New Hip Hop News

On March 5, Anderson .Paak and Bruno Mars shocked the music industry by revealing that they had formed an R&B super duo and dropping their debut single as Silk Sonic. Arriving alongside a Bootsy-Collins assisted intro track, “Leave The Door Open” quickly won over fans of both artists, and in the weeks following its release, Silk Sonic’s first offering has managed to reach the top spot on the Billboard Hot 100.

Now, according to Hip Hop By The Numbers, Anderson .Paak & Bruno Mars’ “Leave the Door Open” has reportedly sold over 2 million units in the United States, making the infectious single eligible for a shiny new platinum placque from the RIAA. 

Sadly, an official full-length Silk Sonic album has not yet arrived, despite Bruno Mars and Anderson .Paak’s chart-topping hit single arriving nearly four full months ago. On a more positive note, however, Silk Sonic’s latest sales milestone does mean that Anderson .Paak will soon have his first domestic platinum record, as his only platinum placque reportedly came in the form of an Australian platinum certification for Macklemore and Ryan Lewis’ “Dance Off.”

While we all endure the neverending wait for Silk Sonic’s forthcoming album, watch them perform “Leave the Door Open” in honor of its recent eligibility for double platinum status. Congratulations to Bruno Mars and Anderson .Paak!

R. Kelly has been trying everything possible to get out of prison but none of his attempts have worked. The singer’s facing multiple charges of sex trafficking and sexual abuse in different states. This year, he’s set to face a federal judge in his Brooklyn sex trafficking and racketeering case.

Mike Pont/Getty Images

According to PageSix, the singer has already been brought to a notorious jail in Brooklyn that also holds another accused sex trafficker — Ghislaine Maxwell, the accused accomplice of Jeff Epstein. Kelly was taken from federal prison in Chicago to the Metropolitan Detention Center in the NYC borough. This particular lockup has been at the center of criticism due to the terrible conditions that detainees have been living in. The MDC was recently sued by the family of a former inmate who died in custody after being pepper-sprayed.

Maxwell has also detailed the conditions of the prison in letters to the federal judge. Maxwell, who is accused of luring underage women for Epstein, said in a recent filing that the raw sewage “permeated” her cell unit. She added that “vermin droppings fell from the air vents.”

Kelly’s trial will begin on Aug. 9th in Brooklyn. The embattled singer is charged with sex trafficking and racketeering for allegedly picking up underage girls for the purpose of having sex.

We will keep you updated on Kelly’s trial. 

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Snoop Dogg is probably the most globally recognized stoner in hip-hop and for many weed enthusiasts, it’s a dream to one day light up a blunt with the legendary West Coast rapper. We’ve heard countless stories about smoke sessions with Uncle Snoop, but recently, there was a celebrity who just couldn’t hang with him during their hangout. During his appearance on E! Nightly Pop, Snoop revealed which comedian couldn’t handle his weed when they met up.

“I can’t even front… the last person I just blew with, I knocked his wig off and I’m supposed to see him again this week. My good friend Pete Davidson,” said Snoop when asked which celebrity couldn’t stand on his level. “I mean, he fights. He fights it and fights it and fights it and then he says, ‘Hey man, I’m cool, dawg.'”

Kevin Winter/Getty Images

Pete Davidson previously detailed his weed use, revealing that he self-medicates to regulate his Crohn’s Disease. While he may be a daily smoker, Pete clearly doesn’t smoke as much as Snoop does, leaving the rapper unimpressed with his lungs.

When asked about the last time he personally got too high, Snoop spoke about his 4/20 over a decade ago with Willie Nelson, revealing that the singer knocked him off his feet with the amount of weed he smoked.

Watch the video below.

After differences that resulted in a restraining order against former co-star Bam Margera, the Jackass team has set out to replace the lost cast member with several new faces for the upcoming Jackass 4.

New additions to the wild crew include Odd Future founding member Jasper Dolphin — who recently “became a human beehive” for an installment of Vice’s JASPER & ERROL’S FIRST TIME. 

Surfer Sean McInerney, a.k.a. Poopsies slid his way into the cast thanks to his stunt work with professional surfer Jamie O’ Brien on Red Bull’s Who is JOB.

