(AllHipHop Music)600 Breezy is without a doubt a Chicago mainstay.
Emerging from the Drill movement that took the nation by storm, 600 forged his own path with his unique flow and vocals which endeared him to fans across the globe.
Having overcome personal hardships and tragedy, 600’s circumstances fueled his work ethic, releasing a bevy of mixtapes and even captured the attention of rap superstar Drake, who used the then newcomers vocals on his ‘More Life’ playlist track “Lose You.”
The fanfare was short-lived though as 600 Breezy was arrested on a probation violation. In his time away, he received much support, included from Drake himself.
After serving 16 months, 600 was released and wasted no time getting back into the studio.
Fast forward to 2020, now on Asylum Records, the Chicago native has returned with the release of ‘Iceman Edition 2.’
The project is a departure from his more recent sounds, as he described it as an apologetic return to his gangsta roots.
“I went back to my hood to reconnect with myself,” says Breezy. I locked myself into the studio, slept on floors with my people, and watched the sun come up for days. I had to shake the Hollywood nonsense off me and get back to s###-talking Breezo. I created this project strictly for the streets.”
The 10-track project features production from Kid Hazel (21 Savage), Bankroll Got It (DaBaby), Womatictrack (2 Chainz), and more.
Further upping the ante, 600 Breezy released a visual to accompany the project in the form of the 3ZFilms-directed “Signature.”
Watch the video below and check 600 Breezy’s new mixtape ‘Iceman Edition 2,’ out now via Asylum Records.
(AllHipHop Music) Best known for his role as Tyrone Johnson on Marvel’s television series ‘Cloak & Dagger,’ in addition to playing Simba in the Broadway musical ‘The Lion King,’ actor turned recording artist, Aubrey Joseph unloads ‘XXI.’
Performing under the moniker Aubrey Omari (@aubreyomari), a combination of his first and middle name, the project serves as the Brooklyn native’s highly anticipated rap debut.
Composed of 13 cohesive cuts, including previously released single “Aston Martin,” the new album boasts features from Mduduzi Madela, NAJ, Féras Chatila, and Lamii.
Supported by self-directed music videos for “Cold” and “I Waited/Benz,” which feature a clip from his 2018 Breakfast Club interview as well as still images of Breonna Taylor and childhood friend Pop Smoke, ‘XXI’ is equally socially relevant as it is introspective.
Aubrey on the album:
“I gave 100% of myself on this album. Understanding that my debut can never be re-done, I put an extensive amount of energy and time into every single record. Once this comes out, it’s out forever and it’s part of my legacy as a rapper. During the creation process, I studied what I view as not only the greatest debuts in Hip-Hop, but the greatest Hip-Hop albums of all time; I wanted to match that vibe.
Paying homage to my East New York roots while simultaneously bringing something fresh to the scene was important. Detailing my journey from the block to Billboards, boy to man, and as the title suggests teenager to adult (21); a dream I was told would never come true, this album is my audio biography. Told in the most vulnerable way I could think of, this album is both a proclamation and manifestation of my own destiny as one day being one of the greatest ever to ever touch a mic.”
Despite his “apology,” Wiley was banished from Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.
Now, artists, managers, producers, labels, and other companies in the music industry have co-signed a letter, which states “that love, unity, and friendship, not division and hatred, must and will always be our common cause.”
“Whether it be systemic racism and racial inequality highlighted by continued police brutality in America, or anti-Jewish racism promulgated through online attacks, the result is the same: suspicion, hatred and division. We are at our work when we attack one another,” the letter reads.
“From slavery to the Holocaust we have painful collective memories. All forms of racism have the same roots – ignorance, lack of education, and scapegoating,” the letter continues.
The letter is signed by artists such as Naughty Boy, The 1975, Clean Bandit, and even Ed Sheeran’s manager, Stuart Camp.
As the “godfather of grime,” Wiley’s influence in the culture and genre, and the impact he has on his fans is tremendous.
For him to make such atrocious statements against Jewish people was the last straw for his management, who dropped him immediately.
(AllHipHop News) We all remember the debacle that was Fyre Festival, which was supposed to take place in the Bahamas in the summer of 2017.
Festival-goers paid $1200-$100,000 thinking they’d see their favorite music acts, such as Blink 182 and Migos, hit the festival stage.
They were bamboozled into paying for luxurious accommodations and gourmet food. Instead, they arrived and were put in white tents and fed packaged food.
Three years later, U.S. Marshals have decided to auction off the merchandise that was left on the Festival grounds – a total of 126 items.
All proceeds would be split amongst the victims of the mastermind behind the whole scam, Billy McFarland.
While the proceeds could never amount to the total damage McFarland caused, it’s better than nothing.
“This Fyre Festival-branded clothing and other items that were seized from Billy McFarland were originally intended to be sold at Fyre Festival itself but were kept by McFarland, with the intent to sell the items and use the funds to commit further criminal acts while he was on pre-trial release,” stated U.S. Marshal, Ralph Sozio, in an official release.
From sweatpants, baseball caps, wristbands, and t-shirts are among the items up for auction.
