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What looks to be one of the most anticipated tours of the year kicks off this Fall with the legendary Ms. Lauryn Hill joing rap hero Nas in seventeen different cities across all of North America. The pair have previously worked together way back in the 90s, but now they are back for a stage bonanza - literally - with two special guests. 

Lauryn Hill at Kaya Fest 2017

It has been almost twenty years since the multi-Grammy Award winning Lauryn Hill released her first and only solo album 'The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill' following her time with The Fugees, and longer since she and Nas collaborated on the 1996 single 'If I Ruled the World (Imagine That)' from the latter's second album 'It Was Written'. But they are uniting once again for a series of US and Canada performance dates.

Continue reading: Lauryn Hill And Nas Team Up For Joint US Tour

'Time is Illmatic’ - directed by multimedia artist and first-time director One9 – kicked off the Tribeca Film Festival yesterday, Wednesday, April 16. The film documents Nas’ time living in the projects to his ascendance as an internationally renown rapper with his critically acclaimed debut album. 

Nas at the New York Premiere of 'Black Nativity' 

The nature of the subject is about surviving and thriving,” said Tribeca Film Festival co-founder Jane Rosenthal. “That’s what New York did post-9/11,” when Rosenthal, Robert De Niro and Craig Hatkoff held the first Tribeca fest. “And that’s what Nas has done in his career. It’s about bridging cultures and bridging communities — that’s what his work is about.”

Continue reading: Nas’ 'Time Is Illmatic' Kicks Off The Tribeca Film Festival

If you’re at Coachella this year, you won’t be reading this story and if you are… well, this might just make things worse, but here’s a rundown of the best things you’re missing anyway. Saturday saw a huge dust storm rip through Coachella Valley on Saturday, but diehard fans stuck it out anyway for Muse’s headlining gig. The English rockers performed festival staples like "Hysteria," "Resistance," and "Magic," but a large portion of the Coachella crowd left the field early as high winds swept sand and dust across the festival field, Reuters reports.

Muse went for festival favorites and a Nirvana tribute.

Continue reading: Coachella Saturday Highlights: Muse, Pharrell And Surprises From Jay And Bey

Wireless Festival, Justin Timberlake and Jay-Z – a match made in heaven as far as festival organizers, reporters, fans – all those involved really – are concerned. The pair are splitting up the headlining duties on the three nights of the festival between the two of them, with Justin having performed last night and bringing in Jay for an encore. Tonight it’ll be Hova who takes center stage, as Timberlake only comes on for a couple of tracks. On Sunday, they will share the main stage at the festival for an entire set.

Timberlake's performance was nothing short of spectacular.

Check out the rest of our gallery from the first night of Wireless.

Continue reading: At Wireless Festival, Justin Timberlake And Jay-Z Will Stop At Nothing Short Of Total Domination

Kim Kardashian was unable to make her partner Kanye West's birthday bash in New York City this weekend after being told she could not fly ahead of the birth of her first child next month. The expectant mother was stuck in Los Angeles as Kanye rang in his 36th year at Caribbean-themed nightclub Ms Lily's, reports the Daily Mail.

Kim's thoughts were clearly still with her rapper boyfriend, tweeting, "Happy Birthday to my best friend, the love of my life, my soul!!!! I love you beyond words!" on Saturday as Kanye prepared to party with his NYC pals. She had apparently bought the Jeezus rapper a $750,000 Lamborghini for his birthday last year though decided to cut down on the lavish gifts this time around. 

Kim may have been a little grumpy on Sunday morning after seeing photographs of a pretty stylish looking Beyonce turning up with husband Jay-Z to celebrate Kanye's birthday. The Halo singer opted for a midriff-baring black-and-white outfit with bowler hat and dark sunglasses.

Continue reading: Kim Kardashian Misses Kanye's Birthday As Beyonce Steals The Show

2 Chainz has managed to walk away from his marijuana possession charge an innocent man, thanks to a lack of evidence that the offending items actually belonged to him. The Guardian reports that 2 Chainz claimed one of his bodyguards had packed the rucksack, therefore the drugs were not necessarily his. The bodyguard, Harold Folsome Jr, said that he had just packed the bag with items found around the hotel, thus absolving himself of prove ownership, too. “whoever left t in the room, I guess that’s who it belonged to,” [sic]said Folsome.

