Month: December 2021

Monaleo Gets Straight To The Point On The Dismissive ‘We Not Humping’

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Houston rapper Monaleo is among the freshman rappers to keep an eye on for 2022. The 20-year-old independent musician has caught the eye of many thanks to the success of her debut single “Beating Down Yo Block,” which boasts a sample of Yungstar’s “Knocking Pictures Off Da Wall” plus her sharp confidence as she relays her anger about a past lover who did her wrong. Monaleo concludes her strong year with the new single “We Not Humping.”

The track features Monaelo’s trademark energy and hard-hitting bars, which she uses to shut down a man’s request to get intimate. She gets straight to the point with lines like “Put a bag on your head ’cause it’s in my budget / All I gotta do is push a button” and “He don’t like my ways but I’m not changing / I don’t text him back ’cause that sh*t draining.”

The new song comes after Monaleo teamed up with fellow Houston native Maxo Kream for “Cece” off his latest album, Weight Of The World. Prior to that, she dropped a strong follow-up to “Beating Down Yo Block” with “Suck It Up,” which took aim at the women who have an issue with her confidence, success, and ability to attract the attention of men.

You can listen to “We Not Humping” above.

Minnesota Vikings’ Everson Griffen Announces He Has Bipolar Disorder

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Minnesota Vikings defensive end Everson Griffen has had a rough fall 2021. After a turbulent past few weeks of concerning social media posts, Griffen decided to be transparent with his fans this time around.

Yesterday (Dec. 3), Everson posted a photo on Instagram with a support group, and announced that he had bipolar disorder: “It’s true I am bipolar. I will embrace it and I will be an advocate for mental health. I been running from it a long time. I’m not ashamed of it anymore.”

He continued by saying his illness began when his mother died nine years ago, and he hopes to rectify his past mistakes by taking his illness seriously from here on out: “It all started when my mother passed away. Went into a dark place, thought I was great for many years. I promise this time I will do everything the experts say and my wife. I love my family and I miss my friends. Thank you for all the love and support, but most of all thank you for all the prayers.”

This announcement comes in the aftermath of Griffen posting a troublesome video inside of his house where he had a gun in hand, claiming people were trying to kill him.

The Vikings then issued a statement that the police got involved to help Everson, and that they were prioritizing his safety: “Law enforcement agencies have notified us Everson Griffen came out of his home without incident and is now getting the care he needs. We are thankful to the Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office, the Carver County Sheriff’s Office, the Minnetrista Police Department and the Orono Police Department for their quick response and dedication to ensuring the situation ended peacefully. Our focus remains on Everson’s health and safety and providing the proper resources for him and his family.”

Two days later (Nov. 26), Griffen was placed on the reserve/non-football illness list, where he will remain indefinitely. He has recorded 10 solo tackles and five sacks this season.

See Everson Griffen’s bipolar announcement below.

Ben Roethlisberger Likely To Retire Following This Season: Report

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Ben Roethlisberger has reportedly told the Pittsburgh Steelers that this is his last season with the team and he will most likely retire rather than play elsewhere.

ESPN’s Adam Schefter broke the news on Twitter, Saturday: “Ben Roethlisberger privately has told former teammates and some within the organization that he expects this to be his final season playing quarterback for the Steelers, league sources told ESPN.”

The future Hall-of-Fame quarterback is “highly unlikely” to join another team after his contract ends with Pittsburgh.

Schefter added that he’ll have more details ready for ESPN’s Sunday NFL Countdown at 9:00 AM, this weekend.

Ben Roethlisberger, retire
Joe Sargent / Getty Images

Roethlisberger has thrown for 2,522 yards, 14 touchdowns, and six interceptions this season, while the Steelers are 5-5-1 on the year.

Earlier this week, former Steelers linebacker Ryan Shazier said he feels Roethlisberger should retire after this season.

“Sometimes the game will tell you when it’s time,” Shazier explained on CBS Sports Radio’s Tiki and Tierney Show. “And I love Ben, but I think next year may be time for him to step away from the game. Ben has been known for being one of those types of quarterbacks who is really tough to bring down, extend the plays, allow his team to make big plays because of how much of an athlete he was. He knew how to change the game. And I feel he’s losing a lot of that.”

[Via]

Snoop Dogg Discusses New Album & Super Bowl Halftime Show With Ebro

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Snoop Dogg has seen quite the musical resurgence in 2021. Whether be dropping his star-studded, highly anticipated album Algorithm last month, becoming an executive at Def Jam or announcing that he’ll join other hip-hop legends like Eminem and Kendrick Lamar for the 2022 Super Bowl Halftime Show, Snoop has been rolling all year long.

