With yesterday’s installment of “Empire” season 2 episode 17 on Fox – it had been ominously foretold in just about every Fox promo leading up to the airing of this episode that “one Lyon would fall,” but seriously, some honest to goodness fear has been struck into the hearts of many a loyal fan when it comes to what may or not be “mortally” permanent when the all the dust settles and “Empire” season two is one for the record books, shuttered up tight over the summer to prep for a brand new “Empire” season three. So hold on to your hats and be warned by this *** spoiler alert*** that if you don’t want to know, you need to stop reading now:
Anika Calhoun (Grace Gealey) gets scooped up by the Feds via Cookie Lyon’s (Taraji P. Henson) pal from around the way, Tariq (Morocco Omari). Last week, ‘Tariq The Freak’ from the old neighborhood where Cookie and her sister Carol (Tasha Smith) grew up suddenly materialized on the current Lyon scene, trying to cuddle up with Carol in order to get dirt for the Feds on Lucious Lyon (Terrence Howard). In yesterday’s episode, neither Lucious or Cookie were buying Tariq’s love song for a crackhead, and Cookie gave Tariq the news in no uncertain terms at Laviticus regarding her addict sister, causing Carol to relapse and show up drunk at the ASA Awards. Tariq, not to be deterred by any of that ASA drama sets his sights on another weak link in the chain by detaining Anika at Federal headquarters.
Lucious’ Mama, Leah Walker (Leslie Uggams) starts scheming hard to reveal herself to the world at large as Lucious Lyon’s mother who is still alive and kicking. Never one to be above a good slow burn, Leah is incensed when she sees Lucious’ video on television showing her abusing Lucious as a young woman and then taking her own life. When Andre Lyon (Trai Byers) tries to tell her that it would hurt the family for her to go public, Leah swears that she would never betray Lucious or the rest of the family in this way. However, when things take a dramatic turn at the ASA Awards, Leah maneuvers herself into the center of a hungry knot of paparazzi and while she refrains from telling them exactly who she is, she reveals that she is indeed a part of the Lyon family.
Freda Gatz (Bre-Z) Shoots Jamal Lyon (Jussie Smollett) at The ASA Awards when Jamal jumps in front of the bullet meant for Lucious as a means of revenge by Freda for the death of her own father, crime lord Frank Gathers (Chris Rock). In what was a shocking twist, Freda is forced to put it all together when a drunk and embittered Carol accosts Freda on the red carpet and reveals that it was none other than Lucious Lyon himself that killed the notorious gangster Frank Gathers, aka Freda Gatz’s dad. In a fit of passion, Freda rips a gun from the holster of a member of the ASA’s security detail and aims for Lucious’ back as he is turned away, addressing the press and photographers with Cookie. Jamal, seeing what Freda is about to do and knowing why thanks to a recent and very candid conversation with Cookie, jumps directly in front of the bullet, saving Lucious’ life but also possibly ending his own. Will Jamal survive? Only next week’s episode, the last of season 2 in it’s entirety, will tell.
“Empire” airs Wednesday nights at 9:00/8:00 central on Fox.
(AllHipHop News) Ororo Munroe aka Storm and T’Challa aka Black Panther are two of the most prominent black characters in the Marvel Comics universe. Storm has already been a major figure in the X-Men motion pictures, and Black Panther is set to star in his own live-action movie. But could the two superheros meet on the big screen one day?
Alexandra Shipp (Aaliyah, Straight Outta Compton) stars as Storm in the upcoming X-Men: Apocalypse. The 24-year-old actress spoke with The Lowdown with Diana Madison about the possibility of Ororo and T’Challa teaming up in a cinema presentation.
“I want that movie so bad. I’ve got a pitch. I’m like coming up with a vision board. I want this movie to happen,” said Shipp. “Honestly, it doesn’t have to be me. If Chadwick was like, ‘You know what I really want to do this with Hallie,’ I’d be like, ‘That’s fine at least make the movie.’”
Chadwick Boseman was tapped to take on the role of Black Panther in the Marvel franchise. Halle Berry has played Storm in X-Men, X2: X-Men United, X-Men: The Last Stand, and X-Men: Days Of Future Past.
X-Men: Apocalypse is scheduled for release on May 27.
