In a nearly complete makeover from last week’s Khaled helmed list, this week’s top 10 most popular singles of the week is confidently topped by Eminem with his latest single “Rap God” from his upcoming album The Marshall Mathers LP 2. While all seven cyphers officially aired as a part of the annual BET Awards Show earlier this week, it was Top Dawg Entertainment’s roster that kept fans talking before and after the event with Kendrick Lamar’s mention of his “Control” verse and a reference to a “sensitive rapper.” Lupe Fiasco returns to the list this week with an official single from an upcoming album with little information. The list is rounded about by Game’s Scarface featuring bonus track from OKE(the Cali rapper also rekindles his history with 50 Cent on the track), Slaughterhouse’s BET cypher, Raekwon’s lending Lloyd Banks a hand and the comedy-ridden cypher from the “Real Husbands of Hollywood.”
Eminem Readies “MMLP2” Release With “Rap God” Single
Besides scoring more than a 100,000 first-week downloads for his single “Survival” (which we already heard a couple months ago as a part of the “Call Of Duty: Ghosts” soundtrack), Eminem let loose “Rap God” at the top of the week as a further lead-up to his scheduled November 5 release date of the Marshall Mathers LP 2. “Rap God” quickly climbed the iTunes’ charts after being made available at midnight on November 15.
The song, which is more than six minutes long, is produced by NYC native DVLP and kicks off with a sampled vocal intro and the track’s recurring hook. Throughout the song, which will appear as the ninth track on the album, Em switches from one flow and cadence to the next. In the second verse the Detroit emcee pays homage to Hip Hop legends like Rakim and Lakim Shabazz alongside Dr. Dre and Eazy E.
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Besides providing another glimpse at MMLP2’s commercial potential, the single has also brought with it some criticisms of homophobia from groups like gay rights charity Stonewall as well as publications like The Week, Huffington Post, and Entertainment Weekly.
Kendrick Lamar And TDE Stir It Up At The BET Awards
While the cypher was originally recorded in late September, TDE’s anticipated BET Awards Show cypher finally aired this week alongside other artists and groups like Slaughterhouse, Rapsody, and Action Bronson. The TDE cypher included appearances from ScHoolboy Q, Jay Rock, Ab-Soul, Isaiah Rashad, and Kendrick Lamar in that order. While the rest of the members have long standing ties, Isaiah Rashad signed to the label less than a month ago after Kendrick Lamar’s acknowledging his “talent” on Twitter in August.
The group’s cypher also rekindled some of the attention garnered from Lamar’s much-talked-about “Control” feature with early reports of his offhanded snub of Toronto emcee Drake. The line in question comes early in Lamar’s verse with an apparent reference to Drake’s recently released third album. “And nothing’s been the same since they dropped ‘Control’ / And tucked a sensitive rapper back in his pajama clothes,” he raps, “Ha-ha, joke’s on you, high five / I’m bulletproof, your shots will never penetrate / Pin a tail on a donkey, boy, you been a fake.”
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Video of the TDE cypher can be seen below.
Lupe Fiasco Takes It Back On “Old School Love”
After a string of songs without an album, Lupe Fiasco’s latest release is the first single from his upcoming fifth studio album Tetsuo & Youth. The song, titled “Old School Love,” features English artist Ed Sheeran and as the title suggests, a nostalgic reflection on a past era. In the second verse, the Chicago rapper makes references to Hip Hop greats before him. “Model flows off of Fat Boys and Juice Crews / Melle Mel’s, Ice-T’s and the 2 Cools,” he raps, “Add a Moe Dee and a Double L / Had to walk ‘cause it’s hard to run in those unbuckled shells.”
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Tetsuo & Youth represents Fiasco’s temporarily shelving his Food & Liquor series for a seemingly unrelated project. The album’s title seems to be a reference to a late 1980s Japanese cult classic called Tetsuo: The Iron Man. Fiasco’s last album,Food & Liquor II, was nominated for Best Rap Album of the year.
Fiasco also recently announced a string of tour dates leading up to the album kicking off on November 2 in Atlanta, Georgia.
This Week’s Top 10
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3. Lupe Fiasco f. Ed Sheeran – “Old School Love”
4. Game f. Scarface – “Hollywood”
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6. DJ Khaled f. Rick Ross, Meek Mill, T.I., Swizz Beatz & Diddy – “I Feel Like Pac, I Feel Like Biggie”
7. Lloyd Banks f. Raekwon – “Drop A Diamond”
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10. Rick Ross – “Hold On, We\’re Going Home (Remix)”
Related:Eminem’s “The Marshall Mathers LP 2” Deluxe Edition Features Five Bonus Tracks
