J. Cole is slowly returning to the spotlight after dropping his free EP Truly Yours and “Power Trip” that features Miguel. During NBA All-Star Weekend, Cole spoke with MTV News about the motivation behind the latest single off his sophomore effort, Born Sinner.

Cole explained that he had to choose between “Power Trip” and “bigger record,” but went with the former because it had a newer sound. He also relates his fresh direction to when Justin Timberlake’s “Cry Me a River” was released and how it was vastly different than anything on the radio during the time.

Watch the interview above.

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Joey Bada$$ wants to work with every legendary producer in the game. After getting Premo to cut him a record, Joey is adding another name to his production credit resume. Cinematic TV provides us with footage of the young BK spitter and Pete Rock vibing out at Ecko Studios. Check that out above.

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If you haven’t been keeping up, there’s a new dance craze taking over the Internet.

Baauer’s “Harem Shake” has shot all the way to No. 1 on the iTunes chart. There have been countless YouTube videos of people uploading themselves going crazy that last about 30 seconds. Now, filmmaker Chris McGuire decided it was time to see what Harlem actually thought about the song.

In the clip above, McGuire posted up near 125th street—considered the heart of Harlem—and asked various people their reactions to seeing the “Harlem Shake” for the first time. To their dismay, many of these people agreed, “That’s definitely not the Harlem Shake.”

Just for fun, check out Fat Joe’s version below. What are your thoughts on the new “Harlem Shake?”

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Swollen Members’ own Madchild have teamed up with Slaine of La Coka Nostra and Prevail for his upcoming single called “Grenade Launcher.” The video is set to premiere on February 26 right here at XXL. Before we get Madchild’s new EP, here is a sneak peek of the video that shows the crew at a barbershop doing their thing.

Swollen Members is set to drop a new album, Beautiful Death Machine, on March 19. Slaine is also schedule to release The Boston Project on April 16. Check out the video trailer above.

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The Wu-Tang Clan wasn’t present for this performance, but Method Man rocked it with The Roots. Check out a behind-the-scenes look of Meth and Black Thought ripping through the verses on “Protect Ya Neck.” Very dope.

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Ryan Leslie performed in New York City over the weekend at Irving Plaza. In preparation for the release of his new album Black Mozart, due out on April 16, he performed a variety of cuts from his catalogue. One of the tracks “Carnival of Venice” was captured live. Watch R. Les move the crowd that even included pop star icon Madonna, who was seen in attendance for the evening.

Previously: Ryan Leslie Breaks Down His Les Is More Rap Album

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Drake’s new single has been making waves on the Internet with multiple remixes.It is essentially the hottest hip-hop record out that everyone can relate to.

During All-Star Weekend in Houston, Drizzy spoke about the motivation behind the record with MTV News. Despite the controversy of him not actually starting from the bottom, he spoke highly of his coming up in the game. He says it wasn’t “a fluke” and wanted to make it known through his backstory. Watch the interview above.

Bonus: Here’s Drizzy performing the single in Houston.

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Justin Timberlake releases his highly anticipated video for “Suit & Tie.” Set in a black and white filter, JT and Jay-Z give us scenes on recording the song, as well as live shots of them performing it in front of an audience. It’s a pretty classy. Check it out above and be sure to grab his album The 20/20 Experience on March 19.

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Lupe Fisaco and Guy Sebastian put on a stunning performance of “Battle Scars,” the single off Lupe’s album, Food & Liquor 2: The Great American Rap Album. The Chi-Town spitter recently announced the new title of his next project, which will be Tetsuo & Youth, due out sometime in 2013. Check out the performance above.

The post Watch Lupe Fiasco and Guy Sebastian Perform on “Late Night with Conan O’Brien” appeared first on XXL.

Murs and Fashawn offer their latest visuals off This Generation. In “64 Impala,” we get a proper glimpse of how life is like on the West Coast. It features plenty of tricked out 64s, with the pair looking to have a lot of fun riding in them. Watch the video above.

