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Since her days as a kid on Long Island, pop-rock singer-songwriter Julia Wolf has been fascinated by horror films. “My mom was putting on slasher films from when I was in the womb,” she says.
Over time, such grisly themes began to spill over into her music. In early 2024, she thought of the lyric “I’d slit my own throat just to see if you’d mourn me” while crafting a track about a recent ex — but then texted her sister and best friend to make sure that the line wasn’t overly morbid. Soon after receiving the go-ahead, she found another lyric, “I stalk myself on the internet just to see what you’ll find,” tucked away in her phone’s Notes app. Before long, Wolf had enough material to begin recording.
“It was just the choice of how vulnerable I wanted to get,” she recalls. “It’s something that took me until my thirties to understand that that’s what I want to do — be as honest as possible.”
The resulting track, “In My Room,” has pushed the 30-year-old from the indie shadows into a hitmaker. Propelled by its niche usage by a particular cult fandom on TikTok, its following has since carried over to the Billboard charts: the grungy song has reached a No. 27 high in 17 weeks on Hot Rock & Alternative Songs and a No. 21 high on Hot Alternative Songs. And its success has opened doors that Wolf can hardly fathom, including an Instagram direct message from — and eventual collaboration with — Drake earlier this year, who opened their conversation by quoting lyrics from the breakthrough.
Raised on a steady diet of Avril Lavigne and emo music, Wolf began experimenting with music in high school at open mic nights and restaurant gigs around Queens. Debut EP Girls in Purgatory arrived in 2021 and full-length Good Thing We Stayed followed in 2023, with the latter’s pop-leaning singles “Get Off My” and “Gothic Babe Tendencies” with blackbear garnering buzz within the indie scene. As Wolf readied “In My Room” in 2024, she teased it relentlessly on TikTok. Though heavier and darker than anything she’d made before, the song quickly gained traction on the platform, thanks to Wolf tying snippets of the track to rotating images of different Twilight characters and scenes.
“Julia is the most Twilight-obsessed person I’ve ever met in my entire life,” NU.WORLD Management founder Tanner Barry, Wolf’s manager since 2023, says. “When it started working, it was so easy for us to keep playing into it.”
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Lifted by several posts of Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson as Bella Swan and Edward Cullen, Wolf released the song in full in March 2024. But as the trend began to wane, funding dried-up, according to Barry. At the time, they were working with independent distributor Stem, which was hesitant to back a bigger push for “In My Room” because of it being based around a timely fad, Wolf says.
“Since the song was already out for so long, they didn’t want to add any more funds to it. It was just me and Tanner thinking of what we can do to [grow] this organically.”
She remained convinced that the Twilight universe would remain the most receptive vessels for “In My Room,” and every time she continued to post the song with a clip surrounding the franchise’s characters, it’d rack up hundreds of thousands of views. Wolf and her team brought those stats to fellow independent distributor AWAL, and while they were in discussion, the track experienced its biggest viral wave yet, with a TikTok video celebrating Stewart’s beauty in a collage of photos. Today, the video has more than six million views. “We were all panicking like, ‘What do we do?’ ” Wolf remembers.
She quickly followed it up with a clip in the same format of Twilight co-star Ashley Greene (who portrays Alice Cullen), which has since surpassed 12 million views. Wolf and AWAL reached a deal this January, and the company helped boost Wolf’s visibility, in part by funding microinfluencer campaigns. The timing of the hit’s resurgence proved fortuitous: She had nearly wrapped the recording for 2025 full-length Pressure — which ultimately arrived in May — and the scorching hot single provided a push in the lead-up. Initial plans to release single “Jennifer’s Body,” a nod to a different cult fandom, were temporarily shelved, and she instead opted for an acoustic version of “In My Room” in February.
“She’s such a good singer,” Barry says. “I thought [the acoustic video] would be a good way to show people that she actually sounds like that.”
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The following month, Drake surfaced in Wolf’s DMs. According to Wolf, he discovered the song after a woman requested that he play it at a club. “Shout out to that girl for having my back,” she says today with a laugh. The two then exchanged numbers and began to talk about making music together. Wolf recorded a few demos to send to the superstar, and one titled “Dog House” became the winner. Wolf’s raw vocal serves as the intro to the track, which erupts into a high octane rage-rap single that also features Yeat. The song arrived in September, and in turn became Wolf’s first entry on the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at No. 53.
