Hip Hop News

Cardi B’s commercial prowess is reaching insurmountable heights, and she hasn’t even dropped off her anticipated sophomore album yet. She has, however, delivered a pair of singles from the forthcoming project: the Megan Thee Stallion-assisted “WAP,” and her most recent release “Up.” While the former has proven to be a runaway hit, not to mention the bane of many people’s existence (Candace Owens included), “Up” appears destined to follow-suit — at least to an extent.

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Though it lacks much of “WAP’s” overt sexual magnetism, the simple banger has certainly made an impression already, having officially gone platinum only a little over a month after its release. An impressive feat, and further proof that Cardi B is incapable of dropping a song that doesn’t succeed on the commercial front. At this rate, she’s the proud recipient of thirty-one RIAA certifications, including one Diamond plaque for “Bodak Yellow.” On that note, “I Like It” and “WAP” will likely elevate to diamond status in the near future. 

Undeniably, Cardi tends to elicit strong reactions from both fans and haters alike, a quality that has likely helped boost her rampant success. Should her sophomore album indeed arrive this year as expected, it’s all but guaranteed that Cardi will be looking at another slew of gold and platinum plaques to add to her already expansive collection. At this rate, she’s already two for two. 

Future’s security wasn’t taking any risks when a woman seemingly attempted to get close to the rapper during a recent club night out, slamming the fan down to the ground in a vicious manner as the multi-platinum recording artist watched on.

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A video is currently being shared on social media by rap blogs, including No Jumper, showing the altercation allegedly going down. In the clip, a woman appears to antagonize Future’s security guard by getting in his face before she gets slammed down by her throat. She immediately gets back up and tries again to approach the security guard, mouthing off at him. Once again, the paid security grabs her by the throat and pins her to the ground in the crowded nightclub. The camera then pans over to show Future, who seemingly watched on as it all went down.

Future has not commented on the altercation, which reportedly happened during the same weekend as the Grammy Awards. 

In similar news, Lil Baby and his entourage were recently accused by a woman of attacking her and stealing her camera during Super Bowl Weekend. Read more about that here.

Watch the video of Future witnessing the alleged altercation above. The rapper was also in the headlines because of a comparison that he seemingly co-signed recently, suggesting that he’d have given Michael Jackson a run for his money if he was around when MJ started popping.

Hip-Hop thrives on debates, whether fans are arguing about the merits of an artist’s latest release or stacking one rapper’s skills against another’s. As a result, plenty of Hip-Hop fan accounts on social media capitalize on Hip-Hop culture’s contentious tendencies by encouraging online debates and fanning heated discussions. Naturally, some are bound to spark outrage by rap fans, and that is best illustrated by a new poll that pits Talib Kweli versus Young Thug. The Atlanta rapper known for projects like So Much Fun, JEFFERY, and I Came From Nothing led early results in the poll, and Talib Kweli fans were furious, with their commentary making it all the way to the veteran lyricist himself. 

Talib Kweli recently posted a screenshot of a fan’s Instagram story that read, “I can’t believe what I’m seeing. The amount of disrespect is ridiculous. @talibkweli goated. To this day I still don’t know what the f*ck Thug be saying.” However, the Black Star rapper’s stance on the matter was far more graceful and laid back. 

After starting his caption with a flood of laughing emojis, the rapper wrote, “These kind of polls always crack me up but probably not for the reasons y’all think. Young Thug can’t do what I do and I can’t do what Thugga do. I’m secure and comfortable in that. Yes we both can be qualified as rappers technically but what we do and what we have been inspired by regionally and artistically is so different, the gulf is too wide for this kind of comparison.”

“All of this is subjective anyway, but it’s always fun to see people get passionate about hiphop,” he continued, touching on the nature of the poll. Still, Talib Kweli remains confident in his talents and abilities, writing, “with that said, ain’t nobody beating me in my lane, which is being Talib Kweli.”

Before ending his Instagram post, Talib Kweli also shows love to Young Thug and his generation of Hip-Hop artists, writing, “one love to all the so called “mumble rappers” because while it might sound like mumbling to some of us, many others hear them loud and clear…”

What’s pretty interesting about the poll is that the contest was, at the time, still pretty competitive, with 58% of voters siding with Thugger and 42% going with Talib Kweli. However, as the poll nears its end, Young Thug’s victory has expanded. See the original tweet below, and check out the fan account for more unorthodox Hip-Hop polls.

Do you think polls like the one that inspired Talib Kweli’s statement are foolish or a great way to spark dialogue in Hip-Hop culture?

Many rap fans have theorized how 2Pac’s legacy would look had he not been killed on September 13th, 1996. How deep would his discography be? Which legendary emcees would he have collaborated with? What would his thoughts on the current rap landscape be? The questions are endless, and sadly, unanswerable. Today, however, TMZ has shared a conversation with Pac’s stepbrother Mopreme Shakur, who shared his own perspective on how 2Pac would react to the recent Grammy Awards. 

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As TMZ reports, Mopreme believes that Pac would have many thoughts and criticisms to level against The Grammy Awards, going so far as to suggest that Pac would be vocally “fighting tooth and nail” to instill change in the long-running institution. He also echoes the belief that many Grammy voters are simply uninformed about all the nominees, and therefore incapable of making sound and fair decisions — TMZ notes that he believes 2Pac would have felt the same way.

The report also reveals Mopreme’s suggestion that Pac would not only criticize The Grammy Awards and the Recording Academy, but actively fight and apply pressure to facilitate the desired changes. Mopreme also indicates that Pac would have wanted the Grammys to shy away from the safe mainstream options, instead shining a light on the up-and-comers putting out quality work — he proceeds to use Samm Henshaw as an example, arguing that Pac would have tirelessly fought for the underdogs of the rap game.

It should be noted that 2Pac Shakur, easily one of the most revered figures in the entire rap game, died without ever winning a Grammy. He was nominated for Best Rap Album in 1996 and 1997, though he ultimately lost to Naughty By Nature and The Fugees, respectively. In 2000, “Changes” lost the Best Rap Solo Performance award to Eminem’s breakout single “My Name Is.”

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Though the music industry landscape has changed entirely over the years, one constant that has endured is how a leak can derail an artist’s release slate. Even superstars aren’t immune to the issue. Case in point, The Weeknd recently found one of his own unreleased tracks hitting the internet, as reported by HipHopNMore. 

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The song, which features production from Zaytoven behind the boards, has been making the rounds online. It should be noted that the song sounds closer to vintage Weeknd than his recent Blinding Lights album, which has in turn fueled the narrative that it’s an older cut leftover from the vault. “Better Believe” also happens to feature XO affiliate and longtime Weeknd collaborator Belly, who closes the track with a quick verse.

While clearly unmixed, the song doesn’t quite meet the standard we’ve come to expect from The Weeknd — though it’s likely that fans of his more hip-hop-oriented sound will appreciate the stylistic return. Expect the most scholarly of Weeknd historians to have no shortage of theories surrounding the origins of “Better Believe,” with the most optimistic suggesting that new music is on the way.

At this moment, Universal Music Group has been doing their part to scrub the song from existence, so those curious to catch the track will have their work cut out for them. If you have heard the illicit recording of “Better Believe,” sound off with your thoughts on the track in the comments below.