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Michigan State Police took to social media this week to address rumors surrounding the deaths of three Michigan rappers who went missing in January and were later found dead in an abandoned apartment building.
Montoya Givens, 31, Armani Kelly, 28, and Dante Wicker, 31, were reported missing in late January after traveling to Detroit from the western part of the state for a performance at 31 Lounge on the city’s east side. Their families reported them missing after not hearing from them after the show was canceled. Their bodies were later found approximately six miles away in Highland Park, Michigan in what police described as a “rat infested” abandoned apartment building.
“We know there are a lot of media/social media rumors about this investigation. While we have to keep some things private we know a couple of things: There is no one in custody for this homicide. This homicide was not random and had nothing to due with music or a performance,” read one of the tweets from the Michigan State Police public information for Macomb, Oakland and Wayne counties account.
The tweet continued, “This was a gang violence related incident. There are other people that know the details and we need them to come forward. Please call 800.Speak.Up if you have information on this case. Together we can bring closure to these families.”
One social media user inquired about a possible reward, to which the account replied, “That depends on crime stoppers and how the information provided helped in making an arrest.”
The story of the rapper’s disappearance and subsequent deaths became a national news story when they were reported missing Jan. 21. It was nearly two months later when their bodies were found with state police saying they each died of gunshot wounds, according to CNN.
The update is the latest provided by Michigan State Police. On Feb. 7, the same Twitter account wrote, “The investigation also has revealed that this was not a random incident. The investigation is continuing and detectives are making progress and we believe we may have determined a motive.”
Per PEOPLE, Taylor Perrin, Kelly’s fiancé told a local Detroit news station, “I just beg for help, for anything. I need answers and, if it comes to it, I need closure, because I will never forget and I will never stop,” she said. Perrin explained that Kelly who rapped under the rap name, “Marley Whoop,” was working, going to school and developing his rap career while bouncing back from a robbery arrest.
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A shooting incident broke out at Michigan State University on Monday (Feb. 13) that left three students dead and five others critically injured. Local police say they located the gunman at a separate location where he died of a self-inflicted gun wound.
Local outlet Click On Detroit was among many outlets that covered the Michigan State University shooting, which took place at 8:18 PM local time inside Berkey Hall, an academic building on the MSU campus grounds. Two students were shot dead inside Berkey Hall along with others being injured. Later, the gunman opened fire at the MSU Union building, leaving another student dead and injuring more.
Details surrounding the shooting are scant at best but naturally, the news of the violent act once again drummed up the ongoing debate of gun control in the nation and with so many unanswered questions about the gunman’s motives, tensions are high as police continue to investigate the matter.
The gunman was identified as 43-year-old Anthony McCrae. As reported by Click On Detroit, McCrae had a criminal record in the city of Lansing, Mich. The 2019 charge was over a concealed weapon and McCrae completed probation in 2021.
As this story develops, we’ll return to add details as they become known to the public.
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McDonald’s is no stranger to big-name collaborations and partnerships, and they’re rollout out a timely meal for this coming Valentine’s Day. The fast food leader will debut the Cardi B and Offset meal that is meant to be shared with the one you love, or at least like a little bit.
McDonald’s new couple-centric meal features Cardi’s preferred combo of the classic McDonald’s Cheeseburger with tangy BBQ sauce and a large Coca-Coola, while her hubby’s meal of choice is a Quarter Pounder with Cheese and a large Hi-C Orange Lavaburst. A large fries meant to share accompanies the meal, along with a hot apple pie.
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“Let me tell you, McDonald’s is date night done right,” Offset says of the meal. “It doesn’t have to be all boujee. Get your date, grab some good food, and have fun, that’s it.”
Cardi added, “Whether it’s going for a date night or grabbing a bite after late-night studio sessions… I’m always asking Offset to take me to McDonald’s. And now, Offset and I have a meal named after us! I want all my fans to try it – especially with that BBQ sauce.
Ahead of the couple’s meal hitting restaurants on V-Day, McD’s released a really cute commercial that’s definitely full of the warm fuzzy vibes of the upcoming day of love.
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Tune in to McDonald’s YouTube channel on Valentine’s Day (Feb. 14) to see the commercial spot for the Cardi B and Offset meal.
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Written By D.L. Chandler , Senior Editor Posted 20 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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Quality Control Music, one of the most popular record labels in Hip-Hop, was acquired by Hybe America, the entertainment company helmed by Scooter Braun. According to reports, Quality Control Music was purchased at the price of $300,000.
