Idolator

Those of you who enjoyed the snippet of Soulja Boyz II Men that was in the Real's "Failed Ideas In Hip-Hop" video earlier this week may be thrilled to know that the comedy duo has come up with a puppetry-employing video for the track—and while, like many mashups, the song falls apart a bit on the verses, the chorus, and the thought bubbles employed by the various characters, more than make up for that cacophony. [The Real] More »

This video of "failed ideas in hip-hop" has its moments—the RickRossRoll being one that some enterprising YouTuber should seize upon immediately—but the last 30 seconds, which are taken over by an unholy wedding between "Crank That" and "End Of The Road," may be the most sublime sound-collision I've heard since Marnie Stern got her fretwork in Lil Mama's pot of lip gloss. [YouTube]

The top tier of this week's album chart was pretty grim, thanks to a post-Grammy hangover that resulted in people promptly forgetting that they could easily buy albums by the likes of Jack Johnson (No. 1, off 42%), Alicia Keys (No. 2, off 51%) and Amy Winehouse (No. 3, off 55%). But lurking in its middle reaches was yet another testament to the power of televised music: Boyz II Men's Motown: A Journey Through Hitsville USA shot up from No. 182 to No. 62 on a 157-percent sales gain, one derived in large part from the group's appearance Thursday night on the Fox game show Don't Forget The Lyrics, which featured them performing songs from the new album. Oh, if only music programming wasn't such a ratings disaster, the music industry would be able to fix itself but good! More »