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The War & Treaty’s Michael Trotter Jr. Recalls Getting ‘Stabbed’ at Age 12 in a Gang: ‘That Was the Turning Point’

The War and Treaty’s Michael Trotter Jr. is opening up about the rough journey that led him to where he is today. The duo is the latest guest on Bunnie XO‘s Dumb Blonde podcast, where Trotter shared his experience with gangs and family trauma.

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“Cleveland is not something I talk about often,” Trotter explained. “Growing up in Cleveland, I grew up in a strict Christian household, it was very cultish to me. Friday night sundown to Saturday night sundown. It’s nothing but God. You can’t do anything. You can’t watch TV, I couldn’t go play with friends, none of that stuff. It was just church, church. It really altered my life for a minute there.”

He continued, “It was a big contrast to what real life was. Friday to Sunday it was like, ‘Hallelujah, Jesus, Jesus’ and the rest of the week, we were living like s—.”

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The singer noted that in his faith, everyone was “putting on this faith and saying that they’re happy,” but divorce and drugs were prominent throughout the community. He started “rebelling” early in life, after dealing with abuse at the hands of his father, who was struggling with addiction. “I turned to the streets in Cleveland, had a strong gang life. The gang association is called Folks, and I had a cousin who was very high up in gang life in Cleveland. I had my little initiation and I started selling.”

Trotter shared that his gang activity started at age 11. “I got stabbed when I was 12, and I think that was the turning point,” he recalled. “I was laying in the streets of Cleveland, and my cousin had been killed, so my mom then was like, ‘We need to get out of Cleveland and get to D.C.’”

Over time, and through processing his PTSD, Trotter has grown through his trauma, forming The War and Treaty in 2014 with his wife, Tanya. Since then, thankfully, the husband-and-wife duo have grown into musical success. The War and Treaty were one of two country acts nominated in the Grammys’ best new artist category in 2024; the other was Jelly Roll, Bunnie XO’s husband. “The space we occupied was really important,” Michael previously told Billboard. “The two artists representing the genre were not representative of that genre at all, if we’re being completely transparent. You got Jelly Roll, a tatted-face rapper who can sing a little bit, and Mike and Tanya, these Black, overweight, gospel-trained singers. Country music is actively trying to attack the narrative it has created, and I’m proud to be part of that change.”

Ol’ Dirty Bastard Helped Save 4-Year-Old Girl After She Was Hit by Car

Maxine Lovell and her daughter Maati had an unexpected run-in with the Wu-Tang Clan‘s wild card Ol’ Dirty Bastard back in 1998. They tell the story in the documentary Ol’ Dirty Bastard: A Tale of Two Dirtys.

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Maati, who was just four years old at the time, was hit by a car while walking with her older sister causing her to be stuck under a ’96 Ford Mustang. “Maati was nowhere,” said Maxine in the exclusive clip given to People. “I couldn’t find her. And I kept saying, ‘Where’s my daughter? Where’s my daughter? Where’s my daughter?’ And everybody said, ‘Under the car.’ When I bent down all I saw was her. And she wasn’t crying; she wasn’t screaming, but when she saw me, then she screamed.”

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Adding, “Some brothers came from out of nowhere. They lifted the car. Someone slid [Maati] from underneath. She didn’t cry and she didn’t scream. She didn’t know what had happened to her. But when she saw my face, she started wailing.”

One of the people that helped lift the car was none other than ODB after he noticed the commotion in front of Papa Wu’s Brooklyn Sounds recording studios on Fulton Street. There’s a news article about the accident in the Daily News and he talked about helping Maati on The Howard Stern Show after it happened. “I just stopped my car in the middle of the street and I ran towards the car,” he told Howard Stern. “Like what’s goin’ on? Everybody’s talkin’ so fast and movin’ so fast, it’s like [a] spontaneous reaction.”



The little girl’s mother also revealed the late Brooklyn rapper kept in touch over the years. “He kept checking [on us] — he didn’t just leave it like that,” she said. “And I told him, ‘Anytime you need to talk, call me.’ So he would call me and tell me things that were in his head.”

Ol’ Dirty Bastard: A Tale of Two Dirtys premiered over the weekend (Aug. 25) on A&E.

