The Wu & J. Cole Cover The Source...

...for their annual "Green Issue" which drops March 23rd. Being a Wu-Tang fan, I think it goes without saying that I'm looking forward to the release of Wu-Massacre. Then there's the Roc Nation's golden child, J. Cole. I know I've said it before but the more I hear from Mr. Cole, the more excited I get about his debut album. Anywho, here's the latest from the Ville's very own...

J. Cole - Who's World Is This

This is off of that wacktacular XXL Freshman '10 mixtape.

J. Cole - Knock On Wood Freestyle

Mr. Cole goes in over Common's "Go".

Young Chris - Still The Hottest ft. J. Cole

This is off of Chris’ upcoming mixtape, The Network 2. "Get back to rap you niggas Twitter too much" (c) J. Cole

The 10 Freshmen of 2010 Cover XXL...

...for the April 2010 issue.

If you remember, last year XXL completely dropped the ball by excluding both Nicki Minaj and Drake off of their highly debated list of emerging emcees. So this year they asked both of the Young Money members to join the "Freshmen Class of 2010" and if you haven't noticed by looking at the cover above, they declined. I'm not sure who thought it would be a good idea to even ask them to appear on this list after snubbing them last year...probably the same person who was too slow to put them on it the first time around.

I think XXL shot themselves in the foot with this whole "10 Freshman" thing to begin with. By giving the Freshman class a specific number they've put themselves in a position where they have to try and fill 10 spots every year. As result, people like OJ Da Juiceman make the cut....



Yep, you heard it correctly. He just rhymed "basketball player" with "basketball player". Smfh....chances are that shit was ghostwritten.

Anywho, they should just call it "The Freshmen Class of (Whatever Year)" without including a specific number of artist. That way they can only include artists that are truly worthy of being featured, whether it's 3 or 10.

Head over to XXL to read about these up and coming artists, who with the exception of J. Cole, Nipsey Hu$$le and Big Sean probably won't be around this time next year.

Drake Covers Complex...

...for the February/March issue. *Late Pass* I know this was posted on other sites a few weeks ago, but once I moved back into my place I discovered that the water from the flood damaged my phone/DSL connection...so once again I was without internet access for all of last week. Anywho I'm posting this because I wanted to comment on an excerpt from Drake's interview and more importantly I wanted to post this track...

Bonus:
Drake - My New Shit ft.Von Pea (of Tanya Morgan) & Phonte

That Lil' Wayne/Young Money stuff is cool but this is the type of Drake shit that I love. I just want to point out the fact that this guy's ability to mesh well with everyone from Lil' Wayne to Phonte is amazing.

See video of the cover shoot in Atlanta and read what Drake had to say about fellow up and coming rappers J. Cole, Wale and KiD CuDi after the jump.

Excerpt From Complex Interview...
Interviewer: Around the time that Kanye directed “Best I Ever Had,” it seemed like there was strife between your camp and Cudi’s camp because Kanye was so enamored of you while Cudi’s project was being worked on.

Drake: I wasn’t aware of that. Even so, I could understand. If Wayne were to be enamored—which is a great word—of another young artist, I would be like, “Damn, I’m here too!” But at the same time, it happens in more than one situation. It happens with ‘Ye, and I have a great relationship with Jay, and Jay’s got Wale and J. Cole, who’s one of my favorite dudes rapping right now. I’ve happened to have had more success. I made the most money, I have number-one records, those guys don’t have that shit. And it’s just facts, it’s not even my feelings or that I feel I’m more talented. That’s what the game is about, making great music that earns profit. When it comes to my relationship with the new dudes, I’m just excited for them. I get to sit back in a cool position and be like, “Yo, I’m excited to see you do it now because I know what it’s like, it’s gonna be so much fun for you…”

Interviewer: You feel like you’re at the finish line?

