Last night, Hopsin brought his Funk Volume 2015 Tour to Milwaukee’s Turner Hall Ballroom with Dizzy Wright, DJ Hoppa and Jarren Benton. With some energetic sets from Benton and Wright, and even a short film played between performances, the man of the night and the whole Funk Volume crew definitely delivered. Hopsin performed a number of tracks from latest LP, Pound Syndrome, as well as a collection of his older tracks (including a few from his “Ill Mind of Hopsin” series. Hopsin gave his dedicated Milwaukee fans everything they asked for and more last night.
Check out our photos below and be sure to check out if the tour is coming to a city near you.
Last night, English new wave singer-songwriter Eliot Sumner performed at Chicago’s Lincoln Hall with Minnesota indie rock band, On An On. Performing a number of records from her 2014 Information EP, the Burberry Model turned indie rock singer gave an intimate performance for the Windy City crowd. Perhaps most known for her family tree, as she is the daughter of legendary rocker Sting (of The Police) and actress Trudie Styler, Sumner is currently making a name for herself aside from the shadows from her kin.
Opening her performance, Sumner greeted the crowd with a performance of her track ‘Dead Arms & Dead Legs’, the first taste of new music that her fans received in 2015. Throughout her 9-song setlist, Sumner was stern-faced and focused, but letting a sly smile sneak out at moments for her second to last stop on her current tour. Dressed in an oversized shirt and all black leggings (with all black shorts on top), Sumner keeps her emotion in check during her live performances, while still making sure everyone in the audience has a drink in hand and is enjoying their night.
After closing her set with a performance of ‘After Dark’, her second record from the new year, Sumner thanked On An On for having her, as well as the Chicago crowd. “You’ve been fucking awesome,” Sumner told the crowd before helping tear down her set, and even getting things ready for On An On. For a model/daughter to one of the biggest musicians in the world, Eliot Sumner is remarkably low maintenance and down-to-earth, but her voice and talented work on the bass guitar is what stole the show last night.
Check Eliot Sumner’s music video for ‘Dead Arms & Dead Legs’ and her setlist from last night below, and listen to more of her music on her official Soundcloud page.
Setlist
Dead Arms & Dead Legs
Firewood
I Followed you Home
Let Love Lie on your Life
After Dark
Halway to Hell
Wobbler
Come Friday
After Dark
The Game’s followup to his legendary LP The Documentary and forthcoming album, The Documentary 2, is just a couple weeks away (October 9th oniTunes). And in anticipation of his upcoming double album, The Game has released its next track, ‘Standing On Ferraris’. The new record features some clever shots at Interscope Records, talks about Kanye West’s shoe game, and even has some ad-libs and commentary from Diddy. It should be no surprise that Game isn’t siding with 50 Cent in the 50 v. Diddy beef. If you like what you hear, pre-orderThe Documentary 2 now.
Photo by Dan Garcia/The Early RegistrationThe Wisconsin Badgers (2-1) seem to be biding their time prior to conference play beginning in just two weeks, taking care of business against both Miami (Ohio) and Troy after their solid effort versus Alabama in week one.
The Badgers final pre-conference-play test will come against the Hawaii Rainbow Warriors (2-1) this Saturday night (7:00 pm Central) from Camp Randall Stadium in Madison, Wisconsin.
The team received some unfavorable news this week when it was announced star running back Corey Clement will now be out four to six weeks due to sports hernia surgery. Clement has not played a snap since week one against Alabama, sidelined with a groin issue.
It’s a good thing the Badgers have this guy named Joel Stave. The senior has been brilliant thus far, powering Wisconsin with a robust and diverse passing attack; a strange site in the Capitol after years of dominating opponents on the ground. This allows for far more options from the team’s playbook.
“We’ve done a good job at pushing the chains a little bit and get bigger runs on first down,” Stave said Monday. “In doing that, you open up your playbook.”
Stave has been even more impressive inside opponent territory, racking up 227 yards and six touchdowns versus no interceptions when throwing inside the opponent 40-yard line.
Dare Ogunbowale and Taiwan Deal will now continue to shoulder the load in the Badgers ground game. Seen as temporary fill-ins, the tandem will now be counted on well into conference play. The two have combined for 339 yards rushing in three games.
Look for the pair, as well as Stave, to have a big day. The Rainbow Warriors have allowed a staggering 381 yards per game to their opponents.
