Lupe Fiasco Shares The Meaning Behind His Latest Album, ‘Drill Music In Zion’

Prior to the end of last month, it’d been almost four years since Lupe Fiasco released an album. His last project came back in 2018 with Drogas Wave. That project arrived with 24 songs and multiple features from Nikki Jean as well as contributions from Damian Marley, Simon Sayz, Crystal “Rovel” Torres, Elena Pinderhughes, and Bishop Edgar Jackson. Last month, Lupe returned with Drill Music In Zion, which delivered a ten brief songs with Ayesha Jaco and Nayirah. Now that the album has been out and available to enjoy for some time, Lupe took a moment to explain the project’s title during a sit-down with SiriusXM.

“What I can say, and this isn’t to get you to listen to the album by any means,” he said. “The best definition of the title was actually from my sister. My sister does the opening record on the album, Ayesha Jaco. She did the opening on my first two records, Food & Liquor and The Cool.” He added, “I gave the title to her, and it’ll make sense when we get into it because I did this record in three days, and I didn’t have time.” He continued:

There’s a scene from Matrix 2 where they’re in Zion, so everybody knows the name of the little sanctuary where the humans were able to live in the Matrix movie is Zion. That place is a sanctuary away from all the agents and other stuff. But there’s a scene in there and the whole arc of the movie the robots have found a way to drill down in Zion. So they finally found it and maybe it’s Matrix 2 there’s a scene where they’re all standing in Zion and it’s all quiet then all of a sudden you see pieces of the ceiling fall and it’s this whole epic scene. So that one scene in the film became the whole inspiration from the joint.”

Lupe also noted that a line in a freestyle also sparked the idea to call the album Drill Music In Zion and said that he was forced to commit to it at that point.

You can check out Lupe’s interview with SiriusXM above.

Carlos Santana Has Postponed Six Shows After He Passed Out At A Recent Performance

Earlier this week, Carlos Santana left many worried after the legendary guitarist passed out during a show in Michigan. Santana is currently on the Miraculous Supernatural 2022 tour with Earth, Wind & Fire, and they were all performing at the Pine Knob Music Theatre in Clarkston, Michigan when Santana took the fall. Luckily, he was able to get up and walk away under his own power, but now, it will be a little while until fans see him rocking out on stage. That’s because according to NME, a press release recently announced that Santana has postponed the next six dates of his tour to ensure that he recovers fully.

In the statement, Santana’s manager Michael Vrionis said the guitarist was “doing well and is anxious to be back on stage soon.” He added that Santana’s doctors “have recommended that [he] gets rest to recuperate fully.” The statement arrives after Santana’s wife hopped on social media to tell fans that “he’ll be as good as new soon” while also thanking them for their “prayers, love, care [and] concern.”

The day after Santana passed out on stage, he took to Facebook to explain what happened and assure fans that he was okay. “To one and all,” he wrote. “Cindy and I, we are good just taking it easy. Forgot to eat and drink water, so i was dehydrated and passed out. Blessings and miracles to you all.”

Cardi B Seemingly Got Into A Fight With A Fan During Her Wireless Festival Performance

The second weekend of London’s 2022 Wireless Festival got underway on Friday night. This year’s edition of the hip-hop-themed showcase kicked off last weekend and brought forth performances from Playboi Carti, Lil Uzi Vert, and many more. One of the big names that took the stage so far this weekend was Cardi B who brought her talents on stage for an exciting performance. Cardi’s set seemed to be smooth sailing except for one moment when she appeared to get into a fight with a fan.

The moment was briefly caught on camera by those in the audience. It appeared that while Cardi was performing on stage, she leaned down to interact with the crowd. It’s here that a fan seemingly grabbed her hair which led to Cardi swinging her mic at the individual. The incident could also be seen on the festival’s big screens, but the visuals were cut shortly after Cardi began to fight her way out of the fan’s grasp.

Cardi did not speak out about the incident, but she did share a performance recap afterward. In it, she thanked Megan Thee Stallion and Offset, who both joined her on stage during the performance. “Let me tell y’all something … WIRELESS LONG ASSS STAGE AINT NO JOKE,” she wrote in the post. “You need lots of stamina.”

You can watch videos of the incident between Cardi and the fan above.

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

August 08 And Jhene Aiko Embrace Their Astrological Energies On Their New Song, ‘Water Sign’

Known for his work with singer/songwriting collective 88 Rising, August 08 has returned with a new single. Joined by fellow LA native Jhene Aiko, August 08’s “Water Sign” is a transcendental duet.

