Ever since The Carter documentary was shown at this year’s Sundance Film Festival to great reviews, and ever since Lil’ Wayne’s camp tried to sue QD3 Entertainment claiming the film painted Weezy in a negative light (Meaning they showed a lotta drug use), I’ve been interested in watching this film. Seeing that it was just released released on DVD last Tuesday, you can figure how Tha The Carter documentary was a good choice for Friday Night ‘Fro. Enjoy. (Sidenote: I would have more commentary on the actual film, but have yet to watch it in full).

Here’s the official version of Weezy’s No Ceilings mixtape. If you already got the one we put up earlier this week, this one has higher sound quality as well as four new tracks (Plus official artwork if you like to keep your iPod clean like me). Tracklisting, artwork, & download link below. Props to the homie BDK over at Tha Carter Cartel for the links!

1. Swag Surf

2. Ice Cream

3. D.O.A.

4. Gudda Gudda Skit

5. Wasted

6. Watch My Shoes

7. Break Up (feat. Short Dawg & Gudda Gudda)

8. Banned From TV

9. Throw It In The Bag (remix)

10. I Think I Love Her (feat. Tyga & Shanell)

11. Shanell Skit

12. Wayne On Me

13. I’m Good f. T-Streets

14. Poke Her Face (feat. Jae Millz)

15. Run This Town

16. I Got No Ceilings

17. Skit End

18. No Ceilings (feat. Birdman)

19. Oh Let’s Do It

20. Single

21. Sweet Dreams (feat. Nicki Minaj)

Download: Lil’ Wayne – No Ceilings [Official Mixtape]

Lil’ Wayne’s highly anticipated No Ceilings mixtape leaks days earlier than the expected date (Oct. 31st). It’s really not a surprise since all of Weezy’s music get leaked early. The official version should still drop on Halloween so for now no official artwork and no DJ (That last one may not be such a bad thing). We’ll update the post when the official does drop. Tracklist below…

1. Swag Surfin’
2. Ice Cream Paint Job
3. D.O.A.
4. Interlude
5. Wasted
6. Watch My Shoes
7. Break Up (feat. Short Dawg & Gudda Gudda)
8. Banned From TV
9. Throw It In The Bag (Remix)
10. I Think I Love Her (feat. Tyga & Shanell)
11. Interlude #2 (feat. Shanell)
12. Wetter
13. I’m Good (feat. T-Streets)
14. Poke Her Face (feat. Jae Millz)
15. Run This Town
16. I Gotta Feeling
17. Outro

Download: Lil’ Wayne – No Ceiling [Mixtape]

I honestly don’t do iPod Hustle this frequently. But we kinda got some open space while we getting some reviews ready (Plus, this one is gonna be a quick one). In this edition we got Timbaland featuring Jigga & Miss Keri Baby, Gucci Mane jumps on 50’s remix, and Weezy gives us a glimpse of his No Ceilings mixtape. By now you know you should have you iPod set to Hustle right? Well…

Download: Timbaland feat. Keri Hilson & Jay-Z – “Rumors”
Don’t get too excited Jigga stans fans, it’s mostly a Keri Hilson R&B track featuring Jay-Z (A quick verse too). That’s not a bad thing but it’s what you’d expect from Timbo and Keri at this point. It’s supposedly gonna be on Tim’s Shock Value 2. Sidenote: Miley Cyrus is gonna on Shock Value 2?

Download: 50 Cent feat. Gucci Mane – “Crime Wave (remix)”
The beat on this one goes hard and the original version of “Crime Wave” quickly made it to my iPod (Check out the music video here). And then 50 had to add Gucci Mane to the remix. I honestly don’t have a problem with Gucci but let’s be real; What does his add to the track? Sidenote: What’s the name of the sample used on “Crime Wave”? The same one was used on Jay-Z’s “Public Service Announcement (9th Wonder Remix)” and on Fabolous’ “This Is Family”. Update: Okay, Gucci’s verse wasn’t that bad.

