State Champ Radio Uncategorized
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HipHopWired Featured Video
Source: Paul Natkin / Getty / Les McCann
The music world lost a giant before 2023 came to a close with the passing of soulful Jazz great Les McCann.
The Hollywood Reporter shared the sad news that Les McCann passed away at 88 in the Los Angeles area. McCann’s music is no stranger to the Hip-Hop community, as some of his songs were used as samples of the late Notorious B.I.G., legendary producer/rapper Dr. Dre, Mobb Deep, and more.
Per The Hollywood Reporter:
The musician, who released more than 60 albums over the course of his career, had been admitted to a hospital from the nursing care facility he’d lived in for the past four years and was diagnosed with pneumonia, his manager Alan Abrahams told The Hollywood Reporter.
In a prolific career, he was arguably best known for his 1969 Montreaux Jazz Festival performance of the protest song “Compared to What.”
Hip-Hop Songs That Sampled McCann’s Work
For those who don’t fancy the credits for their favorite albums, McCann’s song “Go On and Cry” was sampled in the original version of “The Next Episode,” which was supposed to be featured on Snoop Dogg’s classic album Doggystyle before it landed on Dr. Dre’s 2001.
Biggie’s “Ten Crack Commandments” off his double-disc Life After Death is heavily sampled from McCann’s “Vallarta.”
Mobb Deep went into the McCann duffy when they used his song “Benjamin” to craft their track “Right Back At You” off their a1995 album The Infamous.
Other artists who sampled McCann include stoner hip-hop pioneer Massive Attack, Cypress Hill, Slick Rick, A Tribe Called Quest, De La Soul, and Naughty By Nature.
McCann was born in 1935 in Lexington, Kentucky, and was a self-taught pianist before picking up the sousaphone in high school and serving in the U.S. Navy at 17.
In a 2017 interview with the Oxford American, McCann said he wanted to “go to the Navy School of Music,” only to learn they did not have the sousaphone to play.
He would go on to win a talent contest in the Navy that landed him an appearance on the Ed Sullivan Show. After being discharged, he formed a band in Los Angeles, landing his first contract with Pacific Jazz in 1960 after Miles Davis heard him play in a nightclub.
McCann also signed with Atlantic Records after Roberta Flack discovered him.
After suffering a stroke in the 90s while on stage in Germany, he used a wheelchair, but that didn’t keep him from performing.
McCann’s life is the true definition of a life well lived.
May he rest in paradise.
—
Photo: Paul Natkin / Getty
HipHopWired Featured Video
Source: Avery Kelley / Handout
Filmmaker Avery Kelley—who is 15—is adding her name to the list of creatives eager to present authentic and respectable images of Blackness to the world.
Raised on Chicago’s South Side, she witnessed successful, enterprising Black businesswomen who inspired her to pursue the arts. Originally a dancer, Avery found her talent in film, writing and producing content. In the four years since she started her production company, Inspired Melanin, she’s garnered award after award for her works, which include a historic documentary on the impact of the Soul Train television show, as well as a documentary on Chicago’s storied Studio One Dance Theater.
Critically acclaimed, her most recent work, The All-Aroundz, is touring film festivals stateside and internationally. More than just a worker, she’s equally known for her commitment to social causes, which includes her Give Love and Carry On fundraiser, which donates clothing to foster children.
Hip-Hop Wired: How are you? Recently, your organization hosted a clothing drive for foster children, called “Give Love and Carry On.” What inspired you to choose this as a fundraiser for you and yours?
Avery: I found out about the plight of children in the foster care system from my mother, and from there I began researching to learn more about the situation. I know that I can’t just solve every single problem that goes on within the foster care system, but I wanted to start somewhere, so I knew this was a way that I could start. I started by deciding to raise duffel bags and luggage tasks. That’s where the idea came from. I did research, saw a problem and wanted to fix it.
It’s a great idea! Who were some of the sponsors for your event?
