genre hiphop

23 May 2025

DJ Khaled Runs the Gauntlet With Viral Sensation Ashton Hall in Hilarious Album Promo Video

DJ Khaled is a master marketer. He can turn just about anything into a viral clip, dating back to his thrilling Snapchat voyages that had followers on the edge of their seats nearly a decade ago.

Khaled linked up with content creator Ashton Hall, who has gone viral for his wild daily routine videos, which produced plenty of chatter on social media, whether it’s his Saratoga water ice face washes or banana-peel-spreading skin routine.

Hall, a former college football player, is quite the athlete and also gives fans a look into his rigorous workout regimen, which Khaled joined him for.

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The hilarious clip finds the We The Best mogul shirtless in an open black vest, taped-up legs and Air Jordan 3s running alongside Hall in what appears to be a parking lot. Cinematic effects make the video look like an action-packed scene straight out of a Bad Boys movie.

“ALBUM MODE ! AALAM OF GOD,” Khaled captioned the video on his Instagram ahead of his Aalam of God album arrival, which is expected later in 2025.

Fans and plenty of Khaled’s peers found the album promotion tactic to be amusing, as A$AP Rocky, Busta Rhymes, Swizz Beatz, E-40 and more chimed in on Instagram.

“Nah the cuz fake got some speed he keeping up,” Rowdy Rebel added while giving Khaled props.

Khaled hasn’t released a project since 2022’s God Did, which topped the Billboard 200, so the anticipation is there.

He appeared to kick off the Aalam of God rollout into another gear with a blockbuster movie trailer starring Mark Wahlberg and Anthony Ramos. The album teaser saw him hinting at collabs with Rihanna and Drake.

However, Drake threw cold water on the epic trailer’s momentum when he questioned whether he’d be on the project. “Must be Drake Bell,” Drizzy commented, and Khaled ended up deleting the post on IG altogether.

23 May 2025

Questlove Says He Was ‘Shocked’ to See Kendrick Lamar Pay Homage to The Roots With ‘GNX’ Video

Kendrick Lamar is a student of the rap game, and Questlove was surprised to see the West Coast hip-hop savant pay homage to The Roots with his “Squabble Up” video.

The Roots drummer stopped by The Jennifer Hudson Show on Thursday (May 22), where he opened up about Lamar recreating the scene from the Philly band’s 1999 “The Next Movement” video with the olive open-room set of the GNX visual.

“I was so shocked because the way that people told me — I woke up to 30 K. Dot texts,” Questlove said. “I thought, ‘Oh no.’ He just dissed us. I thought it was something else. And they were like, ‘No, he paid tribute to y’all in this video.’”

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He continued to salute Dot: “It’s an honor, but it’s also a surprise when you see people acknowledging you after all this time.”

While Hudson was surprised to see Quest’s humility when it comes to the band’s influence, he explained that it’s from The Roots being “not super mainstream, but we’re niche, but we’re not overexposed popular.”

Produced by Sounwave and Jack Antonoff, “Squabble Up” arrived as a standout on Kendrick Lamar’s GNX album in November. A Calmatic-directed visual paying homage to The Roots was released just a few days later on Nov. 25.

The Debbie Deb-sampling anthem debuted atop the Billboard Hot 100 to give Lamar his fifth No. 1 hit and third of 2024 at the time. GNX brought about a domination of the Hot 100, with Lamar occupying the entire top five. (“TV Off” featuring Lefty Gunplay, “Luther” with SZA, “Wacced Out Murals” and “Hey Now” featuring Dody6 came in at Nos. 2-5).

Watch Questlove’s full interview above, and revisit the “Squabble Up” video below:

23 May 2025

Which New Music Release Is Your Favorite This Week? Vote!

As spring is winding down, Alex Warren and Jelly Roll, Joe Jonas and more are heating things up with new music released this past week.

