“I’m happy he’s found Christ but there’s so much compromise,” the Twitter user wrote, referring to the direction ‘Ye’s music has taken since his back-to-back 2019 gospel projects Jesus Is King and Jesus Is Born, the latter of which is credited to the Sunday Service Choir. “And then to find out that he helped produce that demonic sonf/video that Lil Nas X made is so upsetting.”But the 22-year-old rapper shut that down immediately by responding, “There was nothing demonic about the industry baby video. just say u hate gay people musty.”LNX was also surprised to find out that people took issue with his latest video, which in one widely discussed scene depicts a group of naked men dancing in a prison shower. “Lil nas is definitely doing too much now,” another Twitter user wrote, to which Nas wrote back, “N—a i literally went to hell and twerked on satan but gay prison is where you draw the line ?!”The only through-line between the two visuals is the beginning of the “Industry Baby” video depicts a fictional courtroom scene between the rapper and Nike following the temporary release of his viral “Satan Shoes” in March, which he announced after dropping “Montero.” (The actual court case between Nike and MSCHF settled in April.)
Hip-Hop
Kanye West continues to keep fans on their toes as if they’re waiting to cop the next pair of Yeezys. But after Thursday night’s listening event for his 10th studio album Donda came and went, and the project never materialized at midnight ET Friday (July 23), fans were disappointed but not surprised.Yeezy fans crowded Spotify and Apple Music at the stroke of midnight just like the sold-out Mercendes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, where he hosted the Kanye West Presents A Donda Listening Event to preview the highly anticipated LP. A rare verse from Jay-Z that alluded to Watch the Throne 2, reflections on his divorce with Kim Kardashian (who was in attendance), and collaborations with Baby Keem, Roddy Ricch and Lil Baby riled up in-person and online audiences.But at the end of the day, viewers felt like they had ultimately clowned themselves into thinking ‘Ye was going to give them an album he had just danced around to for an hour in an empty arena. Those who kept refreshing Spotify, Apple Music and other streaming platforms were only met with ‘Ye’s more recent release: “Nah Nah Nah.”
Take a look at Billboard’s weekly roundup and the “awards” it gave to this week’s headlines.Happiest Music News: Lady Gaga & Tony Bennett plan to reunite with “One Last Time” showsGaga and Bennett, who recorded their first Grammy-winning collaborative album Cheek to Cheek in 2014 and have been pals since 2011, are celebrating a decade of friendship with two shows at Radio City Music Hall, titled One Last Time: An Evening With Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga. The first show will be held on Aug. 3 (Bennett’s 95th birthday), while the second will be on Aug. 5. Learn more here.Sweetest Music News: Halsey gives birth to her first childCongratulations are in order for Halsey and Alev Aydin, who welcomed their first child! The singer revealed in touching black-and-white Instagram photos that they named their baby boy Ender Ridley Aydin. “Gratitude. For the most ‘rare’ and euphoric birth. Powered by love,” she captioned the post. See the sweet family photos here.Sportiest Music News: Megan Thee Stallion stars on Sports Illustrated Swimsuit cover, Jonas Brothers air Olympics TV specialNo competition to see here, because there’s a tie between Megan Thee Stallion and the Jonas Brothers for who takes home the gold in this category. She becomes the first rapper — and second musician after Beyoncé — to star on the cover of Sports Illustrated Swimsuit, which was unveiled on Monday (July 19). “She is so symbolic of everything I hope other woman can tap into for themselves,” SI Swimsuit Editor-in-Chief MJ Day tells Billboard. Meanwhile, the pop trio kicked their sibling rivalry up a notch with their hourlong special Olympic Dreams Featuring Jonas Brothers, which aired on Wednesday (July 21). Read more about Meg’s historic magazine cover here, and learn about the JoBros’ TV special here.Most Record-Breaking Music News: BTS & Justin Bieber make history on Hot 100 The K-pop supergroup becomes the first act to top the Hot 100 and Songs of the Summer charts with two different songs, as “Butter” keeps atop the seasonal tally for another week and “Permission to Dance” replaces it on the all-genre chart. The feat hasn’t been accomplished in nearly 11 years. The last act to do so was when Katy Perry’s “California Gurls,” featuring Snoop Dogg, was crowned the song of the summer in 2010, while her follow-up single “Teenage Dream” took over the throne of Hot 100. Two slots down on the Hot 100, “Stay” by The Kid LAROI and Justin Bieber earns the latter his 100th hit on the Hot 100, making him the youngest soloist to accomplish this feat at 27 years, four months and three weeks of age. Learn more about BTS’ historical chart moves here and Bieber’s here.Most Live News: Kanye West plays Donda at listening event Yeezy officially returned as all eyes were on the Kanye West Presents A Donda Listening Event Thursday night (July 22), where he debuted his 10th studio album, Donda (which has yet to materialize on streaming, by the way) at Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium. The biggest surprises of the night included a Watch the Throne reunion between Ye and Jay-Z, his head-to-toe red outfit reminiscent of what he wore to the 2010 MTV Video Music Awards when he premiered “Runaway,” and his reflections on his divorce from Kim Kardashian. Read the five best moments from the listening event here.Most Surprising Music News: Taylor Swift pulls Fearless (Taylor’s Version) from awards contentionBillboard broke the news on Tuesday (July 20) that the award-winning superstar pulled Fearless (Taylor’s Version), the 2021 re-recorded album of her 2008 breakthrough sophomore release, from Grammy and CMA Awards contention. Her ninth studio album Evermore, however, will be submitted to the Grammys for consideration in all eligible categories. Read the official statement here.
