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After being kicked out of Game 1 of the Golden State Warriors versus Sacramento Kings first-round playoff game on Saturday night (April. 16), E-40 lambasted the Kings’ organization for “racial bias” when handling his confrontation with a female fan.
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40, known as a Golden State Warriors fan and frequent attendee, sent a statement to Billboard, recalling the incident involving him addressing the heckler in “an assertive but polite manner.”
“On Saturday night, I was subjected to disrespectful heckling over the course of the Warriors-Kings game in Sacramento. During the fourth quarter, I finally turned around and addressed one heckler in an assertive but polite manner. Yet, shortly thereafter, Kings’ security approached me, assumed that I instigated the encounter and proceeded to kick me out of the arena,” writes 40.
He also acknolwedges that despite his accomplishments as a musician and businessman, “racial bias” continued to be the norm and played an intergral role in his departure from the game.
“Unfortunately, it was yet another reminder that — despite my success and accolades as a musician and entrepreneur — racial bias remains prevalent. Security saw a disagreement between a Black man and a white woman and immediately assumed that I was at fault,” he says.
At the end of his statement, 40 said that he hopes the Kings organization will do a thorough investigation on the matter and that those “involved are held accountable for their behavior.”
“I’ve attended countless NBA games throughout my lifetime and have always prided myself in my professionalism, so this experience has been jarring. I was absolutely humiliated by the Kings’ security team and I’m calling on the franchise to investigate the appalling conduct that transpired.”
He adds, “I’m truly grateful for my fans and supporters who have reached out to express their concern and disappointment regarding these disheartening circumstances and I hope those involved are held accountable for their behavior.”
Watch the clip below.
Super-producer Metro Boomin embarked on a star-studded hero’s (and villain’s) journey during his Coachella performance Friday night (April 14).
Metro feels like he naturally sits at the intersection of Marvel and music, inviting his interconnected web of friends (who are chart-topping rappers) into a comic book world of his own design. “In this life, we all must make a choice, to be a hero or a villain. But let this be a warning: When Metro appears, you better know damn well which side you’re on,” narrated Morgan Freeman, with comic illustrations of Coachella and Metro’s thrilling arrival projected on the screens before plumes of smoke cleared them and descended on the stage.
It’s no wonder he was tapped to work on the soundtrack for the forthcoming film Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse. But across festival grounds at the Sahara Tent, Metro assembled his own Avengers for his self-proclaimed “Trochella,” and even saluted the ones who couldn’t physically be there like A$AP Rocky, whose pre-recorded audio of him officially introducing Metro boomed from the speakers. He emerged from a black cloak at the top of the stage, a full orchestra accentuating his sinister presence. But Metro’s not the villain in this story, as he brought out Future for a haunting yet victorious rendition of “Superhero (Heroes & Villains).”
Future zoomed through his hits — including “Wicked” and “Mask Off” — before Metro sent Young Thug a remote moment of hope in the midst of his RICO trial in Atlanta by playing “Metro Spider.” Don Toliver then graced the stage while donning sunglasses that resembled a mask, playing into the motif of Metro’s latest Billboard 200-topping album, Heroes & Villains, and playing “I Can’t Save You (Interlude),” “Too Many Nights” and “Around Me” off the project.
Thick clouds of smoke covered the stage once more, creating even more mystique around Metro’s set. “Legendary s— only!” he bellowed while praising fellow producer Mike Dean on the synths. He rolled out the red carpet for his beloved collaborator 21 Savage as they ran through fan favorites from their Savage Mode days and other beloved 21 tracks, such as “Bank Account” and “Knife Talk.” But there was one person who received a special dedication from him.
“Long live my mom Leslie Wayne… She with me right now, Lord Jesus, she with me right now,” he bellowed before leading the rowdy crowd in a sobering moment of silence in honor of his late mother, who died last June.
Suddenly, Dean cued the chaos back up with a dizzying array of green strobe lights before a faint, yet very famous falsetto caused an uproar for none other than The Weeknd. He performed “Faith,” “Escape from LA” and “Heartless,” which were all produced by Metro from The Weeknd’s fourth album, After Hours. With help from his close collaborator Dean, The Weeknd executed the same genius transition from “Heartless” to “Low Life” he debuted at Coachella just last year, when he co-headlined with Swedish House Mafia. Now, he comfortably assisted a billed act and shared the spotlight with other A-listers like Future, who joined him for “Low Life.” But when he got a moment to himself again, The Weeknd treated fans by performing a brand new song.
