The most recent Pirates of the Caribbean movie, 2017’s Dead Men Tell No Tales, made nearly $800 million at the worldwide box office, but that was a big drop from the billion dollar-grossing film preceding it, On Stranger Tides. Plus, no one liked it. But rather than letting the franchise sink to the bottom of the ocean (which is probably where star Johnny Depp should go after losing his libel case against British tabloid the Sun for labeling him a “wife beater”), Disney is making at least two more Pirates movies: a reboot from Chernobyl creator Craig Mazin, and another starring Margot Robbie.
The Birds of Prey star told Collider that it’s “too early” to discuss specifics about the “female-fronted Pirates of the Caribbean,” but she did tease that it will have “lots of girl power… I’m not a producer on Pirates, so I’ll sit back and kind of wait for the process. We’re really, really excited at the prospect of adding obviously a very key female element to that world.” The script is being penned by Birds of Prey writer Christina Hodson.
Is it too soon to replace the Depp’s Jack Sparrow animatronic in Disney’s Pirates of the Caribbean ride with one of Margot Robbie? (It’s not. Start now.)
Getting to make a guest appearance on Sesame Street is a real sign that you’ve made it as an entertainer, and now Maggie Rogers can proudly say she is among those ranks. Today, the classic show shared a new clip of Rogers’ time on the show, during which she sings a lovely song called “It’s Nighttime.”
Rogers walks through the neighborhood with Elmo, Abby, Rudy, and Charlie and begins the song, “The moon is shining, the stars are out / And it’s time to start settling down / It’s dark outside, it’s hard to see / and lots of people getting ready to sleep / But just ’cause the sun’s not up in the sky / There’s plenty of creatures that really don’t mind / So much is happening in the nighttime.” From there, she goes on to sing about some of the creatures that thrive at night, like owls and fireflies.
Rogers shared the video and wrote simply, “*wholesome content*.”
Elsewhere in the show, Rogers joins the aforementioned characters for a camping sleepover, but they end up having to go on a neighborhood quest when their treats go missing.
Speaking of things from childhood (for some of us, anyway), Rogers recently joined Phoebe Bridgers on a cover of the Goo Goo Dolls classic “Iris,” which Bridgers had promised to cover if Donald Trump did not secure his re-election.
Watch Rogers sing “It’s Nighttime” on Sesame Street above.
Selena Gomez had a lot on her plate this year. Not only did the singer release a comeback album, but she also launched a beauty company, worked as executive producer on a Netflix movie, and premiered her first cooking show Selena + Chef on HBO. The series sees her linking up with some of today’s biggest chefs to learn their most popular recipes. So to celebrate her success run as a musician, producer, actor, and now chef, Selena decided to give back.
Gomez announced that she and her HBO team would help ensure that some families in need are able to celebrate Thanksgiving with enough food. Together, they will be donating $100,000 to Feeding America, a non-profit organization which serves as a nationwide network of food banks. Speaking about the generous act in a statement, Gomez said, “With so many people in the US facing food insecurity and to help ensure people in need also celebrate Thanksgiving, Selena + Chef will be donating $100,000 to Feeding America.”
Selena Gomez donates $100k to feed families across America this Thanksgiving on new episode of ‘Selena + Chef.’ pic.twitter.com/W3RUbTrxq5
In other Gomez news, the singer has also been a major advocate for mental health this year. After revealing she is diagnosed with Bipolar Disorder, the singer opened up about going through a depression at the onset of quarantine. Gomez said was able to pull herself out of the depressive episode by focusing on her work, beauty business, and other charitable goals.
Approximately 36 years ago, we went through a bunch of news cycles where LaVar Ball, then known as the father of Lonzo and the guy behind Big Baller Brand, would say stuff that got him on TV. Nothing got him as much publicity — not even the time he went onto CNN and got into a war of words with Donald Trump — than his insistence that he could beat Michael Jordan in a game of 1-on-1.
It was a whole thing, and it is hard not to laugh at the fact that it happened when remembering that the Charlotte Hornets, the team owned by Jordan, took LaVar’s youngest son, LaMelo, with the No. 3 pick in the 2020 NBA Draft. And according to Tim Keown of ESPN, who attended the Ball family Draft party, the irony isn’t lost on LaVar, either.
