Track of the Week 7 - Chris Brown feat. Tyga

There's not a lot to say about this week's hot track that will do it justice. As the simple but brilliantly entertaining video goes to prove, 'Holla At Me' is an ideal throwdown track, a perfect combination of both CB and Tyga's rapping talent and an upbeat, catchy rhythm.

Chris Brown's teaming up with the 20 year-old Young Money talent is spot-on, with the duo's verses complimenting the other's flawlessly.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6suO7L6BPEc

StreetDance 3D vs. Step Up 3

Historically, Street Dance films haven’t been viewed in the best light, particularly in comparison to contemporary dance films of the 80s onwards. Most see a combination of ballet and street when a street dancer is forced to study ballet in order to make their way in life... Then becomes romantically linked to their teacher.   So, with the basis of StreetDance 3D being, well, pretty much that, how is it going to change the film world’s opinion of street dance? And, more importantly perhaps, how is it going to fare up to the already established ‘Step Up’’s next instalment, coming to screens in August.

StreetDance 3D is the first British film of its kind and, what’s more, is “the first British movie to be shot in 3D”. Being a British based movie instantly sets StreetDance apart from its American counterparts. Street dance has been far further below the surface in the UK than in the United States but, as we all know, has experienced a surge in popularity over the last 12 months. The reason? Diversity’s shock win on last year’s ‘Britain’s Got Talent’.

Milking what they can from pop culture’s interest in street dance, the makers of StreetDance 3D have hired the cream of the crop to cameo in the movie. Diversity top off the list, followed closely by their fellow BGT competitors Flawless and previous winner, George Sampson, who stars as Eddie. “I think we [all] have already helped to make street dance more widely acceptable,” says Diversity’s Ashley Banjo, “but I’m hoping the film with further enhance the standing of street dance in the UK and globally.” Combining the existing equation for street dance films with established dance personalities will, in Diversity’s opinion, make the film more appealing to the UK audience.

Step Up, on the other hand, isn’t using any established names to rake in the cash, except their own. Since the release of Step Up in 2006, American street dance film makers have upped their game, taking the premise of laughable films such as Save The Last Dance and You Got Served and bringing something worth watching to the table. So successful was the first film (and Channing Tatum) that Step Up 2: The Streets was released two years later. The second instalment was more globally successful than its predecessor due to a better plot and a stunning group routine in the rain. The Step Up franchise has now found itself at the forefront of Street Dance in film being the first film most people think of in the genre. So does StreetDance 3D stand a chance at getting ahead of this established saga? “I don't think it's a case of competing with the US counterparts,” continues Ashley, “The Americans have been doing it for years, and it's great that Britain is now getting involved.”

Step Up 3D, released on August 6^th, is clearly going to be even bigger than the Step Up film. The two minute trailer for the film showcases a bigger competition, bigger dance routines and better crews. And, in true Step Up style, brings a friendly face back from the past. Step Up 2: The Streets’ shock star, Moose (Adam Sevani), a young, curly haired weed with some serious moves, returns for the latest in the series. Unfortunately, though, the trailer looks to be a little too similar to that of its UK counterpart.

As far as soundtracks are concerned, Step Up has always been ahead of the game. Take Flo Rida’s ‘Low’ for example, pretty much made famous by Step Up 2. This time around, artists such as Trey Songz, Sean Paul and Flo Rida once more appear on the Atlantic released soundtrack. Universal, on the other hand, seem to have missed the point for out British soundtrack, using tracks from artists such as Pixie Lott and Cheryl Cole. Not that that’s to say great dancers can’t dance to anything, of course.

StreetDance 3D may be getting the head start in the battle, with its release date more than two months before that of Step Up, but it’s currently looking like it’s going to fall behind. With Street Dance films being based in the States before now, the well-spoken British (and, even, northern) accents in StreetDance 3D are a little hard to swallow, even for the two minute trailer. Routine’s by our famed acts such as Diversity and Flawess are challenged and improved upon for Step Up 3, using light effects (and more water) to really make the most of the 3D effect.

