R&B/Hip-Hop
Nicki Minaj Drops ‘Super Freaky Girl (Queen Mix)’: Stream It Now
Nicki Minaj released “Super Freaky Girl (Queen Mix),” a collaboration-fueled new cut, in the early hours of Friday (Sept. 9). Minaj teased the track Thursday, but didn’t give away her co-stars. It’s a long lineup, including JT & BIA, featuring Katie Got Bandz, Akbar V and Malibu Mitch. “Ayo, this the Queen Mix right here. Miami, Boston, Chicago, Atlanta, New York … stand the f— up!” the star announces on the updated version of her first solo No. 1 hit before the sample of Rick James’ ’80s classic “Super Freak” kicks in and she begins to rap, “I can lick it, I can ride it while you slippin’ and slidin’/ I can do all them little tricks and keep the dick up inside it/ You can smack it, you can grip it, you can go down and kiss it/ And every time he leave me ‘lone, he always tell me he mis...
Pusha T Praises Ukrainian Defense Ministry’s ‘Great Taste in Music’ After They Quote His Lyrics
Grammys are nice, Emmys are good and Oscars, well, who doesn’t want one? But Pusha T got the rarest hip-hop honorific this week when the Ukraine Ministry of Defense shouted out one of his lyrics during a briefing on Russian military losses in the country’s six month assault on the nation. Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news In a tweet on Wednesday (Sept. 7), the Defense ministry quoted Pusha’s line, “I put numbers on the board,” from the 2013 track “Numbers on the Board” off Push’s solo My Name is My Name album. The ministry noted that since the unprovoked assault launched on Feb. 24 (through Sept. 7), Russian forces have reportedly suffered nearly 51,000 personnel losses, as well as the destruction of 2,097 tanks, 4,520 armored combat vehi...
Lil Nas X Dazzles With ‘Montero’ Tour Opener In Detroit
Lil Nas X turned a small catalog (to date) into a big show as he opened his first-ever concert tour on Tuesday night (Sept. 6) at the Fox Theatre in Detroit. Over 65 minutes, three acts and more than a dozen songs, the Long Live Montero Tour production was designed to dazzle — no surprise, really, to anyone who’s seen the Georgia-born hitmaker’s extravagant performances for awards shows and other events. Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news It was designed to be, as he wrote in the Playbill-style program handed out to fans, “a play about me, starring me as me, with music by me…about my journey, what I’ve been through, me being out of breath while performing and my aspirations to continue on my path in life.” Coach creative director Stuart Evers adde...
Fat Joe to Host 2022 BET Hip Hop Awards
Fat Joe is in demand. The BET Hip Hop Awards have enlisted the Bronx legend to host their forthcoming awards show slated for Oct. 4 at the Cobb Energy Center in Atlanta. “This will be the BIGGEST award show in history,” Fat Joe tells Billboard. “It’s truly an honor to host and produce the BET Hip Hop Awards, and I can’t thank Connie and the entire BET family enough for this opportunity. We’re going to celebrate music, culture, and entertainment, honor the biggest and brightest stars in the world and make this an unforgettable night full of laughs and surprises. Always remember that yesterday’s host is not today’s host.” Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news “Fat Joe is hip-hop royalty. He has represented the art form and the Bronx, the birthp...
30 Milestones in Hip-Hop Awards History: Super Bowl Halftime Show, Will Smith, Lauryn Hill & More
The Pepsi Super Bowl LVI Halftime Show Starring Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Mary J. Blige, Eminem, Kendrick Lamar and 50 Cent made history at the Creative Arts Emmy Awards on Saturday, Sept. 3, becoming the first Super Bowl halftime show to win for outstanding variety special (live). This year’s show, which aired Feb. 13 on NBC, was a seamless celebration of hip-hop music and culture. All six principal performers collected Emmys, as did executive producers Jay-Z, Desiree Perez and Jesse Collins; co-executive producers Dionne Harmon and Dave Meyers; and supervising producer Aaron B. Cooke. Rappers have been winning awards and earning plaudits for decades. Less than six months ago, Will Smith became the first entertainer who started out as a rapper to win an Academy Award for acting. Below, take a ...
Viral Hip-Hop Artist YNG Martyr Signs With Warner Music, Unleashes ‘It Happened’
YNG Martyr is the type of hip-hop artist who drives in his own lane. To push the cliché further still, his car is a self-designed one-off, and he rarely adheres to the speed limit. A proud Wiradjuri man, YNG Martyr today joins the Warner Music Australia roster. And straight out the gate, the 21-year-old drops “It Happened,” his first release through the music major. Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news “It Happened” is a kooky hip-hop number with touches of Earl Sweatshirt, a production that could come from anywhere. If you said it was born in Canberra, the Australian capital, you’d be right, and it would be a total fluke. YNG Martyr is no novice. His independent career has yielded more than 140 million streams for his tracks on Spotify. If ...