Keown appeared on the ESPN Daily podcast on Thursday morning and gave a bit of a debrief on the whole saga, which included a wonderful anecdote about LaVar — who wore an “I Told You So” Big Baller Brand baseball cap — reacting to the pick around the 1:35 mark of the below video.
“And when the pick was announced, LaVar, who was relatively quiet for part of the night, announced, ‘Tell MJ we’re coming!’” Keown recalled. “So we may get that 1-on-1 we’ve been waiting for.”
LaMelo actually fills some holes as a dynamic playmaker for the Hornets, so it was a pretty good pick, regardless. Nonetheless, I think I speak for most people when I say I really want LaVar Ball and Michael Jordan to play basketball against one another.
It’s that time of year again. The season where pairing powerful beers with butter, spice, and sugar-laden foods occupies your thoughts. Whereas summer is focused on chilling in the backyard and quenching your thirst, the holidays are all about feasts and big drinks to enhance those meals while washing them down.
We’re calling out substantial, flavor-forward beers that pair well with substantial, flavor-forward holiday meals.
To help us in this endeavor, we reached out to serious beer experts and asked them: “What’s the best beer to pair with a big holiday meal?” These are folks who live and breathe beer, write books about brewing, and have been certified to talk about and judge beer on the international stage. Still, their answers vary pretty widely.
Most of these beers will be available in specialty beer shops or online. A few of them might be harder to find (even in their home countries) outside of the brewery that produces them. In those cases, read about what the beer is and what it tastes like and track down an analog from your favorite local craft brewery.
Style: English Strong Ale Brewery: Mount Saint Bernard Abbey, Coalville, UK ABV: 7.4%
The Beer:
I don’t eat meat anymore, so there’ll be no turkey on my table. But that makes no difference as to the beer I open. You see, you can pair turkey with any beer you like and it’ll work because the bird is such a neutral flavor. The reality is that you’re matching your beer to the sides and the gravy.
My go-to choice is Belgian, or Belgian-style: A malty Brune or Dubbel, a rich Tripel (not a lean bitter one), or a Quadrupel. You need booze. You want some malt sweetness for the root veg and gravy, some refreshing bubbles, and a little spiciness to match the food’s herbs and seasoning.
Tasting Notes:
Tynt Meadow is a Dubbel-inspired beer brewed with all English ingredients (including the yeast) at Mount Saint Bernard Abbey in Leicestershire. It has a sweet tea and biscuity malt body. There are aniseed and dried fruits. The texture is full enough to handle big food flavors, and the yeast brings some extra fruitiness and a little peppery spice.
Regardless of the centerpiece proteins, this is a great beer for all the veg and sides of a big festive feast.
San Miguel Cerveza Negra — Latiesha Cook, certified Cicerone and president of Beer Kulture
San Miguel Brewery
Style: European Dark Lager Brewery: San Miguel Brewery, Mandaluyong City, Philippines ABV: 5%
The Beer:
For a big meal, my immediate favorite beer pairing screams for a dark lager. I’ve always enjoyed San Miguel’s Cerveza Negra because it’s well balanced between its sweet-yet-roasty malt notes.
This brew is rich in flavor but stands up very nicely when paired with a large and hearty meal. It’s such a good beer. Probably one of the best I’ve had in this style.
Tasting Notes:
It pours with a creamy foam-like head and has a beautiful dark brown to ruby color. On the nose, it smells of malt and brown sugar. It reminds me of a bread my grandmother used to make for us called Macheteadas.
The beer has no warming alcohol, which is nice with a hearty meal, and quite expected from a five percent dark lager. You’ll immediately be greeted with roasted malts and molasses on the first sip. Then your tongue gets a follow up of milk chocolate, sugar, and cream.
Saison D’Erpe-Mere — Breandán Kearney, founder & Editor-in-Chief of Belgian Smaak
KleinBrouwerij De Glazen Toren
Style: Saison Brewery: KleinBrouwerij De Glazen Toren, Erpe-Mere, Belgium ABV: 6.5%
The Beer:
The two brewers who produce this beer have colorful backstories. Jef Van Den Steen, now in his seventies, was a rockstar in Belgium with chart hits in various European countries. He went on to become a mathematics teacher, a politician, an author, and then a brewer. His colleague Dirk De Pauw, in his sixties, was a financial director for a group of hospitals.
