State Champ Radio celebrity news
Page: 39
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If we know anything about Cardi B it’s that she’s all about getting that bag. But when she revealed her latest endorsement of clothing brand Shein, people reacted with shock and criticism as the “W.A.P.” rapper is known for rocking high-end clothing brands.
As surprising as it was to see Cardi B co-sign a clothing brand that many people wouldn’t admit to wearing just because it’s, well, “cheap,” some people began to roast Cardi for daring to promote affordable coats and jackets, saying she must be strapped for cash if she’s willing to go this route. “Shien?!?! Are you kidding me. That’s embarrassing,” one commenter said. Still, many others came to her defense in the comments section reminding people that Cardi came from the bottom to the top responding with comments like, “She humble she grew up hustling she buys shein and. Nothing wrong with it and she paired it with red bottoms she knows.”
Not one to take any disrespect lying down, Buzzfeed is reporting that Cardi addressed her haters herself by going on X Spaces and reminding everyone she’s still getting plenty of money.
Per Buzzfeed:
“People say that I’m surviving on Shein deals and brand deals,” she began. “Y’all like to talk about tour deals a lot. I want to let y’all know I could wake up tomorrow, sign a contract, and have half of $65 million — or half of $70 million – in my bank.”
Adding that she was offered that much on her “off year,” she continued, “I don’t want to take tour deals until I announce my album. When I announce my new album I know they’re going to up it. You’ve got to move smart like a bitch. You can’t act like you’re hungry, especially when you’re not.”
“I’m not surviving, baby. Spend like about $3 million in a month,” Cardi said, later adding that she’s waiting for an $80 or $100 million deal. “As long as my bills is paid, I can buy whatever the fuck I want whenever the fuck I want. Shit, I can go spend $500,000 on a fucking car tomorrow. I could buy me a $300,000 watch tomorrow. Bitch, I could buy your mother.”
Yeah, don’t try to slander Cardi’s money moves cause she will respond.
What do y’all think about Cardi B’s Shein deal? Is she too big of a star to go that route or do y’all think it’s much ado about nothing? Sound off in the comments section below.
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Spotify Wrapped is back for 2024 and this year’s wrap-up adds some interesting new genres, graphic flourishes, and month-to-month breakdowns of your listening habits. For the eighth year in a row, Drake is listed as the most-listened-to rapper in both the United States and the world.
In some circles, it’s been said that Drake and his audio war with Kendrick Lamar put a tarnish on the Canadian superstar’s musical legacy. However, that hasn’t put a dent into Drizzy’s streaming numbers as evidenced by the latest Spotify Wrapped roundup.
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In the United States, Taylor Swift is just one slot ahead of Drake as the most-listened-to artist, which makes all the sense in the world given her massive popularity and supportive fanbase. With Swift and Drake taking spots one and two, the rest of the United States’ top 10 list includes in order Zach Bryan, Morgan Wallen, Kanye West, Future, Kendrick Lamar, Travis Scott, The Weeknd, and Metro Boomin.
On the domestic front, the inclusion of Future, Metro Boomin, and Kendrick Lamar has a tipping point in the explosive “Like That” track that ignited the war of words between Drake and K-Dot and culminated in the chart-topping “Not Like Us” that boosted the profile of the Compton, Calif. star.
On the global front, the top artist is Taylor Swift once more, with The Weeknd, a rival of The Boy, taking the second slot with Bad Bunny at #3, Drake at #4, and Billie Eilish at #5.
As it stands, Drake can once again claim superiority as the top rapper in the States and the OVO honcho may be motivated to gain ground on the global front despite having a largely quiet 2024. All eyes will be on October’s Very Own for sure in the following year.
Source: Spotify
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Photo: Getty
HipHopWired Featured Video
Spotify Wrapped is back for 2024 and this year’s wrap-up adds some interesting new genres, graphic flourishes, and month-to-month breakdowns of your listening habits. For the eighth year in a row, Drake is listed as the most-listened-to rapper in both the United States and the world.
