entertainment blog
Drake, Meg Thee Stallion & More Sign Letter To Protest Using Rap Lyrics In Court
HipHopWired Featured Video Source: Noam Galai / Getty The war against Rap continues but some of our biggest talents are fighting back. Several top rappers have signed a letter to protest the use of lyrics in court. As spotted on Vulture the Hip-Hop community is trying to right a glaring wrong when it comes to rappers getting prosecuted. Artists, industry leaders, and legal experts have joined together in a call to “Protect Black Art,” publishing an open letter in The New York Times and The Atlanta Journal-Constitution urging legislators across America to limit how creative expression can be used against defendants on trial. Specifically, it calls for an end to the racially discriminatory practice of treating rap lyrics as confessions. Drafted and published by...
Something In The Water Festival Returns Virginia Beach For 2023
HipHopWired Featured Video Source: The Washington Post / Getty Something In The Water made its first big waves in 2019 and, to date, it remains one of the best music festivals Hip-Hop Wired has ever covered. After a brief detour to the Nation’s Capital last earlier this year, Something In The Water will make a triumphant return to Virginia Beach, Va., the hometown of its visionary founder, Pharrell Williams. SITW, the brainchild of native son Skateboard P, was a bit of a love letter to the legendary producer’s beloved hometown while also giving credence to the musical and creative talent from the region itself. 2022 saw Something In The Water take place in Washington, D.C. and the results by most accounts were mixed. In all, SITW is far more than a music festival as it served as a launchin...
Return Of The Dreamers: Dreamville Festival Is Coming Back For 2023
HipHopWired Featured Video Source: Greg Noire / Dreamville Festival Dreamville Festival, one of the premier music festivals in the states, will bring elite talent back to its stages in April of next year. Under the guidance of Dreamville Records honcho J. Cole, Dreamville Festival will raise its flag in the city of Raleigh, N.C. in what is sure to be another can’t-miss event from the Dreamers and their cohorts. Hip-Hop Wired was in attendance for the first Dreamville Festival in 2019, which featured the aforementioned J. Cole, J.I.D., Bas, Ari Lennox, EarthGang, and 21 Savage among others. On April 1-2, 2023, Raleigh will once again host the fest at the spacious Dorothea Dix Park in North Carolina for two days of good music, good energy, and positive vibes. “Dreamville Festival wants to ke...
Watch Yves Tumor’s Video for New Song “God Is a Circle”
Yves Tumor has released the new single “God Is a Circle.” It comes with a music video directed by Jordan Hemingway, who worked with Tumor on the visual for “Secrecy Is Incredibly Important to the Both of Them.” Watch the new video below. “God Is a Circle” was produced by Noah Goldstein and features background vocals by Ecco2K and Thoom. It’s Tumor’s first new music since putting out The Asymptotical World EP in 2021. Tumor recently wrapped up an extensive tour of North America and Europe in support of the EP and 2020’s Heaven to a Tortured Mind. Read more about The Asymptotical World on Pitchfork’s list of “The 31 Best Rock Records of 2021” and see “Jackie” at No. 25 on Pitchfork’s list of “The 100 Best Songs of 2021.” Content This content can also be viewed on the site it originates from.
How Bon Iver, Harry Styles, and More Are Getting Out the Vote for the 2022 Midterm Elections
The 2022 midterm elections are nearly upon the United States, and musicians have been rallying behind their local candidates to encourage fans to get out and vote. Ahead of the elections on Tuesday, November 8, here is a roundup of the artists hoping to drum up higher turnouts with events, endorsements, and more. Wilco’s Jeff Tweedy is playing a get-out-the vote show today (November 2) at the Egyptian Theatre in DeKalb, Illinois. He is performing the free event in support of Representative Lauren Underwood, an incumbent Democrat who supports cheaper healthcare and gun control, among other causes. Upon being sworn in in 2019, she became the youngest Black woman to serve in the House of Representatives. Back in 2020, Bon Iver’s Justin Vernon launched a nonpartisan initiative called For Wisco...
Watch the New Trailer for Lost Angel: The Genius of Judee Sill
In a new trailer for Lost Angel: The Genius of Judee Sill, Adrienne Lenker, Jackson Browne, Graham Nash, Weyes Blood, and more sing the praises of the 70s outsider folk artist Judee Sill. The film follows the little-known but well-loved singer-songwriter through a youth of armed robberies and drug addiction that ultimately led to an all-too-brief music career derailed by an overdose. The film was directed by Andy Brown and Brian Lindstrom and is set to premiere November 13 at the 2022 DOC NYC festival. Check out the trailer at Rolling Stone. Last year the producer and multi-instrumentalist Lorenzo Wolff released the tribute album Down Where the Valleys Are Low: Another Otherworld for Judee Sill, featuring Bartees Strange’s take on “The Pearl” from Sill’s 1973 album Heart Food. In 200...
