TDE (Top Dawg Entertainment)

TDE’s Annual Holiday Concert Returns For 2025 With Doechii, SZA, Schoolboy Q, And Surprise Guests

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Top Dawg is for the kids. For the past 12ish years (give or take a pandemic shutdown), TDE, the South Los Angeles-based label that homes music from rap stars like Ab-Soul and Schoolboy Q, R&B queen SZA, and breakout artist of 2024, Doechii, has held a holiday concert at the Nickerson Gardens housing project in Watts for the community. Top Dawg has announced the date for this year’s iteration (December 12), which will feature the above-mentioned artists, along with fellow TDE signees Isaiah Rashad, Jay Rock, Kal Banx, Ray Vaughn, SiR, and Ray Vaughn, as well as surprise guests.

In the past, that latter category has included stars like A$AP Ferg, Big Sean, Rihanna, and Travis Scott, as well as former TDE golden boy Kendrick Lamar. The best part about the concert isn’t that it’s basically free, though; it’s that the price of admission is an unwrapped toy, which will be distributed in Nickerson Gardens (where Anthony “Top Dawg” Tiffith grew up) the next day. So, if you want to see a great concert, all you have to do is something nice for the community! It’s a good deal!

In addition to the performances, the event also usually includes food trucks and other activities, while the next day will be Community Giveback day, with barbering services, family holiday photos, raffles, sports activities, and of course, the toy giveaway. There’s also a job fair with onsite employment opportunities. Top Dawg is for everybody.

You can find more information about the 11th annual TDE Christmas Concert + Toy Drive below.

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Ab-Soul Shared The Tracklist For ‘Soul Burger,’ Which Features Doechii, Lupe Fiasco, Vince Staples, And More

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Ab-Soul’s new mixtape Soul Burger is dropping this Friday, November 8, and today, the Carson rapper has revealed the tracklist, which contains some real surprises and treats for rap fans. Soul — who’s been embroiled in some minor J. Cole-related controversy, but quickly dispelled rumors of any beef between the two — has already released two songs from the project. While “All That” sees Soul teaming up with a different Compton rapper from the one he’s usually associated with, “Crazier” further undermines the belief in friction between Dreamville and TDE.

While some of the guests on Soul Burger seem like no-brainers — specifically, labelmate and current heir apparent to rap’s women’s division crown, Doechii, and fellow West Coasters Blxst, Ty Dolla Sign, and Vince Staples — one that’s sure to raise a few eyebrows is Lupe Fiasco. Now, if there’s anyone rap fans think actually has a disagreement with Soul’s Black Hippy bandmate Kendrick Lamar, it’s Lupe, who notoriously shaded the Compton-bred Pulitzer winner on Twitter in 2018, apparently in a bout of jealousy over the attention K. Dot’s received for his pen in the past few years. Of course, from a “bars only” standpoint, the combo of Ab-Soul and Lupe Fiasco only makes sense, as very few rappers in the world can keep up with either of them when they start really digging into their wordplay bags (and/or conspiracy theories). TDE President Punch is also featured on that song, which should help balance things out (and continue to remind fans that Punch is a very, very skilled wordsmith in his own right).

You can see the tracklist below.

Soul Burger is out on 11/8 via Top Dawg Entertainment. You can find more info here.

Punch Dispelled Rumors Of Beef Between TDE And Dreamville Artists After A Viral Fan Theory About J. Cole’s ‘Pi’

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Ever since Future and Metro Boomin added Kendrick Lamar to their combative single “Like That,” the rap game has been in shambles, with bloodlust among rap fans fueling pernicious rumors of beef between their favorite entertainers. Case in point, the song “Pi” from J. Cole’s new mixtape, Might Delete Later, has been the center of rumored beef between rappers affiliated with Kendrick’s former label, TDE, and J. Cole’s label, Dreamville. However, TDE President Terrence Henderson — aka Punch — stepped in to dispel that myth before it spread any further.

After a rap fan on Twitter (never calling it “X”) wrote, “Ab-Soul threw jabs at J. Cole after Cole did him dirty by adding him & Daylyt to a song with a verse dissing Kendrick on ‘Pi’,” Punch did some fact-checking on the inaccurate speculation. “I hate to clear up rumors,” he wrote in response. “I usually let them fester and see how far they go, but ALL verses on ‘Pi’ were recorded long before ‘Like That.’”

