Mac Lethal - Look at Me Now (While Cooking)

               Mac Lethal's currently going viral. That Shit Cray....when you reall think about it, it really is though. I mean, Kreayshawn quotes aside, that ish really is crazy. Don't believe me? Mac's currently sitting at 68k views in less than 12 hrs and will be featured on Good Morning America in the coming days. Cracked me up when I saw the video was titled "nerdy white kid", considering it was uploaded to Youtube by Lethal's own record label. Now that shit's funny. Karmin's got competition.

Michael Kiwanuka – Home Again EP

            For the soulful section of TheJourney viewers. Home Again, the title track off Michael Kiwanuka's latest EP is on steady repeat around these parts.

Michael Kiwanuka – Home Again EP

Taiwanese video of Ndamukong Suh's stomp

               Ha! All I gotta say is I love other cultures. Shouts to NMAtv for keeping us informed with the days' news.

Avicii - Levels (Official Video)

           Everybone's favorite Swedish DJ comes through with the official visuals off Levels. Old school folks might recognize Levels' sampling Something's Got a Hold On Me by Etta James. Love this track. Make sure to check out Th@ Kid's sample of Levels on NewWhiteShoes here.

Bow Wow x Lil Wayne - Sweat (BTS Video)

            I actually really really dig this track. Don't roll your eyes at me! Expect the official music video for Sweat to drop any day now..

Eminem, Slaughterhouse & Yelawolf – 2.0 Boys Live (Video)

              While in Detroit, Slim Shady, Yela and the Slaughterhouse machine perform their 2.0 Boys live for the first time.

Timeflies Tuesday: Space Jam (Video)

               Now that the lockout is over (btw, f*ck all you NBA franchise owners out there..), look for a steady increase in basketball related references in hip-hop over the next few months. Space Jam is the latest drop in Timeflies weekly series Timeflies Tuesday.

The League - Your World (Official Video)

                I posted League's highly-infectious track Your World a few days back. Here's the official visuals.

The Roots - undun (Album Stream)

               The legendary Roots crew link up with NPR to give y’all an early listen to their 13th studio album, undun, due hit shelves on December 6th (pre-order now). Click here to stream undun in it's entirety. If you dig The Roots, check out b.FUNK, one of my favorite hip-hop infused rock groups.

Phil Adé - Coming Home (Official Video)

             TheJourney's 2012 XXL Freshman Predictions enlistee and creator of one of the top 5 mixtapes of 2011 (A Different World) comes through with the official visuals for Coming Home, off A Different World.

Soul Khan – Someone’s Pocket (Prod. Audible Doctor)

               Someone's Pocket is the first single off Soul Khan’s upcoming Pursuance EP (which is entirely produced by the homie Audible Doctor), dropping December 6th. Make sure to check out my interview with Soul Khan here. 

Jhameel - Wicked

              Jhameel's upcoming leak next Tuesday will cap off his 5-week onslaught of free music. Great time to be a fan of good music. Check out all of Jhameel's prior appearances on TheJourney here. Little bit of an MJ-esque sound on Wicked, yeah? I dig it.

Jhameel - Wicked

City And Colour - Fragile Bird (SmarterChild Remix)

                Make sure to check out LA Lights, which got posted on Sunday. SmarterChild crafts dope remixes.

City And Colour - Fragile Bird (SmarterChild Remix)

A.P. - Just To Get A Rep (Freestyle)

             Jadakiss' protege, AdotPdot, hailing from Elizabeth, New Jersey, put out Just To Get A Rep yesterday. Look for it to be on AdotPdot's upcoming project Will I.E. The Example - available December 14. I haven't seen any other mainstream blogs posts this track yet, but the beat and AdotPdot's flow are too sick not to post.

A.P. - Just To Get A Rep (Freestyle)

The O'My's - My House x New Love (Videos)

              The Cool Kids put me onto the soulful sounds of The O'My's. Thank you.