“Temperature rising, bodies united, now that I tried you in my arms. No need to fight it, no need to hide it, now that I’ve seen what’s in your heart,” he sang before letting his vocal runs synch up with the electrifying synths and Dean’s sexy saxophone.
21 Savage eventually returned for the first live performance of “Creepin,” which is No. 4 on the April 15-dated Billboard Hot 100. The remix’s guest Diddy made for another major surprise guest on the already star-filled night, which could very well have been just an average day in the studio for Metro Boomin.
Drake is in his feelings.
On Friday (April 14), the chart-topping artist took to Instagram to voice his opinion about AI-generated versions of his voice, particularly a video that features him rapping Bronx artist Ice Spice’s “Munch.”
“This is the last straw,” he wrote on his story, along with a post about the AI clip. The pairing of Drake with Ice Spice is particularly interesting, given the rappers’ history. While Drake was an early advocate of Ice Spice, born Isis Gaston, he unfollowed her on Instagram, something Gaston had no explanation for in interviews. However, shortly after, he re-followed her.
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Drake’s complaint comes after Universal Music Group asked streaming services including Spotify and Apple Music to prevent artificial intelligence companies from accessing their copyrighted songs. AI companies would use the music to “train” their machines, something that is becoming a cause for concern within the music industry.
In an email sent to Spotify, Apple Music and other streaming platforms, UMG said that it had become aware that certain AI services had been trained on copyrighted music “without obtaining the required consents” from those who own the songs.
“We will not hesitate to take steps to protect our rights and those of our artists,” UMG warned in the email, first obtained by the Financial Times. Billboard confirmed the details with sources on both sides. Although there isn’t clarity on what those steps would be or what streaming platforms can do to stop it, labels and artists alike seem aligned about a needed change.
UMG later issued a statement regarding the email sent to DSPs. “We have a moral and commercial responsibility to our artists to work to prevent the unauthorized use of their music and to stop platforms from ingesting content that violates the rights of artists and other creators. We expect our platform partners will want to prevent their services from being used in ways that harm artists,” it read.
Other AI covers making the rounds include Rihanna singing Beyoncé’s “Cuff It,” which sounded relatively believable, aside from a glitch during a melodic run.
While the implications of artificial intelligence poking its head into music can be scary for artists and labels alike, it’s hard not to smirk at Drizzy rapping, “A– too fat, can’t fit in no jeans.”
Being the Voice of the Streets, Lil Durk makes it a point to give back to the community through various endeavors while leveling up in his own career.
Durkio is looking to provide aid in the education department as Billboard learned on Friday (April 14) that the Chicago native has launched his Durk Banks Endowment Fund with Amazon Music’s Rotation, his Neighborhood Heroes foundation, and Howard University.
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The scholarship fund will provide a pair of Chicago-bred students with $50,000 checks toward their freshman tuition enrollment at the decorated HBCU.
“Change the narrative,” Lil Durk repeats in conversation with Billboard over the phone. “It’s stuff we never got a chance to do or somebody never did for us. A lot of people don’t do it as far as the music era that we’re in. In my age range, it’s more toward, ‘Let’s go feed them turkeys, let’s go feed them meals.’ My team came together where we turned it up a notch. I wanted to come up with something that was different and impactful.”
The 30-year-old OTF frontman went a step further and is also donating $250,000 to specifically help students hailing from Chicago eligible for Howard’s Graduation Retention Access to Continued Excellence (GRACE) Grant, which supports students financially in staying on course to graduate.
“For me to boost them up and get them to the next level, it was like a no-brainer,” he adds. “And this scholarship was a super-no-brainer for me. For me and my team, having my own scholarship is like a Grammy.”
Separate from the scholarship fund, Durk spent $100,000 on an all-expenses-paid trip for a group of 20 high schoolers to visit Howard University this week. The kids received the full college experience staying on-campus where they were paired with a Howard student mentor.
