Hip-Hop
New Owner of Wu-Tang Clan’s Once Upon a Time in Shaolin Revealed
A new chapter has begun in the strange saga of Wu-Tang Clan‘s seventh studio album, Once Upon a Time in Shaolin. The one-of-a-kind release that was bought by pharmadouche Martin Shkreli and, after his seven-year prison sentence, seized by the federal government, has a new owner: the cryptocurrency collective PleasrDAO. As the New York Times and Rolling Stone report, PleasrDAO acquired the album for the crypto equivalent of $4 million, though since the government doesn’t treat cryptocurrency as real money, the purchase took place through an intermediary. PleasrDAO has previously bought digital collectibles connected to Russian dissident punks Pussy Riot and NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden, and the group believes Once Upon a Time in Shaolin fits into ...
Yellow Days and Ric Wilson Announce New EP Disco Ric in London Town, Share “Life’s Been Good to Me”: Stream
Yellow Days and Ric Wilson have announced a new collaborative EP, Disco Ric in London Town, due out October 29th. They also shared its lead single “Life’s Been Good to Me” as a preview. The spacey track kicks off with synth-drenched production by Yellow Days’ George Van Den Broek and features additional vocals by singer Lynda Dawn. “Life been good, life been well/ Brother beat the case and not goin’ to jail,” raps Wilson on the opening verse. “Spirit out the gutter, mind out the cell/ Mama prayin’ for me, knowin’ I can’t fail.” According to the rapper, his chemistry with Van Den Broek was practically instantaneous when they began collaborating on the song. “George made this beat and I immediately had words in my head,” he said, while the mind behind Yellow Days added, “I remember Ric went ...
Young Thug Recorded “Day Before” with Mac Miller One Day Before the Rapper’s Death
Young Thug has opened up in a new interview about coincidentally recording his Mac Miller collaboration “Day Before” just one day before the latter rapper’s tragic 2018 death. The aptly titled track appears on Thug’s newly released album Punk. Speaking to The Breakfast Club, Thugger revealed that he recorded the LP’s powerful closer with Miller one day before the Pittsburgh rapper passed away from an accidental overdose. Thug recalled: “I was with Mac the day before he died. He was at my studio and we did the song on my album. This shit is so crazy but it’s coincidental. He came to the studio and did the song, and the next day he died. And the song that we did at the studio, the name of the song is ‘Day Before.’ But the song is about like women… It was, like, flamboyant.” He continued, “I ...
Chris Brown Calls Kyrie Irving a ‘Real Hero’ for Refusing COVID-19 Vaccine: ‘I Stand With My Brother’
Brown has yet to make an official statement on whether he’s been vaccinated against COVID-19, but Irving recently revealed that he is neither pro-vaccine nor anti-vaccine during an Instagram Live on Oct. 14. “The financial consequences, I know I do not want to even do that,” Irving said. “But it is reality that in order to be in New York City, in order to be on a team, I have to be vaccinated. I chose to be unvaccinated, and that was my choice, and I would ask you all to just respect that choice.” The Brooklyn Nets player added, “I am going to just continue to stay in shape, be ready to play, be ready to rock out with my teammates and just be part of this whole thing. This is not a political thing; this is not about the NBA, not about any organization. T...
MOUNT WESTMORE (Snoop Dogg, Ice Cube, E-40, Too $hort) Share Debut Single “Big Subwoofer”: Stream
Several months after the hip-hop supergroup MOUNT WESTMORE was announced, Snoop Dogg, Ice Cube, Too $hort, and E-40 have finally released their debut single, “Big Subwoofer.” The track arrives from a compilation helmed by Snoop Dogg, who joined Def Jam as a label exec in June. Produced by Kato on the Track, “Big Subwoofer” features a booming beat befitting the West Coast legends that comprise MOUNT WESTMORE. E-40 and Snoop glide through effortless verses while Too $hort turns in some of his signature raunchy rhymes. Closing out the track is Ice Cube, who brings much-needed energy with lyrics like “It’s a new day, still got the AK/ If these bitches wanna take it back to ’88.” For the music video, the quartet travels in a poorly CGI’d spacecraft to Planet Snoopiter, where...
Snoop Dogg, E-40, Ice Cube & Too $hort Blast off For Funky Planet ‘Snoopiter’ in Mount Westmore Debut, ‘Big Subwoofer’
“Big subwoofer bouncing like a trampoline/ Glass shake when I roll past the scene/ Candy apple paint dripping classic green/ Everybody eating, you can ask the team, fast and mean, speaking bumping, tags is clean,” Snoop raps as he commands the bridge of the ship while Cube drops some signature tough talk about keeping the party going. The song is the debut single from Snoop Dogg Presents: The Algorithm, the first project under Snoop’s new gig as executive creative consultant for Def Jam Records. The legendary rapper — who is celebrating his 50th birthday on Wednesday (Oct. 20) — has pulled together as-yet-unnamed artists from the label’s past, present on future for The Algorithm, which is slate to drop on Nov. 12. “There’s so much talent ...
