The 10 Best Major Label Hip-Hop Albums Of The Year (There Are 10?)

1. Kanye West - “Graduation” (Def Jam)

2. Jay-Z - “American Gangster” (Def Jam)

3. Common - “Finding Forever” (G.O.O.D.)

4. Talib Kweli - “Eardrum” (Warner)

5. Wu-Tang Clan - “The 8 Diagrams” (SRC)

6. Ghostface Killah - “Big Doe Rehab” (Def Jam)

7. U.G.K. - “Underground Kingz” (Jive)

8. Lupe Fiasco - “The Cool” (Atlantic)

9. Redman - “Red Gone Wild” (Def Jam)

10. Timbaland - “Shock Value” (Interscope)

The 10 Best Indie Hip-Hop Albums Of The Year

1. Little Brother - “Get Back” (ABB Records)

2. El-P - “I'll Sleep When You're Dead” (Definitive Jux)

3. Evidence - “The Weatherman” (ABB Records)

4. Blu & Exile - “Below The Heavens” (Sound In Color)

5. Black Milk - “Popular Demand” (Fat Beats)

6. Aesop Rock - “None Shall Pass” (Definitive Jux)

7. DJ Jazzy Jeff - “Return Of The Magnificent” (K7)

8. KRS-One & Marley Marl - “Hip-Hop Lives” (Koch)

9. Sean Price - “Jesus Price Superstar” (Duck Down)

10. Cilvaringz “I” (Babygrande)

Honorable Mention: J. Dilla “Ruff Draft” (Re-Release): This release would have been included on the top albums list, however it was a re-issue.

The 5 Best EP Releases Of The Year

1. J-Live - “Reveal The Secret” (K7)

2. Talib Kweli & Madlib - “Liberation” (Blacksmith)

3. Show & A.G. - “Live Hard” (DITC Records)

4. Dilated Peoples - “Release Party” (Decon)

5. Atmosphere “Sad Clown Bad Fall” (Rhymesayers)

The 10 Best Mixtapes of the Year:

1. DJ Statik Selektah, DJ Premier, Royce Da 5'9 – “The Bar Exam”

2. Mick Boogie, Busta Rhymes, J. Dilla – “Dillagence”

3. Mick Boogie, Little Brother – “And Justus For All”

4. Lil Wayne - “Da Drought 3”

5. DJ Warrior, Black Milk, Bishop Lamont – “Caltroit”

6. Styles Of Beyond, DJ Green Lantern – “Razor Tag”

7. Mick Boogie, Joey Fingaz, Copywrite – “The Jerk Vol. 0”

8. Ill Bill / La Coka Nostra “Black Metal”

9. A-Trak – “Dirty South Dance”

10. Nick Catchdubs, Wale – “100 Miles & Runnin’”

The 10 Best Hip-Hop Alternative LP’s of the Year:

1. Amy Winehouse – “Back To Black” (Universal)

2. Blockhead – “Uncle Tony’s Coloring Book” (Ninja Tune)

3. Mark Ronson – “Version” (Columbia)

4. Sa-Ra Creative Partners – “The Hollywood Recordings” (Babygrande)

5. Kenna – “Make Sure They See My Face” (Star Trak)

6. Chromeo – “Fancy Footwork” (Vice Records)

7. Duran Duran – “Red Carpet Massacre” (Epic)

8. Saul Williams – “The Inevitable Rise & Fall Of Niggy Tardust” (Saul Williams)

9. M.I.A. – “Kala” ( XL)

10. Sharon Jones & The Dap Kings – “100 Days, 100 Nights” (Daptone)

Honorable Mention: Radiohead “In Rainbows”. All of the above records have some connection to hip-hop in one way or another, but Radiohead does not. Regardless, it deserves recognition. Sorry Britney.

