Monthly Archives: August 2020

Kanye West sues to get on Ohio presidential ballot – Music News

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Kanye West is suing Ohio’s elections chief after he was denied a spot on the state’s presidential ballot.

The musician has been running an unconventional campaign for November’s election, having only made the ballot in eight states to date.

After Ohio’s Republican Secretary of State Frank LaRose rejected a nearly-15,000 signature petition and other election paperwork from West, citing mismatched information on the documents, the rapper filed a complaint on Wednesday.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, the Gold Digger hitmaker’s election lawyers allege LaRose has a duty to accept any petition for an independent candidate as long as there is no protest filed against it and it does not violate state law.

Ohio has traditionally been a battleground state in U.S. elections, but Trump defeated Hillary Clinton handily there in his 2016 election victory.

West has already failed to get on the ballot in a majority of states, falling short in his adoptive home of Wyoming as well as his native Illinois, and the key swing state of Wisconsin. He also missed filing deadlines or was rejected in states including California, Florida, and Pennsylvania.

However, he will appear on the ballot in Arkansas, Colorado, Oklahoma, Utah, and Vermont.

The hip-hop superstar had supported U.S. President Donald Trump until he announced his own candidacy last month. Operatives from Trump’s Republican Party have been accused of helping the rap legend’s push to appear on ballots in a bid to draw young Black voters away from his Democratic Party rival, former Vice President Joe Biden. West has refused to deny the claims.

The music and fashion mogul’s campaign got off to a disastrous start when a botched launch prompted his wife Kim Kardashian to ask for public sympathy due to his battles with bipolar disorder.



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Jamie Lynn Spears seeking control of sister Britney’s finances – Music News

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Britney Spears’ sister Jamie Lynn Spears is attempting to gain more control over the hitmaker’s assets.

According to the Los Angeles Times, in a court filing made last week, Jamie Lynn, who starred in Nickelodeon series Zoey 101, requested that all the assets from the singer’s trust be relocated into new accounts with Fidelity Brokerage Services.

The move, if approved, would transfer Britney’s financial assets from the trust, which was established in 2004, into the new accounts, of which Jamie Lynn is a custodian. A judge’s approval is required to complete the transfer.

Under the amendment, 29-year-old Jamie Lynn would be able to administer Britney’s assets to her two children upon her death. Jamie Lynn signed the documents last week.

According to the publication, the filing does not seem to be directly related to the battle over Britney’s ongoing conservatorship, which was recently extended to February 2021.

The Toxic star’s dad Jamie was put in charge of his daughter’s welfare and finances in 2008, following the superstar’s headline-grabbing meltdown. He relinquished some control last year as he battled ill health and passed matters over to Britney’s longtime caregiver, Jodi Montgomery.

The conservatorship has proved unpopular among fans, who have taken to social media with the #FreeBritney campaign, demanding the legal arrangement be scrapped.

Britney herself is now seeking to have Montgomery replace Jamie as the sole conservator overseeing her financial affairs and wellbeing. While her bid was refused in court earlier this month, her attorney has filed an appeal.



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Billie Eilish shares hope for the future while reflecting on ‘weird’ Covid-19 crisis – Music News

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Billie Eilish’s “hope” for the future is what’s making her “hold on” through the Covid-19 pandemic.

The Bad Guy hitmaker appeared alongside her brother and collaborator Finneas O’Connell on the latest instalment of NPR’s Tiny Desk Concerts this week, filmed in their own home.

Ahead of a performance of her latest single My Future, Billie opened up on life during the coronavirus crisis.

“Quarantine’s been weird; I know you all feel the same,” she reflected. “It’s been weird, we don’t know how long it’s gonna go. There’s barely anything that feels like there’s any hope in, but I think the future is something to be super hopeful in, and the unknown and what is to come.”

She assured fans: “We’ll be okay one day. Maybe not right now, but I think that’s what’s making me hold on.”

The gig was Billie’s first performance since she appeared at the Democratic National Convention (DNC) last week, and urged her fans to vote for presidential nominee Joe Biden “like our lives and the world depend on it”.

“You don’t need me to tell you things are a mess – Donald Trump is destroying our country and everything we care about,” the 18-year-old said.

“We need leaders who will solve problems like climate change and Covid – not deny them. Leaders who will fight against systemic racism and inequality.”



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Katy Perry gives birth to daughter Daisy Dove – Music News

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Katy Perry is a new mum.

The popstar and her fiance Orlando Bloom, 43, announced the arrival of their little girl, Daisy Dove, with a statement via the charity Unicef, for which they are both goodwill ambassadors.

Alongside a black and white picture of their hands holding the newborn’s, 35-year-old Katy and Orlando said: “We are floating with love and wonder from the safe and healthy arrival of our daughter.”

The couple have set up a donation page to mark Daisy’s birth, with money given by fans benefiting new mothers and their children.

“We know we’re the lucky ones and not everyone can have a birthing experience as peaceful as ours was,” the pair continued. “Communities around the world are still experiencing a shortage of healthcare workers and every eleven seconds a pregnant woman or newborn dies, mostly from preventable causes.

