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Erykah Badu has been a creative force since the mid-1990s and is highly regarded as one of the most innovative vocal performers of modern times. In a new profile, Erykah Badu lets fans in on her artistic process and shares that she has a full project with The Alchemist in the works.
Erykah Badu, 54, was the subject of Billboard‘s Women in Music series as this year’s chosen icon, and traveled down memory lane regarding her upbringing in Dallas, Texas, the early days of crafting her acclaimed debut album Baduizm, living in Brooklyn in the 1990s, and much more.
However, the portion of the profile where Badu talks about the impact of Hip-Hop music and culture was notable, with the songstress explaining how she’s into the music but not to the level she once was. However, her affinity for music and culture is still vibrant as her children have all toyed with creating music themselves.
“Rap is the people. Hip-hop is the people. It’s the folks. It’s the tribe. I have the luxury of experiencing having children who I watch grow up and love and encourage very much, and I cannot separate them when I see artists who are that age coming up,” Badu said.
Regarding the project with The Alchemist, Badu shares limited details of what’s to come and says that what she’s aiming to create with the legendary California producer and rapper is taking up the majority of her focus.
From Billboard:
She’s been hard at work on her first studio album in 15 years, which is being produced solely by The Alchemist, the hip-hop journeyman who has had a resurgence as of late thanks to his work with the Buffalo, N.Y.-based Griselda crew and artists like Larry June. Badu posted a teaser of the project on Instagram to an exuberant response from fans who’ve been damn near begging her to drop something new and show the generations of artists who’ve had her pinned to the center of their mood boards how it’s supposed to be done.
The entire profile on Erykah Badu is well worth the read. Find the full piece here.
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Big U, an alleged top-ranking Rollin’ 60s Crips gang member and community activist, was arrested and charged with other individuals this week in connection to a RICO case. Big U, who was formerly connected to the late Nipsey Hussle, is accused of running a Mafia-like criminal enterprise by authorities, claims that U say are overblown due to Internet chatter.
In a report from the Los Angeles Times, Eugene “Big U” Henley, 58, was a massive influence on the Hip-Hop scene in Los Angeles, and his involvement with the gang world was notable considering he spent recent times as a community leader looking to quell violence on the streets. Now, Henley is facing charges of murder, kidnapping, robbery, and more.
As the Times notes, Big U was instrumental in boosting the career of Nipsey Hussle, who was also a member of the Rollin’ 60s. His connection with the music scene and his reported position in the Crips operation was framed by federal investigators as that of a mob boss with people visiting Los Angeles being required to “check in” with Henley to move untouched about the city. Henley is alleged to have put the “check in” requirement toward musicians and professional athletes alike.
In the 107-page federal complaint, officials say that Henley ran his self-styled enterprise similarly to how the Mafia operates, using his “stature and long-standing association with the Rollin’ 60s and other street gangs to intimidate businesses and individuals” across the city, according to the complaint.
When authorities first announced their intent to go after Henley, they named him a fugitive in a news conference but Henley eventually turned himself in. As reported by TMZ, Henley recorded a video ahead of turning himself in, stating that he’s done nothing wrong and has contributed heavily to his community. Over a dozen other individuals connected to Henley were also taken into custody.
U.S. Atty. Joseph T. McNally spoke at Wednesday’s news conference and said that Henley’s image as a music executive and community leader was false.
“[Henley] has maintained the image of an entertainment industry entrepreneur running a music label and of somebody who gives back to the community here in Los Angeles,” McNally said. “The facts alleged in the complaint paint a very different picture. It is one of a murderer, a thief, a liar and a cheat and the criminals that enabled him.”
Henley is accused of kidnapping and killing a young rapper and discarding his body in the Las Vegas desert. FBI investigators say that the hit was carried out due to disrespect and ordering a robbery of an unlicensed marijuana dispensary over unpaid extortion payments. Henley is also alleged to have taken charity donations from the likes of Shaquille O’Neal and Draymond Green, only to pocket the money for himself.
