• 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.

  • Kendrick Lamar's TDE Label Announces Free Holiday Concert, Toy Giveaway In Los Angeles Projects Today

    Top Dawg Entertainment (TDE) is giving back this holiday season with the gift of music (and more)! The label — home to Kendrick Lamar, Schoolboy Q, Jay Rock, Ab-Soul, SZA, and Isaiah Rashad — has partnered with Nickerson Garden Projects to donate toys, shoes, and more along with a free concert today (Dec. 23) starting at noon. The even is free and open to the public, so if you're in the Los Angeles area, head there between 12 p.m. and 4 p.m.

  • Nicki Minaj Says Kendrick Lamar's Animated Voices Remind Her Of Her Own, Twitter Reacts

    While hitting the press circuit in support of her new album The Pinkprint, Nicki Minaj has repeatedly mentioned the lack of respect she gets in the industry as a woman and how she is always having to prove herself despite her success and her status as the queen of mainstream hip-hop. In a new interview with Rap Radar's Elliot Wilson for is CRWN interview series, Minaj brought up the fact that no one took her crazy voices seriously but that they respect it when Kendrick Lamar does them.

  • Kendrick Lamar Premieres New Song on 'The Colbert Report' [WATCH]

    As "The Colbert Report" finishes its last week, the show has been able to pull together some high-profile guests to pay homage to a man, Stephen Colbert, who has become a star on late-night television. As his final music guest on the show, the show had Kendrick Lamar come on for a short interview and to perform a song, an opportunity which K.Dot used to premiere a new, unnamed track.Before jumping into the song, Colbert poses the difficult questions he always does in the sarcastic and humorous manner that has made his stage persona so popular. He lets Kendrick know there is some pressure on his shoulders, noting that "Paul McCartney, R.E.M., Jack White and Nas were your opening acts."He asks if it is difficult to get life insurance as the leader of West Coast rap and what he is trying to communicate through his songs as a writer, not a rapper.

  • Kendrick Lamar Speaks on Protests and Anti-Violence Message of 'i' [WATCH]

    Kendrick Lamar is someone who understands how to use his words to convey a powerful and meaningful message, notably in his new single "i." Speaking to MTV's K.Dot, Lamar was asked about his message of anti-violence and how it applies to the current situations in Ferguson, Missouri, and Staten Island, New York, after the decisions by grand juries to not indict two police officers in the killings of two unarmed black men. He comments on the situation and how he has grown used to seeing it on the streets of Compton, California, via "Pigeons and Planes.""It's definitely frustrating ... It's something that I've been around since the beginning of time. I remember coming up in the city of Compton and [seeing] these same types of ordeals."He also mentioned that when he is making a song like "i," it is "about what's going on in real life. It's bigger then just a good tune, it's a psychological catchphrase."Growing up in a tough situation, he knew the disadvantages that were set out in front of him from Day 1. His father gave him advice on how to handle one such issue, and that was racism:

  • Beyoncé, Pharrell, Kendrick Lamar Among Music Nominees For 2015 NAACP Image Awards [FULL LIST]

    The NAACP has announced the nominees for the 2015 Image Awards, which honor outstanding people of color in film, television, music, and literature. Among the music category nominees are Beyoncé, who nabbed four nominations including Outstanding Female Artist for Beyoncé Platinum Edition and Outstanding Song For "Pretty Hurts;" Pharrell, who's up for four awards including Outstanding Male Artists and Outstanding Album for G I R L; and Kendrick Lamar, who is up for three awards including Outstanding Male Artist.

  • Kendrick Lamar To Appear As Guest on Final Week of 'The Colbert Report'

    Next week, "The Colbert Report" will sadly be going off the air as Stephen Colbert prepares for his new job as host of "The Late Show" on CBS, but he's determined to go out on top. As revealed in a tweet sent out by "The New York Times" writer Dave Itzkoff, Colbert's guest next Tuesday, Dec. 16, will be Kendrick Lamar. Since Lamar recently performed two songs on "Saturday Night Live," let's hope that he uses his performance on "The Colbert Report" to debut another new song from his upcoming, highly anticipated album (or even reveal its title and release date).
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