Oh my gosh, we have an entire list of sponsors. So I’m so incredibly grateful for it. I’ve never had sponsors for anything in my life. So to be able to have it for this event, to be able to help us raise these bags just really warms my heart. I can name the main six. First, we have Riley’s Way Foundation. They were not only a sponsor, but are also the fiscal sponsor for the Give Love Carry On event as it’s not a nonprofit. Next, we have Over Time Elite, which is an Atlanta-based basketball league with teenagers. They are amazing. For the event, they donated bags for foster children. They also donated swag bags filled with game day tickets and merch to be able to give to the guests.
Then we have True Star Media, which is a Chicago-based youth media program. We have Project Osmosis, which is also Chicago-based but works nationally. They help students throughout the arts. Fifth, there’s Project I Am, which works to be able to create blessing bags for the homeless. And last, we have my production company, Inspired Melanin.
You were born and raised in Chicago and recently moved down to Atlanta. What was life like for you growing up in Chicago, particularly on the South Side?
Growing up in Chicago is amazing. It’s the best. It’s the best city in the world. And I know, I know there may be just a little bit of bias to that because I’m from there, but I’m serious. I grew up in a very family-based environment. I lived no more than like six minutes away from my grandmother my entire life. Of course, I know there’s always the serious type of Chicago that has violence and shootings, but there’s so much more to it than that. I grew up around so many powerful black women who inspired me to be able to go after what I wanted. I went to great schools with great teachers who helped shape people and helped shape me. I loved growing up there, and I wouldn’t change it for anything.
Was film your first dream? If not, how long did it take for you to recognize you had a talent behind the lens?
It’s not something that I knew originally. I’ve always known that I wanted to do something that has to do with the arts. I’ve been dancing since I was 2 years old, and at my dance studio, I was around so many entrepreneurial-based mindsets that I always knew it was something that I wanted to do. I just didn’t necessarily know which art field yet. I originally assumed, “oh, hey, I’m going to be the next Zendaya or Viola Davis.” So I kind of went after that dream, and I did different auditions.
During one audition, we had to write our monologue. I wrote a little monologue, and I performed it. And I was like, “OK, the self-tape was OK, but this monologue was pretty good!” I was only like 9 or 10 at the time though, and so after writing that monologue, I told my mom I like this. I was able to find my passion from that. And it was very unexpected, but I’m so grateful for it because film is like one of the best things ever. And I’m so glad I get to be able to tell different stories through this art form.
I think the world is grateful that you found it, too. So from this seed of screenwriting, you started a production company, named Inspired Melanin. What’s the inspiration behind the name?
It’s such a funny story to me. When I knew I wanted to start a production company at 11, I completed my very first short film called Backrow, which is about a group of seven kids that all sat in the back row of class. I didn’t want to just stop here. So I researched what a production company was and said “OK, but what am I going to call it?” I knew what I wanted to do. I knew that I wanted to be able to represent the underrepresented, which is a kind of umbrella. But I didn’t know the name. That same morning I was talking to my mom about tattoos I wanted. I was 11. Why am I over here thinking about tattoos, I don’t know! But I was telling my mom I wanted a tattoo on both arms, one saying inspired, and the other saying melanin.
Suddenly, I was like, “oh, wait, that kind of has a nice little ring to it.” My parents were like, “Why don’t you name the company that? It aligns with the mission that you want to be able to do.” It’s two tattoos that I wanted at the time and two tattoos that I still want, not just because of the name of the company, but because through the work that I do, I want to be able to inspire melanated people.
There’s a constant theme of representing teenagers and making art for teenagers. As you begin to grow, is your focus going to remain on inspiring teenagers?
I’m a teenager right now so I want to be able to write work that’s for teenagers in the future. When I’m an adult, I want to be able to do that as well and tell adult stories. I want to be able to explore a bunch of different avenues and use them to inspire this generation. For example, my favorite show is A Different World. It’s touched so many people and left a positive impact on the black community. It affected everything from music, style and television and just changed so many different things. A Different World made my dad go to college. And so when thinking about just the impact that film can have, that’s kind of similar to the impact that I want to be able to have.