The auction is run by Gaston & Sheehan from Texas, ends on August 13th.
(AllHipHop News) Dancehall icon Mavado has taken aim at Drake on his new song “Enemy Line” for appropriating Dancehall music.
While this is the first time Mavado has taken shots at Drake on a record, although the two previously feuded after Drake referenced Dancehall artist Popcaan on his “Only You Freestyle:”
“With Pop Skull in Gaza, but not that Gaza, but still it’s a mazza. N##gas want peace like Cassava. But we let bridge dem burn like grabba. Four in the cliz and one in the headie. Hand no shake, man, hold that stay. You man love pose with the ting for the picture. You man shoulda buss that ting already.”
On “Enemy Line,” Mavado claims that no matter how tough Drake might think he is, or how hard he’s trying to be accepted by the culture, he will never be “from yard.”
“Guh f##k yuhself, f##k yuh fist & fornicate. Cassava piece dat a mi army base. Tell soft and fake likkle sheep, like mormon. Die trying but you will be a yard man.”
Mavado also goes as far as to accuse Drake of secretly wishing he was Jamaican.
MD$ is here to put Finland on the map, while trying to break into the US market. The Grammy-nominated, multi-Platinum producer and DJ has had some major success when it comes to placements, co-producing “Never Know” for 6lack, “Bone Marrow” for G-Eazy, “Push It” for Kevin Gates, and “Diamonds” for Normani and Megan Thee Stallion.
Now he’s focused on not only traveling to Los Angeles (whenever the pandemic ends), but also releasing his own production EP with features from friends G-Eazy and Danny Seth. Additionally, audiences can expect a documentary on the reality of an overseas producer and the difference in cultures compared to the States.
The name MD$ means “million dollar smile,” which he got when he was “young and stupid.” He fondly recalls thinking “I’m not going to smile until I get my first million,” and ended up breaking that promise.
AllHipHop caught up with the 27-year-old via FaceTime who was posted in Helsinki, Finland, to discuss his upbringing in Finland, biggest influences, his placements, fatherhood, and more!
AllHipHop: Being from Finland, what was the household like growing up?
MD$: It was cool. My parents were separated when I was super young so I was always going back and forth from my dad and my mom’s house. I had plenty of siblings too: 3 on my dad’s side and one on my mother’s side so it’s been busy taking care of children. Music was always there as well because my mom’s a singer and my dad’s drummer. Music’s always been in the family.
AllHipHop: Who were your biggest influences?
MD$: That’s a hard one, damn. When I first got into rap and hip-hop, it must’ve been 50 Cent. That’s who really sucked me into that whole sound and genre. It was the wave, the catchy hooks, the beats, they really hooked you in.
AllHipHop: How did you get into producing?
MD$: My dad actually, he downloaded Fruity Loops 3 when I was 14 or 15. He had it on his computer and I always used to play around with it. Wasn’t really doing anything serious, I was messing around and seeing what you could do with it. I was 15 when I actually started taking it serious. I thought “alright, these beats are starting to sound good. I’m getting somewhere.” From that moment on, I kept on working and working.
AllHipHop: What were some of your favorite placements?
MD$: I had plenty here in Finland before I had anything in the States or the UK. I was working with the biggest artist here but I felt it wasn’t enough for me. I went to London, I met some guys there: a group called Last Night In Paris and the rapper Danny Seth. Danny ended up getting signed in LA, then Danny and G started working together. My first major placement there was G-Eazy featuring Danny Seth, a random track they dropped.
AllHipHop: What was that big artist in Finland?
MD$: JVG. It’s a duo, 2 rappers. They changed the game here, pretty crazy.
AllHipHop: How did you land in a writing session for 6lack’s “Never Knew”?
MD$: That song was random, I didn’t even know who 6lack was when I first heard the track. At that point he wasn’t really that big yet, he was coming up. A friend of mine named Fweslaxsh must’ve sent the beat to someone working with him and it ended up on the project. When it came out, I’m like “oh damn, this is crazy.” It ended up getting a Grammy nomination and all that, crazy. Crazy story.
AllHipHop: How’s it feel to be nominated for a Grammy already this early in your career?
MD$: It’s crazy, it just happened. I landed on it, it’s a blessing.
AllHipHop: Talk about your own production EP you’re working on. You have features with G-Eazy & Danny Seth.
MD$: It’s going to be fire. It’s going to be some bangers, then some experimental s##t. It’s going to be a mixture of different types of s##t. The first tracks will probably be out by the end of this year, hopefully. This Corona situation made it harder because I should be there [America] right now, but I can’t. I have to wait it out and see what’s going to happen. As soon as this thing clears, I’ll be there working on this project.
AllHipHop: You plan on moving here or working here temporarily?
MD$: Yeah, I’m going to move there. I got 2 kids here so I’m obviously going to be doing the back and forth thing. Maybe a few months there, come back for a month with the kids. I have to come up for an arrangement for that.
AllHipHop: You have a 7-year-old and 4-year-old. What have you learned from fatherhood?