To kick off Rolling Loud’s return, co-founders Matt Zingler and Tariq Cherif have provided five things — in their own words — that fans can look forward to this weekend.1. First to Hear New Music Performed LiveWe’re the first major festival to host a show in 16 months, so fans can be the first to hear everyone who hasn’t been able to perform in so long. To get the chance to listen to your favorite songs that came out in 2020-2021 in a live setting for the first time is going to be insane.2. First WWE Smackdown at a Music FestivalFans get to see the first ever WWE Smackdown event to take place onstage at a music festival. It’s gonna be nuts. Yes, they’re going to construct a wrestling ring and host two wrestling matches in between sets Friday night. There’s also an exclusive merch capsule we’re dropping to celebrate this moment.3. High-End FoodFor VIP guests, we partnered with Nobu to provide an exclusive menu.4. Access to Great MerchWe’re known as being the gold standard for merch, and this year is no different. This year, we have collaborations with Revenge, WWE, and more. Our fans love our cut-and-sew collection, which we also expanded. Also, Bunny’s merch collection is debuting at our Bae Bar. She’s throwing a meet-and-greet with Lil Yachty.5. Upgraded Amenities and OpportunitiesThe overall site experience has been super upgraded with amenities such as the biggest traveling Ferris wheel, the biggest main stage, awesome activations, skatepark, basketball court, cereal bar, mega drop, and many more cool experiential opportunities that bring hip-hop’s Disney World to life.
Like many other events, Rolling Loud was canceled last year because of the coronavirus pandemic. Originally set for May 2020, the event was rescheduled several times. This weekend’s lineup includes A$AP Rocky, Travis Scott and Post Malone.Kanye West, who held a listening party for his anticipated 10th studio album, DONDA, at Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium ahead of Friday’s planned release, is also slated to perform at Rolling Loud Miami.
Drizzy and his fellow Torontonian have connections that extend well beyond their hometown.Drake has previously cited Smiley as an “inspiration” and, a day after finding out he was one of the most-nominated artists for the 2019 Grammys, the rapper uploaded a video of himself shirtless in the pool, sipping a drink and cooling down to the intro track off Smiley’s A Tape to Remember.Drake’s forthcoming sixth album was originally slated for release in January, but was pushed back due to his rehab from surgery. It’s the followup to the mega-hit double album from 2018, Scorpion.Stream Smiley’s “Over The Top” featuring Drake below.
