Current Events
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Social media giant TikTok announced a partnership deal with UnitedMasters to provide users with more access to numerous independent artists.
In a press release, the social media platform TikTok announced that they reached a deal on a partnership with UnitedMasters. The direct partnership will give TikTok access to UnitedMasters’ full catalog of independent music artists numbering over 2 million, which includes Brent Faiyaz, Tobe Nwigwe, and FloyyMenor among others in a multi-year collaboration. Artists with UnitedMasters will also have access to TikTok’s own Commercial Music Library.
“Our partnership with TikTok provides UnitedMasters artists unparalleled access to a vast global audience, while TikTok creators and users gain early exposure to some of the most impactful independent music today,” explained Steve Stoute, Founder and CEO of UnitedMasters in the press release. “TikTok recognizes the power of music and creativity, which is why we are excited to formalize this partnership.” According to Social Media Today, the move is inspired by TikTok users’ predilection to find and share new music within the app. An internal report from the social media platform stated that approximately 75% of its users learn about new artists while viewing clips in the app. The partnership also gives those artists with UnitedMasters more exposure to global brands with a presence on the platform, including Diageo, Bose, Walmart, ESPN, Coca-Cola, IKEA, and Dove.
“We want to make the world’s best music available to our global community of over a billion music fans,” said Ole Obermann, Head of Music Business Development at TikTok in the statement. “That’s why we are so excited to be entering into a direct deal with a prominent independent label like UnitedMasters, with its deep, diverse roster of independent artists. Together, we’re ready to amplify these voices and bring their music to a global stage, unlocking new opportunities for discovery.”
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Source: Dwyane Wade / Dwyane Wade Statue
The internet came together to roast the Miami Heat after the team unveiled a new statue honoring Dwyane Wade that looked nothing like the legendary shooting guard.
Sunday was supposed to be a monumental day for the Basketball Hall of Famer. Instead, it turned out to be a day full of hilarious jokes.
The Heat unveiled Wade’s statue in front of the Kaseya Center in Miami during a ceremony, and immediately, social media had the same reaction: They asked, “Who is this man?” because the statue looked nothing like the 42-year-old retired NBA superstar.
The statue was supposed to depict Wade doing his iconic “this is my house” moment during his playing days. Instead, we got someone impersonating Wade, pulling off the moment.
Social media wasted no time taking the statue and using it in hilarious memes. One of those memes took the head of the statue and put it on Wade’s body during the iconic LeBron James alley-oop from Wade moment.
“Dwayne Wade’s statue is some NASTY WORK,’ the satirical sports X account, The Hater Report, wrote in the caption alongside a photo of the statue.
Another post read, “that ain’t D WADE, that’s homie from I Am Legend!!!”
“The Dwyane Wade statue will haunt me until my dying day,’ another user said on X.
During his speech, Wade even asked, “who is that guy?” Apparently he was just trolling, because he later shared a video of himself overseeing the statue being made.
Welp.
We can’t be mad if Dwyane Wade isn’t made about his statue, but he’s still gonna get these jokes.
You can see more reactions to the statue in the gallery below.
3. Accurate
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Trump rallies have hit yet another low with some disgusting remarks made against Puerto Rico. In turn Bad Bunny, Jennifer Lopez, Ricky Martin and others have endorsed Kamala Harris.
As spotted on Variety Magazine the recent Donald Trump rally in New York City spewed various vulgar racist insults and wild untruths throughout the six-hour long event. Comedian Tony Hinchcliffe opened up the festivities with jokes aimed at several communities including Mexicans, Jews and more. His hack routine included some disparaging and very alarming lines aimed at Puerto Rico. “There’s a lot going on. I don’t know if you know this, but there’s literally a floating island of garbage in the middle of the ocean right now. I think it’s called Puerto Rico” he said. The vulgar remarks were met with very little laughter prompting the crowd to sit through another awkward moment.
