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Offset isn’t letting anyone shake his confidence following his split from Cardi B — especially fans claiming his famous ex is the only reason other women have dated him since.
In a since-deleted post on X Tuesday (Feb. 18), the Migos rapper shut down a troll who wrote that “the only reason” he’s attractive to women is “because he was married to Cardi B.” “Incorrect lol I’m him,” ‘Set simply replied, according to VIBE.
Earlier in the thread, another person had pulled up five-year-old screenshots of posts by Atlanta model Melanie Jayda — whom Offset is rumored to be dating — praising the “WAP” hitmaker back in 2019. “Just excited to get Cardi’s leftovers,” the user had written of Jayda.
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Another Cardi fan also got a reaction out of the “Stir Fry” artist by writing, “Offset is operating from a bruised ego!! Cardi not only moved on, she upgraded … with another man who is better looking and has more money,” potentially referring to the Grammy winner’s rumored new boyfriend, Houston Texans wide receiver Stefon Diggs.
“You b—hes delulu wouldn’t I be the perfect n—a if …,” Offset wrote in another now-deleted reply. “Stop talking bout money baby u delusional.”
The exchanges come about seven months after Cardi filed to divorce ‘Set for a second time. Just over a month later, the couple’s third child arrived Sept. 7, 2024.
The exes have been going back and forth on where they stand ever since. While the Whipshots founder has said she wants a “healthy co-parenting relationship” with Offset, both hip-hop stars have put each other on blast online multiple times. In December, for instance, the “Ric Flair Drop” musician accused Cardi of focusing on “d—” and trying to “make me look bad,” after which she fired back, “So dating because I’m single means I’m just worried about d—?? You sound like a dummy … F–k off and sign the papers TODAY.”
Cut to Valentine’s Day, and Offset appeared to air out his grievances on a new single titled “Ten.” “I don’t need you, I got money/ I don’t miss you, I got money,” he spits on the track. “Love you, but not like money/ Love all my hoes the same.”
Drake has remained at odds with Sacramento Kings star DeMar DeRozan ever since the former Toronto Raptor seemingly sided with Kendrick Lamar during the 6 God’s feud with the Compton rapper last year.
Footage went viral earlier this week when a DeRozan jersey was thrown on stage during Drake’s Sydney concert, and once he realized who was on the back of the No. 10, Drizzy discarded the jersey in disgust as “Rich Flex” rang off.
Like many DeRozan fans, the Sacramento Kings’ social media team came to the defense of the team’s superstar wing with a clip clapping back at Drake.
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The video uses Drake launching the DeRozan jersey, but is edited to a Kings fan happily catching it. “the 916 loves Deebo,” the Kings captioned the video.
Kings fans chimed in defending the Compton native in the Instagram comment section: “DeMar did more for Toronto and Canada than Drake could ever dream of.”
Another added: “SOCIAL TEAM NEEDS A RAISE!”
DeRozan spent the first nine years of his NBA career in Toronto, where he grew a close friendship with Drake, before being shipped off to San Antonio.
“No matter what, when it comes to him, he’ll forever have a friend in me and loyalty out of me because he cared,” DeRozan said of Drake in 2021 after leaving the Raptors. “He was there for me when everything was kind of going crazy.”
However, the relationship looks to have soured when DeRozan appeared in Kendrick Lamar’s “Not Like Us” video after K. Dot shouted out the hooper on the track. DeRozan also showed up to support Lamar’s Pop Out concert on Juneteenth, where Kendrick performed “Not Like Us” for the first time live.
DeRozan attempted to play it down the middle even after showing his support for Lamar. “We love Drake, we always can play him,” he said during an interview last summer. “Kendrick been a friend of mine, family. Damn near family, for a long time, for a while.”
Drake wasn’t having it, and he proceeded to blast DeRozan and the idea of the Raptors retiring DD’s No. 10 during an appearance on the Raptors broadcast in a game against the Sacramento Kings in November, threatening to “pull it down myself” if his number ever went up on a banner.