It’s fair to say that fans have let their excitement get the best of them in the past. That, combined with the vagueness of some rappers’ battle raps, gives plenty of room for conspiratorial thinking and jumping to conclusions. However, there’s a big difference between fan theories on the internet and what really goes on behind the scenes — and Punch’s tweet is a reminder that many of those theories are usually missing key pieces of information. In this case, the fans in question appear to have overlooked the fact that Daylyt and J. Cole have collaborated since on “Plate Of Collard Greens,” and that even Ab-Soul appears to be rooting for Drake to have a soft landing.

Alemeda Signs To Top Dawg Entertainment And Drops Her Debut EP, ‘FK IT’

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After the success of SZA’s SOS and Doechii’s Alligator Bites Never Heal, it looks like Top Dawg Entertainment is going all-in on the girlies, and we’re here for it. The Los Angeles-based label has signed its third woman, Ethiopian alt-pop singer-songwriter Alemeda. You may remember her from her UPROXX Sessions performance of “Gonna Bleach My Eyebrows” in 2022, and since then, not only have there been plenty of other singers adopting that cosmetic choice, but Alemeda herself has built a growing fanbase as her alt-pop style caught on through artists like PinkPantheress and FKA Twigs.

Today, Alemeda released FK IT, her debut EP for TDE, featuring three all-new songs, “Below The Belt,” “I Already Dug Your Grave,” and “Not Asking For Much,” in addition to prior releases like “I Hate Your Face,” “Guys Girl” and the aforementioned “Bleach.” The project picks up threads from SZA’s pop-punk experiments on SOS and similar songs from the likes of Fousheé’s new project Pointy Heights, like “Feels Like Home.” “Below The Belt” “I Already Dug Your Grave” are upbeat riffs on the Disney pop-punk Alemeda says she grew up on as a kid in Arizona, while “Not Asking For Much” slows things down for a bit more bite. It’s a bit of a departure from “Gonna Bleach My Eyebrows,” which took more inspiration from UK garage and 2-step.

The versatile project is a worthy introduction to Alemeda for newcomers and an exciting look at the future of the formerly hip-hop-centric TDE. You can check out FK IT here.

JID’s Manager Jokes His Album Is Never Coming Out After Getting Some Advice From TDE’s Punch

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Dreamville fans have been impatiently awaiting the release of JID’s fourth album, Forever & A Day, for almost two years now, after JID announced it in August 2022. Since then, he’s projected and missed at least one release window, fall 2023, after announcing a second project, a joint album with Metro Boomin, was also in the works. And although Metro pledged to release the album sometime this year, reassuring worried fans it was “still a thing” despite his busy schedule, Top Dawg Entertainment President Punch may have ruined fans hopes for a 2024 release after giving JID’s manager, Barry Hefner, his “secret” to success.

Replying to a SZA fan account’s celebratory post about the longevity of the singer’s last album SOS (80 weeks at No. 1 on the Top R&B Albums chart), Punch wrote simply, “Insane.” When Hefner wondered, “what’s your secret?” Punch replied with the strategy that vexed SZA fans (and the artist herself) for the five years between the release of her acclaimed debut CTRL and SOS: “The secret is… hold albums back.”

Hef, who was definitely in on the joke, promised to apply this strategy to the Since The ’80s management roster — which includes JID. “TDE always holding their artists back from being successful..” he responded, citing a common fan complaint about the California label’s unpredictable release schedule. “if this what holding the album back looks like ain’t sh*t coming out over here.” Punch jovially agreed. “JID fans finna get at now.”

So, there you have it, JID fans. Forever & A Day may take that long to come out, and really, you can blame SZA fans for keeping SOS in rotation so long — even as they await its promised follow-up, Lana. This is why they say patience is a virtue.

Schoolboy Q Had His Toronto Concert Canceled, And He Thinks It’s Retaliation For The ‘Not Like Us’ Video

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The reach of Kendrick Lamar’s “Not Like Us” knows no bounds. Schoolboy Q had been on stage at The Pop Out — Ken & Friends Juneteenth concert when Lamar rattled through “Not Like Us” five consecutive times, and the former Black Hippy member appeared in Lamar’s star-studded video for the Drake diss track.

