R&B/Hip-Hop
2022 Billboard Live R&B/Hip-Hop: Photos From the Evening
The biggest and brightest stars and executives in the R&B and hip-hop world showed out at Billboard Live: R&B/Hip-Hop on Thursday night (Nov. 17) at Academy LA. Billboard‘s deputy director, R&B/hip-hop Carl Lamarre and executive director, R&B/hip-hop Gail Mitchell started the evening’s festivities by thanking the R&B and hip-hop team, including reporters Neena Rouhani and Heran Mamo, and devoting a moment of silence to Takeoff, PnB Rock, Young Dolph, Pop Smoke, Nipsey Hussle and more rappers who have died in recent years. Future, who currently stars on Billboard‘s cover, presented the Rookie of the Year award to Blxst, who recently came off a sold-out world tour and earned two 2023 Grammy nominations for album of the year with Kendrick Lamar’s Mr. Morale & the Big S...
Big Sean & Jhené Aiko Welcome Baby Boy
Congratulations are in order for Big Sean and Jhené Aiko, who welcomed their first child together, a baby boy named Noah Hasani. Aiko took to Instagram to share the wonderful news, noting that the bundle of joy arrived on November 8. “After 24 hours of labor, a total lunar eclipse, and while it was pouring rain… he came,” she wrote alongside a series of photos from the hospital, surrounded by family and, of course, Sean. “my baby Yoda, my Sani [blue heart emoji].” See her post here. Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news Sean mirrored the same sweet sentiment over on his Instagram, along with a photo of his new son holding the rapper’s finger. “After 24 hours of Labor, A Lunar Eclipse, with rain from the beginning of labor til he was born, he’s here s...
Beastie Boys Exhibit Drawn From Band’s Archives to Open in L.A. in December
Beastie Boys fans who want to immerse themselves in the world and ethos of the pioneering rap band will get a chance to in Los Angeles next month. Beginning Dec. 10, street art gallery Beyond the Streets will mount an exhibition of archival items and memorabilia spotlighting the raucous hip-hop group, who became the first rap act to chart a Billboard top album with 1986’s Licensed to Ill, which included the songs “Brass Monkey”, “(You Gotta) Fight for Your Right (To Party!)” and “Girls.” The exhibit, which will be free to the public and open through Jan. 23, is set to include a trove of items from the personal collections of Adam “Ad-Rock” Horowitz and Michael “Mike D” Diamond. (After the death of third member Adam “MCA” Yauch in 2012 from cancer, the group disbanded.) Explore Explore See ...
Blueface Arrested Following Shooting in Las Vegas
Blueface was arrested Tuesday afternoon (Nov. 15) in connection with a shooting last month in Las Vegas, and is expected to face several charges including attempted murder. Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news The 25-year-old rapper, whose real name is Johnathan Porter, had warrants out for his arrest following a shooting that took place Oct. 8 near Sunset Road and S. Las Vegas Blvd, reads a statement from Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department. LVMPD detectives apprehended the artist at approximately 2.40pm, and were set to book him into Clark County Detention Center on warrants for attempted murder with a deadly weapon and discharging a firearm at/into an occupied structure, the statement continues. The department also supplied Blueface’...
Diddy Celebrates Turning Another Year Older By Singing ‘Happy Birthday’ to Himself
Diddy rang in his 53rd birthday on Friday (Nov. 4) by, well, celebrating himself, of course. In a video posted to his Twitter account, the rapper lays in bed while being the first person to wish himself a happy birthday in song. “Happy birthday to me/ Happy birthday to me/ Happy birthday to meeee/ Happy birthday…to…me!” he sings with increasing enthusiasm before excitedly shouting, “Thank you God! I lived another year! Woo!” “THANK YOU GOD FOR LETTING ME WAKE UP LIKE THIS!!! HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME! LOVE! LOVE!! LOVE,” he captioned the post followed by a series of emojis. For his big day, the mogul appears to have gifted himself multiple cannabis companies in New York, Illinois and Massachusetts, thereby priming him to head the largest Black-owned cannabis business in the country (according t...
20 Questions with R&B Singer-Songwriter Ambré Ahead of Her The Wild Magnolia Tour: ‘I’m Looking Forward to Having Fun’
Singer-songwriter Ambré made noise in 2015 with her debut project Wanderlust and has been working nonstop since, following up with 2090’s in 2016. In 2019, Ambré finally signed to Jay-Z’s record label Roc Nation, dropping her EP Pulp, a soulful project that showcased her songwriting, producing, and singing abilities. Additionally, she earned a Grammy for best R&B album for her contribution to H.E.R.’s self-titled project at the 2019 Grammys. Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news Now, the 26-year-old Ambré is back with her 3000° project, which was released in June. The project is an ode to a pair of New Orleans classics – Juvenile’s 400 Degreez and Lil Wayne’s 500 Degreez. The album’s Jvck James-featuring single “I’m Ba...