Nearly a month after debuting the song live during the TikToker’s guest appearance at the “Son of a Sinner” musician’s Stagecoach set in April, the twosome have dropped new duet “Bloodline,” an emotional anthem about breaking free of generational trauma and charting a new course. The track marks one of Warren’s first steps forward after the explosive breakthrough success of his Billboard Hot 100 hit “Ordinary,” and in a recent Instagram video promoting the track with Jelly, Warren teased that the collaboration will appear on his next album — which he wrote is “about to be CRAZYYY.”

But the team-up is just one of several eye-popping collaborations to drop this week, with Burna Boy also hitting the studio with Travis Scott for “TaTaTa.” Plus, Jessie Murph and Sexyy Red got together for a remix of “Blue Strips,” which the rising country star originally released in April, scoring her highest peak on the Hot 100 to date at No. 15.

And in addition to fiery new singles from Reneé Rapp, Karol G and mgk, the middle child of the Jonas Brothers dropped his first solo album since 2011: Music for People Who Believe in Love, a 14-track LP that features collaborations with Joe’s little bro Frankie Jonas, as well as Sierra Ferrell, Louane, Tiny Habits, Luísa Sonza and more. “The music I’ve been making felt really personal,” Joe told Billboard in April of returning to the solo scene. “And I selfishly didn’t want to share it with other people. This needed to come from my voice in particular.”

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But which of those releases are you vibing with the most this week? Billboard wants to know. Tell us by casting your vote in the poll below.

23 May 2025

Skilla Baby Shot Multiple Times in Drive-By Shooting

Skilla Baby (real name Trevon Gardner) was the victim of a drive-by shooting in Redford, Mich., on Thursday evening (May 22), Billboard can confirm. A press release from the Redford Township Police Department — who did not identify the Detroit rapper — said a male was transported to a local hospital to have his non-life-threatening injuries treated.

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The lead investigator on the case, Edward French, told TMZ that the suspect pulled up alongside the rapper’s car and fired an estimated 25 times.

The press release noted that he suffered three non-fatal gunshot wounds before crashing his vehicle into a building in the area of 8 Mile and Centralia around 7 p.m. local time. When officers arrived on the scene, they discovered a bullet-ridden vehicle, but Skilla Baby — who was alone in the car, according to the press release — was already being transported to a local hospital.

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Per FOX2, the rapper was grazed in the head and back, and also shot in the hand area. He was alert during his time in the hospital and is expected to recover.

Police are still searching for the unidentified gunman, who fled the scene.

Billboard has reached out to Skilla Baby’s reps for comment.

Last year, Skilla partnered with the Detroit City Council to produce a gun buyback event, aiming to reduce gun violence across his hometown.

“It was successful,” the 26-year-old told Billboard of the event. “We got 300 guns off the street. I think the underrated part of the gun buyback was that it was a job fair and we expunged a lot of people’s records. That was important to me, because I’m a felon, and to help people change their life and the trajectory of their future — people judge you, and it’s hard to be successful when you’re a felon.”

2024 was a busy year for Skilla Baby, who delivered a pair of projects with The Coldest to start the campaign, followed by Crack Music 3 in November.

23 May 2025

Young Thug Labels Kid Cudi a ‘Rat’ for Testifying in Diddy Trial

Young Thug called out Kid Cudi for testifying in Sean “Diddy” Combs’ sex trafficking and racketeering trial on Thursday (May 22), and labeled the Cleveland rapper a rat on X. Thugger quickly deleted the polarizing message, but the toothpaste was already out of the tube.

“Dam cudi a rat lol,” Thug wrote before taking the post down minutes later.

Billboard has reached out to Cudi’s rep for comment.

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Thugger had been locked up for more than two years while fighting for his freedom as part of the YSL RICO trial. He eventually reached a plea deal on Oct. 31, 2024.

However, there is a connection between the YSL trial and Diddy’s, as Thug’s attorney Brian Steel is part of the Bad Boy mogul’s legal defense team. Steel cross-examined Cudi while he was on the stand.

Cudder briefly dated Cassie in the early 2010s, but the romance was ultimately short-lived. As part of his testimony, Kid Cudi recalled Diddy allegedly setting his Porsche on fire in his driveway with a Molotov cocktail. Cudi also tied a break-in of his home around the time of his relationship with Cassie to Diddy.