The Top 10 Major Label Singles Of The Year

1. Kanye West - “The Good Life” (Def Jam)

2. U.G.K. / Outkast - “International Players Anthem” (Jive)

3. Timbaland - “The Way I Are” (Interscope)

4. 50 Cent “Ayo Technology” (Interscope)

5. Kanye West - “Stronger” (Def Jam)

6. Common - “I Want You” (G.O.O.D.)

7. Jay-Z “Roc Boys” (Def Jam)

8. Talib Kweli “Hot Thing” (Warner)

9. Lupe Fiasco – “Superstar” (Atlantic)

10. T.I. - “U Know What It Is” (Atlantic)

The 10 Worst Guilty Pleasure Rap Songs Of the Year

1. Soulja Boy - “Crank Dat” ( Capitol)

2. Rich Boy - “Throw Some D's (Universal)

3. UNK - “Walk It Out” (Koch)

4. Mims - “This Is Why I'm Hot” (Capitol)

5. Fat Joe - “Make It Rain” (Koch)

6. Lil' Boosie - “Wipe Me Down” (Asylum)

7. Da Shop Boyz - “Party Like A Rockstar” (Universal)

8. DJ Khaled “I'm So Hood” (Koch)

9. Playaz Circle “Duffel Bag Boy” (DTP)

10. Swizz Beatz "Money In The Bank" (Universal)

Top 5 R&B Songs Of The Year (Why Is This Here?)

1. Rihanna – “Umbrella” (Def Jam)

2. Keysha Cole – “Let U Go” (Geffen)

3. T-Pain - “Buy You A Drank (Shawty Snappin’)” (Jive)

4. Justin Timberlake – “Summerlove” (Jive)

5. Ne-Yo – “Because Of You” (Def Jam)

10 Best Emcees Of The Year

Oh boy, this one will cause some arguments, but that’s the point of lists, right? The main criteria for selecting these artists was that they must have had at least one full-length album or mixtape (aka “the new album”) this year. So no, as much as we love Rakim, he didn’t make the list this year, because he didn’t release shit. The results are also based on pure skill, not style. So yeah, T.I. is cool-as-a-fan and all, but this is about the written words, not how they are said. Now start arguing.

1. Jay-Z (American Gangster)

2. Common (Finding Forever)

3. Lil’ Wayne (Da Drought 3)

4. Ghostface Killah (Big Doe Rehab, The 8 Diagrams)

5. Royce Da 5’9 (The Bar Exam)

6. Talib Kweli (Eardrum, Liberation)

7. Phonte & Big Pooh of Little Brother (Get Back)

8. Lupe Fiasco (The Cool)

9. Apathy (Baptism By Fire, It's The Bootleg Muthafuckas Vol. 2, No Place Like Chrome)

10. Copywrite (The Jerk Vol. 0)

10 Best Producers Of The Year

The criteria for producers of the year were selected based on having at least one critically acclaimed full-length album produced this year. This isn’t a list based on who had the hottest (or most expensive) beats, so, simply having a hit single or two under your belt doesn’t count. Sorry Swizzy, Pollow.

1. Kanye West (Graduation, Finding Forever)

2. Timbaland/Danja Handz (Shock Value, Red Carpet Massacre)

3. Mark Ronson (Back To Black, Version)

4. El-P (I’ll Sleep When You’re Dead)

5. Blockhead (Uncle Tony’s Coloring Book, None Shall Pass)

6. RZA (The 8 Diagrams)

7. Evidence (The Weatherman)

8. Black Milk (Caltroit, Popular Demand)

9. Exile (Below The Heavens)

10. DJ Jazzy Jeff (Return of The Magnificent)

Honorable Mention: J. Dilla for “Ruff Draft” as only posthumous material was released.

The Top 10 Rookies Of The Year

This list doesn’t necessarily make up the following artists’ “rookie” year, however 2007 was the year that they made enough noise and actually got people paying attention to them. Congratulations and welcome to the music industry guys, it sucks!

1. Amy Winehouse

2. Black Milk

3. Slaine (La Coka Nostra, Special Teamz)

4. Blu

5. Bishop Lamont

6. Wale

7. Pollow Da Don

8. Ralphige

9. Dirt Nasty

10. Chrisette Michelle

The 5 Most Disappointing Albums Of 2007

1. T.I. – “T.I. Vs. T.I.P.”

After “King”, we thought T.I. could do no wrong, but then he delivered the sub-par “T.I. Vs. T.I.P.”. We really tried to find songs on that record to like, and there were a few, but it was a massive let down after his 2006 release.

2. Pharoahe Monch – “Desire”

We guess old Monch wanted to get in on some of that hip-pop, cross-genre Gnarls Barkley money, and the result was “Desire”. Unfortunately, nobody really desired this LP. Sure, it had a few moments that reminded us of why we like Pharoahe in the first place. But songs like his Elvis rendition, “Body Baby”, or the Gospel road-to-nowhere, “Push”, left us scratching our heads.

