One of the DJs doing a great job differentiating himself from the rest of the pack is Michigan native, DJ Benzi.  Through hard work, Benzi has become known as a tastemaker for upcoming hip hop talent.

Given this status, any artist that DJ Benzi co-signs will immediately gain attention from all the industry talent scouts.  This gives Benzi a great deal of influence and helps to build his buzz.

Outside of working with new talent, Benzi has also built up a reputation around remixes, and blends, to some of hip hop’s biggest songs.  The DJ Benzi and Willy Joy remix to Wale’s “Chillin” is a great example of Benzi’s work.

That remix, coupled with the video created by Jordan Laws, makes the hit song that much better.  Another example of Benzi’s work is the Sky High mixtape, where Benzi and Plain Pat put Kanye West remixes into what was considered the best mixtape of 2008 by Current TV.

The party was held at The Loft in Brooklyn Heights, and despite being extremely packed and hotter than hell, everyone had a great time.  Million$Mano and DJ Benzi kept the crowd happy with their sets, playing all the hip hop anyone would expect to hear at a 10.Deep party, and the open bar wasn’t too bad either!

The party moved to the streets after Donnis’ performance though, as people were trying to escape the heat and grab a quick photo with Donnis, who was outside mingling with his fans, family, and friends.

Donnis took a break from meeting fans to record a quick interview with HipHopAtLunch.com.  We touched on his interests ranging from the culinary arts to Twitter!  We obviously asked some hip hop related questions as well.

Like Donnis said in the interview, hit him up on Twitter; @DonnisMusic, and tell him what you think of Diary of an Atlanta Brave.  While you’re at it, ask him to share some of his favorite photos or cooking recipes!  As the interview shows, there is a lot more to Donnis than just music.

In this video, you can feel Donnis‘ passion as he performs “Over Do It” at the 10.Deep release party.

Donnis said that he wrote this record as if it was his last shot at making it, and in the video we see him put his heart and soul into the performance.  Sometimes you have to come close to quitting before your big break comes, and as Donnis stated in the interview, he approached this mixtape as if it was his last.

Check out Donnis performing “Gone,” also off of Diary of an Atlanta Brave.

Diary of an Atlanta Brave drops today, with production from J.U.S.T.I.C.E. League, DJ Benzi, D.Focis, and Needlz.  If you want to hear a southern artist going in over amazing beats with impressive lyrics, then this is a mixtape you will want to download ASAP.

For more information on Donnis, check out our feature article!

Jay-z has a song with Young Jeezy and a song with J.Cole on his upcoming Blueprint 3. Our prayers have been answered! More on FreshnessMag.com

Promo video for the Donnis x 10.Deep mixtape release party.  This video features Donnis and Just Blaze in the studio going over the mixtape.  More on Xclusiveszone.net

Ricky Ross the BAWSE jumps onto Mario’s “Break Up” track, and lays down the best guest verse so far.  BTW, that hair cut is #BAWSE!!   More on hhrum.com

Here is the first video promoting the Goodie Mob’s reunion taking place on September 19th.  The hype around this reunion is huge!   More on OnSmash.com

Jay Rock sits down with XXL to speak on West Coast rappers and comments on his current freestyle campaign.  More on XXLMag.com

Jay-z gives us a one minute clip of his much anticipated “Run This Town” video featuring Kanye West and Rihanna.  This video is looking good –>    More on Nahright.com

This track from 10.Deep’s new poster child, Donnis, comes hard with serious lyrics that will hype you up and make you think at the same time!  The amount of heart and energy that Donnis puts into this track makes it hot, and he approaches it as if it were his last.

The opening line, “They don’t want to give it to me, Ok fine I’ll take it,” sets the “long time coming” theme of the whole song, with Donnis eventually speaking about the major labels with:

“They would say Donnis so hot, but how we gonna break him?
See thats the problem, See you labels can’t break him,
I’m eating niggas dreams, and I’m shittin inspiration…
Aint no more patience, I’m sick and tired of waiting!”

Donnis‘ much anticipated 10.Deep sponsored mixtape, Diary of an Atlanta Brave, drops August 20th.  For more background info on Donnis go here.

Yung Joc – Posted at the Store

The video for Yung Joc’s first single, “Posted at the Store,” off of his latest album, Grind Flu, was shot on location in the hood.  This street banger, which speaks about being posted up at the store and selling your own product, serves as Joc’s reintroduction into the rap game after a two year hiatus.