Rita Ora Covers Outkast (Video)

              During Day 3 of her video diary, the Roc Nation songstress reveals how she spent Halloween, shows off her Independent Magazine feature and performs a sick acoustic cover of Andre 3k's Hey Ya @ the 2:40 mark.

B.o.B. – EPIC (Every Play Is Crucial) [Mixtape]

                Here is B.o.B.'s latest project, EPIC, which hit the net minutes ago. I'm in my cyberspace law lecture right now, but can't wait to hear Every Play Is Crucial in it's entirety.

The Black Keys - Lonely Boy (Official Video)

Get More: The Black Keys, Lonely Boy, Music, More Music Videos

                Lonely Boy is the latest set of official visuals from everyone's favorite Ohioan rock group; The Black Keys. Such a simple video, but somehow, executed to perfection. As finals draw closer and closer, my posts will likely be become shorter and shorter in nature... Maybe not such a bad thing for those of you out there that are like, "Good, stfu n3wb and go back to studying.." Federal Income Tax and Patent Law = lockdown. And I'm not talkin Akon and Ya Boy.

Common: Freedom Project (Documentary)

              Chi-Town native, Common unites with CNN’s The Freedom Project for a documentary in where he embarks on a journey through Haiti where 300,000 children are forced to work in modern day slavery conditions. No lie, the fact that we've practiced slavery in such abundance throughout our species short existence really makes me question the existence of a higher power. Sad shit. The Dreamer, The Believer, in stores December 20th.

Adele – Live at the Royal Albert Hall (Stream)

                Adele's set to release her Live at the Royal Albert Hall album tomorrow. The Guardian hooks it up with an advance stream of the live performance. Pretty incredible. Up top is Turning Tables, one of the tracks available off tomorrow's release.

Kopps - LA Lights (SmarterChild Remix)

               Was stoked to open my inbox earlier today to find the intriguing sounds of SmarterChild awaiting me. Here is SmarterChild's latest remix of Flo-Rida and Akon's Who Dat Girl. Look for another SmarterChild feature to pop up on TheJourney sometime tomorrow.

Kopps - LA Lights (SmarterChild Remix)

IntotheNorthSea - Soon

               Recently I ran across Soon, the first track off IntotheNorthSea's latest self-titled project. Thought I'd share. Check out INTOTHENORTHSEA here and make sure to say what up to these guys on Facebook.

Digital Performers selling out shows in Japan (Video)

          Think this rage will ever hit U.S. shores? Maybe a Michael Jackson-themed digital comeback?

Miku Hatsune is 16, has long legs, turquoise hair and attracts thousands of kids at her concerts. And she’s also not real. Her voice is generated by vocal synthesis software and her live performances are the result of 3D projection technology.

Mayer Hawthorne’s Alternative Halftime Show (Video)

            As promised, Mayer Hawthorne rocked out in his parent’s crib for his own halftime concert for the Lions/Packers game on Thanksgiving. Better than Nickleback? Um, duh..

Birdman - Y U Mad Feat. Lil Wayne & Nicki Minaj (Official Video)

                 This shit kinda sucks... but YMCMB is the hottest record label in the industry right now, so here ya go..

Lykke Li - Dance Dance Dance (Official Video)

               If TheJourney had been around in 2008, Dance Dance Dance would have gotten some love. While the video may be nothing special (to some), the track is wonderful.

Mac Miller - Black Friday (Mixtape)

            Hit the jump to grab the download.

That black friday mixtape is a collection of very old songs. like me when i was 16-17. if your interested. check it out. – Mac

The Weeknd - The Knowing (Official Video)

                The Weeknd chose Thanksgiving as the day to drop his first full length official video. Dope.

Podcast #82 – Macklemore & Ryan Lewis – Knocksteady Live

               Macklemore and Ryan Lewis took a little bit of time away from their international tour to chop it up with the fine crew over at Knocksteady. Make That Money and Wings get performed @ the 4:30 mark below. Pretty dope to get to hear Intuition interview Macklemore.

