R&B/Hip-Hop

15 May 2025

Megan Thee Stallion’s Attorney Shuts Down Tory Lanez Defense’s Claims of New Evidence in Shooting Case

Megan Thee Stallion’s attorney, Alex Spiro, has replied to claims from Tory Lanez’s legal team regarding what they claim is new evidence in the 2020 shooting case that allegedly proves his innocence.

Spiro released a statement on Wednesday (May 14), shutting down the new claims surrounding the case.

“Tory Lanez was tried and convicted by a jury of his peers and his case was properly adjudicated through the court system,” Spiro said in a statement to XXL. “This is not a political matter — this is a case of a violent assault that was resolved in the court of law.”

The statement came in response to Unite the People’s lead consultant, Walter Roberts, who hosted a press conference on Wednesday regarding Lanez, who is listed as an advisory member on the organization’s website, and the 2020 shooting case.

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Roberts claimed that he acquired new evidence in the case proving Lanez’s innocence. He said he was approached by Bradley James, who claimed to be Megan Thee Stallion’s friend, Kelsey Harris’ bodyguard, on the night of the July 2020 shooting. Roberts added that James allegedly overheard a conversation in which Harris admitted to having the gun during the shooting, and that according to James, Lanez did not shoot anyone.

Billboard has reached out to Megan Thee Stallion’s rep and Unite the People for comment.

Lanez was convicted on three felony counts of shooting Megan Thee Stallion in the feet following an argument outside a July 2020 party in Hollywood Hills. According to prosecutors, Megan got out of a car during an argument when Lanez shouted, “Dance, b—h!” and fired at her feet.

Lanez was ultimately sentenced to 10 years in prison, and Thee Stallion was granted a restraining order against the Canadian singer in January.

Earlier this week, Lanez was attacked in prison, during which he was reportedly stabbed 14 times, and suffered from collapsed lungs. He was transported to a hospital near the California Correctional Institution, where he was serving his sentence.

A statement on his Instagram account said that Lanez was stabbed in his head, neck, back and torso, but is now breathing on his own. “Despite being in pain, he is talking normally, in good spirits and deeply thankful to God that he is pulling through,” the statement said. “He also wants to thank everyone for the continued prayers and support.”

15 May 2025

Chris Brown Arrested in Manchester Over Alleged Two-Year Old Nightclub Bottle Attack

Chris Brown was arrested at his hotel in Manchester, U.K. on Thursday morning (May 15) over what British authorities alleged was an attack on a music producer at a London nightclub two years ago. According to The Independent, Brown, 36, was detained by Metropolitan Police at the five-star Lowry Hotel in Salford just hours after he arrived on a private jet.

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The singer was arrested on suspicion of grievous bodily harm, with officials telling the paper, “A 36-year-old man was arrested at a hotel in Manchester shortly after 2am on Thursday, May 15 on suspicion of grievous bodily harm,” without naming Brown, per protocol. “He has been taken into custody where he remains. The arrest relates to an incident at a venue in Hanover Square on February 19, 2023. The investigation is being led by detectives from the Central West Area Basic Command Unit.”

According to the paper, producer Abraham Diaw accused Brown of smashing him over the head with a bottle and kicking him at the Tape nightclub on that night, with Diaw previously telling The Sun on Sunday that Brown “hit me over the head two or three times. My knee collapsed as well.” Diaw has also lodged a civil complaint against Brown for $16 million seeking damagers for injuries and losses as a result of the alleged incident, according to The Independent.

At press time a spokesperson for Brown had not returned a request for comment on the arrest.

Brown has a long history of arrests and allegations of violence, including his 2009 beating of then-girlfriend Rihanna, which led to him being charged with felony assault; that incident resulted in the U.K. denying Brown a visa to travel there for a short tour in 2010. In 2012 he was involved in a brawl with Drake and his entourage at a N.Y. nightclub that injured eight people, followed by an altercation with Frank Ocean over a parking space in West Hollywood in 2013.

The singer was also arrested for felony assault for punching a man outside a hotel in Washington, D.C. in 2013, which led to him being charged with a probation violation and a sentence of 131 days in lockup. He was also allegedly among the men behind an assault on a man during a basketball game at Palms Casino Resort in 2015, an incident his team denied he was involved in. In 2016, Brown was arrested at his home on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon and, a year later, was court-ordered to stay 100 yards away from ex-girlfriend Karrueche Tran after she told a court he’d repeatedly threatened her. Among other similar incidents, Brown and several members of his entourage were named in a lawsuit over an alleged assault following one of the singer’s shows in Fort Worth, Texas in which Brown and several accomplices allegedly “brutally and severely beat” four men.

