Say what you will about Kanye West, but dude knows how to keep himself on top of the news cycle in order to draw attention to a new album. In an effort to out-Radiohead Radiohead, he wants fans to remix his lead single "Love Lockdown" and -- unlike a certain British band who charges for their stems on iTunes -- is offering all of the essential elements of the song for free to do with......

We liked the song, but agree with Kanye's decision to re-record it since the new version is far superior. Especially when it "overloads." Nice touch. [Kanye's Blog]......

"Love Lockdown," the jammy Kanye performed at the VMAs Sunday -- in our opinion the highlight of a show that was otherwise pretty dreadful -- is streaming on his blog. Listen up.......

Well, it's something like that. Check out his new video for "Champion." What, did you really think we'd go more than a week without mentioning Kanye?......

Ah, the rain. In previous years we've always half jokingly call the Pitchfork Music Festival "Sweatfork" due to the usually oppressive heat, but this year the afternoon storms brought about "Mudfork" and the attendant rise of the mud people. Saturday is usually the most crowded day of the festival and this year was no different, although we must admit we're seeing less and less of the ironic gym suited American Apparel crowd and more and......

Another week, another Kanye controversy. Last week, Bill Zwecker reported Mr. West would be attending anger management classes to reassure several corporations who were interested yet hesitant to extend to him endorsement deals. The trouble stemmed from Kanye's recent blog outburst regarding the criticism he faced for his much-maligned Bonnaroo show. Kanye's reaction to Zwecker's report: Nuh-uh. In a new blog entry, Kanye denied the reports and the fact that he needs any kind of......

We understand your needs. Coming into work after a three-day weekend sucks. Even way up here in the Chicagoist offices, our usually rambunctious and festive staff is a tad subdued. Our bellies are still slightly swollen from overcooked burgers and sweaty cans of beer. DJ Ray Protégé has put together a mixtape to help shake of the post-Independance blues and amp up your Monday morning. Hipster Hop showcases many of the groups of the so-called......

Sigh. As one of the few Kanye apologists remaining, we're finding it harder and harder to defend some of Mr. West's antics these days. First, there was the infamous Sunrise Show at Bonnaroo, followed by a bevy of bad feedback from festival-goers. Now, almost two weeks later, Kanye has taken to his blog to defend himself. To wit: I am sick of negative people who just sit around trying 2 plot my downfall... Why???? I......

Hip-hop pioneer Grandmaster Flash is in town tonight, but not to lay down beats. Rather, the artist formerly known as Joseph Saddler will be at the University of Chicago's International House to sign and promote his new autobiography, The Adventures of Grandmaster Flash: My Life, My Beats. During the appearance, Flash will also discuss his life and the memoir with WGCI's DJ Timbuk2. In the memoir, co-written with music-bio veteran David Ritz (Marvin Gaye, B.B.......

How appropriate, the day that Chicago's supreme mash-up duo has a record release party is the same day Gregg Gillis decided to drop the new Girl Talk album, Feed The Animals. For free. (Or pay what you can.) It's largely the same set of tunes he used to whip the crowd into a frenzy at last year's Pitchfork Music Festival, so there are no real surprises, but it is a supremely solid piece of work.......

Erykah Badu's New Amerykah Part One (4th World War) is just completely and utterly fantastic, and believe us when we say that judgment is based on an objective level. Badu has long been a cypher of sorts -- is she an Earth mother? a revolutionary? an unbalanced eccentric? -- but New Amerykah draws together all the disparate threads of her personality and weaves them into a piece of work that stands as her strongest statement......

You've seen Ramon Norwood around town, trust us. He's kind of a hard guy to miss since his tall figure is easily spotted bobbing to the beats at shows around town, but you would never guess he's the sort of guy to hole up in a studio to create a hip-hop concept disc based around the neighborhoods he frequents around town. Working under the moniker of Radius, Norwood has done just that and created an......

Rock The Bells, a "world-class hip hop platform" that kicks off its 2008 tour right here in Chicago on July 19th, announced their main lineup yesterday, which includes local acts The Cool Kids, Kid Sister, and Kidz in the Hall. Ironically, The Cool Kids and Kid Sister (both playing Coachella this weekend) aren't listed on the Chicago itinerary, though they are listed for subsequent shows. We don't know if it's an oversight or not, but......

The listed events were chosen by the editors of Chicagoist and brought to you by the 2009 Toyota Corolla. Reunion From Cheap Trick to Material Issue, Chicago is a power-pop kind of town. We're also a town that takes super talented bands and devour them whole, only to spit out their bones and leave them for dead. The Krinkles already made their way through that life cycle and hung up their guitars years ago,......

The Interview Show, a monthly opportunity for host Mark Bazer to rub elbows with Chicago celebs, returns tonight to the Hideout. Here’s a few queries we’d like to see answered: For rapper extraordinaire Rhymefest: What was it like to work with Michael Jackson? Does he seem as freaky in real life as he does on Court TV? When’s El Che dropping? And premiering at a stage near us? For author and Strand Magazine Critics Award......

