(AllHipHop News) We all know President Trump isn’t the greatest at making decisions (no need to elaborate there).
For one of his recent political video ads on Snapchat attacking his Democratic rival Joe Biden, Trump sampled T.I.’s single, “Whatever You Like.”
“I know u got plans for my people that are contrary to OUR BEST INTERESTS. Make no mistake… WE AINT ON THE SAME SIDE. Whatever U ARE,IM NOT!!!! Be CLEAR!!!! I have a family, I have children, I have ancestors that I WILL NOT LET DOWN,” T.I. fumed.
If you’re familiar, the Jim Jonsin-produced smash charted on the Billboard 200 in 2008, debuting at the No. 1 spot.
Who would want one of their most successful singles to be manipulated for Trump’s political agenda?
“I don’t want Joe Biden, need Joe Biden. Long as you’ve got me, you don’t need Joe Biden,” the weird political ad states.
Twisting the original lyrics to fit his agenda in this political attack was a big NO for Clifford “T.I.” Harris. And one of the ATL rapper’s representatives also quickly released a statement.
“Trump and his team (out of desperation for his campaign) have circulated a campaign video post throughout social media that includes the unauthorized use of T.I.’s song, along with edited images of him and Joe Biden. The video distorts lyrics from his #1 charting song by misrepresenting the words through text language and distortion of his recorded voice.”
The rep continued made it clear that T.I. never authorized the President, nor gave his consent to use the song – especially one that endorses him, and attacks Joe Biden.
“It is sad but expected, that this President would stoop so low.”
(AllHipHop News) Rappers T.I. and Killer Mike both gave impassioned speeches to address the uprisings in the aftermath of Minneapolis murder victim George Floyd.
Uprisings, revolts, riots and insurrections have sprouted up all over the nation, but the rappers urged their constituency from anarchy, chaos and self-destruction.
“I didn’t want to come, and I don’t want to be here,” Killer Mike said, sounding extremely emotional from the podium. “I’m the son of an Atlanta city police officer, my cousin is an Atlanta city police officer, and my other cousin is a police officer in East Point. I’ve got a lot of love and respect for police officers, down to the original eight police officers in Atlanta that even, after becoming police, had to dress in a YMCA because white officers didn’t want to get dressed with n###ers. And here we are 80 years later, I watched a white officer assassinate a black man, and I know that tore your heart out.”
However, the rapper told protestors not to destroy where they live, assuming that those causing the mayhem were African American.
“It is your duty not to burn your own house down for anger with an enemy, saIt is your duty to fortify your own house so that you may be a house of refuge in times of organization,” Mike said.
The mayor kicked off the press conference and evoked MLK and self-love, chastising the people in a parental manner.
“If you care about this city then go home. This is not a protest. This is chaos. A protest has purpose,” Atlanta Mayor Keisha Bottoms said. “You are not honoring the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and the civil rights movement. You’re not protesting anything running out with brown liquor in your hands, breaking windows in this city. T.I. and Killer Mike own half the West Side, so when you burn down this city, you are burning down our community.”
Tip garnered the most commentary on social media after comparing The A to the mytical, fictitious tech-savvy country Wakanda.
“When everything else goes away, when you don’t get treated right in New York or L.A., Atlanta has been here for us,” T.I. said. “This city don’t deserve this. This is Wakanda; it’s sacred. We must protect it.”
He literally said what the f### I been saying all gotdamn day. Take y’all ass HOME. Atlanta isn’t the place to spread your stupid behavior covered by fake ass outrage. #atlantaprotestpic.twitter.com/bprB18GWyq
So his community set-up a memorial in remembrance of KJ Balla’s legacy. Filled with balloons, flowers, and candles, people gathered to pay their respects.
However, during the celebration, hood politics trumped the science of love and honor. On Thursday, late in the afternoon, bullets erupted leaving one man injured.
The unnamed man was shot in his leg around 1:30 p.m. according to a police report at 790 Eldert Lane. He was immediately transported by ambulance to Brookdale Hospital.
He is expected to survive.
KJ Balla unfortunately did not survive. This is a conversation that Brooklyn has been having too frequently.
Earlier this year, Pop Smoke (from the Carnasie area of King’s County) was murdered during a home invasion in Los Angeles.
So far, no arrests have been made in the murders of Pop Smoke, Nick Blixky or KJ Balla.