3. 50 Cent – “Curtis”

Wow, you’d think after all the tough talk 50 was doing prior to the release of this LP, not to mention the stakes being extra high going up against Kanye, he’d deliver us another banger. Not so. The album did have it’s share of hot singles, but so much of the rest of it was filler, overflowing with braggadocio about A) how rich he is now B) how good he is in bed (so seductive!) and C) how big of a gangster he is. Not surprising, but with a title like “Curtis”, we expected a more introspective look at the guy – we guess that’s all there is to him.

4. Will.I.Am – “Songs About Girls”

We had high hopes for Will, after a strong series of hot beats for other people in 2006 (Nas, Game, Justin). Unfortunately, Will’s solo “debut” (this is like his third record, yo) was critically panned thanks to his strange attempts to be one of those cool rapper/singer Cee-Lo/T-Pain/Akon types. It must really suck to have something like “The Donque Song” (note the artistic spelling of “donkey”) as a part of your musical legacy, when in fact the single didn’t do donkey dick.

5. RJD2 – “The Third Hand”

As much as we love ourselves some RJD2, we didn’t love The Third Hand. Make no mistake, RJ’s still got it – just one year earlier he delivered us the superb Things Go Better With RJ and Al LP with Soul Position. Problem was, RJ sang all over this LP. He’s not so bad on vocal chops, but let’s face it, we buy RJ’s records for the beats. A decent record, but you'll still catch us rocking the instrumental version.

Yes, Homo: The Gayest Rap Lyrics Of The Year:

“Come see me in north Philly, I’ll make that ass strip.” – Nox on Scott Storch’s “Built Like That”

“Congratulations cuz your son made a million with his mouth.” – Rich Boy on “The Madness”

"I treat emcees like Dominique Simone." - Kool Keith on "Time For Sex"

"Come here and I'll show you I spit on more than just the mic." - Saigon on "Come On Baby"

"Ball right, brawl right, waiting for a dog fight, so I can give it to you ass-wipe niggas all night." - Edo G "Long Time Comin" (Special Teamz)

"I love the way you make that thing clap, boy I gotta get me some of that." - Trick Daddy on Pitbull's "Dukey Love"

The Top 5 Bitch Moves Of The Year:

1. Tony Yayo Wins Fight With 14 Year Old

Apparently taken the “if you aren’t with me, you’re against me” creed a bit too far, Tony Yayo (allegedly) roughed up 14 year old James Rosemond for (allegedly) wearing a T-shirt with the logo for Czar Entertainment, the management company that (allegedly) represents former G-Unit member, The Game. Rosemond is the son of Jimmy “Henchmen” Rosemond, who also manages Game. Oh, and Tony Yayo is a friend of 50 Cent, who also happens to rap, but it’s likely you have never heard of him, either.

2. Racist Imus Comments Magically Transform Into Hip-Hop Censorship Crusade

Ambulance chasers Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson were right there to milk the Don Imus racist-comment controversy for all it was worth, but in doing so, they were criticized for instead turning a blind eye to the overuse of words like “bitch” and “nigga” in hip-hop music. Turning their focus into a crusade to “clean up” hip-hop (good luck, guys), we felt ultimately they were more concerned with how much press they could get.

On one hand, these words aren’t helping the culture in any positive sense, but on the other hand we definitely aren’t for censorship, which is instead what this boiled down to. Jay-Z put it best – “I missed the part where this stopped being about Imus / what do my lyrics got to do with this shit?”

3. Each Officer Of Atlanta Task Force Awarded Full Collection Of DJ Drama Mixtapes After Warehouse Raid

At the beginning of the year, it became very evident that the music industry was in trouble because of illegal downloading. The solution? To seize the thousands of pieces of illegal contraband (read: mixtapes) created by DJ Drama, Don Cannon, and the Aphilliate deejays! Yes, because we all know that it’s crappy CD-R’s with Xeroxed artwork, bad mixing, explosions, and deejays swearing at you over the music, that is single-handedly crumbling the music industry, not torrents. The only thing that was ultimately accomplished here was the fact that Atlantic finally found a reason to give a release date to DJ Drama’s album. Somewhere, Saigon is brainstorming.

