Alex Da Kid Recalls Arguing With Eminem Over "Love The Way You Lie" Mixing

On the heels of his latest release, “Go,” British producer Alex Da Kid sat down with Julie Adenuga for a Beats 1 Radio interview released Wednesday (May 23) to give listeners the inside scoop on working with Eminem, Dr. Dre and Rihanna.

Known for producing tracks like Dr. Dre’s “I Need a Doctor” and Nicki Minaj’s “Massive Attack,” Alex opened up about how his production on B.o.B’s “Airplanes” remix started his relationship with Eminem.

“I was also sending him beats through his AR, because he was going to make an album that wasn’t like Dre-centric for the first time, so he was looking for a new sound,” Alex says. “I was sending him really strange beats, because I know he liked them and then he did the remix, and he got on it, he didn’t really realize it was the same producer and then he realized and he’s like, ‘send me some more stuff,’ so I sent him ‘Love The Way You Lie,’ and he loved it and he did it.”

Though Em loved the track, Alex and him did get into a small dispute about mixing it.

“He was like, ‘OK, I want to put it out,’ and I’m like, ‘Well, who’s mixing it?’ And he was like, ‘I’m mixing it,’ and I was like, ‘Well, I need to be there.’ And he was like, ‘You can’t come to Detroit. I’m mixing it by myself or you can’t have the song.’ We argued for a little bit, and he said eventually I could come to Detroit and mix it, ‘Fine. Do it.’ So I came there and we just hit it off straight away.”

Alex also explained how Rihanna’s feature on “Love The Way You Lie” came to be and the success of the single, which is certified diamond by the RIAA and currently has 1.5 billion views on YouTube.

“Rihanna wasn’t even on it at the time. Skylar Grey, who wrote the hook, was on it still. The song was mastered and done and we were trying to get her to record it. She loved it but she was on tour and she couldn’t find a studio. But then she eventually got on it. I don’t think people really thought it was going to be a single. People loved it but people weren’t sure. Then it came out and Rihanna did a show at Staples Center and Eminem came out. And all the press and everybody were there and nobody expected it and it went crazy that point on. ”

Take a listen to the full interview below.

Article source: http://hiphopdx.com/news/id.46992/title.alex-da-kid-recalls-arguing-with-eminem-over-love-the-way-you-lie-mixing

Will Smith Preps Rap Comeback With Bars, Son!

Will Smith and DJ Jazzy Jeff — collectively known as DJ Jazzy Jeff The Fresh Prince — have been toying with the idea of new music for several months. Last December, Smith told HipHopDX he was “getting hyped” about it.

On Wednesday (May 23), Smith shared a YouTube video announcing he was finally ready to make his rap comeback.

“At my peak, I was doing a television show, a movie and an album every year, so it was like churning out that kind of creativity,” he explains. “What happens is you get to a point where you get empty. So, I’m excited. I’m reengergized and creating wildly like I used to. I’m ready. I got the beast back.”

During the roughly three-minute clip, Smith shows off some bars he’s been working on, which come complete with Uncle Phil and Fresh Prince references.

“I got inspired/Quickly I unretired/The Fresh Prince just rewired,” he spits.

Will’s children with wife Jada Pinkett-Smith, Jaden Smith and Willow Smith, have already established careers of their own.

Last November, Jaden put out his critically acclaimed debut album SYRE, while Willow’s latest album, The 1st, dropped the month before. 

Although several people appear in Smith’s YouTube video, Jazzy Jeff, who just released his new album M3, is nowhere to be seen.  

Article source: http://hiphopdx.com/news/id.46979/title.will-smith-preps-rap-comeback-with-bars-son

Pusha T’s "King Push" Renamed "DAYTONA" Ahead Of Release

On the heels of Pusha T calling his long-awaited album “flawless,” Def Jam officially announced it will drop on Friday (May 25). The LP was originally titled King Push but has now been renamed as DAYTONA.

In a series of tweets, Pusha explained why he changed the title of the album and the meaning of the Daytona name.

“I changed the album title from ‘King Push’ to ‘DAYTONA’ because I felt it didn’t represent the overall message of this body of work,” he wrote. “‘DAYTONA’ represents the fact that I have the luxury of time. That luxury only comes when u have a skill set that your confident in.”