Watch the Sacramento Kings’ reaction to Drake spiking DeRozan’s jersey below:
Rizzle Kicks has learned not to question a bolt from the blue. While working on the lyrics for its mighty new LP, Competition is for Losers, the duo – comprised of rappers Jordan Stephens and Harley Alexander-Sule – was struck by moments of synergy. The two members had entered the studio with the intention to make “an album talking about exactly where we’re at in our lives,” says Alexander-Sule, 14 tracks of fluorescent-hued pop-rap that celebrate a journey to embracing stillness over momentum, peace over chaos.
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The pair’s freewheeling spirit shines on the record because of how easily its bars dip and traverse through different moods. Tracks like “Everything’s Aligned” and “Javelin” hone in on the realization that something truly powerful can still exist and thrive after years of fear have been pushed aside: for Stephens and Alexander-Sule, it’s a friendship that has withstood everything it has been through.
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Rizzle Kicks formed in Brighton as teenagers in 2008, having attended music workshops together, and then south London’s BRIT School, which also helped to launch the careers of Adele, Lola Young and Olivia Dean. Within three years, it became one of the biggest acts in the U.K. For a moment in time, 2011 debut album Stereo Typical felt omnipresent; it blasted from car windows, it shot over TV montages, it echoed through shopping centres.
The 2011 hits “Down With the Trumpets” and “Mama Do the Hump” both went platinum. A breezy approach to music-making conjured images of giddy misadventures, cider-soaked conversations among friends that would roll until dawn, in-jokes formed from the simple, shared pursuit of a laugh. Rizzle Kicks defined a specific, more innocent time in youth culture, so much so that TikTok has turned to labelling any glimpse of sunshine in the U.K. as “Rizzle Kicks weather”.
Shortly after they released its second LP Roaring 20s in 2013, which landed at No. 3 in the Official U.K. Album Charts, the pair say they had lost a sense of purpose. They started to drip-feed a number of singles and EPs, and diversified into acting, but many of these one-off releases felt like “treading water,” Alexander-Sule notes.
Rizzle Kicks attempted to create another album, which never came out, while a U.K. tour booked for late 2016 was called off before the pair even hit the road. Though Stephens and Alexander-Sule remained close during this period, for a number of years, the question of working together again was scrupulously avoided.
They soon shifted towards solitary creative work, including respective solo material. There was broadcasting and some literary projects (2024 memoir Avoidance, Drugs, Heartbreak and Dogs and children’s book The Missing Piece) for Stephens, and for Sylvester, writing with the likes of ascendant British acts Rachel Chinouriri and Tom Grennan.
Rekindling their creative partnership as Rizzle Kicks after more than a decade necessitated an open mind for Stephens and Alexander-Sule, and a willingness to let go. Speaking over Zoom, the pair discuss new beginnings, last November’s comeback gig at KOKO in London, and the greater purpose of their comeback.
Jordan, on Miquita Oliver and Lily Allen’s Miss Me? podcast, you spoke about witnessing “rebellious joy” at your comeback gig. What does that phrase mean to you?
Jordan: I guess I’d be careful about [the energy] being seen as rebellion, but it was incredible. If I’m feeling pumped, I’m thinking of [Irish rap trio] Kneecap – they’re actively doing guerrilla marketing, picking court cases against the government – that’s so serious! But my understanding of the gig at KOKO versus my understanding of the gigs we did 10 years ago is that the joy we’re providing feels a little bit different in these tough times.
It’s hard right now. I really, really hate saying that everything seems like it’s the end of the world. I don’t like being apocalyptic. But we’re seeing the worst of everything in the world right now; the news and social media is just more shocking than ever. The lane in which we exist might be more necessary, as we value community and live music. Being in a place with people who have a mutual interest is hugely important nowadays.
Are there any of your older songs that feel more potent or relevant now when playing them live?