Well, Schoolboy Q’s Blue Lips Weekends tour was scheduled to roll through Drake’s native Toronto on Thursday, July 18, but not anymore.

“THey just cancelled my sHow in TORONTO [cry-laughing emoji],” Schoolboy Q posted on X (formerly Twitter). “CANADIAN POLICE DONT WANT NOBODY FROM TDE PERFORMING.”

“TOP was just wit Wayne & Baby smH partynextdoor just Had a sHow @ tHe palladium 🤦🏾‍♂️ if we wanted to get yall we would’ve just did it.. now wHen sumbody get Hurt don’t cry..,” he added in another post.

Finally, Schoolboy Q had a sense of humor about it: “Actually I get it.. Nvm tHis sHit Lokey Hilarious [cry-laughing emoji]… Iono wHy dot put me in tHat f*cking video [face-palm emoji].”

As of this writing, there hasn’t been any official explanation for the cancellation. But as it stands, Schoolboy Q will next perform in Chicago, Illinois on July 20. See all of his remaining dates here.

Kendrick Lamar Delivered The Long-Awaited Black Hippy Reunion At ‘The Pop Out’ Concert, Where They Performed A Medley Of Songs

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Kendrick Lamar opened his The Pop Out — Ken & Friends Juneteenth concert at LA’s Kia Forum by delivering the live debut of “Euphoria,” one of his Drake diss tracks from this spring, and adding another ruthless bar to it.

Somehow, The Pop Out got better from there.

Lamar staged a long-awaited Black Hippy reunion. One by one, he was joined on stage by Jay Rock, Ab-Soul, and Schoolboy Q. They performed a medley of songs, including “Money Trees,” “Win,” “King’s Dead,” “6:16 In LA,” “Collard Greens,” “That Part,” and “King Kunta.”

Black Hippy, a Top Dawg Entertainment (TDE) supergroup formed in the late 2000s, never released a full group LP, though it remained a vague possibility as of March 2023.

In February 2022, Terrance Louis “Punch” Henderson discussed Black Hippy never releasing an album during an interview with Mic.

“We definitely wanted to do a Black Hippy album,” Punch said. “But it was such a learning experience for us, everything was new. The timing never really panned out. When one guy would be recording his album, another guy would be on tour. Everybody was never in the same timeframe. So we didn’t want to hold back; we wanted to keep going and just push further into their individual careers. In hindsight, I wish I would’ve pushed the Black Hippy album more. That was always my goal, personally. You would have to ask everybody individually to see if that’s what their goal was.”

Why Is Reason Leaving Top Dawg Entertainment?

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In 2022, Kendrick Lamar released Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers, which in 2021 he declared would be his last album released under Top Dawg Entertainment. Now, it’s Reason’s turn to leave the nest: Today (June 18), the rapper announced he is leaving TDE.

Why Is Reason Leaving Top Dawg Entertainment?

He made the announcement via a letter shared on social media. Based on the message’s tone, the split appears to be at least somewhat amicable, with Reason expressing his appreciation for the label, Anthony “Top Dawg” Tiffith, and TDE fans. Reason also references his “decision to travel a different path after the years.”

Worth noting is that least year, Reason made waves for publicly arguing with TDE president Moosa, so perhaps some tension with the label was a contributing factor to Reason’s departure.

Check out the full letter below.

“The last 7 years have been incredible, and I’ve appreciated all the time and experiences that have come within that span of time. I can’t even put into words the surreal feeling I’ve had of being able to share my thoughts, expressions, emotions, stories, and experiences with you all through the platform provided to me by Top Dawg Entertainment.

With that being said, it comes with great appreciation and excitement that I want to announce my split with TDE. I want to give a huge thank you to Top himself, not only for giving me a chance to live out my dream but also for hearing me and understanding my decision to travel a different path after the years. There’s truly no words for the amount of respect I have for you, and that’ll never change, no matter what.

I also want to thank every single TDE fan who embraced me and allowed me to share my music with them. There’s no world in which you don’t mean the absolute most to me. Last but not least, a thank you to all the artists who embraced me.

Thank you for being a constant inspiration and ear while trying to navigate this industry and music. Thank you guys for the time and a huge thanks to everybody for this experience.

Excited for what comes next!

Love!!!”

