World leaders on Thursday heralded the G20 summit as the day the world “fought back against the recession” as they put on a show of unity that lifted global markets and mapped out a new future for financial regulation.
Gordon Brown, UK prime minister, host of the summit, said the meeting marked the emergence of a “new world order”, as he unveiled what leaders claimed was a $1,100bn package of measures to tackle the global downturn, including support for lower income countries and a $250bn plan to boost the international money supply.
Close inspection showed that some of the $1,100bn pledged included reannouncements and half-done deals. However, even before the summit ended, equity markets rose sharply around the world amid hopes that the global economy was stabilising.
In London, the FTSE 100 rose 4.3 per cent to pass 4,000 points for the first time in six weeks, while in New York, the S&P 500 closed 2.9 per cent higher. Early Asian trade on Friday showed investors extending the strong gains made on Thursday.The benchmark Nikkei was up 0.6 per cent after hitting a three-month intraday high. Read more…
Continuing on his epic global portraiture project, NYC’s KEHINDE WILEY returns to his homeland of Los Angeles this Saturday, April 4th, to unveil the latest installment of the “World Stage” series at ROBERTS & TILTON GALLERY. Following his recent group of African works, Wiley now offers up a group of grandiose oil paintings depicting the residents of Rio de Janeiro Brazil. Focusing not on the city’s highly aggrandized elite, the artist instead turned an eye to the residents of the notorious favelas in an effort to capture images of the city’s most vibrant inhabitants.
Posing in their own street clothes that often portray a fondness for American consumption, Wiley’s subjects reflect the wild ethnic mix that defines the majority of Brazil’s native population and he captures them set against locally sourced floral and textile backgrounds that explode with color. Heightening the exhibition’s tropical theme, Wiley commissioned a series of hand carved frames for his portraits using exotic local hardwoods engraved with images of South American birds and flowers in incredibly detailed motifs. Don’t miss it…
New Balance MT576S BAMBOO RAKE
The Nike Air Yeezy seems to be receiving the most attention right now; however, it is not the only unique, glow-in-the-dark shoe set to drop soon. On April 4th, 2009, this New Balance MT576S BAMBOO RAKE will be available at Mita.
This particular sneaker is the product of a collaboration between New Balance, Mita and creative collective FRAT. It combines the 576 upper and the midsole of the infamous MT580. Other unique feature include an imprinted Shi-mei-nawa rope design and a bamboo rake motif on the tongue. Supposedly, this motif represents good fortune. Last but not least, it also possesses a glow-in-the-dark Ying & Yang symbol in representation of ‘day and night’ to the FRAT collective. Via Hypebeast.
LMAO! Kay Slay puts the smack down on Sean Malcolm, the “canned” editor of the now defunct KING magazine. Damn, the game is getting so disrespectful..can’t we all just get along?
OK, time for some marketing suggestions. Instead of putting out “Death of a Dynasty” or another Jim Jones album for that matter, Dame Dash should’ve regrouped and packaged the story that the whole world was interested in hearing and that is the demise and fall of one of the strongest camps in Hip Hop, Roc-a-Fella Records. This doc looks compelling, I would pay some snaps to go see this. All the elements are there; betrayal, jealousy and unprecedented arrogance (gotta love it!). Jim Jones almost writes his own obituary by illustrating that he has become the Dame Dash to Cam’Ron’s Jay-Z, meaning that the magic, the chemistry that was Dip Set will never be the same once these dudes are seperated just like the Roc will never be the Roc without Jay & Dame as one unit (sorry ‘Ye).
They say revenge is a dish best served cold. Apparently Wayne had vendettas to settle and he’s cleaning up like the end of the Godfather trilogies. These negroes is taking jokers to the cleaners!
Lil Wayne has filed a lawsuit against the production company behind The Carter, a documentary about him, according to Radar Online.
The flick recently debuted at this year’s Sundance Film Festival and Weezy claims he was never given approval over the final cut as promised before the premiere. He also alleges that the film portrays him in a negative light.
QDIII, who is listed as one of the five co-producers of the film, was specifically targeted in the suit, along with his company QDIII Entertainment and it’s affiliate Digeratti Holdings, LLC.