Trump rally speaker goes on vile racist tirade against Latinos pic.twitter.com/PuEjn2lLQF
— Kamala HQ (@KamalaHQ) October 27, 2024
Naturally his vile commentary soon went viral and was deemed by hate speech by Latinos and others alike. Immediately after Bad Bunny took to Instagram and shared a reel from Kamala Harris reminding us all that Donald Trump not only blocked aid to the island after Hurricane Maria but disparaged Puerto Ricans via crass insults. Jennifer Lopez also shared the same clip to her Instagram Story and also posted Madame Vice President’s proposed economic plan for the PR. Singer Ricky Martin also endorsed Harris via his social media saying he also “remembers” how Trump failed to have compassion for Puerto Ricans after facing the deadliest and costliest hurricane to strike the island.
Latino politicians also voiced their displeasure. New York congressman Ritchie Torres also to X, formerly Twitter to call out the struggle podcaster. “As a Puerto Rican, I am tempted to call Hinchcliffe racist garbage but doing so would be an insult to garbage. When casting their ballots at the voting booth, Latinos should never forget the racism that Donald Trump seems all too willing to platform.”
While citizens of Puerto Rico can’t vote, Puerto Ricans have heavy concentration in several swing states including North Carolina, Florida, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania and Michigan. You can find out where you can vote early here.
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Source: Nike / NIke
The classic and once super rare Nike x Wu-Tang Clan Dunks in the black and yellow silhouette will be returning to shelves Nov. 9 on the Nike SNKRS app and select sneaker boutiques.
A few weeks ago, Nike shock dropped the coveted Wu-Tang Clan Nike Dunks on their SNKRS app. While millions of Wu-Tang fans took L’s on the sudden release, they’ll be getting another crack at owning a pair as a release date has been officially set.
To hype up the upcoming drop (as if they needed to), they’ve incorporated the talents of the New York Knicks, Jalen Brunson, Mikal Bridges, and Josh Hart to hype up the release. Standing alongside The Abbot himself, The RZA, the Nova Knicks throw up the “W” in solidarity with the Hip-Hop legend from Shaolin.
We need those kicks in our lives.
While the young’ns these days aren’t up on the Wu like the OGs, we don’t expect these to be an easy cop as sneakerheads will be coming out in droves to own a pair of these classics once release day comes around.
“These Dunks are important to me and the Wu-Tang legacy because of the cultural impact they’ve had since their original release,” says Wu-Tang Clan leader RZA in a statement. “For many years, the sneaker world was reserved for athletes and some entertainers, and Nike recognizing us in this way is a testament to hip-hop and our contribution to culture.”
No word on how many pairs will be available but with a $600 resale price tag on the ones that dropped a few weeks ago, they’ll definitely be hard to get regardless of availability.
Will you be trying to cop a pair of the Wu-Tang Dunks come Nov. 9? Let us know in the comments section and see more detailed pics below.
1. Nike Wu-Tang Clan Dunk
Source:NIke
Nike Wu-Tang Dunk
2. Nike Wu-Tang Clan Dunk x New York Knicks
Source:NIke
Nike Wu-Tang Clan Dunk x New York Knicks
3. Nike Wu-Tang Clan Dunk
Source:NIke
Nike Wu-Tang Clan Dunk
4. Nike Wu-Tang Clan Dunk
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Nike Wu-Tang Clan Dunk
5. Nike Wu-Tang Clan Dunk
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Nike Wu-Tang Clan Dunk
6. Nike Wu-Tang Clan Dunk x New York Knicks
Source:NIke
Nike Wu-Tang Clan Dunk x New York Knicks
7. Nike Wu-Tang Clan Dunk
Source:NIke
Nike Wu-Tang Clan Dunk
8. Nike Wu-Tang Clan Dunk
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Nike Wu-Tang Clan Dunk
9. Nike Wu-Tang Clan Dunk
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Nike Wu-Tang Clan Dunk
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Elon Musk continues to oppose undocumented immigrants in the United States. A new report has found he once worked illegally in this country.