MD$: A lot man, discipline. I had to grow up at an earlier age, step my game up. That’s a big part of why I started going really crazy with the producing and DJ s##t. When I got the news I had a baby on the way, that gives you a different kind of drive.
MD$: It was cool. I’m used to performing because I’ve been deejaying for a lot of the local rappers here, they’ve been doing big shows for thousands of people. It wasn’t anything crazy, but it was cool to be part of that whole night. That show was here in Finland, it was a festival called Rockfest. I ended up being there the same time.
AllHipHop: Talk about deejaying versus producing, obviously you have a passion for both.
MD$: The passion’s more for producing and deejaying comes along with that. I started deejaying when I was young, that’s the first thing I started doing. I wanted to learn how to scratch because I was making New York, East Coast type beats. They always had scratches on them. I wanted to learn how to deejay and that whole world, that got me money here as well. I started deejaying for different rappers here, started doing parties here and there. I wasn’t really enjoying playing other people’s music that much, I liked playing my own stuff. That’s more fun for me.
AllHipHop: What can we expect from your documentary from Finland?
MD$: It’s going to be interesting. It’s going to be a lot of inside stuff of me going back and forth between LA and Finland. It’s going to show a lot of different songs we put out. We shot the making of the Kevin Gates track, the Megan Thee Stallion track. It’s going to be fun man.
AllHipHop: Why do you want to migrate to the States?
MD$: The chances there are bigger for me to get my sound out. I’m limited here with my sound and the way the people are obviously. I like to be in the room with people I’m working with.
AllHipHop: Why do you feel Finland is limiting? Is it the culture there?
MD$: That’s limited too, then if I’m trying to work with people, I really like to be around people when I’m actually producing the song. It’s hard for me to do that from out here to different people in the States. The sound people are putting out here is not that rich yet, you have to have certain little things if you want to get to a certain level here. The song needs to be more commercial maybe, in that sense. I love the freedom in the States. A song can go big, but it doesn’t have to be a certain type of sound.
AllHipHop: How’s it feel to go Gold with Kevin Gates?
MD$: That happened through my friend Edgar in the States, he hooked me up. Me and my friend FRACTIOUS FRANK made the beat. s##t, another one of those stories where we sent the beat out and it happened.
AllHipHop: What does it mean to go Platinum in both countries? What songs?
MD$: It’s cool but I feel that’s not enough. I still want to leave a bigger mark, do something that’s special. Platinum is always cool, but it’s not what I’m after here.
AllHipHop: What are you after?
MD$: Changing the game, giving people more chances. That’s what I’m doing, getting people from here a chance to break into the US as well. There’s so much talent here, but there’s not enough people here looking after them or pushing them to send songs out to people in the States. I want to be that bridge between all the Scandinavians, especially the people in Finland. I want to keep pushing the younger people, that’s what I really want to do. Obviously I’m making my s##t go crazy first too.
AllHipHop: What is it about your beats?
MD$: They’re honest. I’m doing what I feel like and that’s what it is.
AllHipHop: How do you create a vibe in the studio?
MD$: It’s different with different people. You having to read the situation and see what the artist is vibing to, set the mood for him. If it’s just me, I’m putting my LED lights on. Put the purple color on and start vibing out.
AllHipHop: Who are some artists you want to work that you haven’t yet?
MD$: There’s a lot. Drake’s one of them, he’s got one of the craziest vocal sounds. He’s super present on the track. 50 would be crazy to work with. Rihanna, that’d be crazy. Koffee, she’s got a crazy voice. Burna Boy, Post Malone, man there’s so many of these.
It’s been two years since Young Dolph has given his fans a solo album.
His new album is called Rich Slave and comes as the highly anticipated follow-up of Dum & Dummer, which was last year’s collaborative effort with Key Glock.
Young Dolph has already given us a taste of what’s to come with singles, “Blue Diamonds,” and “RNB,” which was produced by Juicy J and featured Megan Thee Stallion.
It’ll be interesting to see what else Dolph has up his sleeves for this project, which drops August 14th.
As if there wasn’t enough hype surrounding the album, Young Dolph has also announced the official “Rich Slave Lamborghini Contest.”
The winner will get Dolph’s custom-wrapped, blue, and orange striped Lambo, priced at nearly $415K.
To top it all off, Young Dolph is set to personally deliver the prize to the winner himself.
Fans and car enthusiasts have until August 20th to enter the contest and a winner will be chosen at random on September 4th.
(AllHipHop News) If you are are a true fan of J. Cole, you already know he’s actually kind of nice on the basketball court.
After playing on his high school team and enrolling at St. John’s University in Queens, NY, Cole skipped his freshman year, and tried out for the team as a sophomore.
The rapper ultimately stuck to academia (he graduated Magna C## Laude in 2007) and his passion for music, which has earned him his place in Hip-Hop history.
Now, at 35-years-old, Cole is apparently looking to re-live out his dreams as an NBA hooper.
The pair linked up when Master P did voiceover work for one of Cole’s Puma’s commercials. According to Master P., they discussed Cole’s intentions to train and try out for an NBA team roster spot.
