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Lil Nas X was reportedly among four Americans stopped by Norwegian police after they rode through an Oslo tunnel on electric scooters. Authorities briefly closed the Festning (Fortress) Tunnel but none of the scooter riders were detained or charged. Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news The tourists […]

The Red Hot Chili Peppers and Ms. Lauryn Hill will headline the 2023 Global Citizen Festival in New York’s Central park on Sept. 23. The lineup of this year’s event on the Great Lawn will also feature Megan Thee Stallion, Conan Gray and Stray Kids.

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The free, ticketed event will focus on the organization’s drive to end extreme poverty now, with interested fans encouraged to earn passes by joining the movement and taking action on the Global Citizen app (or here) to help the organization’s work to level the playing field for women and adolescent girls around the world, combat climate change and continue the fight against the global food and malnutrition crisis.

According to a statement announcing this year’s lineup, for the first time in a generation, the number of people living in extreme poverty is on the rise. “The 2023 Global Citizen Festival campaign takes aim at the major issues perpetuating extreme poverty, including the impacts of climate change on the Global South, the inequities affecting women and girls around the world, and the global hunger crisis, and will call on governments to protect and defend advocates everywhere,” read the statement. “The campaign will unite millions of voices, amplified by the world’s biggest artists, to demand urgent action from world leaders gathering in New York City for the United Nations General Assembly in September.”

After this year’s COP27, G7, World Bank spring meetings and Paris climate finance summit failed to deliver any tangible results or disrupt the world’s “unjust systems,” Global Citizen CEO/co-founder Hugh Evans said in the statement that, “complacency can’t win. If we want to see breakthroughs on development and climate change, we need the U.S., U.K., Canada, Australia, and all G7 nations to meet the urgency of the hour. Every single citizen has a vital role to play, and together, we must be laser-focused on driving results and impact in September.”  

Global Citizen began holding concerts around the globe beginning in 2012 with a goal of ending global poverty. It has long attracted a variety of A-list acts, including last year’s lineup featuring Metallica, Charlie Puth, Jonas Brothers, Måneksin, Mariah Carey, Mickey Guyton and Rosalía performing in Central Park and Usher, SZA, Stormzy and Tems are among the headliners for a sister event in Ghana’s capital, Accra.

See the lineup announcement below.

Coolio‘s posthumous album includes guest appearances from Naughty By Nature‘s Treach, Da Lench Mob’s J-Dee, and Ras Kass on a project that was not intended to be the rapper’s last.
Titled Long Live Coolio, the forthcoming LP is a celebration of the Grammy award-winning MC, best known for his ’90s classics “Gangsta’s Paradise” and “Fantastic Voyage.” His representatives on Friday (July 7) exclusively shared with The Associated Press the 11-song track list and who will be heard on the album when it is released later this year.

“A Star Is Born”, the latest track from the release — a collaboration between Naughty By Nature’s Treach, MC Shan, and Coolio’s long time producer/collaborator DJ Wino — premiered on Friday, a track that doubles as a history lesson in Coolio’s path to superstardom. The video was filmed in Las Vegas.

“When I heard Coolio’s verse, I’m like, ‘Yo, it feels like the homie is still here,” Treach said, showing off a large portrait tattoo of his labelmate Coolio on his chest. “How do we want people to think of him? We just want them to always think of him. That’s what it’s about — keeping your homies’ names in the streets. Tupac just got a star in Hollywood. We don’t just say it when our brothers are here. We say it until we meet up with them again.”

“Went from Old Man to Boo Daddy to Coolio,” Coolio raps in “A Star is Born.” “At the age of 18 I hit the studio KDAY I’m on radio.”

“Coolio told his story in the second verse,” said DJ Wino. “This song was not meant to be posthumous.”

Coolio died in September 2022 from the effects of fentanyl, heroin, and methamphetamine, the Los Angeles County coroner’s office determined, ruling it an accidental death. In March 2023, Coolio’s estate announced that the hip-hop legend had been working on an album in the days leading up to his death.

DJ Wino says about 75% of the album was completed prior to Coolio’s death. “He laid it out there for us,” he said of finishing Long Live Coolio. “It was up to us to come through, and like good little foot soldiers we followed up.”

Coolio won a Grammy for best solo rap performance for “Gangsta’s Paradise,” the 1995 hit from the soundtrack of the Michelle Pfeiffer film Dangerous Minds that sampled Stevie Wonder’s 1976 song “Pastime Paradise” and was played constantly on MTV. The song hit one billion views on YouTube in 2022.

The rapper had subsequent hits with “Fantastic Voyage” in 1994, “1, 2, 3, 4 (Sumpin’ New)” in 1996 and 1997’s “C U When U Get There.” His career album sales totaled 4.8 million, with 978 million on-demand streams of his songs, according to Luminate. He was nominated for six Grammys overall.

