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SOURCE LATINO: TikTok Serving as a Launchpad for Regional Mexican Artists to the Billboard Charts

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TikTok Serving as a Launchpad for Regional Mexican Artists to the Billboard Charts

With Raggaeton remaining a dominant force on TikTok, Karol G, and Shakira’s “TQG” found a way to break through and become the top trending Latin song on the platform last week. Traditional and regional Latin genres that don’t get as much radio airplay have seen improved commercial success because of TikTok.

Regional Mexican music, a catch-all word that incorporates genres like norteo, corridos, and banda, is leading the charge. This genre went from being absent to a mainstay on the Billboard charts, in part due to the success of regional songs on TikTok. Both “Soy Él Unico” by Yahritza y Su Esencia and “Botella Tras Botella,” which first gained popularity as an original sound on TikTok, debuted at #20 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 2021. “Botella Tras Botella” (344k video productions) by Christian Nodal & Gera.MX was the first regional Mexican hit to chart on the Hot 100.

Mexican regional music is having a big year on TikTok, and Peso Pluma, a 23-year-old singer, is leading the push. Peso Pluma, who has over 1.6 million TikTok followers, is behind some of the year’s biggest hits, such as the Natanael Cano collaboration “PRC” (261k video creations), which gained popularity thanks to a dance that utilizes the song’s distinctive trumpet hook, and the Eslabon Armado and Peso Pluma joint effort “Ella Baila Sola,” which generated over 470k video creations.

@odalysve Esoeren el final @Natanael Cano ♬ PRC – Peso Pluma & Natanael Cano

Peso is currently in the spotlight thanks to his collaboration with Yng Lvcas, “La Bebe,” which generated over 40k creations and peaked as #2 on TikTok’s list of the week’s most popular songs. Peso Pluma has five singles that have reached the Billboard Hot 100 as a result of TikTok, including “PRC” (#64), “La Bebe” (#26), and “Ella Baila Sola,” which recently reached the highest-charting position for a regional Mexican song in chart history at #17.

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Nick Cannon Set to Host New Radio Show ‘The Daily Cannon’ on Amp

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Nick Cannon Set to Host New Radio Show 'The Daily Cannon' on Amp

Nick Cannon is turning his talents to radio, specifically Amazon’s live radio app Amp.

The Daily Cannon, a new morning program presented by Nick Cannon, will debut on Amp on Monday, April 24, at 9 a.m. EDT, according to an announcement made by the live radio app from Amazon. The multidimensional talent will serve as a cultural ambassador as he headlines each raw and uncensored show with personally selected new R&B, hip-hop, and pop songs; the inside scoop on celebrity and culture news; and conversations with today’s best musicians, newsmakers, and Amp innovators.

The Daily Cannon on Amp is a cutting-edge radio show that has been redesigned for a live audience that is primarily social. With Amp, listeners can ring in and have live chats with Cannon on the app, allowing him to interact with them in real-time.

The Daily Cannon 1080x1080 1

“I’m excited to be joining the next generation of live audio entertainment on Amp. Having a place where I can directly connect with listeners five days a week to spotlight the hottest emerging artists, chat about the latest and greatest in music and entertainment, and share real-time announcements in my world and beyond will make The Daily Cannon a show you don’t want to miss,” said host Nick Cannon. “There’s a magical thing that happens when entertainment is unedited and live, and I am excited for our journey ahead.”

Programs on Amp feature a diverse range of emerging and established hosts across the talent spectrum, including artists Nicki Minaj, Halsey, NBA YoungBoy, Joe Budden, NBA star Draymond Green, and artist, producer, and TV personality Kandi Burruss. Anyone can create their own live shows using just their phone.

Ncredible and Justin “Freeze” Fostar are responsible for producing The Daily Cannon. Ben Sumpter and Nick Cannon are the executive producers. The Weiss Agency’s Heather Cohen, Michael Goldman’s management, Del Shaw Moonves Tanaka Finkelstein’s legal counsel, and Michael Goldman are members of Cannon’s team. Bobb & Lezcano Lezcano.

The Amp app can be downloaded in the U.S. iOS App Store here.

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Elon Musk Paints over ‘W’ on Twitter Headquarters Sign, now reads ‘Titter’

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Elon Musk Paints over W on Twitter Headquarters Sign now reads Titter

Even though April Fools Day was over a week ago, the jokes apparently have not stopped for Elon Musk. Over the weekend, the eccentric Twitter CEO apparently defaced…his own business’s sign.

For reasons completely unclear, Musk had covered up the “w” on the company’s sign outside of its headquarters in San Francisco. While some assumed that it was a routine maintenance or repair issue, it appeared that Musk had done it….just because.

However, while some fans thought that the stunt was funny, the building’s landlord was apparently not having it, stating that the sign could not be altered from its previously-approved design.

