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  DAN HYMAN  

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Back when Pittsburgh MC Mac Miller was just a “little white kid named Easy Mac,” the prospects of becoming hip-hop’s next breakthrough artist may have seemed far-fetched. But thanks to a buzzed-about mixtape that dropped last summer, and a new EP, On and On, hitting the streets today, Miller, born Malcom McCormick– who switched from his Kraft-friendly calling card to his current moniker a few years back– may be just the person to successfully bridge today’s wide-ranging demographic of hip-hop fans. ” I feel like hip-hop is really reaching places that it never reached before,” Miller, a suburban-looking rapper, with an urban, biting flow, says on a recent afternoon. “I’ve seen it grow to be something so big and powerful. It’s great.”

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Local Pittsburgh record label Rostrum Records — home to Wiz Khalifa (whom Miller describes as “the big homey”) — honed in on Miller’s skills early on. “(Rostrum) saw that I was talented at a young age and they would give me pointers and talk to me and be there when I had new music to show,” says Miller, who started rapping at age nine, and now seems like an industry vet before his twentieth birthday. After signing with Rostrum just after turning 18, Miller released K.I.D.S, — a mixtape sprinkled with mellow, sweet-flavored hip-hop that pays homage to the positive jams — A Tribe Called Quest, Outkast — he was raised on. Video views for the album’s songs have hit the multi-millions.

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Earlier this month, Miller dropped his follow-up, Best Day Ever, which, he says, reflects his evolution as an MC. “It was definitely a step outside the box and into another part of music,” the rapper, who looks like your friend’s little brother, says. “I felt like that was stepping outside my current boundaries and evolving as an artist.”

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Miller is aware he doesn’t fit the prototype of a typical rapper, but he’s not worried. As evidenced by “Donald Trump”– the standout track on Best Day Ever, he’s also learned a valuable lesson of hip-hop: flex your cocky guns whenever possible. “I just wanna ride, ride through the city in a Cutlass/Find a big butt bitch somewhere get my nuts kissed,” Miller raps while laughing.

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“(I try not to) worry about what most rappers do or what the stereotype rapper is or what I gotta do to look cool,” Miller says. “I decided to just be me.”
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  DAN HYMAN  

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While you’re busy checking out all the new music that dropped today, it never hurts to take a peek back at what happened this week in year’s past. Say, for instance, did you know that 40 years ago, Janis Joplin (pictured above)’s timeless classic “Me and Bobby McGee,” which reached Number One this week in 1971, was actually written by Kris Kristofferson and Fred Foster? Or that Chuck Berry’s rock ‘n’ roll classic ‘Johnny B. Goode’ single was released this week  in 1958? Yah, we thought not. So take a trip back in time and revisit all (good and bad) that’s happened in music during this week in March.

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  DAN HYMAN  

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–Madonna has been sued by employees of her Malawi charity.

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Death Cab For Cutie have released the first single, “You Are A Tourist,” from their upcoming album Codes and Keys. Listen to it here.

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–Britney Spears unveiled new songs from her album Femme Fatale this past weekend at a surprise show in Las Vegas.

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–Slayer has announced they will be touring with Rob Zombie. Check out a full list of tour dates here.

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–Justin Bieber and The Arcade Fire won big at Canada’s Juno Awards.

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“I haven’t watched the Junos in years. Canada’s answer to the Grammys is usually a dull affair full of imported talent and nods to Top 40 radio. This year, though, it was a showcase of some of Canada’s finest talent. While hip-hop was a little under-represented, and I could have done without that Hedley performance, the 2011 Junos showcased some of Canada’s greatest musicians in a job well done. I’m glad I tuned in..”–Indie & Unsigned With Ben
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–Gwyneth Paltrow says she has a lot of record deal offers following the recent success of her singing career in Country Strong and as a guest on Glee.

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–My Morning Jacket have announced their new album, Circuital, will be released on May 31st.

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–Eminem and other artists may stand to make a lot of extra cash from the ruling in a digital music court case.

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–Internet sensation Rebecca Black’s video for “Friday” is reportedly getting more views than Lady Gaga’s “Born This Way.”

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–The White Stripes will be reissuing three of their singles for Record Store Day on April 16th.

  EMILY ZEMLER  

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The fourth annual Soundset Festival announced its 2011 lineup today. The Shakopee, Minn. hip-hop fest, which takes place at Canterbury Park on May 29th, will feature Atmosphere, Big Boi and Slaughterhouse as headliners.

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The festival will offer two stages with over 40 artists throughout the course of the day, along with a DJ tent, a live painting exhibit, a skate demo area and a Soundset custom car show. Other artists in the lineup include Brother Ali, Doomtree, De La Soul and Blueprint. For a full list of artists go here.

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Atmosphere tweeted, “we don’t stop. fourth year. guess who’s headlining.”

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Tickets for Soundset will go onsale this Friday April 1st at 11 a.m. CST. General admission tickets cost $38. Fees and parking are included in the price. Tickets will be available here. Soundset will also offer a VIP ticket option for $90, which includes VIP access, a festival shirt, artist meet and greets, a special edition festival laminate and a VIP bar. The entire festival is 18-plus.

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  JONAH BAYER  

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If newspaper is dead, someone forgot to tell Radiohead. To celebrate the physical release of their latest disc, The King Of Limbs, the iconic band have published their own newspaper, The Universal Sigh, and it’s available today!

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The paper will be given out for free at various locations throughout the world today and tomorrow. You can view what towns will feature the paper here. However, if you’re really lazy or the paper isn’t coming to a location near you, the New Zealand magazine Rip It Up has posted a PDF version of the paper here where you can download the paper’s short stories, lyrics, art and poetry without leaving the house.

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We’ve also just gotten word from the Radiohead fan site At Ease that the band will be releasing a 12″ vinyl single containing two unreleased songs — “The Butcher” and “Supercollider” – for Record Store Day on April 16th. The official number of copies that will be produced is unknown, but the site says that it may be limited to 2,000 copies per territory.