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Saweetie has scored here very own touchdown, by fronting an NFL metaverse concert during Super Bowl week. The “Best Friend” rapper is the headline performer at the Saweetie Super Bowl Concert, a free virtual show presented by Intuit on Roblox and set to premiere Feb. 10.
The Warner Records artist will step into the metaverse on the heels of the launch of WMG’s Rhythm City, for what’s said to be a first-of-its-kind “music-themed social roleplay experience” on the Roblox gaming platform.
According to WMG, which partnered with NFL on the latest initiative, Saweetie will perform a “family-friendly, fully motion-captured” set featuring her hit singles and presented as official part of the Super Bowl LVII event lineup.
The virtual concert will drop next Friday at 7:00pm ET and will re-air every hour, on the hour, until Sunday, Feb. 12.
“As our ecosystem evolves,” comments Oana Ruxandra, chief digital officer & executive vp of business development at WMG, the music major “is focused on building open, interactive and dynamic virtual experiences that deeply connect artists with their fans. It doesn’t get more iconic than the Saweetie Super Bowl Concert Presented by Intuit on Roblox. We are so thrilled to be working in support of this event and incredibly excited to kick off our first concert in Rhythm City.”
Saweetie is the latest WMG artist to make the crossover into the Roblox world, namely Twenty One Pilots, Why Don’t We, Ava Max, David Guetta and Royal Blood.
This year, she’s on a mission to expand her creative horizons. Saweetie is reportedly stepping back onto the small screen with a guest starring role on Peacock’s Bel-Air, the streaming platform’s The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air spin-off. The 29-year-old previously appeared in several episodes of Freeform’s Black-ish spinoff show Grown-ish, as rapper Indigo.
As for music, Saweetie most recently released her six-track EP The Single Life in November 2022. And she has hit No. 1 on Billboard’s Top Triller U.S. chart with three numbers: “Tap In” in mid-2020, followed by “Fast (Motion)” in mid-2021, and “Closer,” featuring H.E.R., in February 2022.
With the Rhythm City project, WMG is the latest music company to partner with Roblox, which boasts more than 61 million daily active users and exploded in popularity with young gamers during the pandemic.
Sony Music and BMG announced partnerships with Roblox in 2021. Spotify became “the first music-streaming brand to have a presence on Roblox” last year.
HipHopWired Featured Video
PlayStation Plus emerged as a must-have monthly service back in 2010, becoming the chief way players can join multi-player games along with other incentives. The PlayStation Plus Collection, which emerged as a bonus for people who signed up for the service, will be going away later this year but there is still time to grab some of the heavy hitters before they’re gone.
Via the PlayStation Blog, the new monthly games for the PlayStation Plus Essential tier were announced Wednesday (Feb. 1). This month’s offerings are fan-favorite Destiny 2‘s Beyond Light expansion, survival horror title Evil Dead: The Game, skateboard adventure OlliOlliWorld, and organized crime saga Mafia: The Definitive Edition.
Of the three, the star might be Destiny 2′s Beyond Light and the expansion pack includes more looting, a new power in Stasis, and more unfolding on the massive planet of Europa. However, we’re hearing good things about OlliOlliWorld and Evil Dead: The Game enjoyed strong reviews during its initial release. Mafia: The Definitive Edition is a remake of the 2002 original title.
In that same blog post, the PS Plus Collection announcement was tacked on the bottom and we’ll feature the message below:
We also wanted to provide an update on the PlayStation Plus Collection that has been offered as a benefit to PlayStation Plus members on PS5 since 2020. On May 9 the PlayStation Plus Collection will no longer be offered. If you haven’t redeemed the titles in this collection yet, you can still do so until May 9, which will enable you to access those titles even after this date for as long as you remain a PlayStation Plus member.
As the message reads, the games aren’t exactly going away forever but the collection as we’ve come to know it will be gone. Standout titles in the collection include God Of War, Detroit: Become Human, The Last Of Us: Remastered, and Bloodborne among other stunning titles.
Learn more by checking out the PlayStation blog post by following this link.
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Photo: Sony/PlayStation
HipHopWired Featured Video
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Source: Samsung / Samsung Galaxy S23
It’s time to unpack with Samsung and get our first official look at the company’s new lineup of Galaxy smartphones.
Like we always do around this time, Samsung is here to show off its new slate of phones that don’t fold. Wednesday, February 1, Samsung officially unveiled its new Galaxy S23, S23+, and S22 Ultra smartphones, confirming earlier leaks.
The Galaxy S22 Ultra effectively took the Galaxy Note’s place with its arrival last year, taking on the responsibility of housing the S-Pen and being the phone catered towered the person who needs a device that can transition between work and play.
With the Galaxy S22 Ultra, the design gets tweaks, but you’re getting much of the same with Samsung seemingly taking if ain’t broke, don’t fix it approach with its premium smartphone offering. Still, there are some improvements to marvel at when you use the device.
With the Galaxy S22 and S22+, you will notice some of the most changes in the phone’s design and other improvements in terms of software, performance, and improved camera system.
All three devices are models of sustainability and are made of more recycled materials than previous Galaxy smartphone models. The S23 line was made using aluminum, glass, and plastic from recycled fishing nets, water barrels, and plastic bottles.
So let’s get into the specs of each device below.
Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra
Source: Samsung / Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra
The Galaxy S23 Ultra keeps things pretty much the same but boasts some improvements to its already stellar design. The device comes in a matte finish in four attractive colors, Phantom Black, Cream, Green, and Lavender.
In keeping with the legacy of the Galaxy Ultra, the S23 Ultra features a 6.8-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2X Infinity-O QHD+ Edge Screen with a 19.3:9 aspect ratio plus 120Hz refresh rate capable of achieving 500ppi, 1,750nit to deliver that crisp, sharp, and beautiful display experience Samsung users come to expect from their Galaxy devices.
Corning’s Gorilla Glass Victus 2 improves drop protection and scratch resistance on the S23 Ultra’s glass.
The Galaxy S23 Ultra also features a newly shaped curvature on the device’s edge, allowing for a larger surface area than its predecessor.
It also features what Samsung calls “Intelligent Display” that automatically adjusts the display’s color tone and contrasts at three different to ensure either your mobile gaming or streaming experience is never impacted.
Samsung has its eye on the ever-growing mobile gaming industry and is ensuring its S23 devices are up to the task of handling gamers’ needs. Gaming and overall performance on the S23 Ultra also improve thanks to the new Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 Mobile Platform for Galaxy.
The new chip provides 40% faster graphics and 40% better AI performance with a BIG 5,000 mAh battery that will keep you away from a wall socket, promising all-day battery life. It also features 8 or 12GB of RAM paired with 256 GB and 1 TB of storage space.
Source: Samsung / Samsung S23 Ultra
5G service is the standard, and support for WiFi6 will have you connected to the web, streaming, and gaming at the highest speeds.
The S23’s Updated Camera System
Source: Samsung / Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra
The S23 Ultra separates itself from the S23 and S23+ by featuring a “200MP Adaptive Pixel sensor” that will allow users to do much more with their photos without losing image quality.
It also has a 12-megapixel ultrawide, two 10-megapixel telephoto lenses with 3x and 10x optical zoom, and 8K video capture at 30 FPS with wider-angle shots.
New object-based AI will carefully focus on human characteristics like eyes and hair in individual frames that Samsung claims will “carefully reflect a person’s dynamic characteristics.”
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Nightography is better than ever, thanks to the S23 Ultra’s massive pixel sensor.
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The selfie camera gets a big bump to 12 megapixels and now has a faster autofocus, 60FPS video recording, and is what Samsung says is its “first Super HDR selfie camera.”
The S Pen Returns
Source: Samsung / Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra
The addition of the S Pen to the phone made the S23 Ultra a smooth transition for Note users to the device. A partnership with Google brings live Samsung Notes to Google Meet.
Source: Samsung / Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra
The Galaxy S23 & S23+
Source: Samsung / Samsung Galaxy S23
The baseline S23 and midrange S23+ are not the powerhouse the S23 Ultra is but still boast significant improvements. Both models feature the same Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 processor, like the Ultra making them well-equipped to handle mobile gaming and other functions.
The Galaxy S23+ and S23 have a 50-megapixel main sensor and 3x zoom and ultrawide lenses. The S23+ has a 6.6-inch display, while the S23 has a 6.1-inch display.
Like the Ultra, both models feature a 12-megapixel selfie camera allowing for fantastic selfies day or night.
Gone is the bump on the back, and now the S23 and S23+ both have the same camera system design as the S23 Ultra for a more streamlined design across the devices.
Source: Samsung / Samsung Galaxy S23
Both displays use Corning’s Gorilla Glass Victus 2 and can handle 120Hz Adaptive Refresh Rates like the Ultra model. The devices come in four color options, Phantom Black, Cream, Green, and Lavender.
What’s The Price?
Source: Samsung / Samsung Galaxy S23
The baseline Galaxy Ultra S23 Ultra with 256GB of storage begins at $1,199.99. The S23+ starts at $999.99, and the S23 costs $799.99 and will be available beginning February 17.
Head to Samsung’s website for more information.
For more photos of the devices, hit the gallery below.
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Photos: Samsung
1. Samsung Galaxy S23 Lineup
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TikTok’s CEO, Shou Zi Chew, will testify in front of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce in late March in his first appearance before Congress, according to a statement from the committee’s chair, Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers.
The Republican representative from Washington said Chew is expected to comment on TikTok’s data security and user privacy policies, its impact on children and the company’s ties with China’s Communist Party.
The popular short-form video app and influential music discovery tool has become a lightning rod for political controversies as lawmakers on both sides have questioned the company’s handling of U.S. users’ data and whether it’s obligated to share user data with China’s ruling Communist Party. The app is owned by Chinese company ByteDance.
In an emailed statement, a TikTok spokesperson confirmed the hearing was to take place on March 23 and said they welcome the opportunity to “set the record straight about TikTok, ByteDance, and the commitments we are making to address concerns about U.S. national security.”
“We hope that by sharing details of our comprehensive plans with the full committee, Congress can take a more deliberative approach to the issues at hand,” the spokesperson said.
Congress is currently considering a bill introduced in December by Senator Marco Rubio (R-Flor.), Rep. Mike Gallagher (R-Wis.) and Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-Ill.) that would effectively ban TikTok and any other social media company headquartered in China, Russia or a handful of other countries from operating in the United States.
In addition, a number of U.S. states and large state universities have issued orders restricting access to TikTok on state-issued mobile devices and over campus internet.
In her own statement, Rodgers said that Bytedance has “knowingly allowed” the Chinese Communist Party to access U.S. users’ data, and her committee aims to ask TikTok for “complete and honest answers for people.”
