The Whole Delivery

The first Flashback today is from the 4th album that further certified Andre and Big Boi status as music legends of current times. A second single hit was needed after the high energy fun but depressing title choice and sorta flop that was "B.O.B." And they got that in this smooth classic produced by them and Mr. DJ. There was no long term taint however with this one. "Ms. Jackson" really got Stankonia the crossover sales it needed to become the selling hit album it became as you know. So, first Flashback of the day, enjoy. More from The Whole Delivery, soon. 

Based off her rousing performance in the fine live remake of The Wiz on NBC, TWD celebrates its first Flashback Friday selection of December 2015 with one Mary J.Blige. The wicked witch was superb in her role Thursday evening, and provided all the elements that showed why Ms. 411 is always as real as they come. Taking it back to her 2001 "revival," it's the smooth joint that lead to a Jadakiss and Fabolous remix and another in the sound production archives of Dr. Dre. It's "Family Affair," as the Flashback Fridays return. And there will be another Flashback Friday selection coming soon. 

Before major label troubles that showcased how she was certainly the opposite of a soft, cookie cutter pop princess some wanted to carve her into, Jojo really appeared to be someone who would have the status that Taylor Swift occupies now. Back in 2004, "Leave (Get Out)" was a powerful enough beginning for her, with this video retired on MTV's TRL thanks to the quality production of Danish R&B/soul producers Soulshock & Karlin. It reached #12 on the Billboard 100 and was a force across the world, especially Down Under in Australia and New Zealand. Though Jojo now hates how this song and the rest of her first album sounded, she's still appreciates it enough due to it being her start in the game. And though she has never built on that early promise thanks to the aforementioned label struggles, along with the occasional difficulties for many childhood stars to keep their illumination going into their young adulthood, Jojo is certainly not giving up hope ...

(Viewer and listener discretion is advised, especially if you aren't black and/or lived in an American hood). A song near and dear to my heart, since it was filmed in my neighborhood 15 years ago. It's the crowning moment of M.O.P's respectable career (and before they went the disastrous G-Unit route). It's the North Brooklyn hood classic that gave so much energy to Tompkins Park when they shot the video in the area during that 2000 summer. It's the unapologetic  "Ante Up," your first Flashback Friday video of the day. More to come from TWD Friday, stay tuned. 

It's always going to be an embarrassment when CNN hosts any debate in this era when they have largely been exposed, day after day, year after year, of being centrist media clowns laughably desperate to appear being the network that actual holds anyone accountable. And after Anderson Cooper's latest, constant interruption of a Democratic debate to make it seem like he's a real journalist when he is just a fraud, the network went and got its usual fact check hack Tom Foreman to try and pull a fast one on Bernie Sanders. Only, it failed miserably. It was centered on of course the gun debate, the one topic where centrist media fools like CNN will think that they can show Sanders as having the usual duplicitous politician tactic of possibly "flip-flop" on their weakest topic just like everyone else. Now, we can discuss whether his D- rating for NRA or his preference to not want gun manufactures to be sued under UNKNOWING circumstances (I capitalized that beca...

The best Obama impersonator ever, one Alphacat, has decided to make another classic parody song, this time with Aubrey's "Back to Back" beat and having it be 100 times better than Aubrey's diss at Meek. It's "Back to Back" Obama style, and it is another classic from what maybe the greatest parody person ever. He is that great. It's the happy return of the Music Wakeup Call at TWD. It's just so timeless, so many classic lines and facial reactions like this:  

Flashback to 20 years ago when one Monica Brown came out and was one of the freshest talents in the game, with this hit that got its deserved respect for a number of years but has been forgotten lately considering how Monica has been off the radar. It's the Dallas Austin produced classic from then 15-year-old Monica, "Don't Take it Personal (Just one of Dem Days)", your (late) Flashback Friday choice for this week. TWD, your home for music's best nostalgia moments.

After today's first Flashback Friday selection , we keep it 2000 related with the legend Janet Jackson's effort from the Nutty Professor 2 soundtrack. It's the enjoyable and fun "Doesn't Really Matter."  This really was a quality music video.  More to come at TWD. 

