R&B/Hip-Hop

While none of us will ever know what it’s like to go on a lavish island vacation with Jay-Z, to hear Beyoncé tell it, the soundtrack to her 2024 Hot Girl summer is totally relatable. In a new email interview feature with GQ, Queen Bey opens up about about why she decided to launch her own whiskey brand, SirDavis, as well as the musical influences on her Cowboy Carter album and what movies and albums she’s had on repeat lately.

Asked what is currently inspiring her in the world of film and music, Beyoncé said she simply loves and respects “all of the female singers-songwriters who are out right now,” ticking off a list that includes: Raye, Victoria Monét, Sasha Keable, Chloe x Halle, and Reneé Rapp. “I love Doechii and GloRilla, and I just heard That Mexican OT, he’s from Houston…. He goes hard!,” she said of the MC from Bay City, Texas whose 2023 breakthrough hit “Johnny Dang” hit No. 65 on the Billboard Hot 100.

In addition, like so many of you, she also loves Sabrina Carpenter’s first Billboard Hot 100 No. 1, “Please Please Please,” and added that, “I think that Thee Sacred Souls and Chappell Roan are talented and interesting.” Most relatable of all, though, was her love for Miley Cyrus, with Bey saying she’s mesmerized by the singer who joined her on the Carter track “II Most Wanted.”

“I’m obsessed with my backseat baby…. I’m a Smiler,” Bey said, referring to Cyrus by her fan group name and via a lyrical reference to the line “I’ll be your backseat baby, drivin’ you crazy/ Anytime you like, whoa/ I’ll be your shotgun rider, ’til the day I/ ‘Til the day I die” from their whiskey-soaked Carter ballad collab.

Back in March, Miley gave thanks for her feature on the landmark country-tinged album from Bey that features a galaxy of other stars — including her godmother Dolly Parton, among many others. “I’ve loved Beyonce since long before I had the opportunity to meet & work with her,” Cyrus wrote in an Instagram post that included the Cowboy Carter album cover. “My admiration runs so much deeper now that I’ve created along side of her,” she continued. “Thank you Beyonce. You’re everything & more. Love you. To everyone who spent time making this song so special thank you from the bottom of my heart.”

When she’s not listening to her fellow female pop stars, Beyoncé said she spins classics by Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye and the legendary Stax label, as well as watching the 2024 documentary about the Memphis soul label that broke Otis Redding, Isaac Hayes and Sam & Dave, Stax: Soulsville U.S.A.

The best movie she’s seen this year? The long-awaited, $1 billion-grossing sequel to the feelings-forward animated smash Inside Out 2. ” I think it’s brilliant,” she said of the film featuring the voice work of Maya Hawke, Ayo Edebiri, Tony Hale, Amy Poehler and Lewis Black, among others. She said she’s also currently watching the Game of Thrones sequel House of the Dragon and Lena Waithe’s long-running drama about life on the South Side of Chicago, The Chi.

It’s YMCMB for life, apparently. Nicki Minaj spoke out in support of Lil Wayne and appeared to take aim at Jay-Z after the NFL passed over Weezy in favor of Kendrick Lamar for the 2025 Super Bowl Halftime Show.

With Super Bowl LIX in New Orleans, Minaj took issue with Jay — who serves as a co-producer of the NFL Halftime Show — and the league’s decision to overlook her mentor and the Young Money leader, which sparked a fiery rant from the Queens rap legend on Monday afternoon (Sept. 9).

“Go & enjoy your fkng money b4 it’s too late … One n—a took a knee The other n—a took the bag,” she wrote while subliminally shading Hov. “He gon get you ‘n—-s’ in line every fkng time.”

She continued: “Got everything in the world. Still spiteful & evil. Disgusting. Be happy Abeg. Go be fkng happy n!gg@!!!!!!!! In rap business. In women business. When you got the Politicians & the police you good tho. Plus dat ugly laughy taffy alien … LMFAOOOOOOOOOOOO.”

Nicki didn’t stop there, as she appeared to blame Jay’s ego and hatred for Birdman, Drake and herself as the reason behind Wayne’s snub.

“Denying a young black man what he rightfully put into this game for no other reason but your ego. Your hatred for BIRDMAN, Drake & Nicki got you punishing Lil Wayne?!?!!! LIL WAYNE!!!!!!!!!! THE GOAT?!!!!!!!!!!! Nola what’s good,” she wrote. “Eminem stood firm on having 50Cent come out. A white man. S–t sad. House N—-R TINGZ. but it’s GOOD FI DEM!!!!!!! No loyalty ? Welp. then n—-z will keep son’ing you!!!!!”

Birdman even chimed in as the Cash Money president looks to have been disgusted by the NFL’s decision. “Smfh… These n—az Pussi @NICKIMINAJ @Drake @LilTunechi YMCMB,” he added on X. “I’m make these n—az respek us on Gladys… Hatin s–t for real.”

Billboard has reached out to Jay-Z’s reps at Roc Nation for comment.

The NFL announced on Sunday (Sept. 8) that Kendrick Lamar will serve as the headliner when the big game comes to New Orleans on Feb. 9, 2025.

Others outside the Young Money family have spoken out in defense of Wayne as well, including Master P, Boosie Badazz, Cam’ron and Mase. Lil Wayne himself is yet to publicly react to the NFL’s move.

Read Nicki Minaj and Birdman’s tweets in full below:

Kendrick Lamar was announced as the Super Bowl LIX Halftime Show headliner on Sunday (Sept. 8), and hip-hop staples spoke up about Lil Wayne being overlooked with the 2025 big game being in his hometown of New Orleans.

Master P voiced his opinion on Instagram, saying that Lil Wayne “should be part of this celebration,” as the No Limit Records boss serves as an ambassador of entertainment in the Big Easy.