Cassie named Cudi in her 2023 sexual abuse lawsuit, which lit the fuse against Diddy, claiming Combs attempted to blow up the “Day ‘n’ Nite” rapper’s car. While on the stand on Day 3 of the trial, she explained why she cut the relationship with Cudi short. “Too much danger, too much uncertainty of what could happen if we continued to see each other,” Cassie said.

As for Cudi, he took to social media to reflect on the “stressful situation” after taking the stand, and the Ohio native said he’s “glad it’s behind” him.

“I’ve been seeing all the love and support and I just want to say thank you so much, man,” Cudi said in a video he shared to various platforms. “People been hitting me up the past week just checking in and even today, it really means a lot to me, man. You guys are the best. I love y’all. This is a stressful situation. I’m glad it’s behind me.”

On Thugger’s side, he’s been teasing his UY SCUTI album, which he’s hinted at a June arrival date for. He reunited with Future for his “Money on Money” single in April.

23 May 2025

Rob49 on Viral Stardom, ‘Let Me Fly,’ Collab Album With G Herbo & Making Music With Justin Bieber

In an age of elusive algorithms and viral fame, Rob49 has had an uncharacteristically steady rise for a young rapper. After an uneventful stint in the National Guard and two semesters at Southern University, Rob49 picked up the mic for fun during the COVID-19 pandemic. Almost immediately, he garnered co-signs from industry vets like French Montana, and inked a record deal before the year was out. From there, Rob’s uptick in popularity hasn’t ceased — much to the surprise of everyone, even him.

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“I ain’t never wanna be no rapper. I used to really be looking at rappers like they were lying,” Rob told Billboard of his early days. “Like, ‘Ain’t no way you doin’ what I’m doin and made it out this s—t.’ Now, I feel like all rappers gotta be doing what they’re talking about — because ain’t no way your hood let you [fake] that, let you say what you say and get away with it.”

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Rob49’s latest album, Let Me Fly, is a testament to that relentless hustle, and to the acceptance that clearly he was built to be a rap star. The lighthearted nature behind his inescapable hit “WTHelly” shows that making hit songs, even if the origin of it is rather silly, comes as easily to Rob as breathing.

“I don’t be looking for a catchy record,” Rob says. “I really just be doing what I want.”

Below, Billboard talks with Rob49 about “WTHelly,” linking with Justin Bieber, and the key to making good music.

Let’s set the record straight: Who was the first person to say “what the helly?”

I don’t know who the first person was, but a lot of people are trying to take credit for it in my city. It’s New Orleans slang right now.

How are you feeling about the reception to “WTHelly” so far? Were you expecting it to be a hit from the jump?

I knew it was gonna be good, but I was kinda scared. A lot of the other releases I had, I was kinda thinkin’, ‘Oh this is gonna be it!’ and it was not what it was supposed to be. I was scared [“WTHelly”] was gonna be one of them ones. I’m grateful for it [catching on].

It must be nice to see it starting to get the traction the song is getting.

Did you see it?

Did I see what?

Did you see “WTHelly” on your socials?

I had to search it, it didn’t just pop up for me.

Ah, see that’s why I asked you that. We ain’t go hard enough then.

What’s your favorite “WTHelly” flip?

What the helly-Bron James. I came up with that one, and my friends came up with the rest.

How are you feeling about the reception to the remix? Justin Bieber’s verse seemed to really divide people, and I can’t help but notice you haven’t dropped it.

I was gonna drop the [remix] with [G Herbo] first and add it to the album, but we wound up doing it too late. So it might come out the next day on the album, then we’re just gonna go from there with it.

Do you plan to drop the Justin Bieber remix as well?

I talked to Justin a couple of days ago and he was telling me he wanted to do some more songs. So I don’t know.

How is he feeling about the reception to his verse? It was pretty divisive when it dropped.

