R&B/Hip-Hop

07 Jan 2025

Ice Cube Salutes Tyler, The Creator by Comparing Him to Fellow Major West Coast Acts

Ice Cube is a big fan of fellow Cali native Tyler, The Creator and how he’s able to be himself while also pushing the envelope creatively.

In a recent sitdown interview with HipHopDX, the rapper and filmmaker gave the Odd Future founder some high praise by comparing him to a couple influential West Coast groups.

“That’s L.A. That’s the L.A. people don’t know about — ultra creative individuals who won’t conform to the culture of gangbanging. They’re going to be themselves,” he said when asked about his thoughts on the Hawthorne, California rapper.

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Adding, “He reminds me of, like, The Pharycde. Here’s another: The Black Eyed Peas come from here. You’re going to always have those groups who are going to stay down with their own style and their own flavor, and going to win with it. Because they’re not conforming, they’re not being what you want them to be; they’re being who they are. And you gotta salute that.”

For what it’s worth, before 2024 ended, Tyler dropped off a freestyle to Kendrick‘s song “Hey Now” entitled “That Guy” in which he pays homage to Southern Cali street culture with various dances and the cadence he raps in.

Cube recently released his 11th solo album Man Down and is in the process of starring in and producing the fourth installment of his Friday film franchise. Maybe he can find a role for Tyler and the rest of the Loiter Squad, especially Earl Sweatshirt as Brad Pitt.

You can watch the full interview below.

07 Jan 2025

Here’s Why Fans Think Lil Baby Dissed Gunna (Again) On ‘WHAM’ Deluxe

Fans are speculating that Lil Baby has accused his former collaborator Gunna of allegedly being a snitch once again.

Baby recently released the deluxe version of his latest album WHAM, which includes four new songs: “99” featuring Future, “Idol,” “Running This Sh–” and “My Shawty.”

“Running This Sh–” stands out from the bunch because the song includes a line about a certain someone still being “a rat,” and it has fans speculating that Lil Baby may be referring to Gunna. “I don’t care what he did, he a rat still/ And I said what I said, don’t at me,” he raps on the song’s second verse.

Lil Baby has made no secret about how he feels about Gunna. He recently told Charlamagne Tha God that they don’t have a relationship anymore and Baby doesn’t see himself working with Gunna again.

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Gunna has had voices on his side, though. Young Thug’s dad has made multiple public statements in defense of the YSL signee, and the rapper’s lawyer Steve Sadow has as well. Most recently, responding to a Sportskeeda news article about a recent leaked Young Thug snippet in which he raps, “Never associate with a rat,” Sadow took to X to once again voice his thoughts on the matter.

“I was Gunna’s attorney but I am NOT speaking on his behalf,” he began. “This long post is solely to set out the truth. Gunna did NOT cooperate, and did NOTHING and said NOTHING to cause harm to Thug’s case… “

Adding, “Love the street rules and the dry-snitched comments. Oh. the fake outrage, same old sh–. Both were charged with RICO. Both faced 20 yrs in prison. Both pled to RICO. Regardless, I’m more than willing to accept the blame for the great deal.”

You can cop the WHAM deluxe here, or you can wait for it to hit streaming on Friday.

Billboard reached out to both Gunna’s team and his attorney Steve Sadow for comment.

07 Jan 2025

Busta Rhymes Shares Impressive Fitness Transformation With Mirror Selfie

Busta Rhymes is proud of the results of his fitness journey, and the Grammy-winning rapper took to Instagram on Monday (Jan. 6) to share a bathroom mirror selfie showing off his newly toned stomach and arms.

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“THE BLESSINGS DON’T STOP SO WE WON’T EVER STOP!! NEVVVVVERRRRR!!! GRAND RISING DON’T BLOCK YOUR BLESSINGS AND BE GREAT PEOPLE!!” he wrote in the caption, adding in a Slick Rick the Ruler impression. “‘WENT TO THE BATHROOM TO WASH UP, PUT SOME SOAP ON MY FACE AND MY HAND UPON A CUP. AND SAID A, MIRROR MIRROR IN THE WALL, WHO IS THE TOP CHOICE OF THEM ALL?! IT WAS A RUBBLE DUBBLE 5 MINUTES IT LASTED, THE MOREOR SAID YOU ARE YOU CONCEITED BASTARD!!’”

See his post here.

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Per TMZ Hip Hop, the star has last a whopping 64 pounds over the past year, thanks to his gym routine as well as a personal chef who cooks him meals while he’s on tour.

It’s also been an exciting musical era for Busta, who unleashed his latest body of work, BLOCKBUSTA, in November 2023. It was loaded with superstar guest appearances including verses from Chris Brown, Burna Boy, Kodak Black, Coi Leray, BIA, Young Thug, DaBaby, T-Pain and more.