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Off his recent press run for his album No Love Lost, Joe Budden stopped by Funkmaster Flex last night. During their interview, Budden decides to rap a solid verse over Clipse’s “Grindin.” Some hip-hop heads might be mad at him for reading off his iPhone, but he still did the beat justice. Watch it above.

Side note: It seems Flex wants to stay “digital” by dropping a mixtape tentatively titled Funk Flex: Who You Mad At? Me Or Yourself? That’s quite a title.

[via RapRadar]

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The tape is scheduled to drop on March 14. Listen to the first single, “Way Out,” here.

The post Watch the Trailer for Yelawolf’s Mixtape “Trunk Muzik Returns” appeared first on XXL.

Pitchfork continues their ongoing Frames series with a hilarious cartoon visual featuring Waka Flocka Flame. In the episode following Peanuts-like animation, Waka remembers various instances as a child getting punished by his grandmother. Things really pick up at the end. It’s quite possibly one of the best stories we’ve heard yet. Check it out above.

[via Potholes]

The post Waka Flocka Flame Recalls Getting Punished By His Grandmother in Animated Visual appeared first on XXL.

It was announced a few days ago that 2 Chainz would be the special guest on the CBS comedy series 2 Broke Girls.

In the episode, Chainz is spotted on a private plane to the Grammys. Max, played by Kat Dennings, and Caroline, played by Beth Behrs, are both on the flight as well. They get into all sorts of funny scenarios that make for an entertaining watch.

Watch his guest appearance above.

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Uncle Murda made his way to the Breakfast Club to speak on a variety of topics. Murda discusses bringing New York back, disapproving NYPD, and adding his verse to Tahiry’s “Devil” that features Styles P. The conversation also turns into Love & Hip-Hop where Murda addresses some comments Joe Budden made towards him. Watch the interview above.

Previously: Uncle Murda Releases New Mixtape “The First 48″ [Download Now]

The post Uncle Murda Discusses His Disdain for the Police, “The First 48″ Mixtape, and More appeared first on XXL.

Frank Ocean made his Grammy debut with “Forest Gump” off Channel Orange. The performance—which also featured the song’s video in the background—had Ocean showcasing his pitch-perfect vocals and even a whistling bit near the end. Watch that above and you can expect the video to be releasing soon.

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Justin Timberlake made his return to the Grammys tonight with an unforgettable performance. Backed by a band, JT kicked it off with “Suit & Tie” alongside Jay-Z. Next, he went into one of his new songs off The 20/20 Experience called “Little Pusher Lover Girl.”

Watch it above.

Previously: 10 Rappers We’d Like to See Remix Justin Timberlake’s “Suit & Tie”

[via Yardie]

The post Watch Justin Timberlake and Jay-Z’s Performance of “Suit & Tie” at the Grammys appeared first on XXL.

Fresh off a Grammy win, Miguel hits the stage to perform his chart-topping single, “Adorn” off his sophomore album Kaleidoscope Dream.

The performance started with Miguel in the middle of the crowd, as he ran through the chorus. Then, guest collaborator Wiz Khalifa came to rap his verse from the remix. They finished the song and soon after presented the nominees for Best Country Solo Performance, which was awarded to Carrie Underwood.

Watch the performance above.

The post Watch Miguel and Wiz Khalifa’s Performance of “Adorn (Remix)” at the Grammys appeared first on XXL.

Rick Ross was seen stepping out in L.A. yesterday. When TMZ tried to ask him questions about his near escape from death for a drive-by shooting in January, Rozay was all smiles.

Remember, the MMG head honcho crashed his Rolls-Royce trying to avoid the shots fired at him. TMZ tried to get an update, as well as his thoughts on 50 Cent saying it was a hoax. All Ross did was laugh and smile some more. Just goes to show you that he isn’t scared of anything.

Check out the video below.

[via TMZ]

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Casey Veggies sits down with Life+Times to discuss his single off Life Changes. Much like their former videos with artists, Young Veggies explains each rhyme from the song. Watch it above.

[via 2DopeBoyz]

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