LeBron James has joined one of the NBA's most exclusive clubs. The Cavaliers superstar was voted the league's MVP for the second straight year, a person familiar with the announcement told The Associated Press today. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the league has not announced the results of the vote. James, who averaged 29.7 points, 7.3 rebounds and 8.6 assists this season, will receive the trophy Sunday from commissioner David Stern at the University of Akron.
JAY ELECTRONICA FT. DIDDY - THE GHOST OF CHRISTOPHER WALLACE
Jay Electronica is back with a brand new track called "The Ghost of Christopher Wallace," which features an appearance from Diddy... Once again, Jay does it right, making every leak an event rather than flooding the internet with new tracks.
If you just can't get enough collaborative Wu Tang apparel, then check out Rocksmith's new "Wu Massacre" tee. The limited edition t-shirt features illustration by French Magazine Be Street... We just received this shirt in limited quantities, and it is sure to go fast. Phone orders are available. 805-497-4717
We just received a new shipment of Thunder High's from Supra. This summer Supra is introducing alot of nylon to their styles. This Thunder High is black on the side panel with dark gray going down the tongue to toe box. The gray waxed laces are a nice touch. Phone Orders are available (805)497-4717.
Better late than never, the Milwaukee Bucks were impressive Monday night, surprising the Atlanta Hawks to even their playoff series at two games apiece. But the most spectacular performance on the court that night did not come at the hands of an NBA player. No, it was Bucks mascot Bango who took mascot antics to another level by dunking from a massive 20 foot ladder including a flip in the epic jam for good measure
Here's E-40's new video for his new track "Understandz Me." Listen closely, you can't tell me E-40 isn't one of the greatest creative MC's of our time. Every rapper on the West Coast has stolen at least 1 line from this dude.
Artist, Eric Bailey, recently relaunched his website, birdsandbullets. Check out a sample of some of his fresh artwork below, and be on the look out for some big things coming from this dope artist!
Having many sources of fascination from an early age, the heart of artist Eric Bailey's practice is in the influence he draws from his surroundings. From the coastal settings of Big Sur and Santa Cruz, Ca to the streets of San Francisco, Bailey finds artistic inspiration in the natural meets modern. This comes through in his classical style oil paintings that fuse glamour with nature and turn a contradictive eye on the traditional thought of luxury. Bailey currently resides in San Francisco, Ca where he intends to take his concept of naturalism versus materialism even further. Intermingling the two-standout energies of Northern and Southern California, Bailey plans to give life to the final product. When executed the collection will be a facetious concoction of the organic beauty of unrefined settings meshed with the polished refinement of extravagance.
VIDEO: FAT JOE X JEEZY X DIDDY - HA HA (SLOW DOWN) BTS
Here's a behind the scenes look into the making of Fat Joe's Scoop Deville produced track "Ha Ha (Slow Down)." The track features Jeezy and Diddy makes an appearance in the video. Fat Joe's album, The Darkside, is due out on June 29th. - Drew
Here goes the first single off Eminem’s upcoming album Recovery, called "Not Afraid." Recovery us due out June 22, 2010,and will feature production from DJ Khalil, Just Blaze, Jim Jonsin and Boi-1da, among others.
"I had originally planned for Relapse 2 to come out last year," remarked Eminem. "But as I kept recording and working with new producers, the idea of a sequel to Relapse started to make less and less sense to me, and I wanted to make a completely new album. The music on Recovery came out very different from Relapse, and I think it deserves its own title."
We just received a huge shipment from our homies at Crooks & Castles today. Crooks keeps stepping their game up season after season. This new summer delivery is so fresh, we received tank tops, tees and a light weight cardigan. My favorites have to be the tank tops, all 3 are dope and they will sell fast! Stop by both Tradition locations soon because as you know we don't have sizes in Crooks for long. Phone Orders are available (805)497-4717 or (805)643-8805.
Last week, longtime Los Angeles hip-hop station 93.5 KDAY threw their Krush Groove event featuring performances by of Glasses Malone, Mack 10, Slick Rick, E-40,Too Short, and Bone Thugs-N-Harmony. Xzibit was the special guest at this year's event along with DJ Quik and Chamillionaire. Peep this video of X rocking he sold out crowd with the homey Young De. Be sure to check out our event tomorrow night at Mi6 with Young De and GBC.