BLOCKBUSTA debuted at No. 42 on the Billboard 200, while reaching No. 10 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart.

07 Jan 2025

Lonzo Ball Says He Didn’t Help Write LiAngelo’s Viral Song ‘Tweaker’

By now, you’ve likely heard G3’s (aka LiAngelo Ball) viral anthem “Tweaker” — or at least a snippet of it. Fans on social media have taken a liking to the song because it sounds like something out of the early to mid 2000s, when hip-hop music videos often featured fitted hats, sports jerseys and spinning chrome rims. “Tweaker” also sounds like something you would hear on a video game soundtrack or a song that your favorite wrestler would use as entrance music and some have made memes to drive that point home.

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Fans also noticed Gelo’s big brother, Chicago Bulls guard Lonzo Ball, is credited as a songwriter. However, the elder Ball brother cleared that mistake up on X, saying that the only credit he should get is for the cover art. “Only credit I deserve is the cover art lol G really that,” he wrote on X.

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Lonzo has been hella supportive of his younger sibling’s career pivot from basketball player to rapper in recent days, even playing the song in the Bulls locker room last week while he danced and rapped along to the now viral sensation.

“Tweaker” began going viral before it was properly released on streaming services Friday (Jan. 3), thanks to a clip of LiAngelo playing the song for streamer Neon.

As of press time, the song has almost 4 million hits on WorldStarHipHop’s YouTube page, and Lonzo Ball is still credited as a songwriter on the Apple Music app.

07 Jan 2025

Fat Joe Shares How Killer Mike Inspired Him to Come Out of Retirement & Why Barack Obama Is His Dream Interview

Before Fat Joe kissed 2024 goodbye, the hip-hop luminary had one more trick under his sleeve after enjoying a blockbuster calendar year: releasing his first solo album in 15 years. In December, Joe accomplished that feat when he dropped his long-awaited effort, The World Changed on Me, and spoke to Billboard News about the project’s inception.

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Despite its compact size, the 11-track set is a hearty entree for rabid Joe supporters. The BX behemoth flaunts new flows and deliveries while maintaining his steely wordplay, as showcased on standout tracks “Dog House” and “I Got You.” With features ranging from Babyface to Ty Dolla $ign and Anitta, Fat Joe holds his own alongside his starry guest appearances. According to Joe, his decision to venture back into the booth was courtesy of Killer Mike after the Run the Jewels MC clinched three Grammy awards at last year’s ceremony.

“He’s the guy who inspired,” Joe says, referring to Mike’s inspiration. “I retired. I was gone. I had an infamous phone call with Eminem, where he was trying to talk me into not retiring. ‘Joe, we need you. You’re one of us.’ I was super done, but I got back outside because of Killer Mike. The man won that Grammy.”

For Joe, a Grammy remains an elusive feat in his decorated career. As he explains to Billboard News, seeing Killer Mike reach the achievement in the later stages of his career galvanized him to where he wanted to pursue music again. “When I seen it, I called Dre, I was like, ‘Yo. It’s possible. Let’s get back in the kitchen and cook.’ So, he inspired me to come out of retirement,” says Joe.

While Joe remains a fixture in hip-hop for his rugged raps, he was able to flex his journalistic muscle this year after STARZ premiered his new talk show, Fat Joe Talks. Premiering last October, Joe interviewed myriad friends in the music and entertainment space, including Method Man, Mary J. Blige, DJ Khaled and more. Though those names are buzzy in the hip-hop circuit, Joe has his eyes set on someone bigger and outside of the space: Barack Obama. Having the former president recount his historic 2008 election victory would be a monumental conversation for Joe, an explicit check off his interview bucket list.

“I know what it felt like for me when he did his acceptance speech. The first time he won, he did that speech in Chicago. It was like millions and millions of people out there. I felt so proud,” remembers Joe. “I could not believe it. That was when Jesse Jackson was crying in the audience. It was ill to see that.”

Watch the full interview with Billboard‘s Carl Lamarre as they chat about Chris Rock’s involvement in Joe’s new album, maintaining friendships with 50 Cent and Ja Rule simultaneously, and overcoming his bout with depression.

07 Jan 2025

Travis Scott Escorts WWE’s Jey Uso to Ring With Apparent Joint In Hand: Watch

Travis Scott brought a new definition to his signature “It’s lit” ad-lib on Monday night (Jan. 6). La Flame popped out to WWE‘s Netflix debut of Raw in Los Angeles, where he made a special appearance escorting superstar Jey Uso to the ring.

Being a man of the people, Scott brought the rage to the crowd as he surfaced in the audience concourse sporting his hardcore champion belt while holding a Cacti drink and what appears to be a joint in his other hand. (Billboard has reached out to Netflix, WWE and Travis Scott’s reps for comment.)

