Doechii made history at the 2025 Grammys, after becoming the third woman to win Best Rap Album for her mixtape, Alligator Bites Never Heal. However, in the moment, the TDE rapper found herself unprepared. “Something in my spirit told me, ‘You’ll know what to say when you get up there. Just trust me,’” she tells Cosmopolitan in a recent interview. According to the rapper, the speech was “downloading” in her mind, right as she began to speak. “It’s like my mouth was moving, but it wasn’t me speaking.” Despite her uneasiness about what to say, her words resonated with millions that night: “Anything is possible. Don’t allow anybody to project any stereotypes on you, to tell you that you can’t be here, that you’re too dark or that you’re not smart enough, or that you’re too dramatic or you’re too loud. You are exactly who you need to be to be right where you are, and I am a testimony right now.” Doechii Says Her Family Keeps Her Humble In another part of the lengthy interview, the rapper shares how her family keeps her humble. “They’re always keeping me grounded,” Doechii said. “Most of the time, I don’t talk about work with them.” She even recalled a recent interaction with her family that captured how they really get down. “I was in the car with my family and my team, in a dress looking fab, and my sister chose that moment to ask if I farted. Like, number one, no I didn’t, and number two, why would you say that? Like, I’m a superstar,” she recalled. I don’t fart!” Docechii, whose real name is Jaylah Ji’mya Hickmon, said that “I’m just Jaylah to them.” Family members aren’t the only people allowed to call Doechii by her birth name. “Anybody who truly knows me calls me Jaylah, and I don’t even have to protect it,” she continued. It’s like nobody who knows me calls me Doechii.”

Childbirth is a difficult endeavor, and Summer Walker has firsthand experience with how challenging it can be. Speaking with Mariah the Scientist on her Apple Music 1 show, Over It Radio, she was asked if there was a difference between her first and second births. “The second one, it sucked bad. Real bad,” Walker recalled. “But, believe it or not, the second birth was shorter than the first one.” When giving birth to her twins, Walker said it only took seven hours. But she was in labor for 52 hours with her first child. “That shit was bad. All of it’s bad,” Walker said, noting she “almost died both times.” When Mariah asked if she would do it again, without hesitation, Walker said, “Yes.” In 2021, Walker had her first child, Bubbles Renee Walker, with ex-boyfriend London on Da Track. She had her twin sons with LVRD Pharoh in 2022. According to PEOPLE, she gave birth to her three children at home.  In December, Walker confirmed she was dating Rico Recklezz. On Instagram, she expressed her affection for how the Chicago rapper treats her. “You know what? Ya’ll can say whatever ya’ll wanna say about my man, but let me tell you one thing,” she said in an IG post. “When I ask this man to do something for me, he gon’ do it the best, the biggest way he motherfucking can. He don’t never go small.” On the music side, Walker is gearing up to release Finally Over It, her third album. The LP will be the third and final installment of her Over It series, following Over It (2019) and Still Over It (2021).

Birdman recently reflected on all the obstacles he had to overcome before Cash Money Records launched into a successful label. Appearing on Nick Cannon’s Counsel Culture Show on Wednesday (April 23), he shared how his and his older brother Ronald “Slim” Williams’ vision was not immediately accepted. Birdman recalled having a meeting with executive Sylvia Rhone of Warner Bros., but the brand said it was not ready to partner with an independent label. “Sylvia Rhone said our music don’t work for them, so we just left,” Birdman told Cannon. “I just walked out.” They also met with Def Jam, but was rejected because of their album artwork, and Birdman is still confused about their brief interaction with the label. “I went to Def Jam and met with Russell [Simmons], Lyor [Cohen], and Kevin Liles,” Birdman said. “This ni**a Russell said he don’t like our artwork. I said, ‘This some weird sh*t. I walked clean out. N*gga don’t like my artwork, what about my music? You don’t care for the music? So, I left.” View this post on Instagram A post shared by The Art Of Dialogue (@theartofdialogue) Birdman went on to say that they almost inked a distribution agreement with Priority Records, who also signed Master P’s New Orleans-based label No Limit Records, to an unprecedented deal. According to Birdman, Master P intervened and made sure it didn’t happen. “I went to Priority, some weird sh*t here.  I go to Priority, they fly us to California,” he said. “Me and Slim, a couple of the homies, we go out there. Ni**a come in there and said, ‘I’m sorry, we can’t do the deal. They said because Master P said, ‘If we sign y’all, he’s leaving.’ I just jumped on a jet and went back to New Orleans was like, ‘F—k it, we just gonna grind with it.” When Universal Records reached out to the camp, they negotaied “one of the more historic deals in music history.” “And then Mel Lewinter and them called and I said, ‘This my last trip. I ain’t taking no more motherf**king flights to New York or California,” he recalled. “F**k it, we’ll thug it out. I’m still making millions, they gonna come down here and f**k with me, I ain’t going back. And that was my last flight,” Birdmand rememverd. After years of rumored tenseions between Cash Money and No Limt, everything seems to cool now. On No Chill with Gilbert Arenas, Master P spoke on the relationship between the two camps. “A lot of people thought, ‘Oh, they got beef,’ but, man, we lived right up the street from each other,” Master P said.

