[NEW] Kanye West – Real Friends (Feat. Ty Dolla $ign)

Kanye West
REAL FRIENDS & NO MORE PARTIES IN LA (SNIPPET)

Speculation around the status of Kanye West‘s upcoming album, SWISH, has been swirling pretty constantly since the turn of the new year when Yeezy decided to drop his underwhelming Nike dissing, Jumpman-esque single “Facts”. So when Kim Kardashian West teased the prospect of new Kanye music every Friday late last night, it’s safe to say all his fans had a mini freakout. Comparisons were instantly drawn to Ye’s revolutionary “G.O.O.D. Fridays” series back in 2010 which sent the internet into a frenzy leading up to the release of his much herald album, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy. While last week’s release seemed more like a throwaway teaser, this brand new single from Kanye seems like the real deal. While Kanye has never been known to mince his words, what makes “Real Friends” special is that it seems to come from an honest and vulnerable place, as he struggles to maintain relationships and questions how many genuinely trustworthy individuals he really has in his life. Packaged with the brand new single also comes a snippet for (what we presume to be) next week’s release, titled “No More Parties In L.A.” which is produced by Madlib and includes a feature from Kendrick Lamar. From the sound of it, things are only about to get better from here.

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[Event Preview] TDE Presents: 1st Annual Kunta’s Groove Sessions – 11/5 @ Riviera Theatre, Chicago

Kendrick Lamar sent the internet into a frenzy last month with the initial announcement of his Kunta’s Groove Sessions tour via Instagram, with a caption that simply stated “8 cities. 8 nights, 8 intimate shows.” Since then, fans throughout the country have scrambled to get their hands on tickets which have sold out in mere minutes after going online. Prices on the secondary market have skyrocketed, especially in New York, where the cheapest available ticket at one point was $563 before they switched venues from Webster Hall to Terminal 5 according to Rukkus. Thankfully, the same has taken place here in Chicago, as the show has been moved from Concord Music Hall to the Riviera Theatre, providing a second chance to those of us that missed out the first time around.

In case you’ve been living under a rock, the excitement for the tour stems from the release of Kendrick’s landmark sophomore album, To Pimp A Butterfly, which received plenty of critical and commercial acclaim. Since its release, fans have been clamoring for a chance to see Kendrick perform live along with his band The Wesley Theory. Opening up the tour is labelmate Jay Rock, who is fresh off the release off his own album, 90059, which features standout singles like “Money Trees Deuce” and “Vice City”.

Head over to the link below to grab yourself some passes before they sell out again for good, and if you’re not in Chicago make sure to check out the remaining dates on the tour.

PURCHASE TICKETS FOR CHICAGO

 

REMAINING TOUR DATES

 

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[NEW] Kendrick Lamar – To Pimp A Butterfly (Album Stream)

In a strange turn of events, Kendrick Lamar‘s highly anticipated album is now available on Spotify and iTunes.  Top Dawg Entertainment label boss Anthony Tiffith sent out a few tweets after the album mysteriously appeared suggesting that the surprise drop was a mistake. Accident or not, though, it’s really great to hear what Kendrick’s been working on since his instant classic debut studio album. While Good Kid, m.A.A.d. City told the story of a young Kendrick, To Pimp A Butterfly sees a composed, mature and confident Lamar delivering organic funk & soul-inspired new age hip-hop. Although we’ll want some more time with it, we’re loving what we’ve heard thus far. Check out the Spotify stream below or head to iTunes to pick up a digital copy. It will be interesting to see how this rollout unfolds as more information on what actually happened becomes available. Regardless, we’re more than excited about the new music. Continue reading

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[NEW] Kendrick Lamar – King Kunta

Kendrick Lamar
King Kunta

With Kendrick Lamar‘s sophomore album release around the corner, the anticipation, speculation and hype is at an all time high. Today, we get another glimpse into the project with “King Kunta,” an ode to the P-Funk era. Over a groovy bassline, King Kendrick delivers a gritty empowering message with a James Brown-esque cadence. In the closing chapter of George Clinton‘s memoir, he talks about working with Kendrick Lamar. “King Kunta” likely emerged from those sessions with its distinct Parliament/Funkadelic sound. Give this one a listen above–To Pimp A Butterfly drops on March 23rd. Check out what Clinton had to say about Lamar below:

