MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL READERS OF ASIAN RAP WORLDWIDE!!

....Just a want to wish all the readers of Asian Rap Worldwide a very Merry Christmas!! I hope you all will enjoy a safe and joyous holiday season.

Ma Ying-Jeou's interview with Deutsche Welle about cross-strait ties with Mainland China (in English)

Ma Ying-Jeou is an interesting fellow. As Taiwanese president elect Ma Ying-Jeou has greatly improved Taiwan and Mainland China relations to the best we have seen in the past 60 years since Taiwan has claimed independence. But there are some fears from some Taiwanese especially from the opposition party that Ma is leading Taiwan into unification with the mainland. In this interview with Deutsche Welle, you can hear straight from the Horse's mouth (Ma = 馬 which means horse, get it? lol) about his plans for cross-strait ties with the mainland.

I dunno, it just might be me, but after watching that interview, it appears to me that Ma IS open to reunification with the mainland, providing that the mainland follows some certain conditions.

Soft Lipa's "Winter Sweet" song is leaked + album cover

Soft Lipa - Winter Sweet

Soft Lipa has leaked out his Winter Sweet song. The concept album with the same name will be released on December 30th.

Dumbfoundead gets in a fight during his freestyle battle!!

This is why you don't mess with Asians, cuz we all know martial arts. In this scenario though I think Dumbfoundead was the culprit here being in his opponent's face and all. Nice flying spinning kick, Dumb. Tatsumaki-Senpu kyaku!!!

Dumbfoundead catches up with Tantrum

Dumbfoundead catches up with Tantrum in the anniversary of their freestyle battle. Great to see two of these emcees showing mad respect for each other. Tantrum gives his thoughts about pre-written lines in freestyle battles and about Jin's upcoming battle with Dizaster and Illmaculate.

If you haven't watched the battle between Dumbfoundead and Tantrum, watch it here.

Special Christmas deal from Jug-A-Knot!!

Impak from Jug-A-Knot has a special Christmas deal for all of y'all. If you order a DVD of Work Hard Play Hard Vol. 1 you will get a second copy for FREE! This deal will last till the 31st of December, 2009. Get your copy now!

Order it at: www.jug-a-knot.com

"Confucius" Trailer (Starring Chow Yun Fat as Confucius)

There's a new Confucius movie starring Chow Yun Fat as Confucius. Chow Yun Fat? The God of Gamblers--that Chow Yun Fat? Bingo. Yep, that one. Let's hope he'll do the role justice. It is said that the movie will have some romance and kung fu in it. As for the romance, I'll let that slide because Confucius' lineage still continues to this day. I'm pretty sure that was a result of Confucius laying his sagely mack down. Otherwise, how do you explain the hundreds of thousands of people with his name? Okay as for the kung fu, WTF. I'm not really sure about that. But then again Confucius was living in pretty corrupt times... I guess he had to defend himself? LOL. But anyways, this movie looks epic and I'm definitely going to watch this one. It is scheduled to be out in early 2010.

UPT is working on their next album

Just a lil studio session with UPT working on their next album.... trying to get that singing part right.

Jin - 711 feat. KT

From Jin's upcoming Christmas mixtape, 711 is about getting some late-night munchies. Jin's Christmas mixtape will be out in December 16 and will be available in all Hong Kong 7-11's.

J.Reyez - Passing Me By feat. Chris Jackson

J.Reyez, a Korean rapper from Hamilton, Ontario has new song out called Passing Me By featuring Chris Jackson. This is a break-up song and J.Reyez sounds really emotionally intense about it. But hey, at least he got it all out right? And that's therapeutic! Thank goodness for rap music. The YouTube video features the lyrics of Passing Me By, so feel free to read along.


DOWNLOAD MP3: J.Reyez - Passing Me By feat. Chris Jackson

CCTV's coverage of Harper's visit to Beijing

This is CCTV's summary of Harper's visit to Beijing. At 2:35 there is a summary of the relationship between Canada and China since 1970.

Trailer for "Bang Bang" (Movie starring Thai Ngo)

This is a trailer for an upcoming Asian-American gangster film called Bang Bang starring Vietnamese rapper Thai Ngo (playing as "Justin") and David Huynh (playing as "Charlie"), directed by Byron Chan. The movie will be released in the summer of 2010.

Synopsis:

Justin is a troubled teen looking for a way out of the gang life. His best friend Charlie is a rich Taiwanese kid who lives in the nice part of town. Justin runs away from home after a fight with his Mom and takes refuge at Charlie's house while Charlie's parents are away on a prolonged business trip.

The murder of a fellow gang member avalanches into a full blown war with a rival gang. Caught in the midst of teenage angst, gang life, and alienation, the two friends find themselves heading down two different paths of life."

Official website: http://www.bangbangthemovie.com/

Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper gets a "scolding" from Chinese Premier Wen Jia Bao in Beijing

Stephen Harper: "Errrm... are you sure this is safe to drink?"
Wen Jia Bao: "Of course it is. It is MADE IN CHINA! Cheers!"
(Reuters)
Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper is currently in Beijing to thaw relations between Canada and China. Boy, was he ever surprised when he got a "scolding" (as the Canadian press put it) by Chinese Premier Wen Jia Bao. Here's what Wen Jia Bao said [via translator]:

This is your first trip to China and this is the first meeting between the Chinese premier and the Canadian prime minister in almost five years. Five years is too long a time for China-Canada relations and that is why there are comments in the media that your visit is one that should have taken place earlier.

To which Harper retorted:

...I agree with you Premier that five years is a long time. It’s also been almost five years since we’ve had yourself or President Hu in our country, and so I hope as we approach this important milestone in our relationship, the forty year anniversary, that yourself or President Hu will also have the opportunity in the not too distant future to visit Canada.

Touche. Well played Harper, NOT! Harper are you crazy? What the heck was the point in ignoring Beijing for the past 5 years? Harper should have paid a visit to Beijing long ago to establish economic ties and more business dealings with China for the well-being of Canadian citizens. 5 years as Premier Wen said, is too long! Canada needs to step up to stay ahead of the curve!

North Korean "Defector Boxing Girl" Choi Hyun-mi (Korean Million Dollar Baby)

Choi Hyun-mi or the "defector boxer girl" as she is often called, is making big headlines in South Korea. Choi Hyun-mi is originally from North Korea and in 2004 her family made a decision to defect North Korea. Three years later after settling in Seoul in 2007, she she became the WBA featherweight boxing champion and is still the reigning champion after successfully defending it last week against Japanese challenger Tsubasa Tenku. Choi Hyun-mi is a real-deal Korean "Million Dollar Baby". I smell a movie about her life story somewhere down the road...

Check out this pic of Choi Hyun-mi punching Tsubasa Tenku. Wow! Look at that punching power and the ripple-effect it has on Tsubasa's cheeks! LOL.


Choi: "This one is for KORRRREEAAAA!!"
(Reuters)

Hmost Wanted (Hmong Hip Hip Documentary)

A teaser for an upcoming documentary called Hmost Wanted directed by Mark D about Hmong rappers in the Hmong-American hip hop scene. The teaser said "coming 2009". I'm not sure if the documentary was released yet.