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The Contenders is a midweek column that looks at artists aiming for the top of the Billboard charts, and the strategies behind their efforts. This week, for the upcoming Billboard Hot 100 dated Dec. 7, 2024, we look at whether a major surprise drop is going to halt Shaboozey’s historic run atop the chart.
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Shaboozey, “A Bar Song (Tipsy)” (American Dogwood/EMPIRE/Magnolia Music): The biggest country crossover hit of 2024 is now officially also the longest-running Hot 100 No. 1 of all-time – though it still has to share the status, at least for now, with Lil Nas X’s Billy Ray Cyrus-featuring “Old Town Road.” Both songs have now spent 19 weeks atop the Hot 100, with “Bar Song” holding off Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars’ “Die With a Smile” this frame to tie the historic mark – helped by the added exposure from an eventful night at the CMA Awards, albeit one marked by more controversy than likely expected.
And it’s good for Shabozoey that he got his 19th week — because not only is the gap between “A Bar Song” and “Die With a Smile” continuing to shrink, but it’s also about to get very crowded at the top of the Hot 100.
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Kendrick Lamar, “Squabble Up” (pgLang/Interscope/ICLG): Kendrick Lamar shocked the world on Friday (Nov. 22) by surprise-releasing his new album GNX at noon, with no previous indicators that an album (or really new music in general) was particularly imminent. The 12-track set follows his major moment in the spotlight earlier this year with his exceedingly high-profile Drake feud, which was essentially bookended by a pair of Hot 100-toppers: “Like That,” for which he appeared as a guest rapper on Future and Metro Boomin’s We Still Don’t Trust You album, and his own “Not Like Us,” an immediate hip-hop all-timer.
He may now get his third chart-topper of the year. Unsurprisingly, GNX has taken over on streaming services the past week – five days after its release, the album’s 12 tracks still hold all of the top 12 spots on Apple Music’s real time chart, and as of Tuesday, the album held the entire top eight on Spotify’s Daily Top Songs USA listing. The latter tally is led by “Squabble Up,” the album’s second track and presumptive lead single, which samples Debbie Deb’s 1984 freestyle classic “When I Hear Music” and also now has its own music video, released Monday.
“Squabble Up” is expected to lead the way for Kendrick’s new set on the chart next week – and with its robust streaming numbers, it should have a good chance at capturing the top spot – though it may have some competition from one of its album mates. “TV Off,” featuring Gunplay, has also emerged as a fan favorite from the LP, helped by its highly “Not Like Us”-reminiscent beat and viral-friendly “MUSTAAAARRRRRRD!” mid-song howl namechecking the song’s star producer. It’s taken over from “Squabble Up” atop Apple Music and sits just below it on Spotify – so if it keeps growing, it may be a real challenger to “Squabble” as soon as next week.
Lady Gaga & Bruno Mars, “Die With a Smile” (Streamline/Interscope/Atlantic/ICLG): “Die With a Smile” has gotten within striking distance of the Hot 100’s No. 1 spot a couple times now, but has still yet to get over the hump to become Bruno Mars’ ninth No. 1 and Lady Gaga’s sixth on the chart. Unfortunately for the superstar duo, it’s only likely to get more difficult for “Smile” in the weeks to come, as even if it finally manages to close the gap for good with “A Bar Song,” it now has a glut of Kendrick Lamar songs and an avalanche of holiday songs looking to pass it on the chart. The song’s airplay is still slowly climbing, though – so if Bruno and Gaga have one more card up to play for the song, that top spot will likely be within reach for a little while still. (They should maybe wait until 2025 to use it at this point, though.)
Mariah Carey, “All I Want for Christmas Is You” (Columbia/Legacy): The Queen of Christmas is officially out of hibernation. “All I Want for Christmas Is You” re-enters the Hot 100 at No. 16 this week, and with Thanksgiving now right around the corner, the run-up to holiday season is soon to be in full bore. The preponderance of expected high debuts from Lamar’s GNX – it could launch half its tracklist in the top 10, possibly even more — might keep it on the edge of the top 10 for next week, but it’s only a matter of time before “All I Want” (which has led for 14 weeks since 2019) is challenging for the Hot 100 title in earnest.