You grew up around the type of Black excellence that people associate with Atlanta. Why did your family move to Atlanta?
I moved right before my freshman year. So it was the very end of my eighth grade. My family and I decided to move to Atlanta because it is such a huge film hub. There are so many more opportunities in the film space in Atlanta currently than there are in Chicago. Once I arrived here, my mom mentioned the Black Girls Film Camp to me in 2022 after scrolling on Instagram. When those applications opened at the end of 2022, I was like, “this is the time for me to apply.” I applied on the last day, made a pitch video and submitted it at almost 11:59 p.m.!
And when I got my interview and found out that I was accepted, I was like, “oh my gosh, this is God.” Because I almost missed this amazing opportunity, Black Girls Film Camp has changed my life. It changed the way that I see myself as a storyteller, the way that I see myself as a writer, a director and a creative. It’s opened so many doors for me to be able to explore different fields of the industry and meet so many Black women powerhouses, like those who are heavy hitters in the industry currently in the past.
Tell me about the films you’ve made. What was your first work and how did it come to be?
Back Row, which I touched on a little bit before, was the first script that I ever wrote. It was my very first short film that I ever did. I was able to have it in a film festival and it got a lot of amazing feedback. Next was the Teen Dom Talk Show, which originally started as Teen Dom. It was my project. It was a talk show for the kids, the teens and everyone in between that I began back in 2020. It was non-scripted, and we had two full seasons of the show, one of which was all livestream while the other was pre-recorded. Then I have the Soul Train Soul Change documentary. It originally started as a school project for the Chicago Metro History Fair, but it advanced to the National History Day Competition and won one of the best Illinois entries. It was also highlighted in a week-long exhibit in the National Museum of African American History and Culture.
After that, I did a 10-minute documentary, called One Step at a Time, which is the first feature-length documentary I’ve done. It is one of the projects closest to my heart because it focuses on the story of my dance studio, Studio One Dance Theater in the Chicago area that highlights Black excellence, black love, black sisterhood and family. Due to the pandemic, it was unfortunately shut down. That brings me to my most recent work, The All Aroundz, which is a short film that I did as a part of the Black Girls Film Camp 2023 cohort. I’m so grateful and blessed and thankful to Black Girls Film Camp because thanks to them and thanks to this experience, I was able to enter into so many different festivals. Also, more projects are coming soon.
How have your parents helped you in your journey?
I’m so grateful because without my parents none of this would be happening. First, legally, I’m a minor. Beyond the legal aspect, they’re just my biggest supporters and they know that this is something that I genuinely want to do. They have done nothing but constantly support me throughout this entire process and helped me balance doing filmmaking, school, dance, and all of these other fantastic things; school, which is a top priority for them.
Do you have any final thoughts?
I do want to say that for the Love Carries On Drive, we still are accepting donations until the end of this year. We are looking for the goal to be able to raise 1000 duffel bags for foster children in need. My social media has a link labeled Love Carries On Drive, and you can learn all the information about the drive. From there you can click the Amazon wish list to donate and then just click the Love Carries On address and send a bag over. We are looking for as many bag donations as possible. Feel free to follow the Love Carries On Drive on Instagram. You can also follow my Instagram @askaveryk for Love Carries On Drive updates as well as for film updates and more. Last, check out the Inspired Melanin website. We’re updating it.
HipHopWired Featured Video
Source: Avery Kelley / Handout
Filmmaker Avery Kelley—who is 15—is adding her name to the list of creatives eager to present authentic and respectable images of Blackness to the world.
Raised on Chicago’s South Side, she witnessed successful, enterprising Black businesswomen who inspired her to pursue the arts. Originally a dancer, Avery found her talent in film, writing and producing content. In the four years since she started her production company, Inspired Melanin, she’s garnered award after award for her works, which include a historic documentary on the impact of the Soul Train television show, as well as a documentary on Chicago’s storied Studio One Dance Theater.
