Chris Brown Billboard Artist of the Year

Chris Brown is young, only 18-years old and he's definitely motivation for other young people, artists, athletes and others that focus on their life's goals. He performed in Anaheim, CA on December 6, 2008 probably oblivious to the fact that he was named Billboard's Top Artist for 2008. One could say that Chris has been on a roll since 2006 when he nabbed the Billboard honor.

This year he's had solo hit songs like "With You" and "Forever" as well as successful collaborations, like the duet "No Air" with Jordin Sparks. Just last month, Chris won three awards at the American Music Awards that included artist of the year.

Artists rankings on billboard are determined by album sales as well as digital downloads, radio airplay and internet streams. In these days of leaked tracks, it's good to see that internet streams are now being tallied in the realm of airplay for artists as this is a huge area of impact for most artists indie and mainstream alike.

Here's a free promotional mp3 download of Jair Dynast featuring T-Pain for your iPod that you can pass around this Christmas to all your friends on Facebook.

T-Pain's Tattoo Inspired T-Wayne Rap Tour

T-Pain is a hot commodity right now in the rap and hip hop world. He recently wrote and produced eight tracks for famous rapper, urban wear designer and fashion icon, Diddy although he doesn't know how many will actually get used by him.

One of Pain's biggest collaborations was done with Justin Timberlake. Justin surprised Pain by sending him vocals for his "Can't Believe It" remix a couple of weeks ago. Pain said he added what he does to it and gave the remix back.

The Florida native, T-Pain has done work with Chris Brown and he may also have worked with Ciara "Go Girl" in a fast session at the same time he worked with CiCi in separate rooms while in the studio. Next month, December, Pain will kick off his I Am Music Tour with Keyshia Cole, Gym Class Heroes and his pal Lil Wayne who is Olympic champion, Michael Phelps personal motivational rapper.

T-Pain said it's weird that without their knowledge both he and Wayne got the same tattoo - I Am Music. He has his tattoo on his arm while Wayne has his tattoo on his forehead. So, watch out for the T-Wayne Tour 'cause the tattoos will be one of the highlights that people are waiting to see.

T-Pain Thr33 Ringz Album Leaked

Rapper R&B singer T-Pain has just released a new album, Thr33 Ringz with a bouncy beat on iTunes. It was recently leaked online to tastemakers' blogs and it has already created quite a ruckus on the Internet.

His label has launched a ferocious attack by releasing other versions. One such version features an outstanding rendition by one of hip hop's most prolific artists, Jair Dynast along with Justin Timberlake, Mary J. Blige, Kanye West, T.I. as an exclusive track.

You can get your copy online to share and enjoy here. These are challenging times for the music industry. New-media has grown accustomed to using artists creative works without compensation. Finding a way to explode online is one way to make tracks super popular and hence more desirable by iTunes buyers.

Hugh Hefner Race Sex and Jazz Music

Most young people probably associate Hugh Hefner with the famous three letter word, sex and his successful Playboy Magazine empire but few would know that he's also well known for his involvement in jazz and race.

If you were not a teenager in the 50s, you would not know that Hugh Hefner celebrated the fifth anniversary of his Playboy Magazine in 1959 by putting on a Jazz Festival in Chicago. Hefner now 82-years young is an American icon because he chose to shamelessly promote the music he loved, Jazz in his magazine.

Hefner celebrated the 25th anniversary of Playboy magazine with a party at the Hollywood Bowl in 1979 not knowing that jazz had been tried unsuccessfully at the Bowl. That first event received good support from the Chicago community and 30 years later it is still going strong.

The annual Playboy Jazz Festival celebrated its 30th anniversary with Bill Cosby returning as host for the 27th time. Cosby now 70 years old shares Hefner's passion for jazz. He remembers traveling outside of Philadelphia for the first time not as a military person. Cosby joined the Navy at age 16 and traveled in the deep South with the track team where he had to enter restaurants through the back door.

Hefner remembers a Chicago "so segregated" as a young man that when he would go to the South Side of Chicago and downtown to see jazz acts, it would be the only place where you were likely to see a mixed-race audience.

Music has been for a long time the catalyst to heal the great racial divide of generations. Therefore, it is no surprise to learn that Hugh Hefner was a strong supporter of the civil rights movement in the 1950s. Today, rap and hip hop music has been able to further heal the racial divide as the music of choice for all young people - black, white and all other ethnic backgrounds.

Steven Watts, chairman of history at the University of Missouri and author of Mr. Playboy: Hugh Hefner and the American Dream that is expected in bookstores in October 2008 will no doubt tell how Hefner used his early television show, Playboy Penthouse to present blacks and whites together at a time when that was seldom done culturally or socially.

