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WATCH: Stephen A. Smith Blasts Diddy for Deleting Cassie Apology Video

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Stephen A. Smith Says COVID-19 Vaccine Saved His Life

Stephen A. Smith is blasting Diddy for deleting his apology video to Cassie. On his own podcast, Stephen A. said the video was the one thing he should have kept.

“If you had a million photos, if you had a million videos, and you decided to delete 999,999, that’s the one you should’ve kept up, if you’re sincere,” he said. “And I know, that you’ve been taking a lot of hits, and there’s been shrapnels of criticism all over the place aimed in your direction.

“Although one could argue, the ex that you hit had to deal with a hell of a lot more than you had to deal with in terms of the criticism.”

Amid ongoing lawsuits and accusations, Sean “Diddy” Combs has deleted all posts from his Instagram, including his apology to Cassie Ventura. This purge occurred during the week of June 16 without any prior statement or explanation. However, Diddy’s posts on X/Twitter, including his December 2023 declaration that “Enough is enough,” remain untouched. The Instagram wipe happened shortly after Diddy was accused of assaulting Cassie over her alleged relationship with Kid Cudi.

In a VladTV interview, Diddy’s former bodyguard, Roger Bonds, recounted an incident where Diddy found messages between Cassie and Cudi, leading to a confrontation. When Cudi wasn’t home, Diddy allegedly assaulted an employee, Capricorn, whom he believed knew about the relationship. “He put hands on Capricorn because of that situation. Capricorn ended up leaving and suing him for it. He paid Capricorn $450,000 to keep her mouth shut,” Bonds explained.

In May, CNN released 2016 footage of Diddy assaulting Cassie at a hotel. Despite Diddy’s prior denials, the video showed him slamming Cassie to the ground and throwing household items at her. Following the video’s release, Diddy apologized: “I take full responsibility for my actions in that video. I was disgusted then when I did it. I’m disgusted now. I went and I sought out professional help. I got into going to therapy, going to rehab. I had to ask God for his mercy and grace.”

Anyway, that “apology” has gone off to Instagram oblivion, and it looks like the storm can’t stop and most certainly won’t stop. 

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The post WATCH: Stephen A. Smith Blasts Diddy for Deleting Cassie Apology Video first appeared on The Source.

The post WATCH: Stephen A. Smith Blasts Diddy for Deleting Cassie Apology Video appeared first on The Source.

Kai Cenat Will Host 24-Hour Stream Backstage At Travis Scott’s July Concert In London

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Kai Cenat is set to up his live streaming game with a 24-hour stream, backstage at Travis Scott’s upcoming concert in London. Known for his engaging, hilarious streams and viral moments, Cenat will join Scott at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on July 11, part of Scott’s Circus Maximus tour. Who knows what’s in store for the “chat” but fans of the streamer and Houston rapper are here for it. 

The collab was sparked during one of Cenat’s recent livestreams when Scott called in with the idea: “I got a sold out stadium show. Let’s do 24 hours in London.” Scott continued, “We’ll do it backstage. We’ll go crazy.”

Get this, Scott played a crucial role in Cenat’s streaming success. After Cenat faced a Twitch ban for guideline violations last year, Scott intervened to help him get reinstated, although the specifics of his assistance remain unclear. Since then, Cenat’s career has thrived.

ICYMI, recently, Cenat made headlines with a sleepover stream featuring Kevin Hart and Druski, following a solo stream with Hart. They called in LeBron James, Rich Paul, and BenDaDon, and the event was filled with drinking, dancing, eating, and endless jokes. Hart even teased Cenat for getting rejected by Tyla on a previous stream, bringing him a poster that read “We Friends Tho.”

Meanwhile, Travis Scott continues to enjoy the success of his 2023 album *Utopia*, which debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 and sold 496,000 album-equivalent units in its first week. All 19 songs from the album charted on the Hot 100.

Excited for this event. Something tells me other collabs from top creators and major artists, are sure to follow.