Over a calming, rattling drum beat, August 08 likens his flame to the beauty of the night sky. He then embraces their astrological placements, singing “My water sign /come just like the wind at night /Feisty like a fire sign / No, I don’t mind.” Aiko then joins in, confessing to another subject her to remain close to her.

The song is accompanied by a video, in which the two are joined by a group of dancers, performing visually captivating choreography while wearing stunning, colorful costumes.

Earlier today, August 08 and Jhene Aiko revealed to Variety that the latter has officially signed the former to her label, Allel Sound. Allel comes as a joint venture between Aiko and Def Jam records.

“As a longtime fan of Jhene’s, I’m really humbled by her belief in me as an artist,” said August 08. “She set the bar as an independent R&B artist from L.A. who wrote her own rules and made no compromises in following her dreams. We really vibe on music and creativity and I’m excited to go on this journey with her.”

Check out “Water Sign” above.

The Weeknd Postpones His Toronto Tour Kickoff Due To The Rogers Communications Outage

Fans of The Weeknd have been waiting more than two years to see him on tour. Unfortunately, they’re going to have to wait a little bit longer. The long-anticipated “After Hours ‘Til Dawn Tour” was set to kick off at the Rogers Centre in Toronto tonight, however, due to an outage at Rogers Communications, the kickoff date has been postponed.

“We regret to announce that The Weeknd tour stop at Rogers Centre has been postponed due to service outages impacting venue operations,” read a tweet from the official account of the Toronto Blue Jays, who frequently play at Rogers Stadium. “A new show date will be shared ASAP and tickets will be honored. We understand how disappointing this is and apologize for the inconvenience.”

The outage has affected venue workers’ ability to scan tickets and maintain security. The Weeknd has since taken to social media to mourn the show’s postponement with fans.

“I’m crushed & heartbroken,” he said in an Instagram story. “Been at the venue all day but it’s out of our hands because of the Rogers outage. Operations and safety are compromised and I tried my absolute best. This one hurts the most, and we will make this show happen, but unfortunately not tonight. I know how long you’ve been waiting and how hard a lot of you worked to make it to the show to experience this special moment with me. I can’t wait to see you all.”

the weeknd ig story 2022
Via Instagram/theweeknd

As of now, new dates have not yet been announced.

Tyler The Creator Slams His Former Collaborators For Selling Old Demos Of His: ‘U Thirsty As Hell’

It doesn’t look like Tyler The Creator‘s decade-plus long feud with Bastard collaborator Brandun Deshay is ending anytime soon. This past Thursday, Tyler took to Twitter to express his disdain toward Deshay, now known as Ace Hashimoto, along with Tyler Major, for selling old demo tracks via Discord.

“b deshay and tyler major selling old songs of mine is wild ha,” Tyler said in a tweet, “all them discordd kids are sus especially 3D glass pacifist whatever the hell he called, copping stolen shit is like damnnnn u thirsty as hell ok.”

Tyler doubled down on his comments and even slammed the fans who were buying these demos.

“damn bro you that thirsty for 2 minute drafts / few hundred bucks get it together fellas,” he tweeted, “subliminal tried to get on a call like no bro, just stop, its not cool dawggy.”

Given his reservations about sharing his unfinished demos with the world, it is clear Tyler is protective of his craft. Back in March, Tyler also expressed his disinterest in non-fungible tokens during an interview for Converse’s 2022 All Star series. Instead, he prefers to direct his energy toward quality production and instrumentation.

“What the f*ck is a NFT?” he said. “I paint at home, I play instruments. … I have a friend who’s making me speakers by hand right now. What the f*ck is a NFT? None of the examples I’ve seen is, like, beautiful art. It’s a f*cking monkey in a Supreme hoodie.”

Lil Nas X Never Wants To ‘Milk’ A Song Like He Did ‘Old Town Road’ Again

For Lil Nas X, it memorably all started a few years ago with “Old Town Road.” The rapper really knew how to keep that song alive, too, as it was the No. 1 song in the country for a record 19 weeks. It was the biggest song in the world for a long time, but now Nas says he never again wants to “milk” a song of his like he did that one.

Last night, a Nas fan got on Twitter and asked for “unpopular” opinions about the rapper. Somebody responded, “i hate how fast the eras go like.. [‘Old Town Road’] was the only era i felt lasted a good amount of time. [‘Call Me By Your Name’] had potential to be so much bigger than what it was and longer at #1 if the era was longer.. same with montero.”

Nas responded to that tweet, writing, “how long did u expect [‘Call Me By Your Name’] era to be?” They replied, “u should’ve milked it like [‘Old Town Road’] idkkk hella remixes.. the song was HUGE but could’ve been bigger me thinks.” Nas answered, “i don’t wanna milk any of my songs like that again. it takes the fun out of creating new things.”

