By Charlotte Lytton and Benjamin-Emile Le Hay 10/19/12 4:38pm

Shindigger

Swizz Beatz and DMC. (Shaun Mader/Patrick McMullan)

Money in the Bank: Rap Overruns The Plaza for Children’s Rights

We were exhausted—it was our third night in a row at The Plaza, and, quite frankly, we were becoming a little too familiar with the hotel’s ornate ballrooms at fund-raiser after frilly fund-raiser. The Observer loves schmoozing, but of late our calendar has left us rather harried—perhaps even unappreciative. As we arrived at the bedazzled edifice for the seventh annual Children’s Rights Benefit this past Wednesday, we quickly took notice of rapper Nick Cannon, slipping coolly out of a large black SUV with an entourage and bodyguards. At last, something seemed fresh, and unpredictable. While hip-hop stars and R&B producers are certainly no strangers to this old-school bastion of New York excess, it’s always exciting to see a touch of, er, young blood among traditional notions of prestige and privilege. With producer Kasseem David Dean a k a “Swizz Beatz” up for top honors that night, we anticipated that the hotel would be getting a much-needed dose of swagger.  Read More

By Foster Kamer 9/13/12 1:06pm

TAX ON TAX ON TAX

george-bush-kanye-west-statement

Mitt Romney’s Tax Rate Enshrined in New Kanye West Song

If there’s one thing all Americans likely understand in some cursory manner about Mitt Romney, beyond the matter of his religion, it’s that something is curious about the way he pays his taxes. Most Americans, for example, don’t have dealings with shell corporations in the Cayman Islands. Also, in the circumstance that they’re asked for their tax returns, most Americans usually don’t have a choice as to whether or not they’re going to produce them. But as of yet, the Republican candidate for the highest office in the land hasn’t exactly seen his tax returns become a matter of interest within pop culture. Until now. Read More

By Drew Grant 9/11/12 11:14am

Music and Politics

Nicki Minaj/ President Barack Obama

Nicki Minaj Was Totally J/K-ing About Voting Republican, Thanks Obama for ‘Understanding’

Last week, Nicki Minaj caused whiplash, turning our heads with her verse on on Lil Wayne’s latest mixtape, Dedication 4. “I’m a Republican voting for Mitt Romney/You lazy bitches is fucking up the economy,” she rapped, causing us to wonder whether this would hurt her chances for judging American Idol … even if she was joking.

Now the hip-hop star is claiming that yes, she was just joking, especially when the POTUS gave her the benefit of the doubt on a recent radio shout-out. Read More

By Foster Kamer 2:11pm

TOO SHORTZ

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Dr. Dre Enshrined in Pantheon of Rappers Who Have Made the New York Times Crossword Puzzle

Ever since a debate erupted over the merits of a clue whose answer was the word ‘illin’ in the New York Times crossword puzzle in January, obsessives of crossword master Will Shortz‘s diabolical work have carefully watched developments in the newest evolution of what may be the most famous daily puzzle game in Western Civilization. Today, another brave, daring step is taken. Read More

By Foster Kamer 7/09/12 3:50pm

JAYSTOCK

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All Jay-Z Everything: Barclays Center to Open with Three Jay-Z Concerts

Jay-Z might be from Brooklyn—and may season his songs with references to the borough liberally, not including his memorable Reasonable Doubt duet with The Notorious B.I.G., “Brooklyn’s Finest”—but does anybody remember the last time he played a proper concert there? Odds are, unless you’re an obsessive who tracks his every movement—or a Phish fan—you may not.

Fear not, though. The modest opening of the Barclays Center (the new home of the NBA’s Nets, of which, Jay-Z is an investor) will now shove this seemingly arbitrary but actually earth-shatteringly important query into irrelevance, as Jay-Z will not be playing one, or two, but three shows to open the new stadium, this September. Read More

By Foster Kamer 5/04/12 3:44pm

In Memoriam

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A Few Words About MCA

Adam Yauch, a founding member of the Beastie Boys—otherwise known as “MCA”—died today in his native New York City after a prolonged battle with cancer. He was a crucial component in the rise of hip hop as a culture and rap as an art form, and instrumental in the group’s transition: from their early days as a punk outfit and then a brash and belligerent party-rap act, to one of the most sonically deft acts in the history of contemporary music. Never content to rest on their laurels, the Beastie Boys always surprised their listeners, contemporaries, and critics with each subsequent musical course they charted. Yauch’s influence on the lasting relevance of the Beastie Boys, their evolution, and their cultural purview can’t be overstated. Read More