(AllHipHop News) Young Money executive Lil Wayne connect with Fat Joe aka Joey Crack to talk about a gang of things. One of those things was the brutal death of George Floyd in Minneapolis.
Thousands of people line up on Joey Crack’s Instagram live to cop the jewels he so easily drops like in the opening scene of “The Godfather,” where guests clamored to give tribute or hear wisdom from Don Corleone’s lips.
That’s how people are with Joe. They pull up to hear him pull information out of some of rap music’s most interesting personalities.
They all trust Crack.
Lil Wayne, who rarely does interviews or speaks about controversial topics like race and polices, also trusts Crack — which is why he gave an interview and spoke about George Floyd’s death.
Weezy says, “We have to stop placing the blame on the whole force and the whole everybody, or a certain race, or everybody with a badge … And if we want to place the blame on anybody, it should be ourselves for not doing more than what we think we’re doing.”
Many did not believe that Wayne was selling out because he did not support Black communal anger.
His position was that people jump into protest without care or commitment. They don’t care enough to do the research and don’t commit enough to follow through.
“Some people put a tweet out and they think they did something,” he said to the Terror Squad leader.
“Some people wear a shirt and they think they did something,” Wayne went on to say. “What you gonna do after that? Did you actually help the person? Did you actually help the family? Did you actually go out there and do something? So, if I ain’t about to do all that, then I ain’t about to do nothing. I’ll pray for ya.”
“What we need to do is we need to learn about it more.” Tunechi said while finishing his thoughts. “If we wanna scream about something, know what we’re screaming about. If we wanna protest about something, know what we’re protesting about. Because if we wanna get into it, there’s a bunch of facts that we think we know that we don’t know. … We scream about things that, sometimes, they really ain’t true.”
He committed to learning more about what’s going on.
(AllHipHop News) Rapper, actor and filmmaker Ice Cube is very “critical” of his own movies and won’t watch them at home.
The star is behind a number of hit movies, including “Boyz N the Hood,” “21 Jump Street,” and “Anaconda,” but speaking to The Guardian he confessed his music always takes preference when he’s at home.
“I do listen to my own music more than I watch my own films,” he shared. “When I watch a film, I’m picking out what I should have done, so I’m critiquing the movie more than I’m enjoying it. Who needs that?”
The star, real name O’Shea Jackson, went on to admit he doesn’t like to spend his time resting, and has been “staying busy” during the coronavirus lockdown.
“I’m not full steam into TV. I prefer to spend my time trying to create new stuff,” he said. “I’ve got a lockdown beard that’s holding up. I’m staying busy.
“We just celebrated the 30th anniversary of my first solo record, AmeriKKKa’s Most Wanted. I spent a week putting up pictures and thinking of stories, and we did a listening party where I played the music and gave people a backstory of each track. It was cool to go that deep.”
The star will appear in the forthcoming movie, “The High Note,” alongside Dakota Johnson and Tracee Ellis-Ross, which is out on video on demand services on Friday.
(AllHipHop News) A lawyer ensnared in an epic legal battle with Damon Dash wants more money from the rap mogul in his latest lawsuit.
Christopher Brown filed a brand new, $1 million lawsuit against Damon who has already been ordered to fork over $300,000 to one of the lawyers’ clients.
Christopher Brown has not yet revealed what was said to cause another $1 million worth of damages, but now he’s suing Damon in Massachusetts.
Brown claims Damon defamed him in multiple states including Massachusetts, Hawaii, and New York.
The latest $1 million is on top of the $51 million Christopher Brown is trying to squeeze out of Damon for allegedly groping a photographer and keeping her equipment after a dispute at his Los Angeles home.
(AllHipHop News) Madonna has found herself at the center of controversy once again, after paying tribute to George Floyd with a video of her son David Banda dancing to Michael Jackson’s “They Don’t Care About Us.”
Following the tragic death of 46-year-old Floyd, who died after being pinned to the ground, while unarmed and unhandcuffed, by a police officer who knelt on his neck and stopped him breathing, people around the world have been coming forward to condemn police brutality – with celebrities including Cardi B, Rihanna, Lady Gaga and Reese Witherspoon all having their say on the heartbreaking incident.
Madonna also weighed in on the scandal on Thursday, by sharing a clip of her 14-year-old son showing off his dance moves to a Jackson tune.
