War Is My Love is off the upcoming Ghost Recon: Future Soldier video game. This isn’t your average video game song though, Kendrick definitely brings his style & rhymes you expect. The beat is made up of some great synths & sounds I can see working well with the game, it has that epic feel to it. Kind of dope to me Kendrick is going to be in this game, he didn’t have to dumb his rhymes down & I think it will work well for the game. Stream is below.

Stream: Kendrick Lamar – War is My Love

Happy Days is off 1982‘s upcoming album 2012, dropping Tuesday May 22. Don’t sleep on this track as Mac & Bun both drop great verses that are accompanied by Shawn (of Boyz 2 Men) on the chorus doing his thing. Of course, Term brings heat on his verse as usual. I feel this is going to be a stand out track for me off the album, be sure to check back Tuesday for the album purchase link.

Also, check out the video for Up Every Night, and the track Thug Poets, both off 2012. Happy days is available for stream below.

Stream: 1982 ft. Mac Miller, Bun B & Shawn (of Boyz 2 Men)

Belgian singer/songrwriter, Selah Sue, released her debut album Selah Sue in Europe last year. The album premiered in the Top 10 in Belgium, France and the Netherlands and has sold over 400,000 copies across Europe. She is set to release the album to the U.S (and I would assume Canada) on August 21st via Columbia Records. The most popular song from the album is “Raggamuffin”, so Selah decided to mix it up a bit and call on none other than J. Cole to assist her in the re-make of the original song. With that comes the first official single off the U.S release of Selah Sue, “Raggamuffin (Remix)”. J. Cole’s infectious flow is heard on two dope verses that compliment the reggae influence heard in Sue’s voice. Her singing style is what makes her so appealing and really makes the track what it is. I’m digging this song and am looking forward to what else Selah Sue has to offer. Also can’t go wrong with two new Cole verses. Stream “Raggamuffin (Remix)” below.

This settles it. I’m officially a huge fan of albums made by one artist and one producer: Blu & Exile’s Below The Heavens, Fashawn & Exile’s Boy Meets World, Sene & Blu’s A Day Late & A Dollar Short, Killer Mike & El-P’s R.A.P. Music, and now MaLLy & The Sundance Kid’s The Last Great… The Minneapolis duo’s album dropped just two days ago, and is available for free download. I definitely recommend checking it out. Early favourites include “Shine”, “The Renaissance 2.0″, “Winner”, “Good One”, and “Unplugged” (featuring fellow Minneapolis native Brother Ali). MaLLy is scheduled to co-host the upcoming Soundset Festival. Stream and download The Last Great… below.

First I heard of Baltimore native, Ellis was his track Original Manz, back a few months. Off the same upcoming summer album Education of Ellis (E.O.E. for short), we have Misled, featuring the ghost Styles P. Legin, the producer went in on this one, bringing a Tupac sample that fills as a chorus whilst Ellis & Styles P spit their dope verses. Its also great to see a vet in the game, such as Styles P. on an up-comer’s new work, as he did here. With that said, stream and download are below, enjoy.

Stream: Ellis ft. Styles P. – Misled

Download: Ellis ft. Styles P. – Misled

Writers Guild is a hip hop collective out of Arizona, and today we have their newest track, “Armed”. Produced by Lifted (the latest producer signed to Kanye’s G.O.O.D Music label) “Armed” has a great old school hip hop feel to it, laced with funky boom bap elements that keep this sounding true to the culture throughout. Although this is my introduction to the AZ based collective, they’ve caught my attention quickly with their sharp rhymes and great flows on this track. Be sure to listen to Armed below, and download via Bandcamp

Not long after dropping the visuals for “Fortuna”, off his upcoming Joy & Pain EP, The Come Up Show favourite ANTHM lets loose “Polaris”, his collab with another personal favourite of mine, Blu. Produced by RJF, ANTHM and Blu bring the HEAT on this one. Be on the lookout for ANTHM’s Joy & Pain EP dropping mid-June. Stream and download “Polaris” below [via 2DBZ].

Download: ANTHM ft. Blu – “Polaris” (Prod: RJF)

“’Heavy in the Game’ is a line that comes from my favourite 2Pac song. It’s about being immersed in your craft that even though you may want to leave, you can’t – you’ve worked too hard to get where you are and there’s no looking back. As a Canadian musician, especially a rapper, I’m grateful that I’ve been able to be doing this professionally for 10 years. This album represents my best work. I’m proud that a lot of people will be able to relate to this album. Heavy in the Game is about trying to do the right thing even when you are faced with the temptation to slip. – D.O.”

D.O.’s highly-anticipated album Heavy In The Game just dropped today, and is available for free via Bandcamp. Spanning 21 tracks and clocking in at around 1 hour, Heavy In The Game is a solid offering from the Toronto veteran. The inspiration for Heavy in the Game comes from D.O.’s extensive domestic and international touring, his experience with launching independent label Northstarr Entertainment, and his success as one half of hip hop duo Art of Fresh. Early favourites include “Bill Russell”, “Can’t Tell Me” (Remix), “For Heaven Sake”, “It’s On”, “Shut It Down”, and “The Legacy 2.0″. Stream and download the entire album below.

Fresh of Hot 97′s Funkmaster Flex show last night, we have the latest from Childish Gambino, titled Unnecessary. Off his upcoming mixtape, the track features TDE member Schoolboy Q over Gambino’s own beat & the two both go in on it. No release date is set for the upcoming mixtape, but Unnecessary is available for stream & download below.

Download: Childish Gambino ft. Schoolboy Q – Unnecessary

Stream: Childish Gambino ft. Schoolboy Q – Unnecessary

In my last post about J57, I mentioned that he will be releasing two EPs on May 22nd: 2057 and The Ports. “Four Finger Ringers”, a collaboration between the Brown Bag AllStar and fellow New-Yorker Sene, is the first track we hear off The Ports. Sene’s been on my radar since his 2009 album A Day Late & A Dollar Short, entirely produced by Blu, and has been making a buzz recently with the release of his 2012 album Brooklyknight. “Four Finger Ringers” is just a short taste, but it’s got me excited for the full EP on May 22nd. Both EPs will be available at J57music.com. Stream and download “Four Finger Ringers” below [via Okayplayer].

Download: J57 ft. Sene – “Four Finger Ringers”

SWAOW! Famous just let loose “All On Me”, off his 2012 Road to Center Stage – The EP: Part 2, which dropped last month. Famous is definitely an exciting Canadian talent, and The Come Up Show was able to document his trip to SXSW with Northstarr this year. For those not familiar with Famous’ Road to Center Stage, check out the EPK video. Stream and download “All On Me” below.

Download: Famous ft. Francesca – “All On Me” (Prod: Kemo)