Drake: I’m at the starting line. Those guys are at home, putting on their tracksuits, getting ready to make their attack. When J. Cole gets it super-right, I think he’s gonna have a place as a Nas-type character who really stands for hip-hop, but still makes ill records that everybody fucks with.

*sigh* I already know that the part of his comment that's underlined is going to rub people the wrong way. Look I'm a fan of Wale, J. Cole and Drake...and I'm anticipating hearing J. Cole's debut album just as much as Drake's (if not more). I've never heard Drake come off as arrogant in an interview, but this could be easily seen as that. I don't think there's any denying the fact that Drake's the most successful out of the three at this point. Hell, the guy was been nominated for a Grammy....for a mixtape song. But like they say, it's not what you say, it's how you say it and I think he could've said that differently.

Also, I don't understand what he means by "when J. Cole gets it super right". Correct me if I'm wrong but J. Cole has released two well received mixtapes and he has more of a buzz than Drake had when he released Comeback Season (Drake's 2nd mixtape).....so what does he need to do to "get it super right"? Start singing in autotune?

Head over to Complex to read the rest of the interview.

Behind The Scenes of Drake's Cover Shoot...

Alicia Keys Covers GIANT Magazine...

...for their winter preview special double issue (whatever the hell that is). Hit the jump to watch her interview with Smokey D. Fontaine of GIANT Magazine. Is it me or does his name sound like it's straight out of a blaxploitation film? Anywho, there's also a few wack ass pics in which she's fully clothed after the jump as well.

Btw I'm tired of these boring ass photo shoots with these chicks just laying around on some random couch looking all sleepy and like borderline ratards (<--no, it's not misspelled go watch The Hangover). These photographers need to turn shit up a notch, be a bit more creative. Hell, I don't know...next time try having Ms. Keys wrestle a giant bottle of canola oil (with the top off) on top of a piano while she's wearing that purple catsuit from her "Try Sleeping With A Broken Heart" video.

Okay, that may be a little extreme and unrealistic....who has canola oil readily available at a photoshoot? What about olive oil? Okay, baby oil perhaps? *sigh* I just wanna see her covered in oil...any type will do.


Random blogger/internet nerd comment: The embed code for this video has to be the longest I've ever seen in my life.

Chris Brown & Drake Cover VIBE...

...for its December relaunch issue. I'm not sure if you remember, cared or even noticed but VIBE gave the axe to it's magazine back in June. Well I guess they figure they'll have better luck the second time around....hey, only time will tell (I give it another year before it folds again).

Anywho to celebrate the return of VIBE magazine I'd like to dedicate the following song...

Shalamar - The Second Time Around

Bonus:
Chris Brown - Famous Girl
"Drake would say you're the best he ever had"....if you're wonderin' who or what he's talkin' about click here.

50 Cent Covers XXL...

...for the special year-end double Dec/Jan issue. In the cover story 50 talks about his new album Before I Self Destruct, his site thisis50.com, his role in hip-hop and how he's doing everything under the sun to keep his name in everybody's mouth.

I have to give it to 50, between the Fat Joe, Rick Ross/Triple C jokes and now his encouragement of Beanie Sigel's temper tantrum, he's managed to keep himself in the spotlight. All of this despite the fact that his music has failed to live up to the expectations of critics and most of his fans. Well it appears as though 50's latest target is Jay-Z. He's been sending shots at Jay for a while, but in his most recent tirade at the end of Beanie's latest track he goes all in callin' Jay out...

Beanie Sigel - I Go Off Ft. 50 Cent

“Yeah, you changed, man. You let the money change you, Jay. You used to be from Marcy n—a, now you’se a pass the Grey Poupon ass n—a. You don’t want the shooters? I’ll take them. N—a, you feed the wolves or the wolves feed off you. Eat yo’ ass alive. I’m here by Comrade's Creed. Strategy. Your move, mister.” - 50 Cent

...good luck with that 50. As much as I would love for Jay to respond...I have a feeling that he's not even considering it. At this point, Jay has nothing to gain and definitely nothing to prove by beefing with any artist, including you. But when asked whether or not he's looking forward to Jay responding, he had this to say...

