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Busta Rhyme’s Extinction Level Event 2: The Wrath Of God was, in many ways, the culmination of a variety of different roads. Though Busta has yet to indicate that retirement is even the slightest possibility, the project felt climactic in a truly satisfying fashion. Even Busta himself seemed to feel as if an emotional weight had been lifting upon release. 

Following the release of his new video from the project — a cinematic affair for the Rick Rock produced and Mariah Carey-assisted “Where I Belong” — there’s a distinct air that things have come full circle. “The past is an animal that chases you forever,” says Busta, as a cinematic voiceover begins. There’s a quick callback to “Call An Ambulance,” a single off It Ain’t Safe No More, the album that first brought Rhymes and Carey together. Next comes an indication — “18 years later” — a call from Trippie Redd, and the proper opening moments of “Where I Belong.” 

Circling back to the animated comic book stylings of “I Know What You Want,” this sequel clip is certainly packing a heavy dose of nostalgia for Busta Rhymes fans. Though the twisting cinematic narrative and Samurai-inspired imagery might be a little hard to follow at times, “Where I Belong” remains a visually striking addition to Busta’s extensive collection of music videos. At the center of it all is the chemistry between two longtime friends and collaborators, still making it look effortless after all these years.

Big respect to Busta Rymes for this one. 

Following the massive success of his 6lack-assisted single “Calling My Phone” earlier this year, Lil Tjay has been giving his sophomore album Destined 2 Win everything that he’s got. During the album’s rollout, the South Bronx, New York rapper shared an album trailer featuring the heavyweight boxing legend Mike Tyson, and he also recently dropped a documentary that captured the creation process behind Destined 2 Win. Now, after reports that his sophomore album is on track to debut on the Billboard 200 with approximately 70,000 album-equivalent units, Lil Tjay is giving Destined 2 Win another boost by releasing the music video for “Love Hurts.”

The album cut “Love Hurts” features Toosii, who is also gearing up to drop a highly anticipated project. The two artists appear in the music video for “Love Hurts” as a Fatal Attraction-esque scenario plays out over the course of four minutes. Throughout the video, Tjay and Toosii wax poetic while lamenting over the pain of their past relationships, and by the end of the video, it is revealed that Tjay’s love interest, as well as a man in a parked car, have been killed.

As the lights from police sirens flash against Lil Tjay and Toosii’s faces, the video concludes with a screen card that reads “To be continued..” over an all-black background. In the video’s comment section, some fans of the two artists have theorized that the story will continue in a music video for a song from Toosii’s upcoming album Thank You For Believing. Whether or not that fan theory materializes in the coming weeks and months, check out Lil Tjay and Toosii’s music video for “Love Hurts” at the top.  

Over the past few months, Mooksi’s new single “Track Star” has become one of Tk Tok’s latest dance obsessions. Similar to how SpotemGottem’s “Beat Box” blew up on the beloved social media platform, a Tik Tok user created a dance to Mooski’s “Track Star,” and before he knew it, his song had gone viral. The “Track Star” challenge itself has influenced several high-profile celebrities, from Bernice Burgos to Jayda Cheaves, to share TikToks of them doing the dance, but like “Beat Box,” many rappers and singers tried to get in on the “Track Star” craze by sharing their unofficial remixes to the viral hit, including Erica Banks, Lil Mama, Trey Songz, and Jacquees.

Now, Mooski has opted to continue pushing “Track Star” by dropping off the single’s official music video. The visuals briefly show a group of dancers performing the dance from the viral “Track Star” challenge, but the real selling point of the “Track Star” video is Coi Leray. The “No More Parties” artist plays the “track star” who broke Mooski’s heart, and the video showcases their relationship all the way from when they meet in a club at the beginning to when Mooski eventually decides to cut ties with Coi Leray‘s character at the conclusion of the video. 

Check out the “Track Star” music video above to see Mooski and Coi Leray’s on-screen chemistry for yourself.

A few weeks ago, Benny The Butcher and Harry Fraud united for The Plugs I Met 2, an early album-of-the-year contender from two experts in their respective fields. Today, a new video for the Rick Hyde-assisted “Survivor’s Remorse” has landed, directed by The Digggers. It’s not entirely surprising to see The Butcher opt to make this one his new single, as it’s been widely praised as one of the album’s standout tracks. 

