beefing

Lil Duval Claims Afrobeats Are The Death Of Hip Hop, Twitter Debates

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Comedian and rapper Lil Duval provoked a not-so-humorous debate on Twitter last night (February 19th), which caused a back-and-forth conversation regarding the longevity of hip hop. In his tweet, the Guy Code star wrote, “Afrobeats might be the death of hip hop as we know it.” As a result, Duval sparked a heated argument amongst music lovers.

One user quickly snapped back with “hip hop will never die,” while another vocalized reassurance, explaining, “Afrobeats is a fad. It’ll come and go just like every other form of music that has tried to bite hip hop.” However, fans of the genre were not so happy with Duval’s statement, which even prompted pro wrestler EJ “the Judge” Nduka to respond. “We gon’ ignore those outlandish tweets you put out about your kid,” the Judge tweeted, “or we gonna focus on how uncultured you are?”

Duval Stirs The Pot Amongst Music Lovers

Deriving from Ghana and Nigeria, afrobeats has gained popularity as a genre that fuses together R&B, hip hop, dancehall, and house. Accordingly, Apple Music describes this category of music as “the infectious but indescribable sound of 21st-century Africa.” In recent years, artists like Burna Boy, Tems, and Rema have raised in popularity in North America, with the trio even performing during the NBA’s halftime show.

Twitter users were quick to jump at the differences between the two genres, showcasing how afrobeats and hip hop are not on the same playing field. “Hip hop and afrobeats will coexist, and we also bringing dancehall back, we the essence of music,” one user wrote. Another brought up the cultural significance of the genre by tweeting, “It stands to reason that the globally recognized sound of black people comes from Africa and not USA anyway. About time hip hop stopped representing us.”

Duval’s Past Tweets Receive More Backlash

As pointed out by angry commenters, this isn’t the first time the 45-year-old performer has sparked controversy. Duval was under fire after old tweets recently resurfaced containing uncomfortable comments about his daughter. Accordingly, the disturbing tweets (the same ones that the Judge referred to as “outlandish”) have only added flames to the fuel that angry music lovers are throwing his way.

Do you think that afrobeats threaten the existence of hip hop? Let us know in the comments down below. Make sure to check back later for more music and pop culture news updates.

Twitter Reacts:

Funk Flex Apologizes To Wu-Tang Clan For Past Hot 97 Beef

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Funk Flex has posted an apology to RZA and the rest of the Wu-Tang Clan for their beef over the years. The Hot 97 DJ shared the message on Instagram, Saturday. He explained that he regrets not putting their dispute, which dates back over twenty years, to bed.

“I WANNA TAKE THIS TIME TO APOLOGIZE TO THE @RZA AND THE ENTIRE @WUTANGCLAN !!! ALMOST 25YRS AGO THE GROUP, ME AND HOT97 HAD A DISAGREEMENT THAT TO ME NEVER GOT PUT TO BED. AND I APOLOGIZE!” Flex wrote i the caption of a photo of himself with RZA of the Wu-Tang Clan.

NEWARK, NJ – DECEMBER 14: FunkFlex performs onstage at the 2017 Hot for the Holidays concert at Prudential Center on December 14, 2017 in Newark, New Jersey. (Photo by Manny Carabel/Getty Images)

“LOOKING BACK AT THIS 20 SUMTHIN YEARS LATER.. WE GONNA MAKE UP FOR THE TIME WE MISSED…” he further wrote. “THE WORLDS GREATEST RAP GROUP AND THE WORLDS GREATEST RADIO STATIONS ARE GOING TO COME TOGETHER BRING U SOMETHING AMAZING!”

Raekwon commented on the post: “Nothing but love Blackman! And that’s Reciprical!!!!!.” RZA also commented three Wu-hands emojis.

Wu-Tang Clan detailed their beef with Hot 97 during the group’s 2019 docuseries Wu-Tang Clan: Of Mics and Men. Inspectah Deck claimed Hot 97 threatened to pull their music if the group didn’t perform at Summer Jam in 1997. On stage at the event, Ghostface Killah lead the crowd in a “Fuck Hot 97!” chant.

“They didn’t play our records for like the next 10 years,” Deck explained, while adding that they got other radio stations to join in the boycott as well. “Us not being involved while they playing the Biggie shit, they playing Nas shit, everybody that was rocking with us at the time. That affected our sales, that affected our touring, that affected everything. That affected our presence.”

Wu-Tang Clan previously mended their relationship with Hot 97 by playing Summer Jam in 2013. The group aren’t the only artists Funk Flex has blacklisted over the years. He also recently stopped playing music by 6ix9ine, but has since gone back on that decision. Check out Funk Flex’s apology to Wu-Tang Clan on Instagram below.

[Via]

Akademiks Says He’ll Fight Lil Baby: “I Will Choke You To Death”

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Akademiks wants to go blow-for-blow with Lil Baby following the release of It’s Only Me.

Baby dropped off his third solo album in October, which contained two disses directed at the controversial figure. Baby didn’t throw subliminals, either. The rapper fired back at the media personality for stating that he’s richer than him on “From Now On.” “Akademiks know he ain’t as rich as me,” he raps. Then, he mentions the media figure on “Top Priority” when he raps, “Akademiks n****s think they can’t get touched/ I don’t be on computers much, CED turnt me on to YouTube.”

h Lil LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – MARCH 14: Lil Baby attends the 63rd Annual GRAMMY Awards at Los Angeles Convention Center on March 14, 2021 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for The Recording Academy )

Though the streamer is a well-documented fan of Baby’s music, it’s clear that Baby’s bars soured his appreciation. Since the album dropped, the Off The Record host dissed Baby on numerous occasions. During one stream, he called the ATL rapper “short bus baby” and questioned his intellect.

In a recent live stream, Akademiks took it a step further. The beef may have began with words but the former Everyday Struggle host made it clear that he wants all the smoke. In fact, he went as far as saying that he would choke the rapper to death.

“I will fight Lil Baby for free or for money,” Ak said. “I just wanna get in the ring with him. You don’t got no 4PF, n***a, I will choke you to death. I will punch you in your face. You’re not doing shit. Stop it. You’re a fucking retarded rapper, you can’t do shit. Stop it. Who gon’ stand on that?”

Ak said that he was putting this out in the world before questioning other rappers who he’s challenged to scrap with.

“I’m putting this out on public media, n***a. If Lil Baby really thought it was some shit, he’d be like, ‘Yo Ak, let’s really get into it,’” he continued. “I’ve said this shit mad times. Have you heard any rapper say, ‘Yo Ak, well fuck it then, let’s get it in.’ Not one of these n***as, bro. Not one of them.”

No word from Lil Baby. But, considering that Akademiks’ previously said that he’d testify against the rapper, it seems unlikely that Baby will respond.