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One of Sean “Diddy” Combs’ attorneys has filed a motion to step down from representing the incarcerated hip-hop mogul. Per court documents filed in the Southern District of New York on Friday (Feb. 21), Anthony Ricco said that while he had “provided Sean Combs with the high level of legal representation expected by the court, […]
Ye (formerly Kanye West) is feeling the love, even after his controversial X spree earlier this month. The Chicago rapper shared a screenshot of an X post highlighting Tyler, The Creator supposedly liking a picture of A$AP Rocky on his Instagram page, and added a caption saying that the West Coast rapper is North West’s […]
Six years after Leaving Neverland gave Wade Robson and James Safechuck a platform to share shocking accounts of Michael Jackson‘s alleged sexual abuse of them as children, the two men are once again taking to the documentary format to talk about their experiences. Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts […]
Over its 50-plus years in existence, hip-hop has long been underestimated. And in a new interview, Doechii calls it for exactly what it is: racism.
In her new cover story with The Cut published Wednesday (Feb. 19), the Florida native was introspective about her place in a long lineage of rap legends, noting that the ingenuity of her predecessors — shouting out Lauryn Hill, specifically — has historically gone unappreciated. “Old-school hip-hop is vulnerability,” Doechii began.
“I’m gravitating towards the pure skill that was incorporated,” she continued. “Anyone who doesn’t think that hip-hop is an intellectual genre, I think that assumption is rooted in racism.”
Now that she’s taken the baton from the “Ex-Factor” hitmaker, Lil’ Kim, Mary J. Blige, Missy Elliott and more game-changing women in rap, the “Denial Is a River” artist says she strives to inspire the next generation of young Back girls who love the genre. “The first album I ever purchased and ever remember listening to in full length was The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill,” she told the publication. “The feeling that I have when I listen to The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill is the same feeling I want some other Black little girl to have when she listens to me. And in order for her to have that feeling, I have to talk about my feelings.”
The interview arrives just a few weeks after Doechii made history as the third woman to ever win best rap album at the Grammys with Alligator Bites Never Heal, following none other than Ms. Hill and Cardi B. During her acceptance speech, she echoed, “I know there is some Black girl out there [watching], and I want to tell you that you can do it … you are exactly who you need to be.”
Elsewhere in her Cut feature, Doechii recalled her own struggles as a young girl with dreams of being an artist someday. Before she had a spiritual experience in the sixth grade during which her stage name suddenly came to her as if through divine intervention, pulling her out of a dark place. The musician says she “was getting bullied so bad,” she considered suicide.
“[Then] I realized, ‘Oh, f–k, I’m gonna kill myself and then I’m gonna be the only one dead,’” she added. “The bullies aren’t gonna be with me, and everything they said is not coming with me either. I would just be gone. And then I was like, ‘F–k that!’”
If you or anyone you know is experiencing suicidal thoughts and/or distress, the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline is available 24/7 at 1-800-273-8255 for confidential help and support. You can also call or text 988 to get connected to a trained counselor.
See Doechii on the cover of The Cut below.
Three 6 Mafia had been hit with Satanism allegations in the past and DJ Paul hopped on Bunnie XO‘s Dumb Blonde Podcast earlier this week to clear the air.
Paul explained that the satanic imagery was essentially “just an image” for the Memphis crew, and it started with DJ Infamous referring to the group as Triple 6 Mafia.
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“Basically Lord Infamous said ‘Triple 6 Mafia’ in a song, that wasn’t even our group name,” he told Bunnie, who is married to country star Jelly Roll. “I liked that and I was like, ‘Whoa, that’s dope.’ And I started sampling ‘Triple 6 Mafia, Mafia.’ And that became really popular with us, but that still wasn’t our name.”
He continued: “I was just sampling that, and then it was time to form a group, I was like, ‘We should call ourselves Triple 6 Mafia.’ And everybody liked it … Next thing I know, white fans came like that [snaps fingers]. They flocked to us.”
DJ Paul downplayed the late Lord Infamous being involved with Satanism in any fashion when asked by Bunnie. “He was just high,” he quipped. “That n—a grew up singing ‘Amazing Grace’ in a church, and I was playing the organ … It was just an image. It was just something that was cool. We never studied Satan or nothing like that.”
Formed in the early ’90s by DJ Paul, Juicy J and Lord Infamous in Memphis, Three 6 Mafia went on to become one of the most influential rap groups in the genre’s history. The horrorcore crew saw stints from the late Gangsta Boo, Koopsta Knicca as well as Crunchy Black.