Brown is preparing to launch the European leg of his Breezy Bowl XX Tour, which is slated to kick off on June 8 at Johan Cruijff Arena in Amsterdam. It was not known at press time if Brown’s arrest will hamper his ability to play a planned series of June shows in the U.K. on the tour.

At press time it was also unclear if Brown was still in custody and it did not appear as if he’d commented on the arrest on his social feeds; a spokesperson for the Metropolitan Police department had not returned Billboard‘s request for comment at press time.

15 May 2025

Lizzo Opens Up About Viral Fame: ‘I Have an Anxiety Attack’

On the latest episode of Therapuss, Lizzo joined host Jake Shane for a deeply personal and often hilarious conversation about her upcoming album Love in Real Life, her complex relationship with fame, and the viral moment that launched her 2017 single “Truth Hurts” to No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100.

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“The sync changed my f—ing life,” Lizzo recalled of the track’s inclusion in the 2019 Netflix rom-com Someone Great. “I dropped ‘Truth Hurts’ in 2017. I think they put it in Someone Great in 2018 or 2019. I was like, ‘Okay, cool.’ That s— went so crazy — it launched ‘Truth Hurts’ to the No. 1 song. A song that had been out for three years. From that one sync.”

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The hit marked her first Billboard Hot 100 entry and eventually became the longest-running solo No. 1 by a female rapper.

Elsewhere in the episode, Lizzo spoke about writing music from pain, particularly her song “Soulmate.” “I was crying in the studio when I wrote it,” she said. “When I sing this song in a year, this will be me. I will believe these words, but b—-, I did not believe these words when I was writing it.”

As for her new project Love in Real Life, Lizzo described it as “a diary of October 2023 to November 2024.” She added, “There’s not one album that wasn’t directly impacting my personal life… This time I wrote a song that doesn’t have a happy ending.”

She also addressed the emotional toll of viral fame. “All viral aint good viral. The internet don’t know that they think all viral is good viral. It’s not.” Jake added, “It’s like all press is good press, it’s like no.”

Lizzo added, “Sometimes when my videos going viral, I have an anxiety attack… And I’ll be like ‘oh f—, what did I do wrong. I did something wrong, because I don’t read comments anymore.”

Noting it had been “two years” since she had read social media comments, she continued, “I never scrolled through my comments because that’s hell, but I saw TikTok comments got so mean. You know when I really stopped after the very backhanded compliments trend.”

The Therapuss interview also touched on Lizzo’s decision to stop using dating apps (“I got kicked off Hinge for impersonating a celebrity — it was me”) and the heartbreak of disappointing a fan during a meet-and-greet while exhausted on tour. “That was my first time realizing: Oh wow, there can be misconceptions and you’re not in control of it.”

Lizzo’s Love in Real Life is expected later this year.

14 May 2025

Snoop Dogg Drops ‘Iz It a Crime’ Album Featuring Sexyy Red, Wiz Khalifa & Pharrell: Stream It Now

Snoop Dogg’s longevity, work ethic and versatility can’t be matched by many — if any — in the hip-hop realm. The Death Row legend returned on Thursday (May 14) with his 21st studio album, Iz It a Crime?

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The project boasts 21 tracks with features from stars like Pharrell Williams, Sexyy Red, Wiz Khalifa, Charlie Bereal, Jane Handcock, October London and more. The title track from the LP fittingly samples Sade’s “Is It a Crime.”

Snoop stopped by The Breakfast Club on Wednesday (May 14) where he detailed how he’s still feeling inspired to drop music at a high level even over 30 years into his Hall-of-Fame career.

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“I’m an MC and I love to rap and I love to make music, and people love my voice and they love when I make great records,” Snoop said. “When I don’t make great records, people let me know that as well.”

The Long Beach native continued: “I hear all of that and it makes me say to myself, ‘I should treat myself like a musician and not like a rapper.’ If you a musician, you can make music until you die, but when you’re a rapper they try to put a cap on you.”

Snoop Dogg also previewed an accompanying movie for Iz It a Crime? during a private screening in NYC on Tuesday (May 13), but it’s unclear when exactly the film will arrive.

It’s been a busy six months for the 53-year-old mogul. He reunited with Dr. Dre for Missionary in December, as the joint album debuted at No. 20 on the Billboard 200.

The Death Row gospel label compilation, Altar Call, which arrived in April and was dedicated to Snoop’s late mother, also saw contributions from The Doggfather.

Stream Iz It a Crime? below.

14 May 2025

Styles P Says He & Jim Jones ‘Ain’t in the Same League’ When Asked About Verzuz Battle

Styles P doesn’t think he and Jim Jones are in the same category.

When co-host and Harlem native KP suggested that Jim Jones had better songs than Styles P when it came to a Verzuz, the Yonkers rappers respectfully disagreed and laid out the differences between the two artists.