“Brutal murder travels around the world my son David dances to honor and pay tribute to George and His Family and all Acts of Racism and Discrimination that happen on a daily basis in America,” she wrote alongside the video, adding the hashtags #DavidBanda, #JusticeForGeorgeFloyd and #MichaelJackson.
However, Madonna’s tweet didn’t have the desired effect, and she was quickly inundated with sarcastic messages from social media users, who insisted her post was somewhat off message.
“Wow, racism is gone, thank you girl,” one person wrote, while another added: “I really appreciate you for allowing your son to dance away the racism for us.” A third tweeted: “Thank you so much. I’m so glad he was able to stomp out racism with this deeply moving tribute. Y’all’s hard work and sacrifice to the cause…how can we ever repay you?”
Meanwhile, ex-basketball player Rex Chapman labeled Madonna’s post “the worst tweet of all time”, and added: “Come dance in the kitchen for racism’ is a weird take. To Michael Jackson? And other things.”
(AllHipHop News) Derek Chauvin, the former Minneapolis police officer responsible for the death of Texas rapper Big Floyd, has been arrested by his same fraternal order that licensed him to terrorize Black people.
Rapper Big Floyd, most popularly known by his given name George Floyd, was murdered on Memorial Day after Chauvin presumably smashed his throat area while kneeling unmercifully on his neck.
Four officers were called to the scene because someone said that Big Floyd was trying to make a purchase with a fake bill (it is disputed whether or not it was a $10 or a $20).
Multiple videos have been circulated, but the video shot by and posted to Facebook by a 17-year-old girl gave the perfect angle to see Chauvin’s callous and deadly choke-maneuver.
It is in fact this video that clearly shows the officer’s disregard for the late DJ Screw associate’s life— prompting days of civil unrest in the streets of The Twin Cities— and for the chief to call for his swift arrest.
The arrest was the fastest, from incident to detainment, ever for the city of Minneapolis for an officer. But what exactly does it mean for him to have received a murder in the third-degree charge?
First-degree murder involves calculation and second-degree murder doesn’t involve that sort of calculation.
The definition of third-degree murder might change depending on what state are you in. It is sometimes called voluntary manslaughter. It all means that this charge can “occur when a person kills another person in a heat of passion following a provocation; when a person who is involved in a fight with another person kills that person without intending to do so; or when a person kills another person while believing that it’s necessary to do so in self-defense, but when that belief was actually unreasonable.”
While the department is struggling to see where Chauvin’s heinous crime fits, they are open to expanding his charges and adding the other three officers that were present.
(AllHipHop Opinion) “The Empire Strikes Back” endures as one of the most robust, classic tales of revenge ever imagined. The movie has always been heralded for its ingenious approach to film making, tech advances and superior storytelling. Also, we collectively recollected the iconic imagery of Han Solo being shockingly frozen, seemingly to death! I don’t remember how old I was when I saw “Empire” as a child, but it still remains my favorite of all the “Star Wars” films. And I am not sure why because the bad guys won.
These days, the real-life Empire is catching Black bodies left and right and an all-too-familiar, persistent, rag-tag rebellion returns replacing melancholy with angst.
But, “Revenge Of The Jedi,” this is not, as real people battling injustice are overpowered, outgunned and bullied by a militarized regime in, it seems, perpetuity. The 2020 catalyst has been a rash of recent deaths and attacks of unarmed Black people – all to the backdrop of the “we’re-all-in-this-together” psalm in the midst of a pandemic. The Empire even has a secret weapon that failed, a sociopathic lying “Karen” that botched a mission in New York’s Central Park. Rhetoric is as American as apple pie, but not as filling as the numbers on brutality.
Police killed 1,099 people in 2019, with Blacks representing 24% of the victims, but 13% of the overall American population (Source: MappingPoliceViolence.org). (Other reports have similar death tolls, but the numbers do vary. The Washington Post, for example, says it was 1,004.) Darth Vader would certainly demand better numbers against a people that truly want no smoke. Black people were three-times more likely to be killed by the cops and also far more inclined to be unarmed too. Damn, even the Ewoks had sticks and stones with their Shih Tzu-looking selves. Ahmaud Arbery, the Brunswick, GA jogger (killed by the son of a retired cop), was unarmed. Breonna Taylor, a young soon-to-be nurse, was shot dead by cops in her sleep. George Floyd, 46, had the life forced out of his body by a modern day, particularly savage Storm Trooper named Derek Chauvin.
