Hip-Hop
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Lizzo is officially kicking off Halloween 2024 with a creative new costume.
On Saturday (Oct. 25), the pop-rap sensation took to Instagram to showcase her self-described “LizzOzempic” outfit, inspired by a recent episode of South Park.
“Ok Halloween… you can start now,” Lizzo captioned a faux advertisement featuring herself alongside a mock prescription box for a weight loss drug.
The South Park episode, titled “The End of Obesity,” aired in May and comically critiqued the Ozempic trend, using Lizzo as an alternative to the popular medication. In the episode, Eric Cartman visits his doctor seeking Ozempic for weight loss. When he learns he can’t afford it, the doctor prescribes an unconventional solution: “I’m going to write you a prescription for Lizzo. She’s a really good singer who talks about body positivity,” he says. “I want you to listen to Lizzo five times a day and watch her videos before bed. I’m afraid you’ll have to be on Lizzo for the rest of your life.”
In another post showing off the Halloween getup, Lizzo clapped back at South Park by dancing to the show’s jingle and flipping off the camera. “Oh OH oh… it’s Lizzo b—,” she captioned the clip, which also included a Cartman cut out in the background.
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The “About Damn Time” hitmaker also shared a clip of herself dancing next to someone wearing an inflatable Cartman costume. “It’s that time of year where I feed y’all so ridiculously, and you’re so very welcome, baby,” she captioned the video, soundtracked by ROSÉ and Bruno Mars’ “APT.”
When the South Park episode originally aired, Lizzo reacted on TikTok, expressing her surprise. “That’s crazy. I just feel like, damn, I’m really that b—-,” she said. “I showed the world how to love yourself, and now these men in Colorado know who the f— I am and put it in their cartoon that’s been around for 25 years.”
Lizzo has donned numerous imaginative Halloween costumes over the years, including outfits based on Tina Turner, Marge Simpson and Baby Yoda, among others.
Check out Lizzo’s “LizzOzempic” Halloween costume on Instagram below.
Who knew that Freddy Krueger had good enough taste in rap music to be a Freddie Gibbs fan?
The Gary, Indiana, rapper tapped the notorious Nightmare on Elm Street slasher to help promote a mysterious new project. Apparently, there are billboards around L.A. featuring a picture of Krueger’s eyes with “Freddie’s Back” above them and the phone number (320) 244-5268 under the quote. When you call the number, the Freddy in your nightmares picks up and gives you the message below (or threat, depending on how scared you are).
“Well, hello little rabbits,” the Freddy Krueger voice is heard saying in the message. “Haven’t you missed me? Hmmm? The jagged edge piercing through your mundane reality. Freddie’s back, bi—. I can’t wait to rip through your dreams like a sledgehammer through a Piñata. Oh, what a rush. You’re all my children now. Welcome to prime time, bi—es. No matter where you run, I am omnipresent like a flock of rabid rabbits. You can keep your mind, but your $oul is $old $eparately. After all, they say You Only Live 2wice, but the truth is You Only Die Once. Sweet dreams.”
Freddy mentions three of the other Freddie’s projects: Piñata, $oul is $old $eparately, and You Only Live 2wice. But then he ends the message with, “but the truth is You Only Die Once,” which could be a clue about the name of this mystery tape. This hasn’t been confirmed, just a little speculating based on a video of a cartoon rabbit (Freddie’s nickname is Rabbit) in a Jason mask posted on an IG account with the handle @youonlydie0nce.
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At the top of 2023, Gibbs told XXL that he was working on multiple projects at once. “I’mma hit y’all with some sh– that y’all thought y’all was ready for, but you really ain’t ready for,” he told the outlet. “Alchemist and Madlib ain’t goin’ nowhere, so keep that in mind. And me and Boi-1da in the studio now real, real, real heavy.” He also mentioned that he might make an R&B album, saying, “I’m making the best music of my life, so it’s no reason to stop. And I’m the king of R&B, so I gotta do that album as well.”
Rod Wave‘s Last Lap beats the competition on Billboard’s Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart with a No. 1 entrance on the list dated Oct. 26. The album, released through Alamo Records, starts with 127,000 equivalent album units earned in the U.S. for the tracking week of Oct. 11 – 17, according to Luminate, kicking off as the week’s most-streamed album of any genre.
