Ye is highlighting a sneaker that shares the name of his forthcoming album, Bully. Hitting Instagram, Ye showed a new all-black sneaker. The details are slim as Ye just shared…
Ye continues to highlight his forthcoming album, Bully. Hitting Instagram on Monday morning, Ye dropped off an image of himself dapping up the legendary Mike Dean. He captioned the image…
In 2024, Sean “Diddy” Combs, the CEO of Bad Boy Entertainment, faced escalating legal challenges as his federal racketeering and sex trafficking case moved forward. A New York judge set his trial date for May 5, 2025, as Combs pleaded not guilty in a pivotal court appearance. Shackled and dressed casually, he was supported by family members during the hearing. Prosecutors outlined a potential three-week case, while Combs’ defense estimated their arguments would take one week.
Combs’ legal troubles deepened with six lawsuits filed against him, including multiple disturbing allegations of sexual assault. One lawsuit detailed an alleged assault at a 1998 party, while another accused him of drugging and assaulting a woman in 2021. Prosecutors also pointed to past attempts by Combs to obstruct justice, citing bribery and video evidence of violence against a former partner.
Despite offering a $50 million bond with strict conditions, Combs’ bail was denied for the third time. Prosecutors argued he posed a significant risk of witness tampering, a claim supported by alleged communications from jail. Judge Subramanian emphasized the gravity of the charges, keeping Combs in custody as the case advanced.
Amid the legal fallout, Combs’ mother, Janice, publicly defended her son, calling the charges a “public lynching.” As the case unfolded, the once-celebrated mogul’s legacy faced a cloud of controversy, overshadowing his career and contributions to the music industry.
The Return of Donald Trump
In 2024, Donald Trump made a historic return to the White House, defeating Vice President Kamala Harris in a stunning election upset. This victory marked Trump’s comeback after his loss in 2020, a tumultuous race filled with legal battles, impeachments, and a criminal conviction. Trump’s win made him only the second U.S. president in history to serve two nonconsecutive terms.
Trump’s electoral victory was sealed by key swing states like Wisconsin and Pennsylvania, pushing him past the necessary threshold of electoral votes. In his victory speech, he promised a “golden age of America,” emphasizing economic growth, immigration reform, and a revitalized Republican agenda. He also celebrated the GOP’s projected control of the Senate, signaling a shift in power.
A notable feature of Trump’s return was his bold moves to reshape government. He announced the creation of a new Department of Government Efficiency, with Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy tapped to lead the initiative. The department’s mission would focus on reducing bureaucratic obstacles and streamlining federal operations, aligning with Trump’s broader goal of modernizing government. Musk’s involvement, known for his disruptive influence across industries, emphasized the administration’s commitment to deregulation and technological innovation.
The potential collaboration between Trump and Musk sparked widespread speculation, with many wondering how their partnership would reshape industries like electric vehicles, space exploration, and media. Both men share a free-market ethos, but critics raised concerns about the volatility such an alliance could bring, given Musk’s unpredictable leadership and Trump’s controversial use of political influence for business advantage.
As 2024 closed, the implications of Trump’s victory and his new alliances loomed large. The political landscape appeared poised for significant change, with Trump positioning himself as a force to drive the nation forward, while navigating the challenges of leading a deeply polarized America.
The YSL Trial
The year 2024 marked the end of the long-running YSL Trial, which had been ongoing for over a year and involved rapper Young Thug (Jeffery Williams) and several co-defendants. After facing charges including racketeering conspiracy, gang activity, and firearms offenses, Young Thug reached a deal that led to his release on October 31. He was sentenced to 40 years, with five years in prison, commuted to time served, followed by 15 years of probation. An additional 20 years were “backloaded,” meaning he could face imprisonment if he violates probation.
Thug’s release came after an intense prosecution led by Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis, who had pushed for a 45-year sentence. However, the judge opted for a more lenient sentence, acknowledging the time Thug had already spent in jail since 2022. As part of his probation, Thug is prohibited from contacting other co-defendants, except for his brother and fellow rapper Gunna. The plea agreement also required him to complete community service, which he has already started, including speaking to law students about the importance of legal advocacy.
While Young Thug closed this chapter of his legal ordeal, some co-defendants took different paths. Deamonte Kendrick, known as Yak Gotti, rejected a plea deal and intends to fight his charges in court. Meanwhile, Quamarvious Nichols and Rodalius Ryan accepted plea deals, with Nichols receiving a 20-year sentence and Ryan pleading to RICO charges.
