News Exclusives

Happy Birthday To Killer Mike!

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On this day in Hip Hop history, Dungeon Family member Killer Mike was born in Atlanta, Georgia. From Grammy’s to politics, Killer Mike maybe one of the most slept on figures of this culture we call Hip Hop.

Killer Mike’s Hip Hop career began with a feature on OutKast‘s 2000 album Stankonia, on the track “Snappin & Trappin.” His follow up feature with OutKast on “The Whole World” won him a Grammy at the 2003 Grammy Awards for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group. That same year Killer Mike released his debut studio album Monster, which peaked at #10 on the Billboard 200 chart and #4 on the Top R&B/Hip Hop Albums chart.

Over the next few years, Killer Mike released I Pledge Allegiance to the Grind 1 & 2 before announcing in 2008 that he was signing to T.I.‘s record label Grand Hustle Records. Not much was heard from Killer Mike musically until he teamed up with El-P in 2011 to become Run the Jewels.

Killer Mike and El-P were introduced to each other by Cartoon Network executive Jason DeMarco. Later that year, El-P produced Killer Mike’s album R.A.P. Music. In the same year Killer Mike featured on El-P’s album Cancer 4 Cure. Due to the fact the albums were released within weeks of each other, the two decided to go on tour together. The success of the tour led the two to team up under the moniker Run the Jewels. The duo has since released two self-titled albums and plan to release a third this year. Run the Jewels 2 peaked at #50 on the Billboard 200 chart.

Aside from music, Killer Mike is one politically active and conscious brother. Most recently, he has been heavily campaigning for Bernie Sanders, introducing him at speaking engagements, sitting with at interviews, and even going to his fundraisers as an honored guest. Over his career he has passionate against police brutality against people of color, systematic racism, and has fought for social equality. It is obvious in his music and when he speaks in interviews that Killer Mike is passionate about humanity and wants to get us all on track and acting like civil, equal human beings.

Killer Mike has also appeared on T.V. and in movies and is currently active as a rapper. His next solo project, Elegant Elephant, has been in the works since 2013 but there’s no word on when it will be released. Killer Mike is an icon and his image in Hip Hop is one of the more positive ones the genre has to offer. Take some time today to enjoy some of the fruits of his labor if you don’t already listen on the daily. From everyone here at The Source, happy born day, Killer Mike. May you see many more years of success.

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Pooh Shiesty Sentenced To 5 Years, 3 Months In Federal Firearms Conspiracy Case

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Several reports have confirmed that Memphis slang spitter Pooh Shiesty was sentenced to 63 months in federal prison for a federal firearms conspiracy charge stemming from a shooting in Florida last year.

After Shiesty, whose real name is Lontrell Williams Jr., plead guilty to the shooting at the top of 2022, prosecutors dropped three other charges that Shiesty was facing, which could’ve landed him in prison for life. Even though his required minimum was eight years, the judge still only sentenced the rapper to a little over three months.

More details will be available as the story develops.

The post Pooh Shiesty Sentenced To 5 Years, 3 Months In Federal Firearms Conspiracy Case appeared first on The Source.

Wu-Tang Clan And ATCQ Albums Will Be Added To The Library Of Congress

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Last week, two more classic Hip Hop albums were added to the National Recording Registry; Wu Tang Clan’s Enter The Wu Tang(36 Chambers) and A Tribe Called Quest’s 1991 Low End Theory. Its the first entry from the Staten island collective, but it’s the second album for the Queens crew to hit the Congress.

The two LPs join a 2022 inductee class that includes Bonnie Raitt’s Nick Of Time album, Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believin’,” and Alicia Keys’ Songs In A Minor.

Tribe’s fourth member, Jarobi White, left the group before the album was finished to pursue culinary arts while Q-Tip, Ali Shaheed Muhammad and the late Phife Dawg completed the album on the Jive/Zomba Records imprint. The album has been certified platinum following a coveted 5-mic rating from The Source Magazine.

Wu-Tang’s 1993 debut introduced the nine-member crew of RZA, GZA, Ol’ Dirty Bastard, Method Man, Raekwon, Ghostface Killah, Inspectah Deck, U-God, and Masta Killa. The Loud Records debut followed a solo outing from GZA (as The Genius) at the top of the decade, as well as an EP from RZA (as Prince Rakeem). The album was subsequently certified triple platinum. Notably, this album arrived the same day as Tribe’s third LP, Midnight Marauders.