Def Jam’s album press release also cleared up months of speculation about the project, revealing Kanye West contributed to a song titled “What Would Meek Do?” in addition to producing the LP. Rick Ross is the only other guest, appearing on “Hard Piano.”

Daytona’s arrival will coincide with the release of exclusive new merchandise designed by Cali Thornhill Dewitt on KingPush.com. Dewitt previously worked with West to design the Pablo merchandise collection.

Pusha’s manager, Steven Victor, also made an announcement on the KanyeToThe forum about a listening party on May 24. An intrepid Reddit user posted a photo invite issued by Def Jam Records for people to attend the listening party, which will be held at the Public Arts Building in downtown New York City.

Pusha T King Push Album ReleasePusha T King Push Album Release

Check out the tracklist for Daytona below.

1. If You Know You Know
2. The Games We Play
3. Hard Piano f. Rick Ross
4. Come Back Baby
5. Santeria
6. What Would Meek Do? f. Kanye West
7. Infrared

Article source: http://hiphopdx.com/news/id.46980/title.pusha-ts-king-push-renamed-daytona-ahead-of-release

J. Cole & Lil Pump Interviewed Each Other At Rolling Loud 2018

It’s probably safe to say there’s no beef between J. Cole and Lil Pump. On Tuesday night (May 22), Everyday Struggle co-host DJ Akademiks shared an audio clip of Cole and Pump interviewing each other at Rolling Loud 2018.

Pump is heard talking about a fight with someone over a weed scent in a person’s house and the Dreamville mastermind asks if he made a scene intentionally.

The two met at the Miami music festival and evidently squashed whatever tension was still lingering. Pump said they were already on good terms on two different occasions — once at the 2018 Billboard Awards and once to TMZ. Both comments came after this year’s Rolling Loud.

Twitter was convinced Cole was speaking directly to him on the KOD track “1985 (Intro To ‘The Fall Off’),” which served as an ominous warning to the newer generation of rappers looking for a quick route to fame and fortune.

Pump fired back at Cole on social media, saying, “Wow you get so much props. You diss a 17-year-old. Lame-ass jit.”

During an interview with Angie Martinez, Cole opened up about the song and explained, “We’re in age of trolling. We’re in the generation of trolling. These kids have figured something out. They figured out attention is all that matters. The skill? Who gives a fuck? The quality? No, all that matters is attention.

‘This music is just a platform for me to get attention. What’s even more important than the music is the shit I do outside of the music. What type of wild shit can I cook up? What type of wild shit can I say just to get the attention?’”

In a follow-up video on YouTube, Akademiks said the two “actually fuck with each other”

“There is an interview that will be surfacing very soon between J. Cole and Lil Pump,” he said. “They’re just really talking candidly about all types of things and they’re trying to bridge the gap generationally.”

He ended with, “It should come out soon.” 

Article source: http://hiphopdx.com/news/id.46981/title.j-cole-lil-pump-interviewed-each-other-at-rolling-loud-2018

XXXTENTACION & His Mom Plan To Launch Helping Hand Foundation

XXXTENTACION is keeping himself busy inside and outside the studio in 2018. In a series of Instagram posts, the controversial artist announced he’ll be starting a new charitable endeavor called Helping Hand Foundation with his mother.

Congrats to #xxxtentacion for starting a charity Foundation with his mom ???

A post shared by “Von” (@djvontv) on May 17, 2018 at 1:20pm PDT

xxxtentacion helping hand charityxxxtentacion helping hand charity

Nothing’s set in stone yet and details about the foundation’s plan of action are still unclear. In March, X held a benefit concert called A Helping Hand for the victims of the Stoneman Douglas High School shooting. In January, he also visited the foster home SOS Children’s Villages to donate musical instruments and video games. It was an opportunity for him to start the #THEHELPINGHANDCHALLENGE, which called on fans to do the most charitable acts possible and win a chance to spend time with him.

Despite the positivity involved in the Helping Hands Foundation announcement, X continues to face ramifications from his ongoing domestic violence case. Most recently, Spotify said it would be pulling his music from their programmed and algorithmic playlists. He is currently facing charges of aggravated battery of a pregnant woman, domestic battery by strangulation, false imprisonment and witness-tampering.

Article source: http://hiphopdx.com/news/id.46973/title.xxxtentacion-his-mom-plan-to-launch-helping-hand-foundation