Flavor Flav Lawyers Say Public Enemy Rapper Will Fight Domestic Battery Charge
Their son told police he stepped in to stop the scuffle when his parents separated and his mother lunged toward Drayton, according to a police report. Officers reported a small cut on the side of the woman’s face “consistent with an altercation taking place.” Officer Katrina Farrell, a Henderson police spokeswoman, said she had no information about whether the alleged victim required medical treatment.“ In alleged domestic violence cases, there are often two sides to the story and we will explain our side in the courtroom,” Drayton’s attorneys, David Chesnoff and Richard Schonfeld, said in a statement. The arrest was first reported by celebrity website TMZ. Flavor Flav’s public persona includes wearing a big clock on a chain around his neck. He was inducted with the group Public Enemy into...
10 Artists Who Changed Their Names Mid-Career
“What’s in a name?” Shakespeare wrote. “That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet.” Juliet was imagining a simpler life after rechristening her Romeo, but the principle would also apply if that rose were already trademarked, or the flower had a racist past, or that particular perfume reminded you of a life you’re ready to leave behind. Artists change their names for lots of reasons, but it is almost always a result of pressure — whether that be internal or external. If there’s one thing these moments of transformation have in common, it’s that they represent a pivot point for the musician — a dividing line, after which they will never be exactly the same. In that spirit of renewal, we’ve assembled a list of 10 artists who decided that another name would smell much sw...
50 Cent’s Cognac Brand Fires Back at Remy Martin Lawsuit
“This action is a naked effort to use meritless litigation to financially destroy a competitor,” Sire’s attorneys wrote Monday. “Remy Martin must be stopped, and the claims against Sire Spirits should not be allowed to survive.” Though it contained more legalese, Monday’s filing conveyed a similar sentiment to a message posted to Instagram by 50 Cent himself just days after the lawsuit was filed. In the since-deleted post, the rapper mocked Remy Martin — the second best-selling cognac in the world after Hennessy — for being “afraid” of the upstart Branson. 50 Cent, whose real name is Curtis Jackson, launched Branson in 2018, selling the cognac in a circular bottle with gem-like facets that was designed by the rapper himself. But on Aug. 13, Remy Martin sued on the grounds that ...
Maxo Kream Talks Carrying the Load Through the Highs and Lows With New Album ‘Weight of the World’
The title of Maxo’s latest effort, Weight of the World — released this past Monday (Oct. 18) — is appropriate as it arrives not only at a unique time in his life but for the world at large. Obviously much changed for him personally, but we are all still reeling from the stoppages caused by COVID-19, despite the fact a new normal has been created. In the time before vaccinations and loosened protocols, the Roc Nation signee took the time to be more thoughtful and strategic on his third studio album (and second under RCA), after a two-year hiatus following 2019 breakout album Brandon Banks. “The whole COVID [thing] gave me more time to really go deep and seep into my music,” he says. “Everything planned out perfectly, I feel like it’s the perfect time — and after this...
Young Thug Sues Apartment Building for Giving 200 Unreleased Songs to Stranger
Not so much fun: Young Thug has filed a lawsuit against a luxury apartment building in Atlanta, claiming the concierge service handed out a bag of his personal belongings — including a hard drive containing over 200 unreleased songs — to a stranger. According to legal documents viewed by AllHipHop, the mixup happened at a complex called The Trace in midtown Atlanta. Thugger reportedly left a leather Louis Vuitton bag in the parking garage next to his black Lamborghini on November 1st, 2020. Another resident spotted the orphaned luggage and turned it into the concierge desk. The employee who received the bag then contacted Young Thug and left instructions that no one should give away the bag without approval. Soon afterwards, a different employee handed the bag to an unknown person, an...
Judge Approves Kanye West’s Petition to Change Name to “Ye”
A California judge has approved Kanye West’s request to legally change his name to “Ye.” According to documents viewed by Consequence, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Michelle Williams Court approved the name change request on Monday. Ye first filed a petition requesting the rebrand in August, with no middle or last name. Ye has yet to publicly comment on the name change, but in a 2018 interview with radio host Big Boy, he expressed his affinity for the word by pointing out that it is “the most commonly used word in the Bible,” and that it’s a plural form of “you.” That same year he also tweeted about his desire to be called “Ye,” writing, “the being formally known as Kanye West … I am YE.” Advertisement Related Video Over the weekend, Ye gave his first live performance in over three year...
