Shaq Applies His Analysis To Rap Lyrics About Him From Cardi B, Drake, Jay-Z, And More

When it comes to pop culture figures that rappers love to reference in their songs, NBA Hall of Famer Shaquille O’Neal stands head and shoulders above the rest — literally, in most cases. Not only does he have an extensive hoop, film, and rap career to draw lyrical comparisons to, but there is a wealth of words that rhyme with “Shaq” — not to mention, his many, many nicknames. The Big Diesel, who’s now best-known for his nightly hoops analysis on NBA on TNT, tried his hand at breaking down some of the bars about him from rap titans like Biggie, Cardi B, Drake, and Jay-Z for Genius’s Between The Lines.

Throughout the course of the video, Shaq gives his impression of the many, many rap lines about him. Nas’s “It Ain’t Hard To Tell” was one of the first songs to make reference to O’Neal (more precisely, to the way “Shaquille holds the pill”), blowing the then-NBA sophomore’s mind, while Mannie Fresh’s “Still Fly” line about buying a car from him turns out to be a true story. Shaq also notes he wasn’t bugged by Biggie’s line about losing money on Lakers games from “I Love The Dough” because it too was based on the performance of the Lakers in their first three playoffs appearances with Shaq on the team, plus due to BIG’s contribution to Shaq’s own album — which he naturally gets into as well.

There’s plenty more to talk about; watch the full video up top.

Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Jaden Smith Is Opening A Restaurant Where Homeless People Can Eat For Free

Jaden Smith — who is also known mononymously as “Jaden” — is set to expand his philanthropic food truck operation into a full-blown restaurant, according to Variety (scroll down a bit). The restaurant, called I Love You, builds on the efforts he made to help feed homeless people on Los Angeles’ Skid Row two years ago with his I Love You food truck. In order for the concept to work, Jaden has figured out an unusual strategy to help offset costs: Those who can pay will pay more to “pay for the person behind you.”

While the report sports meager details — we don’t yet know when or where I Love You restaurant will open — it’s a pretty safe bet he’ll be able to follow through on his plans. Last year, he partnered with Lyft to provide free rides to people in communities like Flint, Michigan so that they have access to clean water, grocery stores, and work opportunities. He also has a boxed water initiative aimed at encouraging people to use more environmentally friendly methods of drinking portable water than plastic bottles.

Jaden is coming off a successful 2020 that saw the well-received release of his Cool Tape Vol. 3 and Jaden’s participation in the soundtrack from the Spider-Man: Miles Morales video game.

You can find out more about I Love You here.

Ahead Of Tonight’s Release, J. Cole Shared ‘The Off-Season’ Tracklist And Producer Credits

These days it’s easy to feel like it’s J. Cole’s world, we’re just living it. As the North Carolina label head and rapper readies his next release, The Off-Season — which is dropping later tonight at midnight — the constant updates and hip-hop fan fervor has been hard to ignore. Cole is more than capable at creating hype around his new projects by putting out information bit by bit, and just hours before the album drops tonight he’s shared both the tracklist and a list of producers involved in the project. Obviously, his collaborators read like a list of who’s who in the rap world, and all signs point to The Off-Season being a direct contradiction of its tongue-in-cheek title. And don’t worry, this isn’t his retirement project, either.

Check out the tracklist below, along with his list of producers.

The Off-Season tracklist:
1. “95 South
2. “Amari”
3. “My Life”
4. “Applying Pressure”
5. “Punchin’ The Clock”
6. “100 Mil’”
7. “Pride Is The Devil”
8. “Let Go My Hand”
9. “Interlude”
10. “The Climb Back”
11. “Close”
12. “Hunger On Hillside”

Producer credits:
Timbaland
Boi-1da
DJ Dahi
Jake One
Frank Dukes
Tae Beast
Maneesh
Wu10
Sucucki
Coleman
Tommy Parker
Mario Luciano
T-Minus
J. Cole

The back cover of the album also notes the executive producers: Jermaine Cole, Ibrahim Hamad, and T-Minus. Now all we need is the music!

New Music Friday: Here’s What Drops Tonight

It’s certainly looking like a big Friday for hip-hop fans, many of whom are eagerly awaiting the stroke of midnight. After all, there’s plenty of exciting new music lined up to be released. Naturally, J. Cole’s The Off-Season, a fourteen-track endeavor with production from Timbaland, Boi-1da, Jake One, and T-Minus is set to arrive, with many still buzzing from the high of Cole’s recent L.A. Leakers Freestyle.