Peep this new Drake joint called "Find Your Heart" produced by Kanye West. Not sure how I feel about this yet, it might take some time to grow on me. Drake can sing though. You can download it here.
This Friday, April 30th, Tradition, HoneyBEvents & Bonzai Group:Get Busy Committee's Official Tour Kick Off Party. For those who do not know, Get Busy Committee features Ryu (Styles of Beyond/Fort Minor), Apathy (Demigodz), and Scoop Deville (producer of Snoop's "I Wanna Rock" and Fat Joe's "Ha Ha"). Join us at Mi 6 in West Hollywood for this kick off party that will also features performances by GBC and Young De as well as DJ Cheapshot & DJ Myster-E in the mix. Sponsored by the good people at Hip Hop Official, Myspace, Tradition, and TLFI. You won't want to miss this event!
*VENUE CHANGE*
Mi 6 9077 Santa Monica Blvd Los Angeles, Ca. 90065 310.850.8369 www.clubmi6.com
Lebron makes the ball boy pick up his clothes up off the ground. At first, I thought maybe Bron Bron didn't see the kid. Then he went and threw the rest of his clothes on the floor after looking the kid in the eye. Maybe it was because they were in Chicago. This bring a whole new mean to "King James" now.
Some new music from Spitta, with the producer of the hour Ski Beatz on the boards. This should be on the Curren$y's upcoming project, Pilot Talk set to drop soon. Preview down below. Click here to download.
DAMN!!! Pac Div came out of nowhere with this brand new mixtape called Don't Mention it. This project is a prelude of their upcoming debut album, Grown Kid Syndrome, which is due out very soon. Don't Mention It features Colin Munroe, Dom Kennedy, Pill, and more.
This is what PAC DIV had to say about the mixtape...
"Basically Don’t Mention It is 11 or 12 songs that we felt that we wanted to record at the moment and they’re all over the place. We got some real introspective records; we got some real base heavy, 808 records. We got just stuff we wanted to get off our chests on how we were feelin’. It’s 11 or 12 honest songs. Just how we was feelin’ at that exact moment. It took us maybe a few months to write and record."
With B.o.B.'s album, The Adventure's of Bobby Ray, hitting shelves today, I felt that it's only appropriate to put up this video to support. The video is mighty creative if you ask me. - Richard
We teamed up with Teruo Artistry to bring you this brand new “Devil Music” tee in 3 colorways. “If something is too good to be true, than it probably is, but sometimes you just can?t resist… Music so good, it is bad.” Teruo Artistry recently designed the cover from Game’s R.E.D. Room mixtape.
We are releasing this T-shirt on May 8th in conjunction with an event that we are doing at our Ventura location with DJ Skee, Get Busy Committee, Young De, and more. Stop by Tradition on May 8th to check out the 2010 Summer line and Artshow from Teruo Artistry an receive free tickets to the event that night. Purchase the limited edition tee (only 24 made) and receive a VIP wristband that guarantees entry to this event. With DJ Skee in the house you never know what special guest might pop in!
King Fantastic is a new project from Reese One (Bleu Collar) and DJ Troublemaker.King Fantastic's debut album, Finger Snaps and Gun Claps, —a concise study in Westcoastsynthesizerbeachbumgangstermusic, as interpreted by Killer Reese One and Troublemaker— drops in June. Look for an appearance from King Fantastic and Bleu Collar at an upcoming show that we are throwing with Get Busy Committee May 12th at the Viper Room.
Last week Alife hosted yet another legendary “Alife Sessions” behind their NY store. This time Alife hosted Cypress Hill, Ninjasonik, and Fischerspooner as performing guests. Ricky Powell MC'ed the event. I had to laugh out loud at the girl "hanging out the window."
The homeys at Teruo Artistry put together a dope artshow at our Westlake location featuring their resident artist, Timothy Teruo Watters. TTW began feeding his hunger for creativity and expression by drawing in sketchbooks during family dinners and teaching himself painting as a teenager. Today he occupies the title of Chief Creative Officer and Head Designer for Teruo Artistry, a creative lifestyle clothing brand. This artshow is the precursor to an event that we are doing with Teruo Artistry at our Ventura location on May 8th. Together, we are presenting an evening of ART, MUSIC and FASHION. Stop through Tradition's Ventura location on Saturday, May 8th for the debut of Teruo Artistry's Summer Line, an art exhibit by TTW and music by DJ Skee, Get Busy Committee, Demrick AKA Young De, Six Reasons, Prophet, J.Pigg, and a very special guest!!!