Sylvester Robinson, 59, allegedly Henley’s second-in-command, and alleged lieutenant Mark Martin, 50, are both accused of violating the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO). Along with Henley, Termaine Williams, aka “Luce Cannon,” was charged with robbery, Armani Aflleje, aka “Mani,” was charged with transporting an individual to engage in prostitution, and Tiffany Hines was charged with bank fraud.
As seen in the videos above, Big U is claiming innocence.
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LaVar Ball first emerged on the scene as a larger-than-life figure who touted the basketball skills of his three sons as the next big thing in professional sports. Recently, LaVar Ball went through a medical procedure to remove his foot and explained in a new column piece that complications from diabetes led to the decision.
LaVar Ball, 57, penned an exclusive column for the April/May issue of SLAM magazine with Ball gracing the covers of the publications with his sons LiAngelo aka Gelo, LaMelo, and Lonzo. Ball’s relentless promotion of his sons and their athletic exploits made the Ball family one of the most intriguing names in sports and both Lonzo and LaMelo have flourished in the NBA with the Chicago Bulls and Charlotte Hornets respectively.
In the SLAM column, the patriarch of the Ball family gets candid about the complications from diabetes that led to the amputation of his foot, which caused him to face his mortality. However, he found strength not only in the success of Lonzo and LaMelo on the court but also in Gelo’s big hit “Tweaker” which he references several times throughout the piece.”
From SLAM:
When I was in the hospital and “Tweaker” was starting to become a global hit, I had a couple of FaceTime conversations with Gelo, but I was kind of slurring because I was all drugged up with all the medication they were putting in me. It was hard for me to really dial in on what I was trying to say. Even though I was kind of slurring with my speech, Gelo understood what I was trying to say. I remember just telling him, Keep doing your thing. And make sure you take care of your brothers. Just make sure all of y’all are together. Cause the more you guys are together, the better I feel. That’s all I kept thinking about when I was in the hospital—my boys being together.
Read the story in full here.
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Mystikal was arrested in July of 2022 on several serious charges, including first-degree rape, which carries a mandatory life sentence in Louisiana. This past Monday (May 17), a judge overseeing Mystikal’s case moved the trial to May 19 as the rapper continues to declare his innocence.
Mystikal, real name Michael Tyler, was first arrested on July 30, 2022, and booked at the Ascension Parish jail on charges of first-degree rape, simple robbery, damage to property, domestic abuse battery, strangulation, false imprisonment, and four counts of drug possession.
Local outlet KLFY reports that this past Monday, it was thought that Tyler, 54, would face his plea deadline and enter the record for the court. However, the judge decided to move the case to next month. Despite authorities saying that the victim appeared to have suffered physical harm and anguish, Mystikal pleaded not guilty to the bevy of charges.
As the outlet noted, Tyler has faced sexual assault charges in the past, going way back to 2003 when the Louisiana rapper pleaded guilty to sexual battery and did six years behind bars. In 2016, Tyler was charged with kidnapping and sexual assault but the case was dropped.
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Dreamville Festival was launched in 2019 and save for one year skipped due to a nationwide shutdown due to the pandemic, it has occurred annually since. Dreamville Festival organizers released the finalized lineup for this year’s event which features J. Cole, 21 Savage, Lil Wayne, and Erykah Badu among its headliners.
Now in its fifth and final year, Dreamville Festival will return to Dorothea Dix Park in Raleigh, N.C. on Saturday, April 5 and 6, featuring familiar acts for past attendees along with new names in the star-studded lineup.
The top headliners for the festival are Lil Wayne, joining forces with the Hot Boys and the Big Tymers, and J. Cole on the following day ending the festival. Joining these acts on the opening day (April 5) are 21 Savage, PARTYNEXTDOOR, Ab-Soul, and Ludacris. Keyshia Cole will also be performing and celebrating the 20-year anniversary of The Way It Is project. Dreamville Records acts Ari Lennox, Bas, Lute, and Omen will also take the stage.