Throughout the trial, Thug’s legal team, led by attorney Brian Steel, worked tirelessly to secure a favorable outcome, with Steel emphasizing Thug’s positive impact and the misinterpretation of his lyrics. In a gesture of gratitude, Thug praised Steel and encouraged law students to consider a career in law to help others.
Despite his release, the trial continues to affect the YSL collective, with the case wrapping up only after the final verdicts for Yak Gotti and Shannon Stillwell were delivered in December. Gotti was acquitted on all charges, while Stillwell was convicted for firearm possession. The YSL Trial has been a significant event in Georgia’s criminal justice system, reflecting both the complexity of gang-related charges and the ongoing legal battles within the music industry.
The Rise of Women’s Sports
The 2024 year in women’s sports, particularly in the WNBA, was defined by standout rookies, record-breaking performances, and historic milestones that captivated fans across the globe.
Caitlin Clark, selected first overall in the 2024 WNBA Draft by the Indiana Fever, quickly made her mark, earning the Kia WNBA Rookie of the Year title. Clark, a former NCAA record-holder in both men’s and women’s basketball for scoring, led the Fever to its first playoff appearance in nearly a decade. She played in all 40 games, contributing to a remarkable seven-win improvement, and finished in the top five of MVP voting, a feat previously achieved by legends like Candace Parker and Diana Taurasi. Clark’s debut season also contributed to a 319% increase in attendance for the Fever and a record-setting year for the league in viewership and merchandise sales.
Angel Reese, another rookie sensation with the Chicago Sky, showcased her dominance by setting a WNBA record for the most consecutive double-doubles by a rookie. Reese’s performance, which included a record-breaking streak of 15 games with double-digit points and rebounds, placed her among the league’s elite. Her consistent excellence was a cornerstone of Chicago’s success, further solidified by a dramatic victory over the Fever, where Reese’s 25-point, 16-rebound game led the Sky to an 88-87 win.
The excitement surrounding these rookies was evident not just on the court but also in viewership, with Caitlin Clark’s debut game drawing 2.1 million viewers across ESPN platforms, the highest for a WNBA game in history. The surge in interest reflected the growing popularity of the league, with record-breaking increases in social media engagement and web traffic.
Another major story of 2024 was A’ja Wilson of the Las Vegas Aces, who made history by setting the record for the most points scored in a single WNBA season, surpassing Jewell Loyd’s previous record. Wilson’s 27-point performance against the Indiana Fever brought her to within 44 points of becoming the first player to score 1,000 points in a season.
As the WNBA continues to break barriers and grow in prominence, 2024 highlighted the league’s expanding influence, both on and off the court, thanks to the exceptional talent and dedication of its athletes. With rising stars like Clark, Reese, and Wilson leading the way, the future of women’s sports is brighter than ever.
Kanye West Sexual Misconduct Allegations
In 2024, Kanye West faced a series of sexual harassment lawsuits and troubling allegations, further complicating his already controversial public image. One lawsuit, filed by model Jenn An, accuses West of sexual assault and strangulation during a 2010 music video shoot at the Chelsea Hotel in New York City. An claims that after West specifically selected her for the shoot, he allegedly responded to her discomfort about her revealing outfit by saying, “That’s why I chose you.” The lawsuit also details a disturbing encounter where West allegedly strangled An and forced her to simulate oral sex, calling it “art.”
Adding to West’s legal woes, his ex-assistant Lauren Pisciotta filed a lawsuit accusing him of drugging and sexually assaulting her, alongside other disturbing claims of inappropriate sexual behavior. Pisciotta’s suit highlights West’s sexual fetishes and alleged misconduct, including messages he sent boasting about sexual orgies and inappropriate behavior in the workplace. She also alleges that she was tasked with coordinating Ubers for women to meet West, including one instance where he demanded sexual acts from her and others. Pisciotta claims she was fired in 2022 after leaving her OnlyFans career to work with West, and she is suing for breach of contract, sexual harassment, and wrongful termination.
Further complicating matters, West’s tumultuous marriage to Bianca Censori reportedly faces strain, with rumors of an impending divorce. The couple, married in 2022, has recently been seen apart, with West reportedly considering relocating to Tokyo. Despite speculation, some sources suggest reconciliation is still possible.
Amid these personal and legal challenges, West’s behavior has sparked widespread criticism, with several women, including model Mikaela Lafuente, speaking out against his inappropriate advances. Lafuente criticized his unsolicited messages and emphasized that infidelity was unacceptable, particularly given his marriage to Censori.
As the lawsuits and allegations mount, Kanye West’s legacy is increasingly defined by these legal battles, overshadowing his previous achievements and further tarnishing his public image.
