ENTERTAINMENT THE CIVIL WAY!

To say this has been anticipated for a minute would be an understatement. It seems like forever ago when “Contemplation” dropped back in June, but patience truly is a virtue and who am I to really complain over a guy giving away quality music for free? Today is the day and along with L-R-G, The Kid Daytona finally let loose of “The Interlude.”

If that paragraph was enough to convince you give this a listen, then production from Bink!, 9th Wonder, 6th Sense, Amp and Cook Classics with Freddie Gibbs, Styles P, Aloe Blacc and more riding shotgun should. Now, if that doesn’t, then the fact that most of the tracks are inspired by a past classic has to do the trick.

This has been going on for years, but seems to be a growing epidemic in more recent times.

It has come to light that an individual has been impersonating Bryant Management CEO Cortez Bryant, and Bryant Management operations manager Nina Packer, for financial gain through false bookings of a Lil Wayne featuring Young Money / Cash Money family tour. Utilizing phony email addresses (cbryant@youngmoneytour2011.com / N.PACKER@YOUNGMONEYTOUR2011.COM) the individual(s) have been targeting independent promoters across the nation in an attempt to solicit dates for a Lil Wayne headlined tour featuring artists such as Nicki Minaj, Drake, Birdman and others for spring 2011.

Lil Wayne, who is co-managed by Bryant Management and Hip Hop Since 1978, domestic tours are booked exclusively by Live Nation and Shawn Gee of SEFG, LLC.

Pink Friday is on the way, and Nicki Minaj took a little time to sit down with Mr. Thanksgiving at ATL’s Hot 107.9 to discuss her life, Lil Wayne, possible tours, her influences, and…body image issues. Hit the jump for part two.

Waka‘s latest single from his debut album Flockaveli now has an official video. Shot by MVisions… “Grove Street Party” is exactly what you’d expect. A party. And if you’ve ever seen Waka party, you know it’s crazy.

Being a busy hip hop mogul means Jay-Z often lives life on the run, which is great because Gucci has just printed his book Decoded inside a jacket.The high-end fashion house has printed the first two pages of the memoir inside a one-of-a-kind leather bomber jacket that will be gifted to the rapper. It’s on display at Gucci’s flagship New York store as part of a scavenger hunt conducted to promote the tome.

In the lead-up to its release this week, pages of the book were scattered around places that mean something to Jay-Z. There was a page at the bottom of the pool of the Delano Hotel in Miami and more underneath plates at the Spotted Pig restaurant in New York. Clues to their location were revealed on Twitter, Facebook, Jay-Z’s website and a dedicated Bing site.

The book hit stores Monday in the US where it was hotly anticipated by fans eager to learn about the hip hop star’s ascent from teen drug dealer to superstar straight from the horse’s mouth.Written as a first-person memoir, it also includes interviews with Jay-Z’s family and friends and details of his creative process.

It was completed several years ago but Jay-Z was initially reluctant to release something so personal – particularly because it goes into his father abandoning him as an 11-year-old. Earlier in the year he explained: “It’s too much. For the book, I was interviewed, people close to me were interviewed. So I was learning a lot of things I didn’t know as a child.”

No word if Beyonce had a page tucked inside her undies.

Even with all the controversy and his own mistakes, T.I. is still a personal favorite. Grand Hustle is already a few weeks in on their second stint in two years sans-Clifford. Hopefully they can keep everything afloat until Tip comes home next fall…for good.

No one man ever won a championship by himself and while B.o.B. is having quite the year, even he cannot place the entire label aboard his shoulders. T.I.’s upcoming album No Mercy hits shelves December 7. Longtime label mate Young Dro recently spilled the beans about the albums guest features which include:

- Chris Brown
- Trey Songz
- KiD CuDi
- Kanye West
- Scarface
- Eminem
- Rocko

And of course, Young Dro himself. I would have loved to see Big Kuntry and Macboney on the list though. While it always felt like Tip was missing a step this musically, I’ve still got high hopes for this album. I hope I’m right.

Seen: RR

The last time Lloyd Banks’ music was really on my radar was a few years ago. That’s not to say he hasn’t dropped anything worthwhile since then. It’s to say the momentum behind Hunger For More 2 is different. Special, even.

The PLK has been rather consistent with his “Blue Fridays” series even though this newest installment dropped yesterday. This will not appear on the album – which drops next week – but hopefully “Everything You Got” is an indication of what to expect.

DL: Lloyd Banks – “Everything You Got”

Credit: OS