4. Akon Teaches Teenage Fans About Sex, Violence

Wow, Akon has both Tony Yayo and R. Kelly beat with this one. The “singing African” (as Beni B has dubbed him), found himself in trouble in two separate incidents, both of which involve teenage fans, and both of which were broadcast on the internet, thanks the miracle of YouTube. While performing in New York, Akon got himself in trouble for violently tossing a male fan into the crow, who was picked out of the audience by security, after a series of heckles. Then, in Trinidad, Akon was found “simulating sex-acts” on stage with a 14-year old girl. In other news, Akon has just completed work on Michael Jackson’s re-release of “Thriller”. COINCIDENCE?

5. Saigon Gets Shitted On By Atlantic, Again

We’ve heard this story time and again. Saigon, who has seen his share of ups and downs with Atlantic Records finally saw his album release on the horizon, complete with a hot lead single (“Come On Baby”) and accompanying remix featuring Jay-Z, which still wasn’t enough for Atlantic to take a chance and release the record. Saigon was so fed up with the further delays, he even announced his “retirement” on his MySpace blog.

9 Things That Need To Change In The Industry (But Probably Won't) In 2008:

1) Music Industry: Stop Being Such Bitches

Whether it’s declaring ripping music to your computer illegal or slapping a guy like DJ Drama (who ultimately helps your cause) with a federal case, stop being such fucks about the decline of your industry. It’s changed forever now, you major label people need to wake up an accept it. All fighting it does is make you a big bad, faceless enemy; one that the fans just love to screw every time they freeload and steal your music. You want people to buy your music the old fashioned way? Stop the home invasions (as seen in this shocking footage: http://youtube.com/watch?v=gGSbRv_WVFs). Instead, be more forward thinking, like Radiohead and Saul Williams, offering alternative methods of music distribution, with different options for the fans. Please note however, the healing process may take a while, you sniveling, spineless cunts.

2) Fans: Support The Artists You Like, And Buy Their Albums.

But this goes both ways. Okay, let’s not front. We ALL steal music. But the fate of the music industry – and more importantly, the fate of your favorite artist - is at stake here, and unless you want to see more ringtone rap on your radio and TV all day, support the artists you love. If you downloaded an album illegally, but you rock that shit all the time, buy a copy legally. If you liked them, go back and pay for your free copy of In Rainbows or Niggy Tardust. If your favorite artist is dropping an album on Tuesday, buy it. Speak to the labels with your wallets. Show them what kind of music you are willing to support, and what kind of music you are not.

3) Record Labels: Make Records, Not Ringtones

The number of one-hit wonders this year was astounding: Da Shop Boyz, Rich Boy, Lil’ Boosie, Cupid, Lil’ Mama, and other “artists” got their 15 minutes thanks to disposable songs – most usually with an accompanying dance. The purpose of these gimmicky tracks is not to sell albums, but to sell ringtones, so that when you’re phone rings in-line at Wal-Mart, you and all of the other people that are in-the-know can spontaneously bust out into the Soulja Boy Dance. Or, rather, you can stand there and be embarrassed that everyone in line now knows that you actually paid $3.49 for that ringtone. Plus, everyone knows that Soulja Boy is so not nearly as hot now as Flo Rida.

4) Rappers: Stop Biting Jay-Z’s Adlibs

Speech! If we hear one more rapper tell his producer “you a fool for this one” or say something like “it feels so good”, “it’s so beautiful right now”, we give up. Come guys, you think nobody listens to Jay-Z? Stop re-using his adlibs to help yourself get comfortable in the booth. Bonus points for rappers who stop demanding “I need everybody to report to the dance floor,” that are not named Jermaine Dupri.

5) R&B Singers: No More Talk Box/Vocoder

Roger Troutman is turning in his grave. It’s like, he died, and then the ban on the vocoder was lifted, ready for T-Pain and Akon to beat into the ground. We’ll admit, T-Pain knows how to use the thing scarily well, but when people like Chris Brown, Snoop Dogg, and Lyfe Jennings (who?) start to do it, it’s time for us all to step back, take a deep breath, and remove the tubes from our mouths.