Despite the strong thematic direction explored in both Rick Hyde and Benny’s verses, the clip itself is straightforward enough, as both parties post up and spit bars in their environment. There’s a rawness throughout that captures the essence of “Survivor’s Remorse,” and this no-frills approach places all the attention on Benny and Hyde — two compelling performers who recite their experiences with gravitas and conviction. 

“Remember when I told Black to give me a mission,” raps Benny, the weight of his reflections evident. “He pulled up in fifteen minutes to give me a biscuit / I thought about this rap shit and had to stick to the business / I changed my mind, he didn’t, now he doin’ twenty in Clinton — and that could’ve been me.” Hyde keeps stride with his BSF partner, closing out his verse with a hard-hitting stanza. “That won’t change your situation when your mama and them stressed / If it’s sixty when it’s wholesale, it’s ninety with the Fent,” he spits. “Grab your pot and grab your scale, it gets colder than Quebec.”

Check out the new visuals for “Survivor’s Remorse” now, and sound off — do you think it’s a standout off Benny The Butcher and Harry Fraud’s The Plugs I Met 2? 

This week, 26-year-old Nathan Montgomery Maloley, better known as SK8, spoke with HotNewHipHop about his Top 5 things to do in his hometown, Omaha, his favorite restaurants, his favorite basketball players, of which his #1 was Kobe, and more. SK8 also talked about his top 5 favorite weed strains, which he had a funny anecdote to go alongside. He recalled that his first time smoking was when he was in 8th grade, hanging out with some older kids. 

“Yeah, first time I started smoking was… I think I was, middle school, 8th grade, so I’d have been what? 13 or some sh*t? You know, I tried it out… it was the older homies though. I was always kicking it with the older homies… homie had like a van, he had something rolled up I ain’t never smoked before. He was like, ‘you gotta try this.’ I’m like, ‘I heard about this, I don’t know, they talkin’ about this the gateway.’ And I said shit, let’s do it. And they passed the blunt to me, and it was a wrap after that.”

SK8 also cited his love for chicken during the episode. He called Chick-Fil-A one of his favorite restaurants, saying he “could eat that sh*t for lunch every f*cking day.” He also put a chicken finger basket as his top 3 snack, saying, “Chicken fingers and fries. That’s my sh*t.” Those are some pretty strong feelings!

Check out all of SK8’s top 5 favorites in the newest episode of Top 5s. 

Playboi Carti’s Whole Lotta Red contained plenty of controversies upon its release as numerous fans were disappointed upon the first listen. After giving the tape multiple tries, fans began to see the artistry behind it as Carti delivered his version of a punk trap album. The elements came together wonderfully and since the release, he has been teasing a deluxe album. Prior to giving us this, he has no just released the music video for “Sky” which just so happens to be one of the more popular tracks on the album.

With this new music video, Carti has the whole thing filmed with a green filter. From there, he and his friends can be seen raising hell in a grocery store, where they all proceed to trash the place and do whatever they feel like. It’s a video that completely embraces the punk aesthetic and there is no denying that this is a style that suits Carti perfectly.

Let us know what you think of this visual, in the comments below.

In September of last year, R-Mean paid homage to the great LeBron with “King James,” a Scott Storch-produced banger with a key assist from Jeremih. Now, four months deep into 2021, the lyricist has returned to give the single some additional momentum. Behold the new visuals for “King James,” which finds R-Mean and Jeremih holding it down for a heavily basketball-inspired video clip directed by Alex Kodo.

Though the titular baller is currently sidelined with a high ankle sprain, his legacy is well represented all the same. Adorned in Lakers gear and surrounded by similarly supportive cheerleaders, both R-Mean and Jeremih hold it down with the commanding presence of a starting duo. Given the subject matter, it’s not surprising to see basketball heavily incorporated into the clip, with plenty of highlight-reel dunks from Jordan Sutherland and
Alan Palesano — there’s even a reimagined take on the Zoom audience, which originally aimed to simulate the presence of fans during the onset of the COVID bubble.

Though the video may have taken a bit of time to land, it’s nice to see R-Mean keeping his momentum rolling. The rapper has been putting in work for a minute, and we’re interested in seeing what he’s got lined up for the remainder of the year. Check out “King James” now, and sound off if you’re eager to catch R-Mean’s next move. 

