Eric R. Danton | Sound Check

Breaking news: rap lyrics feature drug references

A newly released study shows what any casual fan of hip-hop could have told you without a second thought: references to drugs are more prevalent in rap songs now than they were 20 years ago.

This shocker comes courtesy of Denise Herd, associate dean of students at the School of Public Health at the University of California, Berkeley. She reached her conclusions after examining lyrics from 341 rap songs and finding that not only had drug references increased, rap songs were more frequently glorifying drug use, as well.

"Positive portrayals of drug use have increased over time, and drug references increased overall," Herd says in a press release, in which she also paraphrases Chuck D's line about rap's role as the "CNN of the ghetto." "This is an alarming trend, as rap artists are role models for the nation’s youth, especially in urban areas. Many of these young people are already at risk and need to get positive messages from the media."

Not to dump all over her project, but did it really take a research study to figure this out?

The conclusion is nearly as glaringly obvious as the study I received a couple weeks ago from Stanford, announcing, "Symphonies Spend More Than They Earn." So that's why they're all on the verge of bankruptcy. And that study took two economists to complete.

Nelly eager for Springsteen collaboration

After a four-year absence from the music scene, Nelly was hoping to return in genre-bending style by collaborating with Bruce Springsteen, the Associated Press reports via the Monterey County Herald.

And why not? The St. Louis rapper has already worked with country singer Tim McGraw, on the former's lackluster 2004 album "Suit." Alas (for Nelly, anyway), the Boss encountered "scheduling difficulties" that precluded his participation on "Brass Knuckles," due in June and featuring Akon, Ashanti, Chuck D, Ciara, LL Cool J, Lil Wayne, Pimp C, Snoop Dogg and T.I.

Nelly, best known for his 2002 hit "Hot in Herre," remains optimistic that the two can work together.

'"We still might get a chance to get it off. We're saving it. We might repackage it for the holidays," he said Sunday on the orange carpet at the Nickelodeon Kids Choice Awards.

Among other collaborations, Springsteen contributed guitar and backing vocals to Marah's 2002 album "Float Away with the Friday Night Gods," sang (with Patti Scialfa) on Emmylou Harris' "Red Dirt Girl" album and duetted with Jesse Malin on "Broken Radio" last year on Malin's "Glitter in the Gutter" album. Springsteen hasn't worked much with rappers, at least, not so far ...

Jay-Z, Mary J. Blige to play Mohegan

Jay-Z and Mary J. Blige, two of the biggest acts in urban music, have teamed up for a tour that stops May 8 at Mohegan Sun.

Tickets go on sale Friday at 10 a.m. for $150, $125 and $95.

Gnarls Barkley releases new album NOW

Gnarls Barkley has moved up the release of its second album by three weeks to, well, today.

“The Odd Couple” had been slated to drop April 8, but the duo comprising singer Cee-Lo Green and producer/musician Brian "Danger Mouse" Burton decided not to wait on the follow-up to their 2006 mega-hit “St. Elsewhere.”

“They felt the timing was right to just go for it,” a spokesman for the band said in a statement. “With the shifting seasons, furtive romantic entanglements and fierce college basketball rivalries, the latter half of March can be confusing. People need to be soothed and inspired now.”

Here's my review.

McCain gets dissed; is Obama next?

After mocking Al Sharpton last year on the mother of all diss tracks, "Al Sharpton is a Ho," underground rapper Elemental Emcee turns his attention to the presidential campaign with a sharp poke at Arizona Sen. John McCain, the presumptive Republican nominee.

The Atlanta rapper targets McCain's positions on the war in Iraq, civil liberties, abortion and gay marriage, dismissing the senator as a "senile warmonger."

"If you can read and you're not insane, then don't ever vote for John McCain," El rhymes on the refrain, before adding a campaign-style disclaimer.

"I'm Elemental Emcee, and I approved this message, and I hope it pisses you off, John McCain," El raps.

Democrats may not be immune from the rapper's ire, either: "I might even do an Obama diss rap, I don't even know," El says as the track fades.

Download
John McCain Diss Rap

Kanye to glow in Hartford May 16

After lighting up the Grammys with his sweet shades (and a cameo from Daft Punk in their first-ever TV appearance), Kanye West brings his "Glow in the Dark" tour to Hartford May 16 with a stop at Dodge Music Center, according to an itinerary released today by his publicist.

Rihanna, N.E.R.D. and Lupe Fiasco are also on the bill. No word yet on ticket prices or when they go on sale.

West added to his Grammy collection with four additional awards this year, including best rap album for "Graduation." His most recent Connecticut performance, last summer at Mohegan Sun, was controversial among attendees, some of whom felt shortchanged by his hour-long set.

(Photo by Lawrence K. Ho/Los Angeles Times)

CD Review: 'Nostalgialator' by Mike Ladd

Last year was, in almost every way, disastrous for American hip-hop. Sales of ringtones outpaced rap albums, which fell off by 30 percent, and Jay-Z was the only big-name rapper to release an album worth more than a couple listens.

Things are looking up in 2008, though, thanks to a record that was first released in Europe in 2004 by a guy who lives in France. That’s right — mainstream hip-hop is in such bad shape that an album recorded four years ago, and finally released in the U.S. for the first time this week, is the freshest thing on the scene.

What an experience

Here's a guy who knows what he wants: Daniel Michael Miller II, a musician and rapper from Akron, legally changed his name last year to "The" Dan Miller Experience. And yes, the quotation marks are an official part of his name.

"I like to do little things in my life that amuse me," Mr. Experience told The Associated Press. "This amuses me."

(Thanks, Matt, for the link.)

CD Review: 'Lupe Fiasco's The Cool'

The hype around Lupe Fiasco’s 2006 debut outpaced the quality, but “Food and Liquor” showed a certain rough potential that the Chicago rapper has shaped and polished for his latest album.

“The Cool” is a concept record, based around a namesake character Fiasco (real name: Wasalu Muhammad Jaco) introduced on “Food and Liquor.” He adds two more players here, the Streets and the Game, and spins an allegorical tale about how the Cool interacts with the Streets and the Game.

Everlast proclaims new video controversial

Can something you do be controversial if you're the one who points out how controversial it is?

Everlast seems to think so. His "controversial new video raises eyebrows and consciousness," according to the headline on a press release his people sent out this afternoon. To wit: His video for the new song "Letters Home from the Garden of Stone" features graphic violence "as seen first-hand from ground zero in a no-holds barred presentation that brings home the savagery of war."

"I wanted to show the hard reality of war from those stuck in the lower rungs of its foodchain – the foot soldiers, the displaced and maimed civilians," says the rapper. "The news gives us a sanitized version of what's going on presented by generals in crisp, clean uniforms. I wanted to grab the viewer by the scruff of the neck and shove their face into the reality that has been painfully endured by thousands of soliders and civilians alike."

So war is hell? Who knew? Aside from William Tecumseh Sherman, that is, who first made the observation 143 years ago (and didn't need a press release to do it).

You can watch the "no-holds barred" video here. (Socially conscious angle: Everlast requests that viewers make a donation to War Child International, a network of independent organizations working globally to help children affected by war.)