“Americans deserve to know how these actions impact their privacy and data security, as well as what actions TikTok is taking to keep our kids safe from online and offline harms,” Rodgers said.
A TikTok spokesperson refuted Rodgers’ statement.
“There is no truth to Rep. McMorris Rodgers’ claim that TikTok has made U.S. user data available to the Chinese Communist Party. The Chinese Communist Party has neither direct nor indirect control of ByteDance or TikTok,” the spokesperson said. “Moreover, under the proposal we have devised with our country’s top national security agencies through CFIUS, that kind of data sharing—or any other form of foreign influence over the TikTok platform in the United States—would not be possible.”
Warner Music Group will launch Rhythm City — a “music-themed social roleplay experience” — on the gaming platform Roblox on February 4th.
Not only will Rhythm City host events and shows from Warner’s artists, it will allow users to take on roles like DJ, producer, or dancer as they explore the virtual world and purchase digital items only available on Roblox. Rhythm City was developed in partnership with Gamefam, a metaverse-focused gaming and content company.
Warner is the latest music company to partner with Roblox, which has been around for more than 15 years but exploded in popularity with young users during the pandemic. Sony Music and BMG announced partnerships with Roblox in 2021. Spotify became “the first music-streaming brand to have a presence on Roblox” last year.
Earlier this month, Roblox announced that it had more than 61 million daily active users in December who spent close to 5 billion hours on the platform. It’s no surprise, then, that record companies are eager to find new ways to seed their music to Roblox users.
“Immersive online environments represent a meaningful opportunity for reaching a growing number of fans who want to use virtual communities to enjoy shared music experiences,” Dennis Kooker, Sony Music’s president of global digital business and U.S. sales, said in 2021. When BMG announced its Roblox partnership, Christopher Ludwig, BMG’s vp of global digital partnerships and strategy, noted that the platform “has transformed the gaming experience for millions and is proving a powerful way to introduce new generations to music they love.”
In a statement announcing Rhythm City, Oana Ruxandra, chief digital officer and evp, business development at Warner Music Group, struck a similar tone. “As our lives become increasingly digital, exciting opportunities are opening up for artists and fans to engage and interact,” she said. “WMG is focused on facilitating the foundations of these new experiences by building and experimenting across evolving ecosystems. This partnership with Gamefam sees WMG creating a place for artists and audiences to come together to define and contextualize their communities within living spaces.”
Joe Ferencz, founder and CEO at Gamefam, added that “we are thrilled to have a chance to combine our passion for developing authentic, highly-engaging metaverse content with our love of music.” “WMG has been a brilliant partner in pushing innovative strategies, and together with our expertise, we’ve channeled that into production excellence creating a new community for music lovers in the metaverse,” he continued.
Warner acts, including Twenty One Pilots and David Guetta, have previously hosted virtual concerts on Roblox.
HipHopWired Featured Video
Source: SOPA Images / Getty / PS5
It’s a new year, and Sony is declaring if you want a PS5, you should now be able to get one.
Sunday clips of a new PlayStation television ad shown on Australian television hit folk’s Twitter timelines showing Spider-Man giving gamers hope some information about Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 was coming.
It turns out that clip is a part of Sony’s new “Live From PS5” ad campaign celebrating community and welcoming more players to get in on the PlayStation 5 action.
Monday, PlayStation dropped the ad in North America while also sharing the news it would be increasing its PS5 supply.
Per The PlayStation Blog:
To all our fans: thank you for your patience as we navigated unprecedented demand for the PS5 console amid global challenges. If you’re looking to purchase a PS5 console, you should now have a much easier time finding one at retailers globally.
For players in the U.S., U.K, France, Germany, Netherlands, Belgium, and Luxembourg, be sure to check direct.playstation.com to purchase a PS5 console, games, and accessories directly from PlayStation. PS5 products are also available at participating retailers globally.
This news comes after Sony boss Jim Ryan happily announced the PS5 jig is up during the company’s CES presentation.
“Everyone who wants a PS5 should have a much easier time finding one at retailers globally, starting from this point forward,” Ryan told CES attendees.
2023 Looks Like It Will Be Another Good Year For The PS5
As for the ad, it’s an excellent one-minute spot showcasing upcoming PS5 titles like Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 and Final Fantasy XVI, plus already released exclusive hits Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart, Gran Turismo 7, God of War Ragnarok, Destiny 2, Horizon Forbidden West, Returnal, Ghosts of Tsushima, possibly Uncharted and more.
It sounds like PlayStation is gearing up for another stellar year. Xbox already gave its gaming base a taste of what’s to come with its recent Developer Direct presentation, where we got a shock drop with Hi-Fi Rush, which is already getting game of the year nods from players.
In a recent interview, Xbox boss Phil Spencer did not acknowledge the company did not do right by gamers and was “too light on games,” but it looks like Xbox could also have a stellar 2023 to make up for its shortcomings in 2022.
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Photo: SOPA Images / Getty
All products and services featured are independently chosen by editors. However, Billboard may receive a commission on orders placed through its retail links, and the retailer may receive certain auditable data for accounting purposes.
Scouring the annual Consumer Electronics Show for the best in gear is a painstaking pursuit that takes place over four days in Las Vegas. This year marked the gathering’s first full return since 2020, and 115,000 attendees converged from all over the world at the Los Vegas Convention Center and beyond.
