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Rollling Loud is returning to Asia in November. RL revealed it’s first wave of headlining performers at Rolling Loud Thailand 2024 on Tuesday (June 11) with A$AP Rocky and Tyla leading the charge. Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news Other artists headed to Pattaya, Thailand, include Wiz Khalifa […]
If you couldn’t tell from all the times he’s mentioned him in interviews or the songs he’s featured him on, Jay-Z is Pusha T’s favorite rapper. Pusha’s paid homage to Jigga many times in the past, but never like this. On Saturday (June 8), the Virginia rapper and the jeweler Saint Jewels shared pictures of […]
Metro Boomin continues to expand his superhero universe with the launch of his new comic book series, The Metroverse, which was announced on Tuesday (June 11).
His literary endeavor comes almost two years after the rap super-producer released his Billboard 200 No. 1 album Heroes & Villains and executive produced the blockbuster, chart-topping soundtrack for Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse last June.
The Metroverse superhero saga serves as a visual interpretation of Metro’s musical journey portrayed in an immersive comic universe, which he worked on with Joshua Frankel, founder of Zero Zero, and his partner Patrick Stephens. While paying homage to Metro’s love of comics, each issue will be illustrated by Greek comic book artist Vasilis Lolos, who previously worked on visuals for My Chemical Romance‘s 2010 album Danger Days: The True Lives of the Fabulous Killjoys.
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“It’s a dream come true to have my own comic book The Metroverse on shelves,” Metro said in a press release. “Josh and Patrick helped bring my superhero vision to life on these pages with the talented Vasilis Lolos making it pop with incredible visuals. I can’t wait to share what we’ve created with my fans.”
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Metro Boomin The Rise #1 will be available here on Friday, June 14 at 8:00 a.m. PT, with 4,000 units of the standard edition and 300 units of the signed edition. In the first issue, Metro “faces off against The Suit, a villainous media mogul with dark powers and even darker intentions,” according to a description on the official website. “The Suit, a master of media manipulation and corporate corruption, seeks to control the city through fear and deception. But standing in his way is Metro Boomin, armed with unmatched creativity and his magic amulet, he fights back with the power of his beats and his resolve.”
To celebrate the release of the first issue of The Metroverse, Metro and Zero Zero, in partnership with Complex, will launch an immersive pop-up, which will emulate the Metroverse world displayed in the comic’s first issue, and allow fans to buy limited-edition Metroverse merchandise and copies of the first issue. The Metroverse pop-up will take place on Thursday, June 13 from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. PT at Complex LA, located at 433 N Fairfax Ave. The first issue will be drop exclusively on ComplexShop at 9:00 a.m. the same day before officially launching at Metroverse.Media at 9:00 p.m. PT.
“The Metroverse, a brainchild of Metro’s, has been exhilarating to work on from beginning to end,” added Frankel. “With Zero Zero’s mission to transcend boundaries, we really honed in on the most authentic storyline and visuals in each issue that complemented Metro’s raw superhero vision. I know his fans are going to go wild for this series!”
The Metroverse Issue #1 Cover
There’s a lot that goes on in a Big Body Bes video. He might be posted up in his favorite bodega drinking an ice cold Country Club, curling an EZ bar dipped in flames, or breaking bread at a cuchifrito. One thing is for certain, though, he’s going to be outside with the back block […]
Rihanna isn’t done with music just yet. The Navy can exhale after Ri clarified that her recent “I’m Retired” shirt was just a fashion statement looking into the future and had nothing to do with the present day. The nine-time Grammy w inner caught up with Extra on the red carpet for her Fenty Hair […]
Tory Lanez has suffered another loss from behind bars. Raina Chassagne, the Canadian singer’s wife, has filed for divorce after less than a year of marriage. Per court documents obtained by Billboard, Chassagne filed for divorce from Lanez — born Daystar Peterson — cited irreconcilable differences for the split. She and the incarcerated artist tied […]
Flavor Flav has teamed up with Red Lobster a week after buying out the seafood chain’s entire menu in an effort to help save the company, which filed for bankruptcy protection in May. The Public Enemy rapper stars in Red Lobster’s Crab Your Way campaign ad, which was rolled out on Monday (June 10).
In celebration of the upcoming Crabfest, Flav voices the commercial, launching a pair of new flavors in Cajun Butter and Roasted Garlic Butter.
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“When @flavorflavofficial says he wants to rally all the Red Lobster fans the only appropriate response is yeahhhhh boyeeeee,” he and the restaurant chain wrote on Instagram.