Here’s the tracklist to Coolio’s Long Live Coolio:

“Shine On Me”“Got That”“Notice Me” (feat. Ras Kass)“Fast Pace” (feat. Kid Frost)“I’m Wit That BS” (feat. J-Dee from Da Lench Mob)“TAG You It” (feat. Too $hort)“A Star Is Born” (feat. Treach from Naughty By Nature)“Belly of the Beast” (feat. Cejaz Negraz)“Snitch’N”“Stand Up Beat It Hit It” (feat. Jay Chris)“R Thentic” (feat. Kurupt & Chill)

Wu-Tang Clan mastermind RZA has collected a trophy room full of honors over the course of his nearly-four decade career. But it is a recent unexpected tribute that had the veteran MC/producer feeling super special. “[It’s a] great honor to know that there’s another generation that’s not even of my own household that feels the […]

Ice-T has zero time for your judgement. The rapper/actor wasted no time hitting back at commenters who criticized his wife Coco Austin’s NSFW July 4th photo shoot. “Happy ‘4th of July’!! I’m celebrating in AZ. Yes, it gets HOT outside,” Coco wrote alongside an image in which she showed off her assets in a barely-there […]

Nearly three years after his shocking death at 49 in 2020, late rapper MF Doom‘s wife has revealed what caused her husband’s passing. The British-born MC (born Daniel Dumile), died on Oct. 31, 2020 of what was then deemed “unknown causes” by wife Jasmine Dumile; the artist’s passing wasn’t announced until two months after his death.
According to Leeds Live, an inquest has found that Doom died after his condition “suddenly deteriorated” while he was in the hospital. Wife Jasmine Dumile told the outlet that her husband was in good shape, but had been suffering from a number of health issues at the time, including kidney disease and high blood pressure, which led to weight gain and anxiety.

She said Doom had been prescribed ACE inhibitors to treat his blood pressure but after just two doses he developed breathing problems, which sent him to the ER after his tongue and throat swelled. She said the rapper called her in distress from the hospital when the swelling got worse and, she told an inquest hearing, she then used a second phone to directly alert the nurses on duty.

Because of the COVID-19 restrictions then in place, Jasmine said she could not visit her husband in the hospital until Oct. 31. “That’s when the respirator was turned off that was helping him breathe,” she told investigators. The inquest found that on Oct. 21, Doom had complained that he couldn’t breathe and attempted to get out of his hospital bed before collapsing and suffering respiratory arrest.

Jasmine’s legal team has reportedly asked questions about how often medical staff at St. James Hospital in Leeds checked in on the rapper and why there was an alleged two-hour delay in giving him medication for his throat swelling. The inquest also reportedly heard that Doom’s condition was being closely monitored by the hospital staff and that he’d shown signs of getting better, including elevated oxygen levels and the ability to speak with doctors.

Doctors did note, however, that the swelling of his tongue, throat and lips was a “rare” side-effect of the ACE inhibitors, which caused a condition called angiodema (a swelling similar to hives, but which takes place under the skin instead of on the surface). The outlet also reported that following Doom’s death the hospital trust carried out a “serious incident investigation” to determine what lessons could be learned from the case; the inquiry into Doom’s death is reportedly ongoing.

In a post announcing his death in Dec. 2020, Jasmine wrote, “To Dumile, The greatest husband, father, teacher, student, business partner, lover and friend I could ever ask for. Thank you for all the things you have shown, taught and given to me, our children and our family. Thank you for teaching me how to forgive beings and give another chance, not to be so quick to judge and write off. Thank you for showing how not to be afraid to love and be the best person I could ever be. My world will never be the same without you.”

Dumile was born in London and moved with his family to New York as a child. Under the stage name Zev Love X, he co-founded the rap trio K.M.D. with his brother Dingilizwe, who went by DJ Subroc. Dumile first hit the Billboard charts as a member of K.M.D., which notched a pair of top 20 hits on Hot Rap Songs in 1991: “Peachfuzz” and “Who Me?” His brother’s April 1993 death in a car crash at age 19 caused Dumile to take a break from the industry before returning to rap in 1997 and adopting the MF Doom persona, modeled after Fantastic Four villain Doctor Doom. From then on, he always performed wearing his signature metallic mask.

First things first: the recent trend of fans tossing objects on stage at artists is not cool. That said, Lil Nas X had a positively sub-zero, chilled-out response when someone tossed a sex toy on stage during his headlining set at Lollapalooza Stockholm on Saturday night.
In fan video of the incident, Lil Nas is making his way through a performance of “Down Souf Hoes,” blissfully shaking his hips and moving across the stage in an outfit consisting of furry knee-high blue boots and a matching loincloth adorned with a bull skull at his waist. All of a sudden, something comes flying at him from the audience, nearly hitting the rapper in the knee.

He smiles, walks over to the projectile and picks it up as the music cuts out and he asks, “who threw they p—y on stage?” The object in question appeared to be an anatomical model of the female anatomy, and in keeping with Nas’ whip-fast sense of humor as of Monday morning (July 3) the rapper’s Twitter handle was changed to “p—y.”

While Lil Nas handled the situation with humor, the recent rash of performers being hit with objects during concerts has raised some alarms about artist security on stage. Just last week, Kelsea Ballerini was hit in the face by a projectile during a show in Boise, Idaho, which resulted in the singer leaving the stage for a bit to regroup.