“Since Covid-19, many more newborn lives are at risk because of a greater lack of access to water, soap, vaccines and medicines that prevent diseases. As parents to a newborn, this breaks our hearts, as we empathise with struggling parents now more than ever.

“By supporting Unicef, you are supporting a safe start to life and reimagining a healthier world for every child. We hope your (heart) can bloom with generosity.”

Daisy is Katy’s first biological child, but Orlando is also dad to nine-year-old son Flynn from his marriage to model Miranda Kerr.

The birth news comes a day before the release of Perry’s new album, Smile, which drops on Friday.



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LL Cool J celebrating as police get a break in 18-year-old Jam Master Jay murder case – Music News

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LL Cool J is celebrating after learning two man have been indicted for the murder of his friend Jam Master Jay.

The Run-DMC star was killed in 2002 and now New York police officials are convinced they have the men responsible.

“I’m just so happy that they got indicted on that,” LL tells Rolling Stone, “and I’m just glad that they’re one step closer to a conviction. It was an absolute tragedy. Jay will always be forever respected by me.”

The arrests have brought back happy and sad memories for the rap pioneer, who toured with Run-DMC in his teens.

“I can’t even remember the first time I met Jay,” he adds. “He was definitely already in Run-DMC, but we’re from the same neighbourhood. Every time I met him, he was just the coolest dude in the world. He just had a great smile, a great personality, a great energy. It always seemed to be really clear that he knew what he was doing. He was a very smart guy.

“He was a lot of fun, and he just brought an air of security to everyone around him. Like, he was very confident. He was so cool.”

Jam Master Jay was at his studio in Queens when two men shot him. Ronald Washington and Karl Jordan, Jr., have been accused of the murder over a drug deal gone bad. They have pleaded not guilty, but bandmate Darryl ‘DMC’ McDaniels is confident the cops are near to closing the case.

“It’s been a difficult 18 years not having him (Jam Master Jay) around while knowing that his murderers were not yet indicted for this heinous crime,” DMC said in a statement. “I commend NYPD, NYC Detectives, Federal Agents and all the law enforcement who were involved in this case, for not giving up and working to bring justice for Jay.”

LL Cool J echoes that, adding: “It (Jay’s death) is one of the things that makes me have thoughts that I don’t want to talk about in interviews. So I’m just glad that what happened with the indictment happened now, and I’ll leave it there. I’ll take 18 years over no years; 18 is better than nothing.”



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Nas was too high for Notorious B.I.G. recording session – Music News

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Nas has recounted that he missed out on recording in New York with Notorious B.I.G. in the early 1990s because he got too high in the studio.

The rapper was asked about his mythical session with Biggie that failed to produce any tunes during a recent appearance on The Breakfast Club and revealed he was too stoned to perform.

“I was in the studio and Big was rolling up some of that chocolate from Brooklyn – and he didn’t warn me,” Nas said.

“I was zonked out,” the Made You Look hitmaker explained.

He continued: “There’s pictures of that session out there. Yeah, we was supposed to do a couple of songs. I was gonna remix some stuff for (Notorious B.I.G.’s debut album) Ready to Die.”

He added, “One of them I did was (Biggie’s 1994 track) Gimme The Loot.”

When asked why he didn’t return the following day, Nas explicated: “Still high. We were smokers, man – (I) still am.”

Nas and Notorious B.I.G. never rescheduled the session before the late rapper was killed in a drive-by shooting in Los Angeles on 9 March 1997. Biggie’s break-out album, Ready To Die, is now considered one of the greatest, most influential rap albums of all time.



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Mark Mothersbaugh was hospitalised with COVID-19 – Music News

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Devo star Mark Mothersbaugh was left fighting for his life in a hospital intensive care unit in June after testing positive for COVID-19.

The post-punk rocker’s wife, Anita, revealed the health scare while raising concerns about the couple’s Hollywood Hills neighbours, TikTok stars Bryce Hall, Noah Beck and Blake Gray, who have come under fire for ignoring coronavirus concerns by throwing huge house parties at their rented mansion.

“This virus is no joke,” Anita told the Daily Mail.

“I’ve experienced it first-hand. There was a week where my daughters thought (Mark) would die,” she divulged.

Venting about the TikTok personalities’ infamous bashes, she told the publication: “It makes me crazy, the sheer inconsideration (sic). It goes on all day long.”

Describing scenes from the house, Anita said: “There are people in the pool screaming, they’re blasting music and there are cars parked all down the street. They don’t seem to care about public health.”

Her comments emerged a week after Los Angeles authorities shut off water and electricity to the trio’s home after violating coronavirus restrictions by hosting a massive gathering for Hall’s 21st birthday on 14 August.

Mothersbaugh has yet to personally comment on his COVID-19 battle, but he may want to make use of Devo’s revamped ‘energy dome’ hats, which have been re-released with face shields to help protect fans during the coronavirus lockdown.