Download: Lil’ Wayne – “Wasted” & “Swag Surfin’”
Of course the big news in Hip-Hop at the moment is Weezy pleading guilty to gun charges in New York and possibly getting a year in prison (NY don’t play about guns. Word to Plaxico & Shyne!). This track are from his soon to be released mixtape No Ceilings (Which is suppose to contain no Auto-Tune or features and drops Oct. 31st). By now by the titles I’m sure you guess what instrumentals he goes over but if this is a return to the Dedication 1-2/Squad Up days…I don’t know if this is that. Either way, shout out the Lil’ Wayne. I’m sure we’ll have enough music to hold us over for 10 years (If need be).

This weeks edition of Song of the Week is dedicated to Bryan “Baby, Birdman, Stunna” Williams. This coming off of his recent comments about Jay-Z being #1 on MTV’s Hottest list. Lists sure do make for ALOT of blog material. Now I can understand you going to bat for your team…but let’s be real Birdman, Weezy isn’t on Jay’s radar moneywise. You might be, but not your son. Back to the music. I know Birdman isn’t going to make anyone’s list of Top MC’s, but you can’t kid yourself and say Baby didn’t lay a gem down on this one. I know some of you “purists” out there are going to turn your nose up to this one, but this song still goes hard to this very day. As always, this is King Jerm reminding you to help control the pet population by having you pet spayed or neutered…WRONG SHOW! Enjoy this installment of Song of the Week!

Download: Big Tymers – “#1 Stunna”

Fat Joe is a Hip-Hop pioneer in his own right, having put YEARS in the game, rapping with some of the illest MC’s out (D.I.T.C), and he had a couple of protégés under his wing (Big Pun, Remy Ma). But times have changed and so has his crew. Long gone are the days of Pun, Remy is doing a bid, and Joe has been in a public skirmish with 50 Cent years. Joe has not given his fans that “personal” album that they have been waiting on. This is the year of sequels (Blueprint and OB4CL2); will Fat Joe’s be considered on that list of “New Classics”? Let us find out!

Winding On Me
Featuring Lil’ Wayne & Ron Browz; Produced by Ron Browz
Fat Joe didn’t take long going after the younger club crowd with this one. This shouldn’t be a surprise considering this is the same guy that brought you “Lean Back” and “We Thuggin’”. I know people give Ron Browz a hard time, but I kind of like this song, maybe the Wayne feature helped. This beat sounds similar to “Pop Champagne” but the club crowd will still eat it up.

Joey Don’t Do It
Produced by DJ Infamous
The production on this song is SICK! I’m pretty sure this is a sample from some Doors Hendrix song, (guessing) but DJ Infamous did his thing on the track. I can’t sit here and act like Joe didn’t do the production any justice, he did, just wish the song would have been longer than 2 minutes.

One
Featuring Akon; Produced by The Inkredibles
It seems to me that every song Akon is featured on sounds the same. This is Fat Joe’s ode to keeping it real with ONE woman. I can dig it; I just don’t like Akon on the track. WHY? They could have gotten a legitimate R&B singer to do what he did on the song.

Aloha
Featuring Rico Love & Pleasure P; Produced by Rico Love
I guess Joe is keeping up with the ladies with the last two tracks. On this track it sounds like Joe is endorsing TRICKING. I really don’t like the featured artists on the song, they could have been left out, and maybe been replaced with Ne-Yo.

Put You In The Game
Featuring T-Pain & OZ; Produced by Schife, G-Boi, & Joe Boom
Three straight songs aimed at the females? This one is executed better than the previous songs with T-Pain on the track. What stands out to me is the production. The bass will have the sound systems working overtime. I can see know this will be a favorite by the females.

Congratulations
Featuring Rico Love & T.A; Produced by Eric Hudson
I like the feel on this song, but this might not be a crowd favorite. This production is simple, but sometimes simplicity makes good songs. The hook is on some “Empire State of Mind” or some Kanye influenced music. Whatever you want to call it…I’m feeling it.

Porn Star
Featuring Lil’ Kim; Produced by Jim Jonsin
Only two people could have done this song, Trina or Lil’ Kim. They have the latter on the track. Joe breaks out the Auto-Tune for this one, and to keep it 100 with you, I don’t want to visualize Joe doing the dirty. I’m not sure about this one; I can’t give it a co-sign.

