Last night Jay-Z performed the second of his two historic nights at New York’s Carnegie Hall benefiting the United Way of New York City and Shawn Carter Scholarship Foundation. We were lucky enough to attend and witness the event – Backed by an orchestra conducted by Jeri Lynne Johnson (of Black Pearl Chamber Orchestra) and the Illadelphonics featuring Questlove and Bilal amongst others.

Jay-Z delivered classics such as “99 Problems,” “Hard Knock Life,” “Run This Town,” and “Empire State Of Mind” with the help of Alicia Keys, of course. Bilal gave us a special rendition of Billy Joel’s “New York State of Mind” before Nas took the stage to join in before going into “If I Ruled The World,” There was also a beautiful rendition by the orchestra of Gil Scott Heron’s “New York Is Killing Me.”

The night was classic New York bringing together tuxedo NY set with hip hop heads, a couple of NY Giants players, Chris Rock (who was celebrating his birthday) and even John Mcenroe (to name a few).

One to tell the kids about for sure.

(Apologies for the poor photo quality – we got what we could get!)

Facebook | Twitter

Posdnous and Trugoy (Dave) of De La Soul have adopted the monikers of Jacob “Pop Life” Barrow and Deen “D” Whittier to present their newly founded First Serve duo. Above, you can find a characteristically quirky intro to these fine young men.

On April 2nd, First Serve will be releasing a concept album centered around “the story of two young boys from Queens, New York with big dreams and larger rhymes.” French production team 2 & 4 will be laying down the beats for the project. Take a listen to the first single, “Pushin’ Aside, Pushin’ Along,” below – smooth like butter. In absolute delight we are.

At the very end of this post, you’ll also find The Goon Time Mixtape, which features the duo rapping over reworked instrumentals from Nas, Jay-Z, Jurassic 5, The Beatles, Aloe Blacc, Eminem, Run DMC, and B.B. King.

Soundcloud | YouTube

Crazy animations and comic steez in this new video for Flux Pavillion’s “Superbad” featuring Doctor P. We are completely engrossed in this glitchy chaotic awesomeness.

You think you don’t know Flux Pavillion, but oh, indeed you do! Kanye West and Jay-Z sampled our boy in “Who’s Gon Stop Me.” And there’s more coming from where all that came from!

Facebook | Twitter

So, since when was Frank Ocean so incredibly charming and adorable?! Wow. We are loving this mini interview he did with GQ as their pick for Rookie of the Year for 2011. Congrats to the young gentleman!

Tune in for some wise words on vitamin C, non-musical advice from Kanye, and Frank’s extra curricular activities, amongst other things.

Twitter | Tumblr

Ladies and gentlemen, the long awaited Watch The Throne is just around the corner – August 1st for the digital release, and August 5th for the physical release. And just when we thought we couldn’t wait any longer, Kanye and Jay-Z blessed us with a leak called “Otis.” As you might guess, the track features a sample from Otis Redding’s “Try A Little Tenderness.” And you guessed it: now we really can’t wait.

Otis feat. Otis Redding by watchthethrone

Kanye West on Facebook | Twitter | Official Site

Jay-Z on Facebook | Twitter | Official Site

Hugo’s new video for “Bread and Butter” shows the artist in his own comfort zone, pure soulful rock and roll, dedicated to the ladies. But the song that got him a deal on Roc Nation was a country-twanged cover of Jay Z’s “99 Problems.”

Sade’s new 2xCD compilation The Ultimate Collection is finally available today, including four new tracks. She’s also kicking off her US tour with John Legend in mid-June – see a full list of tour dates here. This video from the World Tour kick off in France shows a little bit of what we can expect from a live performance, and it’s got us pretty psyched. Make sure to pick up a copy of The Ultimate Collection, an obvious necessity for all music fans.