(AllHipHop News) Culture Republic’s flagship artist Nick Grant is back with new visuals for the Erykah Badu-inspired “Window Seat.” The accompanying video for the track off Grant’s ’88 mixtape was shot in Seattle by IFE + BONOHO.
“The meaning of the song to me is about getting the bigger picture in life, that it’s more than just about the material things. Broaden your view on life and your life will change,” says Grant.
“Window Seat” provides an up close and personal view of the thoughts taking place in N.G.’s mind, and the Atlanta representative has a lot to share with the world.
The last several months have seen a torrent of career milestones for Grant. The Southern lyricist released his well received ’88 project, he recently served as an opener on Dave East’s “Hate Me Now Tour,” and he has been recording new music with the legendary Organized Noize Productions.
(AllHipHop News) Kanye West has always spoken very highly of himself when it comes to his place in pop culture history. The G.O.O.D. Music leader now has another Chicago native stamping him as an all-time great.
Chance The Rapper is featured on the June/July cover of Complex along with Hamilton creator Lin-Manuel Miranda. The two artists sat down with the publication. The interview included Chance talking about whether Kanye should be so vocal about his own accomplishments.
“There’s not really a responsibility to tell people of your accomplishments, but I think in Kanye’s situation – it’s Kanye West,” said Chance. “If I was the greatest artist of this generation, and the few past generations, and a few generations going forward, I’d probably say it all the time. Especially if I was black and people didn’t really like me. I’d be like, ‘Let me remind you all the f-cking time.'”
The Donnie Trumpet & The Social Experiment affiliate was heavily involved in the making of Kanye West’s The Life Of Pablo. Chance arguably had the standout verse on the entire album. Besides appearing on “Ultralight Beams,” Chance contributed to several other TLOP tracks. His album project Chance 3 is set to arrive on May 13.
(AllHipHop Features) “If it’s rap or the trap, we gonna make it regardless,” declares Tate Kobang on his cut “RE-Guard-Less” off Live Hazey. In a little over a year, the rhymer has effectively started on a path where he won’t have to revert back to street life to build his wealth. It looks as if making music is what will allow Kobang to make it big.
After years of dropping mixtapes, the buzzing East Baltimore rapper finally broke out on the national radar in April 2015 as a result of his video for “Bank Rolls.” The clip was a surprise winner considering it borrows the beat from a local 2000 hit and runs 2 minutes without a chorus.
So why did Tate’s “Bank Rolls” cause both fans and bloggers to take notice? According to the artist, his performance over Tim Trees’ Charm City classic “Bank Roll” spawned the addictive magic.
“I ain’t gonna lie. It was the flow, but it’s mostly the beat,” explains Kobang. “You don’t hear those kind of beats no more. The flow and cadence I was using was f-cking ridiculous.”
The success of the vid led to two more versions being created. An official remix with an added verse was released last September. Since that time, the visuals for “Bank Rolls Remix” has been viewed 2 million times on YouTube.
Then three months ago New York Hip Hop veterans The Lox jumped on the track. Sheek Louch, Styles P, and Jadakiss spit bars about their love for their hometown of Yonkers. D-Block’s recognition of the record was a major co-sign for the DMV delegate.
“They just reached out. They hit us up like, ‘The record is crazy.’ One of their moms had got sick, so it took a little while to get everything done, but it came around. That sh-t was crazy,” Kobang informs AllHipHop.com. “They want to come to Baltimore to shoot the video. That’s gonna be big for the city.”
While Tate was just starting elementary school when The Lox first taught Hip Hop followers in 1998 about the importance of “Money, Power & Respect,” the music aficionado looks to 90’s stars as his biggest influences. Elements of his work draw straight lines back to Rap City era emcees.
Kobang credits his raw sound to the Wu-Tang Clan’s Method Man, his melodic approach to the Fugees’ Lauryn Hill, and his storytelling ability to the Lost Boyz’s Mr. Cheeks. However, Tate could just as easily tap into the sonic traits of Shirley Caesar, Garth Brooks, or Justin Timberlake.
“I listened to a lot of Method Man, a lot of Lauryn Hill, a lot of Mr. Cheeks. My uncle was pumping Nas in my head,” says Kobang. “On the R&B side, my mother was putting Carl Thomas in my head, and my grandmother with Gospel. Then moving out to Pennsylvania, I got hip to Pop music and Country sh-t. Everything is in there.”
