entertainment blog
Jay-Z, Lil Wayne & Hip-Hop’s Insufferable Need To Debate
HipHopWired Featured Video Source: Kevin Mazur / Getty Jay-Z caused a seismic shift in Hip-Hop by boldly declaring that no artist in his genre would withstand his barrage in a VERZUZ battle, via Twitter, and the dust still has yet to settle. This moment shined a light on Hip-Hop’s insufferable need to debate and caused an unnecessary divide between music fans regionally and generationally, but what does this prove in the end? Hip-Hop has existed for nearly five decades and still shows signs of evolving from its early roots in the Bronx and enjoys dominance in the music industry due to its global impact. The passion fans have for their favorites is easily expressed via the free-flowing channels of social media, often derailing into unchecked bouts of opinion versus opinion that spiral out o...
Jay-Z, Lil Wayne & Hip-Hop’s Insufferable Need To Debate
HipHopWired Featured Video Source: Kevin Mazur / Getty Jay-Z caused a seismic shift in Hip-Hop by boldly declaring that no artist in his genre would withstand his barrage in a VERZUZ battle, via Twitter, and the dust still has yet to settle. This moment shined a light on Hip-Hop’s insufferable need to debate and caused an unnecessary divide between music fans regionally and generationally, but what does this prove in the end? Hip-Hop has existed for nearly five decades and still shows signs of evolving from its early roots in the Bronx and enjoys dominance in the music industry due to its global impact. The passion fans have for their favorites is easily expressed via the free-flowing channels of social media, often derailing into unchecked bouts of opinion versus opinion that spiral out o...
Excision Announces Fifth Album, “Onyx”
Excision is getting set to blast fans out of 2021. Just over a week ago, the bass music titan teased that something big was on the way. Through a cryptic video with electric guitar, heavy bass, and otherworldly visuals, fans didn’t know what to expect considering Excision has his hands in multiple music festivals, a record label, and other ventures. Putting an end to the frenzy of speculation, Excision has now revealed that his fifth studio album is on the way. Titled Onyx, the album was initially scheduled to release this year but was delayed a mere 13 days. At the time of writing, Excision has not shared any previews of the album aside from the initial teaser video. With a heavy metal introduction, the video builds up to another one of his signature, heavy-hitting drops b...
Arizona to Host Carl Cox, Kaskade, Adam Beyer, More for Inaugural “Body Language” Festival
In Arizona, there’s one event promoter that has the Phoenix EDM scene on lock: Relentless Beats. These top-notch organizers already power landmark festivals like Decadence NYE, Crush Arizona and Goldrush. Now, their sub-brand RBDeep is adding yet another event to the company’s docket: Body Language. The three-day festival will be dedicated to house, techno and underground music. Slated for March 4-6 at Rawhide Event Center, the fest will welcome Adam Beyer, Boris Brejcha, Carl Cox and Wax Motif to its three stages, as well as a Kaskade “Redux” set and a special B2B performance from longtime friends Dombresky and Noizu (read our interview with the pair here). According to organizers, a second wave of artists will be announced in early 2022. You can bu...
Anytime, Anywhere: Mix On the Go With This New Portable DJ Set
Renegade performances are about to get a whole lot spicier, thanks to a new portable DJ set developed by Japanese tech company Stokyo. Weighing in at a manageable nine pounds, the set comes complete with two turntables and a two-channel mixer, as well as six line inputs/outputs on the latter for speakers, headphones and a monitor. According the Stokyo, the set is modeled after the iconic GP3 Portable Turntable, which was produced by Columbia Japan through the late 1990s. Upgraded features include pitch adjustment for 12-inch or 7-inch records and a crossfader on the mixer. Each of the three units are battery or AC powered. The portable DJ set is now available for pre-order on Turntable Lab for $629.95. You can check it out here or purchase the portable turntable or mixe...
US Congress Investigates Live Nation’s Role in Astroworld Tragedy
A Congressional committee has launched an investigation into Astroworld promoter Live Nation and its role in the deadly crowd surge that left 10 people dead and hundreds more injured. The House Oversight and Reform Committee sent a letter to Michael Rapino, president and CEO of Live Nation Entertainment, Inc., requesting information on what led up to the November 5 event and the organizer’s subsequent response. “Recent reports raise serious concerns about whether your company took adequate steps to ensure the safety of the 50,000 concertgoers who attended Astroworld Festival,” the committee members wrote. Reports cited in the letter suggest that security and medical staff were “inexperienced or ill-equipped to deal with mass injuries,” the placement of the barricades made it difficult for ...