The glass tower of the brewery’s name comes from the road on which their brewery is housed, Glazentorenweg, named originally for the glass windows of the prostitution houses that were once located at the bottom of the street. The Saison D’Erpe-Mere was launched in November 2004, making the beer 16-years-old this month.
Tasting Notes:
Saison D’Erpe-Mere is as classic a Belgian Saison as you will find outside Saison Dupont. The grist bill of 80 percent pilsner malt and 20 percent wheat malt deliver a biscuity, refreshing grain quality which compliments many types of fish as well as white meats such as chicken and turkey. Magnum bittering hops and Saaz aroma additions give a background spiciness that lifts herbs and spices deployed in many dishes as well as complimenting bitter green vegetables.
It’s extremely dry and effervescent, cleansing your palate with its carbonic bite. The ester characteristics of its yeast give citrus notes which liven up the fruitier aspects of your lemon drizzle sauces, vinegar, and oils.
Drink it as an aperitif before dinner to whet the appetite, pair it with the main meal to compliment the flavors of dinner, or, because you deserve it right now, sip on it as a dessert.
Turmeric Saison — Miguel Rivas, host of the “Every Beer Has a Story. Every Story Has a Beer” storytelling series on IGTV Live
Allagash Brewing Company
Style: Saison Brewery: Allagash Brewing Company, Portland, Maine ABV: 5.3%
The Beer:
Food and beer, beer and food, personally I don’t think it gets the respect it deserves. Usually, when people think about pairing food, the immediate reaction/suggestion goes to wine. I am a huge advocate of promoting beer with food. After all, wine only uses one ingredient, grapes. Beer, on the other hand, has four main ingredients (water, malt, hops, and yeast) where you can then explore an infinite palette of flavors and colors.
For my food pairing, I chose to merge some Asian influences for the food and Belgian influences for the beer. The dish I like preparing at the moment is an Asian-style rice noodle. I make it in a wok with finely chopped and sliced mushrooms, carrots, peppers, and asparagus all lightly sautéed in a fish broth. I then sprinkle some sesame seeds. Lastly, I mix the rice noodles with a splash of soy sauce.
For the beer, I chose Allagash Turmeric Saison. As per the brewery description, “Turmeric has a long history of culinary use, so we decided to try it in one of our beers. We’re glad we did. The earthy and unique flavor of whole turmeric root, alongside the bit of pepper that we add during brewing, gives a lightly spicy quality to this fruity and aromatic certified organic Saison.” This combination of ingredients in the beer combined with the spicy character of the yeast creates a beautiful combination with the vegetables and the noodles.
Tasting Notes:
Pours a straw yellow/golden color with some slight haze, a foamy white/creamy head with good retention with spotty lacing. The aroma is citrusy, spicy, fruity, and barley with hints of turmeric and pepper. The taste is very consistent with the nose with a refreshing and slightly dry finish. Adding to the complexity, there are spicy flavors and light peppery phenols. It has a light to medium body, medium carbonation, and the mouthfeel is very smooth. It’s well balanced, has a really nice complexity of flavors, and has a very high drinkability.
Overall a spectacular beer. It’s delicate yet complex and very versatile when it comes to pairing it with food. I believe it will go well with a great variety of dishes.
I’m always looking for drinks that deeply connect to where they are made rather than products that could come from anywhere. Jitka Ilčíková’s Wild Creatures makes special brews with a pronounced sense of place. Jitka grows the fruit she uses herself and ferments 100 percent spontaneously, using the microorganisms that exist in her family’s vineyard in Mikulov (the legendary wine-producing town in South Moravia).
Tears of Saint Laurent is made with St. Laurent grapes, the most widely planted red variety in the Czech Republic. If you’re just about anywhere in the Czech lands, it tastes like here. For a long time, bottles from Wild Creatures have been very hard to find, despite (or maybe because of) international interest. But thanks to a recently announced expansion — including a new facility with much more room for barrels — it should be easier to get your hands on stuff from Wild Creatures soon. Add that to the list of good things that happened in 2020.