Kobang’s appreciation for various genres makes complete sense when you look at his background. His life story comprises of learning under his rapper uncle Killa Q, singing in the church choir, and playing saxophone. In addition, he spent time studying the technical aspects of audio interpretation. He picked up piano and learned to read music as well.
“It helped with understanding keys and being on pitch,” says Kobang about the value of being an instrumentalist. “I later moved to Pennsylvania and started taking piano and music tech classes. I learned how to piece stuff together. It definitely helped my artistry a lot. Rapping is rapping, but the artistry is everything.”
Listeners checking out Tate’s 2015 album Live Hazey will notice the Maryland native provides drug game narratives (“Dope Man”), Akinyele-like sex odes (“Eat Da P-ssy”), smooth vocalizations (“Aint What I Do”), and personal recollections (“Talk About It”). Tate is capable of approaching various topics, but the most noticeable trait that runs through his tunes is the introspective tales honoring his loved ones.
“I lost my mother, then lost my father like three months later in the same year. We didn’t see it coming at all. That showed me motherf-ckers could be gone today. You don’t know,” Kobang expresses. “So while you got them, you need to make sure they know you love and cherish them, make sure they know you’re here for your family, no matter how f-cked up they act towards you or how phony they are. Cause at the end of the day they’re family. You only get one mother, one father, and one grandmother.”
Tate has also managed to find new kinsfolk at his label home. Last year, he joined the roster at the growing powerhouse known as 300 Entertainment. The 23-year-old born Joshua Goods is set to assume the company’s mantle as their representative of the Mid-Atlantic region.
300 Entertainment – founded by industry heavyweights Lyor Cohen, Roger Gold, Kevin Liles, and Todd Moscowitz – has already helped Fetty Wap, Young Thug, and Migos become regulars in music publications and on radio stations. With that experience in the front office and the distribution backing of Atlantic Records, the enterprise has a global reach not typically associated with most indie imprints.
“It’s like they’re an independent with the power and muscle of a major. So they can move how they want. They have all of the connects and respect,” states Tate about the New York based label. “It’s like family. They call and see how the kids are doing. I got the record execs coming to the strip club with me.”
A photo posted by Tate Kobang (@realtatekobang) on
There are probably plenty of B-More strippers paying their rent off the money flying during Tate’s anthems such as “Poppin.” But followers of the self-described “King Of Baltimore And N-ggas’ Girls” should not expect the rising artist to only present rap music. Kobang is not willing to accept being labeled a one-style performer.
“I honestly can do everything. Some motherf-ckers be like, ‘I can do everything.’ No, I really can do everything. That’s why I gravitated to people like Nelly and Swizz Beatz. These are the people that can touch any genre. Nelly had a #1 in every f-cking genre,” adds Kobang. “I want to do a Country record and maybe do a Gospel record with my grandmother. I don’t want motherf-ckers to put me in a box. Ever. It’s hard to get out of that box.”
He continues, “N-ggas could never say R&B or Pop or Country is not Tate Kobang, because I gave you that from the jump. I gave you everything.”
Things have gotten pretty ugly between Nicki Minaj and her ex, Safaree, on Twitter. It’s been the battle of the subtweet. Safaree’s team has now issued a statement saying there will not be any more social media feuds. He plans to just wait and see what happens with his legal proceedings that involve Nicki. Nicki is accusing Safaree of stealing money from her, and Safaree is accusing Nicki of physical and emotional abuse. Do you think Safaree is bitter? After all, it’s got to be hard to get over someone you were with for 12 years, especially someone like Nicki Minaj. Check out the statement made by Safaree’s publicist, CJ Carter, below.
“Initially things were being handled privately behind the scenes but it was taken to social media and unfortunately it’s now being played out in the public eye which could easily be interpreted as a cry for attention. Safaree will not continue in any more social media feuds and at this time we are unable to comment or provide any details pertaining to the current legal proceedings that are taking place with Safaree Samuels and Nicki Minaj. We are confident that things will be both favorable and amicable for all parties.”
(AllHipHop News) Yesterday, in an interview with WOFL Fox 35 Orlando, George Zimmerman announced that he currently has plans to sell the gun that he used on February 26, 2012 to kill unarmed African American teenager Trayvon Martin. In a highly controversial ruling rendered on July 13, 2013, a Florida jury acquitted Zimmerman of all charges after he successfully plead to having killed the 17 year old in self-defense.