Shaboozey Sues Warner for Breach of Contract Over Efforts to Exit Deal

UPDATE (Aug. 26): Shaboozey’s ex-record label sued him back after the singer filed his own lawsuit against the company, accusing him of “fraud” to avoid fulfilling his contractual obligations. You can read more here.

PREVIOUSLY (Aug. 23): Amid the chart-topping success of “A Bar Song (Tipsy),” Shaboozey is now suing music publisher Warner Chappell — claiming the company is stonewalling his efforts to exercise a contractual provision that would give him an early exit from his deal.

In a case filed Wednesday (Aug. 21) in Los Angeles, the country star (born Collins Obinna Chibueze) claims his publishing administration deal with Warner-Tamerlane (a unit of Warner Chappell) contained an acceleration clause — meaning he could repay 110% of advances to speed up the expiration of the deal.

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Shaboozey’s lawyers say he invoked that clause last month — perhaps unsurprisingly, given the massive success of “Bar Song.” But they claim Warner has, thus far, declined to even tell him how much is owed.

“To date, Warner has refused to disclose to plaintiff the total amount of the unrecouped balance of prior advances it made,” writes Todd Bonder, the star’s attorney. “Warner’s conduct violates the administration agreement signed between the parties.”

The lawsuit comes amid a breakout year for Shaboozey. “A Bar Song,” a genre-blending hit that interpolates J-KWON‘s 2004 rap hit “Tipsy” into a bouncy pop country track, has spent six weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, tying the longest chart-topping stint for a song in 2024.

In his complaint, Shaboozey also names his former record label, Kreshendo Entertainment, as a defendant. He claims the company — which he left in 2019 before signing a new record deal with Empire — is the reason Warner is refusing to turn over the crucial information.

“Kreshendo and [others] have instructed Warner not to provide plaintiff the total unrecouped balance related to advances made with respect to the compositions or has refused to authorize Warner to provide such information,” his lawyers write.

The dispute appears to turn on Shaboozey’s argument that he personally took over Kreshendo’s role in the contract with Warner after he terminated his label. In his legal filings, he says that Warner “has not agreed” with such an interpretation.

The lawsuit also claims that Kreshendo released three separate Shaboozey songs in 2019 after he had already terminated the deal — “More,” “Joan Jett” and “Prosperity” — without his permission.

A spokesman for Warner Music Group did not immediately return a request for comment. A spokesperson for Kreshendo could not immediately be located for comment. A publicist for Shaboozey did not return a request for comment.

Shaboozey’s Ex-Record Label Sues Him Back: ‘Fraud and Misrepresentation’

Days after Shaboozey sued both Warner Chappell and his former record label, the label sued him right back — accusing the breakout country star of using “fraud” and “bad faith” to avoid his existing contractual obligations in the wake of the massive success of “A Bar Song (Tipsy).”

In a complaint filed Friday (Aug. 23) in Los Angeles court, Kreshendo Entertainment claims that after it released Shaboozey (Collins Obinna Chibueze) from his record deal in 2019, the company retained key rights to his music. Rather than stick to those requirements, Kreshendo claims the star has instead “elected a strategy of fraud and misrepresentation to deprive plaintiffs of their contractual rights.”

“Notably, Shaboozey had no issue with any of these terms for years,” write the company’s attorneys, from the law firm Reed Smith. “It was only after he recently released the ‘Bar Song,’ which has become a huge hit, that he has taken sudden issue with the terms he expressly agreed to.”

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The new case was filed just two days after Shaboozey filed his own case on Wednesday (Aug. 21) against Kreshendo and Warner Chappell. In that lawsuit, Shaboozey claimed that Warner was blocking him from exiting a publishing administration deal and that it was doing so at the behest of Kreshendo even though he had terminated the label years earlier.

But in the new accusations, Kreshendo says it’s Shaboozey who’s in the wrong. The company admitted that it had released Shaboozey from his record deal in 2019 but argued that the move came with important stipulations — namely, that Kreshendo would continue to own a 50% stake in all of the singer’s compositions and retain a right to be paid a percentage of profits from his masters.

Those requirements were put in place, according to Kreshendo, to compensate the company for the support it had provided a then-undiscovered singer.

