By: Cassandre

On Sunday, March 31st, the world lost visionary, Grammy-nominated rapper, community leader and activist, philanthropist, entrepreneur, partner to Lauren London and father of two young children, Nipsey Russell. While police have identified a suspect in the fatal shooting, many are mourning Nipsey Hussle's’ death and wondering why?

By: Candace 

Solange’s new album “When I Get Home” is making waves all over the internet with its ambiance and alluring soul. Released March 1st, the 32-year-old Houston singer’s fourth studio album covers a range of soothing jazzy beats, R&B elements, and new age touches that lend themselves to some truly phenomenal songs that carry tons of replayability.

By: Nella Rae

Rap and Hip Hop artists today often are ridiculed by older generations for the blatant promotion of drug use in their music and the heavy influence it has on this generation. The idea that original gansta rappers made drug dealer music, but newer rappers are making drug user music has been a recurring topic of debate. Does today’s rap and Hip Hop have the wrong message, especially given the addiction crisis and war on drugs?

By: Nia Simone 

As described eloquently by Fayetteville-bred rapper J. Cole on 21 Savage’s smash single a lot, “Some niggas make millions; other niggas make memes.” But the truth of the matter is, the rap industry is slowly realizing that breakout stars of today have developed a holy matrimony of both elements. Connecting digitally to audiences on the ground floor of social media platforms is what directly correlates to success.

By: Cassandre 

Is it possible to separate the art from the artist? Recent events in pop culture have brought up this discussion again. In early January, LifeTime premiered Surviving R. Kelly, a docu-series that explores the sexual abuse allegations that have come out against R. Kelly over the last 20 plus years. Despite these various allegations, R. Kelly's music career continued to thrive, even now. In the week since the documentary premiered, R. Kelly's Music sales have increased.

By: Matthew McKenna 

Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, released on Dec. 14, has quickly escalated to one of the year’s best animated films in just its first box office week.  In Sony and Marvel’s latest collaboration, Into the Spider-Verse OST leaves the hip-hop community with an exceptional blend of rap artists and moods, juxtaposing itself against Marvel’s Black Panther The Album, which was released a week before Black Panther this past February.

By: Moyo Ajepe 

Drop what you’re doing and go look up “Queen Carter” and “Sister Solana”. Rumor has it, unreleased music from Beyoncé and Sza are being released on various platforms under those, respective, monikers.

By: Moyo Ajepe 

One of the best parts about being African, besides the food and the parties, is the music. Afro-flavour has crossed oceans and influenced so many music styles. And that’s when it hit me; why isn’t there a list of the hottest singles/albums from artists throughout the African Diaspora? What better way to connect and celebrate how rich in culture the entire African continent is than through music!

By: Devon Rooks

Apparently, a reckoning is coming, and her name is Belcalis. By now, those who follow pop culture should be used to the fact that the Grammys will almost always disappoint by wildly subverting expectations. Some might go so far as to say that the award has lost its prestige due to the show’s recent celebration of less than worthy offerings.

By: Sterling Woods

Fans of artist Chance The Rapper will get a special treat this weekend if they head to see the new Marvel animated feature ‘Spider-man: Into the Spider-Verse’.

By: Matthew McKenna

Meek Mill understands what it takes to overcome odds.  The native Philadelphia rapper and activist recently dropped Championships on Nov. 30, his first album deliverance since being released from prison in April, after what many viewed as a miscarriage of justice.

By: Matthew McKenna

It has been one calendar year since Jaden Smith’s debut studio album, Syre. Enter The Sunset Tapes: A Cool Tape Story (TST) released on Nov. 17th, 2018. The 20-year-old’s third-installment of his Cool Tape series originally dates back to 2012, revealing poignant parts of his creative personality to fans in this latest project.