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17 Aug 2023

‘Lil Boo Thang’ Viral Artist Paul Russell Signs With Arista

If you give a hoot about feel-good songs on TikTok, there’s a solid chance you’ve heard Paul Russell’s “Lil Boo Thang” by now. A full version of the infectious song, which interpolates “Best of My Love” by The Emotions, has been cleared for landing and is set for release on streaming services at midnight on Friday (Aug. 18). Billboard has also learned that Arista Records has officially signed Russell, a Texas native now based in Los Angeles, ahead of the song drop.

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The proof of “Lil Boo Thang”’s virality is in the stats. Russell teased a 21-second snippet of the track via TikTok on June 28, with the post garnering over 5.3 million views and launching over 55,000 “creations” from new fans who’ve paired it with everything from clips of their dogs to best-friend tributes to fitness milestones. Russell later repurposed the post on Instagram Reels, where he reeled in another 10.4 million views.

In six subsequent TikTok posts that included the song, with lyrics like “Tell ‘em you found a lil’ something too fresh” and the folksy “I don’t give a hoot what your dude say,” Russell has generated another 4 million views and dozens of comments with varying versions of “Dude, drop the full version now!!!“. (He again cloned these follow-ups on Reels, bringing in millions more listens for the song clip.)

The infectiousness of “Lil Boo Thing” owes quite a bit to the legendary bounce of “Best of My Love,” a disco-funk anthem written by Maurice White and Al McKay of Earth, Wind & Fire that spent five weeks atop the Billboard Hot 100 in 1977 and was The Emotions’ biggest hit.

Paul Russell

Courtesy Photo

The full version of “Lil Boo Thang” (see the single cover, right) has received 20,000 pre-saves to date.

“First and foremost, ‘Lil Boo Thang’ is meant to be a good time,” said Russell ahead of the full track release. “When I wrote it, I was stressed out on a Thursday afternoon, so I just turned on some of the music that makes me happy and imagined that I was celebrating something. I think what makes the song special is the fact that so many of us are ready to just forget about whatever is happening around us and enjoy the good things in life — not just thinking back to good times in the past but creating new ones in the present day.”

The Cornell graduate has nearly 2 million monthly listeners on Spotify, with 14 million streams for his 2022 single “Ms. Poli Sci” and 7.3 million for 2021’s “Hallelujah.”

Check out the TikTok post that started it all:

17 Aug 2023

Troye Sivan’s Lie Detector Test Reveals He’s ‘Never Seen A Movie With Cher In It’: Watch

From comparing his acting skills to that of Lady Gaga and Cher to trolling Kelly Clarkson, Troye Sivan got a lot of things off his chest during his lie detector test with Vanity Fair on Wednesday (Aug. 16).

At the start of his test, which only detected a small number of lies from the Australian pop star, Sivan revealed that a friend is currently dating his celebrity crush, chef and recipe developer Pierce Abernathy. “I think he knows, though,” he quipped.

In classic pop star fashion, Sivan had plenty to say about his fellow musical artists. In April, Sivan posted a TikTok video reacting to Kelly Clarkson’s “Mine,” asking his fans, “What did I do to upset Kelly Clarkson?” He cited lyrics which he misinterpreted as, “Troye Sivan / Who the hell do you think you are?” instead of “Sabotage, your choice of art.” The fictional feud resulted in the pair making nice on Clarkson’s Emmy-winning talk show, and Sivan confirmed that he “did know that” Clarkson was not singing his name, he “just thought it was funny.” When questioned if he enjoyed trolling, Sivan responded, “I do, yeah. That’s one place I really like to lie.”

In addition to conquering the pop music scene with “Rush” this year, Sivan also showed off his acting chops again on the Weeknd-led HBO drama The Idol. When asked if he considers himself a better actor than Lady Gaga, Sivan emphatically said, “No… I think she’s better than me for sure.” When asked the same question about Cher, Sivan confessed “I don’t think I have actually seen a movie with Cher in it,” but not before asking whether or not the Oscar-winning Moonstruck actress appeared in Mamma Mia. “I’ve seen, like, two movies, just in general,” he joked.

