Hip Hop News

Kodak Black is tired of being called a clone following his prison release. Much like the conspiracy theories surrounding Gucci Mane after he was released from prison a few years back, Kodak is fighting back the narrative that he was cloned by the government, tackling Gucci himself after running into the rapper recently.

After the Broward County native admitted that the clone speculation was beginning to anger him, Gucci Mane trolled the rapper after running into him, continually insisting that he was duplicated while in prison. “Is this the clone or the real one? @kodakblack,” asked Guwop on Instagram, posting his conversation with Kodak on his Stories. While Yak seemed amused by the encounter, he jokingly called out Gucci directly afterward, hopping into his own car and throwing some funny insults.

“Ay you, ay you n***a, Gucci Mane, Radric Davis, Wizzop, Guwop, all that. I’m glad my comeback game wasn’t too much on point tonight, n***a,” said Kodak. “When you said, ‘oh, is you a clone?’, you know what I should have hit you with? ‘B*tch, I might be!’ That’s what I should have told your little ugly ass. You got that smooth ass haircut but no waves on that motherf*cker. All that motherf*cking pomagrenade [sic], all that grease on that motherf*cker and you got no waves on there. Ayo, Keyshia! You need to make some product, wave product, for that n***a. Smooth ass haircut, not a damn ruffle up there.”

It’s clear that Kodak’s roast of Gucci Mane was all in good fun. In the video of the two together, they seemed to really vibe with each other. After all, they’ve collaborated on numerous occasions, including on “Wake Up In The Sky” with Bruno Mars.

Every single year, Jordan Brand blesses sneakerheads with a ton of new shoes during the Holiday season. November and December are festive times and during these moments, it is important to go out and get some dope sneakers that will have your family members impressed at any outings. The Jordan 11 gets particular attention during this time as every single December features one or two new Air Jordan 11 releases. Later this year, we are expected to get the “Cool Grey” retro but now, an “Animal” model is also expected to drop.

In the image below, courtesy of KicksOnFire, you can see that the “Animal” model will contain a black upper, while the strip that goes around the silhouette will feature various animal patterns. From tiger to cheetah to leopard to zebra, there are plenty of different animals to behold here. Overall, it makes for a dope new offering, that is set to be a women’s exclusive.

An exact release date has not been announced for these although you can expect them to drop sometime closer to Christmas as this is a Holiday release. In the meantime, stay tuned for any updates as we will be sure to bring those to you. Also, let us know what you think, in the comments below.

Image via KicksOnFire

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Rise & Grind is a new editorial series, meant to introduce and dissect new, buzzing, or underground artists.

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Pooh Shiesty is the success story Gucci Mane’s been seeking these past few years of reconstructing the 1017 empire. The Memphis-born rapper’s skyrocketed to fame over the past few months after securing a significant buzz across the South. He’s the latest artist that Gucci can be credited for introducing to the masses, joining the likes of Young Thug, PeeWee Longway, and plenty more.

“Back In Blood” has been an inescapable banger that’s been climbing up the Billboard 200, earning Shiesty his first top 40 hits. Meanwhile, his first project, Shiesty Season debuted at the top of Billboard’s Top Rap albums chart and in the top 5 on the Billboard 200. Along with his recent contribution to the soundtrack for Judas & The Black Messiah, Shiesty’s a natural-born hitmaker that has a promising trajectory ahead. 

Fresh off of the release of Shiesty Season, Pooh Shiesty hopped on a quick Zoom call with HNHH for the latest edition of Rise & Grind where he answers 10 basic questions before diving into a quick Q&A, below.

Stay tuned for a new installment of Rise & Grind every Monday.

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Image Via Publicist

Stomping Grounds: 

Memphis, Tennessee. South Memphis. Cane Creek apartments. 

You know, it was rough, you know? It’s like any other neighborhood. I’m from DHG part of South Memphis, though. Like, it’s split in sections, and train tracks. We from Cane Creek.

Zodiac Sign: 

I’m a Scorpio.

I don’t know. I think I represent Scorpios. I’m what a Scorpio looks like. Moves like. Acts like.

