Hip-Hop
Big Sean Says He Confronted Mental Health Struggles While Making ‘Detroit 2′
Big Sean is opening up about the mental health struggles he faced before releasing his new album, Detroit 2, last week. “I don’t feel like this currently, but I had never gone through wanting to kill myself, give up on my life until the past few years and I didn’t realize how important it was to embrace the ups n downs of life and enjoy (in joy) taking active steps to better it. it’s the Journey!” he wrote in a candid series of tweets Sunday evening (Sept. 7). “I thought doing what I loved would always make me happy and satisfied, so when I got tired of it, I was confused and it drove me insane,” the rapper said. “Later i realized I was just growing n had to gain a new mentality and foundation on many levels n re-discover my passion! And try new things.”...
Kanye West’s Choir Walks on Water at Sunday Service in Atlanta
Kanye West‘s Sunday Service returned to the Atlanta area over Labor Day weekend with a mesmerizing event featuring the rapper’s choir appearing to walk on water. The epic gathering, held Sunday (Sept. 6) at Pinewood Forest in Fayetteville, Georgia, included a sunset sermon by televangelist Joel Osteen, who shared the famous story from the Bible of Jesus walking on water. Later in the service, West’s choir offered attendees a stunning visual by crossing the lake’s surface on foot and performing uplifting gospel music. West’s wife, Kim Kardashian, shared scenes from the fascinating service on Twitter and her Instagram Stories. The intimate event drew about 150 guests, including 2 Chainz. West rebooted Sunday Service on his Wyoming ranch in mid-August, noting tha...
Cardi B Speaks Out About Harassment From Trump Supporters, Including One Who Tried to ‘Dox My Home’
Cardi B went live on Instagram to explain why she’ll continue to speak out against Donald Trump and why she will keep encouraging fans to vote in the upcoming election. “I’m not gonna show my face on this video. I look like shit, I feel like s—. I’m a little sick,” she began during the unplanned live session Sunday night (Sept. 6), prompted by a Twitter tussle with conservative activist and Trump supporter Candace Owens. “It’s not a secret that I use my platform for people to vote. I love politics. I endorse the Democratic party. Everybody knows I don’t f— with Trump like that,” Cardi said on Instagram Live. The rapper then opened up about dealing with harassment from Trump followers. “They be degrading me,” she ...
Jay Park’s H1GHR MUSIC Showcases Seoul and Seattle Hip-Hop Talent on RED TAPE: Stream
H1GHR MUSIC, the independent record label founded by South Korean-American pop rapper Jay Park, has released RED TAPE, the first installment of their new two-part compilation album The New Chapter. Stream it below via Apple Music or Spotify. Park originally founded H1GHR MUSIC in 2017 to shine a light on the undiscovered artists from his hometowns of Seattle and Seoul. While he was busy collaborating with Charli XCX and getting signed to Jay-Z’s Roc Nation, Park was simultaneously spending his time inking deals with K-pop and hip-hop artists for his own label. He’s amassed quite a roster since then and the proof is in The New Chapter, which combines various singles and collaborative tracks by members of H1GHR MUSIC to surprisingly cohesive results. The New Chapter is split into two parts, ...
Kelly Rowland and Michelle Williams Share Touching Tributes on Beyonce’s 39th Birthday
Beyonce received lots of love from her friends, family and fellow musicians on her 39th birthday. Among those helping celebrate Queen Bey’s special day on Friday (Sept. 4) were the “Crazy in Love” singer’s former Destiny’s Child groupmates Kelly Rowland and Michelle Williams, who each penned touching tributes on Instagram. “To my one who knows me, sometimes better than I know myself!” Rowland captioned a colorful photo of the two standing side-by-side in sparkling dresses. “YOU already know… Forever and ever babe! Happy Happy Birthday Love!” Williams, meanwhile, shared an encouraging message alongside a black-and-white photo from Beyonce’s days as a student. “Bey always gets people with the baby pics or younger year ty...
Cardi B Wishes She Could Perform ‘WAP’ for Large Crowds: ‘I Miss Shows and Festivals’
Cardi B is no doubt enjoying the success of her new hit single “WAP” with Megan Thee Stallion, but she’s still disappointed over not being able to perform it live for fans. “Yoooo I wanna perform WAP so bad with a lot ass crowd.I miss shows and festivals,” Cardi tweeted Saturday (Sept. 5). “Yoooooo I would of went crazy.” In recent months, thousands of tours and festivals around the world have been postponed or canceled in an effort to slow the spread of COVID-19. Cardi hasn’t performed for major crowds since numerous global festival appearances in 2019. One fan responded to the rapper’s tweet, writing, “We miss you performing! It would’ve been such an iconic performance.” “WAP” recently spent a second week at No...