Though it will be interesting to see whether we have actually managed to pull it out of the bag in the end, it looks as though, come August, the British effort will have been long forgotten in favour of Step Up 3D.

Track of The Week 6 - Drake

Scarily, Drake has only just started receiving airplay over here in the UK with his latest release, Over. On the other side of the pond, however, the young actor, singer and rapper, has gained critical acclaim from his 2009 released mixtape So Far Gone, as well as numerous collaboration with hip-hop royalty such as Young Wayne, Kanye West and Timbaland.

'Over' is an ode to fame and the issues which come alongside it. Singing the chorus to his new 'friends', those that have appeared since Drizzy's rise to fame, it is obvious that, despite revelling in his success, Drake does have some reservations about the falseness of celebrity.

 With Drake's distinctive and sexy vocals over a combination of strings, a jazzy rhythm guitar and a military style drum beat, Over is an original rap hit. Recently picked up by Zane Lowe among others, it shouldn't be long until Drake is deservedly noticed over here.

Over available on iTunes now.
The album, Thank Me Later, available June 15th.

	Drake - Over .mp3
	Found at bee mp3 search engine

Court Fashion

Drizzle some Drizzy on me

Mmmm, one of each please?

The Soundcheck arrives.

Fortunately for Audio Push, their incredible hit record ‘Teach Me How To Jerk’ was massively successful, causing rap and dance fans globally to learn the jerk.

Unfortunately, though, for Audio Push, their incredible hit record ‘Teach Me How to Jerk’ was massively successful, making everything to follow behind seem weak in comparison.

The twosome’s new mixtape, The Soundcheck, available for free from their myspace page, does just that. And it’s a shame, because a lot of the tracks have serious potential... they’re just nothing compared to ‘TMHTJ’.   

Kicking off with the duo’s collaboration with Brandy, Aviator, the mixtape gets off to a good start. The combination of Brandy’s sexy vocals with Oktane’s distintive rapping makes this smooth track a perfect opener. The second track, however, is one of those lacking in quality. Similar in sound to Aviator, Satellite, featuring Steph Jones, doesn’t ever really get started and is lyrically inferior to the likes of Aviator.

Sadly, The Soundcheck doesn’t pick up the pace again until the end of the track listing, a whole 7 songs later. Turn it Up is a catchy dance floor track featuring Lindzee Starr whih would have been better off higher in the track listing as its most likely to keep the audience interested.  In contrast, though, the two better tracks on the collection are in the latter three. Turn It Up and, the best track of all, Come Back to Me, are divided by Girls and Clothes. G+C is an unimaginative ode to the hip-hop stereotype of “girls, cash, cars, clothes” as sung repetitively through the chorus. After the joy of Teach Me How to Jerk, I was somewhat disappointed by the boys lyrical admission of conforming to the stereotype.

Thankfully, the boys bring it back around for the final track, Come Back to Me, which, surprisingly, fills me with hope for the future of Audio Push. Another slow track, CBTM is a romantic break up song in which the adorable Price Tag showcases his singing talents for the chorus. Breaking up Oktane’s rhymes, Price beautifully begs the object of his desire to come back with some of the best lyrics in The Soundcheck, “you took the paintings off of the wall when I thought we had a masterpiece”, being just one line of note. If it were me, that voice could certainly order me around. It’s just a shame they didn’t make the most of it sooner.

Eastpak Throwdown

As soon as the doors to Brixton’s ‘Plan B’ open, walking through is an accident waiting to happen. With b-boys and girls practising their moves across the floor, it’s hard to approach the bar without incurring a collision. Having said that, it shouldn’t be any other way. The perfect snapshot of what’s to come, once you’ve got your drink and found a good seat there’s not much else to watch until proceedings begin except the practising dancers. However, as the evening draws on, the relatively small venue gets jam packed so it’s best to arrive early to ensure a good seat with an ideal view of the lino.