Nas also replied to other responses from the unpopular opinions prompt. One user wrote, “a lot of fans skew their opinions based on what the man himself thinks!” Nas replied, “it be the opposite way around too,” then clarified, “like i can love something then realize everybody else hate it then fall out of love with it sadly.”

Another user wrote, “He releases too many snippets!” Nas responded, “i’m just really impulsive when i create something.” The commenter added, “I love that. I just want to be surprised when the album comes out!” Nas replied, “i feel u.”

Check out more of Nas’ responses here.

Doja Cat Is Getting Slammed For Asking 17-Year-Old ‘Stranger Things’ Star Noah Schnapp To Matchmake

This week, Doja Cat has stirred the internet pot once again. This time, it’s by calling out Stranger Things actor Noah Schnapp for sharing screenshots of DMs where she asks Schnapp if he could set her up with his co-star, Joseph Quinn. Doja called Schnapp’s TikTok posts as, “borderline snake sh*t” and “weasel sh*t.”

Trouble is, Schanpp is a minor (17 years old, to be exact) and reaching out to him in the first place could be seen as questionable behavior by some. While Doja Cat has garnered her share of supporters in calling out the young (yet very internet savvy) Stranger Things star, she’s now also facing quite a bit of backlash from commenters on social media.

“Why is doja cat (26) going on live and calling noah schnapp (17) a snake / weasel for a 20 sec TikTok he made ??? embarrassed for her,” one person tweeted, along with a photo of the Kanye West “bro stop” meme. Another tweet reads, “Sorry i have to laugh at the doja cat noah schnapp situation because why would you go to a 17-year-old known sh*tposter asking him to hook you up with his 29-year-old coworker and expect him to be 100% serious about it LETS BE REAL.”

Meanwhile on TikTok, Doja Cat’s unrelated videos, like one of her kitchen dancing, are getting flooded with comments that have been liked tens of thousands of times. “Leave Noah alone,” reads one. “UR GETTING MAD AT A KID,” reads another, while a more err… nuanced commenter concludes with, “Yikes you ain’t getting Joseph any time soon now.”

Just another day on the internet when Doja Cat and Stranger Things is involved, y’all.

Trey Songz’s Sexual Assault Lawsuit Has Been Thrown Out

Trey Songz made many headlines over the last two years for sexual assault and rape allegations. However, MyNewsLA reports that the anonymous accuser filed papers to dismiss the $20 million lawsuit and the judge granted her wish earlier this week.

Initially, the “Slow Motion” artist was accused of assaulting Jane Doe at a Los Angeles house party in 2016. The lawsuit, filed back in February, also mentioned rape, gender violence, intentional and negligent infliction of emotional distress, and false imprisonment.

TMZ reported that a representative for 37-year-old denied the allegations, specifically stating, “Earlier today, the attorney who drafted this suit was credibly accused of trying to pay a woman to falsely accuse Trey. Hours later, that same attorney has filed this suit on behalf of an anonymous client. It isn’t hard to see what’s happening here, and it is a shame for genuine victims of sexual assault.”

Back in April, Songz had a similar experience, evading sexual assault allegations filed back in November 2021.

“The LVMPD has concluded the investigation into the sexual assault allegations against Tremaine Neverson and determined that no criminal charges will be filed,” police shared with TMZ. “If any new evidence comes to light, the case will be reopened for further investigation.”

A Documentary Series And Podcast About Young Thug And His Legal Battles Are In The Works

Young Thug has been in the news a lot lately, mostly for being scooped up in the wide-ranging RICO indictment alongside other members of the YSL label. Today, Variety broke the news that Alex Gibney’s Jigsaw Productions and Rolling Stone Films are working together on a documentary series and podcast about Young Thug.

The companies describe it as a tale set against “the larger Atlanta hip-hop boom, and the ongoing RICO case against YSL that accuses Young Thug and 27 other alleged collaborators of crimes ranging from racketeering to murder. The projects seek to separate the fact from the fiction of the criminal charges against YSL members, while also interrogating the controversial practice of prosecutors using rap lyrics as evidence of criminal activity. The result will be a wild, enthralling story of music, money, crime and hip-hop on trial.”

Executive producer Gus Wenner, the CEO of Rolling Stone, added, “We’re thrilled to partner with the talented team at Jigsaw to tell this ambitious and important story about one of the most compelling and controversial music scenes of the moment.”

This announcement has been met with mixed reactions on Twitter, with most fans wondering how these projects can begin when the legal issues remain very much unresolved.

Young Thug is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.