Drake’s ‘Jimmy Cooks’ Tops Radio Charts as He Replaces Himself at No. 1 Again
Drake and 21 Savage’s “Jimmy Cooks” collaboration conquers two more Billboard radio charts this week with coronations on the Mainstream R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay and Rap Airplay lists. Though the song arrived in June, promotional efforts have ramped up in recent weeks, with the song’s official music video release on Oct. 22 and the pair’s joint album, Her Loss, released Friday (Nov. 4). (“Cooks” does not appear on the album.) “Jimmy Cooks” jumps 5-1 to crown Mainstream R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay following a 9% increase in plays that made it the most-played song on U.S. monitored mainstream R&B/hip-hop radio stations in the week ending Oct. 30, according to Luminate. With the leap, Drake replaces himself at No. 1 for a seventh time in his career, as “Jimmy” ousts Future’s “Wait for U,” featu...
Drake and 21 Savage Drop Joint Mixtape ‘HER LOSS’: Stream It Now
After the most creative media(less) rollout of the year — a Vogue cover and NPR Tiny Desk included —Drake and 21 Savage finally unleashed their joint album, HER LOSS, on Friday (Nov. 4). Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news The 16-track offering was originally slated for Oct. 28, but according to Drizzy was postponed due to his righthand producer and engineer Noah “40” Shebib contracting COVID shortly before the release date. “Our brother [Shebib] got Covid in the middle of mixing and mastering the crack,” the Toronto rapper wrote on an Instagram story. HER LOSS marks Drizzy’s second collaborative project, following his cult-favorite 2015 mixtape alongside Atlanta-made powerhouse Future, What a Time to Be Alive. Holding a little more experience in t...
Kanye West Says He’s Taking a ‘30-Day Cleanse’ From Speaking, Sex & Alcohol
Kanye West shared a string of tweets on Thursday (Nov. 3), during which he revealed that he will be taking a “fast” from speaking, alcohol, sex and porn. “I’m not talking to nooobody for a month,” he captioned a post that reads, “I’m taking a 30 day cleanse, a verbal fast. No alcohol, no adult films, no intercourse.” He concluded by noting that his “Twitter still lit,” implying that he will still be active on social media during his cleanse. Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news Ye continued his Twitter spree by praising basketball star Kyrie Irving, who has also been controversial about in the news in the past few years. West’s Instagram account was restricted again on Monday (Oct. 31) following his latest reported violation o...
Chuck D Calls Out Gun Violence After Takeoff’s Murder: ‘It’s Not Normal Behavior’
Chuck D has always fought the power, and that includes gun crime. The rap legend and co-founding member of Public Enemy, Chuck D, like so many others is shocked by the murder of Takeoff, one third of the hip-hop group Migos. “This is a tragedy, the pain is unbearable,” he tells TMZ Live. Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news Earlier in the week, Takeoff became the latest in a growing list of hip-hop stars killed by gunfire, a death that could have been averted. Sadly, he points out, a death by bullet has been normalized in popular culture in ways that didn’t exist in the ‘80s and ‘90s. “It’s not normal behavior,” says the Rock And Roll Hall of Famer, but “through culture, it’s been normalized over the years.” Speaking as a member of the Hip-Hop Allia...
‘The Last Rocket’: 8 Verses to Remember Takeoff By
Takeoff — born Kirshnik Ball — was reportedly murdered in Houston early Tuesday (Nov. 1) following an altercation outside of 810 Billiards & Bowling when gunfire rang off and fatally struck the Migos rapper while leaving two others hospitalized. Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news In the hours since Takeoff’s death, there’s been an outpouring of support from the hip-hop community with touching tributes coming from the likes of Drake, Gucci Mane, Nas, Rich The Kid, Metro Boomin’, Chance The Rapper, Chuck D and more. As one-third of Migos alongside Quavo and Offset, Takeoff served as the backbone of the seminal trio, which played an integral role in changing the sound of 2010’s rap and turning Atlanta into the hip-hop capital of the world. Fans h...
Migos Label Quality Control Music Mourns Takeoff’s Death: ‘We Are Devastated’
In the wake of Migos member Takeoff‘s untimely death, the hip-hop trio’s label, Quality Control Music, took to Instagram on Tuesday (Nov. 1) to mourn the loss of the rapper. Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news “It is with broken hearts and deep sadness that we mourn the loss of our beloved brother Kirsnick Khari Ball, known to the world as Takeoff,” a statement posted to the label’s social media reads. “Senseless violence and a stray bullet has taken another life from this world and we are devastated.” The heartfelt statement concluded by asking fans to “respect his family and friends as we all continue to process this monumental loss.” The post was captioned with a dove and broken heart emoji. Takeoff was shot and killed early Tuesday morning (Nov...
