Hip Hop News | Trending Hip Hop Stories

Afro Nation and Billboard Partner for New US Afrobeats Chart

by
billboard x afro nation

Billboard has launched the first-ever Afrobeats music chart in the United States, collaborating with Afro Nation, a music festival and global Afrobeats brand. The Billboard U.S. Afrobeats Songs chart, which has 50 positions, ranks the country’s most popular Afrobeat songs using a weighted formula that includes official-only streams on subscription and ad-supported tiers of leading audio and video music services, as well as download sales from top music retailers. On March 29th, the Billboard U.S. Afrobeats Songs chart will be available on billboard.com.

“The last decade has seen Afrobeats explode into a worldwide phenomenon, influencing culture and fashion across the globe and I am humbled to have made a contribution to growing the genre alongside many talented, passionate people,” said Afro Nation founder, Co-Head of UTA London and founder of Event Horizon Obi Asika. “There is still so much more potential within the scene and the community that has grown around it and I believe it is vital that with Billboard we now have a US chart that reflects this growth and provides a platform for emerging artists from every continent to showcase their talent to new audiences.”

“Billboard is excited to collaborate with Afro Nation on the launch of the Billboard U.S. Afrobeats Songs chart,” said Billboard’s SVP of Charts and Development, Silvio Pietroluongo. “As with much of the world, Afrobeats has grown tremendously as a genre in America and we are proud to showcase the top songs and artists with this new weekly ranking.”

Afro Nation is one of several significant drivers to the sound’s development in the United States, with singers like Wizkid, Burna Boy, and Davido set to perform at their festival in Puerto Rico in 2022. This latest move follows Afro Nation’s relationship with the Official Charts Company in the UK, which released the Top 20 Afrobeats Chart in July 2020. Through the groundbreaking Billboard U.S. Afrobeats Songs chart, they are extending their influence to Billboard. 

The post Afro Nation and Billboard Partner for New US Afrobeats Chart appeared first on The Source.

Viola Brands Set to Launch Iverson 01 Strain in Michigan

by
E7dzlF0UUAg0cDi

As part of their ongoing multi-year partnership with NBA legend Allen Iverson, Viola, the premier Black-owned producer and licensed reseller of premium cannabis products will release limited amounts of their latest strain. Iverson will attend meet-and-greets with customers at five cannabis shops in the metro Detroit region this Friday and Saturday to help promote the launch.

“I’m excited to continue the partnership with my brother Al and bring our newest strain to Detroit,” said Iverson. “Everything I do is for the fans, and this is no different.”

IVERSON 01,’ an indica-dominant Detroit grown hybrid, is a cross of F1 Durban, Gushers, and Runtz. The pre-rolled and packed flower will be sold at a number of dispensaries throughout the state.

Iverson will appear at a handful of dispensaries in support of the launch, starting with Bazonzoes in Walled Lake at 3 p.m. on Friday, followed by 3Fifteen Cannabis in Hamtramck at 5 p.m., and Herbology in River Rouge at 6:45 p.m. On Saturday, he’ll be at Skymint in Hazel Park at 1 p.m. and Liv in Ferndale at 2:15 p.m.

“We’re excited to launch IVERSON in the Michigan market with 70+ valued partners. Although we would’ve loved to visit every location, with scheduling we had to narrow it down to a handful. We look forward to everyone trying ‘01 and meeting Chuck and I at the in-stores” said Viola CEO, Al Harrington.

The post Viola Brands Set to Launch Iverson 01 Strain in Michigan appeared first on The Source.

Coach Carter Surprises Cordae During Sacramento Tour Stop

by
19735ADF ADC6 4A63 96E8 CE22F4854C1B

Coach Ken Carter, the great basketball coach who inspired both the sports movie classic Coach Carter and the title of Cordae’s latest single “C Carter,” arrived at his Sacramento gig on Saturday night to meet the latest The Source cover star.

Carter’s staff planned the pop-up meeting with Cordae’s management after learning about the song from one of his boarding school students.

“I’m very proud of Cordae; he’s a pleasant young man, talented artist, AND– he plays basketball.” Coach Carter said. “I’ll have to see how well he plays one of these days soon.”

