iPod crime wave? Yes, and more

There's an iCrime wave, a new report suggests. America is suffering a surprising resurgence in muggings, which increased more than 7 percent last year, the FBI says. The Urban Institute, a Washington, D.C., think tank, thinks it knows why: iPods.

The little gadgets are the perfect target for snatch-and-grab thieves who find a zoned-out music lover to target, easily identifiable by those signature white ear bud headphones. And the devices are also very easy to fence after being wiped clean, shoved into stolen iPod boxes and sold in small electronics stores.

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Comcast blocks some Internet traffic

Comcast Corp. actively interferes with attempts by some of its high-speed Internet subscribers to share files online, a move that runs counter to the tradition of treating all types of Net traffic equally.

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10 little expenses that add up fast

It's easy to fritter away money on little daily expenses. If you fall into these money traps, learn to avoid them and pocket the savings.

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Barack Obama's black wakeup call

If the advisers around Sen. Barack Obama want to continue to delude themselves into thinking they have lots of time for black voters to get around to figuring out their candidate's record on issues they care about, then the latest CNN poll surely must be the kind of slap in the face to bring them back to reality.

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Rich get parks, poor get pollution

Six-year-old Valentin Marroquin went from being apparently healthy one moment to battling leukemia the next. As his mother Rosario Marroquin started searching for answers, she kept coming back to their Houston, Texas, neighborhood, and the stench that often envelopes it.

1 of 3 "We're the stinky neighborhood," she said. "But we've gotten so used to it that we don't know that's just how we smell."

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Nobel winner suspended in racism row

Nobel laureate biologist James Watson was suspended Friday from his longtime post at a research laboratory and canceled his planned British book tour after controversial comments that black people are not as intelligent as white people.

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Nas Explains Controversial Album Title, Denies Reports Of Label Opposition

"I wanna make the word easy on mutha----as' ears," he explained. "You see how white boys ain't mad at 'cracker' 'cause it don't have the same [sting] as 'nigger'? I want 'nigger' to have less meaning [than] 'cracker.' With all the bullsh-- that's going on in the world, racism is at its peak. I wanna do the sh-- that's not being done. I wanna be the artist who ain't out. I wanna make the music I wanna hear.

"We're taking power from the word," he added. "No disrespect to none of them who were part of the civil-rights movement, but some of my n---as in the streets don't know who [civil-rights activist] Medgar Evers was. I love Medgar Evers, but some of the n---as in the streets don't know Medgar Evers, they know who Nas is. And to my older people who don't now who Nas is and who don't know what a street disciple is, stay outta this mutha----in' conversation. We'll talk to you when we're ready. Right now, we're on a whole new movement. We're taking power from that word."

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T.I.'s Career Is Thriving ... If He Avoids Jail, Will Weapons Charges Slow Him Down?

Endorsements, movie deals, tour dates, fashion line, new album in limbo while rapper awaits trial.

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Universal Music Group to Release Music on USB Sticks

Universal Music Group is exploring their USB options in the UK with USB singles that feature additional multimedia content at a higher price point than CD singles. U.S. introduction and albums to follow.

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Micheal Jackson, Kanye, will.i.am & Akon Working On "Thriller 25"

Michael Jackson's attorney Peter Lopez has confirmed reports that the Jackson has been involved with some of Hip-Hop's biggest selling acts in putting together a 25th anniversary edition of his Thriller album. "Billie Jean," "The Girl Is Mine," "Wanna Be Starting Something" and "Pretty Young Thing" are listed as the four tracks that will get a makeover from Kanye West, Akon and will.i.am of the Black Eyed Peas. In addition to the updated tracks the album will also feature commemorative artwork and four additional songs that were left off of the original Thriller LP.

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New G-Unit Album This Winter

It is hard to keep track of all the claims that 50 Cent makes, I'm sure everyone remembers him saying he would retire if Kanye outsold him in the first week. But does anyone else remember him saying that there would never be another G-Unit album? It looks as if he wasn't serious about that either.

