All posts tagged: rappers

James Harden’s Latest Adidas Sneaker Is a Salute to Nipsey Hussle

James Harden’s Latest Adidas Sneaker Is a Salute to Nipsey Hussle

Published by Jenni Sidey

Seven years after his tragic passing, you can still feel Nipsey Hussle’s presence all over Los Angeles. You’ll hear his music booming in the arena at a Lakers game, see his face on countless murals across the city. Go to a rap show here, and the artist almost certainly drop a “Rest in peace, Nip” from the stage. And hit the streets, and you’re more than likely to spot a person or two rocking a hoodie or hat from The Marathon Clothing, Hussle’s beloved streetwear label, which takes its name from his seminal 2010 mixtape The Marathon and its 2011 sequel The Marathon Continues. This weekend, as part of its mission to keep its founder’s legacy alive, the brand is dropping its first-ever sneaker collaboration with Adidas and Compton native James Harden. After kicking the year off with a blockbuster Willy Chavarria linkup, Harden’s signature line is doubling down on the Cleveland Cavaliers star’s California roots with a moving tribute to his close friend and mentor Hussle. The TMC x Adidas Harden Vol. 10 decks …

The Real-Life Wardrobe of Earl Sweatshirt and MIKE, Whose Style Icons Are Jadakiss and MF Doom

The Real-Life Wardrobe of Earl Sweatshirt and MIKE, Whose Style Icons Are Jadakiss and MF Doom

Published by Jenni Sidey

Where are you guys shopping before tour? MIKE: I’ve got spots. Lowkey, every time I go to LA, I hit Dover Street [Market]. Earl Sweatshirt: I feel like people don’t know about the Nepenthes store in LA. I was talking to a homie that worked there last time. They have all of that shit. All the Needles, all the Engineered Garments. MIKE: Nepenthes is tough. I love it. Earl Sweatshirt: But it’s off the [beaten path]. You’re not going to stumble across it. MIKE: There’s this spot 18 East [in New York] that has hella good blanks. Maybe hit up Margiela for just the one-off. Earl Sweatshirt: I hit Dover. I check downstairs at the H.Lorenzo in LA. They always got the Japanese pants. I’m at Stone Island. I’m at Margiela. I’m at RRL. Are there any newer brands you guys are fucking with? Earl Sweatshirt: I’m fucking with Dertbag. That’s my dog forever, Phil [Post]. He’s just a guy. Just an actual real legend. I like what my dog’s doing at Saint Mxxxxxx. Cali …

Usher says Diddy is being ‘misrepresented’ after disgraced rapper’s sex crimes conviction

Usher says Diddy is being ‘misrepresented’ after disgraced rapper’s sex crimes conviction

Published by Daniella Wilson

Get the inside track from Roisin O’Connor with our free weekly music newsletter Now Hear This Get our free music newsletter Now Hear This Get our free music newsletter Now Hear This Usher is speaking out in defense of Sean “Diddy” Combs. While playing a word association game in a Forbes interview published Wednesday, Usher said that “legacy” came to mind when he thought of Combs, who is currently serving a 50-month sentence after he was convicted on two counts of transportation for prostitution following a bombshell eight-week trial last summer. The “Yeah!” singer said that although his opinion “might be controversial,” the influence that Combs, 56, created through his business empire was undeniable. “In many ways, I think certain people are prosecuted and maybe not recognized for the greatness that they offer,” Usher, 47, said. “I don’t have anything negative to say about Sean Combs because my experience was not what the world has seen and how he’s been misrepresented.” He continued: “I’m not saying that every man is perfect. I’m not saying that …

Nettspend, Fakemink, and EsDeeKid Enter the House of Gucci

Nettspend, Fakemink, and EsDeeKid Enter the House of Gucci

Published by Jenni Sidey

The same sentiment extended to the celebs in the front row, where another viral English rapper, EsDeeKid—the masked Liverpudlian Timothée Chalamet lookalike himself—sat with an enormous croc-leather Gucci bag that he joked was “full of weed.” Demna, a perennial excavator of the zeitgeist, was tapping into a new wave; according to a New York Times interview that was published yesterday, the designer discovered the likes of Mink and EsDee from his Spotify algorithm. “The thing is there are a lot of people on the runway and also in the audience today that I listen to their music, I consume their art,” Demna told my colleague, Samuel Hine, backstage. “I really like what they do and I feel like one of my responsibilities at Gucci is also trying to bring the cultural relevance to it and the cultural relevance always comes from underground culture, not from mainstream, even for a big brand. And I felt like it made sense for me to build my vision and starting to create this Gucci community including these people.” Liverpudlian …

