My Daily Joe

Hoopla Media Group arranged this exclusive interview with Pastor Troy and one of most prolific hip-hop journalists named Justin Melo. In this sit-down, the Atlanta veteran explains going independent before it was the “in” thing to do, acting, new albums and more.

In some ways, Pastor Troy’s career beginning in 2002 was a sign of the unexpected future. After numerous hit singles on Universal Records including the Timbaland and Ms. Jade “Are We Cuttin” collaboration, Pastor Troy left Universal Records on his accord citing creative differences with the wish to go independent.

Fast forward to 2011 and it seems that the trendy thing to do is remain an independent artist. With artists like Ice Cube, Tech N9Ne, Killer Mike and others seeing tons of independent success, Pastor Troy’s career is a reflection of the times.

Speaking to us candidly, Pastor Troy talks about his forthcoming film, acting venture, two new albums and more. Read more »

Country star Tim McGraw may soon go to court with his label Curb Records over an unreleased album. The label has filed a breach-of-contract suit against the singer, claiming that he refused to provide a fifth album that would have completed his contractual obligation to the label by an April deadline. In addition to demanding a finished album, Curb is seeking to bar McGraw from signing to another label and cancel an agreement made in 2001 that cut a sixth record from his contract.

Choose Rolling Stone’s Cover: The Sheepdogs vs. Lelia Broussard. Vote Now!

In a statement released by McGraw’s spokeswoman, the singer says that he submitted an album titled Emotional Traffic in the fall but the label refuses to issue the record because they intend to keep him under control indefinitely. According to Curb, some of the recordings on Emotional Traffic are so old that they violate the terms of their deal.

The rising star Rashondra Angelle talks about growing up in Long Beach, California and the pride of the “Home of Scholars and Champions.”

MyDJ: What was it like growing up in Long Beach, California?

Rashondra Angelle: Well, I think Snoop said it best, “with so much drama in the L.B.C…” naw, but for real, growing up in Long Beach was a great experience! It’s such a diverse city full of many cultures, which taught me so much about myself and others. I honestly can say that I wouldn’t be who I am today if I hadn’t been born and raised in the L.B.C. However, because of its diversity the city has many gangs of various ethnicities living in the same vicinities. Therefore, it could be kind of “touch and go” at some points in certain areas. Yet and still, because it is a beach city, many people have a laid-back quality.

MyDJ: Tell us about going to Poly– The legendary high school Snoop Dogg, Warren G and others also attended. What was it like in those days?

Rashondra Angelle: Long Beach Poly is “Home of Scholars and Champions” that is the school’s slogan and it reigns as truth. During my years there I looked forward to only a few things, Chorale, which was the school choir that I was apart of, pep rallies on Fridays, and graduating, lol. It was a very socially active campus with Read more »

Best known for his work on many of Dr. Dre‘s G-Funk classics, Knoc-Turn’al takes a swerve into club-ready territory on this newly-released remix of If You Wanna. Produced by Treacherous Records’ Komplex, this synth-scorching selection finds the Cali mainstay rhyming alongside Southern upstart CyHi Da Prynce. K-Young ties the body-moving package together with a memorable hook. If you like what you’re hearing, more freshness awaits on the headliner’s Knoc’s Ville LP, released this Tuesday via Hoopla Media Group/Treacherous Records, and available at all major online retailers. Click hereto purchase the set on iTunes!

It’s rare to find a new breed of emcees in 2011 with a true love and passion for the essence of hip-hop. Tricosta began writing poetry before he started rapping. That poetry turned into rhyming before he began putting it over instrumentals. With a background in DJ’ing, Tricosta, who is of Trinidad & Costa Rican background, is the perfect cover boy for real hip-hop in 2011.

With his new inspirational and uplifting boom bap influenced single “Anything” recently released; Tricosta is at the biggest and best point of his hip-hop career yet. Influenced by both Biggie and Eminem, it’s clear that Tricosta has a true appreciation for rhyming.

Complaining of a lack of passion in hip-hop today, Tricosta hopes to restore the faith in hip-hop by making lyrics a point of emphasis. When asked about this, Tricosta had the following to say. “As far as substance goes, that doesn’t exist in hip-hop anymore. That’s a shame because it went from people really having to listen to what you have to say, and they had to pay attention. Now it’s just strictly about does the hook sound good? Is the beat hot? Everything else is whatever. As long as those two things are hot, who cares about the rest?” The blazing single “Anything” is available now….

Meet Donny B. Lord, a blazing new pop artist and Lord of the dance floor, who also shares a fascinating connection to the Jackson family. At a young age, Donny was discovered by Jackie Jackson’s talent scout who quickly brought him to the attention of Jackie himself. Receiving a historical opportunity to be escorted into the Jackson estate, Donny got the chance of a lifetime to perform for Jackie.

After being blown away by his performance, Jackie called in Jermaine Jackson and asked Donny for an encore. Jackie and Jermaine both concluded that Donny was a one-in-a-million talent, and even referred to him as “Little Michael.”

Donny spent a lot of time around Jackie, and even had the opportunity to sit it on numerous Jackson studio sessions. Watching the late, great Michael Jackson — widely considered the greatest entertainer of all time — taught Donny a lesson he could not learn from anyone else.

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