George Clinton: The other day I did a session with the rapper Kendrick Lamar. Even before I met him I was laughing at “Bitch, Don’t Kill My Vibe,” which had the same silly-serious tone we tried for in Funkadelic. He came down to Tallahassee to record with me, and it was beautiful…He acts like he’s about fifty with all his theories. When I met Sly Stone, he knew of P-Funk because he heard those records himself, as they came out. When I met Rakim, he knew of P-Funk because he listened to his brother’s records. With Kendrick, it was his parents’ records. He didn’t just know the hits. He knew the deepest of the deep cuts. When you talk about your old work with a young man with an old mind, the work feels less old. We talked about my old songs and they were renewed. When the past comes rushing into the present that way, I can see clearly that artwork is a living thing. Younger artists teach me that I taught them. That’s why I’m grateful to Kendrick Lamar, and to anyone who is carrying on the P-Funk tradition.
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[Hip-Hop] Kendrick Lamar – The Blacker The Berry (Prod. Boi-1da)

Kendrick Lamar
The Blacker The Berry

TDE fans rejoice, as we finally have the pleasure of hearing the second single from the much anticipated follow up to good kid, m.A.A.d city. After locking up two Grammy awards for his previous single “i,” Kendrick Lamar has returned with the far more aggressive “The Blacker The Berry.” The Boi-1da produced cut should appease fans who may have been disappointed with Kendrick’s last effort. With an audacious chorus that claims, “The blacker the berry, the sweeter the juice,” this new joint finds a fearless Kendrick slaughtering verses while touching on some sensitive issues, including racial tensions and gun violence. Check out the song below, and be on the lookout for more details on Kendrick’s upcoming album, which is set to drop later this year.

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[New] Kendrick Lamar – i

Kendrick Lamar
i

After two long years, the wait is finally over for some new Kendrick Lamar to hit your eardrums. Remaining relatively quiet in the music scene, the west coast emcee seemed to have taken a backseat to let his Top Dawg brethren quietly take over the music scene. Schoolboy Q saw his debut, Oxymoron, receive top praises, Isaiah Rashad has made a name for himself with his EP Cilvia Demo, and SZA delivered some chill vibes with her solo project Z. Now that the music scene is more familiar with the crew, Lamar steps back into the spotlight with a long-awaited single for our listening enjoyments.

The track “i” is an uplifting anthem that is sonically a little something different from the rap star. Introduced by a boasting soundbite, a Rahki-produced guitar heavy Isley Brothers “That Lady” sample drops flipping the beat. K-dot quickly jumps on the track spitting some quick-tongued bars about self-love and acceptance. The momentum and positive message do not let up throughout ending with a smooth transition into a jazz, 70’s classic rhythm and vibe. The track definitely invokes the feel of some old-school, but takes a couple listens to fully grow on you.

Kendrick’s follow-up to good kid, M.A.A.D. city is set to drop later this year and is rumored to feature production from Dr. Dre and a lot of in-house production from the TDE camp. This much-anticipated single is now available for purchase on iTunes.

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Sunday Night Soul [Vol. 22]

While most of the ninja team spent the weekend melting away under the desert sun at Coachella, the rest of us here at TMN have been hard at work to ensure that you have the latest and greatest tunes the internet has to offer. While FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out for those who don’t know) is inevitable while our eyes our glued to the live stream on YouTube, we’ve managed to keep ourselves relatively busy by scouring the net for the most serenely sublime tracks we could find. Although we expected a bit of a slowdown in output this week with the advent of festival season, we instead were surprised to stumble upon an overwhelming amount of material while assembling this magnificent playlist.

We can’t safely say we’ve covered everything here, but we’re fairly certain we’ve found the best of the best. Those include selections from Tin Gardens, D.R.A.M., Submotion Orchestra, Iman Europe, Tiara Thomas, Raleigh Ritchie, Betty Who, Bayou, Telescope Thieves, Joey Solo, XONA, WLYN, Falcons, Lido, Maryann, JENI, CompSci, woodini and Kwabs. Of course there’s plenty of other gems hidden below, but you’ll need to sift through to find them for yourself.

