Now that Young Thug is a free man, fans wonder when he will drop new music. While we don’t know anything for sure just yet, it seems like he’s very hard at work, as Southside and Wheezy recently spoke in an interview on how they, Thugger, Travis Scott, Lil Baby, and Future are working together and cooking up collabs nonstop these days. Fans learned that they hit the studio earlier in November, and it seems like they haven’t left.
“It was like one of them nights where all the homies under one roof in one room,” Wheezy remarked. “Just Supreme Team, like, real deal superheroes. We had Trav, we got Pluto, Wham… And the one and only, King Spider. Under one roof, man, we just making the best music of our time. Like I said at the beginning of the video, like, real deal superhero group, super producers. We just locked in the studio doing, like, 20 songs a night. Like, real deal. Not even exaggerating. […] Yeah, and then the way this s**t going, you know, Free Thugger, man, he out. Thug free, it’s just like, that… It just was one of them nights, bro. And we’ve been doing it three nights in a row, that’s what’s so crazy. We getting up doing this s**t.”
Of course, this is very exciting for Young Thug’s comeback in particular, but we’re sure that the other artists involved got plenty of sauce. Lil Baby has not one, but two albums coming up in 2025, whereas Future proved that he can pull out a dominant year whenever with his triple threat 2024. As for Travis Scott, he’s teased new music as well, but we don’t have a specific timeline and we know that his releases can feel more like events.
With all this in mind, trap fans can’t wait to hear what Young Thug, Travis Scott, Future, and Lil Baby cooked up with the help of Wheezy, Southside, and others. There’s a lot of pressure and expectation for some real-deal bangers, but we’ll see what the direction sounds like. Either way, it will surely be a very celebratory moment.
Vybz Kartel is back home. However, one thing that has lingered on everyone’s mind is how he managed to remain as prolific as he did behind bars. Sure, there’s no doubt that he recorded an incredible amount of music before he was sentenced to life in prison in 2014 for the murder of Clive “Lizard” Williams. However, the fact that for over 13 years, he continuously dominated the summers and released countless singles and projects has raised many questions surrounding his studio circumstances.
Kartel, who has been a cornerstone of dancehall, was released from prison earlier this year after he successfully won his appeal. Shortly after, he released his 12-song mixtape, First Week Out– a testament to his efficient creative flow. As he does the rounds with the media, he’s finally unveiled his secret to maintaining his relevance in the music industry throughout all these years.
Vybz Kartel, born Adidja Palmer, was embroiled in a highly publicized criminal case since 2011. He was convicted in 2014 for the murder of Clive “Lizard” Williams, a charge that has led to a life sentence. The case has been controversial. Kartel maintained his innocence and his legal team highlighted procedural issues during the trial, including concerns about juror bias and the mishandling of evidence. In 2024, the UK Privy Council quashed his conviction, citing these procedural flaws, and Kartel is now a free man.
Rumors Of A Prison Studio
Hot 97’s “On Da Reggae Tip Live” at Hammerstein Ballroom on Friday night, September 2, 2005.This image:Vybz Kartel. (Photo by Hiroyuki Ito/Getty Images)
Over the years, several rumors ran rampant surrounding the circumstances that allowed Vybz Kartel to record and release music while incarcerated. Since recording music is unauthorized in prison, some suggested that he had privileged access to a professional studio, which was never actually proven. Others believed that the vault of unreleased music he left behind had enough songs to flood the streets.
It remained a mystery throughout his sentence, and in 2020, he fueled speculation even further in an interview with Billboard. “It’s a secret like the Colonel’s recipe. The true secret to success is commitment, hard work, smart work, self-analysis and most important, humility,” he responded. “Once I face a riddim (rhythm track), I’m not worldboss, just a man with a pen, paper and a track. Other artists are working hard, so I think it’s just the formula.”