The 65-year-old also hopped into Red Lobster’s comments section of the joint post to thank the fans for helping him go viral, which put the idea of a partnership between Flav and the company in motion.
“Y’ALL WE DID THIS TOGETHER!!!, All it took was ya boy going viral to get a partnership with his favorite restaurant,!!! YEAH BOYYYEEEE,!!!,” he added.
Red Lobster’s chief experience officer Sara Bittorf made sure to remind fans that amid bankruptcy claims, the company is “here to stay.”
“We love seeing our fans show up and rally for us, so when Flavor Flav reached out, we answered the call and invited him to join us in reminding fans we’re here to stay,” she said in a statement.
Per the Associated Press, Red Lobster filed for bankruptcy protection in May after shuttering dozens of locations across the United States.
However, the company is planning to continue operating its 600 restaurants. “This restructuring is the best path forward for Red Lobster. It allows us to address several financial and operational challenges and emerge stronger and re-focused on our growth,” CEO Jonathan Tibus said at the time.
Watch the Red Lobster x Flavor Flav commercial below.
Gladys Knight glistened through renditions of “I Heard It Through the Grapevine” and “Midnight Train to Georgia.” Patti LaBelle kicked off her shoes during a spirited rendering of “Oh, People.” Kirk Franklin took the crowd to church and brought Vice President Kamala Harris on stage for a twirl, and Charlie Wilson closed things down with an extended call and repeat after declaring, “Our ancestors are smiling down on us celebrating something that would have seemed unfathomable.”
The second White House concert in celebration of Juneteenth, held on Monday (June 10), was a joyous affair from start to finish. The performances were bookended by opening remarks from VP Harris and closing comments from President Joe Biden, who both stayed for the entire event that took place three years after Biden signed bipartisan legislation establishing June 19 as a federal holiday to commemorate the end of slavery in the United States.
“Next Wednesday, across our nation, Americans will come together with generations of loved ones to celebrate Black excellence and leadership, culture and community, resilience and resistance,” said Harris. “And to remember our nation’s history in full.”
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“The White House lawn’s never seen anything like this before,” Biden noted, before warning that “old ghosts in new garments are trying to take us back” in time. “Taking away your freedoms, making it harder for Black people to vote or have your vote counted. Closing doors of opportunity, attacking the values of diversity, equity and inclusion. If you can believe it, banning books about Black experience. Black history is American history.”
Kamala Harris dances with US singer Kirk Franklin during a Juneteenth Concert in the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, DC on June 10, 2024.
BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP via Getty Images
Musical performances spanned a gamut of genres and decades. Anthony Hamilton, Brittney Spencer, Trombone Shorty, Raheem Devaughn, Doug E. Fresh and Patina Miller also took the stage.
And while the South Lawn was alight with dancing and jubilation, host Roy Wood Jr. made sure attendees — including Billy Porter, George Floyd’s brother Philonise Floyd and sister-in-law Keeta Floyd, leaders of the National Black Caucus, second gentleman Doug Emhoff and dozens of federal and state lawmakers including Sen. Edward Markey (D-Mass.), Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Calif.) and Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick (D-Fla.) — remembered the reason for the celebration.
Between musical acts and his own humorous quips, the comedian-actor provided context by outlining the chapters and principal players of Juneteenth history. “It’s important to know how we got all the way from enslavement to the first Black woman vice president and the first Black woman on the Supreme Court,” he said, referring to Ketanji Brown Jackson.
Franklin told Billboard pre-show that because of his Texas roots, Juneteenth has been an integral part of his life since childhood. “Now, for it to be celebrated within the framework of American culture is a very important transition because it gives credence to those moments in time where revisionist history somewhat erased those valuable contributions that people of color made to this country,” he said. “When we have allies in every corner of the American experience, it makes these moments even stronger. When we can celebrate those that were forgotten, overlooked, that were not given the same opportunities and freedoms … Juneteenth definitely is one of those eras in history that I love to see that we are reimagining and rewriting so the next generation can understand the value and importance of trying to get it right.”
Being able to come together through music, he added, is gift. “Especially the kind of music that I do. To do spiritual music, to do gospel music … those were the sounds that were echoing through the chambers of the Black experience during that era, and they were also the songs that were coded and road maps to freedom. Gospel music has always been that beacon of light for our people in one of the darkest of times. So to be here to be the representative of the genre is very humbling.”
