Music News

A star-studded group chat filled with NBA ballers and rappers provided the genesis for a cross-industry collaboration between Stalley and Kevin Durant.

The Phoenix Suns All-Star temporarily traded in his buttery jump shot for a microphone as he teams up with the Blue Collar Gang rapper for the thumping “Scared Money,” which hit streaming services on Friday (Feb. 16).

“One day we was talking and he was like, ‘Yo bro, send me a record to hop on,’” Stalley recalls being surprised to hear Durant was hungry to put his rhyming chops to the test late last summer.

The Ohio-bred rapper listened to some unreleased Durant songs through a mutual friend to get acclimated with the EasyMoneySniper’s flow. Then it clicked in Stalley’s head to send over what became the beat for “Scared Money,” filled with bristling drums growling behind starry production.

“I had that sitting not for long [because] I was working on my album,” Stalley says. “I had just put the hook and verse on it and there was an open verse. I’m like, ‘I’ma send it to him and see what he thinks.’”

Much to the shock of Stalley, KD’s turnaround time was quicker than his release behind the three-point line. “He sent it right back,” Stall adds. “[Durant] sent it back faster than some rappers.”

Durant’s introspective bars find him comparing himself to the enigmatic NFL icon Randy Moss and paying tribute to his grandma, who passed away in Feb. 2022. He waxes poetic about his status among the NBA’s legends, while still displaying his hunger for more: “In this hoop world I’m Freddie, Jason/ I’m sitting in the places of greats but never complacent.”

The former NBA MVP isn’t exactly foreign to the rap world, as he’s had verses floating around dating back to the 2011 NBA lockout.

Drake also tapped KD to serve as an executive producer on his For All the Dogs project, as well as its Scary Hours reissue edition. Lil Wayne recently called Durant a “jewel” and a “backpack” rapper, while revealing they have a collaboration that the New Orleans legend is contemplating putting on Tha Carter VI.

As for Stalley, the 41-year-old was extremely impressed with Kevin Durant’s lyrical talents and thinks listeners will be “really shocked” in a good way after pressing play.

“You can tell he’s spent time finding his voice and comfortability while creating,” Stalley salutes Durant. “I didn’t want it to feel like we just jumped on a beat and started rapping. I wanted it to feel like a complete record. I wanted us to complement each other. It wasn’t about trying to out-rap somebody.”

Don’t expect this to be the last time Stalley and KD join forces on wax, as the former MMG rapper predicts they’ll have more records down the line — and even teases the possibility of a joint project.

“We been talking and possibly been shooting some ideas about maybe doing a collab project,” Stalley admits. “Finding a dope producer to produce maybe an EP with us. We definitely been having those conversations. We definitely will have more records that will drop.”

“Scared Money” serves as a single to provide momentum for Stalley to ride into his next album, titled Peerless, which will arrive at some point in mid-to-late March via his independent label.

Stalley hopes people seeing him work with Durant “inspires more athletes to make music.” “I’m hoping this gives them the confidence and excitement to step into the music,” the rapper states. “I’m all for people doing everything and expressing themselves.”

He circles back to credit the “brotherhood” formed in his group chat for ultimately leading to the collaboration with the two-time NBA Finals MVP. “Without us, maybe, speaking every day, this would have never happened,” Stalley admits.

Watch the “Scared Money” video and stream the single below.

Gunna kicked off the year on a pensive note, looking inward with his first single of 2024 titled “Bittersweet.”

After teasing the icy record, which many thought to initially be a freestyle on social media earlier this week, the YSL rapper dropped his first single of the year to streaming services on Friday (Feb. 16).

Gunna doesn’t mince words coming out of the gate, as he possibly addresses his fallout with Lil Baby as his Drip Harder partner has repeatedly criticized Gunna for taking a plea deal in the YSL RICO case in 2022.

“S–t been rough, but I ain’t too tough to say I love and I miss you/ You my dawg, I don’t care if we fall out, n—a, I never could diss you/ For the chains and the fame, only we seen the vision/ Bout my name, let it bang, goin’ out with my pistol/ Got me a taste of this fame, it was sweet, now it’s bitter,” he raps.

Even after all they’ve been through and still with some of the YSL members’ fates hanging in the balance, Gunna hopes to eventually reunite the crew.

“My fans coming through for me, you think they entitled/ Thinking bout the crew again, could we reunite ’em/ As show they hate before they do something positive/ N—-s just want you to fade away and hope that you forgot ’em.”

Gunna unleashed a frosty accompanying visual for the Working on Dying-produced single. The Spike Jordan-directed clip finds the “Fukumean” rapper trudging through the blizzard conditions surrounding his snow-lodge property.

After showing off his flashy designer winter fits, Gunna changes into his gym gear for some boxing training in a testament to his discipline and hard work leading to his body transformation.

Gunna is gearing up to drop his A Gift & A Curse follow-up album later this year, and he’s teasing more “substance” on his records and is expected to tap into some Afrobeat sonics.

Watch the “Bittersweet” video above.

Bow Wow has opened up about his former lean addiction, which led to him being hospitalized at one point.

Lean, according to the National Institutes of Health, is a combination of codeine and promethazine that is also known as “sizzurp.”

The Like Mike star recently appeared on The Art of Dialogue, where he opened up about his addiction and what forced him to eventually get clean after seeing the stranglehold lean had on his life circa 2007.

“I was sipping lean,” he said. “I was sipping so much syrup. I said this after Mac Miller died. I spoke on this s–t. I was drinking that s–t like crazy. If you go back and watch The Road to Platinum series on BET, you’ll see so many white Styrofoam cups. I was losing my f–ing mind. That lean s–t had me f—ed up. I was just always irritated.”

Bow Wow reached a point of no return and knew something had to change after collapsing on stage one night while touring with Chris Brown.

“We were on our tour, I was co-headlining with Chris Brown, and the opening night was in Cincinnati and when I got off stage, I collapsed,” he recalled. “I went straight to Cincinnati University Hospital. My stomach was so f–ked up that I ended up going back home to Atlanta after the first show.”

Bow continued: “I’m sitting in the hospital not knowing what the f–k going on, and I get back home and the s–t gets worse. I’m throwing up, I’m shivering in the bed, I’m sweating, I’m going through it. I didn’t know I was having withdrawals. That’s how much lean I was consuming.”

He credited his former publicist for making up an excuse of dehydration for the reason behind him dropping out of the tour when it was really because of lean.

“I had the best publicist ever, Pattie Webster,” he added. “She put out a press release [saying I dropped out] for dehydration. Wasn’t no dehydration — I was f—ed up off lean … That’s just good PR. We didn’t want the world to know that 18, 19-year-old Bow was heavy on the drank.”

Bow Wow and Soulja Boy ruminated about their days pouring up “Lean” on a track from their 2016 joint project Ignorant S–t, named after the “purple drank.” “This my first time f–king with that DJ Screw/ I can’t even stay awake, that’s what that lean will do/ Pour it out that baby bottle right into that juice/ If I take another sip of it, I am through,” Bow raps.

Watch the clip of Bow Wow detailing his lean addiction below.

If you or anyone you know is struggling with substance abuse, reach out to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration for free and confidential support 24/7. You can also call the national helpline at 1-800-662-HELP (4357).