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Holiday savings are coming earlier this year as Black Friday deals continue to kick off. Hulu is even treating subscribers new and current to a major discount that gets you Starz on Hulu for only $0.99/month for an entire year. It’s only going on for six days though so you’ll have to act fast.
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In addition to the entire Hulu library, you’ll also be able to stream every new and exclusive program on Starz, including new episodes of season seven, part two of Outlander, Sweetpea, BMF, Gaslit, Mary & George, P-Valley, Minx, Party Down and Power Book IV: Force.
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The deal kicked off on Wednesday (Nov. 27) and will go until Monday (Dec. 2), giving you almost a week to take advantage of the sale. Normally, the Starz add-on is priced at $9.99, but with this Black Friday deal, you’ll get Starz on Hulu for 90% off, giving you a total of $108 in savings.
Keep reading to learn how to score the discount.
How to Get Starz on Hulu for Just $1/Month
The Starz add-on deal is available to new and current subscribers of Hulu who don’t already have the Starz add-on, or current Hulu subscribers who have had Starz inactive for at least one month.
If you already have a Hulu membership, you can redeem the Hulu Black Friday deal by logging into your account, going into you account settings and selecting manage add-ons. You’ll want to scroll through the list of available premium channels and select Starz. Once you confirm your purchase, you’ll get immediate access to all of the Starz content — no promo code required.
Don’t have a Hulu subscription? New users get a 30-day free trial when you sign up for Hulu’s ad-supported plan ($9.99/month) or ad-free plan ($18.99/month). Once the free trial is over, you’ll be charged the regular subscription price based on the plan you choose at checkout. To get the Starz on Hulu deal, you’ll want to choose Starz as an add-on to your plan.
The Starz on Hulu Black Friday discount is available through all of Hulu’s plans — including its bundle with Disney+, ESPN+ and Max that’ll expand your content offerings further starting at only $16.99/month. For live TV offerings, you can sign up for Hulu + Live TV for $82.99/month and automatically have Disney+ and ESPN+ bundled for no extra cost in addition to more than 95 live channels to watch.
Besides new and original shows and movies from Starz, you can also look forward to streaming the entire Hulu library including popular content such as Only Murders in the Building, Tell Me Lies, Shogun, The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives, Under the Bridge, The Veil, The Bear, Castle Rock, The Great, Black Cake, We Were the Lucky Ones and The Kardashians.
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Joe Budden has made a career out of dissecting music and Hip-Hop culture with his popular eponymously named podcast, and the latest episode found him aiming his sights at Drake. After the news went wide that Drake launched a pair of lawsuits against Universal Music Group, Joe Budden proceeded to heave heavy critique upon the Canadian superstar, which has social media reacting.
On episode 779 of The Joe Budden Podcast, Budden and his cohosts bumped into a conversation regarding Drake’s lawsuits against UMG, the label he’s currently signed to and accusing of boosting Kendrick Lamar’s scathing “Not Like Us” single. Since this episode exists on a Patreon subscription service, we’ve only seen clips that surfaced online, which we’ll share from X below.
Joe Budden telling the unfiltered truth about Aubrey Drake Graham. pic.twitter.com/K2hMLZFuII
— Busby 🏁 (@MrBusby4o8) November 27, 2024
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The Joe Budden Podcast cooking again sheesh
🦉 “was disrespecting someone’s dead mom” “ idc about his dead mom tell him send a beat”
( I wonder if this why metro booming got upset)
🦉 “is more scared of Not Like Us being played at the SuperBowl”
Kendrick Lamar GNX out now pic.twitter.com/GsQ7fU141K
— Whooping feet (@WhoopingFeet) November 27, 2024
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As the clips highlight, Budden believes the industry has conspired in some regard against Drake due to alleged shady dealings with the personal affairs of his foes up to the business side of things. Fans online are taking note of Budden’s jabs as he’s been known to be friendly with Drake over the years but fell out of favor with the entertainer after Budden was critical of his musical direction For All The Dogs.
