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19 Oct 2022

Taylor Swift Shares Something Sweet That ‘Kept Me Up at Night’ While Writing ‘Midnights’

When Taylor Swift first announced her fast-approaching 10th studio album Midnights, she shared that its songs were based on “the stories of 13 sleepless nights scattered throughout my life.” But what exactly kept the pop star tossing and turning?

In an exclusive series filmed in partnership with Spotify, she’s been revealing exactly that. Two short videos filmed by Swift appeared earlier this week on the streaming service’s Midnights pre-save page, and as of Wednesday (Oct. 19), the “All Too Well” singer has added two more. In each of the four videos, she shares one concept that she fixated on during her middle-of-the-night songwriting sessions that resulted in her Oct. 21-slated new album.

“The third thing that kept me up at night …,” she says in one of the two new Spotify videos. “Wondering what might have been.”

In the second new video, Swift — wearing a colorful striped shirt and pale red lipstick — can’t help but smile a little when she reveals “the fourth thing that kept me up at night.” “Falling in love,” she simply says.

At the beginning of the intimate Spotify series, the 11-time Grammy winner promised that there would be five total videos — meaning Swifties have one more to look forward to. The first two found Swift slyly confessing that “self-loathing” and “fantasizing about revenge” inspired certain tracks on Midnights.

Also, as part of her Spotify partnership, Swift has spent the week staging light-up billboards in different cities all over the world — New York City, London, São Paulo and Nashville so far — that are each programmed to display one unreleased lyric from her new album at the stroke of midnight local time. The billboards don’t say which songs the lyrics are taken from, however, leaving it up to the imagination of the singer’s fans for now.

“Just like clockwork, the dominoes cascaded in a line,” read the one located in Brazil. And in Times Square, another read revealed “I should not be left to my own devices.”

Watch Taylor Swift open up about the inspirations behind Midnights on Spotify mobile here.

19 Oct 2022

Benny The Butcher & Black Soprano Family Are On A Mission To Become Hip Hop’s Best Collective

EXCLUSIVE – Benny The Butcher is on a mission to put his Black Soprano Family (B$F) collective — comprised of Rick Hyde, El Camino, Heem B$F, LoveBoat Luciano, Fuego Base, Jonesy, FlexxBaby and Young World — front and center.

In September, the Buffalo, New York collective released its fifth project, Long Live DJ Shay, which was dedicated to the local Hip Hop pioneer who played a pivotal role in molding the group and sadly passed away in August 2020.

For Benny, the album was business as usual, with the only difference being he’s now at the head of the table. For the rest of the group, it was time for them to show out.

The 14-track effort found several members of the Black Soprano Family tearing up the microphone over the slick yet gritty production DJ Shay helped create. Cuts like “297 Parkside,” “Shay Face” and “Brody” are examples of the B$F rappers proving their worth and showing they’re going for everything set out for them.

The nine-deep crew has been together for over 10 years, some of them even longer. That time spent together has bred strong chemistry among the group, which they exude on Long Live DJ Shay. As Rick Hyde and Heem explain, there’s nothing that can derail this collective.

“The number one mission for the album was to basically separate ourselves from the pack,” Hyde tells HipHopDX. “We’re Black Soprano Family. We stand on different values. Authenticity is our thing, and we just wanted to bring that to the forefront. We felt like we proved a lot. There’s still more to prove, but we proved enough in the music industry, and the path that we’re taking to now is time to separate ourselves.”

Heem adds: “We were going for growth and showing a new level. We’re showing improvement on penmanship, production, quality…we found the sound. You know what I mean? I think Shay would appreciate this right here. Shay would love this. We still got Shay on there, too. His production is on there. His voice, his spirit, everything.”

With a group that spits out ironclad bars like B$F, there’s a high level of competition that exists between its members. As Hyde explains, it’s a “steel sharpens steel” scenario. There’s no animosity between them as they all push each other with a keen competitive spirit in an effort to stamp themselves as one of the strongest groups in the game.

“Our selling point is our cohesiveness,” Hyde explains. “A lot of groups ain’t tight-knit like how we is. A lot of people stray off, whatever, whatever. But nah man, we all been together like a band of brothers.”