“She was at probably two million monthly listeners and jumped up just shy of 10 million,” Barry reflects of the A-list co-sign. “We were seeing the highest streams of [Pressure] on a daily basis. What Drake did so well, that we’re so appreciative of, is he allowed [the song] to be a showcase of Julia.”
Drake also supported Wolf in the months before its release, watching her perform at Toronto’s Velvet Underground in June and sharing some advice over dinner afterward.
“He was expressing how everyone has access to the internet and is able to say anything they want,” Wolf says. “The loudest people aren’t the right people, but it just feels that way. I get so in my head about internet comments and people being mean. He can definitely relate to that.”
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But even with a coveted Drake collaboration opening up an entirely new fan base, Wolf remains devoted to the crowd that got her to this moment: In August, she performed an intimate showcase for 60 fans in Forks, Washington, at the location used for Bella Swan’s home in the Twilight movies. And her star only continues to grow: She released 2MUCHPRESSURE, a remix EP helmed by producer duo 2DUMB on Halloween and will begin touring arenas in support of mgk later this month.
“What helps me stay grounded is that ‘In My Room’ existed for so long when nobody cared,” Wolf says. “I truly believe that any song that I believe in can work. It just needs all these factors to get it to click.”
A version of this story appears in the Nov. 15, 2025, issue of Billboard.
Source: Simone Joyner / Getty
Drake and PartyNextDoor have just achieved another milestone.
This one came from their collaborative album, “$ome $exy $ongs 4 U”, which recently went certified platinum. After years of teasing a joint project, the OVO member finally linked up in February 2025 to deliver on their promise. The 21-track project was filled with mostly love songs but still had a few Hip-Hop moments sprinkled in.
Some of the most popular songs were “Spider-Man Superman,” “Somebody Loves Me,” and “Raining In Houston.” The most successful track off the project is undoubtedly “NOKIA,” which is currently 2x certified platinum. PND also had his solo record on the album, “Deeper,” giving fans those Day 1 PX vibes. The album sold 246,000 units in its first week, Party’s biggest debut to date, and The Boy’s 14th.
Since the release of this project, both artists have not taken their foot off the gas. Drizzy has been teasing the release of his next solo project, “ICEMAN,” and has already dropped the single, “What Did I Miss?”
He appeared to take a few jabs at so-called friends who turned their backs on him during the beef with Kendrick Lamar. One ex-friend of the Canadian rapper is LeBron James, who fans allege caught a few strays on the track. This comes after Kendrick’s Pop Out concert, which, in theory, turned into an anti-Drake event, and guess who was front and center? The NBA GOAT.
Party has still been riding off his late 2024 release of the fourth series of his self-titled album.
Over the weekend, Max B finally walked free after roughly 16 years behind bars. He even made it out to the New York Jets game yesterday, waving his signature “Wavy” flag , and lo and behold…they won! The image of Max B stepping onto the stadium, flashing smiles, soaking in the street-style energy, and then watching the Jets come away with the W is almost cinematic. It felt like the beginning of his comeback. For someone whose career was paused, it’s a vivid way to mark a turning point.
Max B’s story is complicated but very compelling. Born Charly Wingate, he rose to fame from Harlem with his early mixtapes and his unmistakable melodic street voice, helping to define a new East Coast sound. He stacked up mixtapes, collaborated with French Montana (their mixtape Coke Wave is a cult classic), and coined a vice around the “wave” aesthetic. Then the legal issues came into play. He was convicted (in connection with a 2006 robbery that ended in a death) and initially got a 75-year sentence in 2009 before a plea deal and other legal shifts markedly reduced that time. Despite the setback, his music and persona never lost their pull. Instead, anticipation for his release just continued to grow.
In terms of his impact, Max B’s influence on both Hip-Hop and pop culture is real and very under-appreciated. His sing-rap hybrids, ad-libs, and “wavy” slang seeped into later waves of artists who blur the lines between melody and rap, especially in the mixtape era and beyond. Fans still point to tracks like “Picture Me Rollin’” or “Why You Do That?” as part of that early blueprint. Now that he’s out, it matters because he not only gets a second chance at life, but also at reclaiming that voice in the culture. If he drops new music, it can help reset or at least offer a refresher to a sound that helped many artists and scenes. He’s back to make his mark again.