On X, formerly Twitter, the JBTV community space and others are sharing their thoughts about Joe Budden using the pod to air out his grievances against Drake. We’ve got the reactions listed below.
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Photo: JBP/Screengrab
After a seven-week reign for Yeah Yeah Yeahs’ “Maps” on the TikTok Billboard Top 50 chart, there’s a new No. 1, as GloRilla and Sexyy Red’s “Whatchu Kno About Me” vaults to the top of the Nov. 30-dated list.
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The TikTok Billboard Top 50 is a weekly ranking of the most popular songs on TikTok in the United States based on creations, video views and user engagement. The latest chart reflects activity from Nov. 18-24. Activity on TikTok is not included in Billboard charts except for the TikTok Billboard Top 50.
“Whatchu Kno About Me” leads a slew of songs new to the top 10 of the TikTok Billboard Top 50, some of which are chart debuts. The GloRilla and Sexyy Red collaboration has a lengthier history on the tally, ruling in its sixth week after debuting at No. 39 on the Oct. 26 ranking. It had never even been in the top 20 before the latest chart, with its best having been No. 24 on the survey dated Nov. 23.
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So, why now? Though “Whatchu Kno About Me” initially benefited from uploads by high-profile stars such as Taylor Swift, the song’s rapid ascent is thanks to a trend highlighting GloRilla’s “B—h, I’m from Memphis, what you know about me/ Big G-L-O in that GLE” lyric, usually set to lip synchs.
GloRilla earns her first No. 1 on the TikTok Billboard Top 50, which began in September 2023; among eight appearances, her previous best had been a No. 17 peak with “Hollon” earlier this month. Sexyy Red, meanwhile, has her second ruler, as “SkeeYee” was the ranking’s inaugural No. 1 (though she had found success since, paced by the No. 2 peak of “U My Everything,” with Drake, in June.
Concurrently, “Whatchu Kno About Me” jumps 27% in official U.S. streams to 15.3 million in the week ending Nov. 21, according to Luminate. It leaps 26-17 on the multimetric Billboard Hot 100, its first time in the chart’s top 20.
Stepz’s “Rock” makes an even more sizable jump on the TikTok Billboard Top 50, vaulting 43-2 after previously enjoying a best of No. 29 on the Nov. 9 list. “Rock,” which represents Danish rapper Stepz’s first appearance on a U.S.-based Billboard chart, has had a dance challenge attached to it since October (the month it was released).
Though it’s yet to make a chart outside of the TikTok Billboard Top 50, “Rock” has been a steady climber as of late; in the week ending Nov. 21, it earned 1.1 million official U.S. streams, up 4%.
A pair of debuts round out the top four: Gia Margaret’s “Hinoki Wood” enters at No. 3 as her first TikTok Billboard Top 50 appearance, while Nicki Minaj’s “Anaconda” bows at No. 4.
“Hinoki Wood,” released by singer/pianist Margaret in 2023, is the soundtrack to the “chill guy” trend, with a filter that asks if the creator is a chill guy and asks them to choose between a series of prompts (relationship vs. no relationship, walk vs. run, etc.) before providing its determination. Other times, the “chill guy dog” in question is superimposed into creators’ photos to show how laid back they are.
Meanwhile, “Anaconda,” from Minaj’s 2014 album The Pinkprint, rises concurrent with a 10th-anniversary reissue of the full-length that was released Nov. 22. But its TikTok surge is via the #womeninmalefields trend in which women ask what would happen if they did the same thing a man often does to them in a relationship.