The recipients of the Durk Banks Endowment Fund will be presented with their scholarship on Friday when Durkio will be returning to campus and performing as the headliner for Howard University’s Springfest 2023.
Find the rest of our interview with Lil Durk below, which finds him touching on his own college aspirations, his anticipated The Voice 2.0 album, and more.
Billboard: Did you ever want to go to college or think about what life could look like if you went to college?
Lil Durk: Yeah, I always thought about it. It ain’t never too late. For me, it’s like, “Damn, they still going to school.” I got my G.E.D. books shipped in like two days ago. I just want to get my knowledge right … I just want to get smart all around the board. I was doing it last year but I wasn’t really focused.
I’m definitely taking G.E.D. classes, but of course, I’ma do my G.E.D. In my mind, it’s like keeping going on the knowledge. I wanna be super-smart and on point with everything from technology, music, streaming and any subject.
We just rebooted with a smarter Durk, a better decision-making Durk, and we just got off the ground. Me understanding the business and understanding the importance of life. Like, back then, I’d hear [about] a scholarship [and go], “Oh cool, a college scholarship. Great.” Now, I’m like, “Damn, we’re helping these kids out who I’m seeing ride on the bus going to school.” It’s important for the growth on my end, and just seeing it for myself.
How does the selection process for the scholarship go?
So we chose two people from my foundation and the rest gon’ be from Chicago kids who [are] struggling. So we made it where it’s all around the board helping out instead of sticking to different cities. They came from our struggle.
We always see it on TV or on the internet, “Oh, he gave out a scholarship.” But at the time, I didn’t understand. Now it’s gonna be bigger than life when we do it.
When are we getting The Voice 2.0 — what can fans expect?
It’s coming. I promise you when it drop, I’ma give y’all therapy. All the things going on and the world wondering, and then I give them the truth and the facts on the album — it’s gonna be mindblowing. You gonna do a U-turn. This is like our breakthrough.
There ain’t no pressure. The talent and the growth always been there. It just the things around it making it more bigger, like doing the scholarships, being more in tune with the foundation, sitting down with the mayor, and really giving back. That’s the part I was lacking on. I already had the music, now executing the plan is gonna make everything big. The biggest album ever.
I saw you post something about wanting to work with Doja Cat on her rap album. What’s the deal there?
She say she want to work on the rap album and I tried to tell her I wanted to be a part of it. You know, I’m all for that. Just like anytime somebody doubt somebody about anything, I just be like, “Send me a banger! I’ma smoke it and we gonna change the whole narrative.”
If I need help on a situation, and a SZA or a Doja Cat or an Adele could change the perspective on the female side, I know who to go to. Everybody could help everybody.
Swizz Beatz says you made his top 10 greatest rappers list of this generation. What’s it like to hear that from an OG?
Swizz Beatz is one of my mentors. He found me a therapy coach and [showed me] ways to flip my money. He put me in contact with Hov. He’s just a great dude overall. It’s never a favor thing. I might wake up tomorrow and he’ll be like, “I want you to buy this motorcycle. I want you a part of this Ferrari experiment.” That’s like my brother. I don’t want to say “unc” yet, that sound too old.
Future’s empire looks to grow stronger as he expands into the cannabis business.
Today (April 14), Billboard exclusively reports that the “Wait For U” rapper will partner with global branding and licensing company Carma HoldCo to launch “Evol” — his upcoming line of THC, CBD, and Delta 8/9 products. It will be available next month in California.
“As an artist, I strive to enlighten the world with different perspectives and experiences, whether through my lyrics, live performances, or other creative endeavors,” Future tells Billboard. “With Carma HoldCo, I can apply that creativity to build a new cannabis lifestyle brand that resonates within my community and delivers a high-quality product to my fans and a much wider audience.”
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“Future is one of this generation’s most prolific, influential artists,” says Carma HoldCo chairman Chad Bronstein. “His drive, creativity, and vision, in partnership with Carma HoldCo, will create experiences that will inspire consumers and further establish us as the new global leader in branding and licensing.”
Along with being behind Future’s “Evol,” Carma is behind Mike Tyson’s “TYSON 2.0” and Ric Flair’s “Ric Flair Drip.” Carma HoldCo’s products span 75,000 retailers across 40 states and 17 countries.
