R&B/Hip-Hop
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As she preps her as-yet-untitled third album, Megan Thee Stallion is also getting ready to do something she’s never done before: hit the road for a full-on solo summer tour. Speaking to Good Morning America on Tuesday (Jan. 30), the “Hiss” rapper revealed that she’s planning to come to your town this summer. “Oh, we’ve […]
6LACK remains a prominent face in the R&B world due to his unapologetic candor and adept storytelling abilities — so much so that he has the opportunity to win his first Grammy Award this weekend (Feb. 4) for his latest album, Since I Have A Lover. A departure from his dreary, melancholic releases, SIHAL showcases 6LACK’s healthier exploration of relationships and, more importantly, himself.
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“For this one, it feels really good because it’s an album not really rooted in things people see as cool, which is like growing up, trial and error, maturity, and being in healthier relationships with yourself and the people around you,” 6LACK tells Billboard News after notching his Grammy nod for best progressive R&B album. “To get the nom for it is the icing on the cake.”
For 6LACK, he underwent a five-year layoff between projects and used that time off to recalibrate his psyche. “Working on those last two albums and doing those tours, I think I got into a motion of creating from a specific place and not healing up whatever those stories were,” he says. “So I would make something, promote it, perform it, live through it, and move on to whatever the next thing was. The next time I finished both of those tours, it felt like I had a lot of baggage and extra stress that I didn’t even need to have anymore.”
He adds: “So if we’re performing Free 6LACK, we don’t need to be stressed about anything from that era. If we’re performing East Atlanta Love Letter, we don’t need to have anything with us from those eras. So, when I stopped touring and was looking around at everything, it just felt like I was in a room full of clutter — just mentally. That was the main thing that made me feel like I needed some time off.”
The true eye-opener came while touring last year, which allowed 6LACK to see the calming effect his music had on people in real time.
“The tour has been the number one thing that’s shown me the effects of the album because when you make it, it’s one thing, and you can feel how you feel about it, but when you see it in real life, it’s like, ‘Ah.’ People are here crying, they’re laughing, they’re saying, ‘This is the best night of my life. This is the best show I’ve ever been to.’ It’s just really fulfilling to do something rooted in positivity and see the effect it has on other people.”
Watch 6LACK’s Billboard News in full above.
01/29/2024
It’s no longer a “Hot Girl Summer” as Minaj fired back at Megan with her “Big Foot” single.
01/29/2024
Looks like January is the month of beef — and we’re not just talking about Katt Williams unloading the clip on Club Shay Shay, the lively dancehall clash between Jada Kingdom and Stefflon Don, or the comparatively brief showdown between Teejay and Valiant. From Friday onwards (Jan. 26), no two artists dominated the conversation more than rap titans Megan Thee Stallion and Nicki Minaj.
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With release of “Hiss” — her first solo single of the year — Thee Stallion ripped into a slew of high-profile opps, some of which fans think include Minaj, Drake, Pardison Fontaine, and Tory Lanez. In response, following a near-48-hour spiral across several social media platforms, Minaj unleashed “Big Foot” — one part diss track and one part unhinged spoken word monologue. Naturally, this all sent social media into a tizzy, with both artists’ respective fan bases rallying around their faves while more casual listeners picked their sides.
As the beef continues to simmer, the worlds of hip-hop and R&B kept turning. Mary J. Blige pulled the ultimate finesse and got a higher billing on the jam-packed Lovers & Friends lineup (May 4), Ice Spice put her foot on the gas with “Think U the Shit (Fart),” and Snoop Dogg revealed that he’s been prepping a new LP with contributions from Dr. Dre.
With Fresh Picks, Billboard aims to highlight some of the best and most interesting new sounds across R&B and hip-hop — from Megan Thee Stallion’s blistering “Hiss” to SiR’s moody return to R&B’s mainstage. Be sure to check out this week’s Fresh Picks in our Spotify playlist below.
Freshest Find: Megan Thee Stallion, “HISS”
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Tina Snow is not to be played with. On this blistering address to the scores of slick talk and rumors that have hounded her since the turn of the decade, Megan Thee Stallion delivers a masterclass in Dirty South s–t-talking realness. Over an ominous beat crafted by Bankroll Got It, LilJuMadeDaBeat and Shawn Jarrett, the H-Town Hottie relishes in her courtroom victories (“I’m the Teflon Don in the courtroom/ They be throwin’ that dirt, don’t s–t stick”) and calls out the hypocrisy some men operate it when it comes to cosmetic surgery (“These n—as hate on BBLs and be walkin’ ’round with the same scars”). With flows switching at the drop of a dime and a cadence that effortlessly shifts from threatening to unbothered, Meg pulls off the difficult hat trick of delivering a hard-hitting diss track that is genuinely an enjoyable song, irrespective of its intended purpose.
