Jay-Z Shrugs Off the Target Boycott, Flips the “Sellout” Narrative
Jay-Z’s exclusive Reasonable Doubt vinyl deal with Target landed in the middle of a nationwide Black consumer boycott of the retailer, launched after Target rolled back DEI policies, with the company’s site traffic reportedly sliding from 5.2 million to 4.7 million monthly visitors. [Rolling Out] Rather than issue a statement after some fans called him a sellout, Jay-Z answered from the stage during his Yankee Stadium residency, telling the crowd he did “sell out” and pointing to three straight sold-out nights, with the vinyl staying on shelves as the boycott continues. [Rolling Out]
→ Unpack Jay-Z’s response to the Target boycott →
LeBron Explains How Jay-Z Taught Him to Move Like a Mogul
In a new interview, LeBron James detailed how meeting Jay-Z at 16 shaped how he thinks about power, recalling that his first summer around Hov coincided with The Blueprint and that he mostly sat back and observed how Jay carried himself. [HotNewHipHop] He framed Michael Jordan as his basketball hero but Jay-Z as a “big brother” who gave him business game, drawing a line between Marcy Projects and his own Akron upbringing and how both learned to claw for everything. [HipHopHero]
→ Hear how Jay-Z mentored LeBron James →
Desiigner Arrested Again on New Domestic Violence Allegations
Desiigner, the 2016 “Panda” breakout, was arrested again in South Carolina for allegedly chasing a woman with a hammer, following an earlier third-degree domestic violence charge from a March altercation. [AllHipHop] Police allege he took the woman’s car keys and shoved her to the ground, causing minor injuries, with the source noting the couple’s toddler did not witness the alleged assault; he posted a $1,500 bond and faces a pending misdemeanor case with an October court date. [HipHopHero]
→ Get the latest on Desiigner’s legal troubles →
Rick Ross Crowns Himself “BOAT” and Drops Set In Stone
Rick Ross released Set In Stone, his first album in five years, and used a new AllHipHop interview to name his personal top five — The Notorious B.I.G., 2Pac, Jay-Z, Scarface, and Trick Daddy — before coining his own title: not GOAT but “BOAT,” the Biggest of All Time. [AllHipHop] The 19-track album, which Ross frames as the product of “20 summers” and his 12th project, is stacked with guests including T.I., Jeezy, Gucci Mane, Don Toliver, and Yung Miami. [HotNewHipHop]
→ Hear Rick Ross crown himself the BOAT →
Larry June Keeps the Lifestyle Rap Assembly Line Moving With Who Coppin
Larry June dropped Who Coppin, another entry in his prolific run of motivational, lifestyle-driven Bay Area rap. [HotNewHipHop] The 17-track album features Wallo267, Jhené Aiko, Musiq Soulchild, B-Legit, and Swizz Beatz, reinforcing his brand as the chilled-out, organic-orange hustler in a crowded release week. [HotNewHipHop]
→ Get into Larry June’s Who Coppin →
Lil Baby Flexes Luxury Over Pharrell Production on “Dead Fresh”
Lil Baby’s new single “Dead Fresh,” produced by Pharrell, is a straight luxury flex about high-end fashion, jewelry, and global touring over unmistakable Pharrell production, first previewed at a Louis Vuitton event. [HotNewHipHop] Baby even name-checks the collaboration within the song itself, extending both Pharrell’s balancing act as an LV creative lead and hitmaker and Baby’s run as a go-to voice for aspirational flex talk. [HotNewHipHop]
→ Hear Lil Baby and Pharrell’s Dead Fresh →
Tory Lanez Keeps Releasing From Prison With a 23-Track Double Disc
Tory Lanez, currently serving a 10-year sentence, released a sprawling 23-track project, Made You Think I Was Gone …But, split into two discs. [HotNewHipHop] The first leans into rap and revenge-coded records while the second focuses on melodic, heartbreak-themed R&B, with features from HollywoodSos and VV$ Ken, continuing a trend of artists maintaining active catalogs from behind bars. [HotNewHipHop]
→ See Tory Lanez’s new album from prison →
The Internet Confirm Their Long-Awaited Album Is Finally Coming
Alternative R&B collective The Internet confirmed their long-awaited new album is slated for early 2027, after working on it on and off for four or five years. [HotNewHipHop] Matt Martians said the pandemic stretched out sessions and the group again let members pursue solo work — from Steve Lacy’s breakout to Syd’s projects — before regrouping, and hinted a new single could arrive once current touring wraps. [HotNewHipHop]
→ Get details on The Internet’s 2027 album →
Wireless Festival Plots a Post-Kanye Future After U.K. Entry Ban
London’s Wireless Festival is regrouping after cancelling this year’s event when the UK government blocked Kanye West from entering the country over his history of antisemitic remarks, leading sponsors to pull out and tickets to be refunded. [Rolling Out] Festival Republic’s Melvin Benn framed the lesson around timing and said forgiveness matters without excusing the controversy, insisting Wireless will return, while Ye had said he wanted to present a “show of change” and meet members of the Jewish community. [Rolling Out]
→ See how Wireless moves on without Kanye →
Nicki Minaj Faces a Six-Figure Legal Fee Dispute Over the “I Lied” Case
Nicki Minaj is facing a legal-fee dispute after the firm Gordon Rees Scully Mansukhani posted court documents at the gate of her California mansion, claiming she owes $229,541 for unpaid work. [HotNewHipHop] The bill stems from defending her in a copyright suit over her 2014 track “I Lied,” which ended in a confidential settlement last year; her former attorneys now say they were never paid, turning an old case into a fresh civil fight. [HotNewHipHop]
→ Follow Nicki Minaj’s legal-fee dispute →
The Boondocks’ Carl Jones Debuts a New Animated Series at Dream Con
Carl Jones, known for his work as a producer and showrunner on The Boondocks, unveiled a new adult-animated series, Intellectual Power, at Dream Con. [AllHipHop] The series, inspired by activist Rizza Islam, premiered via a world-premiere short film screened for more than 1,000 attendees, signaling Jones’s continued role in adult animation centering Black life and hip-hop sensibilities. [AllHipHop]
→ See the Boondocks writer’s new animated series →
Master P Turns Family Tragedy Into Advocacy — and a Biopic Starring His Son
The Miller family is channeling grief into advocacy after the fentanyl overdose death of Master P’s daughter Tytyana, with Master P launching a 2026 tour focused on mental-health and substance-abuse prevention and Tytyana’s mother founding a support foundation. [AllHipHop] Their son Hercy Miller is now training with acting coaches to potentially play his father in the upcoming biopic Only God Can Judge Me: Master P, eyeing the No Limit peak era just after “Make ‘Em Say Uhh.” [AllHipHop]
→ Learn about the Master P biopic and advocacy →
Emerging: Sweetheart’s DIY Power and 36 Mudd’s Cairo-to-Chicago Rise
Two under-the-radar profiles point to where the next wave is coming from: Sweetheart, formerly Jana Barros, parlayed a hip-hop fashion-blog co-sign into a scene-legend run, building a band and taking full control as her own producer in a male-dominated space. [HipHopSince1987] Meanwhile, Cairo-to-Chicago artist 36 Mudd is gaining traction with his EP Soul Steppin’ and single “My Way,” preaching a “we all we got” ethos and shouting out his hometown. [HipHopSince1987]
