Capitol Music Group has severed ties with the FN Meka project following accusations that the AI rapper perpetuated racial stereotypes online. FN Meka, a virtual “robot rapper,” created by the founders of Factory New, a “first of its kind, next-generation music company specializing in virtual beings.” In a short time, FN Meka amassed over 10 million followers on TikTok and 500,000 monthly Spotify subscribers based on music and lyrics generated by an AI based on popular rap music. The robot rapper, which industry professionals described as a “preview of what’s
Music platform, Shazam, has officially crowned Drake as the most searched artist of all, with over 350 million searches. According to Variety, the platform put together a list of its most searched artists to celebrate the app’s 20th birthday. Unsurprisingly, musician Drake was ranked as the most sought-after artist on Shazam’s radar. Out of all tracks in Drake’s discography, “One Dance” was one of the most searched tracks with over 17 million Shazams. Gnarls Barkley’s “Crazy” took second place as the most Shamazed song, with most people searching for the
Is there anything the Grammy-award-winning musician can’t do? After releasing his fifth studio album, Kendrick Lamar is moving into new territory with billionaire investor Ray Dalio and comedian ExavierTV to discuss all things money as a part of Cash App’s ongoing “That’s Money” campaign. Popular finance app, CashApp, announced the launch of its new commercial on its YouTube channel. According to the clip, EXavier saved up money to open his franchise but lost it all due to gambling. Kendrick asks for Dalio’s opinion on the situation, and he explains exactly where he
Black Ambition, owned by world-renowned singer and producer Pharrell Williams, recently announced its $3 million investment in content curator platform Trend. The pre-seed funding round was led by venture capital firm Flybridge and included a range of investors, including Techstars Ventures, live-streaming service Twitch, famous anime brand Crunchyroll, and reviewer platform Rotten Tomatoes. The investment firm, Black Ambition, which was founded by Pharrell in 2020, is dedicated to supporting Black and Latinx business owners. The non-profit organization aims to bridge the gap to success for entrepreneurs of color working in
LL Cool J and Michelle Williams have teamed up with tech company Salesforces.org for the Rock the Bells festival, which will take place on August 6, 2022. Based in Queens, New York, the festival will feature live performances from music veterans Lil Kim, Rick Ross, Jadakiss, and more. The program will not only champion legendary voices within hip-hop, but it will also help to raise awareness of the mental health issues and stigmas that continue to plague the music industry. Salesforce.org first announced the initiative during their panel discussion earlier this year. They plan
Green NFT platform, OneOf, has launched an exclusive NFT collection, allowing fans to collectively license the audio recording of the Notorious B.I.G.’s most famous freestyle. The collection, in partnership with the Christopher Wallace estate, will provide collectors with a series of 3D profile picture (P.F.P.) NFT collectibles, also known as avatars. The characters on offer will be inspired by Biggie Small’s life, style, lyrics, and fashion. Biggie Smalls, who tragically passed away in a drive-by shooting in 1997, immensely influenced the hip-hop scene we all know and love today. In
Mary J Blige has teamed up with medical tech company Hologic for her upcoming Good Morning Gorgeous tour. The singer will grace the stage with R&B singer Queen Naija and Grammy-award-winning artist Ella Mai. She will also be dedicating the show to raising awareness about Black women’s health. The Good Morning Gorgeous tour, which Hologic will present in partnership with The Black Promoters collective, is set to kick off on Saturday, September 17. The journey, which will begin in Greensboro, is expected to hit 23 cities across North America, including
Megan Thee Stallion has officially won her battle to trademark “Hot Girl Summer,” which had been used to promote clothing, music, and even food, without her approval. In a recent interview with Allure, the rapper explained that she didn’t know the phrase was “gonna catch on how it did,” and saw its value as corporations started to use the phrase on social media. “When I saw Wendy’s and Forever 21 saying, ‘Hey, are you having a Hot Girl Summer?’ I was like, ‘Hell no, Forever 21, you’re going to have to pay
James Curran, 35, — who some of you may know well as JTM or James the Mormon – started off as a struggling teenager who had been expelled from BYU-Idaho twice. It wasn’t until a reported encounter with a police officer who let him off for driving while drunk and high on marijuana that he finally decided to turn his life around. “He knew that was a turning point for me,” Curran said. “I could either choose to change my life or go to jail and who knows what would
Speaking during his keynote speech at the Urban League of Hampton Roads’annual Martin Luther King, Jr. awards program on Monday singer-songwriter Pharrell Williams issued a call-to-action for businesses to pledge a more firm commitment to Black entrepreneurs. Although Williams applauded the “smart” companies that have already taken a stand and implanted different ways they can help founders of color, he didn’t hesitate to explain what more needs to be done. He said: “There’s much more work to be done to achieve anything that resembles equality, business — thank God businesses