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Damon Dash Thinks Jay-Z's Single Lacks "Magic," Hopes Former Ally Can Still "Bring The Ruckus"

With Mr. Untouchable, the latest film being produced by Damon Dash Enterprises, landing in theatres later this month, Damon Dash spoke with SOHH exclusively about the legacy of Nicky Barnes, and his thoughts on the American Gangster film and former partner, Jay-Z's upcoming album.

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Real Life "American Gangster" Tells Hs Story On BET

Notorious drug kingpin Frank Lucas, who will be the focus of upcoming feature film American Gangster, is set to give his story for the first time ever as part of an episode of the BET series of the same name.

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KRS-One Relaunching Stop The Violence Movement; Enlists Superstar Rappers

Pioneering rapper KRS-One will launch a counter offense to the growing problem of guns and violence plaguing America and the world, by officially relaunching the Stop The Violence movement, an anti-violence effort led by superstar members of the Hip-Hop community.

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Prosecutors Drop Charges Against Rapper Beanie Sigel

Rapper Beanie Sigel has resolved charge against him in Philadelphia, where an arrest warrant was issued, after he failed to return a rented 2007 Nissan Altima.

Prosecutors withdrew the charges against Sigel, born Dwight Grant, after the rapper paid the $5,000 late fee he owed for holding a rental car from Payless Car Rental for almost a month past its return date.

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Big Oomp To Head Up Koch South

Pioneering Atlanta producer Big Oomp has inked a multifaceted deal with Koch Records and will head up Koch Records' newly formed imprint, Koch South Urban.

Under the new deal, Koch will release albums by Big Oomp artists Baby D, Big Korey and DJ Unk, who hit big with the #1 single "Walk It Out" and "2 Step."

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40 Ways to Flatten Your Belly

Forget crunches. There are lots of other ways to trim your tummy!

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Nobel winner in 'racist' claim row

A British museum has canceled a lecture by Dr. James Watson, co-founder of the DNA double helix, after he claimed black people are less intelligent than whites in a recent newspaper interview.

Watson, who won the 1962 Nobel prize for his part in discovering the structure of DNA, provoked a storm of criticism after his comments were published in the Sunday Times.

New, cheaper PlayStation 3 coming soon

Sony Corp. on Thursday cut the price of its PlayStation 3 game console in the U.S. and announced an even cheaper model that will arrive before the holiday shopping season.

The PlayStation 3 has been trailing Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Nintendo's Wii in U.S. sales.

The top-line PlayStation model, with an 80 gigabyte hard drive, now costs $499, down from $599. That effectively eliminates the lower-end model, which has a 60-gigabyte drive and has sold for $499.

A new low-end model with a 40-gigabyte drive will go on sale November 2 for $399.


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Small Missouri town is magnet for bizarre crimes

If records were kept on per capita misery, Skidmore, population about 350, might be near the top of the list.

1 of 2 The town sits on a hill above the Nodaway River amid cornfields in northwestern Missouri. Residents farm, man the town's lone gas station and clock in at nearby factories.

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Cam'ron Found! Big Foot Spotted!! MTV Has Footage!!!

The question "Where's Waldo Cam'ron?" has been on everyone's mind for oh so long and now MTV has found him lurking in the above video clip hand-delivered by "Cam's camp".

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Barack Obama To Participate In MySpace/MTV Dialogue On October 29

Gideon Yago, Sway Calloway and WashingtonPost.com's Chris Cillizza will moderate second forum, taking place at Coe College in Iowa.

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Jadakiss, Treach & Ashanti To Star In Murder Drama

The New York Post and the New York Daily News both report that Jadakiss, Ashanti and Treach of Naughty By Nature will star alongside former Sopranos star Michael Imperioli in You're Nobody 'til Somebody Kills You. The film is a murder drama with a Hip-Hop fueled plot based in New York. Spike Lee's longtime assistant director, Michael "Boogie" Pinckney will direct the film under his Blackfoot Films imprint and Lee will serve as executive producer. Sonae Ryder will also make an appearance--those who frequent HipHopDX will remember her being featured here in July.

