October 2009

OJ Da Juiceman is quickly making a name for himself in the music world. Not only has the 28-year dominated the underground hip-hop scene with his classic street records, “I’m Getting Money” and “Make the Trap Say Aye”, The Atlanta native is down with Gucci Mane and has landed huge features with Jadakiss (“Who’s Real”), Mariah Carey (“H.A.T.E.U. remix) and R. Kelly (“Supaman High”)… all before his official major release, The Otis Williams Jr. Story.

Check out our interview and learn more about OJ’s lifestyle, favorite fashion brands, his debut release, and much more!

JimmyJazz.com: Even before it was public that you had diabetes, you were shot. Mentally and physically, what has it done to you as an individual?

For more info on OJ Da Juiceman, please visit MySpace.com/ojdajuiceman.

If you have yet to buy your costume for Halloween Day.... no worries, you can still go trick-or-treating in some cool gear from JimmyJazz.com.

Nike Air Max 95

Coogi Authentic Knit Bag

Ralph Lauren Truro Sneaker

Here's a behind the scenes look of the anticipating Iron Man 2 movie, set to hit the big screen in 2010.

The sequel is directed by Jon Favreau, and stars Robert Downey Jr. (as Anthony "Tony" Stark/ Iron Man), Don Cheadle (as Lt. Colonel James Rhodey Rhodes/ War Machine), Gwyneth Paltrow (as Virginia "Pepper" Potts), Mickey Rourke (as Ivan Vanko/ Whiplash), Sam Rockwell (as Justin Hammer), Scarlett Johansson (as Natasha Romanoff/ Black Widow), Samuel L. Jackson (as Nick Fury), and John Slattery (as Howard Stark).

Shop for Marvel Comics apparel at JimmyJazz.com!

Photo and video spotted at FilmDrunk.com.

Trazz, a upcoming hip-hop star from Buffalo, took some time to talk to us about his music, lifestyle, and most importantly his region: Upstate, NY. Trazz, who was influenced by Big L growing up, is currently heating things up with his single, "All They Wanna Talk About". Additionally, he's also collaborated with some of our favorite hip-hop/ r&b artists, such as Pitbull, Akon, Colby O' Donis and others. Read up on Trazz and DON'T SLEEP ON BUFFALO!

JimmyJazz.com: Are you familiar with Jimmy Jazz?

Trazz: Defiantly! You guys are one of the biggest [urban] retailers. Every time I’m in the city I stop through.

JimmyJazz.com: Where are you from and what do you represent as an artist?

Trazz: Trazz is the name and I’m currently signed to Fix Your Face Music/ Property Music Group.  I’m from Upstate New York… the biggest misconception about Upstate New York is that people never associate us with New York City, because we’re at least 6 hours away. But the thing is, we’re still part of New York State, but we have our own identity. My city [Buffalo] is one that really gets over looked a lot. We haven’t had a major artist come out of Upstate New York since Rick James. Rick James is our pride & joy here, but for me, I’m one of the artists to come out of the region and have major collaborations with a lot of industry artists. I’m ready to put the city back on the map, man.

JimmyJazz.com: In regards to lifestyle, does your overall fashion style reflect Buffalo? Which by the way is home to New Era Cap.

Trazz: I try not to consider myself as having a style. Glasses are something I have a fetish for. Some people it may be shoes, sneakers, jeans or whatever. I literally own over 50 pair of designer shades. So, that explains that. But as for style, Buffalo has it’s own style. It’s [Buffalo] influenced so much from TV… it has a lot of Southern influence; it has a lot of Canadian influence, since we are right by the border.  So, I try not to put myself in a bubble, I just kind of do what comes natural to me.

JimmyJazz.com: Your collaborations with Pitbull, Akon, Colby O’Donis and others have party themes, what more can we expect from your music?

Trazz: The thing about it is, I originally got my start by radio music. My manager, DJ Noodles, his record that got him a lot of recognition was the “Lean Back” record with the Biggie vocals on it. He [DJ Noodles] has been in radio for over 15 years and he saw a lot of potential in me. We started off making music that everybody could feel… I think party & club music is universal. No matter where you are, everybody wants to have a good time. That’s the most appealing kind of music across the board. So we wanted to make music that’s appealing to everybody, which people can listen to on the radio and also go to the club and have a good time with.

JimmyJazz.com: How does an indie artist like yourself manage to get these major artists on your tracks? Considering that you are from Buffalo.