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Kanye West fails to get on presidential ballot in Wyoming – Music News

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Kanye West has failed to get on the ballot for the U.S. presidential election in his adopted home state of Wyoming.

The rapper has set up home with wife Kim Kardashian in the Cowboy State by buying a mega-ranch – but will not take his Birthday Party presidential campaign there after missing a Monday deadline to submit signatures, USA Today reports.

However, according to TheHill.com, he has secured a spot in the key swing state of Minnesota, as well as musical rival Taylor Swift’s home state of Tennessee. He will also be on the ballot in Arkansas, Colorado, Oklahoma, Utah and Vermont, but failed to make it in Missouri after submitting just 6,557 of the 10,000 signatures required.

As a third-party candidate who will not appear on the ballot in many states, West has no realistic path to winning the 270 electoral college votes that would send him to The White House – leading to accusations he is running a spoiler campaign to help U.S. President Donald Trump defeat his opponent, former Vice President Joe Biden.

The rapper is a one-time supporter of the billionaire politician and reports have linked operatives from Trump’s Republican Party to the Gold Digger hitmaker’s campaign.

The hip-hop star said in an interview with Forbes earlier this month that he is “not denying” that his campaign was meant to damage Biden, who he has criticised.

In addition to not making the ballot in his adopted home of Wyoming, the musician also failed to qualify in his native Illinois.

The election takes place in November.



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The Aaliyah Estate in talks to bring entire back catalogue to streaming services – Music News

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The Aaliyah Estate has revealed it’s in talks to bring the late R&B legend’s entire back catalogue to streaming services in the “near future”.

The late R&B legend – whose full name was Aaliyah Haughton – tragically passed away at the age of 22 in a plane crash in 2001.

And on the 19th anniversary of the singer’s death (25.08.20), her estate confirmed they are hoping to add more than the ‘More Than A Woman’ hitmaker’s 1994 debut ‘Age Ain’t Nothing But A Number’ and her EPs to services such as Spotify and Apple Music.

In a statement issued on Twitter, they said: “To our loyal fans:
“We are excited to announce that communication has commenced between the estate and various record labels about the status of Aaliyah’s music catalogue.

“As well as its availability on streaming platforms in the near future.
“Thank you for your continued love and support.
“More updates to come!”

Aaliyah’s uncle, the founder of Blackground Records, Barry Hankerson, owns her music.

And he had teased in 2019 that her collection would be available to stream on the star’s birthday on January 16, 2020, however, no music arrived and there had been no further update since, until now.

Back in 2017, Aaliyah’s greatest hits were made streamable, but shortly after being published on iTunes and Apple Music, they were removed from the app.

Aaliyah released three studio albums, with ‘Age Ain’t Nothing But A Number’ followed by 1996’s ‘One in a Million’, and her seminal self-titled LP in 2001.

In 2016, Drake’s unreleased track featuring the posthumous vocals of Aaliyah, ‘Talk Is Cheap’, surfaced online.

The Canadian rapper had previously released ‘Enough Said’ in 2012, and teased that he was working on a collection of reworked tracks and unreleased songs by the iconic music star.

However, the estate blocked the project from being released.

Aaliyah’s brother Rashad Haughton said at the time: “There is no official album being released and supported by the Haughton family.

“What’s more, Aaliyah’s regular producer Timbaland had expressed his disappointment at not being included in the album, saying: “I know they trying to drop some Aaliyah records, but if [Drake] do it, it should be with me and him, and Missy [Elliott].”



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Nicki Minaj and Ty Dolla $ign to release new collaboration ‘Expensive’ this week – Music News

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The rap superstars’ new track follows their feature on Megan Thee Stallion’s mega-hit ‘Hot Girl Summer’.
While the pair previously hooked up with Jason Derulo on ‘Swalla’ in 2017.

‘Expensive’ is set for release on August 28.

Alongside the artwork, Ty wrote on Instagram: “Expensive out Friday! @nickiminaj Pre-$ave in bio! (sic)”
Last month, Ty, 38, released the star-studded track, ‘Ego Death’, featuring Kanye West, FKA twigs and Skrillex.

And he recently explained that he got the ‘Wash us in the Blood’ rapper on board because he was aiming for “greatness”.

The hip-hop star admitted it was a “blessing” to work with Kanye again on his latest release and he wanted the ‘Flashing Lights’ hitmaker on there because they always create something special together.

He said: “I was just trying to achieve greatness.

“Every time me and Ye get together, I feel like we just make something great. So I just do my part.

“Every time we get together, it just works. So it’s a blessing, man. Shout-out to my bro.”

Ty is poised to release a new album titled ‘Dream House’ – the follow-up to 2017’s ‘Beach House 3’ – though a firm date is yet to be revealed.

As for Nicki, she has had a slew of features, including the remix of Doja Cat’s ‘Say So’, ‘Move Ya Hips’ with A$AP Ferg and ‘Trollz’ with Tekashi 6ix9ine.

The ‘Anaconda’ hitmaker returned with her solo single ‘Yikes’ in February.



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