Stop by Tradition on May 8th and get your free tickets to the performances at Dume Room. Plus purchase a limited edition Teruo Artistry x Tradition T-Shirt and get a free VIP wristband for the afterparty! Skee TV will be in the house filming!
DJ Skee drops off the brand new mixtape from Game called the R.E.D. Room. Game is back spitting dope verses over that classic West Coast sound that you all know and love. Look for appearances from Nipsey Hussle, Jim Jones, Fab, Busta Rhymes, and more. Shouts out to the homeys at Teruo Artistry for doing the dope artwork on the cover. Be sure to come out to our special event with DJ Skee, Teruo Aristry, and more on May 8th in Ventura!
01 400 Bars (Skeemix) 02 Ha Ha f. Nipsey Hussle 03 The Professionals f. Menace, Maad Maxx & Kanary Diamonds 04 Revolver Or The Semi f. Mysonne 05 Drop The World f. Kanary Diamonds 06 Never Stop Hustlin’ f. Fabolous 07 Gangsta 08 Gangs Of New York f. Jadakiss & Jim Jones 09 Trippin f. Kanary Diamonds 10 Everything Red f. Lil Wayne & ‘Shit 11 First Lady f. Kanary Diamonds 12 Lowrider f. Busta Rhymes 13 It Must Be Me f. Pharrell 14 Maad Maxxx Freestyle 15 Dopeman f. XO 16 Diamonds f. K-Young 17 Heartbreak Hotel f. Diddy 18 Slangin’ Rocks 19 Shake (TRV$ Remix) 20 Over (Juice & Mysonne) [Bonus Track]
Our homies at The Forest Lab are killing the Lakers t-shirt game and are back with the Ron Artest "Here's Ronnie" tee. We all know how crazy and unpredictable Ron Artest is and it was only fitting for The Forest Lab to drop a tee that is taken from the "Here's Johnny" scene in the 1980 thriller The Shining starring the Lakers biggest fan Jack Nicholson. This limited edition tee is both Tradition locations. Phone Orders are available (805)497-4717 & (805)643-8805. Peep the process that when into this hand drawn Here's Ronnie by Matt Cory.
DJ SKEE takes a shot and remixes Game's "400 Bars." The Skeemix features Game's acapella over 50 or more beats. The Game's R.E.D. Room mixtape presented by DJ SKEE drops later today! Don't forget about our upcoming event on May 8th with DJ Skee, Teruo Artistry, Get Busy Committee, and more! Plus with Skee in the building, you never know who is gonna come through!
N.E.R.D. is back with a brand new summer anthem called "Hot And Fun" featuring Nelly Furtado. This is the first release from the group’s fourth album, Nothing, which is due out June 15th.
Tradition, HoneyBEvents, and the Bonzai Group Present: Get Busy Committee's official tour kick off party! Join us next Friday, April 30th at The Saint in Hollywood. Featuring performances from: Get Busy Committee, Young De, plus DJ Sets from DJ Cheapshotand DJ Myster-E. Mark your calendars now! See you there!
As many of you may know, legendary MC Guru of Gang Starr passed away a few days ago after a lengthy battle with cancer. Guru, born Keith Elam was 43 at the time he passed. In March, Guru suffered a heart attack that left him in a coma for a brief period. Here is a dope tribute mix that DJ Premier (the other half of Gang Starr) put together to pay his respect. You can download it here.
This movie just might be the greatest thing to ever happen. Inspired by the Nickelodeon show, Avatar, M. Night Shyamalan decided to turn into a full feature film. - Richard
THE GAME FT. NIPSEY HUSSLE - SLOW DOWN (HA HA) FREESTYLE
The Game and Nipsey Hussle jump on Fat Joe's Scoop Deville produced track "Slow Down (Ha Ha)" and turn it to a certified West Coast anthem. I would have to say this version kills the original, and once again Scoop Deville is a beast on the beat. This track is from The Game's upcoming The R.E.D. Room mixtape with DJ Skee. As a bonus, check out another Scoop Deville produced track from Game's upcoming mixtape called "Gangs in New York" featuring Jim Jones and Jadakiss. Look for appearances from DJ Skee and Scoop Deville (with his group GBC) at our upcoming party on May 8th with Teruo Artistry.