Model Jenn An is suing Kanye West for an alleged incident that included sexual assault and strangulation.
According to An, a former contestant on America’s Next Top Model, the event occurred during a music video shoot for La Roux’s “In for the Kill ” in September 2010 at the Chelsea Hotel in New York City.
An alleges that Kanye West specifically selected her to be one of the female background actors and models, reportedly saying, “Give me the Asian girl.” According to her, when she expressed concern about the revealing nature of her outfit, West allegedly responded, “That’s why I chose you.” According to The Wrap, the legal docs state she was currently wearing lingerie.
The lawsuit obtained by The Wrap claims that West dismissed the other background actors and models and then “began filming the sexual assault.”
An accuses West of strangling her with both hands before forcing several fingers down her throat. She claims he repeatedly moved his fingers in and out, causing her to gag, in what she believed lasted over a minute, to simulate forced oral sex. During the moment, Ye is alleged to say, “This is art. This is f–king art. I am like Picasso.”
An’s suit also lists Interscope and Universal Music Group. An is seeking “damages for mental, emotional and physical injury, distress, pain and suffering and injury to reputation” and lawyer fees.
On this day in 2010, famed producer Kanye West released his fifth full length studio album entitled My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy on the Def Jam Recordings/Roc-A-Fella imprint.
West delivered the album of the decade in 2010.From its composition, multiple album covers, a short film, ballerinas, the infamous red suit, and more, Ye’s My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy would set an almost unreachable precedent for artists of all genres that would succeed the first decade of the new millennium.
Album Conception
He distanced himself from the world and returned to what made us all fall in love with his genius. Ye hid away in Hawaii, working on MBDTF, inviting artists to the island to join his reemergence into the culture’s good graces. Ye would go on record saying My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy is the first album he decided to write down all of his raps because his mission was perfection. His career depended on it.
According to Rory Farrell, who interned at Def Jam during this time, West entered the label’s office, fully dressed in a black suit, with the intention of playing the album, but was unimpressed with what they were wearing. West gave Def Jam an ultimatum: dress better or no album. It was ultimately a privilege. He returned the next day with the album. At this time, “Runaway” was 16 minutes long, but would be condensed to 9:08.
West released a number of covers for the album. The most thought-provoking was deemed controversial and rejected by a number of retail stores. Can’t a man sit on a couch with his phoenix? Oh, the days of physical album copies.
BET AWARDS & VMAS Return
Kanye West opened the 2010 BET Awards atop of a mountain to perform, “Power.” This was his first public performance since the infamous VMA mic grab. Decked out in an all-red suit with an oversized sphinx chain, West was back.
Two months later he would close the 2010 VMAs and debut “Runaway,” a tribute to douchbags, that would see the return of The Clipse’ Pusha T.
GOOD Fridays & Runaway Film
West launched a weekly free music series to support the album, leading up to the album’s release. 3 of the songs from the series would appear on MBDTF, including “Monster” with an incomparable verse from Nicki Minaj.
West would turn “Runaway” into a 35-minute short film featuring supermodel, Selita Ebanks. The film explored the beauty of a phoenix, attempting to live in society. The album would serve as the soundtrack to the film and part of the film would serve as “Runaway’s” music video.
The duo of Cipha Sounds and Peter Rosenberg sat down with the New York City legend Ghostface Killah on the latest episode of the Juan Ep Is Life Podcast. The episode starts off with Peter praising Ghostface for the great quality of his latest album, Set The Tone (Guns & Roses). Rosenberg tells Ghostface, “Thank you for never putting me in a situation where I have to interview one of my heroes and pretend that their album is good.”
Ghostface revealed how he worked with Kanye West on the song “No Face” from the album. He said he got the feature shortly before the album’s release. Rosenberg noticed how the song sampled Ghostface’s chorus from the “New God Flow.1” collaboration with Kanye West andPusha T and Ghostface said it’s an inescapable beat and that he loves it. He praised Kanye for his musical genius and how he works with other artists.
As they discussed his catalog, Ghostface reflected on how he didn’t like some of his projects, especially Ironman. “Coming off Cuban Linx, going into Ironman, it was down for me. Even for the beats, it was dark-ish, but I didn’t have the chance to really write because I only had two months to really get it done. And I think that’s why I don’t really deal well with deadlines now.”
They reflected on the song “Nutmeg” from the Supreme Clientele album. Cipha Sounds described the song as artful and should be labeled as more than rap. The interview closes with Ghostface, Rosenberg, and Cipha reflecting on Ghostface’s Hip Hop 50 performance at Yankees Stadium. The trio discussed the backstory on how a past Biz performance helped Ghostface figure out his set.