“Can we talk about what just happened? All I care about is keeping everyone safe, so if you ever don’t feel safe, please let someone around you know,” she said upon her return. “There’s security everywhere tonight. If anyone’s pushing too much or you just have that gut feeling or anything, just always flag it. Don’t throw things, you know! I just always want shows of mine — every show, for every artist — but I’m in control of this one. I just want it to be a safe place for everyone. … Can you help me do that tonight?”

That incident came after Bebe Rexha was struck in the face by a fans’ tossed phone during a June 18 show in New York that required her to got to the hospital to treat her badly bruised eye. A 27-year-old man was arrested and charged with assault and harassment. In another recent incident, a man stormed the stage and slapped Ava Max during a concert in Los Angeles.

See a video of the incident below.

Family and friends gathered at the funeral over the weekend for Houston rapper Big Pokey, an original member of the pioneering group Screwed Up Click.
Pokey, who was born Milton Powell, died June 18 at the age of 48 after collapsing at a performance in Beaumont, located east of Houston. Those attending his service Saturday at Fountain of Praise church in Houston included Mayor Sylvester Turner, Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee and rappers Paul Wall, Trae Tha Truth and Slim Thug, the Houston Chronicle reported.

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Among the others in attendance according to the paper were Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner, Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee and Derrick “D Reck” Dixon, CEO of Wreckshop Records, as well as rappers Lil O, Yungstar, DJ XO, Killa Kyleon and Lil’ Keke.

Pokey was known for Texas and Gulf Coast hits such as “Ball N’ Parlay,” “Who Dat Talking Down,” and a verse on DJ Screw’s nearly 36-minute freestyle known as “June 27th.” He was also featured on Megan Thee Stallion’s 2022 “Southside Royalty Freestyle.”

Nationally, Pokey was most known for a featured appearance on Wall’s 2005 debut hit song, “Sittin’ Sidewayz.” The chorus was sampled from Pokey’s verse on “June 27th.”

Pokey, who grew up in Houston, began garnering local fame in the late 1990s as an original member of the Screwed Up Click, a friend group-turned-rap collective led by DJ Screw, who developed a slowed, pitched-down music style known as “chopped and screwed,” which become synonymous with Houston.

Pokey released his debut album, Hardest Pit in the Litter in 1999 and Da Game 2000 the following year.

300 Entertainment continues to bolster its roster of young talent with the signing of newest act BlakeIANA, a Midwest-based rapper on the rise for her song “BING BONG.” “When I heard BlakeIANA, I was impressed and definitely excited by the sound,” 300 Entertainment co-president Selim Bouab tells Billboard. “Once I sat down with her face-to-face, […]

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Source: Prince Williams / Getty / Bow Wow
Hip-Hop is currently in a slump, and apparently, Bow Wow knows why that is the case.
Hip-Hop as a genre is not having a great 2023. If you didn’t know, there has not been one no.1 Hip-Hop album or single this year, and according to Mr. 106 & Park himself, Bow Wow, it all has to do with the steep decline in the quality of the music being put out.
Spotted on HipHopDX, the “Fresh Azimiz” crafter spoke with Power 106’s Bryhana Monegain on the 2023 BET Awards red carpet in Los Angeles, and she asked the rapper about Hip-Hop’s lack of presence on the Billboard 200  and Hot 100 charts and his answer has everyone saying “he is spitting.”
Per HipHopDX:
“Cause n-ggas puttin’ out trash ass music,” Bow Wow said. “Everything sound alike, everything repetitive, same tempo … everybody could do that, you know what I’m saying?”
He continued: “You really gotta have talent, you really gotta go. I think people are startin’ to get tired of it now, that’s why you don’t see nothin’ chartin.’” Watch the Ohio native discuss Hip Hop’s need to get back to the “real essence of artistry” below.

According to the website, six Hip-Hop acts had a no.1 song on the Billboard 200 this time last year, and two Hip-Hop tracks landed on the top spot of the Billboard 100.
Charlamagne Disagrees, He Feels HipHopDX Is A Good Space
But not everyone thinks Hip-Hop is in a bad state. Speaking on an episode of the Million Dollaz Worth of Game podcast, Charlamagne Tha God believes the genre is still thriving and believes some people critical of Hip-Hop are “stuck in an era.”
“I think Hip Hop is in a great place. I think people that don’t like Hip Hop now are just mad that it’s not what it used to be. They’re stuck in an era. I love all these new dudes My favorite dude is Kodak Black right now, “Charlamagne said while professing his love for rappers like
DJ Envy then said, “I love it not only for that; musically, the music is great. I love the fact that these brothers get money. They’re keeping themselves out of the hood. They’re paying for their families. Paying for their mama’s cribs and all that.”
For the most part, social media agrees with Bow Wow, with one user simply writing in a tweet, “Bow Wow has a point.” 

You can peep more reactions in the gallery below.

Photo: Prince Williams / Getty

1. Lol, damn