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Of Last Lap’s first-week sum, streaming activity contributes 125,000 units, equaling 173.4 million official on-demand streams of the album’s songs. Thanks to that swell, Last Lap begins at No. 1 on the Top Streaming Albums chart. Traditional album sales deliver 2,000 units with a negligible amount of activity from track-equivalent album units. (One unit equals the following levels of consumption: one album sale, 10 individual tracks sold from an album, or 3,750 ad-supported or 1,250 paid/subscription on-demand official audio and video streams for a song on the album.)
With Last Lap, Rod Wave picks up his fourth No. 1 on Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums. His first two leaders – SoulFly (2021) and Beautiful Mind (2022) – each ruled for two weeks, while last year’s Nostalgia clocked three weeks in the top slot. In addition to his four champs, Rod Wave has sent three more titles onto the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart – Ghetto Gospel, which peaked at No. 7 in 2020, Pray 4 Love (No. 2, 2020) and the EP Jupiter’s Diary: 7 Day Theory (No. 5, 2022).
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Elsewhere, Last Lap opens at No. 1 on the Top Rap Albums chart and at No. 2 on the all-genre Billboard 200.
Due to the Last Lap streaming avalanche, 21 of the album’s songs spill onto the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. “25” leads the pack at No. 4 and, with 17.5 million official U.S. streams, is the top-streamed Last Lap track for the week. Here’s a full recap of the album’s placements on this week’s ranking:
No. 4, “25”No. 8, “Last Lap”No. 10, “Federal Nightmares”No. 11, “Angel With an Attitude”No. 13, “Fall Fast in Love”No. 14, “F**k Fame,” featuring Lil Yachty & Lil BabyNo. 15, “Passport Junkie”No. 17, “Never Mind”No. 18, “Turtle Race”No. 20, “Apply Pressure”No. 25, “The Best”No. 28, “Even Love”No. 30, “Lost in Love,” with Be CharlotteNo. 35, “Waited 2 Late”No. 36, “Mike”No. 37, “D.A.R.E.”No. 38, “Scared Love”No. 41, “Karma”No. 43, “The Mess They Made”No. 44, “IRan”No. 47, “Spaceship”
The 21 simultaneous entries makes Rod Wave only the sixth artist to ever chart as many tracks on Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs in a single week, dating to the chart’s launch in 1958. (The feat is a recent trend, as huge streaming returns have allowed for a sharp rise in the number of songs that make the chart in a week, usually with an album’s debut.) The rapper joins Drake, who has eight different weeks of 21 or more songs, Lil Baby (three times), Future, Lil Wayne and Metro Boomin (one each).
A$AP Rocky is set to go to trial in Los Angeles early next year on charges that he fired a gun at a former friend and collaborator on the streets near a Hollywood hotel in 2021. The trial of the 36-year-old rapper, fashion mogul, Grammy nominee and celebrity co-chair of the next Met Gala is set to begin […]
Grammy-winning producer Timbaland has taken on a new role as a strategic advisor to Suno, an AI music company that can generate full songs at the click of a button.
News of the deal comes four months after the three major music companies collectively sued Suno (and competitor Udio) for alleged infringement of their copyrighted sound recordings “at an almost unimaginable scale.”
According to a press release from Suno, Timbaland has been a “top user” of the platform for months, and this announcement formalizes his involvement with Suno. The partnership will be kicked off with Timbaland previewing his latest single “Love Again” exclusively on Suno’s platform.
Then, Suno users will be able to participate in a remix contest, which will include feedback and judging from Timbaland himself and over $100,000 in prizes for winning remixes. Timbaland will also release the top two remixes of “Love Again” on streaming services, including Spotify, Apple Music and more.
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Additionally, as part of being a strategic advisor to Suno, Timbaland will assume an “active” role in the “day-to-day product development and strategic creative direction” of new generative AI tools, says the company in a press release.
Suno is one of the most advanced generative AI music companies on the market today. Using simple text prompts, users can generate voice, lyrics and instrumentals in seconds. On May 21, Suno announced that it had raised $125 million in funding across multiple funding rounds, including investments from including Lightspeed Venture Partners, Nat Friedman and Daniel Gross, Matrix and Founder Collective. Suno also said it had been working closely with a team of advisors, including 3LAU, Aaron Levie, Alexandr Wang, Amjad Masad, Andrej Karpathy, Aravind Srinivas, Brendan Iribe, Flosstradamus, Fred Ehrsam, Guillermo Rauch and Shane Mac.