Joc has made it public that he is in a tough situation with Bad Boy South and Block Ent., and in an effort to stay relevant in the game has decided to release Grind Flu as a free internet album

This album and first single are doing exactly that for Joc, who teamed up with Yung Ralph and Gucci Mane for “Posted at the Store.”

As far as the lyrics go, all three rappers keep their content about the hood and running the block, yet fail to really say anything truly meaningful.  Joc uses his verse to reintroduce himself to listeners with swagged up lyrics. Yung Ralph, aka Mr. Cleveland Ave, also puts forth a good verse about running product, yet the best verse belongs to Gucci Mane.

Gucci’s fast and slurred flow compliments this beat like a match made in trap heaven, and with lines such as, “My watch is frosted flakes, and my chain is toucan sam, BURR!” he keeps us laughing with his ridiculous style.

It’s good to see Joc back doing his thing!

Yo Gotti – 5 Star

Yo Gotti linked up with Rik Cordero to film the video for his hood club banger, “5 Star,” off of Gotti’s latest mixtape, Live from the Kitchen.  If you have been following Yo Gotti’s career, then you already know that he has been repping the hood in Memphis for some time now, and this track doesn’t disapoint.

Yo Gotti spits about his ideal girl on this track, saying:

“Ye aint fighting in the club,
Ye aint on that stupid shit,
Aint worried if he got money,
Ye aint on that groupie shit,
Still money make you cum,
Got your swag game together.”

Sounds like a dream girl to me!  Gotti speaks for the streets with all of his music, and has somehow managed to kill the game while never selling out or crossing over.  BTW, big shout out to Rick Ross who made a cameo in the video… he is poppin up in everyone’s videos these days!

Mario (featuring Gucci Mane, Sean Garrett, and Nicki Minaj)  – Break Up Remix

This song takes a unique position on failed relationships by asking women why they would want to break up.  And thanks to the sick beat produced by Bangladesh, this song has been getting more radio play than anyone could ever stand.

As far as the lyrics go, Mario does a great job on the hook, making the song stay in your head. The star of the song, however, is Gucci Mane who takes the first verse. Gucci’s ridiculous flow and lyrics over this smooth love song is a killer combination that will make you play this track on repeat.  Speaking on his failed relationship, Gucci spits:

“Gucci Mane crazy and his ice game stuntin, BURR!
Swag so stoopid, still the bitch straight dumped me.”

No one downtalks themselves in songs as much or as hilariously as Gucci Mane does.

Sean Garrett does an average job with standard R&B lyrics on the second verse, but adds to the song’s catchiness with his smooth singing voice.

The addition of Nicki Minaj on this remix doesn’t do much more than help her get her name out there.  Despite the hopes of the harajuku barbie’s fans, Nicki doesn’t say much in her verse.  She does manage to end the song with a funny Gucci Mane inspired ad lib, “Nicki!”

This remix is not as great as the original, but it will be interesting to see if it takes off!

New song, “Gone,” from Donnis off of his Diary of an Atlanta Brave mixtape dropping this Thursday.  More on 2Dopeboyz.com

Bow Wow signs to Cash Money.  Good move for everyone involved.  Hopefully Lil Wayne can help Bow Wow with his career!   More on TheUrbanDaily.com

Here is the complete track listing for Kid Cudi’s upcoming album, which is set up like a play with five acts. This is some unique stuff. More on illroots.com

The harajuku barbie jumped on the remix to one of the catchiest songs of the summer, Mario’s hit record “Break Up.”   More on RealTalkNY.com

Jay Electronica is undeniably artistically unique. Here is a video of Jay rocking a venue in Atlanta. Let me know what you think! @HipHopAtLunch More on YouHeardThatNew.com

Wale plays his PSP during an interview with a British journalist in London…Listen to the questions asked in proper English! –> More on NahRight.com

With a unique sound and an even more unique story, Donnis is shaping up to be the next hip hop star to have their career jump started by the help of a 10.Deep sponsored mixtape.

The only other artists to ever get a 10.Deep mixtape sponsorship are Kid Cudi with A Kid Named Cudi, and Wale with The Mixtape About Nothing.  That being said, If 10.Deep thinks Donnis can successfully follow in Kid Cudi and Wale’s footsteps, then we all need to pay attention to the upcoming mixtape, Diary of An Atlanta Brave!

