R&B/Hip-Hop
Is Rihanna About to Drop New Music For ‘Black Panther: Wakanda Forever’?
Rihanna’s comeback is fast approaching. And, if the clues have been accurately deciphered, new music could arrive before the week is out. For several days and weeks, the pop superstar has been linked with the forthcoming Black Panther sequel, for which she’s rumored to perform the end-credit song. The rumor-mill continues to grind away, first with billboards hinting at RiRi’s involvement in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, by way of cryptic promotions on electronic billboards in New York, and now with an official social post. Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news A teaser for the forthcoming movie splashes the title, then resets the first “R” in “Forever.” Under it, the date Oct. 28 — this Friday. The “Umbrella” singer hasn’t released an album...
Salt-N-Pepa to Be Honored With Star on Hollywood Walk of Fame
Salt-N-Pepa are the latest celebrities to get a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. The Hollywood Chamber of Commerce announced on Tuesday (Oct. 25) that the MCs will receive their star in the Recording category, and the honor marks the 2,739th star on the walk of fame. Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news The duo’s star will be located at 6213 Hollywood Boulevard adjacent to Amoeba Music, and will be presented to them in a ceremony on Friday (Nov. 4) at 11:30 a.m. PT. MC Lyte and Roxanne Chante will appear as guest speakers of the event, and the entire ceremony will be streamed live exclusively at walkoffame.com. “This upcoming star ceremony honoring Hip-Hop pioneers SaltN-Pepa will honor the amazing 80s music we all love and so many grew u...
Adidas Ends Partnership With Kanye West Over Antisemitic Remarks
Adidas has ended its partnership with the rapper formerly known as Kanye West over his offensive and antisemitic remarks, the latest company to cut ties with Ye and a decision that the German sportwear company said would hit its bottom line. “Adidas does not tolerate antisemitism and any other sort of hate speech,” the company said in a statement Tuesday. “Ye’s recent comments and actions have been unacceptable, hateful and dangerous, and they violate the company’s values of diversity and inclusion, mutual respect and fairness.” The company faced pressure to cut ties with Ye, with celebrities and others on social media urging Adidas to act. It said at the beginning of the month that it was placing its lucrative sneaker deal with the rapper under review. Adidas said Tuesday that i...
Cardi B Wins Trial Over ‘Raunchy’ Mixtape Cover Art
A federal jury on Friday (Oct. 21) found that Cardi B was not legally liable in a lawsuit filed by a California man whose back tattoos were unwittingly photoshopped onto a “raunchy” album cover, allowing the superstar to avoid millions of dollars in requested damages. Following a four-day trial, the jurors said that Cardi (real name Belcalis Almánzar) did not violate Kevin Brophy’s rights with the bawdy cover of her 2016 mixtape Gangsta Bitch Music Vol. 1, which featured an image that he claimed made it appear he was performing oral sex on the now-superstar. Brophy, who had sought $5 million in damages, testified during the trial that the image had been a “complete slap in the face” and had caused him “hurt and shame.” But jurors were clearly swayed by Cardi’s defenses — like the idea that...
Cardi B Wins Trial Over Mixtape Cover Art
A federal jury on Friday (Oct. 21) said Cardi B was not legally liable in a lawsuit filed by a California man whose back tattoos were unwittingly photoshopped onto an album cover, making it look like — he claimed — he was the one performing oral sex on her, according to Law360. The verdict allows the superstar to avoid millions of dollars in requested damages. Following a four-day trial, the jurors said that Cardi (real name Belcalis Almánzar) did not violate Kevin Brophy’s rights with the bawdy cover of her 2016 mixtape Gangsta Bitch Music Vol. 1, which accidentally featured a large image of Brophy’s back tattoo. The actual man in the image was a model who had consented to the shoot, but a giant tattoo on the man’s back belonged to Brophy. Unbeknownst to Cardi, a freelance graphic designe...
Ari Emanuel Calls on Kanye West’s Business Partners to Cut Ties
Ari Emanuel is encouraging businesses that work with Kanye “Ye” West to pull their involvement with him following the rapper’s recent antisemitic remarks. In an op-ed for the Financial Times published online Wednesday, the Endeavor CEO wrote that West’s business partners, including companies that profit off his music — such as Apple, Spotify, Adidas and his touring partners — should stop working with the star. Emanuel also said that the parent company of Parler, which on Monday announced West’s planned acquisition of the right-wing social media platform, should refuse to sell it to him. “West is not just any person — he is a pop culture icon with millions of fans around the world,” Emanuel wrote. “And among them are young people whose views are still being formed. This is why it is necessa...