Chauvin, a Minneapolis, MN cop, was fired for this flagrant, fatal act (along with three other officers), but he still received top-tier protection from the very police force that discharged him. Nobody has been charged at the time of this writing. And, this is why police-on-citizen murders don’t tell the whole story. This is a story of an institution of racism, an intricate web of historical lies, imperialism, and a beast that changes forms every few years. When you think about it, Darth Vader has nothing on American’s Regime of Racism. Darth Vader was simple evil, black and white, until he wasn’t.
The System, American racism, has long tentacles that extend into every single facet of existence, education, the justice system, environmental, water food, healthcare, and the minds of people. The Empire in the “Star Wars” movies were clear terrorists, obvious bullies but we still see cops as the guys that get cats out of trees here. Daily, it is something. Francisco Garcia, a New York City Police Officer, beat on a man for not social distancing. Jersey City cops had a similar fracas within days and none of the officers were even wearing masks. And in other places like Rancho Cordova, California, a 14-year old is beaten by a cop twice his size for asking a stranger for a cigarette. These terroristic acts do not fit nicely in a spreadsheet, or article if they are even reported. All of this has happened during the pandemic, the time we are supposedly bonded by a common foe.
The coronavirus may have helped people stare at the injustice once again. Most people are home with limited things to do, aside from staring at a TV, a phone, or social media posts. These events, as tragic as they are, are not particularly special or unique. What is different is that it seems like everybody is watching, because of quarantine and stay-at-home orders. We have been forced to pay attention.
John Boyega, the star of the latest Star Wars series, is not from the United States, but he can see oppression clearly. The 28-year old went on a Twitter rampage, slashing every Jedi Mind Trick his followers tried to pull. “I really f#cking hate racists,” he tweeted, “WHITE on BLACK racism … the kind that has ruined the world”. To those that tried to get him to adjust his position, he responded, “You lot can’t rattle me. I’m not the guy to be rattled. I wasn’t raised by no weak people.” See the interactions below.
America loves a good, old rebellion until those rebels are Black. We can go back to the founding fathers to the Confederate Flag-waving rednecks to black-OPS looking militiamen that recently stormed the Michigan statehouse without incident. There may not be any “Return of the Jedi” for Black people in America, but there’s “A New Hope,” if you will. “The Force Awakens,” the latest Star Wars series, offers a different, perhaps visionary look to the rebel alliance. In the movie series (“The Last Jedi” and “The Rise Of Skywalker” included) People are truly fed up – again.
The real question is “Where’s the The Mandalorian?” Where are those that will turn their back on the totalitarian regime and align with rebel forces to save all the brilliant, young minds?
We can’t start calling Grand Master Jay Mando yet, but he is a former military man that is a strong advocate of armed resistance. Also a pioneer in Hip-Hop, the United States vet was on the grounds immediately after Ahmaud Arbery was murdered by Travis and Gregory McMichael. He and others were strapped with big guns. NFAC, his newly-formed self-defense organization, is one of many organized rebellions that have sprouted up. Jay received next-no-publicity in mainstream media outlets a stark contrast to the unorganized, leaderless uprisings and looting. Peaceful protests have garnered a lot of attention, but are often framed as violent by media.
There is so much to say, but let me take off my media hat for a moment before I end this.
When George Lucas created the Star Wars franchise, he created The Empire largely in the spirit of Hitler and Nazi Germany. There are more than enough fair comparisons of Donald Trump and Adolf Hitler to make me cringe (Here is a great letter that articulates those comparisons from a regular citizen). America will demonize protest even though it is built on protest and rebellion on a savage level.
Honestly, like The Empire, most people don’t truly understand the level of evil “we” are up against. Or maybe they do. We, by the way, is Black people. In our rebellion, Landonis Balthazar Calrissian is a super Caucasian. We don’t have the consortium of color we saw in “The Force Awakens,” “The Last Jedi,” or “The Rise Of Skywalker.” We know Trump is Darth Vader in our movie, but who is The Sith Order, those behind The Empire and the First Order? A police officer reportedly jumpstarted the violent protests (watch video on that here) – on both sides. If there was no murder of George Floyd, if there wasn’t some mysterious white guy breaking windows with a hammer, there probably wouldn’t be any “revolt.”
