New Hip Hop News

The death of Pop Smoke shook the world and fans are demanding justice for the late rapper’s family. The people accused of carrying out his murder are currently on trial. There’s been speculation that the prosecutors would be pursuing the death penalty if the accuser is convicted of their crimes.

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TheShadeRoom was in court this morning when one of the two adults accused of killing Pop Smoke was on trial. The prosecution on the case told the judge that they would not be seeking the death penalty for 20-year-old Corey Walker. Walker appeared in court for his arraignment hearing. Deputy District Attorney Hilary Williams, the prosecutor, told TheShadeRoom that the max. sentence Walker could receive if he’s found guilty is life without parole. 

Back in May, it was revealed that Walker had reportedly admitted to having a role in Pop Smoke’s murder. The New York Daily News reported that an informant that was placed in his jail cell recorded a conversation where Walker allegedly said that they used ski masks, gloves, and a police scanner when they robbed Pop to dodge getting caught.

Walker is due back in court this Wednesday where he’ll enter a formal plea following an issue with the paperwork.

HNHH will be keeping you posted on any and all updates related to Pop Smoke’s murder trial.

Following the early success of Fast 9‘s theatrical release, Ludacris posted on Instagram in celebration of the film reaching the $500 million milestone in sales worldwide. The film has been out for less than two weeks, but reached the achievement on a fast timeline because of it being one of the first few blockbuster films to welcome audiences back into theaters, after vaccination rates have begun to curb the deadly COVID-19 pandemic that shut down many industries last year.

Ludacris has been with the Fast franchise since 2003’s 2 Fast 2 Furious, and has seen the street racing series transition into the action blockbuster realm with cars prominently featured. He joined the film franchise at the height of his musical career as a rapper and took on more acting work as the series evolved throughout the years, so seeing the latest installment of the franchise continue to be a financial success must be a great feeling for the multi-talented artist.

“Half a BILLION in only 11 Days,” he said in the post’s caption. “WOW! Sincerely Thank You To Every Fan Around The World That Bought A Ticket & Supported This Movie.”

Fellow musician-turned-actor Tyrese, and pseudo-partner to Ludacris’ Tej character in the Fast films, occupies one of the top comments on his post, stating “Pow!!!!!!!!!!!!! We love you guys WORLDWIDE.” The Fast franchise has come a long way from its humble street racing days, and Tyrese has been around equally as long as Ludacris to see the franchise grow.

In the United States, box office sales have contributed about $125 million to the film’s overall half a billion in sales, indicating a strong audience presence in theaters as they have begun to fully reopen across the country. Fast 9 marks one of the first blockbuster films to make a return to movie theaters, along with A Quiet Place: Part II and Marvel’s upcoming effort Black Widow starring Scarlett Johansson.

Have you seen Fast 9 yet? Are you comfortable with going to the movies again? Let us know in the comments.

Toosii, the 21-year old DaBaby affiliate out of Syracuse, has been dropping commercial tapes since he was 17, and has now got the chance to shine as an XXL Freshman. He’s already shown off what he can do on his most recent album, Poetic Pain, but now he’s got a pretty impressive freestyle on top of that, which tends to count for a lot considering how drab they’ve grown.

In a recent piece, we discussed Coi Leray as a prime example of how the latest XXL Freshman inductees have often tried to implement a much more melodic flow into their signature freestyles, rather than just coming out and spitting whatever comes to mind as most did. Blame it on Chance, if you’d like, though there have surely been some standout showcases since he decided to croon his way through his 2014 Freestyle.

Nevertheless, Toosii raps with some purpose in his radiantly red Moncler puffer, with the camera spinning around him as he starts off cutting straight to the chase, saying, “I know you love me, I know we argue, let’s just be honest / Need to say you’re not the best, think I’ve been being modest.” He delves into the trials and tribulations of different relationships, his mother attending his football games when he was younger, ultimately talking about losing his father and how that turned him into the man he is now.

