Hip Hop News

Tinker Hatfield has made some incredible shoes throughout his career as a designer with Nike although few are better than the Air Jordan 3. This was the very first Jumpman sneaker that Hatfield ever made and it was an instant classic thanks to the elephant print hits and visible Air Max unit in the midsole. Over the decades, this shoe has received countless new colorways, and ever since its 30th anniversary in 1988, Jumpman has continuously brought out new models for fans to enjoy.

With 2021 almost halfway done, Jordan Brand is already looking ahead towards 2022 where we are supposed to get even more great shoes. According to @zsneakerheadz on Instagram, the first Jordan 3 of 2022 is set to be the “Cardinal” colorway which can be found below. This model has an all-over white leather upper while the highlights on the midsole and around the laces are burgundy. Some grey elephant print is placed at the toe box and back heel, all while gold is found on the tongue’s Jumpman logo.

Originally, these were being pegged for the Spring of 2022 although now, they are expected to drop in January. There are still more details to come so keep it locked to HNHH as we will be sure to bring you all of the latest updates surrounding these.

Ever since he first endeared himself to rap fans by singlehandedly robbing the entire hip-hop landscape on wax, 50 Cent has seemingly relished in playing the villain.

His history of lyrical warfare is well documented, having picked up feuds with JAY-Z, Ja Rule, Fat Joe, Jadakiss, Styles P, Kanye West, and more during his prime. Even after transitioning to the world of television, Fif never shied away from confrontation — lest we forget about the infamous birth of “Fofty.”

 Jason Merritt/Getty Images

As ruthless and calculating as they come, Fif has long developed his reputation throughout the years, to the point where his IG page still strikes fear into the hearts of his opponents. Yet every so often, 50 reveals a softer side, a heart of gold hidden beneath layers of ice. Over the weekend, Fif found himself breaking character following a Father’s Day celebration with his son Sire, which prompted the Power mogul to share a few words on Instagram.

“Happy Father’s day God bless hope you enjoyed your family,” writes Fif, sharing a picture of himself and his son — though in true Fif fashion, he made sure to throw in a bit of self-promotion with a reminder that “Raising Kanan 7/18 #lecheminduroi.” Sire also shared a Father’s Day picture on his own Instagram page, furthering the narrative that behind the badass exterior lies a heart of gold. Check out the pics below, and show some belated Father’s Day love to 50 and all the hip-hop dads out there.

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

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Los Angeles is having its time in the spotlight, once again, thanks to the bubbling underground scene. Blue Bucks Clan have been a rising force out of the West Coast. The South Central duo, consisting of Jeeezy and DJ, grew up together, eventually playing alongside each other in college football to now, being one of the hottest groups coming out of Los Angeles in recent memory. 

The release of March’s Clan Virus 2 follows a prolific run the past two years, that includes projects like Clan Way 2. Their production can be as eerie as it is infectious, while their direct, conversational bars make for some great quotables. 

Fresh off of the project’s release, we caught up with Blue Bucks Clan to chop it up about their new project, working with Quavo, and their favorite Lil Wayne projects. 

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

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Photo credit: Louie Knows

Stomping Grounds:

DJ: We both grew up in South Central L.A.. Shit, [we] went to the same high school, played for the same little league. That’s where we met. All in South Central L.A. 

We were just two of the chosen ones (Laughs). You know, we was never followers or nothing.  And we never got into nothing crazy or no trouble like that. So then, I guess, football really just kept us out of that, anyways. So, we had a goal. We had goals to just, you know, try to make ourselves better in football. Do something right.

Jeeezy: I gotta go to my dad’s barbershop, hang out there. You know, that’s where my people be at when I be back in the city. Other than that, you chilling in the house somewhere.

Zodiac Sign:

J: Capricorn. I don’t really know the traits and all that. I’m not into that at all. So, I don’t know nothing about that at all. I just know that I’m a Capricorn.

D: Yeah, I’m a Leo. I don’t really know about that shit, either. I don’t know too many other signs, I don’t know who I’m supposed not getting along with or who I do (Laughs). I just figure out on my own, man. Real-life experience.

Top 5 DOA:

D: Lil Wayne, 50 Cent, Tupac — the greatest of all time — Nipsey. What’s that four? You put us in the fifth spot. 

J: Lil Wayne, Nipsey, Kendrick Lamar, Future and I’ll put Lil Durk number 5.