After finding out his desire to play for the League, P shared some words of wisdom with Cole:
“I said to get one of these NBA jerseys, it’s not gonna be easy. It’s gonna be a lot of hate, it’s gonna be a lot of people not believing in you but you know J. Cole — he got the right size, he in the gym!”
“But, what I told him … this a different time we’re in. They’re going to pick you apart! You’re gonna have to be able to hit every shot and if you don’t hit every shot, they — you know in the NBA, they don’t hit every shot but they believe in them. So, you’re gonna have to go somewhere where the team really believe in you and the players believe in you.”
He also made it very clear to Cole that just because he’s a celebrity, doesn’t mean they (the players & coaches) will take it easy on him.
“They’ve been putting their whole life into this. So, you’re gonna have to prove you’re worthy of being on that court,” said Master P.
The rap star’s house arrest officially ended on July 31st and the rap star has not wasted a minute.
The rapper was spotted in Brooklyn early today (August 2nd) shooting a new music video surrounded by a fleet of luxury cars and a massive entourage.
Tekashi 6ix9ine served two years in prison after being charged in a RICO case against the Nine Trey Gangsta Bloods in 2018.
The rap star’s cooperation earned him a reduced sentence, while 12 of his former gang associates were convicted and sentenced to prison terms ranging from 2 – 20 years.
Tekashi 6ix9ine, born Daniel Hernandez, was sprung from prison early in April of 20/20, after winning his appeal for compassionate release due to the coronavirus.
Since then, Tekashi 6ix9ine had been on house arrest.
Even though his house arrest has ended, 6ix9ine still has to follow mandatory procedures – like checking in with his parole officer at specified times.
Now he can finally leave confined spaces of his own home, but he still can’t move as freely as he used to.
According to TMZ, 6ix9ine still has to get permission to leave the state or the country. These rules apply even if it’s work-related travel such as shows or recording sessions.
The rapper is also required to perform and complete 300 hours of community service.
These are the terms that come with the Tekashi 6ix9ine’s supervised release for the next five years.
Tekashi 6ix9ine shot the video for his new song “P#####,” which has racked up tens-of-millions of views within the first few hours of its release. Take a look:
Thankfully, Slim Thug made it through, as did his fellow Houstonian Scarface, but rappers like Fred the Godson and the UK’s Ty were not so lucky.
Now a second wave of the coronavirus is hitting the city of Houston and Slim Thug is doing his part to flatten the curve.
Slim Thug just launched his own PPE company called SlimHTX.
According to the Houston Chronicle, Slim Thug launched the new business as a partnership with two local entrepreneurs, Jimmy Choung of Uptown Beauty, and Adam Beason, who heads up the Rubix Entertainment Group.
Slim Thug’s new company offers a variety of products aimed at preventing the spread of COVID-19. Products include hand sanitizer, face masks, face Shields, and personalized N95 masks.
“I’m excited to launch my PPE products but we can also make it look like a boss. We need to make wearing masks cool,” Slim Thug told the newspaper. “The most important thing right now is staying safe. This virus is serious and people need to be cautious.”
Slim Thug has been on the forefront of fighting the coronavirus in Houston since his positive diagnosis.
(AllHipHop Rumors) Who the heck is this guy JW Lucas? This dude is a straight up clown that calls himself a Hip-Hop producer! The fella is operating in our culture as a white man with real real racist tendencies! I don’t know where he came from but it is time for him to get the hell out! I hope somebody bolos his monkey a$$!
This guy made some stupid comments about Breonna Taylor and those comments did not go on unchecked at all. But more than anything it seems like Tamika Mallory, one of my sheroes, checked him the hardest. Apparently all of this played out over Instagram Live.
The guy made the statements on Twitter and then double down on them! And then he began to diss Mallory which is totally unacceptable! I think it’s time for Mysonne or someone like myself to put paws on him.
Since this all manifested, he has apologized! He claims he talked to Breonna’s sister….we don’t GAF, bro! S### and GTFOHWTBS! You are a class clown and a racist ass fool. You have been permitted to walk in our culture unchecked for far too long. And there are other instances where this bozo has been talking crazy – with a damn ROOM of Black men. I question those MEN as well for letting this dude WITH 500 FOLLOWERS ON TWITTER to even get in the room. Why am I writing about a person with less followers than people that attended my high school prom?
(AllHipHop News) This pandemic hasn’t stopped the scammers.
If anything, it’s only motivated them to go harder. Earlier this month, a bitcoin scam went into full effect as Twitter accounts of Barack Obama, Joe Biden & Elon Musk were hacked.
It didn’t take long for feds and investigators to track down the culprits – Mason Sheppard from the UK, Nina Fazeli from Orlando, and Graham Ivan Clark, a minor from Tampa.
Hard to believe these three are young, 19, 22, and 17-years-old, respectively.
Clark, the youngest of them all, was surprisingly the evil genius behind the entire scheme. He was arrested yesterday morning.
Clark managed to compromise a Twitter employee, who sold him access to the accounts and the internal controls of Twitter. Clark then used the accounts to solicit people for Bitcoin, promising to send back twice as much to the Twitter employee.