Though many have marveled at its uncanny music-making capabilities, the music business establishment also feared that Suno might have been trained on copyrighted material without consent. (At the time, Suno declined to state what materials were in its training data, and whether or not it included copyrighted music).
Then, Billboard broke the news on June 20 that the major labels were weighing the idea of a lawsuit against Suno and Udio, alleging widespread copyright infringement of their sound recordings for the purposes of AI training. After the lawsuit was officially filed four days later, Suno and Udio then hired top law firm Latham & Watkins, and filed lengthy responses to fire back at the labels. Suno noted it was “no secret” that the company had ingested “essentially all music files of reasonable quality that are accessible on the open Internet” and that it was “fair use” to use these files.
“When I heard what Suno was doing, I was immediately curious,” says Timbaland of the partnership. “After witnessing the potential, I knew I had to be a part of it. By combining forces, we have a unique opportunity to make A.I. work for the artist community and not the other way around. We’re seizing that opportunity, and we’re going to open up the floodgates for generations of artists to flourish on this new frontier. I’m excited and grateful to Suno for this opportunity.”
“It’s an honor to work with a legend like Timbaland,” says Mikey Shulman, CEO of Suno. “At Suno, we’re really excited about exploring new ways for fans to engage with their favorite artists. With Timbaland’s guidance, we’re helping musicians create music at the speed of their ideas—whether they’re just starting out or already selling out stadiums. We couldn’t be more excited for what’s ahead!”
T.I.‘s son Clifford “King” Harris Jr. was arrested earlier this week in Georgia. Fox 5 Atlanta is reporting that jail records indicate the rapper’s 20-year-old son had an open warrant for his arrest in Pickens County for failure to appear in court. The warrant stems from charges of speeding, driving with a suspended license, and […]
Members of 2 Live Crew have won a jury verdict allowing the hip hop legends to regain legal control of much of their catalog from a small record label that owned their copyrights for decades.
After years of litigation, a Florida federal jury said Wednesday that Uncle Luke (Luther Campbell) and the heirs of Fresh Kid Ice (Christopher Wong Won) and Brother Marquis (Mark Ross) were entitled to invoke copyright law’s “termination right” – a provision that allows creators to take back their works decades after they sold them away to a company.
Attorneys for Lil Joe Records, which bought the band’s catalog out of bankruptcy in the 1990s, argued that termination didn’t apply to 2 Live Crew’s albums. Lawyers for Campbell and his late bandmates argued back that the right to terminate was “inalienable” and couldn’t be forfeited.
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In Wednesday’s verdict, the jurors sided with 2 Live Crew, finding the band members had lawfully regained control of the five albums at issue in the case — including their provocative 1989 record As Nasty as They Wanna Be, which reached No. 29 on the Billboard 200 and was certified platinum.
In a statement to Billboard, 2 Live’s attorney Scott Alan Burroughs said he and his clients were “extremely pleased” with the outcome: “Our team has fought this battle for nearly four years and are thankful to have had the opportunity to present our case to the jury and see justice served. The verdict was a total and overwhelming victory for our clients and artists everywhere.”
Meanwhile, Richard Wolfe, lead counsel Lil Joe Records and label owner Joe Weinberger, vowed to appeal the verdict, saying it dealt with novel legal questions about the interplay between termination rights and federal bankruptcy law.
“Since this is a matter of first impression … which has never before been heard by any court, it may go to the Supreme Court,” Wolfe told Billboard. “The bankruptcy code is clear that all assets of a bankrupt party are part of the bankruptcy estate. All means all.”
The verdict was first reported by Law360 and confirmed by Billboard.
2 Live Crew, a pioneering hip hop group known for the backlash sparked by its sexually-explicit lyrics, is just the latest classic act to use the termination right, which typically kicks into action 35 years after a song was released.
Jay-Z has already invoked it to win back control of his debut album Reasonable Doubt, a fact revealed during a recent legal dispute over Damon Dash’s stake in Roc-A-Fella Records. Earlier this year, Cher won a legal battle with Sonny Bono’s widow over whether termination trumped a decades-old divorce settlement. And before that, groups of artists filed class actions against Universal Music Group and Sony Music Entertainment, seeking to win back control of their masters en masse.
2 Live’s dispute kicked off in November 2020, when Campbell and other members notified Lil Joe that they planned to invoke termination and take back control of their music. Lil Joe and Weinberger had purchased 2 Live Crew’s catalog when the group’s previous label, Luke Records Inc., went bankrupt in 1995. When the two sides could not come to terms, Lil Joe sued the members in federal court.
