Tag Archives: Azealia Banks

Rapper Vinny Cha$e Pays Homage to Uptown Roots in “Harlem Roses” Video

Posted on by
Reply

Written by Demara White

Harlem native and rapper on the rise, Vinny Cha$e, pays homage to his uptown roots with the video for his single “Harlem Roses” that features Kid Art from their The Golden Army mixtape. Cha$e, one half of the Cheer$ Club crew, has been creating quite the buzz in the underground scene. After landing a spot on Soulja Boy’s mixtape, the indie artist began to spark more of a mainstream buzz. Several popular media outlets have done features on the Harlemite, including XXL, Rap Radar and MTV.

Vinny Cha$e’s music can be described as a mix between his Harlem predecessors Dipset (circa 2003), and A$AP Rocky. His Golden Army mixtape features infectious beats and various samples including that of the Tribe Called Quest classic “Electric Relaxation”.

Cha$e has also gone to Twitter to ignite his buzz, with his feed reading tweets of the lavish life and his spending habits. His twitter fans love retweeting his quirky anecdotes, i.e.; “Other Rappers is like microwaved food, V. Cha$e is home cooked fresh of da stove greatness.” Though Cha$e and his Cheer$ Club crew are not signed by any major label yet, he – like many other indie artists – hopes to become signed.  But in many of his recent interviews he indicated that no label will cause him to turn his back on “the music” or cause him to sell his soul.

Cha$e considers himself a part of “New Harlem”, a term that he coined for Twitter, which represents the re-emergence of the Harlem culture. Other artists who are considered to be a part of “New Harlem” include Harlem-bred musicians on the rise A$AP Rocky and Azealia Banks.

The video for “Harlem Roses” is a telltale of a day in the life of Vinny Cha$e. It features stills from a concert at Webster Hall in New York City, images of the streets of Harlem, a performance scene in front of The Apollo Theater, and lastly an ode to the closing of the famed Lenox Lounge.

Check out the video and get lost in the music.

Like Meet Me Uptown on Facebook and follow me on Twitter.

Burning Bridges: Azealia Banks vs. Hip Hop

Posted on by
Reply

Written by Andre Preston

Anyone who’s a 90′s hip-hop fan knows that during that era “beef” was served often and cold. Usually the people beefing had legitimate reasons. Whether personal vendettas, physical altercations or for publicity it just made sense. But never have I witnessed a brand new fairly unknown artist, take on the persona of a controversial figure quite like Harlem’s Azealia Banks. Her break out hit “212″ pegged the young rapper as an urban talent with international potential.  Banks’ track charted in the UK respectively. She’s often revered in fashion circles as well, for her forward sense of style. But when she’s on Twitter, the rapstress is unfiltered, politically incorrect, and dare I say semi-gangster.

Last year Banks exchanged shots on Twitter with fellow Harlemite Jim Jones, over the term “vamp”. Banks interprets a “vamp” as a sexually and financially powerful woman who is usually characterized by a penchant for dark things. Jim’s initial response was “learn more about Harlem before you start vampin”. Following the Twitter beef Banks released a diss record about Jim called “Succubi”.

To say Azealia Banks is misunderstood is to say you first understand her. What if you just happen to be a fan, and retweet her song lyrics? You know like Oakland female rapper Kreayshawn did early last year. She tweeted “Have you guys heard @Azealia Banks “212″ I guess that c*nt getting eaten.” Kreayshawn included a controversial link along with her tweet, and Banks took it as an indirect shot calling her a “dumb bi*ch that can’t rap.”

When the opportunity arose for the new rapstress to do a song with the Queen B Lil Kim herself, a strange misunderstanding took place over writing duties. Banks tweeted “Do you know that your management were the ones who said you needed us to write a reference verse in the first place.” Needless to say the song was never recorded.

Azealia doesn’t hold her tongue for her career’s sake either. Funk Master Flex controls New York radio in his time slot. Most artists would try to at least keep Flex on their good side, but not Banks. When the legendary DJ took offense with her going at Harlem’s Jim Jones he called her out live on air. And her response was “G’d up” to say the least. “Tell that n**** Jim to defend himself, you stay out of it and have yourself a glass of Fat free water.” She later went on to say Flex only bullies women, hinting at his domestic violence past.