The real global pandemic is racism. And, as an infectious disease, coronavirus, by comparison, is a common cold. It has killed millions and millions, terrorized more, enslaved, and metastasized faster than the most aggressive cancer. It has empowered the savage and his cousin, the coward, causing them to join powerful groups like the police or government. In a few short months, look at how this wretched thing has festered. Weak men hunt the defenseless, beat on kids, and then hide behind an army (75 riot cops protected the home of a purported disgrace to the badge named Derek Chauvin). Listen to the silence of your peers, neighbors, co-workers, and, even your mates. Talk to those that will listen, but don’t expect any change from those quietly co-signing this madness. There is no indication that there will be any from White America as a monolith.
I wrote this because I am tired – exhausted. I wrote this because I have personally had more racially charged incidents in the last few years than I have since I was a younger man. I have been fighting racism and racists nearly my whole life in one way or another. I wrote this, because we all have a purpose and a voice. We don’t all have to be Grand Master Jay or Mysonne or Tamika Mallory or T.I. or Martin or Rosa Parks. But we can all do something.
You can write a letter to your local government.
You can donate to an organization.
You can support Black business.
You can tweet about injustice.
You can do so much.
You can fight back.
Both Luke Skywalker and Finn found their strength over time. And, even a heartless mercenary of a totalitarian state named Mando found a heart.
(AllHipHop News) Blac Chyna is demanding $70,000 in damages from her former landlord Michael Kremerman after he previously sued her for $48,000 last year.
According to the New York Post’s gossip column Page Six, the 32-year-old former stripper claims Kremerman owes her more than $20,000 from her security deposit, and is now asking for $50,000 – twice the original $25,000 deposit – according to court documents filed in Los Angeles Superior Court.
In the filing, Chyna, real name Angela White, also denies Kremerman’s allegations that she damaged the rental property, and alleges in the documents the only deductions that could be taken from her security deposit are repairs for an “accidentally damaged sink ($1,100), remaining rent due for November 2018 ($3,360); and cost of a popcorn machine ($231)”.
Her attorney, Lynne Ciani, told Page Six that Chyna plans to countersue her former landlord for his “fraudulent claim” that she owed him “unpaid rent at a time when he no longer even owned the rental property”, alleging the man “tried to ‘have his cake and eat it too’” by charging her for unpaid rent – despite the fact that he sold the rental property in March 2019.
Chyna is set to appear in court against Kremerman on June 26.
Kremerman first sued Chyna in April 2019, claiming she bailed on her lease five months early and failed to pay rent.
In January, a judge ordered Chyna to pay Kremerman $72,000 because she failed to respond to the lawsuit.
(AllHipHop News) Dionne Warwick and The Roots’ ‘Captain’ Kirk Douglas will help raise funds for the historic Apollo Theater in Harlem, New York with a new virtual fundraising gig.
Gary Clark, Jr., Kool and the Gang, Robert Randolph and Michael McDonald are among several artists tapped to perform during Let’s Stay (in) Together: a Benefit to Support the Apollo Theater.
As with several venues across the U.S., the iconic theater, a noted venue for African American performers since the 1930s’, was forced to close in March due to the Covid-19 pandemic, and is struggling to stay afloat as performances remain shut.
In addition to musical performances, stars including Warwick, Doug E. Fresh and Roy Wood, Jr. will make appearances, with additional special guests to be announced soon.
“Music has the incredible power to connect, transform and heal,” reads a statement from Apollo Theater representatives. “We hope you’ll support the Apollo Theater and join us for a special event featuring music that lifts our spirits, shapes our lives, and continues to unite us all.”
Artists will perform music from performers who have graced Apollo’s legendary stage, including B.B. King, Patti LaBelle and Stevie Wonder.
“A portion of the funds raised will be allocated for micro grants to support local merchants and small businesses in the 125th Street neighborhood impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic,” the statement continues.
The fundraiser will livestream for free on the Apollo Theater’s website on June 2 at 7:30 pm ET.
(AllHipHop News) Actor Shameik Moore has been slammed for suggesting the Black community should stop ‘blaming’ police brutality on racism.