The news was first announced on Wednesday (Feb 8.) by Hybe America and QC Media Holdings as reported by the New York Times. Hybe shared that the price of the acquisition includes both cash and stock holdings. Braun, one of the top music executives in the business, was named CEO of Hybe America in January. Hybe America’s parent company, Hybe, is based in South Korea and manages the K-pop group BTS.
“QC is one of the most significant independent labels in the world,” Braun said to The New York Times in a statement. “They not only distribute music, but they also distribute culture. Their artists are the voices of their communities.”
Quality Control Music was established in 2013 under the leadership of Pierre “P” Thomas and Kevin “Coach K” Lee. The label is the home of Lil Baby, Lil Yachty, and the Migos. According to P and Coach K, they are still the heads of the label but Braun will direct all business moves.
“We want to take our brand worldwide and need partners with mind-sets like ours — ground up, self-made and building companies from nothing,” P added in a statement regarding the new deal. “All of Hybe’s leaders are entrepreneurs with track records for finding, growing and amplifying their talent globally.”
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Doja Cat is an artist who marches to the beat of her own drum and that often invites unwelcomed comments on her appearance, music, and social media personality. Instead of pushing back on a silly rumor that she’s a member of the so-called Illuminati, the talented artist is leaning into it.
Doja Cat is routinely the topic of conversation on social media given the fact she’s very active on her pages and engages with fans, which often ends up getting weird because many people lack all manner of decorum and couth online these days. Like many a famous star before her, Doja was bestowed with the assumption of being part of some secret powerful organization that is apparently controlling the minds of the masses, or whatever YouTube Unversity likes to drone on about.
“This illuminati sh*t is so funny to me I’m gonna keep doing deliberate weird ass sh*t just to make those people uncomfortable. I’ve fr found a new outlet of joy,” Doja tweeted on Monday (Feb. 6). She added, “playing with people’s ignorance and stupidity for my own happiness and personal gain >.”
When a fan says she should tattoo the Illuminati symbol on herself, Doja seemed to honor the idea.
Doja Cat also published a video of herself singing a new tune with lyrics that you have to hear for yourself as we don’t want to ruin the surprise. Go take a trip to her Twitter page to see what we’re referencing.
Also, can we let the Illuminati thing go in 2023? Please?
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Written By D.L. Chandler , Senior Editor Posted 47 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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Benny The Butcher proved that his street tales and aggressive bars are right at home over polished production just as they are over hard drums and dusty loops, as proven on Burden of Proof. The Buffalo star will once again recreate that magic alongside Hit-Boy after he announced the upcoming Everybody Can’t Go album on social media.
Benny The Butcher shared an image of himself on the red carpet at the 65th Annual Grammy Awards looking sharp as expected. The Black Soprano Family honcho didn’t give a ton of details but it’s clear that fans need to get prepared for the anticipated collaboration.
From IG:
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Sometimes the experience of the journey is a better feeling than reaching the destination. You won’t ever kno unless u make it there…but remember ‘EVERYBODY CAN’T GO’ The Album produced by @hitboy…Loading
Benny The Bucher and Hit-Boy linked in 2020 for the acclaimed Burden of Proof project and it was a welcome departure from the darker production of Daringer, Beat Butcha, and The Alchemist. Flexing his signature confidence and songwriting ability, Benny shined over the lush beats of Hit-Boy in an unexpected fashion.
We can only hope that the pair will improve on the solid formula of three years ago.
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The Grammy Awards gave a proper tribute to Hip-Hop during the broadcast, but some noted that one of the genre’s first superstars was noticeably absent. Will Smith didn’t show up for the tribute despite his partner DJ Jazzy Jeff being present, and Questlove explained the situation during an interview.
The culture was on full display for Hip-Hop’s 50th anniversary and the star-studded tribute directed by Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson was largely a crowd-pleasing moment for fans in attendance and at home. As we noted above, Jazzy Jeff was there on the 1s and 2s but there was no sighting of the former Fresh Prince. Questlove shared exclusively with Variety why Will Smith didn’t make it to the tribute.
“I’ll give the spoiler alert away. Will Smith was [a part] of the festivities tonight, but they started shooting ‘Bad Boys 4’ this week,” Questlove told the outlet on the red carpet. “There were a lot of preliminary shots that he had to do, so we had to lose Will.”
Along with Will Smith, Questlove teased that the original tribute runtime was cut down from 23 minutes to 14 minutes due to scheduling conflicts and the like.
Check out the quip from Questlove regarding Will Smith and the tribute overall below.
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Written By D.L. Chandler , Senior Editor Posted 45 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 […]