“Before Shaboozey became the well-known artist he is today, he was an unknown artist that plaintiffs believed in, and they agreed to invest their time and money to help him develop and reach success in the music industry,” the complaint reads.

The lawsuit claims that Shaboozey has repeatedly breached the termination agreement, including through failing to pay the required profits and also through the wrangling with Warner that was detailed in his own lawsuit earlier in the week. Kreshendo says Shaboozey’s statements to Warner, including directing the company to stop paying Kreshendo, have been “false” and “an attempt to circumvent his contractual obligations.”

An attorney for Shaboozey did not immediately return a request for comment from Billboard on Monday (Aug. 26). Warner Chappell, which was named as a defendant in Shaboozey’s case, is not a plaintiff in the newer lawsuit.

The dueling lawsuits come amid a breakout year for Shaboozey. “A Bar Song,” a genre-blending hit that interpolates J-KWON‘s 2004 rap hit “Tipsy” into a bouncy pop country track, has spent seven weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, marking the longest chart-topping stint for a song in 2024.

‘World of Warcraft: The War Within’ Has Finally Arrived: Here’s Where to Score the Expansion Online

All products and services featured are independently chosen by editors. However, Billboard may receive a commission on orders placed through its retail links, and the retailer may receive certain auditable data for accounting purposes.

After launching in 2004, World of Warcraft has been bringing new gamers into the fold as one of the best and most long-running massively multiplayer online role-playing games out there. And for the game’s 10th expansion, gamers can experience Azeroth in a different way in The War Within.

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Starting at $49.99 for the base edition, World of Warcraft: The War Within for Mac and PC is available for purchase starting on Monday (Aug. 26) at G2A.com and other online retailers.

Playable on Mac or PC via Battle.net, The War Within expansion takes place in a new subterranean realm called Khaz Algar and follows a new campaign to defeat Xal’atath, the Harbinger of the Void and new threat to Azeroth.

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The War Within is the first entry in a new trilogy called The Worldsoul Saga. It will be followed up with Midnight and The Last Titan, which both should be released within the next six years.

Activision Blizzard

‘World of Warcraft: The War Within’

$49.99 and up

If you’re new to World of Warcraft, now is a good time to start playing since there’s a new expansion and upcoming trilogy to experience. One of the best things about the game is that you don’t need to play past versions of the game or expansions to start playing. It’s core mechanics are simple enough to pick up and understand, while in-game tutorials guides you on your journey through Azeroth.

You also don’t need a console, like Xbox Series X or Sony PlayStation 5, to start playing. You just need a modern computer with a solid internet connection to get started.

Available at G2A and Battle.net starting at for $49.99, World of Warcraft: The War Within is out for Mac and PC on Monday (Aug. 26). In the meantime, watch a trailer for the expansion below:



Want more? For more product recommendations, check out our roundups of the best Xbox dealsstudio headphones and Nintendo Switch accessories.

BTS’ Suga Apologizes Again After Receiving DUI From Riding a Scooter Intoxicated | Billboard News

Suga released a second apology after he received a DUI from riding his scooter intoxicated throughout the streets of Seoul. Keep watching to see what his second apology says.

Tetris Kelly:

BTS’ Suga apologizes again for being intoxicated while riding his scooter, this time with a handwritten note. SUGA, aka Agust D, already spoke out a couple weeks ago. After being cited by police in Seoul and having his license suspended after falling off an electric scooter. Now he posted a note to Weverse saying: “I would like to apologize again to you with shame. I deeply apologize for the disappointment and hurt of my misbehavior to my fans and everyone who loves me. I’ve made a big mistake, forgetting the responsibility to repay you with actions worthy of the love I’ve received.”

In reference to his original post a day after the incident, he stated: “I should have thought more deeply and been careful, but I couldn’t.” Some fans have expressed concern online though most have been respectful. He added: “Due to this incident, I have greatly damaged the precious memories I made with the members and fans and put a lot of pressure on the name of the BTS. Once again, I sincerely apologize to the fans who were hurt by me. I sincerely apologize for causing a social stir and disappointing many people.”

We could never be disappointed in you, Suga. Wishing you the best as you complete military service.