When asked exactly how he’s produced so much work given his circumstances, he responded, “Many people say YES! VYBZ IS RECORDING IN PRISON!! But where’s the proof? But this is Jamaica where you don’t need proof to imprison someone. For the record, I’m not authorized to answer such ‘above pay grade’ questions so I’ll say, ‘a tree fell in the forest and no one was there to hear it.’”
During a recent appearance on the Juan Ep Is Life podcast, Vybz Kartel provided a rare glimpse into his life during his incarceration. He discussed his ongoing battle with Graves’ Disease, the first thing he did upon his release, and so much more. However, the most notable part of the interview came when Cipha Sounds and Peter Rosenberg delved into the logistics of Kartel’s ability to continuously release music.
Kartel explained he was able to release music through a backlog of unreleased songs. “In the first year, we had songs unreleased,” said Kartel. “But then the songs ran out and we had to do what we had to do. That’s when I started recording behind bars.” This ultimately led him to get creative by using nothing more than an iPhone.
Vybz Kartel Makeshift Studio
Kartel’s method was nothing short of ingenious. Without access to a professional studio, he improvised by using his prison-issued mattress to create a makeshift sound booth. He explained how he would position his iPhone a few feet away from his face. Then, he would wrap the mattress around his head to muffle any unwanted noise. This setup allowed him to capture vocals with surprisingly good sound quality. Afterward, he would then send it to a trusted engineer on the outside.
“I would have to Deejay directly into the iPhone,” he explained. “I would have the phone, like, 3 feet from my face and I would wrap the mattress around my head and record. It was crazy,” he explained. He used an iPad to play the instrumental while recording his vocals on the iPhone. Vybz would then send the vocals to an engineer who would mix it to sound crisp and professional.
One of Vybz Kartel’s biggest songs came during his incarceration with “Fever.” The song, which appeared on his 2016 album, King Of Dancehall, has since earned over 100 million streams on Spotify alone, according to Billboard. However, because of the rules in prison, he had to sneakily record music at odd hours of the day. “Most of the time, we had to record like at night but sometimes, it had to be like 12 o’clock when most of the officers would be on like lunch break and I would still have to be watching,” he explained. “So I’d be like, ‘fever!’ and then I’d have to get up and look. It was crazy. It was line by line!”
What’s Next For Vybz Kartel?
The expansive interview touches on several topics including some live performances, both in Jamaica and abroad. Currently, he’s planning for his comeback show on December 31st, 2024 – the Freedom Street Concert, taking place in Kingston, Jamaica. Hopefully, he’ll be touching the United States in the future. But for now, we’re happy that he’s back home.
SZA has been having a grand old time as of late. Following the release of S.O.S., she was greeted with all sorts of accolades. Overall, this album was truly a massive achievement. After the success of CTRL, there were very few people who thought this album would live up to the hype. Moreover, with a five-year gap between albums, it seemed like she was taking too much time. However, all of those fears were put to bed thanks to just how phenomenal the project was. The praise was very well-deserved.
Since that time, she has gone on a world tour that has brought her to numerous cities throughout the world. She has documented this journey every step of the way. Overall, this has led to some comprehensive photo dumps. Moreover, she hasn’t been shy about showing off her infamous BBL. Some have dubbed her BBL as the greatest of all-time. Clearly, she doesn’t mind this honor as she will post her booty on IG from time to time. Last night, she did just that while in the studio.
In the post up above, you can see how SZA was wearing a cute white and orange Nike onesie. Additionally, she was in the studio shaking her booty to some new music. “No thoughts jus vibes,” she wrote in her IG story. It is clear by this post that she is spending time making new music, or simply recording some verses for others. She was recently featured on “TELEKINESIS” on Travis Scott’s Utopia, and many consider this to be the best feature on the album. Simply put, SZA is on a massive roll right now.
Hopefully, we will be blessed with some new SZA music, very soon. She is a fantastic artist, and we just want to hear more from her. Let us know your expectations for new music from the songstress, in the comments section below. Additionally, stay tuned to HNHH for the latest news and updates from around the music world.