Clark made $100,000 in a single day and because Bitcoin is a cryptocurrency, the scammed money is hard to track and recover.
“There is a false belief within the criminal hacker community that attacks like the Twitter hack can be perpetrated anonymously and without consequence,” US Attorney David Anderson said in a statement. “Today’s charging announcement demonstrates that the elation of nefarious hacking into a secure environment for fun or profit will be short-lived.”
Twitter is cooperating with the FBI. Each individual is expected in court today (August 1st).
(AllHipHop News) Founding member of the Southern Hip-Hop group Three 6 Mafia, Juicy J, has just announced that he is dropping a new solo album.
Looks like Juicy J is going all out as he has tapped the “who’s who” in rap music to guest star on his new project The Hustle Continues.
Names like Megan thee Stallion, Lil Baby, A$AP Rocky, Wiz Khalifa, Logic, Ty Dollar $ign, Young Dolph, Rico Nasty, Jay Rock, 2 Chainz, Conway and more have decided to support the “Dark Horse” emcee on his fifth studio album.
This will be Juicy J’s first indie project since his album Hustler Till I Die in 2009. His new partnership with eOne is not really new.
Juicy worked with the label’s president Alan Grumblatt, who signed the rapper and his Memphis crew Three 6 Mafia to Relativity when they first got started.
“Alan gave Three 6 Mafia our first deal, he believed in me then and he believes in what I’m doing today as an artist, and as a producer,” Juicy J explained. “It made the most sense to release The Hustle Continues independently and eOne gave me the best deal where I own 100% of my masters.”
Juicy J’s new single and video “GAH DAMN HIGH” dropped today and features Wiz Khalifa. The new video is directed by Joe Weil.
The visuals for “GAH DAMN HIGH” mimics a reality TV show — following Juicy J around his massively big and white property as he does the juiciest things, like painting a cannabis portrait, cleaning his house to make sure it COVID-19 free, along with zoomed guest appearances from Wiz Khalifa, as well as his friends Gary Vee, Lena The Plug and Adam 22.
The Hustle Continues, which Juicy J produced and executive produced, is available October 14th on eOne.
Hailing from Memphis, Jessica Ray began her musical career at age 13, singing and dancing her way through her teen years.
Attending University of Memphis, she graduated with both a bachelors and masters in Music Performance and Journalism, while performing in a group on campus called Sound Fuzion.
Fast forward to 2020, she’s living out her dreams of being a recording artist daily. Ray hopes for her music to inspire and touch the masses, encouraging them to do what makes them happy. Now, she releases the official music video for her single titled “Lock.”
The song itself explains the inner thoughts and feelings of a woman, standing for all the strong, confident females in the world speaking their truth. The vibe is perfect for that summertime romance!
Look out for more from the MIME Records recording artist.
It’s Taylor Gang Or Die, all day everyday. Chevy Woods has been with Wiz Khalifa since the beginning, serving as his hype man as they were both coming up in their hometown of Pittsburgh. Chevy, whose real name is Kevin Woods, actually used to rap under the moniker Kev Tha Hustla, which speaks volumes to his life before the music.
The name Chevy came about after he was blocked out of his Twitter. During a show in Kansas, Wiz let Kev use his Twitter to ask the fans what they thought about changing his name. Chevy actually was given from one of his homeboys in his neighborhood of Hazelwood, and the people were all for it.
Chevy has been featured on some of Wiz’ biggest hits, including “Medicated,” “Karate,” “No Permission,” “Still Down,” and more. Now 17 projects later, Chevy returns with his highly-anticipated debut album titled Since Birth. The project details the real Chevy Woods as a man, father, artist — not just the positive things you see on the internet and social media.
AllHipHop caught up with Chevy Woods at the Kandypens house about how he got his name, early Taylor Gang days, the meaning behind Since Birth, fatherhood, and more!
AllHipHop: You used to go by Kev Tha Hustla, how much were you hustlin’?
Chevy Woods: I mean, I’m here now. I was the true meaning of listening to the OG saying: “get in and get out.” I got what I got out of it, then I got out. It wasn’t really a struggle to do that, because music came about.
AllHipHop: What was a young Kev Tha Hustler like? When did music come into your life?
Chevy Woods: I played basketball in different neighborhoods. I was writing raps then, but nothing I wanted to show people. I went to college after high school for a year, at Robert Morris University. I met one of my homies, he’s my roommate. This dude’s showing me how to do the parental advisories on the computer, the artwork. He had a book full of rhymes, I’m like “yo I can rap too.” At that time, I remembered everything I said. He had it written down, I wanted to write rhymes. It wasn’t 16s or 8s, it was straight to the pad. Next page, rip through the pad. He showed me how to put raps together, I started in college. Then I left school and went back to the hood, jumped to the streets. It was still a hobby, but it wasn’t an everyday thing for me.
AllHipHop: When did Taylor Gang happen?