Hawaii senior quarterback Max Wittek is coming off one of his best games as a collegiate, throwing for a career high 272 yards at a nearly 71% completion rate. Wittek also threw for two touchdowns and no interceptions.
Junior wide receiver Marcus Kemp is a player to watch. The six-foot-4 Kemp will be a tough matchup for the Badgers, coming off a five reception 119 yard effort in Hawaii’s 47-27 victory over UC-Davis last week.
Opposing Ogunbowale and Deal on the ground for Hawaii will be running back Paul Harris. The junior is also coming off a brilliant effort last week, racking up 141 yards on just 11 carries.
The Badgers run defense has been dominant so far this season, so Harris will have to earn his keep.
Hawaii is seen as a very physical, hard-hitting team. Badgers head coach Paul Chryst has seen the game tape. He knows what to expect when the Rainbow Warriors suit up at Camp Randall Stadium Saturday night.
“I think it’s one of their strengths,” said Chryst. “I think they’re a team that loves the physical part of the game and they’ve got some guys that — I think their schemes play to that and I think they’ve got some really good football players.”
Wisconsin leads the all-time series against Hawaii five games to one.
Saturday night’s game will mark just the second time the Rainbow Warriors have every played in Madison.
Prediction:Wisconsin 38, Hawaii 14
Game time: Saturday, September 19, 7:00 PM CT on BTN, BTN2; Camp Randall Stadium, Madison, WI (Buy Tickets)
Joseph Somers-Morales, better known by his fans as SoMo, serenaded the House of Blues in Chicago last night while on his “The Falling Up” tour. The YouTube sensation, turned R&B star on the rise, brought in help from newcomer Jordan Bratton and rapper Kirko Bangz. SoMo’s latest mixtape, My Life II, dropped earlier this month debuting at #2 on the R&B/soul charts and on the list for the Top 10 album charts on iTunes. Hitting chart after chart, SoMo is bringing back R&B to a new audience. Features in My Life II included: Ty Dolla $ign, Trey Songz, Hoodie Allen, and Jeremih.
Lined up and packed in to see their favorite artists, The House of Blues last night could not disappoint. The venue was filled with great music from SoMo’s dynamic voice, Bratton’s soul filled performance, and Bangz’ thrill ride verses.
Opening the show was rapper Kirko Bangz. Bangz, who is best known for his hit ‘Drank In My Cup’, which when released peaked at number 28 on Billboard Hot 100 chart in 2011. Bangz energetic and adrenaline filled performance set the pace on high for the rest of the night as he brought a headlining caliber performance from the start of the show. His non-stop demeanor rubbed off to concert goers as it set that bar high the rest of the night.
New to the scene Bratton, a Long Island native, has worked with artists like Fabulous and Chance The Rapper (to name a few). Dim light set the mood as Bratton brought the concert goers down to his mellow smooth pace level. Bratton performed original songs like ‘Danger’ and ‘Prisoner’ with even covering Ed Sheeran’s ‘Think Out Loud’. Bratton after his set ventured off into the crowd to greet fans and to pose for pictures.
Known by his core fans for his ‘SoMo Sunday’ cover songs on YouTube, SoMo has come a long way since his YouTube days. SoMo’s performance brought concert goers into his own personal intimate world. Making a name for himself, we’re set to see a lot more of SoMo as he reaches news fans for his smooth and infectious lyrics. With all the characteristics of becoming more recognized for his work SoMo’s next few career moves could set him up in a big way.
Check out more photos (by Jesus Montero/The Early Registration) below and see if SoMo is coming to a city near you here.
Stefan Ponce is more than just the producer behind your favorite records from Childish Gambino, Vic Mensa and Chance The Rapper. Although his name is forever attached to some of your favorite rappers, Ponce is currently making a name for himself. Don’t label him as the Grammy-nominated Stefan Ponce, or the Childish Gambino-affiliated Stefan Ponce, or the guy who produced ‘Down On My Luck’ and ‘3005’, Ponce is an artist of his own, with an album of his own that’s on its way. We sat down with Stefan Ponce to talk about his forthcoming project, and some of his artist friends who have helped him get to this point.