Fellow rapper Nicki Minaj thinks Banks is delusional, for her apology of not being able to make her “Pink Friday” tour due to working on her own album. When Banks called out the Australian blond bombshell femcee Iggy Azalea for rapping she’s a runaway slave master, she caused a racial debate on media sites. She even bumped shoulders with Iggy’s boss TI. TI immediately let it be known “Don’t speak on me and mine, ya’ll females handle that.” Banks felt TI was being sexist, stating in Vibe Magazine “If I was a boy TI wouldn’t say anything to me.”

When it comes to “beef”, Azealia Banks is fearless. If you’ve been unscathed in every confrontation thus far, your confidence is bound to shoot through the roof.

Like Meet Me Uptown on Facebook and follow me on Twitter.

Harlem Rapstress Azealia Banks Joins ASOS Holiday Campaign

Posted on by
Reply

Harlem rapstress Azealia Banks is not only making noise in the music industry, she’s making her mark in the fashion industry as well. The ‘212’ rapper’s bold and risqué sense of style has caught the attention of the UK’s largest online-only fashion and beauty store. Banks has joined the ASOS Christmas Campaign along with Ellie Goulding and Charlotte Free.

The sweet-faced, slick-talking rapper will be included on the ASOS site in a 90-second look book film. She’ll also be ringing in the New Year by gracing the cover of the January issue of ASOS’s look book. The online store released a teaser for the holiday campaign in which Banks rocks a jeweled bustier top and long burgundy tresses. All of the pieces of clothing that Banks wears in the teaser will be available for purchase.

On ASOS.com, each celebrity will have their own page that will feature fashion and beauty tips and other essentials for the holiday season. The stars will also reveal their “Best Night Ever”.

Banks has become a household name in the fashion industry. She’s performed at events for Prada and Chanel. She’s also a part of the fall campaign for T by Alexander Wang.

Check out Azealia’s ASOS holiday campaign teaser here.

Like Meet Me Uptown on Facebook and follow me on Twitter.

Harlem Rapstress Azealia Banks Boycotts Dolce & Gabbana

Posted on by
Reply

We all know that Harlem rapstress Azealia Banks isn’t one to bite her tongue. Since her inception into the hip-hop industry, the 21-year-old ‘212’ rapper has made headlines for beefing with other artists like Nicki Minaj, T.I. and Iggy Azalea. Once again the femcee is back in the headlines for her controversial remarks, but this time around she isn’t exchanging jabs with any of her hip-hop counterparts. Banks has an issue with the Italian luxury industry fashion house Dolce & Gabbana.

Last month Dolce & Gabbana showcased their Spring 2013 collection during Milan Fashion week. The garments displayed on the runway featured images of women that resembled mammy-like figures. Models wore dresses that had illustrations of African American women wearing plantation-era cornucopias on their head. Some models donned earrings that featured dark-skin women dressed in burlap dresses.

Displeased by the popular designer’s new collection, Banks recently took to Twitter to express her thoughts. She tweeted “It’s all just really unnecessary. The clothes in the collection were fine without the black mammie imagery.” She later tweeted, “I hate when people do corny racist things and try to justify it as art. Definitely Boycotting Dolce & Gabbana.”

Despite the critics, Dolce & Gabbana representatives are standing by their spring 2013 collection. They’re arguing that the imagery featured in their new designs is inspired by their Sicilian roots. Banks says that the illustrations on the clothing are reminiscent of imagery from the Jim Crow Era and that she will never purchase a Dolce & Gabbana product again.

What are your thoughts about Dolce & Gabbana’s Spring 2013 collection?

Like Meet Me Uptown on Facebook and follow me on Twitter.

Harlem Rapstress Azealia Banks Quits Hip-Hop

Posted on by
Reply

It seems as if the current trend for hip hop artists is to dabble in singing. Rapstress Nicki Minaj featured her vocals on her latest album “Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded” and we’ve all heard rapper Drake attempt to hit a high note or two on some of his sentimental songs. The most recent hip hop artist to join that group of “rappers turned singers” is Harlemite Azealia Banks. But Banks is doing more than just experimenting, she’s declared that she’s leaving the rap game behind and wants to be solely recognized as a vocalist.

The fairly new artist who is best known for her breakout record “212″ and for her social media beefs with other rappers in the music industry, recently took to her Twitter account to inform the world about her career change. According to HipHopDX, she tweeted “no longer wishing to be a rapper. i never was…. and as soon as i started paying attention to bulls–t urban media, i started getting myself in trouble.” She then followed up with, “From now on i’m a vocalist, and will not be associating myself with the “rap game”… or whatever the f–k that means.”