Critically acclaimed, her most recent work, The All-Aroundz, is touring film festivals stateside and internationally. More than just a worker, she’s equally known for her commitment to social causes, which includes her Give Love and Carry On fundraiser, which donates clothing to foster children.
Hip-Hop Wired: How are you? Recently, your organization hosted a clothing drive for foster children, called “Give Love and Carry On.” What inspired you to choose this as a fundraiser for you and yours?
Avery: I found out about the plight of children in the foster care system from my mother, and from there I began researching to learn more about the situation. I know that I can’t just solve every single problem that goes on within the foster care system, but I wanted to start somewhere, so I knew this was a way that I could start. I started by deciding to raise duffel bags and luggage tasks. That’s where the idea came from. I did research, saw a problem and wanted to fix it.
It’s a great idea! Who were some of the sponsors for your event?
Oh my gosh, we have an entire list of sponsors. So I’m so incredibly grateful for it. I’ve never had sponsors for anything in my life. So to be able to have it for this event, to be able to help us raise these bags just really warms my heart. I can name the main six. First, we have Riley’s Way Foundation. They were not only a sponsor, but are also the fiscal sponsor for the Give Love Carry On event as it’s not a nonprofit. Next, we have Over Time Elite, which is an Atlanta-based basketball league with teenagers. They are amazing. For the event, they donated bags for foster children. They also donated swag bags filled with game day tickets and merch to be able to give to the guests.
Then we have True Star Media, which is a Chicago-based youth media program. We have Project Osmosis, which is also Chicago-based but works nationally. They help students throughout the arts. Fifth, there’s Project I Am, which works to be able to create blessing bags for the homeless. And last, we have my production company, Inspired Melanin.
You were born and raised in Chicago and recently moved down to Atlanta. What was life like for you growing up in Chicago, particularly on the South Side?
Growing up in Chicago is amazing. It’s the best. It’s the best city in the world. And I know, I know there may be just a little bit of bias to that because I’m from there, but I’m serious. I grew up in a very family-based environment. I lived no more than like six minutes away from my grandmother my entire life. Of course, I know there’s always the serious type of Chicago that has violence and shootings, but there’s so much more to it than that. I grew up around so many powerful black women who inspired me to be able to go after what I wanted. I went to great schools with great teachers who helped shape people and helped shape me. I loved growing up there, and I wouldn’t change it for anything.
Was film your first dream? If not, how long did it take for you to recognize you had a talent behind the lens?
It’s not something that I knew originally. I’ve always known that I wanted to do something that has to do with the arts. I’ve been dancing since I was 2 years old, and at my dance studio, I was around so many entrepreneurial-based mindsets that I always knew it was something that I wanted to do. I just didn’t necessarily know which art field yet. I originally assumed, “oh, hey, I’m going to be the next Zendaya or Viola Davis.” So I kind of went after that dream, and I did different auditions.
During one audition, we had to write our monologue. I wrote a little monologue, and I performed it. And I was like, “OK, the self-tape was OK, but this monologue was pretty good!” I was only like 9 or 10 at the time though, and so after writing that monologue, I told my mom I like this. I was able to find my passion from that. And it was very unexpected, but I’m so grateful for it because film is like one of the best things ever. And I’m so glad I get to be able to tell different stories through this art form.
I think the world is grateful that you found it, too. So from this seed of screenwriting, you started a production company, named Inspired Melanin. What’s the inspiration behind the name?
It’s such a funny story to me. When I knew I wanted to start a production company at 11, I completed my very first short film called Backrow, which is about a group of seven kids that all sat in the back row of class. I didn’t want to just stop here. So I researched what a production company was and said “OK, but what am I going to call it?” I knew what I wanted to do. I knew that I wanted to be able to represent the underrepresented, which is a kind of umbrella. But I didn’t know the name. That same morning I was talking to my mom about tattoos I wanted. I was 11. Why am I over here thinking about tattoos, I don’t know! But I was telling my mom I wanted a tattoo on both arms, one saying inspired, and the other saying melanin.