El Camino adds: “I feel like there’s competition here, but we more so looking to help improve each other because that’s what’s going to push us all further in the long run. But at the same time, you know it’s always going to be like shit, ‘I know my shit crazy’ and you want to shine. We know each other capabilities, so we already know what time it be. I like hearing them come in saying, ‘I’m bout to kill this shit’ because now I’m gonna do the same.”

When it comes to being a part of the Black Soprano Family, an artist can’t come in with any weak material. As the group explains, a rapper can’t be B$F if their rap skills aren’t at a high level. Everyone in the crew has something to prove, especially when the group leader has carved out a path to success.

“You got to be nice,” Heem says. “So the competition is going to be natural, and it’s like I got to keep up with bro ’cause I know bro about to dunk it. I see Camino bopping a certain way, I know he talking. Butch in the corner ain’t saying nothing to nobody, I know he cooking something up. Rick Hyde, when he keep on moving his hands, he’s gonna go off. There’s expectations here, and if you’re not tapped in, you’ll get lost.”

Benny The Butcher ensures his team always strives to deliver their best work, as he was in their position not too long ago. Under the Griselda Records imprint, Benny studied his older relatives Conway The Machine and Westside Gunn and set out to establish himself as a star.

The same thing is happening with the Black Soprano Family. Benny is giving his crew all the tools and resources they need to advance their careers — as long as they take the baton and run with it. In the same way Benny had to go out and get his with Griselda, the same goes for the members of B$F.

“The thing about me, I do this,” Benny says. “I be in rooms, and I’m on songs with n-ggas, and I got an extensive rapping career. You know who got the game ball, and that’s dope, but you also want n-ggas to get the game ball. I want these n-ggas to get game balls. I got a trophy full of them and that’s what it’s about.”

Heem adds: “Bro making us really rap. If you look at Butch trophy case, you see your shit, you get on the court with him, and he’s like, ‘All right, we about hoop, bruh. I got to drop 30 tonight. Even if I miss, I got to try.’”

Even the people behind the scenes are just a part of B$F as the rappers themselves. Jake Amankwaah (president), Tony Deniro (general manager) and Howard “Harlem” Fickling (A&R) all pride themselves on seeing this family grow and there’s nothing that’ll stop them from achieving that goal.

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“This group is great, and it just inspires us to work hard too, and whatever it is, we all try to help level each other up. We want to be different than the other groups out there,” Deniro says, while Fickling adds: “I’ve seen a lot of collectives come along, and I think we’re about to be one of the best ones ever to do it.”

Amankwaah chimes in: “The F stands for family, and we encompass that in everything we do. That energy and that aura transcribe through our music, merchandise and the business that we do.”

Long Live DJ Shay is only the beginning for the Black Soprano Family. Each member has a solo album on the way, and according to Benny The Butcher, their music is some of the hardest material Hip Hop purists will hear and enjoy.

“These n-ggas albums, how they sound is cinematic,” Benny proclaims. “And I can’t wait till the world here what they got. I’m just now getting in this shit and a lot of people are like, ‘Damn, what are you doing putting other n-ggas on?’ I don’t give a fuck, I put in my work and these n-ggas is dope, and these my n-ggas and y’all can’t fuck with these n-ggas. They’re here now.”

Stay tuned for more of HipHopDX’s conversation with the Black Soprano Family. In the meantime, stream Long Live DJ Shay below.

19 Oct 2022

50 Cent Says Kanye West Entering a ‘Dangerous Area’ With Antisemitic Comments

50 Cent is the latest artist to speak out about Kanye West’s recent spree of antisemitic hate speech. In an appearance on Hot 97’s Ebro in the Morning show on Tuesday (Oct. 19), Curtis said that Ye is flirting with treacherous territory with the comments the rapper/entrepreneur has made in a series of interviews in which he has repeatedly amplified antisemitic tropes.

“I think he’s in a dangerous area,” 50 said. “I forgive him for the things that he said, because I’ve already identified when something’s going on that I don’t understand.” 50 said that such outrageous, button-pushing behavior has become the norm for Ye, pointing to the provocative “White Lives Matter” shirt West has worn recently as another example of his desire to provoke.