The polarizing entrepreneur has been openly critical about the country’s border control. As spotted on Raw Story the Tesla CEO seemingly started his career without having the proper paperwork in place. The Washington Post reports that back when Elon Musk had big dreams when he was attending Stanford University. In 1995 the South African native was in America on a student visa but during the fall semester he apparently informed the institution that he would no longer be taking classes.
According to the terms of the legal document he should have left the country but he continued to live in the United States attempting to jumpstart his company Zip2 (formerly known as Global Link Information Network). In 1996 a venture capital firm agreed to invest into Zip2 but quickly found out that both Elon Musk and his brother Kimbal Musk were here illegally thus the firm demanded the two siblings acquire their work visa in 45 days or the deal was off. “Their immigration status was not what it should be for them to be legally employed running a company in the U.S.,” Zip2 board member Derek Proudian said in an exclusive statement to The Post. “We don’t want our founder being deported.”
This is particularly ironic given Elon Musk has spreader anti-immigrant conspiracy theories through his social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter. Earlier this year he very critical of Joe Biden’s reelection campaign tactics and hinted that it immigrants would cause terrorist attacks. “This administration is both importing voters and creating a national security threat from unvetted illegal immigrants. It is highly probable that the groundwork is being laid for something far worse than 9/11. Just a matter of time.” he wrote.
This administration is both importing voters and creating a national security threat from unvetted illegal immigrants.
It is highly probable that the groundwork is being laid for something far worse than 9/11. Just a matter of time. pic.twitter.com/kuilPxAvv3
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 5, 2024
Recently Musk attended Donald Trump’s rally in Butler, PA. and jumped around like a fanboy and went on to spread mistruths about Kamala Harris and running mate Tim Walz. Elon has yet to formally respond to The Washington Post‘s report.
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On Sunday (Oct. 27), Donald Trump held his latest Nazi-friendly rally in New York City at Madison Square Garden. While most of the outrage came due to guest speaker, Tony Hinchcliffe, calling Puerto Rico an “island of garbage in the middle of the ocean,” Trump’s rhetoric continues to be akin to Adolf Hitler’s when his Swastika crew held its own rally in MSG back in 1939.
To make that point the producers over at The Daily Show put together a montage of both Donald Trump and Adolf Hitler’s speeches to show just how similar the two men are when talking about their enemies, immigrants and political opponents. From referring to immigrants as “vermin” and suggesting they “poison the blood” of our country (America is literally a country made up of immigrants), Donald Trump seems to be copying Hitler’s entire playbook when it comes to churning out divisive and hateful rhetoric to gin up his hardcore MAGA base and fill them with anger and frustration against people of color.
If you actually keep up with Donald Trump this shouldn’t come as a surprise as his ex-wife, Ivana Trump, revealed that Trump kept copies of Hitler’s speeches by their bedside while they were married. Keep in mind this was decades before Trump ran for president as he and Ivana were married from 1977 to 1990.
Still, Trump’s hardcore supporters will continue to support their orange overlord regardless of what he says or does, but when people wonder how Hitler was able to get away with mass genocide while convincing a huge swath of the German population that he was doing the right thing, we’re living it.
Check out The Daily Show’s montage of America’s version of Adolf Hitler spewing hateful rhetoric, and let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.
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CNN commentator Van Jones brought up a good (albeit obvious AF) point regarding a glaring double standard applied to Kamala Harris and Donald Trump in the race for the presidency. During CNN’s Town Hall with Harris, which aired Wednesday (Oct. 23) , Harris answered some tough questions from audience members, and she held her own. However, pundits, especially right-wing pundits, predictably picked her apart and scrutinized her performance in ways they don’t when Trump — arguably the most boorish, childish, bigoted, and idiotic blowhard in the history of modern politics — is in the spotlight.
