Month: July 2022

Post Malone’s a gamer with many vices: he’s appeared in Call of Duty campaigns, streams often on Twitch, and was inspired to make music from playing Guitar Hero. Now, he’s partnered with the independent shopping app Whatnot for a one-on-one match of Magic: The Gathering with a fan in Los Angeles, with a potential prize of $100,000 for the musician’s opponent.

While it’s not a video game, Magic: The Gathering is one of the world’s most popular tabletop strategy card games, complete with a rich fantasy aesthetic and setting and a collectible card component. The Twelve Carat Toothache singer is a big fan, and his interactive and unique collaboration with Whatnot is exactly the kind of experience both parties want to bring to fans. 

John Walters, Head of Special Projects at Whatnot, said that “Post Malone, both as an artist and as a person, fits perfectly into this growing and supportive community.” He added that the 27-year-old star will be a “formidable opponent” in the showdown.

Emma McIntyre/Getty Images

But HotNewHipHop, you may ask, how can I get the chance to dunk on Post Malone with my deck? Here’s how it’ll work: Post Malone will host a livestream on the Whatnot app on August 4th at 9pm ET. Once fans join, they will be prompted to click the “Enter Giveaway” button on the screen and a winner will be randomly selected.

What if you get selected but don’t know jack about Magic? No problem: professional champion Reid Duke will be there to coach you ahead of the match when you’re flown out to Los Angeles on August 11th for the in-person matchup, which will also be streamed on Whatnot. For more detailed info, here’s the collaboration’s website.

This is Post’s latest trick up his sleeve and comes just after the announcement of a tour documentary on Amazon Freevee titled Runaway set to release on August 12th. The film’s director, Hector Dockrill, said that “being on tour with Post is like every emotion hitting you at once, it’s intense and it’s wild, and our vision was to pull fans into the experience just enough to get a glimpse of this, while leaving the rest to the imagination.”

He’s also recently released a video for his new track with Doja Cat, “I Like You,” and was recently spotted playing beer pong with Dua Lipa and some of the members of the dream-punk band Turnstile.

You can check out the new visual below, and don’t forget to shoot your shot on Whatnot, rise to the occasion, and good luck beating Post Malone in a Magic match.

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Yung Miami has been a trending topic for quite some time now. Between her relationship with Diddy remaining relevant and her new podcast, Caresha Please, going viral with each episode, the City Girls rapper can’t manage to stay off of everyone’s radar. While plenty of people enjoy seeing her content on their timeline, her recent post has fans worried about her well-being.

Joseph Okpako/Getty Images

Early this morning (July 30), the mother of two took to Twitter to share her feelings with her one million followers. “I’m really having a mental breakdown right now,” she wrote. Three minutes later, she came back and added, “Haven’t slept in [days]. Like, I’m tired af and don’t feel like doing nothing today. My energy is off!”

In an effort to lighten her mood, hundreds of her fans hopped in her replies with encouraging words. One person said, “… Something is weighing heavily on your spirit and I pray that your peace is restored soon.” Other supporters gave her activities she could do to regain her mental health such as retail therapy, going for a walk, or aromatherapy.

While Miami hasn’t detailed what’s causing her to be stressed, another tweet she posted hinted at her dating life. Yesterday, she tweeted, “I can never be no one option!” 

In recent news regarding the Quality Control Music recording artist, video footage captured her throwing it back on Quavo during their Rolling Loud performance. As “Strub Tha Ground” blasted through the speakers, Miami moved backward and twerked on the rapper’s lower body.

Beyoncé’s RENAISSANCE album may have leaked a few days before its official debut, but that doesn’t seem to have slowed down the industry icon’s seventh studio album’s first-week sales projections at all.

On Saturday (July 30), it was revealed that the mother of three is expected to move 275 – 315K copies during the project’s first seven days out. On top of that, the 16-track effort will likely collect almost 170M streams over the next week as well.

HDD notes that these projections are strong enough to give Beyoncé a No. 1 debut on the charts – the same achievement we saw with Lemonade back in 2016 as it topped Billboard’s ranking with 485K album sales and 115M streams.

Though it’s sure to be a success on the streamers and at award shows, RENAISSANCE hasn’t come without its share of controversy.

The project was primarily produced by names like Mike Dean and The-Dream, though there was a large roster of famous faces who contributed in one way or another – some without their knowledge.

As you may have heard, “Midnight Snacks” singer Kelis was less than pleased to find out that her 2003 “Milkshake” track was sampled on Queen B’s “ENERGY” featuring Beam.

Since then, the Harlem native has lashed out at Beyoncé on social media, also dragging Nas and Rihanna’s names into the drama.

Seeing as The Neptunes are the original writers and producers, and they were credited on RENAISSANCE, it remains unclear if anyone was legally obligated to tell Kelis, but she’s been expressing her hurt, nonetheless.

