Common recently previewed new album in New York.
You don't earn the moniker "Common Sense" for nothing. Just ask the Chicago MC who used to sign his name that way (before shortening it for legal reasons).

When he started working on the follow-up to his acclaimed — and some would say, career-saving — salvo, 2005's Be, Common reached out to his Windy City partner Kanye West to once again produce the bulk of the album. Their Be collaborations had brought out the best in the poetic lyricist, especially with street gems like "Chi-City" and ethereal numbers like "They Say."

Problem was, West was on tour overseas when Common started digging into Finding Forever. So Com had a decision to make: wait for 'Ye and lose momentum or work without him and lose the cohesive production that had long eluded him.

Com, it turns out, smartly chose neither: Instead, he hopped on a flight and met West abroad. Common tagged along with Kanye throughout Spain, New Zealand and Australia as the two laid the foundation for what became the former's seventh album, due July 10. In addition to West, the set also features collaborations with Lily Allen and Will.I.Am.

The Beyonce Experience Tour is coming to Canada. The North American leg begins in New Orleans and has four Canadian stops. The Grammy Award winner will play in Montreal August 14th, Toronto August 15th, Calgary September 6th and Vancouver September 7th. The international tour kicks off Tuesday in Tokyo.