CHICAGO, IL — Just when it looked like Patrick Kane was on the track to clear his name from the on-going rape allegation, after speaking to media with confidence that he would be absolved from any wrongdoing and after fans greeted him with cheers last night at the United Center, a cloud of doubt was again cast over him as the attorney of his accuser, Thomas Eoannou, presented some serious allegations in front of the media this afternoon.
According to Eoannou, an empty evidence bag (that Eoannou believes to be legitimate) was received on the doorstep of the accuser’s mother’s home. “In my 30 years plus of being both a prosecutor and a defense attorney, I have never seen an evidence bag outside of a police lab, a prosecutor’s office or a courtroom, let alone find one in the doorway of a rape victim mother’s home,” said Eoannou. Eoannou also called for an independent investigation, outside the local authorities, to look into the matter.
While many were quick to again doubt the integrity of the Chicago Blackhawk’s star forward, and assume that Eoannou’s allegation’s were true and that Kane (or someone close to Kane) potentially tampered with the evidence, the Town of Hamburg Police Department issued the following statement:
“In regard to the information conveyed today by Mr. Thomas Eoannou, the Hamburg Police Department will cooperate with any authorized investigation regarding the handling of evidence and the procedure of such. That said, The Hamburg Police Department has documentation that unequivocally demonstrates that it’s handling of the evidence and the integrity of it’s chain of custody of evidence in this case is unassailable. As is policy with active investigations, there will be no further comment regarding this situation.”
In simpler terms, the Hamburg Police Department has full confidence, through its evidence of documentation, that there is no reason to question the integrity and handling of its evidence in this matter.
Of course anything can happen, but unlike the attorneys for both the accuser and Kane, the Hamburg Police Department has no obvious motive for tampering with the evidence.
Accusing or hinting that someone, especially the opposing side in an on-going investigation, is a serious accusation, but if we are to believe the Hamburg Police Department, then there is no reason to question the evidence in the case, as well as the various reports that the evidence of the rape kit demonstrated that Kane’s DNA was not found on the accuser’s genitals or undergarments.
Although lack of DNA evidence does not necessarily prove one’s innocence in a rape allegation, prosecutors say that cases where a rapist uses a condom (therefore no DNA evidence) are extremely rare.
Chicago doesn’t subscribe to the idea that music festivals need to end in the summer, which is why React Present has totally expanded their Halloween music festival this year with Freaky Deaky. And while you purchase your tickets and await it’s full schedule, Freaky Deaky has just announced its daily lineups. Fans on Freaky Deaky’s opening day will be trick or treated to performances from Bassnectar, 2 Chainz, Action Bronson, Flying Lotus, Markus Schulz and many more. On Saturday Armin Van Buuren, Big Gigantic, Logic, Joey Bada$$ and more will hit the state. Then on Sunday, the Windy City will see sets from Chicago’s own Vic Mensa, Pretty Lights, Aluna George, A-Trak, Carnage, Mac Miller and many more.
With appearances from 2 Chainz, Vic Mensa, Flying Lotus, Mac Miller, Logic, Joey Bada$$, Action Bronson and Riff Raff, Freaky Deaky is set to have the biggest rap and hip-hop presence of all Chicago music festivals this year.
We are just a few weeks away from the release of Atlanta rapper/singer Raury’s debut album, All We Need, the follow up to his critically acclaimed mixtape Indigo Child. The LP will drop on October 16th and in promotion of the forthcoming project, Raury paid a visit to Stephen Colbert, as one of his first guests on The Late Show. The ‘Devil’s Whisper’ performance (which is the lead single from All We Need) also marked the 19-year-old’s first network television appearance.
Watch Raury’s powerful performance of ‘Devil’s Whisper’ below.
Lana Del Rey wastes no time when it comes to releasing new music. Since her 2012 debut, Born To Die, Lana has now released four studio albums in just four years (including Born To Die:The Paradise Edition), a consistency that is rare for today’s pop artists. While Lana instantly gained a cult following after her debut LP, she most recently won over critics last year with Ultraviolence, widely accepted as her best album up until that point. While artists frequently fall victim to the sophomore album curse and slumps throughout their career where they simply run out of fresh ideas for songs, fans were anxious to see if Lana could follow up her critical success from Ultraviolence, just a year later with Honeymoon. Although the Honeymoon may not be quite as beautiful as the wedding that it follows (Ultraviolence), Lana’s new album again proves that she is continuing to grow as an artist, all while delivering her unique sound and consistently great records.
The Early Registration 