Are you surprised by Beyoncé’s first-week sales projections? Sound off in the comments below, and tap back in with HNHH later for more music news updates.

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Black Panther fans or not, millions of people around the world felt the tragic loss of Chadwick Boseman in 2020. Many fans, after celebrating his life and legacy, have wondered what’s next for his on-screen character T’challa – the titular character of Marvel’s Black Panther based on the 1970s superhero.

Some wanted a recast, some wanted his character to get a respectful canonical death, but none could have expected to find the answer in a LEGO set first. So, if you don’t want spoilers, proceed with caution.

According to images of upcoming LEGO sets slated for an October release, the new Black Panther will be Shuri, played by Letitia Wright. She is T’Challa’s sister in the comics and 2018 smash film.

While a LEGO set is never official confirmation, it’s safe to say it’s likely given the direction of Marvel’s first teaser for Black Panther: Wakanda Forever and the fact that LEGO sets have been prophetic in the past. 

The new teaser isn’t explicitly dedicated to Chadwick Boseman. However, from the heart-wrenching version of Bob Marley’s “No Woman, No Cry,” and Kendrick Lamar’s “Alright” to the somber tone of the trailer’s shots and characters, it’s clear that this teaser is mourning the actor’s loss as we all are.

At the end of the trailer, a new Black Panther suit is revealed, which got fans speculating before this LEGO set seemingly confirms Shuri will take up the mantle against a new underwater enemy.

Loads of people are ecstatic for the new flick, but the fanbase at large is split on Marvel’s decision to kill T’Challa’s character in the films instead of recast Chadwick Boseman. Fans on one side argue that it would be disrespectful to keep a character that was so defined by Boseman’s performance and give the role to another actor entirely.

On the other hand, many argue that the character of T’Challa is bigger than Boseman (including Chadwick’s brother Derrick). Ending his story early, per this argument, is disrespectful to not only the work of Chadwick himself, but to what the character represents as the most iconic Black superhero.

Casting Letitia Wright in the role, who is not only T’Challa’s sister in the film but also another Black hero, seemed like the most logical recast and canonical replacement for T’Challa. However, Letitia Wright’s controversial views on vaccination have made fans question whether she should even be in the Marvel Cinematic Universe anymore, let alone fill in the shoes of one of its most iconic and progressive characters.

Whatever you think of the trajectory of T’Challa’s legacy or Letitia Wright’s character (both personal and fictional), LEGO’s made that conversation much less hypothetical now. The tweet above begs a question, though: has it? Is it all misdirection? Stay tuned to HotNewHipHop for the latest updates.

R.I.P. Chadwick Boseman.

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The government’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic hasn’t always been up to par with citizens’ standards, though it seems some politicians are taking a better course of action as monkeypox continues to spread.

On Friday (July 29) evening, New York Governor Kathy Hochul announced that she’s declaring a “State Disaster Emergency to strengthen ongoing efforts to confront the monkeypox outbreak.”

Governor Kathy Hochul — Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images

“The Executive Order enables us to respond more swiftly, and allows health care professionals to take additional steps that will get more New Yorkers vaccinated,” she explained on Twitter.

Hochul also pointed out that 1 in 4 monkeypox cases in America have originated in New York, which is precisely why she’s so eager to generate a quick response that will combat the virus and protect more people.

As TMZ notes, the emergency declaration comes just one day after the New York State Commissioner of Health referred to monkeypox as an “imminent threat to public health.”

It’s been noted that the viral disease “is almost never fatal,” though one of its most horrific side effects is the rashes and lesions that begin to form on extremities and genitals among the infected.

At this time, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have listed New York and California as the states with the two highest recorded numbers of cases (1,345 and 799 respectively).

Hochul’s newly implemented executive order will allow for EMS personnel, pharmacists, midwives, physicians, and certified nurse practitioners to administer vaccinations.

The NY Governor mentioned earlier this week that the state has been stocking up on monkeypox shots. An additional 110,000 doses are said to be coming from the feds, leaving their supply sitting around 170,000.

Tap back in with HNHH later for any updates on the monkeypox virus.

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The music industry has been known to take advantage of up-and-coming artists on more than one occasion, and during an interview on the Million Dollaz Worth of Game podcast, Fivio Foreign admitted to Gillie Da Kid and Wallo that he was one of them.

The New York native revealed that, prior to his big break, he signed a deal with Ma$e that resulted in him only seeing a $5K advance after feeling pressured to do so by a friend. “The n*gga that brought me to him, he was like, ‘Yo, man. Just sign that shit You buggin’,'” Fivio recalled.

“I thought that shit was going to last until whenever it was going to last. That shit ain’t last two weeks,” he added, reflecting on his naivety of the business at the time.

Clips from the interview have been making rounds on social media over the past few days, and on Saturday (July 30), Gillie shared what seems to be a response from Ma$e containing a diss aimed at Diddy.

