NOTE: Some of you are like, “dude what the hell? I thought this was for your mobile blog!” That was the case, until I decided that I didn’t like it not importing properly into my Facebook (the Tumblr Facebook application is “meh”). Now you’re gonna see all of the links on my normal blog and just the music I personally recommend on the mobile blog (which makes more sense based on the idea of it). This one last week, the stuff runs identically on both, and next week, the new direction begins. Enjoy!

WHAT IS #MUSICMONDAY?

Every week, I post a lot of links to free music you can download. Why? Why the hell not? I’m not hosting the links, I didn’t upload ‘em, I have no legal liability and I’m helping promote the artists. Essentially, I’m a g******ed hero! Enjoy!

Sometimes I rant about musical stuff — that goes at the end. The music is divided into three categories …

I’VE HEARD IT AND IT’S WORTH A LISTEN

• There are so many good songs on New Rap Remixes 2011 Vol. 1 that I barely know where to begin. An extended mix of “Rocketeer” by Far East Movement, “DJ Play The Beat” by Estelle with Swizz Beatz, “Lay It Down” by Lloyd with Patti Labelle … all clean, lengthy mixes for your pleasure. Wonderful.
• You’ll also know (if not like) many of the songs on Now That’s What I Call Music Volume 37 including “Love The Way You Lie” by Eminem and Rihanna, “Just The Way You Are” by Bruno Mars, “Firework” by Katy Perry, “No Hands” by Waka Flocka Flame (one of my least favorite rappers with one of my most favorite names), “Whip My Hair” by Willow Smith and more.
• If you call yourself a 90s hip hop head and you don’t know Def Jef, I have to call shenanigans on you. Luckily, you could just grab his whole freaking discography and educate yourself. He also played a role in the early career of a good friend of mine, Felicia “The Poetess” Morris, so he holds a special place in my heart.
• Not enough?
• Get ready to feel romantic, dude. The Black By Popular Demand mixtape series has dropped some nostalgic burners, but Day 25 is all up in your 90s slow jam groove. “At Your Best” by Aaliyah. “I Swear” by All 4 One. “Let Me Love You Down” by Ready For The World. “Make It Last Forever” by Keith Sweat and more.

I SUSPECT THIS IS WORTH HEARING, BUT I’M TOO BUSY TO HAVE LISTENED TO IT

• Word is, the Straight From The Vault EP is fresh new stuff from Michigan flamethrower and international sensation Eminem.
• Speaking of spitfires from snowy climates, Avril Lavigne’s new album Goodbye Lullaby is available, but the Hotfile link is already dead. Just FYI.
• Fresh off of her Twitter beef with Rihanna (yawn) “Listen To My Song” is a leftover from Ciara produced by Tricky and The-Dream.
• Here’s a Hidden Beach-commissioned remix of Jill Scott’s “No. 1 Lady” for your listeing pleasure.
• “The giant is greater, so step back!” No, it’s not “Soul Clap,” but “Where You Been” is a leak off BerriTV from A.G. (also known as Andre the Giant, formerly of AG & Showbiz).
• A new song from Notorious B.I.G. with J. Cole on it? Eminem featuring B.O.B.? Pitbull with Ne-Yo and some guy named Nayer? All that and more are available from Muzica Hip Hop.
• Showing a political side of things, producer Cairo Mayeson has dropped the Chaos in Cairo beat tape, a set of instrumentals framed by the climate of change in northern Africa.
• Here’s a new song from J. Cole called “Nothing Like It” which he apparently debuted on Ustream.
• She left Floetry behind, hit the gym and came back with a new album, so Marsha Ambrosius is dropping Late Nights and Early Mornings and that’s just plain cool.
• Mike Posner has apparently done a cover of the Adele song “Rolling In The Deep.”
• If you don’t know Trey Songz, you don’t listen to the radio. When he’s not making chart topping hits, he likes making versions of songs out of other people’s songs. This time, “F*** ‘Em” is a version of Ace Hard’s “Hustle Hard.”
• New Malcolm and Martin? Hell yeah! “Paul Revere 2011″ is from DJ Booth’s Exclusive Freestyle Series.
• Lots of people are talking about Let The Drummer Get Some — the hot new mix tape from Blink 182 drummer Travis Barker, itself a prelude to Barker’s upcoming album, Give The Drummer Some.

