State Champ Radio Newsletter
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Written By D.L. Chandler , Senior Editor Posted 22 mins ago @dlchandler123 D.L. Chandler is a veteran of the Washington D.C. metro writing scene, working as a journalist, reporter, and culture critic. Initially freelancing at iOne Digital in 2010, he officially joined the iOne team in 2017 where he currently works as a Senior Editor […]
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What up, Hip-Hop Wired Nation? We’re back on our biweekly schedule with CRT FRSH AKA Certified Fresh! Part of our duty as a publication and crew is to school the masses on who is doing what musically and there’s no better way to do that beyond our CRT FRSH (Certified Fresh) bi-weekly playlist.
Disclaimer:
The CRT FRSH playlist is a labor of love. We don’t take payments nor do we do favors. We only add joints to our playlist that fit the theme and vision we’re going for and don’t seek to waste the time of the listener. Further, we don’t stick to one lane of Hip-Hop. We believe that all aspects of the music should get some light, whether it’s young lions in the trenches or those hoping for that one shot to blow up to grizzled veterans puffing out their chests with lots more to say.
One thing about doing a playlist is that it’s really tough to keep up with the glut of new music that comes out weekly and it doesn’t help that a lot of artists exist in their own ecosystems and social spaces online that discovering all the gold out there is difficult. That said, we believe in the art of (digital) crate digging because there is so much good music out there that we want to make sure we’re always highlighting.
We updated the playlist last Friday (Jan. 27) and tried our best to include other joints we missed in the last part of 2022 and early 2023. We’re pretty sure there are joints that should be here and we hope that someone reading this takes notice and puts us on to the new. Now, on with the show.
We open up this week’s playlist by honoring the life of Lola “Gangsta Boo” Mitchell, who passed away at the top of the year. The path Gangsta Boo laid for other women rappers from the south cannot be denied and her time in Three 6 Mafia solidified her place in the annals of Hip-Hop. We added GloRilla’s “FTCU” to round out the brief tribute, which features Gangsta Boo and further proves how vital Memphis is to the culture.
Keeping it in Memphis, Finesse2Tymes joins forces with Tay Keith for the track “Still With It” and Metro Boomin’s solid compilation HEROES & VILLIANS is packed with several songs we could’ve chosen for the list but we went with “Feel The Fiyaaaah” featuring A$AP Rocky and the late Takeoff.
DJ Drama is back on his Gangsta Grillz grizzly, and his tape with Icewear Vezzo, Paint The City, is another strong entry in the catalog. Joining Vezzo on “Trippin” is 2 Chainz in a scene-stealing turn. Again, we head back down to Memphis with the late Young Dolph and Key Glock joint “Thats How” from the rapper’s posthumous album, Paper Route Frank.
Back to Gangsta Grillz, French Montana’s Coke Boys 6 gets the mixtape treatment, and the track “RZA” features Black Soprano Family honcho Benny The Butcher in top form per usual.
It’s always dope to hear DJ Premier’s production and the legend lends his talents to the vocals of Seattle’s Macklemore on his track HEROES from his forthcoming album, Ben. And for those listeners of a certain age, the news that De La Soul’s catalog is coming to streaming services was huge. The veteran trio’s “The Magic Number” is the first of many tracks to come and we can’t wait.
Salute to the likes of Privaledge, Armani White, Denzel Curry, Cordae, Anderson .Paak, Russ, Styles P, Rasheed Chappell, 38 Spesh, Ty Farris, Mickey Diamond, YUDU featuring Godsilla, Eto, Oddisee, Poe Mack, Van Gunz, Mourning Run, Radio B, Ray Vaughn and more.
Check out the playlist below.
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Since taking up duties as head of the DC Universe over at Warner Bros., James Gunn has ruffled many fans’ feathers with the way he’s been shaking things up. That includes moves such as canceling Wonder Woman 3 and putting the kibosh on Henry Cavill’s return as Superman just weeks after Cavill announced he’d be returning as the Man of Steel.
