Artist: Webbie

Representing: The Trill Fam

Independent Album: Savage Life 2

411: "I can't go to the club or to a party and dance with my grandmother, saying, 'Gimme that pu---.' You know what I'm saying?"

So says Webbie, whose 2005 hit "Give Me That" was criticized for being too graphic.

"Some people got the wrong idea on 'Give Me That,' " he said. "All my music is positive. I was 18, 19 at the time. I was partying. To this day, I go to clubs every night. All my fans love 'Gimme that pu---' — the women who respect themselves, bad chicks, independent women. 'Give Me That' is a party song."

Well, no one, not even his granny, should have any qualms about the Webster's new record, "Independent." It's the kickoff for his new album Savage Life 2, which comes out this week.

Web was named "Savage" by a childhood friend who recently passed away, and on Savage Life, he was obviously just telling his story.

"Savage Life 2 is the same ole thing," he said. "I got a lot to talk about. I'm still living that same life. Y'all still see me in the clubs."

Joints To Check For:


— » "Independent." "I did 'Independent' for everybody," Webbie said. "For my little daughters to my aunts to your mama, everybody. I ain't gonna stop. It ain't gonna change. We're number one in the country right now. It feels good, man. I never thought it would happen. I figured it would happen because [there are] a lot of independent women in the world. Me and Boosie and Trill Entertainment, we been coming with 'hood music for the past eight years. Now it's time for us to get some platinum plaques."

» "A Miracle." "The song features Rick Ross and Birdman," Webbie explained. "I chose them because them cats are OGs in the game. I look up to them. ... Right now, we're on MTV talking. You got a lot of kids in the projects who may never make it to this situation. It was a point where I thought I wouldn't make it to this situation. ... [There's] a point where everybody who makes it to TV thinks that. It's a miracle."

» "I Miss You." " 'I Miss You' is my second single featuring LeToya Luckett," Webbie said. "[I] slowed it down, told my girl I miss her. I been on the road for two months. We kissing through the phone on there and everything. ... Me, I'm me. I ain't gonna sit here and be like, 'I'm a G, man! Anybody f--- with me, I'mma cut 'em!' And I ain't gonna sit here and put no tie on either. I'm gonna be me. But listen to my music, and they know how I'm coming.

"The video — we just getting used to the good life," he said. "We ain't renting these cars; we doing good right now. It's a miracle, and we just putting it in these haters' faces right now. ... Shout out to all my people that's proud of us. They know we really come from the mud."

Don't Sleep: Other Notable Selections This Week

» DJ Young Mase - The Streets Are Shady

» DJ 31 Degreez & Re-Up Gang - Got Snow?

» DJ Nik Bean, DJ Felli Fel and Crooked I - St. Valentines Day Bossacre

» DJ Whiteowl, Lil Wayne and Juelz Santana - Young Money Empire, Vol. 1

» DJ Hurricane and DJ Capcom - 50 Cent Vs Fat Joe (NY Giants)

'Hood's Heavy Rotation: Bubbling Below The Radar

» Quan (featuring Zoe) - "2 Live N Die in VA"

» Saigon (featuring Grand Puba) - "Who Can Get Busy"

» Jim Jones - "Love Me No More"

» Shareefa (featuring Jadakiss) - "On Fire"

» Willie the Kid (featuring La the Darkman) - "I Sit Back"

Fire Starter: QDT


We told you a couple of weeks ago about the musical partnership of DJ Quik, Snoop Dogg and Teddy Riley, which will offer opportunities for cameos, songwriting, producing and even record-mixing. What else can you ask for? The threesome say they would love to bring their proven longevity to new albums by Riley's guy and Snoop's good friend the Game. The first taste of their combination comes on March 11 via Snoop's Ego Trippin' LP.

Celebrity Faves

There are sneakers, and then there are Air Jordans. Launched in '84 during Michael Jordan's rookie season, the B-ball kicks have been a staple on the hardwood and the streets ever since. Nike celebrated the revered sneaker's 23rd edition release in New Orleans during All-Star Weekend, inspiring stars like Carmelo Anthony and Chris Tucker to bow down to Jordan and his legacy.

"MJ is legendary, on the court, off the court. Everybody knows the stamp that he's made on the shoe game," 'Melo said. "And that's something that's gonna be here until he's gone, his kids are gone, and until their kids are gone. It's a lifetime."

"Mike is the man," the "Rush Hour 3" star chimed in. "I remember my first pair of Jordans. Every time I go to the store, I look at the Jordans. He's the man."

The Streets Is Talking: News & Notes From The Underground

Nas is still working in L.A. on his upcoming LP, Nigger, and although he's worked with myriad producers thus far, he hasn't released a final track listing as of yet. But a few of his collaborators think the material they cut with the legendary lyricist should be out soon.

"Me and Nas did a record together, and it's huge," Captain Charisma himself, DJ Khaled, said last week. "Remember when Diddy and Nas did a record together called 'Hate Me Now'? In 2008, it's Nas and Khaled. We did a record for my [upcoming] album. I'm in the studio right now working for my [new] album. But I told Nas if he wants to use that for his first single, we can go and do that and make history. I hope that goes down. Either way, you will hear the record. We definitely did something, and it's huge. I actually don't know what he's calling it. I do have the record, though, and it's amazing."

And why not do a song about getting some hate? Nas has definitely caused an uproar with the title of his album.

"We gotta offend," he told MTV on the red carpet at the Grammy Awards, where he and wife Kelis were wearing matching outfits featuring the album title.

"I'm offended. I get treated like a nigger all the time," Kelis added.