While riding this wave of momentum, Snoop visited Ebro Darden’s Apple Music radio show The Ebro Show on Thursday (Dec. 2) to discuss his latest endeavors.

When discussing his project Algorithm, which serves as a showcase for his latest work along with other exciting artists on the Def Jam label, Snoop touched on how he’s bought in to Def Jam’s vision: “It’s a bunch of artists that I have a relationship with that were either connected to Def Jam or either connected to me. Then there’s a bunch of new artists that are up and coming that are on Def Jam that we trying to get off. And just a matter of me coming together, showing them how to work a project where we could stay in house… I was trying to build the family vibe of, let’s just use Def Jam people so that way when it’s time for videos and clearances, it’s all in house… And we can make Def Jam what it used to be because Def Jam used to be the talk of the town. Def Jam was the hottest hip that were ever created and I’m not going to sit back and let it go somewhere else when I could help it get to where it needs to be.”

Ebro and Snoop also talked about how the monumental his Super Bowl performance with legends like Dr. Dre, Kendrick, Eminem and Mary J. Blige came together, and the obstacles that came with it: “Shout out to Jay-Z and Roger Goodell because them was the last two pieces to the puzzle to make it actually official, like a referee with a whistle. Because it was a bunch of snags and hurdles that you all didn’t hear about, because some of us got criminal records and backgrounds that they tend to want to bring up, even though we disconnected from that. But the spirit of who we are overwhelms everything, and the love that we have just trumped it all to where people like, whatever they did in the ’90s ain’t relevant to what they doing right now, these are grown men. These are business men, and they established themselves as positive role models.”

Snoop Dogg, age 50, sounds more energized than ever, and hopes to bestow his wisdom about hip-hop to younger generations. Check out his interview with Ebro below.

DJ Kay Slay, Snoop Dogg, Too $hort, Sheek Louch, & Papoose Take Us To “The Jungle”

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Recently released single “The Jungle” sees industry legends DJ Kay Slay, Snoop Dogg, Too $hort, Sheek Louch, and Papoose all link up on a nearly four-minute long track, and it’s exactly what you need to get you through the weekend.

While promoting his song on Instagram, Kay Slay referred to it as a “street banger,” also sharing that it was produced by Suits. “Off my new project dropping December 17th The Soul Controller” he announced this afternoon, dropping off a snippet of “The Jungle”’s accompanying music video.

While the 55-year-old has yet to share his upcoming album’s tracklist, he has said that it will consist only of “straight hip-hop bangers,” adding, “this one is for the Culture which is our way of life!!” From the looks of the New York native’s comment section, there’s no shortage of fans who are excited to see what DJ Kay Slay has in store for us.

After hearing “The Jungle,” who else would you like to see the record executive collaborate with on The Soul Controller?

Quotable Lyrics:

Skill for skill, my real to real

Say I eat what I muthaf*ckin’ kill

You see street to street, and beat to beat

In the jungle, we pray on the weak

Kyle Announces His Fifth Project, ‘It’s Not So Bad,’ And Says It Will Be Released As An NFT

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kyle.jpg
Getty Image

Kyle’s last album, See You When I Am Famous!!!!!!!!!!!!, arriv ed in the summer of 2020, with features from Rich The Kid, K Camp, Bryson Tiller, Trippie Redd, Tyga, and more. The rapper originally considered delayed it due to the pandemic but he changed his mind. A year and a half later, Kyle is ready to deliver another work, this time with a twist: He announced his fifth project, It’s Not So Bad, on social media and explained how it will be a little bit different.

“IT’S NOT SO BAD – MY FIFTH PROJECT – JAN 28th,” he tweeted. “Instead of splitting the royalties with the label, I’ll be selling this project as an NFT to give an opportunity for my fans to own this project with me. We’re in this together. Forever & Ever. [two hearts emoji].”

This year Kyle released a bunch of singles that will presumably appear on the project, including “Love Me Like You Say You Love Me,” “Optimistic” with Dougie F, and “Sunday.”

As for It’s Not So Bad, it remains to be seen what guest features Kyle will include on the project. Thankfully, we’ll learn about that within the next few weeks, as it’s less than two months until It’s Not So Bad becomes available.

Juicy J And Wiz Khalifa Gear Up For Their Joint Album With The Sinister ‘Pop The Trunk’

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Juicy J and Wiz Khalifa’s friendship goes back more than a decade, when Juicy appeared on a remix of Wiz’s 2010 breakout hit “Black & Yellow.” Wiz returned the favor by appearing on “Stoners Night (Part II),” from Juicy’s mixtape Blue Dream & Lean. Since then, the duo has worked together time and time again, and nearly 12 years later, they’re getting ready to deliver a joint album. The currently untitled project is set to arrive in early 2022, according to Complex, and while the two remain tight-lipped about details surrounding the project, they have dropped one of its singles.