Top trends Billboard spotted include major advancements in wireless electronics, including televisions, useful and lightweight VR and AR applications and devices; major digital advancements from automotive manufacturers; and a whole slew of gadgets aimed at tracking, monitoring and improving health and well-being.
While it’s impossible to see it all — and even more difficult to figure out what will actually make it into consumers’ hands — this comprehensive list represents the innovations Billboard loved best, that we think, in the short term or long term, will make our work better and our lives more enjoyable.
Below, find Billboard‘s best products from CES 2023, in alphabetical order by award name.
—Additional reporting by Melissa Gill and Jen Smith
Hip-Hop is set to hit the semi-centennial mark in 2023, and Hip-Hop Wired and our brother site Cassius Life are coming together to celebrate the moment while focusing on the genre of music’s influence on culture. There is nothing Hip-Hop does not touch, whether it be alcohol, clothes, or food. This post focuses on Hip-Hop’s love for video games and the franchises that rappers have loved and continue to play. Video games’ presence in Hip-Hop is no secret. Your favorite rappers will drop some bars referencing video games in their songs every chance they get.Rappers who use their music to document their early struggles pointed to video games being either a luxury at the time growing up poor or a means to keep them off the streets and out of trouble.One bar immediately comes to mind is the Biggie Smalls‘ “Super Nintendo, Sega Genesis when I was dead broke, man, I couldn’t picture this,” on his iconic track “Juicy,” off his debut album Ready to Die.On ScBoolBoy Q’s “Hoover Streeter,” he rapped, “Grandma said she loved me, I told her I loved her more, she always got me things we couldn’t afford, the new Js and Tommy Hill in my drawers, Sega Genesis, Nintendo 64, see GoldenEye was away at war.”Now you can’t visit a rapper’s studio and not see a classic arcade cabinet or console where the musician can pick up the sticks and enjoy a break outside the booth.In the gallery below, we show love to the video games and established franchises that have become beloved by rappers throughout the years that span genres of games.
1. Mike Tyson’s Punch-Out!!
In the late 80s and the early 90s, Mike Tyson took the sports world by storm as he viciously knocked out his opponents in the ring. So it made perfect sense, at the time, to make him the face of his video game. In 1987, Nintendo linked up with Tyson for Mike Tyson’s Punch-Out!! for the Nintendo Entertainment System, a home version of the arcade hits Punch-Out!! and Super Punch-Out!!.
You would be hard-pressed to find a home that didn’t have the NES cartridge sitting inside the console with players trying to take underdog Little Mac on his journey to professional boxing greatness.
On your quest to become champ, you face contenders like Glass Joe, Soda Popinski, King Hippo, Super Macho Man, Great Tiger, and Piston Honda, who each have different special techniques you have to avoid while figuring out their patterns to defeat them. Some even had weak points enabling Little Mac to score one-punch knockouts.
Once you beat those guys, it’s time to face the legendary black trunks and black boxing sneakers-wearing Mike Tyson. He was no pushover and was considered by many to be one of the most challenging video game characters to defeat.
2. Double Dribble
Another sports game that you would more than likely find a rapper’s home is Double Dribble. This wasn’t Konami’s first basketball video game, but it is the video game company’s most popular.
Double Dribble arrived in arcades in 1986 before being ported to the Nintendo Entertainment System in 1987. It was ahead of its time thanks to its fast-paced basketball action and the in-game dunk sequences, a first for sports video games, and the signature sound when you shoot a 3-point shot.
3. Tecmo Bowl/Tecmo Super Bowl
Before Madden NFL took over the football video game world, Tecmo Bowl was king. Tecmo Bowl started in arcades in 1987 before coming home to NES consoles in 1989.
When it reached North America, it was the first game to feature the NFLPA license, and of course, who could forget the unstoppable Bo Jackson, who was the running back for the Los Angeles Raiders and was arguably the most op cyber athlete ever.
Tecmo Bowl would come back even stronger with the release of Tecmo Super Bowl, the first game to be licensed by both the NFL and NFLPA.
Fans loved the game because it kept the fun Tecmo Bowl gameplay but added a season option, injuries, and those cool animations when you scored a touchdown, intercepted a pass, sacked the quarterback, or made a spectacular catch.
4. NBA Jam
Oh my, he’s on fire!
NBA Jam, the 1993 successor to Arch Rivals, took the arcades by storm when it arrived in 1993. Instead of made-up hoopers, the game featured two stars from your favorite NBA franchises.
Acclaim would bring the game to home consoles where players would enjoy the no holds barred NBA action where players can push opponents without consequences, do outrageous dunks, and hit three points bombs way before Steph Curry arrived in the league.
The game was also unique in that it only featured two-on-two action with teams of five players to choose from, initially three in the arcade version.
One person noticeably absent from NBA Jam which was the highest-earning arcade game at the time was Michael Jordan. Due to his marketing agreement with Nike that didn’t allow him to be a part of the NBPA’s licensing deal, his absence in the game was felt.
But, developers tried their best to make up for it by giving players the ability to input codes for hidden characters like formers US President Bill Clinton, his wife Hillary Clinton, Will Smith, Larry Bird, and more.
5. NBA Live
In October 1994, the basketball video game world took a giant leap when EA Sports dropped NBA Live 95. Yes, EA dropped other great basketball games like Lakers versus Celtics and the NBA Playoffs, Bulls versus Blazers and the NBA Playoffs, and NBA Showdown, but NBA Live 95 was a game-changer.
