Everyone has a playlist that gets them through the long workday. Well, that is, if you’re lucky enough to have a job where you can listen to whatever you want, when you want, by your lonesome (sorry folks in customer service who have to stay attentive). We all know that the slower the song, the longer it feels the day is passing by, but the more crunk it is, the better we feel. And hey, if the song applies to our feelings or life at the moment, then that’s awesome too. Here are just a few songs that we think you should add to your playlist. Feel free to include some of your favorite recommendations way down below…

Workin’ Day and Night/Michael Jackson

In all honesty, the whole Off the Wall album should be in heavy rotation on your playlist, but if I had to pick one that probably fits your workday mood, it’s clearly “Workin’ Day and Night.” You might not be working crazy hours (sun up to midnight) for an ungrateful spouse, but I’m sure you can still relate. Plus, the production on this track is bananas enough to get and keep your feet a-tappin’!

Party Up/DMX

Okay, so I might be the only one who thinks this, but I find it very necessary to always have at least one DMX track on hand to spaz out to. What? Like I said, the more crunk the track, the better. And nobody is more crunk than DMX. For me, it’s usually “What’s My Name,” but I think everyone knows and can appreciate “Party Up.” Also known as, “Ya’ll gon’ make me lose my mind, up in here, up in here!” That’s probably what you will be saying around 3 p.m., so why not have a theme song?

Night to Remember/Shalamar

Are you kidding me? Everybody loves this jam! It’s the perfect song for those last few hours of work when you know you’re anticipating a date or quality time with your favorite guy. This song requires just a little shimmy at your desk, and I’m sure when you head out to meet up with ‘ol boy, you’ll be humming this joint. It’s almost like Lay’s potato chips, when you listen to “Night to Remember,”  you can’t listen to it just once.

Keep Ya Head Up/2Pac

If you need to slow it down just a little in the early morning or after lunch, hows about a little bit of positivity in between all the booty popping dance songs? Pac was pretty good for that, and that’s why everyone does a hard head nod to the beat of “Keep Ya Head Up” when it comes on. It’s smooth, but not too slow to put you in itis mode (ready to fall asleep). Plus, Pac is great eye candy to keep you in good spirits.

Soon As I Get Home/Babyface

You’ve got to have at least one smooth slow jam to throw into your mix. Babyface’s “Soon As I Get Home” is perfect for that. It’s one of those, put one finger in the air and snap type of jams, and the lyrics are pretty awesome too: “I give good love, I’ll buy your clothes, I’ll cook your dinner too, soon as I get home from work.” Now that’s a man I think we can all say we would love to have waiting on us after work! THE jam.

Don’t You Worry ‘Bout a Thing/Stevie Wonder

I bet you thought if I was going to pick a Stevie jam it would have been “Living For the City.” Too easy. Instead, how about a fun song that sends good vibes and reminds you how much you need to take a vacation? Any Stevie song will do, but this one always makes me want to get up from my chair and start salsa dancing. Or at least a bootleg version of the salsa. Okay, maybe just a two-step…

If I Ruled the World (imagine that)/ Nas feat. Lauryn Hill

I know what you’re thinking: If I ruled the world, my a** wouldn’t be working. I’m sure that’s true, but until then, a sista is just going to have to dream. And this is one of those songs you can both dream and rock to. You’ve got to love Nas and Lauryn in their prime!

These are clearly just a few of many songs that are great to jam to while working, so we would love to hear some of your picks! Proceed below…

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Source: nydailynews.com

I think we’ve all been there: stuck in traffic just burning to get in the house to sit down somewhere after going through a hard day or hard times in general. But instead, you’re staring at the back of the head of a stranger in their rusty car moving inch by inch. You know what you need? According to jazz bassist and singer Esperanza Spalding, you need to hear your jam. And not the jam on your iPod, but the one on the radio that you never heard but can’t stop tapping your foot and singing the wrong lyrics to. We’ve all probably been guilty of making up some lyrics, right? As she says, “You can’t help singing along, even though you’ve never heard it, you keep singing it wrong!” And this song, “Radio song,” will indeed keep you moving.

Love the lyrics and the way this song changes every few minutes to surprise you (the pianist was working hard!). I wouldn’t deny it if I was stuck in a car (too bad I take the subway). But I think I’ll go find it and add it to my playlist because it just screams summer! It definitely sounds like a spirit lifter to waltz down the street with (in some wedges with your shades on?). Yep, “this song’s THE one.” Check it and let us know your thoughts:

But what do you think? Pass or play?