Yet Cole isn’t the only artist dropping tonight. Two long-quiet acts are returning with their comeback singles, with both Nicki Minaj and Migos also slated to come through; though Nicki has yet to reveal her title, the Migos have confirmed that their lead Culture 3 single will be titled “Straightenin’.” Additional singles set to land include Lil Gnar, Ski Mask The Slump God, and Chief Keef’s “New Bugatti,” A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie, and Rowdy Rebel’s “9 Bridge,” and T-Pain and Kehlani’s “I Like Dat.”

While Cole’s Off-Season will likely be the biggest release of the night, it’s not the only album set to drop. Fellow Dreamvillians EarthGang has been adamant that they would deliver their sophomore album Ghetto Gods on the same day as Cole, having teased as much as recently as this past week; at this moment, it’s unclear whether or not Olu and Gr8 intend on going through with it, or if they’re simply engaging in the subtle art of trolling.

21 Savage’s Saw: Spiral soundtrack is also coming, with features from Savage, Young Nudy, and more. Kodak Black is also ready to drop a new album, readying Haitian Boy Kodak, which clocks in at eight total tracks. In addition, we’re also looking at Berner’s Paulie Cicero, Jorja Smith’s Be Right Back, and the deluxe edition of Lil Skies’ Unbothered. Suffice it to say, it’ll be an active night, and we encourage you to sound off in the comments with whatever you plan on queuing up first. Is this the biggest hip-hop release night of the year so far? 

Conway The Machine Previews “Tonight Show” Spot With J.I.D & Ludacris

Conway The Machine and the entire Griselda crew have been doing huge things over the past few years. With every single member becoming a household name in hip-hop, it’s no surprise that their individual projects are doing big numbers all while delivering some dope tracks to the table. On Conway’s latest effort La Maquina, he came through with a ton of great joints, including the track “Scatter Brain” which features the likes of J.I.D and Ludacris. 

Now, Conway will be heading to The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon, where he will get to perform “Scatter Brain” alongside the two aforementioned featured artists. Taking to Instagram, Conway posted about just how much this means to him and how he was able to climb the ranks despite people counting him out.

“Well well well… The man wit the twisted face done made it to the tonight show with jimmy Fallon… AGAIN! don’t miss @fallontonight y’all it’s up!! Yea I was counted out and shitted on but I stayed at it and got where I’m at by doin it MY WAY and it’s a beautiful feeling! But anyway, Lmk Who’s house can I come watch it at,” Conway wrote.

If you’re a Conway The Machine fan, this is gearing up to be a must-watch performance, so be sure to set a reminder if you plan on tuning in.

Conway The Machine

 Zachary Mazur/FilmMagic/Getty

The Weeknd Changes His Profile Picture On Instagram & Sparks Album Rumors

Despite his now-infamous snubs at the Grammy Awards earlier this year, The Weeknd has enjoyed a landmark career year throughout 2021. Having headlined the Super Bowl, racked up a slew of platinum plaques, and made Billboard chart history, the Canadian singer-songwriter has had an awe-inspiring run over the past four months, especially considering that he has only released one song this year. Thus, it’s only fitting that he was honored at the BRIT Awards on Tuesday.

Having also performed at the award show, The Weeknd recently took to his Instagram to promote his BRIT appearance, posting various clips of himself singing “Save Your Tears” and Michelle Obama presenting his BRIT award. However, his subsequent posts and abrupt profile picture change have fans thinking that something much bigger is happening.

At a quick glance, it appears that The Weeknd’s last few posts are simply meant to promoting his recent virtual performance for the BRIT Awards, but the artist’s vague captions have led fans to believe that Abel is gearing up to drop a new album. Mere weeks ago, The Weeknd teased that he might release the “magic” that he recorded during quarantine, so perhaps The Weeknd’s latest Instagram posts are confirmation that those tunes are in fact on the way after all. 

In his most recent Instagram post, The Weeknd posted a still from his BRIT Awards performance, which features a dark shot of him facing the camera in his strange fisherman-style getup, and for the caption, the After Hours artist wrote, “the dawn is coming….” The photo now doubles as his profile picture, so check it out below.

What do you think — is The Weeknd teasing a new project or is he simply promoting his recent performance at the BRIT Awards?

HBO Max Drops “Friends: The Reunion” Teaser; Reveals Release Date

After being delayed due to Covid last year just like everything else in this world, the long awaited Friends: The Reunion special finally has a release date. On Thursday, HBO Max released the first teaser for the special, revealing its release date in the process, May 27.

Friends/ Getty Images

The “real-life unscripted celebration” of the beloved show stars the main cast members, Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Matt LeBlanc, Matthew Perry, and David Schwimmer, as themselves. In addition, The Reunion will feature a slew of guest appearances like BTS, Lady Gaga, David Beckham, Justin Bieber, James Corden, Cindy Crawford, Cara Delevingne, Elliott Gould, Kit Harington, Larry Hankin, Mindy Kaling, Thomas Lennon, Christina Pickles, Tom Selleck, James Michael Tyler, Maggie Wheeler, Reese Witherspoon, and Malala Yousafzai.

