Victor “Vic Mensa” Mensah and Chancelor “Chance the Rapper” Bennett came up together on Chicago’s underground music scene. The two emcees were even part of the SaveMoney collective along with Nico Segal, Towkio, Joey Purp, and others.
Chance appeared on Mensa’s breakout Innanetape project in 2013. That same year, Vic showed up on Chano’s star-making Acid Rap mixtape. They both went on to become 2014 XXL Freshman class members, and they built business connections with Hip Hop legends like Jay-Z and Kanye West.
After the two midwesterners had a falling out, they finally reconciled in 2017 at the Lollapalooza festival in Chicago. Borrowing a line from Jay-Z’s 4:44 track “Family Feud,” Mensa tweeted at the time, “Nobody wins when the family [feuds]. THE VIBES ARE BACK.”
Collaborative music involving Vic and Chance is now back as well. Today (February 5), Vic Mensa returned with the new single “Shelter” which features his SaveMoney comrade Chance the Rapper as well as Fugees founding member Wyclef Jean. An Andre Muir-directed music video for “Shelter” will go live on YouTube at 10 am ET.
The release of “Shelter” is also serving as a fundraiser for Julius Jones, the current death row inmate who maintains he was wrongfully convicted of first-degree murder in 2002 at the age of 22. Numerous celebrities and sports figures have advocated for his release from prison. For example, Oscar-winner Viola Davis produced the ABC docu-series The Last Defense which covered Jones’s case.
Many Cardi B fans have been patiently waiting for her to release the follow-up to 2018’s Grammy-winning Invasion of Privacy album. After dropping her new single “Up” today, Bardi Gang members are likely excited that it appears the rapper’s sophomore album era has officially begun.
Zane Lowe caught up with Cardi for Apple Music’s New Music Daily show to discuss the release of “Up.” The NMD conversation also included the New York City-bred rhymer talking about the recording process for her next studio LP.
“I really wanted to put out an album last year, but I feel like I don’t have the right songs. I have recorded so many songs. I think I’ve got like 50 songs recorded, and I’m just still not satisfied. If I’m not satisfied, I’m just not satisfied, but I really want to put out an album this year,” Cardi told Lowe. “I feel like I have no choice now. Now, I feel like I exceeded my limit of holding [music].”
The self-described Balenciaga Bardi admitted some level of fear is playing a role in her holding back in putting out another body of work. She also appears to be aware of the constantly changing sonic landscape of Hip Hop and that her music should be an accurate reflection of her personal emotions.
“Music is in a different stage right now. Because I don’t even be knowing what should be like the base of my album sometimes. I’ll be like, ‘Damn, should most of my songs be freaky songs? Should most of my songs be about tricking?'” said Cardi.
The 28-year-old entertainer added, “I’ve got my sensitive songs and stuff, and it’s just like, ‘Are they enough? Are they explaining my feelings enough?’ I’ve got like three potential intros, and it’s just like, ‘Are they good enough? Are they explaining everything that I want to explain?’ It’s just a lot.”
Artists not being able to go on nationwide and international tours at the moment because of the COVID-19 pandemic is another factor that is impacting Cardi’s decision on when her next album will arrive on DSPs. With citizens around the country starting to take the COVID-19 vaccines, some industry insiders hope concert venues will be able to open back up in 2022.
“It’s like you want to go on tour after you drop your album and everything, and then it’s like that’s another thing. You’re hearing different types of dates – ‘Oh, 2021 might be open. Touring might be open at the end of 2021… No, it’s going to be open in 2022,'” stated Cardi.
She continued, “When it is open in 2022, everybody’s going to want to tour, so you’ve got to wait for your slot. It’s like, ‘I don’t want it to be almost nine, eight months when it’s my slot.’ You’ve got to compete with arenas of basketball players, like that, the sports and other artists that are going to go on tour. It’s just a lot.”
The Big Game between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers will kick off this Sunday at 6:30 pm. As the world awaits the Super Bowl LV broadcast that evening, basketball legend Shaquille O’Neal is offering a special digital presentation featuring stars of sports and entertainment that same day.
Mercari Presents The SHAQ Bowl will stream live on over 20 digital platforms. Numerous celebrities will compete in live viral challenges – such as dodgeball, tug-of-war, and a hot wing challenge – inside the custom-built SHAQ Bowl stadium located in Tampa, Florida.