“You’re entitled to that feeling,” Styles replied. “This is what hip-hop is about: You connecting with music that connects with you. If that’s how you feel, I ain’t mad at you for feeling that way. I f—in’ totally think… I know you’re f—in’ wrong.”

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He continued: “Me and Jim ain’t in the same league. Me and Jim don’t do the same things. I am a bar master. I am a lyrical technician. I been on joints with some of the best MCs in the world: Big, Hov, Black Thought, Talib… I bar sh– down. If there’s a lyricist or MC, I’m one of their f—in’ favorites.

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He then continued by saying he’s got love for Jim and respect for how he came up in the game, but at the same time feels a little disrespected by the comparison.

“I’m not here to make catchy hooks. … I don’t knock that,” he explained. “I’m trying to say some sh– that’s gonna make your soul move. That’s what I’m into. So when I say a verse, if it resonates with you, it’s gonna be some sh– that you may catch 10 years later down the line, so me and Jim don’t do the same things. I have the utmost respect for Jim, for how he built his career. I love Jim, that’s like my bro, but I think to compare us is an unfair comparison.”

If you recall, both rappers’ respective groups battled in one of the best Verzuz face-offs to date when The LOX dismantled The Diplomats at The Theater at Madison Square Garden back in 2021.

You can watch the full episode below.

14 May 2025

Quavo Records Two New Songs Live on Plaqueboy Max’s Livestream

Quavo appeared on a recent livestream with PlaqueBoyMax and recorded two new songs during their time together.

On Tuesday, Quavo sat down with PlaqueBoyMax in the studio during the producer’s recent livestream and hopped in the booth to record some new tracks live for the viewers. The first song, “Nun,” has a rambunctious trap beat, as Quavo drops some braggadocious flexes over soaring horns and hard-hitting drums. The second song, “Glacier,” is much slower, as Quavo sings his way through to the end.

The new joints from Quavo come shortly after he unveiled a posthumous Takeoff collab titled “Dope Boy Phone.” The new track came as the former Migos rapper makes a pivot into acting, and said in April he thinks he’ll eventually become bigger than other rappers-turned-actors like Will Smith.

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“They cant f— with me,” he told TMZ. The Atlanta star recently starred in High Rollers with John Travolta, which is a sequel to their previous film Cash Out that featured Sex and the City‘s Kristin Davis. Quavo was also in Savage Salvation alongside Robert De Niro and John Malkovich as well as Praise This with Chloe Bailey and Druski. His next starring role will likely be in an upcoming heist film called Takeover, which will also star Billy Zane. The movie was originally shot in 2022, but as of 2025 still does not yet have any locked-in release date.

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Check out the video of PlaqueBoyMax and Quavo recording two new songs below.

14 May 2025

Lil Eazy-E Says He Wants to Recreate His Father’s Voice Through AI

Eazy-E‘s son wants to see his late father make a comeback with the help of artificial intelligence.

TMZ spoke with the late rap legend’s son Lil Eazy-E, who spoke about some plans he has in store for his father’s legacy. “I have something special that I’m doing,” he said. “I actually just got a sample of [Eazy-E] talking to me. It kinda made my mind go another route of the possibilities and the things you can do with AI. That’s where this world is going to. You can’t close your eyes and ears to new technology. I look at it as doing something special movie wise. I look at it as doing something special audio wise.”

He then revealed his concept for a new project where an AI model helps him tell both his father’s life story and his life story in a parallel universe. “I have a project that I’ve been dreaming about doing and it simultaneously tells you the story of his life and my life,” he said. “So, I want those times to where I can look back or have that individual talk to me and kinda guide me, and AI would be the best way of doing that.”

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The late legend’s son added that he’s partnered with The Ace Industries in Las Vegas for the project, saying the organization “helped me build it” and “sent me a couple of samples, and it was touching, he was actually talking to me.”

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During the unveiling of Eazy’s street sign in Compton, DJ Yella was asked about using AI to recreate his former N.W.A. group member’s voice by TMZ, and the producer seemed skeptical. “I think somebody’s working on something like that with Eazy’s voice,” he said. “I haven’t heard it yet, but they said it worked great. I’m like, ‘I gotta hear it to believe it.’”

14 May 2025

All the Guest Stars on Kendrick Lamar & SZA’s Grand National Tour So Far

Kendrick Lamar and SZA have been sharing the spotlight with each other on their current Grand National Tour, and the “All the Stars” collaborators are bringing their A-list friends into the fold during select shows.

Playboi Carti was the first guest performer, popping out for “Good Credit” at the Atlanta show last month after Dot had been performing the MUSIC track dolo since the tour’s opening night in Minneapolis. Both Baby Keem and Kaytranada came out as surprise guests, performing “Family Ties” and Teedra Moses’ “Be Your Girl,” respectively, during the concert at the “Kill Bill” singer’s home state of New Jersey earlier this month. While SZA performed her “Consideration” collaboration with Rihanna from the latter’s iconic 2016 album Anti at the Jersey stop, we could only hope and dream that RiRi would one day join her on stage.