Cupcake
Featuring Benisour; Produced by Schife
Now Joe is going back to his Young Jeezy roots. I know this is what is hot in the streets right now, but certain things Joe is too old for. This is one of them topics. I don’t want to hear 40 year old rappers talking about moving work. Leave that to the new cats out there, you better than this Joe.

Ice Cream
Featuring Raekwon & T.A; Produced by T-Weed
This is the song I have been waiting for from Joe. The production on this one is Johnnie Walker Black SMOOTH. Once again Joe’s subject matter is going at the females, which is okay, but the production makes up for the questionable subject matter. Raekwon doesn’t sound too enthused about rapping on the track, but maybe that is the way he sounds.

Okay Okay
Produced by Andrews “Drew” Correa
Joe has gotten some good production on this album, and he didn’t waste the opportunity to make decent songs. The only problem I have with this one is the hook. Joe could have done much more considering the subject matter and the production. The song is still FIRE though.

Blackout
Featuring Swizz Beatz & Rob Cash; Produced by J Buttah
It’s kind of funny seeing Swizz featured and not behind the boards on a song. This time Swizz does his best to get the crowd amped on this one. The beat will have all the girls off the dance floor, and nothing but the LIVE NIGGAS will be left standing. Joe definitely mixed some South and North on this one. DOPE.

Music”
Featuring Cherlise; Produced by DJ Infamous & Slick
FINALLY, Joe gives a song that lets us into his life. Joe doesn’t understand that he is a likable guy that his fans really don’t know him. Joe drops some gems on this one, “They say Joe too selfish, he won’t let us in the door/I say, Shit, I could’ve left Pun in front of that store/Could’ve left Remy Ma ass in Castle Hill/Where every other day another nigga get killed?/They say, What’s Cool without Dre?/I say, Shit what if them niggas never met Jose?/LV was a great DJ/Now he produced “Roc Boys”, headed for a Grammy/What if I would’ve told Khaled to stop buggin’ me??He’d probably never be president of that company/Shit, you probably would have never heard the movement/I ain’t gotta talk, I ain’t gotta prove shit/Scott Storch was the best, they kept sleepin’ on him/’Cause he’s a white boy, he kept ghostbeatin’ for ‘em/Dropped “Lean Back”, and that shit hit/And guess what? I made the nigga rich, cocksuckers.”

Bottom Line:
Joe still didn’t give us THAT album that we wanted, but don’t let that sound like this album is a failure. I don’t know what album Curly was listening to, but this one is ABOVE AVERAGE. Joe did go at the ladies on a third of the album, but seeing what his recent successes with the singles have been, I can’t fault that at all. I really don’t believe he had any major slip ups, just some questionable features, but the songs I felt weren’t the strongest were some of the songs aimed at the ladies. All in all, Joe can be happy with this release, and with the right timing with the singles, he may come home with a Gold plaque.

nappyPicks: “Winding On Me”, “Joey Don’t Do It”, “Congratulations”, “Blackout”, “Music”

Download: Fat Joe feat. Cherlise – “Music”

Download: Fat Joe – “Hey Joe” (”Joey Don’t Do It” Original Version)

1. Jay-Z
2. Lil’ Wayne
3. Drake
4. Kanye West
5. Rick Ross
6. Gucci Mane
7. Young Jeezy
8. Fabolous
9. 50 Cent
10. Raekwon

1. Jay-Z

2. Lil’ Wayne

3. Drake

4. Kanye West

5. Rick Ross

6. Gucci Mane

7. Young Jeezy

8. Fabolous

9. 50 Cent

10. Raekwon

Turbulence
The first song off the album has me intrigued to really see what they have in store for the listeners on the rest of the album. Turbulence goes back to the title and it really kicks this album off.

Look What I Got
Featuring Korleone
First off, I love the production on this song along with the chopped and screwed hook. This is a perfect song for them boys that like to stunt. This was on one of Ludacris’ earlier mixtapes (The Preview), I liked it then and I still like it now. DOPE.

Stupid
Featuring OJ Da Juiceman; Produced by Hurt
I’m known for burying OJ, but I think this track would have been better with Gucci, but since his “protégé” is on this song, I’ll go easy. One good thing is that OJ doesn’t overdo it with the “Aye” and his rhymes sound like something I heard before from him, but this isn’t about him, or maybe it is. I like the production and I can see myself getting “stupid” to this when it comes on in the club, or I’m beating it out in the Chevy.