Diplo, Ezekiel Elliott, Olivia Culpo, Quavo, Steve-O, and The Miz are competing for the SHAQ Bowl Trophy as part of Team Kansas City. On the other side is Team Tampa Bay which consists of Anthony Anderson, Drew McIntyre, Nelly, Offset, Tim Tebow, and Winnie Harlow.
Quavo and Offset will pull off double duty because the southern rappers were also tapped to perform at The SHAQ Bowl as the Migos group. The Halftime Show’s lineup also includes “Whats Poppin” hitmaker Jack Harlow and R&B singer Bryson Tiller. DJ Diesel (Shaquille O’Neal’s alter-ego) is listed as a performer as well.
Chad Johnson, Terrell Owens, Sara Walsh, Jen Alda, and DJ Carnage are set to host the extravaganza. The SHAQ Bowl is scheduled to begin streaming live on Sunday, February 7 at 3 pm ET. Viewers can watch the show on SHAQBowl.com as well as @SHAQ‘s Facebook, Twitch, YouTube, Twitter, TikTok, and Live X Live social media accounts. The event’s YouTube video is embedded below.
Lil Uzi Vert had a lot of people talking this week when he decided to add a new accessory to his look. The Eternal Atake album creator had a reported $24 million pink diamond implanted into his forehead.
This unexpected move by Uzi was quickly compared to Texas rapper Sauce Walka who rocks a teardrop diamond piercing below his left eye. Not too long after that, 21 Savage joined the public conversation by making fun of Sauce Walka’s supposed $250,000 facepiece.
21 was in a Clubhouse app chatroom when he decided to share his thoughts on the new trend. The Atlanta-bred rap star called Sauce Walka’s jewelry “cubic zirconia” which is the low-cost, synthetic gemstone that looks like a diamond.
Sauce Walka then jumped on Instagram to fire back. He posted a video where he threatened to expose 21. The clip’s caption read, “@21savage Hatin & Pillow talkin to them hoes….. IG got u PUNK n##### hurt huh. F### IT new classic drippin grab ya phone.”
Apparently, the two men eventually connected via Direct Message. 21 Savage posted the exchange on his Instagram Story. According to the text, the “Runnin” performer told Sauce, “ion want no smoke gang” and added six tears of joy emojis.
Sauce wrote back, “Don’t do that blood. lol u know ima funny MF… I still remember lil 21 running with Maybach Hot… In 2015, I had 60k on my neck in ATLANTA… [face with tears of joy emoji] We good bird but u almost was a #NewInstagram sauce classic… That ain’t for us! Lol!”
21 replied, “All dat s### ugly bra [face with tears of joy emoji]. U can’t get mad [face with tears of joy emojis]. I ain’t gone call u no b#### ass n#### tho gang that’s gone turn to some mo s###.” Sauce Walka liked the “ion want no smoke gang” and “u can’t get mad” comments.
In the early hours of Friday morning, Cardi B’s name was the #1 trending topic on Twitter in the United States. The music-based chatter was spiking on the platform because the Bronx native dropped her latest single “Up.”
Cardi released her new record alongside a Tanu Muino-directed music video. The nearly three-minute visuals feature colorful scenes, different looks, choreography, and a little woman-on-woman kissing.
The immediate social media response to “Up” has been mostly positive. Fellow contemporary rappers like J.I.D and Zoey Dollaz shouted out Cardi’s most recent work. A lot of the online praise is directed at the video which continued the Rhythm + Flow judge’s run of big-budget productions following “Money,”“Press,” and “WAP.”
New episodes of Wild ‘N Out are coming. The long-running improv comedy show’s hiatus is about to end following creator/host Nick Cannon and MTV/VH1’s parent company ViacomCBS making amends.
Last year, Wild ‘N Out was taken off the air because of comments the NCredible Entertainment founder made on his Cannon’s Class podcast. Cannon eventually apologized to the Jewish community for making statements that many people believed were based on anti-Semitic conspiracy theories.
“First and foremost I extend my deepest and most sincere apologies to my Jewish sisters and brothers for the hurtful and divisive words that came out of my mouth during my interview with Richard Griffin,” tweeted Cannon last July.
He added, “On my podcast, I used words and referenced literature I assumed to be factual to uplift my community instead turned out to be hateful propaganda and stereotypical rhetoric that pained another community. For this, I am deeply sorry but now together we can write a new chapter of healing.”