Zach Holmes, affectionately better known as “Zackass”, earned a spot on the team likely because of his experience on films such as Too Stupid To Die and his own prank Youtube page with over 30K subscribers.

Each new member of the team seems perfectly on par with the daring stunts and prank-filled comedy creations that uphold the Jackass name. 

The film will also bring back Jackass veterans Steve-O, Chris Pontius, Wee Man, and Preston Lacy. 

In an interview with GQ last month, Jackass OG Johnny Knoxville revealed that Jackass 4 will be his final run with the franchise in order to not press his luck stating, “You can only take so many chances before something irreversible happens,” he said. “I feel like I’ve been extremely lucky to take the chances I’ve taken and still be walking around.”

Jackass 4 is set to release on October 22.

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Samaria Rice, the mother of Tamir Rice, went public on Instagram with a statement that heavily criticized activist Shaun King for publicizing a private conversation they had about the amount of money he raised for her following her son’s death. Tamir was killed at the age of 12 at the hands of police in 2014 when a police officer immediately fired shots at him for carrying a replica toy gun.

King runs and writes for a journalism blog called “The North Star with Shaun King” and published a record of a conversation he had with Samaria on Tuesday that was since taken down. In the piece, he emphasized the amount of fundraising he did for Samaria in the wake of Tamir’s death, but since the post’s removal, the sole remains of the piece is a podcast episode of the same topic with a dead link to the episode. Samaria responded to the removed-published piece Tuesday on Instagram, highlighting some very choice words for the outspoken activist, as well as some previously-iterated concerns about King.

In the statement, she questioned why King felt the need to go public with the conversation they had, remarking that it was uncomfortable and toxic to have. She also asserted that she never gave him permission to raise money for Tamir and that his actions following Tamir’s death and other killings of black individuals at the hands of police are performative and capitalize on the hurt of grieving families, while he himself, is a white man posing to be a black man.

She wrote,

“Why do you think it’s so important to tell folks we had a conversation? Well we talked and everything that was said was very toxic and uncomfortable for me to hear that you raised additional money and then say you did not want to bother me. Personally, I don’t understand how you sleep at night. I never gave you permission to raise nothing. Along with the United States, you robbed me for the death of my son.

You gave me a cop and donut conversation. All lies Shaun, please stop thinking we on the same page. As a white man acting black, you are [an] imposter that cannot be trusted.”

She concluded her statement: “Tamir human rights was violated, why would you ever make it about you? You are a selfish self-centered person and god will deal with you white man.”

Samaria has called out other activists in the past, criticizing and accusing Tamika Mallory of clout chasing in March for helping curate Lil Baby’s Grammys performance. She ended her statement by questioning King’s motives in making the conversation about himself and his efforts while she’s still grieving and fighting for the Department of Justice to reopen Tamir’s case.

You can read the full statement below.

Tough as nails would be an understatement when delving into the type of player Devin Booker is becoming. Smooth, skilled, and fearless, and now with an unbelievably, swollen nose to boot.Coming off a shouldering 40-point triple-double in Game 1 against the Los Angeles Clippers, the two-guard collided with your favorite player’s (likely) least favorite player, Patrick Beverley.

Though returning to the game in its final quarter, Booker received a pair of stitches on what turned out to be a rather nasty hit. According to TMZ, NBA Coach of the Year Monty Williams heralded his star for his willingness to play, saying “He was probably playing with a great deal of pain.” To say “probably” downplays it, as a photo of this man’s nose from any angle can surely do his coach’s statement justice.

Devin Booker injured from a headbutt during Clippers vs. Suns – Christian Petersen/Getty Images

Though taking a 2-0 lead against an injury-riddled Clippers squad has likely managed to heal that wound, Booker is expected to wear a mask in Game 3 at Staples Center this upcoming Thursday. In the house that Kobe built, and wore a mask of his own in, it’ll be interesting to see how this plays a part in his game. Better yet, it’ll be even more interesting to see how many more analysts choose to draw parallels between him and Bryant. For the meantime, Book and his Suns are two wins away from Phoenix’s first final berth since 1992.

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