“There’s nothing for me to say about it, though. I watch it take place and I just look and I go, ‘Okay… yeah,’ that’s just him doing what he does. What Kanye would do,” 50 said. “Even the original Trump support thing was a little out there for me. Everybody looks at things, they navigate things differently. One week it’s, ‘I don’t want my kids raised by a white woman,’ and the next week it’s ‘I wanna go home.’ So you don’t know exactly what he means… Crazy’s unpredictable, unpredictability’s entertaining.”

But, 50 added, when you start to get into “certain areas,” it become harder to have compassion for what Ye is saying, because “he’s not crazy where he doesn’t know what he’s saying. He knows exactly what he’s saying.” In July 2020 West’s ex-wife, Kim Kardashian, opened up about his struggle with bi-polar disorder in a series of lengthy Instagram Stories.

“He is a brilliant but complicated person who on top of the pressures of being an artist and a black man, who experienced the painful loss of his mother, has to deal with the pressure and isolation that is heightened by his bi-polar disorder,” she wrote, noting that it was the first time she had addressed how his bipolar disorder impacted their family life. “Those who are close with Kanye know his heart and understand his words some times do not align with his intentions.”

As someone who is known for speaking his mind very directly, 50 was asked how he handles his business when he feels wronged and considers burning everything to the ground to make a point. Curtis told the Ebro crew that he thinks what’s motivating Ye’s recent behavior is “coming from business. The Gap deal falling apart and him being angry with Adidas,” he said of two of Ye’s recent fashion collaborations melting down after disagreements over designs, business plans and West’s allegations that his Yeezy brand retail roll-out did not take place as expected.

If it was him, 50 said he’d work to reinvent those deals in a new way, instead of focusing on “venting.” Taking a step back, 50 speculated that Ye’s recent outbursts are in the vein of attention-seeking “look at me” behavior, before suggesting that West is also struggling to retain his music audience. “You can’t have [fame] forever. It’s hip-hop. You can have a moment, you can have a run. But you can’t have it forever. It’s not possible,” he said.

Ye’s antisemitic comment have been widely panned by a number of fellow artists, even as he is reportedly in talks to buy the conservative social media site Parler, a popular destination for supporters of former president Donald Trump and, according to NPR, “a hotbed of vaccine misinformation, bigotry and right-wing conspiracies.”

Watch 50’s interview below.

19 Oct 2022

BTS Continues Its Aerial Yoga Adventures in Special ‘Run BTS’ Episode: Watch

BTS continues to soar to new heights — both in international success and fitness endeavors. The K-pop group picked up where it left off in the special Run BTS episode, which sees members Jin, Suga, J-Hope, RM, Jimin, V and Jung Kook giving the aerial silks a try. In part two of the special episode, shared on Tuesday (Oct. 18), the septet decided to give a new set of elegant poses a test run now that they’ve found confidence in the craft.

The beginning of the episode sees the Bangtan Boys looking up the poses they wish to try during the aerial class. Where the first part saw the members struggling to get the hang of the silks, they now fly through the poses and even show off for the other members, doing ab crunches while suspended in the air and climbing the silks as if they were ropes.

“I don’t think you you guys are in your right mind,” Suga tells Jung Kook and Jimin, to which Jin adds, “You are doing real workouts.”

After their shenanigans ceased, each member hit the poses they selected from the beginning of the episode, and later went into doubles poses for fun. With their confidence in aerial yoga at an all time high, the BTS members shared they will continue their practice in a third installment of the Run BTS episode.

The new installment of Run BTS arrives after Big Hit revealed that Jin will be the first of the group to sign up for South Korean military service. “Jin will initiate the process as soon as his schedule for his solo release is concluded at the end of October. He will then follow the enlistment procedure of the Korean government,” the label said in a statement. “Other members of the group plan to carry out their military service based on their own individual plans.” The statement also added that the group will reconvene around 2025, after each members’ respective drafts are over.

In the meantime, the next part of “Fly BTS Fly” is set to arrive next week, and will first air through Weverse and VLive, before arriving on YouTube. Watch the newest installment of Run BTS below.

19 Oct 2022

SXSW Announces First Wave of Showcase Artists for 2023 Festival

Armani White, Algiers and Balming Tiger are just a few of the artists confirmed for the 37th annual South by Southwest showcase event and conference, set to take place March 13-18, in Austin, Texas.