The award-winning film Judas and the Black Messiah hit theatres and HBO Max earlier this year to vast critical acclaim, but in addition to the hype surrounding the Daniel Kaluuya and LaKeith Stanfield-starring film, Judas and the Black Messiah‘s soundtrack arrived to just as much fanfare. The stacked album featured artists such as Jay-Z, Nipsey Hussle, J.I.D., Smino, H.E.R., and G Herbo, yet the Nas and Hit-Boy collaboration “EPMD” remains as one of the standout tracks. Today, the Grammy-winning duo returns to unleash its stunning new music video. 

The video starts with an artistic intro that appears to draw inspiration from the likes of Black filmmakers such as Spike Lee and Jordan Peele, as the opening sequence features a dramatic orchestral arrangement while powerful pro-Black messages appear on the screen. “Reclaim our cultural ownership,” “Don’t compromise,” “Don’t cross over,” and “Respect to the kings, Love to the queens,” all flash on the screen before a young woman is seen screaming “Wake Up!,” School Daze-style.

From that point on, the music video fully begins, as the hard-hitting beat for “EPMD” starts to roll in. Throughout the video, Nas and Hit-Boy recreate looks from classic EMPD — the veteran Hip-Hop duo that the song’s hook is based on — album covers, including 1989’s Unfinished Business and 1992’s Business Never Personal.

In addition to the references to EPMD, Nas and Hit-Boy‘s new music video boasts a bevy of beautifully shot scenes, making for an incredible visual offering from the unstoppable duo and serving as yet another victory lap for the recent Grammy winners.

Scroll back up to the top and check out the loaded visuals for Nas and Hit-Boy’s Judas and the Black Messiah soundtrack collaboration “EPMD.”

Juicy J, the self-described “Tom Brady of Rap,” is one of Hip-Hop’s most versatile and ever-evolving veterans. Thanks to his willingness to collaborate with artists of every generation as well as his infectious energy on wax, Juicy J has enjoyed a storied career as a member of Three 6 Mafia and as a solo rapper. His latest album, The Hustle Continues dropped last fall, and the high-spirited nature of the record proves that Juicy J isn’t ready to stop any time soon.

Today, Juicy J has officially unleashed the music video for THE HUSTLE CONTINUES standout “SPEND IT.” The humorous visual for the Lil Baby- and 2 Chainz-assisted track arrives exclusively on the Memphis artist’s Facebook page, and it finds Juicy J, Lil Baby, and 2 Chainz running various unprofessional businesses.

Juicy J takes on the role of a janky used cars salesman, while Lil Baby and 2 Chainz are portrayed in the music video as owners of a pawn shop and plastic surgery center, respectively. The four-minute music video is an entertaining effort that features funny skits from Juicy J, outlandish visual effects that put Lil Baby’s head on a baby’s, and plenty of vibrant shots.

Check out the Facebook exclusive music video for Juicy J’s “SPEND IT” above and let us know what you think.

Whether he’s ready to put the After Hours era behind him or not, The Weeknd continues to be one of the most present artists during the pandemic, having just performed at the Super Bowl in February, announced his permanent boycott of the Grammys, and rereleased his seminal mixtape House of Balloons in honor of its 10-year anniversary. Needless to say, Abel is a busy man. Yet today, the XO artist has revisited the past once more and treated fans to an unreleased music video from his 2018 EP My Dear Melancholy,.

On the three-year anniversary of My Dear Melancholy,, The Weeknd has shared an unorthodox music video for the second track from his critically acclaimed EP, titled “Try Me.” The most notable aspect of the three-minute and 42-second video is that it is shot vertically, with an interestingly lo-fi feel.

The video starts with the XO singer-songwriter climbing into a car that’s filled with girls in the backseat sensually rubbing and touching on each other. As Abel performs the My Dear Melancholy, standout, however, things get a lot creepier, as the shot abandons him in the car to show two women hugging. One of the women unexpectedly lifts her head to reveal blood dripping from her eyes, and the shot quickly turns to the women in the backseat of The Weeknd’s car, who then appear with a supernatural glow in their eyes.

This music video went unreleased for three years, but it’s interesting to see the start of the cinematic visual direction that The Weeknd ended up fully diving into for the release of After Hours. Are you feeling the creative direction of the “Try Me” music video or should The Weeknd have kept this one in the vault? 

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