“I worked my whole life for this…🔑” -DJ Khaled on his Epic Records partnership.

On the heels of what has been a year of massive mainstream saturation…DJ Khaled called us to give us the good news that he’s brought his We The Best label over to Epic Records and will be releasing his 9th solo album, Major Key, there as well. So as both label head and artist, Khaled will be partnering with Epic’ chief LA Reid, no stranger to cross-pollination of fame himself. It’s a reunion of sorts, since LA Reid gave Khaled his first major distribution deal for We The Best while heading Def Jam in 2008. As Khaled and I discussed in the cover story of SneakerNews Volume Three, We The Best is celebrating it’s 10 year anniversary…at the same time as Khaled is reveling in being Snapchat’s 6-million-follower man, and becoming a fixture on everything from Beats1 (We The Best radio show) to Jimmy Kimmel Live. As for the leak about an upcoming collabo featuring Jay-Z and Future? Khaled promises that’s just one of the big treats he has in store.

Read Khaled’s every hyperbolic statement about the new deal…and watch his short “energy” vlog…
After the jump
(more…)

Miss Info: As the days gets shorter and colder and darker here in New York City…the perfect antidote for the seasonal blues is this new EP ‘BirdsIView’ from 23-year old Los Angeles singer/rapper Tyler Thomas. Thomas has been on his independent grind for the past few years, catching the attention of industry insiders with “Whiskey on the Rocks” back in 2012 and his 2013 ‘Higher Learning‘ EP…but now, under the executive-production direction of Grammy-winning squad The Stereotypes, Thomas is primed for the big-time.

This week, Thomas dropped a video for the very PCH-drive-ready “Make Me Go” (above)…But so far, my favorite track has been the grittier “Lincoln Ave.”

Watch Tyler’s “Lincoln Ave” video and download his ‘Birds I View’ EP…
After the jump…
(more…)

Been making boss moves so long, had to get a partner. Meet my first official manager @jenbui Shit finna get ugly…

A photo posted by Dreezy 🎤💋 (@dreezydreezy) on Jul 21, 2015 at 2:25pm PDT

(Dreezy via Instagram with her manager, our friend, Jen Bui)

Chicago’s Dreezy signed with Interscope late last year and this week, the 20-year old rapper/vocalist from the South Side dropped her first major-label EP, Call It What You Want. A follow up to Dreezy’s 2014 Schizo mixtape , the new 5-song EP features collaborations with Teyana Taylor on “How I’m Coming,” as well as K-Camp on “Ain’t Rockin’ With You,” Unlike the pure drill sound of other members of Chicago’s new gen of rappers (both male, and female, i.e. Katie Got Bands), Dreezy is aiming for a shared space of coquette lady raps and radio-friendly R&B melodies…and the results are likeable and promising.

Listen to Dreezy’s Call It What You Want EP…
After the jump
(more…)

MissInfo:
Finally! I’ve been holding my breath waiting for these ever since Todd James tipped me off to his new collaboration with Pharrell…
For the first time, Adidas let artists modify the original Superstar shelltoe sneakers…the ones embedded in hip hop’s DNA ever since Run DMC hit that b-boy stance in the 1980’s. And since Pharrell was the original art-connoisseur hip hop artist…his taste in collaborators on this, the latest in his ongoing partnership with Adidas, is impeccable. From our dear friend Todd James aka REAS, to the twisted Japanese manga-mind of Mr., to photographer Cass Bird, to futurism architect Zaha Hadid…they each got to add their own stamp to the shell of the iconic sneaker toes.
I want every single pair! But especially these REAS joints. Start lining up for the drop on August 7th.

Check out more photos and videos of the Pharrell x Adidas Originals Supershells…
After the jump
(more…)

When will these dudes learn? Seriously, if you try to stage crash a rapper’s set, best believe the entourage is going to pummel you before spitting you back out into the crowd. The latest bozo who tried to test this theory popped up at SXSW while Run The Jewels was trying to do their thing.

The outcome was disastrous as expected.

Check out the video below…

(more…)

Not that Boosie is one to play with, but his security team is like the secret service. While performing in St. Paul, Minnesota, a drunken fan kept trying to invade Badazz’s space when he crossed the gun line.

Watch the clip below to see what happened…

(more…)

Young Thug and Travi$ Scott are both known to put on energetic performances, but things got a little out of hand at the pair’s recent tour stop in Tucson, AZ after a fan attempted to fight the G.O.O.D. Music rapper.

As we can just about make out in the shaky footage below, a man approaches Scott (wearing red pants) in the venue following the show and starts swinging on him. It looks like the rapper managed to dodge most of the punches and even lands a right hook himself before security apprehended the fan (and by that I mean chokeslammed him).

Tensions continued to boil over as Travi$ is seen trying to stomp the guy, but it looks like he walked away unharmed. Travi$ and Thugga’s Rodeo tour pulls into Denver tonight, where it’s safe to assume things will be a little more chilled out.

Watch the footage below…

(more…)

Afroman still rocks an impressive ‘fro these days, but he clearly wasn’t the lazy, lovable stoner we used to know while performing in Mississippi on Tuesday (February 17). The Palmdale rapper, who is best known for his 2001 hit “Because I Got High,” was arrested after socking a female fan in the face — in the middle of his set.

More details and footage below…

(more…)

Cam’ron posted an instagram video on Weds which was touching for those of us who knew and loved his late friend Huddy, but the message that went along with it also shocked Killa Cam music fans…

“Fresh off da flight.. To see my brother.. HUD 6 told me lastnite.. #AChangeGoneCome ..my last album.. #PurpleHaze2 this summer.. It’s been fun.. But HUD said we got other things to do. #Hud6”

Could this really be true? With the DJ Atrak x Cam’ron Federal Reserve project still unreleased, and a recent flow of hood movies and mixtapes…is Cam’ron really retiring from rap?

I reached out to Cam to get more details and here’s a short version of our convo…

(more…)

Fight Night, Round Two.

After beating up a chain-snatcher back in August, Migos was involved in another brawl during a recent concert in Springfield, Massachusetts — only the way this scuffle started is truly incredible. As you can see in the clip below, Offset stares down a fan near the front row before launching himself — chains and all — into the crowd, attempting to Superman punch a concert go-er. Naturally, the crowd dispersed as more punches were thrown, but thankfully it wasn’t long before the show resumed. It’s unclear why Offset attacked the fan, but they must have been spouting some serious slander.

Watch below…

(more…)