6) Rappers: An Offer You Can't Refuse: Stop Sampling Gangster Flicks

The only pass we’ll give here is Jay-Z’s American Gangster, because it’s actually officially tied to the movie, and Jay brilliantly beat everyone to it by making this happen. Otherwise, for chrissakes, leave The Godfather, Scarface, Goodfellas, The Departed, Carlito's Way, The Sopranos, and all of that shit alone. It’s done. It’s been done; for about ten years now. Maybe instead, you could sample a romantic comedy. Love, Actually, starring Hugh Grant might have some choice samples for you, and we promise you that nobody is on that shit yet.

7) Producers: Don’t Forget Your Roots.

Hey, we’re all for cross-genre music and expanding the definition of what exactly “hip-hop” is, and at the same time, we understand where the big money is, but damn, what happened to hip-hop producers producing for hip-hop artists? Unless your name was 50 Cent, rappers weren’t getting beats from Timbaland or The Neptunes in 2007. Britney, Kenna, and Duran Duran? Different story.

8) R&B Singers: Fire The Dream

We just loved Rihanna and her cute little “Umbrella” (ella, ella, ay, ay, ay) song, penned by The Dream – who Jay-Z referred to in an interview as a “brilliant song-writer”. Really, Jay? Because now, every damn song on the radio-adey-oh-oh-oh sounds like “Umbrella”, thanks to The Dream’s patented stutter-style. The Dream’s sound has infected songs like J. Holiday’s “Bed”, his own “Shawty Is A Ten”, and countless others with it’s deadly, annoying echo. Perhaps the worst part about this is that we all know where The Dream bit his song-writing style from.

9) Rappers: Grow The Fuck Up, You Lil' Bastards

Five years ago, everybody wanted to be "Big", but then "Big" rappers started dying. So, today, every new rapper wants to be "lil" or "yung", making it very hard to separate the men from the boys. Lil' Blacky!?! Really?!!? What the fuck happened to being a man? Why are all these guys happy with being sonned and put in the same catergory as "Lil Romeo" (who has since - ironically - dropped the 'Lil") and Young MC? With the exception of Lil' Wayne (and some will even argue that), adding the prefix of "lil" or "yung" to your name almost guarantees you for one-hit wonder status.

Beef: Rap Battles Of 2007

Some of these battles were wars of words, some wars of lyrics. The winners are picked based on ultimately who emerged looking victorious, versus who looked like a clown after everything was said and done.

1. 50 Cent Vs. Kanye West: Kanye West

2. Cam’ron Vs. 50 Cent: 50 Cent

3. Kanye West Vs. Beanie Sigel: Kanye West

4. Timbaland Vs. Scott Storch: Timbaland

5. Tru Life Vs. Cam’Ron: Draw

50 Reasons To Live Another Year:

Last year, our list was only about 60% accurate, with 40% of the albums listed never dropping. Those mysterious releases have been included on this list once again, such as Dr. Dre’s Detox, which has actually held the number one spot here for about 5 years now. So, expect about the same percentage results this time around.

1. Dr. Dre - “Detox” (Aftermath)

2. Ghostface / MF Doom - “Swift & Changable” (Nature Sounds)

3. Nas - “N***er” (Def Jam)

4. Raekwon - “Only Built For Cuban Linx 2” (Aftermath)

5. Lil Wayne - “The Carter 3” (Cash Money)

6. The Roots – “Rising Down” (Def Jam)

7. Del - “The 11th Hour” (Definitive Jux / Hieroglyphics)

8. Atmosphere - “When Life Gives You Lemons, You Paint That Shit Gold” (Rhymesayers)

9. T.I. - “Paper Trail” (Atlantic)

10. J-Live - “Then What Happened” (BBE)

11. Papoose – “Papoose - The Nacirema Dream” (?????)

12. The Game - “The D.O.C. (Diary Of Compton)” (Geffen)

13. Skillz - “The Million Dollar Backpack” (Koch)

14. Fat Joe - “The Elephant In The Room (Koch)

15. Rhymefest - “El Che” (J Records)

16. Sa-Ra Creative Partners - “Nuclear Evolution: The Age Of Love” (Ubiquity)

17. 50 Cent - “Before I Self Destruct” (G-Unit)

