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Best Music of 2009 (So Far): Steve LaBate, Associate Editor
To celebrate the half-way point of 2009, this week Paste staffers are counting down their favorite albums and songs of the year (so far). Check out all of our lists here, and share your own favorites in the comments.So much love to give already this year, and it's not even July. And there's even more to come later this year with new albums from The Avett Brothers, Pearl Jam, the Beastie Boys, Tom Russell and Calexico, Jay-Z, Os Mutantes, Yo La Tengo, The Black Crowes, Gordon Gano, Erykah Badu, Lil Wayne and The Dead Weather. I'm only supposed to include 10 albums and 10... read more
Found in: Blogs, List of the DayBest Imitation of Themselves: Jay-Z, Wilco and Daft Punk Share Similar Interests
On Ben Folds Five's self-titled debut album, Folds let us know, while fronting a band and album sporting his name, that he does the best imitation of himself... read more
Found in: Music, FeaturesMTV's Unplugged Returns with Adele, Silversun Pickups and Katy Perry
There are a few essential steps in a musician’s career that signify big-time success: releasing a best-of album, headlining a festival, and throughout the 1990s, performing live on MTV’s Unplugged. Alhough the series was hugely popular for a time, when major rock artists like Nirvana and Eric Clapton graced the stage with acoustic-only versions of their biggest hits, after eight seasons, Unplugged left the air, to return only for special occasions in the following years. Today, it makes a comeback, returning to MTV.com with a series of monthly performances from popular contemporary artists like Adele, Silversun Pickups and Katy Perry.... read more
Found in: Culture, NewsJay-Z's Blueprint 3 Finally Gets Release Date
You'd be forgiven for thinking that Jigga Man had disappeared for the last few months; nary a tour date or eight-bar could be heard from the C-E-O of the R-O-C. Sure, that teaser for "Jockin Jay-Z" was awesome, but when your upcoming album has a nigh-unprecedented level of hype, your audiences need some red meat. Rest easy, true believers, because the long night of doubt is over: Blueprint 3 has a confirmed street date of Sept. 11, Billboard reports.... read more
Found in: Music, NewsJay-Z Reportedly Close To Deal With Sony
It looks like the Roc Boy is heading to Sony. Following his split with Def Jam last week, Jay-Z is apparently on the verge of signing a deal that will bring the highly anticipated Blueprint 3 and future recordings to Sony's Epic Records.... read more
Found in: Music, NewsJay-Z Splits with Def Jam
We knew Jay-Z was a business, man, but settling a label contract over a coin flip? Now that's serious business. News of the separation between Hova and Def Jam hit the streets Thursday, when Jay spoke to RapRadar.com and confirmed that he would indeed be leaving his label of almost a decade.... read more
Found in: Music, NewsYou Talkin' to Me? A Survey of Songs by Musicians, About Other Musicians
It's nice when musicians sing songs about other musicians. The phenomenon would seem to compound the sense that pop stars are only interested in their own insular world, but instead it somehow makes artists seem more human—it proves that even they are obsessed with other musicians, just like we are. Hearing a pop song by one artist about another artist is sort of like reading someone else's fan mail (or hate mail). In any case, it can be revealing both about the artist giving the tribute and the artist on the receiving end. Here are some good ones.... read more
Found in: Blogs, List of the DayCatching Up With... Lady Sovereign
On New Year's Eve of 2007, Lady Sovereign towered onscreen over a million people in Times Square. The giant billboard image would dwarf anyone, but Louise Harman's five-foot one-inch frame... read more
Found in: Music, FeaturesDef Jam preps 2LP comp for anniversary, Record Store Day
Hip-hop is in a collaborative frenzy right now. Nearly every big-name release has a small horde of featured artists, and producers and emcees are passed around the studios like so many communion chalices. Even so, uniting an entire label's best and brightest is no mean feat, since so many titanic egos would have to play nice to squeeze onto a single album. Def Jam, rap mecca that it is, is artfully sidestepping this problem by releasing a double-vinyl compilation in celebration of the label's 25th anniversary.... read more
Found in: Music, NewsA Survey of Rap Songs About Telecommunications
This Soulja Boy song is very popular right now. It's a horrible song, almost horrible enough to make you think that rap songs about telecommunications are, across the board, a bad idea. Not true! Just to be sure Soulja Boy doesn't ruin it for everyone, here are 10 better hip-hop tracks about the world of telephonic communication:... read more
Found in: Blogs, List of the Day
The 20 Best Gadgets of the Decade…
The 20 Best Live Acts of the…
The 50 Best Albums of the Decade…
The 25 Best Movie Performances of the…
Download Harper Blynn's "Centrifugal Motion"
Blind Pilot - One Red Thread
B.O.B. - Put Me On
Punch Brothers - Punch Brothers at CMJ
David Bazan - Hard To Be
