Ever since Baauer’s catchy electronic dance tune “Harlem Shake” turned into this insane do-it-yourself phenomenon, there have been 4000 versions of the video uploaded every day. Four Thousand! All following the same formula…intro music with one guy pelvic thrusting while the rest of the room ignores him, then when the beat drops, cut to a chaotic scene where everyone is dancing and raving. And done. Youtube views smorgasbord! There’s a Firefighter Harlem Shake, and a Today Show Harlem Shake, and countless college Harlem Shakes, office Harlem Shakes, porn star Harlem Shakes, even the Hot97 in-studio Harlem Shake…

You know the only thing missing from the Harlem Shake videos? Actual Harlem Shaking.
Oh yeah…remember that little wobbly dance craze that was all the rage in the early 2000′s when it appeared in various Bad Boy music videos? One of the few dance fads that was best done by kids under the age of 16. Something about loose connective tissue perhaps.

Well, the Baauer song and viral meme is not about that Harlem dance. Sorry G.Dep.
And when Shlepp Films went to Harlem to see if the streets are “con los terroristas” with the rest of the “Harlem Shake” fanatics….the answer was a big fat no.

Well…actually, lol.
To be fair…I’m pretty sure there are more kids in Harlem dancing around in spirit hoods and “air humping” to the EDM “Harlem Shake” than there are kids doing the Harlem “Harlem Shake” in 2013…but it would be great to see someone tackle a hybrid-homage video to both past and present dance crazes. DO IT!

Until then….Let’s compare the Porn Star “Harlem Shake” to the Bad Boy “Harlem Shake”…
After the jump…
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Friday fun….it’s all about apocalyptic Russian meteorites, and really disturbing photos of comedian Louie Anderson, and the amazing moment when ASAP Rocky breastfeeds off Kathy Griffin…
And then this.

As a special Valentine’s Day treat to some precious little lady, Vin Diesel (an actor whose head has a six-pack) actually filmed himself singing Rihanna x Mikky Ekko’s “Stay”, while the video is projected onto the blank wall next to him.
It’s like Riddick x karaoke x 9 1/2 Weeks.
Un-friggin-believable.

Watch Vin Diesel laying bare his muscle-y heart for all the world to see….
(I also added a few customized Vin Diesel “Stay” memes to mark the occasion)
After the jump
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Condolences go out to the friends, family and fans of Bronx hip hop legend Tim Dog (Timothy Blair). The unofficial member of the Ultramagnetic MC’s has passed away after suffering a diabetes-related seizure. Tim Dog was 46 years old. (sources: The Source, Complex)

Last year there was a less dignified scandal involving Tim Dog when Dateline exposed the former rapper as a convicted credit card defrauder.
But Tim Dog’s contribution to hip hop was with one of the most iconic diss songs of all time…
Tim Dog’s 1991 classic, “Fuck Compton”, a response to the rise of N.W.A and West Coast gangsta rap in general.

Watch the video for “Fuck Compton”…
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Whatever you’re doing can just wait for the next 6 minutes and 1 second…There’s finally a new episode of my favorite web series, Zach Galifianakis’ talk show Between Two Ferns. This one is a special Oscar edition with guests Jennifer Lawrence, Naomi Watts, Christoph Waltz, Anne Hathaway, and Amy Adams.

Zach: “Do you say the n-word more in Django Unchained or more in real life?”
Christoph: “In real life.”

Watch (but not while drinking)…
After the jump
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Heeee’s Back!
I live my friend Theophilus London‘s life vicariously through the internets. Sometimes he’s hanging in Paris with Kanye at Virgil Abloh’s Pyrex x Colette Pop-up. Then he’s Karl Lagerfeld’s special guest at the Chanel runway show (dressed in a 3/4 length green python tweed Chanel jacket, of course). And there’s late night cabarets with vapid models and funky old rich dudes… Or studio sessions with the faces of the cool cartels, like Solange Knowles, Matthew Williams, Aaron Bondaroff et al. But don’t let the felt hats and photo shoots fool you, Theo keeps his humor and his friendliness at all times, and he’s got new music cooking to boot!

Theophilus has been living in Paris (and working on his français), recording a follow up to Lover’s Holiday and Timez Are Weird These Days. And he’s already teamed up with lots of diverse talents, everyone from electro producers like Club Cheval, Brodinski, and Gesaffelstein…to Afro-soul artists like Thomas Brenneck of The Menahan Street Band and Budos Band.