The son of legendary musician Quincy Jones, QDIII has had his hand in a long list of hip-hop related docs including the Beef DVD series, Crips and Bloods: Made In America and Tupac Shakur: Thug Angel. As of press time emails to him have not been answered. Read more…
With paperwork recently hitting the Net revealing a lawsuit that Cash Money Records has filed against several mixtape deejays, including DJ Drama’s Aphilliates Music Group, XXLMag.com contacted the self-described iPod King to find out his reaction to the case.
“The accusations against me are misplaced,” Drama told XXL in a statement. “This is not a case of Lil Wayne vs DJ Drama. Me and Wayne are good.”
According to the documents [ View here, here and here] Cash Money has named the Aphilliates, along with BCD Music Group, Deep Distribution World Wide, Tyree C. Simmons (Drama) and Cinque Productions, Inc. in a civil action suit.
Frank Nino, of Makin’ Moves Entertainment, who is also named in the case, told XXL that he believes the matter revolves around money profited by BCD, who released various Weezy mixtapes in big chain stores like FYE. Read more…
The reclusive persona known as “Q” finally steps out from obscurity and reveals his true identity. No one could pin a face to the moderators and operators of WorldStarHipHop until now. Here goes the mystery man himself making a guest appearance on Angela Yee’s Lip Service.
50 Minutes reports “How do you approach a gang of pirates, terrorising shipping on the high seas? With extreme caution and a posse of armed guards, for a start.” Shout out to Street Omar
Cam is rolling out his new lineup. I ain’t hatin’ on this one either. Homie got a laid back flow and he favors Shyne-Po. Check Cam’s verse where he says he ate those four shots in D.C. like pastries. These negroes is crazy!
I BEEN RIDING WITH BARACK SINCE DAY 1. I’M ALL ABOUT THE CHANGE AND EVERYTHING HE TALKS ABOUT. BUT I DO HAVE A QUESTION AND I’M NOT SURE THE ANSWER IS YES? DOES HE KNOW HOW BAD IT’S GONNA BE IN THE STREETS BY THE SUMMER IF THINGS DON’T CHANGE? YOU KNOW USUALLY WHEN THINGS HAPPEN IT’S ALWAYS SOMEBODY IN THE HOOD SAYING THAT SHIT AIN’T COMING OVER HERE. IT SEEMS LIKE ALL THINGS PASS THE HOOD BUT NOT THIS TIME. SHIT IS GETTING REAL AND FAST.
PEOPLE ARE DYING LEFT AND RIGHT, DRUG DEALERS ARE TURNING INTO THIEVES AND THIEVES ARE TURNING INTO KILLERS. THE MUSIC BUSINESS AIN’T SWEET NO MORE, AND FAST MONEY IS SUPER HARD TO COME BY. THEN IT’S THIS WORD CALLED “PRIDE” THAT WON’T LET A NIGGA CUT BACK KNOWING HE AIN’T GOT IT CAUSE HE’S SO USE TO HAVING IT.THE PAIN OF SEEING SOMEBODY ELSE WITH IT HURTS SO MUCH MORE THAN IT EVER HAS BEFORE BUT ACTING LIKE IT’S NOT EFFECTING YOU IS STUPID. LISTEN!! IF STEVE WYNN WAS WORTH 40 BILLION AND HE’S NOW DOWN TO 4 EVERYBODY IS BEING EFFECTED. Read more…
Miami Hip-Hop star Pitbull has inked a deal with Bryan Leach’s Polo Grounds Music, a source has confirmed with AllHipHop.com.
Pitbull, who released his debut album and all subsequent releases under the TVT deal, had a public falling out with label head Steve Gottlieb.
Pitbull, born Armando Perez, accused the label and its executives of sabotaging his career due to the lack of promotion for several of his albums, including has last, The Boatlift. Read more…
Going one-step beyond his critically-acclaimed Def Poetry series, hip-hop entrepreneur Russell Simmons has linked up with HBO once again for a new show documenting the lives of young, aspiring poets.Described as “one part Def Poetry Jam and two parts documentary,” Russell Simmons Presents Brave New Voices follows teens from New York, Philadelphia, Ann Arbor, Sante Fe, Honolulu and San Francisco as they prepare to face off in the National Youth Poetry Slam Competition.
