Music

Teyana Taylor Announces A Farewell Tour As She Nears Her Official Retirement From Music

by
Getty Image

Last year, Teyana Taylor announced her plans to retire from music months after the release of her third album, which was called, simply, The Album. She revealed that she would be “retiring this chapter” of her career due to “being overlooked,” which she said was a result of issues with her label, Def Jam. “I constantly feel alone, I constantly feel under-appreciated, I constantly feel failed…there is literally no push,” she said during an Instagram Live, adding that she asked to be dropped from the label “on almost 10 different occasions.” Taylor seems quite close to making her retirement official, but she won’t do so without a farewell tour, which she announced today.

Starting this November, Taylor will hit the road for The Last Rose Petal Farewell Tour. “How lucky am I to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard,” she wrote on social media. “However, for every goodbye, God makes the next hello closer. Come out and watch me leave it all out on the stage… One last time… Just for you & as my last rose petal falls, I say farewell.”

The tour begins on November 7 in San Francisco and continues throughout the month before coming to an end on November 30 in Atlanta. Pre-sale tickets will be available starting on September 23 while general admission begins on September 24 at 10 am.

Saweetie Is Hosting ‘Sex: Unzipped,’ A Netflix Comedy Special Featuring Sex-Positive Puppets

by
Getty Image

Just when you thought Saweetie had one of her manicured hands in everything, it turns out she’s already found her next endeavor — and it might not be anything you would have expected. Vulture reports the Bay Area rapper/aspiring media mogul is set to host a new comedy special on Netflix titled Sex: Unzipped featuring sex experts, actors, stand-up mainstays, and “horny puppets.” From the description, it sounds a little bit like the Guy Code/Girl Code shows that used to air on MTV2 all the time, with higher-profile funny people and a few more actual experts (okay, fine — any).

The guests mentioned include Pose star Dominique Jackson, Late Late Show writer Ian Karmel, British comedian London Hughes, Always Be My Maybe scene-stealer Michelle Buteau, Netflix comedy regular Nikki Glaser, and HBO show host Sam Jay, among others. For more factual/researched information, the show’s recruited Alexander Cheves, Emily Morse, Oloni, and Stella Anna Sonnenbaum to round out its panel of experts. The show is set to stream on Netflix starting on October 26.

One release date we still have yet to receive from the ranch dressing enthusiast/McDonald’s collaborator is the one for her debut album, Pretty B*tch Music, which she pushed back in order to add some Cher-inspired oomph. However, she recently hinted that “things will unfold” around the holidays, so perhaps that release date is coming soon.

Nipsey Hussle’s Alleged Killer Will Finally Stand Trial In January 2022

by
Getty Image

Nipsey Hussle (born born Ermias Asghedom) was shot and killed in March 2019 — over two years ago — outside his Marathon clothing store in South LA. But the man who is accused of murdering the beloved LA rap icon, Eric R. Holder Jr. has yet to stand trial. That is reportedly going to change in just a few months, according to a new report from Rolling Stone. The publication shared today that a Los Angeles County judge officially set the jury trial date for January 5th, 2022. “He’s nervous, but he knows it’s time to get the case moving to trial,” said Aaron Jansen, a deputy public defender who is Holder’s most recent lawyer. Jansen also told Rolling Stone he will argue that Holder was “off his medication” the day of the shooting and experiencing “a substantial mental health issue.”

Holder’s trial was delayed repeatedly by one of his former lawyers getting elevated to judgeship, and another judge’s retirement, along with pandemic-related delays. Surveillance videos reportedly show Holder firing at least ten rounds at Nipsey using both a black semiautomatic handgun in one hand and a smaller silver revolver in the other. The video also reportedly shows Holder kicking Nipsey in the head after the shooting, before fleeing the scene.

After hearings back in May 2019, a grand jury indicted Holder on one count of murder for Nipsey’s death, two counts of attempted murder for the bullets that struck bystanders Kerry Lathan and Shermi Villanueva, two counts of assault with a firearm, and one count of possession of a firearm by a felon. If convicted for these crimes he could face up to life in prison.

R. Kelly Reportedly Won’t Testify During His Sex Trafficking Trial

by
Getty Image

R. Kelly is currently on trial facing charges including sex crimes, human trafficking, child pornography, racketeering, and obstruction of justice. After the prosecution had several alleged victims come forward to detail the reported abuse they faced at the hands of the R&B singer, Kelly’s defense team is now making their case. But just after the singer failed to produce one of his own witnesses, Kelly is now reportedly opting out of testifying on his own behalf.

During his hearing on Wednesday, Kelly told the judge that he won’t be taking the the witness stand to defend himself, per a report from Billboard. “You don’t want to testify, correct?” US District Judge Ann Connelly asked during the proceeding, to which Kelly replied: “Yes, ma’am.” Apparently, Kelly’s main reason is that he wants to avoid cross-examination from prosecution.