Welp, Roberta Vinci really will officially become the prime enemy of Williams' fans for good after irrationally and angrily calling out Venus Williams moving on match point in the Wuhan Open semifinals today (Wuhan is 12 hours ahead of the ET zone). Here's the match end. Vinci would have already looked bad if she said it in English. But the fact that she said "what the f--k" and then asked Venus if she wanted tea or coffee in Italian makes her look more cowardly here. Roberta truly is a fun, fiery person, but this was really a lame move from her. Even more bizarre would be if she did not complain about Venus' time during the match. Either way, another huge win for Venus in a great week at a big tournament, where she will play Garbine Muguruza in a quality final to salvage a prestige event that has been hurt by absences and laughably bad attendance.

One of the truly great songs of not only a magical and timeless 2000, but really ever, with a video that perfectly matches it. It's Common serenading his then wifey at the time in Erykah Badu with the special song that is "The Light," from 15 years ago. It's the first of several flashbacks today on Flashback Friday. More to come in a bit. 

Now because of "The Minions" in Despicable Me 2, this song got a hilarious second wave. But what makes this hit from 20 years ago even more funny is the fact that honestly, no one from this 4 person group is known by anyone individually. Like, none of them have their own Wikipedia page. Yet, they have sold so many records just on this main hit, especially over in Asia. And the even funnier thing was, "I Swear" wasn't even their song. It was a cover of a popular country music song from a John Montgomery that dropped a year before in 1994. The Flashback Friday of this week, it's the still largely mysterious group that is All 4-One with, one of the all time weirdest videos and most endearing songs ever, in "I Swear."

And just like his former flame , this clown came out in 2005 before he became a clown, and was just destined to be massive. He did become massive, not as we all know, in both the good and really bad ways that still persist today. With Juelz Santana and Scott Storch producing (talk about two careers that have hit a downward spiral), it's Chris Brown with his classic debut, "Run It." More to come from The Whole Delivery later today. 

Before she became known for threatening to beat b----es up for money to the current entertaining, original brash superstar she is now, this is when it all started for one Ms. Fenty 10 years ago. It's "Pon de Replay," her debut song. when she was just that island girl. More to come from The Whole Delivery today, stay tuned. 

From the 84th to the 85th season, the world's second best league @LaLiga / @LigaBBVA returns today. pic.twitter.com/WLtL2wNV6i — Andrew Jerell Jones (@sluggahjells) August 21, 2015 Since so much attention is given to the Big 2 and their continued preference to have the rest of the league be broke and not competitive against them, this La Liga preview will take an important, quick look at the rest of the 18 teams in the second best league in the world. It's the historic 85th season of La Liga BBVA. Atletico Madrid are arguably the deepest they have ever been under Diego Simeone, and that includes the title winning, Champions League finalist campaign of two years ago. Still, that deepness is created by the absences of key figures Arda Turan, Mario Manduzkic, Miranda and Mario Suarez. Though the latter have been replaced by equally talented figures, Turan's passing quality and vision is something yet to be seen consistently from exciting prospects Oliver Torres...

10 summers ago, T-Pain came out in the game with Akon backing him with this 2005 late summer classic, and the rest is history. It's T-Pain's "I'm Sprung", as the Flashback Fridays return to entertain you on your late summer journey. The Flashback Fridays will continue later on, as will the rest of The Whole Delivery. 

As his return to competition begins at the Rogers Cup in Montreal this week, it appears nothing can stop Novak Djokovic from capturing a 10th Grand Slam title at the upcoming US Open, not even a grown man on his back with a steep flight of stairs in his path. His recovery from a devastating Roland Garros defeat to Stan Wawrinka, by winning Wimbledon for the third time, was just as impressive as if he were still up for a calendar Slam. It was a signal that Djokovic is clearly the best in the world at the moment as questions beset his other Big 4 rivals with Roger Federer’s age, Andy Murray’s consistency and Rafael Nadal’s confidence affecting their level.    Coupling Djokovic’s current dominion of the ATP World Tour with his hard court supremacy may appear to make him a larger favorite in Flushing Meadows. The Serbian has already won the three biggest titles on the surface this year, capturing a fifth Australian Open with ease and showing his legendary resilience in ...