In 2012, Zimmerman was the neighborhood watch coordinator at The Retreat at Twin Lakes, the gated community in Sanford, Florida where Martin was temporarily staying at the time that he was identified and targeted by Zimmerman as dangerous and subsequently killed.
As per his interview with WOFL Fox 35, and as has also been reported by many AP news sources, Zimmerman’s plans to auction the gun are connected to his belief that the weapon is an “iconic piece of American history”, as stated in the ad that Zimmerman placed yesterday on a gun auctioning website as reported by CNN: “I am honored and humbled to announce the sale of an American firearm icon,” the ad states, continuing, “The firearm for sale is the firearm that was used to defend my life and end the brutal attack from Trayvon Martin on 2/26/2012.” The starting bid for the gun, which Zimmerman recently received back from the Department of Justice upon exoneration, is $5000.00.
Zimmerman has also further stated that he intends to donate a percentage of his proceeds from the sale of the gun to “fight” violence against law enforcement officers specifically from groups like Black Lives Matter as a “free American” who does not intend to “cower” as a reaction to death threats that Zimmerman claims to have received since posting the ad.
However, in a recent twist for Zimmerman, as reported a few hours ago by RawStory, GunBroker.com, the site where Zimmerman had placed the ad, has cancelled the auction that was set to go live for bidders this morning. The listing, as reported by CNN has mysteriously disappeared.
As for Trayvon Martin’s family, when they were initially asked to comment on Zimmerman’s stated intention to attempt to sell the weapon that ended Trayvon’s life, they chose not to comment on “the actions of that person” choosing instead to continue via the Trayvon Martin Foundation, to maintain a “laser focus” on the political battle to change the laws that still would continue to allow George Zimmerman and others to easily purchase guns and enact gun violence on fellow American citizens with insufficient legal consequence, punishment or legal responsibility.
(AllHipHop News) Yesterday, radio personality Charlemagne Tha God threw hands with boxer Shawn Porter, during a celebrity sparring session.
Shawn Porter hosted a press conference and open training session at Gleason’s Gym yesterday (May 11) in Brooklyn.
A variety of media personalities decided to get into the ring with the Shawn Porter, to test their boxing skills against a world champion. It didn’t end well for most of them.
“I watch boxing, so I respect the craft. I was in there for two rounds and I feel like I was running for two hours. This is no joke, respect boxers. If you see them in the street, don’t mess with them,” Charlamagne Tha God said. “He was faster than I thought he was. Hand speed, foot speed and he had power. He got me pretty good a couple times, I’m glad I had this gear on.”
But Shawn Porter had some positive words to say for Charlamagne as well.
Apparently, the outspoken radio host, who was recently threatened by Bryan “Birdman” Williams during an episode of The Breakfast Club Morning Show that went viral, is apparently swift on his feet.
“Charlamagne did well. He came in with some toughness and a bit of a game plan,” Shawn Porter said. “He knew I was here to put on a show, but he competed.
Shawn Porter held the training session to showcase his athleticism, as he prepares for a big match with Keith Thurman on June 25 at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn.
Charlamagne Tha God takes a body blow from Shawn Porter. But apparently Charlamagne can take a punch!
Other media personalities including Sirius XM’s Rhett Butler of The Shadow League and Nestor Gibbs of Tha Boxing Voice threw some jabs at Shawn Porter. But most of them got it like Charlamagne.
Shawn Porter, who is the former welterweight world champion, will square off against Thurman as the main event of Showtime Championship Boxing, which will air on the same date, at 9:00 PM.
Photos From Ed Diller/DiBella Entertainment/Premier Boxing Champions
Apparently DMX is upset that he’s getting billed as the opener for ‘Real Housewives of Beverly Hills’ star Erika Jayne at a “gay club.” The club does cater to gay crowds on some nights, but the venue is not just a gay club. It seems that X has a gig at House Nightclub, but he isn’t happy about Erika being promoted as the headliner. Mark Lowe, the owner of HOUSE, says it’s all a misunderstanding. He explains that DMX and Erika’s events are two different shows. Although House has some LGBT nights, Saturday is not one of them. Well X better get ready for his sold out show.