Best known for hits such as Billboard Hot 100 top 15 anthem “Stay Fly,” “Poppin’ My Collar,” “Slob on My Knob” and many more, Three 6 Mafia became the first rap group to win an Oscar Award in 2006 for “It’s Hard Out Here for a Pimp” in Hustle + Flow, which took home best original song. The group’s last album arrived in 2008 with Last 2 Walk.
Watch the full interview below.
Ye — formerly Kanye West — is walking back earlier statements labeling himself a Nazi. West came to the realization on Wednesday (Feb. 19), retracting his previous statements in a new post to X.
“After further reflection I’ve come to the realization that I’m not a Nazi,” he wrote.
The backtracking on his heavily criticized comments — which saw him praising Adolf Hitler — comes just over a week since his series of antisemitic, homophobic and hate-filled X tirades earlier in February.
“I love Hitler, how what bi—es,” Ye wrote, which he followed up with, “I’m a Nazi.” He later added, “Hitler was sooooo fresh” and “call me Yaydolf Yitler.”
West had been selling T-shirts emblazoned with a black swastika logo for $20 on his Yeezy website, which was shut down by its marketplace partner Shopify.
West faced backlash for his remarks, as the Anti-Defamation League, Charlie Puth and Lyor Cohen all condemned Ye and pleaded with him to stop pushing antisemitic rhetoric.
“With antisemitism on the rise, your voice and influence carry a significant responsibility,” the former Def Jam president wrote in a letter to Ye. “I urge you to be more sensitive to the pain your words inflict on Jewish communities and all those who stand against hate.”
Back in October 2022, Ye fired off a series of antisemitic rants, including the “Death Con 3” tweet, which led to companies such as Adidas, Def Jam, Balenciaga, Gap and more cutting ties with the rapper.
“West is not just any person — he is a pop culture icon with millions of fans around the world,” Endeavor CEO Ari Emanuel wrote at the time. “And among them are young people whose views are still being formed. This is why it is necessary for all of us to speak out. Hatred and anti-Semitism should have no place in our society, no matter how much money is at stake.”
In another post on X, Ye responded to Adam Sandler seemingly referencing the musician during his performance on the SNL50: The Anniversary Special over the weekend, singing, “50 years of finding out your favorite musician’s antisemitic.” Ye chose to focus on the “favorite musician” part of the lyric, responding to the comic actor on X: “Adam Sandler Thank you for the love.”
Sean “Diddy” Combs‘ attorneys have filed a motion seeking the dismissal of a sex trafficking charge in the hip-hop mogul’s indictment, citing the alleged racist origins of the count. Combs’ legal team, which made the filing official on Tuesday (Feb. 18) in New York federal court, argues that “no white person has ever been the […]
The charity album Good Music to Lift Los Angeles makes a chart-topping debut, as the 90-track set arrives atop Billboard’s Compilation Albums chart (dated Feb. 22).
The effort — which boasts acts such as Dawes, R.E.M. and Perfume Genius — was sold for 24 hours only through Bandcamp as a digital download on Feb. 7. The price of the album was $20.25, but customers could choose to pay more. Proceeds from the project benefit the Los Angeles Regional Food Bank and California Community Foundation’s Wildfire Fund, both supporting individuals impacted by the January wildfires in the Los Angeles area.
In total, the Good Music to Lift Los Angeles album sold just over 10,000 copies in the week ending Feb. 13 in the U.S., according to Luminate. The last non-soundtrack compilation to sell more in a single week was another benefit project, Cardinals at the Window: A Benefit for Flood Relief in Western North Carolina, which sold nearly 12,000 and debuted atop the Compilation Albums chart dated Oct. 19, 2024.
The 90-track project is comprised entirely of previously unreleased recordings, including new songs, covers, remixes, live versions and unreleased demos. Other acts featured on the collection include K.Flay, Faye Webster, Death Cab for Cutie, The Postal Service, Mac DeMarco, Neko Case and TV On the Radio.
Good Music to Lift Los Angeles also launches at No. 5 on the Top Album Sales chart and in the top 40 on Top Alternative Albums (No. 16), Independent Albums (No. 20), Top Rock Albums (No. 20), Top Rock & Alternative Albums (No. 26). It was also the top-selling digital download album in the U.S. in the week ending Feb. 13.
As Good Music to Lift Los Angeles opens at No. 5 on the Top Album Sales chart, let’s take a look at the rest of the chart’s top 10. Kendrick Lamar’s GNX reenters the list at No. 1 for its first week on top (116,000; up 10,100%) after its physical release on CD, vinyl and cassette; The Weeknd’s Hurry Up Tomorrow falls 2-1 in its second week (29,000; down 92%), Dream Theater’s Parasomnia starts at No. 3 (16,000) and Chappell Roan’s chart-topping The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess dips 3-4 (14,000; up 24%).
