New Hip Hop News

[viaToday is International Women’s Day and, while Burger King intended on celebrating the day by announcing a new scholarship program to fund their female employees’ dreams of becoming chefs, their announcement was pretty misguided. Unfortunately, while the company’s intent was pure, their execution has been widely criticized as the trend continues to grow.

“Women belong in the kitchen,” tweeted the official U.K. account for Burger King on Monday. The tweet was the first in a series announcing the new scholarship, but it has been picked apart as “misogynistic”. “If they want to, of course,” BK later clarified. “Yet only 20% of chefs are women. We’re on a mission to change the gender ratio in the restaurant industry by empowering female employees with the opportunity to pursue a culinary career. We are proud to be launching a new scholarship programme which will help female Burger King employees pursue their culinary dreams!”

The message has been retweeted over 240,000 times as people are reacting to it in droves.

Complex reached out to Burger King for a statement, to which they said, “It was our intention to undermine an outdated stereotype about women and reclaim the terminology, in order to highlight a big problem in the restaurant industry – that women occupy only 20 percent of chef positions in UK restaurants today, which we believe is offensive. The campaign’s aim is to continue the important conversation around gender inequality within the culinary field.”

Do you think they succeeded? Check out some of the reactions below.

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When it comes to hip-hop friendship, DJ Khaled may very well boast a nigh-unparalleled contact list. Largely nonconfrontational by nature —  except, of course, should you dethrone his number-one debut on the Billboard charts — Khaled has built up no shortage of high-profile bromances with some of the game’s most powerful artists. Case in point, the Khaled Khaled hitmaker recently spent a busy All-Star Weekend with the legendary Diddy, and you already knew some mogul talk transpired. 

 Neilson Barnard/Getty Images

Khaled made sure to highlight some pictures from their weekend get-together, praising his pal’s acumen as a negotiator. “Diddy is a great negotiator,” captions Khaled. “So am I ! Swipe to capture us closing new deals.” He follows-up the image with another, in which he and Puff take a contemplative stroll by the ocean. “STILL IN THE MEETING,” he captions, a far cry from the average corporate meeting that tends to plague the average worker. Clearly, such are the benefits of perseverance, hustle, and confidence — all of which Khaled does his best to exude on a daily basis. 

On that note, Khaled made sure to highlight the latter quality in a third and final pic of he and Diddy’s weekend link-up. “Confidence is [key],” he writes, clearly ready for a quick dip in the pool. “Happy all star Weekend! billi & Diddy, the brand that’s worth a lot! THE LIGHT IS LOVE.
POSITIVE VIBES ONLY.” Check out the images of Diddy and Khaled’s big get-together, and look for further news on the latter’s upcoming studio album Khaled Khaled, due out soon. 

Pooh Shiesty has one of the hottest songs out right now, and with the recent release of Shiesty Season, he’s slowly cementing his name in the South. “Back In Blood” is now rising up the Billboard Hot 100 to become a top 10 hit which means his feature rate has been steadily going up and he’s pretty much popping up on a new song every single week. 

Just a few weeks ago, Coi Leray took to Instagram where she previewed a short snippet of an upcoming collaboration with Pooh Shiesty that set the timeline ablaze. Fans have been eager to hear it in its entirety. Unfortunately, no release date has been set but she slid through with an extended snippet of the song that’s building some well-deserved excitement. Slaughter Gang’s Kid Hazel handled the production on this track, adding to his already impressive catalog.

With the release of this upcoming collab with Pooh Shiesty to follow the remix to “No More Parties” ft. Lil Durk, it seems like this could be the beginning of an impressive run ahead. Coi Leray built a strong fanbase over the past few years as she’s tried to distance herself from her father Benzino’s infamy. Last year, she released her EP, Now Or Never that included a string of features from artists like Gunna, Fetty Wap, and Sevyn Streeter. 

Check out the snippet of Coi Leray’s upcoming collaboration with Pooh Shiesty below and let us know what you think in the comments.

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It isn’t a secret that Megan Thee Stallion is a Hot Girl. The H-Town Hottie is one of the most popular rappers in the world, shutting it down when she releases new music or new pictures. After documenting her bootcamp-style training for a few weeks, the rapper has been flaunting her body-ody-ody whenever the opportunity presents itself and, while she’s been known to post a thirst trap every now and again, she just upped her own ante with a string of ice-cold, nearly-nude photos of herself looking like the bad b*tch she is.

Sharing a gallery of shots with the appropriate caption “Body ody ody ody”, Young Tina Snow wore a blue shag over her shoulder, strapped up some diamond-studded knee-highs, threw on some elegant jewelry, and covered up for some glamorous pics on Instagram. With a blonde Monroe-esque wig atop her head, many are saying that the Hot Girl has never looked better.

Of course, the color palette of this photoshoot recalls some of Megan’s earlier work, possibly teasing a return to the Tina Snow days. People are theorizing that a continuation of that era, with a return to Megan’s alter ego, could be in the near future.