(AllHipHop News) Buzzing rapper Kodak Black seems to have his mind set on hooking up with a few reality TV stars. During a visit to the popular plastic surgeon Michael “Dr. Miami” Salzhauer, Kodak got into a discussion about Kylie Jenner, Kendall Jenner, and Zonnique. It was the T.I. & Tiny: The Family Hustle star that got the most attention.
“Probably Tiny’s daughter [Zonnique],” said Kodak when asked about potentially taking a celebrity to prom. “By the way, Tip won’t be calling me at 12, 1, 2, ,3, 4 in the morning.”
The 18-year-old “SKRT” rhymer continued, “That’s not his daughter. It’s like, ‘That’s not your business bro.'”
Zonnique is T.I.’s stepchild. However, he has helped raise her during his time being married to Tiny and refers to her as his daughter. The Grammy winner is also involved in Nique’s music career.
“With my stepdad, I just go to him at the end and get his opinion about it,” Zonnique told AllHipHop.com about Tip’s participation in her creative process.
(AllHipHop News) Trinidad James is celebrating the rising success of his new single with Lil Dicky and Mystikal titled “Just A Lil Thick (She Juicy)”.
The Atlanta rapper’s new single recently surpassed 3.5 million views and is currently moving up the charts as one of the most added songs on Billboard’s Rhythmic Radio chart.
To celebrate the early success of “Just A Lil Thick (She Juicy),” Trinidad James has decided to launch a new app and a website www.JustALilThick.com, to better interact with his fans.
“Don’t hide it. Celebrate it this summer and every day that you live… cause what I do know is life is a speeding bullet out the chamber and this bullet of life can penetrate and surface as long as you believe it can.”
The app allows users to upload their own photos, which replaces Lil Dicky’s face with users’ in between two butt cheeks, from a scene in the video for “Just A Lil Thick (She Juicy).”
Put your face in between to voluptuous bootys here by clicking here.
(AllHipHop News) It looks as if Top Dawg Entertainment has added a new member to the team. Several TDE representatives sent out a tweet last night that simply read, “@skiiiwalker?” That happens to be the Twitter handle of Chicago singer/producer Lance Skiiwalker.
Earlier this year, TDE CEO Anthony “Top Dawg” Tiffith revealed on an Instagram post that the label recently signed two new artists.
At the time, the acts were just labeled “John Doe 1” and “John Doe 2.”
The mystery signees have yet to be officially announced, but the simultaneous social media postings seem to be an indication Lance Skiiwalker is one of the John Does listed.
Skiiiwalker is not a new name to TDE fans.
He appeared on Jay Rock’s “Telegram (Going Krazy)” and “Money Trees Deuce” off 2015’s 90059 album. The former member of the duo known as The Rocketeers also produced Schoolboy Q’s “His & Her Fiend” under the name Rocket.
(AllHipHop News) DJ Khaled was able to take his daily posts on Snapchat and turn that into an A-list career. The music producer is now one of the most talked about Hip Hop representatives. He has even been featured in the New York Times.
The Q&A with the Times included Khaled sharing his thoughts on future plans. He hopes to one day appear on screen with a 2-time Academy Award winner.
“Well, my life goal is to do everything forever. My life goal is called ‘live life,'” said Khaled. “I want to do movies. I want to work with Denzel Washington.”
Before the curator of hit records such as “I’m So Hood,” “All I Do Is Win,” and “I’m On One” jumps into acting, Khaled has to finish his gig as the opener on Beyoncé’s “The Formation World Tour.” When asked if he ever speaks to Bey during the trek, the Miami native revealed he rarely crosses paths with the superstar.
“I’m very quiet. Every time I’ve ever seen her is when I’m with my brother Jay Z, and I just say, ‘Hi,’ and I look the other way so fast, and I kind of run,” Khaled stated. “I just don’t want to say nothing too much. I’m not messing that up.”
Oy Vey! This is why social media is the devil! Our beloved Serena Williams decided to give dog food a shot. Now, granted she is giving her dog some top choice food, but this is not the way to do anything…right? She explains in the video exactly how she came into eating the doggie food.
“And I promise you, I was like, ‘That looks so good.’ It was fresh greens and boiled chicken and beef and it was seared tenderly. It was just perfection. That looks like the best food. Better than my food,” she said. “So today, I was like, I might wanna taste his food, so I order him the salmon and rice because I eat salmon and rice. Before you judge me, look at it. It’s kinda all mixed together. C’mon, it looks good…I put some in his bowl. I’m like, what the heck, I’m gonna try a piece. So I ate a spoonful. Don’t judge me, I ate a spoonful! So what happened? Well, let’s just say a spoonful of dog food makes a lot of you-know-what goes down. “Let’s fast forward two hours. I just ran to the toilet like…I thought I was gonna pass out. It did taste weird. I force-swallowed it.”