Crazy wild lineup for the Saturday installment of the Tomorrow Never Knows festival at Schubas. Let's take a look, shall we? White Williams is the current hip hop-electro indie wunderkind, and perhaps the blogosphere's favorite young son since Beirut's Zach Condon. While his recent tourmates Girl Talk and Dan Deacon are relatively over-the-top in their use of pop culture touchpoints, Williams is far more minimalist in his influences. They're impeccable nonetheless, and Williams has more......

We all know that Chicago has a little something for everybody. As far as dance classes go, there are bountiful opportunities throughout the city to try something new, develop a new skill, or just plain old embarrass yourself in front of your significant other. We went ahead and found some of the more interesting offerings in the way of dance classes: Get in the action! AMEBA is an acrobatic and aerial dance troupe that also......

The Cool, Lupe Fiasco's much-anticipated follow up to Food & Liquor, dropped on Tuesday to a cloud of bittersweet press. Some critics have blasted the album for its darker sound, wishing for the breezier days when Lupe's rhymes were all about meeting cute girls and skateboarding. Others question if the change in sound is a move in the right direction. However you feel about the album (or if you haven't had a chance to......

Lucky enough to get a few days off for the Chrismukkah holidays? Several Chicago area music entities have been kind enough to give you time-filling options. Lupe Fiasco’s sophomore CD The Cool drops today, and he has announced live dates from New York to Honolulu in support of it. Chicago's only chance to catch the hometown hero will be this Thursday during an in-store appearance at Wicker Park’s hip-hop destination The Bassment. While there, be......

Moving forward in our quest to give you readers some options for going out on New Year's Eve so you aren't procrastinating. Fat Cat: The theme of the evening is a "Roaring 20's anti-Prohibition" party. Guests are encouraged to dress in zoot suits, feather boas, and flapper dresses. The $75 cover ($100 on NYE) includes top-shelf liquor, a champagne fountain, hors d'ouevres, fondue stations, and 1000 balloons (emphasis Fat Cat's). RSVP at 773-506-3100. Bin 36:......

Sure, you may be hungry like the wolf for the Duran Duran show tonight (get it? Hungry like the wolf? Duran Duran? No? Nothing?), but the big show we're excited about this weekend is taking place at The Metro Saturday night. Hip-hop legends The Wu-Tang Clan hit the stage in support of their new record, The 8 Diagrams, their first record since 2001's Iron Flag and since the 2004 death of ubiquitous member Ol' Dirty......

Anything snarky that we come up with regarding the use of music in the Democratic Presidential campaigns just pales in comparison to the cold, hard facts: Hillary Clinton's theme was a Celine Dion song and has recently been replaced by a Big Head Todd and the Monsters tune, and Barack Obama's fundraising events feature performances by some of the most relevant and buzzworthy artists out there. Tonight's Change Rocks concert at the Riv brings......

Discobelle pointed us towards Shala Esquire’s Immortal Movement Radio podcast. It's got some of the Chicago area's hottest hip-hop and dance talent including: Cool Kids, Hollywood Holt, Kid Sister, Qualo, Mic Terror, and even The Jai Alai Savant. Snag yourself a copy and melt those early Tuesday blues into a muli-culti dance party. MP3: Shala Esquire’s Immortal Movement Radio......

Jesse Thorn, Host of The Sound of Young America ...

Intonation is back! And they’ve partnered with the MCA to put on a big ‘ole party as part of the museum’s 40-year celebration. Even better? The whole show is as free as air. Intonation’s Rock/Art kicks off on tomorrow at 1 p.m. with a whole slew of local bands, representing some of the most notable sounds to come out of Chicago in the recent past. When you get there, check out the new Sympathy......

One of our favorite rock albums of the last year was created by two guys who don’t play a single conventional instrument. To add insult to injury, the gentlemen in question also come from a nation that despises the phrase “freedom fries.” Worse yet? They threw one of our own fair city’s preeminent hip-hop celebrity missionaries into a tizzy when they snatched an MTV Europe award from his hands last year, spiraling said local celeb......

Since Kanye West's hotly anticipated new disc, Graduation, has slipped its way onto the internets we figured it was time to break out our review copy and share a few of our thoughts earlier than we had planned. While we enjoyed his last two discs, we felt that, for the most part, the man could do with a bit of editing. The new one arrives leaner and more focused than previous efforts, and while West's......

Four years ago, Rich Seng was a former seminary student making low-budget TV ads for local businesses when a friend took him to a hip hop open mic at Subterranean. One thing led to another that night, and before anyone knew what hit ‘em two renowned local emcees were freestyle battling each other. An idea was born, and Seng started organizing the first Rhyme Spitters rap battle tournament. He relied on word of mouth and......

With summer easing onto its laurels and panting in the heat, it's easy to get into a mindset that all the fun the season brings to Chicago is over. Not so! While the rest of the city is waiting for the humidity to give way to fall, you could squeeze in some more entertainment, in the form of Queerfest Midwest. The event, from noon to 10pm on Saturday at the Pulaski Fieldhouse in Wicker Park,......

We at the Gothamist network would like to express our heartfelt wishes to the people of Minnesota in the days after their tragic bridge collapse. We're not trying to discount the severity of the accident by making note of it in opposition to our usual -Ist lightheartedness - we just wanted to take a moment and recognize those affected last week. After the Minneapolis bridge collapse, Bostonist did a little research and found that Massachusetts......