Nicki Minaj - Catch Me

There was some bad and some good on Nicki's debut LP Pink Friday, but enough good to safely say she shits on most female emcees who have been and gone. 'Catch Me' is a mellow and moody jam set in some future musical dimension. Swizz Beats chops up the bridge and throws in some aimless lazers providing the backdrop for Nikki to half rap half sing about her man's headfuckerie. Super smooth, but left off the final album track list.

Download Nicki Minaj - Catch Me

Lloyd Banks & Co. - Start It Up (UK Remix)

With 50 Cent busy doing features, Tony Yayo never really having any talent to begin with and Young Buck wallowing in a gutter somewhere, Lloyd Banks has done well to sustain the G Unit badassery of back in the day all on his lonesome. It took surprise summer anthem Beamer, Benz or Bentley to really put him back on the map and now Banks is back to travelling across it, stopping off in the UK to enlist Giggs and Sway for the Start It Up remix. The beat remains the same as the original, a clattery and turbulent Swizz Beats synth-attack perfect for bumping in the whip, and we're left with the same verses from the Yanks (minus one from Fabolous). Sway and Giggs represent, and while the latter wouldn't exactly be my first pick to show off UK talent, Sway at least shows that British rappers can hold their own on these brash American possee cuts. No question though; Kanye's shamelessly cocky verse still reigns supreme. 

Download Lloyd Banks & Co. - Start It Up UK Remix