Elsewhere in the video, the singer, who has a love for interior design, also shared that “doesn’t like” Drake’s mansion, and that he is “sorry to [that] man,” a sly reference to Keke Palmer’s viral Vanity Fair lie detector test from 2019. He named Ariana Grande as “up there” in his personal ranking of his favorite female pop stars with whom he has collaborated.

Sivan also reflected on the time he appeared in one of the campaigns for Beyoncé’s Ivy Park x Adidas athleisure line. Memory lane soon brought him to a discussion surrounding Queen Bey’s record-breaking Renaissance World Tour. “I would love to go to her Renaissance tour, I’m trying. Her birthday show [Sept. 4] is in L.A., so I wanna go to that,” he said. One of the many viral moments from the Renaissance World Tour has been the “Everybody On Mute” challenge that spawned from the namesake lyric in Beyoncé’s BEAM-assisted “Energy.” Sivan expressed his frustration with those who can’t seem to grasp the “mute” part of the challenge, saying, “People go quiet, and then they clap that everyone went quiet, and I’m like ‘You ruined it.’”

Check out Sivan’s full lie detector test above.

17 Aug 2023

Here’s Why Ed Sheeran Doesn’t Want to Perform at the Super Bowl

Ed Sheeran is one of the biggest music stars in the world — but that doesn’t mean he wants to play one of America’s biggest stages.

The crooner recently sat down with Andy Cohen, who asked him if he’d ever consider playing the Super Bowl. “There was a conversation a while ago — I think it was when Coldplay did it — of me going up to play ‘Thinking Out Loud.’ I think that would be the only way I’d do it, is if I was joining someone else,” he replied.

He then admitted that he doesn’t think he has the “pizzazz” to rock the Super Bowl stage. “You watch Prince, you watch Michael Jackson, you watch Katy Perry, you watch Lady Gaga, you watch Rihanna, you watch Beyoncé — you watch all these amazing performers. I’m just not that,” he said. “I’m not going to have dancers on stage, I’m not going to have fireworks on stage like The Weeknd. That’s not me. I don’t think anyone wants to see me do the Super Bowl.”

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Sheeran concluded that he would only take the stage at the Super Bowl “as a guest.”

The 2022 Super Bowl saw Rihanna return to the stage for the first time in years, though the 2023 performer has yet to be announced.

Watch Sheeran discuss his thoughts below.

17 Aug 2023

Billboard’s Top 5 Songs of the Summer 2020 | Billboard News

Billboard looks back and counts down the top five songs that ruled the summer of 2020.

Rania Aniftos:
We’ve made it to 2020 — a new decade and a new taste in summer music. We’re gonna find out as we look into the top songs of the year. SAINt JHN kicks us off with his massive hit “Roses.”

This song is rapper Megan Thee Stallion’s seventh Hot 100 entry and it made it all the way to No. 4 in the summer of 2020. “Savage” had us feeling fierce all summer long.

Our third biggest song of the summer is an epic collaboration featuring Lil Wayne, DaBaby and Tory Lanez. Jack Harlow makes it to No. 3 with “What’s Poppin.”

For the No. 2 spot of 2020, professional hitmaker The Weeknd brings us yet another summer jam with “Blinding Lights.” Get this: It was the first song to hold a spot in the top 10 on the Billboard Hot 100 for an entire year.

Big year for DaBaby. He was not only featured on the No. 3 song, but also has the top summer song in 2020. “Rockstar” featuring Roddy Rich is No. 1.

See you next week as we continue our countdown. Getting close to finding out what song tops this year!

17 Aug 2023

No Joke: Druski Launching A Whole Sports Agency, Social Media Reacts

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WNBA: AUG 06 Las Vegas Aces at New York Liberty

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Social media personality and comedian Druski, who has over 6 million followers just on Instagram, is reportedly opening a sports agency. Yes, you read that right.

Called 4Lifers Sports Agency (4 Lifers being the name of his overall brand), his first client is reportedly star Florida Gators defensive end and NFL Draft prospect Princely Umanmielen.

Reports TMZ Sports:

TMZ Sports is told Druski — who boasts millions of followers on social media — is launching the athletics branch of his 4Lifers brand … with the defensive standout coming on board as his inaugural signee.