Podcast #82 – Macklemore & Ryan Lewis – Knocksteady Live

Luke Christopher - Poisonous Apple (Official Video)

            Luke Christopher takes Common's Drive Me Wild for a lyrical test-drive while on the sidewalks of Hollywood Boulevard. If you missed Luke Christopher's track The Rescuer, make sure to check it out here.

Ay Y'all, HAPPY THANKSGIVING! A lil treat for y'all to digest before y'all eat. Sorry for the wait! Homage to my man Common. Much Love!!

Lupe Fiasco - Friend Of The People (Mixtape)

                 Lupe Fiasco drops off Friend of The People right in time for Thanksgiving. Now that's a friend of the people. Download here. Below is my favorite track off Friend of The People - The End of The World - Lupe's rendition of M83's hit Midnight City. Make sure to check out RapGenius.com's timely lyrical breakdown of the entire project here. Have a great Thanksgiving!

Kyle Lucas - Purple Clouds EP (Mixtape)

                The homie Kyle Lucas put out his latest solo project Purple Clouds EP a few weeks back, and I somehow overlooked it. My bad on that. Purple Clouds features some sick samples and as usual, the Purple Ribbon representative holds it down on the mic. For those unaware, Kyle Lucas is the headman of Vonnegutt, who're signed to Big Boi's Purple Ribbon label. Their last album, $Free.99, was really fresh, make sure to check it out here.

Kyle Lucas - Purple Clouds EP (Mixtape)

Jhameel - Waves

              Here's the title track off Jhameel's five week series Waves.

 

Wale - Barry Sanders (Official Video)

              Wale decided to go vrial with Barry Sanders on Thanksgiving. If for nothing else, I'm posting this because of the dope old-school sports footage.

AWOLNATION - Not Your Fault (Official Video)

Get More: AWOLNATION, Not Your Fault, Music, More Music Videos

                AWOLNATION, who earlier in the year gave us Sail (an ode to The Styx's Come Sail Away), is back with his latest set of visuals for Not Your Fault.

B.o.B – Strange Clouds Live (Video)

                 Bobby Ray, backed by The Roots (who I’m sure didn’t play him the way they hilarious did Michele Bachmann on Jimmy Fallon’s late night gab-fest a night earlier), performed his latest single.

Wiz Khalifa & Snoop Dogg – Young, Wild & Free Feat. Bruno Mars (Official Video)

                Everyone's two favorite stoners are back, this time linking up with Bruno Mars for the official visuals off Young, Wild & Free, which is featured on the upcoming soundtrack to Mac + Devon Go To High School.

b.FUNK - Me Kno Rap

             TheJourney is proud to announce that we alongside BuckMarleyXXX.com will be sponsoring b.FUNK's upcoming mixtape entitled CHeCk yO mINd. Me Kno Rap is the first single off CHeCk yO mIND. If you missed b.FUNK's prior project, Playoff Mode, make sure to grab it here as it's one of the dopest mixtapes of two thousand eleven.

b.FUNK - Me Kno Rap

The Roots - Sleep (Official Video)

               Here's the first tune off The Legendary Roots Crew's upcoming studio album undun. Sleep features Aaron Livingston and is produced by Hot Sugar.

undun is an existential re-telling of the short life of one Redford Stephens (1974-1999). Through the use of emotives and Redford's internal dialogues the album seeks to illustrate the intersection of free will and prescribed destiny as it plays out 'on the corner'. Utilizing a reverse narrative arc, the album begins as the listener finds Redford disoriented--postmortem--and attempting to make sense of his former life. As he moves through its pivotal moments he begins to deconstruct all that has led to his (and our own) coming undun. 

M83 - Midnight City (Live on Jimmy Fallon)

             M83 stopped by Fallon’s show last night to perform one of the more infectious songs of 2011 with Midnight City. Make sure to check out PropaneLv's remix of Midnight City here and Patrick Reza's dubstep interpretation here.

Avicii - Levels (Cazzette NYC Mode Mix)

                 Avicii took to his Facebook page to release the latest in a string of Levels-inspired remixes. Props to Cazzette.