19735ADF ADC6 4A63 96E8 CE22F4854C1B

After his decision to lock his undefeated basketball team out of the Richmond High School gym in 1999 made national headlines, Coach Ken Carter became the inspiration for the 2005 film Coach Carter. The community was upset at first, but his calm demeanor and resolve motivated his athletes to excel intellectually as well as athletically. The film is presently available to watch on Netflix.

The post Coach Carter Surprises Cordae During Sacramento Tour Stop appeared first on The Source.

Juice WRLD’s Estate Announces the Release of ‘Fighting Demons’ Vinyl

by
3 1

The Fighting Demons vinyl was issued by Juice WRLD’s estate, and it’s the much-awaited follow-up to the Fighting Demons posthumous digital album, which was released in December 2021.

All original tracks from the Fighting Demons digital album are included on the vinyl album, including hit songs like Wandered to LA and Feline. The record is only available in limited quantities online and in stores, with a special red vinyl hue available only at Target.

Lil Bibby, who worked closely with Juice WRLD and formed Juice WRLD’s label Grade A Productions, and Juice WRLD’s manager, Peter Jideonwo, produced Fighting Demons. Following its release, the vinyl is projected to return to the top of the charts.

The Fighting Demons album features Justin Bieber, Polo G, Trippie Redd, and Suga of BTS. You can see images of the vinyl release below.

Visual Portfolio, Posts & Image Gallery for WordPress


3 1


2 1


1 1

The post Juice WRLD’s Estate Announces the Release of ‘Fighting Demons’ Vinyl appeared first on The Source.

Don Toliver Headlines Night 2 of Rolling Loud at SXSW

by
001 DON TOLIVER RL NIGHT 2 @FIFTYCLICKS 2

Following a crazy first night, Rolling Loud and RAP TV’s SXSW Showcase returned for night two at Stubb’s. Houston crooner Don Toliver headlined RL’s second night in Austin, performing favorites including “Lemonade,” “After Party,” and “No Idea” for the sold-out crowd. A set from Houston classic Trae The Truth, an energizing performance from rising artist SSGKobe, street-savvy bars courtesy of Detroit’s Icewear Vezzo, and other performances from Bbymutha, Jasiah, BIGBABYGUCCI, Yung Kayo, and more were among the night’s highlights.

Rolling Loud will return to Hip-Hop again in July. Rolling Loud Miami 2022 is set for July 22nd – 24th at Hard Rock Stadium with headliners Kanye West, Kendrick Lamar, and Future. Tickets are 90% sold out.

You can see images from the close of Rolling Loud SXSW below.

Visual Portfolio, Posts & Image Gallery for WordPress


001 DON TOLIVER RL NIGHT 2 @FIFTYCLICKS 2

001 DON TOLIVER RL NIGHT 2 @FIFTYCLICKS-2


001 DON TOLIVER RL NIGHT 2 @FIFTYCLICKS 1

001 DON TOLIVER RL NIGHT 2 @FIFTYCLICKS-1


@melodi.jpg rollingloud.jpg 57

@melodi.jpg-rollingloud.jpg-57


@melodi.jpg rollingloud.jpg 53

@melodi.jpg-rollingloud.jpg-53


@melodi.jpg rollingloud.jpg 52

@melodi.jpg-rollingloud.jpg-52


@melodi.jpg rollingloud.jpg 51

@melodi.jpg-rollingloud.jpg-51


@melodi.jpg rollingloud.jpg 50

@melodi.jpg-rollingloud.jpg-50


@melodi.jpg rollingloud.jpg 47

@melodi.jpg-rollingloud.jpg-47


@melodi.jpg rollingloud.jpg 44

@melodi.jpg-rollingloud.jpg-44


@melodi.jpg rollingloud.jpg 42

@melodi.jpg-rollingloud.jpg-42


@melodi.jpg rollingloud.jpg 41

@melodi.jpg-rollingloud.jpg-41


@melodi.jpg rollingloud.jpg 39

@melodi.jpg-rollingloud.jpg-39


TRAETHATRUTH RL NIGHT 2 @FIFTYCLICKS 5

TRAETHATRUTH RL NIGHT 2 @FIFTYCLICKS-5


TRAETHATRUTH RL NIGHT 2 @FIFTYCLICKS 3

TRAETHATRUTH RL NIGHT 2 @FIFTYCLICKS-3


TRAETHATRUTH RL NIGHT 2 @FIFTYCLICKS 1

TRAETHATRUTH RL NIGHT 2 @FIFTYCLICKS-1

The post Don Toliver Headlines Night 2 of Rolling Loud at SXSW appeared first on The Source.