Rap isn’t the only thing that Banks decided to quit. She also deleted her twitter account claiming that Twitter has been a negative influence and she encouraged her fans to follow her on Tumblr instead. “No more twitter for me… it makes me entirely too accessible. Catch me on tumblr… it’ll be more interesting,” she wrote. Banks released her debut album 1991 last month and her upcoming mixtape Fantastic is set to drop sometime this summer.

Say it ain’t so. Finally a female rapper comes into the game with amazing talent and the potential to surpass other female emcees in the music industry, and now she’s calling it quits. She was just beginning to take the world by storm. If you’ve ever listened to an Azealia Banks song or watched one of her performances, you can’t help but notice that she has something special. I think it’s unfortunate that all of the issues that she’s had with other people in the industry has somewhat overshadowed her craft. I hope that she can make the same impact as a singer than she would have as a lyricist. What are your thoughts about Azealia Banks quitting rap?

Like Meet Me Uptown on Facebook and follow me on Twitter.

A$AP Rocky and Azealia Banks Shine at Coachella

Posted on by
Reply

Every April, scores of music enthusiasts flock to the desert in Indio, California to attend the highly anticipated Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival. In recent years, the multi-day festival that originally catered to an indie-rock crowd has emerged into a major mainstream event. Artists like Madonna, Jay-Z, and Kanye West have all graced the stage at Coachella. This year, Harlem-bred rappers Azealia Banks and A$AP Rocky were the talk of the festival. Their pivotal performances not only highlighted the first weekend of Coachella 2012, but it contributed to solidifying their position in the music industry.

Although Azealia Banks is new to the rap game, she’s been cosigned by some of the biggest names in the music industry. Despite being a newbie the sweet-faced, slick-talking rapstress’ music has been well-received internationally. With major buzz comes high expectations; many people were curious to see if she could pull off a live performance. The Coachella Festival was her first official gig in the U.S. and she delivered. Rocking a purple ombre weave, a black and white striped pant set and combat boots, Azealia Banks took to the stage and performed for a packed tent of Coachella-goers.

Her 25 minute set included her recently released tracks ’2-1-2′, ‘Grand Scam’,'Fu** Up the Fun’ and covers of songs like ‘Valerie’ by Amy Winehouse and ‘Come Home With Me’ by Cam’ron. The crowd was intrigued by her use of slick wordplay over hip-hop, electronic and house produced tracks. Overwhelmed by the positive reception from the Coachella crowd, a teary-eyed Azealia tried her best to hold her composure and deliver a strong performance.

Following her set she tweeted “The audience was so receptive. And loud ! It made me happy so I cried all thru my set lol”. Although the comparisons to Nicki Minaj are continuing to roll in, Azealia is set on creating her own path. “She’s only had one album, and she’s only been famous for a year, so she doesn’t have that big of a legacy for me to be the new her. She’s her and I’m me” said Azealia in an interview with The Guardian. It will be interesting to follow her journey in the music industry as she not only deals with the challenges of being respected in a genre dominated by men but tries to differentiate herself from other femcees.

A$AP Rocky and the A$AP mob closed out the festivities on Saturday night. Performing on a stage that resembled an antiquated war zone with up-side down black and white U.S. flags swaying in the background, A$AP Rocky and his squad did an hour long set. Decked out in all black everything from his ‘Funeral’ emblazoned snap-back to his patent-leather kicks he performed songs like ‘Purple Swag’, ‘Kissin Pink’ and ‘Peso’. The crowd included members of Odd Future and Barbadian songstress Rihanna.

The A$AP team outshined Radiohead which was presumed to be the evening’s main attraction. “I just want to say thank y’all for a wonderful night, see y’all next year” he said after performing his last song. A$AP Rocky has accomplished so much is his career so far. He went from relatively being unknown about a year ago to headlining events like Coachella. The future looks very promising for the Harlem rapper.

Azealia Banks and A$AP Rocky are taking the world by storm. Although Indio, CA is miles away from New York City, this past weekend was big for Harlem.

VIDEO: Azealia Banks’ Coachella Performance

VIDEO: A$AP Rocky’s Coachella Performance

Like Meet Me Uptown on Facebook and follow me on Twitter.