Unlike its predecessors, NBA Live 95 was much faster and felt more authentic to the NBA experience we witnessed during those games we watched on NBC.
NBA Live 95 laid the groundwork for future basketball simulators by introducing a dedicated sprint button, detailed player ratings, instant replay, offensive-defensive strategy, and of course, those alley-oop dunks that get a rise out of you have you talking trash every time you pull one off.
For many years, NBA Live would be the premiere basketball video game franchise until NBA 2K dethroned it.
6. Mortal Kombat
Street Fighter II was the king of fighting games, but Mortal Kombat had its sights on the throne and damn near took the crown.
When Mortal Kombat hit arcades in 1992, it brought a level of video game violence gamers had never experienced. On top of pulling off special moves, these wonderful fatalities allowed players to punctuate a match and brutally kill their opponents.
The game became an instant hit in arcades, and, of course, the energy was the same when it came home to consoles. When you rolled up at a friend’s house, the studio, it would be a safe bet you would see a Mortal Kombat cartridge, primarily the Genesis version, because it was the only one with the classic code that allowed blood to be in the game.
Super Nintendo, unfortunately, didn’t allow that.
7. Street Fighter II
Before there was Mortal Kombat, you could find everyone at the local arcade, Carvel ice cream shop, and bodega wasting quarters playing Street Fighter II in 1991.
Street Fighter II eventually made its way into homes and, by 1996, became one of the most popular games in homes, with 6.3 million SNES cartridges sold.
The game was extremely popular in Hip-Hop circles and arguably is among rappers’ most referenced songs. Lupe Fiasco is an avid Street Fighter player, and when he was not dropping albums, the Chicago rapper was actually participating in tournaments showing off his playing skills.
8. John Madden Football / Madden NFL
Now known as Madden NFL, EA Sports once again shook the video game world with John Madden Football when they brought it to the Sega Genesis in 1990.
Like Tecmo Bowl before it, John Madden Football did not have the benefit of the NFLPA or NFL license to make it an accurate NFL simulation, but it did provide football fans with a fantastic game to play.
It would eventually gain the NFL license in 1993, bringing your favorite NFL team or teams to the game and, finally, players in Madden 95 after adding the NFLPA license. The acquisition of both rights meant something from the games had to be removed, noticeably the hilarious moment when the ambulance would rush onto the field to pick up an injured player running while running over other players.
Madden NFL would become a behemoth in the sports video game world after it outright bought the exclusive rights to use the NFL’s teams, stadiums, and players in a video game because it honestly feared the growing competition from the NFL 2K franchise.
Madden NFL, despite its flaws, is beloved among the Hip-Hop community, with rappers such as Ludacris making exclusive songs for the game and having huge fans in other rap stars like The Game, Bow Wow, Chris Brown, and Snoop Dogg, who displays his passion for the game during streams where he does hilarious express his anger when things don’t go his way while playing.
9. NBA Street
At a time when NBA Jam was put on ice, EA Canada and NuFX decided to fill that void with 2001’s NBA Street on PlayStation 2.
Published by EA Sports BIG, the game took the NBA action to the streets or the hardtop, and guess what? Michael Jordan was in the game.
NBA Street became insanely popular, selling 1.7 million copies on the PlayStation 2 while featuring an insanely Hip-Hop heavy soundtrack, so it’s no secret the game became beloved in Hip-Hop circles.
10. Def Jam: Vendetta
This is a no-brainer, a wrestling game featuring your favorite rappers? Of course, this game would be on the list. The game would also spawn a sequel called Def Jam: Fight For New York.
The games featured Lil’Kim, Snoop Dogg, Method Man, Ludacris, Ice-T, N.O.R.E., Memphis Bleek, Fat Joe, Funkmaster Flex, Busta Rhymes, Joe Budden, Keith Murray and more.
11. NFL 2K
NFL 2K was another that started out on the Sega Dreamcast and featured Randy Moss on the cover and who many consider one of the best cyber athletes ever, not named Bo Jackson or Michael Vick.
After the demise of the Dreamcast, NFL 2K would find life on the Xbox and PlayStation 2 and dropped NFL 2K5, which many said was better than the Madden game that came out that year and only cost $20.
NFL 2K5 spooked EA so much that they quickly gobbled up the NFL licenses for an insane amount of money, making Madden the only football video game on the market.
12. NBA 2K
NBA Live laid the groundwork, and NBA 2K took the rock and ran with it. The NBA 2K franchise first burst onto the scene on the Sega Dreamcast and featured NBA Hall-of-Famer Allen Iverson on multiple covers.
The game eventually arrived on other consoles and delivered basketball fans an even better basketball video game experience than NBA Live, thanks to the incorporation of ESPN’s presentation.
NBA 2K is now THE premiere basketball video game franchise and works closely with Hip-Hop by incorporating artists’ music while introducing players to new acts. Of course, your favorite rappers also spend their free time trash-talking to each other online and meeting up in The City, NBA 2K’s online hub.
13. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare
Call of Duty is THE biggest video game franchise on the planet right now, and the game that helped it become a global phenomenon was none other than 2007’s Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare.
The franchise has since blown to epic proportions, spawned numerous sequels, a separate free-to-play game, Call of Duty: Warzone, a popular mobile game, and features athletes, movie stars, and Hip-Hop artists in their ads regularly.