J. Cole Shoots, Scores the Cover of ‘NBA 2K23’ Dreamer Edition
J. Cole is in the clouds on the cover of the “Dreamer Edition” of the NBA 2K23 video game. The Dreamville boss who signed up to play for the Scarborough Shooting Stars in the Canadian Elite Basketball League earlier this year will also executive produce the soundtrack for this year’s edition of the game — due out in November — and be a playable character in the MyCareer storyline. Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news “NBA 2K has long been a place to discover new musical talent through their game and continues to be a gold standard for showcasing all things basketball culture,” Cole said in a statement. “It’s been an amazing journey to not only appear on a cover of this year’s game, but to be part of the MyCAREER storyline, soundtrack and bri...
Here’s How That Megan Thee Stallion ‘She-Hulk: Attorney at Law’ Cameo Came to Be
Megan Thee Stallion recently made a hilarious and unexpected appearance in the new Disney+ show She Hulk: Attorney at Law. But how exactly did she become Megan Thee Marvel Star? In a Thursday (Sept. 1) interview with Entertainment Weekly, the show’s creators explained from start to finish how they snagged Hot Girl Meg herself for the celebrity cameo they were dreaming up since the scriptwriting stages, saying that the rap star was “perfect” for the gig. Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news The “Plan B” rapper made her Marvel debut in the third episode of She-Hulk, which stars Tatiana Maslany, Jamila Jameel and Mark Ruffalo (who returns to his role as Bruce Banner from the Avengers films). Megan appears for real after Maslany’s character...
Chlöe Delivers a Sultry Cover of an Adina Howard Classic for Spotify Singles
Chloe Bailey dropped a sultry cover of Adina Howard‘s “Freak Like Me” on Wednesday (Aug. 31) for her new Spotify Singles release. “I want a freak in the morning/ A freak in the evening, just like me/ I need a roughneck n—-/ That can satisfy me, just for me/ If you are that kind of man/ ‘Cause I’m that kind of girl/ I’ve got a freaky secret, everybody sing/ ‘Cause we don’t give a damn about a thing,” the elder half of Chloe X Halle coos on the chorus, slowing the swagger of the 1995 original down to a hypnotic swirl. The R&B staple served as Howard’s breakthrough debut single in January of ’95 and preceded the release of her debut album Do You Wanna Ride? the following month. Peaking at No. 2 on both the Billboard Hot 100 and the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, the bump-n-grind anthem ...
Mickey Guyton, Robert Glasper Headline Otis Redding Center for the Arts Fundraiser
In tandem with celebrating soul pioneer Otis Redding’s 81st birthday and legacy, the Otis Redding Foundation will host a groundbreaking ceremony and fundraiser events for the future Otis Redding Center for the Arts on Sept. 9-10 in Macon, Georgia. Grammy Award-winning jazz pianist Robert Glasper and Grammy-nominated country singer-songwriter Mickey Guyton are among the artists set to perform during the weekend celebration. Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news Slated to open in 2023, the Otis Redding Center for the Arts will be housed in an 11,000 square-foot space. To further foster music education for students from ages 3-18, the center will offer learning labs, collaborative spaces, practice rooms and a stage for performances. “Expanding our educa...
Lil Tjay Chronicles His Grueling Return From Near-Death Shooting on ‘Beat the Odds’
Lil Tjay counts his blessings on his poignant new track, “Beat the Odds,” which finds the Bronx MC recounting his recovery from a nearly fatal ambush shooting during a botched robbery attempt in June. “I do my own thing, f–k it, I took seven shots, no shame/ Back to wall, I’m still gon’ blow you down, I ain’t no stain/ Flow on Wayne, I don’t give a f–k about no ceiling,” Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news The video for the track that dropped on Friday (August 26) opens with frantic 911 calls from the day of the incident — including a woman’s voice saying she thinks the victim is “deceased” — before fading in on Tjay laying down with his eyes close, an oxygen mask over his face. It then focuses on him writing and recording lyrics while hook...
DJ Khaled Enlists Kanye West, Eminem and More on ‘God Did’: Stream It Now
DJ Khaled is on some kinda streak. God Did dropped at midnight via We the Best/Epic Records, and is the hip-hop star’s 13th studio album. Like so much of his catalog, it’s filled with A-list collaborations, from Drake to Kanye West and Future, R&B artists SZA and John Legend, Jamaican dancehall stars Buju Banton, Bounty Killer and Sizzla, and there’s a contribution from the late Juice WRLD. Spanning 18 tracks, the new project also contains “Staying Alive,” the Drake and Lil Baby-assisted update on the Bee Gees’ disco classic. The first single from God Did, “Staying Alive” debuted at No. 1 on Billboard’s Hot Rap Songs and Streaming Songs charts, and peaked at No. 21 on the Official U.K. Singles Chart, for his best performance there in two years. Explore Explore See latest vid...
