Yesterday activists protested Reebok's flagship store to put pressure on the company to cut its ties with rapper Rick Ross, who recently ... well you already know this story. Whether or not the more than 71,000 signatures collected to get Ross fired will work remains to be seen, but Big Corporations don't typically hold up to this kind of outcry very well. Bill O'Reilly lead an outraged middle America to fire Ludacris back in the day for what O'Reilly considered lyrics glorifying drinking and driving. And, of course, who can forget the time the Caveman was fired from Geico for his song making light of arson?

The point is, protests and boycotts often work. Which got us thinking: What other famous product-endorsing artists have said something terrible? Turns out, quite a few. BOYCOTT!

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This week the 400 pound chicken wing dumpster with a beard known as Rick Ross stepped in fresh shit when someone with a sense of decency finally heard the words he raps on "U.O.E.N.O." and exposed them to light. In the song Ross drugs a woman's champagne and has his way with her while "she ain't even know it." And today at 2pm outside Reebok's flagship store (420 5th Ave.) members of UltraViolet -- "a community of over 400,000 women and men, fighting to expand women's rights and combat sexism everywhere" -- will stage a demonstration against the rapper and the sneaker company he endorses. They've collected 71,763 signatures calling for the shoe company to cut ties with Ross.

"In remaining silent, Reebok is using its brand to promote rape," says Nita Chaudhary, co-founder of UltraViolet, in a press release about the planned demonstration. "Reebok and Rick Ross have crossed a line-- not only does Ross brag about drugging and raping a woman, he is pushing the idea that if you don't use the word 'rape' it doesn't count. We are fed up and disgusted with Reebok, and Thursday we will bring this fight to their front steps."

Anytime a group asks for someone's ouster over an issue of speech, it has the potential to ring a bit Bill O'Reilly versus Ludacris/Pepsi tone deaf, but that's not the case here. The lyric in question has no other meaning, no room for the "misinterpretation" Ross claims this all is. And the fact is, dude's written disgusting lyrics for years. Let's dive into a couple before the protest begins.

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Into The Future We Go...

Even though he wasn't born until the decade after Back to the Future came out, Rockie Fresh still rocks a DeLorean in his videos and even sports a pair of Nike Air Mags AKA the Marty McFlys. Fitting considering he acts much more maturely than his 21 years of age would have you believe.

His rhymes are often of the standard braggadocios fare as many other rappers, but there's wisdom about him in interviews. He often says he's not here to floss or act like a super star. He wants to reach people and bridge different genres and demographics with his unique sound that was cultivated from initially performing with alt rock bands like Good Charlotte and Fall Out Boy. He listened to Jay-Z growing up, but he also spent a lot of time in the crib exploring different sounds and artists that didn't fall under the rap umbrella. As a result, he's developed a sound Diddy wanted to recruit for Bad Boy and Rick Ross wanted to bring to Maybach Music. Ultimately he went with Rick Ross. Now, with his third mixtape due out on January 21st, Rockie has arrived in New York to screen some visuals and rock some shows. We sat down with him to discuss his fairly immediate success as well as why he chose Ricky over Diddy and how he feels about the violence in his hometown of Chicago.

See Also:
- The Maybach Difference: How Wale, Meek Mill, and Rick Ross Overcame Early Failure To Find Success
- Meek Mill - 40/40 Club - 9/26/2012

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Rick Ross

With all the limitations facing today's music industry, it's rare that any artist gets a second chance. This is especially true in the ever-changing world of hip-hop where if an artist, especially on a major label, doesn't immediately finding an audience, they're soon shuffled back into the over-saturated mixtape scene or indie-rap underground and seldom heard from again. That's why it's nothing short of astounding how Rick Ross' Maybach Music Group has not only successfully relaunched rap careers, but made artists left for dead by other labels among the most popular in the genre.

[UPDATE: We've just gotten word this show has been cancelled.]

See Also:
- Rick Ross Falls Back To Earth On God Forgives, I Don't
- Live: Rick Ross And His Crew Pack The Backyard At Alife

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This past weekend saw Rick Ross and Young Jeezy's long-simmering beef boiling over into fisticuffs as the rappers and their entourages went at each other at the BET Hip-Hop Honors Awards (and possibly broke an expensive mirror in the process). That squabble wasn't a one-off, though! Here's a primer on rappers behaving badly at ceremonial functions. (Warning: Many of these flip-phone videos might cause motion-sickness.)

