G rowing up in Compton in the 2010s, Roddy Ricch listened more to the Atlanta rap hymns of Future than to his iconic West Coast forebears. (“I was born in ’98,” he has said. “What do you expect me to rap like?”) He’s since become one of the most popular …
Read More »Common Talks His First Rap Album, First Rhymes in 'Bluebird Memories' Excerpt
Common recounts the story behind the first rap record he bought — and the first rhyme he wrote — in an excerpt from his upcoming Audible original, Bluebird Memories: A Journey Through Lyrics and Life, out August 4th. Common recorded Bluebird Memories at the Minetta Lane Theatre in New York …
Read More »Mac Miller's Posthumous Album 'Circles' is a Fitting Coda to His Career
It is to Mac Miller’s great credit that he became more compelling the further his career progressed. He would have made millions if he had stayed true to his humble teenage beginnings as a sentient snapback hat, Lord Finesse admirer and legal opponent, and Pittsburgh’s sauciest white boy since Terry …
Read More »Kanye West Delays New Album 'Jesus Is King'
UPDATE (9/27): Kim Kardashian announced on Friday night that Kanye West’s new album will arrive on Sunday following a NYC listening party. “Just a few final tweaks to the mixes,” the rapper’s wife wrote on Instagram. ** Less than a month ago, Kim Kardashian announced, via Twitter, the impending release …
Read More »Young M.A Dropped One of the Year's Best Freestyles When She Needed it Most
Freestyles aren’t known for being bastions of vulnerability. Traditionally, the form is a mixture of technical skill, improvisation, showmanship, and hyperbolic boasts. In July, Tyler, The Creator’s “Butt Sex” freestyle for Funk Flex broke the form wide open with a mix of trolling and fleeting moments of sincerity. In a …
Read More »Schoolboy Q Plots North American Tour With Nav
Schoolboy Q and Nav — an intriguing if oddball music coupling — are embarking on a 19-city North American tour this fall. The Crash Tour 2019 will launch November 4th at the Revention Music Center in Houston, Texas and include stops in cities like Atlanta, Philadelphia, Brooklyn, Chicago and Denver. …
Read More »Drake's OVO Pop-Up Shop to Launch in Las Vegas
Drake‘s October’s Very Own (OVO) imprint is launching a new pop-up shop this week in Las Vegas, Nevada. The store debuts on Saturday at Wynn Plaza and will be open daily through January 12th. The shop stems from the multifaceted partnership Drake inked with Wynn Las Vegas, which was announced …
Read More »Chance the Rapper Pushes Back 'The Big Day' Tour to 2020
Chance the Rapper has announced that he will be pushing back the tour for his new album The Big Day to 2020. Posting the news on Instagram, he wrote, “This year has been one of the greatest of my life; Marriage, new baby, first album etc. But with it being …
Read More »Hits Are Fleeting, but Crudo Means Raw Makes Messages That Last
Colombia’s viral chart is generally awash in tuneful reggaeton — the dominant sound of commercial pop in that country, with its tightly programmed beats and curt rumbles of bass. But in June 2018, an unusual song rocketed to the top of the Spotify ranking: “La Mitad De La Mitad” by …
Read More »Lil Nas X Comes Out on World Pride Day
Lil Nas X came out in a handful of Twitter messages posted Sunday, telling fans to listen closely to the lyrics on his 7 track “C7osure (You Like).” “Some of y’all already know, some of y’all don’t care, some of y’all not gone [fuck with me] no more,” he wrote. …
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