Grouplove - Colours (Live on Letterman)

             I was watching Sister Wives on TLC last night and couldn't help but think, "now this is grouplove." Grouplove takes their highly contagious track Colours to Letterman. If you haven’t already heard it, check out Xaphoon’s remix of Colours here and Skizzy Mars' hot verses over Xaphoon's remix here. I'd be lying if I said that Colours wasn't one of my favorite tracks of 2011.

Big Sean - Celebrity Feat. Dwele (VEVO Official Video)

                  Cool concept. Anyone else think Big Sean sounded rather monotone during this performance?

Snoop Dogg & Wiz Khalifa's 'Mac + Devin Go To High School' (Track List)

              Viewer Beware: looking directly at the above track list off Snoop Dogg & Wiz Khalifa's upcoming collaborative album has been known to induce the munchies... Make sure to check out track #9, French Inhale, featuring Mike Posner, here.

Anonymous strikes again, exposes cop who peppersprayed UC Davis students

              By now you've likely seen the above video of UC Davis' students getting owned by a power-hungry cop. Crazy ish. If this is the kind of discretion the cop exercises with dozens of cameras recording his every move, makes you wonder how he would have conducted himself if the digi's weren't present. Anon continues to fight the good fight.

Hello John Pike We are the Internet Hate Machine. We are all over the globe. We are Anonymous. We do not forget. We do not forgive. Don't expect us, we are already here!

Mike Posner - The Layover (Mixtape)

              After countless leaks, Posner hits the net with his latest mixtape, The Layover. Features include Big K.R.I.T., CyHi Da Prynce, Slim Thug, Twista, eLZhi, Bun B, Casey Veggies and MGK among others.

Phony Ppl – 4 The First Time

             Real instruments? Respect. Phony Ppl uniquely combine hip hop and jazz in an incredibly dope way. Considering we're only a few days away from Thanksgiving and about a month out from Christmas, 4 The First Time's chorus has a nice little 'winter-time' feel to it. Enjoy..

Phony Ppl – 4 The First Time

Hona Costello - Shine Feat. Lyrik Luciano & Ramaj Eroc (Official Video)

                Hona Costello and the crew are back with the official visuals off their collaborative track Shine. In case you missed Hona Costello's #FollowMe mixtape, make sure to grab it here. One of my favorite mixtapes of 2011. Tons of replay value. In case you missed it, make sure to also check out Hona Costello and BeN GZ's Lost and Never Found.

Mike Posner - Room 925 & Mittens Up

              Couple more tracks off Mike Posner's upcoming project The Layover. 5pm Oregon v USC on ABC. Do me a favor and cheer on The Ducks!

Mike Posner - Room 925 Feat. CyHi The Prynce

Mike Posner - Mittens Up Feat. Elzhi & Dusty McFly

Jhameel - drunk performance of Move Like Jagger (Video)

             Jhameel's f*ckin sick. After cracking up to the intro of this video, anyone else have the sudden urge to get drunk with Jhameel? As part of his 5-week series entitled Waves, Jhameel's been giving his fans one new track a week via Soundcloud. Look for track #3 in the series to drop next Tuesday. Until then, check out all our posts on the Minnetonka native here.

Jhameel was once set on the path to officer-ship in the United States Army. Although his linguistic skills in Arabic, Spanish, Korean, and Russian would have been highly rewarded in the military, Jhameel quit the program before signing an irrevocable contract due to personal beliefs about U.S. presence in the Middle East. He then earned a degree in Arabic from UC Berkeley within just two years, graduating summa cum laude. Immediately after, he began his career in music. 

Jhameel creates explosively funky music comprised of soul-stirring guitar, immersive synthesizers, triumphant brass, and athletic, melodic vocals inspired equally by Prince and Michael Jackson. He plays each and every instrument on his records himself, creating catchy melodies that settle easily into your mind with human lyrical themes that continue to challenge the heart. Jhameel’s skills extend to the mixing board too, as he produces his own music.