Bonus:

50 Cent - Okay You're Right

This is still my shit. Shout out to Dejuan and his Sirius subscription.

50 Cent - Strong Enough
This is off of BISD...I fux wit it. That is all.

Def Jam Covers XXL...

...for their upcoming November Issue which celebrates Def Jam's 25th Anniversary. I guess I'll let XXL tell you all about the issue:

"XXL’s new issue will include memorable tales from the MCs about the famed label, along with a complete discography of Def Jam releases and a comprehensive timeline of the brand’s biggest moments. Behind the scenes masterminds, Russell Simmons, Lyor Cohen and Kevin Liles sit for the first time to share their memories and Rick Rubin also takes a look back at the legacy of Def Jam."

Um that cover's cool and all, but where's Russell Simmons, Rick Rubin, Lyor Cohen, Kevin Liles, Public Enemy, The Beastie Boys, Slick Rick, LL Cool J, Jay-Z, Ja-Rule, DMX & Ludacris? I know that some, okay damn near all (I think) of these people are no longer on/affiliated with Def Jam but I'll be damn if they didn't play extremely critical roles in the history of Def Jam.

Somewhere there's a ball...that was dropped...by XXL.

Anywho, hit the jump to see what I think is one of the dopest Def Jam posse cuts ever...



*sigh* Man this was like the hip-hop golden age. Method Man, Redman, DMX and LL all on one track just going in. Of course the one above is the revised version, the one where LL took Percy and Canibus off, leaving only Def Jam artists.

Smh at the fact Canibus changed his verse because L got offended, only for L to go and re-write his verse answering Canibus' old verse. Then L turned around and released the video with Canibus' new verse (w/o the "diss") and put his new verse (with the answer to the "diss") in it. Then to add insult to jury, L just completey removed Canibus from the video all together...and the "Bitch Move" award goes to LL Cool J. Oh well, here's the original video with Canibus and Percy...



Damn, poor Canibus. A lot of people think that L killed Canibus' career...well I'd have to disagree. His career was over before it started...he had Wyclef as his manager and executive producer. Damn I got side tracked...back to Def Jam, be sure to check out VH1's Hip Hop Honors which will also be celebrating the 25th anniversary of Def Jam on Tuesday, October 13th.

Clipse Covers Complex...

...for the October/November issue. First off, the cover which was done by KAWS, is dope as hell. If the name doesn't ring a bell, he's the same guy that did the artwork for Kanye's albums Graduation and 808's & Heartbreak. Btw he's also contributed his artistic skills to the artwork for Til The Casket Drops, which is scheduled to drop October 20th. But beyond the cover the Clipse discuss their upcoming album, the birth of Play Cloths, their views on rap music today and artist who drop songs every week *cough*Lil' Wayne*cough*. When Complex mentioned that their upcoming album seems very disconnected from the industry as a whole...like, “Fuck that, this is what we’re on.” Malice's response was...

"This album is like redemption for me. We’ve been through so much with the label, with so much in our lives. Around Hell Hath No Fury, it was just rough times. You could probably hear it in the music. We had a lot of dead weight around us that got cleared out. This time around, everything is freer; we’re in a happier place. You can really hear the change in the music. Listen to “I’m Good.” You can feel it that we’re better. Definitely. Hell Hath No Fury is about when it was more raw. This album is more along the lines of Lord Willin’. And you know Hell Hath No Fury is my favorite album."

Yeah, at one point last week I had $3 in my pocket, my tank was on E, I was contemplating future plans and wondering how long I have before I get laid off from my job. Then I played "I'm Good"...and while I was cruisin' on fumes down Lake Shore Drive all that shit went out the window and I felt like despite everything, at the end of the day, when it's all said and done....I'm good.



So ladies and gentlemen, grab a beer, some wine, a square, a blunt, a cigar or whatever relaxes you (hopefully it's not crack) and throw this song on...