R. Kelly Attacker Confesses, Singer Requests Release on Bail
An inmate claims he was “forced” to assault Kelly “in hopes of getting spotlight attention and world news notice to shed light on the government corruption.” R. Kelly is asking a judge to release him on bail after he was attacked last week by an inmate. In a motion filed Friday (Sept. 4), Kelly’s attorney Michael I. Leonard says not only did the Bureau of Prisons not protect his client, but also that personnel at the facility actually encouraged the inmate to attack the singer. As proof, Leonard presented to the judge a handwritten motion from inmate Jeremiah Farmer confessing to the attack. In the motion, titled “The Government Made Me Attack R-Kelly,” Farmer said after he told a mental health professional at the facility of his plan to attack Kelly, the person enc...
Lil Wayne Morphs Through His Iconic Decades-Spanning Looks in ‘Big Worm’ Video
Lil Wayne pays tribute to himself throughout the various eras of his career in his latest music video for “Big Worm,” which he released Thursday (Sept. 3). Against a blue-lit backdrop, Weezy stuns viewers with the evolution of his face tattoos and hairstyles over the years, from his long black dreads and signature sunglasses to his short cornrows pulled back with a headband to his current blond mid-length dreads. And the timely homage to his old self comes just after his 2009 mixtape No Ceilings became available on streaming services for the first time last Friday (Aug. 28). “Big Worm” comes from the deluxe version of Wayne’s Billboard 200 No. 1 album Funeral, which featured eight additional tracks with guest artists Doja Cat, Tory Lanez, Lil Uz...
Saint Bodhi Pops Off on New Song “Gold Revolver”: Stream
Dual threat rapper/singer Saint Bodhi pops off on a cheating partner in the new song “Gold Revolver”. A former ghostwriter, the 27-year-old SoCal native earned her stripes collaborating with Beyoncé, Kevin Gates, Erykah Badu, A$AP Rocky, and more. Now a solo artist signed to Def Jam, she first made waves in August of 2019 with the hard-luck R&B of “FlowerChild”, and then returned in the spring of this year with the balls-to-the-wall banger “Bad Mood”. “Gold Revolver” is her most exciting release yet. Over haunting pipes and head-nodding drums, Saint Bodhi raps a tale of violent madness worthy of early Eminem. “Yo, I have a n—- hogtied to the furnace/ Bitch should’ve watched his words/ I’m slipping in my mental/ I’m whispering to the birds.” The narrator’s unfaithful partner is in for a...
Kanye West Has Spent Nearly $6 Million on His Presidential Campaign
Kanye West has spent nearly $6 million since entering the presidential race on July 4th, according to a campaign finance report filed with the Federal Election Commission on Friday. Kanye has largely self-funded his run thus far, loaning approximately $6.7 million to his campaign between July and August. In fact, to date, he’s received only eight outside donations totaling a little over $3800. As for his expenditures, most have gone to consulting firms who’ve been working to get his name on states’ ballots. In particular, Fortified Consulting, which shares the same address as Lincoln Strategy Group, a Republican consulting firm, has received $1.5 million. So far, Kanye hasn’t seen much of a return on his investment; he’s been kicked off more states’ ballots than he’s actually gotten o...
Brandy & Monica Combine for Over 20 Million U.S. Song Streams After Verzuz Battle
Brandy and Monica‘s record-setting Verzuz viewership translated into major gains for both singers’ streaming totals after the event. Combined, the pair registered 21.9 million U.S. on-demand streams for their song catalogs from Aug. 31 through Sept. 2, according to Nielsen Music/MRC Data, a period comprising the day of the competition and two days after of residual fan activity. That total compares to 6.3 million U.S. on-demand streams in the three days leading up to the broadcast (Aug. 28-30), a surge of 248%. Of the 21.9 million streaming total, Monica’s catalog accounted for 11.2 million plays, while Brandy’s songs clocked 10.9 million streams. The two R&B hitmakers participated in the latest Verzuz showdown on Monday (Aug. 31). At its peak, the web broadcast...
Lil Durk Shares New Song “The Voice”: Stream
Lil Durk has shared a surprise new single called “The Voice”, as well as a corresponding music video. The track finds the Chicago MC ruminating on the rough times he’s going through. “Money ran low right, felons can’t vote, right?/ I can’t even vote for who I believe in, shit ain’t goin’ right,” Lil Durk spits over a wistful yet clacking beat from TurnmeupJosh. “I just dropped a tear inside the funeral, ain’t more right?” Even if it’s hard to connect with some of the finer details, the overall feeling is still something to which we can all likely relate. “The Voice” is accompanied by a simple visual that depicts Lil Durk rapping in front of a fleet of white cars and on a private jet. Take a look below. Editors’ Picks Lil Durk’s latest solo offering comes amidst a summer season filled...