Top 5 DOA: 

Dead or alive? I’m gon’ put me on there, BIG30, Gucci Mane, Kodak Black, and Chief Keef. I dont even care about nobody else. Them five right there.

Biggest Accomplishment:

Shit, going number one. [I] never went number one before. We number one all the platforms and shit.

Studio Habits & Essentials: 

I don’t know what my crazy studio habit is yet. I probably got a habit that I don’t know about yet. I don’t know about my habit but I know I need weed in there, for sure. I don’t need it to be crowded, and I need me something to drink, you get me? Some water, for real.

Shiesty Season:

Man, [Gucci Mane] put everything together, you know? He planned everything, knew the dates. When everything was going to drop, how I was going to shoot this video. He’s behind it all. That’s why I gave him the big ups. He’s the genius. Everything went as planned.

He let me know what’s the right move and what’s not. He might let me know his opinion and how he feels. He probably thinks this should go this way, and I probably don’t think — you know what I’m sayin’? It’s like, with everything. He’s just an honest dude. Real n***a all the way around the board.

First Bars: 

I remember the first bars I put out, yeah. I remember the first rap I made and the first one I dropped. “Choppa Talk,” with me and Big 30, was my first rap. The first rap I put out was “Weak A** B**** Remix,” by Three 6 Mafia. I remixed that song. 

First Show:

I was doing shows in Memphis. They already was booking me when my first song came out. I remember my first show, it was a Memphis show. 

It was lit. A feeling like no other. They really wanted to see me. And actually, I paid to perform. I ain’t know nothing about the business at first. I was like, 18,19.

Clocking Out:

Family, for real. You gotta be there for family. Probably go to them when I leave the studio. They’re gonna keep me going, for sure.

A couple of TV shows. I love Power, though. I know everything about Power. Seen every episode.

[Ed. note: Pooh Shiesty wants a role in an upcoming Power spin-off. 50, you know what to do.]

Up Next:

I ain’t going to stop.  You know, you can expect a video to every last one of my singles. Every last one of my songs, for real, that’s on the mixtape. You can expect a video from that. S***, more music. You know, I ain’t never stop dropping. I ain’t gonna never let up.

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Image Via Publicist

Your dad is a rapper himself, and also the CEO of Memphis label Mob Ties. You’ve mentioned that he provided you some game when you were coming up. At this point, who’s the better rapper between the two of you?

C’mon, man. What this shit look like? What it look like? He is, though. He got it. He taught me.

What’s the most important lesson he’s taught you as a rapper? 

Keep going. He know how hard it get, how many times a n**** want to quit, and how many times that you stop, you pull back, whatever. Anything can happen. A n**** could go to jail tomorrow, he’d just tell me, “Keep going. Don’t ever stop.” 

What was your reaction when you initially heard Lil Durk rap, “Pooh Shiesty, that’s my dawg but Pooh, you know I’m really Shiesty”?

Shit, I’m Big Shiesty. I’m Big Shiesty. 

I mean, it’s interesting that you’re working with Durk after watching the rise of drill music growing up. Since Chief Keef is in your top 5, I’m sure the drill movement meant a lot to you growing up. 

Yeah, I watched it all. It was crazy that he tapped in as soon as my chance came around. But you know, that’s what real n***as supposed to do. So, everything was real shit. We locked in. He means his words. He stood on his word. He said we’re gonna do this the way, we did it. He stood on that. He a real n****.

Can you breakdown the “Big Blrrd” ab-lib? 

It’s the sound that Blrrd’s make. It’s the sound that drums make. Where we get ‘em from. 

No inspiration taken from Birdman? 

Nah, we get that from guns. No man influenced it. We fascinated with guns, bro. That come from a gun. I don’t know where they come from. They probably just be hollering, though. 

Would you release that as a ringtone?

Yup. Hell yeah. This month. 

There are some who actually declared Migos to be down for the count following the 2018 release of Culture 2 and the subsequent spree of solo albums from each member. Plagued by accusations of oversaturation and a played-out sound, the Atlanta trio opted to take an extended hiatus and regroup in the studio.