The conversation surrounding racially-driven police brutality in the U.S. has been rife, after footage emerged online on Monday (25May20) of African-American man George Floyd who was killed after being knelt on at the neck by an officer.
See I have a very strong opinion that the black community hates to hear.. but needs to hear… we need to learn how to deal with police… and or racism… because THIS is the part of the scenario we have failed to fix. https://t.co/xEZ1SdgSUx
While the majority of users have been calling for institutional change, Moore, who voiced the Marvel superhero in 2018’s “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse,” embarked on a lengthy Twitter thread in which he attempted to advise his black followers how best to “avoid” being killed by police.
“We have to work on our community before blaming everything on ‘racist’ and police,” Moore tweeted. “1… there is STILL black on black violence that needs to be addressed… and 2.. if we KNOW that the wrong white person could change our whole life with a false accusation..WHY DO WE GIVE THEM THE ENERGY THEY WANT?”
He continued: “Give them an inch they WILL take a mile….. We literally know this already. At what point do we look at ourselves and make adjustments? Look… all I’m saying is.. in the MOMENT.. when we are experiencing racism.. can We the black community find ways to avoid being killed? Or hunted.”
After facing criticism for his tweets, Moore claimed that he “refuses to feel like a victim” or “have a slave mentality”. He also said that he does not face danger in his daily life as he “knows how to carry (himself) in tuff (sic) situations.”
See I have a very strong opinion that the black community hates to hear.. but needs to hear… we need to learn how to deal with police… and or racism… because THIS is the part of the scenario we have failed to fix. https://t.co/xEZ1SdgSUx
Arguing that his tweets had been “taken out of context”, the star then went on Instagram Live, where he appeared to suggest that Black people should use their “resources” rather than protest.
As an example, he claimed that civil rights pioneer Rosa Parks could have used other means of transport rather than a bus, insisting, “What we don’t know as a black community is, (there were) black owned taxi cabs and black buses that could have been used during that time. This is something a lot of people might not want to hear.”
He concluded: “What I’m getting to with that is if the government decides to… shut off electricity, clean water and gas to any of the black neighborhoods in America, there is literally nothing we can do but riot. We don’t have the resources. I think what we need to do is work internally and strengthen our minds and spirits.”
Powfu is here to put low-fi Hip-Hop back on the map. You may recognize the Canadian artist from his presence on TikTok, but now he’s spearheading a new lane in the rap game: the lo-fi movement. His sound transcends genres, from lo-fi to alternative to bedroom pop.
Growing up, his father was in a punk rock band and taught him how to play instruments at the young age of 2. His uncle introduced him to the likes of Kanye West and Jay-Z, which sparked a love and passion for the genre. Powfu also has a soft spot for romantic films, going on to write and release songs for 3 years before striking gold.
Powfu, real name Isaiah Faber went viral in 2019 for his single “death bed (coffee for your head), ” whose music video currently has over 64 million views in less than 2 months. The record itself is an ode to real love and romance, with that old school Hip-Hop feel we all fell in love with since its inception. Additionally, “death bed” recently received an explosive remix from Blink 182.
Now, Powfu releases his new highly-anticipated EP titled poems of the past. AllHipHop caught up with the 21-year-old via Zoom to discuss his decision signing to Columbia Records, the making of “death bed,” his previous jobs, his goals, and more!
AllHipHop: How’s Quarantine life over in Vancouver?
Powfu: I’m about an hour outside of Vancouver. It’s actually really chill right now. Everything’s basically open now. I was itching to get out, but it was okay. I was able to play basketball and skate.
AllHipHop: Being from Vancouver, what was the household like growing up?
Powfu: I grew up with 3 younger siblings, so it was quite a bit of work. I had to take care of them. I lived with my grandma and my parents for most of my life, so I was really close with my family. We all were musicians growing up so we all helped each other out, which was really nice. It turned into a career for me.
AllHipHop: Who were your biggest influences?
Powfu: I had a bunch of influences. In my younger years, I listened to a lot of punk rock music. That had a huge inspiration. In my teenage years, I started listening to more hip-hop like Kanye and G-Eazy. I started listening to punk rock again recently: Yellowcard, Blink 182, Simple Plan, Sum 41.
AllHipHop: At what point did you realize that you could do music for a living?
