New Hip Hop News

While they were in the thick of trying out dangerous stunts for laughs and fame, the Jackass crew fought against people who complained that they were acting irresponsibly. Jackass first premiered on MTV 22 years ago and quickly, the group of friends became fan favorites. Johnny Knoxville, Steve-O, Chris Pontius, Bam Margera, and others on their team raised hell on the series, but they turned things up a notch when the television show became a film franchise.

Soon, worldwide fans were testing out these Jackass antics and landing themselves in the hospital. Recently, Steve-O caught up with Mike Tyson for the champion boxer’s Hotboxin‘ podcast and admitted that all of the Jackass criticism was much-deserved.

“We were genuinely worth vilifying because back then they didn’t have YouTube or video on the internet and we were legitimately a bad influence,” he said. “When Jackass came out, little kids were showing up in hospitals all over the country and maybe the world because they saw us doing this crazy sh*t and they wanted to do it themselves.”

“At that time, you could really point to us as being a bad influence,” he said. “But I think over the years, because now that there’s so much YouTube, [MTVs], so much [stuff], it’s not our f*cking fault anymore.”

Watch Steve-O’s Hotboxin with Mike Tyson appearance in full below.

Just in case there were any doubts—yes, we are still talking about last week’s Verzuz. The R&B showdown featured not one show but two, as Ray J and Bobby V went toe-to-toe against Sammie and Pleasure P in a chaotic pre-show that has received new life thanks to meme culture. Prior to Omarion and Mario’s feisty face-off, their four peers belted out fan favorites, albeit some of those notes arrived off-key.

The Verzuz show went down in Los Angeles and it was clear that Ray J was thriving on hometown turf. His wife Princess Love as well as their children were in attendance, and while there were several standout Ray J moments, his “One Wish” performance turned heads.

As you recall, Ray wasn’t at his best vocally, and later, his big sister Brandy jumped in his comment section with a brash talking to. During “One Wish,” Ray found that his fellow performers decided to take over in a harmony that outdid him on his own song. As social media users continue to chitter-chatter about the chuckle-worthy Verzuz moment, Ray J is stretching out the dialog by jumping on Livestream with Sammie and Bobby V.

The trio joked about why Ray was outsung on his own hit and Sammie stated he thought he was helping Ray J out because he may have had one too many shots of Casamigos. Although there was plenty of trash-talking going down during their Verzuz appearance, it was all in good fun and the singers praised one another’s talents. 

Watch the clip of the Livestream below and swipe to revisit their viral Verzuz performance.

They would go on to give us “No Guidance,” but there was a time when Chris Brown and Drake were at odds. There were reports of a club brawl that got out of control and rumors ran rampant for what seemed like years about what was at the core of the tension. The two seemed to be at the opposite ends of the industry and no one believed that they would be able to mend fences, but they flexed their maturity and are now on good terms.

During Brown’s expansive interview with Drink Champs, Noreaga asked about that era of “light-skinned beef.” He told the singer that he knows when it comes to getting down, Brown would “go in,” to which Brown told him he “loves combativeness.”

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“I’m not saying I will come with all the smoke but I really don’t have no problem with all the smoke,” said Breezy. “I ain’t even tryin’ to be tough, none of that. It be the—most of the time, forgive me for saying this, but the n*ggas that I be knockin’ out or beatin’ up… [laughs] ‘Got beat up by a singin’ n*gga.'” Of course, that’s a take on Drake’s “Back to Back” diss track bar to Meek Mill.

Elsewhere, Noreaga joked about how he thought the fight between Drake and Brown went down, but the singer said it was nothing like that.

“It was just a misunderstanding on both ends,” said Breezy. “It wasn’t no—I ain’t going into too many details. It’s funny as hell now, but as far as that, blood, he good though. He straight.” He added, “It was funny, and then when we actually sat and talked about it afterward, it was just like, ‘Man, what the f*ck was we doin’? Like bro, that sh*t funny as hell.’ But sh*t, I’m an R&B n*gga.”

Check out the clip of Chris Brown as well as his full Drink Champs interview below.