Chevy Woods: Taylor Gang happened when I was hustling in the hood, s##t didn’t work out. At one point it was good, then at one point it was super bad. I went broke, I was f##ked up. Hustling of course, you’re going to go through roadblocks. I f##ked the money up. Nobody else’s money, but my money. On some embarrassed s##t, I left the hood and went to stay with my girlfriend at the time. She lived 30 minutes away from the hood, so I never had to go there. People don’t know, this is deep s##t. I’m letting this out because the album’s called Since Birth, basically everything I f##king went through. It’s destined for me to put this album out at this time and explain it to people.
AllHipHop: How old were you?
Chevy Woods: I might’ve been 21, 22. It wasn’t me because I’m used to being in the hood with the homies all the time. Damn, you broke. You can’t really hang with the homies, they have nothing for you. Of course I had people that’d give me s##t, but my pride was too big to ask for something. s##t got bad, I asked one of my cousins for something. He gave me something, we turned that into something, then turned that into something else. We’re back on the move again. I was in the hood, s##t got good. Real s##t, phones start crackin’ again. I couldn’t even really f##king sit down no more, now I’m running around hustling forreal. That lifestyle was everyday: wake up, answer the phone, serve people, smoke weed, sleep, repeat.
AllHipHop: Were you making bank though?
Chevy Woods: I was, everyday. To put it into perspective: when I quit hustling, Wiz said “yo, I feel like you got one foot in and one foot out. I’m about to give you 2 weeks.” It wasn’t an ultimatum, but he had to be on the move with what he’s doing.
AllHipHop: How’d you and Wiz meet each other?
Chevy Woods: We met through my homie Freeze at ID Labs, with my homeboy E. Dan who mixed this whole album right here. It goes way back. We went to the studio, Wiz was there. He liked what I was doing, I liked what he was doing. We recorded a song called “Me” the same day, been cool ever since. I was his hype man, he’s thinking bigger than what I thought it could be.
Once he put me on, I thought “alright cool, I’ma ride this out. Put the same hustle I was putting in the streets, over here.” I cold turkeyed. When I left messing around in the streets, I had $33K. I didn’t really have any responsibilities. I was with my girlfriend, she had a daughter. I was raising her (who’s still in my life right now, that’s my baby). A bunch of stuff going on for me. Wiz showed me we could do this s##t, if we really do it. f##k the street s##t. I’m still that n*gga regardless if I sell drugs or not, but I quit hustling to go do this.
AllHipHop: You said people seen you grow up on the internet, did you enjoy that?
Chevy Woods: Yeah for sure, I didn’t know that though. Of course, Wiz one day said “we’re gonna take over the internet.” I’m like “what the f##k do you mean?” The internet for me wasn’t a thing to be taken over until Twitter s##t came about. He showed me Twitter, then he showed me Ustream. I’m from the streets, my mentality isn’t really thinking that.
I’m not even gon’ say I come from the streets, I come from a good home. Even though my dad left, my mom raised us as good kids. She worked in the Board of Education. Of course, times were hard. Sometimes we didn’t have the best of foods or the best of clothes, but we weren’t mad. Wiz showed me this music s##t could work. I’d never have thought of it like that, on a bigger scale.
AllHipHop: How hard was it to leave the streets?
Chevy Woods: It was difficult. I was making $3K, $4K, $5K a day. Of course the streets, you go up and down. You go to jail being caught with s##t, it sets you back. If your phone’s ringing and you go to jail, they call somebody else. It sets you back, no matter how much time it is. Once I cold turkeyed, f##k that s##t. Going on the road, Wiz was starting to pop. We weren’t making $10K or $15K a show, it was $2K a show we had to break down with the homies. Wiz was still that in tune to be like “y’all out here with me, let me break y’all off with some money.” Even if it was for clothes and eating, we’re here. He’s paying for the hotels, it was real s##t.
AllHipHop: How was it having his career explode the way it did?
Chevy Woods: It was dope. I left the dope game, the streets with money. I wasn’t really worried about money, I was worried about him going to where he saw it all going. I wanted to help that in any way I can. When it came time for me to become the hype man, I was all on-board. f##k what I’m doing, we gon’ do this and I’ll get to what I’m doing later.
AllHipHop: What are your fondest memories from the early Taylor Gang days?
Chevy Woods: Man, we used to be in ID Labs studios man. Shout out to E-Dan, Germ, Franchise, Josh. Ideas were flowing, we never knew where the f##k it was going. We recorded in places where the heat wasn’t on, in full coats and hoodies writing rhymes. Record in the basement, then go in the stairs. It was tough.
AllHipHop: How are the studio sessions now?
Chevy Woods: Oh, they’re amazing. [laughs] You go where you want, you go when you want. You come with your ideas and work. Of course we thugged it out to get here, but it’s a real working environment now. I could go with f##king horseshoes on or I can go with a f##king sweatsuit, or with shorts and a t-shirt on. We can do whatever now, it’s way better. And we’re in California.
AllHipHop: You dropped 17 projects and no album. Why is that?
Chevy Woods: Sometimes I ask myself that, all tapes and 2 or 3 EPs. I was prepared to do albums. Before this album, I trashed 4 or 5 of them.