Uso drew one of the biggest pops from the crowd all night when he showed up in his hot pink “YEET” attire with his “Main Event Ish” theme song bumping throughout the Intuit Dome.

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Uso and Scott headed to the ring and even dapped up ringside announcers Michael Cole and Pat McAfee before Jey took on Drew McIntyre.

Chief Content Officer Triple H was happy Uso didn’t take up Scott’s offer to hit the apparent joint, but he’s also excited for what’s to come with the Houston rapper and WWE.

“Everybody should expect to see more things from Travis Scott in a big way,” Triple H said following Raw. “As it relates to Travis Scott, I’d like to personally thank Jey Uso for just saying, ‘No’ on the entrance. That could’ve gone very different and I’m thankful that it didn’t.”

It was a busy night for Travis Scott. His unreleased “4×4” track debuted as the new Raw theme song and he got to bounce around and interact with countless WWE stars including catching up with The Rock.

Watch the clip of the rapper’s entrance with Uso below.

07 Jan 2025

Peso Pluma, Playboi Carti & A$AP Rocky Lead 2025 Rolling Loud California Lineup

After closing out 2024 by treating Miami to an explosive 10th anniversary lineup that included cinematic headlining sets from Travis Scott, Future and Playboi Carti, Rolling Loud is set to mount its seventh California showing on March 15 and 16 at Hollywood Park, on the grounds adjacent to SoFi Stadium, in Inglewood, Calif.

Playboi Carti — who debuted new tracks from his forthcoming I Am Music album during his 2024 Rolling Loud Miami headlining set — will return as a headliner for Rolling Loud California this year alongside Grammy-winning música Mexicana superstar Peso Pluma and Billboard 200 chart-topper A$AP Rocky. Other notable performers include Quavo, Bossman Dlow, Sexyy Red, Ken Carson, Destroy Lonely, YG, OsamaSon, Hurricane Wisdom, Molly Santana, Skaiwater, Ski Mask the Slump God, Ab-Soul, 03 Greedo, Larry June, Dom Kennedy, Kamaiyah, Blxst, 310Babii and more.

This year, Rolling Loud California will shift to a two-day format. Fans can spend the weekend experiencing carnival rides, brand activations, art installations and more than 75 artist performances across three different stages for $179 (general admission, no hidden fees). VIP passes begin at $499.

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“We’re excited to switch things up with a two-day format that keeps all the energy of Rolling Loud but makes it more affordable for our fans,” said Matt Zingler and Tariq Cherif, co-founders and co-CEOs of Rolling Loud, in a press release. “By cutting down a day, we can offer the same epic lineup, dope activations and unforgettable vibes at a price that’s easier on the wallet. At the end of the day, it’s all about making sure everyone can come together to celebrate hip-hop without breaking the bank.”

Rocky (2019) and Carti (2023) have previously headlined Rolling Loud California, while Peso Pluma makes history as the first non-hip-hop artist to headline any edition of the festival. Like Carti, Rocky also has an album that’s expected to arrive in 2025. In a Billboard cover story last year, the Harlem rapper described his long-awaited Don’t Be Dumb record as “the best album he’s ever made.” In June 2024, Peso Pluma unveiled Éxodo, his Grammy-nominated fourth studio album, which reached No. 5 on the Billboard 200 and placed 23 of its 24 tracks on Hot Latin Songs.

Rolling Loud Miami celebrated the festival’s 10th anniversary in style, with an enflamed Future, Playboi Carti’s bald backup dancers and Owen Wilson’s “FE!N” cameo emerging as the weekend’s defining images.

Passes go on sale on Friday, Jan. 10, at 12 p.m. PT, only on Rolling Loud California’s website.

07 Jan 2025

Jelly Roll Thinks He Can End Eminem & Machine Gun Kelly’s Feud

Eminem and MGK (formerly Machine Gun Kelly) have one of modern music’s longest standing feuds, but if one person can bring them together, it’s probably Jelly Roll. And on a recent episode of the Flagrant podcast, the “Son of a Sinner” singer said that he’s up to the task. 

While discussing how he’s worked with both the Detroit rapper and the “My Ex’s Best Friend” musician in the past, Jelly revealed that he hopes to someday “bring them together,” as he sees “so much more of them in each other than they know.” “They’re gonna get together one day, eventually,” he added confidently. 

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“I haven’t really brought it up to Marshall yet, ’cause I’m just still kind of glad that I’m still in that circumference to be able to have those conversations,” the country star continued. “I also gave [MGK] some perspective too: We all grew up watching Eminem take over the game early. If you got mentioned in an Eminem song, it was like being mentioned in a comedy special. You’re on f–king fire. You couldn’t be hotter.”