Suddenly, I was like, “oh, wait, that kind of has a nice little ring to it.” My parents were like, “Why don’t you name the company that? It aligns with the mission that you want to be able to do.” It’s two tattoos that I wanted at the time and two tattoos that I still want, not just because of the name of the company, but because through the work that I do, I want to be able to inspire melanated people.
There’s a constant theme of representing teenagers and making art for teenagers. As you begin to grow, is your focus going to remain on inspiring teenagers?
I’m a teenager right now so I want to be able to write work that’s for teenagers in the future. When I’m an adult, I want to be able to do that as well and tell adult stories. I want to be able to explore a bunch of different avenues and use them to inspire this generation. For example, my favorite show is A Different World. It’s touched so many people and left a positive impact on the black community. It affected everything from music, style and television and just changed so many different things. A Different World made my dad go to college. And so when thinking about just the impact that film can have, that’s kind of similar to the impact that I want to be able to have.
You grew up around the type of Black excellence that people associate with Atlanta. Why did your family move to Atlanta?
I moved right before my freshman year. So it was the very end of my eighth grade. My family and I decided to move to Atlanta because it is such a huge film hub. There are so many more opportunities in the film space in Atlanta currently than there are in Chicago. Once I arrived here, my mom mentioned the Black Girls Film Camp to me in 2022 after scrolling on Instagram. When those applications opened at the end of 2022, I was like, “this is the time for me to apply.” I applied on the last day, made a pitch video and submitted it at almost 11:59 p.m.!
And when I got my interview and found out that I was accepted, I was like, “oh my gosh, this is God.” Because I almost missed this amazing opportunity, Black Girls Film Camp has changed my life. It changed the way that I see myself as a storyteller, the way that I see myself as a writer, a director and a creative. It’s opened so many doors for me to be able to explore different fields of the industry and meet so many Black women powerhouses, like those who are heavy hitters in the industry currently in the past.
Tell me about the films you’ve made. What was your first work and how did it come to be?
Back Row, which I touched on a little bit before, was the first script that I ever wrote. It was my very first short film that I ever did. I was able to have it in a film festival and it got a lot of amazing feedback. Next was the Teen Dom Talk Show, which originally started as Teen Dom. It was my project. It was a talk show for the kids, the teens and everyone in between that I began back in 2020. It was non-scripted, and we had two full seasons of the show, one of which was all livestream while the other was pre-recorded. Then I have the Soul Train Soul Change documentary. It originally started as a school project for the Chicago Metro History Fair, but it advanced to the National History Day Competition and won one of the best Illinois entries. It was also highlighted in a week-long exhibit in the National Museum of African American History and Culture.
After that, I did a 10-minute documentary, called One Step at a Time, which is the first feature-length documentary I’ve done. It is one of the projects closest to my heart because it focuses on the story of my dance studio, Studio One Dance Theater in the Chicago area that highlights Black excellence, black love, black sisterhood and family. Due to the pandemic, it was unfortunately shut down. That brings me to my most recent work, The All Aroundz, which is a short film that I did as a part of the Black Girls Film Camp 2023 cohort. I’m so grateful and blessed and thankful to Black Girls Film Camp because thanks to them and thanks to this experience, I was able to enter into so many different festivals. Also, more projects are coming soon.
How have your parents helped you in your journey?
I’m so grateful because without my parents none of this would be happening. First, legally, I’m a minor. Beyond the legal aspect, they’re just my biggest supporters and they know that this is something that I genuinely want to do. They have done nothing but constantly support me throughout this entire process and helped me balance doing filmmaking, school, dance, and all of these other fantastic things; school, which is a top priority for them.
Do you have any final thoughts?
I do want to say that for the Love Carries On Drive, we still are accepting donations until the end of this year. We are looking for the goal to be able to raise 1000 duffel bags for foster children in need. My social media has a link labeled Love Carries On Drive, and you can learn all the information about the drive. From there you can click the Amazon wish list to donate and then just click the Love Carries On address and send a bag over. We are looking for as many bag donations as possible. Feel free to follow the Love Carries On Drive on Instagram. You can also follow my Instagram @askaveryk for Love Carries On Drive updates as well as for film updates and more. Last, check out the Inspired Melanin website. We’re updating it.