Jordan: I loved playing the older songs [at KOKO]! In my mid 20s, after we put Rizzle Kicks on ice, I spent a lot of time dealing with stuff to do with being in the pop industry; how I felt about my own self-worth and understanding of achievement. In that time, through the work I’ve done on myself, I’ve turned around and realised that [Rizzle Kicks] did so well at such a young age.
I actually really reveled in playing the songs that everybody loves. We made a breakthrough as being carefree, f–king joyful young men, you know? And that’s what we were talking about in the music. Don’t get me wrong, tracks like [2013’s] “Lost Generation” were politically-charged, to an extent. But we weren’t mouthy – ultimately, we just wanted to give people a good time.
Was there anything that shifted in your personal lives that made it the right time to return to music?
Harley: Making music with Jordan is my favorite thing in the world, and I just wanted that feeling back. Before, I was definitely struggling a lot with my mental health, and just over time, that got better. I spent a lot of time with people I love, and eventually, the desire to get back in the studio started to outweigh the pressure of returning to the stage. Other than the initial, overwhelming period after the news was out, I’ve dealt with everything a lot better than I could have anticipated.
Did you ever worry that the public’s reaction to the comeback wouldn’t meet your own expectations?
Harley: “I mean, if anything, when we announced that we were going to come back the response was overwhelming. I remember the day we put the KOKO tickets on sale, I said to my manager, ‘I’d be really happy if we could sell 300 tickets on the first day, that’d be great.’ And then it sold out in 15 seconds!
Jordan has remained in these media spaces over the years, but I’ve definitely been away from the world for a long time, so I found it quite overwhelming at first. There’s quite a lot of schools around where I live, and I was getting hounded for the first couple of weeks because our comeback videos were getting shared loads. I can’t believe how excited people were.
We’re not trying to base this whole comeback on nostalgia, however. We want this to be something that can grow from here. We want to be in a space where we can continue to make albums and tour; we want this to be consistent, not just a ‘flash in the pan’-type situation. We could have easily released a song, done a tour, made a bit of cash, and then f–ked off again. The fact that this album has been in the works for four or five years is testament to how seriously we’re taking this era. We really want to push ourselves and progress.
How different does it feel to be writing from a place of acceptance in your life?
Jordan: For me, personally, I was so chaotic on the last album. This is the complex thing of mixing drugs with creativity, is that we have this whole historical notion around being a ‘tortured genius.’ I was messed up by crazy ideas, I needed grounding – but at the time, even Harley struggled to do that with me. I don’t have any real vivid memories of that time, other than I know where I recorded it, and I know I involved a bunch of my family in the process.
In the past, I would have been eating loads of sugar, doing drugs and drinking [during recording]. Now I’m just drinking maybe one coffee. I’m thinking more logically and rationally; I’m a better rapper; I’m more relaxed and comfortable in the studio. I had great lyrics back in the day, but nowadays, I deliver bars with a little bit more confidence.
But also, I write so much slower than I used to! That’s one thing, I guess, that’s a blessing and a curse in a way. When I was younger, I used to think so fast, and sometimes I’d only be able to think in rhyme. But now, I only have one or two thoughts at a time. Sometimes they trouble me, but they’re calmer. So if I’m writing a rap, I don’t just write rap verses for no reason. I’m there for three or four hours writing a 16-bar verse, just because I’m chilling!
Warner Records has partnered with respected hip-hop and R&B executive Tim Hinshaw to launch Free Lunch Records, an extension of his creative and touring firm Free Lunch Agency, the companies announced on Wednesday.
The collaboration aims to provide Warner artists ready access to Free Lunch’s creative, touring and sync services while serving as a new platform for emerging talent. Warner Records senior vp of A&R Ericka Coulter has been named general manager of the upstart label, which also announces its first two signings in Syd and Alex Isley. Coulter will keep her continue her role at Warner, the label noted.