18. Lupe Fiasco - “L.U.P.End”

19. Busta Rhymes - “Back On My Bullshit” (Aftermath)

20. Kanye West - “A Good Ass Job” (Def Jam)

21. Madlib + MF Doom - Madvillan 2 (Stones Throw)

22. Mos Def - “The Ecstatic” (Downtown Recordings)

23. Stat Quo - “Statlanta” (Shady/Aftermath)

24. J. Dilla - “Jay Love Japan” - ??????

25. KRS-One - “Adventures In Emceein” (Koch)

26. AZ – “Undeniable” (Koch)

27. Foxy Brown - “Brooklyn's Don Diva” (Koch)

28. Kool G. Rap - “Half A Klip” (Koch)

29. Akrobatik - “Absolute Value” (Koch)

30. Ludacris - “Theatre Of The Mind” (Def Jam)

31. Timbaland - “Shock Value II” (Interscope)

32. Saigon - “The Greatest Story Never Told” (?????)

33. Bishop Lamont - “The Reformation” (Aftermath)

34. Royce Da 5'9 - “The Revival” (Babygrande)

35. Andre 3000 Solo LP (LaFace)

36. Big Boi Solo LP (LaFace)

37. Snoop Dogg - “Ego Trippin'” (Geffen)

38. The Cool Kids - “The Bake Sale” (Chocolate Industries)

39. Cesar Comanche - “Die In Your Lap” (Hall Of Justus / ABB)

40. Pete Rock - “NY's Finest” (Nature Sounds)

41. Lil Jon - “Crunk Rock” (TVT)

42. G-Unit – “Shoot To Kill” (G-Unit)

43. Missy Elliot – “The Countdown” (Atlantic)

44. Edgar Allen Floe - "The Streetwise LP" (MCEO Records)

45. Sean Price & Chaundon – “A Tale Of Two Seans” (Duck Down)

46. 9th Wonder & Buckshot – “Chemistry 2” (Duck Down)

47. Rock of Heltah Skeltah – “Shell Shock” (Duck Down)

48. Cee-Lo & Jack Splash “Love Stink” (Counterflow)

49. Gnarls Barkley – Sophomore LP (Downtown Recordings)

50. MF Doom – “Doomposter” (Rhymesayers)

Rest In Peace:

1. Pimp C

2. Big Moe

3. Disco D

4. Stack Bundles

5. DJ Przm

By Nolan Strong

The Staten Island, New York house of an associate of 50 Cent and Tony Yayo was shot up and almost set on fire early Wednesday morning.

According to The New York Post, unknown attackers shot up a house where Barja Walter lives around 4:45 am.

In previous reports, Walter, 32, has been credited as being Tony Yayo's road manager.

The assailants also threw a Molotov cocktail on the lawn, attempting to set the property ablaze, with Walter's girlfriend and three children inside.

Walter's Chevy was also found riddled with bulletholes.

Walter was also questioned in the murder of Busta Rhymes' bodyguard Israel Ramirez, who was murdered in February 2006.

Like Yayo, Walter refused to answer the NYPD's questions surrounding an investigation into the murder of Ramirez.

Walter was also accused of attempting to shoot three police officers in Brooklyn's Armstrong Houses in 2002.

The incident is similar to an April, 2007 incident, in which the Staten Island home of Tony Yayo's mother was riddled with bullets, while people were inside.

Tony Yayo is due in court tomorrow (January 10), to answer allegations that he backhanded the 14-year-old son of rival music executive Jimmy "Henchmen" Rosemond.

Yayo, born Marvin Bernard, has pleaded not guilty to assault and harassment charges, stemming from the March, 2007 incident.

By Chris Richburg

Rapper Beanie Sigel is headed back to federal prison for violating his probation.

The Associated Press reports that Sigel was ordered to serve one day in federal prison and six months in a halfway house, after he was found guilty on Wednesday (Jan. 8) of a second probation violation for taking a trip to Atlantic City, N.J.

U.S. District Judge R. Barclay Surrick also found the rapper (born Dwight Grant) guilty of being in contact with a convicted felon.

As a result, Sigel’s probation, which was originally set to end next month, was extended by 18 months.

The sentence is the latest setback for Sigel, who has been at the center of various legal situations in recent years.

The rapper, who spent a year in federal prison on a gun charge, was later acquitted of attempted murder in September 2005, a month after being released.

Later that same year, he was jailed briefly for failing to pay $27,000 in child support.

In 2006, Sigel continued to stay in the eyes of the law, when he told police he was shot by men who surrounded him and stole his cash and jewelry.

Last year, a federal judge extended Sigel's supervised release amid allegations that he violated parole.