The song is called “Pop The Trunk,” a sinister track that’s paired with a music video, which follows the pair as they somehow convince strangers to give them their souls.

The forthcoming album won’t be their first joint effort. Back in 2016, they teamed up with producer TM88 as the TGOD Mafia collective for TGOD Mafia: Rude Awakening, which boasted 16 songs, plus a lone feature from Project Pat. “Pop The Trunk” arrives after Juicy was involved in a fight during Three 6 Mafia’s Verzuz battle against Bone Thugs-N-Harmony. As for Wiz, he recently dropped the single “Million Dollar Moment” earlier this year.

You can listen to “Pop The Trunk” in the video above.

NoCap Only Wants “200 Or Better” For His Cars In New Single

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Alabama native NoCap has had a busy year despite not releasing a project this year. Since being released from prison in late July, NoCap attacked the late summer and fall with a vengeance, establishing a solid rhythm by dropping single after single without hesitation. He also participated in he and NBA YoungBoy’s label Never Broke Again’s mid-November compilation album for two solo tracks.

This week, NoCap’s new single “200 Or Better” is a YouTube exclusive that he dedicates to explaining his preferences when it comes to cars. “200 Or Better” is produced by Al Geno, who has built his career providing beats for NoCap, as well as Lil Baby, Rylo Rodriguez and Yung Bleu.

The aggressive claps on the beat coincide with NoCap’s bars nicely, as he sandwiches his singular verse with two renditions of the hook where he discusses overcoming the struggles in his life.

Within the verse, NoCap raps about his beloved Lambo and how he gets better and better with each new song. NoCap is ending the year strongly, as 2021 is his first without an album since before 2018.

Check out “200 Or Better” by NoCap below.

Quotable Lyrics
Tryna put that Lamb’ on some Forgis
Forty on Draco lawyer
I talk for the hurt mom, and son thuggin’ with pеndin’ charges
Only thing on his mind, he catch his opp, he gon’ do him dirty
Who prolly ain’t gon’ lеarn until the judge try to give him thirty

Check Out squeakPIVOT’s Posthumous “Mood Swing” Featuring Saba & Pivot Gang

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On June 4th, MFnMelo and squeakPIVOT unleashed their 8-track collaborative project, which also saw them link up with artists like Rex Life Raj, Kobe Jxrdan, Dinnerwithjohn, and Frsh Waters.

Unfortunately, Squeak passed away back in August at the age of 26 after being fatally shot in Chicago’s Austin neighbourhood, but his friends are doing everything they can to keep his memory alive. On December 9th, a deluxe edition of En Route is set to drop, and it will include the track “Mood Swing,” featuring Saba as well as Joseph Chilliams and Frsh Waters of Pivot Gang.

“‘Keep it moving’ been the motto / Long live Squeaky, Walt and Dado,” Melo sings on his verse, addressing the loss of his pals while knowing deep down that he has to keep his head up and continue to create music to help him heal.

Check out “Mood Swing” below. RIP Squeak.

Quotable Lyrics:

I just bounced back like it was routine
Don’t know where I’m at, but know I do things
Please watch how you talkin’, ’cause the mood swing
With the same n*ggas that I’m choosing
They tried to switch the style up like it’s KPOP
They never understood it, but I ain’t stop
I can’t think about it much that’ll make the mood swing
I just got on muf*cka don’t say much

[Via]

Dave East Remixes “Expensive Pain” & “Paid In Full” On New Freestyles

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It’s been a particularly busy year for Dave East. Though it seems like he’s slowed down on releasing music in comparison to previous years, he still brought some serious heat in 2021. The rapper teamed up with Harry Fraud for HOFFA earlier this year and he’s dropped off a few EastMixes. However, his acting career has been doing quite well, especially since he took on the role of Method Man on Wu-Tang: An American Saga.

For fans of the EastMix series, the rapper came through with two new offerings this week. The first is his remix of the titular track off of Meek Mill’s “Expensive Pain” and the second is a new freestyle over Eric B. and Rakim’s “Paid In Full.”

Check both below and sound off in the comments with your favorite.

Quotable Lyrics
I was ’bout to go back to trapping, I saw the signs
With powder that look like cake mix, I’m Duncan Hines
Got it in lines, put my name on a few, bring the check in
Still knowin’ some n***as sellin’ dust out of a Weston
I still get a rush hearin’ shots from a FN
Dog food around me, coke, too, what’s your preference?