June 20-27, Edition 2
Keeping up with music’s ceaseless news cycle can be tasking, but we at OGM are cutting right through the noise. In our weekly news series “Top 5ive,” we’re saying things straight-up — unpacking the Top 5 most important news stories you need to know right now. Know the major players and what their latest moves are, as our new editorial series is dedicated to keeping listeners informed on the most harrowing, heroic and heartfelt headlines in hip-hop.
In this week’s edition (June 20-27), we recap the horrifying incident involving Lil TJay, Kendrick Lamar’s Louis Vuitton performance, Drake’s first week dominance with Honestly, Nevermind and so much more.
Last Tuesday (June 21), the music world was shocked to learn that New York rapper Lil TJay was shot multiple times in a botched robbery attempt. While many anticipated the worst, TJay is still with us, and was upgraded from critical to stable condition as the week progressed. The shooter (Mohamed Konate) has been charged with three accounts of first-degree murder. At the moment, the young star is still recovering, and we are sending thoughts and prayers to everyone suffering from this horrific incident. For more about the accident, click here.
Kendrick Lamar made waves this week after multiple show-stopping performances, with the most notable coming from a showing at Louis Vuitton Men’s Spring-Summer 2023 Show in Paris. The event paid homage to late fashion designer Virgil Abloh, which Lamar ad-libbed “Long Live Virgil” while performing his track “Count Me Out”. Along with that, he also name-dropped Virgil in multiple other tracks from his latest album Mr. Morale and The Big Steppers including “N95”, “Savior” and “Rich Spirit.” He was also seen donning a crown of thorns that featured over 8,000 handset diamonds. For more on K-Dot’s performance, click here.
Even with its doubters, Drake’s seventh studio LP Honestly, Nevermind has found itself at No. 1 on this week’s Billboard Top 200. The album sold 204,000 first-week units and is Drake’s 11th album to reach this milestone. This makes Drake the fifth artist in music history to have over 10 No. 1 albums on the Billboard Top 200 — which just proves that the Toronto rapper isn’t taking his foot of the gas anytime soon. It’s also worth noting that it was only announced mere hours before the project dropped on streaming services, making this charting position even more mind-blowing. For more on the Dance project taking the world by storm, click here.
Although he just dropped a 20-track LP (2 Alivë) and 9-track deluxe months ago, Yeat is already back teasing new music. The “Sorry Bout That” rapper took to Twitter to tease an 8-song EP ahead of a new album titled LYFË, with the now-deleted tweet also stating that it will “change earth n music.” Along with this, fans have been ecstatic about his upcoming collaboration with Cole Bennett and The Minions ahead of the new film Minions: Rise of Gru this Friday (July 1). The track is apparently releasing on the same day, and will finally answer a question that’s plagued fans in recent weeks: What would a Yeat and Minions track even sound like? For more on the rising superstar’s new music, click here.
Kid Cudi is hitting the road this year ahead of his new Netflix series and accompanying album, Entergalactic. The legendary Ohio emcee will be accompanied by Don Toliver, Denzel Curry, 070 Shake and Strick, who have all dropped albums within the last year. Along with the upcoming tour, he also announced his inaugural “Moonman’s Landing” festival in his hometown of Cleveland. Cudi has already started his rollout by dropping the new single “Do What I Want” and featuring on Dot Da Genius’s “Talk To Me” with JID and tour opener Denzel Curry. For more on the moon man’s upcoming tour, click here.