Westside Gunn, Conway the Machine, and Benny the Butcher Announce Spring Griselda Tour

by
Griselda Logo1

The Buffalo, NY-based hip hop collective Griselda recently announced a run of ten gigs around the US this spring. After performing at Coachella this April, Griselda will embark on their nationwide Claires Back Tour starting in Chicago on May 10 and finishing at the Shrine Expo Hall in Los Angeles on June 3. On May 15, the band will perform at the brand-new Boston venue Roadrunner as part of their tour. Tickets go on sale at 10 a.m. local time on Friday, March 25 at http://www.griseldaxfr.com/.

This will be Griselda’s first tour since they sold out back-to-back gigs at the Novo in Los Angeles in 2020. Since then, the band has been active, releasing critically acclaimed albums and performing at festivals like Day N Vegas, Made in America, and Rolling Loud.

Griselda is coming off a succession of highly anticipated album releases, beginning with Westside Gunn’s latest addition to his HWH collection, HWH8, which he released earlier this year. Conway The Machine released his critically lauded album God Don’t Make Mistakes in February, including Jill Scott, Lil Wayne, TI, Beanie Sigel, and others. Benny The Butcher broke new ground earlier this month when his single “Johnny P’s Caddy,” featuring J. Cole, from his latest album Tana Talk 4, reached the Billboard Hot 100.

You can see the full run of dates below.

Griselda Logo1

The post Westside Gunn, Conway the Machine, and Benny the Butcher Announce Spring Griselda Tour appeared first on The Source.

Muni Long and Supergiant Records Enter Partnership with Def Jam

by
Muni Long's "Hrs and Hrs" Becomes TikTok's First Hit Single of 2022

Muni Long has partnered with Def Jam Recordings through her Supergiant Records label. The signing was announced today by Def Jam chairman & CEO Tunji Balogun.

Muni’s platinum breakthrough smash “Hrs & Hrs,” co-managed by Rashad Tyler and Chris Anokute, has taken the world by storm, racking up over 150 million streams, peaking in the Top 5 on Apple Music, #17 on the Billboard Hot 100, and now sitting at #3 at Urban radio and hitting the Top 10 at Rhythm radio.

“It has been a lifelong goal of mine to be able to bring my gifts to the world. This alignment with Tunji and Def Jam for a global takeover is a literal dream come true,” said Muni Long. “Supergiant Records started as an idea between myself and my husband Raysean in 2019 and over the course of the next two years we would invest, hire, strategize and create. As our team grew, so did our success, and as a result of hours and hours of hard work and intense focus, this year we reaped a bountiful harvest. Many, many thanks to my partners, Rashad Tyler, Raysean Hairston, Chris Anokute and all those who contributed to this historic moment. We look forward to an incredible journey with Tunji and the Def Jam family.”

“Muni represents everything a Def Jam artist should be: bold, independent, authentic, creative, visionary, and one of a kind” said Tunji Balogun. “I have followed her artistry and journey very closely, from her time as a writer for some of the biggest artists in the world, to the incredible run of success she is now so deservedly enjoying. Muni sets the new standard for where we want to go as a label. I’m thrilled to join with her and her world-class team in this exciting partnership. With all the amazing work done by Priscilla and Raysean, Chris, Rashad and the Supergiant team, along with J.R. McKee and his MPR team – combined with the resources and passion of the Def Jam family – the sky’s the limit.”

“We’ve both known Muni for over a decade, since the start of her music business journey as a teenager,” said Supergiant Records co-founder/co-manager Rashad Tyler and co-manager Chris Anokute. “So fast forward to now, through the ups and downs we’ve seen her endure, we couldn’t be happier for her current success. Let’s just say she put in her 10,000 hrs.”

The post Muni Long and Supergiant Records Enter Partnership with Def Jam appeared first on The Source.