Now, this is the same woman who I consider uber sexy and HOT. However, her talking about taking a boo boo just made my stomach turn. She still sexy though.
Anyway, she is currenty in Rome in a tennis tourney.
There was a bit dust up on the internet when Soulja Boy revealed that he had recently signed a deal for $400 million. Well, people had a bunch of jokes and others were claiming BS. But look what popped up on the interwebs today…
https://www.instagram.com/p/BFSM2mULjyN/
Apparently, the deal extends beyond music and has something regarding film and TV.
Last year was a tumultuous year for our beloved city. We made international news and the cover of Time Magazine. The city was set on fire, literally and figuratively. Our youth showed no regard for authority by being blatantly defiant, while opportunistic adults pillaged stores for merchandise of all kinds during the riots. The mayor used the word “thugs” to describe the people causing the mayhem in the streets. Freddie Gray died, along with 343 other people. Twenty-two of the 344 total reported homicides from last year were school aged children. In addition to the three hundred forty-four killings, we had more than sixteen hundred shootings. Man, I tell you, last year was a tumultuous year for our beloved city of Baltimore.
There were many planned events scheduled during the week of April 24, 2016 to commemorate the week our city burned in April 2015. We witnessed churches joining hands to memorialize the death of Freddie Gray, whose burial preluded the Baltimore Riots of 2015. There were candlelight vigils and peaceful protests across the street from where the Penn-North CVS in Penn-North was set ablaze. Police Officers were told to be vigilant and on active standby because there was concern that the peaceful protest would turn into an unbridled breakout.
On April 27, 2016, literally one year after the riots, everybody functioned with apprehension, not knowing what to expect. A city where people are already suspicious of others, paranoid and on edge was heightened with greater suspicion and anticipation. I was in the Penn-North section of Baltimore on that day. I was at a school, Booker T. Washington Middle School, participating in an open forum discussion on the increase of violence in Baltimore City Public Schools. The irony in that.
One year prior Baltimore City Public School students used social media to incite a purging activity at Mondawmin Mall in West Baltimore. School officials were forewarned of the threat, but chose to ignore it. The mall was made aware of the threat, but was advised by school officials and local law enforcement to ignore it. The students showed up at Mondawmin, like they normally do around 3pm when schools are dismissed, mass transit was discontinued, armed law enforcement displayed militarized force then all hell broke loose.
So, as I was saying, on Wednesday April 27, 2016 I was participating in an open forum on violence in our public schools. I said that I “participated” in the forum, when in actuality I played an extremely significant role in helping organize the entire event. The forum was attended by many stakeholders in the community. We had a distinguished panel which consisted of students, parents, teachers, law enforcement and community activists. Our audience was indicative of our panel, consisting of students, parents, teachers, law enforcement, community activists, as well as elected officials and administrators. During the discussion many issues were highlighted.
We discussed assaults on staff by students, student on student assaults, substance abuse issues engulfing our young people, untreated mental health and emotional issues causing instability amongst our youth, lack of parental guidance and adult responsibility to children, and lack of funding for resources to better serve the youth in the schools or in the communities. We discussed the harsh reality of the school-to-jail pipeline, limited opportunities outside of school for youth, lack of respect and underdeveloped relationships between youth and law enforcement in our city. In hindsight, we discussed all of the reasons that would lead to a youth revolt, a failing school system and the root causes that would deteriorate the dexterity of any community.
“What’s going on in Baltimore, now” I asked the question rhetorically. Well, would you believe that exactly one year after the riots on April 27, 2015 a twelve year old black boy was shot by a Baltimore City Police Officer for brandishing a BB gun, which mistakenly looked real? Would you believe that approximately one week after appearing at our teacher forum and addressing the crowd, issuing the challenge that “we” need to collectively work together to improve the conditions of our schools, that Baltimore City Public Schools CEO Dr. Gregory Thornton was quietly replaced from his position? Would you believe that we are creeping up on 100 murders already this year and it’s only the beginning of May?