Joan Didion Dies at 87
Iconic American author Joan Didion has died at 87 from Parkinson’s disease, The New York Times reports. Didion became most well known and regarded for her nonfiction which often blurred the lines between journalistic feature and personal essay. For her 1968 collection Slouching Towards Bethlehem, she covered musicians like Joan Baez, Janis Joplin, and more. Over the course of her career, Didion published five novels, six screenplays, and many more works of nonfiction. Her most recent, South and West: From a Notebook, came out in 2017. Another collection of essays, Let Me Tell You What I Mean, was issued earlier this year. Didion was also the subject of a Netflix documentary about her life and work, titled Joan Didion: The Center Will Not Hold. Joan Didion was born in Sacramento, California...
Nirvana Respond to Nevermind Artwork Lawsuit, Seek Dismissal
A lawyer for Nirvana has formally responded to a lawsuit regarding the band’s Nevermind artwork, as Billboard notes. The motion to dismiss was filed yesterday (December 22) in a California federal court. In the filing, the lawyer argues that plaintiff Spencer Elden’s claims are “barred by the applicable statute of limitations.” In addition, the lawyer writes, “Elden’s claim that the photograph on the Nevermind album cover is ‘child pornography’ is, on its face, not serious.” Spencer Elden filed the lawsuit on August 24, accusing Nirvana of violating federal pornography laws and also accusing them of exploitation. The surviving members of Nirvana (Dave Grohl and Krist Novoselic), the estate of Kurt Cobain, Courtney Love, photographer Kirk Weddle, the labels that released Nevermind, and othe...
Fireboy DML Taps Ed Sheeran for New “Peru” Remix: Listen
Fireboy DML has shared a new version of his song “Peru,” now featuring Ed Sheeran. The Nigerian singer-songwriter released the original version of the hit single back in July. Check out their collaboration below. “It has been a dream knowing Ed Sheeran is a fan of my sound and having him jump on a song that was inspired by me traveling the world,” Fireboy DML remarked in a press release. “Not only is this an exciting moment for me, but also for Afrobeats. I hope this is the first of many collaborations with Ed and other artists around the globe, and I can’t wait for everyone to enjoy this song during the holidays.” Last year, Fireboy DML released his breakout sophomore album Apollo. He’s since stopped by The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon to perform a special medley and teamed up with ...
Nas Is Dropping a New Hit-Boy Produced Album Titled ‘Magic’
Nas and Hit-Boy have teamed up on a surprise new album titled Magic, releasing at midnight on Christmas Eve. The “early Christmas gift” is composed of nine tracks, including “Wave Gods” ft. A$AP Rocky and DJ Premier. Here is the full tracklist: Speechless Meet Joe Black Ugly 40-16 Building Hollywood Gangsta Wu For The Children Wave Gods ft. A$AP Rocky and DJ Premier The Truth Dedicated Nas and Hit-Boy previously collaborated on Nas’ last album, King’s Disease II. Released in August, it has been nominated for Best Rap Album at the upcoming 64th Grammy Awards. The musical minds also worked together on 2020’s King’s Disease, which scored Nas his first-ever Grammy Award for Best Rap Album. Magic drops at midnight on December 24 across all major streaming services. In o...
Biden Extends Pause On Student Loan Payments Due To New COVID Case Surge
HipHopWired Featured Video Source: Drew Angerer / Getty President Joe Biden‘s administration announced on Wednesday (December 22nd) that due to the latest surge in COVID-19 cases across the country as a result of the Omicron variant, it will continue letting Americans hold off on repaying their student loans. “We know that millions of student loan borrowers are still coping with the impacts of the pandemic and need some more time before resuming payments,”, President Biden said in a statement that announced the move. The decision means that those borrowers do not have to make any payments until May 1st. The original deadline for loan repayment to begin was to be January 31st. The interest rate will be unchanged, remaining at 0% during the three-month extension period. “This additional exte...
Brooklyn Barista: Angela Yee Opens Coffee Shop In Pandemic
HipHopWired Featured Video Source: Tommaso Boddi / Getty Angela Yee continues to find ways to boss up. She has launched her own coffee shop in her hometown. As spotted on Page Six the media personality has added yet another brand to her emerging portfolio of businesses. This fall her Coffee Uplifts People (CUP) shop enjoyed a soft opening. She detailed how she came about the idea to the celebrity gossip site. Yee revealed she had started the brand at home during the height of quarantine and found instant success. She thought that opening up a brick and mortar location would make better sense for the business model but her inner circle had their doubts. “A lot of my friends told me it wasn’t a good idea to open up a coffee shop because there were so many businesses shutting down” she a...
