R&B/Hip-Hop
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Thumbing through the Feb. 11, 2006, issue of Billboard — a 75th birthday tribute to Clarence Avant — brings back many memories.
Like my first encounter with Clarence sometime in 2000. Having heard about this revered gentleman, I happened to find myself standing near him at an industry function. As I timidly introduced myself, he shook my outstretched hand and said politely, “Yes, you work for that ofay [slang for white] publication.” I had no immediate response to that except to laugh (we both did) because he was right. At that time, inclusion and equity — two of Clarence’s lifelong missions — still weren’t climbing to the top of the music industry’s business charts. And Clarence wasn’t afraid to call out bullshit when he saw it.
Or when Clarence saw me having breakfast one morning and summoned me to his table. He relayed how disappointed he was in a major label executive who’d wrongly accused me of always writing negatively about him and his company. He didn’t have to (and I was unaware until he told me), but Clarence took it upon himself to step in, admonish the executive and set things straight … an example of his storied brokering, mentoring and counseling behind the scenes — and never done for public credit.
And when Clarence’s children Nicole and Alex reached out about surprising their father with a birthday salute in Billboard. I watched and listened intently as an unsuspecting Clarence looked back at his life and career — from growing up a humble country boy to becoming the pioneering godfather to the Black music community. During that interview, I saw and felt the unwavering passion, perseverance, dedication, joy and, yes, the cuss-peppered anger and frustration that drove Clarence as he worked across industry aisles advocating for opportunity and parity.
“I did it because there was no one else out here doing it,” he declared in 2006. “Black folks [in this industry] had never had anybody they could talk to. The white boys would only give up so much information. My doors were open. And I got involved.”
From then on, we’d chat over lunches or periodic just-checking-in phone calls during which the impish raconteur would regale me with colorful stories about the industry and other circles that he traveled in, from philanthropy to politics. And if I needed perspective for a story that I was working on, a generous Clarence would always take my call.
The last time I saw him was in April at the dedication ceremony for the South Los Angeles facility named after his lovely wife, the Jacqueline Avant Children and Family Center. It was both a joyous and very emotional occasion for the noticeably frailer industry giant. But Clarence still possessed his signature sly, mischievous grin and joking banter.
I joined the Clarence Avant fan club later than most. However, I’m thankful for the precious times we spent together. And for the key lesson he taught me, which I’ll continue to embrace in his honor: Keep paying it forward.
Young Capone, known for songs “What It Iz,” “Lights, Camera, Action,” “Dope Boy Fashion” and more, has died at 35. The rapper’s death was confirmed dead by his publicist, Aleesha Carter, on Wednesday (Aug. 16) via Instagram.
“This is with a heavy heavy heart that I’m even posting this. We made magic when we strategically put out projects, always,” she wrote, sharing a series of videos from Capone’s career. “‘Young Capone, aka Dopeboy Ra, aka Rara, was one of my first Hip Hop/ Rap clients, and I can’t believe the news I just got of his unexpected passing! A friend…a client and just huge in East Atlanta. This is not the easiest post at all. Rest easy, RIP.”
The news comes after the rapper — a protegé of Jermaine Dupri — was reported missing, and was last seen in Chicago. No cause of death was shared in Carter’s statement.
After news broke of Young Capone’s death, Dupri shared a picture of the rapper on Instagram and captioned it with four dove emojis, tagging the late artist’s Instagram account. He also soundtracked the post with the rapper’s Daz Dillinger collab “I’m Hot.”
Capone, real name Rodriguez Smith, earned a name for himself in East Atlanta during the mid 2000s in the underground hip-hop scene, working with Daz Dillinger and Dupri on material before getting signed to Dupri’s So So Def record label. After his signing, he released 2006’s “Lights, Camera, Action.”
As Young Capone, he released two mixtapes: 2010’s Look Who’s Back and 2011’s Paper and Politics. Under Dopeboy Ra, he collaborated with T.I.’s Hustle Gang collective on its 2017 album We Want Smoke. Capone’s final release, SlumMade 2.0, was released in December.