Clipse - I'm Good

...and remember LIFE IS GOOD. To read the entire interview head over to Complex.com. If the Complex interview isn't enough, head over to PrefixMag.com for another one.

Jay-Z Covers XXL...

In the upcoming October issue of XXL magazine Mr. Carter discusses his reign as President of Def Jam records, compares himself to The Beatles and also talks about how he'd beat Jesus in an arm wrestling match because he's God MC Jay-Hova. Oh yeah, he also responds to the criticism he's received in regards to his first single off of The Blueprint 3, "D.O.A."....

“I’m not hating on young people. Like, when people say that, I’m like, What are you talking about? It’s just stupid. I’m not hating on young people… I’m not Bill Russell, [saying] Michael Jordan ain’t shit. I’m saying Lil Wayne and Kanye are like LeBron and Kobe. My job as someone at the forefront of the game is to leave it in a better position than when I came in. Same way that Russell [Simmons] left it to me. ’Cause this thing saved my life. Literally. So I have a responsibility to it karmically. And after that it’s on you. I did my part. I made ‘D.O.A.’ I said it. I made the statement. I made the push. Here, y’all take it from here.”

I never felt like Jay was hating on young people in "D.O.A.", I actually think he was hating on one person in particular....but I'll go more into that in an upcoming post. Anywho, to read more excerpts from the interview go to XXLmag.com.

Keri Hilson Covers Complex...

I know I'm late, but I couldn't just disregard a Keri Hilson cover. Anyway my future baby mama is in the August/September issue of Complex magazine talkin' about blah, blah, blah, blah. Movin' on....yall already know how I feel about Ms. Hilson, if only I could've been the grease guy for the photo shoot. You know...the guy who got to rub vegetable oil all over Keri's body in-between shots. *sigh*

See Keri's the type of woman I'd use good vegetable oil on. Nope, no Jewel, Kroger or Safeway store brand vegetable oil for her. She deserves the best...like Wesson or hell even Rachel Ray Extra Virgin Olive Oil, that's only if the mood is right though. Oh well, just to show her how sincere I am about me and her being together (and how classy I am), I'd like to dedicate THIS SONG to Ms. Keri Hilson.

Couple pics and a quick behind the scenes video of the photo shoot after the jump...

Nah, Nah, Nah, Nah...Hey, Hey, Hey...

...goodbyyyyyyye.

By now I'm sure you've heard that VIBE magazine is no more. If you haven't then let me fill you in...VIBE magazine, after 16 years in business, closed it doors on Wednesday June 30, 2009. To be honest I'm not surprised in the least bit...just a few months ago one of my former favorite magazines, KING, closed its doors. Unfortunately, they weren't the first magazines to go out of business and they definitely won't be the last. The print aspect of media, newspapers and magazines, are on the brink of becoming extinct and have been for a while. Remember back when The Source was considered the Holy Bible of hip-hop? That was back when you couldn't wait for next month's issue so you could see how many mics an upcoming album was gonna get, or see who was featured in the unsigned hype column or just to read an in-depth interview with your favorite artist.

Well, those days are long gone...and while I don't think that newspapers and magazines are going to become completely obsolete by tomorrow, I do feel like they're going to die a slow and painful death.

Why do I say that? Well there's a few things that have happened over the past few years that have made their demise inevitable.

The Internet Came Along and Bitch Slapped The Print Industry
I wrote this and immediately after I finished I was able to post it for you to read. Now if I was writing this for a magazine or newspaper there would've been a delay from the time I finished writing this to the time it was available to you. That delay could've been a matter of hours (newspaper) or a matter of weeks (magazine) depending on the type of print it was published in. Regardless of the length of the delay, the fact that it exist is the very reason why the internet has the completely overthrown print as the primary source for news and other types of information.