Em and MGK first started butting heads in 2012, when the latter — who was 22 at the time — referred to the former’s then-16-year-old daughter Hallie as “hot as f–k” on Twitter, which is now called X. In the years since, the two rappers have dissed each other in their music, and Slim Shady most recently name-dropped his opponent on 2020’s “Unaccommodating.”

“But when they ask me is the war finished with MGK? Of course it is,” Em riffed on the track. “I cleansed him of his mortal sins/ I’m God and the Lord forgives/ Even the devil worshippers.”

Even so, Jelly said that a truce between his two friends is “inevitable.” “I think that they’re gonna find each other’s heart more than they don’t,” he said on the podcast. “If they never do connect that way, [the feud] did more for both of them than it did to hurt either one of them.”

When asked how he balances his relationships with Em and MGK, Jelly noted that he simply stays transparent with both stars and their teams. The “Need a Favor” musician has worked with the “Emo Girl” artist on the tracks “Lonely Road” and “Time of Day,” as well as appeared on “Somebody Save Me” from Eminem’s Billboard 200-topping album The Death of Slim Shady. According to Jelly, neither of his friends has ever had an issue with him working with both of them, despite the two hip-hop stars’ famous beef. 

Listen to Jelly share his thoughts on Eminem and MGK’s feud on Flagrant above. 

07 Jan 2025

Kendrick Lamar Called a ‘Trash Rapper’ by WWE’s New Day During ‘Raw’

Kendrick Lamar has a couple more names to add to his opp list for 2025. WWE‘s Raw made its Netflix debut in Los Angeles on Monday night (Jan. 6), and wrestling tag team New Day called out the West Coast rapper in his home state.

“Think about it,” began the duo’s Xavier Woods. “The past six months y’all have been elevating this trash rapper Kendrick Lamar.” The heel turn was met with plenty of boos from the sold-out Intuit Dome crowd.

Kofi Kingston chimed in: “Boo him! We think he sucks, too. Boo him, yes!”

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New Day welcomed the cheap heat. “Doing this in LA is insane work,” one fan wrote on X. Another added, “Top tier trolling…”

Others online complained that the clip was seen only by those in the arena and Netflix subscribers who opted for ad-free plan, while it was cut from the streamer’s standard-with-ads plan.

Billboard has reached out to Kendrick Lamar and Netflix for comment.

It’s quite the crossover for West Coast rap and WWE fans. Fans will have to wait and see if the move makes it onto Kendrick’s radar, and whether the Compton rhymer offers up any response in his music going forward.

Kendrick wasn’t the only rapper in the mix on Raw. Travis Scott pulled up to the star-studded Netflix debut, as his unreleased track “4×4” was implemented as the show’s theme song. The “Sicko Mode” rapper’s appearance was first teased by WWE’s Triple H, who announced on Nov. 17 that the rapper would be taking part in the debut. Netflix then announced the next day that Scott’s music would serve as Raw‘s new theme song.

06 Jan 2025

Kai Cenat Tells Chat ‘The Beef Is Over’ With Ye

Ye (formerly known as Kanye West) and streamer Kai Cenat seem to be on good terms these days.

Over the weekend, the Chicago rapper posted a picture on his Instagram Story of a horse wearing a Bully stable blanket standing in the middle of the room Cenat uses to stream his popular Twitch show.

Cenat, however, seemed confused about the meaning of the picture and said so during a stream. “I don’t even know what this sh-t means,” he said. “Now, listen, I know he’s got an album coming out. And I’m not gon’ lie. I think I’m officially a part of the rollout. I don’t know, though. Brilliant move by him. I think I’m a part of the rollout. He made me a part of the f—king rollout, dude.”

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He then continued to speculate about what Ye was trying to tell him. “But it’s the most random thing. Like, I wanna pick at his brain, and I wonder why. Oh my god. He’s trying to call me a dehydrated horse. Oh my God. What can this mean? Is he gonna diss me?”

He added that he was going to hit Ye’s manager up to figure out what’s going on. Once he got in contact with the rapper’s team, they got Ye to send Kai an Instagram DM saying, “Happy New Year, family,” which then cause the streamer to tell his chat that their “beef is over.”

If you remember, back in March of 2024, Ye took offense to Cenat criticizing a care package of clothing sent by him and his team. Apparently, the clothes were too big for Kai and he complained about it on his stream. “I said a small, not an extra-extra large. The f–k am I supposed to do with this sh-t?” Ye then DM’d him and accused the Kai of being “controlled” and “a pawn.”

While Ye’s 11th solo album doesn’t have a release date, he’s continued to tease the album and released Bully‘s cover art in October.

Billboard reached out to Ye’s team for comment.