Compared to what most people had to offer this time around, Toosii definitely came prepared to deliver a story for this year’s XXL Freshman issue. Check it out below and tell us what you think.

Though some have concluded that Busta Rhymes’ latest studio album Extinction Level Event 2: The Wrath Of God would have made a fitting end for a legendary hip-hop icon, it appears as if The Dragon’s reign is far from finished. In fact, he’s recently been getting busy in the studio, linking up with DaBaby to concoct a new collaboration. 

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Busta confirmed as much on Twitter, and while he did not indicate a release date for the duet, it’s clear that he’s extremely enthusiastic about what’s to come. “Don’t be afraid now you muthafuckas,” taunts Busta, while Baby chuckles with a blunt in hand. “It’s too late for that bitch.” He lets out a sinister cackle. “Hold the fuck tight.”

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It’s unclear as to whether or not the track in question is meant for a DaBaby project or a Busta drop, but it should be an exciting release either way. After all, both parties have been known to absolutely snap, and a little bit of healthy competition between two generations of lyricists could be exactly what the doctor ordered. Yet solid though DaBaby may be, sparring with Busta Rhymes is no easy feat — just ask Kendrick Lamar, who stood toe-to-toe with The Dragon on “Look Over Your Shoulder.”

At this moment, all we can really do is take Busta’s advice and “stay tuned,” though it wouldn’t be surprising to see this single arriving sooner than later. Are you excited to see how the pair sound on wax?  And if so, who is stealing the show?

The #FreeBritney campaign is still going strong but unfortunately for fans, it means that they likely won’t see her on stage again. According to TMZ, Larry Rudolph announced that he will be relieving himself of his duties as Britney Spears’ manager since the singer will be calling it quits. Rudolph sent a letter to Spears’ personal conservator Jodi Montgomery and Jamie Spears, the conservator of the pop star’s estate, where he revealed that he would be resigning as her manager.

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“It has been over 2 1/2 years since Britney and I last communicated, at which time she informed me she wanted to take an indefinite work hiatus. Earlier today, I became aware that Britney had been voicing her intention to officially retire,” he wrote. “I was originally hired at Britney’s request to help manage and assist her with her career. And as her manager, I believe it is in Britney’s best interest for me to resign from her team as my professional services are no longer needed.”

The news of her retirement comes after she testified that she was forced to go on a European tour against her wishes. However, the conservatorship reportedly has evidence proving the opposite. 

Vince Staples is readying the release of his upcoming self-titled album, having set the tone with his brand new single “Are You With That?” In celebration of the new single, Vince took a moment to chop it up with Zane Lowe on Apple Music 1. 

Naturally, Staples had many kind words to say about his longtime collaborator Kenny Beats, who produced the upcoming Vince Staples in its entirety. “Kenny’s amazing,” praises Vince. “Kenny knows. Kenny’s somebody who still learns every day, he still takes from experiences and other things he hears in music and tries to figure out how to make them into his own.”

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“He knows he’s very much collaborative in a sense,” continues Staples. “A lot of people have an idea of what they want to do, but Kenny is somebody who kind of listens to what you kind of want to get across and he tries his best to kind of implement whatever you need, while still kind of remaining himself. So it’s always a fun time working with Kenny.” It’s no wonder that Vince opted to turn to Kenny once again, following their stellar work on the 2018 album FM! album

. As for the album itself, Vince opened up about his creative process, providing a bit of insight into his philosophy on music and art. “People like to hear you speak about this or people like to hear you speak about this or in this certain way, or this certain platform,” he explains. “You have to take what you feel like the elements of those things are and kind of put them in music. And I think that kind of determines… If you have something to say, if you have something that you think is funny, you have something that you think is interesting or you have something that makes you upset, put it in the music.”

“If you can put it in music, then you kind of bring that connectivity with people,” he continues. “So I think that’s kind of what may help me kind of figure out this go around, was just noticing those things.”

For more from Vince Staples, be sure to check out the rapper’s brand new single right here. Look for the upcoming album to drop this Friday, July 9th.