Trazz: You have to go outside of your box. This is not Atlanta [Georgia] or Miami [Florida]. So we don’t have the major recording artists in our backyard. You have to travel out and you really have to network. Fortunately for me, because I have a strong team behind me and a lot of members of my team are industry affiliated, it’s rarely ever that I’m ever here in Buffalo. Since I’m always in a different city trying to make moves and network.

JimmyJazz.com: Specking of being on the road, do you have any shows lined up for this Fall?

Trazz: Right now, I’m schedule to perform in Tampa [Florida]. This is actually November 16th. Every year, they throw a show, The Last Dance. It’s basically the last show of the year. In the past they featured other artists such as Plies, The Game, E-40…. I’m actually scheduled to perform on the pre-show.  There’s also a tour being put together for Fabolous and Serani… I’m hoping I can get on that tour.

JimmyJazz.com: As far as Serani, you’ve also collaborated with reggae great Wanye Wonder on “Gonna Love U”….

Trazz: Wayne is phenomenal. He was such a good choice for the collaboration, because outside of him having national fame, he’s an international superstar. He has that Caribbean vibe to him. Like I had mention to you before, we try to make music that everyone could vibe with. Not knocking any national stars here [USA] that don’t have any international exposure, but we thought Wayne had that appeal that we can get shows in the Caribbean, based on the strength of that record [“Gonna Love U”]

JimmyJazz.com: Are you currently looking for different ways to leverage your music into different avenues?

Trazz: By trade, I’m actually an actor. Music is something I’ve been doing since the age of 5. I attended New York Film Academy for 2 years. I was actually in the first hip-hop gospel play to ever hit theaters. It was called Rise, It was written by Play (from Kid & Play) and Salt (from Salt-N-Pepa). Acting is something I’ve enjoyed just as much as music. So I always look for different avenues. I think music is my pride & joy and #1 priority, but it’s only a piece of the puzzle. I feel once I get in, I can showcase my acting ability. Acting is something I’ve been doing to fuel my music career and fund my lifestyle.

JimmyJazz.com: Going back into collaborations, if you could work with one artist, doesn’t matter the genre, who would it be?

Trazz: [Short pause]. That’s a difficult question. I’m such a huge fan of Jay-Z. In my opinion, the best to ever do it. But, I grew up and was influence by Big L. If he was still around, I think my dream would be do a collaboration, something crazy with Big L. If he were still around, he would be my first choice. I grew up knowing every verse he ever wrote.

JimmyJazz.com: I can kind of see that. You both have that flamboyant wordplay.

Trazz: The younger generation they never heard of Big L. He was someone that definitely died before his time; he never reached his peak of potential. To a lot of the young kids reading this article, make sure you do your homework on Big L. He was definitely one that influenced a lot of these MC’s out here.

JimmyJazz.com: Are you giving back to any upcoming artists from Buffalo?

Trazz: I feel that my region, not only my city, but my region has been overlooked. From Rochester to Syracuse… us as a region. There so many talented artists from my region that have there own niche. It’s going to be the domino-effect that St. Louis had, once one person comes out of there, all of the A&R’s and everyone’s attention is gonna be on. Once I give fuel and attention to this area, people are really going to see what we have to offer here. That will be a dream to me, to put my city on the map and give other people in my city [or in my region] an opportunity.

JimmyJazz.com: What’s one thing we don’t know about Trazz?

Trazz: Trazz is about to have a baby. That’s one thing that the fans don’t know. So it’s ‘Go Time’ even more. I’ve been pursuing my career as hard as I can up till this point, but I think the fans will expect a super surge from me. I have to provide for someone other than myself, and it only motivates me more.

JimmyJazz.com: Congrats on that ….

Trazz: I Appreciate that.

JimmyJazz.com: Last, how can fans get in contact with Traz?

Trazz: Fans can log-on to MySpace.com/TrazzMusic. They can also go to TrazzMusic.com, which will take you to the MySpace page. Also, if they want to learn about the team surrounding me, they can go to FixYourFace.net.

It's been a productive week for Calvin Broadus (aka Snoop Dogg). The rapper/ entrepreneur recently debuted his official single from Malice n Wonderland, his 10th studio album. The single, "Gangsta Luv", features Atlanta hit-maker (and Christina Millian's boo) The-Dream.

