The Crystal Method have just released the video of their recent collaboration with R&B legend Martha Reeves. The clip merges footage from The Crystal Method’s recent touring with behind the scenes film for the RE:GENERATION documentary with Reeves in Detroit.

Presented by Hyundai Veloster, RE:GENERATION is a documentary film that follows DJ Premier, Pretty Lights, The Crystal Method, Mark Ronson, and Skrillex as they remix, recreate and re-imagine five traditional styles of music.

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Hip hop legend, DJ Premier went back to school recently: music school that is. Premier is one of the featured present day DJs/Producers in the upcoming RE:GENERATION music documentary directed by Amir Bar Lev (The Pat Tillman Story, My Child Can Paint That) and commissioned by Hyundai Veloster.

Along with Skrillex, Mark Ronson, Pretty Lights and The Crystal Method, Premier is looking for inspiration outside of his own musical world. Premier turns to classical music and had the chance to work with the Berklee School of Music Symphony orchestra. Check out Premier’s YouTube clip with highlights of his time back at school.

We are blown away by the startling realism in the Musician Portraits series, a collection of 22 paintings by figurative artist Joe Simpson, including Brandon Flowers, Mark Ronson, Scroobius Pip, and Maxi Jazz. The exhibition will be on display in the converted library at 16/17 Greek Street, Soho, London, for two weeks from October 14.

When the Black Lips set off to record their latest studio album, they decided to try something new — working with a professional producer for a change. Though the album will be the band’s sixth studio album to date, they’ve always chosen to produce themselves. Surprisingly, pop wunderkind Mark Ronson topped their wish list of ‘dream producers’, which may seem like an unlikely choice for the lo-fi, garage rock sound of Black Lips, but Ronson’s old school, ‘60s recording style and Grammy-nominated work on Amy Winehouse’s Back to Black proved that he had the proper aural aesthetic to capture and refine the band’s vintage-inspired sound. [read more at The Creators Project]

This clip for the second single of Mark Ronson’s highly anticipated new album, Record Collection, due for release on September 27, is the perfect backdrop to the catchy beats of The Bike Song.

The five minute video is a whimsical retro melange of super-hero, underdog, heist and summer romance themes, centred around the latest hipster accessory — the vintage bike — all in glorious technicolour. The clip features Ronson himself as well as the song’s guest artists Kyle Falconer (The View) and Spank Rock, and is directed by Partizan’s Warren Fu, who also directed the clip for Bang, Bang.

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More often than not, internet-only hip hop mix tapes are released by wannabe rappers whose lyrics and delivery are derivative and uninspired, and who’ll never get enough weight behind them for a full length release. 24 year-old Washington MC Wale Folarin is different. Mixed by one of New York’s best hip hop DJs, Nick Catchdubs, and produced by 9th Wonder and Mark Ronson (who signed Wale in 2007 to his Allido label), his latest offering Back To The Feature solidifies Wale as a confident, engaging lyricist with a true talent for cross-genre appropriations.

A third of the way through ‘Back To…’, Wale recalls the hype surrounding his previous release, saying he never intended to make what critics named “the mix tape of the year … the monumental mix tape of the moment”, but just wanted to release his raps. By borrowing other musician’s tunes and making them his own, Wale’s post-modern approach celebrates the wonderful immediacy of online mix tape culture, being the best method for fans to access their favourite artists’ music as quickly as possible without costing anyone a cent.

After collaborations with Jean Grae and Lady Ga Ga, sponsorship deals with Nike, Stussy and 10 Deep, and praise from everyone Rolling Stone Magazine to The New York Times, Wale is one of the shining stars of contemporary independent hip hop whose talent and crossover appeal is sure to rocket him to superstardom.