Despite the legal drama, Sigel made an effort to turn things around in December when he joined comedian/actor Bill Cosby to lead an anti-violence march decrying Philadelphia’s rising gun violence.

The rapper also spoke about staying in school and making good life choices at a high school in a southwest Philadelphia neighborhood.

Although his legal situations have painted a negative picture of him, Sigel admitted that he isn’t the person he used to be. "I'm human, but I'm working on my mistakes," he told Surrick.

Nevertheless, Surrick told the rapper that his actions have consequences as he could have sent Sigel away to prison for three to nine months.

"If they're looking at you as a role model, you've got to do the right thing," said Surrick, who recognized Sigel’s positive contributions.

Sigel will also serve six months of his new sentence in a halfway house.

He will be unable to promote his latest album The Solution during this time.

By Brandi Hopper

All's still not well at the Roc.

Last month, South Philly rapper Beanie Siegel talked about the lack of support Roc-A-Fella artists are getting from the label on Angie Martinez's Hot 97 radio show. Yet this time Beans seems to be blaming Jay-Z for the breakdown.

In a recent sit down with G-Unit DJ, Whoo Kid's Sirius Satellite show, Beans alluded to a rift with the hip-hop mogul.

"It's like everybody got their homie, that dude in their squad that's a rotten mother@#*$er but that's your man, so you cover up his faults," Beans said. "I'm a loyal dude. And its not me pointing a finger at certain individuals or anything, see I'm a loyal dude man, [but] not your boys, that sh-t's crazy." [Listen here]

Beans said his last album, The Solution, which came out in December, has gotten no support from the label. About his marketing, promotion, touring, radio play "...man I don't know what the @#*$'s going on."

And according to Beans, label mate Freeway is getting the shaft, too.

"Def Jam sucks!" Whoo Kid proclaimed on the air, after telling beans it's "Camel hunting season."

Beans said he's going to make a personal trip to Def Jam next week to see what the deal is.

"Somebody gon' answer me something," he said. "I'm not confused about what's going on, I'm confused about why it's going on."

Freeway's feeling just as out of the loop. The State Property rapper also chopped it up with Whoo Kid about his grievances with the label.

When Jay-Z resigned as president of Def Jam, Free said Hov didn't even hit him up with the news. Freeway got the memo the way most everybody else did.

"I heard its official, but I got it off the internet though," Free said. Beans didn't get a phone call either. [Listen here]

In the meantime, Beans is taking promotions into his own hands. He's presently working on a mixtape called "True American Gangster."

R&B singer Chris Brown may be one-step closer to his dream of recording with the Michael Jackson, thanks to a recent conversation with Black Eyed Peas’ front man will.I.am, who is executive producing the King of Pop’s new album.

According to Brown, he recently had a conversation with Jackson, who verbally agreed to collaborate with him on a song in the near future.

"Hopefully it will be," Chris Brown told AllHipHop.com in a recent interview. "We are talking but…like I originally talked to will.I.am, because he does some stuff for him. And then when I talked to Mike, he said 'Yeah we’ll do something,' so hopefully we will do that record."

Jackson has enlisted the Black Eyed Peas’ front man to executive produce his upcoming untitled album, which also features contributions from Rodney Jerkins, Teddy Riley and others.

The album is being recorded in Westmeath Ireland, Las Vegas and New York.

Brown, 18, has frequently cited Jackson as an inspiration, noting that he grew up mimicking the 49-year-old singer’s signature dance moves.

The news comes as Jackson is reportedly in the planning phase of a series of performances in the UK that will net him close to $30 million dollars.

Jackson is said to be working with will.I.am and Queens, New York rapper 50 Cent to produce a 10-30 date residency at the O2 Arena.

The concerts will be Jackson’s first produced series of shows in over a decade.

By Roman Wolfe

Producer Dr. Dre and Interscope chairman Jimmy Iovine have teamed with Monster Cable Products to design "Beats by Dr. Dre" high performance headphones.

The headphones, which utilize newly developed driver technology, were conceived by Dr. Dre and mutually designed with Jimmy Iovine and Monster's sound engineers over the past two years.

The high performance "Beats" headphones were designed to accurately replicate various frequencies, including low end bass, while maintaining a natural sound.