’Tin Gardens – Leave Slow’
’Slime ft. George Maple – Sonnet’
’May – Soul (FloFilz Remix)’
’Sye Elaine Spence – Is This Love’
’Moses Sumney – Plastic’
’Royal Auditorium – Selfless’
’D.R.A.M. – Feet In The Water w/ Sunny & Gabe’
’Midé – Wait For You Ft. Bianca Rose’
’Taylor McFerrin – The Antidote (feat. Nai Palm)’
’Submotion Orchestra – All Yours’
’IAMNOBODI – Try Me (feat. Ego Ella May)’
’Iman Europe – Kneva Know (prod. Zikomo)’
’Aaron “Ab” Abernathy – In Love/Near’
’Elle Varner – Little Do You Know’
’Tiffany Evans – Just Something To Say’
’Melo B Jones – Shoulda Woulda Coulda (prod. by Žiga Murko)’
’Maribelle Anes – Lips Lock (Prod. by Maribelle Anes)’
’August Alsina – Get Ya Money feat. Fabolous’
’Tiara Thomas – You Do’
’Math Allen – Get Out The Way (Prod. By The Ambassadors)’
’1 O.A.K. – Slide Thru Ft. P Lo (Prod. by Hyperspace Music)’
’Rome Fortune – Come & Get It (Prod. DunDeal)’
’SoMo – We Can Make Love’
’Raleigh Ritchie – The Chased’
’Betty Who – Lovin Start’
’Rizzo – Flush’
’MNEK – Every Little Word’
’Fantastic Mr Fox feat. Denai Moore – On My Own’
’HUNTAR – EXPECTATIONS (FTSE’S X X X – PECTATIONS MIX)’
’b a y o u – Airlock’
’THROWING SHADE – SWEET TOOTH (from the ’19 JEWELS’ EP – out on 19 May via No Pain In Pop)’
’K A I Z E N – The Doin”
’Telescope Thieves – Svns (feat. Nori)’
’Grand Beach – Swim Good ft. S. Carey & Daniela Andrade’
’Jon B – Calling On You ( J LOUIS ) remix’
’Jansport J – Teresa’s Prototype’
’John Legend – GreenLight (Iman Omari Flip)’
’Melo Zed – About (her)’
’Joey Solo – Christina (Out now on Play It Louder Vol.2)’
’kenji – True’
’kenji – If You’re Lost’
’WithLoveXavier – Better (Prod. XONA)’
’This Girl – Radio Roman (XONA Remix)’
’kwok. – I Got’
’WYLN – Changes’
’Duncan Gerow – Tinashe + Esta = Vulnerable’
’Ciara – Body Party (Kwok Remix)’
’Cassie
Me & U (Altisko Rework)’
’XONA – Doin U Right’
’Jalen Jenkins – For Me’
’PARTYNEXTDOOR – West District’
’PARTYNEXTDOOR – Persian Rugs (Falcons Bootleg)’
’Drake – Too Much (GXNXVS Remix) (Feat. Sampha)’
’Drake – Bria’s Interlude (SAVON Bootleg)’
’Poetic Justice – Kendrick Lamar (Ft Drake)(XONA Remix)’
’PlueStarfox – We Be All Night (DERP)’
’Yung Lean – Gatorade (Lido Remix)’
’Maryann – You And Me (Prod By N8 The Gr8)’
’JENI – Drunk In Luv (JENI SUK REFIX)’
’Miley Cyrus – Adore You (CompSci Remix)’
’Marvin Gaye – I’ve Got My Music (KidBeat Refix)’
’Jhene Aiko – My Afternoon Dream ( Telescope Thieves Edit)’
’J Rican – Prototype Body (StarRo X Jeftuz MashUp)’
’Raheem Devaughn – Woman (Layzie Edit)’
’Duncan Gerow – Usher + DJ Clue = My Way’
’Zedd – Find You (Sci Fi Scheme Remix)’
’MTBRD – Who Babe (Flamingosis Remix)’
’Mitch Murder – Mirage (SevnthWonder Remix)’
’noï – Injunction’
’The Weeknd – 28 (ALEXSANDER REMAKE)’
’2K2レイス – get it shawty’
’YUNG LEAN – GATORADE (DOLPHIN TEARS Lido EDIT)’
’Tinashe – 2 On Ft Schoolboy Q (woodini Remix) – DL in description’
’Fluke Nukes – NaNa’
’MellowMaswel – Always (Unmastered)’
’Kwabs – Something Right’
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