The post Kai Cenat Will Host 24-Hour Stream Backstage At Travis Scott’s July Concert In London first appeared on The Source.

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Viral ‘BBL Drizzy’ AI Company Behind Drake Diss Track Sued By Major Labels

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The Drake, Kendrick drama continues, this time in the form of big tech, music labels, lawsuits and artificial intelligence. A group of major record labels, represented by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), is suing two AI startups, Suno and Uncharted Labs (developer of Udio), for allegedly using copyrighted music without permission to train their AI systems.

The RIAA, acting on behalf of labels such as Sony Music Entertainment, UMG Recordings, and Warner Records, has filed copyright infringement lawsuits against Suno and Uncharted Labs. The lawsuits claim that these companies used unlicensed sound recordings to train their AI models.

So what exactly is Udio? Founded by former Google DeepMind researchers, Udio, is known for creating “BBL Drizzy,” an AI-generated song that went viral during a dispute between Kendrick Lamar and Drake. Udio aims to make it “easy for anyone to create emotionally resonant music in an instant” and raised $10 million in funding in April. Suno, which enables users to create songs with simple prompts and relies on OpenAI’s ChatGPT for lyrics, raised $125 million last month.

Get this, RIAA CEO Mitch Glazier stated that the lawsuits are “necessary to reinforce the most basic rules of the road for the responsible, ethical, and lawful development of generative AI systems and to bring Suno’s and Udio’s blatant infringement to an end.” He emphasized that while the music community is collaborating with responsible developers, unlicensed services exploit artists’ work without consent or compensation.

Back in April, over 200 artists, including Billie Eilish, Kacey Musgraves, and Jon Bon Jovi, signed an open letter organized by the Artist Rights Alliance, urging AI developers to stop using AI to infringe upon and devalue the rights of human artists.

For all you legal eagle junkies, the lawsuit against Udio notes that “if developed with the permission and participation of copyright owners, generative AI tools will be able to assist humans in creating and producing new and innovative music.” However, it warns that irresponsible development without respect for copyright protections could harm artists, labels, and the music industry, reducing the quality of new music and diminishing cultural value.

The lawsuit against Suno claims that the platform has over 10 million users generating music files, resulting in about 2 million streams. These files compete with copyrighted recordings without giving credit or compensation to the original artists. 

Udio and Suno have not yet responded to requests for comment from media outlets that reported this story.

The post Viral ‘BBL Drizzy’ AI Company Behind Drake Diss Track Sued By Major Labels first appeared on The Source.

The post Viral ‘BBL Drizzy’ AI Company Behind Drake Diss Track Sued By Major Labels appeared first on The Source.

Swizz Beatz Responds to Backlash From Controversial ‘Verzuz’ Deal With Elon Musk’s ‘X’ Platform

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ICYMI, Swizz Beatz and Timbaland recently announced a new partnership between their music battle platform, Verzuz, and Elon Musk’s social media app, X, which has sparked backlash. Addressing the critiques, Swizz Beatz emphasized his positive intentions. 

“LIFE BEGINS AT THE END OF YOUR COMFORT ZONE,” read a joint statement on Swizz and Timbaland’s Instagram accounts, featuring a photo of the producers toasting with Musk. “IT’S OFFICIAL, VERZUZ IS BACK AND 100% BLACK OWNED AGAIN… WE WILL ALSO BE BUILDING NEW ENTERTAINMENT BUSINESSES ON THE X PLATFORM.”

And you all know the backlash was evident in the comments, with one highly liked comment stating, “Trying to force Black people back to Twitter with music while you’ve made the site a playground for straight up white supremacists is an insult to our intelligence — basically saying ‘it doesn’t matter how we treat them as long as we give them a hot beat to dance to.’ NO.”

Get this, Swizz Beatz responded to the criticism, noting, “But nobody said anything before we been on that platform since Verzuz started.” He further addressed concerns on X, saying, “You will see my intentions as always. We must change what we don’t like, not complain about it. We go hard since the 90s. People will soon see the plan. I understand that people have questions, and they will also understand I’m not a silly person.” He also pointed out the irony of critics using X to voice their complaints, adding, “But you’re on X [laughing emoji].”