2 Chainz was arrested for the offence back in February when Maryland state police pulled him over in a routine stop and smelled burning marijuana coming from the vehicle. Talbot county court judge William H Adkins said “It belonged to somebody in that room," the judge agreed. "As for who, I don't know.” As the ownership of the offending items was not proven, no charges were brought against the rapper or his bodyguard. The arrest, however, has already caused significant disruption to 2 Chainz music career, as well as for some of his fellow hip-hop stars as Nas was forced to cancel his Live Nation Movement festival, citing 2 Chainz’ “visa issues resulting from a pending unresolved court case” as a reason.

The rapper released his major label debut Based On A TRU Story last August. It debuted at number one in the US. He has now begun recording in Paris with Kanye West for a new LP. 

Continue reading: A Lucky Escape? 2 Chainz Found Not Guilty On Marijuana Possession

The Kennedy Center has announced its schedule of events for 2013-4 and amongst the more unusual musical treats that the center has planned includes the Queensbridge rapper Nas celebrating nearly 20 years since the release of his debut album Illmatic. Nas will be performing twice with the National Symphony Orchestra, the Washington Post have reported. Nas’ appearances will be part of a “week long salute to hip-hop,” an unusual step for a center whose arts programme normally focuses on jazz, dance, classical and theatre events.

Michael Kaiser, the president of the Kennedy Center explained that they had felt the need to expand on their current entertainment schedule, in order to bring in in lie with the tastes of a younger crowd. “We’ve always felt the need to address the interests of a wide range of people… Hip-hop will certainly draw in a younger audience. We’ve had hip-hop here before, but never as our own festival. Chris Richards of the Washington Post commented on the week-long hip-hop venture, saying “It’s encouraging to see the Kennedy Center shining its light on the genre. The expected highlight [will be] two performances by Nas.”

Continue reading: Kennedy Center Goes Hip-Hop: Nas To Play With National Symphony Orchestra

The Bonnaroo festival line-up has been released and it's something to get yourself excited about. Not got a ticket? You'll definitely want to get yourself one once you see who'll be performing. 

The Bonnaroo festival info page is a veritable delight of explaining Out There and In Here. Out There is out here, where we are now, beyond the limits temporally or spatially of the festival itself, but In There, in the festival, the festival organisers want it to be a haven of positivity, safety and, above all, supreme amounts of fun. They describe it as "4 of the best days ever" and "an escape into Excitement. Music. Art. Discoveries. Trees. Fresh Air. Green Grass... Friends (Old / New). Adventure. Overwhelming happiness. Hugging a stranger by accident. Sharing and Generosity. Bonnaroovian Dancing. Hyperbolic verbiage..." and the list goes on. Sounds good, right? Well, the line-up is even better, and suitable for all genres you may find yourself remotely interested in. 

Here's the best of the list, from the headliners down to the early stars: Paul McCartney, Grammy winners Mumford & Sons, Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers, Bjork, R Kelly, Wu-Tang Clan, The National, The Lumineers, David Byrne, St Vincent, Passion Pit, The XX, Kendrick Lamar, Grizzly Bear, Animal Collective, Of Monsters and Men, Nas, ZZ Top, Beach House, Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeroes, A$AP Rocky, Tame Impala, Gaslight Anthem, Billy Idol, Foals, Local Natives, Alt-J, The Tallest Man on Earth, Earl Sweatshirt, The Vaccines, Frank Turner, Purity Ring... and once again, the list goes on. Check out the website to see the rest.

Continue reading: Bjork, Paul McCartney And R Kelly: Variegated Lineup For Tennessee's Bonnaroo Festival

Rapper Nas is the latest celebrity to speak out in defence of Quentin Tarantino's controversial new film Django Unchained, speaking to press at the unveiling of his new collaboration with cognac makers Hennessy.

The famed rapper, who had his own brush with civil rights campaigners when he announced in 2007 that he was to name his upcoming ninth album after the infamous 'N word,' said that he has indeed been to see the Jamie Foxx-starring film, but he couldn't understand what all the fuss was about (he eventually named his 2008 album Untitled). He went on to explain that given Tarantino's history in film-making, peple should hardly be surprised with his gratuitous use of language and gore and that, in fact, the movie fits in well with the context of the Spagetti Western era anyway. He said: "It's a movie, movies by [Tarantino], why should we be surprised if the movie is raw?"