See Also:
- Rick Ross Falls Back To Earth On God Forgives, I Don't
- 2Bad For 2Pac
- How To Stop Masturbating To 50 Cent

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The term "flop" in a musical context usually refers to an unsuccessful album. Although singles constantly perform above or below expectations, a song will rarely get a reputation as a flop unless there's a lot riding on it, such as a pre-release single from a big-name album. In 2011, Beyoncé's "Run the World (Girls)" and Lady Gaga's "Judas" failed to launch and became notorious stumbling blocks for two women who had up to that point experienced one success after another.

In 2012, no singles have fallen short of expectations in such a high-profile way, but hundreds of songs are constantly being lobbed at radio, and some great tracks get lost in the shuffle. Last year, I critiqued the singles campaigns of recent albums, suggesting how different tracks could have been released in a different order. But right now, I feel compelled to highlight some singles that simply deserved better, because by December, these songs will be long forgotten in lists that boil the year in pop down to "Somebody That I Used to Know" and "Call Me Maybe."

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Rick Ross is a smart man. He's smarter than me, and probably smarter than you. He went from one of the most laughable men in rap music to one of the most powerful and respected, and he did it simply by betting on himself—or by betting on an imagined version of himself. More specifically, Rick Ross the person (government name: William Roberts) bet on his ability to convince the public of one of two things: that he is Rick Ross the character, or that it doesn't matter if he isn't. Despite predictions to the contrary, Ross the person was right, and with his new album God Forgives, I Don't, he's bet that Ross the character is a bulletproof brand. He's bet that he and his album are too gloriously big to fail. I can't help but wondering if he's fatally mistaken.

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The worst result of 21st-century technological advances, at least from a musical point of view, is the dual proliferation of DIY recording equipment and social media, allowing millions of—notice the quotation marks—"musicians" to flood inboxes, festival backpacks, Facebook timelines and Twitter mentions with "hot" tracks. Rappers could be seen as the worst offenders, since rap songs are the easiest to record, needing only a mic, an instrumental and minimal mastering to work.

As a result, Internet browsers are all being transformed into freelance (and usually unpaid) A&R reps, sifting through hundreds of songs before finding something that's worth loading into an iPod. The job can be quite overwhelming—but have no fear. Every Wednesday, we'll bring you the week's best hip-hop tracks so you can clear your inbox and stop playing the guessing game. Here are the three and a half great songs that popped up this week.

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Mikey Fresh

Alife Backyard Sessions: Maybach Music Group's Self Made 2 with Rick Ross, Stalley, Wale, O
Alife
Tuesday, June 26

Better than: Listening to Funkmaster Flex jock Ross in the pre-performance interview.

Rick Ross and Co. might seem too big for the narrow streets of the Lower East Side—and especially too small for the Alife Rivington Club's backyard—but the Maybach Music Group crew was there last night, resulting in so much pandemonium outside that even "cool people" were forced to wait on line.

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Jen Diaz/Hot 97

Lauryn Hill.

Hot 97 Summer Jam: Nicki Minaj, Young Jeezy, Rick Ross, J. Cole, Wale, Meek Mill, DJ Khaled, Waka Flocka, Trey Songz, Maino, Big Sean, 2 Chainz, French Montana, Mavado, Tyga, Slaughterhouse (and Nas and Lauryn Hill)
MetLife Stadium
Sunday, June 3

Better than: Seeing a Nicki Minaj concert.

In an era of increasing separation and ever-tinier attention spans, it's almost quaint to celebrate a tradition like Hot 97's Summer Jam with 60,000 of your closest friends.

Each year, Summer Jam means a sunny early afternoon heading over to the Meadowlands, the constant threat of rain during the afternoon hours, a few rap songs here and there with rappers featuring other rappers, walking into a chilly night leaving the show, and general ratchetness in the parking lot before, during, and after the concert.

Oh, and drama! Plenty of drama—which, in the years since Jay-Z vs. Nas evaporated, has turned into yawn vs. shrug.

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