From thegrio:
On the heels of major news that Donald Trump was quoted admiring Hitler’s generals and was called “fascist” by his longest-serving chief of staff, Harris found herself being criticized by some TV analysts after the town hall for sometimes having long, nuanced answers to policy questions. Trump declined to attend the debate altogether despite multiple debates being standard for a presidential campaign.
“Donald Trump and Kamala Harris are not taking the same exam. And I think it bothers people,” Jones said during a political panel. “He gets to lawless, she has to be flawless. That’s what’s unfair.
“That’s what’s unfair tonight. They’re not taking the same exam. Look she has policies. She may not articulate them perfectly every time. She may not put the stories in the right places. But she’s fighting for actual ideas that will help real people. And he’s talking about people’s penises … It’s pissing me off.”
Now, listen: Typically, Van Jones is a flip-flopping Aaron Burr-ass political analyst who straddles the line between progressive and conservative and can’t seem to decide whether he wants to denounce Trump or hump his leg a little — but this time, he’s pretty spot on.
Harris’ critics have balked about her not revealing any specific policy ideas, despite the fact that she has been far more candid regarding details of her plans than the guy who said on the debate stage that he merely has “concepts of a plan.”
We should have no interest in any political analyst who is complaining that Harris can have “long, nuanced answers to policy questions” while Trump is out here screaming like a tinfoil hat-wearing maniac about pet-eating Haitians, cancer-causing-windmills, medical Lysol-injections, military boat-sinking batteries that may cause shark attacks, and cops who need “one real rough, nasty day” where they can freely commit acts of police brutality.
I mean, look at what Trump said about late pro-golfer Arnold Palmer just this week. Imagine the media uproar if Kamala Harris stood on a nationally televised stage in front of a massive audience and said this:
“Arnold Palmer was all man and I say that in all due respect to women, and I love women, but this is a guy that was all man…When he took showers with the other pros they came out of there, they said, ‘Oh my God. That’s unbelievable.’”
So, yeah — Harris and Trump might be running in the same race, but they’re not being graded on the same curve. Not by a long shot.
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Source: TheStewartofNY / Getty / Megan Thee Stallion
Megan Thee Stallion continues to leave her foot on our necks and shows no signs of letting up.
If you saw your timelines on X, formerly Twitter, full of Hotties and men thirsting over Megan Thee Stallion, there is an excellent reason for that.
Along with her new album, Megan Act II, Megan Thee Stallion released the visual for her latest single, “Bigger In Texas,” an ode to her home state and city of Houston.
The visual directed by Megan and Julian Klincewicz is H-Town to the max opening with title graphics in the 1990s Pen & Pixel font.
In the second verse of the song, co-produced by Bankroll Got It, Shawn Jarrett, Truckee Street and Han Yang Kingsley Wang, Megan raps, “E’rrythang bigger in Texas, ain’t no injections, we at the pole, no elections/ B–ch, don’t come around me tryna pass out drugs, ho, I ain’t poppin’ no Teslas/ I don’t wanna take no pictures, I don’t get along with these out here b–ches/ I don’t even know this hoe, but the b–ch keep beggin’ me for attention.”
While dropping those bars and flossing her Johnny Dang grillz, Meg reminds us that her knees are still strong by dropping it extremely low and hitting us with that signature twerk while rocking green shorts, a bikini top outfit, and a matching cowboy hat.
Social Media Is Loving “Bigger In Texas”
X has been lusting over the “Hiss” rapper and celebrating her latest drop, and who can blame them? Megan is on fire.
“Megan Thee Stallion let y’all talk all that shit about her, dropped #MeganACTII & WHACKED y’all effortlessly throughout the album. She really got her lick back!” one user on X, formerly Twitter, wrote.
Others just appreciated the visual greatness.
Clutches pearls.
You can see more reactions in the gallery below.
2. We stan a rapping queen
5. She’s taking it!
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Source: Aaron J. Thornton / Getty / GloRilla
GloRilla hit the gram to show off more than her moose knuckle; she had a whole baby bump, throwing social media into a tizzy.
