NEWS
1997–2001 Honda CR-V: A Compact Crossover is Born
The Honda CR-V is so common today, its numbers so thick on the ground in most places, that you’ve probably never stopped to consider what the compact crossover’s name means—or that it means anything at all. As a standout member of a mostly drab segment, the Honda’s name could just be the same old alphanumeric mumbo-jumbo applied to any number of modern vehicles. But did you know that it actually means “Comfortable Runabout Vehicle”? The funky name reflects the newness of what the CR-V represented back in the mid-1990s: there literally wasn’t a term for what it was, so Honda made one up. Among the first of a new kind of in-between vehicles (not quite a car, but not quite an SUV), the Honda, and others like it, would sometimes be called “soft-roaders...
2021 Audi Q5 Sportback First Look: Baby Got (Sport)Back
Audi adds a more rakish sibling to the Q5 model line for 2021. Dubbed the Q5 Sportback, the latest iteration of the brand’s compact crossover takes on the BMW X4 and Mercedes-Benz GLC-Class Coupe. Like its competition, the Q5 Sportback trades cargo space for style. Whereas today’s Q5 sports 23.1 cubic feet of space aft of its rear seatback, the Sportback offers just 18.0 cubes. That’s on par with the Bimmer and Merc, which provide 17.7 and 18.5 cubic feet of space with all seats in place. Fold the Sportback’s rear seats down and its cargo hold expands to 52.3 cubic feet, a sum that bests the X4’s and GLC’s and nearly matches that of the current Q5’s 53.1-cubic-foot space. See all 33 photos 2021 Audi Q5 Sportback: Familiar Face Predictably, th...
Halsey Slams Tory Lanez’s ‘Daystar’ & His Attempt to ‘Profit Off of His Violence’ Toward Megan Thee Stallion
Tory Lanez caused an uproar across social media on Thursday night (Sept. 24), when he teased that he would finally break his silence after Megan Thee Stallion revealed that the Canadian rapper shot her in the leg during a July confrontation. Instead of coming clean, the 28-year-old rapper and singer, whose real name is Daystar Peterson, unveiled a 17-track album Daystar, with the lead track “Money Over Fallouts” featuring the line, “Gotta see a couple questions: how the f–k you get shot in your foot, don’t hit no bones or tendons?” “Megan people tryna frame me for a shootin’…Knowin’ I ain’t do it but I’m comin’ at my truest,” he also claims on the track. Despite the controversy, Day...
5 Uplifting Moments in Latin Music This Week (September 26)
From career milestones and new music releases to major announcements and more, Billboard editors highlight the latest news buzz in Latin music every week. Here’s what happened in the Latin music world this week: Nicki Nicole Launched New Swag Argentine trap singer Nicki Nicole has teamed up with Spanish clothing company Pull&Bear for a limited-edition capsule collection. Including edgy sweatshirts, dresses, crop tops, and many more must-have trends, the collection is part of Sicko19, the remake of a pre-existing Pull&Bear line that’s been reinterpreted and digitized. The capsule collection is already available at select stores and on Pullandbear.com. Nicki Nicole is confirmed to speak at the 2020 Billboard Latin Music Week as part of its two-part On The Rise panels taking pla...
A$AP Ferg ft. Tyga “Dennis Rodman,” T.I. ft. Young Thug “Ring” & More | Daily Visuals 9.25.20
Source: Jose Perez/Bauer-Griffin / Getty Recently social media was abuzz with word that A$AP Ferg was kicked out of the A$AP Mob and while it’s supposedly squashed, at this point it doesn’t seem like the Harlem rapper needs to give up his “A$AP” moniker. The artist currently (or formerly?) known A$AP Ferg pays homage to one of the more underappreciated players in NBA history and in his visuals to the Tyg- assisted “Dennis Rodman” actually call on the talents of the controversial NBA legend to star alongside them as they ball in Chicago Bulls-inspired attire. This kinda explains why Ferg went and dyed his hair all kinds of color. Down south meanwhile, T.I. preps for the release of his 11th studio LP, The Libra (The Legend Is Back Running Atlanta) and links up with Young Thug for his latest ...
Lizzo Wants To Normalize Her Full Figure with “Body Normative” Movement
Source: PYMCA / Getty Lizzo is thicker than a bowl of cold grits and she’s proud of it. That’s why she’s telling the world to do away with promoting “body positivity” and to embrace her “body normative” movement instead. In an interview with Vogue, the singer explained how mainstream the “body positivity” movement has become not only white-washed but synonymous with slender body types. “It’s commercialized. Now, you look at the hashtag ‘body positive,’ and you see smaller-framed girls, curvier girls. Lotta white girls. And I feel no ways about that, because inclusivity is what my message is always about. I’m glad that this conversation is being included in the mainstream narrative.” So, how does this impact full-figured women? It doesn’t, at least not in a positive way.&n...