AllHipHop: Are you a super tough critic on yourself?
Chevy Woods: For sure! It has to be the right way. Some of those songs come back, like “Hands on a Dashboard” is from 2017. All the stuff happened with police brutality and it made sense. I didn’t put it out at the time, I made it because it’s a situation that happened to me. It had nothing to do with anything going on in the world, I went to the studio after that s##t happened. I didn’t even write a second verse because the first verse explained exactly what happened.
AllHipHop: Talk about album listening tonight, you have everyone out here. How’d it feel to see Wiz dancing to your records?
Chevy Woods: It’s crazy, that’s my dawg. We talk about everything. For the album, I really wanted him to be in tune. Making it, I was sending him everything. I was telling him the moves I was going to make because without him, this is not what I saw. Me believing in what he believed in, then he believed in my talents enough to be like “alright, now we can put the album out.” Not that he wasn’t behind all my other music, but now he’s like “you feel comfortable? I feel comfortable.”
He wasn’t pushing me to be album, album, album. He said ‘when you ready, we gon’ do it.” Now I’m ready, I’m doing it. I put it together, he sees all the work and all the songs. How I’m doing all the videos, putting all the promo s##t together, as a team too. A lot of people aren’t talking but they’re handling all my s##t and I appreciate it. Shout out to the gang man. I’ma pull up to the office, I’m sorry I’ve been neglecting the office.
AllHipHop: “Gang With Us” went all the way up, bring us back to that studio session.
Chevy Woods: I wish Sledgren was in the session, but he wasn’t there. The thing with me and Sledgren, our moms are close friends. That’s my mom on the back of the artwork, my mom’s standing in front of Sledgren’s mom’s house. It all tied in. My mom told me where the picture was taken at, but she didn’t tell me what year so I don’t know how old we were. They’re good friends, so it’s close-knit. I used to live on the 4600 block then moved to the 4800 block, but we still stayed friends because Lewis Park is the playground that we’d all meet at and have fun in the hood.
AllHipHop: What’s one thing you want fans to get from this project?
Chevy Woods: They watched me grow up on the internet, without the music. They heard projects I put together, but it’s a lot of s##t I haven’t ever told nobody. I had to be comfortable with myself. It’s me man, this is the real me. My path wasn’t easy and I wouldn’t change it, but there’s a lot of things people don’t know about me. A lot of things I went through that people don’t know. I show them all the happiness, all the fun, all the smoking weed, all the drinking, but at the same time it’s a message. I don’t do one side of the coin, we’re both sides of the coin.
AllHipHop: You’ve been cheffing it up? Seen you make jerk chicken.
Chevy Woods: The cooking’s real man. I went home 10 days ago and cooked for my mama on Father’s Day. I’m still in my stepdaughter’s life — not even my stepdaughter, that’s my daughter. My princess. We’re really in tune, she does everything like me. A lot of the times, it’s “I’m a dad man, I’m tryna lay back and drink a beer.” You know what, let me cook for my mom. My dad’s still in my life, but they’re not together. Let me go over and cook for my mom, show her Big Woods.
Chevy Woods: That’s my role model, not even gon’ front. I watch his videos, I see his wine and his tequila. He’s a f##king role model. Kobe was happy as hell to go against Jordan. Allen Iverson was happy to go up against Jordan. I’m the Allen Iverson of cooking. One time we might play, I might cross him up. He told me after this quarantine is over, we gon’ get together. He told me how much he’s a Michelin star, it’s all good. I respect that. I don’t think he knew I watched so much of his cooking until I said something. Shout out to E-40, sprinkle me man.
AllHipHop: Did you and Wiz bond over fatherhood, especially in the beginning?
Chevy Woods: Oh yeah, for sure. I was on the road when he didn’t have a kid, he said “yo, I see how you raised your daughter. I’ma have a kid one day and it’s gon’ be the same type of deal.” How he does it is amazing, out of this world. His dad’s amazing, his mom’s amazing, we all help. It’s a village.
AllHipHop: As someone with a platform, what do you think needs to happen in the world?
Chevy Woods: Get Donald Trump the f##k out of office. [walks off]
(AllHipHop News) Kim K was not happy about Kanye West talking about one of the most personal decisions of their family – at a political rally.
He apologized to the world, but he still is taking to social media to keep the top fresh in people’s minds.
On July 25, Kanye West apologized to his wife for violating their trust and telling the world about the two of them considering aborting their first child North West.
He said on Twitter, “I would like to apologize to my wife Kim for going public with something that was a private matter. I did not cover her like she has covered me. Kim I want to say I know I hurt you. Please forgive me. Thank you for always being there for me.”
The 43-year-old received his wife for a few days at their Wyoming Ranch and rumors have abound that they were fighting the whole time.
The root of the couple’s discourse started when Kanye decided to make abortion the linchpin of his presidential campaign agenda at a South Carolina rally on July 19.
It was there he revealed that he and Kim had considered getting rid of North West. He also revealed that his own father wanted his mother to terminate her pregnancy with him.