On day two (April 6), Tems and GloRilla will rock the Dreamville stages and will be joined by Dreamville Records star J.I.D., Wale, Coco Jones, and BigXThaPlug. Dreamville’s EARTHGANG and Cozz will also rock the stages.
“Our team looks forward to welcoming fans from around the world to Dreamville Festival this spring for our fifth anniversary celebration. The first weekend in April has grown to become one of our team’s favorite times of the year as an annual NC reunion,” said Dreamville Cofounder and Festival President Adam Roy in a statement.
A limited number of two-day general admission passes are available now and portions of the sales will be donated to the Dreamville Foundation charity, and the Dorothea Dix Park Conservancy. So far, all of the general admission plus and VIP ticket packages are sold out but waitlists are available on the festival’s website.
Learn more here.
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Photo: Shaun Llewellyn / @shaunllewellyn_
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Tracy Morgan is one of the dozens of celebrities who attend New York Knicks games and has become quite the fixture at Madison Square Garden. However, fans are more concerned with Tracy Morgan’s health than his celebrity status after the comedian and actor had what appeared to be a medical episode while at a recent game.
Tracy Morgan, 56, sat courtside on Monday (March 17) to watch the New York Knicks take on the Miami Heat. While the Knicks game didn’t air on national markets, the news of Morgan falling ill moved swiftly via the X social media platform and the reactions came in fast. Much of what was said was speculative as details surrounding the incident are still developing.
In a report from PEOPLE, the outlet shared an X post from @RealJoshBrownie that showed a video of Morgan being helped by emergency medical staff from the court floor after vomiting. Morgan was also reportedly bleeding from the nose as he was helped to his feet and was ultimately taken out of Madison Square Garden via wheelchair.
Tracy Morgan getting wheeled out from courtside at MSG .. bleeding from nose .. could barely stand up … hope he’s ok pic.twitter.com/E61zXqQQ8H
— RealJoshBrownie (@realJoshBrownie) March 18, 2025
https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js
The medical incident took place around the third quarter of the Knicks-Heat matchup and delayed the game for 10 minutes as staff rushed to address the matter. MSG officials told the outlet, “We hope Tracy feels better soon and look forward to seeing him back courtside.”
The outlet adds that it reached out to Morgan’s reps but did not receive a response.
Tracy Morgan has battled health issues over the years, including receiving a kidney transplant. The SNL alum also was severely injured in a 2014 automobile crash and his long road to recovery has become part of both his standup act and his testimony.
On X, fans of Morgan are sharing their warm thoughts as he continues to heal from this latest incident.
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Angie Stone passed away en route to a performance on March 1, shocking her legion of fans and supporters as details later emerged. During the funeral service for Angie Stone, Tyler Perry took to the podium to both honor and defend the late singer’s legacy regarding unpaid royalties.
Angie Stone was laid to rest at the First Nazareth Baptist Church in her native Columbia, S.C. last Saturday (March 15). The event was streamed live on local outlet WACH‘s YouTube stream and featured a bevy of speakers.
Tyler Perry took to the podium some two hours into the memorial service and addressed the music industry regarding their mistreatment of Stone regarding decades of unpaid royalties. In interviews, Stone has been clear that dealing with recording labels had not worked out favorably on the financial side and that she had given far too much of herself to the industry for such lopsided gains.
“I’m angry at the way she was treated,’ said Perry. “To think that this woman was in the business for all of these years. All of those years, all of those songs, all of that money that was owed to her. Where is it? It’s wrong.”
Perry also centered on Stone’s musical contributions and used lyrics from the singer’s “No More Rain” single and tied it together in a moving tribute to Stone’s enduring influence and legacy on soul music and R&B.
Angie Stone was 63.
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Charleston White has become a popular, if controversial, media figure due to his outlandish comments about Black entertainment and culture. An old video of Charleston White recently surfaced featuring him testifying against a friend, prompting some online to harken back on White’s comments regarding snitching.