SiR, “No Evil”
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For his first official single since 2022, SiR dives head first in to a grittier, more jagged approach to R&B Soundscapes. The Inglewood crooner finds solace in his lover, despite the unsettling things he finds when he looks inwards. “Pardon my superstition/ But with my supervision/ I see so much of myself/ My past, my pain, my pride and my ego,” he sings in the first verse. Taylor Hill’s brooding, dynamic production blends stuttering hi-hats with sultry guitars, making for an instrumental every bit as immersive as Sir’s lead vocal.
Breez Kennedy, “Who’s Been On Your Mind”
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Breez Kennedy — a 17-year-old rising R&B star by way of New Jersey and Florida — just might be next up if “Who’s Been on Your Mind” is anything to go by. Out via Standard Records/Def Jam Recordings, the guitar-anchored single finds Breez living almost exclusively in his falsetto as he questions his lover about who is truly on their mind. “Would be so hard if you replace me/ Only concerned ’cause you been changin’ on me/ Girl, did I not do enough?/ Do people change when they say they’re in love?” he posits. Conveying a level of ache and forlornness far beyond his years, Breez is laying a sturdy foundation for his burgeoning career.
Kimani Jackson, “Good Man”
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Having already experienced viral success thanks to his show-stopping MTA performances in New York City, Kimani Jackson is ready for his next act. On “Good Man,” a booming, standout track from his Icebreaker EP, Jackson dips into a soulful blend of bluesy R&B with hints of gospel and jazz to soundtrack his quest to be, well, a good man. In the same bombastic sonic vein as towering classics like “Sometimes I Feel Like A Motherless Child” and “It’s a Man’s Man’s Man’s World,” “Good Man” is a big swing — one that Jackson pulls off, thanks in no small part to his soaring vocals and pristine vocal control.
YoungBoy Never Broke Again, “Act a Donkey”
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“You invited, ayy, tell Charlamange he invited to Grave Digger Mountain/ All he gotta do is pull up on me, n—a, and talk to me face to face.” That’s certainly one way to open a track!
Although the Megan v. Nicki battle has taken up most of the last week’s conversation, a certain Baton Rogue rapper had a bone to pick with one Breakfast Club host Charlamagne tha God. Over a bouncy Hitmann-helmed beat, NBA YoungBoy unloads the clip on Charlamagne, who recently crowned him “Donkey of the Day” for his less-than-sunny outlook on fatherhood. “Look, I love them graves, we tote them Ks, got Glocks with switch, they tear you up/ I’m 4KTrey, I bang for Dave, enforcement can’t do s—t with us/ Came inside this game and b—h, I f—d it up, I’m a donkey/ And I keep it on me, plenty money, b—h, don’t speak up on me,” he spits.
Lyrical Lemonade feat. Teezo Touchdown, Juicy J, Cochise, Denzel Curry & Lil B, “First Night”
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Already one of the year’s best posse cuts, this cross-regional link-up thrives on juxtaposition. The song — taken from Lyrical Lemonade’s star-studded All Is Yellow project — opens with a somber piano-backed ballad courtesy of Teezo Touchdown. “Somebody help me sing / Somebody help me sing about me,” he coos in a pitch-perfect tongue-in-cheek tone. The track then morphs into a “Black and Yellow”-evoking beat over which Juicy J employs his Memphis-bred cadence to chant, “Let a n—a hit it on the first night/ I just wanna f—k, I’m not tryna fall in love/ Gon’ let a n—a hit it on the first night/ I’m a real n—a, you know I would never judge.” Indeed, Juicy. Indeed.
Maxo Kream, “Bang the Bus”
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Maxo Kream in general is always a treat. Maxo Kream dirty macking over an EvilgIAne beat? Now we’re cooking with gas. A hilariously horny track, “Bang the Bus” fits nicely in betwen the “Slut Me Outs” and “Pound Towns” of the past year: “Redbone, slim, petite, drop it pop it Megan knees/ I need a pound town brown ratchet ghetto bitch for me/ The police kick my door down, you gotta take these pounds from me,” he spits. Evilgaine’s beat never quite settles into a steady groove thanks to that smartly warped sample, but those idiosyncracies offer a nice balance to the general contemplative vibe of the track.
