Nas, after the release of his new album “King’s Disease,” decided to collaborate with TIDAL to launch an exclusive playlist, “No Rap In My Playlist.”
The multi-platinum selling artist has dubbed the 21-track album to be “Some old school vibes to vibe to,” and it features artists such as Michael Jackson, Earth, Wind & Fire, Prince, Chaka Khan, Barry White and more.
Last weekend, Nas revealed information about his new solo album King’s Disease, which would also be his thirteenth. It was a project that was completely produced by Hit-Boy and saw extra assistance from Lil Durk, Charlie Wilson, Big Sean, Don Toliver, Anderson .Paak, fellow Firm alumni Foxy Brown and AZ, and more. Today, he disclosed a new visual for “Ultra Black,” which is the album’s lead single and showcases Nas paying tribute to all things attributed with black:
“Rhythm and blues, pop, rock to soul to jazz, ‘til my toes are tagged, how I look being told I’m not supposed to brag? Nobody fault, I tell the truth, I know it’s facts, we ultra black…/”
Nas is featured in different locations as he is interspersed with shots of various Black families, right from a mother carrying a child along with her husband and kids to the single fathers. One can even see Hit-Boy on his drum machine, holding his child, which enhances the idea of celebrating Black life and love.
Moreover, because of a line which was perceived to be dissing Doja Cat, “Ultra Black” attracted a lot of attention. However, Doja Cat’s own funny response led to the debunking by Nas during an interview with Power 106:
“I just was really saying a rhyme that rhymed with ‘Ultra Black’… I rhymed that word with ‘ultra black,’ I didn’t even think of it. It’s all love, it’s all love, you know what I’m sayin’? It was like ‘Michael Blackson black.’”
The release of King’s Disease comes two whole years after its predecessor NASIR, which adhered to the G.O.O.D. Music format of that period and contained only seven tracks and featured production from Kanye West. Apart from West, it also featured appearances from Diddy, 070 Shake, The-Dream, and The World Famous Tony Williams. In response to the critics of NASIR, he released a second installment of his Lost Tapes series in 2019. The first one was released back in 2002.
The “Power Store” concept is being expanded by Foot Locker, which opened its first Coast community-based Power Store in Compton, CA last Wednesday, Aug. 26.
This Power Store is all set to become the hub for local sneaker culture, art, music and sports. Exclusive artwork of local artists will be featured in the store, aligning with Foot Locker’s commitment to bring the optimal localized expression of its brand to customers. To support the Compton community, teammates have been recruited from within a five-mile radius of the store.
About the Store:
The store, spanning over 12,000 square feet, is located at 205 E Compton Blvd and offers an elevated retail experience, which includes full-family shopping, a curbside pickup window, as well as an activation space in order to host events for people obsessed with sneakers and are willing to adhere to physical distancing rules.
In order to extend the store’s “Home Grown” hyper-local product initiative, the store will also offer a tailored set of local brand exclusives along with limited-release products, which include Viva La Bonita, Ugly Primo, Mel Depaz and K.Swiss x Mike Reesé.
In order to create custom artwork for the store, Foot Locker has associated with renowned Los Angeles artists, Mel Depaz and AngelOnce, and the creations include a mural outside and digital canvas art inside.
To celebrate the opening, Foot Locker held neighborhood clean-ups and over the summer, it also established a community garden.
At the Louisville demonstration staged to honor late Breonna Taylor, the EMT aged 26, who was shot within the safety of her own home by the police, over 60 people were arrested.
The protest was one fragment of “A Day of Action,” which is a four-day even organized by social justice organization Until Freedom to demand justice for Taylor.
The protestors walked all the way from the Louisville police training headquarters to the University of Louisville’s Cardinal Stadium wherein a conflict with the police had emerged as the demonstrators were obstructing a main road right in front of the venue.
Many people were arrested including Trae tha Truth and reality stars Porsha Williams and Yandy Smith, who also took to Instagram to post a video of her arrest.
The Louisville officers explained that those who were arrested will be charged with obstructing the roadway and disorderly conduct. They were in police custody last night and did not receive a bond yet.
Previously, in July, Trae tha Truth, Williams and Smith were taken into police custody with YBN Cordae, Until Freedom co-founder Tamika Mallory and 87 others when they staged protests outside the home of Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron. Each of the individuals was charged with intimidating a participant in a legal process, disorderly conduct 2nd degree and criminal trespass 3rd degree. Eventually, the felony charges were dropped.
Recently, Mallory explained that one of the objectives of the organization is to make sure to keep Taylor’s name and story alive, when critics questioned Until Freedom’s motives.
Moreover, she also spoke about the criticism directed towards the usage of the promotional ads to promote the event.
“Yesterday, while we were inside of the women’s empowerment event, the white militia [3 percenters] was outside—about thirty to forty people with weapons,” Mallory told The Root. “While some folks are upset about the name of a conference and a graphic, our lives are in danger because we’re actually physically on the ground not on social media.”
The owners of the Milwaukee Bucks released a statement supporting the decision of their players to not partake in Wednesday’s (Aug. 26) playoff game against the Orlando Magic.
Earlier that day, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski announced that Milwaukee players decided to stay in their locker rooms during that night’s game. Fans as well as other participants of the league praised the decision which set a precedent that the Los Angeles Lakers, Portland Trail Blazers, OKC Thunder and Houston Rockets later followed.
Soon enough, the owners of the Bucks agreed that the decision of the players was a great way to increase awareness about racial inequality and demand change.
“We fully support our players and the decision they made,” the statement read. “Although we did not know beforehand, we would have wholeheartedly agreed with them. The only way to bring about change is to shine a light on the racial injustices that are happening in front of us. Our players have done that and we will continue to stand alongside them and demand accountability and change.”
It is not shocking that they supported the players. Once they learnt that Jacob Blake, a young Black man who was unarmed was shot several times by the cops as his children watched on, the coach of the team Michael Budenholzer started a Zoom session to express condolences to Blake’s family and demand change.
“I’d just like to send out my thoughts and prayers to Jacob Blake and his family, another young Black man shot by a police officer,” Budenholzer said. “We need to have change, we need to be better and I’m hoping for the best for him and his family. I’m hoping for the best as we work through this in Wisconsin and in Milwaukee and in Kenosha. So, thoughts and prayers with Jacob Blake.”
Later, the team released a statement stating that they are “firmly against recurring issues of excessive use of force and immediate escalation when engaging the Black community.”
RECENT COMMENTS