Tasting Notes:
This wine-like grape ale is moderately acidic with complex, fruity notes like those of a great Gamay or Merlot. Lots of plum, blackberry, and black currant flavors upfront followed by an elegant, dry finish. Pairs well with stimulating conversation, shared plates, and close friends.
It’s often said that Belgium has all four seasons and a beer for every style of food. And it’s true, leaving me torn between bright, spritzy saisons with a hint of tartness and a complex funkiness, and a strong dark ale full of dark spices, roast, and with a hefty alcoholic kick.
With the nights drawing in and the weather going from bad to worse, my big meal preferences lean towards a roasted chunk of meat and some trimmings. And that means my go-to beer has to come from the dark side of Belgian brewing. But I don’t want to have just one beer with my dinner, I’d like a couple. So, I usually eschew some of the chewier quadrupels and dark strong ales and instead go for something a little more sessionable, a reliable classic: Westmalle Dubbel.
Tasting Notes:
Ruby red and checking in at seven percent ABV (I said it was relatively sessionable; this is Belgium after all), Westmalle Dubbel always reminds me of dates, plums, and sticky toffee pudding but without the cloying sweetness of stronger beers. It has a light mouthfeel and dry finish. It’s balanced and fruity and moreish.
I’m a sucker for beers from Seattle. Part of it is that it’s my home. Another part of it is that Washington State has a seriously awesome roaster of craft beer breweries. One of my favorites is a craft brewery that helped introduce me to craft beer in the late 1990s, Elysian Brewing. One of those beers was their winter ale, BiFrost.
The beer screams out to be paired with a big, wintry meal. It’s rather light/dry in the body while packing a punch taste-wise. It’s also fairly high in the ABV department and usually comes in 22-oz. bottles, making it the perfect beer to pour into small glasses for sharing over a meal.
Tasting Notes:
The malts are present up top with a malty caramel over a tart apple that’s spiced with cinnamon. The taste delivers on those promises and adds in a dose of orange oils with more Christmas spice and a malty body. The hops kick in late and offer a good, bitter/dank counterpoint to the sweet malts. The taste ends slightly dry with another hit of that orange zest citrus brightness.
Despite a recent wave of female talent currently washing over the rap game in the form of Cardi B, Doja Cat, Megan Thee Stallion, Rico Nasty, and more, many women in the game have continued to note double standards about their place in hip-hop persisting in the face of their success. In a prime example, burgeoning Detroit rap star Sada Baby recently went on an NBA Draft disappointment-fueled rant disparaging female rappers who switched careers from more adult-oriented industries to rhyme about sexually explicit themes instead of living them.
“And just ’cause I’m in a f*cked-up mood, I’ma put it on the flo’,” he began. “B*tch, if you known for f*ckin’ pornos and all that type of sh*t, f*ck yo music! Ain’t nobody takin’ you seriously as no motherf*ckin’ artist. Care ’bout none of that sh*t. B*tch, you known for shakin’ ass, showin’ titties, f*ckin’ OnlyFans all that type of sh*t. Whatever, b*tch. Don’t nobody give a f*ck about recordin’ no motherf*ckin’ music. Be real wit’ yourself.”
While he didn’t specifically name names, there are a number of rappers who may fit the bill, openly professing origins in the sex-work industry. Among them are newcomers like Armani Caesar, Blac Chyna, and Sukihana and established veterans like Cardi B, while OnlyFans has proven to be a worthwhile way to supplement their income, as discovered by Rubi Rose. Meanwhile, Sada Baby makes no mention of rappers like Blueface and Tyga, who both have OnlyFans pages. In fact, the latter rapper even produced his own porn video once upon a time.
Sada Baby recently experienced some online backlash over old, offensive tweets as well after Nicki Minaj’s remix of his underground hit “Whole Lotta Choppas” increased the wattage of the spotlight on him. Perhaps he should curtail his social media usage for the time being, as he’s just on the cusp of blowing up and might very well undermine himself with some of his more controversial comments. Or stick to basketball videos — he’s actually a pretty decent player, although you won’t see him declaring for the NBA Draft himself anytime soon.