“Hinoki Wood” sports an 82% jump in streams to 310,000 in the week ending Nov. 21, while “Anaconda” is up 16% to 818,000.
Two other songs hit the top 10 for the first time. First there’s The Marias, whose “No One Noticed” soars to No. 6 in its ninth week on the ranking, following a previous peak of No. 28. It benefits from a newly released extended version, with the Spanish-language edition scoring the lion’s share of the engagement.
“No One Noticed,” which is up 111% to 15.5 million official U.S. streams toward the Billboard charts thanks in part to the extended version’s release (including a 68-22 leap on the Hot 100), is mostly used in uploads discussing relationships past and present, more often than not the former.
Then comes NLE Choppa’s “Gang Baby,” which debuts at No. 9 two months after the song’s premiere as part of the rapper’s Slut Szn album in September. Its initial gains on the platform were via a dance challenge that NLE Choppa himself promoted, though a more choreographed dance has taken over in recent weeks.
“Gang Baby” jumps 39% in streams to 4 million in the week ending Nov. 21 and concurrently debuts at No. 42 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart.
See the full TikTok Billboard Top 50 here. You can also tune in each Friday to SiriusXM’s TikTok Radio (channel 4) to hear the premiere of the chart’s top 10 countdown at 3 p.m. ET, with reruns heard throughout the week.
11/27/2024
Fight the food coma and go on the hunt for treasures from Rage Against the Machine, Olivia Rodrigo and more!
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In a year of some of the brightest African music stars dropping some of the best work of their careers, this month saw Nigerian superstar Wizkid throw his hat into the ring.
“Mama call me, ‘Ayo Balogun, they can never find another you,’” Wizkid sings on the heartfelt closing track “Pray” from his sixth studio album Morayo, which translates to “I see joy” in Yoruba and is dedicated to and named after his late mother. The 16-track project finds the Starboy balancing that joy and grief over impeccable genre-hopping production. And following his 2021 debut album Sounds of My World, Juls, a key hitmaker behind Afrobeats heavyweights like Wiz, Burna Boy and Mr. Eazi, draws inspiration from his travels around the world to unify the Black diaspora through his expert fusion of South Africa’s amapiano, Ghanaian highlife, Jamaica’s dancehall, U.K. rap and more on his sophomore album Peace and Love.
But that’s not all. There have been plenty of great tracks released this month, and several that mix and match genre, instrumentation and tradition in ways that bring out new and innovative sounds, really emphasizing the fusion element of the burgeoning Afrofusion movement — new songs from Fave, Nasty C and Lekaa Beats, King Promise and E’Major all fit the bill in different ways.
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We’ve highlighted 10 of our favorite new songs by African acts that have come out roughly within the last month. Check out our latest Fresh Picks, and kick off Thanksgiving break with our Spotify playlist below.
Fave, “Lose My Mind”
The rising Afrofusion star (real name Godsfavour) remains anchored in her faith on “Lose My Mind” from her second EP Dutty Love. The gospel-tinged record is powered by producer Hylander’s skittering drums and Fave’s unshakable conviction that God will keep her sane and on a steady path. “‘Lose My Mind’ is really just one of my many odes to God. He’s such a wonder,” she told Wonderland.
JayO, “High Heels”
JayO adds extra pep to your long-legged step in “High Heels” from the British Nigerian singer-songwriter’s debut EP WHOSDAT. “The way you look in them high heels/ It’s keeping me on my toes,” he cleverly croons about a woman whose spellbinding composure makes JayO struggle to keep his. Ideally, you would strut to JayO and RZ’s scintillating syncopated beats while wearing your favorite stilettos.
Wizkid, “Bend”
Wizkid reflects on love, the loss of his mother and his musical legacy on his new album Morayo. On the highlight track “Bend,” Wiz taps into a nostalgic flow and commands us to dance with his enticing “Bend your body, kọ jó” hook on the Afrobeats club banger. Helmed by Made in Lagos executive producer P2J (who also produced the majority of Morayo) and Gaetan Judd, “Bend” invites you to get lost in its carefree rhythm characterized by bustling percussion.