Having long been associated with street activities such as dance and graffiti , luggage and clothing brand, Eastpak, bring this brilliant dance night to South London on the second Thursday of every month. For 6 years, Eastpak have been combining various forms of entertainment from month to month, making each Throwdown completely different and constantly engaging.

For April’s Throwdown, Kwake, the Speaker’s Corner Quartet drummer, provided the musical entertainment to start the evening. An incredible drummer, without the rest of the quartet, Kwake plays a fast-paced, complex solo alongside electronic melodies from the DJ booth. Making the most of the live music, the b-boys take to the lino yet again to practise their battling skills.

Once Kwake has whipped the audience into a frenzy and brought more people through the door, EastPak Throwdown’s regular compére, Charlie Morley, starts off the first battle of the night with the beat boxers. Beat boxing is something I’ve never understood but there’s no preparing you for the talent on display at the Throwdown. And that goes for all events, as tonight’s 1 on 1 b-boy battle shows. A massive 26 entries gave all they could to be crowned the champ (a mere one of them a rare b-girl) but it eventually came down to a fight between Spin and Manni, with Manni crowned eventual winner. May’s Throwdown will prove to be even more exciting with the b-boys going 2 on 2 for the title.

Alongside all this action, there is a monthly showcase, with April’s performance being by the London Waaktitioners. A dance group of 3 guys and 6 girls, the Waaktitioners put on a phenomenal Waaking routine with members gradually appearing from the crowd throughout the routine. Next month will see a Locking showcase at Plan B, as well as TWO amazing guest appearances in the form of The Cuban Brothers, a hybrid of comedy, hip-hop and breakin’, and the B-supreme All Stars.

The Eastpak Throwdown is an event that really shouldn’t be missed and if you have yet to go, May is going to be the month not to miss. Throwdown will be on May 13^th at Plan B in Brixton.

www.throwdownuk.com

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=8518668307

Kick-Ass

I’ve officially decided Kick-Ass is my new favourite film.



I saw the film nearly two weeks ago and it’s taken me so long to write up a review as I wanted to do it justice (and forgot the brilliant line I came up with whilst in the theatre.). Yet I probably still won’t.


Film lovers across the globe have been long-awaiting Kick-Ass due to its major hype, numerous magazine covers and controversial originality which could have caused the polar effect and left audiences feeling let down. On the contrary, Kick-Ass perfectly lives up to its hype, bringing us a film with so much good about it.


To start with, the originality comes from Kick-Ass being a rated 15, yet from the point of view of a teenage school boy with girl problems. With the on-paper potential to be a rubbish teen flick, Kick-Ass is actually ideally written for the older audience, entertaining with adult humour at the same time as taking you back to the same imaginative youth as the main character, Dave’s.


What’s more, despite the majority of the hype surrounding 13 year-old actress Chloe Moretz’s script, it still isn’t completely predicatable, managing to maintain the humour that the film revolves around, despite expectations.


Most important, though, is the superb cast. Not one actor lets the film down throughout, nor does anyone outshine the others. Brit actor Aaron Johnson (Nowhere Boy) is flawless as an American teen, and, despite being sometimes shy and timid in reality, is brilliantly unabashed in his role as Dave Lizewski. Funny man Christopher Mintz-Plasse (Superbad, Role Models) also wows as the ignored son of the enemy, AKA Red Mist. Moretz takes to her role easily as well, and provides the ideal partner to Nic Cage’s Adam West inspired Big Daddy. Even the actors in smaller roles make the most of their time on screen making every moment count for something.


All in all, if you haven’t seen Kick-Ass by now, it probably means you’re not overly enticed by it. If that is the case, then there’s no argument you can make against it that can’t be remedied by seeing it. The likelihood is it will soon become most people’s new favourite film too.