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So when can we get new music? The expectations are high. Max B has been quoted as saying he’s ready to dive back in headfirst and not take “turtle steps” once he’s released. The mix of nostalgia (for the old wave) and anticipation (for how he’ll adapt to now) means that when he releases something, it won’t just be another drop. It’ll be a statement! Keep an eye out for a project, features, or maybe even a full comeback album. The “Wavy God” has the momentum and the story to back it.
Source: French Montana / Max B
Now that he’s home, here’s a list of artists Max B needs to collab with, because the possibilities are exciting.
FRENCH MONTANA — The two are long-time friends and collaborators (known for the Coke Wave mixtape series) and have already reunited since Max B’s release, making future collaborations a certainty.
DRAKE — Max B has expressed gratitude for the recognition Drake has given him in songs (“Money In The Grave”) and is open to working with “Champagne Papi.”
WIZ KHALIFA — Max B has a close relationship with Wiz Khalifa, who Max B says “showed straight love” during his incarceration, making a collaboration highly anticipated.
YOUNG THUG — Max B personally called out Young Thug, saying, “We gon’ make some history?” in a phone call to The Joe Budden Podcast, noting their similar melodic rap styles.
A$AP ROCKY — The Harlem ties speak for themselves.
TRAVIS SCOTT — Cactus Jack is a huge Max B fan. The wave mixed with the production of Travis Scott would feed families.
A BOOGIE WIT DA HOODIE — Max B specifically mentioned A Boogie as one of the younger artists he’d like to work with.
CASH COBAIN — Max B also name-dropped Cash Cobain, saying he’s received “sexy joints” from him and is looking forward to jumping on them.
JIM JONES — While they had a past beef, Max B has stated he wants to start over and that “business is business,” so a potential reunion for a track is a possibility.
RELATED: The Wave God Is Free: Max B Finally Released From Prison
Source: Johnny Nunez / Getty
Wack 100 recently had to stand on business after Adin Ross made some questionable comments.
The streamer made it very clear which side he was on during Drake’s beef with Kendrick Lamar. Appearing on many streams with the 6 God. During a sitdown with West Coast dot connector, Wack 100, the two traded thoughts on Kendrick and Drake. Things went left quickly when Ross accused Kenny of allegedly physically abusing his wife, Whitney Alford.
The streamer was shut down quickly, as Wack points out, he had 0 facts to back up such a wild statement. Wack also put the nail in the conversation when he told Adin, “You’re a white guy, so y’all always think black people did some sh*t.”
Kendrick and his wife reportedly stayed at a hotel in 2014, where the alleged incident took place. After the beef between Drizzy and Kenny died down, a website surfaced featuring a video of an alleged hotel employee breaking down the story. Kendrick later went on The Breakfast Club and denied that anything ever happened between him and his partner.
Wack 100 made it clear from the start of the stream that he is Team Kendrick in this beef. Even though he ties to Cash Money and Birdman (and by extension, Drake), he still stands with his West Coast bredren.
Kendrick and his team have not commented on Adin Ross’s allegations against him.
RBX, a rapper affiliated with Death Row Records and a relative of the legendary Snoop Dogg, filed a lawsuit against Spotify alleging that the service used bots to bolster his streaming records. In response, Spotify countered RBX’s assertion, stating that they have safeguards in place to counter the insidious practice.
Rolling Stone reported on the lawsuit on Monday (November 3). In their report, the outlet says that RBX’s lawsuit was filed in the California District Court over the weekend. While Drake is referenced in the complaint, the rapper’s target is Spotify, according to the filing.
“Every month, under Spotify’s watchful eye, billions of fraudulent streams are generated from fake, illegitimate, and/or illegal methods,” read a portion of the complaint.
“We cannot comment on pending litigation. However, Spotify in no way benefits from the industry-wide challenge of artificial streaming,” Spotify shared in a statment. “We heavily invest in always-improving, best-in-class systems to combat it and safeguard artist payouts with strong protections like removing fake streams, withholding royalties, and charging penalties.”
Spotify continued with, “Our systems are working: In a case from last year, one bad actor was indicted for stealing $10 million from streaming services, only $60,000 of which came from Spotify, proving how effective we are at limiting the impact of artificial streaming on our platform.”
It has yet to be reported what the court’s next maneuver will be regarding the complaint.
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Photo: Getty
Drake / Shohei Ohtani
Toronto superfan Drake had a lot to say about Shohei Ohtani and the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Recent Blue Jays fan Drake decided to talk trash about Shohei Ohtani and the Los Angeles Dodgers following their Game 5 loss.