Apparently Musk (or one of his staff) may have found a loophole in the contract that allowed them to paint the “w” the background color of the sign (white). While some people were unsure whether the painting was the work of vandalism, Musk proudly took credit on Sunday on (where else?) Twitter, showing off the new sign.

No word if the social media platform will officially be changing its name any time soon.

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Cash App Creator Bob Lee Stabbed to Death in San Francisco

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Cash App Creator Bob Lee Stabbed to Death in San Francisco

Bob Lee, the creator of Cash App, was found fatally stabbed early Tuesday (Apr.4) near downtown San Francisco.

NBC reports San Francisco Police Department responded to a stabbing victim around 2:35 a.m. on Tuesday and found Lee suffering from the wounds. He was transported to a local hospital, where he would die.

At the time of his death, Lee operated as the Chief Product Office of MobileCoin.

“Bob was a force of nature. Helped to birth Android and CashApp into our world,” Joshua Goldbard, the CEO of MobileCoin told ABC7 News. “Moby was his dream: a privacy protecting wallet for the 21st Century. I will miss him every day.”

There have been no arrests made in Lee’s death.

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Lil Durk’s Entry Into the Tech Space Through the World of Phygital Fashion: NXTG3NZ

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Screen Shot 2023 03 27 at 6.24.49 PM

Lil Durk, the Platinum recording artist, has recently made a major move into the tech space through the world of fashion with his co-founded phygital sneaker collection, NXTG3NZ. The collection, which stands for Next Generation Z with the 3 representing Web3, is a unique project bringing together the worlds of physical and digital experiences.

With a passion for fashion and sneakers, Lil Durk has been seen with Amiri on the runway and has now taken his love for fashion to a new level with NXTG3NZ. The team behind the collection consists of elite creatives and music and sports executives. They are working hard to ensure that the sneakers are not only fashionable but of the highest quality.

The only way to receive the physical sneaker is to purchase the NFT, making it an exclusive experience for sneaker collectors and fans alike, as well as a leading project in the Phygital space.

Lil Durk’s move into the tech space through NXTG3NZ shows that he is stepping into his entrepreneurial self and has major interests from venture funds and major brands already.

The project is gaining momentum and attention globally from sneaker enthusiasts.

Adam Weitsman, a prominent billionaire figure in the recycling industry and mentor to Lil Durk was gifted the first pair of physical sneakers.

Jessica T. Chin, CMO at Algorand Foundation, former WhatsApp and Nike marketing leader, “NXTG3NZ is built on Algorand to bring real value for Lil Durk’s fans. As the pioneers of scaling blockchain infrastructure, we are thrilled to partner with Lil Durk as a platform for change and creativity. Algorand continues to enable real world utility connecting both physical and digital worlds.”

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Twitch Employees Among 9,000 To Be Laid off by Amazon

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UNIVERSAL MUSIC GROUP EXPANDS RELATIONSHIP ACROSS AMAZON MUSIC AND TWITCH

The tech industry is getting another hit. Amazon has announced the intention to lay off 9.000 additional employees. According to Variety, that number will be on top of the 18,000 jobs that were announced to be cut on Monday.

Among the divisions that will be impacted is Twitch. Amazon is also said to be ready to downsize the Amazon Web Services (AWS), People, Experience and Technology (PXT), and advertising areas. Last week, Twitch CEO Emmett Shear resigned following a 16-year leadership tenure.

The final call for job cuts will be mid to late April, according to CEO Andy Jassy. The job cuts are reportedly fueled by economic “uncertainty.”

“This was a difficult decision, but one that we think is best for the company long term,” Jassy wrote.

The full Amazon memo from CEO Jassy can be read here. Layoffs are also hitting Meta, Facebook’s parent company. You can read that here.

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The Technology Behind ChatGPT Gets More Powerful and Scarier

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The Technology Behind ChatGPT Gets More Powerful and Scarier

OpenAI unveiled GPT-4, which according to them, is capable of performing well on standardized tests. OpenAI further reveals that the updated technology passed a law school bar exam with a score in the top 10% of test takers. The older version, GPT-3.5, scored around the bottom 10%. Equally impressive, GPT-4 can also read, analyze or generate up to 25,000 words of text, and write code in all major programming languages, according to the company.

GPT-4 is a multimodal large language model, which means it can respond to both text and images. “Give it a photo of the contents of your fridge and ask it what you could make, and GPT-4 will try to come up with recipes that use the pictured ingredients. It’s also great at explaining jokes, says Sutskever, OpenAI’s Chief Scientist. “If you show it a meme, it can tell you why it’s funny.”

Within hours after its release, several users said they created computer games in less than a minute by simply asking the chatbot to generate code, resulting in near-perfect renditions of Tetris and Connect Four.