Organizers today (Oct. 19) announced the first round of artists, a batch totaling 191 up-and-comers and established performers from around the globe.

Other artists confirmed for SXSW 2023 include Beenzino (Seoul, South Korea), Edie Bens (Swansea, U.K.), Great Gable (Perth, Australia), iLe (San Juan, Puerto Rico), Ladaniva (Lille, France), Son Rompe Pera (Naucalpan, Mexico), and Yogetsu Akasaka (Setagaya-Ku, Japan).

In addition to musical performances, the six-day event also typically gives audiences access to panels and Q&A sessions.

Major artists regularly grace the showcase stages. Shawn Mendes this year debuted his song “Wonder”, in addition to performing hit songs “In My Blood” and “Monster.”

Among its partners for the 2023 edition are Anniversary Group, Atomic Music Group, Athens in Austin, British Music Embassy, Don Giovanni Records, Fire Records, FOCUS Wales, Gorilla vs Bear, Jazz re:freshed Outernational, Pop Montreal, M for Montreal, Music From Ireland, New West Records, Space Agency, and Wide Days Scotland.

The music showcase is just one part of the larger South by Southwest festival, an event founded in 1987 and dedicated to celebrating entertainment and culture.

Additional announcements will be made as the 2023 event approaches.

SXSW signed a “lifeline” deal with P-MRC, a joint venture between Penske Media Corporation and MRC, in April 2021, making P-MRC a stakeholder and long-term partner with the Austin festival. P-MRC is the parent company of Billboard.

Visit SXSW.com for more.

19 Oct 2022

Kodak Black Spooks Druski By Turning Into A ‘Super Gremlin’ During Instagram Live

Kodak Black had some fun with Druski on Instagram Live on Tuesday night (October 18), and the comedian wasn’t too fond of what was happening.

Druski played the role of the shady CEO of his fictional record label, Coulda Been Records, and was on the hunt for new talent to add to his roster.

At one point, Kodak Black joined the IG Live, and things were going smoothly until he started tapping into his “Super Gremlin” powers.

During their conversation, the light in Yak’s room began flickering on and off as the Florida native ominously declared: “I’m a nightmare baby. Super Gremlin. Voodoo baby.”

Druski was spooked by Kodak’s behavior and pleaded with the rapper to cut it out. “Wait, why is it blinking black and white?” he asked, growing concerned. “Aye Kodak, come on, man. Don’t do that now. Chill, chill, chill. Aye Kodak, it’s me, bruh! I’m joking, bro.”

Kodak Black’s cameo wasn’t the only highlight during Druski’s Instagram Live. NBA YoungBoy also hopped on the call, which many fans were surprised to see after his team threatened the comedian over a joke about the rapper’s baby mother and fiancée, Jazlyn Mychelle.

YoungBoy appeared on the call rocking a black balaclava and smoking a cigarette. Druski offered him a not-so-favorable deal to join Coulda Been Records, but the Baton Rouge hitmaker wasn’t so keen to sign on the dotted line.

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“Look, we got a position down here, you could be the CEO,” Druski pitched YoungBoy while still in character. “With the type of person you are, man, I’m telling you, dawg, we could take over the world together. How does the money sound, if we do, like, a 80/20?”

YoungBoy asked: “80 my way?” to which Druski replied with a laugh: “No, no… See, down here at Coulda Been Records, things are flopping a different way, you follow me? 20’s still a good number, though! I could probably do 70/30, your favor.”

“I’m gonna get back at you on that,” was the 22-year-old’s response.

21 Savage, Snoop Dogg and Super Bowl champion Antonio Brown also joined the Coulda Been Records Instagram Live and the comedy continued as Druski tried to sign each one.

Druski may not have been successful in his latest recruitment drive, however, he snapped up a star back in June when Quavo “signed” to the fictional imprint. In a clip shared on social media, Quavo and Druski were hanging out at an airport when they jokingly announced the Migos rapper was the first artist join the label.

Druski solidified the deal by giving Huncho a stack of “trap money.” “That’s the thing, I’m going tenth on the jet. I ain’t gonna go half with him on it,” the comedian joked before Quavo showed the cash advance in his hand, saying: “Look at what he gave me.”

