I had the pleasure of producing the social media experience for Swagg in Los Angeles this past weekend. Swagg gave away tickets to the Atlantic Records BET Awards post-show dinner to Twitter users who used the hashtag #swaggLA. There was also a tweet-up held to give away tickets to the BET Awards and the only way attendees could learn of the location was by following @swaggmobile on Twitter.

Sarah Evans and Necole Bitchie where on deck to host the main event on Sunday evening: The Atlantic Records BET Awards post-show dinner. The social media rockstars interviewed celebrities to inquire about their mobile and technology swagg. I, doublefisted, was tasked with tweeting the event live + sharing photo and audio content with online followers as the event occured. It’s so cool to be behind the scenes and see content come to fruition online. There are so many photos from the event, and I’m sure music and techie fans will love the celeb videos that are to be shared online soon! Check out the video below of my homie @PRsarahevans as she interviews our “Honorary SWAGG Correspondent”, Jermaine Dupri.

by Kanye West: I’m so happy there is FINALLY a new track from Mr. West! Knowing there is a new track from Kanyeezy has completely made my week! The track sounds like the old Kanye…you know – the Kanye that rose the charts with albums College Dropout, Late Registration and Graduation. Not so much the recent, gone crazy Kanye with 808s and Heartbreak.

The single is somewhat verbose and you can tell Kanye had a lot to say because at times, it seems like he could just keep going and going and going….But, with him being gone for so long he can really do anything he wants. He really has that much Power! The meaning behind this song is somewhat ambiguous. Some are speculating that Kanye is referencing his own power and arrogance, while others state he is referencing white power that is still prevalent in this country. Only time will tell what the true meaning of the song is or if people will stick to discussing the beat and melodic flow vs. the lyrics.

Me? I’m keeping this joint in heavy rotation. The track is definitely a club banger and I’m marking it as a ‘hit’. More importantly, one track means there are more to come. Good Ass Job is rumored to be the title of Kanye’s fourth album, set to release in September 2010. I’m counting down!

by Alexander O’Neal and Cherrelle: Talk about a song that will get you up in the morning! This came on my Pandora channel this morning and I was JAMMIN in the shower. Yall would have thought I was performing at the Apollo!  This was not on my mom’s initial playlist, but this needs to be the first of many songs that will be added via Download List #2.

by The Emotions: I’m posting songs that I downloaded for my mom on her iPod, but I like these songs just as much – if not more – than my mom! I love this group and I love this song. Yall remember back in January when I couldn’t figure out the song that kept playing in my head? My parents and friends thought I was crazy…but I finally figured out the song because of this track. I knew that song, Flowers, had tones that sounded very similar to the tones on this one. This song will make me get up, grab something that can play as a mic and pretend I was one of the Hutchinson sisters. You better hope this song never comes on in a public place because karaoke or not, I’m breaking out my best vocal performance – and if you know how I sing, that isn’t saying very much lol

by Trey Songz: Ok…so I want to renig on the post I made last night about Chris Brown. I really thought Chris Breezy had a chance at coming back with his new sex-inspired video similar to what Trey Songz has been doing recently. But, Trey definitely shut that down today when he premiered this new video. I’m not sure if his Marketing team just happened to release the video today or if they were that smart to stop the conversation about Chris Brown before it even started. Regardless = his team is brilliant. On to the video…

I watched the video during the lunch break of a training and whew! I was SO glad I wore my glasses today because the tears definitely came down! This video is so sad It is so realistic and although my boyfriend nor I fit those roles of Trey Songz and Keri Hilson as a married couple with the wife in the army, I felt their pain. I saw myself in their shoes and it broke my heart.

I’ve watched the video twice since then and I’ve cried each time. As I write this post laying in my bed, I look at my boyfriend’s “side of the bed” and the thought of him leaving and not coming back kills me. So many couples deal with the fear of their loved one being deployed. Even worse is the fear of soldiers ringing your doorbell with bad news. That is so powerful and life-changing!

