MUSIC VIDEO: "Decoy"-8More feat. Freck Billionaire

Rapper 8More is back with a new video! "Decoy" is a single from 8More's mixtape Endustry 8, which was released back in 2012. The single has created a nice buzz for the West Philly rapper, so he decided to re-release it. The visual itself was shot by Cloudvizion Film with production done by 8MPBeatz.

Check out the video below!

RECAP: "...Healing"-The Game S8, E7

There was no new episode of The Game last week since The Book Of Negroes was showing on BET (I strongly recommend it!). Picking up from last episode, Jason confides in Malik about his upcoming date with Kelly. Malik try to give Jason some pills in case he has sex with Kelly. At first, Jason refuses to take them. However, when Malik makes him questions about whether or not he is enough for Kelly now, Jason accepts the pills anyway!

Meanwhile, Tasha has a meeting with Blue, congratulating him for his hard work and success on the field. She wants to add him as a client. Blue, however, is looking for a bigger management company, though. He wants big endorsements, and he really doesn't know if she is a good fit for him. However, Tasha feels like no one knows him, or, if they do, they know him as a cornball. Blue feels like Tasha is off her agent game, stating how they only came downstairs to the restaurant from her condo, and that she even brought the baby to the meeting. Where's the effort to really snag him? When Tasha begins to breastfeed Kyra at the table, the owner tells her she can't do that in the restaurant. Blue quickly takes a stand for her, which, of course, someone records!

RECAP: "You've Lost That Loving Feeling"-The Challenge: Battle of the Exes 2 Episode 8

Can’t believe we are so close to the end of The Challenge: Battle of the Exes 2! Picking up from last week, the game is down to FIVE couples: Leroy & Nia, Jay & Jenna, Wes & Theresa, Zach & Jonna, and Jordan & Sarah.  Back at the house after the Dome, Leroy and Nia are still upset at the fact that Jay and Jenna threw them in. Honestly, I expected both of these teams to be gone way before now, especially Jay and Jenna. However, I think people are just keeping them around because they pose no threat and could be easily beaten when it comes down to it.

The next day, Sarah opens up to a few of the girls about her struggles with Jordan. Theresa suggests writing a letter to him, which she does. It’s so important for them to be on the same page! Sarah and Jordan are a strong team, and could actually win this thing if they work together like they have for the majority of the challenge! After Jordan reads the letter, the pair apologizes to each other and hug it out.

RECAP: "Sleepless In Atlanta"-Being Mary Jane S2, E4

Another great episode of Being Mary Jane last night ! Picking up from last week, Niecy meets with Trayvion's father Cameron. She's very annoyed by him, since she hasn't heard from him in two years. He wants to change now that he has lost his college scholarship. Eventually, he kind of wears her down, as they joke with each other. After Niecy breaks her diet and eats chicken wings, Cameron states that they can get back on their fitness together. That sparks a whole discussion of how there is no "them" in Niecy's mind. Cameron wants to be involved in his son's life, but Niecy doesn't plan to just let him walk in without being able to trust him, which is understandable. I'm not sure how this is going to work out!

In The Spotlight: Christian Richardson

Keeping these spotlights coming! As always, if you are or represent an upcoming artist, designer, producer, etc., and are interested in a feature on The Spotlight, please read our Features/Submissions page for more details!

Today, I’m happy to feature one of my fellow Moonz (aka strong supporters of Wale and each other!), poet Christian Richardson! Christian started writing poetry in his senior year of high school back in 2007, with his first poem being a love poem to a girl he was “foolishly in love with,” he joked. “We were not communicating at the time, so I wrote her a letter instead.” Poetry soon became a way for him to truly open up about his feelings and emotions about his life circumstances.

In The Spotlight: Fanci

Got another spotlight for you all, and several more in the coming weeks! I’m definitely very excited! As always, if you or your client is interested in being featured on The Spotlight, please check out our Features/Submissions page for guidelines!

Today, we have Berlin-based singer Fanci! The singer got his start in music fairly early, taking classical piano lessons at the age of 6, and eventually went on to take jazz lessons with Berlin's famed piano player Reggie Moore and guitar lessons with Rudy Stevenson. “Both taught [me] how to improvise on piano and guitar, and so I was able to write songs,” Fanci said.