14. Fight Night
Outside Mike Tyson’s Punch-Out!! there wasn’t a great boxing game until EA Sports blessed us with Fight Night in 2004.
The game featured plenty of professional boxers not named Floyd Mayweather Jr. and delivered an authentic boxing match feel.
One big fan of the franchise was iconic producer Just Blaze, an avid gamer in the Hip-Hop world and filmed plenty of videos handing all trash talkers who wanted the smoke a virtual fade.
Fight Night, unfortunately, was put into early retirement following 20122’s Fight Night Champion, but who knows? Maybe the folks at EA are working on bringing it back.
15. Grand Theft Auto
Grand Theft Auto is one of those franchises immersed in the Hip-Hop world. 2001’s Grand Theft Auto III took the GTA franchise to new heights, and the Hip-Hop world took notice.
Also, while out committing all kinds of crimes and embarking on zany missions bopping to the Hip-Hop station just made all the sense in the world.
2002’s Grand Theft Auto: Vice City would further pull us into the GTA universe, but Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas proved how much Hip-Hop influenced the game. CJ, a fictional Grove Street Gang member, is one of the most beloved video game characters ever.
2008’s Grand Theft Auto IV was well received, leaving many to believe it is criminally underrated, but now, it’s 2013’s Grand Theft Auto V that is still the talk of the world.
GTA V has become one of the highest-selling pieces of entertainment in the world, spawning two re-releases and countless numbers of DLC for the online component.
It’s so popular in the Hip-Hop world that Dr.Dre, who still hasn’t dropped Detox, is in the game and has his own storyline.
All products and services featured are independently chosen by editors. However, Billboard may receive a commission on orders placed through its retail links, and the retailer may receive certain auditable data for accounting purposes.
Looking to make a few upgrades? Now is a great time to enhance your sound system. Whether you’re a music lover, a dedicated audiophile, gamer, movie buff, TV binger or a combination of all five, the speaker options are plentiful.
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And with retailers such as Amazon, Best Buy, Target and Walmart rolling back prices due to an overstock of inventory, winter sales, the Super Bowl and Valentine’s Day, you’re sure to find great deals on speakers and other electronics.
That said, having too many options can be overwhelming. When shopping for a speaker, it’s good to narrow down the style, size and price that best suits your needs. To make the search a little easier, we gathered up nine of the best speakers for music lovers to play all their favorite tunes, podcasts and more.
From portable Bluetooth speakers to wired and freestanding speaker options, see below for our picks for the best options to enhance your sound system. For more recommendations, read our roundups of the best record players, best over-ear headphones, best wired headphones and best Bluetooth earbuds.
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Amazon
JBL Flip 6 – Portable Bluetooth Speaker $129.95
If you’re looking for a smaller speaker, the JBL Flip 6 portable Bluetooth player is worth a try. Flip 6 has a two-way speaker system that is designed to deliver rich sound and optimized dual passive radiators for deep bass. Measuring nearly 8 inches long, this portable speaker is equipped with a 20-watt sound output and 12 hours of battery life. It’s also waterproof and dust-proof and comes in several colors, including red, blue and black (prices may vary depending on the color). Purchase the JBL 6 at major retailers such as Amazon, Walmart, Best Buy, Crutchfield and at JBL.com. If you’re in the market for something cheaper, the JBL Flip 5 is on sale for $99.95 and this Anker Soundcore Bluetooth speaker is on sale for $27.99.
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Amazon
Bose SoundLink Flex Bluetooth Portable Speaker $149 $
The Bose Soundlink Flex is another good choice in portable speakers. These awesome speakers are available in multiple colors, sizes, designs and prices – the cheapest of which is the Bose Soundlink Micro, currently on sale for $99. The Bose Portable Smart Speaker is $399, while the Soundlink Flex falls on the more affordable side of the price scale.
The Soundlink Flex is engineered with a custom transducer that is designed to flood the room with powerful sound. Available in black, white or blue, the speaker’s rugged exterior makes it easy to take on the go, and with up to 12 hours of battery life, you can play tons of songs before it’s time to recharge. The accompanying utility loop is perfect for hanging the speaker on a clip or carrying it around (the Bluetooth range stretches up to 30 feet). The Soundlink Flex is also IP67 certified waterproof and dust-proof.
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Amazon
Marshall – Acton II Bluetooth Speaker $225.99 $279.99
The Acton II Bluetooth speaker from Marshall combines the brand’s iconic retro design with contemporary technology. This compact speaker delivers mega-sound in a smaller package than some of the other Marshall designs. Acton II has three dedicated class D amplifiers, dual tweeters and subwoofers, Bluetooth 5.0 (up to 30 feet), a frequency range of 50-20,000 Hz and a 3.5 mm input for wired connectivity. Connecting the speaker to the Marshall App turns your phone into a control panel to adjust things like volume and playlists. The Action II is available at major retailers such as Crutchfield, Best Buy, Amazon, Urban Outfitters, Target and at Marshall.com.
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Sonos
Sonos Move
$379.05
Sonos Move lives up to the hype! With 10 hours of play time, this mobile speaker will make you want to dance for hours on end. Apart from outstanding sound quality and deep bass, the Bluetooth speaker has a built-in handle for easy mobility, which means it’s perfect for a party or other gatherings (and solo listening sessions). And its IP56 rating means that it can withstand humidity, rain, snow, dust, salt spray, UV rays, extreme heat and cold weather. The Sonos Move stands about 9.5-inches tall and weighs around six pounds. For more options from Sonos, check out the Sonos Roam and the Sonos One SL, both of which retail for less than $200.