Welcome Aboard
Skit.

Hold Up
This might be my favorite so far off the album. The song could have used an assist from the late, great Pimp C (RIP), but even without his vocals on the track, the song still goes HARD. The production is slow, simple, and it fits well within the Playaz Circle. DOPENESS!

Yeah We Gettin’ Rich
Featuring Ludacris
The production on this track sounds like a 2002 DipSet track, but this one features three rappers from the South. While Titty Boi and Dolla come out the gate swinging, the Ludameister showed why he is one of those emcees that you might not want to get on a track with.

Can’t Remember
Featuring Bobby Valentino
This is your Hip-Hop/R&B track that has become a standard in the industry. Don’t think that PC went soft on this one. The beat is smooth, and the lyrics are okay, but this just doesn’t do it for me. Not a SKIP, just a question mark for me.

Big Dawg
Featuring Lil’ Wayne; Produced by Wonder
The reunion is back on this track. Weezy returns to lend his vocals on the track (similar to what he did on “Duffle Bag Boy”) and I can’t even front…I like this song. I wonder why Weezy didn’t drop a verse on the song. He used auto tune on the hook (are you surprised?) but it worked well on the track. The production on this one is sick. Shout out to the Wonder for this one.

Quit Flossin
Featuring The Casey Boys of Jagged Edge
This Hip-Hop/R&B track works better for me than the Valentino collab did. I like the hook better than I did the earlier track, but I don’t want to hear “trappers” getting all soft. Again, not a SKIP for me, but another question mark.

Refreshments
Another intro keeping up with the album’s title.

Big Wheel Whippin
This song features a T-Pain knockoff, but he’s just doing the hook. The production on this one is pretty good, and the lyrics are decent, just seems like they are getting on the redundant side. This beat on this one makes up for the average content.

Weight Droppin
Featuring Raekwon; Produced by Wonder
The last time Rae teamed up with an Atlanta duo we got “Royal Flush” and “Skew it on the Bar-B”. This time he kept simple and ended up working well with the Playaz Circle. Once again the production by Wonder stands out to me.

DJ Know Me
Featuring Young Dro
Young Dro? These are the songs that I like to hear from Playaz Circle, they are making songs for their audience; the trap, the club, and the hood superstars. Some artists need to stop trying to appeal to everyone and just attack the target audience. Young Dro reminded us why everybody loves Dro. “Buying my whole click cars like we on the Oprah show!” Even when I had almost wrote him off, he goes and does this.

Ghetto
Featuring Cee-Lo & Sunni Patterson; Produced by LT Moe
Okay, this is my favorite song off the album. HANDS DOWN. Cee-Lo does it for me on this track. The song is just too smooth for me to ignore it. This is a song makes you think of all the wrongs of our society, and when I say “our” I’m referring to the hoods all across the world. FIRE!

Prepare for Landing
The flight is over.

Outta Here
Produced by The Royalty
The last song on the album and Playaz Circle gives you some of the same that they gave you on previous songs. Nothing new to report here…TIME TO GO TO BAGGAGE CLAIM.

Bottom Line:
Playaz Circle came back strong with their second album. I have to think this is a victory for the duo considering the lack of buzz surrounding this project. The collabos on this album all work well with the duo and they seemed to fit together fluidly. They stuck to their guns and did what they knew how to do: make music for the A and the South. I know this album didn’t have the national spotlight like the last one, but for the ones that do get this, they will be satisfied. I would be interested in seeing the guys on more projects in the future, because I like the chemistry that Titty Boi and Dolla have together. (PAUSE)

nappyPicks: “Look What I Got”, “Stupid”, “Hold Up”, “Big Dawg”, “DJ Know Me”, “Ghetto”

Download: Playaz Circle feat. Cee-Lo & Sunni Patterson – “Ghetto”

