Hello '09: Graduation and Proving Grounds.

Don't call me selfish, but yes, I did label my long overdue latest blog "Graduation" because I'm definitely gonna be a high school graduate come June of this year. Owww. But it does have a double meaning for all you impatient readers. What comes to mind when you hear Jay-Z and Eminem? Certainly not Gold plaques and Moonman awards. Sure those are nice, but those two are much more related to Multiplatinum plaques and Grammys (by the way, tune in to the Grammy's this year, hip-hops biggest performance in history-Swagger Like Us-is going to take place in a big way). So will these two graduate officially to be considered the two greatest rappers of all time? We shall see. Already, they ended 2008 with a bang, Jay-Z with his offering from the Notorious Soundtrack: Brooklyn Go Hard, a head nodding collabo with Santogold that features one of the most ridiculous punchlines in the former Def Jam President's career. Read it and weep:

I father, I Brooklyn Dodger them

I Jack, I Rob, I Sin

Aw man, I'm Jackie Robinson

'Sept when I run base

I Dodge the pen.

Oh lord, what's that thing that they say on AIM again?

oh yea...

WTF?!

(Get a tissue, hurry back, there's more)

The Blueprint 3 is supposed to feature Big Hovi returning to his more lyrical roots, instead of worrying more about how high his singles debut on the charts. There's nothing wrong with a little Billboard honor but, who doesn't miss the Renegade days?

Oh, speaking of the devil.

Imagine a year when the two greatest living legends release an album in the same year.

'Pac and Big always avoided that, and even after Pac's death, he put out more albums than when his heart was still beating. I'm tellin' you, check your local deli, he's out there somewhere.

Eminem is coming back out with his latest offering, Relapse, and has already had a buzzing single by the same name, in which he finally returns to his distorted tip-top shape form (see: Brain Damage, The Way I Am, Sing for the Moment).

"Give me that 5 month year old baby to shake him up

It'll only take me a second to

Slip up and choke his trachea"

What? It's sickening, which is exactly why Relapse is gonna garner some major attention, probably about .56% of the attention the inauguration gained, which is major (lol).

Tell me something though, how hard do you think Jim Jones has been working lately?

We Fly High and the Capo Movement 3 years ago gave him all the common symptoms of a one-hit wonder. A new clothing fad, a Billboard top ten single, and 2789287924823 remixes. But, a gradual improvement in his lyrical ability, plus an uncanny ability to simply make people listen to the heartfelt stuff he says, has Jim Jones in line to release a major album, cleverly titled Pray IV Reign, in mid-2009. He has once again found himself in the Billboard spotlight, but how about his verse on Kid Cudi's every-blunt-rolling-lover's favorite song, Day 'N' Nite? Even if you wear Neiman Marcus to work and Kumar drives you around downtown you know that we are all...

born to dieeee...you know the rest.

Watch out for this track, becasue at first I hated it, but it grew on me, which is good, because at first I hated 6 minutes (Pssh...Imagine that).

Precious (feat. Ryan Leslie)

I call it a mellow-dy, and if you're not careful you'll slowly drift to your basement and lie on the floor. But catch it at the right time, and you'll see how powerful that collabo is.

Last but not least, Mr. Raspy himself has coughed, wheezed, and choked his way back into the spotlight. Remember the end of '08? Everybody was waitin for his 3rd LP, Kiss My Ass, he even had the t-shirt on at the BET Hip-Hop Awards. How embarassing that he even had a release date on it, but December 9th just came and went and his ass ain't been kissed.

Probably for all those mom's in suburbia who cover their kids faces when Miley Cyrus gets kissed on the Disney Channel, Jada changed the name of his album to The Last Kiss, sparking the debate that he was going all Lupe, the Game on us and retiring in the height of his career. But, of course, that was just TMZ talking so we'll be hearing more heart attacks on Hot 97 in the future for Yonkers greatest lyricist.

Hey you, yes you, have you heard Death Wish? Or Letter to B.I.G? Jada is back, and if you don't believe it, well, idk, believe it, because its true. Watch for that album in '09.

Oh, I almost forgot, two last things before I leave you. Busta Rhymes recently debuted the cover for his new album Back on my B.S last week. Its so creative, I couldn't help but laugh just looking at it. Check it out.

Isn't it hilarious? But its true, the hits just keep on coming for Mr. Arab Money, the latest features Mr. Raspy and Young Jeezy, on the banger, Conglomerate. Lyrical onslaughts from all three heaveweights just makes his new album that much better.

The 2nd thing was something about fashion, which always passes its way through downtown Brooklyn, and my boy Cam (shout to him) runs a boutique in Pacific, and just got a new shipment of the new Alejandro Ingelmos (won't find those at Foot Locker (I used that joke already didn't I)), and omg, they're hawt (that was gay.) Peep those and my next blog, Peace Suckaz.