HipHopWired Featured Video
Source: Prince Williams / Getty / T.I.
One thing T.I. is going to do is stand on family business.
The self-proclaimed “King of da South” was not happy to see a photoshopped image of himself putting his son, King Harris, in a headlock to promote an upcoming R&B Night party on Wednesday (Nov. 29) the duo was set to host.
Footage of the Atlanta rapper/actor/aspiring comedian checking the Atlanta promoter went viral on social media, and the “Big Sh*t Poppin” crafter was BIG MAD.
The image resulted from the heated verbal altercation between TIP and his son, King Harris, while at the Atlanta Falcons game last weekend, which led to numerous memes and people wondering about T.I. and his wife’s parenting skills or lack thereof.
“N***a you can talk to me. Until then, ain’t nothing going. Ain’t nobody getting nothing going, nothing,” T.I. said in the video. “Call who you need to call, do what you need to do. Ain’t nothing happening, no money, no beers, no partying, no sections, nothing. You put me and mine on the muthaf**kin flyer, n***a get me everything. And if you can’t, don’t play with me. I don’t know if y’all from here, but n***a don’t play with me in this city. It’s my muthaf**kin city. Don’t play with me in this city,”
Cooler heads have prevailed, the flyer was updated, and T.I. hosted the party. He spoke on the altercation in a statement through a representative sent to XXL.
“Let’s not miss the point with all the entertainment,” Tip said through a representative. “It was the principle that was important here. S/O to the club owners for doing what’s right. Family is Forever & Business is Business…Long Live OG Clay.”
We’re glad to hear that it was all settled.
—
Photo: Prince Williams / Getty
HipHopWired Featured Video
Source: Richard Levine / Getty
Apparently, when Red Lobster promoted its Ultimate Endless Shrimp deal, the company had severely underestimated how much people love shrimp—and it cost the seafood restaurant giant $11 million in quarterly operating losses.
According to the New York Times, Red Lobster’s “irresistible” all-you-can-eat shrimp promotion was a little too irresistible, so much so that the company was forced to raise the price to $25 from $20 after the popular promotion caused a drop in the restaurant chan’s third-quarter profit—which is generally the opposite of what a popular promotional offer is designed to do.
From the Times:
Thai Union Group, which owns a large stake in the chain, said in a third-quarter earnings call this month that the deal was in part to blame for an $11 million operating loss.
Red Lobster hoped the promotion would bolster traffic at its U.S. locations through fall and winter, when its restaurants tend to be the emptiest.
Ultimate Endless Shrimp had already been a Red Lobster “guest-favorite” staple for over 18 years. But the restaurant took it a step further this summer, offering the previously seasonal deal “all day, every day” instead of just on Mondays.
Obviously, Red Lobster learned nothing from that one episode of The Simpsons.
Ludovic Garnier, the chief financial officer of Thai Union Group, indicated that the corporation was taken completely by surprise by the fact that offering people an unlimited amount of seafood for $20 negatively affected the profits of a restaurant that primarily sells seafood. (*Googles educational credentials needed to become a chief financial advisor*)
“But something which was different from our expectations is the proportion of the people selecting this promotion was much higher compared to expectation,” Garnier told investors earlier this month.
As for the future of the way-too-generous promotion, Garnier indicated that the company hasn’t decided to do away with it completely.
“It’s one of the iconic promotions for Red Lobster, so we want to keep it on the menu,” he said. “But, of course, we need to be much more careful regarding what is the entry point and what is the price point.”
HipHopWired Featured Video
Source: Emma McIntyre / Getty
Legendary music industry executive Jimmy Iovine has been issued a summons by an anonymous plaintiff who has accused him of sexual abuse.
