Ken Carson continues to make waves. The rapper is collaborating with Xbox on a Series X release that features his recognizable “X” logo on the console. Carson isn’t the first artist to link up with Microsoft for a themed release, but the scarcity of the Series X consoles are going to seriously impact demand. There are only going to be 50 released, which means the resale on the rapper’s collab is going to be through the roof.
The details on the Carson/Xbox collab are still scarce, but TikTok users have pointed out that the console has been tailored to reflect the rapper’s style. The controller has been getting most of the attention, and rightfully so, according to user Omerstech. The video game TikToker pointed out that Carson’s controller has been iced out with a sleek new design. “I think he iced out the Xbox controller,” Omerstetch noted. “Those are all like little diamonds.” He also noted a zipper designed on the side of the controller. The console comes with a numbered briefcase emblazoned with Ken Carson’s “X” logo.
Carson has been vocal in his love for video games throughout his career. The rapper recently sat down for a Mixed Tunes interview alongside label mate Destroy Lonely, and the two of them debated which of their favorite games were better. The latter opted for Call of Duty, but Carson picked Grand Theft Auto. “It’s just like life,” he reasoned. “I feel like that’s the realest game. You can do literally anything you want.” Carson went as far as to liken his experiences in Atlanta to playing GTA. “Every time someone asks me what’s Atlanta like I be like, Grand Theft Auto,” he added.
Ken Carson’s Xbox collaboration could not arrive at a better time. The rapper received the best reviews of his career following the release of his second album, 2023’s A Great Chaos. He’s also going on tour with Kid Cudi and Red Hot Chili Peppers throughout most of 2024. The tour kicks off May 30 in Washington. The Cudi link-up is an especially poignant one for Carson, as the “Man on the Moon” is one of his biggest musical influences.
Bill Gates, the co-founder of Microsoft, has been a significant figure in the tech industry for decades. His influence extends beyond technology, touching philanthropy, health, and global development. As of 2023, according to Bloomberg, Bill Gates’ net worth is estimated to be around $123 billion US dollars. But how did he amass such wealth, and what does this figure represent in the broader context of his life and achievements?
Bill Gates co-founded Microsoft in 1975 with Paul Allen. Their vision was a computer on every desk and in every home. This dream quickly became a reality as Microsoft Windows became the dominant operating system worldwide. With each version of Windows and other Microsoft products like Office, the company’s revenue soared, and so did Gates’ personal wealth.
While Microsoft was the primary source of Gates’ wealth, he didn’t rely solely on it. Over the years, Gates diversified his investments. His investment portfolio includes a mix of stocks, bonds, real estate, and stakes in various companies. This diversification strategy not only protected his wealth from potential downturns in the tech industry but also contributed to its growth.
Bill Gates is not just known for his wealth; he’s also renowned for his philanthropic efforts. Together with his then-wife, Melinda, he established the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation in 2000. This foundation focuses on global health, development, and education. A significant portion of Gates’ wealth has been pledged to this foundation. It emphasizes his commitment to making a positive impact on the world.
Comparing Gates’ Wealth To Other Billionaires
Bill Gates, Chairman and CEO of Microsoft makes a point as he talks to reporters. At a CompUSA store in San Francisco, June 25, 1998. Gates talked about the new features of the Windows 98 operating system that was released today in the United States. (Photo by Jeff Chistensen)
In the grand scheme of global billionaires, where does Bill Gates stand with his $123 billion net worth? While he’s consistently been among the top wealthiest individuals worldwide, the exact ranking can fluctuate based on market conditions and the financial moves of other billionaires. However, regardless of the exact rank, Gates remains a prominent figure in the list of the world’s wealthiest individuals.
What lies ahead for Bill Gates and his vast fortune? While it’s impossible to predict the future with certainty, Gates has clarified that he intends to give away most of his wealth during his lifetime. This means that his net worth might decrease in the coming years, but the impact of his philanthropic efforts will likely increase, benefiting countless individuals and communities globally.