Interestingly enough, former wrestler turned actor, David Bautista saw an opportunity in the chaos. According to The Insider, the actor largely known as Drax The Destroyer in the Marvel Cinematic Universe pitched Gunn on the idea of taking on the mask of Bane in his rebooted DC Universe.
With word that Bautista’s iteration of Drax will be coming to an end in James Gunn’s upcoming Guardians of The Galaxy Vol. 3, it would leave David Bautista with some time on his hands for the foreseeable future. And Bane is a character he’s had his eyes on playing for quite some time now.
However, it doesn’t seem like becoming the iconic Batman villain is in the cards for Bautista. As it stands, Gunn is looking to inject some young blood into his revamped DC film franchises. And that’s a big strike against the 54-year-old actor.
“I have had conversations with James about that but I think the direction he’s leaning in, completely rebooting that whole universe, he’s starting from scratch and starting younger and fresher and I think you need to do that,” the actor told Insider over the weekend while doing press for his upcoming movie, “Knock at the Cabin.”
It would’ve been cool to see a Bautista Bane go up against Robert Pattinson’s Batman. The difference in their physical sizes alone would’ve made for some interesting cinematic fight scenes. But alas, it is not meant to be. Being the stand-up guy that he is, Bautista understands why it wouldn’t work out for him. And he acknowledges it’s too late for him to take on the role of another comic book character for the long haul.
“I think for the DC Universe to be revived, you need to start from scratch, and I think you need to start with younger actors,” Bautista, 54, continued. “You need to start to plan for the next 15 years, and I just don’t think you can do that with me. And I understand that. And, also, I have to say that I appreciate that because I don’t want to play a character that I can’t bring justice to it. I don’t think at this point in my career that I can bring justice to Bane anymore. I just don’t know if I could handle the physical part, and I don’t think I would have the longevity to plan ahead for films. So, I just don’t know if I’d be that guy.”
We have faith that he could be Bane for at least two films. But at the end of the day, we ain’t calling the shots. We’re sure Bautista will eventually pop up somewhere in the DC Universe. Probably for a one-shot affair or something.
What do y’all think? Is David Bautista too old to play Bane in the DC Universe or should James Gunn have given him a chance? Let us know in the comments section below.
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State Farm’s “like a good neighbor” tagline got the SNL treatment last weekend when host Michael B. Jordan put on the signature red polo shirt and took over a family.
In the sketch, Michael B. Jordan shows up when a set of parents were looking to file a claim after their daughter clogged a toilet with her stuffed animals.
Mikey Day plays the confused dad who comes home to discover that Jake from State Farm really was “here for you 24/7” in fact, playing with his kids. Jake also takes the kids and their mom, played by Heidi Gardner, to church on Sunday morning — sparking a fight between the couple.
As Jake continues to take over the family, teaching the little girl piano and playing catch with the son, Day’s character becomes more and more perplexed. He even looks up rates of other insurance when Jake shows up in the shadows, whispering that it won’t help because State Farm matches rates. Jake then taunts Day with a sinister voice saying, “Save more when you bundle home and auto.”
Left with nothing, Day mourns losing his family to handsome insurance pitchman Jake, drunkenly singing “Like a good neighbor, State Farm is there,” as he plans to jump off a bridge. “He took everything,” he roars.
The whole sketch takes another turn when it’s revealed that the entire scene is a commercial for Liberty Mutual insurance.
The hilarious sketch isn’t the first time Jake from State Farm has been the subject of satire. In a commercial during Super Bowl LV, the company hired Drake to don the red shirt as “Drake from State Farm.”
The actor who plays Jake is actually Kevin Miles from Chicago, in 2021 he told Forbes about his experience with the notoriety that comes with the role.
“They never say Kevin, which is okay (laughs). They’ll say ‘Jake.’ Even on-set, they just say ‘Hey Jake!’ and I just answer. It definitely started with the mask a little bit. I’d walk my dog and people would be like Hey, you’re ‘Jake from State Farm.’ They could still tell! One time I was at the store and I had my glasses on with a hat, deep incognito mode. Someone was just like Man, your voice is just so recognizable. That felt cool and weird.”