Umanmielen is widely regarded as one of the top defensive ends in the country … and has been named to the Chuck Bednarik and Lombardi Award watch lists this season after racking up 39 total tackles, 4.5 sacks and 2 forced fumbles for the Gators in 2022.

If you say this was on your bingo card, you’re a damn liar.

“Launching 4Lifers Sports Agency allows me to combine my two passions — sports and entertainment,” Druski told TMZ Sports. “Our team is committed to providing athletes with the resources, support and marketing opportunities to grow on and off the field. The process begins today with Florida Gators star Princely Umanmielen’s addition to our family.”

Needless to say, the social media peanut gallery has plenty of hot takes and jokes about Druski’s latest power move. See for yourself in the comments.

17 Aug 2023

Tom Brady & His Daughter Pose for Photo With BLACKPINK: ‘New Gig In Retirement’

Tom Brady is being drafted to a new team: the BLINKs. The 46-year-old former New England Patriot became the unofficial fifth member of BLACKPINK last week after attending the K-pop quartet’s New Jersey concert, where he and his daughter posed for a picture in an epic lineup with Rosé, Jisoo, Lisa and Jennie.

The snap shows Brady towering over the girl band, standing on the far left as his 10-year-old daughter Vivian — whom he shares with ex-wife Gisele Bundchen — and a friend pose in between Jisoo and Jennie. “@tombrady the newest member of @blackpinkofficial?” joked the NFL’s official account, sharing the picture on Instagram Thursday (Aug. 17).

The star — who in February announced his retirement from the NFL after 23 seasons and seven Super Bowl wins — also shared the photo on his Instagram Story, writing that he’d found a “new gig in retirement,” along with a crying laughing emoji. “Thank you for the hospitality and kindness,” he added, tagging all four of the “Pink Venom” singers.

The posts come about a week after Brady and his daughter were spotted at BLACKPINK’s Aug. 11 show at MetLife Stadium, where someone in the crowd snapped a photo of the quarterback standing awkwardly amongst a sea of BLINKs. “This is the most ‘dad takes his daughter and her friends to a concert’ picture ever taken ???,” Brady later joked, reposting the photo on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter.

But while Brady has wrapped up his pro career, BLACKPINK is just getting started. The ladies are on the cusp of finishing out their hit Born Pink World Tour, with only two shows left in the U.S. After that, they’ll close out with two recently nannounced finale shows in Seoul, South Korea.

17 Aug 2023

Paramount Ends BET Stake Auction, Stock Price Reportedly Drops

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In this photo illustration, BET (Black Entertainment...

Paramount Global, the powerful conglomerate that oversees several major media networks, has decided to end its auction of a majority stake in one of its most notable properties. BET is no longer on the block, which reportedly caused Paramount to suffer a hit to its stock price.

According to a report from Deadline, shares for Paramount Global dropped 2 percent on Thursday (August 17) following news from yesterday that the company is no longer looking to sell a majority stake in BET, which stands for Black Entertainment Television.

More from Deadline:

A source familiar with the discussions told Deadline that Paramount informed bidders for a stake in BET that the process had been halted because the company concluded it wouldn’t create enough value or result in a meaningful reduction of debt. The company has been looking for opportunities to streamline, and just last week announced the sale of book publishing unit Simon & Schuster to KKR for $1.62 billion.

Among the rumored players vying to purchase the BET stake, Tyler Perry, who has a deal with the network, Sean “Diddy” Combs, and Byron Allen were all considered frontrunners for the purchase. What this means for BET going forward isn’t known, nor can it be confirmed that further efforts for the sale won’t resurface.

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Photo: SOPA Images / Getty

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17 Aug 2023

Keyboard Warrior DJ Akademiks Gets Bold With TDE Punch Claiming He Tried To “Suge Knight” Him

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Source: Earl Gibson III / Getty / DJ Akademiks

Keyboard warrior DJ Akademiks had time for TDE’s president Terrence “Punch” Henderson after he claimed he tried to “bully” him for being out-of-pocket while talking about SZA.

Last week, DJ Akademiks continued his trend of being extremely disrespectful to women when he hopped on the alt-right network Rumble and engaged in a ridiculous rant where he disgustingly talked about the singer’s body, weight, and appearance, calling her “a fat mini Lizzo,” and claiming she a “botched BBL.”