Unless you were under a rock when the world shut down, Verzuz, created during the pandemic, gained popularity through Instagram Live battles between respected artists. It faced a hiatus in 2022 due to a legal dispute with Triller, which had acquired the platform in 2021. The lawsuit was settled the same year, with Swizz and Timbaland hinting at Verzuz’s return in 2023.

Verzuz has featured many iconic matchups, including Monica vs. Brandy, Gucci Mane vs. Jeezy, Ashanti vs. Keyshia Cole, and Dipset vs. The Lox.

Do ya’ll have an issue with Swizz partnering with Elon Musk? The latter mogul is controversial, polarizing and one would think he is ultimately self serving but one thing is for sure, he cut a deal with Swizz and Timbaland, and they said yes.

The post Swizz Beatz Responds to Backlash From Controversial ‘Verzuz’ Deal With Elon Musk’s ‘X’ Platform first appeared on The Source.

The post Swizz Beatz Responds to Backlash From Controversial ‘Verzuz’ Deal With Elon Musk’s ‘X’ Platform appeared first on The Source.

Diddy Deletes Cassie Apology And Scrubs All Instagram Posts

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Amid ongoing lawsuits and accusations, Sean “Diddy” Combs has deleted all posts from his Instagram, including his apology to Cassie Ventura. This purge occurred during the week of June 16 without any prior statement or explanation. However, Diddy’s posts on X/Twitter, including his December 2023 declaration that “Enough is enough,” remain untouched. The Instagram wipe happened shortly after Diddy was accused of assaulting Cassie over her alleged relationship with Kid Cudi.

In a VladTV interview, Diddy’s former bodyguard, Roger Bonds, recounted an incident where Diddy found messages between Cassie and Cudi, leading to a confrontation. When Cudi wasn’t home, Diddy allegedly assaulted an employee, Capricorn, whom he believed knew about the relationship. “He put hands on Capricorn because of that situation. Capricorn ended up leaving and suing him for it. He paid Capricorn $450,000 to keep her mouth shut,” Bonds explained.

In May, CNN released 2016 footage of Diddy assaulting Cassie at a hotel. Despite Diddy’s prior denials, the video showed him slamming Cassie to the ground and throwing household items at her. Following the video’s release, Diddy apologized: “I take full responsibility for my actions in that video. I was disgusted then when I did it. I’m disgusted now. I went and I sought out professional help. I got into going to therapy, going to rehab. I had to ask God for his mercy and grace.”

Anyway, that “apology” is gone off to instagram oblivion and it looks like the storm can’t stop and most certainly won’t stop. 

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Screen Shot 2024 06 21 at 2.49.09 PM

The post Diddy Deletes Cassie Apology And Scrubs All Instagram Posts first appeared on The Source.

The post Diddy Deletes Cassie Apology And Scrubs All Instagram Posts appeared first on The Source.

Spotify Launches New Plan in U.S. For a Dollar Less That Entirely Exclude Audiobooks

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Spotify has introduced a new subscription plan, Basic, priced at $10.99 per month, offering a $1 discount for users who don’t need audiobook access. Take that, inflation! 

Check this out, this single-user plan provides ad-free access to millions of songs and podcast episodes but excludes the audiobook feature available in the regular Premium Individual plan, which costs $11.99 per month.

Spotify explained this one who dollar drop in price stating, “Enjoy the music streaming benefits of your Premium plan without the monthly audiobook listening time,” when announcing the Basic tier. In contrast, the higher-priced premium plans include 15 hours of audiobook listening time monthly from a catalog of over 250,000 titles.

Get this, the basic plan’s launch follows recent price increases for most of Spotify’s existing plans. The Individual plan rose by $1 to $11.99 per month, the Family plan went up by $3 to $19.99 per month, and the Premium Duo plan increased by $2 to $16.99 per month.

