State Champ Radio R&B/Hip-Hop
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SZA shared her thoughts about Drake in a new interview on Friday (Dec. 9) after the rapper’s womanizing ways were lampooned on Saturday Night Live.
The skit, which aired last Saturday (Dec. 3), depicted host Keke Palmer and numerous female SNL cast members launching “United Tingz of Aubrey,” a class-action lawsuit of Drake’s exes, former flings and random women he’s used as inspiration for his music. Of course, the irony is that SZA, who served as the episode’s musical guest, actually is one of the Honestly, Nevermind rapper’s exes.
“In a strange way, I was like, ‘Did they know?’” she said in a sit-down with Audacy. “But they didn’t ask me to be in it. Nobody said anything. … I feel like Drake has a Regina George quality to him where it’s just kind of like, ‘Have you or anyone you know been personally victimized?’ He’s like a cool kid, you know. When you’re the popular kid in school, it’s entertaining. It’s entertaining, but you sometimes are taking losses in the midst of that entertainment. The honesty, I respect that. But I definitely laughed real hard…I cackled.”
SZA first confirmed she and Drake had briefly been an item in the late 2000s after he dropped her name in “Mr. Right Now,” his 2020 collab with 21 Savage and Metro Boomin. And despite finding humor in the SNL sketch, the R&B star insisted there’s nothing but peace with her superstar ex these days.
“We’re cool. And we’ve always been cool,” she continued. “It’s never been weird. It didn’t come completely out of the blue when he let me know. I didn’t know it was a song with 21 [Savage] or anything like that. But anytime he’s ever mentioned me, it’s always been positive. He’s never said anything negative about me. I’m grateful for that. I think highly of him…He’s King Drake.”
The same day the interview aired, SZA finally dropped her long-awaited sophomore album, SOS, more than five years after releasing her 2017 debut Ctrl.
Listen to SZA’s full interview on Audacy below.
A$AP Rocky announced that his new album is finished before taking the stage to perform some new songs at Amazon Music Live Thursday night (Dec. 8).
He made the PSA during on Amazon Prime Video. “Thursday night football. Amazon. My first time back on the stage. Album’s finished, Don’t Be Dumb. Let’s go!” the rapper exclaimed. Rocky later returned to the screen for those watching Amazon Music Live at home, the streamer’s live concert series hosted by 2 Chainz, to perform four unreleased songs from Don’t Be Dumb as well as some fan-favorite classics such as “Everyday,” “Yamborghini High” and “Lord Pretty Flacko Jodye 2 (LPFJ2).”
Rocky ended the concert on a solemn note when he gave a heartfelt speech about the rappers who’ve lost their lives, before debuting Same Problems,” one of his new songs. “Rest in peace to everybody we lost in hip-hop throughout the years. You gotta know that we the highest statistic of losing people, no other genre loses rockstars, pop singers and country artists. Hip-hoppers, we get killed and shot every day,” he said. “Overdoses, all type of unfortunate events. So this next song is dedicated to everybody we lost and anybody who ever lost somebody, you know what I’m saying.”
Images of Takeoff, PnB Rock, Young Dolph, The Notorious B.I.G., Tupac, Juice WRLD, XXXTentacion, Pop Smoke, A$AP Yams and more flashed on the screens on either side of him while Rocky repeatedly asked “How many problems get solved?” over an eerie piano beat.
His partner Rihanna, Tyler, the Creator, Snoh Aalegra, Buddy, Earl Sweatshirt and more stars were in attendance. Rocky also brought out rapper $NOT to perform “Doja,” AWGE hip-hop duo THOTTWAT for their joint “Shirt” performance, and host 2 Chainz to run back their Billboard Hot 100 No. 8 hit “F–kin’ Problems,” which also features Drake and Kendrick Lamar.
Watch A$AP Rocky’s performance of “Same Problems” above.
A new R. Kelly album titled I Admit It was uploaded to streaming services Friday (Dec. 9), but it didn’t come from Kelly’s team or his label.
While the release credits Sony Music’s Legacy Recordings as the label, a rep for Legacy Recordings said the company was not involved in the project. Furthermore, sources at Legacy say the album came as a total surprise and they are inquiring with streamers such as Spotify, Apple Music and Amazon Music about how the album was delivered to them.