The apology was last Saturday, but since then Kanye has sent out all kinds of anti-abortion tweets — clearly leaning to the hard-right evangelicals who may vote for him.
“I cried at the thought of aborting my firstborn and everyone was so concerned about me… I’m concerned for the world that feels you shouldn’t cry about this subject.”
Conchita Leeflang replied to one of his posts telling him to stop communicating on social media and focus on his family.
“DE-LETE. Go work on your family. Your kids and your wife is ALL that should matter eight now. Your “real” friends should tell you. Your “fake” ones will NOT. You are KNOWN to be an excellent father. THEY need you right now. No one on twitter does.”
DE-LETE. Go work on your family. Your kids and your wife is ALL that should matter eight now. Your "real" friends should tell you. Your "fake" ones will NOT. You are KNOWN to be an excellent father. THEY need you right now. No one on twitter does. 🙏🏾🙏🏾
(AllHipHop News) R&B superstar The Weeknd is taking over social media app TikTok next week for an interactive livestream concert.
The Weeknd Experience will feature the singer as a digital avatar, belting out hits from his latest album, After Hours, in an augmented-reality gig created especially for the platform.
The unique show, scheduled to take place on August 7th, will mark TikTok’s first such concert and will feature 3D graphics and picture-in-picture video.
Viewers will also be encouraged to support the campaign to fight racial inequality by donating to the Equal Justice Initiative during the broadcast, with TikTok bosses agreeing to match funds “up to a generous amount”.
In addition, there will be exclusive The Weeknd Experience merchandise made available for purchase from August 6th-10th, with proceeds benefiting the EJI.
The concert will premiere exclusively on the @tiktok account from 8:30 pm after which there will be a number of repeat airings.
(AllHipHop News) Nicki Minaj’s husband is asking a judge to adjust the terms of his pretrial release so he can be by the pregnant rapper’s side when she gives birth.
Kenneth Petty is currently free on bond as he awaits trial for failing to register as a sex offender in California after he and Minaj moved to the state last summer from his native New York, where he was convicted for attempted rape in 1995.
In the documents, Petty claims authorities at the U.S. Attorney’s Office and pretrial services office have no objections to his request, so he simply needs the judge’s approval to lift the curfew and travel restrictions.
A ruling has yet to be made.
The news comes days after Minaj confirmed rumors suggesting she is expecting the couple’s first child by sharing photos from a fun maternity shoot.
(AllHipHop News) The 2020 MTV Video Music Award nominees have dropped and to no one’s surprise, Hip-Hop is straight housing the place.
Up for Video of The Year are two rappers and their special featured artists: Eminem ft. Juice WRLD’s “Godzilla” and Future ft. Drake’s “Life Is Good.”
Competition is stiff for them as they are up against top names like Billie Eilish, Lady Gaga and Ariana Grande, Taylor Swift, and The Weeknd.
DaBaby and Megan Thee Stallion are up for Artist of The Year. Post Malone, Justin Bieber, The Weeknd, and Lady Gaga are also being considered for the incredible honor.
When it comes down to the Best Collaborations, it is not shocking that Future and Drake are up there as serious contenders. Karol G ft. Nicki Minaj’s “Tusa” and Black Eyed Peas ft. J. Balvin’s “RITMO” is sure to shake up the category.
Ms. Karol G has been called the Rihanna of the Latin world and will surely bring her sex appeal to the stage should she be offered an opportunity to perform.
Where you would expect rappers to dominate is in the Best Hip-Hop category.
Who are talents that MTV believes are the Best Hip-Hop songs of 2019? It looks like they got it right with acts that fans love and enjoy.
DaBaby’s “BOP,” Eminem ft. Juice WRLD’s “Godzilla,” Future ft. Drake’s “Life Is Good,” Megan Thee Stallion’s “Savage,” Roddy Ricch’s “The Box,” and Travis Scott’s “Highest In The Room” are all up for the award.
A few new categories are going to make it to the show: Video for Good, Best Music Video From Home, and Best Quarantine Performance.
Lil Baby scoots in there with his “The Bigger Picture” for his do-gooder video. Drake slides in there with his “Toosie Slide” for Best Music Video From Home.
Regardless of who is nominated for The Best Quarantine Performance, there is only one real winner … trust us … it will be DJ D-Nice. He has to be the winner; his Instagram show Club Quarantine is bodying life — not just the show.
Other Hip-Hop acts up for awards are as follows:
Best Direction: Doja Cat’s “Say So”
Best Cinematography: Camila Cabello ft. DaBaby’s “My Oh My”
Best Art Direction: A$AP Rocky’s “Babushka Boi”
Best Visual Effects: Travis Scott’s “HIGHEST IN THE ROOM”
Best Choreography: DaBaby’s “BOP”
It is amazing to know that Drake goes into the season with 4 nominations and DaBaby, Doja Cat, Megan Thee Stallion, Roddy Ricch, and Future are tied with 3 nominations.
Best of luck to everyone. The 2020 Video Music Awards airs on MTV, Sunday, August 30, 2020, at 8:00 pm.