On this date at the turn of the millennium, Jay-Z and his Rocafella cohorts released the only crew album of his career, The Dynasty: Roc La Familia.
Along with Memphis Bleek and the State Property clan from Philly, including Peedi Crack, Beanie Sigel, Oschino, Sparks, Freeway, and others, Hov brought the supergroup energy to this album that was seen as the pinnacle of Jay’s career; right before his Blueprint metamorphosis, which was the beginning of the mogul he is today.
Even with all of the star power on the album, there were still some stand-out tracks on the LP exclusively released on the infamous Rocafella imprint, including the Neptunes-produced ‘I Just Want To Love U(Give It To Me)”, the controversial “Guilty Until Proven Innocent” featuring the trouble-ridden R. Kelly and the old Kanye-produced “This Can’t Be Life” featuring Beanie and Geto Boys’ Scarface. With additional production from Just Blaze, Rockwilder, Rick Rock, and others, this album is one of Jigga’s standout projects of his illustrious career.
Salute to Jay, Biggs, Dame, Bleek, and the rest of the Roc for this piece of Hip-Hop History!!
Ye is ready to bring fans into the world of Bully. Hitting Instagram, Ye dropped off the cover art for the album, crediting Japanese photographer Daidō Moriyama for the work.
Previously, the artist formerly known as Kanye West introduced fans to the sound of his forthcoming album, Bully. On Instagram, he teases “Beauty and the Beast” from Tokyo while stating that the Bully album is on the way. You can hear the tease below.
Kanye West is introducing fans to the sound of his forthcoming album, Bully. On Instagram, he teases “Beauty and the Beast” from Tokyo while stating that the Bully album is on the way. You can hear the tease below.
Kanye West is currently the subject of a lawsuit from his ex-assistant, Lauren Pisciotta. Among the claims, Pisciotta stated Ye drugged and sexually assaulted her.
Adding additional details of Ye’s behavior, the suit highlights alleged “sexual kinks” of the superstar rapper, including his want to have sex with the mother of his wife, Bianca Censori.
According to Page Six, Pisciotta called Censori Ye’s “on-call sex party participant/employee,” revealing a Sept. 2022 text message between the two reading: “I wanna f–k your mum. Before she leaves.”
In the last few weeks, reports have stated the polarizing couple is reportedly on the brink of a split, with an actual divorce likely.
According to the all-seeing eyes of our friends at TMZ, Ye, and Bianca, who have been married for nearly two years, has seemingly encountered a “rough patch.” This is not surprising considering all the attention and pressure their union garners, not to mention Kanye’s many controversies.
The media outlet noted that both Kanye (also known as Ye) and Bianca separated “a few weeks ago,” and the rapper has informed his close circle about his intentions to relocate to Tokyo and file for divorce.
Get this, Kanye has been spotted in Tokyo on two occasions—first at a pro-wrestling match on September 30, and again at a Jamaican restaurant on October 3—without Bianca by his side. Meanwhile, Bianca has reportedly returned to Australia to be with her family as they work through their marital issues.
Tokyo isn’t Kansas in terms of distance from LA, but if Bianca is back in Australia, then they’re quite far apart.
Moreover, despite the reports of their marriage being “on the rocks,” sources close to the couple have suggested that reconciliation is still possible. The New York Post cited an insider who stated, “It’s not beyond repair.” The insider added, “Ye changes his mind all the time. That may happen here [with the divorce].”
Now, interestingly, the reason for the alleged split remains unclear, but Bianca continues to hold her position as the Head of Architecture at Yeezy. Since their secret marriage in December 2022, the pair have often appeared inseparable.
ICYMI, Kanye and Bianca originally met in 2020 when, according to a former friend of Bianca’s, Kanye reached out to her via Instagram. “Ye slid into her [Instagram] DMs and said, ‘Come and work for me,’” the friend recalled in an interview. Bianca, who was studying architecture at the University of Melbourne at the time, reportedly left college shortly after their interaction.
Back in November of last year, Bianca’s friends and family reportedly staged an intervention, concerned about the state of her relationship. One close friend told the Daily Mail, “[Bianca] knows that she has shut out those close to her, and she is also starting to see through the smoky mirrors of her marriage.” They added that Bianca had become “aware of Kanye’s controlling ways” and was beginning to gain an “outside perspective” on the situation.
If you’re keeping score, this potential journey to Splitsville would mark Kanye’s second divorce, as he was previously married to Kim Kardashian for six years. The former couple share four children: North, Saint, Chicago, and Psalm.