XL Recordings

Vampire Weekend, Ruby Suns, Santogold and others with a taste for African music reportedly make appearances on the forthcoming full-length collaboration between mix-and-matching London dance producers Radioclit and Malawi-born, London-based singer Esau Mwamwaya (we don't have confirmed information yet on the record). Also apparently on hand is M.I.A., who drops some sing-songy verses about "water to clean and baptize me" on "leaked" Mwamwaya demo "Rain Dance". Mwamwaya's translucent vocals bounce over heavy, intricate, and slightly lascivious percussion, along with whistling noises and what sounds like a child's voice. Yes, you can probably dance to it. In the rain, even. 

Also posted today to Mwamwaya's MySpace page is an interesting re-working of Vampire Weekend's "Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa" (the original EP version is here), the B-side to VW's single. (via GorillavsBear)

["Rain Dance" apparently from a forthcoming LP on Ghettopop; "Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa" available now from iTunes]

Photo by Joseph Mohan

"Love Lockdown" might sound like one of those novelty password-protected diaries they market to 11-year-olds, but apparently it's actually the name of a new single from rapper/producer/fast food mogul Kanye West. And it will be released via download Monday, September 8. That is, if the "label sources" consulted by MTV UK are to be believed.

The MTV report suggests that a follow-up to last summer's Graduation "seems likely to be with us in the near future." A post on the blog of Def Jam UK A&R dude and radio personality DJ Semtex suggests the album could drop as soon as December. Semtex also says that "Love Lockdown" will be out on Monday, and that he'll play the song on his BBC radio show tonight.

There's nothing amidst the usual array of half-naked girls and expensive shit on the Kanye blog to suggest any of this, but there is... um... sorry, got distracted there. Kanye's publicist did not return a request for confirmation.

Both DJ Semtex and the MTV report also note that "Swagger Like Us"-- the M.I.A.-sampling, disappointing-save-T.I. posse cut that leaked last week-- isn't actually a T.I. song, as previously believed. It's a Jay-Z song. ("You thought this was a T.I. single right? You really thought that Hov was going to give this away?" writes Semtex.) It, too, hits iTunes on Monday.

Kanye's got a brief European tour...

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