Donald Trump Had Permission to Play Foo Fighters’ ‘My Hero’ at Rally, Campaign Says

Donald Trump‘s campaign is asserting its right to use Foo Fighters‘ “My Hero” at events despite the band’s public denunciation of the campaign’s prior use of the track.

“We have a license to play the song,” Trump campaign spokesperson Steven Cheung wrote in an email to The Hill. Additionally, he tweeted at the band, using puns of the group’s song titles in his response: “It’s Times Like These facts matter, don’t be a Pretender,” Cheung wrote, tagging Foo Fighters and adding a link to The Independent‘s article about the licensing issue.

Trump played Foo Fighters’ 1997 anthem in welcoming Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to the stage at a Friday (Aug. 23) rally in Glendale, Ariz., held after the independent presidential candidate suspended his campaign and endorsed Trump for president. “I don’t think too many of you people have heard of him, he’s very low-key,” Trump said just before the chorus of “My Hero” began to play. “He’s a very low-key person, but he’s highly respected. He is a great person. I’ve known him for so long. For the past 16 months. Robert F. Kennedy Jr.”

“Foo Fighters were not asked permission, and if they were, they would not have granted it,” a spokesperson previously told Billboard of the unauthorized usage. Furthermore, “appropriate actions are being taken” against the campaign, the spokesperson added, noting that any royalties received as a result of the campaign’s usage of the track will be donated to the Kamala Harris/Tim Walz campaign.

The Trump campaign’s use of “My Hero” marks the third instance this month in which an artist has accused the campaign of using their music without permission. One day prior to the campaign’s use of “My Hero,” Cheung posted a 13-second video to his X account featuring Trump stepping off a plane to the strains of Beyoncé’s “Freedom” — a track the Harris/Walz campaign had been using as its official anthem, with Beyonce’s permission, for weeks prior. Shortly after Beyonce’s record label and music publisher sent the Trump campaign a cease-and-desist, Cheung removed the video from his account.

Karrahbooo Responds to Lil Yachty Ghost-Writing Claims: ‘Who Ain’t Write It?’

Late last week, Lil Yachty had what many would consider a meltdown on social media — and his former groupmate is responding to some of the heated allegations.

Yachty hopped on Instagram Live to address both a not-so-flattering clip from his podcast A Safe Place where he and his co-host Mitch got into an awkward conversation about work ethic, and a couple of since-deleted tweets from an X user who claimed to run into his former artist and assistant Karrahbooo at a Red Lobster where she allegedly told the fan she was “kicked out” of the Atlanta rapper’s Concrete Boys collective.

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Yachty accused Karrahbooo of lying and being manipulative. “Tell people how you verbally abuse people. Don’t get on here to make it seem like n—as kicked you out… bullying you? Bro, go ‘head and tell people how you talk to people… You talk to people like they’re small, like they’re beneath you,” he said on IG Live, adding, “This the problem with you new artists. Y’all get poppin’ online and then you become more popular than your actual music. You $900,000 in the hole and I got every f—ing receipt.”

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Boat also claimed he wrote all of her verses and positioned her as the face of Concrete Boys. “I wrote every f—ing verse you’ve done,” he proclaimed. Later saying, “I slowed the beat down, I put 808s specifically on your verse so when it got to your part and the beat dropped, everyone would be like, ‘This girl is the craziest one,’” in reference to her viral On the Radar freestyle.



Well, over the weekend, Karrahbooo addressed her former label boss.

She first responded to him via Instagram Stories, saying, “Put it on yo kid I ain’t write these songs miles. Stop da cap and leave me out ur internet shenanigans.” She continued, “Stop bullying me big dawg I never said anything you letting random fans get in yo head man up.”

Then, during her set at Pepsi Dig In Day in Chicago, Karrahbooo again addressed Yachty’s ghostwriting allegations. While performing her song “Running Late,” she asked the crowd, “Who ain’t write it?… Who ain’t write it?” several times.

They both then took more jabs at each other on Instagram. “Don’t throw rocks and hide your hand,” wrote Yachty on his IG Story, to which Karrahbooo responded by saying, “I never threw rocks and u have my number u big grown bi— leave me alone literally @lilyachty.” Adding, “I never said nothing about sh– and I still ain’t said nothing about what’s really going on I don’t want no beef wit you industry people just move on wit ur life stop tryna bring me down when I stay out the way I’m done talking u got it yo character gone speak for itself.”