Mike Posner – A Perfect Mess (Prod. Mike Posner)

               Mike Posner keeps the leaks coming as promised with his latest release - A Perfect Mess - off his upcoming mixtape The Layover dropping in just two more days..

Mike Posner – A Perfect Mess (Prod. Mike Posner)

Amy Winehouse – Our Day Will Come (Official Video)

               Off Amy’s upcoming posthumous, Lioness: Hidden Treasures, due out on December 6th. No doubt that it's kinda weird to see a 'new' video from someone no longer with us, but Amy always made good music.

Wiz Khalifa - Dessert (Official Video)

               While Wiz Khalifa was in studio he decided to put together an impromptu music video for his remix to Wale's Bait. I could probably pass on this track, but I know we got a lot of Wiz fans on TheJourney, so here goes..

Young Jeezy - F.A.M.E. Feat. T.I. (Official Video)

               Young Jeezy's postin' up all over the front page of TheJourney today. First we heard All I Do, featuring Andre 3000 and Jay-Z, and now we have the official visuals off Young Jeezy and T.I.'s F.A.M.E.

The Weeknd – The Zone (Unofficial Video)

              Unofficial, but officially dope.

DJ Premier - Regeneration Feat. Nas & The Berklee Symphony Orchestra (Video)

             Presented by Hyundai Veloster, RE:GENERATION is a documentary film that follows DJ Premier, Pretty Lights, The Crystal Method, Mark Ronson, and Skrillex as they remix, recreate and re-imagine five traditional styles of music. Learn more at youtube.com/veloster and regenerationmusicproject.com.

Mike Posner - Henny & Purple Feat. Slim Thug

              Another situation of being unable to hear a track before I post it because I'm in class. But considering Mike Posner's prior 3 leaks this week have been dope, I think it's safe to say Henny & Purple has potential. The Layover is coming soon..

Mike Posner - Henny & Purple Feat. Slim Thug

Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA)

             The US Government, backed by trial lawyers and entertainment industry lobbyists alike, is seeking to cripple internet activity through the rigid internet censorship bill known as SOPA. In effect, the bill would allow the entertainment industry to block domain names that the industry deems to have allegedly hosted pirated material. Sounds a little like China's internet regime. This will have sweeping effects on blogs (like TheJourney), on Google, Facebook, Twitter and any other means of information dissemination. Make sure to take 2 seconds [literally] to sign the anti-censorship petition put forth in light on SOPA's draconian agenda, and check out more literature on SOPA here.

Mac Miller On Debuting #1 On Billboard (Video)

              Sway's like "Mac, put out that damn cigarette!"

Kounterfeit Change and The Cartunes - Rolling Deep (Adele Cover)

              A few weeks back I posted Kountefeit's live cover of Adele's Rolling In The Deep, and now we're fortunate enough to get the studio version. Sick cover.

Kounterfeit Change and The Cartunes - Rolling Deep (Adele Cover)

Drake - Good Ones Go Feat. The Weekd (Sango Remix)

              Sango uploaded this fresh Drake and The Weeknd remix to his Soundcloud account about an hour ago. Good sh*t. In case you missed it, check out Sango's previous remix of The Weeknd's track Gone.

Drake - Good Ones Go Feat. The Weekd (Sango Remix)

JMSN – Alone (Kno Remix)

                     Dope.

After hitting up CunninLynguists’ producer Kno for an exclusive remix of Maroon 5’s Goodnight Goodnight that eventually ended up being cut from their 2008 remix album Call & Response due to sample clearance issues, Brandon Phelps at Variable Entertainment, this time with up-and-coming Detroit singer/producer JMSN (pronounced Jameson), reaches out to Kno again for an exclusive re-work of JMSN’s single Alone. JMSN’s album †Priscilla† drops 1.11.12.

JMSN – Alone (Kno Remix)

Intuition - Duke Westlake Cypher (Video)

             2 videos from Intuition in under a week? Niiice. Duke Westlake provided this dope beat that Dumbfounded started off, then passed the baton on to The Palmer Squares, who in turn dished the rock to Traphik, who eventually called out Intuition. And that's how we ended up here. Confused? I was too. But it's simple; cypher and then pass the mic. George Watsky is up next. Make sure to check out all our posts on Intuition here.