It’s funny — when he first did it, he was like, “What you think? You think I can go harder?” I told him like, “Man I love it, bro — if you feel comfortable about it, if you like it, then I love it.” You know?

Were you surprised by people’s negative reaction to Bieber’s verse?

No, not really. I knew it was a possibility, because — it was the same way when he asked me, “Do you think I can go harder?”

What do you think people misunderstood about it?

Probably the singing part. You just never know what it’s gonna be — and fans don’t understand that all the time, that you don’t know what a hit is. Like, it just kinda happens. Some people might’ve been, like, “Oh my god he sung!” and if it would have been a hit it would have been a crazy banger. That be the difference between songs.

Tell me about the work you did with Birdman on this album. What did you learn from working and talking with him?

Just go hard, cause you get a lot of motivation from him like that and I just be accepting it. We don’t really be talking about too much. Don’t let up, don’t take it for granted, stuff like that.

You mentioned New Orleans — what’s your relationship like with your hometown right now?

I love my city, but when I go back there now it just feels like dry energy. There’s nothing really there, in terms of anything. I saw so much stuff traveling the world, it just doesn’t feel like enough for me — and that’s scary. I ain’t never wanted it to be like that because I like going home.

I noticed Skilla Baby’s not on Let Me Fly — is that collab album still coming?

I’m gonna call him and talk to him about that. Right now, I’m working on a collab album with me and G Herbo. I don’t know what we’re gonna name it — one of my close friends be saying, “Ghetto Poet” or something like that. I think I wanna name it that. I was gonna ask [G Herbo] how he feel about that. “Ghetto Poet” sounds great for an album, right?

Absolutely. I’m curious about how you approach dropping music. For a lot of young guys the blueprint has been too flood the streets with as much music as possible, but you’ve been very intentional with the singles you’ve dropped since 4 God II.

I just didn’t wanna drop no bulls—t. But at this point in my life I don’t care. I know if it’s hard, it’s better than yours. They got a lot of people out here dropping stuff that’s not better than mine.

Do you ever worry about losing momentum?

I definitely feel nervous about it. I was nervous this time, but I wasn’t nervous for myself, I was nervous cause everyone around me was getting nervous. I keep tellin’ em we good, but then they keep getting nervous! But you gotta be a strong-minded person, and not let people around you dictate your movements.

How did you creatively approach Let Me Fly differently than 4 God II?

I just wanted to be myself for real. 4 God II, it did good, but I felt like I was listening to the people a lot about the songs I was picking and stuff. This time, no one has say so but me.

Do you feel pressure with this record to take it to the next level?

I don’t feel no pressure, I just feel like we gotta go hard. Right now, we don’t have to come out with a fake roll out. The songs are going up for real — it’s not a game. Right now, I feel like I gotta show you [who I am], because a lot of people hold they nuts. You not gonna be able to hold your nuts this year.

22 May 2025

Producer on Lil Wayne’s ‘Tha Carter III’ Sues UMG, Saying He’s Owed $3M in Royalties

A producer on Lil Wayne’s hit 2008 album Tha Carter III has sued Universal Music Group (UMG) over claims that he’s owed more than 10 years’ worth of royalties totaling more than $3 million.

UMG was hit with the federal lawsuit on Thursday (May 22) over Darius “Deezle” Harrison’s production work on Tha Carter III, which spent three weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 2008. Harrison’s attorney says the producer worked on six tracks for the album, including “Lollipop,” which reigned atop the chart for five weeks.

The lawsuit claims that per Harrison’s producer agreement with Lil Wayne’s Young Money Entertainment, UMG’s Cash Money Records is supposed to pay him a 4% royalty rate for his songs from Tha Carter III. Harrison is also allegedly owed a 3% royalty rate for work he performed under a separate agreement with Cash Money Records, including producing six songs off the 2005 Birdman album Fast Money.

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Harrison previously sued Lil Wayne, Young Money Entertainment and Cash Money Records over these same royalties in 2011, and that case settled confidentially a year later. Harrison says UMG began sending him royalty statements around the time of this settlement in 2012 but then stopped “almost immediately.”