‘Wicked’ Gets the Lego Treatment With Exclusive Emerald City Set You Can Take Home ‘For Good’: How to Preorder

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You can spend more than one short day in the Emerald City, as Lego has revealed a new set inspired by the upcoming film. Wicked‘s premiere was confirmed to get an earlier release date, and now official merch inspired by the musical-to-movie adaptation has been revealed — including Lego’s exclusive collectibles.

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You can prepare to meet the Wizard of Oz alongside Elphaba and Glinda as you build a replica of the Emerald City. Included in the Lego set are characters inspired by Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande, allowing you to re-create scenes from the Broadway musical.

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The Emerald City set ($99.99) won’t be out until Oct. 1, but rather than risk the possibility of the Wicked Lego set selling out on the release day, Target, Amazon and Walmart have opened up preorders. Ordering the collectible now will ensure that you get a Lego set by the day of release — and if you have a Prime membership, you have the added bonus of receiving free shipping (new users can get a 30-day free trial here).

Keep reading to preorder the Lego set.

Target

LEGO “Wicked” Welcome to Emerald City Collectible Toy

Before Dorothy walked the yellow brick road, Elphaba and Glinda journeyed to the famous Emerald City for their meeting with the mysterious Wizard of Oz. You can bring the green shimmering city home in the form of Lego’s exclusive set, which comes with 945 pieces and an instruction booklet that gives you step by step guidance. The brand also recommends the Emerald City set for children ages 9+.

The Emerald City isn’t the only build you can look forward to collecting: Wicked fans are getting treated to a range of famous scenes from the musical and upcoming movie including a Glinda and Elphaba’s dorm build ($69.99) where Grande’s Glinda sings “Popular.”

In addition to the Lego set helping to distract you until the movie’s premiere, Wicked released a special behind-the-scenes trailer on Aug. 21 that gives viewers an inside peek into the making of the film as well as how the main theme of friendship plays a major role in the theatrical adaptation.

For more product recommendations, check out ShopBillboard‘s roundups of how to get tickets to Tony nominated musicals, the best vinyl record player accessories and music posters.

Mariah Carey Says Mom Patricia & Sister Alison Died On the Same Day: ‘My Heart Is Broken’

Mariah Carey is suffering through not one, but two unimaginable losses. As first reported by People and confirmed by Billboard on Monday (Aug. 26), the vocalist’s mother, Patricia, and sister, Alison, have both died, passing away within hours of one another on the same day over the weekend.

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In a statement shared with Billboard, Carey wrote, “My heart is broken that I’ve lost my mother this past weekend.”

“Sadly, in a tragic turn of events, my sister lost her life on the same day,” she continued. “I feel blessed that I was able to spend the last week with my mom before she passed.”

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The five-time Grammy winner added, “I appreciate everyone’s love and support and respect for my privacy during this impossible time.”

No further details about the nature of Patricia and Alison’s deaths have been made public.

Patricia was a Juilliard-trained opera singer and vocal coach. She was married to Alfred Roy Carey, with whom she welcomed Alison, Mariah and a third child — a son named Morgan — before the couple divorced when the “Obsessed” singer was 3, according to People. Alfred died of cancer in 2002.

Carey — who herself is a mom to two kids, twins Moroccan and Monroe — has been open about her complicated relationship with her family. In her 2020 memoir The Meaning of Mariah Carey, the superstar recalled how her therapist once encouraged her to “literally rename and reframe my family” for her own “sanity and peace of mind”: “My mother became Pat to me, Morgan my ex-brother and Alison my ex-sister … I had to stop expecting them to one day miraculously become the mommy, big brother and big sister I fantasized about,” she wrote.

“Ours is a story of betrayal and beauty,” Mimi added of Patricia in the book. “I’ve emancipated myself from bondage several times, but there is a cloud of sadness that I suspect will always hang over me, not simply because of my mother but because of our complicated journey together … Our relationship is a prickly rope of pride, pain, shame, gratitude, jealousy, admiration and disappointment. A complicated love tethers my heart to my mother’s.”