We polled a diverse group of individuals to ask what their favorite mixtapes and albums of 2009 were. When you start talking about the best there’s no way to compile a list that will satisfy everybody so we’re going to show you a consensus of what our poll yielded. Think of it as our own panel of experts.

10. Raekwon – Only Built 4 Cuban Linx…Pt. II

9. Lupe Fiasco – Enemy Of The State

8. Rick Ross – Deeper Than Rap

7. Lil Wayne – No Ceilings

6. J.Cole – The Warm Up

5. Wale – Attention Deficit

4. The Clipse – Til The Casket Drops

3. Jay-Z – Blueprint 3

2. Drake – So Far Gone

Kid Cudi – Man On The Moon: End Of Day

The voting was close but at the end of the day there can only be one winner. Out of our 22 person panel, Cudder received an impressive 10 votes.

Jay-Z was no slouch either coming in second with 8 votes for his Blueprint 3 album. Tied with the Jigga Man is VA’s finest duo The Clipse and their Til The Casket Drops offering as well as newcomer Drake and his So Far Gone mixtape. DC rhyme slinger Wale also had a good showing, rounding out the top 5 with Attention Deficit.

As with any list not everyone that was deserving made the cut so we’re going to throw out an Honorable Mention lot. That list, in alphabetical order, is as follows:

- Chester French – Love The Future

- Daniel Merriweather – Love & War

- Dom Kennedy – FutureStreet/DrugSounds + Best After Bobby

- The Dream – Love vs. Money

- Grizzly Bear – Veckatimist

- John Mayer – Battle Studies

- Miike Snow – Miike Snow

- Mike Posner – A Matter Of Time + One Foot Out The Door

- Ryan Leslie – Ryan Leslie + Transition

- Trey Songz – Anticipation + Ready

- Wiz Khalifa – Deal Or No Deal

Thanks to all who took part including: 87Films, A.J., Adil, Audra, Benny, Byron, DC to BC, Jeremy, Joe T., Joe M., Matt W., Patricio, Shawn, Shomi, Whitney C., Whitney H.

Let’s have another year of enjoying and supporting good music.

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Happy……New Year from Da Fam Cam on Vimeo.

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Sometimes I’ll see stuff and I’ll store it away for a while before actually dissecting it. I made the mistake of doing that with this video. I stumbled upon it a few months ago and literally just moments ago sat down and watched it for the first time. This piece is pretty dope stemming from the stuff that Colin Munroe talks about all the way down to the cinematography of the whole thing.

A few things that Colin said that really resonated with me:

“Often I talk with people about being part of the ‘playlist generation’…It just makes sense that all of those influences are going to melt together and start creating unique and individual sounds that dwell somewhere between the traditional lines.”

What he’s referring to is the fact that people aren’t afraid to listen to all types of genres of music and in turn that has allowed people to create music without boundaries that blend different sounds culminating in a truly unique product. This is a concept that really excites me. It’s something that Colin, himself, along with folks like Chester French and Mike Posner are pursuing.

EDIT: I apologize. I just realized that I didn’t mention the forerunners of this movement. People like N.E.R.D. and Gym Class.  There are a ton more too. Don’t judge me.

“There’s a lot of cool being sold, more than there ever has been…It’s not as much about people striving to say something, or be something, or to be on a journey, or to tell their story. People are striving to make sure they are as cool as fuck…Cool is the commodity, that’s what’s sold now.”

If you know me then you know that one of my complaints with society is the lack of integrity and that is definitely conveyed in the entertainment industry. People aren’t worried about quality product or making a difference, they’re worried about material accomplishments and appearing to be “cool as fuck”. Honestly, this is something that bothers me deep down and, if I’m ever put in a position of influence, will transpire to change.

Check out the rest of the video and if you’re unfamiliar with Colin Munroe’s music treat yourself to his first mixtape.

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MD Management held an A&R showcase Dec 5th in Richmond, VA featuring A&R’s from Atlantic and Sony. The homegirl did her thing in front of the Richmond faithful. Very well put together event. Yours truly was invited to speak and we had a very cool Q&A session with the crowd there. Shout out to everyone that was there.

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Last night was probably the coldest and windiest night in New York City history. That didn’t stop me from dragging Nisarg to what was being labeled “the Ultimate Joe Budden show” on Varick St. It was my first time seeing Joe live so I was eager. Kanye West is the best performer I’ve seen live. Second would be Jay-Z and third will be Lupe Fiasco.

Who Is Joe Budden? - In 2003, right around the time Interscope Records signed a monster by the name of 50 Cent, Def Jam was looking to add some fire power to it’s rap roster. Kevin Liles and crew found it in New Jersey rapper Joe Budden. The Just Blaze produced “Pump It Up” was the commercial hit of that summer and things looked up for the young rapper. Underneath all that were a series of mixtapes where Budden went into depth about his struggles with drugs, his parents, being stabbed by girlfriends, abortions, label issues and so much more. This would be dubbed “Mood Muzik”. After being dropped by Def Jam Joe took a long hiatus from rap that ended with 2005’s “Mood Muzik 2″. I remember this vividly because it was my first year off to college and I was going through a lot. Mood Muzik helped me get through it like it helped thousands of others get through their issues.