"When I’m making a track I’m trying to capture the sound that makes me go 'now that’s the s**t!' And I want that reaction from everybody who hears it," Dr. Dre said in a statement. "I spend a lot of time in the studio listening to my music through headphones…with 'Beats,' people are finally going to hear it the way they should: the way I do."

The "Beats by Dr. Dre" headphones is the first product that Dr. Dre has ever officially endorsed.

Jimmy Iovine, who is currently Chairman of Interscope Geffen A&M Records, started as a recording studio engineer before going on to produce music for Patti Smith, Tommy Petty & The Heartbreakers, The Pretenders, U2 and others.

He established Interscope Records in 1990 and has distributed record labels owned by Dr. Dre (Aftermath, Interscope), since 1992.

"Dre and I have been developing these headphones for a while and in Monster we found a partner that could work with us to crystallize his vision and develop them to the quality level he expects," said Iovine, Chairman of Interscope Geffen A&M Records.

"'Beats by Dr. Dre’ is yet another example of Interscope’s commitment to working together with its artists in developing new avenues to experience music."

The "Beats by Dr. Dre" headphones will hit stores this spring with a retail price of $399.99 dollars.

Atlanta rap star T.I. and his girlfriend and former Xscape group member Tameka "Tiny" Cottle are expecting their second child together, AllHipHop.com has confirmed.

The child is the second the couple have together and the fifth for the 27-year-old rapper, who is currently under house arrest, while awaiting trial on federal gun charges.

Cottle, 32, was present when T.I., born Clifford Harris Jr., was arrested in October of 2007 for allegedly attempting to purchase three machine guns and two silencers.

Reports of Cottle’s pregnancy began to surface shortly after she was arrested for possession of marijuana and ecstasy during the raid on an Atlanta parking lot the resulted in T.I.’s arrest.

Cottle joined Xscape in 1992 and the group was later signed to Jermaine Dupri’s So So Def label, where they released three platinum albums and hit singles like "Understanding," "All I Need," "Am I Dreaming" and others.

She also earned a Grammy Award for co-writing TLC’s hit single "Scrubs" in 1999. In January of 2007, the pair confirmed that Cottle was expecting a child, but tragedy struck the couple in March, when she suffered a miscarriage six months into her pregnancy.

From AllHipHop.com

According to a release from All Hip Hop.com, 41 year old Christopher “Play” Martin from legendary rap group Kid-N-Play was released after being seriously injured in a car accident that killed one person in Durham, North Carolina. He along with another female passenger was struck by a driver trying to flee police after a home invasion on December 29th. The driver, wounded, drove a half a mile before striking the SUV driven by Play. Play was formally apart of the 80’s group Kid-N-Play. After the separation of the group, he became a born-again Christian and went on to found two entertainment companies and is currently a teacher at North Carolina Central University. Get well greetings can be sent to him at hp4digitalworks@yahoo.com.

Rapper and Cash Money Record’s CEO Birdman is facing a federal lawsuit. According to the Associated Press, he is accused of sampling artist’s songs without paying licensing fees. He along with other rappers including Lil Wayne and Big Tymers are claimed to have albums that contain copyrighted materials without licensing agreements or paying royalties. There has only been one payment of $400,000 but there have not been any other accounting measures to show what is owed. When tried to serve the company with the lawsuit on Dec 3rd, it was found that the New Orleans suburb office was vacant. Birdman has reportedly fled to Miami. His publicist has not seen the suit as of Jan 3rd. The companies that are named as plaintiffs are: WB Music Corp., Warner-Tamerlane Publishing Corp., Cotillion Music Inc., Noontime Tunes and W.B.M. Music Corp. Warner-Chappell Music, a division of Warner Music Group, is the plaintiffs' parent company.

Beyonce Knowles won her copyright infringement lawsuit against the songwriter who claimed that her song was used without permission to make “Baby Boy”. According to a article put out by marketwire.com and Music World Entertainment, Jennifer Armour claimed her agent sent in a track to Matthew Knowles in March 2003 and parts of her song ended up included in the track recorded by Beyonce. A judge ruled that there was no evidence because neither Music World Entertainment nor Beyonce had a copy of the said track. After a second appeal, it was found that “Baby Boy” was recorded before Armour submitted her song and there were no comparisons between the two. A statement was released that the decision was dismissed as of Jan 2, 2008. Beyonce says she is pleased that the case has come to an end and that she is “hopeful this decision will allow all of us that were involved to finally move on.”