Conscious rappers like Common, Nas, Immortal Technique and new rap songs from Jair Dynast highlight some of the social issues that plagued our inner cities today. You can be part of a vibrant rap music community to interact with other music fans that share your interests and get free rap music downloads monthly.

Famous Stars Athletes Discuss Youth Violence

The south side of Chicago's Harold Washington Cultural Center was an appropriate community for a panel discussion on Youth Violence and one that could benefit from more serious "community organizers" or youth mentors.

Fox News anchor Robin Robinson, actress, fitness trainer A.J. Johnson, New York Knicks NBA star Quentin Richardson, actor and comedian Michael Colyar, entrepreneur, community activist and high-ranking member of Gangster Disciples Noonie "G" Ward, hip hop music artist Shawnna and Pastor Phil Jackson of "The House" on Chicago's west side rounded out the panelists for the two-hour session that was moderated by 107.5 Tony Sculfield and simulcast live on that station.

Hundreds of students-athletes packed into the auditorium to hear from all the panelists including Atlantic recording rap artist T.I. and join in the discussion. T.I. who is the father of six children talked candidly about his own immature actions, various run-ins with the law and what could only be described as Divine intervention in his life to date that he's living a free man or even a living man.

There was a testy exchange about street credibility and the idea that some rappers are emulated because a real history of criminal behavior somehow makes for authentic gangsta credentials in the hood. This type of behavior and ensuing trouble makes money for the rappers that have a real rap sheet so it's a vicious cycle.

This has become so important to rappers that some like Rick Ross have deliberately set about to create a phony thug persona in order to cash in on street credibility and money that real thug rappers can command because of the number of altercations, number of times arrested or time spent incarcerated.

Chicago native and NBA basketball star Quentin gave an account of his own personal experience of having two brothers killed over a senseless truck theft. He talked about the thoughts of revenge and retaliation that can overwhelm when faced with violence in your own family.

The discussion switched to negative messages and images in hip hop music and it was rightly pointed out that it's the consumer's responsibility to demand better from their favorite rappers. Although there are rappers that rap about positive things, like Common, Jair Dynast and Kanye the consumers still prefer to support the gangster rappers. T.I. told the audience to buy positive rap at record shops including rap music stores online.

He explained that in any business it's about supply and demand and if they create a different demand then there will be a different supply but as long as there's demand for gangster rap music that demand will be supplied so it's ultimately the consumer that needs to create the changes in hip hop culture.

Rapper Pharrell Williams

Designer Fashion and Supercars

Pharrell Williams has been talking about his McLaren Mercedes and a Ferrari Enzo as his favorite supercars with the McLaren Mercedes being his absolute favorite because it handles like an S Class when in fact it is a Formula 1 car.

He compares the Ferrari Enzo to being in a spaceship or a stealth bomber. He talks about meeting Lewis Hamilton at the American Grand Prix in Indianapolis recently and how much he's learned about motor-sport from him.

Pharrell is also trying to be environmental conscious and has just ordered a hybrid Yukon as his contribution to saving the planet. In spite of his love for speed and cars, he said that he still gets the greatest rush from performing with his band, N.E.R.D. now currently on a world tour of their new album, Seeing Sounds.

Williams is a Virginia-born fashion mogul that designs his own labels - Billionaire Boys Club and Ice Cream and jewelry for Louis Vuitton in a joint venture that he has with Marc Jacobs, Louis Vuitton's chief designer. Pharrell loves music, sneakers and 'ice' because he loves attention to detail, comfort, functionality and aesthetic.

In addition to his own brand, Pharrell loves to wear Tom Ford and Ralph Lauren Purple Label Couture. Designers of fashion as well as car designers that listen to rappers like Pharrell can congregate at vanguard rap music social network to share new rap music downloads with their peers.

Chuck D's Video "Ali Rap" Theme

Mohammed Ali the world's most famous boxer of the 20th century was arguably a rapper of his time. "Floats like a butterfly, stings like a bee", Ali used his "rap" like music to the ears of his opponents - remember Shakespeare's "if music be the food of love play on". These rhymes were all part of Ali's clever psychological tools to get into the psyche of his opponents that he could beat them.

Some people may say that Ali was taunting his opponents but if you examine his rhymes, it much resembles the rap that rappers use to tell the stories of their environments. There's a ESPN documentary "Ali Rap", set to Chuck D's music as the theme, that examines if Ali unwittingly invented rap music by his public pronouncements. While this may be controversial, it is one that's worthy of discussion - Ali would have it no other way.

You can read about the Ali's relationship and rap in a new book, Ali Rap: Muhammed Ali, The First Heavyweight Champion of Rap, edited by George Lois.

If you are a famous athlete such as Michael Phelps that listens to Chuck D's rap music, download new Vanguard rap music here.