New Hip Hop News

With the ninth chapter of The Fast And The Furious saga receiving praise as the summer’s first blockbuster, Complex has come through to share a first look at the tracklist of the official soundtrack. Set to drop on June 19th, the project features an absolutely stacked lineup of hip-hop talent, including a few posthumous appearances from Pop Smoke and King Von.

In addition to Smoke and Von, the F9 soundtrack will feature appearances from Don Toliver, Lil Durk, Latto, Skepta, Pop Smoke, A$AP Rocky, Juicy J, Project Pat, Offset, Trippie Redd, Kevin Gates, Lil Durk, King Von, Jack Harlow, Ty Dolla $ign, 24KGOLDN, The Prodigy, RZA, Lil Tecca, Konshens, NLE Choppa, Rico Nasty, Sean Paul, and more.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by #F9 (@thefastsaga)

In some cases, we’re looking at some promising combinations. For example, the opening track “Fast Line” features Toliver, Lil Durk, and Latto,  “Lane Switcha” features Pop Smoke, Skepta, A$AP Rocky, Juicy J, and Project Pat, and “Hit Em Hard” unites Offset, Trippie Redd, Kevin Gates, Lil Durk, and King Von. 

It should be interesting to see how the music turns out, and whether or not F9 has the mileage to secure a spot alongside the great hip-hop soundtracks of our time. Look for the soundtrack to land ahead of the film on June 19th, and check out the full tracklist below. Do you think this one has potential?

On Monday, May 24, 32-year-old Derius Taylor reportedly admitted to shooting and killing 20-year-old Dominique Stafford, a locally known Kansas City rapper, in 2015. According to Complex, Taylor pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and armed criminal action for his involvement in Stafford’s murder, and a Jackson County judge then sentenced him to 20 years in prison — 10 years for each of his convictions.

Taylor’s conviction comes six full years after Stafford’s death, which took place in April 2015. The Jackson County prosecutor reveals that Taylor originally devised a plan to rob Stafford during a fake drug deal, and when he got to the Kansas City rapper’s car, Taylor shot him and took both a rifle and a diamond-encrusted pendant, the latter of which he ultimately sold at a nearby pawn shop.

Raymond Body/Getty Images

According to Complex, Stafford’s death tragically came one month after his older brother’s. In March 2015, 22-year old Arthur Stafford, Jr. was shot and killed, but unfortunately, after more than six years, Arthur’s murder has still not been solved by the Kansas City Missouri Police Department.

Both of the Stafford brothers were signed to local Kansas City-based record label Duced Out Records. Rest in peace to both Dominique and Arthur.

[via]

Throughout the past few years, Royce Da 5’9″ has been using his platform to speak on hip-hop culture, praising his peers for their accomplishments and building up young Black artists. Today, the legendary Detroit lyricist — who is currently putting in work on his upcoming follow-up to The Allegory — has taken a moment to speak on J. Cole’s brief but important decision to pursue a pro career in the Basketball Africa League.

Though Cole’s time in the league was short-lived, with the rapper wrapping his three-game stint with 5 points, 3 assists, 5 rebounds, and forty-five minutes of time on court, Royce made it clear that he appreciates and respects the rapper’s dedication. “Listen man, I just want to say I’m very proud of what J. Cole is doing,” he begins. “He’s showing the young kids that look up to him that you don’t have to stop at one dream. If you can somehow create enough value for yourself, you can achieve many things and do whatever you want without limits.”

 D Dipasupil/Getty Images

“If you dedicate your life to playing a professional sport and you don’t realize its a business, you just wasted your whole life,” he continues. “J. Cole brings viewership, just like Jake Paul and Logan Paul bring to boxing. Just like when all the boxing purists go man, this is bad for the sport. No, we don’t do that shit when all ya’ll n***as decide you want to be rappers and get in our fuc*ing way. We don’t say nothing about that.”

Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images

“So just be happy for J. Cole,” concludes Nickle. “He’s chasing his dreams, he’s bringing viewership, he didn’t take nobody’s spot because he’s bringing something to the table that other muthafuckas can’t bring. And you can thank hip-hop for that.”

It’s clear that Royce appreciates J. Cole as not only an artist, but a man. We can only hope the pair once again cross paths in the studio, as their first and only collaboration “Boblo Boat” was an excellent piece of music. Check out Royce’s glowing assessment of Cole’s basketball career below.

Congratulations are in order for G Herbo and Taina Williams, who shared that they have welcomed their first baby into the world together. 

The couple announced they were pregnant at the beginning of this year, keeping the child’s sex under wraps until a few months later when G Herbo accidentally revealed they were having a boy during an Instagram Live. He went on to tweet the following: “YEAH I GAVE THE GENDER AWAY ON ACCIDENT THE OTHER DAY [laughing emoji] BABY BOY + SON SON = DOUBLE TROUBLE.”

Early on Thursday morning, the rapper updated his Instagram with the first picture of his newborn son in his arms. He kept his caption short and sweet, sharing a black and white heart emoji. Already, celebrities including Reginae Carter, Lil Tjay, DJ Envy, DJ Clue, Trae Tha Truth, and more have rushed to post their celebratory messages in the comments. 

Taina Williams has not posted since the birth of her newborn son.

G Herbo has one son with his ex-girlfriend, Ariana Fletcher. This is Taina Williams’ first child.

We’ll keep you posted as the couple reveals more information about their baby, including his name, more pictures, and anything else. Congratulations to G Herbo and Taina!

In an age where it seems as if everyone is looking for their Andy Warhol-predicted 15-minutes of fame, Lauren London remains fiercely private about her personal life. The actress has been in the industry since 2003 when she made her debut appearance in the music video for Pharrell Williams and Jay-Z’s “Frontin’,” but she’s probably most famously remembered as Nu-Nu from the movie ATL alongside T.I.

However, London’s relationships with the father of her children—Lil Wayne and Nipsey Hussle—have often made headlines, and following Nipsey’s callous murder back in the Spring of 2019, London has dedicated herself to continuing his legacy. The Southern California native recently sat down with the Los Angeles Times to speak at length about her career, loss, and rebuilding after a tragedy.

“I think when really hard things happen to people it’s just hard to think that life will ever be sweet again. So that’s something that I’m learning again, is how to do that,” said London. “I lost what I would say is the love of my life. … So I had to go so deep within myself. I was so in a dark space and it was just like, ‘What is this? Who am I? God, please show me.’ … When you’re facing God face-on, you’re asking real questions and you want real answers. It wasn’t for play. I really wanted to know what was going on. So, I think it just has expanded because of my quest for peace.”

The actress spoke about meeting Nipsey back in 2013 after a few casual interactions. He reportedly slid into her DMs and their friendship grew into a romance. “Nipsey made the biggest joke that L.A. was my gang, that I bang L.A.,” she said. Since his passing, London has spent time focused on her family and her spiritual practices, but she eased back into the industry by starring in Without Remorse with Michael B. Jordan.

“I always say I’m a seeker of truth. I always say that. Because I want to know the truth,” said London. “I want to know what it really is, and I think that also has been what has helped me in my spiritual practice too. It’s a tenacity for God.”

[via]