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Mannie Fresh Says He and Lil Wayne Have 11 More Songs In Stash That Will be Released

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Some things just sound right and make you feel that all is right in the hip-hop universe. Lil Wayne and Mannie Fresh working together is one of those things. The energetic MC and charismatic DJ have made for one of music's best tandems during two-plus decades, creating major hits and influencing culture.  While obviously the two have branched out since their Cash Money heyday, it was still special to see Fresh listed as producer on the recently released blockbuster, Tha Carter V.  The Mannie-helmed “Start This Shit Off Right” and “Perfect Strangers” were two bullseye-hits on the 23 song LP.
Last night in Atlanta, Fresh performed a DJ set right before Wayne hit the stage as headliner at A3C, spinning Cash Money classics and hits from notables including Wayne and Notorious B.I.G. The producer/ DJ said he’s not surprised Wayne has had longevity on top of the game.
 
“I always felt homie was gonna hold his own,” Mannie told us backstage after his set. “Big ups to him for always answering the phone no matter what was going on.  I can I always say my dude — low point for me, low point for him [or] when we was up— always answered the phone. Before I knew Wayne, I knew his dad. His das was always like ‘this dude got star qualities.’ When I met him, he was right. First one there, last one to leave. It’s still that way. When we worked on Tha Carter [V], people don’t know we got like 13 songs, we dumbed it down to two. And we did that in three days. So the chemistry is still there, still crazy. Dude was like, 'let this ride and you can put those out.' The world will get to hear Mannie Fresh/ Carter. It’ll be ‘The Fresh File.’”
 
Fresh is currently crafting a solo LP and one of the MCs he most wants to work with is Kool G. Rap. 
 
Tha Carter, hit with major velocity since it’s release two weeks ago. It went gold in just a few days after being streamed around half a billion times it’s first week out (the second highest in history). The opus, Wayne’s latest in the series that started 14 years ago also debuted number one on the Billboard charts.

Taylor Swift Breaks Political Silence, To Vote Democrat In Midterm Elections

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In a time when Kanye West is arguably alienating a large portion of his fanbase with his MAGA hat and pro-Tump speeches on late night sketch shows, Taylor Swift has decided that it’s her turn to her first-ever public political stance. The iconic singer used social media to convey her support for the Democratic candidates in the upcoming midterm elections in her home state of Tennessee.

“I’m writing this post about the upcoming midterm elections on November 6th, in which I’ll be voting in the state of Tennessee,” she told her 112 plus million followers. “In the past I’ve been reluctant to publicly voice my political opinions, but due to several events in my life and in the world in the past two years, I feel very differently about that now. I always have and always will cast my vote based on which candidate will protect and fight for the human rights I believe we all deserve in this country. I believe in the fight for LGBTQ rights, and that any form of discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender is WRONG. I believe that the systemic racism we still see in this country towards people of color is terrifying, sickening and prevalent.
I cannot vote for someone who will not be willing to fight for dignity for ALL Americans, no matter their skin color, gender or who they love.”

Swift then outlined why she considers Senate candidate Marsha Blackburn to be the absolutely the wrong person to represent her state.

“Running for Senate in the state of Tennessee is a woman named Marsha Blackburn. As much as I have in the past and would like to continue voting for women in office, I cannot support Marsha Blackburn[,]” the multi-time Grammy winner expressed. “Her voting record in Congress appalls and terrifies me. She voted against equal pay for women. She voted against the Reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act, which attempts to protect women from domestic violence, stalking, and date rape. She believes businesses have a right to refuse service to gay couples. She also believes they should not have the right to marry. These are not MY Tennessee values. I will be voting for Phil Bredesen for Senate and Jim Cooper for House of Representatives. Please, please educate yourself on the candidates running in your state and vote based on who most closely represents your values. For a lot of us, we may never find a candidate or party with whom we agree 100% on every issue, but we have to vote anyway.

So many intelligent, thoughtful, self-possessed people have turned 18 in the past two years and now have the right and privilege to make their vote count. But first you need to register, which is quick and easy to do. October 9th is the LAST DAY to register to vote in the state of TN. Go to vote.org and you can find all the info. Happy Voting! 🗳😃🌈”

Her newfound public political stance has upset some of Swift’s Republican fans, many of whom took to social media with their rebuttals, admonishing the singer. Meanwhile, several celebrities jumped in the mix to support the hitmaker. One time Swift nemeses Kary Perry likes Swift’s post as did Avengers mega-villain Josh Brolin, legendary directors Rob Reiner and Joseph Khan, and of course Swift’s renaissance-man friend Todrick Hall.

Swift is slated to perform a slew of concerts around the world in this month, and will be open this week’s American Music Awards broadcast.

Lil Wayne A3C Performance Cut Short Following Incident

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In a weekend where literally dozens of noise-making, popular hip-hop figures converged on two cities, the most anticipated performance ended almost as soon as it began.  Lil Wayne’s headline outing at the A3C Music festival in Atlanta lasted for only two and half songs. The man with the number one album in the country, "Tha Carter V," was ushered off stage and into his waiting SUV after pandemonium broke out in the crowd. A reportedly violent incident occurred in the audience, causing thousands of concert-goers to stampede towards the exits.
 