Conclusion
NEW YORK, NEW YORK – JUNE 07: Bill Gates speaks onstage at the TIME100 Summit 2022 at Jazz at Lincoln Center on June 7, 2022 in New York City. (Photo by Jemal Countess/Getty Images for TIME)
Bill Gates’ net worth of $123 billion in 2023 is a testament to his business acumen, strategic investments, and the immense success of Microsoft. However, it’s essential to remember that Gates views his wealth as a tool to effect positive change in the world. Through his philanthropic endeavors, he continues to make a lasting impact, proving that wealth isn’t just about the number in a bank account but how it’s used to make a difference.
The gaming world has seen a plethora of consoles, each promising a unique experience. Among these, the Xbox Series S has emerged as a notable contender. But the question remains: is it worth your hard-earned money? Let’s delve into the details.
The Xbox Series S stands out primarily because of its price. Priced at a recommended retail of $299.99, it’s undeniably the most budget-friendly next-gen console available. When you compare it to its sibling, the Xbox Series X, which is priced at a hefty $500, or the PS5, which can sometimes exceed $500, the Series S offers a tempting proposition.
A pair of Microsoft home video game consoles, including an Xbox Series S (L) and Xbox Series X, taken on October 27, 2020. (Photo by Phil Barker/Future Publishing via Getty Images)
Another striking feature of the Xbox Series S is its design. Touted as the smallest Xbox ever, it boasts a disc-less structure. This means all games for this console are digital-only. Its compactness isn’t just about aesthetics; it’s also practical. If you’re someone who’s always on the move or has limited space, the Series S is a dream come true. It’s not just about saving money; it’s also about saving space.
Now, let’s talk about the heart of any gaming console: its performance. While the Series S comes at a lower price, it doesn’t skimp on the gaming experience. It can play all the games that the more expensive Xbox Series X can. Although its specifications might seem a tad less powerful, supporting only 1440p resolution with 4K upscaling, it’s essential to note that it houses the same 3.6GHz CPU as the Xbox Series X. This is quite an achievement for its price range. Additionally, it features a 4 teraflop GPU and 10GB of RAM. So, while you might compromise a bit on storage, you’re still getting a console that offers super-fast loading times.
Microsoft’s Xbox Series X (L, in black) and series S (R, in white) gaming consoles are seen on display during its worldwide release at an electronics store in Tokyo on November 10, 2020. (Photo by CHARLY TRIBALLEAU / AFP) (Photo by CHARLY TRIBALLEAU/AFP via Getty Images)
Considering the current gaming landscape, the Xbox Series S presents itself as a viable option, especially for those who are keen on entering the next-gen gaming realm without burning a hole in their pockets. Its compact design, combined with its performance, makes it an attractive choice for many.
In Conclusion
The Xbox Series S, with its affordable price tag and commendable performance, certainly offers value for money. If you’re looking for a next-gen gaming experience without the hefty price tag, this might just be the console for you. However, as with any tech purchase, it’s essential to weigh its features against your personal gaming preferences and needs.
Microsoft will begin 2023 with massive layoffs. According to CBS News, the tech giant will shed talent due to the impact of the economy.
The news, originally reported by Sky News, states the software company will announce the layoffs in the forthcoming days, and nearly 5% or 11,000 positions will be cut worldwide. Engineering divisions appear to be the target for talent removal.
Microsoft declined to comment, citing the news is a “rumor.” Microsoft currently employs over 200,000 people across the globe.
Microsoft said earlier this month that it would provide all U.S.-based employees unlimited time off under a new “Discretionary Time off” policy.
A new 10-year agreement has been reached between Microsoft and Nintendo. The deal will ensure that the Call of Dutyvideo games are available on Nintendo consoles if Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard closes.
According to reports from The Verge, the deal is a clear attempt to pressure Sony into accepting a similar offer. The decade-long length is similar to what Microsoft offered Sony earlier this week.