Last week, the superstar rapper used her platform for good, announcing that she is helping to rebuild her hometown after it was hit with a disastrous winter freeze. Along with U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, Megan is enlisting the help of her friends, partners, and colleagues to raise funds for the reparation and the rebuilding of Houston homes that were damaged this year. Read more about that here.

Rise & Grind is a brand new editorial series, meant to introduce and dissect new, buzzing, or underground artists.

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LBS Kee’vin is one of the only rappers to successfully create a buzz for himself out of Pensacola, Florida. While the state is known for its strong presence in the rap game, Pensacola has never been an area that has received much mainstream attention. The 24-year-old rapper, real name Kee’vin Lewis, is shattering expectations with his unique brand of soulful hip-hop, commanding attention with his emotion-driven lyrics that tell his story as an anomaly, making it out of the trap with the power of his art. He’s the latest artist to put on for Florida, but his reach is worldwide. 

Image via artist

“Shining” with 42 Dugg has proven to be a big hit for the rising rapper, and his recently-released “Soul Burden” with Fredo Bang proves that the up-and-comer has the skills to impact the game for years to come. Of course, Kee’vin initially burst onto the scene with “Boston George”, which was the third song he ever recorded. As he continues tapping into his pool of seemingly endless potential, Kee’vin’s authentic nature will keep glowing through his music.

With “Soul Burden” available now on all digital streaming platforms, LBS Kee’vin took time out of his schedule for the latest edition of Rise & Grind, answering ten basic questions before jumping into a quick Q&A session, which you can read below.

Stay tuned for a new installment of Rise & Grind every Monday.

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Stomping Grounds:

Pensacola, Florida. It was like the regular, you know, neighborhood stuff growing up as a child. You know, you got robbing and killing… all that. It’s that in every neighborhood though. It wasn’t too bad, though. It was alright.

My favorite part about growing up in Pensacola was probably that my mama wasn’t so strict on me. She kind of let me, you know, go do what I want most of the time. My mom is like my number one fan. For real, for real. 

Nope, there weren’t any other famous rappers from my area. I’m trying to be the first one for my city to, you know, break down the door. I’m the first artist in my city to ever sign a major record deal. So yeah.

Zodiac Sign:

I’m a Virgo. I don’t really study into zodiac signs. I don’t be paying attention to it. But I just know I’m a Virgo from other people saying I’m a Virgo basically. I don’t know nothing about it.

Top 5 DOA:

Top 5 dead or alive… I’ll say Lil Wayne, of course. Lil Baby right now. I’ll say Boosie. Jeezy. And myself.

Biggest Accomplishment:

My biggest accomplishment? I probably say leaving my hometown, to be honest. Because there’s a lot of hate. It’s like it’s a real trap down there. So when you make it out of there you really accomplish something.

Studio Habits & Essentials:

See, I like to record in my house. I’ve got a studio in my house. I never leave to go to the studio. But what I do is I take, like, all day on the song. I walk around the house humming the melody and come back to the computer, say something, get back up, walk around, and hum. Sit back down. Yeah, it’s just a process. I don’t write nothing at all. Just go to the mic and sing it. Everything’s off the head.

I really don’t have studio necessities because everything I need is like, in the house. If I need to go get something, like, if I’m hungry, I just get up, go to the refrigerator.

“Shining” with 42 Dugg:

The label asked me if I f*ck with Dugg. I was like, yeah, he was one of my favorite artists at the time. So I just linked up with him. Met him at his studio, played some sh*t for him and he liked it. So then he actually sent me that song. He sent me “Shining” and then I got on it. And then he put another version and I put another verse. So yeah, it’s got 2 million streams on Apple Music. 

It’s just kind of like a turnt song, like a flexing song. It’s all about living life and just having fun.

I kind of expected it to go well, though, I never had no doubts that that song wouldn’t go well. So it really didn’t surprise me.

First Bars: 

I don’t even remember the first song I wrote. But “Boston George” was like the third or fourth song I ever made. And that caught the label’s attention. That was the first song I ever dropped too, and that caught label attention. So you know, it happened pretty fast.  

I built the studio in my house. I had a three-bedroom house in Pensacola and I took one of the rooms and turned it into a studio, bought out equipment, and we just started recording from that. But I still, to this day, don’t remember the first song I recorded. I was probably 23 when I built the studio.

First Show:

The first show was in Pensacola and it was turnt.

It was really good. It was really good. Like, at first I had a lot of problems because it was a nightclub. It was supposed to be grown people but a lot of kids was coming trying to get in so the lady that owns the place, she was kind of kicking kids out at first but in the end, she just said ‘go ahead. Y’all just go ahead and go in,’ so it was a lot of love.

I felt great. I wanted to know how I would react ’cause I love attention so I wanted to see if I was gonna feel the same way when I got on stage and there’s like 10 times that. I love attention. 