In 1994, Nas forever changed the landscape with the release of his seminal debut, Illmatic. More than 30 years later, the album his regarded as a classic, a touchstone moment in history where the Queensbridge native ..To pay tribute to the album, Nas has partnered with the Gotham Dispensary to premiere its inaugural show, “The World is Yours,” a collaborative exhibition between legendary rapper Nas and future-conscious design studio Objects Are By and named after one of his signature songs. Featured in the groundbreaking exhibition are never-before-seen photos of Nas from 1994, captured by Danny Hastings, the Creative Director of Wu-Tang Productions. These striking images, “taken during a pivotal moment in Nas’s rise to fame, offer a glimpse into a young artist on the brink of changing the world of hip-hop. The exhibition is not just a visual journey but an immersive experience that speaks to the stillness before the storm—the quiet before Illmatic reshaped the genre.” Along with the iconic photography, “The World is Yours” will feature a limited-edition collection of homeware and apparel, created in collaboration with Nas and Objects Are By, inspired by the unseen photographs. The collection includes “woven tapestry blankets, heavyweight hoodies, long-sleeve tees, collectible rolling trays, and ashtrays.” Each item is designed with OBJECTS ARE BY’s signature bone-free china and is available exclusively at Gotham. Curated by Danny Hastings, the exhibit features never-before-seen images of the legendary rapper from 1994. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Gotham (@gotham.ny) In a statement, Hasting spoke about curating the exhibit and collaborating with Nas.  “In 1994, a young Nas stood beside me on a subway platform, the city buzzing above us, destiny waiting in the shadows. Illmatic had yet to be released. There was no entourage. No flashing cameras,” Hastings told HOT97. “Just two kids from the boroughs—one with rhymes, the other with a camera. I titled that first portrait Last Train to Queensbridge, a poetic timestamp of a moment before it all began. You can see the wonder in his eyes, the weight of dreams just beginning to take form.” “Five years later, in 1999, I photographed Nas again—this time for his I Am… album. He had arrived. The innocence had shifted into certainty. The raw energy matured into vision. These portraits are styled, polished, intentional. They reflect not just his rise, but mine as well,” his statement continued. “By then, I was pushing my technique—refining light, playing with texture, treating each frame like a cinematic painting. “Together, these images create a dual narrative: a coming-of-age story told in silver halide and shadow. One subject, two eras, bound by art and ambition. This is not just a portrait of Nas,” Hastings added. ‘It’s a portrait of time, of transformation, and of trust between a rapper and a photographer, both carving space for their voices in a world that didn’t hand anything out. These photographs are windows. They look back, but they also echo forward. In them, you see not only what was, but what was coming.” For more information, visit here.

Alijah Arenas, a top basketball prospect and USC recruit, is recovering after a fiery car crash in Los Angeles left him hospitalized. The 18-year-old son of former NBA star Gilbert Arenas was placed in an induced coma but has shown encouraging signs of progress, according to a statement from his family. The crash occurred early Thursday morning in the Reseda neighborhood of the San Fernando Valley. Police say Arenas was driving a Tesla Cybertruck that struck a tree and fire hydrant before bursting into flames. Video obtained by TMZ shows the wreck engulfed in fire as water sprayed from the hydrant. Two bystanders risked their lives to pull Arenas from the vehicle. One rescuer recalled hearing banging on the window through thick smoke. “We used everything we had to bend a cracked window and pull him out,” the person said. “The car was on fire. We just knew we had to get him out.” Though still intubated, Alijah Arenas has begun to communicate. His family said he remembered the smoke and wrote a note asking, “Did anyone get hurt?” Authorities have not yet determined the cause of the crash. Arenas is among the most highly ranked recruits in the country. After reclassifying in December, he committed to USC in January. He led Chatsworth High School to the Division II state title game and became the first boys’ high school player in Los Angeles to score over 3,000 points. He was recently selected for the McDonald’s All-American Game. USC head coach Eric Musselman extended prayers to the Arenas family, while the family thanked first responders, hospital staff, and supporters. They remain hopeful and ask the public to continue praying as Alijah Arenas works toward recovery.