Blended Babies – Dead Time

               The production team responsible for some of your favorite artists tracks from artists like Asher Roth, Bun B, Freddie Gibbs and Pac Div, to name a few, released an instrumental album, Shooter McGavin, last week via Decon Recods (head to iTunes to cop a copy). Here is Dead Time, one of the standout instrumentals off Shooter McGavin.

OnCue - Can't Wait (Mixtape)

           Make sure to check out all of TheJourney's prior posts on OnCue here. Without further adue, here's Can't Wait in it's entirety. 

OnCue - Headlights (Official Video)

               Here's some official visuals for Headlights, off OnCue's upcoming mixtape Can't Wait - which will be available via TheJourney in a matter of minutes. I'm in class at the moment, but I'm going to go ahead and assume that Headlights is dope. Check out all our prior posts on OnCue here.

Charles Manson & Aileen Wuornos (Video)

              The human pysche is a f*ckin trip. I ran across these Charles Manson and Aileen Wuornos' videos and couldn't resist posting them. Because everyone deserves a good laugh on hump day...

Drake speaks on 'The Ride' (Video)

              Because Drake gets more hits on TheJourney than any other artist, here's his continuing conversation with VEVO, where Drake speaks on his Sophomore album Take Care (which is available now) and how The Ride - featuring The Weeknd - stands out from the rest. If you're new to TheJourney, check out the thought-provoking track Peace Tonight, featuring Talwst Santiago and production from ILLANGELO, the producer responsible for The Ride and multiple other tracks off Take Care.

Jhameel – White Lie

            After multiple appearances on TheJourney as of late, it's starting to get quite apparent that Jhameel is a budding force to be reckoned with in the music industry. Check out all of Jhameel''s prior appearances on TheJourney here.

Jhameel – White Lie

Soul Khan – Lord Knows Freestyle

             Soul takes on Drake and Rick Ross' Lord Knows instrumental, and proceeds to utterly annihilate the entire track. Lyrics at their finest. Make sure to check out my interview with Soul Khan here.

Soul Khan – Lord Knows Freestyle

Mike Posner – Hey Lady Feat. Twista

              Expect a plethora of Mike Posner music to be premiering over the next few days leading up to the November 20th release of The Layover. Hey Lady, featuring the human tongue-twister, is the second single off The Layover. Here's the first.

The Roots - Stomp (Official Video)

             Stomp is slated to be track #6 off The Legendary Roots Crew's upcoming studio album undun. I'm in class at the moment but you can bet anything The Roots puts out is post-worthy.

undun is an existential re-telling of the short life of one Redford Stephens (1974-1999). Through the use of emotives and Redford's internal dialogues the album seeks to illustrate the intersection of free will and prescribed destiny as it plays out 'on the corner'. Utilizing a reverse narrative arc, the album begins as the listener finds Redford disoriented--postmortem--and attempting to make sense of his former life. As he moves through its pivotal moments he begins to deconstruct all that has led to his (and our own) coming undun.

Ludacris - 1.21 Gigawatts: Back To The First Time (Mixtape)

                Just minutes ago Ludacris took to datpiff.com to let loose Marty Mcfly-inspired mixtape 1.21 Gigawatts: Back To The First Time. Make sure to cop it here. I haven't been overly-impressed with Luda's more recent work, so here's to hoping 1.21 Gigawatts: Back To The First Time lives up to it's pre-launch hype. Below is What U Smokin' On, off 1.21 Gigawatts: Back To The First Time.

Ludacris - What U Smokin' On Feat. Wiz Khalifa (Prod. Big K.R.I.T.)

Wale - Lotus Flower Bomb Feat. Miguel (Official Video)

            Wale comes through with the official visuals for Lotus Flower Bomb, featuring Miguel, which is off Wale's recently released album Ambition. Watching Wale's new music video in the middle of Federal Income Tax class is a daring feat to say the least..

