music blog
HHW Gaming: Fortnite Slapped With $520 Million Fine For “Tricking Players,” & “Invading Kids Privacy”
HipHopWired Featured Video Source: Neilson Barnard / Getty / Fortnite Epic Games, the studio that gave us arguably the most popular game in the world, Fortnite, pockets got a bit lighter. Spotted on Kotaku, Epic Games will have to dip into its funds and pay an astounding $520 million combined settlement after the FTC (Federal Trade Commission) found the company invaded kid’s privacy and was tricking some of its players into purchasing things in Fortnite, they didn’t want. The FTC announced the epic (no pun intended) penalty on Monday, Dec.19, pointing out that it is the most significant penalty in the history of the regulatory commission. In response to the fine, Epic Games said, “No developer creates a game with the intention of ending up here.” So What Did Epic Games’ Do? According to th...
2 More Defendants From YSL RICO Case Plead Guilty
HipHopWired Featured Video Source: jmsilva / Getty The YSL RICO case goes to trial next month and among the more than two dozen defendants, two more have come forth to enter guilty pleas. The pair joins Sergio “Gunna” Kitchens and Walter “DK” Murphy of alleged YSL members who entered plea deals. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports that rapper Slimelife Shawty, real name Wunnie Lee, entered an Alford Plea, the same as Gunna, which means that he maintains his innocence while accepting that it was in his best legal interest to accept the deal. Slimelife Shawty pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to violate the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act as a first offender. His 10-year sentence was commuted to one-year with time serviced and nine years of probation. Martinez...
SZA Debuts 20 Songs From ‘SOS’ on Hot 100, Rules Artist 100 for First Time
SZA debuts a whopping 20 songs from her sophomore LP SOS, on the Billboard Hot 100 chart (dated Dec. 24), including two in the top 10. The set launches at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 albums chart, marking her first leader and sparking her first week atop the Billboard Artist 100 ranking. SOS arrives at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 with 318,000 equivalent album units earned, according to Luminate. That’s the seventh-largest one-week total of the year and the second-biggest among R&B albums, after only the first week of Beyonce’s Renaissance (332,000, Aug. 13). SZA scores her third Billboard 200 entry after her debut LP, Ctrl, reached No. 3 in 2017 and EP Z peaked at No. 39 in 2014. Of the 23 tracks on SOS, 20 debut on the Hot 100, including two in the top 10: “Kill Bill” (No. 3) and “Nobod...
Xman Xmas: Ed Christman’s Christmas Classics, Deep Cuts & Oddities
Christmas is a time for music and memories. In that spirit, this playlist is an excerpt from Ed Christman‘s yesteryear Xman Xmas mixtapes, compiled circa 1986-1988. The Xman XmasTape Ed Christman Encompassing well-known classics by Burl Ives and Bobby Helms, long-lost gems (e.g. The Gems’ “Love for Christmas”) and surreal oddities such as Edd “Kookie” Byrnes’ “Yulesville,” here are some Christmas classics to revisit and deep cuts to discover. In particular, Christman, Billboard senior editor/analyst, would like to call your attention to Dean Martin’s reference of Rudolph as “Rudy, the red-beaked reindeer.” Andy Williams, “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year” The Crystals, “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer” Bobby “Boris” Pickett and the Crypt Kickers, “Monster’s Holiday” The Trashmen, “D...
Watch Phoebe Bridgers Cover “These Days” With Jack Antonoff, Matty Healy and More
Phoebe Bridgers brought out a handful of her musicians friends while performing at a benefit concert called the Ally Coalition Talent Show organized by Jack Antonoff and his sister, fashion designer Rachel Antonoff. The benefit was the first in-person show since its last rendition in 2019, with benefits going towards improving the lives of LGBTQ+ youth. Ally Coalition kept the lineup under wraps until the actual show, so fans were pleasantly surprised to see Bridgers leading the night. The singer delivered a stunning performance of “These Days,” a song that was written by Jackson Browne and has been recorded by several artists, most famously by German singer Nico. For the cover, Bridgers brought out The 1975 frontman Matty Healy and Jack Antonoff himself, as well as Lucy Dacus, Weyes Blood...
Rick Anderson, The Tubes Bassist, Dies at 75
The Tubes has lost another member. Rick Anderson, bassist and founding member of the San Francisco rock band, died at 75 on Dec. 16, the group shared in a statement on social media. “We lost our brother on 12/16/22,” the band captioned a series of photos on Sunday (Dec. 18). “Rick brought a steady and kind presence to the band for 50 years. His love came through his bass. RIP.” The statement did not offer any additional details regarding Anderson’s death, which comes after the April passing of Re Styles, who sang with the group. The Tubes formed on March 22, 1972, in San Francisco, and was the combined forces of two Phoenix bands that came from the city to California in 1969. The first band, called The Beans, included Anderson as well as other members Bill Spooner, Vince Welnick and Bob Mc...
