Music

NLE Choppa Shouts Out The Female Artists He Thinks ‘Got Next,’ Including Coi Leray And Flo Milli

by
coi-leray.jpeg
Getty Image

It’s no secret that hip-hop music is going through a nearly unprecedented boom in female artists dominating the charts. There are more female rappers charting on the Hot 100 than ever, and more women in hip-hop are receiving more attention. The 2021 XXL Freshman class included no fewer than three new women on it, including Coi Leray, Lakeyah, and Rubi Rose, and the days of label or fan-imposed, Highlander-style rap beef (“there can only be one!”) among them appear to be over.

While there are obviously some men in the game unhappy about this shift in the status quo, there are others who are ready and willing to champion the next generation. Among the latter is Memphis rising star NLE Choppa, who used his Twitter to highlight some of those who are currently taking over or poised to blow up in the near future. He even went out of his way to tag them all in the thread to ensure they got maximum exposure, listing the above-mentioned Coi, Lakeyah, and Rubi, as well as BIA, DreamDoll, Dreezy, Erica Banks, and Renni Rucci. Later on, he added a couple of names he forgot, Flo Milli and Rico Nasty, noting he’s got a song with the latter.

Of course, because it’s Twitter, fans were quick to chime in and insist that he forgot other rising stars like Armani Caesar, KenTheMan, and Latto, but there’s no pleasing everybody — and, to be fair, there are a lot more female rappers getting attention these days. If a few get missed in one or two Twitter threads, they’ll likely still receive big love from fans, which should be the goal at the end of the day, right?

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

Megan Thee Stallion Gears Up For College Graduation By Bedazzling Her Cap With Her Signature Catchphrase

by
megan-thee-stallion.jpg
Getty Image

Now that Megan Thee Stallion‘s got four Grammys to her name, her next accomplishment is set to be a college degree. The rapper has been taking classes at Southern Texas University and this semester, she’s slated to graduate with a degree in health administration. To celebrate her impending degree, Megan added some bling her graduation cap, but it wouldn’t be complete without her signature catchphrase.

The rapper shared photos of her sparkling hat on Instagram, showing that it reads “Real hot girl sh*t” in block letters. “2021 finna graduate collegeeee taking my graduation pics today,” she wrote in the post’s caption. “I can’t wait for y’all to see.” Of course, no look of Megan’s would be complete without a matching set of acrylic nails, which feature TSU’s letters and even a metal tassel.

Previously speaking about her degree in an interview with People last June, Megan said she is inspired to finish her degree not only for herself, but also for her late mother and grandmother. “I want to get my degree because I really want my mom to be proud,” she said. “She saw me going to school before she passed.” Megan added, “I want my big mama to be proud. She saw me going to school before she passed. My grandmother that’s still alive used to be a teacher, so she’s on my butt about finishing school. I’m doing it for me, but I’m also doing it for the women in my family who made me who I am today.”

Check out photos of Megan’s handiwork above.

Megan Thee Stallion is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

The post Megan Thee Stallion Gears Up For College Graduation By Bedazzling Her Cap With Her Signature Catchphrase appeared first on UPROXX.

Ye’s Yeezy Brand Is Being Sued Over Shipping Delays

by
kanye.jpeg
Getty Image

Complex reports that Yeezy, the apparel brand founded by Ye, the artist formerly known as Kanye West, is being sued in California for “failing to ship items within thirty days and failing to provide adequate delay notices” to customers. Recently elected L.A. County District Attorney George Gascón filed the suit last Friday, October 22 on behalf of the State of California, pointing out how Yeezy violated California state business codes.

Essentially, in California, any product purchased online must be shipped within 30 days. If there will be any delays, the merchant must either notify its customers, provide a refund, or inform consumers of any other possible solutions. Yeezy allegedly “made untrue or misleading statement regarding its ability to ship products within a certain timeframe, particularly where customers paid an additional charge for expedited shipping.”

Other counties included in the suit are Alameda, Napa, and Sonoma. The suit wants the company fined $2,500 per violation. The Yeezy brand has proven to be popular and lucrative for the artist, with Yeezy’s Gap deal approaching a $3-4 billion estimated value and items like the puffer jacket the producer wore at his Donda listening events and his Adidas sneakers sending fans clamoring and often selling out within hours of release.

The post Ye’s Yeezy Brand Is Being Sued Over Shipping Delays appeared first on UPROXX.

Meek Mill Wants To Do A Kanye West And Make His Record Deal Public

by
meek-mill.jpeg
Getty Image

Last year, Kanye West went to war with Def Jam and Universal over the terms of his recording contract, demanding to have his masters returned to him and even going so far as posting several pages of contract amendments on Twitter. Of course, that didn’t stop him from receiving a fair amount of criticism on the terms of his own GOOD Music recording contracts when he announced he’d return his artists’ masters to them. Still, he apparently inspired Meek Mill, who announced his own intentions to make his contract public on Twitter in the interest of music industry transparency.

