Twenty-five years after the first queen of hip-hop was stiffed on her royalty checks, Dr. Roxanne Shanté boasts an Ivy League Ph.D. -- financed by a forgotten clause in her first record deal.

"This is a story that needs to be told," Shanté said. "I'm an example that you can be a teenage mom, come from the projects, and be raised by a single parent and can still come out of it a doctor."

Read more on how Roxanne Shanté got Cold Chillin'/Warner Bros. Records to fund her college education at www.nydailynews.com

More Shanté after the jump . . . oh, and have a nice day. Ha!

Aww, suki-suki! Amazon has posted a sampler of the most anticipated rap album that is not Jay-Z's The Blueprint 3 -- Raekwon's Only Built 4 Cuban Linx Part II (due in stores Sept. 8).

First impressions after listening to Cuban Linx Part II sampler:

1. It's not a classic album. Undoubtedly, it's a worthy sequel to Only Built 4 Cuban Linx (Part I). We can now forgive Raekwon for his previous fuckery Immobilarity (and Lex Diamond Story?).

2. There are two noticeably old J Dilla beats on the LP: On "Ason Jones," the beat is from Dilla's "Believe in God" (via Jay Love Japan) and "10 Bricks" features another J Dilla beat that appears on one of his posthumous compilation (The Shining?).

3. "We Will Rob You" (featuring Slick Rick, GZA & Masta Killa) is a straight banger. Bravo!

4. No Nas guest appearance?

5. "Broken Safety" (featuring Jadakiss) is a sinister track. Perfect.

6. "Nu Wu" (featuring Method Man & Ghosface Kilah) should have received more airplay on urban radio.

7. A minor quibble: At 21 tracks, this album is bloated.

Listen to Only Built 4 the Cuban Linx Part II sampler HERE.

via kevinnottingham.com and icedotcom.blogspot.com

Cypress Hill -- "Get 'Em Up"

What the fuck?! A new Cypress Hill joint. Are B-Real, Sen Dog and DJ Muggs getting back together? It ain't no "How "I Could Just Kill a Man," but it will definitely get the crowd hype.

Phuncky props to eastofla.com

**BONUS**:

For his excellent True Hip-Hop Stories series, D-Nice lets B-Real talk about how the song "How I Could Just Kill a Man" established Cypress Hill and the historical contributions of Latinos in hip-hop. 

Essential viewing:

RR Exclusive: The OFFICIAL tracklisting to Jay-Z's Blueprint 3 (due Sept. 11).

The collection boasts an impressive list of production talent and guest appearances. Among the producers bringing their sonics to the album include No I.D., Kanye West, Swizz Beatz, the Neptunes, Timbaland, the Incredibles and Al Shux. Elsewhere, R&B piano diva Alicia Keys, Atlanta trap rapper Young Jeezy and in-demand rapper-crooners Drake and Kid Cudi are the notable features on the collection.

Jigga recently dropped the "Run This Town" video featuring Rihanna and Kanye West. Click HERE to watch.

Props to the Almighty www.rapradar.com

I agreed somewhat with Alvin. I would prefer to hear a Jay-only album (alá  The Blueprint). But this list of talent appearing on The Blueprint 3 is very impressive; I don't have problem with all of those features. 

Let's hope Jigga pulls off a near-classic album for the '09. I have yet to enjoy an entire full-length rap release this year -- except for Rick Ross' Deeper Than Rap.






Holla!

This Dominican and Puerto Rico beauty is a model out of Tampa, Fla. Although the 21-year-old Pisces is enjoying her modeling status, her true aspirations is to one day open a sneaker boutique. At 5'1", she is very flexible when it comes to meeting men. But fellas, before you step to her for a love connection, you better make sure your shoe game is on-point. "[I'm looking for a] man that's not a bitch and who [is] intelligent, smooth, funny [and] loyal," she says. "A man that can keep his kicks clean because if your swagger is nice but your kick game is not, I'll boot your ass real quick." Ouch!

Props to the305.com