Month: June 2022

A new generation of Yo! MTV Rapsis upon us and it’s picking up where its predecessor left off. This MTV Entertainment Studios series is highly anticipated among Rap fans who have been aching to see the genre return to the small screen in a new way. Decades ago, music networks were overflooded with programs that centered on sharing music videos, exclusive televised interviews, and in-studio interactions that made for unforgettable pop culture moments. 

The internet and social media all but made those shows obsolete, at least for television, but MTV has brought back a favorite to Paramount+. Latto was one of the artists who visited the show and while there, she was asked about the double standard that is often discussed in the industry. Many women, especially rappers, have spoken out about the issue and Latto confirms she’s still struggling with it.

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“I’m still dealing with it,” she said. “I’m still learning how to deal with it, honestly. Being so young, it’s like I’m finding my way throughout all of this, but that is very, very true. And I think it’s no different in the music industry than in real life, though. Women just have it harder. We just got to go a little harder, you know what I’m sayin’, but the success, it pays off in the end.”

She was then asked about the women in the industry that she was inspired by, and she mentioned that her father is a “Hip Hop head.” 

“He loved [Lil] Kim, Foxy [Brown], Roxanne Shante, Eve—he love Eve ’cause that boy is a Ruff Ryder!” Latto joked. “Trina! But you know, me, when Nicki [Minaj] came out?! That’s different ’cause that’s like, my generation.” Check out more from Latto’s Yo! MTV Raps appearance below.

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She may be following in her famous father’s footsteps, but Simone Johnson wants the world to see her as her own person. The 20-year-old daughter of Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson is ready for her chance to be a wrestling star and it seems that she’s inching closer to her official WWE debut. Simone signed with the mega-brand back in 2020 but only recently did she finally reveal her wrestling name: Ava Raine.

Wrestling remains one of the most-watched sports entertainment events in America and with Simone’s news came both applause and criticism. Of course, wrestling fans had quite a bit to say about “Ava Raine” as they questioned why she didn’t choose a name close to her father’s moniker. Messages of all kinds flooded in by the tens of thousands.

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“I probably sound like a broken record & hopefully this is the last i’ll mention this but i don’t understand why people being portrayed as separate individuals from their family name is such a heated topic,” she tweeted. “A name doesn’t discredit any prior accomplishments from any family.”

“I could build my entire career around my father & people would still bash me anyway [shrug emoji],” she added. Meanwhile, Simone—or Ava, now that her social media pages have changed to her stage name—followed up her tweets by adding that she was “not trying to ignore or undermine all the sweet comments” from her supporters.

Ava’s famous dad has previously expressed how proud he is of her by taking up his torch while also carving out her own path. Check out her tweets below.

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He’s spoken about his connection with Janet Jackson but Bobby Brown has expounded on the romance that could have been. The R&B legend has secured a nice little placement over at the A&E network; not only did they host a two-part docuseries about Brown’s rise to fame, but they have also inked a deal for a family-friendly reality series documenting his home life as a husband and father.

In Biography: Bobby Brown, the New Edition icon detailed having a massive crush on Janet Jackson many decades ago, however, things never moved forward the way he had hoped. Why? According to Brown, Janet’s father, Joe Jackson, stood in their way.

The tales of Joe Jackson have been shared over the years and he is often portrayed as an abusive dictator of a father who pushed his musical children too hard. Yet, simultaneously, Jackson has been revered for helping to change the course of history, not only for his family, but for the music industry, as a whole by shaping the childhood careers of The Jackson 5, Michael Jackson, and Janet.

“I had a big crush on Janet. Everything. Her little smile, her body, dance moves, her little laugh,” Brown said of the singer. “We loved each other’s company…  We didn’t have that long of a relationship. The reason me and Janet broke it off is because she couldn’t be with a man like myself. I’m from the projects. I’m hood.”

“Her father wouldn’t allow her to be with someone like me. Janet was the crush of my life.” We wonder how Ms. Jackson feels about this. Check out a few highlights below.

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