After Meek Nil's awful (first) diss back at Aubrey, here is a "diss" that was already made actually less atrocious with how embarrassing Tweet Mill's was. It's Common's largely forgettable 2011 song that had the middle of the first and second verse aimed at Drake during their Serena Williams love triangle. "All that La La, you ain't no motherf--king Frank Sinatra." More to come from The Whole Delivery today.  

Photo from Fifa.com/Getty Images Score Settled.  Those are the operative words when one comes to mind the minute Carli Lloyd put two goals into the back of the Japanese net in 6 minutes to show the full intent on the United States closing out their World Cup of revenge. It was a start so expedient and clinical, unlike any other World Cup Final had ever seen before, a determination that was set in stone the minute Saki Kumagai hit the final penalty past Hope Solo four years ago in Germany. And it was a desire to feel the glory that the 1991 and 1999 teams felt, instead of the agonizing heartbreak that tormented them for four years all the way to the final whistle was blown at BC place.  The Olympic title for a third straight time and instant revenge in London wasn’t satisfying enough. The hashtag “#ScoretoSettle” was established, because this United States women’s national team program hates when it is not in first place. In their minds, it is against the law of...

Photo from ATP/Getty Images When Dustin Brown was riding in a Volkswagen van throughout Europe a few years ago, it seemed being an unknown tennis nomad would define his career. All the characteristics as an itinerant player with modest accomplishments was firmly in the script for him, coming from a country in Jamaica who supported him less than the number of people who don’t know who Bob Marley is there.  Brown would always be known as the man in the van, the van that his white German mother and black Jamaican father invested for him when he needed to somehow survive in tennis. It was the van that served as his house and kitchen. It was the van that created a racquet stringing center for him to take care of fellow lower ranked players’ sticks as they too were on the precipice of homelessness. It was the van that had him wondering, when he was stuck in a world of doubt and second guessing, if continuing the tennis odyssey he set himself on since the age of 8 was worth con...

Denial of reality can be an alarming, misguided practice that a person can willingly partake on oneself. It is a conspicuous moment revealing how individuals are fully insecure with accepting the truths that they don’t want to embrace, tormenting themselves into a place of a dangerously false universe. Denial is a toxic behavior, and it has long been prevalent in America’s constant struggle with its racist characteristics, long before it became a union and in the current aftermath of its formation two centuries after. The tragic assassination of nine black people at the hands of a 21-year-old white terrorist has sparked another episode of racist denial, not only from conservative Caucasian Americans but even some notable white figures outside the right-wing spectrum. Shifting the focus off racism as the main reason for Dylann Roof’s devilish acts, some quickly attributed the shooting deaths to being simply an attack on Christianity.  Leading in that chorus of denial unsur...

Another song with "Slow Down" that was a major hit at the start of summer 2005 was another perfectly timed debut single in R&B. It was from Pretty Ricky, and like Bobby V, never could match the success from their first song (and let's not even go there on how bad Pleasure P's solo career has gone). The second Flashback Friday choice of the day, it's Pretty Ricky with "Grind With Me." (And those at Warner Music Group screwed up again. This came out in late May 2005, not anytime in 2006. Big Music labels really are so horrible). More to come at The Whole Delivery, stay tuned. 

10 years ago at this time, Bobby Valentino was new and very relevant. Now, not so much. But you can't deny the smoothness that was and still is his debut song/single, "Slow Down." Definitely near graduation/prom music here, it's today's first of several Flashback Fridays from 2005. More to come from The Whole Delivery. Stay tuned. 

Of the edges of D'Angelo and Kendrick Lamar's pro-black efforts, Janelle Monae artist Jidenna has done the perfect song and video for his debut single "Classic Man." It was firmly a representation of black old school excellence in a new era. It's broken through so good that LeBron's "Beat by Dre" commercial plays it. Today's "Music Wakeup Call," Jidenna with "Classic Man." More to come at TWD today.

