New York

Currently Spinning: Killer Mike and El-P make “R.A.P. Music” work

Back in 2012 an album came out that truly got me excited about hip hop again.

A white guy from New York and a black guy from Atlanta, each from different spectrums of the same genre, joined forces to collaborate and plant their freak flag in the middle of a cookie-cutter music industry.

I’ve since come to realize that what makes the 12 tracks on R.A.P. Music by Killer Mike so impressive is not only the atypical production style of El-P, but the passion and sincerity with which the leading character delivers his commentary.

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Brazilian icons Kaká and Oscar Schmidt share Orlando City moment

SANFORD, Fla. – When it comes to sports in Brazil there’s no bigger name in soccer than Ricardo Kaká and no bigger basketball icon than Oscar Schmidt.

On Tuesday at the Orlando City Soccer Club’s training facility the two friends took a moment to chat while Schmidt was in town with family just as Kaká was preparing to head out for a U.S. Open Cup match in Chicago.

Kaká presented the Naismith Memorial Basketball and FIBA hall of famer with a personalized No. 14 OCSC jersey before the two shared stories of how they met many years ago.

( – Click here for J.C.’s story on Orlando City SC for Orlando Sentinel – )

Kaká, a former FIFA World Player of the Year, is in his first season in Major League Soccer. He’ll captain the MLS All-Stars against Premier League side Tottenham Hotspur next Wednesday.

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Ice Cube (1990-1994) – Spotify Playlist

The four albums that unleashed the solo career of Ice Cube onto the world are a treasure in the history of hip hop.

Whereas stereotypes have largely perpetrated rap in certain ways over the past couple decades, the initial era of the former backbone of N.W.A. is worthy of revisiting as he’s helped legitimize social concerns for an entire group of people.

Once you get past the menacing attitude of the production and equally intimidating delivery of the emcee, there’s lots of depth to peel back within each album. Ice Cube in the early 1990s comes complete with commentary matching the times, which can be tough to digest upon first sitting if hesitant to soak it all in.

There’s scathing tracks about corruption of law enforcement and the prison system, and government degradation and racial tension, and tales of street life and sexual relations. It’s all packaged with punk rock bravado from a ghetto-American point of view.

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Blueprint relives worst shows of his music career in “What a Night”

There’s always been something about the uneasiness and embarrassment of others that makes the rest of us cringe with curiosity.

Such stories serve dual purposes in that they entertain on one hand and fascinate on the other, as though we can relate in some form or fashion. Or maybe we’re just intrigued by the kinds of far-fetched circumstances we’ve never had a chance to experience ourselves.

Blueprint offers up these types of stories to help quench such an appetite as he shares the most awkward moments from his life on the road in “What a Night,” a book about the worst shows of his music career.

Although Blueprint’s been known for different things at different times in his life, first as a computer programmer, and most notably a producer, emcee and musician, it’ll take some time before his work as an author of books reaches those aforementioned levels.

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Derek Jeter walks off for New York Yankees in final home game

Don’t feel bad if you missed the final home game for New York Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter on Thursday. The amazing ending to Jeter’s 20-year career is most potent in the isolated video clip below.

Jeter’s final at-bat came as it would in a sports film from Disney: Bottom of the ninth, game tied at 5-all with one out and a runner on second. Legend steps into batter’s box at Yankee Stadium for what is likely his final appearance in font of the hometown fans. Then… BOOM! The 40-year old swings at first pitch, sending a liner to right field and scoring the game-winning run.

This kind of stuff doesn’t typically happen in real life.

[mlbvideo id=”36599553″ width=”400″ height=”224″ /]

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State of Florida Produces 9 Former Prep Players In NFL Draft

That brief moment of excitement I feel each year when preparing to watch the NFL Draft doesn’t linger for too long. I’m usually ready to channel surf or dip in and out of the room by the eighth pick. But this year I realized it’s all in the way you approach it.

I spent much of the draft last night in a recliner with a laptop, smartphone and remote control nearby. First thing I realized was that ESPN has been ruining this event for me for years. It wasn’t until I committed to the NFL Network’s broadcast that I no longer had the urge to throw my television through a wall due to the rabid jaw-flapping.

Then I got caught up in the information overload world of Twitter and Facebook, reading and responding to online posts about fan’s draft triumphs and despair, with plenty of doses of humor thrown in at each other’s expense.

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Carnahan Coverage: Orlando City Soccer Club Wins Home Opener

If you keep up with professional soccer here in the states it’s likely that you already know about the expansion plans of Major League Soccer.

In 2015 the league will add two franchises – a brand new team in New York and USL Pro side Orlando City – to its roster of franchises.

But first, the defending champion Lions must finish out one more season in the second division. They hosted their home opener on Saturday, finishing in a 1-1 draw with the Pittsburgh Riverhounds.

– (Click here to read my recap for the Orlando Sentinel) –

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