Hip-Hop
Meek Mill Breaks Down the “Otherside of America” on New Single: Stream
Meek Mill has shared a new single called “Otherside of America” about his childhood growing up black in the US. The political track opens with a sample of a negative Donald Trump speech over romantic orchestral strings, setting the rapper up for an emotional journey. Don’t mistake “Otherside of America” for your usual protest song. While there’s a high intensity to the track, courtesy of producers Butter Beats and Shroom, the Grammy-nominated rapper spends his time talking about the effects of poverty, violence, and racism on black kids-turned-teenagers with nuance and vivid imagery. “Reporting live from the other side/ Same corner where my brothers died,” he raps. “Living like we ain’t got care/ Told my mama I ain’t dying here.” Stream it below. Earlier this week, Mill — who was released ...
Black Music Month 2020: TDE’s Reason on Petitioning For Cops to Be Local to Their Area & Why He’s ‘Never Been Prouder to Be Black’
HIP-HOP 6/5/2020 by Reason With Black Music Month in full effect this year, African American artists are looking for ways to stay active, motivated, and committed on the fight for social change within their communities in light of the recent deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Adbery and more. Spurred by the callous disregard for Black lives, artists are hoping to use their platforms as microphones to invoke reform in both the short and long term. Every Friday of this month, we will have an artist speak on today’s climate, offer their suggestions for revision going forward, and why being Black continues to be a gift more than a curse. TDE’s Reason is first at-bat with his take on why he wants America to reconsider the hiring process for cops, and why he values his sk...
Lauren London Speaks Out About Gun Violence, Nipsey Hussle’s Legacy: ‘It’s Like He’s Touching People Still’
Lauren London sat down with Jada Pinkett-Smith on Wednesday (June 3) to discuss the impact of growing up around gun violence, the legacy of her late parter Nipsey Hussle and how she educates her sons about handling police interactions. “What I instill in them is more about the police. How to handle yourself when you get pulled over. That’s more of my education, protecting them being black men in America,” said London about what she talks about with her three-year-old son with Hussle, Kross, and her 10-year-old with former partner Lil Wayne, Kameron. London said that growing up in Los Angeles she had schoolmates who were in gangs, and by summertime “they were gone… they had transitioned from gun violence.” And while she never got numb to hearing that one of them had ...
Kanye West Donates $2M, Launches Education Plan for George Floyd’s Daughter
Kanye West is donating a multi-million dollar sum for college savings funds for George Floyd’s daughter, plus legal costs for the Arbery and Taylor families, Billboard can confirm. As the hip-hop star joins street protests in his hometown Chicago, Kanye has made a $2 million donation to assist the families of Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery and Breonna Taylor, whose murders have sparked protests across America and around the globe. According to several published reports, West set up a 529 education plan for Floyd’s six-year-old daughter, Gianna. Kanye was spotted joining in Chicago’s south side on Thursday night joining the #JusticeForGeorgeFloyd march, in protest of Floyd’s death during his arrest by Minneapolis police, footage of which was captured and seen by millions around the globe. Ahmau...
Teen Grazed as Bullets Fly on Set of YFN Lucci Video Shoot
A teenager was injured Wednesday night (June 3) after gunfire rang out during the filming of a music video in Atlanta, the city’s police said. Rapper YFN Lucci, whose real name is Rayshawn Bennett, was filming the music video in an apartment complex in the southeastern part of the city, Atlanta police told WGCL-TV. Police said the 15-year-old boy’s thumb was grazed after some 21 bullets were fired, with at least one striking YFN Lucci’s Bentley. The teen was not identified and it was not immediately known if he has been hospitalized. YFN Lucci left the apartment complex without his luxury car before authorities arrived at the scene, police said. Police are searching for suspects in the shooting. You Deserve to Make Money Even When you are looking for Dates Online. So we reimagined what a d...
Saint Jhn Scraps ‘Roses’ Video Shoot With Future, Donates Budget to Bail Out Protesters, Black Businesses
Tuesday was designated as #TheShowMustBePaused by the music industry in order to give people a chance to “disconnect from work and reconnect with our community.” Guyanese-American singer SAINt JHN broke that Black Out Tuesday protest, but for a very good reason. “I don’t got no speeches, I ain’t a speech n*gga,” he wrote. “People are hurt and I feel them, period.” In a call for “better leadership” in the midst of a nationwide outbreak of protests over the police-related killing of unarmed black man George Floyd in Minneapolis — and nights of unrest around the country — the singer revealed on Tuesday that he was planning to shoot a video in the next few days for the remix to his hit “Roses” that he just reco...