We are happy to confirm that the new Bing is running on GPT-4, which we’ve customized for search,” Microsoft said. “If you’ve used the new Bing preview at any time in the last five weeks, you’ve already experienced an early version of this powerful model.”  According to CNN, while ChatGPT has impressed many users with its ability to generate original essays, stories and song lyrics in response to user prompts since its November 2022 launch, it has also raised some concerns. AI chatbots, including tools from Microsoft and Google, have been called out in recent weeks for being emotionally reactive, making factual errors and engaging in outright “hallucinations,” as the industry calls it.

To use GPT-4, users have to subscribe to ChatGPT Plus, which has a  $20 monthly subscription, for premium access to the service. 

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Biden Administration to TikTok: Remove Chinese Ownership or Face U.S. Ban

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black content creators

TikTok is on the clock. The Biden administration has warned the tech giant that it is facing a ban in the United States if its Chinese owners do not sell their stakes in the social media platforms.

The order was given by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS), highlighting China and the social media app having nearly 100 million users in the United States.

CNN notes TikTok confirmed receiving the request but denied the possibility of providing details.

“If protecting national security is the objective, divestment doesn’t solve the problem,” TikTok spokesperson Maureen Shanahan said in a statement. “A change in ownership would not impose any new restrictions on data flows or access. The best way to address concerns about national security is with the transparent, US-based protection of US user data and systems, with robust third-party monitoring, vetting, and verification, which we are already implementing.”

China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Wang Wenbin stated America has “failed to produce evidence that TikTok threatens US national security.”

In 2022, Congress and Joe Biden passed legislation blocking TikTok from US Government devices, which the European Union and Canada followed.

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Wyclef Jean Updates Fans After Hospitalization for Exhaustion: ‘We Forget Our Body is our Temple’

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wyclef jean

Wyclef Jean had his first-ever stay in the hospital, but he is delivering a message to fans that he is doing ok.

Speaking with TMZ, Wyclef Jean stated he felt numb on the right side of his face and went to a doctor immediately. That doctor then sent him to the ER.

On Instagram, Wyclef wrote, “Sometimes we forget our body is our temple. Be back soon.”

Wyclef stated Dr. Waleed Lashin let Wyclef know the hospital stay and numbness resulted from exhaustion and stress-related. Wyclef is now back at home, and more tests are scheduled.

Wyclef Jean has always had his hands on many different things.  Now, the former Fugees member is taking his talents to the automotive industry.  On Monday (March 6), Jean showed off his new electric vehicle in an Instagram post.  The caption read, “U S A premier Attucks Apex AP0 welcoming my Electric SuperCar…. Little Haiti We Up!!!!”

His new vehicle is the Attucks Apex AP0, a two-seat lightweight supercar.  It is said to be the lightest electric supercar in the world, weighing less than 2,700 pounds.  The car was designed in the United Kingdom but built in the United States.  Jean called it his dream car on Twitter.  It was first revealed at The Ritz-Carlton Amelia Island Country and Golf Course this past weekend in Florida.

Though the Attucks Apex has been released, consumers won’t be able to purchase it until the Winter of 2024.  The electric vehicle is set to be priced at $350,000 with a high speed of 190 miles per hour.  The car has the capacity to reach 60 miles per hour in 2-3 seconds!  The “Sweetest Girl” rapper continues to help improve his birth nation, Haiti.  With this new vehicle, Jean has plans to have its headquarters right in Little Haiti, Miami.

Wyclef spoke about his new supercar on Twitter.

“Attucks Apex AP0 EV Supercar also marks the launch of my new platform, #AttucksFuture and technology; we will voice and create dreams in the community.”

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The Game’s Crypto Company Registration Revoked

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The Game rapper

Words by: Brandon Simmons

Compton rapper The Game is one of the many people to invest in cryptocurrency.  He backs a crypto startup company, ParagonCoin Limited, which is mainly involved in the marijuana industry.

Recently, the ex-G-Unit member’s crypto company had its registration revoked via the United States Securities and Exchange Commission.  The SEC claims the company has not filed periodic reports since 2019.  The commission also reports that they have sent letters to ParagonCoin Limited regarding the need to complete the necessary reports.  The letters were never answered.

The “Wouldn’t Get Far” rapper’s company has had issues since its initial offering in 2017.  In 2021, the company was sued for violating securities laws during the initial offering four years prior.  ParagonCoin now owes over $12 million in damages, which is the $12 million the company raised in its Initial Coin Offering.

According to ParagonCoin’s official website, the crypto company is filing for bankruptcy.  In a statement, the firm credits the lawyers they hired as for why the company has become insolvent. 

“Our goal was to build a much-needed decentralized solution for the cannabis industry, however, our plans were impossible to achieve due to several legal mistakes….we sought out the guidance of highly recommended lawyers that were supposed to help, unfortunately they misguided and failed us.”

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