Experts sound off on the meaning behind the less-than-traditional name. By James Montgomery Jay-Z and Beyonce Photo: Evan Agostini/ Getty Images We’ve yet to receive an official confirmation on the name of Jay-Z and Beyonc
Producer Noah ’40’ Shebib tells MTV News in an exclusive interview that while working with the MC, ‘We get to do what we want.’ By Rob Markman, with reporting by Steven Roberts Drake Photo: Getty Images One look at the production credits on Drake ‘s 2010 debut, Thank Me Later, serves as a reminder to just how hot the Toronto MC was out of the gate. Guests like Jay-Z, T.I. and Alicia Keys lent their voices, while multiplatinum producers like Kanye West, Swizz Beatz and Timbaland offered their sonic expertise. The music world was truly Drake’s oyster, but on his sophomore set, Take Care, Drizzy scaled things back in order to make a bigger impact. Instead of pooling together his resources and using his hitmaking influence, Drake went back to basics, choosing to record the entire album in Toronto with friend and engineer/producer Noah “40” Shebib , the studio wiz who helped Drake cook up his 2009 breakout tape, So Far Gone . “I can’t sit there and tell you that anybody made any conscious decisions to the extent of, ‘Oh, we’re gonna make this feel of an album,’ ” 40 told MTV News in December from Take Care studios in Toronto. “We really just make records and cut music until someone says, ‘That’s it: You can’t make any more music; you gotta stop.’ ” The result was a cohesive and emotional 18-track ride, with two bonus tracks for iTunes. The MC revealed to MTV News that the narrative that drives his latest LP was inspired by “Houstatlantavegas,” a So Far Gone track produced by 40. “I really didn’t start working with Drake production-wise until So Far Gone ,” Shebib said. “As far as Drake and music and the people around him, he really controls that, and he picks all those records, and my goal is to facilitate that.” And facilitate he did. 40 either produced or co-produced 15 of the 20 total Take Care tracks. One song in particular, the Lil Wayne- and Andre 3000-assisted “The Real Her,” started with a reverse piano loop that the beatsmith had given to Drake a year before they began working on the album. It might have seemed insignificant at the time, but Drake eventually came back with a song idea off of that one sample. “What ends up happening a lot of times with our records is that, because I can do a lot of things in the studio, whether it be play instruments or produce or edit or run Pro Tools or edit vocals, whatever the case may be, I help him get out his ideas,” 40 said. “I think that’s the goal of any good producer, is to make sure the artist is delivering what they want.” With Cash Money/ Young Money’s track record of success, Drake’s label trusted in the rapper and producer’s abilities, allowing them to create without looking over their shoulder. Safe to say, it all paid off when Take Care debuted at #1 on the Billboard albums chart, pushing over 631,000 copies in its first week after it was released November 15. The album is now well-past platinum, on its way to 2 million records sold in just under three months. “We get to do what we want: We don’t have to clear it with the A&Rs or anybody. We are our own A&Rs,” Shebib explained. “And that’s the greatest freedom you can possibly have in this business.” Related Videos MTV News Extended Play: Drake Related Photos ’40’ Making ‘Take Care’
‘I have a cousin who’s named Indigo, so Blue Ivy sounds pretty cool,’ one NYC fan tells MTV News about the baby’s name. By Jocelyn Vena, with reporting by Steven Roberts Jay-Z and Beyonc
MTV’s Power of 12 is on the scene as Republican candidates fight to be Mitt Romney’s runner-up. By Gil Kaufman Rick Santorum Photo: Andrew Burton/ Getty Images If you stayed up late awaiting the results of the Iowa caucus last week, there’s a good chance you’ll get to bed earlier this Tuesday when New Hampshire voters head to the polls for their presidential primary. While former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney slid out of the Hawkeye State with a razor-thin eight-vote victory over suddenly surging contender former Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum , polls indicate that the leading GOP candidate will face much-weaker competition in his own backyard. Romney is polling at 40 percent in the state, which means that the real scramble this time will be for second place. Though Romney managed to emerge from Iowa with a win (barely), despite not spending much time there in the run-up to Tuesday’s first-in-the-nation contest, it was the roster of those below him that helped shake up the contest. Left for dead months ago after failing to climb out of the single digits, traditional family-values conservative Santorum nearly managed a huge upset but is unlikely to pull another January surprise in New Hampshire, where the large population of independent voters — who make up 40 percent of the electorate — can cast ballots in Republican primaries. His anti-abortion and anti-gay marriage fire-and-brimstone message may not resonate with Granite State voters the way Libertarian Ron Paul ‘s small-government outlook could. In fact, according to CNN, not only is New Hampshire the least-religious state in the nation, but a 2008 poll found that 55 percent of Republican primary voters believed that abortion should be always or mostly legal. Also, New Hampshire is one of the few states in the country where gay marriage is legal. Paul, whose pull with young voters helped propel him to a strong third-place finish in Iowa, could cement his status as a serious contender with a second-place finish. At press time, he was polling around 17 percent, edging out Santorum at 11 percent. With a win clearly off the table, even a runner-up finish was looking less likely, though, for former Utah Governor Jon Huntsman. The most-liberal conservative in the remaining field made a calculated risk by avoiding Iowa and betting the farm on New Hampshire, where he’s spent much of the past six months. But after crowing that he was certain he’d win the state in recent weeks, Huntsman began lowering expectations in the days leading up to the vote, when his poll numbers failed to rise above 7 percent. Like Santorum and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, Huntsman already began setting his sights on the next contest in South Carolina (January 21), while Romney is hoping to solidify his hold on the leader spot and fend off the rest of the pack as the primaries head to Southern states, where Evangelical voters could play a bigger role in boosting Santorum. While the GOP contenders continue to rip each other apart in the scramble to come out on top after primary season, they also have been hitting President Obama very hard on his policies in their stump speeches. Though Obama does not face a primary battle on Tuesday night, he is running a robust campaign in New Hampshire, where his team is trying to get as many supporters out to the polls to vote as possible in order to shore up the commander in chief’s sagging support in the state. No matter what happens, MTV’s Power of 12 will be there to chronicle what’s on the minds of young voters and bring you their reactions to Tuesday night’s vote. MTV is on the scene in New Hampshire! Check back here around the clock for up-to-the-minute coverage on the primary caucuses, and stick with PowerOf12.org throughout the presidential election season. Related Videos Barnstorming The Iowa Caucus With Andrew Jenks
Superstar couple are reportedly calling their first child Ivy Blue. By Kara Warner Beyonce Photo: AP/Evan Agostini The year’s most anticipated new arrival is finally here: Beyonc
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