Despite only been rapping for a few years, the success of Lil Baby is a testament to his God-given talent. The rapper’s 2020 run took him to the top of the rap game, earning him Grammy nominations for his politically-charged single, “The Bigger Picture.” He performed the song last night at the Grammys, as well, with activist Tamika Mallory and Killer Mike both making cameos during his set.
Baby had one of the most memorable performances of the evening, even if he didn’t go home with a trophy. However, he’s keeping the ball rolling with even bigger moves in the business world. RapSnacks already teamed up with Lil Baby for his own line of chips but the Atlanta rapper will also be helping the brand launch their inaugural line of beverages. Baby will be the face of Ooweee Lemonade which comes in five different flavors — Blueberry, Iced Tea, Pineapple Mango, Strawberry Lemonade, and Fruit Punch. Plus, a percentage of the profits will benefit the Boss Up Foundation and Atlanta Children’s Shelter.
“I got my own exotic Lemonade!!!” Baby exclaimed on his IG Story, hinting that he and James Lindsay, the creator and founder of RapSnacks, will reach a billion together with this new product.
In related news, Baby’s hot streak on the Billboard Hot 100 earlier today after he collected another top 10 hit. His collaboration with Drake on Scary Hours 2, “Wants & Needs” has hit #2 on the chart.
Houston rapper Travis Scott has something new for fans, but it’s not what you’d expect. The rap star who made headlines last year with his Cactus Jack McDonald’s fast food meal and Sony Playstation partnership has now released an adult seltzer beverage called CACTI. Travis Scott’s Spiked Seltzer Out Now An agave spiked seltzer, it’s […]
During a recent club appearance, Pooh Shiesty made sure that his “Back In Blood” lyrics remained accurate by pushing away a security guard that was assigned to protect him. A video has been going viral, which shows the moment the 1017-affiliated rapper decided to go without his security inside the club.
In the hit record, Pooh Shiesty raps, “B*tch, I got my own fire/Don’t need security inside the club.” Not feeling interested in getting called out for capping, Pooh made sure to kindly ask his security to leave the vicinity while he performed the song during his latest pop-up.
“Move back, move back,” he can be heard saying directly after uttering the lyric. When the security guard seemingly didn’t move enough, Pooh takes matters into his own hands and gently shoves him out of the way before continuing the performance.
This video comes on the same weekend that people called out Lil Durk for being spotted at the airport with security around him. While Pooh and Durk might not need security, their status as high-profile rappers warrants the presence of some muscle surrounding them at all times, ensuring that they remain safe. Hip-hop has experienced more deaths than usual in the last few years, with gun violence posing a huge threat to rising hip-hop stars. Pooh and Durk should not be shamed for using security. We want them to stay safe so they can keep making great music, right?
What do you think of the video of Pooh shooing away his security?
New York rapper Conway The Machine knows just what fans want. The Griselda group member went online to get everybody hyped up and preview a potential upcoming collaboration tape. Conway The Machine Teases New Tape Conway The Machine responded on Twitter to a fan asking for a project with fellow Griselda rap star Benny The Butcher […]
Between the pandemic and the barrage of artists criticizing them, the past few months have presented challenges to the Recording Academy. Despite all the hurdles they faced, though, they managed to put on a Grammys broadcast this year that was imperfect but still quite entertaining and about as good as could be done given the circumstances.
As was probably expected, the broadcast had fewer viewers than usual, as has been typical with big events during the pandemic; This year’s Super Bowl had its lowest ratings in over a decade. The Grammys also experienced a drop-off and it was significant.
Variety reports that per Nielsen Live+Same Day fast-affiliate numbers, the show had an average of 7.88 million viewers, earning a 1.9 rating with adults 18 to 49. That makes this year’s show the lowest-rated in Grammy history. For reference, last year’s Grammys managed to draw 18.7 million viewers and achieve a 5.4 rating in the aforementioned demographic.
The publication also notes that these numbers are not final and that final figures that take into account live West Coast viewing will be available soon. With that in mind, the final figure is expected to rise by about 15 to 20 percent in the official national ratings. That said, even if the 7.88 million viewer count rises by 20 percent (the generous end of the estimate), that would elevate it to about 9.46 million viewers, which is still around half of the count of 2020 Grammy viewers.