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Mos Def Signs New Deal

After releasing his third solo album last year, Mos Def fulfilled his contract with Geffen Records. The Brooklyn emcee was signed to Geffen after Rawkus Records was eventually swallowed up by the major, Mos released both The New Danger and Tru3 Magic with them. The latter of which, came under pretty bizarre circumstances.

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Birdman Set To Fly Again, New Star-Studded Album Coming Soon

After walking away victorious, winning a viewer's choice award at this year's BET Hip Hop Awards, Cash Money Records CEO Baby is set to re-up with a new album, 5 * Stunna.

The record, which will be Birdman's third solo effort and the follow-up to 2005's Fast Money, is set to hit stores sometime this winter. It will feature guest appearances from Rick Ross, Young Jeezy, Lil' Wayne and new Cash Money member Brisco.

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T.I. Looks For Home Court Advantage, Lawyers Contemplate Guilty Plea

T.I. could possibly be released from jail and receive house arrest while awaiting sentencing if his lawyers decide to plead guilty at the rapper's hearing tomorrow (October 19).

According to top hip-hop blogger Sandra Rose, T.I.'s lawyers will reportedly seek an order similar to the pre-sentence order that suspended Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Vick. Last month Vick was ordered by a federal judge to remain on house arrest every night while awaiting sentencing on a dog fighting charge.

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Tupac's Former Bodyguard Claims To Be FBI Agent

A former bodyguard for Tupac made a stunning revelation during a documentary screening for the new film Tupac: Assassination - Conspiracy or Revenge?

During a Q&A that followed the screening of the documentary in Los Angeles, former Death Row bodyguard Kevin Hackie made the startling claim that he was an undercover FBI agent - and not an informant - as previously reported, during his time of employment as Tupac Shakur's bodyguard and security detail for Death Row Records from 1992-1996.

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'Gayngsta' Rapper Launches Day In Response To Ja Rule Comments

Popular "Gayngsta" rapper Deadlee is organizing and launching World Kiss Out Day, a concert inspired by recent remarks made by Ja Rule, who blaimed "gays on MTV for f**king up America."

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Jay-Z Breaks Down Kanye West's 'Big Brother' Tribute Song

Kanye West's song "Big Brother" on his chart-topping album Graduation was meant to be an ode to Roc-A-Fella founder and CEO Shawn "Jay-Z" Carter recently explained his take on the tribute song.

West's song to Jay-Z is a testament to the Chicago rapper/producer's early days attempting to break into the music business and to Jay-Z, for having a positive influence over his career.

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Eat better in just four weeks!

As a trained chef, restaurant owner, healthy-cookbook author, and confirmed food lover, I absolutely refuse to let the word diet hijack my life -- and I don't think you should, either. Smart eating is not about settling for less; it's about heaping more good stuff on your plate.

Let's change just one health habit a week -- shopping, cooking, and eating to meet that goal -- for four weeks?

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KRS-One & Chuck D Support New Nelly Effort

Although he has taken heat for both his mainstream success and the way some women are portrayed in his music videos, Nelly has the support of two of Hip-Hop's biggest legends for his new album Brass Knuckles. While addressing their former beef, KRS-One had nothing but praise for the St. Louis rapper's crossover potential.

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Hip Hop Album Sales: Week Ending 10/14/07

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Nas CD Title Shut Down, New Disc Will Not Be Called "N*gga," Says Def Jam

After recently announcing the intended title of his upcoming album, Nas' recording home, Def Jam is reportedly denying the album will be called N*gga.

As previously reported by SOHH, Nas announced his album will be called N*gga this past Friday (October 12) during a concert in New York. He said the disc would be released in December. But according to Fox News, neither will the highly anticipated album be dropped in December nor is it likely to carry the controversial title.

"There is no album released by Nas on the release schedule at this point," a source close to Island Def Jam Music Group chairman Antonio "L.A." Reid told FOX. "And they would be unlikely to release an album with that title. How would that look at Wal-Mart?"

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Foxy Brown Pleads Innocent To Blackberry Beating, Faces 7 Years

After failing to make a court appearance last week, Foxy Brown left her cell at Riker's Island yesterday (October 16) to plead her innocence.