Timbaland, Justin Timberlake, and Nelly Furtado all reunited in the studio, sparking excitement for new music from the longtime collaborators. Furtado shared a screenshot of herself face-timing into the session on Instagram, Wednesday. It comes after Furtado recently confirmed that she had discussed working with Timbaland again during an interview with Vogue in June.
“We have plans, for sure. I actually talked to Timbaland recently, and we had this amazing two-hour FaceTime call,” Furtado confirmed at the time. “We were talking about when we made Loose, and getting into all these stories.”
Timbaland, Justin Timberlake, & Nelly Furtado At The VMAs
LAS VEGAS – SEPTEMBER 09: Timbaland, Justin Timberlake and Nelly Furtado performs at the 2007 MTV Video Music Awards at the Palms Casino Resort on September 9, 2007 in LasVegas, Nevada. (Photo by Chris Polk/FilmMagic)
Timbaland has also confirmed that he’s been working on a new album with Justin Timberlake. Speaking with Variety in April, he revealed that the project is “done and it’s coming.” He added that, while the two are still making finishing touches, it’s a return to “fun Justin.”
“It’s fun Justin — it’s like FutureSex/LoveSounds but nothing too heavy, just giving you what you’d expect from us: not overthought, the lyrics are not so deep, it’s bob-your-head, dance-to-it music. Music is a young sport, and you have to keep it fun — fun and young. We’ve both seen a lot of life, but you can’t overthink it because of that, you have to bring out the 13-year-old, 18-year-old again, you know? If not, you can get into the old-fogey stage real quick. (Laughter) That’s just the world we live in,” Timbaland explained. “So you have to know how to be authentic and true to the art and understand it, and that’s what this album is. We took our time. We had songs that maybe were too complicated, but we said ‘We want it to feel like FutureSex part two,’ so we picked songs that will fit that.”
Nelly Furtado FaceTimes Timbaland
Image Via Instagram @NellyFurtado
Timbaland famously produced both artists’ hit albums, FutureSex/LoveSounds and Loose. It’s unclear when new music from the trio will release, but we now have visual proof of them in the studio together.
Ever since the release of Pink Tape a few weeks ago Lil Uzi Vert has been teasing an impending follow-up. The project became the first rap album to hit #1 on the Billboard 200 this year and still sits in the Top 10 of the chart. But they’ve been teasing a follow-up ever since and that’s taken the form of Barter 16. In the past few weeks, Uzi has been sharing information with fans about the follow-up which queries from Young Thug’s similarly titled series. On top of recently dressing up like Young Thug, Uzi is also taking the inspiration even further.
The “Just Wanna Rock” rapper just dropped some more news album Barter 16. The project will reportedly be executive produced by London On Da Track. The producer has worked with Young Thug extensively in the past and will now help out as Lil Uzi tried to match his style. They haven’t released any information about when the project might arrive so far, but clearly, fans are excited. Some fans are also skeptical. Comments underneath many posts about Lil Uzi are curious about their decision to try and embody Young Thug. With the former still in police custody as part of the YSL RICO case, opinions are divided.
Over the weekend pictures made the rounds of Lil Uzi Vert back in the studio. While the rapper didn’t explicitly say that they were working on tracks from Barter 16 most fans made the connection pretty quickly. Uzi is no stranger to turning around quickly after the release of a new album. In 2020 they released the similarly highly-anticipated project Eternal Atake. They followed it up shortly after with a Deluxe version that was essentially an entire new album, LUV vs. The World 2.
Just a few weeks after its release Pink Tape has already sold 500k units. The album has the potential to become the highest-selling rap project of 2023 and will likely compete for the title with Travis Scott’s forthcoming album Utopia. What do you think of Lil Uzi Vert recruiting London On Da Track to executive produce Barter 16? Let us know in the comment section below.
Rick Ross hopped on Instagram today to show followers that he’s been in the studio with DJ Khaled and Meek Mill. He and Khaled groove to an unreleased track in a short clip. Photos of the duo posing alongside Meek Mill were also shared. The artist showed off bottles of Belaire, and French Montana even popped into a later clip to greet followers. It’s unclear what project the artists were working on, or what the release date is for the previewed track.