More Than A Game tells the story of now NBA superstar LeBron James and his fellow teammates during their high school years at St. Vincent-St. Mary High School in Akron, Ohio. It follows the team’s journey of trials and tribulations to the eventual success of a high school basketball national title in 2003. With every documentary that depicts the story on film, there’s an equal telling of that story through music. 8 Mile had it with Music From And Inspired By The Motion Picture 8 Mile, Get Rich Or Die Tryin’ had it with Music From And Inspired By The Motion Picture Get Rich Or Die Tryin’, so it would only make since for a film as strong as More Than A Game to have one. The purpose of a film’s soundtrack should be to present the essential elements of the film and essential tell the story of the film without watching the actual movie. The soundtrack should make the listener feel as though they have seen and experienced the movie through listening. Both soundtracks to 8 Mile and Get Rich Or Die Tryin’ do a great job of this (the former more than the latter) and if listeners are hesitant to seeing More Than A Game with the fear of it being more Crossover and Like Mike and less The Basketball Diaries and Hoop Dreams, hopefully listening to this soundtrack will sway their decision.

1. Drop It Low
Ester Dean featuring Chris Brown; Produced by Polow Da Don
As the first track you hear on the album, you immediately get a bad feeling about listening to the rest. From the title of the song you could already get a feeling as to what this song is about and how it would sound. Featuring typical production from Polow Da Don, Ester Dean sings about dropping her booty low (original huh??) and a return of Chris Brown to the music scene after his incident with Rihanna. Given the story of the movie and how it looks to be, I don’t really see at all how this song relates or got included other than a commercial single for the young crowd to dance to.

2. Forever
Drake featuring Kanye West, Lil Wayne & Eminem; Produced by Boi-1da
A song that everybody should be well familiar with by now as it’s an official single for the album with an accompanying music video released last week. Boi-1da continues with his current streak in providing some bouncy production for all four emcees to deliver everything from average to stellar verses on. While Drake, Wayne, Ye drop good verses, the show is obviously stolen by Mr. Mathers who obliterates his verse with fantastic wordplay, precise delivery, and even flow switching to top it off. This was a quality selection to be included on this album.

3. King On Set
T.I. featuring Young Dro; Produced by The Smash Factory
A song from the self-proclaimed King of the South before his current jail stint that features fellow Grand Hustle member Young Dro dropping rhymes atop production from The Smash Factory that fit well the aforementioned rappers. A song that sounds like it could have fit on T.I.’s King album, features T.I. donning his fast flow while Dro take his time in defining the word “king” and how it applies to him. This track obviously fits LeBron more in present times with his “King James” moniker more than it did during his high school days.

4. Stronger
Mary J. Blige; Produced by Polow Da Don & Hit Boy
This time around Polow Da Don delivers much more meaningful production along with Hit Boy as they supply a beat for Mary J. Blige to deliver in classic MJB style. As one of the album’s official singles, this song perfectly fits with the theme of the movie of individuals standing together as one to over come struggles and hardships. This song truly gives you the feeling of the movie without having seen the preview beforehand.

5. History
Jay-Z; Produced by Kanye West & Kenoe
This song was previously released back in November ’08 around the time of Barack Obama’s election as President of the United States in which Jay-Z performed at the President’s Inaugural Ball. In regards to that event this song fittingly serves as Jay cleverly refers to “history” as his child after searching and finding his wife “victory”. Kanye and Kenoe provide a historic sounding backdrop for Jay to deliver inspirational verses on a song that fits well with the historic legacy left by LeBron and his teammates at SMSV.

6. Top Of The World
Rich Boy featuring Chili Chil; Produced by Rich Boy
After a few inspirational tracks, Rich Boy brings the energy back to the album with this self-produced track. Rich Boy’s beat is the trademark hard thumping southern production that suits him so well, as he delivers lyrics letting listeners know why he’s one of the young rappers in the game moving towards the top and why his gold selling debut album Rich Boy was no fluke. Chili Chil provides the hook on this track that makes the song complete and gives you a feeling of the fight and push within Lebron and his teammates during their quest of a national title.

7. I’m Ballin’
Soulja Boy Tell ‘Em; Produced by Hamsquad
Upon reading the song title and featured artist you should already know what to expect from this track. With production from Hamsquad that fits Soulja Boy Tell ‘Em’s typical style, he proceeds to drop lyrics concerning his economic status as the song title implies. Nothing really special with this track other than the fact that Soulja Boy and Gucci Mane are starting to sound like the same person on tracks with the identical flow/style, subpar lyrics, and limited content matter. Once again other than commercial purposes, I don’t really see why this track was included on this soundtrack, and it’s status serves more towards LeBron in his current status more than how he was during his high school days before endorsements and contracts.

