State Champ Radio recap
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In May, Baby Keem and Kendrick Lamar reintroduced themselves as “The Hillbillies,” a quirky pair of big flexers (“One-hundred and fifty grams of protein,” Dot raps in the duo’s eponymous single) and even bigger spenders who show off their lavish lifestyles and Lamar’s embossed python square toe 3-inch heel cowboy boots in “The Hillbillies” music video. But the opening shot at L.A.’s Dodger Stadium and goofy cameo from Tyler, the Creator — who confirmed Camp Flog Gnaw would officially return this year for the first time since the pandemic at the end of the clip — foreshadowed Saturday night (Nov. 11), where Lamar and Keem took over Flog Gnaw night one’s headliner slot hillbilly style, of course.
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But Keem started off the evening with a surprise: He debuted the trailer for The Melodic Blue short film, starring him, Amandla Stenberg, Shakira Ja’Nai Paye and more, that will premiere Dec. 5 on Amazon Prime Video. But the lead actor let “Savior – Interlude” play out like a movie’s beginning credits while sitting on the hood of an old-school black car, Lamar lounging in the front seat before shooting the s— with his baby cousin in the black-and-white video that was projected on the stage’s middle screen.
After Lamar officially introduced himself as “the OG Hillbilly” in a Beverly Hillbillies-inspired accent, the bombastic beginning horns of “Family Ties” activated the audience, with fans shaking off any exhaustion they’d sustained throughout the day. Despite the contradictory opulence of his hillbilly aesthetic, Lamar opted for a vintage brown sports jacket, white jersey, ripped jeans and Timberland boots with small square-frame glasses. He’s already claimed the rap throne a long time ago — and he’s certainly looked the part before, from sitting on an actual throne in his 2015 “King Kunta” music video to wearing a crown of [Tiffany & Co. diamond-encrusted] thorns at 2022 Glastonbury Festival. But his current attire represented humble beginnings that can get flipped on their head.
But no amount of money in the world could buy the happiness experienced during the family reunion, which even projected the “Family Ties” cover art — an old photo of Lamar, Keem and their unidentifiable relatives — onto the Camp Stage. Yet during Saturday night’s performance, the passionate festival-goers found themselves in the picture instead. Lamar spoke to his younger fans, some of whom he estimated were 9 or 10-years-old when they first discovered him, and guided them through his biggest hits from his 2012 album good kid, m.A.A.d city, his 2017 album DAMN. and all the essentials in between. If his music raised these kids, then Lamar’s family was far more extensive than any photo could ever show.
But his relationship with Keem is different because it’s inside their DNA. With everyone flinging their arms in the air with reckless abandon, Lamar’s rousing performance of “Alright” was more than just a tough act to follow — the set could’ve very finished right then and there. But in between songs, he pleaded with his cousin (whom he endearingly referred to as “nephew” earlier) to save him from the “s—” music that’s being put out lately. Keem stepped up to the plate and offered a smorgasbord of his own hits, including his 2019 sleeper hit “Orange Soda,” his TikTok-fueled cut “Lost Souls” from his 2021 debut album, The Melodic Blue, and his stirring feature on Kanye West‘s “Praise God” from Donda.
And what better way to finish off their performance than with the live debut of “The Hillbillies” — which earned a 2024 Grammy nomination for best rap performance just the day before the festival — and having Tyler run back his music video cameo. Shuffling across the stage, the festival’s chief curator felt like The Hillbillies’ long-lost cousin, his eccentric mannerisms being on par with those of Lamar and Keem’s as the trio entertained the audience with their shenanigans. Watching two rap titans and one incredibly promising rising star run around the stage felt like watching three kids run around the neighborhood playground. Flog Gnaw is Tyler’s personal playground after all, where imagination is limitless. Fans might’ve usually referred to Keem as “Two-Phone Baby Keem” and Lamar as “Dot,” “Oklama” or any one of his other notorious nicknames, but for that night, they were The Hillbillies.
Check out the full set list for The Hillbillies’ Camp Flog Gnaw headlining set below:
1. “Savior – Interlude”
2. “Family Ties”
3. “N95”
4. “A.D.H.D”
5. “Element”
6. “Hooligan”
7. “Honest”
8. “DNA.”