Closing out the top 10: Sabrina Carpenter’s Short n’ Sweet slips 5-6, Billie Eilish’s Hit Me Hard and Soft is steady at No. 7, the Wicked film soundtrack falls 6-8, Stray Kids’ former No. 1 HOP descends 4-9 and Lamar’s Good Kid, M.A.A.d City jumps 18-10.
A lawsuit accusing Bassnectar (born Lorin Ashton) of sexually abusing three underage girls has been settled ahead of trial. According to court documents filed in U.S. District Court in Tennessee on Tuesday (Feb. 18), the case against the electronic music producer was dismissed with prejudice, meaning it cannot be refiled, after the two sides reached […]
Kid Rock showed some respect for Kendrick Lamar‘s Super Bowl Halftime Show performance in an appearance on Real Time With Bill Maher. He also said he doesn’t think it would’ve happened without the NFL’s DEI initiatives.
“To put it nicely, it wasn’t my cup of tea, but I got to respect it,” he told Maher on the Valentine’s Day episode of Real Time. “And here’s why. You know, I grew up loving, emulating hip-hop, all things hip-hop — break dancing, deejaying, graffiti, rapping, and so I understand the culture a little bit more than most. And when I say most, of course, I mean white people.”
Kid Rock continued, “So when you’re watching it, after, there’s a lot of things going through your head. You know, everyone’s like, ‘That sucked,’ this, that and the other. I’m like, man, this kid pretty much came out figuratively with both middle fingers in the air, doing what he does for the people who love what he does, unapologetically. And I don’t think he gives a frog’s fat a– what anyone thinks about it.”
“So I go, huh, it’s pretty much how I built my whole career. I gotta respect it,” said Kid Rock, who recently performed in support of Donald Trump’s inauguration and said the president is “one of the greatest men to ever walk the Earth” and “screams ‘American Badass,’ just by the way he walks,” and professed his love for Trump again during his conversation with Maher on Friday.
Kid Rock then attempted to theorize how Lamar — a frequent Billboard chart topper and 22-time Grammy Award winner, and the top Grammy winner this year (with five wins, including record and song of the year) — got invited to headline the Super Bowl Halftime Show, which made history as the most-watched Halftime Show of all time, with 133.5 million viewers.
“How did he get there?” he wondered out loud. “I’ve heard nobody answer this question. How did he get that gig? Jay-Z. What happened there? I think Jay-Z and Kendrick Lamar should both send Colin Kaepernick a Bundt cake and a six-pack of beer and a ‘thank you’ note with a bunch of money in it because without him kneeling and getting everyone’s panties in a bunch over the anthem, self-included, I don’t think that happens.”
Maher started to move the conversation along at that point, but Kid Rock kept going.
“And by the way, one more point,” Kid Rock said. “This was the epitome of DEI blowing up. Because the NFL was all this DEI, end racism, all this stuff. They got Jay-Z in there booking this. Kendrick Lamar goes out there and basically turns DEI into an IED. It’s all Black people, or all people of color, speaking to his crowd, in the hood, Black people. It was like the most exclusive thing ever and I’m like, ‘F— yeah, that’s awesome.’ I’m laughing my a– off.”
Later in Friday’s interview, when asked his about thoughts on democrats, Kid Rock reminded Maher he’d also once performed (but didn’t vote) for Barack Obama, and told him, “Half my band’s liberal, or gay, or Black, or this. I have one of the most diverse bands out there. Not because of this DEI s—. Just because they’re the best at what they do. We all love each other and get along.”
As the conversation shifted over to Kid Rock’s upcoming tour dates, he spoke of the need for an upheaval in the concert ticket business. The TICKET Act, a ticketing reform law meant to clean up the concert industry, was recently revived in the U.S. Senate after nearly becoming law in 2024. The TICKET Act would introduce mandatory all-in pricing, require refunds for canceled events and ban speculative ticket sales.
“In the last however long, it’s complete horse s—,” Kid Rock said of what it’s currently like to purchase a concert ticket, adding that “the customers get screwed.”
“What we have to really look at right now is what’s going on in some of these European markets, like France. They basically put a price cap on reselling a ticket of like 10 or 15%,” he suggested.
In another clip from the show, which aired during the “Overtime” segment and can be watched below, Kid Rock confirmed that he’s got a gospel album in the works.
“Early beginnings now,” he told Maher. “Doing a gospel album with my old friend Rick Rubin.”
Rubin previously produced Kid Rock’s 2010 album Born Free, which reached No. 5 on the Billboard 200 albums chart.