The contest, which took place last year, is a part of Youth Speaks’ annual four-day Brave New Voices Festival in Washington, D.C.The series will be narrated by rapper/actress Queen Latifah and will feature a cameo from Idris Elba (The Wire) who hosted the poetry slam finals. Brave New Voices premieres this Sunday (April 5) at 11p.m. EST on HBO
I will never understand the logic of the music industry. While they are struggling with downloads and scrambling to clog up songs from leaking they continue to offer albums for free stream, I guess with the belief that every project with mimic Lil Wayne’s last effort. They are crazy. Well here goes Jadakiss’ project…for free…almost feels like a mixtape don’t it! I’m diggin’ the accessibility of this though, they should send us everyone’s album in the mail so we can embed it all over the net. Resistance is FUTILE!
So it wasn’t a media ploy after all. Curtis is posting these pics of what appears to be the cover for the long-awaited debut book by Rick Ross’ baby-mama Tia Kemp.
When rumors first surfaced back in January about Lil Wayne’s plan to release a rock album calledRebirth(Cash Money/Universal), a collective wave of WTF? quickly spread over the Internet. After all, Wayne’s sixth solo albumTha Carter III(Cash Money/Universal, 2008) was last year’s highest-selling rap album and easily one of the year’s high points for most rap fans. But, fear not: According to Bryan “Baby” Williams, Wayne’s mentor and father figure, as well as Cash Money Records co-CEO, the new album is less about Wayne going rock and more about him experimenting and growing as an artist.
“It’s not a rock record,” Baby told VIBE recently during an exclusive interview. “That’s what I think people are getting misunderstood. When you speaking about a rock record, you think he’s got a guitar and everything, but it’s not that. It’s going to be some of those types of beats, but it’s just great music. I don’t think no artist can do what he about to get done. My son is a rock star.”
Wayne’s first foray into the world of rock certainly sounds like he’s trying to switch up his sound. In January, he releasedRebirth’s first official single, “Prom Queen,” which peaked at #15 on theBillboardHot 100. Two weeks ago, he unleashed “Hot Revolver,” the album’s second single, which has climbed as high as #33 on the Hot 100. And just last week, a video emerged of Wayne, who has been attempting to learn to play the guitar for several years now, strumming along to a recording of “Prom Queen.” (Watch below) Still, Baby insists, he hasn’t lost his love for rap music. Read more…
Well I’ll be damned. Now I know Bryan Leech and Big Teach are marketing geniuses but no one could’ve predicted this one. Talk about free promotion. Hurricane Chris slips through the cracks with his ode to Halle, which got the biggest co-sign possible, from daytime juggernaut Ellen Degeneres. Am I smelling hit in the making?
Joey Crack may have started a trend of licking the soles of your unworn Air Force Ones thanks to his unforgettable closet feature on MTV Cribs, but Joe now has his own shoe with the new low cost brand Protege.
Terror Squad gets a call out on the upper of the shoes dubbed The Recession. Protege, like Starbury, is one of the latest low cost shoe brands started up by NBA players distributed exclusively to cost conscious outlets that include K-Mart. This initial sketch made it to the web today via SneakerFiles but is getting many to wonder if Fat Joe has hung up his Nike’s for something that’s his own. No word yet if these will sport the $35 price tag that most Protege shoes go for.
SAN FRANCISCO — Google, which has invested in many startups over the years, will announce on Tuesday that it is creating a venture capital arm whose main objective will be to turn a profit.
The group, called Google Ventures, is expected to invest up to $100 million over the next 12 months. It will be overseen by David Drummond, who will continue in his role as senior vice president of corporate developing and chief legal officer at Google. Investments will be vetted by William Maris, who joined Google about a year ago, and Rich Miner, a co-founder of Android, a mobile software startup that Google acquired in 2005.
Mr. Maris said in an interview that Google will tap the connections of its employees and its ties to the venture capital world to find promising startups in areas like the Internet, clean technology and life sciences.
Many other companies have set up venture capital units. But those groups typically have dual missions of profiting from investments and advancing their parent company’s strategic goals, and their track record has been mixed. Read more…
SAN FRANCISCO — Skype, the Internet calling service that has more than 400 million users around the world, is aggressively moving onto mobile phones.