The complete list of Hip-Hop works and the year they were selected to be inducted:

Nas’ Illmatic (2020)
Dr. Dre’s The Chronic (2019)
JAY-Z’s The Blueprint (2018)
Run-D.M.C.’s Raising Hell (2017)
N.W.A.’s Straight Outta Compton (2016)
Lauryn Hill’s The Miseducation Of Lauryn Hill (2014)
Sugarhill Gang’s “Rapper’s Delight” (2011)
De La Soul’s 3 Feet High And Rising (2010)
Tupac’s “Dear Mama” (2009)
Public Enemy’s Fear Of A Black Planet (2004)
Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five’s “The Message” (2002)

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[WATCH] DJ Envy’s Wife Admits to Faking Orgasms During Shade Room Interview

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During an interview with The Shade Room, Power 105’s DJ Envy and his wife Gia Casey sat down to candidly discuss their “toxic” relationship, including Casey admitting that she’s faked orgasms for a decade during their intimacy.

Casey said, “We would be intimate and he would be putting his best foot forward like, he is in the business of satisfying just all around. He lives to make me happy, and he puts his best foot forward in that role.”  She then added, “So I would see him trying and really going to work, and I’m sure many women can relate, you want to reward that man for that work and the only reward that you have to offer is an orgasm. And even if I didn’t feel it, I would still be performative.” 

The Breakfast Club host responded to Casey’s claims, saying,  “It hurt me because I thought I was pleasing my wife. You hear all these stories about women talking about their girlfriend ‘Oh girl he was so short, oh girl he ain’t doin’ nothin’, and I feel like they laughing, and now I feel like that’s what my wife is doing.”

See the full video below.

The post [WATCH] DJ Envy’s Wife Admits to Faking Orgasms During Shade Room Interview appeared first on The Source.

The Museum Of Graffiti To Exhibit ‘GHOST: Bits and Pieces’

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The Museum of Graffiti is pleased to announce Bits and Pieces, a solo exhibition of new works by GHOST, the New York graffiti artist. The exhibition opens on May 19, 2022 and will be on view through mid-July 2022. 

Bits and Pieces is Ghost’s first solo show at the Museum of Graffiti. The new works are an explosion of colors and imagery that melt into his rounded his unique graffiti letterforms. Ghost’s work contains hundreds of elements from his fantastic imagination where viewers are transported into a psychedelic world where letters come to life. “One of the highest compliments I get is that people say they feel like they took acid without taking acid. I like to take people on a trip. The more they look into the art, the more they discover my world,” states Ghost. His paintings are like eye candy to the artist who unlike many of the graffiti artists working in the streets wants his work to be accessible to the public. He adds, “I want people to get drawn in. Layers and depth are important for me to create a situation where people can spend time with my pieces. People want to walk into them and get into the art. To me that’s what makes my painting successful – when people want to walk into it. I don’t intend to do this but it just happens that way. For the most part it has been accidental discoveries during the process of painting and challenging myself.” 

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The new paintings include works that are reminiscent of the 1980s when he was adorning New York City’s subway trains with his original and improvised style of graffiti lettering and characters. Ghost was one of the last kings of the New York City train graffiti era. Today, he approaches his paintings with the same zest and casual grace as he does his train work, with bold explosions of colors and wild cartoons.  

The post The Museum Of Graffiti To Exhibit ‘GHOST: Bits and Pieces’ appeared first on The Source.

[WATCH] Former Death Row Security Guard Suggests Keefe D Could Be Arrested for 2Pac’s Murder This Year

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On the Bomb1st podcast, Former Death Row muscle Reggie Wright Jr. added more to the rumor mill about the 1996 murder of Tupac Shakur, saying that the last man alive in the car which fired the fatal shots that killed Shakur will be charged with the decades old crime this year.

Wright says that the Las Vegas Police Department has been ramping up their investigation into the Shakur murder and that Keefe D, the most talkative witness in the Tupac murder investigation, has had a nervous last coule of weeks.

“Let’s put it this way, I bet Keefe D [has] been having the runs for the last two weeks,” Wright said. “Because yeah, they are knocking on doors and there’s some activity.” Wright even made a challenge out of the rumors and urged viewers to predict the date in which Keefe D will be arrested this year while promising a prize to whoever predicts the correct date.

The post [WATCH] Former Death Row Security Guard Suggests Keefe D Could Be Arrested for 2Pac’s Murder This Year appeared first on The Source.

Young Chop’s Brother Shot and Killed in Chicago

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According to several reports, Young Chop’s brother, Johnny May Cash, was killed over the weekend after being shot in the thigh and later dying from his injuries. He was 27 years old.

It is believed that May Cash might have been killed in retaliation to a viral video of him shoving a woman against a wall and later hitting her in the head.

Cash was signed to his brother’s label and collaborated with Chicago artist Lil Durk on “I Go” on Durk’s “Signed to the Streets 2” mixtape and on Chop’s 2013 track “Ballin”, which also featured Durk.

