Rap-up.com is reporting that Drake is doing a college tour to promote a green lifestyle.
and looks like there is a Columbus Date, April 7.

“The Away From Home Tour” Dates

April 6 – Charleston, IL – Eastern Illinois University
April 7 – Columbus, OH – Private Location
April 9 – State College, PA – Penn State University
April 10 – Boston, MA – Private Location
April 11 – Lock Haven, PA – Private Location
April 14 – East Lansing, MI – Michigan State University
April 15 – Rochester Hills, MI – Oakland University
April 16 – Morgantown, WV – West Virginia University
April 21 – Orlando, FL – University Central Florida
April 22 – Greenville, SC – Furman University
April 23 – TBA
April 24 – New Orleans, LA – New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival
April 26 – New Orleans, LA – University of Missouri-Kansas City
April 27 – Lexington, KY – University of Kentucky
April 29 – Lowell, MA – University Mass Lowell
April 30 – Syracuse, NY – Private Location
May 1 – Boston, MA – Private Location
May 4 – East Rutherford, NJ – Bamboozle Festival
May 5 – Towson, MD – Holy Cross
May 6 – Cheney, PA – Towson University
May 7 – Ithaca, NY – Private Location
May 8 – Plymouth, NH – Private Location

Read more about it on Rap-Up.com

rjd2 on twitter about his columbus show

Thanks bustown, last nite was all the way live. Word to the wise: if your chest is hella will farrell, jumping on stage w no shirt=bad look.

rj twitter again:

@wesflexner @donewaiting thanks for setting last nite up PROPERRRRR.

Keep reading for more photos. (more…)

Doors open- 8:00
Thought Set-9:40-10:00
Kenen Bell- 10:15-10:45
Happy Chichester11:00-11:30
RJD2-11:45-115

DJ Detox will get wavy constantly.
presales sold well..but some tickets will be available at the door because we like you.

All Photos by Dan McMahon except the Holy Roller.

As we have said repeatedly on this website. RJD2 is headlining our 7-Year Anniversary at Skullys this Friday Feb 5th. Ticket info and line-up here

RJ is an old friend of mine, so in this informal interview we chopped it up about his brief graffiti career,walking the tracks near the Ohio State Fairgrounds, the passing of Howard Zinn, RJ’s new album The Colossus and his theme song for TV’s Mad Men.

I remember when I first heard your name in Hip Hop discussions around town, graff writers were like…thats RJD2 blah blah he is down with A-Team? A-Team had pieces at the convention center and CAP that hit you up… This question is more for the graffiti dorks but…?

so i moved to the bay area after dropping out of college. i had my records and turntables and stuff, and one of the dudes who i stayed with shortly was down with the a-team guys, this dude cliff. he was the only guy i knew in the city at a point, and then he left too. so the only people i knew in SF were cram, esa, this kid beaver who i cant remember what he wrote, but he would do these “god is love” pieces all over the city, and a few other guys. so they sorta inducted me in as the unofficial a-team dj or whatever. those were the only kids i knew in the city, really. so i’d hang with them, maybe go out a little here and there with em while they painted, but not too much. i later found out that esa had a columbus connection. and then cram moved to philly after i’d been here a while. small world, basically. and my friend cliff lived near and was friends with mike giant, and looked up to him-in 95 SF graff world, he was a really big deal, up there with twist and amaze and the like upper echelon of bay writers, so i met mike thru him. esa later moved to LA, and i think she was doing fine art or something. cram actually was doing public murals for a living for a long time. i guess mike giant got involved in tattoos, but i havent spoken to him in a loooooong time. but in short, all the a-team guys were just cool people, no ego shit, just real friendly folks.

(more…)

Read El’s official statement on Def Jux’s Website

This year, a decade after starting DEF JUX and after overseeing the releases of some incredible albums including the forthcoming release of my dear late and great friend Camu Tao’s brilliant “KING OF HEARTS” LP, I’m stepping away from my duties as artistic director for the label to concentrate on what I love most: being a producer and an artist full time. This is something I’ve been contemplating for a few years now, and can’t think of a better time or, with the eventual release of Camu’s record, a more poetic way to transition into a new direction.

This means change for JUX. Of course we’ll still have our website, we will still sell our catalog, merch and more as well as bring you news and updates on all our projects and artists. We will be releasing “KING OF HEARTS”, a DEF JUX remix compilation, a 10 year anniversary retrospective and some other goodies. But then as a traditional record label DEF JUX will effectively be put on hiatus. We are not closing, but we are changing. The process is already underway, and the last several months (for those wondering what the hell we’ve been up to) have been spent dealing with the technical aspects of wrapping up the label in it’s current form and re-imagining our collective and individual futures.

If you watched the Vast Aire vs Def Jux beef that brewed from May to Mid August this year then you prolly knew change was in the air.

The Onion’s AV Club is Reporting that Definitive Jux is now out of business,

Def Jux closing down?
by Kyle Ryan February 2, 2010

More ominous rumors that are likely true: Shabooty.com reports that cool indie hip-hop label Definitive Jux is closing. Although it’s not confirmed—leader El-P won’t say until an official statement is ready—Shabooty analyzes the writing that has been on the wall, including statements from former Def Jux artists.