Oh but wait, additionally, Spotify offers an audiobooks-only plan for $9.99 per month, providing 15 hours of audiobook listening time.

The new Audiobooks Access tier, introduced on March 1, allows Spotify to pay lower music-licensing rates for bundled plans. This follows a 2022 settlement between the National Music Publishers Association (NMPA) and streaming services, which includes a carveout for bundles like Amazon Prime and Apple Music + Apple News.

Don’t get too excited because last week, the NMPA filed a complaint with the FTC against Spotify, arguing that these music-and-audiobook bundles will reduce mechanical royalty payments to songwriters and artists by $150 million annually. Spotify acknowledges that the bundles allow for lower royalty rates but maintains that overall earnings for creators will continue to rise.

The post Spotify Launches New Plan in U.S. For a Dollar Less That Entirely Exclude Audiobooks first appeared on The Source.

The post Spotify Launches New Plan in U.S. For a Dollar Less That Entirely Exclude Audiobooks appeared first on The Source.

[WATCH] Jennifer Lopez Talks To Apple Music About Her New Album And Finding Inspiration In Her Love Story With Ben Affleck

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The iconic Jennifer Lopez joins Ebro live in New York City for the second episode of her very own, exclusive This Is Me…Now Radio series, celebrating the release of her new album This Is Me… Now. Lopez gives listeners an exclusive look into her love story and all the stops on her journey along the way. 

In part two, Lopez talks about learning to embrace her scars while making This Is Me… Now, and how her second chance at love with Ben Affleck made her want to share that sense of hope with her fans. She also shares stories and inspiration during the making of her album, talks about evolving, and how her musical original is breaking all the rules.

Also, she is joined by longtime friends and collaborators Fat Joe and Ja Rule. Fat Joe shares stories about their friendship and talks about how inspirational she is, and she and Ja Rule reminisce about collaborating on the song “I’m Real.” Then, she gets some words of encouragement from LL Cool J and Ludacris. 

When speaking about the second chance at love with famed actor Ben Affleck, Lopez told Ebro, “I have hope always that things will be great. Even when they’re hard. That is a part of me. And I think when this happened in my life there’s a surreal magical plot twist in my life. And I got a second chance at this love it made me want to share that. It made me want to share that hope and as an artist you want to share the things you know. I don’t look at, I love my music and I love to make movies and do all the things you see in the project but I also see life that way. I want to make life beautiful for myself and for my kids and my husband. And for everybody. In my own little way.”

The post [WATCH] Jennifer Lopez Talks To Apple Music About Her New Album And Finding Inspiration In Her Love Story With Ben Affleck first appeared on The Source.

The post [WATCH] Jennifer Lopez Talks To Apple Music About Her New Album And Finding Inspiration In Her Love Story With Ben Affleck appeared first on The Source.

Tinder Hosts “Swipe-Off” Concert Featuring Saweetie At ASU

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Tinder recently hosted an exclusive concert for Arizona State University students with Grammy Award-nominated rapper Saweetie as the headliner and Baby Tate as the opener. 

The free concert was held at Arizona’s Financial Theater in celebration of ASU scoring the top spot in Tinder’s Swipe-Off™ Challenge, which encouraged students to ‘Tap In’ to the possibilities that come from meeting new people as they returned to campus for the new school year.

The platinum recording rapper performed her biggest hits such as Icy Girl, My Type and Tap In while Baby Tate sang fan favorite, Hey, Mickey!

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The post Tinder Hosts “Swipe-Off” Concert Featuring Saweetie At ASU first appeared on The Source.

The post Tinder Hosts “Swipe-Off” Concert Featuring Saweetie At ASU appeared first on The Source.