In the clip, Rick also flexes a diamond-covered watch, similar to the one he just recently purchased. Rick Ross’ new watch cost him around $20 million and took roughly three years to put together. The hefty price tag doesn’t come as a shock to Rick Ross supporters, as he’s known to frequently indulge in extravagant events and purchases.
Just recently, it was also reported that he has his eye on another pricey venture. Apparently, he’s under contract to buy a $37 million mansion in Miami Beach, FL. The massive home features six bedrooms and a whopping nine bathrooms.
Rick Ross and DJ Khaled previously appeared together in the 2008 music video for “Speedin’” featuring R. Kelly. In the music video, he appears to jump from a bridge in order to get away from law enforcement. Last week, the artist shared some behind the scenes details on the video shoot. He filmed from a boat near the bridge he’s shown jumping from in the video. “Right behind me is the world-famous [bridge] that it look like Rozay jumped off in that DJ Khaled video,” he explains in the clip. “But just for the record, the homie that jumped off for me, he a real G,” he continued, “he did it for $300. You feel me?“ The payment seemed pretty low to social media users, considering the wealth Rick Ross shows off all the time.
Two of Chicago’s finest MCs are back in the studio together working on some new material. Chance The Rapper and Vic Mensa posted a new series of photos to Instagram earlier today that show the two of them in the studio together. The caption on the post reads “No “-isms” No schisms.” It’s safe to say that the pair may have some new music together coming soon. Chance and Vic have collaborated together numerous times in their long working relationship. Vic provided a legendary guest verse to the fan-favorite song “Cocoa Butter Kisses” from Chance’s Acid Rap project.
The most recent times the pair teamed up were on Vic Mensa’s standout 2021 single “Shelter.” They joined forces again last year on Chance The Rapper’s “Wraith” alongside Smoko Ono. The comments under the post are about what you’d expect. Fans are excited about the prospect of new music. Many of the comments asked Chance where his new album is. He hasn’t released a new record since 2019’s critically maligned The Big Day. Despite the reputation that the album has fans are clearly looking forward to what’s next.
In a recent interview Chance The Rapper teased that he’s working on a new album. He told Audacy that the album is “one of my proudest projects in terms of writing and artistic vision.” Whether Chance and Vic are working on music for that new project or something else is unclear. What is clear is just how badly fans want new Chance music as they beg for the new album in the comments of nearly everything he posts.
Outside of Vic Mensa Chance is looking to collaborate with some other artists. Recently in a late-night interview he mentioned that he would work with Peppa Pig “in a heartbeat.” While nothing has materialized yet, that didn’t stop fans from imagining what a potential Chance and Peppa collab may sound like. What do you think of Chance The Rapper and Vic Mensa getting back in the studio together? Let us know in the comment section below.
Whenever there’s footage of rappers in the studio, you know it usually spells out good news for fans wanting new music. Moreover, Kodak Black was recently filmed in the studio, cooking it up with G Herbo and NoCap. Not only that, but they previewed what sounds like an upcoming collaboration, and though they didn’t announce anything, it still got fans excited. That being said, it’s also likely that it could be a solo Kodak song that he just played for the other two MCs. Either way, they seemed to be having a good time together, and fans expect them to have dropped some verses in that time, as well.
Kodak Black in particular has to have a lot on his mind these days, what with his recent renegotiation of his release terms. Furthermore, he recently responded to a fan on Instagram Live who said he should go back to jail to work on his addiction. “Damn, what kind of person are you?” the Florida rapper asked. “This motherf***er say, ‘You need to go back to jail and sober up, Yak. For real, for real, man. How and why do you feel like that’s the answer to my… whatever you feel like? I was like ‘S**t… when motherf***ers know you chosen and s**t, that’s when they torment you.”
