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Soulja Boy has no problem reminding the world of all the times he was ahead of the game. While it may seem to be just jokes, Draco has come through with proof of his various trailblazing accomplishments. Earlier in the month, the Atlanta native took credit for being the first rapper at famed jewelry and diamond store Icebox. 

Additionally, he’s claimed credit for Nicki Minaj’s memorable cut “Itty Biggy Piggy” and for being the first rapper to have Fanta Jello. Perhaps his most well-known of firsts is being the first rapper to upload videos on YouTube (it’s even in his Twitter bio). Just as he did with his Icebox claim, Draco is coming through with the receipts proving he was in fact the first rapper on YouTube. 

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“I was the first rapper on YouTube,” tweeted the “She Make It Clap” artist. He then attached a screenshot of text confirming the claim. “For starters, consider this fact: After a months-long beta period, YouTube officially launched on December 15, 2005 with a daily traffic around eight million views,” reads the statement written in March of 2016.

“Soulja Boy uploaded his first video just three months afterward, solidly characterizing him as an early adopter,” it finished. Considering that YouTube serves as the main platform rappers and other artists use to share their music videos and other content, this is a pretty monumental “first” for Soulja. 

We recently sat down with him and he discussed finally getting his credit, Drake, Elon Musk, and more. “Yeah, man. People definitely get my flowers. I just say it now, like, I gotta let the people know. That’s just me,” he said in the interview.

“When I say I started this, when I say I started that, it’s no cap. I really did start it but it’s like I’m just having fun, just letting people know what it is. But I get my credit, I see the tweets, they give me my credit. They know I started it,” he finished. Read the full thing here. 

AS Sale guard Terrell Stoglin became the first player to score 40 points in a Basketball Africa League game last week, becoming the league’s top scorer. As one of the biggest names in the league, the former Maryland baller used his voice to speak out against J. Cole’s presence in the BAL, stating that the rapper has taken a deserving player’s job away.

There has been a media circus surrounding J. Cole’s professional basketball career overseas. Following the release of his latest studio album The Off-Season, the North Carolina-bred superstar rapper made his on-court debut as a member of the Patriots BBC. Cole’s highlights have been going viral on social media, including a clean pull-up jumper from his most recent game, but some people believe that with his subpar stat line, he should be focusing on music. 

Terrell Stoglin spoke to the press and said that Cole’s presence in the BAL is “disrespectful” to other players that have been shut out by the pandemic and are still at home, training hard and hoping to get picked up by a team.

“I think there’s a negative and a positive [to J. Cole’s presence],” said Stoglin to ESPN. “The negative part of it is: I think he took someone’s job that deserves it. I live in a basketball world. I don’t live in a fan world. I know a lot of guys that had their careers stopped by COVID and they’re still home working out and training for an opportunity like this. For a guy who has so much money and has another career to just come here and average, like, one point a game and still get glorified is very disrespectful to the game. It’s disrespectful to the ones who sacrificed their whole lives for this.

 
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The positive side of it is: it brings a lot of attention, and, I guess, money. I don’t really pay attention to that type of stuff. I’m more [concerned that] he took someone’s job that deserved it.”

What do you think about Stoglin’s comments? Do you agree?

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Lloyd Banks has been steadily rolling out his upcoming album The Course Of The Inevitable, which was up until recently strictly referred to as COTI. While the Punchline King hasn’t revealed much in the way of new music, he has gone a long way in setting a tone, having delivered a few trailers featuring a spoken word performance from Rashan Brown. Based on the production value we’ve seen so far, it’s looking like a massive endeavor from Banks, who hasn’t released a studio album since 2010.

Last night, Banks came through to share another piece of the COTI puzzle, unveiling the official album cover on his Instagram page. “The Course Of The Inevitable!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!” captions Banks. [Photo by] @anthonybgeathers starring my boy! Christopher Lloyde II.” 

 Johnny Nunez/WireImage/Getty Images

With the cover out in the open, it feels like it’s only a matter of time before Banks comes through to unveil the full tracklist. Given some of his recent collaborators — a list that includes names like Havoc, Conway The Machine, and Ransom — it wouldn’t be surprising to see a few familiar faces lining the project. Of course, there remain many fans still hoping for a callback to the G-Unit era, as Young Buck previously opened the door for collaboration on “Ash Tray.” Unlikely, but the hold of nostalgia remains difficult to shake. 

 Check out the official album cover for The Course Of The Inevitable, and look for more news on the upcoming album to surface in the near future. Are you excited to see what Banks has been cooking up?

Unfortunately, reports of gun violence is something many of us are all too familiar with now. According to reports, the latest victim of armed violence is Arkansas native Bankroll Freddie. The Quality Control rapper was reportedly shot recently but fortunately remains in stable condition. 

Details surrounding the situation that led to the gunshot wound are scarce, but Freddie himself seemingly confirmed the news on his social media pages. 

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Despite the gunshot wound appearing to hit right under his chin, the Arkansas rapper seems to be in good spirits. He shared an Instagram post to his story of the fresh bloodied wound with the caption “I’m good” on Monday (May 24), likely around the time of the violence took place. Viewer discretion is advised for the graphic photo attached below. 

Jumping into the rap game in 2017, Bankroll Freddie signed to Quality Control shortly after in 2019 after landing on the radar of the label’s co-founder Pierre Thomas. “I feel like a lot of stuff I did slept on. Probably because ain’t too many people heard me. I’m a new face to the world. A lot of people may not have heard my new stuff, my old stuff. It’s more about putting it out there, put it in they face,” said the rapper in an interview earlier this year with XXL. 

Image via Instagram

We’ll keep you updated as more information about the shooting becomes available. In the meantime, our prayers go out to Freddie. 

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Yung Bleu knew was he was doing when he sang about “Thieves in Atlanta” for one of his recent singles. A few weeks ago, rapper Ludacris had his car stolen from an Atlanta bank after he left the car running in the parking lot. He eventually got his vehicle back. On Tuesday, 11Alive reported another car theft, this time affecting pop star/rapper/activist Akon, who reportedly was pumping gas in Buckhead when somebody hopped in his whip and drove off.

According to the report, Akon was filling up his white Range Rover and left the car running. Police are looking at surveillance footage and trying to find the suspects responsible for taking off with the car. Atlanta police are urging residents not to leave their cars running after auto thefts have risen by about 47% since last year.

Leonard Adam/Getty Images

“Any time you stop your vehicle and you leave your vehicle for just a split second, please turn your vehicle off and take your keys with you and secure your vehicle,” said Lt. Dorian Graham. “We’re having far too many vehicles stolen because we are leaving our vehicles running.”

Akon has not made any public statements regarding this incident. We will keep you posted on any updates in this developing story.

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