Bow Wow - Boy Or Girl (Official Video)

                   Bow Wow came through with the official visuals for Mary Jane two days back, now here's a second video in the same week. Looks like Bow Wow's taking a page from Lil Wayne's no days off Playbook.

OnCue - Kinda Late Feat. Mike Posner (prod. 88-Keys)

            I'm in class at the moment, will keep this short. Make sure to check out all our prior posts on OnCue here. Look for OnCue's latest mixtape, Can't Wait, to be available here on TheJourney this Wednesday.

Kinda Late, featuring Mike Posner and produced by 88 Keys, is the fifth track release off of OnCue's upcoming Can't Wait mixtape dropping November 16th.

OnCue - Kinda Late Feat. Mike Posner (prod. 88-Keys)

The Internet and the Music Industry: Where Do We Go From Here?

I'm currently enrolled in Cyber Law. As a group project, Tony Catena and Dan Wilson, fellow colleagues of mine, and myself, set out to analyze the historical progression of litigation involving the downloading of musical works. [See: A&M Records v. Napster, Inc., MGM Studios, Inc. v. Grokster, Ltd., U.S. v. ASCAP). One requirement of this project is to disseminate our findings via a cyber-medium. We decided to utilize TheJourney. In an effort to keep analysis user-friendly, our group has condensed its findings into a short summary below. 

                    The Internet and the Music Industry: Where Do We Go From Here?

              Following the Napster and Grokster cases of the early-2000s, where we witnessed major tension between file sharing medium's and individual recording artists, the evolution of the Internet has distinctly changed this hostile dynamic.
              While many established artists continue to protest the illegal sharing of their copyrighted work, there is a vast, organic movement comprised of young, up-and-coming artists who actively seek out ways to distribute their music via the various file-sharing mediums that exist online today. These mediums include but are not limited to:

• SoundCloud
• Hulk Share
• YouTube

                Online portals such as SoundCloud or YouTube allow artists to directly upload their music, whereby allowing the consumer to easily stream and download particular uploads for free, and/or with the option to purchase. This “option to purchase” element of downloading is a relatively new phenomenon where the artist effectively puts the valuation of the music in the hands of the consumer, as opposed to the decision of the distributor. A prime example of this “option to purchase” element was present in the 2007 release of British mega-band, Radiohead’s album, In Rainbows.
                In contrast to the example of Radiohead, a world-renowned, successful band releasing music for free online; the various Internet uploading mediums have allowed artists -- who would otherwise toil in obscurity -- to market their work and generate a modest amount of revenue without the traditional assistance of the “record label, to distributor, to consumer” model. One example of this straight-to-consumer model is the upcoming hip-hop artist Mac Miller, who entices fans to follow him via social media with the promise to release a new song for free with every 100,000 new Twitter followers.
               With the Internet constantly evolving, it has created essentially an evolve-or-die culture where non-established artists must choose between the two competing systems. 1) The modern “gain exposure and earn minimal profits, straight-to-consumer” model, where cash-flow may be stifled, but exposure and mobility are immense; or, 1) Stick to the traditional model of signing with a record label and earn revenue based on the support of your record company [How To Sell 1 Million Albums and still owe your record label $500,000], but losing the opportunity to freely market their work to the billions of consumers on the Internet who seek out new artists everyday.

               How Does This Affect the Legal Relationship Between Artists and End-Users?

               As the rise of the Internet has created this new relationship between artists and end-users, various court decisions have ruled on different file sharing mediums and Internet-based companies use or encouragement of copyright protected works of art.
               In A&M Records v. Napster, Inc., 239 F.3d 1004 (9th Cir. 2001) the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals held that a business operating a centralized server where end-users could freely upload and download artists’ copyrighted work was a clear violation of the US Copyright Act.
               In Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios, Inc. v. Grokster, Ltd., 125 S. Ct. 2764 (2005) the US Supreme Court held that a company providing software for third-party users to upload and download copyrighted works may be subject to vicarious liability for copyright infringement based on the “inducement theory” that was borne out of Sony Corp. of America v. Universal City Studios, Inc., 464 U.S. 417 (1984). The “inducement theory” states that a defendant is liable as a contributory infringer if:

1) It has knowledge of direct infringement;
2) It fails to take action to prevent infringement from continuing; and
3) It actively takes steps to encourage the users to continue infringing on the copyright holders’ rights.