As Zack Snyder continues to pump up fans for his director’s cut of Justice League (a.k.a. The Snyder Cut), he’s been steadily dropping behind-the-scenes info on the process of bring his original version of the film back to life. As of now, we know that Zack Snyder’s Justice League will hit HBO Max in four one-hour installments, which raises questions about where all of that footage will come from considering Snyder has been adamant that he will not be resurfacing shots from Joss Whedon‘s version of Justice League, which wasn’t received too well by fans. Snyder has also revealed that his own round of reshoots in the fall will only amount to four minutes of new footage, so it’s definitely not coming from there.
Turns out the answer lies in the director’s stockpile of never-before-seen footage, which will make up over half of the Snyder Cut when it’s released. Via io9:
During the discussion, which was held on Vero and lasted over an hour, Snyder revealed that his four-hour cut of the movie will have about two and a half hours of previously unseen footage. Not “new” footage exactly. This is mostly footage he shot way back in 2016 which never made it into the theatrical version, which was famously finished by director Joss Whedon.
That footage is presumably from the film cans that Snyder teased fans with back in December 2019 when “Release the Snyder Cut” was still a hashtag:
Hopefully, those cans contain something that will fix Snyder’s new look for Steppenwolf because, man, that did not go over well. People are still making wicker basket jokes on Twitter.
Barack Obama just released his new memoir, A Promised Land. Ahead of the book, though, as he often did during his presidency, he shared a playlist. The mix was of songs that Obama listened to during his time in office, and it featured a mix of contemporary and classic artists. One of the musicians included was Bob Dylan, and Obama discussed Dylan’s music during a guest appearance on popular music reaction YouTube channel TwinsthenewTrend.
Obama told twin brothers Fred and Tim Williams of Dylan and his music:
“I’ve been a Bob Dylan fan for a long time, partly ’cause I’m just older. He was part of that social conscience that was in rock music and then later in hip-hop music. Look, I’m like everybody else: I like music about girls and cars and you know, right? Rock and roll and hip-hop. But whenever you can find some musicians that really have a message about how America might be, about how the world might be, that always is something that I pay attention to, and he’s one of the greatest examples of that.”
This clip comes ahead of Obama’s December 16 appearance on the YouTube Originals series BookTube, for which he will discuss his book with TwinsthenewTrend and other YouTube creators.
News of King Von being murdered in Atlanta this past Friday at just 26 years old hit hip-hop like a ton of bricks. King Von’s art imitated his real life and made him one of the most prolific storytellers of his generation. After releasing two full-length projects in 2020, Levon James and Welcome To O Block, Von was perfectly positioned to become one of the genre’s biggest stars within the next year. All that was cut short, leaving behind only the potential — and his existing work.
His Shakespearian tales afforded him the chance to navigate the possibility of living life beyond what he grew up knowing. Listening to his music is like pressing play on an audiobook in rap form over dramatic production. With his “Crazy Story” series, the rapper born Dayvon Daquan Bennett was able to naturally tap into a talent that allowed him to express what was going on where he was from in Chicago — Parkway Garden Homes aka O Block — through non-fiction raps.
Just days before he was killed, I met up with him at a studio in Hollywood to chop it up about Welcome To O Block. Devastated beyond belief, I sat in denial for at least 24 hours after learning of his passing, quickly scrolling past any indication that he was really gone. The rapper that I championed to anyone who would listen to me about his “Crazy Story” raps, the artist who I went hard for and believed would be one of the greatest of this generation, was gone. His potential to become something greater than his circumstance was evident. This young man from Chicago who spit captivating cinematic, storytelling raps with precision had the talent to go beyond the music and I was excited, as I am sure many others were, to see where that would land him.
The day I met up with him, a banger with Polo G titled “How I Rock,” just leaked and I wanted to know more. “Yeah, that’s not on the album,” he said slyly. “They’re looking for it, though. They waiting on it.” Welcome To O Block would end up featuring “The Code” with Polo G instead, but Von didn’t mind the leaks. “It be cool though, because it still going to hit the same when I drop it,” he said. “And put a hard video with it or something. It’s cool, you know.”
In what is one of King Von’s final interviews, we talked more about the creation of his storytelling, music videos, what Chicago rap legends he’d put in a Verzuz battle, and more.
What’s it like, on O’Block? What goes down?
Shit, well, O Block, that’s a housing project on 64th Kings Drive, 64th, 65th where I was living. It’s low income. Single mothers over there with they kids. You know how that shit goes. Poverty and shit. Violence.