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Steve Jobs, the former Apple CEO, co-founder and creator of the personal computer, iPod and iPad, iPhone, iMac and iTunes has passed away today. He was 56. Jobs, who had been battling a rare form of pancreatic cancer, succumbed to the disease after years of diminishing health. In August, after coming to the decision that he couldn’t fulfill his duties, Jobs stepped down as CEO of his influential company. After helping to found Apple Computers in 1976 with Steve Wozniak, the college dropout was a millionaire by the time many of us are still paying off college loans, and he went on to shape the way we look at and use technology. From how you do your work, to how you listen to music, and even how you buy your music, Jobs revolutionized everything about the tech experience. And even if you tried to root for other companies, you probably owned something from Apple. Let’s just be honest. Outside of his iconic and profitable company, Jobs leaves behind his wife Laurene, and four children. What a loss.

(Time) — Apple is fond of saying that its Macs “just work.” That’s a relative term, of course. Macs do indeed deliver the smoothest integration of software, hardware and services in the computer business, with a record for reliability that most big makers of Windows PCs can’t touch. But these days, it’s Apple’s iPhone and iPad that set the standard for seamless simplicity. Compared with them, Macs are mere personal computers, complicated by features that aren’t absolutely necessary, parts that are prone to failure and interfaces that aren’t instantly comprehensible to clueless newbies.  That’s one way of looking at things. And judging from last week’s press conference at Apple headquarters in Cupertino, Calif., it’s the direction that the company’s own thinking is going. M.C. Steve Jobs explained that the event’s title, “Back to the Mac,” referred to borrowing good ideas from the iPhone and iPad and taking them to Macs.

Read More…

(Black Web 2.0) — This week Apple is expected to announce a subscription plan for newspapers which should increase sales and revenue of the iPad. Word on the street is that Apple probably will take a 30 percent cut of all subscriptions sold through the company’s online App Store, and as much as 40 percent of the advertising revenue from publications’ apps. Major metropolitan papers across the country are getting ready to roll out their own apps and have been in discussions with Apple. Newspaper industry leaders hope tablet devices and subscription-based digital editions can help newspapers stem, if not reverse losses incurred after they began offering content online for free years ago.

Read More…

by Kiara Ashanti

The stock market is not as intangible as many people think. It’s not only for professional investors or those with finance degrees or those who have the time to sift through and analyze the tens of thousands of stocks on the market. It’s actually something that everyone can easily play using his or her everyday observations. The irony of the market, as Charles V. Payne references, is that simple day-to-day choices that consumers make with their purchases can actually inform a basic investment strategy. As founder and CEO of the stock market research firm Wall Street Strategies, Payne is familiar with the more complex aspects of investing and stock picking but feels that general awareness is key to getting into the game. TAP caught up with the FOX business contributor  to discuss the irony of the market and other principles from his book, “Be Smart, Act Fast, Get Rich: Your Game Plan for Getting it Right in the Stock Market.”

TAP: In your book, you talked about the boom of Crocs and how it exemplifies how average Joes fail to use their day-to-day observations to make some great investments. What are some more recent examples of popular trends and companies that would’ve made great investments for the average consumer if they just paid attention to “the immediate world around them?”

iPhone Users don't neccessarily invest in Apple stock

Deckers is a phenomenal success.  Google – how many people use them every single day, and never thought ‘I should purchase stock in this search engine company that I use four or five times a day.’  Apple-how many people are walking around with their second or third iPod and have an iPhone? Those are just every day, in our face, success stories.  So to me, it doesn’t make sense why someone would not at least investigate further and perhaps take a shot [at buying the stock].

TAP: So your view is that people should be investing in the companies behind the products they spend their money on.

It is just amazing to me.  I did a speech a few years ago and I asked the crowd how many of them had an iPod.  About three-quarters of them raised their hand. And then I said, ‘raise your hand if you own any Apple stock.’ And I think two people raised their hand.  It was really sad.  When the iPhone came out, it was $600 dollars. Wouldn’t it have been smarter to buy a $30 dollar cell phone, and take the $570 dollars to buy Apple stock?

TAP: Is your viewpoint mirror that of a trader or a long-term investor? For example, Crocs is great in terms of sales, but I’m not sure how long the business model would work. They have only one product.

Charles: A lot of companies start off with one product, but you do raise a good point.  What I tried to do in the book was give people ways to monitor whether or not to buy or hold a stock.  I’m not one of these people that believes you buy a stock and then put it away forever. I think that’s a horrible strategy. I blame the financial community for telling people that.  I think that’s why a lot of people got crushed in their 401(k)’s.  Sometimes it’s ok to go to cash, and sometimes it’s even okay to trade on the downside (shorting).

TAP:  Can you give me an example of what you mean?

Starbucks stock highlights the challenges of "supergrowth"

Charles: The one example I give in the book is Starbucks.  Starbucks had same store sales that would go up every quarter about one percent or two percent.  They would just get better, and better, and better, and the stock was just rocking. Then there was a quarter where same store sales were nine percent, but the quarter before it was 11 percent. That’s a yellow flag.  It’s not time to bail, but certainly is time to say ‘that super growth is maybe slowing.’ Next quarter it got a little weaker, and sure enough the stock had peaked. The one thing I talk a lot about in the book is that the stock market is not about buying one stock and hoping it pops.  It’s a lifelong endeavor. It does involve some homework. Earnings reports are very important. Four times a year you want to see your portfolio is doing.  If it’s [the stock] not doing that great, it’s okay to take it off the table.