                In US v ASCAP, Docket Nos. 09-0539-cv (L) (2010), the Supreme Court ruled that the act of downloading a digital file containing a musical work does not constitute a public performance of that musical right, and thus, there is not a public performance infringement of the copyright holder’s exclusive right in the act of downloading a musical work.
                While theses cases do not necessarily reflect an obvious progression of artists/consumers rights, they do seem to indicate a shift in the judiciary opinion of what a copyright holder may enforce related to a digital download of a copyrighted work. As such, where does that leave the average digital music consumer today??
                 If the ASCAP case is any indicator, it is our opinion that there will be a decrease in the amount of lawsuits filed by artists alleging copyright infringement based on downloads because if there is no infringement on the public performance right during the act of a download [download defined as a digital transmission of file], the plaintiff (copyright holder) has less incentive to sue because of the decreased damages recoverable without the actionable public performance claim. However, it must be noted, that the copyright holder may still recover under an infringement claim based on a violation of his/her exclusive reproduction right.
                In addition, the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) has mechanisms in place by which an alleged infringing download does not require the exercise of litigation to enforce the copyright holder’s rights. Instead of a copyright holder pursuing legal action via the traditional litigation process, they can instead utilize the DMCA’s “take-down notices.” These notices have the same effect as litigation, in the sense they effectively issue an injunction against the infringer/uploader of information by what is known as the “chilling effect,” which is essentially the procedural take-down/censorship of the alleged infringing content.
                Ultimately, this cultural shift in the use of the Internet as a means of promoting and disseminating new ideas (read: music), has created a landscape that encourages innovative technology for new artists to promote themselves, yet still maintains the established artists’ rights and abilities to protect their copyrighted works. In fact, it may be argued the cases we have mentioned are effectively antiquated by the use of DMCA provisions, which save time and money, and more efficiently allow copyright holders’ rights to be exercised in a manner more practical and conducive to the 21st Century digital information age.

Collin McLoughlin - Progress (Feat. Jake) (Easy Does It Remix)

               Routine visitors of TheJourney already know that I'm an avid Collin McLoughlin fan. If this post is the first time you've heard the name, click here to check out all of Collin McLoughlin's prior music. Easy Does It, a group heralding outta New Jersey decided to remix McLoughlin's Progress and spread it to the interwebs. Make sure to check out TheJourney's prior posts on Easy Does It here too. Enjoy.

Collin McLoughlin - Progress (Feat. Jake) (Easy Does It Remix)

NatNaiel – Durban Daze (Paloma)

           
                Durban Daze is the first single off NatNaiel's upcoming project, Pizza, out December 20th. The structure behind NatNaiel's verses seem semi-reminiscent of Wale's verse structure, and his choruses strike a chord similar to Kid Cudi's. Meaning, tons of replay value. Yeah? Yeah! Durban Daze is pretty dope, can't wait to see what Pizza has to offer.

NatNaiel – Durban Daze (Paloma)

The Bad Tenants - Even a Hustler (Official Video)

              Even a Hustler is the second music video off The Bad Tenants' incredibly dope new album Our Neighborhood. TheJourney's stoked to have been able to present The Bellingham, Washington, bands latest album Our Neighborhood, in it's entirety. The first video off the project is When I'm Back, which features lots of back roads and one of my favorite choruses of 2011. Song after song, and video after video, The Bad Tenants give us a peak into their genuinely crafted art-form. Is it me, or does The Bad Tenants kinda remind ya of a new-age Jurassic 5. So sick. Make sure to say what up to The Bad Tenant's on Twitter and Facebook.