Hinshaw announced Free Lunch Agency in August 2023 while still head of hip-hop and R&B at Amazon Music, a role he held five years. At launch, Free Lunch said its goal was to “authentically connect brands with artists and culture through bespoke storytelling and real-life experiences.” The agency’s name is a nod to the free lunch programs provided by public schools and parks in underserved communities nationwide.
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While at Amazon, Hinshaw played a key role in securing major partnerships, including the exclusive livestream of Kendrick Lamar’s The Big Steppers Tour and Amazon Music Live performances featuring Lil Baby, A$AP Rocky, and 21 Savage. He also spearheaded deals for high-profile events, including for Tyler, The Creator, J. Cole’s Dreamville Festival and Summer Walker.
As Amazon executive Steve Boom said at the time, Hinshaw put Amazon Music into the conversation among the hip-hop and R&B community “in a way, frankly speaking, we were not.” His efforts there earned him executive of the year honors in Billboard’s R&B/Hip-Hop Power Players list in 2022.
Prior to joining Amazon Music, Hinshaw built the urban music division at Fender Guitars, worked in music marketing for Vans and co-managed his brother, songwriter Prince Charlez, leading to a joint venture with Island Def Jam and a global publishing deal with Universal.
Warner Records co-chairman and CEO Aaron Bay-Schuck praised Hinshaw’s ability to create impact beyond music.
“Tom [Corson] and I are thrilled to welcome Tim and his Free Lunch team to the label,” said Bay-Schuck. “His expertise stretches far beyond finding and nurturing talent – he knows how to make sure his artists are making an impact. Early on in our conversations, it was clear bringing Tim and Free Lunch into the Warner fold would be a perfect synergy. Tim is immersed in the vast culture of hip-hop and R&B, across music, sports, fashion, and live entertainment, and together we’ll work towards our shared goal of uplifting the best and brightest in the genre.”
Hinshaw added that “by uniting Free Lunch Agency with Warner Records, we can combine our expertise in creative, music, and brand building to elevate the first-class roster,” saying, “together we’ll expand the scope of artist narratives to connect even more deeply with fans across the globe.”
A$AP Rocky was full of emotions in the moment a jury ruled he was not guilty in his 2021 felony shooting case Tuesday (Feb. 18). So much so, he leapt straight over a courtroom barrier into the arms of the first person he wanted to celebrate with: Rihanna. In a news clip from a […]
A Nevada judge on Tuesday postponed the murder trial of the only suspect ever charged in the 1996 killing of rap icon Tupac Shakur for nearly a year, saying she had little choice given new developments presented by his defense attorneys and the need to ensure a fair trial.
The trial of Duane “Keffe D” Davis, previously set for next month in Las Vegas, has been rescheduled for Feb. 9, 2026. The judge ordered prosecutors and the defense to return to court over the summer for a status hearing.
“It looks like there are quite a few things that are left to be done to get this case prepared so that Mr. Davis can have effective assistance of counsel,” Clark County District Court Judge Carli Kierny said during a short hearing.
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When asked by the judge if he was OK with moving the trial that far out, Davis agreed.
Davis’ defense team filed a motion Friday seeking more time, saying critical investigative work had to be done and witnesses needed to be interviewed to ensure he gets a fair trial. The lawyers said a private investigator identified witnesses who can testify that Davis was not at the scene of the shooting.
Attorney Carl Arnold, who is leading the defense, said the case involves decades-old allegations and critical facts have yet to be fully examined.
On the night of Sept. 7, 1996, Shakur was in a BMW being driven by Death Row Records founder Marion “Suge” Knight. They were waiting at a red light when a white Cadillac pulled up next to them and gunfire erupted.
Davis, an ex-gang leader who is accused of orchestrating Shakur’s killing near the Las Vegas Strip, has pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder and has been jailed since his September 2023 arrest.