Spotted on HipHopDX, Punch, who is known for speaking his mind on social media, responded to Akademik’s foolishness over the weekend.

Punch Was Tired of DJ Akademiks Nonsense

“Man I’ve been so conflicted the [past] couple of days as to address this dude publicly or not,” Punch wrote in a since-deleted X post. “I’m not playing no internet games… He have to answer for those disrespectful things he said about SZA.”

Akademiks couldn’t help but respond, hopped in his dark room, turned on his video camera, and “clapped back” at the record executive, accusing Punch of trying to “Suge Knight” him.

“None of y’all are Suge Knight. You don’t strike fear in my heart. There is no, ‘Oh my God, he’s going to get me!” Akademik’s rant begins. “I did content about the biggest killers in the world in Chicago. I’ve talked about the worst people you could imagine … I won’t be sitting here scared of an older n-gga who claims he’s a ‘thug.”

He continues his rant, puffing up his chest, saying, “Mr. Punch from TDE, you didn’t have to delete your tweet … I’m not scared of you. I don’t know nobody that’s scared of you, and I don’t know nobody that would think you be doing nothing.

“So please, pipe down, and rather than delete the tweet, don’t send the tweet. Because if you look at my tweet history, I leave them up for all to see.”

DJ Akademiks Claims Punch Is A Hypocrite

He wasn’t done, accusing Punch of being a hypocrite, adding, “This is why we’re laughing: you’re tweeting [about how] you’re not playing internet games while you’re tweeting it! This is why I said y’all are not Suge Knight. Suge Knight wouldn’t give a nice proper warning and then delete the tweet. I don’t think he’d tweet at all.

“I just want to let you know, if [the tweet] was even remotely aimed at me, it was received, laughed at, and sent back. We’re not scared of none of you n-ggas.”


https://youtube.com/watch?v=1vbgjhNHJSE&version=3&rel=1&showsearch=0&showinfo=1&iv_load_policy=1&fs=1&hl=en-US&autohide=2&wmode=transparent

Oh The Irony

Hilariously, the man best known for popping sh*t from behind his keyboard accused Punch of being an “online gangsta” telling him to focus on running his record label.

“Listen, you guys have some great artists, and I’m hoping you guys can put out music a little more frequently, just as the fan in me speaking,” he added. “Put your record out, be quiet. That’s about it … Stop acting gangsta online. If you was gonna do something, you wouldn’t tweet it. Stop it, brother, please. You look pathetic.

“And by the way, I don’t want a response for this neither. Work your record, you’re a record executive. Yeah, you got a couple gangstas on payroll. Whoop de doo! We’re all millionaires. Everybody could pay for some dumb shit to get done. You don’t wanna die, I don’t wanna die. You don’t wanna go to jail, I don’t wanna go to jail. Shut up with your tweeting.”

We are VERY SURE DJ Akademiks would never say any of these things to any of these individuals in person.

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Photo: Earl Gibson III / Getty

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17 Aug 2023

Armani White on Performing With Billie Eilish, Biggest Hip-Hop Influences & More | R&B Hip-Hop Power Players Live 2023

Armani White opens up about performing with Billie Eilish, his biggest hip-hop influences and more!

Armani White:
Yo, that’s fire. This is great, this pillow love me too.

It was so loud when I met Billie Eilish — it was fire though. I was, like, jumping around and I messed up my little signature spin mive. But it was dope. It was dope, though, and you know, like, yeah, I can’t even. I got so many thoughts at once that like it was like I was telling Nicole, my tour manager, I was like, “I’m not really going to understand what’s about to happen until after it happens.” So we ran out there, I did it. I still get chills watching the video like here. “That’s me on that stage right there.”

I told Billie, I was like, “Yo, we’re gonna be the same festival we should play Uno together.” And she was like, “Yo, or crazy idea: You should come out on my set,” and like, yeah! Yeah, it just it literally just happened like that — same day. Like it was like, you know, it wasn’t like a pre-planned thing. We just did it on the fly.