Robert Griffin III attends Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II event at the 2022 NFL Draft on April 27, 2022 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Jesse Grant/Getty Images for Activision)
Now that Nintendo has agreed to the deal, Microsoft hopes that Sony will follow suit. If they do agree to the deal, each new Call of Duty release will also be available on PlayStation consoles the same day as XBox.
However, Sony has reportedly been warning regulators of its concerns surrounding the future of the first-person shooter video game franchise. A recent 10-year commitment by Sony followed a public back and forth between the Japanese corporation and Microsoft.
Microsoft’s offered a similar deal to Sony but they haven’t accepted. @XboxP3 isn’t mincing words about that: “From where we sit, it’s clear they’re spending more time with the regulators than they are with us to try and get this deal done,” he said in an interview
Additionally, Microsoft has promised to continue offering new versions of the video game franchise on Steam. These will launch simultaneously with the Call of Duty launches on XBox consoles.
On January 18, Microsoft officially announced its intention to acquire Activision Blizzard for a whopping $68.7 billion.
If and when the acquisition closes and becomes official, the video game franchise will essentially belong to Microsoft’s corporation.
Microsoft has entered into a 10-year commitment to bring Call of Duty to @Nintendo following the merger of Microsoft and Activision Blizzard King. Microsoft is committed to helping bring more games to more people – however they choose to play. @ATVI_AB
The first self-titled Call of Duty game was published and launched by Activision in 2003. Since then, the company has released 19 titles in the game’s main series.
The franchise remains one of the most popular in the world. According to a report from Paste Magazine earlier this year, the first-person shooter series is the third best-selling franchise of all time.
I think it’s safe to say that no matter the agreements in place, Call of Duty will continue to be played and enjoyed by gamers all over the world. With 425 million sales in 19 years, it beat out Super Mario and Grand Theft Auto for the third spot.
What do you think of the new agreement between Microsoft and Nintendo? Will Sony follow suit? Comment down below.
LIZA’s double life as a recording artist eventually led to her buzzy EP release, Done Is Done, which was entirely conceived and completed during the pandemic with a tight circle of collaborators. While working on the project, even LIZA went as far as renting and living in an Airbnb with her producers. Since then, she’s received numerous accolades, and was evern selected for ASCAP’s “Songwriters: Next Generation” 2021 program. She has also opened for Kyle Dion, Raveena, and Lauryn Hill. “Honestly, I really have to give it all to coffee. That’s been my number one support source,” LIZA jokes.
Some may say it’s LIZA’s optimism that has helped her persevere—after all, to be an emerging musician and have all opportunities somewhat indefinitely on hold because of the pandemic is a hard reality to swallow. “It really forced me to sort of sit with myself and reflect,” LIZA says of her canceled performances and sessions and postponed releases.
“It’s really tough [because performance is the] main way I communicate and connect with supporters and [how I] introduce my music to new people. Shows are the most electrifying thing, especially when you have a crowd that really vibes with your music. There’s nothing like that. So one thing I really forced myself to learn was to focus on the things I could control and a lot of my emphasis went towards writing as much as I could,” LIZA says of her proactive response to these limitations. “It’s seeing what you can do with what you’re given and how you can overcome any obstacles that you have by just changing your perspective,” she adds.
Image via Betty Behailu
When I ask LIZA if her creative process brings its own set of mental blocks—for instance, reliving painful memories through songwriting is surely exhausting—she says it’s moreso an opportunity for her to reflect. “I think of every song that I write, whether it be released or unreleased, as a chapter in my life. I can go back and listen to that song and remember exactly how I was feeling, where I wrote it, when I wrote it, and who I was with,” she says. “Those moments allow me to look back, especially when I moved on from the situation, to see my growth and overall evolution. I’m so grateful for those moments, even though those emotionally taxing moments can be really burdensome—which is why I really, really try to emphasize the importance of self-care and overall mental health.”