See Carter’s statement below:
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Post Malone shines with the week’s top debut on Billboard’s Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart as The Diamond Collection starts at No. 3 on the list dated Aug. 19. The collection, effectively a greatest hits compilation with many of the rapper-singer’s biggest hits, launches on the chart with 32,000 equivalent album units earned in the week ending Aug. 11, according to Luminate.
Of the 32,000-unit week, just under 31,000 units derives from streaming activity, equal to 43.4 million official on-demand audio and video streams for the album’s songs this week. Album sales contribute 1,000 of the remaining units, with a negligible amount of activity is from track-equivalent units. (One unit equals the following levels of consumption: one album sale, 10 individual tracks sold from an album, or 3,750 ad-supported or 1,250 paid/subscription on-demand official audio and video streams for a song on the album.)
With The Diamond Collection, Post Malone logs his fifth consecutive top five effort on Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums. His first four visits topped the list: 2016’s Stoney needed nearly a year to assert its three-week run at No. 1 in 2017-18, while Beerbongs & Bentleys (2018), Hollywood’s Bleeding (2019) and Twelve Carat Toothache (2022) all debuted at the summit and ruled for five, seven, and two weeks, respectively.
The Diamond Collection was released on April 21 to celebrate Post Malone’s eight RIAA-certified diamond songs, which comprised in its entire tracklist for its standard edition: “White Iverson,” “Congratulations” featuring Quavo, “I Fall Apart,” “Rockstar” featuring 21 Savage, “Psycho” featuring Ty Dolla $ign, “Better Now,” “Sunflower (Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse)” with Swae Lee and “Circles.” The set was re-issued on July 21 with 10 additional tracks that are not certified diamond, but nonetheless are also some of Post Malone’s most popular and successful cuts from his five studio albums, such as “Wow.,” “Take What You Want” and “I Like You (A Happier Song”) featuring Doja Cat.
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Beyond the bonus of new deluxe-edition tracks, The Diamond Collection’s debut traces to it pulling all the track-equivalent units (TEA) and streaming-equivalent units (SEA) for its songs for the week. As all the tracks on The Diamond Collection are also spread across Post Malone’s studio albums, the songs’ sales and streaming activity are assigned to whichever album has the most sales for the week. The Diamond Collection is Post Malone’s second-best-selling album for the week (only his latest release, Austin, sold more), thus, it draws the TEA and SEA activity for all tracks that are shared on Diamond and his non-Austin albums. (Should another album overtake it next week, for example, the songs that the album shares with The Diamond Collection would revert TEA and SEA contributions to that album, instead.) With many of Post Malone’s biggest hits linked to The Diamond Collection this week, Post Malone’s three albums from last week’s Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart – Hollywood’s Bleeding (No. 10), Beerbongs & Bentleys (No. 34) and Stoney (No. 46) – fall off the list.
Elsewhere, The Diamond Collection begins at No. 2 on the Top Rap Albums chart and at No. 16 on the all-genre Billboard 200 albums chart.
Doja Cat splashes into the top 10 of Billboard’s Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart as “Paint the Town Red” opens at No. 6 on the list dated Aug. 19. The track gives the singer-rapper her eighth career top 10 on the chart — which combines streaming, radio airplay and sales data into its rankings — as it bursts onto streaming charts and has a strong premiere at various radio formats.
“Paint the Town Red,” released Aug. 4 through Kemosabe/RCA Records, launches with 14 million official U.S. streams in the week ending Aug. 10, according to Luminate. The eight-figure sum sparks the tune’s No. 4 start (and her ninth career top 10) on the R&B/Hip-Hop Streaming Songs chart and a No. 11 arrival on the corresponding, all-genre Streaming Songs list. In the sales market, “Paint the Town Red” begins at No. 5 on R&B/Hip-Hop Digital Song Sales, with 3,000 downloads in the same tracking week.
Initial radio airplay shows “Paint the Town Red” landing at three radio formats — rhythmic, R&B/hip-hop, and pop — and giving Doja Cat the strongest debut radio week of her catalog. On Rhythmic Airplay, the new single enters at No. 22 to rewrite the mark for Doja Cat’s best debut among her 19 career entries, passing the No. 26 bows of “Like That,” featuring Gucci Mane, in 2020 and “Attention” last month.