Purchase The Ultimate Collection on iTunes | Amazon

Official Site | Facebook | Twitter | Myspace

Tour Dates

When we heard about Sade’s forthcoming compilation The Ultimate Collection, we drooled over the mere thought of a Jay-Z remix. To our surprise, Jay went and posted it up on his new blog today. Check the stream for “The Moon And The Sky” below, a wonderful Friday send-off. And there’s much more to come: The Ultimate Collection includes more brand new tracks, and Sade will be on tour with John Legend this summer.

The Moon And The Sky (Remix Featuring JAY Z) by SadeOfficial

Following the latest album Soldier of Love, Sade has announced the forthcoming release of The Ultimate Collection, coming out on May 3rd. More than a Best-of, this album is 28 tracks on a two disc set, including new unreleased songs and a remix of “The Moon and the Sky” featuring Jay Z.

Pre-orders of the album begin today, and include “ultimate access to pre-sale concert tickets.” Check the full list of dates, all including John Legend, after the jump.

Sade and John Legend Summer Tour Dates:
(Newly announced dates are noted in bold below.)
June 16 — Baltimore, MD — 1st Mariner Arena
June 18 — Pittsburgh, PA — Consol Energy Center
June 19 —  Philadelphia, PA — Wells Fargo Center
June 21 — Uniondale, NY — Nassau Coliseum
June 22 — Washington, DC — Verizon Center
June 24 — East Rutherford, NJ — Izod Center
June 25 — Newark, NJ — Prudential Center
June 28 — Toronto, ON — Air Canada Centre
June 30 — Montreal, QC —  Bell Centre
July 03 — Uncasville, CT — Mohegan Sun Arena
July 06 — Boston, MT — TD Garden
July 08 — Indianapolis, IN — Conseco Fieldhouse
July 09 — Cleveland, OH — Quicken Loans Arena
July 10 — Columbus, OH — Schottenstein Center
July 12 — Atlanta, GA — Philips Arena
July 13 — Atlanta, GA — Philips Arena
July 15 — Ft. Lauderdale, FL — BankAtlantic Center
July 16 — Miami, FL — American Airlines Arena
July 17 — Orlando, FL — Amway Center
July 23 — Houston, TX — Toyota Center
July 24 — Dallas, TX — American Airlines Center
July 26 — Kansas City, MO — Sprint Center
July 28 — St. Louis, MO — Scottrade Center
July 29 — Memphis, TN — FedEx Forum
July 31 — Charlotte, NC — Time Warner Cable Arena
August 03 — Detroit, MI — The Palace at Auburn Hills
August 05 — Chicago, IL — United Center
August 06 — Chicago, IL — United Center
August 07 — Chicago, IL — United Center
August 09 — Minneapolis, MN — Target Center
August 11 — Denver, CO — Pepsi Center
August 13 — Vancouver, BC — Rogers Arena
August 14 — Seattle, WA — Key Arena
August 15 —  Portland, OR — Rose Garden Arena
August 17 — Sacramento, CA — Power Balance Pavilion
August 19 — Los Angeles, CA — Staples Center
August 20 — Los Angeles, CA — Staples Center
August 21 — Los Angeles, CA — Staples Center
August 23 — San Diego, CA — Cricket Wireless Amphitheatre
August 25 — San Jose, CA — HP Pavilion
August 26 — Oakland, CA — Oracle Arena
August 27 — Oakland, CA — Oracle Arena
August 30 — Anaheim, CA — Honda Center
August 31 — Anaheim, CA — Honda Center
September 02 — Phoenix, AZ — U.S. Airways Center
September 03 — Las Vegas, NV — MGM Grand Arena

This past Friday, at a NYC club, Jay-Z announced that the New Orleans rapper, Jay Electronica, has been signed to his label, Roc Nation.  Jay-Z explained this move by saying that his “whole goal is to reintroduce the magic to hip hop.”  Jay Electronica has been making his name in the underground scene for several years with hit singles like “Exhibit A” and “Exhibit C”.  The two also created a collaborative song, “Shiny Suit Theory”, which features The-Dream and Charlotte Gainsbourg.

Jay Electronica- Shiny Suit Theory feat. Jay-Z, The-Dream, & Charlotte Gainsbourg [MP3]