Michael Jackson celebrates the 25th anniversary of his legendary album, Thriller (according to the Guinness Book of World Records, the album is the biggest selling of all time with over 50 million sold worldwide) with a special edition of the set including unreleased material, DVD footage, and remixes by Kanye West (“Billie Jean), will.i.am (“The Girl Is Mine” and “P.Y.T.”) and Akon (“Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin’” also featuring will.i.am), according to Billboard.com. Among the unreleased tracks is “For All Time” that Jackson recorded during the time of Thriller and mixed and mastered himself for the re-release. The bonus DVD will include videos of the title track as well as “Beat It,” and “Billie Jean” plus 1983 performance footage of Jackson during the NBC special “Motown 25: Yesterday, Today, Forever.” Other rare moments captured on track include his songs “Someone in the Dark” and “Carousel” and the original demo recording of “Billie Jean.” The 25th anniversary edition of Thriller is due Feb. 12.

Rapper Snoop Dogg partnered with athletic company Cutter Gloves yesterday (Dec. 2) to award Snoop Youth Football League (SYFL) football players and cheerleaders for excellence in academic progress, sportsmanship, and character. The annual recognition took place during the SYFL’s All-Conference Championship game. This year, league members submitted essays on how the league positively impacted their lives. “We couldn't do this without people like [Cutters] who believe in the Snoop Youth Football League,” Snoop Dogg told AllHipHop.com of his partnership. Cutter Gloves also sponsors the SYFL annual championship game, the Snooper Bowl. “It’s easy for a kid to join a gang – we need to make it easier to play football. The SYFL is on to something so fresh and productive for our youth, and we are also all about helping the boys and girls off the field.” Snoop Dogg told the website that the purpose of creating the league was to help youth build problem-solving skills and friendships that last off the football field.

Last Thursday (Nov. 29), Snoop Dogg was in NYC along with a host of other hip-hop notables including Q-Tip, EPMD, De La Soul, dead prez, Mobb Deep, Marley Marl, Raekwon, Lord Finesse, Bumpy Knuckles, Everlast, DJ Muggs, and Kid Capri for the inaugural J.A.M. Awards at the Hammerstein Ballroom. The awards (Justice, Arts, and Music) is reportedly the first dedicated to social responsibility in the hip-hop community and was created in honor of the late Jason “Jam Master Jay” Mizell of the groundbreaking Run-DMC. The awards recognized Chuck D of Public Enemy with the Justice award, graffiti artist Lee Quinones with the Arts Award, and Wyclef Jean with the Music Award. Performances including DJ Kay Slay and DMC paid tribute to Mizell with renditions of Run-DMC classics.

Rapper Luther “Uncle Luke” Campbell became the first hip-hop artist to take a company public today when he announced that his Luke Entertainment Group will be operated on the NASDAQ pink sheets symbol (LKEN) and shares will start trading beginning this month. “The Luke Entertainment Group going Public is an important milestone for hip-hop music,” Campbell said in a statement as Chief Creative Officer and Chairman of the Board.  “The Luke Entertainment Group will be an example of the influence hip-hop music has on the economy and how our culture directly impacts technology and consumer spending.  This will also serve as an opportunity for me to teach the hip-hop culture the power of investing, as many people are probably unfamiliar with Wall Street and how it can help improve your long term wealth.” The Luke Entertainment Group is a multi-media company offering video tones, downloadable web content and music and sports marketing divisions.