J. Cole’s ‘What If’ Invokes Rap’s Greatest Beef to (Maybe) Address His Own

J. Cole’s ‘What If’ Invokes Rap’s Greatest Beef to (Maybe) Address His Own

Published by Jenni Sidey

There’s no shame in admitting it: You pressed play on J. Cole’s new album anticipating some bars, a verse, maybe even a full song about The Beef That Almost Was. In addition to being a new release from one of the few hip-hop stars who still exerts a monocultural gravitational pull on the game, in addition to about seven years of hype wherein he eventually billed it as his “last album,” the third layer of intrigue surrounding J. Cole’s long-awaited project The Fall-Off was if and how he would address what happened in 2024, when he engaged in a war of words with Kendrick Lamar only to wave a white flag before the missiles started flying, and the ways in which that decision has dominated the conversation about his career and persona since. Cole himself lightly stoked these flames, first on an appetizer mixtape last week where he acknowledged the change in perception around him several times. Then, in a note explaining The Fall-Off’s concept, he revealed that Disc 2 of the double-disc album is …

Grammys 2026: An Industry Disruptor Threw a Great Industry Party

Grammys 2026: An Industry Disruptor Threw a Great Industry Party

Published by Jenni Sidey

This time last year in Los Angeles, the city was still beset by PTSD from the 2025 winter wildfires, and the mood around the Grammys was naturally somewhat somber and restrained. This year, however, the vibes were back up in full effect. Clive Davis’s long-running Saturday gala kicked off with a message from Barack Obama and a tribute to Ozzy Osborne by MGK and Jelly Roll, which is an insane sentence to be able to type. But it seemed like the entire music industry was outside during Grammy weekend—the Most Delightfully Random Sighting award goes to onetime Bad Boy rapper Shyne, who turned up to a DJ set from beloved breakout Nigerian artist Odeal at Opulence, music executive Lenny S’s annual post-show party. After a pretty solid telecast featuring mostly respectable wins, there was a lot to discuss: Bad Bunny’s historic Album of the Year win. Kendrick Lamar becoming the new title holder for rapper with the most wins. Lauryn Hill leading an emotional D’Angelo tribute. Cher. But later that night, all Larry Jackson wanted …

Don Toliver Steers Into the Fast Lane on ‘Octane’

Don Toliver Steers Into the Fast Lane on ‘Octane’

Published by Jenni Sidey

The results are clear, at least off of the first few spins: Don’s dexterous versatility, his different musical zones, are represented at their best and sharpest here, from tender crooning (on “Rosary,” his vocals sound so vulnerable it’s almost as if his voice is faltering) to spaced-out Texas swang with crazy double-time sing-songy flows and earworm hooks (“Opposite,” which went over especially well live.) Don points to a more reflective track called “Pleasure’s Mine” as his favorite, because “it’s very new and fresh, but it has a certain nostalgic melody,” calling back to the sounds on earlier tapes like Donny Womack, released when he was just getting on. “I just kind of put my twangs on that whole vibe.” Despite quietly being one of hip-hop’s most malleable hook men at the moment, Toliver goes light on guests this time around. One of the few is Teezo Touchdown, whose standout verse about relationship woes on “All the Signs” is spirited in the Teezo trademark way (animatedly drawn-out syllables, croons that bleed into yodels, r’s rolled for …

Jeffrey Deitch Apologizes to Miles Greenberg for Rapper’s ‘Derivative’

Jeffrey Deitch Apologizes to Miles Greenberg for Rapper’s ‘Derivative’

Published by José Betancourt

New York’s Jeffrey Deitch apologized to artist Miles Greenberg after an ascendant rapper staged an event at the gallery that appeared to draw upon a performance done in the same location in 2021. The musician, Lexa Gates, promoted her new album by walking for hours inside a giant wheel at Jeffrey Deitch on January 14. Titled The Wheel, Gates’s performance was meant to “reinforce the message of persistence, emotional resilience and forward motion that acts as the central theme of the record,” according to the event’s official description. Her related album, I Am, has received coverage from such outlets as Pitchfork, which gave it a score of 5.5 out of 10. Related Articles On a post by Gates promoting the event, Greenberg noted that The Wheel seemed akin to his own performance Oysterknife, for which the artist walked for nearly an entire day straight on a conveyor belt while a digital clock marked time. When Oysterknife debuted at the Marina Abramović Institute in 2020, the performance was briefly halted when Greenberg lost consciousness. The next …

Drake and Adin Ross accused of fraud in alleged attempt to inflate rapper’s streams

Drake and Adin Ross accused of fraud in alleged attempt to inflate rapper’s streams

Published by Daniella Wilson

Get the inside track from Roisin O’Connor with our free weekly music newsletter Now Hear This Get our free music newsletter Now Hear This Get our free music newsletter Now Hear This Rap superstar Drake and popular video game streamer Adin Ross are facing a class action lawsuit for allegedly promoting an online sweepstakes casino and using the earned proceeds to “create fraudulent streams of Drake’s music.” In documents filed December 31 in Virginia’s federal court and reviewed by multiple outlets, residents LaShawnna Ridley and Tiffany Hines have accused Drake, Ross, and an Australian Native by the name of George Nyugen of partnering with the website Stake.us to “prey upon consumers” and expose them to “substantial risks of gambling addiction.” Stake.us is a sweepstakes casino launched in 2022 after sportsbook and online casino Stake.com was banned from operating everywhere in the U.S. It allows users to wager virtual currency, known as Stake Cash and Gold Coins, rather than real money. While Stake.us. has been banned in several states, including California, Montana, Idaho, Washington, New Jersey …