Timothy Watters of Teruo Artistry came through and hung this brand new show at our Tradition location. His new work is amazing, and there are so many dope pieces. Stay tuned for information about the upcoming Tradition X Teruo Artistry tee as well as more information about our upcoming party on May 8th with DJ Skee, Get Busy Committee, Young De, Prophet, 6 Reasons, and J.Pigg.
I am going to post detailed images as well as a video of the artshow in the next few days as well.
Once again, Exile proves that he is one of the best there is on the MPC. I've seen his live set a few times, and it never ceases to amaze me. Exile has done production for Mobb Deep, Ghostface Killah, Kardinal Offishall and Jurassic 5, as well as Blu's Below The Heavens album and Fashawn's Boy Meets World.
Damani is back with a new track called "What's 4 Lunch" from his upcoming album, On Vacation from Vacation. As usual, Damani speaks on the finer things in life... This time he tackles fine dining! Look for a track from Damani on the upcoming Tradition mixtape as well.
Diddy is a fool for this one. He reports live from his bubble bath, to apologize to his competitors for all the misfortunes his award-winning vodka may have caused. I'd like to say I'm sorry too. I'm sorry that Diddy's music isn't as award-winning as his Ciroc Vodka these days, but he's making his money, so I can't hate on that.
TRADITION X FLY OR DIE "HATERS" TEE (LIMITED EDITION)
The Lakers have a 2-1 lead in the series against Oklahoma Thunder, and it seems Kobe has found his shooting touch again. For all the Kobe haters out there thinking that he isn't the best player in the world we have a special gift for you. Tradition is releasing the highly anticipated "Haters" tee with our homies at Fly Or Die. If you are a true Kobe fan and are sick of of hearing that he's not as good a Lebron James then this tee is a must have for you. The Limited Edition "Haters" tee is dropping tomorrow, Friday April 23rd at both Tradition Locations. Pick one up before game 4 Saturday. Phone Orders are available and highly suggested (805)497-4717 & (805)643-8805.
IT WAS A SAD DAY FOR ME TO GET CONFIRMATION ON THE DEATH OF A MAN WHO I WILL CONTINUE TO CALL MY BROTHER, KEITH ELAM, BETTER KNOWN AS GURU OF THE LEGENDARY GANG STARR.
FROM 1988-2004, WE EXPERIENCED SO MUCH SUCCESS TOGETHER THAT WE WERE ABLE TO EXPAND OUR BUSINESSES INDEPENDENTLY AND GIVE EACH OTHER WHAT GURU CALLED “CREATIVE SPACE”, BEFORE PLANNING TO REUNITE FOR OUR 7TH LP WHEN THE TIME WAS RIGHT. TRAGICALLY, WE WILL NEVER REACH THAT DAY.
I’VE BEEN ASKED TO COMMENT ON A LETTER SPEAKING ILL OF ME WHICH WAS SUPPOSEDLY WRITTEN BY GURU IN HIS DYING DAYS. ALL I WILL SAY ABOUT IT IS THAT OUR TIME TOGETHER WAS BEAUTIFUL, WE BUILT A HIP HOP LEGACY TOGETHER, AND NO ONE CAN RE-WRITE HISTORY OR TAKE AWAY MY LOVE FOR HIM. ONE THING I WOULD NEVER DO IS PLAY AROUND WITH THE TRUTH ABOUT HIS LIFE.
I WILL CELEBRATE GURU’S LIFE… I WILL HONOR HIS MEMORY… I WILL GRIEVE WITH THE ELAM FAMILY OVER HIS UNTIMELY DEATH… I WILL REMEMBER THE GANG STARR FOUNDATION AND ALL OF THE ORIGINAL MEMBERS OF GANG STARR WHO CAME BEFORE ME – WE ALL KNOW EACH OTHER… MOSTLY, I WILL CHERISH EVERYTHING WE CREATED TOGETHER AS GANG STARR, FOREVER. I’M GONNA MISS HEARING HIS SIGNATURE MONOTONE VOICE WHEN HE WALKS IN THE ROOM, BUT THE SONGS WILL ALWAYS BRING IT BACK TO ME….HIS RHYME FLOWS WERE INSANE, AND I WILL NEVER REMOVE HIM FROM MY HEART AND SOUL…….REST IN PEACE TO THE MAN WHO FELT “SATISFACTION FROM THE STREET CROWD REACTION” … I LOVE YOU GOO…….DJ PREMIER
Legendary DJ Premier has a few words for his longtime friend Guru in the wake of his passing. This was in response to his death as well as the letter which surfaced yesterday.