New Podcast “ODB: A Son Unique” From USG Audio, Novel And Talkhouse Debuts November 7

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Most people remember Ol’ Dirty Bastard as the stage-crashing, secret weapon of Wu-Tang Clan. A raw showman whose death left the world of music, and those closest to him, shocked and confused. But Ol’ Dirty Bastard, aka Ason Unique, was far more complex. He was a man of many names, a God in hip hop, a father, husband, and someone who struggled with addiction and mental health. 

Hosted by New York-based photographer and filmmaker Khalik Allah, ODB: A Son Unique takes listeners on a journey into the legendary rapper’s complicated world. The first three episodes drop Tuesday, November 7, with two new episodes releasing every Tuesday.

Subscribe to ODB: A Son Unique on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever podcasts are available, and listen to the trailer out today: HERE.

Remarked Allah: “To me, Ol’ Dirty Bastard is a legend and a prophet of Hip Hop. To lend my voice as a host to this podcast has been a true honor and a way of praising the life of one of the most unique geniuses in music. Our lives intersected in many ways, from having mutual friends to both having been enrolled in the curriculum of the Five Percent Nation. Working on this podcast has been a privilege and now I hope the world gains a new perspective on the short but profound life of Ason Unique, also known as the Ol’ Dirty Bastard; the Brooklyn emcee stormed the 1998 Grammy stage and said ‘Wu-Tang is for the children.’”

ODB: A Son Unique pays homage to a singular rap icon who left an indelible mark on Hip Hop. Host Khalik Allah, who started his career photographing the Wu-Tang Clan, tells the story of ODB from a young prankster growing up in Brooklyn to the formation of the most iconic group in New York hip-hop history: Wu-Tang Clan; and the chaotic production of his debut solo album. Allah tells the story of a man caught between the values of the Five Percent Nation – Black nationalist ideology – and a toxic mix of fame, mental health, and a racist criminal justice system which contributed to his untimely death at just 35 years old.

Through archival interviews with Popa Wu, who served as a mentor for both Ol’ Dirty Bastard and Allah, and new interviews with Buddha Monk, Raekwon, detective Derrick Parker, Ol’ Dirty Bastard’s brother Ramsey Jones, biographer Jaime Lowe, lawyer Peter Frankel, writer and cultural critic Hanif Abdurraqib and more, ODB: A Son Unique offers an unforgettable story about Black life in America through the lens of a kindred spirit. 

The post New Podcast “ODB: A Son Unique” From USG Audio, Novel And Talkhouse Debuts November 7 first appeared on The Source.

The post New Podcast “ODB: A Son Unique” From USG Audio, Novel And Talkhouse Debuts November 7 appeared first on The Source.

Cam’Ron And Ma$e Give Stat Baby Her Own Show “Check Out The Stat”

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Fans of sports entertainment and pop culture, get ready for a new and exciting addition to your screens! The highly anticipated “Come and Talk 2 Me” network, founded by the legendary rapper and entrepreneur Cam’ron, is proud to announce its latest addition – a dynamic and thrilling new show “Check Out the Stat” featuring none other than the talented Treasure Wilson, better known as Stat Baby.

The show debuted October 20th on the Come and Talk 2 Me Network on Youtube. The show promises to deliver an unfiltered and captivating experience that will undoubtedly resonate with viewers from all walks of life. Wilson, a University of Miami alumni, and social media sensation with over 53k Instagram followers and 45k followers on Tik Tok, is no stranger to making waves in the world of entertainment. Her new show, brought to you by the “Come and Talk 2 Me” network, will surely be no exception.

Known for her fearless and engaging style, Stat Baby is set to bring a fresh perspective to the network. The show will provide a platform for candid conversations on a variety of topics in the sports and entertainment world. Treasure’s unique ability to connect with her audience will ensure that her interviews and discussions will be nothing short of entertaining and insightful.

Cam’ron, the visionary behind the “Come and Talk 2” Me network, expressed his excitement about the new addition to the network’s lineup: “She is talented and deserves the opportunity so I gave her one!”

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The post Cam’Ron And Ma$e Give Stat Baby Her Own Show “Check Out The Stat” appeared first on The Source.