How long did you live there?
My mom moved over there when I was like 9 or 10 and then I got locked up at like at 16, and they kicked us out because I got locked up.
How did your mom feel about that?
She was sad. She had to move my grandma into her house. Locked up, I couldn’t do shit. I was pretty young. She was mad as hell. She was sad because I was in jail, but she was mad because now they trying to kick me out, and you in jail.
With that being said, your music is a little violent, a little introspective, always with crazy storytelling.
Yeah. It’s O Block shit. It’s poverty.
Who do you make music for?
People that grow up in Parkway with single mothers. You know, that Section 8 shit. Grow up around there, with drug dealers around. People that grew up in shit like that and fucked up predicaments. It’s a lot of people. And then people, just as entertainment, and shit, I guess. The suburban kids. Everybody who fuck with the music, man.
Whenever I tell people about King Von, I show them the “Crazy Story” music videos. What was the beginning of that?
The whole song wasn’t done when I first recorded it. I had the majority of it wrote, or at least half of it. Then I played it back and I keep going into this story but I ain’t know I was making a whole story, until after it was done. At the end of the video, I put “to be continued” and I wasn’t even planning on making a second, but it was so good, I then make a sequel to it. Durk did a remix and thought I might even make another one to this.
How many of these are you going to do?
Probably two more. I’m going to do some more series, though. I got “Wayne Story” on the album. I’m going to make a second one and a third one. It’s a story about a shorty and he just grew up bad. He started young. He trying to hit a lick. He tries to go rob a guy named Wayne. Wayne sees him trying to rob him and they get in a shootout. The boy gets away, but Wayne ends up killing the boy’s cousin. It’s just crazy.
That is crazy. How much fun do you have making the music videos? Would you consider acting as a career?
It be fun when you putting together the ideas but then when it’s time to make it, I be mad as hell, that I put together all this. It’s tiring, man. We would get it out in one day. Sometimes it would drag over to the next day, if that was the plan, but if it was that day, we would just punch the hours in. We out five o’clock in the morning damn near.
Speaking about the stories that you have, where does the inspiration come from?
It’s really just me making everything up. My imagination is decent. I know how to just think of shit. I just come up with what type of story I would want to start off with. Fucking somebody or fixing to rob somebody? What’s his name? Who you fixing to rob? What he rob him for? You see what I’m saying? Then I just put it together.
On your album, what song means the most to you?
“Demon” the most emotional song on that motherfucker, because I harmonized, I’m talking about my homies that passed away. “Demon,” that’s one of them for sure.
Do you read a lot of books?
I read a lot of books when I was in jail. I read a lot in jail because I had a lot of time, and a lot of books, so I read a lot. I don’t got a lot of time on my hands, lately. I’ve been on the go. I’ve got some books on the phone. I try to read them when I’m in the bed. You know them days you wake up, and you just know you ain’t got nothing to do right away, so you’ll be laying around. I try to read on the phone. I used to be doing it heavy in jail. Like, every day, all day, just reading, reading, reading. Every time I lock up in the cell, I make time to read.
What type of books were you reading?
It depends on where I was at. It’s hard to get books in the hole and when you’re in trouble so I got to read whatever is laying around. When I was doing good I could get all type of books.
Did you have a favorite?
I fuck with all the Block Party books. What’s his name? He’s a Muslim brother. I forgot his name. Block Party. [Editor’s Note: the author of the Block Party series is Al-Saadiq Banks] I fuck with all the Sister Souljah books, The Coldest Winter Ever.
Was that your first time reading The Coldest Winter Ever?
That’s the first book I ever read. I read it when I was 16. My uncle sent it to me from the feds. He told me to read it. The Midnight series, I fuck with all that.
You and Durk are best friends but you guys aren’t able to talk or be around each other. How was it to record “All These N****s?”
Yeah, we really just get the beat from DJ. DJ put a beat to something together for us, and he like, “You go first.” I be like, “No, you go first. You start it off.” He like, “All right.” He’ll start it off and shit. Then I’ll go. And then we’ll finish off or something. We’ll go back and forth on it. Then I’ll say I’m good. Then we’ll add if we need to add some shit. It really be simple.
I like that song with you and Polo G, was that a leak?