“There’s different facets to it, and we already shot packages of things,” Lisa Kudrow recently said about the special. “I pre-shot something for it already so we’re definitely doing it because I already shot a little something,”

Friends: The Reunion premieres May 27 on HBO Max. Watch a special teaser (below) and let us know if you will you be tuning in to watch it on May 27th?

[Via]

Trial Delayed For Three Ex-Cops Charged In George Floyd’s Death

Derek Chauvin was convicted of the murder of George Floyd by the State of Minnesota on April 20, but that is not the end of the road for justice. His June 25 sentencing is only the first step of many.

Fellow ex-cops and former colleagues, Tou Thao, J. Alexander Kueng and Thomas Lane, who assisted Chauvin in the arrest, and ultimately, the death of Floyd, still have to face trial for their roles in his murder, too.

Recently released federal indictments charged all four officers with violating the constitutional rights of George Floyd. Now the ex-cops are not only subject to state trial, but also this additional federal charge. 

Derek Chauvin

Minnesota Department of Corrections via Getty Images

While Chauvin is meeting his fate, the three other men involved still remain free on bond with no convictions. Thao, Kueng, and Lane have been granted a longer term to remain free of the consequences of their actions. What’s more, it’s being reported today that the trial that was expected to occur this August has now been delayed until March 2022. 

Minnesota Judge Peter Cahill reportedly said, The three men deserve “space” from the publicity expected to arise from Chauvin’s sentencing next month, according to the NYDailyNews. Judge Cahill reportedly also suggested that the federal cases should be wrapped up first before a state trial involving all three officers begins.

Case Prosecutor Matthew Frank didn’t agree with the judge’s choice to delay the trial.

As previously reported, Chauvin was also recently charged for use of a dangerous weapon resulting in bodily injury of a juvenile from a 2017 incident involving a Black teenager. There is no set timeline for that case.

Stay tuned for updates as the situation continues to develop.

[via]

Air Jordan 4 “Oreo” Hit With Yet Another Release Date Delay

If you are a big fan of the Air Jordan line, then you probably love the Air Jordan 4. It is one of the cleanest and most straightforward models to ever be produced and over the last few decades, it has continuously received a lot of love and some amazing colorways. With the summer on the horizon, Jumpman is gearing up for a ton of new colorways to be given to the masses, and one of the most heavily teased versions is the “Oreo” offering which can be found below.

This model is a lot like the original “Cement” Air Jordan 4 except there is a lot less black and red. Instead, we are met with a predominantly white upper all while the midsole and lace holders have that signature grey and black speckle look to them. When you combine these elements together, you are left with a shoe that has a lot of wearability and we’re sure fans will be eager to get their hands on them upon release.

This shoe has been made privy to various release date changes and now, it is getting yet another delay. Instead of dropping on June 19th, the new date has been set for July 3rd. Keep it locked to HNHH as we will continue to bring you the latest updates on these.

Image via Nike
Air Jordan 4
Image via Nike
Air Jordan 4
Image via Nike
Air Jordan 4
Image via Nike

Mally Mall Sentenced To 33 Months In Prison For Running Prostitution Ring: Report

Having worked with music industry giants from Drake to Bone Thugs-N-Harmony, Mally Mall has enjoyed a long and successful career as a record producer. However, things haven’t been looking too good for Mally Mal since his house raided in 2019 following accusations of human trafficking and harboring exotic animals. Following the raid and his subsequent arrest, the decorated producer eventually plead guilty in the federal Las Vegas prostitution case.

He was originally scheduled to be sentenced in 2020, but last year, Mally Mall reportedly endured a pretty nasty case of COVID-19 last year, which ultimately delayed the final sentencing in his case. Now, news has broken that the accomplished producer has reportedly received his sentence.

According to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, Mally Mall has been sentenced to two years and nine months in prison, which tallies up to 33 months behind bars. As previously reported, the Hip-Hop producer had previously pled guilty to one count of using of an interstate facility in aid of unlawful activity, but prosecutors claimed that Mally Mall had contacted one of the victims as recently as this week and pushed for a max sentencing under the plea rather than the 24 months proposed by Mall’s attorney.

According to the LVRJ, the presiding judge, U.S. District Judge Gloria Navarro, warned the producer that this was his last opportunity to turn over a new leaf, saying, “I hope this really takes. I hope you get this message. You’ve just been really lucky. You will spend the rest of your life in prison if you do this again.”

Mally Mall reportedly has until August 13 at 2 p.m. to surrender, and immediately after his prison term, he will face three years of supervision. Stay tuned for more updates.

[via]