Charleston White was trending on X, formerly Twitter, over the weekend after the @rebootjays account shared a 1993 news report from a Texas outlet featuring a teenage White testifying in court. The case appears to involve a murder case involving one Antoine Dolittle, who shot and killed Michael Levy, who tried to stop White and Dolittle from stealing from a department store. The actual crime occurred in 1991
https://x.com/rebootjays/status/1900933462724350261 – The video mentioned above.
White, 216 at the time, is seen telling the court how the shooting was carried out and the clip immediately hit viral status on the X network with fans adding that this is nothing new for him as he’s made snitching part of his ethos.
As is custom, White welcomed the criticism from observers and dropped a video on social media explaining that he doesn’t think the video will stop his current speaking engagement and tour stops, nor will it have any effect on his earnings. White has been explicit in stating that he would gladly snitch on anyone, and the video below highlights his stance.
https://x.com/charlestonwhyt/status/1900996053014401313 – a response video from White.
Gillie Da Kid reacted to the news in his usual outspoken fashion and White replied via video, appearing to address the podcast host and Philadelphia native that had the “no snitching” street code been pushed aside, Gillie would find justice for his slain son, Devin “YNG Cheese” Spady.
https://x.com/batnarc573511/status/1901652025236140278 – The video comment in question.
So far, it doesn’t appear that Gillie Da Kid is going to go back and forth with Charleston White over the matter.
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Jonathan Majors was seen as largely shedding some of the bad press that surrounded his name in the wake of the incident between him and ex-girlfriend, Grace Jabbari. Despite the civil lawsuit brought by Jabbari being recently settled, an audio clip has surfaced that appears to highlight Jonathan Majors admitting to strangling Jabbari.
In the audio clip procured by Rolling Stone, Jonathan Majors, 35, can reportedly be heard speaking to Grace Jabbari and seemingly confessing to using physical force against her but it isn’t truly highlighted what the impetus was for that allegedly violent exchange.
In the audio clip, Majors is heard saying “I’m ashamed I’ve ever…I’ve never aggressive with a woman before. I’ve never aggressed a woman, I aggressed you.”
Jabbari is heard firing back saying “You strangled me and pushed me against the car.”
Majors responded “Yes, all those things are under ‘aggressed,’ yeah. That’s never happened to me.”
Jabbari goes on to say that a sarcastic comment she made towards Majors prompted him to violently react to her and she suggested that the actor is contending with deeper issues pertaining to anger management. Majors alluded to the fact that something about Jabbari sparked that side of him before the audio cuts off.
So far, a comment from Jonathan Majors or Grace Jabbari has yet to surface, but on X, plenty of fans have reactions pointing to the actor’s slow climb in rehabbing his image and how this sets those efforts back several paces.
We’ve got the reactions below.
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MF DOOM, one of Hip-Hop’s most beloved wordsmiths, left behind a towering legacy of lyricism and influenced countless numbers of bar-heavy rappers in the game today. The estate of MF DOOM, long embroiled in a legal back and forth over a series of rhyme notebooks, won the items back and dropped a merchandise line that garnered mixed reactions from fans.
As spotted in HipHopDX, MF DOOM’s estate dropped an exclusive merchandise line that features an image of a page from one of the notebooks that DOOM’s widow, Jasmine Thompson, sought to gain back from former Stones Throw Records manager Eothen “Egon” Alapatt.
During his time at Stones Throw, Alapatt served as a manager for DOOM collaborator Madlib, and the pair released the acclaimed album, Madvillainy, in 2004. That project just saw a release of previously leaked demos that were referenced on the album.
The Note Books Collection is the latest drop from the DOOM estate and features clothing adorned with a photo of the Metal Face mask and images of the aforementioned notebooks on the front and on the back, handwritten lyrics from the song “Deep Fried Frenz” from the DOOM’s Mm..Food album released also in 2004.
As the outlet notes, an Instagram post highlighting the new collection drop was not received warmly as probably expected. That said, some respondents believed that the estate reaping the benefits of DOOM’s legacy financially is a win for the family despite detractors attempting to frame it as a money grab.
Please view the Instagram post in question below and invite readers to peruse the comments to see the reactions both positive and negative from fans.
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