In some circles, it’s been said that Drake and his audio war with Kendrick Lamar put a tarnish on the Canadian superstar’s musical legacy. However, that hasn’t put a dent into Drizzy’s streaming numbers as evidenced by the latest Spotify Wrapped roundup.
Related Stories
In the United States, Taylor Swift is just one slot ahead of Drake as the most-listened-to artist, which makes all the sense in the world given her massive popularity and supportive fanbase. With Swift and Drake taking spots one and two, the rest of the United States’ top 10 list includes in order Zach Bryan, Morgan Wallen, Kanye West, Future, Kendrick Lamar, Travis Scott, The Weeknd, and Metro Boomin.
On the domestic front, the inclusion of Future, Metro Boomin, and Kendrick Lamar has a tipping point in the explosive “Like That” track that ignited the war of words between Drake and K-Dot and culminated in the chart-topping “Not Like Us” that boosted the profile of the Compton, Calif. star.
On the global front, the top artist is Taylor Swift once more, with The Weeknd, a rival of The Boy, taking the second slot with Bad Bunny at #3, Drake at #4, and Billie Eilish at #5.
As it stands, Drake can once again claim superiority as the top rapper in the States and the OVO honcho may be motivated to gain ground on the global front despite having a largely quiet 2024. All eyes will be on October’s Very Own for sure in the following year.
Source: Spotify
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Photo: Getty
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Source: Houston Chronicle/Hearst Newspapers / Getty
Beyoncé has already leveled up after being snubbed at the Country Music Awards. Billboard has named her the greatest pop star of the 21st century.
As reported by HuffPost, the trade publication recently curated a list of the greatest talents in music. On Tuesday (Dec. 3), Billboard released their Greatest Pop Stars of the 21st Century list. The editorial staff ranked the 25 most prominent talents in the game. Included in the exclusive list are the likes of Drake, Jay-Z, Adele, Taylor Swift, Ariana Grande, Justin Bieber, Bruno Mars, Bad Bunny and more. Landing at the top spot is Beyoncé, crowning her as the best of the best with the receipts to match the claim.
Billboard chronicles her epic run of hit songs starting with her first No. 1 single “Bills, Bills, Bills” as part of Destiny’s Child. The group would follow things up with “Say My Name,” which also topped the Hot 100 chart. From there they track her game-changing solo career that has produced several anthems and left an indelible impact on popular culture. Since then, she has won over 16 American Music Awards, 36 BET Awards, 27 Billboard Awards, 32 Grammy Awards and 30 MTV VMA Awards. “There are no flop eras for Bey, no periods where she disappeared for a half-decade, no clear missteps that were not immediately and emphatically course-corrected. There are only varying degrees of winning for over two decades,” the feature reads.
You can read Billboard’s editorial on why Beyoncé is the greatest pop star of the 21st century here.
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Jay-Z’s The Book of Hov exhibit at the Brooklyn Public Library last year was a huge hit amongst Hip-Hop fans. Now, anyone who missed out on the exhibition will be able to bring it home as The Book of Hov will be turned into an actual book.
The Associated Press is reporting that the exhibit dedicated to arguably the greatest rapper alive will now be available in print form as The Book of Hov: A Tribute to Jay-Z will be available Wednesday (Dec. 4), as Jay-Z celebrates his 55th year on this Earth. Available to purchase on Assouline, the 432-page book features what the 600,000 visitors of The Book of Hov exhibition saw first-hand at the Brooklyn Public Library divided into eight chapters with 675 illustrations.
Per the AP News:
“The Book of Hov: A Tribute to Jay-Z” unveils Jay-Z’s deep connection with the art world and his rising business ventures, reveals his unique method of composing rhymes mentally and his criminal and social justice activism. It offers a tribute to Baseline Studios where “The Blueprint” and “The Black Album” were birthed. The book also captures him articulating his vision and manifesting his future through a series of interviews spanning several years.