8. We Ready
Ya Boy; Produced by Harvey Mason, Jr.
After the previous lacking track, this track brings things back up for the soundtrack featuring Ya Boy dropping lyrics in regards to being ready for the challenge and task at hand, which for LeBron and his teammates was obviously winning the national title. The production from Harvey Mason, Jr., who executive produces the soundtrack and produced the film, is done in fitting battlefield style that connects well with the song’s topic and the lyrics delivered.

9. Go Hard
Hayes; Produced by Jerome Harmon
Continuing with the theme of persistence and determination, Hayes delivers a track in motivational style about pushing on and not stopping when met with opposition. The track’s production from Jerome Harmon, who also contributed to “Venus vs. Mars” on Jay-Z’s The Blueprint 3, is a synth filled, organ driven beat that pushes and supplements Hayes’ lyrics and subject matter to a higher level.

10. Frozen
Jared Evans; Produced by Jared Evans
This track features artist Jared Evans both behind the mic and behind the boards as he delivers lyrics over subtle production about being stuck or “frozen” in a place of misfortune and adversity while trying to make it through. The track connects on a level with the movie and how the team must have felt when things just weren’t going as they expected or wanted them to.

11. If You Dream
Tank featuring Tyrese, Toni Braxton, Jordin Sparks, Omarion, Faith Evans, JoJo, Charlie Wilson, Tamar Braxton & Steve Russell; Produced by Harvey Mason, Jr., Durrell ‘Tank’ Babbs & J. Valentine
A truly inspirational song in terms of song topic/title, lyrics, and production, featuring an all-star casts of R&B/Soul artists to bring the album to a close. The piano driven production on this song perfectly match the topic of never quitting and giving up on your dreams to accomplish your goals in the end. This song is probably the best match on the album in terms of capturing the movie’s story and plot in a single song, and it does a great job in delivering that aspect. This song alone should make any listener eager to go see More Than A Game in theaters.

Bottom Line:
In terms of doing what a soundtrack is supposed to do in complimenting the film, Music Inspired By More Than A Game does that efficiently. While there were a couple tracks (“Drop It Low”, “I’m Ballin’”) that felt out of place and didn’t really relate to the film’s story, a good number (“If You Dream”, “Stronger”, “History”) of them conveyed that story with great results. Listening to this album gives you a feel and understanding of the trials and tribulations that LeBron and his teammates had to deal with on their way to the top in being the best high school basketball team in the nation in 2003. Those that continually hate on LeBron James as an accomplished NBA basketball player can truly see the passion, hard work, and dedication to the thing he loved most in the game of basketball and hopefully get a better understanding of everything that he overcame in the process to becoming one of the best rising stars in NBA history from his high school journey. The often sports related quote “there’s no I in team” is best exemplified with the More Than A Game documentary as it shows as a team they could take on the world and accomplish that which couldn’t be achieved individually. How basketball movies like Hoop Dreams, Sunset Park, Coach Carter, and The Heart Of The Game served as inspiration for those with dreams of one day making it to a career the NBA, More Than A Game continues that tradition for kids all over with posters of LeBron, Kobe, and Wade over their walls. Get to theaters and see More Than A Game as well as picking up this soundtrack even if your aspirations lay elsewhere other than basketball. This is a documentary and soundtrack that provides inspiration and motivation to dreams of all kinds.

nappyPicks: “Forever”, “Stronger”, “History”, “Top Of The World”, “If You Dream”, “Go Hard”, “King On Set”, “Frozen”

Download: Tank feat. Tyrese, Toni Braxton, Jordin Sparks, Omarion, Faith Evans, JoJo, Charlie Wilson, Tamar Braxton, & Steve Russell – “If You Dream”

The music video to the biggest song of the year has been released. And even though I don’t think music videos don’t hold the same weight as they did back in the day, this is still a good look (I mean they could have just put in LeBron highlights from high school and called it a day). My favorite part: Slaughterhouse standing behind Eminem (Of course).