Month: February 2022

Joe Budden Explained Why He Doesn’t Think Megan Thee Stallion Is A Superstar Like Cardi B

by
megan thee stallion
Getty Image

Just when you think respected rapper turned curmudgeonly podcaster, Joe Budden, is finally turning over a new leaf, he makes sure to remind you why he’s one of the culture’s most controversial figures. During the same episode of his podcast in which he praised Cardi B as a superstar, he tore down her “WAP” collaborator Megan Thee Stallion, denying her the same appraisal on the basis of album sales — something he never had much of himself.

The question of whether or not hip-hop has any modern superstars was originally broached on Twitter by TDE President Punch, who posited that there might not be any. He was quickly shouted down on that app, though, by fans who pointed out that all the superstars are women, an oft-overlooked segment of hip-hop. However, even as women have taken over with endorsement deals, acting gigs, and a host of business plans, Budden still found a nit to pick with Megan’s outstanding record.

“You’re not a superstar if you can’t sell an album,” he declared. “What the f*ck are we talking about right now? What stops her from being a superstar if we’re taking out sales? She ain’t sold sh*t. Got every brand deal in the world, but also has all the backing from different people. She’s got a lot going on. That’s the game today.”

That’s… a weird way of looking at a Platinum-certified debut, Good News, two Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 hits, and a slew of Top 40 singles as both a featured artist and lead artist over the past three years. Of course, this could be just another example of Joe Budden’s decades-long case of sour grapes (and his longstanding issues when it comes to women), but Meg’s resume speaks for itself in this instance.

Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Spotify Is Changing A Big Rule Thanks To A Protest Album Of 1,000 30-Second Songs

by
Spotify Logo Phone
Getty Image

UK indie group The Pocket Gods decided to protest Spotify’s royalty rates for artists with 1000X30 – Nobody Makes Money Anymore, an album that, as the title indicates, consists of 1,000 songs that all run for about 30 seconds. Spotify actually caught wind of the project and have since changed some part of how they do things.

Pocket Gods leader Mark Christopher Lee was inspired to take on the project by a 2015 article from The Independent, which ponders the future of music given that royalties are paid on a Spotify stream after a track has been played for at least 30 seconds.

“I saw the article and it made me think, ‘Why write longer songs when we get paid little enough for just 30 seconds,” Lee told i News. He continued, “We wrote and recorded 1,000 songs, each a shade over 30 seconds long for the album. The longest is 36 seconds. It is designed to raise awareness about the campaign for fair royalty rates.”

He also noted his band earns about £0.002 (about a quarter of a US cent) from each Spotify stream of their songs.

The project was first presented earlier this month and Spotify has been paying attention, as Lee now says he was invited to meet with Spotify’s head of artist relations. He said that since the release of the album, the streaming platform has changed one of its rules: “Spotify said we’re ahead of the curve as shorter songs are the future — just look at TikTok. They said that I can pitch 30-second tracks to their playlists for consideration — I wasn’t able to do this previously as the songs were considered too short. So next week I’m releasing a 30-second single called ‘Noel Gallagher Is Jealous Of My Studio.’”

Lee says he was also told songwriters would see increased pay rates when Spotify rolls out an increase in its subscription price.

Hot Press notes The Pocket Gods are used to dropping atypical sorts of albums like this: They’ve released 74 albums since 1998, multiple of which have over 100 tracks.

Drakeo The Ruler’s Family Files Wrongful Death Lawsuit Against Live Nation

by

drakeo the ruler

Drakeo The Ruler’s brother and son are suing concert promoter Live Nation after the rapper was murdered in an attack backstage during a December 2021 concert. Drakeo the Ruler’s Family Seeks Damages Drakeo The Ruler’s family is claiming that Live Nation, along with the venue and festival organizers, is responsible for the LA rapper’s stabbing […]

Kanye West Shares That He Has 10 Albums Simultaneously On Spotify’s Charts

by

Kanye West took to Instagram, Monday morning, to share that he now has ten projects simultaneously charting on the top albums of Spotify in the US. This comes without the inclusion of his new album, Donda 2, which he isn’t releasing on the platform.

West let the numbers do the talking, leaving a simple black heart emoji as the caption to his post.

Kanye West, Spotify
Pascal Le Segretain / Getty Images

West announced the highly anticipated sequel to 2021’s Donda would only be available on his stem player, earlier this month.

“Donda 2 will only be available on my own platform, the Stem Player,” the rapper wrote on Instagram. “Not on Apple Amazon Spotify or YouTube. Today artists get just 12% of the money the industry makes. It’s time to free music from this oppressive system. It’s time to take control and build our own.”

The recent rise in popularity of West’s older albums likely coincides with the release of the documentary, jeen-yuhs, which follows the legendary Chicago rapper throughout his career. The latest episode, Act II: Purpose, detailed the making of West’s classic album, The College Dropout. Jamie Foxx, Pharrell, and more are seen in the studio during the episode.