Late last night, arguably one of Hip-Hop’s hottest acts, GloRilla, had all of her fans saying wait a damn minute when she posted a photo with a big ole baby bump.
Without any context, she shared two photos of herself standing in front of a full-length mirror, rocking a creme-colored bodysuit and holding her baby bump.
She wasn’t done “trolling” because she followed that up with more photos of her alleged “baby bump,” but this time, she was posted up, looking real happy couple-ish with BMF star Davinchi.
In the photos, the “Wanna Be” rapper is rocking the same creme-colored body suit, but this time, Davinchi is hugging her from behind with his hands on her “baby bump,” looking like a happy dad.
The timing of these photos is interesting as the Memphis, Tennessee native is currently promoting her latest project, Glorius. The photos also came after her appearance on Charlamagne Tha God’s podcast, Out of Context.
During the episode, she touched on wanting kids but not wanting to give birth herself, but through a surrogate.
“I do want to have kids but not my own kids,” Glo told The Breakfasts Club cohost. “I want to do a surrogate. I want somebody else to have my baby. I want [the baby] to have my DNA, but I want them to have it.”
She continued, “I just don’t want to actually have a baby. All my friends got kids, and they restricted a lot when they pregnant. I’m like, nah, I don’t want to go through that.”
Social Media Has Thoughts About GloRilla’s Baby Bump Photos
Of course, social media were stunned by the photos. Latto hopped up in the comment section, writing, “Gloria gone on.”
Users on X, formerly Twitter, have also been sounding off about GloRilla’s baby bump photos.
“yall crazy as hell thinking glorilla is really pregnant like not she grew 6 months in a few days,” one user on X wrote.
We got our money on all of this being a part of a music video she is shooting.
Until GloRilla reveals the truth, you can see more reactions in the gallery below.
1. LOL, sadly some honestly believe that was the case.
3. Unless she’s giving birth to Jesus
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Source: Marc Piasecki / Getty
DJ Clark Kent, the legendary DJ who believed in Jay-Z when every record label did not, has passed away from colon cancer. He was 58.
The announcement of his passing came from his family via DJ Clark Kent’s own social media channels. “It is with deep sadness that we share the passing of the beloved Rodolfo A. Franklin, known to the world as DJ Clark Kent. Clark passed away Thursday evening surrounded by his devoted wife Kesha, daughter Kabriah and son Antonio,” reads the statement. “Clark quietly and valiantly fought a three year battle with Colon Cancer, while continuing to share his gifts with the world. The family is grateful for everyone’s love, support and prayers during this time and ask for privacy as they process this immense loss.”
Born in 1966, the proud Panamanian and Brooklyn representative first came to fame as rapper Dana Dane’s DJ. It was DJ Clark Kent famously convinced Jay-Z to record a demo, but unfortunately after shopping it to every record label, they all passed on signing the Brooklyn rapper.
While becoming internationally known for his talents as a party motivator, DJ Clark Kent aka God’s Favorite DJ also became renowned for his talents as producer. Some of the more notable productions in his discography include Jay-Z’s “Brooklyn’s Finest,” featuring the Notorious B.I.G., Junior Mafia’s “Player’s Anthem,” Mariah Carey’s “Lover Boy” and the Notorious B.I.G.’s “Sky’s The Limit.”
Throughout the years, DJ Clark Kent was celebrated as an OG tastemaker and influencer before the terms proper existed, particularly for his amazing collection of sneakers. Recently, it was announced that Angie Martinez would be directing a documentary about his life.
You’ve never heard anyone say an ill word aimed at DJ Clark Kent, because there was never anything unkind to say. Depsite his elite status in Hip-Hop circles, he remained as humble a legend as you could ever find. We’ve compiled some of the more poignant social media salutes to the icon in the gallery.
Rest in powerful peace DJ Clark Kent, you handled your business, for Brooklyn.
5.