Regardless, hopefully Kodak Black was still able to enjoy his studio time despite those emotions weighing on him. What’s more is that G Herbo’s dropped a lot in 2023, so all rappers involved have some hype behind them. For example, he recently appeared alongside Drakeo The Ruler, Tory Lanez, and more on Toronto rapper Top5’s Pedro Activated album. Maybe this prolific streak will continue throughout the year.
Meanwhile, NoCap’s last release came back in 2022, so there’s actually a bit more anticipation there. With this teased collaboration, maybe the trio is looking to score a summer hit. Whatever the case, it’s always a treat to see MCs behind the scenes as they work on their craft. For more news and updates on Kodak Black, G Herbo, and NoCap, check back in with HNHH.
Nas has been on an incredibly prolific run over the last few years. He’s released three installments of his King’s Disease series of albums with Hit-Boy. The first one dropped in 2020 with the second edition following a year later and the third a year after that. He also found time to drop a second new album in 2021 called Magic. Each entry in the King’s Disease series have been both critical darlings and fan favorites. Now, Nas appears to be back in the studio all over again.
According to HipHopDX, the veteran rapper told Vanity Fair exactly that in a recent interview. “I’m in one of these creative growth spurts, it’s something that I’m really excited about, and it surprises me, Nas told the publication. He also clarified that he knew a burst of creativity would come eventually. “I’m not too, too surprised because I was also waiting for the day that I felt like this again, and I knew it would come.”
Nas Getting Back To Recording
LONDON, ENGLAND – JUNE 13: NAS performs at The O2 Arena on June 13, 2023 in London, England. (Photo by Burak Cingi/Redferns)
Nas also hinted in the interview that there could be new music coming in the King’s Disease series. He describes the series as a constant flow of music and that he doesn’t “wanna stop it once it’s flowing the way it’s flowing.” In an interview last month Nas reflected on King’s Disease III. He described rap music as “his therapist” to the Wall Street Journal. He and Hit-Boy further collaborated on a track for the producer’s new album earlier this year.
Last year, Nas teamed up with Mass Appeal for a series of EPs meant to celebrate hip-hop’s 50th anniversary. The short projects would be helmed by various producers and aim to tell the full story of the genre’s history. So far the series has dropped two EPs helmed by DJ Premier and Swizz Beatz respectfully. Nas himself has also appeared on the opening song of both projects. What do you think of Nas returning to the studio so quickly? Let us know in the comment section below.
A recent social media post reveals that Quavo’s upcoming album, Rocket Power, is coming soon. He shared some photos of himself in the recording studio on Instagram today, writing “We Mixing Ima Call For Ur Ear [ear emoji] Soon.” He topped the post off with a Rocket Power hashtag, building fans’ excitement for his next release.
Rocket Power doesn’t have an official release date currently, but is expected to drop sometime this year. The LP will follow his 2018 solo debut, Quavo Huncho. He revealed along with the announcement that the album is dedicated to his late Migos group mate Takeoff, who was shot and killed in 2022. “This album is for the Rocket, our true fans, and also this is my therapy,” he explained on Instagram, “This album is a true reflection of how I feel right now.” Earlier this month, Quavo hosted a pop-up for his “Rocket Power” merchandise in Paris. The pop-up was a massive success, with hundreds of supporters gathering to get their hands on the Takeoff-inspired merch.
Over the weekend, Quavo and his other Migos group mate, Offset, reunited for a performance at the 2023 BET Awards. They paid tribute to their late collaborator, who was projected onto a screen behind them during the show. It was the duo’s first performance together since Takeoff’s death. However, much to fans’ disappointment, the two reportedly have no plans to release new music together anytime soon. TMZ shared the news earlier this week, also claiming that the two artists would never replace Takeoff in a trio.
Offset and Quavo’s BET Awards tribute received high praise from fans and peers alike. Viewers seemed to love the performance, with many claiming that they had “prayed they heal their relationship.” However, fans continue to speculate that the two still aren’t on the best of terms. T.I. also recently weighed in on the performance, calling it “Goddamn monumental.”
(@nojumper)