Jelly Roll doesn’t have to think too far back to remember his favorite moment of his career so far. Shortly after his surprise performance with Eminem aired over the weekend on NBC’s Live From Detroit: The Concert at Michigan Central, the country star gushed that the moment marks a new professional high in an interview with Entertainment Tonight published Monday (June 10).
“When I think about coolest moments of my career, right now at the top, there has to be this thing that I got to go sing with Eminem in Detroit,” he told the outlet. “I got to sing ‘Sing for the Moment’ with him, which is a record where he sampled Steven Tyler. I mean, just what an incredible night and I got to go do it in Detroit. It was unreal.”
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The performance was taped Thursday (June 6) and featured Jelly singing parts of Aerosmith’s “Dream On” to support Em, who also performed his new single “Houdini” that night. According to the “Son of a Sinner” singer, it was the rapper’s idea to do a duet.
“Em reached out, his team reached out and said, ‘Would you be interested in doing this since he was already there doing the secret tribute?’” Jelly recalled. “I couldn’t believe it. I thought it was a joke until I met Eminem himself … As soon as I met Eminem, it was like the coolest moment ever, man.”
His first meeting with Slim Shady was captured in a video posted by Bunnie XO, who is married to Jelly. In the clip, the ACM Award-winner removes his cap with awe and gives Em a big hug. “When the goat meets the GOAT,” the entrepreneur captioned the clip.
“I was giddy, like a child,” Jelly added in the interview. “You could see it all over my performance. Just the kid in me. I thought the camera was off of me. So as soon as I get through singing, I’m like, ‘Whoa,’ I just let this steamroller out. It’s really cool.”
The musician is currently in the process of finishing his new album, which will follow 2023’s hit Whitsitt Chapel. In preparation, he’s been steadily debuting unreleased tracks in performances, such as “I Am Not OK” on The Voice and “Liar” at the 2024 ACM Awards.
“This has been my whole life the last 11 months,” Jelly said in the ET interview. “I have been drowning in this album. I’ve never wrote more songs. I’ve never took it more serious and I’m probably gonna release more music this year than I’ve ever released in a year of my career.”
Lest you think Eminem doesn’t suffer for his art, Slim Shady pulled back the curtain on Monday (June 10) to provide fans with a behind-the-scenes peek at the making of the video for his “Houdini” single. The minute-long clip starring the rapper’s not-so-super alter ego, Rapboy, features the caption, “I do my own stunts. #Houdini video shoot behind the scenes – don’t try this at home!!!”
It opens with Rapboy doing a series of jumps off a bed onto a crash pad, repeatedly face-planting on the black mat you don’t see in the finished product. He then does another round of face plants — this time from a kneeling position — onto a dusty rug while complaining to the director about his motivation. “Oh, you want me to smash my f–king face!?,” video veteran Marshall says, adamantly noting that he can’t be responsible for what his cape does when his mug hits the dirt.
“Don’t do the recoil,” director Rich Lee counsels Em, as the Rock and Roll Hall of Famer argues, “that’s my head bouncing off the carpet!” Lee, however, begs to differ and shows Em on an iPad that he is, in fact, bobbing his head as he drops to the ground. “Can you make my nose not as f–king pointy?” the MC asks while changing the subject while viewing the playback.
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Cut to one of the oldest tricks in the book as Rapboy “climbs” a building and gets blown around by a wind machine, appearing to struggle mightily against gravity while actually just standing on a slight incline shot from the side. “Holy s–t, that’s actually not easy,” a winded Em, 51, says after repeated takes. “I need a break.”
The rest of the clip consists of Em doing multiple takes of set-ups where he does tuck-and-rolls and practices a fight scene. It ends with a blonde-haired Marshall kicking a door open so hard he loses one of his shoes.
The video that makes nods to Em’s 2009 “Without Me” visual features cameos from Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg and 50 Cent, as well as Marshall’s three kids — Hailie, Alaina and Stevie — as well as former SNL star Pete Davidson. The song is the first single off Eminem’s upcoming 12th album, The Death of Slim Shady (Coup De Grâce), which is expected out this summer.
In the meantime, Eminem landed his 23rd career top 10 debut when “Houdini” entered the Billboard Hot 100 at No. 2, kept out of the top spot by Post Malone and Morgan Wallen’s “I Had Some Help,” which has been at the peak for four consecutive weeks. The “Houdini” debut is the rapper’s highest-charting single since “The Monster” featuring Rihanna spent four week at No. 1 in December 2013-January 2014.
Watch the “Houdini” BTS video below.