Future recently concluded his One Big Party Tour, which featured Don Toliver, G Herbo, Mariah The Scientist, and Dess Dior. Ahead of the Minnesota tour stop, Future canceled the tour’s final two stops for undisclosed reasons. “It breaks my heart that I will no longer be connecting with my fans in Kansas City and Minneapolis. I look forward to reconnecting with each of you at another time. Thank you for all your love and support through the years,” he said in a statement to Billboard.
Doja Cat and SZA are keeping the girl power strong well into 2023 with their new collaboration, a remix of the S.O.S. hit, “Kill Bill.”
The duo initially teased the track just hours before its release, when Doja told SZA that she “did something bad.”
Doja was previously set to feature on the original version of “Shirt,” but it didn’t work out due to her emergency tonsil procedure. “She had surgery, she had to have that emergency, like, vocal cord surgery and she wasn’t ready in the time that we needed to get the song done,” SZA explained to HOT 97 at the time of S.O.S.‘s release last year. “There was a crossfire between, I think, her management and my management and they had told us it was done, but it wasn’t actually done.
“It was just a lot of confusion,” she continued, “but don’t know. I hope for the best, and I’m still, like, a major fan of her and her artistry. And I think she’s so incredible and I would love to get her on the deluxe [version].”
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The duo previously worked together on their 2021 collaboration “Kiss Me More” off Doja’s Planet Her, which won the Grammy award for best pop duo/group performance, and also scored additional nominations for record of the year and song of the year.
“Kill Bill” peaked at No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart last December, and its parent logged 10 weeks atop the Billboard 200.
Listen to the new cut of “Kill Bill” below.
Coi Leray is one of the hottest new female rap stars, and now her father Benzino has weighed in on her dating life.
The TV personality appeared on Ray Daniels’ The Gauds Show podcast this week, where he expressed his hesitation about her daughter dating another rapper. He mentioned Chief Keef as an example, sharing, “If my daughter brought home Chief Keef, my life is f—ed. And Chief Keef is one of my favorite young artists, ‘I’m a Gorilla in a zoo’ and all that, but I don’t want my daughter with Chief Keef.”
However, the former The Source owner had a change of tune when asked if he’d be OK with Leray linking up with someone like J. Cole or Kendrick Lamar (both of whom have longterm partners and children). “Maybe J. Cole,” he said. “You know what? I wasn’t thinking about J. Cole. I could see me and J. Cole kicking it. Coi in there cooking and me and him sitting watching the game. I could see me and J. Cole doing that. J. Cole a good one.”
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While Coi is currently single, she’s been previously linked to stars like Pressa, Blueface, and Trippie Redd. On the music front, the star’s been heating up the charts with her hit “Players,” which peaked at No. 9 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Watch Benzino’s interview below.
Tyler, the Creator carves out a piece of chart history this week as his album, Call Me If You Get Lost, re-enters at No. 1 on Billboard’s Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart dated April 15. The set rebounds after the arrival of its deluxe edition, Call Me If You Get Lost: The Estate Sale. As the album returns, it becomes the first project to rule the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart in three separate calendar years.
The deluxe edition of Call Me If You Get Lost was released March 30 and adds eight new songs to the original tracklist. Three days before the deluxe release, Tyler, the Creator announced the impending project on social media and tweeted, in part, “Some of those songs I really love, and knew they would never see the light of day, so Ive decided to put a few of them out.”
In the latest tracking week of March 30 – April 6, Call registered 68,000 equivalent album units according to Luminate, a 617% swell from the prior week. (All versions of the album, old and new, are combined for tracking and charting purposes.)
Streaming contributes the bulk of activity, with 57,000 of Call’s total from that sector, equaling 77.97 million official on-demand streams of the album’s songs. Call also sold 11,000 copies, including digital download and CD editions of the new deluxe version – though the CD is currently only sold through the rapper’s webstore. A negligible amount of activity derived from track-equivalent sales. (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.)
As mentioned, Call becomes the first project to lead the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums in three different calendar years. It first reigned for one week in July 2021 upon its original release, and returned to the summit in April 2022 for another week in the top slot after the arrival of its vinyl editions powered nearly 50,000 sales.