“Nick has not only apologized and taken responsibility for his comments, but he has also worked to educate himself and others through engagement with Jewish leaders and on his platforms,” a representative from MTV told Variety.
The source continued, “Those efforts are of the utmost importance and that’s why we have invited him to rejoin our team. On a separate note, we just learned that he tested positive for COVID and have reached out to wish him a speedy recovery.”
According to the entertainment publication, Wild ‘N Out will begin filming again in the not too distant future. Meanwhile, past installments of the program will begin running again on the VH1 network. Cannon is still a presenter on Fox’s The Masked Singer and reportedly has a daytime talk show in the works.
Sean “Diddy” Combs’ war with Sean John just escalated in a major way.
The Hip-Hop mogul has filed a $25 million lawsuit against the clothing brand he founded Sean John, as well as the company’s owner GBG USA.
According to a complaint lodged today (February 4th), Sean John launched a new clothing line for women with a company called Missguided and illegally used Diddy’s image, likeness, and persona without his permission.
Diddy sold Sean John to GBG USA in November of 2016. In the lawsuit, Diddy claims Sean John, Missguided and GBG fabricated quotes to make it seem as if he was still associated with the brand when they launched the “Sean John x Missguided” line for women.
Diddy claims the companies manipulated the press with false statements attributed to him that never made.
Diddy Files $25 Million Lawsuit Against Sean John
Diddy Files $25 Million Lawsuit Against Sean John
Diddy Files $25 Million Lawsuit Against Sean John
“[Diddy] does not challenge [Sean John/GBG’s] right to use the Sean John trademark, but rather [Sean John/GBG’s] decision to leverage a fabricated quote they created and then falsely attributed to Mr. Combs, and to use Mr. Combs’s name and other monikers to create the false and misleading impression that Mr. Combs is the decision-maker behind the designs and creation of the GBG Collection,” Diddy’s lawyer Jonathan D. Davis explained.
To make matters worse, Diddy says his image was featured in a :40 second Sean John/Missguided video for an ad campaign promoting the clothing line.
The rap mogul wants the public to know that he is no longer associated with the brand he founded in 1998.
“[Sean John, GBG and Missguided] are using the Unapproved Material, which contains false or misleading representations of fact, to promote and sell the items in the GBG Collection because they understand that associating it with Mr. Combs will significantly increase sales and profits,” Diddy’s lawyer Jonathan Davis continued.
This is the second legal skirmish between Diddy and Sean John over the last 30 days.
Diddy claims Sean John/GBG illegally hijacked the phrase, trademarked it, and started selling merchandise on the Sean John website during the 2020 election.
Grand Master Jay of the Black Militia the NFAC was arrested last year for allegedly pointing a rifle at Louisville Metro Police officers and federal officers on a roof at a formation, a charge his supporters say is fraudulent and racist.
Eleanor Harvey, a friend of GMJ, made am impassioned plea for him to the community, “We ask you to HELP Jay WIN this blatant bogus attack on him as we know that he has fearlessly stood for US ALL.”
https://www.instagram.com/p/CKyUBTyj7uB/
Months after the alleged Louisville incident happened, Grand Master Jay found himself pleading not guilty to federal charges in court. Jay, whose real name is John Fitzgerald Johnson, was arrested on Dec. 4 and formally charged with five counts of wanton endangerment. These are the same charges levied against the officer that actually killed Breonna Taylor. In September, the day before the 2020 Kentucky Derby, the alleged act occurred around 8:30 p.m.
The allegations have caused a groundswell of outrage and support for the NFAC founder, who has successfully run peaceful military styled formations. Some of those formations were in support of Breonna Taylor and Ahmaud Arbery, both of which were allegedly killed by police or police affiliates. While they have made a bold presence, the NFAC has never promoted aggressive or violent behavior. To the contrary, they have lobbied for Black people to have autonomy and freedoms, while obeying the law seemingly religiously.
In stark contrast, the violent insurrection on the United States Capitol by domestic terrorists of a white persuasion, was greeted relatively peacefully by authorities. Some of the most egregious offenders were permitted to leave safely and arrested later despite guns, bombs and restraints to kidnap elected officials.
Jay told Vice News, “The terrorism that we saw last week validated everything that I’ve ever said about why we need to have an entity such as a Black militia: that it’s defensive, not offensive, because those are the very types of people who wouldn’t hesitate to stop at the Capitol.”
“If we had pulled something like that,” he continued, “there’d still be body bags being brought in.”
Numerous GoFundMe have been erected in GMJ’s legal defense, as he must defend himself on two fronts. Here is the latest effort to financially support Grand Master Jay:
“Your support is needed to help us defeat this blatant racist attack on Americans excercising their 1st and 2nd Amendment rights. John Fitzgerald Johnson aka The Grand Master Jay has been targeted by the US Govt. As the founder and commander of America’s largest all Black militia, his organization has stood up to the powers to be in the face of such atrocities as the Ahmad Aubery and Breonna Taylor killings. His teachings have ignited a renewed unification of people around the world. He was arrested by the FBI on trumped up charges pertaining to an alleged incident that occured in SEPT. Subsequently Jay was charged by the State of Kentucky with the same offense that the officer that killed Breonna Taylor was charged with. As a condition of his pretrials release he has had his 1st Amendment and 2nd Amendment Rights removed. His legal expenses to fight two cases on two levels at the same time are astronomical as the US Govt moves silence, destroy, and disarm this Movement once and for all. Please help us to raise the funds needed to pay the lawyers and help Jay win this blatant bogus attack on him who has stood for all of us.”
GMJ maintains that the ranks of the ranks of the NFAC (Not F##kin Around Coalition) have been growing in leaps and bounds and incidents like the insurrection on jolt more life into their membership. For more on the NFAC, click the link.
Despite Ice Cube’s public support of the Trump Administration during the 2020 election, the Biden-Harris team reached out to the rapper on Tuesday (February 2nd) — affording him an opportunity to present his Contract with Black America agenda.
The N.W.A. member seems to be open to hashing out the details of his “Contract With Black America” plan in efforts to secure more business opportunities, better education, and jobs for African Americans.
Cube, whose real name O’Shea Jackson Sr., revealed the news to Ryan Cameron on the legendary radio host’s current show “Majic ATL” and noted that they are flushing out details and hoping for a face-to-face.
Last fall, right before the election, Ice Cube appeared on Roland Martin’s show to talk about his agenda and his lack of trust in the Democratic party.
Cube noted that President Trump’s “Platinum Plan” would allow Blacks more access to those valuable public contracts and other opportunities that they are oftentimes shut out of.
But after the Biden-Harris win and the Dems majority in both the Senate and the House, it is only logical that the businessman presents his proposal.
At this point, if Ice Cube is really serious about prophetic action and the fight against systemic-social injustice, he has no choice.
The Biden-Harris administration has not made a statement but you can rest assured that Cedric Richmond, director of the White House Office of Public Engagement, got his eye on Mr. “No Vaseline.”
Hailing from Florida and managed by 100K Management (King Von, YNW Melly, Hotboii), YNW Bortlen had an impressive run in 2020 with tens of millions of streams and widespread critical acclaim. But this Florida-based rapper YNW Bortlen isn’t freezing up as he drops a cold new single and music video entitled “Iceee.”
Going bar for bar in a cabin in the woods via the DrewFilmedIt directed visual, YNW Bortlen is iced out with a group of beautiful women while he raps, “Too much ice on my body for me, I’m ‘Sani / Water, drip drip, Fiji, Dasani.”
The track arrives months removed from “Moschino Bae,” which dropped towards the tail end of 2020. Not only did it rack up 600K YouTube views on the music video, but the track also managed to garner half-a-million streams across digital streaming platforms.
YNW Bortlen is currently preparing for the release of his highly-anticipated project via his label,with the promise to deliver a body of work that everyone can connect with and listen to at any time.
A lot of times when we mention Ja Rule’s name it is not always positive. Since 50 Cent made a mockery of him, his season “upstate” and the Fyre Festival fiasco, people just have been joking about one of the most creative artists/ businessmen to come out of the Def Jam halls.
Well, this is a praise report.
A celebration.
Virtual pomp and circumstance and digital confetti for the Murder Inc. co-founder.
A few weeks ago, we celebrated his protégé, Ashanti, during the Verzuz battle against Keyshia Cole, and listened to her talk about the records that changed her life. The undercurrent is that Ja Rule was threaded through all of those narratives. Today, we celebrate him for something he did for himself … not for J Lo … Lil Mo … or the former Princess of his label … he just finished at Harvard.