Another reason why Donnis’ upcoming mixtape will be an instant classic is that he is working with some of the biggest producers in hip hop, such as Ryan Leslie, Just Blaze, the J.U.S.T.I.C.E. League, Don Cannon, and Tha Bizness.  These producers are coming together with Donnis and 10.Deep to create a mixtape full of original songs and content… aka an album.   This album will be released as a free mixtape.  Hopefully this trend of high production “mixtape albums” catches on!

To give you more of an introduction to Donnis’ story and his lyrical skillz, check out “Blueprint Freestyle.”

Now diving further into his unique story, we see that Donnis first started pursuing a career in music, while serving the US Military in Tokyo.  It was Tokyo’s DJ MasterKey who helped Donnis explode onto the local hip hop scene, eventually leading to Donnis’ decision to come back to America and pursue his hip hop career.

In addition to quickly gaining a strong fan base in America, Donnis managed to land a shoe deal with Fool’s Gold.  (Alongside other Fool’s Gold sponsored artists A Trak and Kid Sister.)

To give you a feel of what the 10.Deep mixtape will have to offer, here is the first track to be leaked, “Over Do It.”

Donnis comes with a lot of raw emotion and energy on this track, which coupled with the smart lyrics and catchy hook makes the listener eager to cop that 10.Deep mixtape on August 20th.

The opening line, “They don’t want to give it to me, Ok fine I’ll take it,” sets the “long time coming” theme of the whole song.  Donnis has been putting in time and effort honing his skills, and now he is going to the top, with or without label support.  Donnis spits:

“They would say Donnis so hot, but how we gonna break him?
See thats the problem, See you labels can’t break him,
I’m eating niggas dreams, and I’m shittin inspiration…
Aint no more patience, I’m sick and tired of waiting!”

The labels wouldn’t help Donnis see his dream become a reality, so now he is going to help the labels out by letting them sign him to a major deal… for the right price, of course!

A song that shows a different side of Donnis is the sexual “Clermont Lounge.”

Even though there’s no lyrics that stand out as extremely insightful on this cut, “Clermont Lounge” does a great job of showing Donnis’ ability to cleverly spit about a common theme in a new and refreshing way.

If you want to see Donnis’ freestyling skills, check out this video:

Like a number of other up and coming rappers who are straying away from stage names and personas in an effort to rap about their real life experiences, Donnis is spitting about what he knows.  Donnis himself has stated that were his life a movie, his music would be the soundtrack.

This new style of hip hop based off of transparency in both music and lifestyle works because everyone has a story, and no two stories are alike.  It is all coming down to who is talented enough and has lived an exciting enough life for all of us to care/listen.  With Donnis’ upcoming  Diary Of An Atlanta Brave, we are about to hear his story!

Donnis kills this leaked track from his upcoming 10.Deep sponsored mixtape entitled Diary of an Atlanta Brave.  More on 2DopeBoyz.com

Nipsey Hussle releases the Jordan Tower produced video for “C.E.O.” off of his latest mixtape Bullets Ain’t Got No Name Vol. 3 More on OzoneMag.com

Jay-z and Spike Lee get together to film a Rocawear 10 year anniversary commercial.  The boys take this one back to Brooklyn! More on XclusivesZone.com

Rick Ross and Triple C’s go hard in this video.  They have the whole internet buzzin with this one! –>  More on YouHeardThatNew.com

Fashawn has given us the album artwork for his upcoming album entitled Boy Meets World.  Check out our preivous artist feature for more on Fashawn. More on XXLMag.com

Fabolous is the latest in the line of rappers who have teamed up with Reebok for a shoe promotion.  Who will let Fabolous tell them what shoes to wear?  –>  More on NahRight.com

Hearing Young Jeezy speak about Thug Motivation 103 has been the best part of my day. I am going to buy this album when it drops. Jeezy never disappoints. More on PocketFullOfPaper.com

Artists sign a record label to do work for them! Will this be more common place in the near future? Let me know what you think! @HipHopAtLunch.  More on Hypebot.com

This is one of the worst Diss records ever made…This has to be a joke, but either way it is aimed at Eminem in response to his latest track, “The Warning.”More on 2DopeBoyz.com

10 Deep, who’s previous mixtapes featured Kid Cudi and Wale, has decided to focus their next mixtape on ATL’s Donnis. This tape is going to be FIRE.  More on Xclusiveszone.net

Drake comes out on stage in his home town of Toronto despite having to use a cane. Check out my Toronto homie @RoShine’s blog for the details: More on Toflo.com

Here is a video clip of Jay-z’s Michael Jackson tribute that he performed last weekend at All Points West. Like Jay-z says, we don’t mourn death, we celebrate life. More on NahRight.com