The Brooklyn rapper, whose real name is Inga Marchand, is facing charges that she assaulted her neighbor Arlene Raymond with her BlackBerry, bruising Raymond's eye and chipping her tooth.

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Trina Addresses Missy Elliott Rumors, "She Is Just My Friend, That's It"

In an industry where many of the women rocking the mic have also been seen rocking handcuffs and alcohol detection anklets, Trina has done her best to remain drama free. In this SOHH exclusive, Slip-N-Slide's Diamond Princess drops jewels about music industry catfights, why female rappers need to band together, and those old romance rumors about her and Missy Elliott.

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Diddy & Alleged Victim Have "Definetly Not" Made Up, Despite Reports

It looks like Diddy may have to face the music for assault case after all.

As previously reported by SOHH, Sean (Diddy) Combs and his alleged beating victim seemed to have patched things up, but apparently, Diddy's supposed friend of 13 years isn't so ready for reconciliation.

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Def Jam Says No Date For Nas' 'Nigga' LP; Imus' Camp Supports Title

Representatives for Island Def Jam have denied that Hip-Hop superstar Nas will release an album with the controversial title Nigga in December.

The rapper made headlines on Friday (October 13), when he announced the controversial title and release date of December for his next album, during a show at the Roseland Ballroom in New York.

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C-Murder Re-trial In Murder Case Set For February

Rapper Corey "C-Murder" Miller will stand trial on a second-degree murder charge for the second time in February a judge ruled yesterday (October 16) in New Orleans, Louisiana.

Judge Martha Sassone set a trial date of February 11 for Miller's trial, which stems from a Jan. 2002 incident in which Miller is accused of shooting 16-year-old named Steve Thomas to death, at a defunct Harvey nightclub.

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Jim Jones, Lil' Mama, Rich Boy On Board For Stay In School Concert

Rappers Jim Jones, Rich Boy and Lil’ Mama will hit the stage for a purpose, when they join various entertainment and sports celebrities for the Entertainers 4 Education Alliance’s (E4EA) 2007 Stay in School concert tonight (October 17).

The second annual event, hosted by the E4EA, New York radio station Hot 97 and leading online, at-home tutoring provider Catapult Online, will take place from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. at The Manhattan Center in New York.

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Rakim, Ghostface, Brother Ali Hit The Road on Hip-Hop Live! Tour

Rakim, Ghostface Killah and Brother Ali will hit the road for the 1st Annual Hip Hop Live! tour, a nationwide trek kicking off this month in Los Angeles that features each MC in front of a live, 10-piece band.

The tour, which starts on October 29th at the House of Blues in Los Angeles, will feature The Rhythm Roots Allstars as the 10-piece backing band.

Tour dates are listed below:

October 29 - Los Angeles, CA - House of Blues

October 30 - San Diego, CA - 4th & B

October 31 - Long Beach, CA - The Vault

November 1 - Santa Cruz, CA - The Catalyst

November 2 - San Francisco, CA - Mezzanine

November 3 - Portland, OR - Roseland Theater

November 4 - Seattle, WA - The Showbox

November 7 - Park City, UT - Harry O's

November 8 - Denver, CO - Ogden Theatre

November 9 - Aspen, CO - Belly Up

November 10 - Kansas City, MO - The Beaumont Theatre

November 11 - Minneapolis, MN - First Avenue

November 12 - Chicago, IL - House of Blues

November 13 - Bloomington, IN - Bluebird Theater

November 15 - New Haven, CT - Toad's Place

November 16 - New York, NY - Nokia Theatre

November 17 - Baltimore, MD - Sonar

November 18 - Washington, DC - 9:30 Club

November 21 - Philadelphia, PA - Trocadero

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Plies, Common, Lethal Bizzle

Florida rapper Plies has reached platinum status as the chart-topping ringtone for his debut single, "Shawty" Featuring T-Pain, has sold over one million ringtones to date.

Chart topping rapper Common is auditioning for a role in the upcoming big budget picture based around the cartoon series The Justice League of America.