Jeffrey Atkins, the “Put It On Me” rapper, just successfully completed a Harvard Business School Online Certificate Program on “Entrepreneurship Essentials.” In a tweet, he hit the fans with the “I ain’t the sharpest knife in the drawer buuuuut…”
Danny Ray, the man who handed James Brown his cape during the soul legend’s most famous live shows, has died.
The 85-year-old died on Tuesday night (February 2nd) of natural causes, according to the Augusta Chronicle.
“The James Brown estate mourns the passing of Mr. Danny Ray, the legendary emcee and cape man for James Brown,” officials for Brown’s estate said in a statement. “Ray worked with Brown from 1960 until the music legend’s death on Christmas day 2006 (sic). He became famous for draping a cape over Brown at the end of his signature tune Please, Please, Please. Mr. Ray was the second-hardest working man in show business.”
Rev. Al Sharpton was among the first people to pay tribute to Ray, tweeting: “Saddened to get the call that Danny Ray, famed MC and cape man for James Brown, died at 85 years old. He was like an Uncle to me as I traveled the world years ago w/ (with) The Godfather of Soul. Danny will never be forgotten. Rest In Peace and Power, family.”
Ray was originally Brown’s valet before becoming his pre-concert emcee. His voice can be heard in introductions on multiple Brown live recordings, which have been sampled by a number of Hip-Hop artists throughout the years.
We lost another Legend Mr. Danny Ray.😪 Some called him Cape-man because he put on the Cape for James Brown, but for me when a Man Don't need his head Rubbed to activate Other's, he becomes Bigger than his Proceived appearance! Thx u Mr. Ray. Bootsy baby!!!✌️✊ pic.twitter.com/dVfuOLNrgE
Bassist Bootsy Collins has also paid tribute, tweeting: “We lost another Legend Mr. Danny Ray. Some called him Cape-man, because he put on the Cape for James Brown, but for me when a Man Don’t need his head Rubbed to activate Others, he becomes Bigger than his Proceived (sic) appearance! Thx u Mr. Ray…”
They are calling this rapper CJ the new Tekashi69! Just when you thought it was safe, another Tekashi69 has allegedly formed in Brooklyn. So the song “Whoopty” which I am very late to is a banger in the drill rap scene and the author of that song is supposedly a guy name CJ. You know CJ right? He is a young Staten Island rapper who is apparently Blood.
Is this song real, because it came out years ago?
But, as we know these things tend to be convoluted in the streets . How did he rise to rap so rapidly? I don’t really know the answer to that because I am not tapped in. However, I do know something that most people have not reported on.
My sources have told me that CJ is related to James Cruz. Now people may not know who James Cruz, but for many years James Cruz (and maybe still do this day) was the right here man of Sean “P Diddy” combs a.k.a. Diddy a.k.a. Puff Daddy A.k.a. probably the biggest boss Hip-Hop has ever seen. James Cruz is a really good guy and he’s very cool from what I have been told.
But La Brim – a Blood doing 30 years, refuted all things CJ…everything – DOES NOT CARE!
Back to James Cruz. I guess the question is: has he been impactful in helping CJ rise to the top the way he has? The second question I have is: can he help him get out of this mess that he’s in? The truth is these are some crazy times for rap artists and a lot of them are getting killed on a day-to-day basis! Not to put that in the air, but we have to say it because it’s nervous out here. Rappers are getting killed! As you may have noticed in the last couple of days a well. Blood Brother Brim may be the least of his worries. BK’s 22Gz is also accusing CJ of swagger jacking (do people still say that?). In a now deleted post, he said “@realcj_ giving me 60 Vibes & boy from staten island the safest borough in nyc.” This did not help!
Honestly, this is just bad all around – from a New York point of view. I don’t know if James Cruz is able to help, but I hope so. If that’s his nephew, which is what I’ve been told, then it may be a good idea for him to step in and do damage control. Honestly, it might even be a good idea to just step away from the Blood situation altogether for live’s sake. Over in LA, it looks like CJ is good. Those Bloods are a bit different so prayers for payments and peace.
CeeLo Green will be helping fans get romantic on the eve of St. Valentine’s Day as part of a “Sessions” livestream from the living room of his Atlanta, Georgia home.