“Ask the record label,” he wrote. “How much have you spent on me as a artist? then you ask how much have you made off me as a artist? i’m about to make my record deal public by Monday just to let the world see what these people on!!!”

Kanye and Meek are just one of a few artists who’ve been taking the recording industry to task for its opaque processes lately. In early 2020, Megan Thee Stallion challenged her label, 1501 Certified Entertainment, over the profit splits in her agreement, while Taylor Swift began rolling out re-recorded versions of her early albums in order to circumvent Big Machine’s share of revenues after she said the label refused to return her masters.

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

The post Meek Mill Wants To Do A Kanye West And Make His Record Deal Public appeared first on UPROXX.

‘You’ Star Penn Badgley Discusses His Delightful Cardi B Friendship And A Potential Cardi Cameo

by

Following the recent premiere of You‘s third season, the hit Netflix series is back at the forefront of the pop culture conversation. Now, we find ourselves here, where Cardi B and star Penn Badgley (aka Joe) have forged a delightful online relationship, which the actor discussed on Jimmy Kimmel Live! last night.

To summarize the situation (which Junkee did well): In a recent interview, Badgley spoke about his admiration for Cardi’s relationship with social media. Cardi was delighted, tweeting, “OOOOMMFFFGGGGGG HE KNOWS ME !!!” From there, the two set their Twitter profile pictures as photos of each other, and Cardi even started pitching an episode of the show featuring herself. Netflix then changed its Twitter bio to read (as it does still), “Petition to get Cardi B to guest star in Season 4 of You!”

Badgley and Kimmel ran through that history, with Kimmel suggesting that Cardi’s name might stand for “Cardi Badgley.” Kimmel wondered if all this means Cardi will find her way onto the show, and Badgley responded, “Well I… I don’t know. I definitely can’t say.” He then noted he heard there’s a Change.org petition to get her on the show, and indeed there is.

Kimmel pressed for more info about the Cardi cameo, going back to Badgley’s answer, saying, “You said, ‘I don’t know,’ ‘I can’t say.’ It can’t be both of those things, can it?” Badgley responded, “I can’t say because I don’t know. I actually don’t know. I’m not being coy.”

Check out the full interview above.

Cardi B is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

The post ‘You’ Star Penn Badgley Discusses His Delightful Cardi B Friendship And A Potential Cardi Cameo appeared first on UPROXX.

Angelina Jolie Expertly Avoided A Reporter’s Question About Her Relationship With The Weekend

by

Rumors have been swirling around The Weeknd and Angelina Jolie ever since the pair were spotted out at dinner together in Los Angeles. So even though the actress is currently engaged in a round of press interviews to promote her role in the new Marvel movie, The Eternals, you had to know an enterprising young journalist was going to try to get an answer out of her about Abel Tesfaye. An E! News reporter for the Daily Pop had to ask — “Now I have to know, Angelina, because your kids are at the age where they have opinions, so I have to know,” he began. “Were they more excited that you were in The Eternals, or that you are friends with The Weeknd?”

For her part, Jolie dodged the question like the professional she is, not even dropping a hint about Abel and focusing entirely on the movie. “They’re very excited about this film, if that’s what you’re asking,” she responded coyly. But, what she couldn’t hide was a pretty big smile, and a grin and fellow star Salma Hayek who was part of the press blitz alongside Jolie. It’s not quite a hint, but maybe it’s something? The Weeknd won’t stop teasing a new era, so maybe we’ll get more answers out of him in coming weeks.

The post Angelina Jolie Expertly Avoided A Reporter’s Question About Her Relationship With The Weekend appeared first on UPROXX.

Amid A Legal Battle, DMX’s Family Releases An Official Statement Regarding His Estate

by
DMX.jpg
Getty Image

It’s hard to believe that it was just this past April when Earl “DMX” Simmons died. Six months into a world without the hardcore rap legend has already been graced with numerous nods to his legacy. There was a moving tribute at the BET Awards from Swizz Beats, Method Man, Michael K. Williams, Busta Rhymes and others, a touching Father’s Day message from his fiancée Desire Lindstrom, a Yo-Yo Ma tribute track, and of course, the posthumous album Exodus, with features from Nas, Jay-Z, Alicia Keys, Snoop Dogg and so many others.

Now as the dust is settling on a legal battle, his family issued an official statement in regards to their handling of his estate. In the statement, DMX’s ex-wife and oldest sons are named as temporary administrators of his estate. And one can assume that this was pre-empted by the legal battle between his family and, Lindstrom — who was not officially wed to the rapper before his death. There have also been claims of people coming forward claiming to be children of the late rapper, the most recent of which would bring the number of children he fathered to 15. Suffice it to say, who gets to manage an estate that includes five platinum albums among the eight LPs, seven compilations albums, three mixtapes, and publishing rights to this and more, is a notable assignment. Read the full statement released today below.