ALBUM REVIEW: The Perfect EP-Ash

I recently featured music and did an interview with alternative R&B/pop singer Ash! On February 10, 2015, the artist dropped her debut project, The Perfect EP, for listeners! The four-track EP was produced by T Brown, who has worked previously with Janelle Monae (Ash is also a background singer for The Electric Lady!).

Ash’s debut reflects her own feelings on love, and, between the actual music and lyrics, listeners are bound to really connect with the EP! "The Perfect EP, I hope helps change the conversation in music. I think the way I've chosen to write about love will add a cool twist to the dialogue that so many artists are already having. At the very least I hope it compels people to love deeper," Ash said of the project.

Check out my review of The Perfect EP below!

RECAP: "That's The Way Love Goes"-The Challenge: Battle of the Exes 2 Episode 7

The Challenge: Battle of the Exes 2 is winding down, and it's getting even crazier! Picking up from last week's cliffhanger in the Dome, it's neck and neck between Johnny and Adam as they stack their crates to reach that bell! Adam tries to jump to try to ring the bell, and fails, but Johnny is able to make it and rings the bell. Though Adam and Brittany are headed home, they definitely killed it for rookies!

That night, Sarah vents about Jordan's mood since that last challenge. Jordan is also upset that Sarah seems to be stressing him so much. It's crazy, because their partnership was so solid up until that last challenge! Now that we're getting down to the money, everyone is going to struggle to keep it together.

RECAP: "Mary Jane Knows Best"-Being Mary Jane S2, E3

Being Mary Jane is really heating up! Picking up from last week, Mary Jane’s maid finds a bunch of food under Niecy's bed, which shocks MJ. She has a conversation with Niecy about her overeating and being overweight. Mary Jane wants to help her niece, becoming her life coach somewhat. Though Niecy feels a little pressed to lose the weight, she obliges. In the new effort to get Niecy healthy, MJ gives her one of MJ’s own famous post-its to read as an affirmation every morning. She teaches Niecy how to cook vegetables, gets her a water bottle to encourage her to drink more water, and goes walking with her and the kids. Though Niecy struggles with the changes at first, she seems to be adapting.

At work, Mary Jane begins her story on freezing her own eggs, having the camera following her for the entire two week process. She speaks with her gynecologist, Dr. Morris, about the process for her viewers. Though Mary Jane is 38, it is not too late for her, though the sooner the better. Mary Jane has to take hormone shots every morning (which, after the first one, leaves her with a rather noticeable bruise), which could cause nausea and vomiting, she’s told. She should also avoid stress, jacuzzis, drinking a lot of alcohol, and second hand smoke.

RECAP: "Acting Class and Rebound A..."-The Game S8, E6

Quite a few surprises on this episode of The Game! Picking up from last week, it turns out
Chardonnay just called her sorority sister, nobody really mysterious or important. Chardonnay wants to forget Jason and turn up, so her soror plans to throw her a divorce party! Meanwhile, while Malik is getting a haircut, he gets a call from Keira. She's alone since Blue and the rest of the starters are making an appearance at a national fitness club for kids. Keira needs Malik to come with her to her acting class, which he refuses at first, but reluctantly agrees to go to.

Later, Jason goes to see Kelly, acting like he's there to see Brittany, but we all know that's not the case. After Jason gets Kelly to admit that her "boyfriend Enrique" is fake, he admits that he believes he has another chance with her and still loves her. Kelly kicks him out, saying that it's not her fault of what happened between him and Chardonnay. It wasn't totally, but she played a role. That kiss sparked a lot of old feelings!

RECAP: "Love Hurts"-The Challenge: Battle of the Exes 2 Episode 6

Can't believe The Challenge: Battle of the Exes is already at the halfway point! Picking up from last week, the house goes out to party per usual. Everyone in the house still can't believe that Nia and Leroy took out Bananas and Nany! Meanwhile, Adam wants to hook up with Averey,  and flirts with her, but Averey has a boyfriend and denies his advances. However, she does get upset that Johnny starts talking to Adam later, the one guy who wants to spend time with her. This girl is borderline mental. Nobody cares Averey. You have a boyfriend. Johnny has a girlfriend. He ain't thinking about you girl!