“Plaintiffs have not been paid any producer royalties associated with the YME producer agreement or CMR producer agreement for over a decade,” writes lawyer Christopher L. Brown, who represents both Harrison and his company, Drum Major Music Entertainment. “The recordings at issue are fully recouped and over $3 million is owed to plaintiffs.”

Harrison also claims in the lawsuit that Lil Wayne has recycled tracks he created for possible inclusion on Tha Carter III in the years since without his consent. UMG is continuing to monetize these songs as well, the lawsuit says.

The legal complaint levels three claims for breach of contract against UMG. Harrison’s lawyer says the label “has simply taken advantage of Harrison’s hard work and skill as a producer” to make a financial windfall, while completely and intentionally ignoring the contractual obligations” that entitle Harrison to a cut of these profits.  

Reps for UMG and Lil Wayne did not immediately return requests for comment Thursday.

22 May 2025

Joey Bada$$ Says ‘The Goal’ Is to Drop a New Album This Summer

Joey Bada$$ plans to capitalize on the bicoastal rap battle he’s currently winning by releasing a new album this year.

While appearing on UPROXX’s video series Sound Check, the Brooklyn rapper and actor told host Jeremy Hecht that he plans to drop his first full-length project since 2022 in the summer. “The goal is to get the album out before August 30,” he said after being asked if there was an album in the works.

Joey Bada$$ has been controlling the conversation in rap since he dropped “The Ruler’s Back” on New Year’s Day, kicking off a monthslong rap battle between the East Coast and West Coast that features close to 30 diss tracks and around 10 rappers. In his latest track “Crash Dummy,” he called out Kendrick Lamar hoping for a response, as the Compton rapper is on his Grand National Tour with SZA. And according to Compton rap vet Glasses Malone, Joey may very well get his wish, saying that he should be expecting a response at any moment.

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Elsewhere in the episode, he spoke on the influence the late MF DOOM had on his career early on, revealing that his late friend and collaborator Capital STEEZ put him on to the masked villain. “I actually wrote that verse to an MF DOOM beat called “Monkey Suite,” he said of his and STEEZ’s classic track “Survival Tactics.”

“Rest in Peace my brother STEEZ because he put me on to MF DOOM and I remember I fell down a crazy rabbit hole. I would just listen to a bunch of MF DOOM beats, just improving my flow, and my lyrics. But then STEEZ sent me the Styles of Beyond beat that we actually did that song to.”

You can watch the full episode below.

22 May 2025

Diddy Trial Recap: Kid Cudi Testifies About Home Break-In and Porsche Molotov Cocktail Explosion

Kid Cudi took the witness stand Thursday (May 22) in the sex-trafficking trial of Sean “Diddy” Combs, telling jurors that he believes Combs broke into his Los Angeles house and later torched his Porsche with a Molotov cocktail out of anger over his relationship with Cassie Ventura.

The “Day ‘n’ Nite” rapper (Scott Mescudi) was a much-anticipated witness in the criminal trial of Combs, who’s accused of coercing Ventura and other women into participating in drug-fueled sex shows known as “freak-offs.” The trial closed out its second week on Thursday (May 22) and is expected to continue for at least another month.  

Mescudi was photographed arriving at the Manhattan federal courthouse in a leather jacket and smoking a cigarette. According to reporting from CNN and the Associated Press, he began testifying in the morning and told jurors he briefly dated Ventura in 2011.

From the stand, Mescudi said Ventura, an R&B singer who dated Combs for 11 years, became very scared when the music mogul learned about her new relationship in December 2011. He then claimed Combs broke into his L.A. house while he was at a hotel with Ventura, and that items were moved and his dog was locked in a bathroom when he returned.

Combs allegedly tried to talk to Mescudi after this incident, but the rapper said he ignored the mogul’s texts: “You broke into my house, you messed with my dog, I don’t want to talk to you,” Mescudi testified.