The Dodgers have lost two games in a row following their dramatic 18th-inning victory, thanks to a clutch home run from Freddie Freeman. Now, they are facing elimination, as they head to Toronto following a dominant pitching performance from Trey Yesavage, who had 12 strikeouts. Still, one of those punch-outs caught the attention of the rapper.
Drizzy shared a photo of Yesavage walking back to the dugout after striking out Ohtani with the caption, “Savage already otw to the dugout boss lol.”
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Drake, an avid sports fan and sports bettor, might have beef with Ohtani, like fellow Blue Jays fans, because the pitcher/slugger passed on signing with Toronto only to join the Dodgers.
Ohtani has been hearing “We don’t need you!” chants from Blue Jays fans.
The Dodgers superstar has been quiet since his phenomenal Game 3 performance, when he reached base nine times and hit two home runs.
The Blue Jays are trying to prevent the Dodgers from winning a consecutive World Series, a feat last done by the New York Yankees after they completed a three-peat.
Drake better be careful; his trolling might reignite that competitive fire in Ohtani and his teammates, allowing them to get back in this series.
Drake is continuing his legal battle with UMG after the lawsuit he brought against the record label over Kendrick Lamar’s “Not Like Us” was dismissed earlier in the month. Filing an appeal this week, Drake aims to get the judge to reinstate the lawsuit, which alleges UMG aided his rival in relaying what his side felt with defamatory claims out to the public, thus damaging his brand.
Music Business Worldwide reports that Drake filed a Notice of Appeal on Wednesday (October 29) in a countering stance against Judge Jeannette Vargas’ October 9 dismissal of the lawsuit. The Canadian superstar alleges that UMG intentionally promoted Lamar’s blistering “Not Like Us” diss track, writing in the complaint that the label pushed the song’s popularity “while knowing that the song’s insinuations that he has sexual relations with minors were false and defamatory.”
Judge Vargas ruled that Lamar’s lyrics, despite the OVO honcho’s insinuation that they were meant to defame him, were essentially stated opinions that were protected instead of facts. Further, the judge said that the case should be examined in full as both gentlemen verbally sparred across with several lines and songs between them.
The filing for appeal is the start of the process, with a full appellate brief filing happening at a later date. There are no new developments as the notice was just filed a day ago, and it will take months for things to move ahead.
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Photo: Getty
Source: Simone Joyner / Getty
It’s no secret that Drake and Adin Ross are down bad these days due to their own personal life decisions as of late, respectfully. But now it seems like things may get a bit worse, as both men are facing some pretty serious accusations in a new lawsuit.
According to Complex, a Missouri man, Justin Killham, has just filed a lawsuit against the Canadian crooner and popular streamer alleging that the two have been promoting Stake’s parent company Sweepstakes Limited’s online gambling. The suit says it’s illegal and goes against Missouri’s state gaming and consumer protection laws. Stating that Stake has engaged in “deceptive trade practices” by using said celebrities in promoting their gambling website, Killham feels that they’ve exploited “vulnerable” Missourians who’ve fallen prey to their marketing and promotion methods and developed gambling addictions as a result.
Per Complex:
“Stake in particular pays online influencer-defendants Adin Ross and Aubrey Drake Graham each millions of dollars yearly to engage in promotion ‘livestream online casino gambling with Stake.com,” the lawsuit reads, accusing Ross and Drake of claiming they gamble with their own money and don’t disclose they’re using Stake-provided funds.
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“These acts are deceptive, fraudulent and unfair and violate Missouri law,” the suit adds. “Drake and Ross deceptively and fraudulently misrepresent, as does Stake itself, that Stake is a social casino and not a real one in their promotional role for Stake, and they also fraudulently and deceptively misrepresent that they only gamble with their own money on Stake.”
Killham is seeking “recovery of gambling losses” on behalf of himself and others impacted by Stake, Drake, and Ross.
While many people wouldn’t fall for anything that Drake or Adin Ross would promote these days, Killham himself seems to have taken the bait and now wants restitution for his own poor life choice (no shots). Still, it seems like he has a pretty strong case, as he seeks to have someone held accountable for the losses he might’ve suffered at the hands of Stake.
More from Complex:
“To hide the true nature of its online gambling operation, Stake asserts that the only chips it sells to consumers are tokens called ‘Gold Coins,’ which can only be used for ‘casual’ gameplay on the Stake.us platform, have no real-world value, and can never be cashed out,” the lawsuit reads. “However, Stake bundles every purchase of Gold Coins with a second type of token called ‘Stake Cash’ as a supposedly free bonus. Unlike Gold Coins, Stake Cash can be wagered on casino games and cashed out for real money at a fixed 1:1 ratio to the U.S. Dollar – exposing Stake Cash as a clear vehicle for real-money gambling.”