The Luxembourg-based company, a division of eBay, plans to announce on Tuesday that it will make its free software available immediately for Apple’siPhone and iPod Touch and, beginning in May, for various BlackBerry phones, made by Research in Motion.
Other companies have already made software for those phones that works with Skype, but it does not offer all of the service’s features.
As with Skype on the computer, users of Skype on mobile phones can make calls and send instant messages to other Skype users free, and they pay lower rates than the phone companies would charge when they use Skype to call landlines or other mobile phones. Read more…
Sony has confirmed that the price of the PlayStation 2 console in the U.S. will be cut to $99.99, following days of speculation concerning a forthcoming announcement.
Although Internet speculation revolved largely around hopes of a PlayStation 3 price cut, Sony has revealed that it is the PlayStation 2 which will receive the new price tag. Previously priced at $129.99, the new price scheme will come into effect on Wednesday, April 1st.
The PlayStation 2 was first launched in 2000 and has so far sold more than 136 million units worldwide, with a software library of almost 1,900 titles, and more than 250 PS2 titles achieving “Greatest Hits” status – currently pegged as sales of 400,000 or more.
Although some publishers have now abandoned the format, a number of family-friendly games still debut on PS2, and Sony still plans further first party releases this year, including MLB 09: The Show and MotorStorm: Arctic Edge. Read more…
TOKYO (AP) – Opening a car trunk or controlling a home air conditioner could become just a wish away with Honda’s new technology that connects thoughts inside a brain with robotics.Honda Motor Co. has developed a way to read patterns of electric currents on a person’s scalp as well as changes in cerebral blood flow when a person thinks about four simple movements-moving the right hand, moving the left hand, running and eating.
Honda succeeded in analyzing such thought patterns, and then relaying them as wireless commands for Asimo, its human-shaped robot.
In a video shown Tuesday at Tokyo headquarters, a person wearing a helmet sat still but thought about moving his right hand-a thought that was picked up by cords attached to his head inside the helmet. After several seconds, Asimo, programmed to respond to brain signals, lifted its right arm.
Honda said the technology wasn’t quite ready for a live demonstration because of possible distractions in the person’s thinking. Another problem is that brain patterns differ greatly among individuals, and so about two to three hours of studying them in advance are needed for the technology to work.
The company, a leader in robotics, acknowledged the technology was still at a basic research stage with no immediate practical applications in the works. Read more…
SOHH has learned urban lifestyle publication King Magazine will be shutting its doors and will be releasing its final issue as a result of the current economic crisis.
The popular men’s magazine is known for featuring a variety of urban entertainers and video vixens mixed with in-depth coverage of serious issues.
KING is a bimonthly magazine of pure adrenaline that brings you the best of everything that is your lifestyle. We hit you with sexy women, fast cars, sports, real money and mad music. We bring you gadgets and games the hottest styles to wear and take you to exotic places worthy of a KING’s presence. (Magazine Agent)
Rumors of the publication’s end began to spread earlier this week.
We don’t often post rumors, despite the number of them that cross our desks daily (many of which end up being true). I felt like posting this one though. We just got word that KING Magazine (aka Butts and Rims) is closing shop, not even releasing it’s next issue. In this strained economy, the already dying print format is suffering big time. It is upsetting to hear of people losing jobs, but can this be considered a victory for women (in particular black women) who struggle against objectification at every turn? I have to admit, I enjoy the images, but I know it can’t really be good for raising the standards of our society. What do you think? (Okay Player) Read more…
WASHINGTON, March 30 (Reuters) – Pentagon spending on the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and to fight terrorism elsewhere has reached $685.7 billion since 2001, a U.S. government watchdog agency said on Monday.
The Government Accountability Office, or GAO, said the Iraq war accounted for $533.5 billion in Defense Department spending obligations through last December, while spending on operations in Afghanistan, the Horn of Africa and the Philippines totaled $124.1 billion.
The remaining $28.1 billion was for operations to defend the U.S. mainland, the GAO said in a letter to Congress dated March 30.
The spending total equals about 85 percent of the $808 billion that Congress has appropriated for military operations in the global war on terrorism since the Sept. 11 attacks on New York and Washington, the GAO said.
The $122.3 billion difference reflects multiyear contracts for procurement, military construction, research, development and other programs, the watchdog agency said. Read more…
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