Final Words:  From Luis Enrique being on the hot seat to being a manager of one of the greatest sides in the history of the game, Barcelona have proven how amazing their club is once again and will go to the Club World Cup to make official their status as the best football side on Earth. It has been another memorable year covering the Champions League. Here is the team of the season below, where the likes of Carlos Tevez, Thomas Muller, Jordi Alba, Thiago Silva and Dani Alves just miss out. Until next season, when it starts back up in late July and August, peace to this great competition. Full Time: Juventus 1-3 Barcelona (Barcelona become 8th European treble winners) A video posted by Drew Jones (@twdbk) on Jun 6, 2015 at 2:13pm PDT More to come, including the team of this season's Champions League GK: Gianluigi Buffon (Juventus) - The 37-year-old marvel may still not have a European trophy to his name, but he still is one of the best in the world and sho...

If Kevin Love was in this series and both teams were full strength, the Cleveland Cavaliers would win this series in five games. These two teams' second matchup this season in Cleveland showed that, as the Cavs outshot the Warriors and dominated them when it came to the second chances and length. More to come with the NBA Finals and TWD, in a bit.

It's been 10 years in the game for Virginia's top two R&B duo. First it was Trey Songz, who came to the game in a different state than the psuedo-R.Kelly state he currently is now. From a decade ago in May 2005, it's his refreshing, earnest and deep to the soul debut single/song that made you think he wouldn't go all the way in on his freak, sex song routes he's fully gone in on now. And asking the question, "All I got is a dolla and a dream, will you roll with me?" is a powerful one that tests one's real love from day one. From 2005, it's Trey Songz's first release with Twista right there, it's "Just Gotta Make It." More to come at The Whole Delivery on TWD Fridays.

With superb usage of MTume's "Juicy Fruit" and Biggie's "Juicy," Tamar Braxton's "The One" has been the full consolidation of her rise to solo stardom, branching off from her family and her previously more known sister Toni. Two years later, it still is a treat to listen to. It's "The One", your Music Energy Boost for today. More to come at TWD later.

With the Whitney Houston "Dance with Somebody" sample down well by producer team of The Futuristics, their effort has allowed Flo Rida article Natalie La Rose are catchy hit with Jeremih. She is the latest performer to not have a good singing voice, but all that matters is that she has a hit for the last 4 months. And for Jeremih, with his label issues, another hit is good enough for him. It's "Somebody," today's Music Wakeup Call. More to come at The Whole Delivery, stay tuned. 

The legend Riley B. King went up above last night at 89. And to honor his great life and career on Earth (as it continues in heaven), here is he performing his classic of many classics. It's "The Thrill is Gone," a song made first by the late great Roy Hawkins and Rick Darnell.  The first of a few tributes to this legend today in The Flashback Fridays. More to come at TWD today. Stay tuned. 

The Music Wakeup Call is back, with one of the rare EDM songs I can tolerate. And I'm so glad that Shermanology was black. Because honestly, there are not a lot of black women in EDM. More to come at TWD today, stay tuned.

It's been a rocky road of late for Avril Lavigne, where public disputes with her love life, ups and downs with her music career, and now battling lyme disease have been the story for the still young Canadian rocker. But the 30-year-old still has so many fans with her "regular girl" style and persona, and it is why she has been an unquestioned major success. So take it back to where it all started for her. It's 2002 around this time, and it is "Complicated," the breakthrough single for Lavigne to prominence. Enjoy your first Flashback of the day. More to come at TWD, stay tune. 

Half-Time Version  It looked as if Ancelotti's gamble to not play a forward up front would back fire, as there was no outlet for his midfield to go up top to anyone for most of the first half. Here is a prime example of that, as neither Bale nor Ronaldo was in the box despite Real being well into Juventus' half.  This was not the only time this occurred. With the backline rattled as Iker Casillas continues to look shaky, Allegri's side was given a real opportunity to at least be the ones in control of this tie when halftime came. Marcelo had a terrible first half and lacked communication with Isco, which helped lead to those two and Varane not following Tevez, whose shot basically acted as an assist for Morata's goal against his former side.   But the aforementioned Isco and James Rodriguez, for any deficiencies they may have defending sometimes, really provided the spark for Real to snatch the momentum of the game away from the hosts. James, alo...