The lawsuit argues that Stake Cash, which can be wagered on games over the internet and redeemed for real money, allows the company to get away with “operating an unlicensed and illegal online casino in Missouri.”
Naturally, a spokesperson for Stake has denied the allegations saying, “We reject allegations that have been made in the media in relation to this potential claim and will vigorously defend this and all such claims,” and says they have yet to be served any official complaint thus far.
Should be interesting to see how this one shakes out.
What do y’all think about this lawsuit against Drake and Adin Ross? Let us know in the comments section below.
Source: Mike Marsland/WireImage / Mike Marsland/WireImage
A new claim from Lil Wayne’s son is stirring up conversation around Drake’s catalog.
Novi Carter, the son of the rap legend, recently told YouTuber TrillMarty that his dad wrote “most” of Drake’s lyrics. “My dad wrote most of [Drake’s] sh*t, I mean, on God,” Novi said. “If it wasn’t for my pops, there wouldn’t be no Drake. I mean, there probably would be a Drake, but he wouldn’t be where he’s at, though.”
He followed that up by saying, “No disrespect to Drake, he hard,” giving credit to Drake while still backing up his statement. Novi didn’t offer details on which songs Wayne may have helped write, and as of now, neither Drake nor Lil Wayne has commented on the claim.
Even without specifics, the relationship between the two rappers is well known. Weezy was the one who brought the “6 God” into the game, signing him to Young Money in 2009 and helping launch his rise to stardom. From there, the pair delivered several big collaborations that helped define their careers.
One of their earliest major moments was “Forever,” where Drake shared a track with Wayne, Kanye West, and Eminem. It was a huge look for Drake, who was still proving himself at the time. Not long after, they linked up again on “Miss Me” from Drake’s debut album *Thank Me Later*, giving fans one of the first true glimpses of their creative connection.
In 2010, when Lil Wayne went to jail on a weapons charge, Drake stepped up and held the Young Money crew down. That time was a turning point, as Drake began to carve out his own lane and show he could carry the spotlight on his own.
After Wayne’s release, the chemistry between the two continued. Their 2011 track “She Will” showed a darker, more introspective side, with Drake’s smooth hook leading into one of Wayne’s more serious verses. Then in 2014, they linked up again on “Believe Me,” a fan favorite that built anticipation for Tha Carter V.
Whether Wayne actually wrote most of Drizzy’s lyrics or not, one thing is clear, their partnership helped shape a new era in Hip-Hop. Drake might have blown up regardless, but with Wayne backing him early on, his rise to superstardom came a lot quicker.
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Source: Drake / GTA 6
Rockstar Games is notorious for not spilling any details on its video games, especially GTA 6. Still, record producer Jermaine Dupri spilled the beans about Drake’s alleged involvement with what is easily one of the most anticipated video games of all time.
While speaking with Rory and Mal, Jermaine Dupri claims that Rockstar Games reached out to him to work on GTA 6, and that the salty 6 God will also be involved with the game.
“They asked me to do Grand Theft Auto, and they were saying like Drake got his own radio station on Grand Theft Auto,” Dupri said.
Dupri took his claims to another level. He claims that not only will Drake have a radio station, but when the game finally arrives, “Drake can actually upload music that we probably have never even heard online on that video game.”
If true, it would be a significant development, as it would provide another means for Drake to release his unreleased big tunes to the masses through GTA 6.
Other Rumors Invovling GTA 6
With any news regarding GTA 6 not announced by Rockstar Games, take this with the tiniest grain of salt. Drake is not the first big-name artist to be associated with the game.
There were rumors that DJ Khaled was going to be getting a radio station, and gamers were not happy to hear that rumor. Dr. Dre was also involved with Grand Theft Auto V and Grand Theft Auto Online, getting story DLC and a station featuring his music.
Along with groundbreaking gameplay, it also plays on pop culture and gratuitous violence. The Grand Theft Auto game franchise is also renowned for its radio stations, which typically feature classic songs from various genres that align with the game’s setting.
Gamers have been reacting to the news of Drake allegedly providing music for GTA 6; you can see those reactions in the gallery below.
3. Exactly
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