(From: Youtube.com)
Mr. Carter helped bring in 2011 alongside the misses, Coldplay, Kanye West, John Mayer, & Memphis Bleek for the grand opening of The Cosmopolitan resort in Las Vegas. More footage inside.
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Jay-Z New Year’s Performance In Vegas
Saturday, January 1st, 2011December COVER COST: Juelz Santana Is Built For Greatness
Friday, December 18th, 2009
It seems like an entire era has passed since we first laid our eardrums on the uptown resonance of LaRon James. Better known as Juelz Santana to his loyal Dipset followers, the Harlem-bred MC has been somewhat of a child star, beginning his career in a rap duo named Draft Pick in the late nineties at the age of 15. After catching the attention of another Harlem heavyweight by the name of Cameron Giles, Santana made his mark on Cam’Ron’s 2000 release, “Sports, Drugs and Entertainment” (S.D.E.). Since then, it has been nothing but full throttle hustle for the 25-year-old. After scoring a Grammy nomination for his collaboration with Cam on the 2002 smash hit, “Oh Boy,” Santana was brought into the fold of The Diplomats–a New York City hip-hop movement founded by Cam’Ron and two of his longtime friends, Jim Jones and Freaky Zekey.
Making his mark in a crew that brought numerous trends (pink-hued clothing) and phrases into the hip-hop lexicon (no homo), these days bring a new direction in the career of Juelz Santana. The MC and new-found record executive is readying the release of his third studio album, “Born to Lose, Built to Win,” on Def Jam Records. This will be the first release for Santana after inking a 50/50 venture with the label after his former mentor Cam’Ron sold his contract to Def Jam for $2 Million. But through all of the tumult that has surrounded the dissolve of The Diplomats and the relationship between its members, Santana maintains a positive outlook and even says that the Dipset movement is still alive and well.
And that should be good news to the movement’s truest fans, as they are holding on to the hopes of hearing one last album from the hip-hop collective. But until that day comes, Juelz Santana’s main focus is pushing his new label, Skull Gang Records, toward the forefront of the future of hip-hop. The new single from his album, “Back to the Crib”–which features Chris Brown–has been heating up radio as the album gets its finishing touches for a 2010 release. As droves of people will be ringing in the New Year staring intently at the Time Square crystal ball or partying the night away, Santana just might be pulling an all-nighter in the studio–gearing up for another win.
Editorial: Bringing In A New Era
Friday, December 18th, 2009
IT’S ABOUT THAT TIME
Photo Credit: www.sxc.hu
Here we are at the end of another year, another year filled with assorted epochs of shift as the seasons and months have once again melted into each other so quickly. Where has the time gone? It seems like so much activity was filled into the space of the last 12 months. With the election of our first African-American President, the epidemic of swine flu, the introduction of Nadya Suleman and her octo-wonderland, an unsteady economy, Twilight Mania, the death of Farrah Fawcett, MVPuppet commercials, Susan Boyle, the flight of Falcon Heene, the death of Sen. Ted Kennedy, our soldiers still fighting in two wars, the reform of healthcare, the influx of Tiger Woods’s personal life and the death of Michael Jackson, this year will be pretty hard to forget. But as we ring in the New Year, we will forget, because 2010 will encompass just as many twists and turns from years past. We will need to have our memory banks clear and our eyes glued on the ills and joys of society–collecting what we need to build our spiritual scrapbooks for the days ahead.
With a new year, there will be a new era–and with that, we hope to bring in the new era right with our launch of The Cost Magazine. With this inaugural issue, Our CoverCosts will feature Harlem hip-hop heavyweight Juelz Santana as he talks about his new album, how his fashion sense and rhyme skills intersect, and why The Diplomats will forever be a movement. We also caught up with R&B ace Omarion as he talks about the influence of Michael Jackson on his career, the origin of his new record label and how he interprets the future of the music business. We’ll also feature Q&A interviews from up-and-coming Florida rapper Smokey and distinguished songwriter Claude “Studio Beast” Kelly.
We’ve witnessed so much in 2009, and as we wait anxiously for our respective clocks to strike 12 a.m. on December 31st, The Cost Magazine strives to be an integral part of your experiences in 2010. Stay tuned as we assemble and cultivate an innovative online venture that will hopefully stand the test of time.
Goodbye 2009. There goes another one for the scrapbook.
We hope that you have a blessed, healthy, safe and prosperous holiday season. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from The Cost Magazine.