Biggest Accomplishment:

D: I would say… It ain’t really just one thing. I’m able to — if my mom or anybody in my family need me, I can help out with whatever now. I’m the one that can help. I can do a lot of people in my family, help them.

J: Our mixtape, when it hit the top 10 on Apple Music, I would say. That was probably the biggest accomplishment so far for me.

Studio Habits & Essentials:

J: I don’t really got no weird studio habits. Three things you need — I don’t really need much. I probably need some water, a good engineer, that’s it. Just a good beat, man. That’s all I really need. I don’t really be needing anything else. 

D: I be just having a lot of snacks. Just having a lot of snacks, chips. I always be having M&M’s every studio session because that’s my favorite candy. The almond ones. Different type of bag.

Clan Virus 2:

J: Yeah, we recorded the entire “Clan Virus 2″ in L.A., though. We knew this project was going to reach a lot more people and it’s going to be a lot of people first time hearing us, so we were like, we have to go hard and make them want to go look back at our old music that we’ve been put out. So, they can see we’ve been rapping like this. We been doing this. That was really it. 

D: Yeah, it ain’t really no pressure but we be needing some pressure. It don’t really be no pressure. We need something to get us motivated. We go to studio every day so it’s like, it just normal. It’s regular that we make songs, the same type of song.

J: The one with Lil Yachty, that just happened organically. We were like, it would be a good idea to put him on the tape. We did the video and stuff. That was one of our singles off the mixtape so we had to put that on there. The one with Cash Kidd, that one was organic, too. That was crazy how we did that one. We were sending the song back and forth, ‘cause you know how we was rapping back-and-forth, but we weren’t in the same studio. We had to keep sending them back to him. We were just waiting on him to send his part back. That shit was crazy. And then we went to put that on the tape because we really fuck with his music, Cash Kidd. That’s one of our favorite artists that we listen to. So, we had to put him on our tape. We already make songs with Bino. We got a gang of songs. We always hang out a lot so that was automatic. 

D: [The pandemic] was just a time we went through. The virus and lockdown just happened to start while we were in that mode. So, we got a lot of songs that we made during that time from when it first started — the lockdown, Coronavirus, and all that — ‘til today. We’ve got so many songs and it’s like it was all done at this time. 

Everybody in the world going to remember this time. The time we were on lockdown. This shit never happened before. So, even when it’s like 30 years from now, everybody gonna remember this time. You know, this exact time, and they should remember what music was coming out. It just all go with each other. It just won’t never be forgotten, this time, and especially this music. It’s just like NWA during, like, the riots and all that shit back then. Like, that’s something that never going — you know, it’s history. It could have been that to help people get through it, or whatever, you know?

First Bars:

J: First song we recorded? It’s on Soundcloud. It’s like way at the bottom on Soundcloud. It’s called “Earthquake.” These n***as wanted me to write a hook. Like, I don’t know why they thought I was good at hooks back then. I just came up with a hook, put it down, and then I did it. And it came out cool, like — we had found that beat on YouTube. Then DJ did his verse and I did a verse, and that was like — that shit funny.

D: Now I mean, I don’t remember too much but I know it was a good time and good vibe. ‘Cause pretty much all our sessions be a good time. We be laughing, joking. That’s how every good song — really every song we on made been like that. We laughing, joking in the studio, in a booth while we recording. That’s when we just having the most fun. That’s when we make our best shit when we joking around. We’ll never just be like this, serious, you know? Like, trying to do a song so bad. It’s just all fun to us.

First Show:

D: It was at the Roxy. We opened up for Rucci.

J: That was the first time we ever performed. Back then, it wasn’t really that wasn’t really nothing. It was probably like five people singing our shit. I mean, everybody was just staring at us like they ain’t know who he was. But we were throwing money and shit. 

D: We was goin’ crazy.

J:  That was like the first time really seeing us, a lot of people. So, they didn’t really know how to feel. But they was fucking with us, though. We didn’t get boo’d or nothing.

[That show] taught us what not to do. We noticed we was doing stuff that we not supposed to be doing on stage. Having all our homies right there with us. You couldn’t really tell who was rapping because it’s like 10 n***as surrounding us. We’re just having fun, we was drunk. We just learned a lot from that first performance.

Guilty Pleasures:

J: I be listening to a lot of unreleased music. Our unreleased music. Bino, I got a lot of his unreleased music. I be listening to Coi Leray. I like her. Yeah, other than that I be playing Madden and shit. That’s it. 