TAP: In chapter six, you talk about using charts.  For the average investor though, charting can be scary. Why does an investor need to learn and what’s the best way to go about doing so?

I say a picture is worth a thousand words. A chart illustrates so many things to a person.  It illustrates success and failures.  It illustrates management’s ability to run the company in a cohesive manner.  It shows underlying risk.  If you see a chart that is just up and down, up and down then you understand that stock might not be for you if you are faint of heart.  You don’t have to be a chartist.  You can just look at a chart and get a sense on how well a company is doing. What I try to do in the book is just go over a few techniques.  To your point of charts being intimidating, there are just a million and one ways of evaluating them.  I think people make it too complicated.

by Kiara Ashanti

The stock market is not as intangible as many people think. It’s not only for professional investors or those with finance degrees or those who have the time to sift through and analyze the tens of thousands of stocks on the market. It’s actually something that everyone can easily play using his or her everyday observations. The irony of the market, as Charles V. Payne references, is that simple day-to-day choices that consumers make with their purchases can actually inform a basic investment strategy. As founder and CEO of the stock market research firm Wall Street Strategies, Payne is familiar with the more complex aspects of investing and stock picking but feels that general awareness is key to getting into the game. TAP caught up with the FOX business contributor  to discuss the irony of the market and other principles from his book, “Be Smart, Act Fast, Get Rich: Your Game Plan for Getting it Right in the Stock Market.”

TAP: In your book, you talked about the boom of Crocs and how it exemplifies how average Joes fail to use their day-to-day observations to make some great investments. What are some more recent examples of popular trends and companies that would’ve made great investments for the average consumer if they just paid attention to “the immediate world around them?”

iPhone Users don't neccessarily invest in Apple stock

Deckers is a phenomenal success.  Google – how many people use them every single day, and never thought ‘I should purchase stock in this search engine company that I use four or five times a day.’  Apple-how many people are walking around with their second or third iPod and have an iPhone? Those are just every day, in our face, success stories.  So to me, it doesn’t make sense why someone would not at least investigate further and perhaps take a shot [at buying the stock].

TAP: So your view is that people should be investing in the companies behind the products they spend their money on.

It is just amazing to me.  I did a speech a few years ago and I asked the crowd how many of them had an iPod.  About three-quarters of them raised their hand. And then I said, ‘raise your hand if you own any Apple stock.’ And I think two people raised their hand.  It was really sad.  When the iPhone came out, it was $600 dollars. Wouldn’t it have been smarter to buy a $30 dollar cell phone, and take the $570 dollars to buy Apple stock?

TAP: Is your viewpoint mirror that of a trader or a long-term investor? For example, Crocs is great in terms of sales, but I’m not sure how long the business model would work. They have only one product.

Charles: A lot of companies start off with one product, but you do raise a good point.  What I tried to do in the book was give people ways to monitor whether or not to buy or hold a stock.  I’m not one of these people that believes you buy a stock and then put it away forever. I think that’s a horrible strategy. I blame the financial community for telling people that.  I think that’s why a lot of people got crushed in their 401(k)’s.  Sometimes it’s ok to go to cash, and sometimes it’s even okay to trade on the downside (shorting).

TAP:  Can you give me an example of what you mean?

Starbucks stock highlights the challenges of "supergrowth"

Charles: The one example I give in the book is Starbucks.  Starbucks had same store sales that would go up every quarter about one percent or two percent.  They would just get better, and better, and better, and the stock was just rocking. Then there was a quarter where same store sales were nine percent, but the quarter before it was 11 percent. That’s a yellow flag.  It’s not time to bail, but certainly is time to say ‘that super growth is maybe slowing.’ Next quarter it got a little weaker, and sure enough the stock had peaked. The one thing I talk a lot about in the book is that the stock market is not about buying one stock and hoping it pops.  It’s a lifelong endeavor. It does involve some homework. Earnings reports are very important. Four times a year you want to see your portfolio is doing.  If it’s [the stock] not doing that great, it’s okay to take it off the table.

TAP: In chapter six, you talk about using charts.  For the average investor though, charting can be scary. Why does an investor need to learn and what’s the best way to go about doing so?

I say a picture is worth a thousand words. A chart illustrates so many things to a person.  It illustrates success and failures.  It illustrates management’s ability to run the company in a cohesive manner.  It shows underlying risk.  If you see a chart that is just up and down, up and down then you understand that stock might not be for you if you are faint of heart.  You don’t have to be a chartist.  You can just look at a chart and get a sense on how well a company is doing. What I try to do in the book is just go over a few techniques.  To your point of charts being intimidating, there are just a million and one ways of evaluating them.  I think people make it too complicated.