“Sessions Presents: In The Spirit of Love, A Valentine’s Day Eve Special with Grammy Winner,” CeeLo Green is available to fans at $19.99, with packages including an after-party and VIP extras.
“Show some love to someone or treat yourself to a personalized V Day video from me,” CeeLo Green tweeted.
Lovers can tune in to watch the Forget You singer’s special show from 6 pm ET here: https://sessionslive.com/CeeLoGreen/tickets.
Lil Uzi Vert trolled everybody when he apparently put a $24 million diamond in his forehead, looking like Vision from The Avengers. However, in a serious twist of fate, it looks like Uzi has had some complications with his embedded pink diamond.
This could be more trolling or it could be some serious issue with the foreign object in the skin. Uzi posted a picture of himself with blood bleeding from the gym on his facial region. It looks real to me, but some people were skeptical, as they were when Uzi Vert initially said that he was embedding the diamond in his face. He also said “We good” on socials so, who know.
Yesterday, he was almost dying and today “we good.” I just hope that if he does die, there is a plan for that gem. My people say it’s likely only worth a fraction of what he paid, but that’s still a lot of money.
Either way, this is the most press Lil Uzi Vert has gotten in a very very long time (IMO). I am not sure what the end game is here but it’s probably going to be good because he is one of the hottest young old rappers out right now. I can’t help but say that this is stupid, putting a foreign object in your body is dangerous. Not to mention, the Internet is already waiting to watch you get robbed of the diamond in your forehead. I know it sounds sick, but one good tug and that bad boy’s out of your face.
If it’s worth $24 million, the way he says it is I don’t think there’s enough security they could stop enough goons to get it from you. What they do with it will be a harder proposition.
An alleged sex tape featuring R&B star Trey Songz has leaked online.
The “Bottoms Up” hitmaker became a trending topic on social media on Wednesday (February 3rd) after video footage emerged of a man receiving oral sex from an unidentified woman.
Fans were quick to scrutinize the X-rated clip to compare the man’s tattoos to those of the star, with many concluding Songz is indeed the guy in the video.
He has yet to confirm the speculation, but he appeared to address the gossip in his own Instagram post, sharing two photos of himself staring at a cell phone, with a confused look on his face.
He captioned the images with a shocked face emoji. The post was followed by a promotional message for his OnlyFans account, which he launched back in December.
Representatives for Songz have yet to comment on the sex tape controversy, which emerges just over a week after he hit headlines for an arrest in Kansas City, Missouri, where he clashed with police and security officials at Arrowhead Stadium.
He was booked for misdemeanors of trespassing and resisting arrest and hit with a felony for assaulting a police officer, after allegedly refusing to follow the venue’s coronavirus safety regulations and wear a face mask as he watched the Kansas City Chiefs take on the Buffalo Bills for the American Football Conference title.
Nick Cannon has been forced to step down as the host of the hit U.S. show “The Masked Singer” after testing positive for COVID-19.
The rapper-turned-TV personality is currently in quarantine and will reportedly miss the first few episodes of the upcoming new season.
Niecy Nash will take his place until he recovers and tests negative again.
Season four of the series just wrapped up with LeAnn Rimes beating out Aloe Blacc and Nick Carter. Season five is filming now and is set to premiere next month.
In related, more positive news, Nick Cannon’s daytime talk show will launch this autumn.
The show should already be on the air, but it was shelved after antisemitic comments Nick made on his “Cannon’s Class” podcast about the history of black people and Jews.
Jackson was a longtime associate of Herbert “G Herbo” Wright III. On what would have been Lil Greg’s 25th birthday, G Herbo posted an Instagram statement about his friend.