I grew up listening to a lot of Eminem. He was just like the anti whatever rap said you was supposed to be. Missy Elliott the same, Busta Rhymes the same, Ludacris the same. Even when I grew up, it was like the Tyler, the Creators, B.O.Bs, the Childish Gambinos — it was just all of the things that did not make sense to whatever the definition of hip-hop was at the time. That’s what I always gravitated towards.

Watch the full video above!

17 Aug 2023

NFL Expands Multi-Year Partnership with Neon16 & Ntertain Studios

The National Football League, Neon16, and Ntertain Studios announce their partnership expansion for the 2023 season. Emerging Latin artists housed under Neon16 — the production powerhouse and music label led by Tainy and Lex Borrero — will join NFL Latino players in an upcoming content series. The deal also includes new music releases that will comprise of a new volume for the next Por La Cultura mixtape.

NFL’s season-long campaign Por La Cultura will continue to spotlight Latin players, coaches and staff members to celebrate Latin excellence while telling their own stories of the community.

Neon16 Dominican star RMAND, from Netflix’s reality music competition show La Firma, is confirmed to be one of the artists for the next volume. 

“Music is a leading passion point for Latinos, and we feel this partnership is an ideal platform for celebrating our Latino players and connecting more deeply with our fans,” said Javier Farfan, cultural strategist at the NFL, in a press release. “This content series brings together the commonalities of artists and athletes and their inspirational stories from humble beginnings, as they reach the top of their careers and their goal of stardom. Working with Ntertain and Neon16 allows us to authentically tell these stories with the creative vision of tastemakers at the forefront of Latino culture, music and entertainment.”

By showcasing current NFL Latino players and emerging Neon 16 music artists, the series aims to highlight the diversity and inclusivity of the NFL while celebrating the shared passion for music and football. 

“We loved the concept of having our artists collaborate with Latino NFL players to create something as unique as an original song,” added Lex Borrero, co-founder and CEO of Ntertain and Neon16. “While both share Latino heritage, we know that artists and athletes also share a common drive to succeed, the talent to shine and the work ethic to thrive in their respective careers. Unifying these traits and the mutual love and respect for music has led to some incredible art that we can’t wait to share with fans this season.”

This season, the team-up will create an original song and music video that reflects Latino NFL players and the artist’s shared passion for music, football, and community.

The first song “#0B,” an energetic electronic banger by RMAND, draws inspiration from his experience working with Miami Dolphins’ wide receiver Braxton Berrios, who is of Puerto Rican descent and wears the number zero. “0B” is slated to release on the third week of the NFL regular season, leading up to the Miami Dolphins Latino Heritage Month game and home opener on September 24th.

Another player and artist collaboration will drop later in the season, joining the RRMAND and Berrios song as this season’s Por La Cultura mixtape. 

Furthermore, the NFL Shop commercial for this year will also feature RMAND as well as Neon16’s Alex Ponce and Nashy-Nashai; the commercial’s score will be done by the label. Neon16 will also produce four exclusive tracks for the NFL and its 32 clubs to use as part of their soundtrack for the upcoming season. 

“With more than 31 million NFL fans in the United States, there is no doubt that Latinos continue to fall in love with the sport of football every day,” said Marissa Solis, NFL SVP global brand and consumer marketing. “We want to inspire Latinos with the lyrics and melodies created by these talented NEON16 artists in the same way they get excited for a perfectly executed pass and catch for a touchdown. This partnership unifies the heroes of stage and sport through their common bond as Latinos representing ‘por la cultura.’”

Last year, the NFL and Neon16 announced their 10-track debut Por La Cultura Mixtape: Vol. 1, featuring El Alfa, Will.I.Am., Yandel, Snow Tha Product, Anthony Ramos, Trueno and more, and beats by producers Albert Hype, Jodosky and Chael. 

The NFL, Ntertain, and Neon16 partnership kicked off in 2021, when Latin artists Jodosky, Kris Floyd and Álvaro Díaz were invited guests of the NFL League. 

This collaboration is one of the NFL’s ambitious plan to go all in on Latin music and its growing fanbase. Last year, J Balvin became the first Latin headliner to perform for the league’s yearly free Kickoff Concert. Last November, the NFL also recruited Tijuana superstars Grupo Firme to perform at the halftime show for its annual Mexico City game, featuring the Arizona Cardinals and San Francisco 49ers.