Powfu: It slowly built up. At first, I wasn’t sure how hard or easy it would be. It actually happened a lot quicker than I thought. I started uploading on SoundCloud 3 years ago. A year ago is when I started making money off of it, on Spotify and stuff. The numbers kept getting higher and higher.
AllHipHop: How active were you on TikTok?
Powfu: I didn’t really use TikTok at all to be honest. [chuckles] I released “death bed,” it was doing really good on YouTube at first, then TikTok I guess picked it up. I don’t even know how it got on TikTok to be honest. I looked it up one day, it had 500 videos. I thought “whoa, that’s quite a bit.” It kept going, people kept making videos with it. I was really happy to see that.
AllHipHop: Bring us back to when you created “death bed.” Did you expect it to blow up the way it did?
Powfu: I always have high hopes for every song that I release, but I had no idea it’d blow up this big. I thought it was possible, but the chances of it happening were pretty slim. I was really excited, I want to keep working and making the music. When I released “death bed,” I already had a fanbase. A small audience. It felt really good so I want to keep making music and growing that. Now it’s even bigger, so I have to make even more music.
AllHipHop: What was the vibe? What were you going through?
Powfu: I was watching a lot of romantic movies around that time, so I was feeling deep and emotional. I heard this sample that Beabadoobee was singing on the beat, it was talking about coffee for your head and falling asleep. I didn’t want to talk about sleeping so I made it a deeper meaning about death.
AllHipHop: What was your reaction to it going Gold in 7 countries?
Powfu: I didn’t even know what Gold meant [laughs]. But I was excited because it sounded cool.
AllHipHop: Is there a special lady in your life who inspired this record?
Powfu: I didn’t have a girlfriend at that time. There wasn’t really a girl I was thinking of, it was all the movies. I was pretending I had a perfect girlfriend. [chuckles]
AllHipHop: How was shooting the music video?
Powfu: That was really fun. It was right before quarantine got out of hand. We’re able to meet up with people and film in the forest, in the little apartment area. It was really cool. It was my first video, it was really interesting.
AllHipHop: Were you nervous?
Powfu: I was at first, but then I got used to it.
AllHipHop: What did it mean to have Blink 182 remix “death bed”?
Powfu: They’re the band I wanted to work with the most. When I started getting big and signed to Columbia, I was telling them how I wanted to work with Blink. They told me that Blink was signed to them as well, so I’m like “oh dang.” They hit them up and asked them if they wanted to work with me, and they did.
AllHipHop: What’s the significance in your new EP titled poems of the past?
Powfu: A lot of my songs are talking about memories from my past. That stuff intrigues me a lot. I named it poems of the past because my songs are poems from the past. [laughs] I write all my music, that’s my favorite thing to do.
AllHipHop: What inspires you the most?
Powfu: Everything. Even hearing other music and songs will inspire me. Also reading books and watching movies, hearing stories from friends.
AllHipHop: What’s one thing you want fans to get from this project?
Powfu: I just hope they like it. There’s quite a few different-sounding songs on it. I’m hoping I’ll catch some people off guard, they’ll be like “I didn’t know you can sound like this!”
AllHipHop: Can you talk about your journey to Columbia Records?
Powfu: I was scared to sign at first because labels scared me, I’ve heard a lot of bad stories with them. I was chillin’ back on it but then they told me they can help release “Deathbed,” which I wasn’t able to because it was Beabadoobee’s song with the sample and the beat. I was too small to contact anybody. Columbia helped me out and they gave me a good offer. I was actually really excited to work with them, so I signed.
AllHipHop: What’d you do with your first advance?
Powfu: I bought my family a house in Chilliwack, it’s like a farm town.
AllHipHop: How proud are they of you?
Powfu: They’re really proud. They’re helping me out as well, it’s all a big family project. We’re all helping each other. My dad’s my manager so he deals with the business side. My mom’s helping him out with that. My sisters are my feedback. I’ll show them a song, they’ll tell me if they like it and what they don’t like about it.
AllHipHop: Being that you’re only 21, did you go college?
Powfu: I didn’t really like high school. I left halfway through grade 12 and went to college early, graduated there. I started working right after I graduated. I had a bunch of different jobs while making music on the side.
AllHipHop: Where were you working?