Juls feat. Nkosazana Daughter, “Muntuwam”
The British Ghanaian hitmaker celebrates his 10-year musical career with a sonic odyssey across the Black Atlantic on his latest album Peace and Love. Crashing waves and chirping seagulls bookend its closing track “Muntuwam,” where Juls dips his toes in private school piano, a soulful amapiano subgenre that accentuates the South African sound’s jazz roots, and enlists popular South African singer-songwriter Nkosazana Daughter’s to add an authentic, breezy flare. “The meaning of the song is ‘the love is right in front of you, I’m here when you need me,’” he told Wonderland.
Nasty C & Lekaa Beats feat. Tiwa Savage, “One Time”
One month after dropping their genre-bending joint EP Confuse the Enemy, Nasty C and Lekaa Beats ran it back in the studio for the Reloaded version. Tiwa Savage blesses us on the smooth track “One Time,” where the South African MC has Hennessy to thank for an unforgettable night that the Afrobeats queen promises will not happen again, with the sweeping violins in Lekaa’s production heightening the drama.
Lil Kesh feat. Fireboy DML & Ayo Maff, “Vex for You”
Lil Kesh has made a name for himself with a series of brash, high-energy songs, particularly in the past few years, so this one is a change of pace for him: more contemplative, laid back and emotional, with an introspective and almost desperately romantic hook. Ayo Maff and Fireboy both slide in easily with the vibe — thematically, it’s right in Fireboy’s wheelhouse, for one — and help round out Kesh’s latest.
King Promise, “Keep It Sexy”
King Promise has a knack for picking the right beats that both provide a high level of musicality and help support and accent his great vocals, and this latest single is no exception. Produced by Killbeatz, the all-Ghanaian collaboration blends in local highlife and hiplife sounds but has broader aspirations, and Promise’s melodies once again help set him apart from his peers. A fun Western-themed music video adds a different element, too, but it’s really the production that helps make this song stand out.
Wizkid feat. Asake, “Bad Girl”
Following on the heels of their latest link up — “MMS,” off Asake’s latest album Lungu Boy, which was just nominated for a Grammy for best African music performance — two of the leading lights of Nigerian music come back together for another joint track that brings out the best of both of them, with Asake and Wiz doubling each other’s lines on the hook. The two vibe so well together that they trade off effortlessly, which helps make this one feel like a true collaboration rather than two stars sending each other verses. From Wizkid’s latest album, this is a standout on an album that is full of them.
E’Major, “All the Love”
E’Major’s brand is truly fusion in every way: the mix of styles, instrumentation, percussion, flows, harmonies and melodies that he employs varies wildly from song to song, giving him a malleable quality, able to pull off anything he puts his mind to. His latest, “All the Love,” fits right into that canon, and lyrically serves as a love letter, with his vocals at times slipping into near-falsetto and back, bringing a joy into the song that also runs through his catalog.
Kizz Daniel & Adekunle Gold, “Pano Tona”
Another big star collaboration in a year that has been full of them, the song is largely helmed by Kizz Daniel, with a verse that emphasizes his individuality, before Adekunle Gold comes through with one that drips with braggadocio. There’s a magnetism to this song that demands repeated listens — one of the reasons this has taken off since it dropped just a few weeks ago.
Quavo has some more heat on the way, and he announced a star-studded collaboration paying homage to his home state of Georgia alongside fellow Peach State natives Teddy Swims and Luke Bryan. Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news Huncho teased “Georgia Ways” on Tuesday (Nov. 26), and the […]
On last year’s For All The Dogs, Drake took to “8 AM in Charlotte” to savor his decade-and-half-long tyranny over the rap game, acknowledging his brute strength and chart supremacy: “Things get kinky after fifteen years of dominance,” he proclaimed. A year later, scarred by defeat against Kendrick Lamar, a beaten and battered Drake isn’t the scary king who once struck fear in the hearts of his opponents. This week, Drake filed two legal actions against UMG for allegedly spiking Kendrick Lamar’s “Not Like Us” streams during their lyrical squabble. Though seemingly against UMG, these legal actions have been perceived by The Culture as a desperate attempt to maintain his dominance, which for the first time is now being questioned.