We currently live in an age of instant information, the days of waiting 30 days or even 24hrs to read about something that just happened 5mins ago seems asinine. Today's generation is more impatient than ever. Everything is about instant gratification....we want what we want, when we want it and unfortunately for print it just isn't capable of satisfying us anymore.

Magazines Became Politicians
Most of you know that I reside in the city of Chicago and with that said, no other major city in America is as grimey when it comes to politics as The Windy City. Shout out to Daley and Blago. Whether or not your city or town participates in the perfidious side of politics, there's one thing you can always count on...taxes. With the current economic crisis just about every city and state in America is seeing a decline in tax revenue. So what's their solution? Raise taxes and cut public services...so basically the citizens pay more for less.

Well at some point magazines took a look at this business model (because whether or not you realize it, politics and government is a business) and decided that it would work for them. Right after the internet bitch slapped print, a lot of magazines and newspapers saw a decline in sales. So what was their solution? Raise prices and cut content...so basically readers pay more for less. Remember when magazines were less than $3 and the pages were abundant with articles. Then one day you went to pick up your favorite magazine and you got to the register and it was $3.95. You chalked it up and paid for it only to find out that for every one page of content, there was three pages of ads. As fly as Willie Esco clothing, Master P sneakers and Davoucci leathers might've been (that's sarcasm), you didn't pay damn near $4 for an urban version of GQ.

People Started To Like Trees Again
If only Captain Planet was alive to see this shit...people are more concerned with protecting the planet than ever before. A few years ago Al Gore scared the living shit out of everybody with the documentary, An Inconvenient Truth, and now everybody wants to save the earth. Hey, nothing wrong with that...I'm all for it considering the fact that we have absolutely nowhere else to go in this entire galaxy. Quick question...

How Many Trees Did I Kill Writing This Post?

...and that's why destroying a tree to print up magazines that will be read in about 20mins and thrown out seems kind of impractical. Especially when you consider the fact that you can publish that same information on the internet without harming a leaf, let alone a whole tree. Some people might say, "If people just recycled we wouldn't have to kill so many trees". Yeah, we've been there and tried that. I don't know if you've noticed, but Americans are a bunch of lazy bastards. We're talkin' about the same group of people who catch elevators to the 2nd floor, drive 2 blocks to go to the corner store, sit in the drive-thru for 20mins when going in would only take 5mins and use remote controls for car stereos.


Of course there a other reasons why magazines and newspapers are shutting down left and right. I just think that the three that I listed contributed or are contributing the most to their demise. Oh well, the sad part is that I actually like the feel of holding and reading a book, magazine or newspaper. I still stop at the gas station at least 2-3 times a week and purchase the newspaper. It's rare, but from time to time I still buy books and magazines just because I get tired of reading everything off of a damn computer screen. Well, while you may never hold a new issue of VIBE in your hand again, all may not be lost for the company. In a very recent interview (like last week) with EbonyJet.com, former owner of VIBE magazine, Quincy Jones said...

“I’m trying to buy my magazine back now....They just messed my magazine all up, but I’m gonna get it back. You better believe it, I’m’a take it online because print and all that stuff is over.”

Even Quincy sees where print is headed.

Christina Milian Is In MAXIM...

I'm glad to see Ms. Milian is lookin' like her fine self again, because that whole blond hair and red lipstick look wasn't hot at all. In the July issue of MAXIM she talks about her highly anticipated upcoming album Elope, strip clubs and her role in the straight-to-DVD film Bring It On 27: Fight to the Finish (why are they still making these?). When asked if she used the cheerleader outfit from Bring It On as a turn-on for her boyfriend she said...

"I haven’t brought home a cheerleading outfit. Other outfits, yes, like a maid costume: a cute apron with the mitts and a robe, too. It was red. It was really cute. I try a little bit of everything. I’m all about keeping the excitement in the relationship. That’s why I sing songs like “Dip It Low.” When I’m with somebody, I like to keep it exciting."