Some of the book’s other highlights include the guitar Jay-Z played at the Glastonbury Festival; Daniel Arsham’s sculpture of the iconic “HOV Hands”; his Rock & Roll Hall of Fame award; and hundreds of paper planes, which were created by New York City schoolchildren who wrote their dreams inside.
“The Book of Hov: A Tribute to Jay-Z” will be available in three editions: The classic version for $120, the ultimate for $2,000 and price upon request for five special limited- edition copies with a tri-fold each housed in a bronze slipcase artwork by Arsham.
A portion of the proceeds from the sale of the special limited edition will be donated to the Brooklyn Public Library.
We don’t know about y’all, but if we’re putting down $2,000 for a book about Jay-Z it better come with a chance to meet him in person or a golden ticket kind of contest or something. Just sayin’.
Will you be picking up a copy of The Book of Hov: A Tribute to Jay-Z? Let us know in the comments section below.
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Jay-Z joined the growing ranks of celebrities in the cannabis space via the high-end Monogram brand, coupled with endorsements from his creative and artistic peers. Now, it’s being reported that Jay-Z’s brand, initially boasting $575 million in funds, has blown through the cash and can’t even be found in stores in dispensaries where advertised online.
In a report from SFGate, Jay-Z, birth name Shawn Carter, joined the cannabis space in 2020 with Monogram, and it came replete with the level of class and luxury expected of anything Hov puts his name on. Boasting a quartet of strains and pre-roll packages, Monogram was believed to be one of the major players, considering its top pitchman’s success in business.
Fast forward to 2024 and it doesn’t appear that the brand ever got its footing. illustrating this point, any potential buyer of Monogram wouldn’t be able to as none of its listed partner dispensaries in California and Arizona carried the product.
The outlet spoke with Seth Yakatan, an investor and adviser who worked with the California legal cannabis sector, and said that Monogram’s parent company, The Parent Company (TPCO), spent high amounts of cash which is evidenced by its seven-part video series featuring Jadakiss, Tinashe, Curren$y, 2 Chainz, and Chika among others.
Monogram was formed on the back of an investment round raised by The Parent Company, which consists of three cannabis businesses with TPCO going public in 2020 via a special-purpose acquisition company which SFGate explained as a fundraising method that fast-tracked a huge haul of cash. In all, TPCO oversaw 20 cannabis retail brands, several grow houses — places where cannabis is grown — and retail stores based in California.
Much of Monogram’s success was based on market projections made by TPCO and was expected to rake in $334 million after announcing the launch. However, as the story notes, California’s competitive market had to compete against itself amid high taxation, falling wholesale prices, and even illegal cannabis sales thus causing many businesses to close up shop.
SFGate also reports that Monogram is no longer in business with TPCO, with the split reportedly taking place two years ago. Monogram is now owned by an LLC connected to the Gold Flora brand, which absorbed TPCO’s business thus making them a minority owner.
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Drake’s legal filings against Kendrick Lamar and UMG have earned him some wrath from Uncle Luke, with the Hip-Hop icon calling him soft.
Drake’s latest move in his ongoing feud with Kendrick Lamar – filing legal petitions against the Compton rapper and Universal Music Group – has rubbed many in Hip-Hop and pop culture the wrong way. Count Luther “Uncle Luke” Campbell among them, evidenced in a social media post the Hip-Hop veteran shared over the past weekend.
“I like Drake’s music, I don’t like what he got going on right now but I like his music,” Luke began. “Some things you don’t talk about. You don’t talk about payola, you don’t talk about buying livestreams and you don’t sue after you got dissed, and you done did some dissing.” He’d go on to proclaim that it was a hallmark of this generation. “That’s y’all young people. y’all young people live in a soft society. That’s why I’m glad I’m an OG. All y’all young people soft. Soft, soft, soft. You got rappers that wanna diss somebody, then wanna go get the gun. Why not go and fight?”