YG Has a Clear Message in New Protest Song ‘FTP’
As nationwide protests continue to grow, demanding justice for George Floyd and the black community as a whole, YG has shared a new protest song titled “FTP (F— the Police).” Sharing the news of the song on Instagram, the rapper also revealed that he had to cancel his planned demonstration on Hollywood and Vine in Los Angeles. “I was told today that my protest is not safe, and people could get hurt or shot,” he explained. “I’m not trying to get none of my people hurt or shot so I’mma cancel the date.” “It’s f—ed up but I’m gonna come back bigger and better,” he continued. “I’m partnering with Black Lives Matter and we gonna do this s— the right way. For the people, for the city, and for all the artists that wanna pop out ...
The Weeknd Donated $500K to Racial Justice Initiatives: ‘Please Give What You Can Even If It’s a Small Amount’
The R&B star also challenged major labels and streaming services to “go big and public” with their donations. The Weeknd is urging his nearly 23 million followers to follow his lead in donating to nonprofit organizations committed to racial equality. On Monday (June 1), the star detailed receipts of $500,000 in donations he split between Black Lives Matter Global Network, Colin Kaepernick’s Know Your Rights Camp and National Bail Out. “Keep supporting our brothers and sisters out there risking everything to push for actual change for our black lives,” he captioned the Instagram slideshow. “Urging everyone with big pockets to give and give big and if you have less please give what you can even if it’s a small amount.” In a follow-up post t...
YG Releases New Protest Song “FTP” (“Fuck the Police”): Stream
For the last four years, “FDT” has been something of a signature song for YG — and with good reason. Now he’s back with another acronymic protest song to match the current socio-political climate: “FTP”, or “Fuck the Police”. Bass heavy with piano notes creeping throughout, the track sees YG being direct about his feelings about the “Ku Klux Cops,” as he puts it. “I’m tired of being tired of being tired/ I’m tired of being shot at like a opp,” he raps. “Callin’ all the foodies from the tribe/ We on some fuck the police shit, it’s the vibe.” YG announced the song via an Instagram video in which he said he wouldn’t be attending a protest he’d promoted earlier. Standing in front of a framed photo of Nipsey Hussle (who joined him on “FDT”), YG said, “I was told today that my protest is not saf...
Killer Mike Delivers a History Lesson and Assigns White America Homework on Colbert: Watch
After a Minneapolis police officer murdered George Floyd, America erupted. Police clashed with protestors, cities imposed curfews, largely peaceful demonstrations spilled over into vandalism, looting, and arson, and white nationalists impersonated legitimate activists to sow distrust and chaos. In the midst of generational turmoil, the rapper Killer Mike delivered a powerful speech that balanced historical awareness, community love, and a rage that threatened to become all-consuming. By speaking directly to his Atlanta neighbors, he gave voice to Americans everywhere. And now that his words have gone viral, the artist born Michael Render is using his heightened platform to push that message forward. On Monday, June 1st, Killer Mike called into the The Late Show with Stephen Colbert&nb...
Terrace Martin Teams With Denzel Curry, Kamasi Washington on Incendiary Protest Song ‘Pig Feet’: Listen
L.A. rapper/producer Terrace Martin has teamed with Denzel Curry, jazz great Kamasi Washington, G Perico and Daylyt on the hard-hitting protest track “Pig Feet.” In the description of the song’s video — a collection of black-and-white footage of the past week’s protests in the wake of the police-involved killing of George Floyd — he writes, “someone asked, how do I feel? I told them hurt, fearless, angry, aware and fully ready to protect me, my family & my people at all costs. I got together with Black men that felt the same way and created a work of truth.” The track, which dropped on Tuesday morning (June 2), opens with a fiery, breathless verse from Curry, who raps, “Helicopters over my balcony/ If the police can’t harass, ...
Anonymous Hacks Chicago Police Scanners to Play N.W.A.’s “Fuck Tha Police”
N.W.A. As the protests over George Floyd’s death and normalized police brutality continue into a new week, we’ve seen everything from celebrities marching in the streets to tone-deaf remixes of Martin Luther King Jr. speeches. Over the weekend, the notorious hacker group Anonymous joined the fray by tapping into Chicago Police Department’s radios and playing N.W.A.’s “Fuck Tha Police”. This past Saturday, the notorious hacker group returned to social media to announce their solidarity with the protestors fighting racism and corruption in the US. “If the police can’t restrain themselves and are shooting reporters, kicking protesters, punching protesters, and engaging in violence — how can anyone expect the people to restrain themselves? People are done being brutalised and murdered,” they t...