Similarly, the superstar captures new career-best debuts on Pop Airplay and Mainstream R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay – at No. 23 on the former, improving upon the No. 26 opening achieved through her featured turn on Post Malone’s “I Like That (A Happier Song)” in June 2022, while a No. 27 breakthrough on the latter outdoes the No. 29 kickoff for the Doja-assisted “Pussy Talk” by City Girls.
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With “Paint the Town Red,” Doja Cat nabs her eighth top 10 on Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs. Here’s a review of her collection:
Song Title, Artist (if other than Doja Cat), Peak Position, Peak Date
“Say So,” No. 1 (two weeks), May 16, 2020
“Streets,” No. 7, Feb. 13, 2021
“Best Friend,” Saweetie featuring Doja Cat, No. 6, June 12, 2021
“Ain’t Sh-t”, July 10, 2021
“You Right,” with The Weeknd, No. 2, Sept. 4, 2021
“Woman,” No. 2, March 26, 2022
“Get Into It (Yuh),” No. 7, June 25, 2022
“Paint the Town Red,” No. 6 (to date), Aug. 19, 2023
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Notably, “Paint the Town Red” samples elements of another No. 6 hit, the Dionne Warwick standard “Walk on By,” which reached that peak on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1964. Thanks to the inclusion, songwriters Burt Bacharach and Hal Davis extend their storied writing careers on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, which includes penning other hits, including many recorded by Warwick, such as “Don’t Make Me Over” (No. 5) and “I Say a Little Prayer” (No. 8).
Elsewhere, “Paint the Town Red” begins at No. 15 on the Hot 100, the week’s highest debut, and No. 5 on the Hot Rap Songs chart.
Post Malone got the ultimate shout-out this week when his debut breakthrough 2016 single, “White Iverson,” crossed the 1 billion streams mark on Spotify and the man who inspired it gave Austin some love.
“Congrats on 1 billion Spotify streams,” retired 11-time NBA All-star Allen Iverson said in a video tribute posted by Spotify. “The whole world loves this song and I’m honored to be a part of it. Keep that same form, Post.”
According to the commemorative clip, “White Iverson” became the 10th song to cross that magic mark back on April 10, a momentous occasion that was celebrated with a memorial plaque sent to the rapper during his two-night stand at London’s O2 Arena in May.
In the video — which was part of Monday’s roll-out of the second episode of Spotify’s Billion Club: The Series show — we see Malone unwrap his latest shiny honor, and in typical fashion he wonders if he could shotgun a whole beer through it. He then promptly sets up a game of Backstage Plaque Pong, using the Spotify honor as an excuse to play his favorite drinking contest. He also takes time to tell the story behind the music.
“I made the beat and I wrote the song but I didn’t know how to work ProTools and so I took it over to my buddy’s house,” he explains as he, of course, pours a full beer into the plaque after promising to find a “cool spot” for his new hardware in the studio he’s building at home.
“It’s such a cool thing looking at something and saying ‘we did that… the team did that and the people like the music that much enough to play it a billion times,’” he said. “I couldn’t be more… I guess grateful is the word I’m looking for. It feels super cool that the song does connect with people, and I’m just happy to bring joy into anyone’s life when I can. It’s an amazing feeling for me, and that really gave me the confidence and courage to keep attempting to do what I love. I just appreciate all the support, and it’s the most beautiful feeling in the world for me.”
Malone also noted that beloved point guard Iverson’s shooting inspired his own legendary lights-out beer pong game — which AI also gave props to in his message — ending with footage of Iverson miming a jumper fading into Posty arcing a perfect shot into the suds-soaked plaque. “White Iverson” debuted on Malone’s SoundCloud channel in 2015 and then served as the lead single from his 2016 debut album, Stoney.
The singer is currently on tour in support of his Austin album, with the final show on his North American summer tour slated for Saturday (Aug. 19) at Glen Helen Amphitheater in San Bernardino, CA.
Check out the Spotify video below.
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