As for Michael B. Jordan, he will make his directorial debut with Creed III in theaters March 3, 2023.
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A newly disclosed financial statement from the 2020 presidential campaign of Ye aka Kanye West shows a hefty sum paid out to white supremacist Nick Fuentes.
According to reports, the committee for the rapper’s 2020 presidential campaign submitted end-of-year financial documents that were required by the Federal Election Commission on Monday (Jan. 30). The filing revealed that the committee paid Fuentes $14,719. The payments were classified as reimbursement for travel expenses.
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When contacted by reporters, the 24-year-old confirmed that it was “incurred by myself and the team when I relocated to LA in November to do work for Kanye 2020.” The first payment, which was $9,000, was given on the same date as his trip to Mar-A-Lago with Ye to see former President Donald Trump.
The filing also showed that Ye paid a large amount to Milo Yiannopoulous, the former Breitbart writer and far-right personality. According to the records from the campaign committee, Yiannopoulous was paid $50,000 in total. Almost $10,000 of that amount ($9,955) was for what is described as a “Domain Transfer.” The remainder – $40,000 – was for “Campaign Wrap Up Services” which was paid out to Yiannopoulous in the middle of December before he was fired.
Another noteworthy finding from the documents from the committee reports that Ye received no donations at all in 2022. This contrasts with their disclosure that they still had $228,000 in their funds as last year came to a close.
The news comes as Ye has been relatively quiet on the political front. He detached himself from Fuentes after a media run with shocking moments such as delivering antisemitic comments and defending Nazi dictator Adolf Hitler while appearing with Fuentes on conspiracy theorist Alex Jones’ show.
His proclivity to run with members of the far-right is still intact, as Ali Alexander is now on the team for his 2024 presidential campaign. Alexander is a rabid election denier and has been implicated for his role in the events leading up to the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol Jan. 6, 2021.
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Jaafar Jackson, born into music royalty as the son of Jermaine Jackson, will soon step into the role of his iconic uncle, Michael Jackson. The 26-year-old performer has plenty of experience as a singer and dancer and will bring that talent to the screen in the upcoming biopic, Michael.
As exclusively reported by Deadline, Jaafar Jackson will play the late, great King Of Pop in the Antonie Fuqua biopic, currently under development by Lionsgate. Jaafar’s father, Jermaine, was a member of The Jackson 5 along with Jaafar’s influential uncle and has been singing and dancing since the age of 12 according to the outlet. With Fuqua in the director’s chair, the script comes from Oscar-nominated screenwriter John Logan, who also won a Tony Award for the play Red.
Deadline adds that production on Michael will begin later this year as Fuqua wraps the filming of The Equalizer 3 with Denzel Washington.
Jackson shared the news of him playing his uncle with a photo showing him practicing some of those famous MJ moves.
“I’m humbled and honored to bring my Uncle Michael’s story to life. To all the fans all over the world, I’ll see you soon,” Jaafar wrote in the caption to the post on Monday (Jan. 30).
Michael does not have a release date yet.
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Brandon Smiley, the son of radio host and stand comedian Rickey Smiley, has died. The elder Smiley shared the news via social media but no cause of death was shared.
Rickey Smiley, 54, shared the news via his Instagram account in a video clip that was captioned “My Son Passed Away” with the post’s caption asking for warm thoughts for Brandon’s mother and daughter.
“I lost my oldest son #BrandonSmiley this morning. I’m okay, but please pray for my son’s mother Brenda, his siblings and his daughter Storm,” Smiley said.
Looking over Smiley’s page, he shared images of his children, including a video of Brandon, who was also a comedian like his father.
We send our condolences to the entire Smiley family.
Brandon Smiley was 32.
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Jason Whitlock doesn’t deserve a bit of our attention but we can’t stand by and ignore his latest head-scratching statement in the name of free thought. The sportscaster and political commentator called into question the various protests cropping up in the wake of a video going wide showing the murder of Tyre Nichols at the hands of five Black Memphis police officers.