Kelly’s defense team is expected to rest their case on Wednesday evening, making way for closing arguments. Kelly’s defense case has been relatively brief and primarily relies on employees and other associates who agreed to discredit the sex crime allegations on the singer’s behalf. Per Billboard‘s report, most witnesses claimed they never saw Kelly abuse anyone, with one mentioning they only ever saw the singer being “chivalrous” to his love interests. Another witness, however, admitted on the stand that they owed Kelly for their career success and hoped to see him win the case.

On the other hand, the prosecution in Kelly’s case have brought a number of witnesses to the stands. One witness claimed they saw Aaliyah, who was under age when she met Kelly, in a sexual situation with the singer. Another woman accused Kelly of horrific and abusive sex crimes, including a forced abortion.

BFB Da Packman Powers Through A Wild ‘Weekend At Solomon’s’ ‘UPROXX Sessions’ Performance

by

The last we heard from Flint, Michigan native BFB Da Packman, the jokester rapper was preparing his debut release, Fat N****s Need Love Too. Today, he becomes the latest guest on UPROXX Sessions, bringing his unique, off-kilter lyrical sensibilities to a boisterous performance of “Weekend At Solomon’s,” a standout from the album. Rocking a Day-Glo Balenciaga long-sleeved shirt, BFB swaggers through chuckle-inducing bars like “I had a fat mama, dawg, I dare you n****s blame me.”

BFB is part of a wave of rappers emerging from Michigan by embracing a behind-the-pocket flow marked by smirking, tongue-in-cheek punchlines. He stands apart from them with his externally-facing outlook; while rappers like Babyface Ray, Icewear Vezzo, Rio Da Yung OG, and Sada Baby are more insular, preferring to work within their tight-knit but growing circle, Packman has stretched out beyond the Great Lake State, pulling rappers from all over into his orbit on Fat N****s Need Love Too. While the album does feature locals like DDG, Payroll Giovanni, and Sada Baby, it also employs appearances from Buffalo brick rap powerhouse Benny The Butcher, XXL Freshman Coi Leray, the stoner avatar Wiz Khalifa, and maniacal standup comic Zack Fox. Packman also recently featured on Guapdad 4000’s “Alpha” remix, popping up in whiteface to represent a pernicious Permit Patrick.

Watch BFB Da Packman perform “Weekend At Solomon’s” for UPROXX Sessions above.

Rihanna Says Her Next Album Is ‘Completely Different’: ‘You’re Not Going To Expect What You Hear’

by
Getty Image

In news that Rihanna fans are painfully aware of at this point, this singer’s most recent album is 2016’s Anti, which was released nearly six years ago now. In the years since, Rihanna has periodically offered statements on either when she expects to release the album or what her upcoming music is sounding like. Her latest dispatch on this front falls in the latter category, as she’s teasing an experimental new project.

In an interview with the Associated Press (on the red carpet of her latest Savage X Fenty fashion show), Rihanna said:

“You’re not going to expect what you hear. Just put that in your mind. Whatever you know of Rihanna is not going to be what you hear. I’m really experimenting. Music is like fashion: you should be able to play. I should be able to wear whatever I want, and I treat music the same way. So, I’m having fun and it’s going to be completely different. That’s it.”

This expands upon what she noted at the end of 2020 when she said, “2021 is a little unknown for everybody and nobody is sure what restrictions there are going to be. My creativity is within my control, though, and I want to take my music and my brands to a different level.”

Watch the interview below.

Vic Mensa And BJ The Chicago Kid’s Nostalgic ‘The Taste’ Video Is An Ode To Summertime In The City

by

Windy City natives Vic Mensa and BJ The Chicago Kid team up for “The Taste,” a nostalgic ode to summertime in the city. Throughout the soulful single, the two name-check their favorite hometown landmarks like River Oaks Center mall, Lakeshore Drive, and Navy Pier, while telling a romantic interest “you taste like Chicago.” After a pair of velvety verses and choruses, the song’s bridge breaks down into a juking beat to really emphasize the point.

Vic Mensa’s comeback in the past year has been nothing short of impressive. Beginning with the V Tape in 2020, Mensa returned to the soulful, lyrically dextrous hip-hop that first brought him to national prominence. He followed up in spring this year with I Tape, which featured his reunion with longtime brother-in-arms Chance The Rapper on “Shelter.” In July, Vic teamed up with Just Blaze for the triumphant “Victory,” which celebrated his return to form, and most recently, he performed his entire breakout mixtape INNANETAPE at Riot Fest.

“The Taste” marks the reunion of Vic and BJ, who previously worked together on V Tape‘s “Rebirth.” BJ, meanwhile, recently announced his independence and has been quietly working on a new project while appearing of projects from likes of Polo G, Common, and more.