According to Variety, the summons was filed last week in the Supreme Court of the State of New York County. And while the filing doesn’t go into much explicit detail regarding what Iovine is accused of doing exactly, it claims the plaintiff listed as “Jane Doe” has “suffered as a result of being sexually abused, forcibly touched, and subjected to sexual harassment and retaliation in violation of anti-discrimination laws in or around August 2007.”
Meanwhile, a spokesperson for Iovine not only denied the allegations, but they told Variety it was the first time they had heard them.
“We are quite shocked and baffled by this alleged claim,” the spokesperson said. “This inquiry is the first we’ve heard of this matter. No one has ever made a claim like this against Jimmy Iovine, nor have we been contacted or made aware of any complaint by anyone, including this unknown plaintiff prior to now.”
The accuser’s summons comes just before the window closed last Friday for plaintiffs in New York State to file sex abuse lawsuits even after the statute of limitations had expired under the Adult Survivors Act. According to the New York Times, more than 3,000 civil suits had been filed before the window expired. Those suits included filings against former NY Gov. Andrew Cuomo, NYC Mayor Eric Adams, music mogul L.A. Reid, rockstar Axl Rose, and, most notably, Sean “Diddy” Combs, who settled his suit filed by singer and ex-girlfriend Cassie just one day after the news broke.
From Variety:
According to the court document, Doe is asserting claims pursuant to inter alia, New York common law for assault and battery; the New York City Victims of Gender-Motivated Violence Protection Act; and the New York City Human Rights Law. Attorneys are seeking compensation to be determined at trial, including for punitive damages, inter alia physical injury and more. Iovine is required to serve a notice of appearance or demand for complaint within 20 days after the summon’s servicing, or 30 days after service is complete if the summons isn’t delivered personally to him in New York.
HipHopWired Featured Video
Source: handout / Department of Justice
Federal authorities have made a significant dent within the counterfeit industry. Over $1 billion dollars worth of fake goods were seized in New York City.
Raw Story is reporting that a national task force has made into the record books when it comes to the black market. On Wednesday, November 15 prosecutors announced their biggest bust in history stating that their work has resulted in the “largest ever seizure of counterfeit goods in US history”. Over 200,000 items were hauled during the bust which roughly translates to over a billion dollars in retail value. The items ranged from knockoff purses, shoes, hats, belts, smell goods and other accessories.
U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said: “As alleged, the defendants used a Manhattan storage facility as a distribution center for massive amounts of knock-off designer goods. The seizures announced today consist of merchandise with over a billion dollars in estimated retail value, the largest-ever seizure of counterfeit goods in U.S. history. This is a testament to the commitment of this Office and its law enforcement partners to combat counterfeit trafficking in New York City.”
New York Police Department Commissioner made it clear that the counterfeit industry is a plague to the safety of citizens and those work in this underworld alike. “The trafficking of counterfeit goods is anything but a victimless crime because it harms legitimate businesses, governments, and consumers” he said in a statement according to the Department Of Justice. “Today’s indictments show how seriously the NYPD and our federal partners take this offense. And we will continue to work hard to hold accountable anyone who seeks to benefit by selling such items on the black market.”
Adama Sow and Abdulai Jalloh a/k/a “Troy Banks” are alleged to be running this operation. Both have been arrested and charged for trafficking the fake items which carries a maximum sentence of ten years in prison.
HipHopWired Featured Video
Source: JOHN LOCHER / Getty
Keefe D’s opportunity to defend his name has been set. His murder trial has been scheduled for next summer.
KTNV Las Vegas is reporting that the Compton, California native will get his day in court. On Tuesday, November 7 Clark County Judge Carli Kearney hosted a hearing and scheduled the murder trial to commence on June 3, 2024. The man born Keith Duane Davis faces charges relating to the murder of Tupac Shakur. On Thursday, November 2 Davis pled not guilty to the crime even though he has conducted several interviews where he admitted to being in the vehicle that fatally shot the “All Eyez On Me” rapper.
