Ryan Leslie, “You’re Not My Girl” MP3

R Les channels early Mike Jack on this Off The Wall-referencing memo to his sidepiece that she can be shady and cheat on her man, but shouldn’t expect him to commit. Insert Bossip.com Puff/Cassie/R-Les love triangle speculation post here. It’s actually rather uncanny how closely he’s adhering to the Jackson blueprint (holler at Timberlake), a slight turn to classicism from his normal glossy future-funk, but then he also thinks it is his birthright to carry the torch. Too soon to tell (needs more Margiela, dance classes), but this song is a step in the right direction.



Download: Ryan Leslie, “You’re Not My Girl”

Street Bullies Riddim MP3

Typically we’re not down with street bullies since until age twelve some of us felt the brunt of being tagged “pip squeak” by just about everyone under the sun. Regardless, this Street Bullies riddim has a lot more feel good then mash down to it, pitting a rather sexy-time Vybz Kartel banger against a more cashflow-focused Elephant Man. AND if you need a little pop controversy in your diet, sandwiched in between is a tribute to MK’s “They Don’t Care About Us,” which pretty much got the street bully beatdown when it was released in 1996. Still, check out the awesome colorways in the original video directed by Spike Lee here.

Download: Street Bullies Riddim (via Rhona Fox)

Rick Ross f. Sleepy Brown, “Neverland” MP3

Honestly, we expected this from Kellz, but Rawse and Sleepy Brown took it there first: They turned the phrase/concept “Neverland Ranch” into a prurient sexual metaphor, promising the ultimate in bedroom dream fulfilment over a sample from the beginning of “P.Y.T.” It leaves you kind of speechless. Alternately, if Architectural Digest was wondering what Rick Ross’s personal Neverland Ranch is like, his hilarious ad-libs spell it out: “15 rooms, 12 baths, eight garages.” Rawse: there’s just so much more to love!



Download: Rick Ross f. Sleepy Brown, “Neverland”

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Michael Jackson, “Beat It (Jakwob and Jestar’s Wakowob)” MP3

After downloading about 90,342 MJ tribute mixes and attending 32 different MJ-themed events (including one spin class dedicated to his post-Off the Wall work), it seemed there would be no new way to pay respects to the greatest of all time. But Jakwob, whose Ellie Goulding remix we’re unceasingly wild for, and his old pal Jestar, have remade “Beat It” into a true-blue Brit bass-wobbler with echoes of dub that’s more creative than most of the homages being horseshoed onto el internet. It’s refreshing… and this shit stays being sad.



Download: Michael Jackson, “Beat It (Jakwob and Jestar’s Wakowob)” (via Neon Gold)

Long Live The King! The FADER Remembers Michael Jackson

We’ve read a lot of what other people had to say about Michael Jackson today and most of it was just depressing or overly serious. That’s not at all how we remember him or how we generally think about things, so after the jump, read a collection of FADER editors’ fondest memories of The King and make sure to listen to his music all weekend long. We guarantee you’ll feel better on Monday.

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The Let Out: Mr. Martelo

This week on the Let Out, the FADER’s weekly East Village Radio show we’ll be playing a bunch of Michael Jackson, no surprise there. Hopefully we’ll play some underappreciated cuts, but it could also devolve into a huge reminiscing session where everyone plays “Beat It.” Just kidding! In addition to the MJ-fest, Mr. Martelo is going to come through for an hour of epic jams and partying in the glass box. Listen live to the Let Out this and every Friday from 6-8 pm on East Village Radio.

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Freeload: DJ Ayres’ Michael Jackson Mix MP3

Since you are now concurrently overwhelmed by and fiending for a refresher course/memory wax on the dearly departed King of Pop, you should revisit the Michael Jackson mix DJ Ayres made for Brooklyn radio last year. It spans Jackson’s whole musical life, which essentially began when he was a little badass baby. Literally no kid star will ever be that talented. It’s chronological, from “I Wanna Be Where You Are” to “I Can’t Help It,” “Say Say Say” to “Remember the Time” to “Butterflies.” Rest in peace to a genius.

Download: DJ Ayres’ Michael Jackson Mix

Freeload: Tanlines Michael Jackson Tribute MP3

This song doesn’t even have a name. We were surprised to find it in our inbox so quickly after The King’s death yesterday, so we asked Tanlines‘ Jesse Cohen what the deal was. He said, “We were working in the studio on something else when the news broke and I happened to be playing with a synth that sounded like the one from ‘Beat It.’ So Eric figured out the guitar line and we made this tribute quickly.” You can see them pulling this together briefly in the above video. As we said before, the breadth of MJ’s influence and spark are immeasurable and maybe the good of his passing will be its reignition. Let this be the beginning.



Download: Tanlines’ Michael Jackson Tribute

Video: Michael Jackson

Last night as we walked around New York, it seemed like every single car had a Michael Jackson song playing, every radio station was running a tribute and everyone on the street was telling a story about whatever moment they remembered from 20 years ago when Michael did something they’d never forget. Even this one kind of crazy looking dude who walked up to us and asked, “Is it true? Is he dead?” and when we answered he just gasped and said “No, it can’t be true” didn’t seem all that crazy in his response. On the radio this morning, NPR played clips of people’s reactions in Africa, Europe, Asia and America and everyone said the same thing: It can’t be true. No one seemed particularly sad, just maybe a little shocked that he was human.

We were looking through our back issues trying to decide if there was even one cover artist who wasn’t influenced or affected by Jackson to some degree, and our answer was, No, there wasn’t, which was obvious but still mindblowing to think about. We may not ever see someone like him again. So we picked a couple YouTubes of moments we remember vividly and one interview we’ve never seen before that reveal a lot about how special he was and how tough that must have been. Something to consider when you look back at his life.

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Michael Jackson, 1958-2009

We don’t normally post when people pass no matter who they are, but you have to pay respect to this man’s music and influence.

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