"He's one of the greatest filmmakers of our generation, and we don't go there to see anything less than rawness," Nas went on the say before adding, "He's an artist, and artists have to express themselves."

Continue reading: Rapper Nas Questions Django Unchained Criticism

Rapper Nas is being sued by a concert promoter, who claims that he was held at gunpoint and held for ransom after the rap icon failed to show for a concert.

According to TMZ, Nasty Nas failed to show up for a New Year's Eve concert in the African nation of Angola, despite already having collected $300,000 for his services. Patrick Allocco, the promoter in question, claims he was held by gunpoint with a ransom placed on his head by Angolan promoters and their 'henchmen' who were demanding their money back. Allocco says that he remained in their custody until February 2012.

Allocco has now filed a federal lawsuit against the rapper, demanding that Nas pay for what happened to him. The case, filed on Friday (Dec 21), claims that the promoter was held captive for a total of 50 days, during which time he was constantly beaten and threatened. Allocco is now demanding $10 million from Nas, claiming he suffered psychologically, physically and financially, whilst he was held for ransom. He also claims that during his absence he was unable to conduct business anymore and, as a result, lost both his home and his company. 

Continue reading: Nas Being Sued Over Kidnapping Ordeal

Lil Wayne might not be able to vote, but he’s still going to make his feelings known about the forthcoming US elections. He’s been doing his research into the two candidates, Barack Obama and Mitt Romney though, frankly, we’re not sure which way Lil’ Wayne’s swinging on this one.

Wayne isn’t eligible to vote in the elections, thanks to a 2007 conviction for gun crime.  He’s made sure that he’s done a little bit of research on the candidates though, so that whoever the rest of the US voting public lumber him with, he can at least feel that he has the measure of the man. “That's all I can do from a personal standpoint," he told MTV News. "I can't vote, so all I can do is figure out who these people are and whoever you guys choose at least I know a little bit about them.” And for Wayne, the person is as important as the politics, it seems: “I am paying attention to it and you know for me following it meaning I kinda did my research on who both of these people were and not really about what they're talking about or what they're politicking about... but just to figure out who these people are.”

Continue reading: Can't Vote, Won't Vote, But Lil' Wayne's Got The US Elections Sussed Anyway

Nelly Furtado has certainly dipped her toe in plenty of different styles during her time in the music industry, and it’s as much thanks to the people she’s opened up to and worked with as it is her own eclectic tastes as an artist. True to form, her fifth album The Spirit Indestructible looks like it’s going to mark another change in direction for the 33 year-old Canadian, featuring as it does Nas on one track among other collaborators.

Talking to MTV, Furtado praised her producer Salaam Remi for his involvement in the album and said it was him who passed on her track Something to the rapper. “He loved it” she said of Nas’ reaction, before enthusing “It wasn't until I was finally sending in my liner notes to the label and handing in my lyrics that I had to ask Salaam for Nas' rap... It's one thing listening to Nas rap, but then when you see his words on paper, you really see what a poet he is. And I'm happy he's on the album."

With Passion Pit front man Michael Angelakos also involved in the project among others, Furtado admitted that she takes what she describes as a “buffet approach” to her albums. "I just kind of want it all on every album” she said, adding “I think this album is sort of a combination of all my sounds. I think this new album is totally spiritual in this really not obvious kind of way. I love songs that make you move your body, but sort of have a deeper meaning to them."

Nas, the rapper behind the landmark hip hop album, 'Illmatic', revealed that a lot of his inspiration was the pain he felt from the loss of his mother after she died of cancer, following a three year battle, in 2002. Nasir Jones, also known by his stage name Nas, had a very strong relationship with his mother, Anne - this being greatly increased by her separation from his father when he was 12-year-old in 1985.

Related: Nas' 'Time is Illmatic' Kicks off The Tribeca Film Festival

'Behind the Music Vh1' showed a television special on 18th April 2012, featuring an interview with Nas. During his interview, he explained: "My mum was real. She was someone who was there to take care of me and my brother and really be there for us and really be concerned about us." Nas revealed that he was glad to be with his mother before her death in April, 2002. 

Continue reading: Nas Called Off Tour To Be By His Mother's Side As She Died