A few weeks back I posted Michael Jackson’s amazing home demo of “Beat It.” That was based solely around Michael’s singing with no instrumental backing at all. Here’s a demo of his breakthrough hit “Billy Jean” that’s the complete opposite in that it’s thoroughly produced. In fact, it sounds so close to the final record…

Earlier this week, XXL announced the 12 artists in its 2014 Freshman Class. Rap-Up TV caught up with 2012 Freshman Class alum Kid Ink, who weighed in on this year’s “Dirty Dozen,” which includes Chance the Rapper, Lil Durk, Vic Mensa, Isaiah Rashad, Rich Homie Quan, and R&B hitmakers August Alsina and Ty Dolla $ign….

See The Light. Eminem’s “Headlights” video is set to debut this Sunday. Spike Lee’s in the directors chair and in this vignette, talks about his previous music videos and the theme behind Em’s. [RapRadar]

Jimmy Page spent the past few years digging deep into Led Zeppelin’s vault for the group’s upcoming series of deluxe album reissues, but now that the project is done the guitarist is finally ready to focus on his own career. “I play guitar at least once a week,” he says. “But now that the Zeppelin…

David Byrne is fast becoming the go-to spokesperson for issues at the intersection of music and politics. He’s been one of a few artists, including Thom Yorke, to speak out prominently against the onslaught of streaming services, and has also publicly bemoaned the death of creativity in New York. But while these are hot button…

With news breaking yesterday evening of Apple’s acquisition of Beats Electronics for a reported $3.2 billion, the question of whether Beats principle Dr. Dre (née Andre Young) — who co-founded the company with Interscope boss Jimmy Iovine — stands to become the wealthiest hip-hop artist or not is something many are wondering. Put another way…

Prince has revealed why he has stopped using swear words in his lyrics, saying that Mohammed Ali had no need for cursing either. The singer was famed for explicit songs such as Pussy Control and Erotic City, but recent albums have eschewed bad language. Referring to recent guests on his songs, Prince told Essence: “Marsha…

The mighty Questlove, usually to be found playing drums on Jimmy Fallon’s late night show, is stepping behind the camera to executive-produce a new music series for VH1. The idea behind Soundclash is to get artists from across the spectrum on stage together to perform each other’s songs as well as covers and other collaborations….

Talib Kweli sits down with Arsenio and the two dig into education, Jay Z, the current state of hip hop, the music industry, and more. What was your reaction to Jay Z’s line about Talib Kweli? Check below for Talib performing, “Sate Of Grace.”…

Apple is reportedly closing in on a deal to acquire Beats Electronics for $3.2 billion, according to a Financial Times report.  If completed at that price, the deal would be the largest ever for Apple. The deal is said to include both Beats’ music subscription service and its hardware business, which sells Beats by Dr….