Check out West’s latest Instagram post below.

[Via]

Samuel L. Jackson Speaks On Joe Rogan Saying The N-Word

by

While the controversy surrounding Joe Rogan and his Spotify-helmed podcast has died down a bit recently, as the news cycle becomes dominated with Russia and Ukraine reports, there are still select celebrities offering their two cents on the matter.

It’s been two weeks since we heard India Arie and Trevor Noah debate the topic of Joe Rogan saying the n-word, while Charlamagne Tha God also elucidated his opinion on the matter during one of his Brilliant Idiots episodes, around the same time. Today, the topic returns to the trending news stories of the day, as Samuel L. Jackson has spoken on the issue during a new Sunday Times interview.

The famed actor disagreed with Rogan’s use of the word, no matter the context. Rogan affirmed in his apology video, “Now, I haven’t said it in years, but for a long time, when I would bring that word up, like, if it would come up in conversation and instead of saying the n-word, I would just say the word – I thought as long as it was in context, people would understand what I was doing.” He concluded, “there is no context where a white person is ever allowed to say that word, never mind publicly on a podcast,” nonetheless, it seems too little, too late in Jackson’s eyes.

samuel l jackson joe rogan n-word

Paras Griffin/Getty Images

“He is saying nobody understood the context when he said it,” Jackson told the publication, apparently rolling his eyes in response. “But he shouldn’t have said it. It’s not the context, dude — it’s that he was comfortable doing it. Say that you’re sorry because you want to keep your money, but you were having fun and you say you did it because it was entertaining.”

Jackson continued, “It needs to be an element of what the story is about. A story is context — but just to elicit a laugh? That’s wrong.”

As the conversation on use of the n-word continued, Jackson spoke about working with Quentin Tarantino and Leonardo DiCaprio for Django Unchained. Apparently, Leo hesitated to use the word so frequently, but both Jackson and Tarantino told him he had to.

“Every time someone wants an example of overuse of the N-word, they go to Quentin — it’s unfair. He’s just telling the story and the characters do talk like that. When Steve McQueen does it, it’s art. He’s an artiste. Quentin’s just a popcorn filmmaker,” Jackson said.

He continued to reveal, “While we were rehearsing Django Unchained, Leo said, ‘I don’t know if I can say ‘n*****’ this many times.’ Me and Quentin said that you have to.”

We’ll have to see if this elicits a response from Rogan or brings the controversy back into public discourse.

[via]

Jackboy Shares “All We Got”

by

Jackboy came into the game with Kodak Black but he’s certainly established himself in his own right in the past few years. He’s had an exceptional run since the top of 2020, releasing his self-titled album and quickly following it up with Living In History and Love Me While I’m Here. Jackboy 2 rattled through 2021 and it appears that the Florida rapper is now setting the stage for a follow-up in the near future.

On Friday, the rapper slid through with his latest offering, “All We Got.” On the new single, the rapper tackles a slow-burning trap beat as he professes his love for those in his corner and threatens a beatdown on anyone coming for his neck.

Check out the latest from Jackboy below and sound off in the comments with your thoughts.

Quotable Lyrics
That n***a a lil’ boy to me, I’mma treat his ass just like a child
I’mma catch him and beat him with a switch, I bet that’ll calm his lil’ ass down
I’mma catch him and beat him with the blick, ain’t no time to go blow for blow
Late night creepin’ with my whip, and I let it blow, I’m snatching souls

Drake Has Security Guard On Watch While He Vacations

by

As we documented over the weekend, Drake is taking some R&R with a quick vacation to Turks and Caicos. The rapper has been sharing glimpses of his lavish trip on his Instagram Stories, including some jetskiing in turquoise waters, and a bit of Netflix and chill on the beach.

Despite this being some relaxing time alone (as far as we know), the rapper still needs to stay on his Ps & Qs, and thus, he’s got a security guard (possibly more) in tow. While sharing some views from his vacation last night, the rapper showed off his burly security guard, looking astute and on watch, while Drake seemingly snapped the photo from the waters. He wrote alongside the image, “I don’t play about me,” with a laughing-face emoji, proving the light-heartedness of the situation. “Watching for assassins on them skiiis,” he concluded.

Many in the comments do not begrudge him of having security on deck, while some fans pointed out that the security guard looks like Rick Ross from a distance. 

Take a look at the post below, we’ll let you be the judge.

In Drake-related news, the rapper is reportedly in talks to purchase a closing Jamaican Toronto restaurant, Randy’s Patties. The spot, located in Toronto’s Little Jamaica neighborhood, reportedly announced it would be shutting it doors as of this past weekend, partially due to COVID-19. When Drizzy caught wind of the IG announcement, he hopped in the comment section and proclaimed, “I’ll buy Randy’s right now.” Hopefully the business venture comes to fruition, we’ll keep you posted.