Show Business Video Shoot (BTS)

Omen - Afraid of Heights

Download Afraid of Heights here for FREE! Featuring J. Cole, Kendrick Lamar, Eric Roberson and others!

It Aint For Everybody...

Malbum (mixtape + album) Cancelled

Up until very recently, I had been recording like I was 2Pac or somebody. Every night I was recording something new and every song was doper than the last. Since I am not ready to move into a new album yet (HeartBeat has more videos to come!) I thought about giving yall a mini project for the time being b/c the music was very dope and deserved to be heard. After going back and forth on the idea of putting out a mixtape (I hate mixtapes... I think it has been overdone and over saturated) I settled on the idea of putting out a "malbum". A malbum is a fuse between a mixtape and album and it was an original concept that was given life when Project: Fr3sh began to work on one. I backed off of that b/c I want to give y'all dope music that I can aggressively market and I didn't feel I could do that with more planned videos for the HeartBeat album. So if you have been fiending for some new Penn music, just know that "PPP"(I'll explain the acronym later) is coming sometime in 2012. Until then, enjoy "GoodBye" which was intended for PPP.

Positive Thought 10/24/11

Don't live in the past, thinking about mistakes or changes you made. Think of your life as a book, move forward, close one chapter and open another. Learn from your mistakes, but focus on your future, not on your past.

The Avengers (Trailer)

Yeah, I'm excited like a 9 year old kid about this!

NBA LOCKOUT

I'm tired of this NBA lockout and I can not believe they let it come to this point. The NBA experienced a resurgence in interest last year for whatever reason (mainly people wanted to see the Heat lose)and they are pissing that down the side of their leg right now! I do side with the players b/c they make the league. Nobody is coming to an NBA game to see the owners or what nice arenas you have. I think the owners need to give a little more than they are b/c after all, you don't have anything if you don't have the players. But hey... those are just my thoughts...

J. Cole - Cole World: The Sideline Story (The Penn Review)

I wasn't going to review this album because I feel as though I am jaded being a J. Cole fan so that may obscure my ability to be objective. After sitting with the album a week I can say there are things that I don't like about the album. The things that I dont like are not very many and are a far and few between.

Dollar and a Dream III set the tone for the album. I love when Cole spits them heartfelt raps that I can personally relate to. I was feeling "Can't Get Enough" although when I first heard it, I didn't really think that was Trey Songz on the hook because he came with a different sound that we are used to from him. I do feel that this was a blatant attempt at a radio single that may have originally took Cole out of his element but I think he pulled it off well. "Sideline Story" put me in the mindset of something I would ride to or skip depending on my mood that day. "Mr. Nice Watch" was just 'OK' to me. I definitely liked Cole's verses better than Jay-Z's effort. "Cole World" is one of my favorite joints on the album and has one of my favorite lines on the album. "Got a 150 bitches in the club starring at me, how that feel... VERY HAPPY" I LOVE THAT LINE! We've all heard "In the Morning" and "Lights Please" so I wont comment on those. "Lost Ones" had a good message but I skip it. One of my homegirls suggested that he should have had a girl rap the 2nd verse to convey the female point of view. "Nobody's Perfect" was my other favorite joint on the album. I loved his flow on the first verse and Missy put me in the mindset of Aaliyah on the hook (I think Cole was going for that cuz he loves Aaliyah like I do). "Never Told" was cool at best. I liked his flow but the song got boring after a while. "Rise and Shine" was classic Cole and it's dope... PERIOD! I don't dislike "God's Gift" but I dont like it either. It's just in the middle of the road for me. "Breakdown" and "Work Out" could have been left off of the album completely for my taste. These 2 songs brought the overall project down to me.

Overall, I loved the album and I suggest that music listeners in search of some good hip hop PURCHASE this album! Again, I will openly acknowledge that I'm a Cole fan so his music hits me differently than other stuff that I listen to so with that in mind... I rate Cole's debut album 4 out of 5.

Thoughts on Jeremih - Down on Me feat. 50 Cent

I dig Jeremih's music first and foremost. I actually purchased both of his albums to support the Chicago kid but I absolutely CAN NOT STAND THIS SONG! I recently read on the internet that Jeremih didn't like this song when they first recorded it either. I think the thing that shocks me the most is that this song is bigger than Birthday Sex. I don't even know how that is humanly possible being that anytime it was somebody's birthday, welp... queue Birthday Sex! But nonetheless. Shout out to Jeremih for staying relevant b/c I really thought he was going to be a one hit wonder.

Omen - Numb (preview)

S/O to the homeboy Omen on the keys giving us a preview of one of his "Afraid of Heights" songs. Look for the project to drop on Halloween!