I PROBABLY WOULDN’T LIKE IT, BUT MANY PEOPLE WOULD

• Hh. Nothing this week falls into this category. Interesting.

What woulda made it over to the mobile blog? Marsha Ambrosius, Def Jef, Malcolm and Martin, Eminem and those two compilations. Just FYI.

Okay? Cool. See you next week.

Watching (Hulu): Raising Hope, “The Germ of A Story”

Courtesy of Hacked IRL – Truth in Sarcasm

Playing (Music): “Love The Way You Lie” by Skylar Grey a.k.a. Holly Brook (original version)

Every week I do a column full of comic book reviews as I’ve done since March 2003 and currently published at Comic Book Resources. Then, after the reviews post, I try to come over to my blog and expand on the thoughts and ideas listed there. Sometimes it’s profound, sometimes it’s gibberish, but it’s always about comics … let’s see what we get this week!

What? This week’s reviews …

OUR BLACK, SHINING PRINCE: I’m very upset by a number of things. I’m very upset that Dwayne McDuffie is dead — his wisdom is gone from the world, his talent is gone, his stories are gone. That’s no good.

I’m upset that I didn’t really realize what a presence he had, nor how important he was to me, until after he was gone because I didn’t have any conception that he might be a finite property. I recently wrote a lot of things that I should have said when he was alive, and I’m a douche commander for not doing that.

This has been a big part of my social networking this week — I told this great story about Scotland that Dwayne told me some years ago and I’ve been non stop on tweets and Facebook about it. I believe I’ve explained my reasons well enough, but I’ll do one last story, and close it down.

Dwayne McDuffie loved the show Sports Night. As did I — we believed that our common love for it doomed its chances on network television. Any show we both loved that fervently had to die — the world wasn’t built to make us happy that way. We once talked about TV shows we’d loved, and hit about an 80 percent rate of common themes.

Now he’s been cancelled by a faulty ticker, and I’m staring at the screen again. Upsetting stuff.

WEIRD COINCIDENCES: I also note that today, Thursday February 24th, is the anniversary of Octavia Butler’s death. She dies on the 24th, McDuffie on the 21st … Black writers should just be freaking careful in late February, y’all. Take an extra step. Slow down in traffic. Just saying.

TONY STARK IS A JERK: During the Civil War, I thought Tony Stark — billionaire heir and entitlement complex poster boy — was about as perfect as a super villain as anybody could get. The difference between him and Victor Von Doom was so paper thin that it’d make Kate Moss look like Roseanne Barr.

The idea that his drunken disses would make a subtle enemy of Otto Octavius (who’s 1. nuttier than a weekend with Chip & Dale and 2. has a hair trigger that makes Namor look calm and reasoned) is easy enough to believe, but it almost begs the question of why more people aren’t gunning for him. Weapons dealers he put out of business. Super villains that Rhodey tangled with like the Advisor.

Also: how many alternate futures have shown Iron Man as an iron fisted futuristic totalitarian? Three? Four? Finally, what’s up with the fact that one generation created such a huge number of super geniuses (Stark, T’Challa, Reed Richards, Hank Pym, Bruce Banner, Victor Von Doom … all of whom went to the same college by the way … and Stephen Strange is only a few years older) and the only comparable brains since then are Amadeus Cho (who, to be fair, hasn’t done much) and Ezekiel Stane? What was in the water back then?

I’m just saying that the numbers add up for Stark (and Banner, honestly … and honestly probably Pym … and if the Ultimate universe is to believed, maybe … well, that’d be a spoiler, but never mind) to “set aside all pretense and sham and anoint themselves masters.” They’re already comfortable being “Illuminati.” I’m just saying …

THAT’S THE NEWS, AND I AM OUTTA HERE: Screw this noise, I’m getting some sleep. See ya.

Watching (Hulu): The Colbert Report for February 15, 2011.