Call’s high streaming activity causes several of the new songs to debut or climb on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. “Dogtooth” leads the pack and jumps 24-11 in its first full week of tracking, after its March 27 release allowed for only three days of activity for the prior tracking week. The song is the most-streamed Call title this week, with 11.7 million official U.S. streams. As “Dogtooth” ascends, it becomes the rapper’s fourth-best showing on the chart and second as a lead act. Tyler, the Creator reached No. 5 twice, with “Earfquake” in 2019 and, with 21 Savage as featured acts on Pharrell Williams’ “Cash In Cash Out” in 2022. “Wusyaname,” with YoungBoy Never Broke Again and Ty Dolla $ign, meanwhile, peaked at No. 6 in 2021.
With “Dogtooth” on top, here’s a look at all Tyler, the Creator’s placements on Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs this week:
No. 11, “Dogtooth”
No. 16, “Sorry Not Sorry”
No. 28, “Wharf Talk,” featuring A$AP Rocky
No. 37, “Heaven to Me”
No. 38, “What a Day”
No. 39, “Stuntman,” featuring Vince Staples
No. 43, “Boyfriend, Girlfriend (2020 Demo),” featuring YG
Nicki Minaj is getting animated, as she is set to both star in and executive produce Lady Danger, Amazon Freevee’s upcoming animated show derived from the Dark Horse comic book series written by Alex de Campi, Deadline reported on Thursday (April 13).
The series will also be executive produced by 50 Cent under his G-Unit Films and Television Inc. production company, in tandem with Brian Sher, Paul Young and Mike Griffin for Make Good Content. Starburns Industries will animate the series.
Following the announcement, 50 shared his the news and his excitement on social media, writing across two separate posts, “What you doing today, we working @nickiminaj South Side you already know what it is. Big Bag BOOM GLG GreenLightGang I don’t miss” and “B.O.O.T.I. (bureau of organized terrorism intervention) LADY DANGER coming soon ! GLGGreenLightGang Taking over.”
Lady Danger will take place in the year 2075, and follows a government field agent who is presumed to be dead, but is later resurrected as the titular Lady Danger. The character is described by Deadline as an ” afrofuturistic a–kicking Agent of B.O.O.T.I (Bureau of Organized Terrorism Intervention)” who, like many comic book superheroes, must hide her identity while taking down villains who threaten the safety of Earth’s inhabitants. Carlton Jordan and Crystle Roberson, also executive producers for the project, are credited as the series’ writers.
Lady Danger adds to a list of production credits for 50, which includes Power, BMF, Hip Hop Homicides, For Life and more. Minaj adds Lady Danger to a list of her growing animation credits, which includes Ice Age: Continental Drift and The Angry Birds Movie 2.
Doja Cat “can’t be boxed in,” writes Baz Luhrmann of the Grammy-winning rapper, who has been named one of TIME‘s most influential people of 2023.
It’s true: Doja is both unpredictable and exceptionally gifted at stirring the pot, and not just when it comes to her Gen Z-defining music. She also consistently grabs attention with everything from her daring fashion choices to her brazen social media proclamations, all of which earned her a spot on the publication’s annual ranking.
“She’s a rapper, a singer, a performance artist — she’s the canvas on which she expresses a character or an idea,” continued Luhrmann, who worked with Doja in creating Elvis‘ lead soundtrack single “Vegas.” “There’s no ‘brand’ to Doja Cat. You never know what she’s going to do next, and that’s exciting.”
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In addition to having the filmmaker write a brief tribute to the musician, who’s spotlighted as a “pioneer,” TIME also interviewed Doja about being “addicted” to the internet and her upcoming album.
“I might just mess with everybody and completely turn the tables on them,” said the “Woman” artist, who’s been trolling fans about the genre of her next project for months.
When it comes to her explosive posts on social media — which span everything from the times she threatened to quit music, slamming Stranger Things star Noah Schnapp for exposing her private DMs, or went on Instagram Live to shave off her eyebrows — Doja says she’s learning to curb her impulsiveness.
“Social media has been a really big part of what I do,” she said. “I’m just learning to control how much I put out, and the way that I put those things out.”
See Doja Cat’s TIME cover below: