NEWS
Snoop Dogg, Justin Bieber, Ariana Grande & More Speak Out After George Floyd Death
National outrage is growing after a video of a Minnesota officer allegedly suffocating a Black man by kneeling on his neck surfaced on the Internet Monday night (May 25). The unarmed man, named George Floyd, told officers repeatedly that he could not breathe, and was ignored. Floyd went to Hennepin County Medical Center after falling unconscious. He died shortly after. On Tuesday, the four officers involved in the incident were fired. “This is the right call,” tweeted Mayor Jacob Frey in response to the action taken. A number of celebrities have joined the cry for justice on social media, condemning the Minnesota police for firing the officers only after national outrage, and asking for the ceaseless racism in the United States to stop. See their posts ...
Grammy Watch: Summer Walker, Doja Cat & More Likely Nominees for Best New Artist
Roddy Ricch has a good chance of landing Grammy nominations for both record and album of the year. His smash “The Box” headed the Billboard Hot 100 for 11 weeks, longer than any other single this year. His album Please Excuse Me For Being Antisocial led the Billboard 200 for four weeks. But you can scratch Ricch off your list of likely Grammy candidates for best new artist. He won a Grammy last year (best rap performance for his featured role on Nipsey Hussle‘s “Racks in the Middle”), which makes him ineligible. Several other artists who might have had a good shot at best new artist nods are also probably going to be ruled ineligible when the Grammy Screening Committee meets (either in-person or by Zoom) this fall. Megan Thee Stallion had released ...
Here’s How The Internet That Built Up Doja Cat Broke Down Her Alleged Racist Remarks
On Monday morning (May 25), Doja Cat tried shutting down the #DojaCatIsOverParty by addressing her allegedly racist songs from the past, early participation in what was considered to be alt-right chat rooms and self-hatred issues rooted in her curly hair in a lengthy Instagram Live video. The video supported a note she wrote to her 6.8 million fans on Monday about how she grew up using public chat rooms to socialize with others and how she takes pride in being a Black woman with her father Dumisani Dlamini’s side being from South Africa. What resurfaced about Doja Cat (real name Amalaratna Zandile Dlamini) over the weekend got Twitter chatting nonstop about whether the “Say So” hitmaker, who recently scored her first No. 1 Billboard Hot 100 hit with th...
Big Hit Entertainment, Home to BTS, Strikes Deal With Seventeen Label PLEDIS
Expanding its strategy to build a multi-label structure, Big Hit is now the largest shareholder of PLEDIS Entertainment. South Korea-based powerhouse Big Hit Entertainment has become the largest shareholder of record label PLEDIS Entertainment, home to K-pop superstars Seventeen and NU’EST, it was announced Monday. Under the terms of the deal, PLEDIS will retain its independence as a label, though its artists will now receive support from Big Hit’s business entities and support organizations to expand their reach into overseas markets — similar to the way Big Hit turned boy band BTS into a top-charting phenomenon across the globe. The PLEDIS deal is the latest move in Big Hit’s strategy to expand its multi-label structure following the company’s acquisition of Source Music last ...
Madonna Rips Minneapolis Police After George Floyd Murder: ‘This Has to Stop!!’
Madonna took to Instagram on Tuesday to excoriate the four Minneapolis police officers who murdered George Floyd. During the incident, Floyd repeatedly told police officers that he could not breathe and was ignored, with one kneeling on his neck in a disturbing video. He died shortly after. According to CNN, the officers were responding to an alleged forgery (ed. note: what the fuck) in progress and the suspect was sitting in a car allegedly under the influence. The officers involved in the incident were fired on Tuesday. Madonna, along with a growing chorus of other major music personalities, was justifiably outraged. “with his knee on his neck, handcuffed and helpless, crying for his life with his face in the street is the most sickening, heartbreaking thing ive seen in a long time. This...
DJ’s Perform Mass Exodus To Twitch As Instagram Continues To Shut Down Live Sets
Source: Credit: HipHopWired Facebook will not let creatives be great on the world’s most needed social platform during quarantine. Thus several disc jockeys are taking their talents to Jeff Bezos. As spotted on Page Six Instagram was doing the most last weekend when millions of users were looking forward to enjoying some tunes during Memorial Day weekend. As previously reported Instagram has very strict copyright policies in place that prohibits music to be played a length. While many behind the wheels of steel quickly found a way around the algorithm was to use sound effects and cut the records up, it all came crashing down when it seems the uber popular social media platform started enforcing their protocol to the letter. Several music masters found their streams continuously u...