"If we don't offend, we're not gonna get no answers," Nas continued. "Don't be scared, be prepared."

Polow Da Don also has one in the cooker for Nasir Jones.

"I just did one with Nas," Polow said. "It's crazy. I think it might be the first single. I think he might put the DJ Khaled record out. If not, he's gonna put this one out. It's f---ing crazy. It's him; it's still a hit, but it's a club banger. He gets to be himself and please the masses. The song is called 'My Legacy,' and it's talking about putting yourself on the line. He done spoke his mind his entire career, stood up for the people, but at the end of the day, 'They still look at me as, "He's just a nigger." No matter what great sh-- I do, they gonna always try to discredit me. So this is my legacy. When I'm gone, what's gonna be my legacy? Will they say, "He's great," or will they say, "He's just another nigger?" ' At the same time, it's a club joint. That's what's dope about it. It's so deep, but it'll be serviced enough to where you'll be like, 'This is my joint!' We didn't stretch for the radio, but it'll be perfect for the radio."

Earlier this month, Jermaine Dupri also talked about a track he gave Nas. "I'm just waiting for him to finish it right now," he said. "He's on the West Coast working on his album. I'm just waiting for him to call me and tell me it's done. Hopefully, he likes it. The producer world is hard. [Artists] don't be liking every beat you make. He gave me a lot of direction, so I felt it would have been easy for me to get on and do. A lot of the rappers' rappers were coming at me after they heard the 'Fallin' ' record on the Jay-Z album [American Gangster], like, 'Make me one of them.' It's in the same vein as that [song]. I'm back on that [vibe]. I'm not back on that completely, but if that's what they want me to do, I can do them records easy in the midst of me doing Janet and Mariah and Usher and everything else. That's the type of sound he wanted for his record. He wanted me to give him something that was soulful but at the same time had a little commercial feel to it. It's gonna be interesting to see." ...

Andre 3000 has the drama "The Battle in Seattle" with Charlize Theron coming out in April and the Will Ferrell comedy "Semi-Pro" dropping this week, but the word wizard is finally buckling down to record the follow-up to his Grammy-winning The Love Below (released jointly with Big Boi's SpeakerBoxx in 2003).

"[We're] doing solo albums," he told MTV News recently. "Big Boi is working on a solo album that should be coming out this summer. If I can finish in time, I'll have an album come out by fall, and we are planning on having another Outkast album afterwards. I don't know when that will be, but [we] just kind of start writing. Who knows?"

Andre said he still doesn't know what he'll call his album.

"I have a few [titles] dancing around in the head," he said. "It's like, you may have a name for a kid, but when it's there or it's close to it, you kind of know what it's gonna be or what it looks like. So, I guess when I am down to the last three or four songs, I may know what I am trying to say.

"I've got a few people in mind," he added of the album's cameos. "But it's kinda too early [to tell], because some people are traveling around the world and can't do it in time, and I wouldn't wanna give away the guest appearances before I actually lock it in." ...

They're young guys, but they're grown men too. Lil Wayne and Young Buck put aside any sour feelings they had toward each other recently, and not only did they perform onstage together, but they cut a record.

"Maturity, growth," Wayne explained of what brought them back together. "Grown men. Also, I done a song with [Buck]. With [recording] the song, we talked, spoke our differences out, which we had none. Zero. We had no beef. Grown men don't talk about the past. We just sat there — 'You good?' 'I'm good.' 'Let's do it. Whatever you need me to do, I'mma do it.'

"With Buck, it's more than just we was on the same label," Weezy added. "Me and Buck was in the same room when we would be on tour. We were in the same category to them. We were both young, so it would always be me, Young Buck and Turk in the same room every night. We wrote together, rapped together. Came up, figured sh-- out together. The [recent] show, we had a show in Tennessee, I was like, 'I'm here.' He was with me; he was on my bus; he rolled with me. He came out. Everybody thought he was gonna sign [to Cash Money], but nah, he's with G-Unit."

It even looks like Wayne's problems with the G-Unit General have settled down as well. As you know, 50 Cent went at Wayne several months ago, with no response from the Louisiana Fireman.

"People thought I had problems with Lil Wayne," 50 vented to Mixtape Monday recently. "I don't have problems with that little n---a. I like him. I like his music."

Fif revealed that some of the animosity he's put forth on records was due to last year's Hottest MCs in the Game list.

"When I have a record that's about to go on sale, and you decide that you want to point out who's the most effective artist, and I clearly been dominating, and I'm #8?"

Wayne says the feeling is mutual. He's never had a problem with 50.

"That n---a's crazy, Wayne laughed. "I ain't f---ing with 50. He's too high up there. That's my n---a, though. I respect that my name even came out the homie's mouth. I just took it as a compliment. I would never go back at 50; he's a trillionaire. I'm trying to get there, homie. I'm smart. I ain't dumb.

Wayne says Tha Carter III is coming sometime in April, but before that, he'll release a mixtape called Hello Brooklyn with Mick Boogie, in which Weezy redid several classic records by BK's legendary MCs, such as Big Daddy Kane, Jay-Z and Notorious B.I.G.

"I'm redoing all the old Brooklyn artists," he divulged. "[Mick's] got some old stuff. So old, he had to send the originals. I don't know what them songs are. I had to listen to them a trillion times, then do it. Nikki Menage, my artist, [and I did] 'Sunshine' by Jay-Z and Babyface. We did 'Juicy.' It's sick." ...

For other artists featured in Mixtape Mondays, check out Mixtape Mondays Headlines.