During an 2018 interview with BET he gave further details behind that tragic evening. “When we pulled up, I was in the front seat,” Davis said. When asked by the interviewer “Who shot Tupac?” he responded “Going to keep it for the code of the streets,” Davis said. “It just came from the backseat, bro.” He also spoke about the incident in his memoir Compton Street Legend. “Tupac made an erratic move and began to reach down beneath his seat,” Keefe wrote in the book. “It was the first and only time in my life that I could relate to the police command, ‘Keep your hands where I can see them.’ Instead, Pac pulled out a strap, and that’s when the fireworks started. One of my guys from the back seat grabbed the Glock and started bustin’ back.”
Keefe D will not face the death penalty if convicted.
HipHopWired Featured Video
Source: Prince Williams / Getty
Akon is threatening to sue Suge Knight over wild allegations that he committed sexual violence against underage girls while in the studio.
TMZ reported that during the first episode of Knight’s new Collect Call podcast, which he launched from behind bars last month, he accused Akon and producer Detail of raping two teenage girls, which Akon vehemently denies.
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Way back in 2009, Knight caught a beatdown by Akon’s business manager, Robert Carnes, Jr., who was charged with one count of felony aggravated assault. In 2020, Akon said the confrontation began over a business dispute between himself, Suge and Detail, but he told TMZ he hasn’t had any recent contact with the former Death Row CEO who is currently serving 28 years in prison for voluntary manslaughter.
From TMZ:
Akon tells TMZ Hip Hop … the claims are false, and he’s not standing for the slander. He says, “I need to make it very clear that I absolutely deny these outrageous false and disgusting claims Suge Knight made on his podcast about me.”
“I’ve never called, received, or had any contact with Suge Knight since he has been incarcerated. My voice you heard on his podcast was as a soundbite previously recorded from an interview I did with DJ Vlad 3 years ago regarding Suge Knight in 2009.”
He continues, “I’ve never been a guest on Suge Knight’s podcast. I always believe in building positivity into the world and my actions and legacy have spoken to that.”
“It’s unfortunate that I have to defend myself from these lies and I will be involving my legal team in filing a defamation lawsuit against Mr. Knight, my prayers for him will still continue.”
Knight recently declared that he will never testify against Duane “Keefe D” Davis has been arrested in connection with the 1996 murder of Tupac Shakur, or anyone else involved in the case. Apparently, he’s far less tight-lipped when it comes to using his platform to air out alleged offenses about other artists and celebs.
As for Akon, the “Locked Up,” singer also addressed the allegations on X last week tweeting, “The world knows a lie when they hear it. It’s unfortunate that this man is going out like this. It’s sad and seriously embarrassing. Regardless of our history, I’m still going to be praying for him.”
https://twitter.com/Akon/status/1718640169232769174
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Source: MF DOOM Estate / MF DOOM Estate
We lost MF DOOM aka Zev Love X aka Daniel Dumile way too soon. The late, great MC’s estate is teaming with Rhymesayers Entertainment to celebrate the third annual DOOMSDAY with plenty of merchandise and music for fans of the Supervillian.
The collection includes hoodies and sweats, tees, slides, skatedecks and even socks. The hoodies run for $100 while the the tees are $45. The entire apparel line is available right now at gasdrawls.com, where DOOM’s catalog of music is also available for sale.
DOOM passed away in 2020, but fans weren’t made aware of his passing (reportedly on October 31), until his wife, Jasmin Thompson, revealed news of his death (he was 49) at the end of the year. Despite the renown he had gathered via his critically acclaimed, game-changing projects like Madvillainy, MM…Food and Operation: Doomsday, as well as his early work with KMD, DOOM was living in the UK and unable to return to the United States due to immigration issues.
Controversy has continued after his death with his wife calling out the suspect care he received before his untimely death (the facility actually apologized) and his one-time business partner allegedly stealing his rhymebooks. In regards to the latter, the estate has filed a lawsuit against Eothen “Egon” Alapatt, the former Stones Throw Records who is accused of possessing 31 of MF DOOM’s former notebooks. Madvillainy, the collab between between DOOM and Madlib, was released via Stones Thrown.
Rest in powerful piece MF DOOM.