Kanye West wants his credit when it comes to livestreaming culture and he thinks Kai Cenat owes him some props. In a recent clip posted by AkademiksTV, Ye doubled down on his belief that he pioneered the kind of livestreams that have helped launch Kai Cenat’s career to new heights. “I invented the streaming s**t with Donda,” Ye said, referencing the high-profile livestreams he held from inside Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium while finishing his 2021 album. “No, this n***a gon’ tell me, ‘Oh, Kai Cenat had n***as in the prison.’ I said, ‘Jews been had n***as in prisons.’ I was like, n***a, that was my whole s**t. Sleeping in the stadium. N***as is taking the whole swag and running with it.” Though livestreaming is nothing new, Kanye feels he helped redefine it with the Donda experience and isn’t happy others are borrowing from the playbook without acknowledgment. He went on to say, “That’s one thing that old n***as be doing. N***as will pull up and want you to remember some s**t. That’s how n***as get out and get shot and s**t. ‘Man, you remember?’ ‘No.’ Bow. You out of here.” This isn’t the first time Ye and Kai have clashed. Their tension dates back to the VULTURES era, when Kanye sent Cenat a merch box that didn’t fit. Kai clowned it on his stream, and Kanye fired back. “F**k that n***a corny,” Ye recently said about the streamer. Still, despite the jabs, the two have also shown mutual admiration in the past, making their back-and-forth feel more like a love-hate saga than a full-blown beef. Whether this turns into a real feud or just more viral moments remains to be seen.

50 Cent is taking legal action to stop the release of the upcoming horror film SkillHouse, claiming he never officially agreed to be part of it. Although he’s listed as an actor and co-producer, the rapper says no final contract was ever signed between him and producer Ryan Kavanaugh. According to the lawsuit, 50 Cent says he and Kavanaugh only outlined a rough deal but never finalized anything. Despite that, the film was shot in 2022 and has used his name and image heavily in promotional materials. The Power creator claims he wouldn’t have taken part in the project unless he had creative control, and now he wants the film blocked from being released and is demanding $5 million in damages. “I didn’t get paid I’m afraid I’m gonna need that by Monday. You already know the vibes!” 50 wrote on Instagram after the suit became public. He also blasted Kavanaugh last week on social media, saying, “They can’t release this MOVIE SKILL HOUSE without my signature which they do not have. What kinda business are they doing? I’d hate to have to demonstrate.” Kavanaugh has yet to publicly respond to the lawsuit. SkillHouse is currently set for release on July 11th, but with this legal drama unfolding, that date could be pushed back or canceled altogether. This lawsuit adds more tension to what has already been a rocky collaboration between 50 Cent and Kavanaugh, with the G-Unit mogul openly warning that he’d stop the film from hitting theaters.

Lil Durk is reportedly leaning on his faith as he faces serious federal charges in a murder-for-hire case. According to his father, Dontay Banks, also known as Big Durk, the rapper has taken on a spiritual leadership role while incarcerated, guiding fellow inmates toward Islam, a faith both father and son practice. “As a human, you sitting in there looking at four walls. You’ve been told to stand up for count. You’ve been told these things, something that you ain’t normally used to. It’s gonna have this effect on you but you know you always bounce back, you always look at the greater picture,” Banks shared. He continued, “As a Muslim, we look and say to ourselves, ‘What Allah is doing for us right now, building us to be a better man, is greater than what they trying to do to us and trying to tear us down.’” Durk, whose full name is Durk Derrick Banks, is currently accused of orchestrating a hit on Quando Rondo in retaliation for the 2020 death of his close friend and collaborator King Von. The plan allegedly led to the 2022 fatal shooting of Rondo’s cousin, Saviay’a Robinson, also known as Lil Pab. His father revealed that Durk’s presence is making an impact in jail, particularly within the Islam community. “[Durk] was telling me that when he came in there was like four Muslims on the block. He said now it’s 17 Muslims on the block, so he in there converting.” Durk has pleaded not guilty and his attorneys are calling for the charges to be dismissed. They claim the indictment was based on false narratives taken from fan-made YouTube content. The trial, which was originally set for earlier this year, is now scheduled to begin on October 14th.