 Michael Kovac/Getty Images

For a while now, the Migos have been steadily teasing the release of Culture 3, the apparent conclusion to the saga that originally started in 2017. And with the project set to be released within the next month or so, Quavo has upped the ante with yet another promising snippet. Once again taking to Instagram Live to do so, Quavo queued up an up-tempo single with much of the focus landing on Takeoff’s opening bars. “Record deposit can’t fit in my wallet,” raps the often-praised and notably reserved lyricist. “Hop in the coupe and it’s feeling robotic / If we talking money then money the topic.”

 Though there admittedly isn’t much to unpack, given that the snippet is brief and Quavo’s commentary is rather overwhelming, it’s still enough to spark some further hype for Culture 3. On that note, keep an eye out for the upcoming project to land shortly, as Quavo previously teased that it would be coming by April. Will you be tuning in? 

Ever since James Harden was traded from the Houston Rockets to the Brooklyn Nets, the Rockets have been struggling mightily. With John Wall and Victor Oladipo at the helm, there has been a very visible lack of chemistry and as it stands, the Rockets are 11-21 and 14th in the Western Conference. This is in stark contrast to what the Rockets have largely been in the past, which is a team that always finds itself at the top of the standings.

Last night, the Rockets lost to the Memphis Grizzlies by a whopping 49 points, and understandably, Wall wasn’t very pleased about it. In fact, after the game, the star spoke to reporters where he was extremely blunt about the team’s struggles. “This shit is ass,” he said. “Terrible.

The Rockets are now on an 11-game losing streak which is not where many fans thought they would be. Regardless, this Rockets team is falling apart at the seams, and with Oladipo trade rumors circling around, it seems like there is no way out for this team, at least not in the immediate future.

Hopefully, for Rockets fans, the team is able to turn the season around and give a more inspiring effort in the second half of the season.

Carmen Mandato/Getty Images

Tiger Woods was severely injured during a car accident last week as he broke several bones in his right leg and also shattered his ankle. It was a devastating injury to the legendary golfer who was gearing up to take part in the Masters next month. Since that time, updates have been coming out about Woods’ condition and how he has been transferred to a new hospital.

On Sunday, numerous golfers at the WGC-Workday Championship honored Woods by dressing up in his signature Sunday uniform of a red polo and black pants. This tribute had a lot of fans saluting the players, including Woods, who made his first public statement since the accident, where he thanked the players for their touching tributes.

“It is hard to explain how touching today was when I turned on the tv and saw all the red shirts,” Woods said. “To every golfer and every fan, you are truly helping me get through this tough time.”

At this time, Woods’ golfing future remains up in the air as his injuries will most likely keep him out for an entire year. Hopefully, the golfer will be able to get back on track, and we wish him a speedy recovery.

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Lil Uzi Vert is finally going public with his girlfriend JT, who performs as one half of the ultra-successful rap duo the City Girls. The two have been linked for the last few months, keeping things cryptic on social media and making their fans guess whether or not they’re actually a couple. It turns out that they were keeping things low-key all along, sharing new pictures on Instagram on Sunday night. However, Uzi’s move to go public with JT was seemingly prompted by one of his ex-girlfriends, Brittany Byrd, who appeared to claim that the rapper was still texting her and trying to get back together.

Leaking text messages where Uzi, saved as “Vert” on Brittany’s phone, claims to still call her every day and telling her that they’re “still together”, Byrd tried to embarrass JT by insinuating that she’s nothing but a side chick. However, Uzi himself went on to dispel that notion, choosing JT as his main.

“JT is the one,” he tweeted on Sunday night. When someone suggested to him that he’s letting his real soulmate go by claiming JT, Uzi shot down Brittany by saying, “I had 2 be real with myself I love JT and y’all will 2.” Then, he affectionately called her his “Darkqueen”. 

On Instagram, he continued pushing the narrative that he and JT are a happy couple, posting a photo dump on his main feed and including a shot of her, seemingly wearing the same furry boots as him in the gallery. He also posted a video of JT enjoying a crab legs snack with him after she tweeted that she was craving seafood. 

What do you think is going on? Is Lil Uzi Vert not being fully truthful with JT (and the world) by posting up with her on social media? Do you think he’s still involved with Brittany Byrd on the low?