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“Dot said squabble up, not lawyer up,” wrote Charlamagne Tha God on social media. Rapsody echoed those sentiments and tweeted the following on X: “Legal action over losing a rap beef. My my my. Not like us at all. #CultureOverEverything.” “You can’t be a bully, swing on someone, they swing back harder. You attempt to shoot, the guns jam, you prosecute for assault,” added DJ Hed on X, slaying Drake with barbs of his own.
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Business tactics aside, crying foul in a rap beef after you attempted to pin Kendrick’s children onto another man — his business partner and childhood friend, at that — and label him a woman-beater is ludicrous. Drake, a proven mastermind in rap beef, has tangoed with Meek Mill, Pusha T and Kanye and said disparaging things. With him now taking this approach, even if his issues are actually with UMG, is why rap fans are starting to really call it quits with Drake.
From Serena Williams crip-walking at the ESPYs to “Not Like Us” to NBA star DeMar DeRozan jumping on stage during Kendrick’s Pop Out concert and then publicly chewing Drake following a game against his Toronto Raptors, Drizzy’s legacy over the last six months has been riddled with body blows. Though Drake was always at the end of dastardly jokes throughout his storied run, at least he had the charts behind him. After Pusha T nearly decapitated his career with “The Story of Adidion” in 2018, Drake managed to cut through the noise with undeniable hits. His Scorpion era, where he rattled off three Hot 100 No. 1 records — “God’s Plan,” “Nice for What,” and “In My Feelings” — kept his indomitable run intact and, if anything, made him seem like Teflon, even after staring in the eyes of defeat during his tussle with Pusha.
Six years later, things have drastically changed. After “The Heart Pt. 6,” where Drake seemingly denounced the feud with Kendrick, he looked to rebound and operate in a space of normalcy. Unfortunately, things haven’t worked in his favor: Despite handing off features for Camilla Cabello and Gordo, the once highly sought-after Drake Stimulus Package returned with paltry results, with none of the songs reaching the top 40 of the Hot 100.
In hopes of reclaiming the summer, Drake followed with the release of 100 GIGS. The self-release was nostalgic, peeling back the layers on some of Drake’s most treasured moments, including studio sessions from his golden era. Though Drake’s decision to leak his records seemed genuine, a power play was at work, as he was testing the waters, showing UMG that he could be just as formidable on his own, distributing the music on his website and faux Instagram page, Plottttwisttttt.
The three-pack, which included “It’s Up” featuring 21 Savage and Young Thug and the Latto-assisted “Housekeeping Knows,” packed a punch but failed to do damage culturally. Ultimately, UMG grabbed his freebies and released them on streaming services, hoping to salvage whatever streams they could after his move of defiance. Like his features on Cabello and Gordo’s records, none of the songs earned a top 20 slot, with “It’s Up” peaking at No. 24.
Despite the setbacks, Drake seems eager to rally on. He has an album with PARTYNEXTDOOR slated to drop, which he claimed during a Kick stream with Canadian streamer qXc is 75% done. This album, which is highly anticipated by his fans, could be a turning point in his career, as his popularity and power as a rap Goliath are beginning to wane.
Also, if Drake wins any lawsuit against UMG and proves that the streams on “Not Like Us” are illegal, he may change the streaming game forever. For years, it was a running joke that labels paid for streams and that everything was doctored to benefit their pockets. Though Drake may have been the biggest benefactor in this all, with his endless wins on the board, his decision to set his sights on UMG’s practices may reinforce the need to monitor streams even more closely.