In the meantime though….
Theo blessed us with a remix of Rihanna’s “Jump” that he did with Club Cheval that we love!
Listen to the exclusive…After the jump!
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Gucci Mane was the guest speaker at the Crawford Long Middle School today.
It was “Career Day” in the Language Arts class. Natch.

I don’t think we need to say much more here. Just digest that. And for the record…yes, Gucci has had some….self-imposed challenges, but I love bizarro Lynchian-life-twists, and this is pretty much the mountain-topper of that.

LA FLARE LOVES THE KIDS!

one more photo of Gucci Mane Career Day…and another recent photo of Gucci at work….
After the jump
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The Legendary Battle For The Soul of Parking Space #9 Continues!
(ok, to be fair, I don’t actually know which space was in question, but I’m pretty sure it had some sweet front door access.)

Late last night, our worlds were rocked by the outbreak of violence between two sweet R&B crooners, Chris Brown, of the Greenish-Yellow Locks Vs. Frank Ocean, of The Exotic Headband. The two bumped heads (and a finger) after an argument in the parking lot of the Westlake recording studio. There were reports that Frank was upset over Chris parking in his space, and that Chris was blocked from driving off, and that Chris attempted a handshake, but then the scuffle popped off between the stars and their crews…and then doves cried.

Now, the New York Post is reporting that the L.A. County Sheriff has bad news for the currently-on-parole Chris Brown…
Frank Ocean doesn’t care about your silly “code of the streets”…He wants JUSTICE!
More details after the jump…
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(Pusha T talks about French Montana’s oddly endearing off-beat “wave”)

Miss Info: Yesterday we gave you the trailer for Pusha T and Rick Ross’ upcoming “Millions” video…along with an interview clip of Pusha sharing the true crime inspiration behind the song’s hook.
But this Monday (Jan.28, 2013), Pusha T releases his latest mixtape, The Wrath of Caine. And just like when we teamed up with Pusha for the listening party for his 2011 Fear of God mixtape , Pusha sat down with me at the Capsule menswear trade show to give you guys an exclusive preview of his new heat….

Pusha T and Miss Info preview Push’s favorite songs off the new mixtape:
“It Doesn’t Matter” Feat. French Montana (Prod. by Harry Fraud)
“Only You Can Tell It” Feat. Wale (Prod. by Kanye West…maybe; )

Watch the video, after the jump…
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(ASAP Yams, a very wavy Harlem sherpa, with ASAP Rocky and more)

Those who have seen how ASAP Rocky‘s music family moves are quick to notice a few things…1) The ASAP crew dynamic is family-like both in camaraderie and in conflict resolution. Translation, if you happen to see a fight, it might just be ASAP on ASAP violence, lol. But as quickly as it flares up, it’s squashed and addressed. 2) There are elder statesmen in the group who may not hold mics, but are just as crucial to the esthetic, the vision and the direction of ASAP as the stars. One of these behind-the-scenes leaders is Harlem veteran ASAP Yams, one of the executive producers of Rocky’s Long Live ASAP album.
Yams has been an ubiquitous presence in multiple Harlem movements, so it’s nice to see him profiled on the New York Times website…Even when I first wrote about Rocky’s “Peso” video, I was thrilled to see a new generation of dapper dans carrying on the tradition of Harlem over the top peacocking. And Yams is one of the OGs connecting the dots between 80′s don divas, 90′s Lo-heads, Dipset Taliban style, and modern-day “fashion killas.”

Watch ASAP Yams discuss his own inspirations and his role in the ASAP global takeover…
After the jump….
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Miss Info: It’s practically a tradition, catching up with Pusha T at the Capsule menswear trade show to check out the next season’s best ‘fits. We chatted about fancy sweatpants and men’s skirts, which we will post soon.But more importantly Push played us the goodies off his Wrath of Caine mixtape, dropping this Monday!

We kick off the Wrath of Caine festivities with the dramatic trailer of Pusha and Rick Ross’ new “Millions” video…
Plus, Pusha talks about the song’s theme….drug dealer stash spots, of course!

Watch Pusha T x Rick Ross “Millions” Trailer…
And Pusha and Miss Info…
After the jump….

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