9. “Swimming Pools (Drank)”
10. “Trademark USA”
11. “Lost Souls”
12. “m.A.A.d city”
13. “Praise God”
14. “Humble”
15. “Orange Soda”
16. “16”
17. “Range Brothers”
18. “Backseat Freestyle”
19. “Bitch, Don’t Kill My Vibe”
20. “Money Trees”
21. “Alright”
22. “Vent”
23. “Savior”
24. “The Hillbillies”
“My dream is to play small theaters in England…This has gone way beyond,” says Ed Sheeran to a sold-out SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, Calif. on Saturday night (Sept. 23). Indeed, playing to a record-breaking 81,000 fans – the most tickets the venue has sold for a one-day event – is staggering. But the show itself […]
“You want to go home or you want to keep going?” Metro Boomin asked the packed audience late into his set on Tuesday night (Aug. 8) at Billboard’s R&B Hip-Hop Live event at The Novo in Los Angeles. The answer from the crowd registered as an unintelligible roar — but it was clear they weren’t ready to leave.
The hitmaking DJ and producer, who most recently executive produced the Marvel soundtrack Metro Boomin Presents Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse — which peaked at No. 5 on the Billboard 200 in June — played for over an hour following Billboard’s 2023 R&B/Hip-Hop Power Players event in honor of hip-hop’s 50th anniversary. Joining him on the bill were “Players” rapper-vocalist Coi Leray and rapper Armani White (“BILLIE EILISH,” “Baazigar”).
Though he was the headlining act of the night, Metro made a casual entrance to the stage, sauntering out in white jeans, T-shirt and purple ball cap to take his place behind the boards. Over the course of the crowd-pleasing set, the hitmaker performed tracks including “10 Freaky Girls,” “Niagara Falls (Foot or 2),” “Creepin’,” “Umbrella,” “Minute,” “No Complaints” as well as Spider-Verse cuts including “Calling” and “Self Love.”
Metro also made several nods to his production work, performing “Father Stretch My Hands Pt. 1” (a cut off Kanye West’s Life of Pablo), Post Malone’s “Congratulations” with Quavo and “Heartless” by The Weeknd.
Metro’s “Self Love” collaborator Leray (sporting close-cropped blue hair) preceded him on stage with an ecstatic set that included such hits as “Bitch Girl,” “Baby Don’t Hurt Me,” “Bops,” “Get Loud,” “Make My Day” and “Players,” which became her first top 10 entry on the Billboard Hot 100 when it peaked at No. 9 on the tally in April. The charismatic rapper was backed by a crew of fatigue-clad dancers, with one male member of the team executing some onstage acrobatics at several points during the performance. This being a Billboard event, Leray made sure to shout out her first Hot 100 entry “No More Parties,” which peaked at No. 26 on the tally in March 2021.
“This s–t real,” Leray said at the top of her set. “I remember when they say I was TikTok, hopped on Tiktok — now they say I’m [Billboard].”
Earlier in the evening, White pulled off spirited performances of such tracks as “SILVER TOOTH,” “Onederful” and “Thanksgiving.” At one point, the rising rapper referenced his big moment at Osheaga Festival on Saturday (Aug. 5), when Billie Eilish brought him out on stage to perform his hit single — you guessed it — “BILLIE EILISH.”
“I don’t know if any of y’all follow me, but I was on stage with Billie Eilish,” said White, clearly still drinking in the viral moment. “Some wild s–t, right?”
It took about one minute for R&B singer-songwriter Victoria Monét to sell out her first-ever headlining concert. In 2016, she served as one of the opening acts for tours by Fifth Harmony and Ariana Grande — the latter of whom she has written a number of hits for, including Billboard Hot 100 No. 1s “Thank U, Next” and “7 Rings” — and performed her first solo festival gig at Day N Vegas just two years ago. But for about one hour at Los Angeles’ El Rey Theatre on Friday night (March 31) , Monét took her “motherf—in’ moment” and never let go.