Drake and 21 Savage Reveal Cover Artwork for New Album Her Loss
Just days ahead of releasing their joint LP Her Loss, Drake and 21 Savage have revealed the cover art for the new album. The record arrives this Friday (November 4). Check out the album artwork below. Drake and 21 Savage announced the release of Her Loss earlier this month. The LP was initially scheduled to drop on October 28, however it was delayed a week after Drake’s longtime producer Noah “40” Shebib contracted COVID-19 while mixing and mastering the album. The original release date was revealed in the video for Drake and 21 Savage’s song “Jimmy Cooks,” the final track on Drake’s latest LP, Honestly, Nevermind. Earlier today, Drake and 21 shared a series of comedic fake interview clips. The rappers “sat down” with Howard Stern to discuss therapy and books, while 21 did a faux “what’s i...
Takeoff’s Cause of Death Revealed by Coroner’s Office
The Harris County coroner’s office has revealed the cause of death of Migos member Takeoff. The examiner confirmed to Billboard that the rapper’s primary cause of death was “penetrating gunshot wounds of head and torso into arm.” The shooter has not been identified as of writing, and Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner is asking the public to come forward with any information on the shooter in order to bring justice to Takeoff and his family. Takeoff was shot and killed in the early hours of November 1 after a private party at 810 Billiards & Bowling. He was with his fellow Migos rapper and uncle, Quavo, when an argument broke out and shots were fired from a minimum of two weapons. Takeoff was pronounced dead at the scene, while a 24-year-old woman and a 23-year-old man went to the hos...
Kelly Clarkson Delivers Smooth Cover of Z.Z. Hill’s ‘Someone Else Is Steppin‘ In’
Kelly Clarkson once more proved that she can truly sing any genre when she dipped into R&B and soul for her latest Kellyoke cover. On Wednesday’s (Nov. 2) episode of her popular daytime talk show, the superstar delivered a buttery smooth rendition of Z.Z. Hill’s 1982 hit, “Someone Else Is Steppin’ In.” Dressed in a flirty periwinkle dress, she delivered every high and low note flawlessly, backed by a full horn section and her band. The song was originally featured on Z.Z. Hill’s 1982 album, The Rhythm & the Blues, released just two years before the singer’s death. Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news Later in the episode, Selena Gomez stopped by, and dished on what it was like to work with Steve Martin and Martin ...
Imagine Dragons & The Strokes to Headline Inaugural Edition of Lollapalooza India
MUMBAI – Rock bands Imagine Dragons and The Strokes will headline the first Indian edition of Lollapalooza in January 2023, it was announced Wednesday (Nov. 2). The festival, which will take place at Mumbai’s Mahalaxmi Racecourse on Jan. 28-29, is promoted and co-produced by Indian ticketing platform and entertainment company BookMyShow, along with global producers Perry Farrell and C3 Presents, which is owned by Live Nation. The Mumbai leg will mark the Asia debut of Lollapalooza, which expanded to Santiago, São Paulo and Buenos Aires in South America, and Berlin, Paris and Stockholm in Europe over the past decade. Other international names in the lineup for Lollapalooza India — several of whom will be staging their first concert appearances in the country — include rock bands Greta Van F...
Tim McGraw Spotted Wearing Dad Tug McGraw’s Phillies Jersey at World Series Game
Country singer Tim McGraw wore his late father’s Phillies jersey at game 3 of the World Series on Tuesday night. McGraw’s late dad, Tug McGraw, was a left-handed pitcher and a major figure during the 1980 World Series, winning a ring with the Phillies. While Tim McGraw was enthusiastic about showing off his father’s jersey, the singer had a complicated relationship with Tug. “I didn’t know he was my dad,” Tim said in a 2013 interview with Larry King. “I was 11 years old, and I was rummaging around in mom’s closet and found a birth certificate. I was growing up in Louisiana, and my mom was divorced, and we were barely getting by.” The singer then met his father for the first time that year, but would not be reunited with the busy athlete again for another seven years. Despite their ph...
2023 CMT Music Awards to Air Live From Austin, Texas
The 2023 CMT Music Awards are headed to the Lone Star State. CMT and CBS have revealed that the 2023 CMT Music Awards will air Sunday, April 2, 2023, live from Austin, Texas’ Moody Center, via CBS. The Paramount Global country music tentpole event returns for its global premiere exclusively via the CBS Television Network and will be available to stream live and on demand on Paramount+. Kelsea Ballerini, who recently released her album Subject to Change, will return for a third consecutive year as co-host of the CMT Music Awards. Ballerini surprised Carrie Underwood during her Wednbesday (Nov. 2) stop at Moody Center on her The Denim & Rhinestones Tour, where they revealed Underwood as the first performer for the 2023 CMT Music Awards. Underwood has won the most honors of any artist at ...