Our homies at The Forest Lab are killing the Lakers t-shirt game and are back with the Ron Artest "Here's Ronnie" tee. We all know how crazy and unpredictable Ron Artest is and it was only fitting for The Forest Lab to drop a tee that is taken from the "Here's Johnny" scene in the 1980 thriller The Shining starring the Lakers biggest fan Jack Nicholson. This limited edition tee drops tomorrow Wednesday April 21th at both Tradition locations. Phone Orders are available (805)497-4717 & (805)643-8805.
Producer, Scoop Deville, stopped by the shop today with his homey Chaney to cop some new gear. Scoop has been on the music scene for a minute producing for B-Real, Snoop Dogg, and others. Scoop made some serious noise with Snoop Dogg's "I Wanna Rock," which was one of the biggest songs last year, and was remixed by everyone from Styles P, Fat Joe, Young Jeezy, and Jay-Z. Look for upcoming Scoop Deville produced tracks from Young Jeezy, Fat Joe and Busta Rhymes as well as a new E.P. in the works for his group Get Busy Committee with Ryu and Apathy. Look for Scoop to perform with GBC at our upcoming Tradition X Teruo X DJ Skee event May 8th.
Last night's dunk Lebron did on the Bulls James Johnson was ridiculous. Bron Bron blew past him and cocked a one hander on his ass! Oh did I mention Lebron took off a step in from the dotted line. WOW!
We just received the brand new summer delivery from G-Shock, and it features some of the best watched that I have ever seen from them! In this delivery, G-Shock introduces a new line of mirror dial DW6900s in gloss and metallic finishes with contrasting band loops. The Black and gold is ridiculous, as is the silver with pink and the teal. We also received a restock of the best selling Matte Black Military G-Shock as well. Act fast, because these will be gone fast. Phone orders are available 805-497-4717.
I was just peepin the homies blog from Akomplice and I wanted to re-post this dope little story about how Patrick and Mike from Akomplice got a chance to meet and chill with the legend Guru from Gangstarr before he passed. R.I.P.
Guru was an amazing artist, but also was one of the most warm, loving and humble people I have ever met. Losing him in our lives brings me a deep sadness. I had spoke to him a couple times in January about some projects we were planning, and he was also hoping to come out and perform at our X-Games party this year, but due to health issues he had to skip it. Even when the doctor had said he shouldn’t come, he still didn’t want to cancel until necessary, on the chance he might feel better and be able to come. He really liked coming to the valley and being a part of the X-Games. I will leave off on a memory of the last time I hung out with Guru and Solar. It was last years Winter X-Games and I get a call from Guru and Solar, “What up P?! It’s the gods Guru and Solar. We are in Snowmass, let’s go check these X-Games out!” They where excited like kids to go see the likes of Danny Kass and all the action sports peeps in full effect. So we met up, jumped in my ex-girlfriend’s beater car and drove up into a restricted area at the winter X-Games, where we were stopped quickly by a guard. He said, “You can’t be here with out a pass” and I promptly replied, “I am here with Guru of Gangstarr, he’s curious to check all this out.” The security guards jumped back with lots of excitement as he was a big fan of Gangstarr and quickly helped us out. Guru being the guy he was, got the guard’s name and his girl’s and put them on the list for his show that night. Now at the entrance, same story again. Guru being the humble guy he was, chopped it up with the door-man for a while and then put him on the guest list too. We got in the X-Games VIP tent, drank hot apple cider, had a nice dinner while waxing philosophically, and then cruised over to the VIP lounge above the super pipe and checked some snowboard finals which had Guru and Solar geeking. Then that night we all met up for their sold out show. We rolled in with honestly a group 50 people deep! The Belly Up security guard was like, “Oh no, this is not going to fly,” but Solar replied, “Let me speak to Mike (the owner).” Solar said, “Mike, we got a problem?,” Mike replied, “nope” and we all rolled in. Lord Jamars crew, Opio of Hieroglyphics crew, and a huge Akomplice crew! That day for me was just an overall great day, and was a great example of how great of a person, a legend can be. RIP Guru aka Kieth Elam we will miss you. Thanks for being a part of our lives, you inspired us! - Patrick.