The Grammy Awards were much different last night in comparison to previous years. For one, there were strict COVID-19 regulations to ensure that everyone involved in the show was kept safe. However, there was also a larger focus than most years on social issues, specifically representation for Black artists who’ve often been underrepresented and snubbed at major awards like the Grammys.
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Lil Baby’s performance at the Grammys last night was arguably the most talked about. The jarring visuals depicting police brutality against African-Americans opened up his set before delving into a grandiose performance of “The Bigger Picture.” The rapper was assisted by Killer Mike who rapped a portion of Run The Jewels’ “walking in the snow.” Activist Tamika Mallory also appeared during Baby’s performance with a powerful message calling on Joe Biden to lead the change.
Not everyone was happy with the performance, specifically, the mother of Tamir Rice, Samaria, who called out Tamika in a post shared to her Facebook page, Complex reports. Samaria Rice shared a video of Baby’s performance, writing, “Look at this clout chaser[.] Did she lose something in this fight[?] I don’t think so. That’s the problem[.] They take us for a joke[.] That’s why we never have justice ’cause of shit like this.” She added in another post, “FUCK A GRAMMY WHEN MY SON IS DEAD. FUCK ALL PIGS COPS.”
Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images
In a follow-up post, she elaborated on her criticism of Tamika Mallory, as well as civil rights attorneys Ben Crump and Lee Merrick. “[Tamika] and the crew you bitches chasing clout along with, Sonney, Crump, and Lee… Y’all have literally fuck out fight up I hope not another family soul used yall to represent them.”
Following the performance, Lil Baby shared a statement via press release explaining the significance of his performance and why it meant more to him than actually being nominated for an award.
“My performance is important to me and I had to make sure it was right. Nominations aside, actually performing ‘The Bigger Picture’ means the most to me. I paint pictures with my songs and wanted the performance to bring that picture to life. Just like with the song, this performance had to reflect the real. No sugar-coating. My family, my fans and my city know who I do this for,” he said.
Sometimes the best new R&B can be hard to find, but there are plenty of great rhythm and blues tunes to get into if you have the time to sift through the hundreds of newly released songs every week. So that R&B heads can focus on listening to what they really love in its true form, we’ll be offering a digest of the best new R&B jams that fans of the genre should hear every Friday.
Brent Faiyaz — “Show U Off”
Brent Faiyaz has taken a step back from his usual toxic R&B slow jams this week to celebrate women with his newly released cut “Show U Off.” Its the latest in a string of singles the singer has unleashed this year, so hopefully that means a follow-up to 2019’s F*ck The World is coming soon.
Giveon — “All To Me”
Giveon delivered Take Time in 2020 and When It’s All Said And Done in 2021. This week, he combined the two into one and offered an extra song to go with it titled “All To Me.” The song is so good its a wonder why it wasn’t included on either projects originally, or perhaps Giveon just never misses.
Jacquees — “Freaky As Me” Feat. Mulatto
Jacquees and Mulatto connect for the R&B singer’s sensual slow jam “Freaky As Me.” The song is set to appear on his upcoming project P.T.O.F: Vol. 1 and is the follow-up to his previously released cut “Put In Work,” from last year.
Fousheé — “Sing About Love”
Following the release of “Single Af,” rising R&B star Fousheé offers another lively cut in the form of “Sing About Love.” Fousheé is on a streak, proving she’s more than her popular TikTok song “Deep End” and absolutely here to stay.
SZA — “Good Days”
The video for SZA‘s “Good Days” is here. She teased the number at the end of her song “Hit Different” with Ty Dolla Sign and now she offers a music video for the magical song which takes place in a psychedelic rain forest filled with mushrooms as well as a library that sees SZA showing off her pole dancing skills. At the end of “Good Days” is a special treat for all the fans who are waiting for the TDE princess to release her yet-to-be-officially-named song “Shirt,” which has essentially blown up on TikTok. Now we can hear what she’s saying in 4K.
Jhene Aiko — Sailing Soul(s)
When Jhene Aiko released her debut mixtape Sailing Soul(s), fans had to download a zip file to hear it or head to DatPiff. 10 years later, the singer has it officially placed on streaming services. Listen to good vibes such as the famed “stranger,” “hoe” featuring Miguel and Future (which was repurposed for her 2020 album Chilomobo), as well as a few SoundCloud loosies like “2 Seconds.”