But the Grammy Award-winning rapper had the last laugh when he arrived in a sea of camera flashes and cheers from the crowd. Kanye has yet to say a word throughout this album rollout, and he remained quiet throughout the event. Regardless though, Kanye had people paying attention to what was about to go down in Atlanta.Billboard compiled a list of the five best moments from Kanye West Presents A Donda Listening Event. Check out our picks below!Kanye Dips Into His Nostalgic Bag For His Outfit Of The DayKanye knows a thing or two about fashion, so when it came to his outfit choice on Thursday, all eyes were glued to what he’d pulled out of his wardrobe. Dressed in a red puffer jacket from his upcoming YZY Gap line, a tan mask, red pants and a pair of unreleased Adidas Yeezy 1020V, Kanye came ready to show out. Fans may remember Kanye pulled out a similar outfit for his performance at the 2010 MTV Video Music Awards. He wore a red suit and a matching pair of Kanye West x Louis Vuitton Don sneakers.Kanye Takes The Bandage Off His Wounds Regarding His FamilyEmotion is something Kanye doesn’t lack, and there are several songs on DONDA where he leaves his emotions all on the table. There was one record where Kanye repeatedly said he was losing his family, a straightforward response to all the commotion regarding his divorce from Kim Kardashian. Kim filed for divorce in February after months of rumors surrounding issues between her and Kanye.Chicago Gets Their Kanye and Lil Durk Dream CollaborationLil Durk is one of the most popular rappers in the game today and another sign that Chicago breeds music talent. In January, Lil Durk paid tribute to his fellow Chicagoan with the song “Kanye Krazy,” and the accompanying music video featured Durk recreating various iconic Kanye videos. Fans called for a collab between the two, and they finally got their wish when Kanye played a song featuring Durkio and Jeremih off the new album. Just last week, Lil Durk said he missed the flight to record a verse for Kanye.Lil Baby, Baby Keem & Roddy Ricch Show Out With Their Scene-Stealing FeaturesDONDA is stacked full of features from Pusha T, Playboi Carti, Lil Durk, Pop Smoke and more. Three features got some of the biggest reactions of the night, though. Baby Keem, Roddy Ricch and Lil Baby delivered stellar verses on their respective tracks, with Kanye giving them more than enough real estate to get their bars off. This is the first time any of these rappers have gotten on a track together with Kanye and they didn’t disappoint.JAY-Z and Kanye Confirm Their Reconciliation On DONDAKanye closed the night in a major way when the last track he played surprised everyone in attendance and watching at home. The song featured an electric guitar-laden beat with Kanye singing about going to jail with an unexpected guest feature. JAY-Z crept onto the track with a smooth flow that announced the possible return of The Throne. The moment is a relief, especially after things seemed to go sour between the two after Ye went on his infamous rants during the Saint Pablo Tour.
In promoting the new track, Lil Nas got fans riled up online when he began posting about a “court” date he had regarding his “Satan Shoes,” the collaboration with MSCHF that resulted in a since-settled lawsuit from Nike. The court date in question turned out to be a minute-long sketch that acted as a teaser for the song, in which Lil Nas was put on trial for being gay, resulting in him being sentenced to jailtime at “Montero State Prison.”The rapper also went on the record early in the week to get ahead of any parents who may complain about the explicit content of his new music video, warning them off the bat that he would not be acting as a babysitter. “saying this in advance so y’all won’t blame me. THE INDUSTRY BABY VIDEO IS NOT FOR YOUR KIDS,” he wrote.On Thursday, Lil Nas also shared a final heartfelt message to his younger self about the song, asking that he stay strong and push through any negativity that he was feeling. “I need you to keep going. I need you to realize that you have the opportunity to be the person that you needed growing up,” he said. “I need you to stop feeling sorry for yourself. And I need you to remember that the only person who has to believe in YOU is YOU.”Watch Lil Nas X’s “Industry Baby” below:
Kardashian filed for divorce from West in February after six-plus years of marriage. West and Kardashian were married on May 24, 2014, during a private reception in Florence, Italy. The wedding took place 11 months after Kardashian gave birth to their firstborn, North, in June 2013. They’ve since welcomed son Saint, daughter Chicago and son Psalm, all of whom were in attendance at Thursday’s listening.Donda — which is due Friday — will be West’s first album since his back-to-back 2019 gospel projects Jesus Is King and Jesus Is Born, the latter of which is credited to the Sunday Service Choir. The new project is named after his late mom, who died in 2007 at age 58.See a fan video of Kardashian and her kids’ entrance below:
Kanye West’s Donda listening event is live.The rapper is premiering his 10th studio album, set for release Friday, at Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium on Thursday night (July 22) with a massive listening part. The event is streaming live via Apple Music.Donda is West’s first album since his back-to-back 2019 gospel projects Jesus Is King and Jesus Is Born, the latter of which is credited to the Sunday Service Choir. It remains to be seen what the new project — named after his late mom, who died in 2007 at age 58 — will sound like, but the first song previewed from the project, “No Child Left Behind,” both lyrically and sonically recalls West’s gospel work.
©2021 Black Promoters Collective (BPC) All Rights Reserved.