Kelis, “Acapella”

Earlier today on twitter, Kelis released “Acapella” her first offering post motherhood. “Acapella,” a song about love bringing actual music into someones life is a step away from a Neptunes-rich catalog and comes with a special message posted to her own site.

Download: Kelis, “Acapella”

Jack Splash f. Kelis, “In The Future”

“Jack Splash is the next Prince!” says Missy Elliot says this press release we just received with this Jack Splash jam. Woah there Miscellaneous, those are some big ass shoes to fill. Shoes that may never, ever be filled, in the way that James Brown’s never will be. Dubious career forecasts aside, Splash and former future dweller Kelis are nice enough to let us into their world just long enough to tell us that we better take advantage tonight cause things ain’t gonna be the same tomorrow. Nas, can we get an amen?

Download: Jack Splash f. Kelis, “In The Future”

We’re Having A Baby!

Well, we aren’t, but Kelis and Nas are… RIGHT THIS SECOND. Kelis is reportedly in labor and Nas is reportedly rushing to the hospital.. But funnily enough, the two were supposed to meet up today not in a hospital but in court, to go through the “financials” of their divorce proceedings. The two are getting dirty in their breakup—Kelis is asking for $20,000 a month (!) in spousal support, along with all pregnancy expenses, and Nas… well, Nas isn’t having that and is offering $5,000 a month to his soon to be ex. It will be interesting to see how the battle continues to unfold after the birth of their new bundle of joy. But aside from all the drama, CONGRATS kids, make it work!

Nas Gets “Bossy” with Kelis

It was all good just a week ago, right? WRONG. Well, at least that’s not the case with Nas and Kelis. From balloons and popcorn to butterflies and candy coated raindrops, dark clouds have officially taken over Nasty Nas and Ms. “Bossy” for the past few months. The latest? Nas is b-r-o-k-e. Well, maybe not quite, but his paper apparently isn’t stretching as long as Kelis says. According to Kelis, the rapper should be coughing up $20,000 a month for their upcoming “seed” while she maintains the “Baby Mama” label due to his alleged $11 million album deal via Def Jam. Ball up, Nas. And in this corner, the Queens, New York emcee claims he got around $4 million from the 2005-06 signing and racks in roughly $147,165. (Men lie, Women lie, court documents found via TMZ definitely don’t…). Looks like we’re in for a few more chapters of this saga… and isn’t it a bit weird how their relationship almost looks like what would have happened in Belly once Nas and T-Boz made it to Africa…? Hhmmmm…. (via)—Cyrus Kyle Langhorne

Can Kelis Make A Comeback?

Can’t get along without you.

Say it ain’t so; Kelis and Nas are officially divorced. The news about the breakup of hip-hop’s other power couple was confirmed this week by Nas and Kelis’ attorney, Laura Wasser. As it turns out, the actual divorce papers that are circulating the blogosphere stated their relationship was already south-bound when they separated on April 20th, 2009.

But as their personal lives go through the ringer, both of their careers are also kind of hanging by a thread. Nas may continue to release material to lukewarm responses like he did with his last album, but now Kelis won’t be there to help finish his sentences on his press runs. So where does that leave Harlem’s finest (sorry Teyana Taylor), Kelis Rogers? Kelis hasn’t put out a studio album since Kelis Was Here in 2006, and she’s due with lil baby Nas this July. The former Fader mag cover girl’s hiatus from music isn’t as extreme as say, Lauryn Hill’s, but we’d hate to see her fade into pop/r&b obscurity. So before we cry “the milk’s gone bad,” here are five steps Kelis can take to shake things up again.

#5 USE A MAJOR LAZER

When Diplo and Switch joined forces for their (soon-to-be-classic) dancehall-baltimore-electronica genre-bender, Kelis was rumored to be a featured guest on the album. The tag team known as Major Lazer have had hands in molding the careers of M.I.A., and Santogold. We expected Kelis, who mothered their eccentric style of dress to have the same chemistry. Lo and behold, her song isn’t on the tracklist. Only time will tell if this collaboration will ever see the light of day.

#4 GO M.I.A.

Now that Kelis has shed the dead weight of a relationship with Nas, she’s built for bigger things like motherhood. History has shown us that pregnancy can inspire, like it did on The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill, to M.I.A.’s string of appearances sporting a baby bump. But while Kelis may not be on every rapper’s radar like Mrs. Paper Planes, her sultry voice is still unmatched in the pop world.

#3 REUNITE WITH THE NEPTUNES

If Nas can make amends with Jay-Z, anything is possible. When Kelis parted ways with the Neptunes, it seemed like she was washed up. Being synonymous with Pharrell though, hasn’t pigeonholed her the way it did the Clipse when they went out on their own. Producers like Polow da Don, Bangladesh, and Will.i.Am prove that Kelis has versatility. Still though, there’s only one way to make a milkshake, and it takes the Neptunes’ ecclectic mix of ingredients to bring out her best.

#2 PLOT A U.K. TAKEOVER

Kelis was already pretty far left when she debuted with “Caught Out There.” It took a minute for folks to grasp a less than traditional, happy I’m raspy voice, especially when aimed over a male-bashing anthem like “Caught Out There.” By the time her sophomore album Wanderland was due, it made a greater impact internationally than it did stateside. Could the U.K. be where Kelis re-establishes herself?

#1 BREAK-UP TO MAKE-UP

Now that Nas and Kelis are trying to annul their marriage, let’s look at the brighter side: they still have to deal with each other because of the baby. While we’re at it, let’s not forget that Nas and Kelis have also made beautiful music together. Ok, maybe it didn’t pop like Jay and Beyoncé’s, but we’re still rooting for them.