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A post shared by KING GILLIE (@gilliedaking)

“$5,000, man,” Wallo says to the former Bad Boy in the clip. “N*gga ain’t shit,” Da Kid added, teasing that we might be hearing more about the alleged shady deal on tomorrow’s (July 31) episode of Million Dollaz Worth of Game. 

Before walking away from the co-hosts, Ma$e looks at the camera and smiles. “Diddy 2.0,” he says, seemingly referring to his disdain for Sean Combs’ behaviour in the past. As you may remember, in March he shared “Oracle 2: The Liberation Of Mason Betha” on which he trashed the Harlem native, even accusing him of exploiting Biggie Smalls’ death.

The former friends’ beef has been a hot topic this year, with the Florida-born artist accusing Puff of sabotaging his set during Lovers & Friends Festival in Las Vegas earlier this year, and more recently, Diddy’s mom sending a message out to Ma$e on Instagram Live – read more about that here, and tap back in with HNHH later for more hip-hop news updates.

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The Kardashian-Jenner influence can move mountains, especially when it comes to the online world. After Kylie Jenner and Kim Kardashian criticized changes to Instagram’s algorithm, the social media giant announced that it would reverse plans to make the platform more like its biggest current competitor: TikTok.

Instagram, which is owned by Facebook’s parent company Meta Platforms, originally proposed to alter its algorithm to include more video content from outside accounts, not just a user’s circle of friends and followed pages. The move is likely a result of pressure from Meta to perform, given that Facebook lost users (and the company lost revenue) for the first time this year.

“I’m glad we took a risk,” said Instagram’s head Adam Mosseri to Platformer. “If we’re not failing every once in a while, we’re not thinking big enough or bold enough.”

“But we definitely need to take a big step back and regroup. [When] we’ve learned a lot, then we come back with some sort of new idea or iteration. So we’re going to work through that.”

Kim and Kylie were two of many to criticize these changes. They shared a post on their story that read “Make Instagram Instagram Again. Stop trying to be TikTok. I just want to see cute photos of my friends. Sincerely, Everyone.”

It’s worth noting that these are two of the biggest Instagram users in the world. Kim, who earned up to $500K per branded post in 2019, has 326 million followers on the platform. Her half-sister Kylie, who earned up to a million dollars per post in 2018, is the second-most followed person on the platform with 360 million followers, second only to soccer icon Cristiano Ronaldo’s 470 million.

Frazer Harrison/Getty Images

Their power over social media has also been proven time and time again. Most notably, Insider reported that Snapchat’s stock fell by over 8% after Jenner abandoned the app due to a redesign. Snapchat lost more than $1 billion in revenue as a result. 

It’s no surprise, then, that Instagram is acting to keep its largest users on its good side. The app is trying to maintain a grip on the younger generation, who is more likely to use TikTok, and adapt to the fast-growing sensation’s appeals and audiences. TikTok has a user base of 656 million, and its ad revenue passed Snapchat last year and is expected to pass YouTube’s by 2024. 

These plans included some specific changes to its algorithm and features. Instagram plans to have most video posts under 15 minutes automatically shared in the Reels format, which means there would be no difference between Reels and regular video posts. Speaking of Reels, the app was also planning to let users use any public post in their reels, which users are currently only able to remix.

The main factor in this change is a difference in appeal: Instagram is a way to share pictures and videos with friends and followers, whereas TikTok is founded on algorithmic recommendations and demographic research to push viral content forward. Whatever side you’re on, the Kardashian sisters are leading the charge of longtime Instagram users who want the app to stick to its guns. 

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Yesterday (July 29), Beyoncé dropped her highly anticipated album, Renaissance. While thousands of fans have confessed their admiration of her newest project, a certain someone, in particular, had different feelings. Kelis, known for her hit song “Milkshake,” was shocked when she realized one of Bey’s songs sampled an old record of hers.

Heated that she was left out of the conversation about the sample being used, she took to Instagram and wrote, “My mind is blown too because the level of disrespect and utter ignorance of all 3 parties involved is astounding. I heard about this the same way everyone else did. Nothing is ever as it seems, some of the people in this business have no soul or integrity and they have everyone fooled.”

Not over the entire ordeal, Kelis came back and referred to Beyoncé’s actions as “stupid and disrespectful.” As she has continued to display her rage, other artists have expressed their gratitude for the mother of three deciding to implement their sound into her body of work.

Santiago Felipe/Getty Images

Kevin Aviance, drag queen and musician, was filled with joy upon finding out that she sampled his 90s hit, “C*nty” on her song, “PURE/HONEY.” He told Page Six, “I feel like someone heard me. I’m vindicated. She gets it. I’m just honored and overwhelmed.”

Like Kelis, Aviance said that Queen Bey did not tell him that his music was being used. “I heard it and I was like, ‘Wow!’ The song lives and that’s all I ever wanted it to do.”

Have you listened to Renaissance in its entirety yet? 

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