Tupac Back LOL (Ray-J)

Apparently, there was an incident between the two recently. Ray-J definitely went on a Tupac rant!

Drake - Club Paradise

HeartBeat Unreleased - Head to the Sky

Pennjamin Bannekar Seeks Grammy

Penn's debut album has made it through to the 2nd round of voting for a Grammy Nomination and we wanted to share this great news with you! You can get Pennjamin Bannekar's HeartBeat on iTunes http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/id446191165?affId=1108120 for only $4.99!!! If you would like a physical copy you can order it here for only $5 (physical copy order link >>> http://bit.ly/mxIGMn)

Fresh off of opening for Elzhi at the Double Door in Chicago on 8/20, Penn will be performing with Mikkey Halsted at the Abbey Pub, also in Chicago, on 8/25 (tix>>> http://www.ticketfly.com/purchase/event/58637 ) Opening for Bilal at the Double Door on 9/4 will be his next performance before traveling to L.A. to open for the hip hop legend, KRS-One on 10/28!

If you haven't had a chance to see the ILLwrite video on MTV, check it out here >>> http://www.mtv.com/videos/pennjamin-bannekar/642751/illwrite.jhtml

Get added to Penn's music emailing list & receive his HeartBeat Live album (w/ live band) for FREE! DM or inbox your email today!!!

Watch the Throne (The Penn Review)

I knew that when this album dropped that it was no way it could be what I "wanted" it to be so with that in mind, I began listening to this album with no expectations. I loved the beat and hook on "No Church In the Wild" but there were parts in the song that lost me. They could have kept "Lift Off" b/c I wasnt feeling that one at all. I think "Ni**as in Paris" is my hands down favorite and I can easily see that joint gettin the most rotation in my iPod. Otis was a failure to me from the moment that it dropped a few weeks ago on the radio. I was feelin "Gotta Have It" while "New Day" and "That's My Bitch" didnt do anything for me. "Welcome to the Jungle" was a yawner for me as well but they got me back with "Who Gon Stop Me" and "Murder to Excellence". The last two joints appeared to be filler joints to me at first but I really felt what they were saying in "Made in America" and "Why I Love You".

Lyrically, Jay dropped a few gems that I had to run back and Kanye had a few clever lines but I think Kanye is crossing over into a lane where he entertains me as opposed to inspiring me these days. Overall I would give this album a 3.5/5.

P.S. I really bought this album off of iTunes lol

Skip (of WeLoose) Smoke Break 2 (The Penn Review)

First of all, money can rap! PERIOD! His flow was definitely on point throughout the mixtape and I found myself running a few lines back. I was feeling the Intro, Sunday Afternoon, Cloud Song (minus the singer), Skywalker, Kitchen Talk, and Circus (minus the feature). My hands down favorite was Kitchen Talk and the lyrics were right on the money. It also reminds me of a song that I would do and I'm kinda mad I didn't think to do it! (lol) The only knock I had on the mixtape was the smoker talk. I'm not a smoker so I cant relate to that portion of the program. Not that I have anything against smoking songs, I just thought there were more than enough reiterations of the topic.

Bottom line, if you are looking for a new artist to give a try, I definitely co-sign for Skip.

Drake - Headlines

I fux wit it!

Chris Brown - Open Road (I Love Her)

I'll pass on this one Breezy...

J. Cole - Can't Get Enough feat. Trey Songz

I dont really hear Trey Songz voice in the song but I fux with it! #Coleworld

Kelly Rowland Here I Am (The Penn Review)

As I began listening to the Kelly Rowland's album I had to admit I was pulling for her to have a decent project. Correction, not decent, GOOD! The first track "I'm Dat Chick" was a complete miss to me. "Work It Man" was better but ok at best. I didn't hate it. I still dont see what the craze is over "Motivation" and even being a Lil Wayne fan didn't help me see the hype over that song. (His verse was sub par to me.) I was excited to hear the joint with Big Sean but yet that didn't do anything for me either. I was beginning to think I wasn't going to like anything on the album until I got to "Feeling Me Right Now". She got a lil kinky on that one so please pay attention to the words. I was diggin "All of the Night" even if it did have an Usher - Daddy's Home vibe to it. "Keep It Between Us" is easily my favorite joint on the album. She could have kept the 2 pop songs at the end of the album. I definitely didn't like those at all. Not even a little bit!

To recap, I liked 3 out of 10 songs. I did not like most of her uptempo songs with the exception of "Feeling Me Right Now". Bottom line, Kelly, you are better than what you released. I give her project a 1.5 out of 5.