The next day, Jordan and Sarah talk about how it doesn't matter now who they go against at this point. They work together so well, while a lot of the other teams struggle to come together and get through challenges as a team. I definitely agree. Jordan and Sarah are probably the less combative in the house with each other, and gel very nicely. Probably because they were never really together. They just had a little hookup and kept it moving. A lot of these other couples have history, and deep issues with each other that keeps them for working together.

RECAP: "Freedom"-Being Mary Jane S2, E2

I am so glad Being Mary Jane is back on TV! Picking up from last week's season premiere, Mary Jane wakes up to noise in her house,and grabs a bat to approach the intruder! It's actually David, who makes her breakfast, half naked. He tries to kiss on her, but she backs away from him. Instead, she apologizes for everything, including giving up on him and stealing his sperm. He asks if he can kiss her, and does. However, they are interrupted by an unknown baby, who is David's son, Andre! Turns out to all be a dream, and Mary Jane wakes up to Isabelle crying.

In The Spotlight: Lamont Bagfeel

I've been listening to and checking out a great amount of artists, producers, and a few designers lately! It's been a great start to 2015, I must say. As always, if you are or represent an upcoming artist, producer, designer, etc., please refer to our Features/Submissions page for more information on how you can be featured on The Spotlight! 

Today, on the blog, we have singer/songwriter/producer Lamont Bagfeel! Lamont  got his start in music when he began to play the drums at church from about 9 - 12 years old. One day, he got on the organ, and was told by a guy at the church that Lamont couldn't play it because it was too hard to learn. "That actually made me want to learn how to play it, so I just started focusing on piano and keyboard," Lamont stated. Though the singer never had real formal training on how to play, he constantly listened to music and started picking it up, teaching himself how to read music and eventually was able to skillfully play bass, guitar, keyboard, organ, and drums.

Yaya Dacosta Snags Lead Role in Upcoming NBC Drama

Yaya Dacosta is really making a name for herself as an actress! The star has snagged a lead role in an upcoming NBC drama!

According to That Grape Juice, Yaya will appear as a character in the 19th episode of NBC's Chicago Fire this season, which will launch the show's spinoff Chicago Med. Yaya will play Maggie Seaver, a nurse with romantic ties to Chicago Fire’s Kelly Severide, who is played by Taylor Kinney. 

The Chicago Med  episode was created and written by Chicago Fire creators/executive producers Derek Haas and Michael Brandt, executive producer Matt Olmstead and executive producer Dick Wolf, according to Deadline.

It's great that we're seeing all these great shows with strong black female leads! Yaya will join the ranks of Kerry Washington, Viola Davis, Jada Pinkett Smith, Taraji P. Henson, and Nicole Beharie, who all have a starring role in top network shows.

Image via That Grape Juice

RECAP: "The Saber's Story"-The Game S8, E5

The Game is heating up! Picking up from last week, Jason goes to see Malik at Phatty's, and Malik ignores him at first. However, when Jason offers him a position on the team as third string quarterback, Malik gets excited! To him, it's his way back to glory, and he'll take what he can get!

Meanwhile, the Sunbeams come together at Tasha for their meeting. They give Chardonnay a "Sunburn" package, getting her a Costco card and apartment books since she is getting a divorce from Jason. Chardonnay thanks them and leaves, since she is technically no longer a Sunbeam. After Chardonnay leaves, they get down to business. There is a charity event before the game, but Keira is dedicated herself to acting and decides not to be there. The Sunbeams stress to her that the team comes first to , and tell that to Tasha as well. She's told that she needs to nip Chardonnay's messy divorce drama in the bud for the sake of the team.

RECAP: "Love, Sweat, and Tears"-The Challenge: Battle of the Exes Episode 5

There was definitely a power move made in this week's episode of The Challenge: Battle of the Exes 2! Picking up from last week, the house goes out to party per usual. Johnny talks to Zach about the resentment that Wes has towards him, and it's all definitely going to come to a head soon! He wants Zach to be on his side to take Wes down, though Zach, unbeknownst to Johnny, has his doubts about it. Zach wants to "run his own game," but we all know he isn't the brightest crayon in the box.

