Earlier this month, we were still debating whether or not Lil B’s I’m Gay album title was purely a publicity stunt, but that's all irrelevant now. Last night, the Cali rapper accomplished something that seemed near impossible in 2011: He released the album on iTunes with one single tweet, before any of the new tracks could leak. Applaud him—at least a little.

Lupe Fiasco rankled a few patriots when he called President Obama “the biggest terrorist” in America during a recent CBS interview. One of those people was Bill O’Reilly, who invited him to The O’Reilly Factor for a good old-fashioned debate. It’s strange to watch the conservative Fox News host defend Obama, but his introduction—“Now, we’re used to irresponsible statements from rappers, but that’s really over the top”—was a pretty typical jab.

When Lupe Fiasco dropped “Words I Never Said,” the first single from his Lasers album, the Chi-Town rapper went straight into politics, with “Gaza strip was getting bombed/ Obama didn’t say shit/ That’s why I ain’t vote for him/ next one either.” The rest of his album proved to be a less politically-charged, but his interviews have picked up where that song left off. Last night on CBS’s What’s Trending, Lupe let loose one particular line that commanded a bit of attention.

It's not often that you arrive late to a packed, sold-out New York City show, get asked to return later, and then get lucky enough to catch three artists like Lupe Fiasco, Mos Def, and Kanye West on stage in a venue so small that you can literally feel the swag. But hey, sometimes miracles do happen, and we happened to be there to catch this one. With little over a week left before the release of his highly-anticipated Lasers album, Lupe Fiasco performed four shows at Blue Note Jazz Club this weekend with the Robert Glasper Experiment and a one-off appearance from the aforementioned guests.

Lupe Fiasco’s third solo album, Lasers, will finally arrive in early March after months of bitter label drama and resulting protests from irate fans. And if Lupe’s second official single “Words I Never Said” is any indication of the album’s remaining content, the opinionated Chi-Town MC will finally unleash the tirade of social and political commentary that fans have been missing since 2007’s The Cool. Over a raucous beat from producer Alex Da Kid and a catchy hook from mysterious singer/songwriter Skylar Grey, Lupe wastes no time delving into his musings on the war on terror, which he dubs “a bunch of bullshit” and a “poor excuse for you to use up your bullets.”

America's struggle with oppression of every stripe is a storied history. The People Speak -- a riveting, extensive documentary directed by Howard Zinn, Anthony Arnove, and Chris Moore -- features an A-list cast (Marisa Tomei, Matt Damon, Josh Brolin, Kerry Washington, Viggo Mortensen, Eddie Vedder, Sandra Oh, Lupe Fiasco, Danny Glover, Sean Penn, John Legend) and covers the topic from every possible angle. Despite the film's current status of simmering in post-production, last night's MoMA screening provided a platform for some of Hollywood’s finest to show off their talent for translating these issues in the most direct way possible. The three-hour-plus film alternates between archival footage, monologues of historical speeches, and letters and acoustic performances -- all focusing on the American history of Democracy and human rights struggle. Yet, as is often the case with Cultural Functions for "Serious" Topics in New York, nothing follows a firm history lesson like an intimate little soiree.

From Moby to Lupe Fiasco, the following photo essay features some of our favorite musicians captured at their favorite places. Sky’s the limit.