This week in Hip Hop, Kanye West continued to shake things up on Twitter by showing his unwavering support for Donald Trump. Meek Mill also got out of prison this week and J. Cole’s KOD album broke first-day streaming records. Lastly, a recent interview with Kelis shed light on her allegedly violent and rocky marriage with ex-husband Nas.
Kanye West Shows His Support For Donald Trump
As Kanye West continues to make Twitter his philosophical canvas, he’s determined to keep pushing things to the edge by declaring that not only does he support Donald Trump, but that he loves him too. West was even photographed in a picture with one of Trump’s red “Make America Great Again” campaign caps.
The Hip Hop community showed concern, with Ebro from Hot 97 and John Legend among those who made attempts to figure out why Ye is supporting Trump. He also dumped Scooter Braun as his manager.
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This has folks like conservative political pundit Alex Jones and Trump himself very excited.
Chance The Rapper stepped in to back up Kanye and ruffled some feathers by saying Black people don’t have to be Democrats. This caused confusion as to whether or not Chance was a Trump supporter too. Trump offered praise to him for his support, which Chance rebuffed, explaining himself and apologizing for his “poorly timed” tweet.
West also announced that he will run for president in 2024.
Read more here.
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Meek Mill Is Free
After being locked up for five months over a probation violation, Meek Mill walked free from prison this week. His release had a lot of his supporters celebrating, including Kevin Hart and JAY-Z.
The first thing Meek did after getting released was head to the Philadelphia 76ers game with his son. He did admit in a recent interview that he doesn’t feel free.
Read more about Meek Mill’s release from prison here.
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J. Cole Breaks Records With KOD
HipHopDX’s editor-in-chief Trent Clark reviewed J. Cole’s album KOD, declaring it to be one of the most important rap albums ever. The album came out the gate breaking records, including dethroning Drake’s Apple Music for most first-day streams (but then getting knocked off himself by Post Malone). Fans can anticipate a deluxe version of Cole’s album to come out soon.
The release of KOD was followed by a music video for “Kevin’s Heart,” which also happens to star Kevin Hart.
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Read the review for J. Cole’s KODhere.
Kelis Alleges Domestic Violence Past With Nas
According to Kelis, Nas allegedly got physical with her in the past. She revealed this information during an interview with Hollywood Unlocked. It was so bad, he reportedly would leave her body riddled in bruises. The incident with Rihanna and Chris Brown resonated with her the most.
“I remember so clearly when the pictures came out with that whole thing that happened with her and Chris Brown,” she said. “I had bruises all over my body at the time. That day, I remember being in Atlanta, sitting in the kitchen … and I wasn’t ready to walk, so I didn’t say it … Seeing her, the way she looked and then looking at myself, I was embarrassed. I wasn’t ready for that move … I thought I could love past this.”
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Read more about Kelis’ interview here.
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DX Reviews
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Flatbush Zombies — Vacation In Hell
Jean Grae and Quelle Chris — Everything’s Fine
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DXCLUSIVES: CHIKA, Kvng Guap, Method Man & Redman
CHIKA Goes Viral With Epic Response To J. Cole’s “1985”
CHIKA’s rap response videos have gotten her a lot of attention and her rendition to J. Cole’s KOD track “1985” is no exception. HipHopDX had the chance to speak with CHIKA about her new-found popularity.
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“I was happy … I’m someone who likes to slave over their words,” CHIKA says. “I like to make sure that the songs I put out have a message and some sort of impact to them. As someone trying to break into the industry, I find it disheartening to see cats rhyme cat in the hat and sit around with million-dollar deals.”
Method Man & Redman Explain How “Drop The Mic” Is A Win For Hip Hop
Method Man is the host of TBS’ Drop The Mic show and he (along with Redman) spoke with DX about why the show is good for Hip Hop.
“And it’s not actually commercializing Hip Hop, it’s commercializing battle rap for lack of a better term,” Meth explained. “Now, we’re not trying to take anything from battle rap. It’s like a pleasant retreat. Battle rap is raw in its own form and hopefully some of the viewers that watch our shit will start tuning into the real-world authentic shit.”
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YouTuber Kvng Guap Is Putting A Younger Generation Up On Biggie, JAY-Z & Nas
DX caught up with YouTube sensation Kvng Guap about his reaction videos to old Hip Hop classics. The 18-year-old explained why he thought it was important to do.
“I feel that it is important to educate yourself on the legends of Hip Hop because a lot of kids my age don’t know anything about the music that founded the music that we listen to today,” Kvng Guap tells HipHopDX. “So I feel it’s like paying respects to the true legends and also getting to hear these amazing songs that I never even knew about.”
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