Sounds good to me and I'm sure The-Dream is lovin' it. But if I was him, I'd tell her to turn the whole role-playing thing up a notch and get real freaky naughty. I mean seriously test her acting skills, because the maid and the cheerleader roles probably come easy for her...she's probably been both in real life. I'd wanna see her go outside the box and play a role she can't relate to...something like a talented platinum selling R&B singer.

More pics of Ms. Milian after the jump.

XXL 2nd Annual Hood to Hood Issue...

...features Gucci Mane, Soulja Boy, OJ Da Juiceman and Shawty Lo on the cover. Just in case you forgot, XXL’s 1st Annual Hood to Hood issue featured Miami artists Rick Ross, DJ Khaled, Trina and Flo Rida.

Ummm...I would comment but Maurice Garland did a great job already. Click here to read his thoughts on the cover.

Eminem Covers XXL...

(click pics to enlarge)

In the June issue of XXL Eminem talks about Proof's death, drug addiction (surprise!), the current state of hip-hop and more specifically Lil' Wayne and T.I....

“I stayed up on the music, and obviously I watch TV and saw what was going on. And without naming any names, it just felt like hip-hop was going downhill. And it seemed like kinda fast. You know, in them three years, it was like everybody just cares about the hook and the beat; nobody really cares about substance. But with this new T.I. album, with this new Lil Wayne album of recent, it seems like things are looking a lot better now. You can appreciate Lil Wayne using different words to rhyme and actually rhyming words that you know. Or T.I., where you hear shit and you’re like Whoa, ah, I wish I would have thought of that! You know what I mean? Or you hear all the compound-syllable rhyming and all that. It just seems like now the craft is getting cared about more.”

Is it me or does it sound like he was trying really hard to find something good to say about Lil' Wayne?..."using different words to rhyme and actually rhyming words that you know." Really? A rapper that uses different words to rhyme and words that you know? That's some groundbreaking shit right there...rap is truly evolving as we speak.

Question: Does Em really like Wayne's music or is he just mentioning him because he's what's "hot" right now? I wish Em was as critical about other rappers as he is about other celebrities. He says he felt hip-hop was going downhill but he doesn't wanna name anybody in reference to that. Why not? He doesn't have any problems calling out the names of movie and pop stars for things that have absolutely nothing to do with the desecration of his beloved art form, hip-hop.

Keyshia Cole & Tahiry Cover KING...

The upcoming June issue of KING will be its last...I don't think anyone is really surprised. I used to buy KING, along with XXL, all the time. Then I discovered this mystical device called a laptop and I hooked it up to this phenomenal source of information called the internet...and I haven't bought a lot of shit since.

Oh well, as you might of noticed my favorite hood chick, Keyshia Cole, graces cover 1 of 2. Man, you just gotta love a chick that rocks a weave ponytail that's as long as her legs. She's hot, but what's up with that awkward ass pose? I'm really tryin' to figure out what the hell the photographer said to make her pose like that...

"Okay....look fierce...but keep your mouth open...like you're slow and about to drool on yourself....perfect...now imagine you just hurt your back movin' furniture..."

It's not your fault Keyshia, I still love you. Oh, the other chick is Tahiry. You know, Joe Budden's girlfriend? You know, the guy from the awesome group Slaughterhouse? He just dropped an album, Padded Room.....I liked it. Still not ringin' a bell....nevermind. Well Joe was nice enough to release a video snippet of her XXL photo shoot, check it out after the jump...

Kourtney Kardashian Should've Covered Maxim...

...instead they threw some wack chick from Watchmen on the cover. Although she isn't on the cover she's still in the magazine. For those of you who don't know who Kourtney is (because you have really awesome lives and don't keep up with half of the bullshit that I do), she's Kim Kardashian's older sister.

A lot of guys think that she looks better than Kim...what do I think? It really doesn't matter, I'd take either one. I'm actually aspiring to be a male groupie to a lot of famous women, Kardashian's included. Ya know, go to all the hot parties, have them pour champagne on me while I do the wop in VIP, take me back to their hotel room, have their way with me and kick me out in the morning. Maybe even give me a shout out in one of their R&B songs (call me Keri)...