The album was uploaded by Universal Music Group-owned distributor Ingrooves, leaving involved parties scrambling to figure out what went wrong. Once Ingrooves executives learned of the release, according to a source familiar with the situation, they set about requesting that streaming services pull the release. By 3 p.m. EST on Friday it was down.
Now, the source says, Ingrooves is in the process of investigating what went wrong internally and is severing a relationship with the label Real Talk Entertainment, which released the album on a sub-label called Legacy Recordings — the same name as Sony’s imprint. Real Talk could not be reached for immediate comment.
In January 2019, Sony and Kelly agreed to part ways days after Lifetime released the Surviving R. Kelly documentary that detailed sexual misconduct allegations against the three-time Grammy-winning singer. Sony still represents Kelly’s catalog of music, however, including his early recordings under Zomba/Jive and then later RCA, both of which are Sony-owned imprints.
The 13-track project arrives as the disgraced R&B singer (real name Robert Sylvester Kelly) is serving a 30-year prison sentence after he was convicted of racketeering and sex trafficking charges in a New York trial last June. In September, during another trial in his hometown of Chicago, Kelly, 55, was convicted of several child pornography charges.
The album’s title track, “I Admit It,” was originally released as a 19-minute track on SoundCloud in 2018. It is now featured as three separate songs, each titled “I Admit It (I Did It),” at the end of the album which addresses the sexual abuse allegations against him over the last few decades and its virulent effects on his career.
Kelly’s attorney, Jennifer Bonjean, did not respond to Billboard‘s request for comment by the time of publishing. But she told Variety earlier Friday that the singer’s team is not behind the release and that he “is having intellectual property stolen from him.”
The last studio album Kelly released was a holiday album titled 12 Nights of Christmas on Oct. 21, 2016. It’s his final album on RCA Records before the label removed him in the wake of the Surviving R. Kelly doc.
This story is developing.
We’re still two weeks away from Christmas but the gifts keep coming early for music fans with long-awaited albums and surprise singles arriving from their favorite stars. And as always, Billboard wants to know which new release you’re most grateful for this holiday season!
On Friday (Dec. 9), SZA‘s hotly anticipated sophomore album SOS finally arrived after a five-and-a-half year wait. Preceded by lead single “Shirt” and a tease of “Nobody Gets Me,” the studio set follows the recent Billboard cover star‘s smash 2017 debut album Ctrl, which spawned hits like “Drew Barrymore,” “Love Galore” and “The Weekend.”
Then there’s Lana Del Rey, who shocked her fans earlier this week with the surprise announcement of her upcoming ninth album, Did you know that there’s a tunnel under Ocean Blvd. The pop songstress even sweetened the reveal by unveiling the title track — a reflective, choir-backed ballad in the form of her early releases — in all its sweeping, wistful glory.
Polo G and Paramore also released new singles on Friday, with the rapper previewing his forthcoming project set for 2023 with “My All” and the pop-punk stalwarts unfurling “The News” ahead of their comeback LP This Is Why dropping on Feb. 10.
A Boogie wit da Hoodie, meanwhile, shared his combatively titled fourth studio album, Me vs. Myself, which includes collabs with the likes of H.E.R. (“Playa”), Roddy Ricch (“B.R.O. (Better Ride Out)”), Kodak Black (“Water (Drowning Pt. 2)”) G Herbo (“Last Time”) and more.
Vote for the new music you’re loving the most in BIllboard‘s weekly poll below.
You might have to wait a bit longer to get your early morning Snoop fix. Four months after Snoop Dogg announced that he was headed for the breakfast aisle with his “Snoop Loopz” cereal brand, the legendary MC claimed he’s being blocked by big cereal box.
“So they don’t want us to use Snoop Loopz on our cereal box even though that’s that’s my name. We’ve built a national brand and disrupted the cereal industry, we did it with hard work and integrity,” Snoop wrote in a message posted alongside a video in which he and partner Master P hold up boxes of the gluten-free Loopz that they promised would have “more corn, more flavor and more marshmallows” than other store brands.
“We’ve built a national brand and disrupted the cereal industry, we did it with hard work and integrity. I know they’re uncomfortable and scared. But our mission is to build diversity and economic empowerment. Times have changed. There’s enough room for all of us to be successful,” continued Snoop, who was offering the Loopz product through his Broadus Foods brand shingle.