Here’s What Megan Thee Stallion Has to Say About Pardison Fontaine Engagement Rumors
Megan Thee Stallion had a few things to say regarding rumors online that boyfriend Pardison Fontaine had popped the question amid their second anniversary. “Lol as nice as last night was we are not engaged,” she tweeted simply on Wednesday (Oct. 19), shutting down chatter among her loyal army of Hotties. However, the rapper didn’t hesitate to show off her anniversary date night with Pardi on her Instagram Stories. In the first video, Meg shared her glitzy aquamarine gown and glamorous updo from the back of a car before her rapper beau crashed the frame, joking, “What, you thought this was a solo? Whatchu doin’, whatchu doin’? Why they always tryin’ to show the plate but never the date? What’s wrong with them? They crazy!” Next she puts Pardi’s skills as a former teacher to the test as she ...
From Glass Animals to Imagine Dragons, What’s Your Favorite Long-Running Hot 100 Hit? Vote!
Glass Animals‘ “Heat Waves” set a new record this week as the longest-running hit in the history of the Billboard Hot 100. On the chart dated Oct. 22, the No. 1 hit officially surpassed The Weeknd‘s “Blinding Lights” by spending 91 weeks on the tally. And now that Dave Bayley and his bandmates are the reigning record holders thanks to the remarkable, slow-burning success of their single, we want to know which longtime Hot 100 hit is your favorite. Of the never-ending cascade of songs that have gone up and down the all-genre tally since its inception in 1958, only 10 have spent at least 68 weeks on the chart — including hits by Imagine Dragons, AWOLNATION, Dua Lipa and more. Do you prefer “Heat Waves” over “Blinding Lights”? Which gets your blood pumping more: Dan Reynold’s ferocious delive...
Kanye West Gets Into Heated Argument With Chris Cuomo Over Anti-Semitism, Buying Parler & Kim Kardashian: Watch
Kanye West continued his streak of spouting anti-Semitic comments in a heated argument with Chris Cuomo Monday (Oct. 17) on Cuomo’s self-titled new show on NewsNation. Before angrily hanging up on the show’s host, the rapper — who now goes by Ye — gave an update on his plans to buy the conservative social media platform Parler, spoke about ex-wife Kim Kardashian’s “left agenda” politics, and explained how he justifies his ongoing campaign of hate speech against Jewish people in a 20-minute virtual appearance on Cuomo. Cuomo caught up with Ye in a video call as the Yeezy designer was riding in a car. When asked if he was on his way to meet with former president Donald Trump, Ye said he was actually going to negotiate with the CEO of Parler — a social media hub generally used by right-wing p...
N.O.R.E. Regrets Giving Kanye West’s Anti-Semitic Statements a Platform: ‘I Feel Like I Failed’
N.O.R.E. spoke out Monday (Oct. 17) about the wave of backlash he’s faced over having Kanye West as a guest on his Revolt TV show Drink Champs. Speaking to Hot 97’s Pete Rosenberg and Laura Stylez, the rapper explained, “Well the logic was the same way you guys are giving me the platform. I think you guys have love for me, you guys have respect for me, and you guys think that I should have a say. I have a relationship with Ye. When he was going through a lot of the things he was going through, he would call me and he would actually listen to me and take my advice. So I felt I could control the situation. I felt that I could control the interview, and learned early on that I didn’t.” N.O.R.E. went on to add that “as a Black man, I feel like I failed,” but justified his thought process that ...
Here’s How Eminem Ended Up Producing Akon’s ‘Smack That’
It’s been 16 years since Akon unveiled his R&B hit, “Smack That,” and the 49-year-old star shared how Eminem came to be a producer as well as a featured artist on the track. Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news While appearing on the Bootleg Kev podcast this week, Akon discussed his past collaborations with the superstar rapper. “It’s interesting because every record I ever put out, I actually produced, except ‘Smack That,’” he explained. “Eminem produced that record. Isn’t that crazy? He always had them small little sounds, it was something minute, but it felt like Eminem.” Akon went on to admit that he didn’t expect Em to be such a good producer. “He gave me a folder with, like, 30 tracks in there. And out of 30, I picked five. And ...
Here’s Why Nicki Minaj & Latto Are Beefing
Nicki Minaj‘s frustrations regarding her Grammy genre shuffle have resulted in the latest rap beef. During an Instagram Live on Thursday, Minaj voiced her concerns over “Super Freaky Girl” being moved from the rap category to pop on the 2023 Grammy ballet, deeming it unfair. Minaj — who despite countless hit singles and albums and 10 nominations over the years has yet to win a Grammy — is not the first artist to raise questions about the Recording Academy’s categorizing methods. In the video, she mentions Drake’s best rap song win with “Hotline Bling” at the 2017 Grammys (a point of contention for the Toronto rapper, who said the song was pop but only categorized as rap because of his race and past music) and Latto’s “Big Energy” being eligible to compete in this year’s rap field. “If ‘Sup...