More pics of Kourtney after the jump.

Go to Maxim.com to see more photos and read her Q&A.

Lil' Wayne Covers Rolling Stone...

In the upcoming April issue of Rolling Stone Weezy F. talks about his rock star lifestyle, his upcoming rock album and no longer wanting to just be the "Greatest Rapper Alive"...

"Honestly? I don't want to be the best rapper in the world...if I have a rap album I'm dropping, then I want it to be the best rap album. But I want to be the best. Period. Now. My favorite rapper hasn't done what I'm doing."

Wayne goes on to explain how his life got to a point where he couldn't even rap about it. He described one particular night when he slept with multiple women and thought in the morning, "This is who I am now."

"The rock sh-- just comes from what my life is now. I've grown into this person...I woke up one morning and had three or four women in my bed where I not only didn't know their last names, I didn't know the beginning letter of their first names. All I know is, they're the most beautiful women in the world, and I was in my own place, in whatever city I as in. And I could have thrown a dart at the map, and I'd probably have a place there too. I knew my driver was waiting downstairs for me. When my nose finally cleared from all the weed I had smoked, I smelled food in the kitchen and I knew it was my chef. Then I look on my phone and see a message and know it's from a popular woman everyone knows. And when I went in the studio that night, I couldn't just rap, 'Yeah, n---a ... .' "

If you would've told me back in the day that a member of the Hot Boys, let alone Lil' Wayne, would even be mentioned with regards to being the "Greatest Rapper Alive" or in "Top 5 Rappers" I would've thought you were freebasing...or just from New Orleans.

Btw...he's still not in my Top 5, dead or alive.

&

Drake > Wayne

source

Kim Kardashian Covers Complex...

Kanye was on one side of the April/May issue of Complex and here we have Ms. Kardashian on the other side.

Besides being thick as hell...what does she do? I know she owns a boutique out in Cali, made an extremely boring porno with Ray-J and she's dating Reggie Bush. Despite all of that, I'm gonna go out on a limb and say that being thick as hell is what keeps her in the limelight.

This photo shoot was about a quarter past wack though... more pics after the jump.

Kanye Covers Complex...

In the upcoming April/May issue of Complex Ye' talks about his aspirations to be legendary designer, the gay accusations, missing his mom, relationships and the recession. Yep, the economy is also taking a toll on Mr. West. When asked if the recession has affected him, Ye' responded...

"Yeah, I try to avoid it overly affecting me. But some shit has happened, like Best Buy was supposed to [shoot and produce] the tour DVD and they pulled out of it. I definitely got hit with that, because not shooting it was not an option, so I had to pay for it."

I know...you're torn. Now you have to choose.

Send 15 cent to Kanye or the little African kid with the fly sleepin' on his left eyeball? It's a toss up for me, I'm thinkin 10 cent for Ye' and 5 cent for the African kid. What? It's not like the African kid has a tour DVD to make.

He has to be kidding. Sorry Ye', I don't think you're gonna find too many people who are gonna feel your pain. He would've been better off just sayin', "Nope...I'm truly blessed."

To read the entire interview head over to Complex.

RoboRoss Covers XXL...

In the May issue of XXL Officer Ricky talks about the 50 Cent beef, slangin' whiskey with Al Capone, being a hitman for the Corleone family, saving Princess Toad and his law enforcement career. Here's what he had to say about denying his job as a correctional officer...

“Me not answering or addressing that situation has nothing to do with my career. I’ve accomplished enough, and I’ve made enough money for me to be good… Yes, it was me in those pictures. But I’ma tell you this. Me taking that job, I was doing my job. You understand what I mean?”

No, we don't understand what you mean. Why didn't you just say that from jump. I know why, because you're a walking vessel of gravy...that's why.

For a preview of the interview go to XXL.