So far there are no suspects and no arrests have been made.

The post Young Chop’s Brother Shot and Killed in Chicago appeared first on The Source.

Today in Hip Hop History: Nas Released His Iconic ‘Illmatic’ Album 28 Years Ago

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28 years ago today, Nas dropped his debut LP ‘Illmatic‘. Released by Columbia Records in 94’ Nas recorded the album at Chung King Studios, D&D Recording, Battery Studios, and Unique Recording Studios in New York City. Produced by DJ Premier, Large Professor, Pete Rock, Q-Tip, L.E.S., and Nas himself; the bangers on the album will be embedded in Hip Hop culture as classics merely based upon its production alone.

The album sold 60,000 in the first week and debuted at number 12 on the US Billboard 200 chart. On January 17, 1996, the album was certified gold by the RIAA in 2001 it earned a platinum certification after shipping 1,000,000 copies in the United States alone.

Lyrically, Nas delivered street certified verses on ‘Illmatic‘ that influenced the majority of the 90’s and is regarded as one of the greatest LP’s of all time by critics and major publications globally.

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2 NJ Women Inmates Impregnated After Sex With Transgender Prisoners

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An all women’s prison in New Jersey launched the liberally progressive move of allowing transgender inmates to be house with the other female inmates, but now the prison is in hot water after two of the naturally-born female inmates were impregnated by a transgender inmate.

It was reported that some of the 27 transgender inmates at the Edna Mahan Correction Facility have been having sex with the biological female inmates, however, there have been no reports of rape because all of the incidents of sexual relations have reportedly been consensual.

“While DOC cannot comment on any specific disciplinary or housing decisions that may be considered in light of these events, the Department always reserves all options to ensure the health and safety of the individuals in its custody,” said NJDOC External Affairs Executive Director Dan Sperrazza.

Last year, to female inmates filed lawsuits against the prison claiming that the transgender inmates were having sex with the biological female inmates, but the legal director over at the ACLU has maintained their support of the prison reform that now allows transgender women to be housed with biological women.

“[It’s] in line with New Jersey’s strong anti-discrimination laws that prevent discrimination and harassment on the basis of gender identity,”  said Jeanne LoCicero.

The post 2 NJ Women Inmates Impregnated After Sex With Transgender Prisoners appeared first on The Source.

Today In Hip Hop History: West Coast Legend Spice 1 Dropped Self-Titled Debut LP 30 Years Ago

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Whether you’re hanging in Coachella Valley or simply mourning the loss of Crenshaw’s fallen hero Nipsey Hussle like the rest of us, West Coast Rap is definitely being bumped at high volumes this weekend. That’s why we had to show some love to the Hayward homie Spice 1 on this lovely Sunday, which happens to fall on the 27th anniversary of his debut self-titled album.

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Two years before appearing alongside MC Eiht and Scarface on our June ’94 cover (Issue #57), the rapper born Robert Lee Green Jr. delivered this banger for the Bay Area, which went on to reach way beyond his hood. The album was a big label follow-up to his well-received street EP Let It Be Known, which sold almost 100K in pure sales as an independent release. Once Jive came into the picture, the seven-song project was re-released and retitled as Spice 1, including five songs from the original project in addition to nine new ones. The switch up paid off, with the revamped version giving us the classic cut “Welcome to the Ghetto” and going on to sell almost half a million records.

The tracks on Spice 1 sound like quintessential G-Funk, translated through singles like “187 Proof” and the reggae-tinged “East Bay Gangster,” all the way to deep cuts like “Peace to My Nine” and the low-rider classic “City Streets.” It’s clear to see his style & delivery is inspired by the rap icon that discovered him — Spice 1 hails from Oakland’s The Dangerous Crew created by Too $hort — but the connection is less “flow biting” and more “of the same kin.” At the end of the day, it all just sounds like good gangsta rap.

The initial success of the album helped it rank in the top 20 of Billboard’s R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart at #14, later achieving gold certification by RIAA. “Welcome to the Ghetto” proved to be a hit as well, rising to #39 on the Hot R&B/Hip Hop Singles & Tracks chart and also appearing on the Hot Rap Singles where it faired the best at #5. It ultimately marked a good start to a career that would go on to produce 12 studio albums and more than a handful of compilation LPs and collab albums, the latest being as recent as 2015 with his Bossolo-assisted project Thug Therapy.

We crowned him as one of the 115 greatest MCs from 1988 to 2003 for our 15th anniversary (Issue #167), and we stand by that sentiment as he rings in 27 years of his debut project. The Bay Area is home to an important sound and time in Hip-Hop, and Spice 1 helped cultivate that. Salute, king!

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