entertainment blog
Rezz, Tale of Us, ZHU, More Confirmed for Lightning in a Bottle’s 20th Anniversary Festival
This year brings the 20th anniversary of SoCal’s Lightning in a Bottle festival, and its organizers have spared no expense. This week brought the release of a star-studded Phase 1 lineup poster, revealing Rezz, Diplo, ZHU, Tale of Us and The Glitch Mob as headliners. Taking place at Buena Vista Lake in Bakersfield, from May 24-29, the fest will host more than 60 artists via this first wave of announcements. Longstanding summertime favorites like Phantogram, Caribou and The Floozies join surging trendsetters like Desiree, Canabliss, Sam Shure and Deer Jade. A host of bass music acts—from Liquid Stranger and LSDream to Moore Kismet and Mersiv—rounds out the expansive bill of music-makers handpicked for the iconic event’s milestone. Rezz, Diplo, ZHU and The Gl...
A$AP Rocky Pays Tribute to Lost Rappers on Moving Track “Same Problems”
A$AP Rocky has shared an emotional track reflecting on the vicious cycle of rappers lost to gun violence and substance abuse. Originally performed during his Amazon Music live show last month, Rocky has now released the single on streaming platforms. The song arrives on the anniversary of A$AP Yams‘ tragic death. Yams, whose real name is Steven Rodriguez, was a fellow member of the A$AP Mob collective and passed away from an accidental overdose in 2015. Yams is among the late rappers Rocky paid homage to during last month’s performance, along with DMX, Takeoff, The Notorious B.I.G., Pop Smoke, Juice WRLD and more — a montage of photographs of them flashed behind him as he sang. “How many problems get solved? / Am I a product of things that I saw?” Rocky professes in the chorus. “How many p...
Golden State Warriors & Oakland Hip-Hop Legends Visit White House
HipHopWired Featured Video Source: The Washington Post / Getty The Golden State Warriors were guests of honor at the White House to celebrate their championship, with E-40, Too Short & other legends from the Bay in attendance as well. On Tuesday afternoon (Jan. 17th), the White House was buzzing with excitement as the Warriors were on hand to celebrate their 2021-2022 NBA championship at a ceremony held by President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris. The crowd also boasted Hip-Hop royalty from the Bay Area, as E-40, Too Short, and Mister F.A.B. along with media personality Sway Calloway were present for the reception. Related Stories Superstar point guard Stephen Curry presented President Biden and Vice President Harris with customized team jerseys. Vice President Harris beame...
El Chapo Sends “SOS” To Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador
HipHopWired Featured Video Source: STR / Getty It looks like notorious Mexican drug lord Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán is plotting his next great escape from a maximum-security prison. But instead of having his henchmen break him out, El Chapo is appealing to the President of Mexico to help him regain his freedom. Raw Story is reporting that the former head of the Sinaloa drug cartel has been suffering “psychological torment” in the U.S. prison he’s currently being held at according to his Mexico-based lawyer, Jose Refugio Rodriguez. And “In the six years that Joaquin has been in the United States, he has not seen the sun.” Related Stories Naturally we doubt that anyone will be losing any sleep over the fact that El Chapo isn’t getting enough time to shine in the sun, but some feel the stateme...
University Of Alabama Darius Miles Charged With Providing Man With Gun Used In Fatal Shooting
HipHopWired Featured Video Darius Miles, a player for the University of Alabama’s men’s basketball team, has been charged with capital murder after investigators uncovered details of a fatal shooting that occurred over the weekend. According to police reports and reporting from news outlets, Miles provided the gun used in the shooting to another man. Darius Miles, 21, was a junior for the Crimson Tide and hails from Washington, D.C. As reported by ESPN, Miles and Michael Lynn Davis, 20, were both charged with capital murder in the shooting death of Jamea Harris, who was 23. The crime took place at a popular area near Alabama’s Tuscaloosa campus grounds known as the Strip. Both Miles and Davis are both currently in the Tuscaloosa County jail and may remind there up to two months before a he...
Bank of America Customers Claim They Are Missing Money, Twitter Reacts To The Possible Jig
HipHopWired Featured Video CLOSE Source: Brandon Bell / Getty / Bank of America One thing you don’t mess with is people’s money, and Bank of America is feeling the heat from some customers. Wednesday, Jan.18, PIX 11 reports that some Bank of America customers are worried after noticing money was missing from their accounts and have taken to social media to voice their anger. “Saw Bank of America was trending and turns out my account was impacted so happy Wednesday everyone,” one person tweeted. “I am at the point of a collapse. where is my money?” another Twitter user said. ABC 7 Chicago reports that at least one person claims their entire bank account was “wiped clean.” The Daily Mail says some customers are complaining about funds being missing from deposits and Zelle transactions ...
