• Kickstarter Funds More Music Projects Than Any Other Category during 2014; Neil Young and 'Meow The Jewels' Big Earners

    Kickstarter and crowd funding in general had their biggest year ever during 2014 and no subject matter was more popular on crowdfunding's most popular platform than music. More than 4,000 project were successfully backed on the site, more than any other category, including film & video, art and publishing. More than 18 percent of all Kickstarter campaigns finder during 2014 were tied to music.

  • Run the Jewels Song Plays in ESPN Commercial for NFL Game [WATCH]

    Run the Jewels received more national attention this weekend when ESPN aired a promo for yesterday, Jan. 3's NFL playoff game between the Carolina Panthers and the Arizona Cardinals. The commercial features players from both teams getting psyched for the game while the band's lead single from their self-titled debut plays, "Deadspin" notes. Killer Mike and El-P had a big year in 2014. The duo dropped its second studio album, "Run the Jewels 2," in October. It hit No. 50 on the "Billboard 200" behind singles like "Blockbuster Pt. 1," "Oh My Darling (Don't Cry)" and "Close Your Eyes (And Count to F--k)." The effort topped year-end lists by tons of media outlets. "On their second album as Run the Jewels, noise-loving Brooklyn rapper-producer El-P and Atlanta's Killer Mike make the most explosive hip-hop you'll hear all year. The best tracks give criminal-minded menace a radical edge: 'Close Your Eyes (And Count to F--k)' is a prison-riot fantasy, and on the blazing 'All Due Respect,' Mike hints at the roots of his messed-up ways," "Rolling Stone" wrote, giving the album four out of five stars.

  • Joey Bada$$ Shares New Track "On & On" Featuring Maverick Sabre And Dyemond Lewis [LISTEN]

    Brooklyn rapper Joey Bada$$ has shared a new single from his upcoming debut album B4.DA.$$, titled "On and On," which you can check out below. In true Joey Bada$$ fashion, "On and On" is yet another excellent '90s east coast throwback, with some crackling, jazzy production courtesy of Freddie Joachim. British singer-songwriter Maverick Sabre contributes the soulful hook, while Joey's fellow Pro Era rapper Dyemond Lewis drops a verse.

  • Music Times 25 Best Songs of 2014: Taylor Swift, Kendrick Lamar, Hozier, St. Vincent & More

    2014 was the year of a thousand controversies: Taylor Swift pulled all of her music from Spotify, Sun Kil Moon started a feud with The War On Drugs, Jack White accused The Black Keys of ripping him off (again), and almost nobody went platinum. When you put all of that aside, however, what you're left with is a bunch of incredible songs, which is really what it's all about. Here are the 25 best songs from 2014, as determined by Music Times writers Ryan Book, Caitlin Carter, Joey DeGroot, Kyle Dowling, and Carolyn Menyes.

  • Run the Jewels to Work on 3rd Album in January, Collab with Zack de la Rocha

    One of the most welcome surprises on "Run the Jewels 2" was the guest appearance of former Rage Against the Machine frontman Zack de la Rocha on the track "Close Your Eyes (And Count to F--k)," but according to RTJ producer El-P, that was not the first time he and de la Rocha had collaborated, and it apparently will not be the last, either. During an in-store event at Rough Trade East in London, according to "NME," El-P revealed that he and de la Rocha worked on music together as far back as 1999 and have plans in the near future to continue that work. "In 1999 I spent a month in my apartment in Brooklyn with Zack de la Rocha just before he split Rage Against the Machine, working on music that will never see the light of day," El-P said. "I can't speak about his future but I will say that I'm going to L.A. to spend another month with him in January." Though it was widely assumed that the break-up of Rage Against the Machine in 2000 would signal the start of de la Rocha's solo career in hip-hop, he has yet to release a solo album, or a full-length album of any sort since Rage Against the Machine's final LP "Renegades."

  • DJ Premier, Royce Da 5' 9" Announce PRhyme North American Tour [FULL SCHEDULE]

    Even though they just made their live debut this past Friday (Dec. 5) in New York, PRhyme, the collaboration between Slaughterhouse's Royce da 5' 9" and Gang Starr's DJ Premier, have announced a month-long tour in support of their recently released self-titled debut album. According to Billboard, "PRhyme: The Tour" kicks off on Feb. 18 in Baltimore and finishes up on March 19 and 20 at Austin's South By Southwest Festival. Tickets for the tour go on sale this Friday, Dec. 12, through PRhyme's website.

  • Run The Jewels Shares Trippy Music Video For "Oh My Darling (Don't Cry)" [WATCH]

    El-P and Killer Mike continue their reign of terror with the release of the new Run The Jewels music video, "Oh My Darling (Don't Cry)," which you can check out here. The Timothy Saccenti-directed clip finds the duo rapping while standing back to back in a dark room with some flashing red and green lights. There are some occasional shots of naked women every once in a while, so this clip is a bit NSFW.

  • Killer Mike Writes Op-Ed for 'USA Today' about Rap's Unfair Treatment in the Courts Following Ferguson Speech [EXCERPT]

    Killer Mike is use to voicing his opinions, whether it be through rhymes with Run the Jewels, emotional onstage speeches or op-eds. Most recently, the rapper co-wrote an article for USA Today about his genre's unfair treatment in the courts. Erik Neilson, an assistant professor at the University of Richmond, helped pen the op-ed, which takes issue with the recent Elonis v. U.S. case in which Anthony Elonis was sentenced to 44 months in prison after posting violent verses on Facebook

  • Ted Nugent's Ferguson Twitter Rant: 'Stranglehold' Singer Says Justice was Served in Michael Brown Case

    Out-spoken rocker Ted Nugent took to Twitter after a Ferguson grand jury decided not to indict police officer Darren Wilson for the killing of African American teenager Michael Brown. The "Stranglehold" singer took the side on Wilson, saying justice was served for the whole ordeal that took place in August. Other artists like Macklemore, Pharrell Williams and Katy Perry expressed their displeasure with the verdict previously.

  • Reading and Leeds Gives Taste of 2015 Lineup: Metallica, Jamie T and Run The Jewels Scheduled to Perform

    The UK got its first lineup announcement, of sorts, for the 2015 festival season as the organizers for the Reading and Leeds Festivals provided at least a small morsel of what to expect from the twin events during 2015: Metallica, Jamie T and Run The Jewels will be among the acts appearing at the events, which will take place between August 28-30, making this a rather early announcement. Glastonbury hasn't so much as played with our minds, although that event will take place nearly two months earlier than the Reading event. Get tickets while they're hot.

  • St. Vincent and Future Islands Take Top Honors for NME's Best of 2014 End-of-Year Awards

    The good news for those based in New York is that UK music publications have all released their biggest stories for the day by the time we wake up, giving us something to do as soon as we get to the office, thanks to a five-hour time difference. As coincidence would have it, NME also released its "best of" 2014 lists more than a month ahead of Christmas (which, unfortunately, may have hurt Britain's own One Direction down the stretch). St. Vincent took the top prize for Album of The Year with her self-titled release. Future Islands earned Track of The Year for "Seasons (Waiting On You)."
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