I guess when I first heard the song on the Ready album months ago, I thought Trey was going to create another sexually based video. I was so wrong…

by Chris Brown: I first saw someone post a link to this video yesterday and before I clicked the link I thought ummmmm what is Chris Breezy trying to do now? He just needs to stop trying to make a comeback and call it a day. Yet, when I saw the video my position quickly changed! I am ashamed that I like the song AND the video. The production of the video is on point! I love the dark scenes where the only visual you see in the result of a light shining. There are a few comical dance scenes where you can tell too much is going on, but Chris Brown just may have a chance at gaining his fan base back with this one. Don’t get me wrong…we all remember that he beat Rihanna’s head to the white meat but he has the potential to fill a void that is missing in the music industry. A void that Usher, Ne-Yo, Lloyd, Omarion, Mario and many others no longer fill. The only reason Trey Songz has become so popular and gained recent success is because Chris Breezy was staying lowkey. Trey definitely can’t dance – not saying he can really “sing” either. But, he has sex appeal and can draw fans in with his sexually explicit videos. This Chris Breezy video has some *really* sketchy scenes but they happen so fast you have to watch the video 3, 4, or 5 times just to get a glimpse. If you blink you might miss something. Knowing his history and past relationship, Chris tried to create that sex appeal while attempting to play it safe. Can you blame C. Breezy for his attempt at creating what proved to be successful for Trey?

Sidenote: I’m willing to put money on this video/track that it will be a turning point in the aftermath of what happened Grammy’s ‘09.

Yesterday was my mommy’s birthday! I don’t know if she reads my blog anymore, but I’m going to do something special to share how my mom’s musical preferences had an influence on me. Two weeks ago was Mother’s Day and the 24th time I have had the pleasure of celebrating Mother’s Day with my mom. About a month ago, my mom gave me a list of songs she wanted downloaded and put on four CDs. I know she thought I forgot, so I figured what better gift than to make her CDs for Mother’s Day. The idea was given an upgrade when my boyfriend won an iPod at a 5k race we ran…well, he obviously ran. I walked For Mother’s Day, I downloaded all the songs on the iPod and my mom LOVED her gift! She screamed and said the iPod was the best gift she had gotten. Obviously, it was a total hit! I played all the songs as we were preparing dinner on Mother’s Day and my mom said, “You be singing my songs more than I do.” And she shoooool is right. There were about 70+ songs that I downloaded and I thought it would be cool to share one track a day because the songs are definitely my kind of music. I want to kick off the Now That’s What My Mom Calls Music series with one of my favorite tracks from her playlist, Square Biz by Teena Marie also known as Lady T.

by Lupe Fiasco ft. Alicia Keys: I figured out what happened with my first I’m Beamin post. Well, more like my boyfriend reminded me vs. me figuring it out. He told me that I accidentally deleted the post and I said f*ck it lol. I just laughed and thought to myself hmmmm that sounds like something I would say. I felt like I had to remind yall of I’m Beamin because this new track from Lupe is banging too! His Lasers album is going to be straight fire based upon these couple of leaked tracks. And I’m assuming these tracks are on the album but he hasn’t released his official track listing yet… This track with Alicia Keys is a great song that will make you get up and move and highlights each artist outside of their “predictable” zone. It’s rare to hear Alicia on an uptempo joint but this is hot. This is one of my favorite songs at the moment and it will definitely be on my summer playlist! P.S. Who knows who this guy is with Lupe in the pic below?!? He made me chuckle.

by Lupe Fiasco: I’m so mad at myself right now. I REALLY thought I posted this video a couple weeks ago. Matter of fact, I’m positive I did but I don’t know what happened to it It’s as though the post went poof! – and disappeared into thin air. I was about to post another Lupe track, but didn’t feel right with this one missing. So, yall know my ordered brain has to post this again.
Since I posted the video the first time, the official video has been released. It’s a good look with a lot of creativity and features some cute lil kids. The track itself is a slightly different mix at the beginning and when that beat drops its ON! That ish get me so hype before he starts with “I get my energy from my inner g…”

by Dirty Money: This video premiered when I was in Philly last week and I didn’t get a chance to watch until I got back. Yall know I love me some Diddy, but I’m still confused on Dirty Money as a whole. If Diddy and Dawn from Danity Kane wanted to make a group, that’s all that needed to happen. Or if Diddy wanted to have Dawn solo, I could have understood that too. I’m trying to figure out the purpose of the third member – Kalenna. She needs to be told three’s a crowd…boo!

Anyways, this song is a straight club banger. Definitely won’t be listening to it past August, but we can enjoy it now. The video is hot too. There are a lot of bells and whistles with a helicopter and Diddy driving around in a banging Bugatti. I’m happy to see T.I. back in the scene because without him and Ricky Ross on the track, it would be straight whack! I hope Dirty Money’s album, Last Train to Paris, which is set to release on June 29 has a good mix of tracks besides this and Love Come Down. If not, my suggestion is that the train doesn’t leave the station and try to make it to no where!