Watch Vic Mensa and BJ The Chicago Kid’s nostalgic ‘The Taste’ video above.

Lil Nas X Reveals Which ‘Black Male Rapper’ Was Going To Be On ‘Montero’ And Why He Was Left Off

by
Getty Image

Although Lil Nas X’s debut album Montero is a star-studded affair with features from icons like Elton John and contemporary favorites like Doja Cat and Megan Thee Stallion, fans noticed a conspicuous absence of other male rap features — specifically, from other Black men (Jack Harlow appears on “Industry Baby”). Nas previously expressed his disappointment and received support from Kid Cudi after telling a fan, “Maybe a lot of them don’t wanna work with me.”

Shortly after the album was released, though, he did share the name of one who did: Drake, who Nas sent “Dolla Sign Slime.” However, Drake was finishing up Certified Lover Boy and unable to dedicate time to recording a verse, so Megan Thee Stallion was tapped to replace him. However, it turns out there was another rapper willing to align himself with Nas’ progressive vision; again, he was thwarted by bad timing.

Yesterday, during a Twitter Q&A with fans about Montero, the question came up once again, with another fan wondering why no other Black male rappers appeared on the album. This time, Nas was a little more forthcoming, revealing that he did almost have one but that deadlines forced him to forego the collaboration. “Ski Mask was almost on ‘Scoop,’” he shared, referring to rebellious Florida rapper Ski Mask The Slump God. “But we had to turn it in before he could finish.” However, Nas reiterated that “other than that a lot of them just don’t fwm tbh.”

While it’s disappointing to learn that the few allies Nas has were unable to participate, the end results still wound up being excellent, as Doja Cat’s verse on “Scoop” was appreciated by fans as a standout on the project. Hopefully, Nas’ success will convince more of his peers that working with him is worth whatever risk they think it’ll bring and, like Cudi later said, break down the “homophobic cloud” that hovers over hip-hop.

The Woman Accusing Nicki Minaj And Her Husband Of Harassment Gives Her First On-Camera Interview

by

Jennifer Hough, who says that Nicki Minaj and her husband Kenneth Petty have been harassing her over his 1995 rape conviction, appeared on The Real to address her current lawsuit against the couple and the residual effects of the original incident, for which she says she previously blamed herself. She says that after the initial incident, for which Petty served four years in New York prison and was eventually registered as a sex offender, she tried to hide from the world, blaming herself for his assault.

However, in recent years, she says her fear changed to one of Nicki Minaj’s power and influence. Hough recounts her conversation with Nicki in 2020 in which the star offered to fly Hough and her family to California in exchange for recanting her 1995 testimony and helping Petty clear his name from the sex offender registry. Petty had recently been arrested for failing to update his address when the couple moved from New York to California after getting married and has since pled guilty for failing to register as a sex offender. Hough, however, declined the offer, saying, “I told her, woman to woman, this really happened.”

She explains how the couple harassed her, sending representatives to her family members to negotiate payments to help them out, and eventually resorting to threats over her reluctance to assist them. “The last message I received was that I should have taken the money because they are gonna use that money to put on my head,” she says. Her intention with the lawsuit is to stand up to the couple and tell them that “you can’t do this to people — you shouldn’t do this to people… you can’t intimidate people to make things go better for you.”

You can watch the interview in the video above.

Moneybagg Yo Taps Lil Wayne And Ashanti For A Woozy ‘Wockesha’ Remix

by

Moneybagg Yo’s sleeper summer hit “Wockesha” receives a woozy remix courtesy of the two artists the Memphis rapper originally just sampled on the song: Lil Wayne and Ashanti. Lil Wayne, whose voice is sampled from an old interview on the song’s intro, contributes a sturdy verse dedicated to the delights of his favorite styrofoam cup filler. Then, Ashanti, whose song “Foolish” uses the same interpolation as “Wockesha” (from DeBarge’s 1983 song “Stay With Me”), offers a honeyed hook, as well as a melodic verse of her own.

“Wockesha” turned out to be the breakout hit from Moneybagg’s recently released album A Gangsta’s Pain, which garnered the Memphis native his first-ever No. 1 on the Billboard albums chart. Since the album’s release, Moneybagg has seen himself become an in-demand features artist as Belly tapped him for “Zero Love” and Fredo Bang put in the call for “Doin’ My Dance.” Moneybagg’s also accumulated high-profile performances, including one at Broccoli City’s return festival and the 2021 BET Awards, where he performed “Wockesha” live.

Meanwhile, his guests have had bountiful years of their own. Lil Wayne has popped up on tracklists from Conway The Machine, Drake, and more, while Ashanti recently graced the Verzuz stage twice, once in January in her own battle with Keyshia Cole, and again during Fat Joe and Ja Rule’s show, performing alongside both.

Listen to Moneybagg Yo’s “Wockesha” remix featuring Lil Wayne and Ashanti above.