It’s been a few weeks since Lil Nas X made headlines for his controversial comeback single “J Christ,” and the singer is ready to talk frankly about the public’s reception of his latest track.
During his appearance on the podcast On Purpose with Jay Shetty, the rapper explained that he felt the messaging of his song was taken out of context. “[‘J Christ’] was this thing that artistically was just supposed to be like, I’m returning … I’m back like Him, you know what I mean?” he said. “It turned into this whole thing where it was me trying to dunk on Christians or something, and that was never what it was. Never.”
Lil Nas agreed with some of the backlash, saying that the anger over a video of him eating communion wafers “looks really bad on paper,” adding that he did properly apologize for releasing that video. “This [was a] thing that I thought was just like a little jokey fun video. I also had to think about how many of my family members are Christian, like my grandmothers and stuff, and like aunties and things like that,” he said. “And I’m like, ‘Wow, do they see this as that too?’ If they do, you know, that’s really messed up. And it makes me sad.”
But the rapper said the he did not apologize for the song or the music video because he stood by his intended messaging. “That message turned around and I didn’t know how to do anything with it. It wasn’t my chaos anymore. It was the world’s and anything anybody said was true because that’s who I am as a person,” he said. “I’m this troll and I want to make these people mad. And so everybody can run with that. And there’s nothing I can do about that. I can say as many things as I want, but knowing my history, they look right, I look wrong.”
The interview comes after Lil Nas X spoke publicly about the release of “J Christ” in a video posted to his Instagram. In the original clip, the rapper explained that those online claiming that he was insulting Christianity with his song were mistaken. “I knew there would be some upset people simply because religion is a very sensitive topic for a lot of people,” he said. “But I also didn’t mean to mock — this wasn’t a f— you to the Christians. It was literally me saying I’m back like Jesus.”
Elsewhere in his interview on On Purpose, Lil Nas said that he’s now reflecting on what his future releases will look like, where his music will go in the future. “You’ve been so focused and zoned in on what you’re doing, and you push your art out into the world and it’s kind of received negatively by the majority … but then also understanding why, you know, and having to see it through,” he said. “So I guess that’s where I’m at right now and my next move, you know, the things that I’m planning on right now, I feel like somewhere in here that’s gonna be this magical moment that I can’t even take credit for.”
Check out the full episode of On Purpose featuring Lil Nas X below:
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After bonding on The Apprentice back in 2007, Snoop Dogg and former one-term president Donald Trump have had an up-and-down relationship ever since. The nadir of their unlikely friendship came during the twice-impeached Trump’s term in the White House, during which Snoop released the Trump-bashing single “M.A.C.A. (Make America Crip Again).”
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The 2017 song featured the lines, “The president says he wants to make America great again. F–k that s–t, we going to make America Crip again… don’t you look strange having all that power but you won’t make change.”
“M.A.C.A.” was released seven months after Snoop parodied Trump in the video for “Lavender (Nightfall Remix),” which featured a clown version of the former reality star named Ronald Klump. The satire of current events had Clown-in-Chief Klump holding a press conference to announce the deportation of all dogs. In a Billboard interview at the time, Snoop ticked off a long list of problems he had with the real estate mogul who is currently making a third bid for the presidency. “The [Muslim] ban that this motherf–er tried to put up; him winning the presidency; police being able to kill motherf–kers… and get away with it (and) people being in jail for weed for 20, 30 years,” Snoop said at the time of Trump’s divisive actions and statements.
Trump, as is his wont, responded to the diss days later with an insult on his socials, referring to what he deemed the multi-platinum rapper’s “failing career.”
But in a weekend interview with the U.K.’s The Sunday Times (paywalled) it appears that one of Trump’s final acts in office before losing to President Joe Biden in the Nov. 2020 election left a lasting impact on Snoop. “Donald Trump? He ain’t done nothing wrong to me,” Snoop reportedly told the paper. “He has done only great things for me. He pardoned Michael Harris.”
Back in Jan. 2021 — just weeks after a mob of Trump loyalists attacked the U.S. Capitol building in an attempt to stop the certification of Biden’s victory — Snoop thanked Trump for his last-minute grant of clemency to Death Row Records co-founder Michael “Harry-O” Harris amid a flurry of 140 commutations and pardons doled out on one of his last days in office.