The stars have also been spotted on the sidelines, as videos of Pusha T attending their Foxborough show went viral.

And the upcoming trio of shows in Lamar’s hometown of Los Angeles might be looking like The Pop Out: Ken & Friends concert he hosted on Juneteenth last year, when the “Not Like Us” rapper brought out Mustard – who’s currently opening this tour and was one of the all-star guests during his Super Bowl Halftime Show performance earlier this year – Ty Dolla $ign, Tyler, the Creator, Roddy Ricch, YG, his former (and SZA’s current) TDE labelmates ScHoolboy Q, Jay Rock, Ab-Soul and many more.

Billboard rounded up all the guest stars who’ve popped up at the Grand National Tour, in order of oldest to most recent appearance.

14 May 2025

Joey Bada$$ Says Jay-Z Wanted to Manage Him Early in His Career

Joey Badass sat down with Red Bull for a story published Tuesday (May 13), during which he talked about almost signing with Jay-Z‘s Roc Nation and his relationship with 50 Cent.

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When he talked about almost signing with Roc Nation back in 2010, Joey blamed it on an old manager and a lack of communication because Jay-Z didn’t want to sign him to a label deal, he actually wanted to manage the up-and-coming Brooklyn rapper. “It was a chain of communication that I didn’t have any part in,” he revealed. “Jay is my favorite rapper, even to this day, and within a year of being in the game, he wanted to sign me. But he didn’t want to sign me as an artist, he wanted to manage me. I had a manager at the time and I always wonder if that’s how it got botched.”

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Billboard reached out to Roc Nation for comment.

He then talked about his role as Unique on Power Book III: Raising Kanan and what he’s learned working with the show’s executive producer 50 Cent. “He’s a very interesting individual; he surprised me,” Joey said of the Queens mogul. “Not that I didn’t think he was smart, but I think he’s much smarter than people may think. His mind is very interesting and very multidimensional. He reminds me a lot of myself, like, how he thinks. It was really dope to have some one-on-one time with him to understand his level of thought.”

When it comes to playing Unique — a rival drug dealer to Kanan and his mother Raquel — he says he’s in character as soon as he puts on his vintage early ’90s clothes on. “As soon as I land on set and I put them clothes on, it’s just time, you know? I’m in there. I’m in that mindset, I’m in that mode. I’m in that frame of thought.”

14 May 2025

Busta Rhymes Wants to Be Featured on Cardi B’s Upcoming Album: ‘Let Me Know When You Ready Queen’

From Missy Elliott to Lil Wayne, Busta Rhymes has collaborated with plenty of icons throughout his decorated career, but now he’s got his eyes on potentially working with a fellow New York-bred rap titan in Cardi B.

Bus-A-Bus linked up with Cardi B at Madison Square Garden on Monday night (May 12) as the pair was courtside taking in the New York Knicks playoff action, with NYK defeating the Boston Celtics to come within a win of advancing to the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time since 2000.

Busta reposted a photo chopping it up with Cardi outside MSG on his Instagram early Wednesday (May 14), in which he posed the idea of hopping on a record with the Grammy-winning rapper.

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“THE BLESSINGS DON’T STOP SO WE WON’T EVER STOP!! NEVERRRRRRR EVER EVER EVER,” he wrote. “SALUTE TO THE ONE OF THE BIGGEST QUEENS OF THE CULTURE @iamcardib WHAT IF ME & CARDI COOKED UP??!! I GOT YOU QUEEN, LET ME KNOW WHEN YOU READY QUEEN!!”

Chuck D and plenty of fans lent their stamps of approval in Busta’s comment section of the rapper’s manifestations.

“Yesss, we’re here for this collaboration,” one fan wrote while another added, “YEEEESSSSSSSS ITS GOTTA HAPPEN!”

Cardi made headlines with her courtside MSG appearance, which seemingly hard launched her new relationship with NFL star Stefon Diggs, who was sitting with the Bronx bombshell.

Busta Rhymes released his seven-track Dragon Season…. Equinox project earlier this year, while Cardi B has continued to tease her long-awaited sophomore album.

During an IG Live session at the top of May, Cardi blamed the delay of her album on feature verses from guests taking too long.

“I really need these f–king features,” she said in a repost of the session. “And it’s like I’m not really trying to press or go crazy on these artists because I love them down. But it’s like come on now! I need that! I need that right now! Helloooo! Y’all don’t want to miss this opportunity. I’ll sing this s–t myself! But I really need y’all and I need y’all to hurry up and I love y’all. I feel like nobody want to miss being on this album.”