19 Oct 2022

Taylor Swift Unveils More Lyrics in Nashville & Brazil at Stroke of Midnight, Just Like ‘Clockwork’

Swifties have just two more days to wait until the release of Taylor Swift‘s Midnights, and the pop star is building up the anticipation by offering them sparse clues and details to find. That includes cryptic billboards she’s started placing in partnership with Spotify in random cities across the world, programmed to reveal one lyric at a time from the new record, always at 12 a.m. sharp.

One of two new lyric reveals went live via a billboard placed in a São Paulo, Brazil, train station at midnight local time (11 p.m. ET), showcasing in bright purple lettering and the lyric: “Just like clockwork, the dominoes cascaded in a line.”

A second billboard popped up an hour later (12 a.m. ET) on the side of Nashville’s 1720 West End building, displaying the words “Did you ever have someone kiss you in a crowded room?”

“Now I’m standing alone in a crowded room… in Nashville,” read a post about the second billboard on Spotify’s official Twitter account, referencing a lyric from Swift’s Speak Now track “Story of Us.”

Swift first began hiding Midnights lyrics in plain sight on Monday (Oct. 17), when she and Spotify staged an electronic billboard in the mecca of electronic billboards: New York City’s Times Square. At the stroke of midnight, a massive vertical sign on one end of the plaza lit up with the lyric “I should not be left to my own devices.”

Next, the singer-songwriter unveiled a billboard in London revealing just five words of a Midnights song:  “I polish up real nice.”

These metropolitan lyric reveals are just one of several ways Swift has been teaming up with Spotify during the rollout of Midnights, her 10th studio album arriving Friday (Oct. 21). The 11-time Grammy winner has also been sharing exclusive videos with her fans via the music streaming service explaining her sources of inspiration for the record; “self-loathing,” “fantasizing about revenge,” “wondering what might have been” and “falling in love” make up the topics of four of the five total videos that have been uploaded to the Midnights Spotify pre-save page so far.

Come midnight Thursday morning (Oct. 20), fans may very well have another lyric billboard to pore over — only time will tell. It is, however, confirmed that a teaser for Midnights will air during the third quarter of Thursday Night Football that same day.

See Taylor Swift’s new lyric reveal billboards in Nashville and São Paulo below:

19 Oct 2022

Iggy Pop Signs With Atlantic & Andrew Watt’s Gold Tooth Records for Next Album Release

Punk icon Iggy Pop has signed with Atlantic Records, in partnership with producer Andrew Watt‘s Gold Tooth Records, for the release of his next album, the companies tell Billboard.

“I’m the guy with no shirt who rocks,” said Pop in statement. “Andrew and Gold Tooth get that, and we made a record together the old-fashioned way. The players are guys I’ve known since they were kids and the music will beat the s— out of you. Have a great day.”

The first release from Pop’s forthcoming album, debut single “Frenzy,” is slated to drop on Oct. 28. The album is Pop’s first since 2019’s Free, released by Caroline International/Loma Vista.

“We’re incredibly excited to welcome Andrew and Gold Tooth into the Atlantic family,” said Atlantic Records chairman and CEO Craig Kallman. “As a brilliant producer and stellar musician, Andrew has the gift of elevating every project into a work of art. And, of course, we’re over the moon to have the legendary and phenomenal Iggy Pop as our first joint signing. Iggy’s groundbreaking work forever changed the rock landscape, and he continues to make boundary-crashing music. This also marks his return to the Warner family, more than 50 years after he made his recording debut with the Stooges on our sister label Elektra. Iggy’s never stopped evolving, and he’s made a fantastic album that we can’t wait for the world to hear.”

Added Watt, “Iggy Pop is a f—ing icon. A true original. The guy invented the stage dive…I still can’t believe he let me make a record with him. I am honored. It doesn’t get cooler. This album was created to be played as loud as your stereo will go…turn it up and hold on…”

Pop rose to fame as the lead singer of Detroit-bred band The Stooges, which released three seminal proto-punk albums in the late 1960s and early 1970s: The Stooges, Fun House and Raw Power. After parting ways for over three decades, the group re-formed and released two additional albums: 2007’s The Weirdness and 2013’s Ready to Die. As a solo artist, Pop has released a total of 19 albums, including classics like The Idiot and Lust for Life, both produced by David Bowie.