Hulu is offering an intimate look into the life and career of Machine gun Kelly thanks to a new documentary. The rapper-turned-rocker is still reeling from the success of his hit album Mainstream Sellout and now, you can tune into Life in Pink: MGK to get all of the details about what it was like for the Pop Punk hitmaker as he created his record. Features on the album included Willow Smith, blackbear, Young Thug, Gunna, iann dior, Landon Barker, Bring Me the Horizon, and two appearances by Lil Wayne.

Weezy having a rock moment isn’t uncommon, but there is nothing normal about how the Rap legend approaches music. On Life in Pink, MGK recalls working with Wayne and watching his creative process in real-time.

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“I pressed play on the song, he’s like, ‘Is that what we’re doing?’ ‘Yeah.’ He’s like, ‘Alright. You guys got time?’ ‘Yeah, for sure,'” MGK stated. “He goes in the courtyard, smokes fifteen blunts, he just takes each, his eyes are closed just playing the track over and over again. He comes back in the studio and we can see him in the courtyard, we’re just kinda sitting there amazed, like, that’s the GOAT forming his thoughts around a track that we made.”

“He comes back in at 5:30 in the morning. He’s like, ‘Y’all ready?'” he added while pretending to be woken up. “He goes in the booth and he lays his sh*t like, one time. I’m just like, one time.”

Check out the clip of MGK reliving his monumental Weezy moment and watch the music video for their Mainstream Sellout collaboration, “ay!”

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A select group of music industry veterans has used their platforms to drop off takes about how artists have presented themselves in the current culture. Each generation faces its own set of challenges as music evolves, and Shawn Stockman of Boyz II Men took to Twitter to share his thoughts about witnessing artists not capitalizing on the opportunities set before them. His group launched decades ago with their “Motown Philly” classic and took over R&B, and these days, Boyz II Men is hailed as one of the greatest singing groups to hit the scene.

“I don’t wanna see any more artists’ jewelry on social media. No more videos of their cars cribs or money,” Stockman tweeted. “From now on, I wanna see videos of artists in rehearsal! Your jewelry don’t mean sh*t if u can’t perform! Man this music business is weird!”

“I’m watching artists squander their blessings by not doing what it takes to have a longstanding career in this music business! It’s heartbreaking! It’s all about optics, no soul, no conviction. No intention to last any longer than just a few streams,” he added. “I don’t care about your clothes, how fly u look, how much u spent on your damn ring! If u don’t put the work in where it counts, Diamond ring and all, u still suck! Shout out to the artists I know and respect who do the work to be great! I love y’all, even if the world doesn’t.”

Stockman also suggested that labels signing these artists should “be ashamed of themselves,” as he accused them of “pimpin these kids” for their talents without giving them the necessary tools to have longevity in the game. 

Check out his tweets below and let us know if you agree.

In each of his projects, Kendrick Lamar gives introspective takes that his fans cling to as they identify with his lyrics, but he entered a new arena with Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers. The acclaimed record topped the charts around the globe and sparked conversations about mental wellness and LGBTQIA+ debates within Hip Hop. As listeners continue to argue the album’s placement in Lamar’s catalog, he recently took to the Glastonbury stage to share why he created Mr. Morale.

Clips of K-Dot’s Glastonbury performance have been shared far and wide, including the powerful conclusion where he was bleeding from his diamond crown of thorns and advocating for Women’s Rights following Roe v. Wade’s reversal in the U.S.

However, elsewhere, Lamar took a moment to speak about his Mr. Morale motivation.

“So many faces, y’all blessed me to be upon this stage,” the hitmaker told the roaring crowd. “And you know we blessed to make sure we give y’all some sh*t you feel, and that’s the real reason why I wrote Mr. Morale, because everybody’s going through something.” He added, “No matter what you’re going through, imperfection is beautiful.”

“I wear this crown. They judged Christ,” he said. “They judge you, they judge Christ… I wear this as a representation so you’ll never forget one of the greatest prophets that ever walked the earth.” The diamond-encrusted crown of thorns was reportedly crafted by Tiffany & Co and features 8,000 of the sparkly jewels.

Check out the clip of Kendrick Lamar below.