For LIZA, being consistent in daily rituals is how she takes care of her mind and body, even if no two days look alike. This includes waking up at 6:30am or 7 every day (“I’m such a morning person,” she says), meditating, drinking coffee in the sun, and writing in notebooks. “I had a really bad pattern of working really, really hard and burning out and then taking a couple weeks off and then working really hard and then burning out and repeating that cycle,” LIZA says of the time she felt least in control. “The important thing that I learned was that self-care isn’t only when you burn out—it’s every day. It’s waking up in the morning and meditating consistently and not looking at my phone and doing things that make me happy for my overall emotional wellbeing.”
As a Black woman stepping into the precarious and sometimes toxic recording industry, practicing self-care also offers some sort of mental protection. “I don’t even know if I can simplify the complexities of racism in a couple of words—and, it sounds cliche, but Black women have to work twice as hard to get half as far. That’s just what the reality of the situation is,” says LIZA. “I think we’re making strides, but we definitely have a long way to go.”
Image via Louie Chin
For now, LIZA looks forward to working on a new music project (“I think it’s the best stuff that I’ve written yet,” she says with pride) and to finding a place to live. And though big changes can be difficult, she works hard to view her life through heart-shaped lenses. “Sometimes I think of my life as a real-life rom-com, which may be unhealthy at times, but I really do love writing about love and happiness and everything related to it,” LIZA enthuses. “My favorite movies are basically every ‘90s Julia Roberts movie—one of my favorites is My Best Friend’s Wedding, where Julia Roberts’ character is named Julianne Potter. The first track on my project is actually named after her.”
From her nursing career beginnings in Toronto to becoming a rising voice in R&B, one could even say that LIZA’s life has always exuded main character energy—and to this day, she confronts all her ups and downs like the protagonist that she is. It shows in all of her work. In essence, every song of heartache LIZA writes also honors the optimism of what can come from the other side. It seems like an ideal place for LIZA to be, mentally, even if everything around her is in flux. “I think I write songs to manifest the love that I want or how I picture love being,” says LIZA. “I really love to capture the essence of good wholesome love.”
*The information contained in this program is not intended to dispense medical advice, and is not intended for self diagnosis or treatment. If you have any questions or concerns about your health, and/or before starting or stopping any treatment or acting upon any information contained in this program, you should contact your own medical physician, or health-care provider.
“I think I’ve attempted to shield the public or whoever from seeing parts of myself that I felt were not consistent with whatever I was trying to put forward.”
“That experience was brand new to me. Historically, I actually haven’t been as forthcoming,” Jones tells Complex. “I think I’ve attempted to shield the public or whoever from seeing parts of myself that I felt were not consistent with whatever I was trying to put forward. That really led me to a place where I felt very misunderstood. I think I realized I was creating a box for myself, rather than just expressing [myself] openly.”
As previously mentioned, choosing to put yourself out there opens the floodgates for trolls, judgment, and unnecessary chatter that could throw even the most confident human off their game. However, once the musical storyteller learned to accept himself—flaws and all—he had an epiphany that not using his talents to share his story (musically or visually) would be nothing less than “hypocritical.”
“After writing an album that was specifically about this radical self-acceptance and nurturing that inner-child to heal [my] past traumas and experiences, it would be hypocritical for me to hold back in the same way when it came to the visual aspect of it,” says Jones.
“[My team] pushing me to really be more open and give more of myself … was sort of an act of faith and of belief in the gospel that I was preaching: not hold back as much and be more honest and forthcoming and authentic.”
But don’t get it twisted, bearing his soul via his latest sonic declaration was “scary.”
“I did have to mentally prepare for people who watched this film to get to know a lot more about me than I was immediately comfortable with,” he explains. In fact, releasing the first project was a bit nail-biting for the rapper as well.
Illustration by Louie Chin
“I just felt a lack of control. I wanted to control. I was so concerned about controlling my image and people’s understanding of me and trying to make sure that everything I did explained me in the most perfect way,” the rapper explains.
