intelligence, Section Eight

I'm starting later than I'd like today and I've compounded it by hitting the NY Times feed.  There's an extended fascinating piece about prodemocracy Ukrainian Intelligence forces and their involvement in recent events.  I really wish the best for those folks.

There's also a more relevant to ProHipHop piece about the probable demise of Section Eight, the film production company and working relationship between Steven Soderbergh and George Clooney.  It gives a nice peek into the difficulties of producing interesting films, especially when you don't have time to actually take care of your responsibilities as a producer!

Nelly on MLK

I found this interview with Nelly a little surprising. He discusses MLK, the tsunami disaster and his multiple charity organizations with more clarity and interest than I would have imagined, definitely a "mature conversation." He also gets into some of his issues with other rappers and has some interesting things to say on that note. I generally stay away from the issue of beefs because I just don't want to be part of fanning the flames, no matter how minor my standing. But I think Nelly makes a good point, you don't call a press conference to announce a diss record, unless, of course, that's part of your marketing plan. I should call up a couple of publicists and get their response. They'd probably dissect all this manliness and cut to the chase, beef + media coverage = greenbacks.