Klipsch
Klipsch R-51M Bookshelf Speakers $349
Klipsch is another star in the realm of premium-quality sound. For music lovers who have the square footage to build a robust sound system, Klipsch offers everything from floor standing speakers to bookshelf speakers, computer speakers, home theater speakers, sound bars and subwoofers. Not sure where to start? The R-51M Bookshelf Speakers are perfect for blasting your favorite tunes. This dynamic speaker duo offers powerful sound, booming bass and award-wining acoustics courtesy of Tractrix horn technology, which mimics the sound, precision and emotion of a live concert. These 13.3-inch speakers are equipped with one-inch titanium dome tweeters, 5.25-inch copper woofers and a removable magnetic grill.
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Amazon
Sony SRS-XG500 Bluetooth Speaker
$399.99 $499.99 20% off% OFF
Sony’s SRS-XG500 Bluetooth speaker is a nice investment if you’re looking for a boombox-style design. An alternative to the JBL Boombox 2 ($499.95), the SRS-XG500 delivers amazingly crisp sound thanks to Sony’s uniquely designed X-Balance speakers that pump out thumping, room-shaking bass. The battery delivers up to 30 hours of play time to keep the party moving all night long (literally). The speaker weighs about 12 pounds, but there’s a built-in handle that makes it easy to carry around, and LED ring lighting for added flair. Sony’s SRS-XG500 speakers are IP66-certified water-and dust-resistant. And it’s on sale at Best Buy.
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Amazon
Polk Audio Signature Elite ES260 Tower Speaker $449 $549
A tower speaker that blends in, and stands out. Polk Audio’s Elite Signature ES60 provides an enveloping, true-to-life sound experience that’s especially useful for Apple Music, Tidal, Amazon Music, Spotify and other streaming platforms. The floor-standing loudspeaker provides crystal-clear, hi-resolution sound with bass so incredible you might be able to feel it.
The speaker is powered by Polk’s Patented Power Port Bass Enhancing Technology, which expands the overall bass port to provide a larger surface area for distortion-free, louder bass impact. The sleek ES60 features 1-inch High-Resolution Terylene Tweeters, 2.5-way cascading crossovers and a trio of 6.5-inch Mica-Fortified Polypropylene Woofers. Speakers in Polk Audio’s Signature Elite Series are designed with quality, timbre-matched components that let you seamlessly mix and match models to build the sound system of your dreams. This speaker is on sale at Amazon, Crutchfield and PolkAudio.com.
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Amazon
Bowers & Wilkins Zeppelin Wireless Music System with Apple AirPlay 2 and Bluetooth (Midnight Grey)
$799.00
Want to splurge? The Zeppelin is a wireless smart speaker that has been modified for the streaming age by way of a built-in, upgradable platform so that the technology always stays up to date. Bowers & Wilkinson’s football-shaped speaker features five carefully positioned premium drive units, 1-inch tweeters, 3.5-inch midranges with FST (Fixed Suspension Transducers) and dedicated drivers.
The Zeppelin has a total output of 240 watts, a six-inch subwoofer and five amplification channels for all designed to give you powerful, hi-resolution stereo sound. The Alexa-equipped speaker gives users instant access to music playlists, radio podcasts and other content in up to 24-bit, high-resolution quality. Zeppelin can also stream Apple Airplay 2, Bluetooth aptX adaptive, Spotify Connect and the Bowers & Wilkson app.
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Amazon
Bang & Olufsen Beosound Level Portable Wi-Fi Multiroom Speaker, Natural Aluminum/Dark Grey
$1,599.00
If you have an even large speaker budget, Bang & Olufsen makes some of the best, higher-end, hi-fidelity speakers on the market. While the more expensive designs can cost over $10,000, the Beosound Level Portable Wifi Speaker is one of the cheapest, sleekest and most popular speakers from Bang & Olufsen. This beautiful, minimalist speaker has a five-driver setup for immersive, full-range sound that adapts to its environment. Lay it on its back, sit it up straight, or hang it on the wall for hypnotic sound experience with potent bass and unmatched sound clarity. This dynamic speaker weighs about 7 pounds (it measures 34.8 inches x 23 inches) and offers up to 16 hours of battery life. The Beosound Level Portable Wifi Speaker is available in natural dark gray, or a glitzy gold tone with light oak.
Music “as we know it” has been prematurely pronounced dead several times over. The cassette tape, MIDI digital synthesizers, Napster, Auto-Tune and streaming were all received with apocalyptic hysteria. The current existential threat is artificial intelligence (AI), a software leviathan with a voracious appetite for copyrighted works, and a prolific capacity for human-free creative processes. Whether AI will kill the humanity of music remains debatable. What is not up for debate is that AI raises many legal issues. While courts have yet to weigh in, the U.S. Copyright Office has issued instructive decisions and made AI-related copyright issues a 2023 priority.
The proliferation of AI in music
AI in music is not new. Alan Turing, the godfather of computer science, created a simple melody-making machine in 1951. Experimental trombonist and composer George Lewis improvised a live quartet with three Apple II computers in 1984. David Bowie experimented with a digital lyric randomizer in the 90s. Hello, World, the first AI composed pop album, was released in 2018.