“Salute to @kendricklamar for performing at the halftime show at Super Bowl LIX.. well deserved, he’s one of the hottest music artists in the world and has one of the biggest songs right now,” he began his post, before sharing his thoughts on Weezy. “As Ambassador of Entertainment in the City of New Orleans, I have to agree with the fans that @liltunechi #LilWayne should be a part of this celebration as well. He’s one of the greatest Hip Hop artists alive, still relevant, and he’s a New Orleans native. Let’s not miss this cultural moment in the South. Life is too short! We have to give our legends their flowers while they are here.”

Cam’ron and Mase returned with an episode of It Is What It Is on Monday (Sept. 9), during which they gave Kendrick Lamar his props, but couldn’t process how Lil Wayne wasn’t the Halftime Show selection. Cam put the onus on Jay-Z, who serves as a co-producer of the NFL’s Super Bowl Halftime Show, and speculated it could be due to issues with Hov and Wayne as rivals in the past.

“Listen, I love Kendrick Lamar… I hate the selection,” Cam began. “It’s in New Orleans and you don’t get Lil Wayne? That’s what we doing? You don’t get Lil Wayne in New Orleans for the Super Bowl? … There’s no reason why Lil Wayne shouldn’t be performing in the Super Bowl.”

He added: “It’s not really a secret, Lil Wayne had a problem with somebody before who’s kind of part of the organization running it. This is payback. Who’s Lil Wayne’s artist? Drake … Lil Wayne not to be performing in New Orleans for the Super Bowl is egregious and it’s gotta stop.”

Mase chimed in: “Hating at this age is crazy.”

Billboard has reached out to Jay-Z’s rep for comment.

Even though he’s from about 80 miles northwest of New Orleans, Boosie Badazz also shared his disappointment in the NFL’s decision to go with Kendrick Lamar and not any artists from the Big Easy or his home state.

“ALL YALL ACTING LIKE YALL COOL WITH HOW THEY PLAYING IT FOR THE SUPERBOWL SMH THE MOST CULTURAL CITY N THE USA( NEW ORLÉANS)ITS A SMACK N THE FACE TO EVERY HIP HOP LEGEND FROM LOUISIANA,” he wrote. “@MasterPMiller @BIRDMAN5STAR THIS SHOWS THEY NEVER WANTED YALL TO KICK N THE DOOR N THE FIRST PLACE CAUSE THEY STILL TRYNA LOCK IT‼️ SUPERBOWL 22 WAS N CALI N CALI ARTIST WAS ALLOWED TO DO THEY THANG N IT WAS A GREAT SHOW‼️BUT NOW ITS N LOUISIANA N NO LOUISIANA LEGENDS CANT DO THEY THANG #idontrespectit.”

Lil Wayne’s longtime engineer, Fabian Marasciullo, expressed his disappointment in the decision to snub Weezy for K. Dot.

“Confused. Disappointed. Angry. But most of all, inspired,” Marasciullo wrote to his Instagram Story captured by Complex. “Will never again be in a position or have the in a position where we are at the mercy of someone else’s decision. We will make the decisions.”

Now, this doesn’t mean that Lil Wayne won’t be part of the Super Bowl Halftime festivities in any capacity. The stage is set for Kendrick to take the stage at Super Bowl LIX on Feb. 9, 2025, in New Orleans. It won’t be Lamar’s first time taking part in the big game’s Halftime Show, as he was part of the West Coast celebration in 2022 alongside Dr. Dre, Eminem, Snoop Dogg, Mary J. Blige and 50 Cent.

“Rap music is still the most impactful genre to date,” Lamar said in the statement announcing him as the Halftime Show performer. “And I’ll be there to remind the world why. They got the right one.”

Rich Homie Quan‘s father and girlfriend have spoken out on social media following the 33-year-old rapper’s sudden death on Sept. 5. 

In statements posted to Instagram Stories a couple days after the star born Dequantes Lamar’s passing, his dad, Corey Lamar, and partner Amber Williams, both used the word “unbearable” to describe the depths of their grief. “Unbearable pain,” Corey wrote in white text over a black background, according to  the Los Angeles Times. “Lord please please please help me to understand this … let this be a dream.” 

“Yall pray for me and my family,” he continued. “I feel like I’m crushed into a million pieces.” 

In an interview with Atlanta’s ABC affiliate WSB-TV, Corey remembered his son as a trendsetter. “I used to tell him that it’s a difference in making songs and making hits,” he shared. “He made hits and I know that his music will live on forever.” 

In her statement, Williams thanked fans for the “overflow” of kind messages they’ve sent her way in the wake of Rich Homie’s death, the cause of which has not yet been revealed to the public. “This pain is unbearable,” she wrote, according to Complex. “I’m traumatized from a moment that’ll forever be in my head. I have nothing to prove because my love for my other half was ALWAYS shown. I had nothing to hide.” 

“Please respect me and the family at this time,” she added. “Our house is no longer a home. I’m completely heartbroken. 15 years gone. I’ll never be the same. This is a complete nightmare.” 

Williams has since shared a number of old photos and videos of her late boyfriend on her Story, as well as reshared condolences from fellow mourners. “Praying for your strength to be strong for those babies,” one friend wrote, which the Brows by Rella founder reposted. 

In addition to his friends and family, news of the Atlanta rapper’s death has also left much of the hip-hop world reeling. Playboi Carti, Quavo, Jacquees and Boosie Badazz were among some of the names who posted their respects to the “Flex” musician — who was dad to four sons — while engineer Alex Tumay tweeted that his late collaborator was “One of the nicest people I ever worked with and a true artist.” 

See screenshots of Corey Lamar and Amber Williams’ statements below.