19 Oct 2022

Car Seat Headrest Cancel West Coast Tour Over Health Issues: ‘My Body Lack the Basic Levels of Functionality’

Car Seat Headrest singer Will Toledo told fans on Tuesday (Oct. 18) that he is unable to embark on the band’s planned West Coast U.S. tour and an appearance at this weekend’s When We Were Young festival due to what he described as ongoing serious health issues.

“After another month of struggling to regain my health, I am currently forced to face the fact that my body lacks the basic levels of functionality necessary to leave the house most days, let along embark on a tour,” Toledo wrote in a note to fans.

Though the 30-year-old singer did not specify what is ailing him, he said as a result of his illness they’ve been forced to pull out of the all-star When We Were Young event at the Las Vegas Festival Ground (Oct. 22, 23, 29) slated to feature sets from Paramore, My Chemical Romance, AFI, Hawthorne Heights, Jimmy Eat World, Bright Eyes, The Linda Lindas, Manchester Orchestra, The Used and many more.

“We are unfortunately forced to pull out of the When We Were Young festival dates and cancel our upcoming California tour,” Toledo noted of scheduled October dates in Pioneertown, CA (Oct. 20), Los Angeles (Oct. 25), San Diego (Oct. 26) and Santa Ana (Oct. 27). Refunds for the headlining dates will be available at point of purchase.

The band also pulled out of the Frantic City Fest in New Jersey on Sept. 24 citing unspecified “continued health issues as well as a planned Sept. 2 slot at Out of Space in Evanston, Illinois due to a rebound case of the post-COVID condition “histamine intolerance,” which Toledo said involves “heavy nausea, fatigue, dizziness and a ‘buzzing’ nervous system.”

Check out Toledo’s note below.

19 Oct 2022

Stefflon Don Inks New Global Recording Partnership With BMG

MOBO Award-winning artist Stefflon Don has entered into a global recording partnership with BMG, Billboard has learned exclusively.

The Jamaica-via-London MC will release her debut studio album, Island 54, in 2023.

Among the forthcoming album’s tracks will be “Clockwork” featuring dancehall superstar Spice. The single was produced by Grammy-winning Beam (Beyoncé, Justin Bieber, Pop Smoke), while its accompanying video counts five million views on YouTube.

In a statement announcing her new partnership, Stefflon Don said, “I’m excited about partnering with BMG because they trust my creativity. They have an amazing support team across the globe, and I am super excited to expand my fan base alongside my new family BMG.”

Tim Reid, BMG’s senior vp of repertoire & marketing, stated, “Stefflon Don is a unique artist who has already accomplished so much on a global scale, collaborating with some of the biggest names in music while gaining equal acclaim on her solo projects. We are incredibly excited to partner with her on the next chapter of her musical career.”

Added Thomas Scherer, BMG’s president of repertoire & marketing, Los Angeles and New York, said, “Stefflon Don is an artist who knows exactly what she wants to achieve, and we are happy to be part of her journey towards this. Our partnership expands on a string of recent BMG signings with artists who desire more control of their music with our global team fully supporting them in exceeding their goals.”

Prior to upcoming album Island 54, Stefflon Don released the mixtapes Real Ting and Secure. Breaking through in 2017 with the singles “16 Shots” and “Hurtin’ Me” featuring French Montana, she has since collaborated with a diverse array of artists, among them Future, Lil Baby, J Balvin, Mariah Carey, Halsey and DJ Khaled.

Stefflon Don’s more recent collaborations include DJ Frass’ “Sweet Bounce,” “Dip” with Ms Banks, “Amazing” with Vybz Kartel and Dunw3ll as well as Calvin Harris’ “Woman of the Year” with Chloe Bailey and Coi Leray.

The first British female rapper to be featured on Spotify’s Rap Caviar playlist, Stefflon Don also performed for the first-ever UEFA Women’s Euro Final show this year. Her other career milestones thus far also include being recognized on the Forbes 30 Under 30 list in 2019.