Which one?
“How I Rock.”
Yeah, that’s not on the album.
That’s not on the album?
No. They’re looking for it, though. They waiting on it.
How do you feel about leaks?
It be cool though, because it still going to hit the same when I drop it. And put a hard video with it or something.
If there was ever a Verzuz with two Chicago rap legends, who would you pick?
Chicago rap legends? Durk and Keef. I don’t know about nobody else. Kanye West was going crazy. Kanye West be on-and-off sometimes. That’s my boy, but it’s like, what you doing, man? He must be tweaking. But you know, inspiration wise, he got a lot of good shit. He got a lot of good treasure. Good outweigh his bad, for sure. But I don’t understand. He don’t really reach out to — well I ain’t going to say what he don’t do, because I don’t know. I just ain’t got no good connection with him and I’m from Chicago. It’s just us. We did this shit ourself.
I feel like in the beginning, Kanye maybe—
Because Keef was big and he got on a Keef song? That was it. After that, no.
You don’t count that?
That’s not enough. No. Of course, he jumped on Sosa. He was the hottest thing out. It makes sense. But no, it ain’t help us or nothing. I ain’t mad about it or nothing and I ain’t trying to say it like that. It’s just that Durk and Keef, that’s the only motherfuckers.
That’s what I’m saying, Verzuz is like “old school.” Who else is from Chicago? Common, Kanye.
I don’t talk about them. I ain’t no super music — I love music right now and what’s going on right now. I can’t tell you about that shit. I couldn’t tell you a Common song. I don’t know. He bald, right? He look like Joe Budden. I can’t tell who is who. I swear to God.
I think it depends on what you grew up with. I grew up watching Common on TV.
Yeah, I saw him play in the movies, too. But not music.
What did you grow up listening to?
Lil Wayne. Gucci.
Gucci. I know that’s your old school.
When I was 15 or 16, you got Durk. Durk and Keef. Keef was 16, I was 18, 17.
Keef is a legend for sure.
Yeah, we ain’t had no Chicago — like Twista, that’s my mom, you know? And Kanye West was, “I ain’t saying she a gold digger.” Both was cool. That wasn’t my type of ice. Wayne and Gucci, for sure.
Did you see that Lil Wayne endorsed Trump?
Endorsed Trump? I see a lot of people endorse Trump. I don’t know what’s going on. It’s just crazy.
How do you feel about that?
I’m confused as a motherfucker. I go to see my dentist, my doctor, and they go, “Biden. No Trump. You know not Trump.” Then I see motherfuckers, some rap n****s, “Man, Trump.” What the fuck?
Are you into politics at all?
No, I got other shit going on. I can’t call it. I don’t even know. I got to make sure this straight over here. I don’t even know what’s going on with that. I ain’t even trying to figure out what’s going on with that.
Welcome to O’Block is out now via Only The Family Entertainment / EMPIRE. Get it here.
Jeremih, the 33-year-old R&B singer from Chicago whose hits “Birthday Sex,” “Planes,” and “Don’t Tell Him” have made him an iconic figure in the music world, has been battling COVID-19 since at least Monday, when a number of his close friends in the industry began asking fans to pray for him online. It was later revealed that he’s been in intensive care on a ventilator to help him breathe. Today, his family issued an update on his condition in a statement to CNN imploring fans to take the coronavirus pandemic more seriously.
The statement reads, “His family would like to remind the world that COVID-19 is real and not to be taken lightly. Also, It’s important for people infected to quarantine and let their families and friends know ASAP. There’s no shame in contracting COVID-19, and people that have it need to be responsible and considerate of others.” The family also expressed gratitude to “everyone who is praying, and we ask for continued prayers. The family believes in daily prayers to God. A great team of doctors and nurses is helping him pull through. He’s not out of the woods yet, but progress is being made. The family and friends are praying that he starts breathing on his own soon, and makes a full recovery.”
Although the severity of Jeremih’s case is rare for someone his age without underlying conditions, Jeremih is not the only star to have been laid low by the virus.
Kanye West apparently contracted the virus earlier this year, frightening his family, while Houston legend Scarface is still dealing with complications during his own recovery. Fred The Godson, Westside Gunn, and YNW Melly were all afflicted as well.
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