The house gets a clue from T.J. about the next challenge: "At tomorrow's challenge, don't let your ex be the one that gets away." At the challenge, T.J. announces they will be playing "Open Arms." There is a giant structure and a zipline with a sled on one side and a heavy bag on the other. The girl will hold on to the bag down the zipline, while the guy rides the sled. The guy can try to jump on the heavy bag with the girl, and get as far down the zipline as they can together, which will get an additional 10 seconds knocked off their time! They will then swim around a buoy to the shore, and ring a bell to end their time. The team with the fastest time will win Power Couple, and the team with the slowest time will go straight to the Dome.

RECAP: "People in Glass Houses Shouldn't Throw Fish"-Being Mary Jane Season 2 Premiere

Being Mary Jane is back for what looks to be an explosive second season! Picking up from last season, Mary Jane returns home from saying goodbye to David, and is obviously upset. So upset, in fact, that she ends up throwing her fish bowl through her glass window in the living room! I was wondering what the title of this episode was about! Poor Starsky.

Later on, Mary Jane hosts a small dinner with her friends to discuss a book they read (I'm assuming she either got that glass fixed pretty quickly or this is a while later). The group debates blacks and their roles in American history. They disagree on some things, but it's all in good fun, though MJ is getting too drunk for her own good! Her brother Paul, Jr comes over, and after a heated debate over their father and his own job, Mary Jane ends up going off about him and her other brother Patrick, who both still live at home. So drunk, MJ expresses her feelings about Patrick's job as security for movie trailers, and Paul selling drugs. Paul goes for the jugular when he says that now he sees why David doesn't want her and is with "that white chick" Ana, and leaves. That quickly shuts MJ up for a second, but then she turns to Val, who made some analogy comparing her brothers to ducks trying to survive or something like that. Mary Jane says that maybe she should be done with both Val and her husband Chris since they are really David's friends! This woman is really unraveling, and it's quite sad to watch how she's acting...over a guy.

Full List of Nominations for 2015 iHeartRadio Music Awards!

The 2015 iHeartRadio Music Awards are coming! The award show will air live on NBC at L.A.'s Shrine Auditorium on March 29 from 8-11 pm ET! According to E! Online, it will also be broadcast simultaneously on iHeartMedia stations nationwide and across the iHeartRadio digital music platform.

The list of nominees have officially been released, and, at no surprise (at least to me), Iggy Azalea and Sam Smith lead the pack with five nominations each! Ariana Grande and Taylor Swift both received four nominations themselves. Can't say I'm in total agreement with the list, but there's a lot of deserving artists!

Fans will get to be involved in the selection of the winners in the Best Fan Army and Best Lyrics categories, as well as for the first-ever Renegade Award, sponsored by Jeep. Voting begins March 2 and ends March 20. 

Check out the full list of nominees below!

In The Spotlight: Ridock King

Another spotlight for you all...and more on the way! I tweeted earlier today that doing spotlights is probably my favorite part of blogging. I get the chance to be able to connect with other people and share their work and stories, and that's really special to me. As always, if you are or represent an upcoming artist, producer, designer, etc., please refer to our Features/Submissions page for more info!

Today, on The Spotlight, we have hip hop artist Ridock King! Ridock began writing music at the age of 9, inspired by artists like LL Cool J and Tupac. “They created music that reached your soul and could also stimulate your mind to help you think more critically about life in general,” he explained. Growing up in Philadelphia, he admitted “many of the ‘street horror’ stories were not unusual to see.” However, he also began to educate himself and connect with other scholars and professionals, which he says gave him great balance. Ridock effortlessly uses a great blend of all of his experiences to create his current sound and lyrics.

NEW MUSIC: "Hesitate"-Maximo

Got a new track, "Hesitate" from Australian R&B producer/artist, Maximo!

Hailing from Brisbane, Australia, Maximo released the track, which he describes as "gritty, alternative R&B reminiscent of The Weeknd and August Alsina. With a different mix blending R&B and hip hop, the track details hesitation within a relationship on both ends, in fear of that vulnerability of opening up to another person.

Check out the dope track below!

MUSIC VIDEO: "Emotionless"-Nyakz

Upcoming R&B singer Nyakz has released the visual for his latest track, Emotionless!"

The song and the visual, which features Columbian model Stefania V, openly showcases the ups and downs of a relationship, as well as potential infidelities. "Whenever you hear a song you want the visual to make sense and I feel the director and I achieved that vision," the singer said. "The video tells you a story about the realities of relationships that everyday people are constantly battling."

Check out the music video for "Emotionless" below!