I’m more of a laid-back performer. I don’t really do too much.

Clocking Out:

My favorite show is Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. If that’s on, I’m locked in and locked to the TV. 

Up Next:

Well, this year, I probably won’t even honestly drop the tape this year. I think I’m just going to stay consistent with features and singles and just dropping consistently but I don’t know. I probably have a tape in the chamber, but I probably won’t drop anything. Gotta have a build-up to it.

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HNHH: What’s the significance of “LBS” in your name?

LBS Kee’vin: It’s a family. But it also has like a street meaning, like, lbs stands for pounds. So it’s a double meaning to it. It’s loyal bag supplier. So it’s like, loyalty. And then you know, you bring it back home with it. Whether that’s for your kids or your girl, whatever, paying bills, whatever. You bringing it back home, you do what you got to do.

You’ve got a bunch of dope records on Belair Baby and Belair Baby 2. What’s your favorite song from those two tapes?

I don’t even have a favorite. I just go through the whole thing and just play it all the way through. But now I feel like I really, really found my sound. I don’t even think on those two tapes I really found my sound. Now I found it. So the third tape that I drop is gonna be crazy.

Is it going to be Belair Baby 3? Or is it gonna be a different title?

I have no clue yet. I don’t even know.

Did you always know that you wanted to be a rapper? Or were there any other plans?

Nah, I never thought I was gonna be a rapper. But I always wanted the lifestyle. I always wanted the fast life, the diamonds, the fast cars, a lot of money, a big house, so I knew I was gonna get to it one way or the other, but I never thought it was gonna be rap.

What did you study in school?

I wanted to go to college at one point, but school just ain’t for me. I don’t got the attention span for school, for real, for real. I probably would have done something pertaining to sports. I like sports.

How long had you been making music before “Boston George”?

Literally, that was my third song ever. Yeah, that’s my third song. But that’s when I knew. After I made it, I was like, ‘Damn, I kind of got like a natural talent’. Because I never made music before. And I come up with this. So yeah.

At the end of the day, what do you want your legacy to be in music?

Basically, I want people to like, when they bring my name up, I want people to say he was really versatile, wasn’t no beat he couldn’t get on. He can rap about anything and make love songs. He can make a pop song, he can make any type of song.

What does your new song “Soul Burden” mean to you?

That song is just– it’s kind of like, if you wasn’t with me when I was at my lowest point then you can’t be with me when I’m at my highest point. That’s basically what the song means, you feel me. We just shot the video and it’s crazy as hell. Shoutout No More Heroes. So when it drops I expect that one to go up, for sure. 

Fredo Bang is featured on there. What was it like working with him?

It was really cool. He’s a cool dude, for sure. Easy to work with. He hard as hell, for sure.

You also worked with the legendary Juicy J on “Classy B*tch”. How did that come together?

Shout out to Harrison at Visionary. He has a really good relationship with Juicy J and I had a club song. So I’m like, ‘Who should I put on this?’ And he brought him up. I was like, ‘Oh, hell yeah, he a legend. Like, go ahead and put him on it’. I chopped it up with him on FaceTime. Real cool dude. Real laid-back dude. So, yeah.

Do you have any closing words? Anything we haven’t touched on that you want your fans to know?

Basically, if you don’t know me right now, you will know me by the end of this year. Pretty much. That’s all I gotta say. 

READ LAST WEEK’S INTERVIEW WITH POOH SHIESTY HERE.

Over the years, we’ve witnessed a few of the greatest artists combine their talents to create highlight moments in hip-hop history. Kanye West and Jay-Z linked up for Watch The Throne. Drake and Future released What A Time To Be Alive. 2 Chainz and Lil Wayne went to each other’s worlds on ColleGrove. 21 Savage and Offset got in their bag with the Metro Boomin-produced Without Warning. Are we witnessing the first steps for the next great hip-hop collaboration project?

Prince Williams, Johnny Nunez/Getty Images

With NBA All-Star Weekend in the rearview mirror, a number of the rap industry’s biggest stars were tapped to make appearances at the various parties happening around Atlanta. Lil Baby had a larger part in the weekend’s festivities, bricking nearly everything he put up in a game against Quavo and Jack Harlow, but perhaps this latest tease could mark a bounceback from one of Atlanta’s biggest rappers right now.

Posting a picture of himself at a party with Lil Durk over the weekend, Lil Baby teased a future collaborative project between himself and the Chicago talent. “Aye y’all tell @lildurk let’s drop the tape f*cc,” he wrote as his caption, revealing that a mixtape from himself and Smurk either already exists, or is in the works.

Instagram

Obviously, with both of these rappers being some of the most popular in the world right now, this is an announcement that will excite millions of hip-hop fans. Hopefully, there’s some truth to this because this could be something incredible.

Do you want a tape from Baby and Durk?