During the case, the label argued that the bankruptcy sale, which had been signed by a judge, made clear that the album rights were “free and clear of any and all liens” or other caveats. The company also argued the albums were created as “works for hire” – meaning Lil Joe had always been the legal owner of the copyrights, and there were no rights to 2 Live to take back in the first place.
But at the trial this month, 2 Live’s attorneys told a different story. As reported by Law360, Burroughs argued the group had “trusted” Weinberg but that he had “betrayed them and steered them into bankruptcy,” where he was able to purchase the rights to their music on the cheap. He called the story a “tale of deceit and dishonesty that wouldn’t be out of place in a Netflix movie.”
Lil Joe can appeal the outcome, first by asking the judge to overturn the verdict and then by taking the case to a federal appeals court. Such proceedings could take months or even years, depending on how higher courts rule.
While Megan Thee Stallion came into Tuesday’s (Oct. 15) broadcast of the 2024 BET Hip Hop Awards as the top nominee, who will emerge as the night’s big winner?
Meg leads the way with 12 nominations, followed by Kendrick Lamar with 11; Drake with eight; Cardi B, GloRilla, Metro Boomin and Minaj (seven each); Future and Travis Scott (six each); 21 Savage and 41 (four each); and A$AP Rocky, Common, Lil Wayne, Pete Rock and Sexyy Red (three each).
Follow along with Billboard all night as we update the winners list live below:
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Hip-hop artist of the year
21 Savage
Cardi B
Drake
Future
GloRilla
Kendrick Lamar
Megan Thee Stallion
Nicki Minaj
Song of the year
“Agora Hills,” Doja Cat
“Bent,” 41 (Kyle Richh, Jenn Carter, Tata)
“Fe!N,” Travis Scott feat. Playboi Carti
“FTCU,” Nicki Minaj
“Get It Sexyy,” Sexyy Red
“Like That,” Metro Boomin, Future, Kendrick Lamar
“Mamushi,” Megan Thee Stallion feat. Yuki Chiba
“Not Like Us,” Kendrick Lamar
“Yeah Glo!,” GloRilla
Hip-hop album of the year
American Dream, 21 Savage
Ehhthang Ehhthang, GloRilla
For All the Dogs Scary Hours Edition, Drake
In Sexyy We Trust, Sexyy Red
Megan, Megan Thee Stallion
One of Wun, Gunna
Pink Friday 2, Nicki Minaj
Utopia, Travis Scott
We Don’t Trust You, Future & Metro Boomin
Best hip-hop video
“8 AM in Charlotte,” Drake
“Band4band,” Central Cee feat. Lil Baby
“Bent,” 41 (Kyle Richh, Jenn Carter, Tata)
“Big Mama,” Latto
“Boa,” Megan Thee Stallion
“Enough (Miami),” Cardi B
“Not Like Us,” Kendrick Lamar
“Type Shit,” Future, Metro Boomin, Travis Scott & Playboi Carti
Best breakthrough hip-hop artist
41
310babii
Bossman Dlow
Cash Cobain
Lady London
Sexyy Red
Skilla Baby
Tommy Richman
Best collaboration
“At the Party,” Kid Cudi feat. Pharrell Williams & Travis Scott
“Band4band,” Central Cee feat. Lil Baby
“Bongos,” Cardi B feat. Megan Thee Stallion
“Everybody,” Nicki Minaj feat. Lil Uzi Vert
“First Person Shooter,” Drake feat. J.Cole
“Like That,” Metro Boomin, Future, Kendrick Lamar
“Mamushi,” Megan Thee Stallion feat. Yuki Chiba
“Wanna Be,” GloRilla feat. Megan Thee Stallion
Best duo or group
¥$, Kanye West & Ty Dolla $ign
2 Chainz & Lil Wayne
41 (Kyle Richh, Jenn Carter, Tata)
Common & Pete Rock
Earthgang
Flyana Boss
Future & Metro Boomin
Rick Ross & Meek Mill
Best live performer
Burna Boy
Busta Rhymes
Cardi B
Drake
GloRilla
Kendrick Lamar
Megan Thee Stallion
Missy Elliott
Nicki Minaj
Travis Scott
Lyricist of the year
21 Savage
Cardi B
Common
Drake
Kendrick Lamar
Lil Wayne
Megan Thee Stallion
Nicki Minaj
Video director of the year
20k Visuals
A$AP Rocky
Cactus Jack
Cole Bennett
Dave Free & Kendrick Lamar