The 2 Live Crew founder would go on to share differences between his generation and this one, citing his past beef with Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg. “One thing that’s off limits, the kids are off limits, girlfriends are off limits, mamas are off limits,” Luke said. His views were mostly met with approval in the comments, with one user writing: “Can’t tell people they wrong anymore without they feelings getting hurt…I just leave everything alone.”
Drake’s pre-action petition claims that Universal Music Group and Spotify were responsible for inflating the streaming numbers for “Not Like Us” using bots on social media and other means. The Certified Lover Boy artist filed the documents shortly after Kendrick Lamar’s latest album, GNX, was released. The move has earned him heavy criticism from others including Joe Budden, who called him a “piece of s—t” on his latest podcast episode, citing the Canadian rapper’s negative actions in the past fueling this karmic retribution.
UMG’s response to the filing was swift, stating: “The suggestion that UMG would do anything to undermine any of its artists is offensive and untrue. We employ the highest ethical practices in our marketing and promotional campaigns. No amount of contrived and absurd legal arguments in this pre-action submission can mask the fact that fans choose the music they want to hear.”
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And the lawsuits for Diddy just keep piling on as yet another woman has come forward to sue the Bad Boy founder for allegedly going Suge Knight on her and dangling her off a balcony many years ago.
According to People, Bryana “Bana” Bongolan filed a 17-page lawsuit against Sean “P. Diddy” Combs claiming that in 2016, the “Last Night” rapper not only sexually molested her but put her life in danger when he dangled her over a 17th-floor balcony of his and Casandra “Cassie” Ventura’s apartment. According to Bongolan, she had spent the night at Cassie’s apartment with her girlfriend when Diddy showed up the next morning and committed the assault.
Per People:
“He grabbed her, turned her back to his chest, and molested her by groping her breasts as she yelled to be left alone,” the lawsuit claims. After Bongolan began to struggle, Combs moved his hands from her breasts to her armpits and placed her on the banister of the 17-story balcony while repeatedly yelling, “Do you know what the fuck you did!”
Bongolan, who was 4 feet 11 inches tall and weighed about 100 lbs at the time, “attempted to resist him, throwing her weight back in a struggle not to be thrown to the ground and what would likely be her death,” but Combs “easily overpowered her again,” the lawsuit claims.
After Ventura emerged, she allegedly screamed at Combs to stop and informed him that Bongolan’s then-girlfriend was also in the apartment.
Combs then pulled Bongolan back over the balcony but did not release her, and instead “slammed Ms. Bongolan onto the balcony’s patio furniture, including a table,” the lawsuit claims. Bongolan said that she did not and still does not know what Combs believed she did.
With all these people coming forward with their stories of Diddy one can only wonder what else is out there that we haven’t heard as of yet. The lawsuit even includes another incident that the fashion designer witnessed between Combs and his ex-girlfriend, Cassie.
Also in the lawsuit, Bongolan claims she observed both “disturbing signs of an abusive relationship” and actual incidents of abuse between Ventura and Combs prior to the balcony incident — including one in which the music mogul threw a “large kitchen knife” at his then-girlfriend, “who, acting in self-defense, threw one back at him.”
As if that wasn’t bad enough, Bongolan revealed that Diddy continued to make her life a living hell as their working relationship continued.
The designer cited several instances, including a trip in which Combs “became aggressive” and “forcibly fed” her a drug she now believes was ecstasy and a photo shoot in which he cornered her to say, “I’m the motherf—— devil. You have no idea what I could do to you. I could kill you.”
Bongolan took Combs’ threat seriously, citing not only his treatment of Ventura but also her knowledge that rapper Kid Cudi’s car exploded after he dated the singer while she and Combs were separated. The designer also heard rumors that the Bad Boy Records founder “skinned a rival’s dog,” the lawsuit alleges.