Aside from that, Drake will embark on an Australian tour next year, kicking things off the same day Kendrick performs at the Super Bowl. And while Kendrick is enjoying arguably the best year of his career to date, securing seven Grammy nominations, a Super Bowl slot, and most likely another No. 1 album next week with GNX, he has the support of the people behind him. The people made “Not Like Us” a cultural phenomenon, the same way they championed Drake in 2018 with his trio of hits. Fifteen years of dominance isn’t achieved by luck; you need greatness and the people’s faith baked into it. It’s not impossible yet for The Boy to recapture his top spot, but he’ll need God’s plan — or at least another “God’s Plan” — to finish the job.
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The Special Counsel has dropped their case charging Donald Trump with election interference related to the Jan. 6 insurrection.
On Monday (Nov. 25), Department of Justice Special Counsel Jack Smith filed paperwork to drop felony charges against President-elect Donald Trump, which were related to election interference in 2020 that led to the events of the attack on the United States Capitol Building on Jan. 6, 2021. “The Department’s position is that the Constitution requires that this case be dismissed before the defendant is inaugurated,” Smith wrote in the filing before the federal courts in Washington, D.C., and Atlanta, Georgia.
“This outcome is not based on the merits or strength of the case against the defendant.” Smith moved to dismiss the case without prejudice, meaning it can be filed again once Trump leaves the White House. Federal Judge Tanya S. Chutkan, who oversaw the case in the nation’s capital, filed an order dismissing the proceeding shortly after.
Smith acknowledged precedent in the filing, writing that his office “faced the circumstance here, where a federal indictment against a private citizen has been returned by a grand jury and a criminal prosecution is already underway when the defendant is elected president.” The case in Florida where Trump was accused of mishandling classified government documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate, will proceed against his co-defendants Walt Nauta and Carlos De Oliveira.
Smith’s filing is in conjunction with his exit from the Department of Justice at the end of the year. Trump’s highly vocal plan was to fire Smith when he took office in January. “The American People reelected President Trump with an overwhelming mandate to Make America Great Again. Today’s decision by the DOJ ends the unconstitutional federal cases against President Trump and is a major victory for the rule of law,” Trump communications director Steven Cheung said in a statement. “The American People and President Trump want an immediate end to the political weaponization of our justice system and we look forward to uniting our country.”
Trump’s other case in New York for his role in election interference linked to hush money paid to adult film star Stormy Daniels where he was convicted is in limbo. Prosecutors have leaned toward freezing the case for the duration of Trump’s time in the White House starting next year. The sentencing, which was set for Nov. 26, was delayed by Judge Juan Merchan.
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Queen Latifah will be the master of ceremonies for one of the most prestigious events in entertainment. She has been slotted to host the 47th Kennedy Center Honors.
As reported by Deadline the Newark, N.J., native will lend her talents for the upcoming awards show. On Monday (Nov. 25), the cultural institution announced that the “Ladies First” performer will be returning to the stage but this time as the host. Last year at the 46th edition, she was celebrated for her lifetime artistic achievements. This time, she will help shine a much needed spotlight on several influential creatives, including filmmaker Francis Ford Coppola (The Godfather), Grateful Dead, Bonnie Raitt and Jazz musician Arturo Sandoval. Additionally, the Apollo Theater will also be celebrated during its 90- year anniversary.
Queen Latifah shared her enthusiasm in an Instagram post. “I am so excited to share that I will be returning to the Kennedy Center Honors this year,” the caption read. The accompanying visual is a snippet of her 2023 interview with Nate Burleson on CBS Mornings. According to their website, “The Kennedy Center Honors recognizes and celebrates individuals whose unique contributions have shaped the way we see ourselves, each other and our world. Recipients have each had an impact on the rich tapestry of American life and culture through the performing arts.”
The 47th Kennedy Center Honors will be broadcasted Sunday (Dec. 22), from 8:30-11:00 p.m., ET/PT on the CBS Television Network and streaming on Paramount+.