JoJo Siwa Claims She Was Used ‘for Clout’ After Avery Cyrus Split: ‘I Got Played’
Trouble is brewing for JoJo Siwa and ex-girlfriend Avery Cyrus. The former Dance Moms star recently claimed that she had been “used” for internet fame by someone she thought she was “in love” with, harsh words presumably aimed at Cyrus, who revealed only days prior that she and Siwa had broken up after dating briefly. On Monday (Dec. 19), JoJo’s mom Jessalynn Siwa posted a video to her own Instagram Stories of her daughter talking heatedly. In the video, the “Boomerang” singer paces back and forth as Jessalynn asks, “Why are you mad?” “Because I got used!” JoJo responds. When asked by her mom what exactly she was used for for, JoJo keeps going. “For views and for clout,” she continues, still pacing, though never naming Cyrus. “I got tricked into being told I was loved and I got f–king...
Zinoleesky – Run It Up
Here is the new single from Zinoleesky titled “Run It Up.” Versatile singer Zinoleesky thrills his beloved fans with a brand new single titled “Run It Up,” a cut from his latest project, “Grit & Lust.” The new record is an amazing piece of music with production credit from his Young Jonn and Babybeat. This fills in as a follow-up to his new single titled “Odinaka.” Hope you like and add it to your playlist. Listen and share Zinoleesky – “Run It Up” below. Coming soon.
Zinoleesky – Many Roads ft Ayra Starr
Here is Zinoleesky’s fresh new single, “Many Roads.” The brand new song from Zinoleesky‘s most recent extended play, “Grit & Lust,” titled “Many Roads,” features Ayra Starr. And it is dedicated to his fans. Babybeat is credited with producing the incredible new record which is for your listening pleasure. This serves as a follow-up to his recent songs, “Odinaka,” “Run It Up,” among others. However, we recommend you add it to your playlist. Listen and share Zinoleesky ft Ayra Starr – “Many Road” below. Coming soon.
Martin Duffy, Felt and Primal Scream Keyboardist, Dies at 55
Martin Duffy, the Felt keyboardist who went on to play with Primal Scream, the Charlatans, and many more UK groups, has died, BBC News reports, citing tweets by the Charlatans’ Tim Burgess and Duffy’s brother, the BBC journalist Steve Duffy. He had injured his brain in a fall and died peacefully surrounded by family, his brother said. Duffy was 55. Raised in Birmingham, Duffy joined the cult indie-pop band Felt in 1985, and his playful organs became integral to their jangly sound, particularly on the 1986 classic Forever Breathes the Lonely Word, which featured a plaintive Duffy staring out from the cover. Throughout the late ’80s, he had been moonlighting as an ancillary keyboardist with Primal Scream, and, in 1991, two years after Felt split, Duffy joined the Scottish band full-time. He ...
Twitter Users Vote for Elon Musk to Step Down, He Pledges to “Abide by the Results”
After 53 days, countless firings, a total collapse of his free speech posture, and some very weird lies about doxxing and “assassination coordinates,” Elon Musk might be poised to step down as head of Twitter. Musk had always said that he expects to find a new CEO “over time,” but the timeline may have been accelerated starting Sunday, December 18th, when he put up a 12-hour Twitter poll asking, “Should I step down as head of Twitter? I will abide by the results of this poll.” In a decisive result, 57.5% to 42.5%, Twitter users voted “Yes,” he should abdicate the role. “Be careful what you wish,” Musk warned as the results of his poll came in. “You might get it.” In response to a comment suggesting a replacement CEO had already been selected, Musk added, “No one wa...
The Story Behind Nirvana’s Era-Defining Anthem “Smells Like Teen Spirit” as Told by Producer Butch Vig
Listen via Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Amazon Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Stitcher | Pocket Casts | YouTube | RSS Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit” is much more than a song. It was — and remains — one of music’s defining moments of the modern era and continues to find itself on virtually every all-time “best of” lists. (Same goes for the album it comes from, Nevermind, which ranked Top 10 on Consequence’s Greatest Albums of All Time list.) When released in 1991, “Spirit” transformed more than our airwaves — it transformed culture and society itself as it blasted onto the scene and thrust grunge into the mainstream. Those relentless drums that open the track, so loudly played by David Grohl that no mics were n...
