Personally, I'm the type who could care less about Valentines Day besides the chocolate treats, my dear BlackRadioIsBack.com & the FuseBox Radio Broadcast folks, but I do always love quality Black Music (corny segue, but I'm tired and so it stays).

We've gotten some pretty fly Love/Valentine's Day related downloads, videos and mixtapes on the Hip-Hop and Soul Music ends of the Black Music Spectrum for folks to check out, so sit back, relax, burn a CD for your loved one/significant other/"friend" and enjoy!

Tony Williams Introduces "Everything About You" Music Video from Tony Williams on Vimeo.

First off, we have the single and video from Soul Music singer and songwriter Tony Williams from his upcoming GOOD Music release, King or The Fool called "Everything About You".

After having a listening session after an interview with Mr. Williams (coming to the FuseBox Radio Broadcast this month) of the release during Inaugaration Weekend (the album is INSANELY on point and better come out on time), I have no problem at all saying that this brother's talent is going to have him on someone's Top 10 list by the time this year is over.

Tony Williams - Everything About You mp3 Download

Tony Williams Official MySpace Page

Next up, we have the I Heart Mixtape by producer and remixer Diwon of Shemspeed Records.

Diwon's musical influences come directly from his family's roots in Yemen, Ethiopia, and Israel as well as his travels throughout the world while his family traveled with their Navy service.

This mix includes songs from all over the world focused on Love as well as his own productions, with artists in that vibe including Buju Banton, Blur, Smokey Robinson, The Concretes, Cat Power, Finley Quaye,Anounshka Shankar and more!

It's a pretty nice, eclectic mix of work - check it out and let us know what's good.

Diwon - I Heart Mixtape mp3 Download

Diwon Official MySpace Page
Diwon Official Website

Third on the roster, we have our people representing the independent Hip-Hop scene in Atlanta, MC/Producer/Businessman Señor Kaos talking about how much he's NOT feeling the entire notion at all of Valentine's Day with the song "Check Out Your Mind".

Give it a listen and let us know what you think!

Señor Kaos - Check Out Your Mind mp3 Download

If you haven't check some of his past work, you know we covered it here at BlackRadioIsBack.com, get some extra music.

Señor Kaos Official MySpace Page
Señor Kaos Official Blog, The Kaos Effect
Vintage Imperial Official Website





Now, we have the talk about love and hate from the free download of The Thinnest Line EP from the steadily climbing up independent Hip-Hop crew from Miami, ¡MAYDAY!

So far, it looks like they're going to be in line to be mainstream America's indie Hip-Hop Massive To Love of 2009 that folks are going to grab up, as though these cats are brand new but have been grinding for years (like ¡MAYDAY! - The Thinnest Line EP

Tracklisting:

1. Everything
2. A Good Night (Interlewd)
3. Evil
4. Habitual Line Stepper (feat. Snave Nayr)
5. Everything (Instrumental)
6. Evil (Instrumental)

¡MAYDAY! Official MySpace Website
¡MAYDAY! Official Website

Picture Jacked From Flickr

You can find Love anywhere, but it's especially great to find it in unique places - at least to me.

But then again, your girl and the BlackRadioIsBack.com and FuseBox Radio staff are weirdos that way. :)

Love The Higher Power (whichever one you believe in), Yourself and Your Family (blood related or no) and True Friends (hard as hell to find, but you know when you got them) First and Foremost!

Peace! - DJ Fusion/FuseBox Radio/BlackRadioIsBack.com

Happy Valentine's Day if you celebrate it and whatnot from your folks at BlackRadioIsBack.com and the FuseBox Radio. :)

Since the folks over at Oh Word have already covered a great list of Hip-Hop Love joints, I decided before running out of here to my gig to hit folks up with one of the long lasting soul music artists who covered a lot of the ranges of emotional love, Ms. Barbara Mason.

To give a little bit of background history on her, Barbara Mason is one of the originators of the "Philly Soul" school of Soul Music, first breaking into the industry in a major way with the 1965 self-penned ballad, "Yes, I'm Ready", at 17 years old.

Ms. Mason has had a great string of Billboard charting hits that blended Soul, Jazz and Funk Music (lots of which she wrote the lyrics too) since then (interestingly enough on relatively smaller labels like Buddha, Unidisc, Artic and West End than the Motowns of the day).

Her style of singing has influenced such current Soul Music artists like Angie Stone, Alicia Keys and Mary J. Blige. She now currently owns her own recording label, music production & promotion companies - Lioness Recordings, Mason Media Recordings and Marc James Music.

Since Ms. Mason came into the game young - both the music industry and life in general - and literally grew up in song, a lot of her music to me just shows the ups and downs of various love relationships and how folks interpret such things from childhood to being grown.

As you folks will see in these downloads, those emotions can range all over the place - happy to sad, matter of fact to crazy emotional, innocence to jaded, sane to bats*** crazy.

We've all been there sometime in our lives, I think, and hopefully your significant other (or hell, just you) are more on the good side of things rather then the bugging out stages of Love and Life.

Here goes the music from Ms. Mason as a gift from us to you to download - enjoy and if you're feeling it, show some love (ha) and purchase some CDs from her!

"Happy Go Lucky" Youthful Love
Barbara Mason - Yes I'm Ready (1965)

"Damn The World and Determined to Make Folks Mad At Your Actions And Talk Smack About You Being With This Character" Love
Barbara Mason - Shackin' Up

"I'm Sad That We Broke Up And I'm Really Feeling That Mess HARD" Love
Barbara Mason - Feeling Blue (2007)

"I'm Bitter After My Last Few Relationships and I Thought It Was All Good To Take Your Man And Found Out The Is Being Gay, Ain't That Some S***" Love
Barbara Mason - Another Man (1983)

Bonus Video: Barbara Mason Live on PBS



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Barbara Mason's Official MySpace Page
Barbara Mason's Official Website