Is Bassnectar Staging a Direct-to-Fans Comeback?
After three years of silence and in the midst of an ongoing legal battle, Bassnectar (real name Lorin Ashton), appears to be staging a comeback. On Tuesday evening, a new mix was uploaded to the Bassnectar Mixcloud account, with the producer’s official Instagram account wiped clean around the same time. Most significantly, however, is a new website, UnlockTheOtherSide.com, which went live around the same time and features the signature Bassnectar logo. Fans discovered the site — the landing page for which was live but password protected on Tuesday evening but is currently offline — with copy describing it as “the new home for the Bassnectar universe & beyond,” according to screenshots reviewed by Billboard. Access for a membership to the site, according to additional screenshots, ...
50 Greatest Rappers of All Time (40-31 Revealed)
UPDATE: The rollout of Billboard/Vibe’s Top 50 Greatest Rappers of All Time continues with this week’s reveal of the rappers ranked 40- 31. The Greatest of All Time, aka the GOAT. That’s a distinguished — and also contentious — honor when it comes to ranking who or what is the ultimate best, whether you’re talking films, TV shows, restaurants or any other subject. In early 2023, Billboard/Vibe is ranking the Top 50 Greatest Rappers of All Time as part of our salute to this year’s golden anniversary of hip-hop. (The genre dates back to 1973, when DJ Kool Herc first set up his two turntables to rock a Bronx party.) The rollout began with the Jan. 11 reveal of the rappers ranked 50-41. Then each succeeding week, 10 more rappers will be revealed, with the final top 10 being announced during th...
Dua Lipa Named Met Gala 2023 Co-Chair
Glitter in her eyes, glitter in the sky, Dua Lipa will be shining just the way she likes at this year’s Met Gala. As announced by Vogue on Wednesday (Jan. 18), the 27-year-old pop star has signed on to be one of four 2023 co-chairs for the A-list fashion event that comes around every first Monday in May. Joining the pop star as fellow co-chairs are Penélope Cruz, Michaela Coel and Roger Federer, a lineup that spans “every realm of popular culture,” according to Vogue. The four of them will assist Anna Wintour in planning a night based around this year’s theme — Karl Lagerfeld: A Line of Beauty — which pays tribute to the late German fashion designer. The “Levitating” singer posted the news on her Instagram account, writing, “Excited to announce that I am one of the #MetGala 2023 Co-Chairs…...
A$AP Rocky Honors Hip-Hop Artists Who Recently Died With New Song ‘Same Problems?’: Listen
Fresh off celebrating the 10 year anniversary of his debut studio album Long. Live. ASAP, A$AP Rocky is giving fans a taste of new music, all while honoring people within the hip-hop community who have died in recent years by releasing his new track “Same Problems?” Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news The song — which Rocky debuted in December as part of his Amazon Music Live Thursday Night Football performance — sees the rapper getting introspective about the role he’s potentially played in perpetuating violence in rap music. “How many problems get solved?/ Am I a product of things that I saw?/ How many problems get solved?/ Am I proud of the things in my songs?” he muses in the chorus. The song also arrives on the eight-year anniversary o...
Kelela Crafts a Pulsing Party Hit With New Cut “Contact”
In anticipation of her forthcoming album, RAVEN, Kelela has dropped a new track “Contact.” Marking the fourth released single from the LP, the continues the energetic aura from other RAVEN songs. With a steady pulsing beat, “Contact” invites everyone to get up whether it be dancing in their living room or on the dance floor. “Oh, it’s a sauna, here if you wanna (We’re standing in the light)/It’s 2 A.M. and we made it, everybody faded (So wild, so wild, so wild)/And now I’m floatin’ away, far and away (You know it feels so right)/You try to stall and delay, but I wanna play,” sings Kelela in the chorus – apt;y describing a club atmosphere. “‘Contact’ has a little bit of something for every part of the night. It’s a soundtrack for pre-gaming,” said Kelela. “It’s also the interior club e...
Lil Yachty to Release Fifth Studio Album ‘Let’s Start Here’ Later This Month
Lil Yachty has announced that he’ll be dropping his latest album Let’s Start Here via Quality Control and Motown Records. The project will land as the Georgia rapper’s fifth studio album, following 2020’s Lil Boat 3. Yachty shared the cover art for the LP on Instagram, which shows a warped image of men and women wearing suits.“Let’s Start Here. – 1/27,” he wrote in the caption. “Chapter 2. Thank You for the patience.” Just late last month, it was reported that Yachty’s album, then-titled Sonic Ranch, had been leaked online. It’s unclear whether Let’s Start Here will include the same songs that were set to appear on Sonic Ranch or if it’s an entirely different body of work. The rapper has been teasing that his next record will be “a non-rap album.” In an interview with Ice Box last year, he...