D: If I’m home, I’m laying down and playing the game pretty much (laughs). 2K, Madden, but I don’t be home. Once I leave, I’ll be out. Probably go to the studio. I might not come back home until like, five in the morning, six in the morning. So, I just want to be in bed all day.

Up Next:

J: More videos. We are about to drop a couple more videos. We’ll drop a couple singles, just working. Same shit. We gonna come out with another tape. We don’t know when but it’s gonna come. We got a lot of music.

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Talk to me about “Little League” ft. Quavo. I heard you guys recorded that in 30 minutes. 

J: Yep. Shoutout to Hit-Boy. He put that together. He just invited to the studio. Quavo ended up being there, he ended up walking in. And he just did the song. It was simple, he did the song. Then Hit-Boy hit us up again like “This is hard, yall better stop playing and shoot this video.” Then we did the video. It just came on, like, that’s it. That was it really.

Was Quavo already familiar with your guys’ music by the time you guys met?

D: Yeah. He knew who we was already when he walked into the studio.

J: He was like, “I fuck with y’all music. Y’all n***as hard.” It’s crazy. You would never expect him to even listen to our shit. It’s crazy when people like on that type of status, like, they heard about us or they fuck with our music. You know we doing something right.

KD and Westbrook have given you guys a shout out in the past. So, I want to know, as former athletes yourselves, what carries more weight: the co-signs from the rappers or the co-signs from the athletes?

J: I like both of them. The athletes usually listen to the hottest shit. So, that means our shit hard enough that they would listen to it before their games and shit like that. And then from the rappers, it’s cool, too. I fuck with both of them, though.

D: Probably like the athletes, I don’t know. Athletes is a little different because it’s people that we like, probably grew up watching or seeing on TV never thinking we would have ever met him or nothing like that. For them to say our bars and all that, I be like, ‘Damn, they really listen to our shit.’ So, it’s crazy.

Can you guys bring me back to the days when you were playing college football? How do you think that experience playing together in college football helped you guys in terms of navigating through the rap world?

J: One thing I took from football is being consistent and being on time for shit. Just like the work ethic, right? You don’t got no choice when you in college. You gotta get up early as fuck. You gotta make it to the meeting on time. You got to be there, you got to lift weights. All that shit. Now, it’s like you gotta go to the studio. We’ll be in there all night and that shit don’t really be nothing to me. I already got it inside. The dedication for it. 

D: We are used to hard work. Like, real hard work and this ain’t hard at all. I just feel like football got us ready for whatever. It could be anything. Because it’s way harder, way, way, way harder. Mentally and physically, it’s way harder than anything I did. This ain’t really nothing, we don’t got to do much but talk. It’s nothing.

I spoke to Bino Rideaux last year around the time he released Outside. He had some incredibly kind words for you two, along with artists like Rucci. He said it “might be like the 90s again.” What are your thoughts on that comment in particular? 

J: I feel like it’s a lot of talented artists right now in L.A.. We been making a lot of noise. I feel like —  it reminds me of like when YG, Ty Dolla $ign, Mustard, and all them dudes that came up at that time. Like, in the early 2010s, 2011, and shit like that. This reminds me of that time. It’s a lot of new talent. Everybody going crazy. Everybody putting in work, it’s looking good for the city right now.

D: Everybody doing something right now. Like usually in LA, everybody knows normally.you know, don’t fuck with each other like that but I feel like it’s been changing lately. I don’t want to say it’s because of us or nothing. I’m not saying that but I feel like a lot of the city — every side of the city is different, you know, Eastside, Westside, whatever — they all fuck with us. Like, everybody fuck with us. By everybody fucking with us, we kind of bringing everybody — not together — everybody going up together. Everybody dropping new music, everybody fucking with it so it’s kinda good, you know?

In your opinion, what’s the hottest single in the city right now?

J: Probably, KALAN.FR.FR “LOOK AT ME.” I like that song. Other than that, Drakeo got that song with Drake. That shit going crazy. 

D: Man, I be listening to a lot of stuff. Probably, KALAN, Drakeo, Bino, Blxst. I don’t want to miss no names but yes, it’s a lot. Everybody has been making noise out here.

I know Lil Wayne obviously sits very high on your top 5 list. DJ, I know you mentioned Tha Carter II as your favorite Carter. Jeeezy, you named ‘Drought III’ as your favorite Wayne project. Can you take me back to the first time you heard Lil Wayne?

D: I was young. My uncle used to listen to him so that kind of put me on it. I was real little, though.