“This is bigger than us, we are fighting for the next generation of entrepreneurs. We’re no longer just being consumers, we’re educating the culture building our own brands, and passing down generational wealth. Broadus Foods is all about helping the community. It’s official we’re taking over the breakfast foods industry. They can’t stop us. It’s David versus Goliath. @masterp and I got the slingshot. This is a minor setback for a major comeback. #GodsPlan What do YOU think we should name our new cereal?”
The statement was accompanied by a video in which Master P said the more boxes of Loopz they sell the more they’re helping out their local communities through charitable efforts. “Snoop, you know when you’re doing something good,” P said, “the devil gotta show up,” Snoop replied. “We did this for the people, we did this for the family. We did this to make sure people got something to eat.”
Snoop praised P for distributing the cereal to those in need, with both men explaining — without naming names — that they are trying to make the breakfast aisle “diverse” for the current moment. “Cuz a lot of those cereals are based off past… this is based on the future,” Snoop said, shaking a colorful box of his brand. “We make people products.” When they announced Loopz in August, the pair said each purchase would be accompanied by a charitable donation.
While the rap legends did not name the company that is seemingly blocking their path, Billboard reached out to Froot Loops parent company Kellogg’s for comment; the company had not responded by press time. In the meantime, Snoop and P asked fans for their suggestions for a new name for their product.
Check out Snoop’s Loopz video below.
As the Samsung NXT 2.0 singing competition marches on, Flo Milli, the second celebrity mentor in the campaign, brought the crowd to their feet with an energetic set during Billboard’s R&B/Hip-Hop Power Players concert event.
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Preceding a performance by City Girls, the rising star jump started an evening dedicated to female rap at Hollywood’s Academy L.A. event space. With its industrial architecture, moving light system and customizable LED panels surrounding the walls and roof of the venue, the rapper took to the stage in a sparkling gold two-piece with backup dancers in-tow as the crowd erupted with excitement.
Kicking off the set with her rambunctious, viral hit, “Conceited,” the Alabama native shared a call to action during her march to the stage. “I need all my bad b*tches to the front. If you feelin’ conceited, make some noise,” she declared upon her entrance, before transitioning into speedy bars and choreography. Right until the midnight hour, Milli showcased her punchy flow and charisma throughout the set by delivering songs, including, “Like That B*tch,” “Hottie,” “Bundles,” “We Not Humpin,’” “Weak” and “In The Party.” One evening prior, Flo closed the curtain on her “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun Tour,” with a sold-out date at The Roxy, and it was clear that her longtime fans took the opportunity to see the buzzing star up close and personal in the intimate venue.
Paying nod to her mentorship role in the Samsung NXT 2.0 competition, Milli also showed love to those very fans by taking a video selfie with concert-goers with the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip4, the same device that our 12 contestants have been armed with as they continue on with their challenge rounds.
Prior to the show-stopping set, a celebration of hip-hop took place outside of the performance space, with Billboard cover stars Future and SZA, Rookie of the Year Blxst, Impact and Excellence Award recipient SAINt JHN, Pusha T and more.
Flo Milli follows Mariah Angeliq as the second mentor in the Samsung NXT 2.0 competition. A third mentor will be revealed in the coming weeks. The trio of rising stars will share their expertise with the final three contenders ahead of a grand finale in Los Angeles in 2023 and the prizes are major. The winner of Samsung and Billboard’s NXT 2.0 competition will win a special digital Billboard cover opportunity, a meeting with a record label, studio time to record their first single, funding for a music video and tickets to the 2023 Billboard Music Awards.
“As an artist, I understand the importance of having community, mentorship and support coming into this business,” Flo said in a statement. “I’m excited to be a mentor for the Billboard x Samsung competition. My number one goal is to give someone the knowledge and support that’s needed to take their dreams and aspirations to the next level.”
For the latest round, the 12 contestants weretasked with showcasing their musicality with the original song challenge. Click here to see how they fared, as well as additional updates on Samsung and Billboard’s NXT 2.0 singing competition!
SZA ends her five-year hiatus with the release of her second studio album SOS, which was released Friday (Dec. 9) via Top Dawg Entertainment/RCA Records.