“(New York, NY October 25th, 2021) – “DMX’s ex wife, Tashera Simmons oldest sons , “Xavier Simmons, Sean Simmons and Tacoma Simmons have been appointed temporary co-administrators of the estate of Earl “DMX” Simmons pursuant to a decision of the Westchester county Surrogate’s Court today. They will now exclusively manage the affairs of their late father’s estate. The estate has retained entertainment attorney Ron Sweeney of Ron Sweeney and Company to exclusively handle all entertainment related matters. Estate Attorney, Herb Nass is the attorney for the Earl “DMX” Simmons estate and the sons as co-administrators.”

The post Amid A Legal Battle, DMX’s Family Releases An Official Statement Regarding His Estate appeared first on UPROXX.

Snoop Dogg Mourns The Passing Of His Mother, Beverly Tate

by
snoop-dogg.jpeg
Getty Image

After months of pulling for his ailing mother Beverly Tate on social media, West Coast rap pioneer Snoop Dogg is now mourning her after she passed away. He announced as much this weekend as he updated his Instagram with a string of grieving posts. Beginning with one recalling one of his mom’s favorite phrases, he continued with a few more, writing “Mama thank u for having me” in the next and continuing to make brokenhearted posts through the rest of the day.

In May, Snoop first gave the indications that his mother was sick, asking fans to pray for her with another set of hopeful posts. Then, in July, he offered an update on her health, writing, “Me and my brothers went to c mama today and she opened up her eyes to c us and let us know she still fighting.” It looks like her fight is finally over; Snoop can take comfort knowing she was comforted and cared for at the end. Longtime Snoop fans are aware that she was the one who first gave him his rap name, nicknaming him Snoopy for his resemblance to the cartoon character. Snoop fans including stars like Magic Johnson have reached out to express their condolences, wishing him well

Also over the weekend, Snoop posted advising Dr. Dre to use the “negative energy” he’s experienced lately to “make something magical.”

The post Snoop Dogg Mourns The Passing Of His Mother, Beverly Tate appeared first on UPROXX.

Aminé Kicks Back With A Giant Poodle In The ‘Charmander’ Video

by

The pride of Portland, Aminé did an admirable job staying busy during the pandemic. The rapper put out nearly a full album’s worth of new material in the Limbo (Deluxe Edition) and then was among those featured in the soundtrack to the Space Jam: A New Legacy sequel. Now he’s dropped “Charmander,” his first new track of 2021 and the video is telling of what he’s been up to since… well, sort of.

“Charmander,” named after the classic Pokémon fire-breather, sees him expanding into new sonic frontiers as the track is propped up by a sped-up jump up drum and bass beat. He ruminates on being comfortable in his home base with the repeatable hook, “I’ve been chillin’ on an island, too,” and is seen hanging with a new friend: A giant poodle. As he goes about his day-to-day in a woodsy Oregon cabin, flipping through records, cooking with his lady, and chopping wood, the massive pup is by his side. And the dog has a similar disposition to Aminé: Curious, but always relaxing. He spoke about the track in a statement:

“After the release of Limbo I took some time to experiment and challenge myself to create in ways I hadn’t before — exploring different textures and tempos without any expectations. ‘Charmander’ was the first product of that period that felt natural while still being at a completely different BPM than any of my previous work.”

Watch the video for “Charmander” above.

The post Aminé Kicks Back With A Giant Poodle In The ‘Charmander’ Video appeared first on UPROXX.

Baby Keem Explains Those Wild Kendrick Lamar Ad-Libs On His Album For ‘Desus And Mero’

by

As one of the hottest emerging talents in hip-hop right now, Baby Keem is the perfect guest to appear on Desus & Mero, where the Bronx duo got in-depth on the 20-year-old Las Vegas rapper’s debut album, The Melodic Blue. One of the questions addressed to him by the hilarious hosts mentioned the wild ad-libs on his songs with Kendrick Lamar on the album, especially the head-turning “Range Brothers.” After becoming fodder for a plethora of memes, Kendrick’s repeated cries of “top o’ the morning” and “let’s get this sh*t” elicited chuckles from both the hosts and their guest as they asked where the two rappers’ energy comes from.

“I think in the booth is where I’m most myself,” Keem mused. “And I’m around the people that get the most out of me. I think that’s it. I’m just comfortable in my environment.” He also addresses the memes sparked by his album, saying his favorite is the dancing cowboy and expressing a wish to contact the creator.

Meanwhile, Desus & Mero is quickly becoming the go-to show for rap artists to promote their new work, as the laid-back vibe and insider perspective have proven to be perfect for drawing out gems from the likes of Lil Nas X, Bobby Shmurda, Chance The Rapper, and the original Nas in recent months. The Bodega Boys’ brand was always brolic but now, it’s becoming better defined — and helping to define the shape and direction of modern-day hip-hop.

You can watch the Baby Keem interview with Desus & Mero above.

The post Baby Keem Explains Those Wild Kendrick Lamar Ad-Libs On His Album For ‘Desus And Mero’ appeared first on UPROXX.