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From the “Moment” the curtains pulled back on the 33-year-old performer, who appeared in a shimmering bronze and green bikini and mesh pants, she instantly blew her fans away. Monét’s windswept, wavy blond hair framed the face of a tried-and-true performer who was somehow just getting her start. The singer’s monumental show kicked off Spotify’s “R&B First Nights” campaign, which aims to amplify the genre’s rising stars by supporting their first live show across select U.S. markets. The campaign, which is financially backed by Spotify’s Creator Equity Fund, will also support U.K. R&B trio FLO‘s Atlanta show next month as part of their first North American tour. Funny enough, when Billboard asked FLO in a recent interview who they were dying to collaborate with, the girl group named Monét.
And it comes as no surprise, considering Monét bodies being a triple threat. She continuously accentuated her assets during her “Ass Like That” performance, singing about her personal fitness journey and a guy who’s absolutely enamored by her results. The subject matter hits close to home, as her partner and the father of her 2-year-old daughter Hazel, John Gaines, is a personal trainer, who fans were introduced to in the whimsical, breath-taking “Moment” music video from early 2020. Both proudly watched Monét in awe among the evening’s star-studded audience, which included Lauren Jauregui, Ambré, Muni Long, Joyce Wrice, Kelela, Ty Dolla $ign, Ravyn Lenae and more.
She not only earned respect from her industry peers and family, but also her fans, who got audibly excited at the sight of her viral dance routine to Trillville featuring Cutty Cartel’s 2004 hit “Some Cut.” The famed squeaky bed frame sounds provided a seamless transition into her 2020 Jaguar cut “Dive,” but Monét wanted to slow things down even more for “Touch Me.”
Scattering spotlights showered the now-perched singer, who basked in it — a rather rare moment for someone who has spent years behind a pen, tucked away in a studio and nowhere near a stage that would give her her own shine apart from any superstar she’s ever worked with in her storied career.
Monét made sure the crowd never forgot who she is, seducing one of her female backup dancers to flaunt her bisexual identity during “F.—” as glowing pink lights filled the 771-capacity venue with lust. She treated her day one fans with touches of nostalgia, playing songs off her 2018 albums, Life After Love, Pt. 1 and Pt. 2. And for one very special fan named Aubrey, Monét brought her up on stage to personally thank her for supporting her all of these years and gifted her a signed vinyl. She later brought up her longtime photographer Alfredo Flores to capture the moment, with the entire audience unpromptedly throwing up a peace sign for the camera, potentially in reference to her upcoming Jaguar II era.
“Take your phones out and light this bi— up, cause you can’t smoke in here!” Monét yelled before diving into her latest, Lucky Daye-assisted single “Smoke.” Once it cleared, she payed homage to her first Jaguar project by giving the audience a truly groovy “Experience” with technicolor lighting that mimicked a disco ball in efforts to transport them straight to the ’70s. But she (literally) snapped everyone back into reality with the same celestial keys that played at the start of the show, but this time, for “Jaguar.” If another Austin Powers movie were to be made today, Monét made her case for why she would be his foxy sidekick (the way Beyoncé once played) with her razor sharp, yet incredibly fluid movements and overall awe-inspiring, superstar presence.
Triumphant trumpets blared for her grand finale and later replayed once Monét returned to the stage, with an adorably stunned baby Hazel in her arms, to bask in this moment just once more. “I just wanted to say thank you to my team. Thank you guys all for coming. This is a team effort. I have the name Victoria Monét, but that name is plural. It’s my team that got me here,” she said above bouts of roaring applause, with her team standing all around her, including her manager Rachelle Jean-Louis and producer D’Mile. “And thank you Spotify for believing in me to have this moment and to kick off your ‘[R&B] First Nights.’
“I wanted to make this night extra special for you guys, too. I know you guys have been waiting for Jaguar II for a really long time,” she teased. “And because you guys sold this show out in one minute, I just wanted to give you a little sneak peek.” While taking a hefty sip from a Veuve Clicquot champagne bottle (if you know, you know), Monét played a snippet of a new slinky, hip-hop-leaning track that featured her signature funky trumpets signaling her victory lap.
Victoria Monét’s El Rey setlist:
“Moment”
“Big Boss (Interlude)”
“Ass Like That”
“Dive”
“Touch Me”
“F.U.C.K.”
“We Might Even Be Falling in Love (Interlude)”
“Do You Like It”
“New Love”
“Freak”
“Monopoly”
“Smoke”
“Coastin’”
“Experience”
“Jaguar”