Jason Whitlock, 55, tweeted out a question Friday night (Jan. 27) regarding the reaction to the footage of the five officers beating Nichols after a traffic stop, who later succumbed to his injuries on Jan 10. The city of Memphis continually urged its residents and outside observers to show restraint once the footage of the encounter went wide.
While the Memphis Police Department promptly fired and changed the five officers, most took note of the fact that action was swift when it came to these officers which stand in contrast to actions handed down to their white counterparts involved in similar incidents nationwide.
That fact was seemingly lost on Whitlock, and his tweet displayed his seemingly feigned curiosity as to why people are angered.
“Five police officers in Memphis appear to have committed a violent homicide. They’ve been fired and charged with second-degree murder. What is the protest about? What hasn’t happened?” Whitlock tweeted.
Shortly after that tweet, Whitlock shared a promo for his Blaze TV show, Fearless, which was centered around respecting law enforcement officers and the like. It was a clear shot at the encounter Nichols had with the elite SCORPION police unit in Memphis just mere yards from his home.
One of the most outlandish comments to come from Whitlock came from his appearance on Tucker Carlson’s show discussing the video and the passing of Nichols. While Whitlock was clear in calling the acts of the officers a crime, something he’s never done so swiftly in the past it seems, there was one point of contention that journalist Gretchen Carlson noted in a tweet.
Whitlock quote-tweeted with a response, writing, “What was crazy about my comment, Gretchen? What are the benefits of communities/neighborhoods run by matriarchal, baby-mama culture? You planning to relocate your intact nuclear family into one?”
There is no changing the sturdy, ham-fisted mind of Jason Whitlock and we’ll spare readers more of his asinine commentary. However, what we will share is how Twitter is cooking him and his ashy sew-in alive. Keep scrolling.
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DJ Khaled is back in his brand ambassador bag once more and this time, he’s taking on the role of model. For Savage X Fenty’s new Valentine’s Day campaign, the We The Best Music honcho donned some relaxed fits for the hot-selling fashion line.
DJ Khaled, 47, revealed that he was soon to take to the runway as a model for Savage X Fenty in an exclusive first look at the campaign in a Zoom chat with BET Lifestyle. The Miami star was grateful for the opportunity to work with Rihanna’s brand and saluted the Barbadian businesswoman’s vision.
“I want to thank Rihanna and Savage X Fenty for letting me be part of this campaign,” Khaled said. “Rihanna is a visionary, and for her to give me the opportunity to wear the clothes, it was so dope and organic. I love that she lets me be myself. I promote to the world to always be yourself. She inspires me.”
Rihanna announced the Valentine’s Day campaign as only she can on Jan. 12, and the entire collection for both guys and gals and whoever can be purchased now.
To see DJ Khaled and his Savage X Fenty look, check out the post below.
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Yung Gravy should be enjoying the fruits of his virtual track “Betty (Get Money)” that’s all the rage on social media. However, the Rochester, Minn. rapper is facing a lawsuit from 1980s hitmaker Rick Astley for an unauthorized imitation of the British singer’s voice.
Deadline reports that Yung Gravy, 26, sampled Astley’s “Never Gonna Give You Up” track from 1987. According to the suit, Astley, 56, approved the sample of the original but did not authorize Gravy to hire a performer to imitate his voice.
The suit was filed in Los Angeles and states that only the instrumentals to “Never Gonna Give You Up” were licensed and that Astley’s voice was a “resource that needs to be carefully managed.”
The outlet obtained the legal filing which cites Yung Gravy and producer Dillion Francis “conspired to include a deliberate and nearly indistinguishable imitation of Mr. Astley’s voice throughout the song.”
Also named in the lawsuit is Nick Seeley, better known as Popnick, who performed the vocal impersonation.
According to Astley’s filing, the impersonation upended a future collaboration with another artist who wanted to use Astley’s vocals.
Yung Gravy has not made a public response to the lawsuit.
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