Controversial UK rapper Lethal Bizzle will perform his first show in Ireland during Dublin's Rap Ireland Bank Holiday Party.

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Love addiction -- how to break it

After a break-up with with your spouse, significant other or love of your life, you might try to remain friends with your ex, slowly cut off contact, or torch every last relic of the relationship.

But one thing is inevitable: Eventually you have to move on. So why is it that some people have a hard time letting go, months or even years after ending a relationship? Although it's natural to mourn the loss of a relationship, some people take such feelings too far.

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Suspect arrested in toddler's videotaped sexual assault

A man wanted in the videotaped sexual assault of a toddler has been arrested, according to police in Nevada.

Chester Arthur Stiles was arrested following a routine traffic stop.

Henderson, Nevada, police Officer Mike Dye said he pulled over the white Buick Century Stiles was driving because it did not have a license plate.


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Lil Wayne Guest Appearance on the New Jay-Z Album?

With the release date to Jay-Z's upcoming "concept album" closing in, HipHopDX has been keeping it's readers up to date with all relevant news regarding American Gangster.

The official tracklist has been released and it's bound to stir some controversy and leave die-hard Hova fans uneasy. While Beanie Sigel will take part on a revised version of Ignorant Shit; Jay's former rival, Nas, will appear on Success. The second track they have recorded together since the infamous beef from years back.



1. Intro
2. Pray
3. American Dreamin
4. Hello Brooklyn 2.0 f. Lil Wayne
5. No Hook
6. Roc Boys (And The Winner Is…)
7. Sweet
8. I Know
9. Party Life
10. Ignorant Shit f. Beanie Sigel
11. Say Hello
12. Success f. Nas
13. Fallin
14. Blue Magic (Bonus Track)
15. American Gangster (Bonus Track)

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Royce Da 5'9" Has A Major Label Revival

Royce Da 5’9”, Detroit’s second best MC (or is it first?), will be making a much-needed return to the current talent barren Hip Hop landscape with the release of his next solo album, The Revival.

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Diddy Turns Himself In To Authorities Over Weekend Scuffle

Diddy is expected to turn himself in to police today (October 16) and face charges over a physical altercation he had over the weekend, according to New York's Daily News.

As previously reported by SOHH, sources say Puff was at a popular SoHo nightspot, Kiosk, Saturday morning (Oct. 13) when he and an acquaintance began screaming about an ex-girlfriend of Diddy's, sources said.

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Rapper Bleu Davinci Charged With Dealing 5 Kilos Of Cocaine

Atlanta rapper Bleu Davinci has officially been indicted by federal officials for conspiracy to distribute cocaine, AllHipHop.com has learned.

The criminal indictment was unsealed last week and was filed in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia, Atlanta Division in July.

The rapper and 15 other men are accused of dealing at least 5 kilograms of cocaine starting around 2003.

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Master P Releases 'Desert Bayou' Documentary; Aids Housing Effort

As Percy "Master P" Miller continues to carve a new niche in the music industry, the rap mogul is bringing the struggle of those affected by Hurricane Katrina to the forefront with a new documentary.

The film, titled Desert Bayou, centers on New Orleans residents that were displaced to Salt Lake City, Utah in the wake of Katrina.

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T.I. Denied Bail

Rapper T.I. appeared in the Federal Courthouse in Atlanta for the first time today at 3:00 PM on weapons charges and has been ordered held without bail.

T.I., born Clifford Harris Jr., had his hands cuffed and his legs chained as he entered the packed courtroom.

His lawyers unsuccessfully sought bail for the rapper, which was denied by U.S. Magistrate Judge Alan Baverman.

Dame Dash and Biggs Release "Beyond Reasonable Doubt" Digital Mixtape

Dame Dash has all but exited the music industry, but the Hip-Hop tycoon is releasing a promotional mixtape that pays homage to Reasonable Doubt, the seminal album from former business partner Jay-Z.

Beyond Reasonable Doubt is a series of songs that were recorded three or four years ago with artists that were signed to a pre-breakup Roc-A-Fella Records.

Check Out Full Article @ All Hip-Hop