Pusha T Teams Up With Arbys For McDonald’s Filet-O-Fish Diss Track

by
PushaTFansChant'F kDrake'atChicagoShow

Between “Exodus 23:1” and “The Story Of Adidon,” it should be clear to MC’s everywhere that the last person you want smoke with is Pusha T. Now you might be able to add fast-food restaurants to that list as well.

Yesterday, March 21, the fast-food chain Arbys unveiled their new spicy fish sandwich. Their ad for their new sandwich featured a Pusha T diss track directed towards Mcdonald’s Filet-O-Fish sandwich.

“I’m the reason the whole world love it, now I got to crush it/ filet-o-fish is *** and you should be disgusted” Pusha raps, alluding to how he wrote Mcdonald’s “I’m lovin it” jingle nearly two decades ago. Push has gone on to say how he was paid “peanuts” for coming up with Mcdonald’s most successful campaign.

 “I did it at a very young age at a very young time in my career where I wasn’t asking for as much money and ownership,” Push said to Rolling Stone in a statement about the new Arbys ad. “It’s something that’s always dug at me later in life like, ‘Dammit, I was a part of this and I should have more stake.’ It was like half a million or a million dollars for me and my brother — but that’s peanuts for as long as that’s been running. I had to get that energy off me, and this [ad] was the perfect way to get that energy like, ‘You know what? I’m over it.’”

Upon release, many took to social media to voice their opinion on the ad and give Push his flowers for being able to infuse his “coke raps” in a fish sandwich ad.

The post Pusha T Teams Up With Arbys For McDonald’s Filet-O-Fish Diss Track appeared first on The Source.

Today in Hip-Hop History: Death Row Records’ ‘Above The Rim’ Soundtrack Dropped 28 Years Ago

by
Screen Shot 2022 03 22 at 5.06.43 AM

On this day in Hip-Hop history, Death Row Records in conglomeration with Interscope Records released the soundtrack to the popular film, Above the Rim. Winning the 1995 Source Award for Soundtrack of the Year, this album featured so many hits that it could have stood alone from the movie as a compilation album.

Acting as executive producers of the project, Suge Knight and Dr. Dre curated one of the most popular movie soundtracks of all time. This album featured work from artists 2Pac, Warren G, SWV, Snoop Dogg, Nate Dogg, The Lady of Rage, and more. Due to the popularity of the artists and the success of the movie, the soundtrack sold 2,000,000 copies in the year of its release and peaked at #2 on the Billboard 200 chart. Although it fell short on the mainstream chart, the album was able to grab hold of that #1 spot on the Billboard Top R&B/Hip Hop Albums chart. Here are some videos from the famed soundtrack to help jog your memory of its greatness.

The post Today in Hip-Hop History: Death Row Records’ ‘Above The Rim’ Soundtrack Dropped 28 Years Ago appeared first on The Source.

[WATCH] Diddy’s Former Bodyguard Accuses Him Of Snitching In Shyne’s Case In 1999 Club NY Shooting

by
Screen Shot 2022 03 21 at 5.25.49 PM

Former Bad Boy bodyguard Gene Deal spoke to The Art Of Dialogue about the shooting in Club NY in 1999 which landed Bay Boy Records signee in prison for a decade and did not pull any punches when saying Diddy snitched on Shyne to save himself.

Deal insinuated that Diddy separated himself from Shyne, whose name is Jamal Barrow, while others made statements against the Biggie soundalike, forcing Shyne into a solitary corner. “They came to Shyne, and they asked Shyne for 20 racks ’cause they had somebody that was gonna make sure all of them got off ’cause they was not going to agree to none of them charges, and they was on the jury stand,” Deal says. “Shyne may not admit to it, but he knows that to be true. So now, the reason they got off was people was coming to Bad Boy security and said that they were there.” 

Deal spoke about the never-before-mentioned snitches on Diddy’s side who were going to assist in throwing Shyne under the bus, saying, “He was like, ‘You supposed to be my brother, and you got people testifying against me?’ Those people were testifying, they were brought to Puff first, saying what they saw against Shyne, what they saw Shyne do. The D.A. didn’t even know those people existed,” said Deal.

See video below.

The post [WATCH] Diddy’s Former Bodyguard Accuses Him Of Snitching In Shyne’s Case In 1999 Club NY Shooting appeared first on The Source.