Sad news in rap music, as we learn that Kevin Michael Gulley, a.k.a. "KMG the Illustrator," of the golden-era Pomona, California rap group Above the Law died over the weekend. Signed to Ruthless Records by N.W.A's Eazy-E in 1989, Above the Law released eight albums over a 22-year career, including classics like 1990's Livin' Like Hustlers and 1992's Black Mafia Life—which pioneered the smooth-but-menacing "g-funk" sound that Dr. Dre brought to full fruition that same year with The Chronic. (The albums were released within a couple of months of each other, after Dre's falling out with Eazy and Ruthless, and there is some dispute as to the [...]

Of course we wish the people of Sudan good luck in this week's referendum to decide whether or not the southern part of the country secedes to become its own nation. A vote for independence seems likely. While there's much discussion about what the new country's name should be, a national anthem has already been written and recorded. It's called "Land of Cush," a reference to a Biblical kingdom in the area. Unfortunately, it sucks. Before anything becomes official, they should talk to Dr. Dre about the possibility of using his song.

Oh my God, psyched! As if they read the Awl and know what a crappy August we've all been having, the folks at NASA are holding a contest where the public can choose "wake-up music" for the astronauts who man the penultimate space shuttle voyage, mission STS-133, scheduled to launch November 1st. Go to the NASA website, where you can listen to 40 songs that have been piped in to start astronauts' days on past missions (and you get to hear the radio communication back and forth with ground control, too) and vote for your favorites. I voted for Elton John's "Rocket Man," because… What do you mean [...]

This seems to not quite qualify as a great stroke of genius. Producer and former rapper Warren G tells XXL that he came up with the name for his step-brother Dr. Dre's classic 1999 album Chronic 2001-which was a follow-up to Dre's 1992 debut, The Chronic. "We actually met at the Beverly Hills Hotel one night, and-I swear to God-he was trying to figure out what to call the album, and I actually said, 'How about Chronic 2001?' Right there at the Beverly Hills Hotel-we sat there, in the bungalows, and named it The Chronic 2001… Dre probably don't remember that shit, but I said, 'Chronic 2001… We are [...]

At this point, it's hard to imagine what's making Kanye West sound so cranky. The fact that his mink coat is dragging on the floor, I guess? Or that a beautiful woman he summoned to his hotel room arrived wearing underpants? Maybe it's just that he has a head cold. You're all stuffed up, sore throat, sinus pressure. That'll put anybody in a rotten mood. Whatever it is, for the music's sake, here's hoping he doesn't cheer up. 'Cause this song, which debuted on Funkmaster Flex's show on Hot97 just last night, sounds great.

This is big big news in rap. It's a new song from Dr. Dre, who is pretty much inarguably the greatest producer in the music's history. It's also, reportedly, an advance single from Dre's third solo album, Detox, a project rap fans have been waiting for, have know the title of, for nearly ten years now.

"An instrumental album is something I've been wanting to do for a long time. I have the ideas for it. I want to call it The Planets. I don't even know if I should be saying this, but fuck it. [Laughs.] It's just my interpretation of what each planet sounds like. I'm gonna go off on that. Just all instrumental. I've been studying the planets and learning the personalities of each planet. I've been doing this for about two years now just in my spare time so to speak. I wanna do it in surround sound. It'll have to be in surround sound for Saturn to work." -Dr. [...]