The Chicago-bred Hip Hop recording artist wrote:
SHORTY ALL I KNOW IS YOU!! FROM THE F###### CRADLE 2 THE GRAVE LITERALLY! AS IM WRITING THIS CAPTION TWIN I AIN’T EVEN DROPPING TEARS CUZ 4 WHAT WE ALWAYS BEEN STRONGER TOGETHER & YOU STILL WITH ME RIGHT NOW.. I FEEL YOU! I DREAMT ABOUT YOU IMMEDIATELY & WHEN I DID I DIDN’T EVEN UNDERSTAND IT TOOK ME A COUPLE DAYS & IM STILL UNDERSTANDING MORE BUT RN I GET A CLEARER PICTURE… YOU KNOW HOW WE LIVE & YOU KNOW HOW WE PLAY.. NUN ELSE TO SAY.. IT BE SO KRAZY HOW I RYHME EVERY TIME I WRITE A CAPTION DAMN NEAR CUZ THIS S### NEVER PRACTICED! LOL I KNOW YOU 1 N#### THAT WANT THE BEST FOR ME & WANT THE BEST OUT OF ME!!!! IM TRYING TO BE MY BEST RN LIL BRO & ITS HARD BUT IM TRYINGGGGGGGG FOLKS!! HOW THE F### CAN I BE MY BEST WITHOUT YOU & YOU THE SAME N#### I CALL ABOUT SOME S### AS SIMPLE AS WTF OUTFIT IM FINNA WEAR??!! IT’S DAMN NEAR IMPOSSIBLE! BUT IM SAYING ALL THIS S### TO SAY HAPPY BIRTHDAY HAPPY BIRTHRITE 2 MY LIL BABY BROTHER MAN!! #WATER A N#### SO PURE I JUST NAMED HIM WATER… YOU’LL NEVER BE GONE YOU’LL NEVER BE FORGOTTEN CUZ IK IM STAYING IN THIS S### 10 TOES DOWNN JUST OFF THE STRENGTH OF YOU! SO YOU LIVE THRU ME! I LOVE YOU & THEMM 2 LIL N##### CMON MANN YOU KNOW THEY A NEVER GO WITHOUT!! YOU MADE SURE THEY DON’T SO IMA MAKE SURE THEY WON’T. NO MORE SAD S### 4 THE GRAM IMA LIVE IT UP CUZ IK THATS ALLLLL YOU DID I NEVER SEEN YOU TOO SAD OR TOO DOWN B4 LOL & WE DONE BEEN THRU SOME SHIIIIITTTT KID!! YOU WAS ALWAYS THE BALANCE!! NOW GOT GOT A N#### DIZZYYY OUT HERE.
Last year, Herbo released the PTSD studio album. That project was centered around the 25-year-old rapper dealing with post-traumatic stress disorder. The PTSD diagnosis was the result of him losing several loved ones to violence throughout his childhood and actually witnessing a murder for the first time at the age of 9.
“I’ve seen firsthand that exploitation is everywhere in this industry – it’s become the status quo, and I’m tired of it. I’m tired of constantly fighting for independence and I’m tired of proving my value over and over again,” states Budden.
He continues, “This partnership with Patreon marks a new era for the creative economy: one where independence comes first and creators get paid – something that shouldn’t be revolutionary. Creators should get the biggest stake in their art and the system isn’t ready to do that, so we’re going to change the system. This is the new blueprint and we are the first.”
Budden is providing his supporters access to three Patreon membership tiers: Homies ($5.00/month), Family ($10.00/month), and Friend of the Show ($25.00/month). Bonus content includes exclusive episodes of The Joe Budden Podcast, behind-the-scenes footage, a members-only Discord, and priority notice on live events.
“Joe understands the discrepancy between what creators are worth and what they are paid. From music to podcasts, Joe has found himself reaching millions of people and getting a tiny fraction of the value he has created,” says Jack Conte, Patreon CEO/co-founder.
Conte adds, “That’s exactly the problem that Patreon set out to solve — and Joe wants to help. We’re excited to start working with him and figuring out even more ways to close the gap between the value that creators bring into the world and what they’re actually paid.”
The second edition of VH1’s original digital docuseries Growing Up Black debuted this week. For the latest installment, the show provides different perspectives from African-American men and women from New York City.
Legendary music producer DJ Clark Kent makes an appearance on Growing Up Black. Chi Ossé, NYC City Council candidate and son of Hip Hop podcast pioneer Reggie “Combat Jack” Ossé, was interviewed for the program too.
Entertainers, journalists, politicians, stylists, and other individuals shared their respective stories of being raised in The Bronx, Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens, or Staten Island. The previous episode of Growing Up Blackdove into the Black experience in New Orleans, Louisiana.
The YouTube description for “What It’s Like Growing Up Black in New York City” reads:
Growing Up Black: NYC is the second chapter of a series dedicated to interviewing local natives across various cities to explore their personal experiences around systemic racism, what it is like growing up black in America, the importance of voting in local elections and their feelings/experiences around the Black Lives Matter movement today.