Davis has acknowledged in interviews and in his tell-all memoir that he provided the gun used in the drive-by shooting and that he was in the car. But his court filings say his descriptions in recent years of orchestrating the shooting were “done for entertainment purposes and to make money.”
Arnold has argued that Davis never should have been charged because of immunity agreements that Davis says he reached years ago with federal and local prosecutors while living in California.
Prosecutors disagree, saying they have strong evidence against Davis and any immunity agreement was limited.
Defense attorneys also are raising questions about the manner of Shakur’s death, saying they have witness information indicating that he was in stable condition after the shooting and died suddenly after being hospitalized for a week. They want to consult medical and forensic experts to evaluate potential alternative causes of death.
This article was originally published by The Associated Press.
A$AP Rocky jumped into Rihanna‘s arms after a jury acquitted him on both counts in the shooting case involving his former friend A$AP Relli (Terrell Ephron). A short time later, it was RihRih who was jumping for joy while celebrating the verdict, writing in her Instagram Story, “THE GLORY BELONGS TO GOD AND GOD ALONE! THANKFUL, HUMBLED BY HIS MERCY!”
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She ended the post with a prayer hands emoji.
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The singer, 36, was on hand for the final days of the four-week trial in which Rocky (born Rakim Mayers) was facing significant prison time tied to an incident that took place in November 2021 in which he was accused of firing a handgun twice at Relli near a Hollywood hotel. The 36-year-old rapper was arrested in Los Angeles in April 2022 and hit with two felony counts of assault with a firearm and was facing a maximum of 24 years in prison.
After deliberating for around three hours, the jury returned its not guilty verdict on Tuesday afternoon (Feb. 18), prompting Rocky to jump over the railing into the arms of an ecstatic Rihanna, with whom he shares two young children, RZA, 2 and Riot, 1. Rocky also took to his socials to celebrate the end of the long-running case, writing on X “DON’T BE DUMB,” a seeming reference to his delayed fourth album of the same name that was slated to drop last August.
At the time, Rocky said posted on X that “LEAKS & SAMPLE CLEARANCES ARE DISRUPTING THE ALBUM. ITS BEEN 6 YEARS & I WANNA MAKE THE BEST ALBUM EVER. IM SORRY FOR THE WAIT,” explaining the delay in releasing his follow-up to 2018’s Testing album. In a Billboard cover story last summer, Rocky said the delayed album was slated to feature frequent collaborator and friend Tyler, The Creator and former Smiths singer Morrissey, as well as an A-list roster of producers, including Pharrell Williams, Mike Dean, Hitkidd, Madlib, Metro Boomin and The Alchemist. “I sat and I played the album for Tim Burton, and he was f—ing with it heavy,” he said, adding that the Beetlejuice Beetlejuice director was “rocking his head” while listening. “He’s like, ‘Wow! I didn’t know you made that kind of music!’”
Though the official track list has not been revealed yet, Don’t Be Dumb has been preceded by a number of singles, including “Highjack,” “Tailor Swif” and “Ruby Rosary.”
A$AP Rocky (Rakim Mayers) has been found not guilty on both counts in the shooting case involving his former friend and associate A$AP Relli (Terrell Ephron). The verdict, which the jury reached after about three hours, according to The Associated Press, was read in the downtown Los Angeles courtroom at 4 p.m. PT on Tuesday […]
Tems has become the first African female artist to hit one billion streams on Spotify with Future‘s “WAIT FOR U,” also featuring Drake, Spotify has confirmed. “WAIT FOR U” samples Tems’ “Higher” from her 2020 EP For Broken Ears and was featured on Future’s 2022 Billboard 200-topping album I NEVER LIKED YOU. The song hit […]
Will Smith has a couple of eerie coincidences that he doesn’t like talking about too much. During a sit-down with the Broken Record podcast with co-host Justin Richmond, the entertainer revealed that he talked to The Notorious B.I.G. and Prince before their untimely deaths, with his run-in with Biggie being the first time he and […]