Dave Meyers & Travis Scott
Doja Cat & Nina McNeely
Offset
Producer of the year
Atl Jacob
Cash Cobain
Hit-Boy
Hitmaka
Metro Boomin
Pete Rock
Q-Tip
The Alchemist
DJ of the year
Big Von
DJ D-Nice
DJ Drama
DJ Khaled
Kaytranada
Metro Boomin
Mustard
The Alchemist
Best hip-hop platform
Bootleg Kev
Club Shay Shay
Complex
Drink Champs
Million Dollaz Worth of Game
On the Radar
The Breakfast Club
The Joe Budden Podcast
The Shade Room
XXL
Hustler of the year
50 Cent
A$AP Rocky
Cam’ron & Ma$e
Cardi B
Drake
Fat Joe
GloRilla
Kendrick Lamar
Megan Thee Stallion
Sweet 16: best featured verse
21 Savage, “Good Good” (Usher, 21 Savage & Summer Walker)
A$AP Rocky, “Gangsta” (Free Nationals, A$AP Rocky & Anderson .Paak)
Cardi B, “Wanna Be” remix (Glorilla, Megan Thee Stallion & Cardi B)
Drake, “Meltdown” (Travis Scott feat. Drake)
J.Cole, “First Person Shooter” (Drake feat. J. Cole)
Kendrick Lamar, “Like That” (Future, Metro Boomin & Kendrick Lamar)
Lil Wayne, “Brand New” (Tyga, YG & Lil Wayne)
Megan Thee Stallion, “Wanna Be” (Glorilla, Megan Thee Stallion)
Impact track
“Blessings,” Nicki Minaj feat. Tasha Cobbs Leonard
“Fortunate,” Common & Pete Rock
“Get in With Me,” Bossman Dlow
“Hiss,” Megan Thee Stallion
“Humble Me,” Killer Mike
“Not Like Us,” Kendrick Lamar
“Precision,” Big Sean
“Yeah Glo!,” GloRilla
Best international flow
SDM, France
Leys Mc, France
Racionais Mcs, Brazil
Budah, Brazil
Ghetts, UK
Bashy, UK
Stefflon Don, UK
Maglera Doe Boy, South Africa
Blxckie, South Africa
Odumodublvck, Nigeria
Ye (formerly Kanye West) is being sued by a former assistant who alleges the rapper drugged and sexually assaulted her during a studio session he co-hosted with Diddy.
Lauren Pisciotta, the ex-assistant who filed the new lawsuit, previously sued Ye in June, when she accused him of sexual harassment, breach of contract and wrongful termination; a legal rep for Ye denied the lawsuit’s allegations in June.
Amended court documents were filed in California on Oct. 8 and first obtained by TMZ, according to The Hollywood Reporter, who reached out to Ye’s rep for comment.
Pisciotta, who worked for Ye for a year, claims in the October filing that she and an unnamed artist management client were invited to one of Combs’ studio sessions.
She says “drinks were served to her and others in attendance, followed by an announcement that everybody had to drink, if they wanted to stay.”
“After a few small sips of the beverage, poured at the direction of Kanye West a.k.a. Ye by a studio assistant and then served to her by Kanye West, Plaintiff suddenly started to feel disoriented,” the suit alleges. Pisciotta claims she got roofied. Pisciotta says upon waking up she felt “immense shame and embarrassment” but could remember almost nothing about what happened.
She alleges Ye brought up that night to her years later, telling her they “did kind of hook up,” and that he provided details about what happened.
Pisciotta, an OnlyFans model, worked for Ye first as an executive assistant and later as chief of staff for his companies.
Sean “Diddy” Combs is named in the amended case filing as co-host of the studio event on the night of the alleged incident. However, Pisciotta has not made any accusations against him.
Diddy is currently being held in a Brooklyn jail, awaiting trial after his Sept. 16 arrest on sex trafficking and racketeering.
Eminem‘s daughter Hailie Jade Scott has revealed the gender of her first baby. During Friday’s (Oct. 11) episode of her Just a Little Shady podcast, the 28-year-old sat alongside her husband, Evan McClintock, to share the exciting news with fans. The couple used a gold-colored balloon filled with either pink or blue confetti to make […]