Ventura claimed during her marathon testimony last week that Combs had threatened to blow up Mescudi’s car out of anger about their relationship, and, in her 2023 civil lawsuit against Combs, said that shortly after Combs issued these threats, Mescudi’s car was blown up. Mescudi seemed to confirm this, saying his Porsche 911 was torched in his driveway in early 2012.

At one point, the jury was shown a photo of Mescudi’s burnt-up luxury car. “It looks like the top of my Porsche was cut open, and that’s where the Molotov cocktail was put in,” Mescudi testified of the photo.

Mescudi later said he met up with Combs to discuss their differences after the incident, and that Combs acted “like a Marvel supervillain” during their meeting. He added that Combs promised he wasn’t responsible for the car explosion, but Mescudi said he believed Combs was lying.

Combs has not been officially linked to the car explosion — a point that Combs’ attorneys emphasized when cross-examining Mescudi. Defense attorney Brian Steel suggested that DNA collected from the car was identified as belonging to a woman, though Mescudi responded that he never heard from authorities about this.

Steel did get Mescudi to confirm on cross-examination that Ventura confided in him about physical abuse from Combs, but never mentioned sexual abuse. This supports the defense’s argument that while Combs committed domestic violence, he never engaged in trafficking and that all of his sexual encounters were consensual.

Mescudi posted a video on X thanking fans for support after departing the courthouse.

Also on Thursday, the jury heard additional testimony from Combs’ former assistant George Kaplan, who said he quit in 2015 after witnessing the rapper’s violent treatment of Ventura and other girlfriends.  

“The central reason that I left my job as Mr. Combs’ assistant was that I was not comfortable or aligned with the physical behavior that had been going on,” said Kaplan, who began his testimony on Wednesday (May 21). Notably, Kaplan was granted immunity after initially being reluctant to testify.  

A parade of other witnesses also briefly took the stand on Thursday. This included Ventura’s former makeup artist, Mylah Morales, who said she saw Ventura with extensive injuries after an argument with Combs in 2010, plus a hotel employee and a computer forensics agent.

The trial is off for the next few days and slated to resume on Tuesday (May 27).

Combs was indicted in September, charged with running a sprawling criminal operation aimed at facilitating the freak-offs and using violence, money and blackmail to keep victims silent and under his control. (Read Billboard‘s full explainer of the case against Diddy here.)

Once one of the music industry’s most powerful men, Combs is accused of racketeering conspiracy (a so-called RICO charge), sex trafficking and violating a federal prostitution statute. If convicted on all of the charges, he faces a potential life prison sentence.

22 May 2025

Could Kendrick Lamar & SZA Dethrone Ja Rule & Ashanti as Greatest Rapper/Singer Duo Ever? Fat Joe Says ‘1 Million Percent’ Yes

Fat Joe thinks Kendrick Lamar and SZA could eventually dethrone Ja Rule and Ashanti as the greatest rapper/singer duo.

During a recent episode of their Joe and Jada podcast, Jadakiss brought up Lamar and SZA’s hit record “Luther” making history by spending the most weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 among duets by co-billed lead solo men and women. Jada asked the Bronx MC if he thought they could also take the No. 1 spot when it comes to rapper/singer duos.

“Well, what you gotta understand is we don’t know if they gonna still be best friends and all that forever,” Joe began before giving his answer. “Because right now, they got about six or seven songs, they all No. 1. Yes, they could take the slot, 1 million percent, they could take the slot.”

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Kiss agreed, saying, “I like your answer because they make missiles whenever they drop something together.”

Joe then added that they make magic together and reiterated that if they’re able to maintain a good working relationship, they should have no problem overtaking Ja Rule and Ashanti.

While the former TDE labelmates have multiple songs together, “Luther” is their lone Hot 100 No. 1. “All the Stars” from the Black Panther soundtrack peaked at No. 7 on the chart, while “30 for 30” from SZA’s SOS Deluxe: LANA peaked at No. 10 and “Gloria” from Dot’s GNX peaked at No. 27.

SZA and Lamar are currently in the middle of their Grand National Tour and have about 10 dates left.

You can watch the full episode below.