Feather — “Juke”
Shortly after sharing her new single “Juke,” Feather has dropped off its accompanying video directed by Noyze. A clear ode to Chicago style of music, the visual features the ultimate footwork battle in an underground basement as Feather croons “let’s juke” in between a smooth sample of DJ Rashad’s “Juke.”
Trevor Jackson — “Get To You”
As Trevor Jackson gets ready for the release of his debut album, The Love Language, he shares “Get To You.” The rising singer’s raw voice sings of missing his ex and things he’d do to get to her. “Love is the universal language of all things and I hope this album gives people more confidence to understand their own love languages and how to communicate them,” he said in a statement. “The power of this music will not only bring people together but it’ll also bring people closer to themselves.”
Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
The Grammys were just last night, so that’s still fresh on the minds of music fans today. That said, Drake just pulled off a feat that’s arguably more impressive than anything anybody did at the Grammys yesterday (except perhaps for Beyonce’s big record): Drake had three songs debut on the new Billboard Hot 100 chart dated March 20, which are the entirety of his recent After Hours 2 EP: “What’s Next,” “Wants And Needs” featuring Lil Baby, and “Lemon Pepper Freestyle” with Rick Ross. That’s nice, but the impressive part is the fact that those songs debuted at Nos. 1, 2, and 3, meaning that Drake currently has the top three songs in the country.
This is the first time an artist has ever had three songs debut in the top three spots of the Hot 100 chart in the same week. Drake is also just the third artist to have three songs simultaneously in the top 3 spots debut or otherwise, following Ariana Grande and The Beatles.
This ends the eight-week reign that Olivia Rodrigo’s “Drivers License” spent atop the chart. That hit has fallen down to No. 5, as Silk Sonic (aka Bruno Mars and Anderson .Paak) debuts at No. 4 with “Leave The Door Open.” This is .Paak’s first song to ever chart on the Hot 100. It’s also Mars’ first top-5 hit since his Cardi B collaboration “Please Me” peaked at No. 3 in 2019.
Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
Virgil Abloh is easily one of the most famous fashion designers on the planet, and sneakerheads love him due to all of the work he has done with Nike. Over the past couple of years, Abloh has been known to work on the Nike Dunk Low, which is a silhouette that continues to bring in big money for Nike. With this in mind, it shouldn’t be a surprise that many are already anticipating what other Nike Dunk Low colorways Virgil will create next.
Recently, @pyleaks on Twitter claimed that Abloh would be releasing 20 new colorways that would be dropping throughout the year, starting in the Fall. These offerings were met with differing opinions, with others saying Virgil was milking the silhouette. In fact, Virgil himself weighed in saying “I couldn’t pick this many bad colorways if I tried.”
At this point, it’s unknown whether or not the collection is, indeed, happening. However, it’s clear that Virgil is not feeling any of these mockups which just goes to show that the colorways shown above should be taken with a grain of salt, at least for now.
Over the coming months, new information should be coming to light, so keep it locked to HNHH for any new details.
Perhaps the collaboration has gotten to his head, or perhaps he’s got somewhat of a point because, on Monday morning, Drakeo The Ruler shook things up by declaring himself the best rapper alive from the entire state of California, effectively challenging Kendrick Lamar and other LA-based rappers to step up their games.
“I AM THE BEST RAPPER ALIVE TO EVER COME OUT OF CALIFORNIA AND ITS NOT UP FOR DEBATE,” wrote Drakeo on Twitter. “F*CC WHOEVER FEEL SOME TYPE OF WAY. AINT NO N***A BEEN MORE INFLUENTIAL THAN MAN AND BEEN SUCESSFULL. I LITERALLY HAVE HUNDREDS IF NOT THOUSANDS OF N***AS TRYNA RAP LIKE ME.”
His tweets continued, eventually calling out rappers like Snoop Dogg, who he says is no longer influential. “I DONT CARE WHO YOU BRING UP OG RAPPER NEW SCHOOL RAPPER YOU CANT NAME ONE RAPPER THATS MORE INFLUENTIAL THAN ME IN CALIFORNIA,” he said before calling out Snoop. “NO NAME ONE N***A age 14 to 28 THAT LISTENS TO SNOOP DOGG BRO,” he responded to someone that said he was less impactful then the legend.
Do you think Drakeo The Ruler is the best rapper from California? Or is this cap?