Powfu: I worked at a bunch of places. When I graduated, I was working construction in Vancouver. I had to drive to Vancouver every morning at 5am which sucked, but it was good. It taught me how to work hard. I quit that and started working at a processing plant. I was packaging bread with a bunch of people who spoke a different language. When they’d get mad at me, I didn’t know why. [laughs] I worked at a car dealership.
AllHipHop: How does it feel to level up now and do music full-time?
Powfu: It’s really nice. Working, especially the processing plant with the bread, I hated that job. One of the worst times in my life, I’m happy I don’t have to do those anymore.
AllHipHop: Favorite person to follow on Instagram?
Powfu: Probably my girlfriend, she posts some epic pictures. She’s really cute so that’s nice.
AllHipHop: Goals for yourself at this point in your career?
Powfu: I want to continue to grow and make music, hopefully change people’s lives and help people. I’m really excited to travel and meet fans in person.
AllHipHop: What’s the first thing you want to do after quarantine?
Powfu: I want to tour right away. Probably tour the States first to get a feel for it, then possibly go to bigger continents like Asia and Europe.
AllHipHop: Anything else you want to let us know?
Powfu: The EP is out now! Really excited for that. Continue to make music and work hard.
(AllHipHop News) David Jassey was incarcerated at San Quentin State Prison for over 11 years until California Governor Gavin Newsom commuted his sentence in March. While in the penitentiary, the Swedish songwriter/producer started a music program as a way to offer a rehabilitative tool for fellow inmates and deter them from violent behavior.
During his time behind bars, Jassey also curated what would become a 17-track album titled San Quentin Mixtape, Vol 1. The Hip Hop project was written, recorded, and produced from inside San Quentin State Prison over the course of four years.
“Music is a form of therapy that unites people from all backgrounds,” says Jassy. “I really wanted to use this program to help the young, talented kids I saw rapping on the yard”
The former Navigators member adds, “I didn’t want them to waste their potential and channel their energy into violent behavior, so it is a blessing to finally introduce this project to the world. It’s been incredible to watch these guys flex their creative muscles and get the support of the music and entertainment industry.”
Youthful Offenders Program’s San Quentin Mixtape, Vol 1 opens with personal messages from music industry figures J. Cole, DJ Khaled, Common, T.I., Russell Simmons, Meek Mill, Snoh Aalegra, Maxwell, Nick Cannon, Talib Kweli, and Fat Joe. Criminal justice reform proponent Kim Kardashian West is a supporter of the effort as well.
“This album is truly a testament to the power of music,” Fat Joe states. “It’s inspiring to watch these young men use music as a rehabilitative tool – both to express themselves and send a positive message to communities across the country. Creating an album is a complex process, so for these young men to achieve this goal from within San Quentin State Prison, they should be very proud.”
(AllHipHop News) Ice Cube was scheduled for a Good Morning America appearance to discuss a myriad of topics yesterday (May 28) including the upcoming Big 3 season, his storied music career and more.
However, in the aftermath of the tragic murder of George Floyd in Minnesota, Cube decided to skip out on the interview.
“I”m in no mood to tell America, good morning,” he Tweeted.
I apologize to everyone expecting to see me on Good Morning America today, but after the events in Minnesota with George Floyd I’m in no mood to tell America, good morning.
First apologizing to his fans, Cube then continued to express his thoughts on how Minnesota police handled the situation, their overall hiring process, and more. He held nothing back in a series of Tweets.
The F.B.I. knows exactly who the racist are in each police department and still let them keep there jobs until something like this happens. Stop sitting on critical information. Weed them out and get them out…NOW! #jonnycomelatelyagainhttps://t.co/X7ny0wsRQX
As you may all know the story by now, George Floyd was a Black Minneapolis man who died at the hands of a police officer who held him down with excessive (and unnecessary) force.
A cop pinned Floyd’s neck with his knee for several minutes and he was essentially murdered because they suspected him of forgery.
Ice Cube’s taking to social media to share his personal decision to not make the TV appearance, of course, warranted both praise and criticism. One fan was disappointed that Cube did not use his high profile status and platform to shed light on the situation. The OG quickly replied.
I’m done talking. These people know right from wrong and they obviously don’t care. So what we talking about? https://t.co/vOQaKFdmxs
Joining Ice Cube are a plethora of celebrities voiced their opinions on the tragedy, including Beyonce, Cardi B, Kim Kardashian West, Channing Tatum, Mandy Moore, Taylor Swift and more.