Today’s AI is more evolved and exponentially more impactful. Indirect enhancements (personalized playlists, music recommendations, etc.) have given way to direct creation tools. For example, Google’s Magenta wrote a new “Nirvana” song by analyzing the melody, chord changes, guitar riffs and lyrics of the band’s past works. ChatGPT receives text instructions to compose lyrics superior to those that IBM Watson wrote for Alex da Kid in 2016. Authentic Artists leases AI-powered artists-for-hire. MUSICinYOU.ai generates tailored compositions from a 300-question personality test. Bandlab’s Songstarter is an “AI-powered idea generator” capable of creating royalty-free music in seconds. Startup Staccato pitches itself as “an AI Lennon to your McCartney” given its ability to bounce ideas off human songwriters.
Only “sufficient human creative input” supports copyright ownership
The Copyright Act protects “works of authorship” – a concept derived from the U.S. Constitution’s Copyright Clause, which empowers Congress to secure “exclusive rights” for “authors.” Courts have held that authors must be human. Consequently, animals (including the famed monkey selfie) and natural forces (a naturally growing garden) cannot be authors of copyrighted works.
While current legal precedent suggests that AI also cannot “author” copyrighted works, the critical issue is what amount of human creative input or intervention suffices to make AI-generated musical works copyrightable (and by whom)?
U.S. courts have yet to answer this question decisively. The Copyright Office has drawn some basic boundary lines. AI-advocate Steven Thaler filed a copyright application for AI-generated artwork. The Board rejected his applications three times, finding that the artwork was not “created with contribution from a human author” and thus failed to meet the human authorship requirement. (Thaler has since sued.)
Conversely, copyright protection was afforded to David Cope’s 1997 work Classical Music Composed by Computer (and, again, to his 2010 album From Darkness, Light). Cope successfully demonstrated that his works only partially used AI and were the result of sufficient human creative input and intervention. More recently, the Copyright Office granted a first-of-its-kind copyright to a comic book created with the assistance of text-to-image AI Midjourney (though the Copyright Office is now reconsidering its decision).
In the absence of bright line rules for ascertaining how much input or intervention by an AI’s user is needed, each work must be individually evaluated. It is a question of degree. Under traditional principles, the more human involvement, and the more AI is used as a tool (and not as the creator), the stronger the case for copyright protection. A song created with the prompt: “create a song that sounds like The Weeknd” will not suffice. But a copyright application which both: (i) demonstrates that a human controlled the AI and (ii) memorializes the specific human input in the creative process is more likely to succeed.
A word of caution: the Copyright Office has made clear that misrepresenting the use of AI in the music generation process is fraudulent. And although the Copyright Office solely relies on facts stated in applications, both it and future litigants are likely to soon deploy AI-detecting software to verify the extent to which AI was used to generate the musical work.
AI “training” looms as the first major battle ground
Generative AI software (like Magenta) is “trained” by feeding it vast quantities of content – text, lyrics, code, audio, written compositions – and then programming it to use that source material to generate new material. In October 2022, the RIAA shot a warning flare by declaring that AI-based extractors and mixers were infringing its members’ rights by using their music to train their AI models. Those that side with the RIAA argue that AI’s mindboggling ingestion of copyrighted music violates the Copyright Act’s exclusive rights to reproduce and create “derivative works” based upon one or more preexisting works. Because generative AI produces output “based upon” preexisting works (input), copyright owners insist that a license is needed.
On the other hand, AI-advocates argue that the use of such data for training falls within copyright law’s “fair use” exception, claiming that the resulting work is transformative, does not create substantially similar works, and has no material impact on the original work’s market. They contend that the training data has been sufficiently transformed by the AI process to yield musical works beyond the copyright protection of the original works.
These competing views are likely to be tested in the class action lawsuit just filed on behalf of a group of artists against Stability AI, DeviantArt, and Midjourney for allegedly infringing “billions of copyrighted images” in creating AI art. (Getty Images recently filed a comparable lawsuit against Stability AI in the U.K.).
Proving infringement with AI-works
How exactly the AI was trained and operates will be issues in copyright infringement litigations. Proving infringement is a two-step process. The plaintiff must demonstrate that copying occurred; and that the copying is unlawful, because the defendant copied too much of the plaintiff’s protected expression and is, therefore, substantially similar.
The first of these inquiries can be proven by direct evidence of copying or circumstantially by establishing access to a specific, allegedly infringed musical work. With art, there is a Spawning AI software called “Have I Been Trained” which allows users to search through the images used to train AI art generators. While no known current analog exists for music, the technology is likely imminent.
The nature of the AI instructions will also be crucial to showing an awareness of the original work and substantial similarity between the AI-generated music and the allegedly infringed music. Prompts that intentionally draw on copyrighted works (i.e., create a work in “the style of _”) undoubtedly bear on the issue of substantial similarity. The marketplace is pivoting in advance of anticipated rulings: Songmastr has, for example, stopped marketing its ability to create songs based on the styles of Beyonce and Taylor Swift.
AI is evolving faster than the courts can evaluate how laws apply to it. The just-filed art litigation may provide some clarity; however, while in the fog, those creating AI-generated music are well-advised to stay cognizant of the legal risks and guide the artificial music making process with a genuine human touch.
James Sammataro is a partner and Nicholas Saady an associate at Pryor Cashman LLP.