Azealia Banks Sued By Former Manager For Extortion
Source: Sakura/WENN.com / WENN Azealia Banks is back in the news after her former manager filed a lawsuit against the rapper. According to TMZ, Jeff Kwatinetz is suing the New York-bred MC, claiming she’s encouraging her fans to help her with a “coordinated campaign of extortion,” which he claims includes online harassment and threats. The ex-manager claims in the suit that Banks has been harassing him for a while, but recently crossed the line by threatening his family over what she claims are unpaid royalties. Court documents show that Banks signed to Kwatinetz in October 2014 when she was slated to release her debut album Broke with Expensive Taste but the partnership was short-lived after Jeff dropped her less than a year later in 2015 for her erratic behavior and her refusal to promot...
T.I. Shares What Tory Lanez Told Him About The Megan Thee Stallion Shooting Situation
Source: Bernard Smalls/ @PhotosByBeanz After Megan Thee Stallion confirmed what we all basically knew that a certain miniature Canadian singer was the one who shot her, many called for Tory Lanez to speak up about the incident. While there weren’t many, there were quite a few Black men in the Hip-Hop industry who called out Lanez while standing up for Thee Stallion. Names like Bun B, J.R. Smith were very vocal on social media and didn’t mince words when pointing out how wack Lanez was for shooting Megan. Atlanta rapper and self-proclaimed “King of The South” T.I. was another rapper who wanted the “Say It” crafter to explain himself expeditiously. In a recent interview with Complex, Tip revealed he did have a conversation with Lanez, and he shared the product of that discussion between the ...
Excision Announces New Record Label, Subsidia, and 118 New Tracks Dropping Monday
On September 11th, 2020, Excision posted a cryptic countdown and timer, plunging his fanbase into a rabbit hole of theories. Two weeks of agonizing waiting later, he has now revealed the launch of a new label called Subsidia Records. To say Excision is launching his new imprint in an unorthodox way would be a gross understatement. This Monday, September 28th, he is releasing 118 brand new songs, spanning across four different releases. No, “118” is not a typo. Constructed as a narrative, the rollout will begin with Dusk: Vol 1, which focuses on the “cutting edge of Experimental Bass.” Night: Vol 1 will come next with a concentration on “Heavy Bass tracks,” and Dawn: Vol 1 is set to follow with a theme of “melodic, lyrical Bass.” Excision...
2021 Rolls-Royce Ghost Extended Takes Rear-Seat Luxury to the Max
Rolls-Royce showed off the all-new 2021 Ghost, the brand’s “entry-level” luxury sedan (ha!), at the beginning of September. It’s a cleaner, statelier design that doesn’t reinvent the Ghost concept so much as hone it to a sharp edge. Built on the brand’s aluminum spaceframe chassis, the luxury sedan now has a platform befitting its station, too. Now Rolls-Royce is showing off the extended wheelbase version—fittingly enough, called the Ghost Extended. See all 10 photos And extended, it is. The wheelbase swells by six inches, and the overall length by seven. There’s a weight penalty to grow your Ghost, but it doesn’t appear to faze the sedan at all. The 102 pounds of additional weight involved in the stretch fails to affect the manufacturer-prov...
Lynk & Co Zero Concept: One Swede Chinese Electric SUV
It may seem like a nascent startup to us Americans, but Lynk & Co is already well-established in China, reporting more than 300,000 overall sales since the first vehicle went on sale in 2018. That’s quite a bit. Its range in that market is heavy on small crossovers that share an architecture with its corporate sibling, Volvo. Lynk & Co’s next play is to move in on the lower rungs of the EV crossover space, a place that more established players such as Tesla and Volkswagen are making moves in. Meet the Link & Co Zero concept. The Zero concept is a car-like crossover and a full-on EV, unlike the hybrids and PHEVs that Lynk & Co currently sells. It recalls the very first concept from the company, the CCC. The connection is more theoretical than literal, but th...
Strictly Discs in Wisconsin, in a Pandemic: ‘People Are Cautiously Optimistic and Pleasantly Surprised’
Store owner Angie Roloff says her store and other independent record shops have done better than expected during the pandemic. In October 1988, Angie Roloff and her husband Ron opened Strictly Discs in Madison, Wisconsin, after Ron left a career in the biomedical research field to pursue his love of music full time. Nearly 31 years later, the couple made the difficult decision to shutter in-store operations due to COVID-19, roughly a week before Governor Tony Evers forced a mandatory shutdown of all non-essential businesses. Now that the Wisconsin Supreme Court has overturned Evers’ stay-at-home order — ruling it “unlawful” and “unenforceable” — the Roloffs and their employees have reopened the store. As part of Billboard’s efforts to best cover th...