While living up to the perfect projected persona may seem like nothing, it’s almost always impossible to maintain such a pristine facade forever.
“The idea of every major decision you have to look at [is] are you being guided by fear of love?,” Jones shares. “It’s been a long five [or] six year process of me trying to slide myself toward the scale of doing as much as I can out of love and as little as I can out of fear.”
“The idea of every major decision you have to look at [is] are you being guided by fear of love?”
To keep a mental and emotional balance, Jones has embarked on several self-care routines over the years, the most recent including daily yoga, “which is pretty new to me,” he tells us.
“I’ve been through a lot of different routines …[but I’m] three to four months in on a new one. It feels like the most concrete thing I’ve done,” the East Coast lyricist explains. “I’m waking up, I’m working out, and doing yoga every day. [I’m] also getting out of bed earlier.”
According to Jones, boundaries and focus are the keys to survival.
“I’m creating limitations on when and for how long I write. I’m trying to read a little bit every day,” Jones says. “I’m not necessarily successful at these things one-hundred percent of the time. In entertainment, opportunities will come up [and] different curve balls will be thrown at you.”
He continues, “You’ll be in a session and it’ll go [until] four in the morning unexpectedly because you’re chasing that feeling. I rebelled against technology in the beginning of trying to find a routine, but now I’ve incorporated an app that tracks how on top of things I am. I try [to] walk a decent amount every day, about 8,000 steps and that’s probably where I do some of my best thinking. It’s sort of like walking meditation.”
Illustration by Louie Chin
Of all his self-care routine tactics, the New Jersey emcee says yoga is the most vital part of his day-to-day life, because he wants to take care of his mind and body from a holistic point of view—something Jones believes allows him to “make better art.”
“I just have not been as active, especially in the last couple years due to the pandemic, as I’ve wanted to be. Part of that is I was so focused on creating something sustainable in my career and finding this solid ground,” Jones says. “But I realized in the lead up to making the album that I was neglecting a lot of the other parts of myself. I’m now coming into the understanding that focusing on myself more holistically allows me to make better art, allow[ing] me to be a more thoughtful and reflective person that’s able to make the things I want to make. In the past, I was just burning myself out almost as a badge of honor, but it wasn’t really getting me anywhere.”
“I’m now coming into the understanding that focusing on myself more holistically allows me to make better art.”
Aside from yoga and other daily rituals, Jones says therapy is another method he wants to tap into (once he finds the right person for the job).
“I [went to] some therapy when I was much younger, [but] it didn’t last for very long. That’s one of the things that I’ve kind of been lagging on,” Jones shares. “I do this thing where I go on online and have all these tabs open of therapists, but I haven’t quite found the person yet. That’s on the top of the list of things I need to accomplish this year: find the person I’m going to talk to and start to open up more in that way.”
While Jones may not have the right therapist just yet, he does have a support squad, better known as The Summit. The Summit consists of Jones and two of his closest friends. They’re a come-as-you-are, no-questions-asked, we-always-have-your-back pack who keep each other afloat through life’s challenges. And yes, entertainers do have challenges.
“When one of us is going through something, we float it to the group chat and try to drop what we’re doing and hop on a call [or] FaceTime [or] meet in person and just discuss those things.” Jones explains, “it’s a little bit different from therapy because it’s not this sort of unbiased, opinionless figure that you’re talking to, but it is very helpful to just speak out some of your frustrations … out loud and have it resonate and have people be there to support you.” And let’s be honest, support is hard to find when people assume you always have it together, especially in entertainment.
“We’re not always encouraged to go to those places,” Jones says. “[There’s] a lot of partying and a lot of talking about the victories and successes, but not the struggles.”
So no matter who you are, always remember, the struggle is real, for everyone—rappers included.
*The information contained in this program is not intended to dispense medical advice, and is not intended for self diagnosis or treatment. If you have any questions or concerns about your health, and/or before starting or stopping any treatment or acting upon any information contained in this program, you should contact your own medical physician, or health-care provider.
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