Last week, the youngest murder victim was a one-month old baby girl whose father scalded her to death. And the oldest murder victim was a 77 year old male, found dead in his home, from “suspicious” causes. Our Democratic nominee for Mayor, State Senator Catherine Pugh, who’ll presumably be sworn into office after winning the general election in a predominantly blue city, defeated former Mayor Sheila Dixon in the primary by less than twenty four hundred votes. And would you believe that Baltimore’s election chief, Armstead B.C. Jones, Sr., had to “defend the integrity of the primary election amid allegations that some ballots went missing and others were incorrect,” as reported by Baltimore Sun journalist Yvonne Wenger and Michael Dresser?
What can I say? We’re still a city in turmoil, but we’re also a city with so much potential. I’d like to believe.
(AllHipHop News) Kanye West’s new manager Scooter Braun puts the rapper’s financial troubles down to generosity.
Scooter, 34, who also manages pop sensation Justin Bieber, was brought in as the rapper’s co-manager in March, tasked with furthering his career as an artist, fashion designer and entrepreneur.
The 38-year-old Hip-Hop star wrote on Twitter earlier this year that he had run up huge debts of $53 million pursuing his artistic vision. In a series of eccentric tweets he also begged billionaire Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg for cash to fund his artistic projects.
The music management mogul says the reason his client is in financial difficulty despite selling millions of records and being married to multimillionaire reality star Kim Kardashian, is his outlandish generosity.
“A lot of people have an assumption about him (Kanye) might be selfish or arrogant,” Scooter tells veteran U.S. broadcaster Charlie Rose. “The guy I’ve gotten to know who I’m learning to translate to others is someone who literally got himself in financial trouble because he would give the shirt off his back to help someone. He’s literally one of the most giving human beings I’ve ever met in my entire life.”
Scooter adds, “He doesn’t know how to say no when someone needs help and he feels like he can truly help everyone and when he gets frustrated its because he’s not trying to make money, or he’s not trying to take as much wealth, he’s trying to say ‘let me help, let me help, let me help’.”
The rapper received little sympathy for his financial predicament when he made begging posts on Twitter in February and admitted to needing investment for artistic endeavors despite his personal wealth.
“Yes I am personally rich and I can buy furs and houses for my family,” Kanye wrote on the social media site, “but I need access to more money in order to bring more beautiful ideas to the world.”
Despite his client’s strange online behavior and egotistical public image, Scooter thinks the rapper is aware of how he is perceived.
“I think he understands,” the management guru adds. “I can understand Kanye to a certain point. I think only Kanye can truly understand Kanye.”
(AllHipHop News) The musical career of DJ Premier includes creating sound beds for some of the most accomplished performers in Hip Hop history. While Premo is widely known for his work with Gang Starr, Nas, The Notorious B.I.G., Jay Z, and other rap stars, the legendary producer has also put his stamp on records by D’Angelo, Janet Jackson, and Brandy.
In addition, Premier’s catalog includes the East Coast representative teaming with the likes of Jeru the Damaja, Bumpy Knuckles, and Royce da 5’9″ to forge complete bodies of work. Surprisingly, Preem has yet to produce an entire project by a female vocalist. That omission is about to be corrected.
Singer-songwriter Torii Wolf is joining forces with Premier for the upcoming album Flow Riiot. The duo offered a hint about the direction of the collection with the new single “1st” which premiered last week. It has already collected over 24,000 plays on SoundCloud.
“‘1st’ came very naturally, just lots of raw emotion,” says Wolf. “I really let it go in the booth. Preem’s beat brought a heartbroken animal out of me, and that is a common theme we’ve really held on to throughout the entire album.”
The track features Premo’s signature scratches as well as Wolf lamenting about a lost love. With a sample from Dilated People’s “Good As Gone,” the single effortlessly seams together an underground Hip Hop feel with a modern Sade-esque lyrical approach.
“Working with Preem is the nonpareil. It’s all about the feel, which is how I find myself doing everything I do in this life,” states Wolf. “When it comes to expression, I don’t believe there are any right or wrong ways to do it, and creating with Preem falls right in line with that way of living for me. We have great chemistry in the lab, and I think of our creations like language and our genres are our dialects.”
The Wantagh, New York native adds, “Our conversations flow beautifully. We understand each other, and I feel so grateful to have found each other here and everywhere and even more excited to share our sound babies with the world.”