J: I can’t even remember. I just know I used to be on YouTube, lookin’ up his shit. He used to have so many songs that leaked on YouTube so I just used to listen to all those songs. I just to put them on my iPod or some shit. Or I’ll make a CD. I used to make CDs back in the day. I just put all that shit on there and just be listening to it and I just go to school. This was like, when I was in middle school. Sixth grade, I’d be going to school and be rapping that shit to the homies. What was that one song? He was like, ‘That’s why your bitch want a real n***a like me.’ It’s called “Workin’ Em.” That was one of the first songs I heard that got me like, ‘This n***a the hardest rapper.’ 

When Tory Lanez first started teasing his new song “SKAT” with DaBaby, Megan Thee Stallion called out her “Cry Baby” collaborator for switching sides and working with her biggest enemy. At the time, DaBaby seemingly confirmed that Tory had bought an older verse from his vault, urging Megan not to think too hard about his decision. Now that the track has officially been released, Megan has taken a major issue with the move, calling out DaBaby publicly over the weekend on Twitter.

“Support me in private and publicly do something different…these industry men are very strange,” she wrote. “This situation ain’t no damn ‘beef’ and I really wish people would stop down playing it like it’s some internet shit for likes and retweets.”

Johnny Nunez/Getty Images

That post came after DaBaby allegedly retweeted a joke making light of Megan’s shooting last summer. Baby claims that he never retweeted the post, but people came through with receipts proving otherwise. Megan unfollowed DaBaby last week when the song was released but the North Carolina rapper appeared to be taking the high road, keeping her on his page. This morning though, fans noticed that the favor was repaid as Baby hit the unfollow button as well, effectively ending their solid relationship in the eyes of their fans.

This move comes after Pardison Fontaine, Megan’s boyfriend, unleashed a fiery tirade on DaBaby on Twitter. He backed up his girlfriend perfectly, calling Baby “corny” in a heated post.

Do you think we’ve seen the end of the Megan x DaBaby collaborative days?

The Keeping Up with the Kardashians reunion that aired on Sunday night revealed more than one suspected-but-unconfirmed truths, resulting in many headlines this morning. Among them: Khloe had a nose job.

Andy Cohen, the show’s host, asked Khloe what was one rumor she hated hearing the most out of all the constant controversy surrounding the family. The former Revenge Body host decided to take the opportunity to set the record straight.

Khloe stated all the talk about her supposed plastic surgeries was most bothersome because she says, she’s only ever had one surgery — a nose job — even noting her surgeon by name.

Cohen was the first person to give her an opportunity to speak her mind according to the star who stated, “No one’s ever asked me, you’re the first person in an interview that’s ever asked me about my nose.”

Khloe even continued to dive into more details about her face noting, “I’ve done, sure, injections — not really Botox. I’ve responded horribly to Botox.”

Cohen also prodded Khloe about the constant paternity rumors, that Robert Kardashian wasn’t actually her father.

Khloe Kardashian, 2019 (L), 2007 (R) – Matt Winkelmeyer, Alberto E. Rodriguez/ Getty Images

Khloe explained that the root of that particular rumor — her appearance — was what bothered her the most, because she realized her looks were ultimately fueling the questions of her paternity. 

Khloe stated, “By people saying, questioning always, ‘I can’t be their equal sibling,’ it’s because of appearance — it’s not because of [genetics]. So that’s the part that’s always stung, but I’m so immune to that [paternity] part. That’s the part that hurts me the least currently.”

The reality star continued to open up to Cohen, speaking about her confidence and how it was affected by the show. 

“When the show first started, I was very secure, very secure,” she said. “And then during the first couple seasons, I became insecure because of the public opinions of myself. Then I had, I think, a good run of being secure, and then I think recently I’ve become now insecure again. So I guess it just goes, you know, up and down.”

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Legendary comedian Dave Chappelle has long-held ties to hip-hop, and over the weekend, he showcased the depth of his network. As the 20th edition of the Tribeca Film Festival came to an end, Dave Chappelle closed things out with a bang by bringing out a slew of rap legends for an impromptu concert at the Radio City Music Hall.