SOS follows CTRL, her classic debut album that debuted at No. 3 on the Billboard 200 and never left, having spent 286 consecutive weeks on the chart (through the Dec. 10 edition).
In her Billboard cover story from November, she opened up about the difficulty of embarking on another personally and professionally demanding album cycle. “I could literally burst into tears and run through this wall at any moment. I am effectively falling apart,” she said at the time. “But it’s not like, the album pressure… It’s just, life is f–king hard. To be expected to do anything at a high level while life is life-ing is f–king crazy. This isn’t meant for a person; it’s meant for a machine.”
The 23-track project includes collaborations with Phoebe Bridgers (“Ghost in the Machine”), Travis Scott (“Open Arms”), Don Toliver (“Used”) and Ol’ Dirty Bastard (“Forgiveless”). Previously released singles “Good Days,” “I Hate U” and “Shirt” are also included in the album, which have all reached the top 20 of the Billboard Hot 100, as well as the full-length version of the oft-teased snippet “Blind,” which she performed on Saturday Night Live last weekend.
For the cover story, Billboard had an earlier listen to select tracks of the album and described SOS as her “most daring body of work yet…. Instrumentally, S.O.S is the most captivating music she has ever made, her beloved lo-fi beats sharing space with surf rock within the same track, a grunge record and an acoustic guitar-driven ballad coexisting without either sounding out of place. And while SZA says she was a “more carefree writer” during her Ctrl sessions, she has sharpened her writing since. S.O.S is an album that certainly justifies a five-year wait.”
Stream SOS here.
Earlier this week, superstar rappers Future, A$AP Rocky, 21 Savage and Playboi Carti were victims of a massive music leak, which included over 200 unreleased songs.
Future, Rocky, and Savage had two songs leaked, while Playboi Carti had three. The YSL duo of Young Thug and Gunna each experienced losses on a bigger scale, losing 20 records, respectively. SahBabii had 41 tracks leaked, while Yung Nudy suffered the most brutal blow with 172.
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Nudy responded to the leaks in a video posted online saying, “I’m a say this sh– one time, bro. I don’t know if y’all know, I’m not like other rappers, bro. I’m 100 percent finna take my time out to find out 100 percent who exactly is leaking my music. And I’m 100 percent gonna pull up at whatever studio it is, and I’m 100 percent gon’ beat your ass, on my mama.”
The unreleased records featured some promising collaborations. For Gunna, he has a potential song with Lil Baby titled “Sunfall” and another one called “On Sight” with Roddy Ricch. On the list, A$AP Rocky has two records with Playboi Carti, one named “Go.”
Two weeks ago, Latto underwent a similar issue when she reportedly had 130 songs leak online, including unreleased collaborations and reference tracks for several prominent songs such as Bia’s “Whole Lotta Money” and Coi Leray’s “Blick Blick.” Bia quashed claims of any possible ghostwriting help, tweeting: “No London jae wrote the hook, I wrote the pre and verse it’s not rocket science.”
Billboard reached out to the reps of Young Thug, Gunna, Playboi Carti, A$AP Rocky and Future for comment.
The list of consequences Kanye West has faced in light of his antisemitic comments continued to pile on. On Thursday (Dec. 7), The School of the Art Institute of Chicago confirmed to Billboard that West’s honorary doctorate degree at the college — which was issued to him on May 11, 2015 — has been rescinded.
“The School of the Art Institute of Chicago condemns and repudiates Kanye West’s (now know as Ye) anti-Black, antisemitic, racist, and dangerous statements, particularly those directed at Black and Jewish communities,” the school shared in a statement. “Ye’s actions do not align with SAIC’s mission and values, and we’ve rescinded his honorary degree.”
TMZ shared a letter from SAIC sent to members of the staff and student body regarding the rapper and his incendiary comments, which came to a head during his Dec. 1 appearance on Alex Jones’ InfoWars show. The letter arrived four days after students made a change.org petition calling for the removal of Ye’s honorary doctorate.
“After hearing from many of you, and conferring with the Board of Governors, the honorary degree awarded to Kanye West has been rescinded,” the letter, written by president Elissa Tenny, read.
In addition to action from brands he worked with, several celebrities have denounced Ye for his comments via social media. His account was suspended on Twitter after he shared a Star of David modified with a swastika to be the symbol for his 2024 presidential campaign.