TDE President Punch Jumped Headfirst Into The Debate Over Kendrick Lamar’s ‘To Pimp A Butterfly’ After J. Cole Dissed It

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Rap Twitter is in a frenzy after J. Cole dropped his surprise mixtape Might Delete Later with its Kendrick Lamar response “7 Minute Drill.” Clapping back on K. Dot after he called out Cole and Drake on “Like That,” the North Carolina rapper asserts “Your first sh*t was classic, your last sh*t was tragic / Your second sh*t put n****s to sleep but they gassed it.”

Putting aside debate about which of Kendrick’s albums counts as his second, the discourse was quickly joined by Top Dawg Entertainment President Terrance “Punch” Henderson, who defended To Pimp A Butterfly and Kendrick as the opinions flew. Unfortunately, even making as innocuous a statement as “I thought to pimp a butterfly was pretty good” opened the industry vet up to a deluge of responses — which, to be fair, he’s pretty much used to after SZA fans used him as their personal punching bag all through the wait for SOS.

His follow-up tweet also garnered a huge response. “The current rap climate got me realizing a lot of you music industry ppl are Kdot haters,” he asserted. “lol you telling me you n****s been secretly hating ALL this time!” He later clarified that “industry ppl” refers to “the folks that work in music,” rather than the rappers currently trading shots on records.

The responses largely fall into two categories. One: People who agree with Punch, and two: people who REALLY disagree with Punch. “There’s more Kdot dick riders on Twitter than you’ll ever find in real life lmfao,” read one quote. Another contended, “That privilege people say Drake has is actually Kendrick ten-fold. Drake would drop a pack of ass & go platinum because of who he is, but that’s where it ends. But you see Kendrick? He’ll drop the most unlistenable sh*t, probably poo on a track & be gifted awards.” YIKES.

While many of Punch’s detractors rightly point out that Kendrick has 17 Grammys and a Pulitzer to his name despite the lukewarm reaction to his last album and that it’s not “hate” to simply dislike one of his five (or four, depending on how you count) albums (and many, many side projects), the defenders were more apt to put down any criticism with ad hominem attacks on straw men. Hmmmmm.

As the debate rages on, I feel it’s important to note that it’s all subjective and personal. None of should really be worrying what anyone else thinks, especially if it’s going to result in anger at people you don’t know and will never meet. Let’s all be a little nicer about this, yeah?

How To Buy Mitchell & Ness’ Rap Label Throwback Jerseys

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As documentarians, networks, event organizers, award shows and more celebrate hip-hop’s 50th anniversary, Mitchell & Ness revealed their unique way of paying homage to the genre. Hip-hop is a culture that extends far beyond its most popular pilar, namely rap music. Since its inception, everyone who emerged in the scene has curated a flavorful fashion sense.

Throughout the decades, several staple garments have entered the mainstream scene thanks to hip-hop influence. One of the early 2000s biggest trends include Mitchell & Ness throwback jerseys. To spotlight that, the brand has rolled out a new line to highlight some of the genre’s most impactful record labels including Jay-Z’s Roc-A-Fella Records, Snoop Dogg’s Death Row Records, Jermaine Dupri’s So So Def, Ruff Ryders, and Top Dawg Entertainment.

How To Buy Mitchell & Ness’ Rap Label Throwback Jerseys

Mitchell & Ness’ rap label throwback jerseys, as part of their Hip-Hop Heritage Jersey Collection, will be made available to ComplexCon 2023 attendees first on November 17 and 18. After which the items will be made available on the company’s official website here. Each item will fall in the $275 to $325 price range.

In a statement, Mitchell & Ness CEO Eli Kumekpor spoke about the line. “We are thrilled this partnership presents fans a unique opportunity to celebrate Hip-Hop’s 50th Anniversary as well as their favorite artists and labels through this collection,” he said. “These jerseys represent an era that revolutionized music, fashion, and popular culture, and we’re proud to honor that legacy.”

View the jerseys including includes the re-release of JAY-Z’s 2003 Roc-A-Fella Records coveted piece below.

Mitchell & Ness Rap Jersey - Roc A Fella
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Mitchell & Ness Rap Jersey - Ruff Ryders
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Mitchell & Ness Rap Jersey - Death Row Records
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Mitchell & Ness Rap Jersey - So So Def
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Mitchell & Ness Rap Jersey - Top Dawg
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