Skinned a rival’s dog?! Which rival could this have been? If true, that man really is the motherf*ckin’ devil. No wonder he keeps getting denied bail.
Bongolan is suing for $10 million in damages for the physical and mental abuse she suffered at the hands of “Brother Love.”
What do y’all think of the latest accusations aimed at Diddy? Sound off in the comments section below.
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LL Cool J is without doubt one of the greatest MC’s of all-time and while many may consider him to be the actual GOAT of the rap game, LL himself is going a step beyond that assessment and labeling himself the most important rapper in Hip-Hop history.
Recently, Ladies Love Cool James appeared on Apple Music‘s Le Code podcast and gave an in-depth interview about himself and his career. While speaking about his place in Hip-Hop among the gods of the game, LL basically labeled himself Hip-Hop’s anchor being “humbly” saying, “I think that one day people are going to wake up and realize LL Cool J is the most important rapper that ever existed.”
While LL’s evaluation of himself is debatable (and it will be in many Hip-Hop circles and think tanks), the man did know how to balance hardcore Hip-Hop songs along with R&B tunes that made women swoon as soon as they came on the radio.
Continuing to make his case as “the most important rapper that ever existed,” LL stated, “They’re going to look and say, ‘Wow when it comes to the jewelry, this is the guy that introduced all the diamond and the ice and the jewelry and the champagne. They’re going to say when it comes to the love songs, they’re going to say, ‘This is the guy that introduced the love songs and all the love sh*t.’
“When it comes to the bad boy vibe, they’re going to realize that this is the guy who introduced all the bad boy vibes before it was done. When it comes to the GOAT terminology, ‘This is the guy who came up with all the GOAT stuff.’ They’re going to say when it comes to Def Jam, ‘Wow this is the first artist that was on Def Jam.’”
Well, the man isn’t wrong. He continued to explain he was the first rapper to make endorsements for clothing brands and attire a thing in the rap game and helped paved the way for rappers to become actors on television and movies. Whether or not that actually makes him Hip-Hop’s anchor being is up for debate, but he made some pretty solid points about his impact on not just the Hip-Hop game but the Hip-hop culture overall.
Check out the interview in its entirety, and let us know what your thoughts are in the comments section below.
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Sad news is coming out of Wendy Williams’ camp as it seems that the mental health and well-being of the iconic talk show host has declined significantly since we’ve last heard from her.
According to Page Six, the attorney for Wendy Williams’ guardian, Sabrina Morrissey, wrote a memo to the judge overseeing their lawsuit against A+E Networks to inform him that Williams’ battle with dementia hasn’t only gotten worse but has left her “cognitively impaired and permanently incapacitated.” The revelation comes as Morrissey continues to battle the network for getting Wendy Williams to do their four-part series Where Is Wendy Williams? for which she was only paid a paltry $82,000 while the network raked in a fortune.
Morrissey states that she wasn’t aware that A+E and Williams were filming the show until several months into the process and that the network exploited Williams for their own gain as she was clearly struggling with her mental health at the time of filming. A+E Networks for their part denied any such wrong doing and tried to shift the blame on Morrissey instead.
Per Page Six:
They argued in a filing obtained by Page Six that the guardian was pursuing legal action against them to “attempt to excuse her own failure to protect” Williams and “deflect from her own decision” to allow the former host to be filmed “without checking in on her.”
Morrissey’s lawyer wrote in response, “None of the defendants ever gained the guardian’s consent for [Williams’] participation to be filmed, and the guardian did not learn of the talent agreement until March
2023, seven months after the start of filming.”
Though the show was a hit, it became obvious that Williams wasn’t in her right state of mind and was eventually diagnosed with frontotemporal dementia and aphasia, which is known to affect memory loss and causes people to act erratically, behavior Williams exhibited during the filming process.
How this will end up playing out is anyone’s guess, but our prayers and well wishes go out to Wendy Williams and her family.
