Harlem tough and Diplomats co-founder Jim Jones has been keeping himself busy. Last week, he released a remix of MGMT’s “Electric Feel” and debuted an off-Broadway play (!).
 
Today, we’ve got the exclusive on his answer track, of sorts, to the Jay-Z/Lil Wayne/T.I./Kanye lovefest “Swagga Like Us” – it’s called “Swagger From Us.” This one’s from his upcoming album, Pray for Reign.

The song basically amounts to an ownership dispute: Your swagger, it turns out, is the property of Jim Jones. You may lease your swagger from Mr. Jones, perhaps, but only with his permission, and with the understanding that true proprietorship of said swagger will remain in Mr. Jones’ name.

Requests for swagger timeshares may be directed to King Jaffe Joffa, Esq.
 
Download “Swagger From Us” here and here.
 
(If you swagger jack our swagger.m4a, don’t forget the swagger credit, please!)

2006’s Dedication 2 is the mixtape that signaled Lil Wayne’s imminent rap takeover – the one where his mind began the unimpeded process of unmooring itself that culminated on this year’s Carter III, a CD full of croaky psychobabble delivered with X-Acto sharpness.

Two years, millions in sales, and 89,976 other mixtapes later, Dedication 3 has hit the web. On a very, very cursory listen (this is a blog – is there any other kind of listening ‘round these parts?), it sounds heavy on three things traditionally considered bad signs on hip-hop releases: spoken interludes, posse-member guest spots and singing.
 
Luckily, the spoken interludes range from a loopy monologue about starting an X-rated band with Sarah Palin to some koan-shaped brags (“You get money and get crazy – I get crazy and get money”). There is not much lucky about the posse members or the singing, unfortunately.
 
So the mixtape consists of occasional, not constant, pleasures: killer lines and turns of phrase pop up throughout like stars in the night sky, islands in the ocean, rest-stop Quiznos on I-95. They include:
 
-“Who run it? Bitch nigga, moi/ That was French, nigga, not a kiss, nigga. Nah.” (“Dedication 3”)
 
-“Motherfucking psychopaths/ Young Money cavemen – motherfuck a Geico ad!” (“Ain’t I”)
 
-“What the fuck do I be thinking? Kill, kill, murder and Benjamin Franklin” (“The Other Side”)
 
-“Bitch, didn’t ya mama tell you not to fuck with them aliens? I’m just tryina mate like a fuckin’ Australian” (“Outro”)
 
Sometimes the highlights aren’t lines, but little familiar idiosyncrasies: the way he calls his Rolls Royce a “Phantom of the Opera” here, the way he’ll warp his vowels and bury his consonants so that his rhymes sound not-quite-verbal there.
 
Download Dedication 3 here.  If the link expires, it’s because too many people have downloaded. Sorry!
 
(.zip file via imstrate dot com)

Has it been a year since the 2007 CMAs already? Yes, it has. Last night, the Sommet Center in Nashville played host to the 2008 Country Music Association Awards; it was an evening of surprises and, well, non-surprises.

Let's kick it off with the non-surprises: forty year-old Kenny Chesney was named Entertainer of the Year for the second year in a row, as well as for the fourth time in five years. To paraphrase our President-Elect, if there is anyone out there who still doubts that Kenny Chesney is the biggest figure in country music today, then tonight (or rather, last night) is your answer. Chesney told the crowd that he loves what he's doing. Who wouldn't love being told you're awesome year after year?

More non-surprising news: Chesney wore a black shirt and a black hat.

But on to the surprises. These were to be found not in the awards themselves but in the performances, which featured reggae legends, old rockers, a newer (but not that new) ex-rocker, and a rapper. Deets:


1. Man of the evening Kenny Chesney performed with the Wailers, as in The Wailers of Bob Marley and the Wailers. The result was the Marley classic Three Little Birds as performed by a timeless reggae outfit accompanied by a country music star and featuring vocals by a New Guy. As non-country guy AC Newman sings, Make of that what you will. 'A' for effort, though.

2. The Eagles, who were the most rock n' roll country band there ever was, were on hand, performing Busy Being Fabulous, an example of the new material that got them nominated for the Vocal Group of the Year award. If any proof was needed that much of what used to constitute "classic rock" has been slowly assimilated into mainstream country music, here it is.

3. Or maybe HERE it is. Also performing last night was Darius Rucker, former mainman of Hootie and the Blowfish, the 90s megastars who also, come to think of it, were not so un-country. In recent years, Rucker has morphed into a successful country singer/songwriter, building a name the old fashioned way: constant touring.

4. Lil Wayne appeared, helping out Kid Rock on Kid's Skynyrd-sampling All Summer Long. What did he do? He sort of played air guitar. And he looked around.  But what he did wasn't the point - Lil Wayne was onstage at the freaking CMAs! (And an interesting postscript to this thought is that, eight or nine years ago, the fact that Kid Rock was performing at the CMAs would have been noteworthy. Now, it's to be expected.)


Of course, most of country's country-erati were there, whooping it up: Carrie Underwood, Rascal Flatts, Brad Paisley, Keith Urban, Brooks & Dunn, recently Joe Jonas-dumped Taylor Swift and George Strait were all on hand. Even Shania Twain appeared, handing Chesney the night's top award. Her presence was a reminder of both her major celebrity in the field, as well as a stark juxtaposition to the presence of Lil Wayne, the Wailers and other genre-bending artists whose presence at the CMAs herald an open and welcoming country music community.

Which deserves an award in itself. Not to mention Nashville's acknowledgement of Robert Plant and Alison Krauss's excellent Rising Sand, which won the award for Best Musical Event. And speaking of awards, who won the main ones? See below.


Entertainer of the Year - Kenny Chesney

Female Vocalist of the Year - Carrie Underwood

Male Vocalist of the Year - Brad Paisley
  
New Artist of the Year - Lady Antebellum

Vocal Group of the Year - Rascal Flatts

Vocal Duo of the Year -  Sugarland

Single of the Year - "I Saw God Today", George Strait
  
Album of the Year - Troubadour, George Strait
   
Musical Event of the Year - Robert Plant and Alison Krauss, “Gone Gone Gone”

Oh, and check out our recent interview with Taylor Swift:

<< So it's confirmed, GNR's Chinese Democracy album is totally/for-real/no kidding coming out soon. Now, listen to title track off the album and temper those expectations! [gunsnroses.com]

+ You know that deal that U2 inked with concert promoters Live Nation? The company has reportedly thrown some $19 million worth of shares into that transaction. Related: Live Nation's stock, like everyone else's, is dipping. Doh! [Reuters]

+ Congratulations to Lil Wayne. His son, Dwayne Carter III, was born yesterday under a shroud of mystery: Everyone's wondering who's the baby momma. [Miss Info]

+ Medicom, which releases these Lego-ish, ursine-like toys called Bearbricks, are fixin' to drop some Daft Punk-inspired creations in March 2009. [Prefix]

+ Cosmopolitan magazine—oh yes, we're going there—is hosting a Fun, Fearless Female Rockstar competition. The booty: $10K in cash, a 3-track demo produced by a "hit-making producer," and the likelihood of performing at a Cosmo event or two. Check out the 10 semi-finalists—among them, frontrunners (in our opinion) Polina, Alexa, and Cruel Black Dove—and exercise your right to vote.
[CosmoStarLaunch]