The Long Beach native is also gearing to hit the road with Redman & Method Man and Devin The Dude on Halloween week for his Wonderland High School Tour. Fans who attend the tour  will also have the chance to cop limited edition Snoop Dogg mech, avalible exclusively for the tour. The Libra (Happy Birthday Snoop!!) recently commited to a ill collabo with Neff. Mechandise includes T-shirt ($25 bucks) and a black snap-back hat with sticky green embroidered writing ($20 bucks). For more info, hit up Neff Headwear.

Click on the Neff logo to see Snoop hyping Malice n Wonderland in Neff gear!

Don't forget to check out Snoop on the road. Here are the dates....

Rams Head Live!

Oct 27, 2009

Baltimore, MD

Starland Ballroom

Oct 28, 2009

Sayreville, NJ

Nokia Theatre Times Square

Oct 29, 2009

New York, NY

Lupo's Heartbreak Hotel

Oct 30, 2009

Providence, RI

House of Blues Atlantic CIty

October 31, 2009

Atlantic City, NJ

House of Blues Boston

November 1, 2009

Boston, MA

Vogue Theatre

November 3, 2009

Indianapolis, IN

Congress Theater

November 4, 2009

Chicago, IL

EPIC

November 5, 2009

Minneapolis, MN

VooDoo Lounge at Harrah's Casino North Kansas City

November 6, 2009

Kansas City, MO

Harrah's Casino Tunica Event Center

November 7, 2009

Robinsonville, MS

House of Blues Dallas

November 8, 2009

Dallas, TX

Grove of Anaheim

November 18, 2009

Anaheim, CA

CLUB NOKIA

Los Angeles, CA

November 19, 2009

House of Blues San Diego

November 20, 2009

San Diego, CA

The Warfield Theatre

November 21, 2009

San Francisco, CA

A number of celebrities are rallying behind Haiti to help the embattled country win a global competition hosted by BBC World News and Newsweek. Wyclef, actress/model Garcelle Beauvais, Russell Simmons, Free (Power 105 FM), Sha Money, Tony Yayo, DJ Whoo Kid, Mona Scott-Young (Monami Entertainment), actor Jamie Hector and singer Black Dada have signed on as ambassadors for LOVE ‘N HAITI, a recycling project in Port-au-Prince that turns everyday trash into energy. LOVE ‘N HAITI – an initiative also championed by President Bill Clinton -- is one of twelve finalists in the BBC’s “World Challenge ’09,” which will award a grant to the finalist with the most online votes. The cash grant will help LOVE ‘N HAITI continue its recycling efforts, which aid in decreasing deforestation, creating jobs, and reducing the incidence of floods.

“I’m proud to be a part of this campaign, not only because it’s for my people, but because I care about our environment,” says Wyclef. “All it takes is one vote to make a difference. We need everyone to support LOVE N’ HAITI!”

To log your vote for LOVE ‘N Haiti, visit TheWorldChallenge.co.uk.

Voting ends November 13.

Yeah, rapper Jay-Z said on his hit "Run This Town", featuring Rihanna and Kanye West, that 'all black everything' is the new cool, but we here at JimmyJazz.com disagree. Ladies, add a bit of pink to your kicks this Fall/ Winter season before you hit the town or class. We guarentee that you will set the blueprint for style.

Here are some of our favorite selections.....

Creative Recreation Galow

Nike Air Max 95

Nike Air Max 90

Swiss fashion watch and jewelry maker Swatch has shaken up the traditional watch making world with the launch of its Swatch Chrono Automatic Collection. The debut collection that just launched, comprises five sporty models offering stylish looks, rugged design and precision timing.

For the popular Swiss makers of fashionable accessories for the wrist, the Chrono Automatic represents an audacious challenge to a market dominated by upscale brands and traditional, more conservative design. The Swiss firm’s ever-inventive and creative designers have wrapped the inimitable Swatch look and feel around a new self-winding movement, putting assured chrono automatic performance and extraordinary style within easy reach of adventurers everywhere.

For additional Chrono Automatic styles, please visit Swatch.com.

One of the best ways to look cool but stay warm this Fall is to roc' Champion. The Athleticwear brand, which was founded in 1919, has been a main Fall and Winter essential in hip-hop for over a decade. Classic MC's like Mobb Deep, Nas, Jay-Z, Fat Joe, 50 Cent, and Ghostface Killah have been seen in public and in the limelight sporting comfy & stylish Champion hoodies, sweatshirts, sweatpants, hats, and more.

Don't get shut out in the cold... look and feel like a Champion! Available now for Men at JimmyJazz.com!

Bonus: Watch Ghostface make fun of a bootleg Obama sneaker with popular NYC radio jock, Ed Lover