“I have nothing but love and respect for Donald Trump,” Snoop told the Times about his apparent change of heart about the former president who was ordered last week to pay advice columnist E. Jean Carrol $83.3 million in a defamation trial that is one of a handful of cases Trump is facing in New York, Florida, Georgia and Washington that have led to four indictments and 91 felony charges.
Snoop was signed to Death Row at the beginning of his career in 1993 and the rapper acquired the label’s catalog in 2022. Harris served 30 years of a 25-to-life sentence for conspiracy to commit first-degree murder before his sentence was commuted.
After telling Big Boy’s Neighborhood in June 2020 that he planned to vote for the first time because he could not stomach “one more year” of Trump’s chaotic rule, the rapper was more circumspect about where his ballot might go in what is expected to be another showdown between Trump and Biden. “I may have to,” Snoop said about whether he feels pressure to declare for a presidential candidate. “Because there are mixed views on that, so I want to see what the people say.”
The Breakfast Club officially announced comedian Jess Hilarious as the newest co-host of the popular syndicated radio show on Monday (Jan. 29). Hilarious will be joining current stars, Radio Hall of Famers Charlamagne Tha God and DJ Envy as the third piece to their daily morning program. Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest […]
As debate continues over contemporary hip-hop’s ability to top the charts, producer Sean Momberger reached into the past to help the genre regain its pop dominance — and score his first Billboard Hot 100 No. 1. “Lovin on Me,” which borrows from a 1990s Detroit hit, became Jack Harlow’s third Hot 100 leader, continuing the Louisville, Ky., rapper’s success […]
While things didn’t turn out the way he would have liked, Eminem had a positive message for his hometown NFL warriors on the Detroit Lions. “So proud of the @Lions,” the D-Town native of his favorite NFL team after the Lions fell to the San Francisco 49ers 34-31 on Sunday, spoiling the Motor City team’s bid to make it to their first-ever Super Bowl.
“Thanks 4 an amazing season!!!! We’ll b back!!!,” Eminem added about the team that put up a 12-5 season that tied the franchise record for most wins. It was a positive boost from one of the team’s most high-profile boosters, with Marshall, 51, showing his hometown pride during the game at Levi’s Stadium in San Fran in another picture captured by a fan in which the rapper — decked out in a Lions shirt and hat — holds up two middle fingers to a group of 49ers fans from his spot in a luxury box.
It was a playful gesture from the “Not Afraid” MC, who recently posted a jokey video aimed at Lions coach Dan Campbell offering to suit up if it would help the team reach the big game. “Yo Dan,” Eminem said in the video. “I’m reporting, I’m gonna report [in the] third quarter, I’m reporting, offensive line, eligible receiver, I’ll be the quarterback, the entire offensive line and the receiver, and I will throw it to myself and I will score a touchdown in the third quarter. Just give me a uniform, or at just least like a helmet. I already have a helmet, it’s not the one for football. It’s just a helmet. But yeah man, I’m here, bro. I’m gonna be there, I’m gonna be there that night, I will suit up and I will score us the winning touchdown.”
And while Em will have to wait another year to see if the Lions can come back stronger, another A-list, chart-topping NFL booster is potentially headed to the Feb. 11 Super Bowl in Las Vegas after the Kansas City Chiefs bested the Baltimore Ravens to advance from the AFC title game. In the family skybox for that one, of course, was Taylor Swift, who once again cheered on her boyfriend, KC tight end Travis Kelce, who had a monster day helping KC reach the Super Bowl for the fourth time in five years.
Because the Lions couldn’t overcome San Francisco QB Brock Purdy’s and company’s late-game surge, dreams of a superstar summit at Vegas’ Allegiant Stadium for the Super Bowl pitting Swifties against Stans will have to wait for a different year.
See Eminem’s tweet below..
So proud of the @Lions Thanks 4 an amazing season!!!! We’ll b back!!!— Marshall Mathers (@Eminem) January 29, 2024
Ice Spice be goin’ hard in Miami for her “Think U the S— (Fart)” music video released on Friday (Jan. 26), alongside the new single. In the clip, the 24-year-old is seen twerking and partying around the city, holding stacks of cash in high-end cars and vibing with her friends on boats. “B—-es be quick, […]