Fat Joe, Ghostface Killah, De La Soul, Q-Tip, ASAP Ferg, Redman, Talib Kweli, and DJ Clark Kent proceeded to hit the stage after the screening of the Chappelle-centric documentary This Time This Place, directed by Julia Reichert and Steven Bognar. Though cellphone recording was prohibited, pictures from the stacked event have hit Instagram, courtesy of Radio City Music Hall’s page. Many were quick to note how welcome it was to see so many rap legends going back-to-back on the same stage, and one has to wonder if Chappelle will continue to strengthen his hip-hop ties in the future.

Erik Voake/Getty Images 

On that note, Chappelle recently teamed up with Talib Kweli and Mos Def, who was conspicuously absent from the Radio City Music Hall concert, to launch the Midnight Miracle podcast. The first episode launched on May 11, providing “a glimpse into a very interesting season in the lives of the three hosts and their friends, and features guests from among the country’s most influential cultural icons.” 

Check out some pictures from the recent concert at the Radio City Music Hall below — perhaps one day we’ll see this lineup, or one of a similar nature, united for a long-form tour. Show some love to the hip-hop vets in the comments below. 

Throughout the NBA playoffs, Devin Booker has been lights out and is arguably the best player on the floor right now. Alongside Chris Paul, Booker has helped carry the Suns to victory and it truly feels like this Suns team is destined to do something special. After taking Game 1 against the Clippers, many fans believe they have a shot at the Finals, and if Booker continues with this pace, he might be on his way to a Finals MVP campaign.

After scoring 40 points, 13 rebounds, and 11 assists yesterday, Booker was praised by Stephen A. Smith this morning, and he even received a huge compliment from the analyst. As you can see in the clip below, Smith claims that Booker is the next Kobe and that this crown needs to be given to Booker immediately.

Booker was a disciple of Kobe Bryant and throughout his young career, Bryant would always give him advice and guidance. Since Bryant’s passing, Booker has been on an absolute mission and there is no doubt that he has the Mamba Mentality inside of him. The Suns are lucky to have a player like Booker and it’s wild to see the team become title contenders just a year after missing the playoffs for another consecutive year.

Game 2 of the Western Conference Finals goes down on Tuesday and if Paul is back, then it’s going to be a scary sight.

Christian Petersen/Getty Images

Bow Wow’s latest insult against his good friend Soulja Boy  stings more than it would have a few weeks ago. Following the 76ers’ loss to the Atlanta Hawks last night, Bow Wow has fired back against his Verzuz rival Soulja Boy by saying the rapper is the equivalent to Ben Simmons in the rap game– and he didn’t mean it as a compliment.

After Soulja Boy jogged everyone’s memory by sharing a photo of the infamous “Bow Wow Challenge” on Monday morning. Sharing the meme on his social media pages, Bow Wow fired back against his opponent with a couple of heated tweets, waking up and choosing violence.

“Soulja just stop,” started Bow. “Like literally stop…. The diff w/ me and you is.. YOU HAVE TO PUT OUT MUSIC. I don’t. Ill be in the box office this weekend while you sit at home in your living room yelling on live at no one.”

He continued, “Soulja i know how much you getting paid on the millennium tour… you’ll make more being my assistant. Play fair. See you saturday lil brother. #headliners vs #openingacts [peace emoji]. Soulja is the ben simmons of the rap game. Go rehearse and get off the internet. See you Saturday cap gun.”

The “She Make It Clap” rapper fought back with his own ammunition, saying, “Bow wow fell off. Bow wow ain’t had a hit since Marco Polo and I gave him that song. Bow wow couldn’t make a hit in 2021 if his life depended on it. Bow wow could never make a song like she make it clap and get played on the radio in 2021. I haven’t heard a bow wow song on the radio since I was still living in the hood without a record deal. I’m done playing I’m bringing Romeo out. Bow wow new name is Lil Pee Wee make it trend. Crank that Better than any song bow wow made his entire career. Bow wow never produced for Nicki Minaj or made a song wit her or drake or Gucci mane. lil dude can’t fuk wit me. Bow wow never put nobody on. I put whole new rap game on. Gave all the new artist a chance. Bow wow never shot nobody. I let the Draco go off. Bow wow never did no time I came home from jail the man.”

After his initial slander, Big Draco proceeded to respond to Bow Wow’s tweets, saying, “Bro you not starring In that movie you an EXTRA, Cardi b got a bigger part than u shad.”

Bow Wow responded by calling out Soula, saying, “Dont forget you sold crack too. Just didnt want to blemish your street cred. Soulja you got my stomach hurting im laughing too hard! Can i enjoy my breakfast?”

What do you think about this play feud? Are you excited for them to face off on Verzuz later this week?