Spain to Resume Welcoming International Travelers Starting in July
There’s a glimmer of hope that summer in Ibiza may still be possible after all. Over the weekend, Prime Minister of Spain Pedro Sánchez announced that the country will reopen to international tourists starting July 1st. The move will hopefully support Spain’s crucial nightlife industry down the line. However, at the time of writing, Ibiza’s major clubs are still closed through the end of June and have not yet announced their own plans for reopening. Ibiza’s most popular clubs all have capacities of at least 3,000, making it difficult to imagine that any of the venues will operate even close to scale in the immediate months ahead. Spain is the second most popular tourist destination in the world and welcomed an estimated 80 million visitors annually pr...
Mastodon Recording New Song for Bill and Ted Face the Music
It’s been a while since we last heard from prog-metal titans Mastodon. It appears as if that’s about to change. In a fairly wide-ranging conversation on the RocknRoll Beer Guy podcast, guitarist Bill Kelliher said the group has “20 rough songs” recorded and that they’re working on a song for the upcoming Bill and Ted movie. “We got asked, like a couple months ago, to be a part of the new ‘Bill & Ted’ movie, to put a song in there,” he said. “So we wrote a song to be in that movie which we’re kinda of wrapping up now. It’s pretty fun.” Excellent! Kelliher also got into the vibe of what a new Mastodon album is going to sound like. He said that before COVID-19 hit, the band had “20 rough songs” recorded. “I’ve definitely been writing like a madman, like crazy. It’s different than Emperor ...
White Dog Choker Amy Cooper Who Falsely Reported Black Man In Central Park Gives Weak Apology
Source: @melodyMcooper / Twitter Amy Cooper, the white woman who attempted to falsely accuse a Black man of physically harming her after he checked her on dog walking rules, is now speaking out. In her first public statement since the viral video of her endangering the life of Christian Cooper and her dog as well, Cooper gave a rather thin apology for her actions. As reported by CNN, Ms. Cooper, who was filmed on Memorial Day walking her dog in an area of New York’s Central Park known as the Ramble, Mr. Cooper (no relation) informed the woman that she should observe the park’s rules and properly leash her pet. What ensued is Ms. Cooper pulling out her phone and calling 911 stating that she was taking a photo of Mr. Cooper and calling the cops while adding the false claim that Mr. Cooper wa...
Universal Music Group Launches Def Jam Africa
Source: Def Jam Africa / Def Jam Africa Artists. Top row L-R / Larry Gaaga,, Boity, Tshego / Middle Row L-R. Nadia Nakai, Cassper Nyovest, Nasty C / Bottom Row L-R. Ricky Tyler, Vector, Tellaman Def Jam is one of Hip-Hop’s most iconic and storied record labels with over 35 years in the game. Today (May 26), the Universal Music Group announced the launch of Def Jam Africa. The new label is being touted as “representing the best hip-hop, Afrobeats and trap talent in Africa” and will followed the “blueprint” set forth by Def Jam, founded by Russell Simmons and Rick Rubin in the latter’s NYU dorm back in 1984. Although based in Johannesburg, South Africa and Lagos, Nigeria, Def Jam Africa is tasked with locking down talent across the whole continent. The label ...
Ayesha Curry Shows Off Weight Loss In Viral Bikini Photo, Fans Call Foul
Source: Donell Woodson / Getty Chef, entrepreneur, wife, and mom Ayesha Curry took some time out during quarantine to shed a few pounds, but not everyone is happy about how she chose to show it off. On Sunday (May 24), Ayesha Curry took to Instagram to show off a smoking new body that left a few fans sweating. In a picture taken by her NBA superstar husband, Stephen Curry, Ayesha posted a picture of herself in a form-fitting bikini with the caption, “Took me long enough.” While initial reactions to her amazing new look were congratulatory, it didn’t take long for a few fans to dig up an old tweet where Ayesha Curry was calling out women for “barely wearing clothes.” Citing hypocrisy, the fans claim that Mrs. Curry’s stance was driven by her insecurities about her weight before accusing her...
Spinnin’ Records Shares Playlist of Over 50 Songs in 360° Reality Audio
Spinnin’ Records has introduced a potentially game-changing way to listen to playlists. The famed Dutch dance imprint recently shared a playlist of over 50 songs in 360° Reality Audio, a groundbreaking, immersive music experience that uses Sony’s spatial audio technology. The technology allows individual sounds like piano, guitar, and even ancillary noise coming from a live audience to be placed in a 360° spherical sound field, amplifying it for listeners who want to submerge themselves in music in a more engaging way. Spinnin’ has implemented 360° Reality Audio in its new playlist, which features tracks from Curbi, Quintino, Lucas & Steve, Sam Feldt, and many more from the label’s illustrious roster. To celebrate the project, reps from Spinnin...