By mainstream fans Joe was labeled a weirdo that blew his opportunity to be as successful as Fabolous. He was called a complainer and accused of making boring and depressing music. Those depressing songs which fans consider masterpieces were all put on display last night at S.O.B.’s. During the 3 hour set Joe ran through several cult classics from the Mood Muzik series as well as album material  from the cd’s Halfway House, Padded Room, and Escape Route.

The Atmosphere – S.O.B.’s by no means a large venue. Through out the night I wondered if a Gucci Mane or a Drake would be able to contain their legion of fans in such a compressed building. For Joe however the setting was perfect. He prides himself on having a one on one type of relationship with each of his fans. Thanks to his live broadcasts and personal songs they know everything about him and he knows a lot about them as well in return.

Amidst what seemed like a sea of white boys that will kill for Joey were other fans of his including his mom who was dissed several times on some of the old songs Joe performed (Joe and his mother have since re-built their relationship). Also in attendance was Shade 45 host Angela Yee with guest Jay Electronica who Joe joked with from the stage towards the end of the set.

Highlights – As I mentioned previously, no stone was left unturned. Joe had to perform easily 40 to 50 songs ranging from 10 minute album cuts to his recent freestyle over Rihannas ‘Russian Roullete’. Fans jokingly asked Joe to perform ‘Porno Star’ which is hailed as one of his worst records of all time. As a response he offered a free sweatshirt to anyone who could recite the God awful first verse of the song. Several fans tried until finally one kid who obviously must have liked the song came up and delivered it flawlessly. Joe talked to his mom from the stage, blogged from his iPhone, broke up fights, smoked cigarettes and drank apple juice. Needless to say the show was a bit ADD but I don’t think any fans went home feeling cheated. That spontaneous and sometimes reckless attitude that critics hate is what fans love and appreciate about Joe Budden.

Lowlights – No one became a Joe Budden fan because of his beat selection. He’s always been heavily criticized even by fans for picking bad beats or good beats mixed poorly. At a Kanye West or Jay-Z show there’s a perfect harmony between the track and the performers voice  (mainly because both use live bands) but that wasn’t the case. Joe’s DJ kept having to lower certain tracks to balance out his vocals; kind of annoying at times. Also annoying was that Joe performs with a backing track which kind of takes away from the live aspect. To his credit he did a great job of memorizing all 50+ songs and several he did acapella but his lyrics would probably standout more if he got rid of the loud backing vocals.

Final Grade  - B+. Great artist, loyal fans, three hours, emotion. All reasons why the show was worth the price of admission.

Below are some videos courtesy of Rap Radar

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This is an audition tape from a group called Candy Slice for NBC’s show, The Sing-Off. Straight comedy.

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This is a pretty dope all-access, behind the scenes type of documentary with Mos Def shot by the folks from Current TV.  It follows Mos throughout Japan and documents his interaction with and appreciation of the Japanese culture.

Mos discusses everything from his love for Japanese fashion, to the inspiration to his new album, to expanding “his” Japanese burger chain into the US.  The one thing that gets me the most though…professional Japanese baseball has cheerleaders!  In the US, baseball is the only of the three major sports to lack cheerleaders.  Quite upsetting.

Anyway though, the documentary is almost 50 minutes long and is a great insight not only to Mos Def but also the Japanese and their customs.  Check it out.

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Directed by Spike Lee.  Enjoy.

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After a series of bad press, Chuck H took a break from the game and subsequently was dropped by his record label, Interscope. This mixtape is his return effort and word on the streets is it’s nice. You be the judge.

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Yep. Two things are certain around this time of year. Someone will fool his or herself that next year will be “different” and the Richmond homie Skillz will rap about all the years happenings. This should be good. Enjoy the radio rip for now. CDQ coming soon.

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If you read, whether on a regular basis or on occasion, please feel free to share with us some of the best books you’ve stumbled across. This is called Da Fam Ink after all. Here are 5 books that may be of some interest:

1. Purple Cow – Seth Godin

2. Flow – Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi

3. The 50th Law – Robert Greene and 50 Cent.

4. The Odyssey – Homer

5. The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin – Benjamin Franklin

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A magic show during halftime of the Oklahoma City Thunder game almost turned tragic. This (man or woman) took what seemed like ages to unchain his or herself and then proceeded to drown around the 3:00 mark. Even magic fell off! No disrespect to Mr.Johnson.

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Check out  Blitzen (Lupe Fiasco), Santa (KRS One), and the Kobe/LeBron MVPuppets all in the holiday spirit.

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