The label has been home to a who’s who of indie-rap notables—such as Mr. Lif, Murs, Dizzee Rascal, The Perceptionists, and, of course, El-P himself—but the label has been quiet lately, as fellow indie label Rhymesayers has grown more prominent.

Kitty Mcconnell launched a new sex blog over at the Other Paper.Com called MA(for Mature Audiences).
Some interesting facts about the C-O’s sex habits from the blog:

•Forbes ranked the city seventh in the nation in its 2007 survey of “America’s Most Lustful Cities.” Lacking “government or academic research on the sexual practices” of the various metropolitan areas, the magazine instead based the rankings on market research of contraceptive sales over 52 weeks in the nation’s 50 largest cities. Tying with Cincinnati, Columbus sold 70 percent more contraceptives than the average city of its size. Male contraceptive sales exceeded the per capita average by 71 percent; female contraceptive sales were 59 percent above average.

• Men’s Health magazine ranked Columbus second in its 2008 survey of the nation’s “Most Sexually Satisfied Cities.” Indianapolis beat Columbus to first place.

If we could get UDF to start selling condoms maybe we could move up in those stats.

OSU is honoring the 50th Anniversary of the 1960’s OSU Men”s Championship team.Above is a picture of Larry Siegfield,Jerry Lucas and John Haliveck still rollin’ deep.
“The General” Bobby Knight was also on this team.
. Read more about the Best Friendships Never Dieing on CNN.com
To keep it 100 hundred, OSU and Homage Clothing have teamed up for this limited edition box set that will be available at the game to honor these great men. Read more about the championship team
Information on Boxset on flyer:

America’s Number 1 Source for News, Weedsteeler.com is sending two of our finest to an inside-job city in style with a party at Bristol Bar this evening. The music will be provided by the usual cast of total shit-maniacs(sorry only Columbus staffers) ,  Chris Lutzko of the Unholy Two, and Sargent D of Stuff You Will Hate.Com/MetalInquisiton.

The event is hosted by CJ Townsend

Egotrip’s Brent Rollins who also designed classic movie Boyz N The Hood’s logo laced the upcoming Rhymesayer release by Freeway and Jake One’s Stimulas Package, packaging.

Atown’s/Spain’s Prefuse 73 thanked the crowd with humility after the end of his set because he was overwhelmed by the positive crowd response.
I’m not gonna lie, I’ve never listened to Prefuse in my life aside from when he played with Edan at the Wex but I did enjoy the soft toned layers of sound over the live drums.
It had a very earthy warmth to it…. like being at a cave near a beach with water trickling in.

I think his performance was more refined than the opener that I came to see, the Muthafucking Gaslamp Killer. (more…)

Major Lazer(Diplo’s & Switch’s dancehalll partytime time dancehall tan as fuck senior year jump-off) announced thurr tour.

Mad Decent’s newest sensation Rusko will open. I saw Rusko last night at Bristol Bar. Show was so packed that they locked the doors. Inside was insane. Doods were climbing the support beams and an in general wilding out. No one actually knows how to dance to dubstep so there was just this constant crowd bounce. Methed out girls years grinding teeth, and couples rolling making out on the couches. Definately a blow-out. Definately the new drum n bass.

The attire was either hippie, underground rapp rave, and Milk Bar.

Major Lazer & Rusko will be in Columbus April 6th at Boma.

TOUR DATES: (more…)

Jay Elect’s buzz is reaching Nas pre-Illmatic levels…In the above video Jay brings Mos Def and Puff Daddy onstage to “civilize an 85er”.

Still buggs me out how he tied the F.O.I, Nicholas Telsa and Mgmt together.

Actually, the most bugged out thing is that Jay Electronica puts a Ancient Moorish Science Fez on Diddy’s head.

You gotta feel the “We Love Haiti” chants before Jay sets it off.

I am not gonna pretend to be interested in battle rapping on the most part. It usually comes off like a bunch of Hip Hop comic book nerds on some Marcon meets dooded playing Mortal Kombat with 15 friends in dirtweed basement on Friday Night.

 But Columbus rapper Zerostar battled St. Louis rapper Remyd in Chicago. From my understanding this Grindtime  battle league is a big deal. Remyd takes it, but I feel like Zero proves why Columbus is better than most places cause the hip hop scene isn’t a bunch of corny nerds.

Remyd best verse is his third where he basically calls Zero a hipster by referencing Drake and Jay-z. Which is funny cause Zero is backpacking  a mfer, that just happens  to live in a city that isn”t redundant. Almost blame the MilkBar on that one and having unique rappers like Jakki in our cities history.

Anyway, Look at the fat whitedood who looks like he is getting an erection everytime Remyd raps.

Just peeped this on the Weightless Message Board. Justin Timberlake beatboxing for Brother Ali in Wyoming at a bar called the Million Dollar Cowboy in fucking Wyoming.

For sure dood. Rap is out of control..