Megan Thee Stallion is facing allegations from fellow Houston femcee Ivy K, who claims the rapper stole elements from her 2024 song “It’s Whateva” for Megan’s new single, “Whenever.” Ivy went on Instagram Live to accuse Megan’s team of contacting her a month ago but going ahead with a “remix” of her track without her approval or knowledge. In the video, you can hear both songs, which have distinct sounds but share a similar hook: Ivy’s “B***h it’s whatever / He, it’s whatever” and Megan’s “It’s whenever, b***h / It’s whatever, he.” Some fans have pointed out that Khia’s 2008 track “It’s Whatever” could have influenced both songs, suggesting that the hook might be an original sample or interpolation used by both artists, either intentionally or not. The connection seems weak due to the differences in tempo and flow between the tracks. However, if Ivy K can prove that Megan’s team reached out to her, the situation may become more complicated. This isn’t the first time Megan Thee Stallion has been accused of copyright issues. In the past, she has managed to avoid significant repercussions, but Ivy K’s claims could bring more attention to the matter. Meanwhile, Megan is continuing to generate excitement for her upcoming album, although no official release date has been set. She recently mentioned her desire to collaborate with Doechii, saying, “I see Doechii, b***h, I love Doechii,” and expressed a desire to challenge herself by rapping over beats she typically wouldn’t choose. As her legal battles seem to be fading, Megan appears more focused on showcasing her musical skills and consistency.

Kelahani will not be performing in the Ivy League. Cornell University has canceled a scheduled concert because of their stance on the war in Gaza, The New York Times. After being slated to headline Cornell University’s annual Slope Day concert event on May 7, the school’s executive leadership rescinded the invitation. Michael I. Kotlikoff wrote that the decision to have Kehlani perform “injected division and discord.” “In the days since Kehlani was announced, I have heard grave concerns from our community that many are angry, hurt, and confused that Slope Day would feature a performer who has espoused antisemitic, anti-Israel sentiments in performances, videos, and on social media,” Kotlikoff said in a statement. Kotlikoff aslo noted that he came to his decision following a meeting with members of the student board that planned the concert.  According to Kotlikoff, the board members agreed that their choice had “compromised what is meant to be an inclusive event. Anticipating backlash,  Kotlikoff is well aware that cancelling the show will be”celebrated by some and criticized by others,” but he believes its “the right thing to do.” Cornellians for Israel, a student group, deamsnded that the school to replace Kehlani as the headliner. On Instagram last week, the group wrote that selecting Kehlani as the headliner “effectively communicates that Israeli, Jewish, and Zionist students are not a welcome part of that community.” Muna Mohamed, a senior at Cornell and co-chair of Black Students United at Cornell, expressed her disappointment in the school’s decision. “I was ecstatic,” Mohamed, who’s also a queer person of color said. “To see it kind of torn from us so quickly, it was kind of like, oh, our happiness never really mattered in the long run.” In the past, Kehlani has not been shy their views on the conflicts in Gaza. For her single “Next 2 U” Kehlani featured background dancers performing with Palestinian flags while wearing suits that incorporate keffiyehs. Taking to Instagram in May 2024, Kehlani explained why they were in solidarity with the Palestinians.  View this post on Instagram A post shared by Kehlani (@kehlani) “As an artist, I was nervous. terrified. worried after losing so much of what id valued for an album i worked incredibly hard on to my humanity, paired with the crippling wonder of what music is appropriate to drop during the most historical tragedies of our generation,” they wrote. “I  remembered my favorite revolutionary poets, singers, filmmakers. I remembered how much impact we have,” Kehlani continued. “I thought about my favorite James Baldwin quotes about the role of an artist in society. I listened to this song enough to recognize a love song IS a protector’s song IS revolution.” .