According to some witnesses, at least two spectators were fighting when one got stabbed. Some witness say they saw a man a draw a gun and hoist in the air. Others say no one had a weapon. A source within the event security team told LiveXLive that they actually saw a man shoot a gun in the air. Wayne started his set at exactly 10pm with “Mr. Carter.” “Got Money” followed, and during song #3, “John,” the stampede occurred.
A3C released a statement shortly after the chaos:
 
“Sadly, there was an altercation tonight that ended Lil Wayne’s performance,” the statement read. “We are still collecting information to determine exactly what happened and will provide follow up information as soon as we know more details. Please be assured that the law enforcement officers present have confirmed that there were no weapons involved. This was a very unfortunate way to end what had been an otherwise amazing week of music, friendships and connections. Thank you to everyone for your amazing support and positive energy all week. We love y’all.”
 
A spokesperson for the Atlanta police was unable to be reached.

Soon after the performance, Wayne tweeted: “Hope everyone at A3C is safe."

“The “Greatest Rapper Alive”’ was very energetic and made sure to thank his fans for their support over the past two decades and he let everyone he would be nothing without the people on his side. He didn’t get to spend much time in Atlanta today, as he flew back to Miami after the A3C incident to make an appearance Club Liv. He had previously been in Miami during the taping of the BET Hip-Hop Awards where he received the coveted “I AM Hip-Hop” award. Bun B and DJ Khaled presented him the honor at the event, which also featured Cardi B, Lil Baby and Gunna, Lil Duval, T.I., YG, Lil Pump, Gucci Mane and Young M.A.
As for A3C today, M.A also performed as did Curren$y and the entire group of the Diplomats. Cam’ron, Jim Jones, and Freekey Zekey along with Juelz Santana. Santana has recently faced serious legal issues, having been arrested for bringing a loaded handgun to the New Jersey airport in March. Santana had been on house arrest for several months and had not been able to travel with his band of brothers while they’ve been touring. Juelz was onstage standing to the side with his wife Kimbella tonight with Wayne.
Stay tuned to LiveXLive for more coverage of this ongoing story, A3C and the BET Hip Hop Awards.

Billboard Magazine’s co-Executive of The Year Coach K checks in from BET Weekend

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The objective is clear, (Quality) Control the fourth quarter. They’re garnering comparisons to iconic hip-hop labels such as Bad Boy, Death Row and more recently T.D.E., but Quality Control principals “Coach K” Kevin Lee and Pierre “Pee” Thomas have carved out their own niche with relentless music releases that always hit the bullseye. 
 
The pair were recently named Executives of the Year by Billboard Magazine, and while their roster members Cardi B and The Migos have dominated all of 2018, QC has no plans to stop. Last night in Miami, they held a “Welcome to Miami” party in honor of their Miami based-female duo, The City Girls. The party served as a welcome for all of the in and out-of-town attendees of the 2018 BET Hip-Hop awards ceremony.  Later in the night, QC's Drip Harder by Gunna and Lil Baby was celebrated at Story nightclub, with many celebrities from music video director Eif Rivera, singer/MC Tory Lanez and street favorite Zoey Dollars in attendance.
 
While Migos are on tour with Drake, Cardi B will be one of the most anticipated performers at tonight’s 2018 BET Hip Awards taping. She joins a stacked performance slate, which includes Gucci Mane, Yo Gotti, T.I., YG, A$AP Rocky, Lil Pump, Lil Duval, Flipp Dinero, Ball Greezy and QC’s Lil Baby and Gunna. The event will also feature City Girls as award presenters, along with Wale, DJ Khaled, and Bun B.

Next week, QC is looking to put up big numbers on the scoreboard with Migos’ melodic star Quavo, who’s dropping a solo LP. His project Quavo Huncho lands on October 12, and features his group members Offset and Takeoff, as well as 21 Savage, Drake, Cardi, Travis Scott, Kid Cudi, Davido, Saweetie, Lil Baby. Be sure to tune in to the LiveXLive Facebook page for live hits from the BET red carpet today. And keep it locked to LiveXLive.com for more exclusives.

Tory Lanez says his new album, Love Me Now, is about to drop.

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Don’t cast your ballot for album of the year just yet. 2018 has definitely been a monumental year for music, especially in the hip-hop community with a cavalcade of the culture’s top tier titans dropping albums. Heavy hitters Eminem, J. Cole, Jay Z and Beyonce, Nas, Kanye West, Drake, Nicki Minaj, Migos, Travis Scott and most recently Lil Wayne, put out well received and commercially successful projects. And let’s not forget Pusha T, whose unapologetic lyrical onslaught was a critical and fan favorite. And ascending superstars have definitely had their say, as well, with Post Malone, controversy-king 6ix9ine,  Jay Rock, Nipsey Hussle, Lil Baby, and Gunna (collectively and individually) -- not to mention late-greats Mac Miller and XXXtentacion -- all releasing lauded projects this year.

And despite this onslaught of material, Tory Lanez is looking to annihilate all them. The Canadian juggernaut revealed exclusively to LiveXLive that his long awaited Love Me Now LP is coming in just a few weeks. 
 
“It’s about my n**** Uno who just Executive Produced the brand new album Love Me Now coming out October 26th," the multi-talented performer said last night outside of Miami’s Story nightclub, where Lil Baby and Gunna were having an album release party for their Drip Season joint project.
 
 “Y’all n**** is over,” Lanez added about the field of competition. “It’s too late for n****.”
 
At the top of the summer while on the Zane Lowe show for Apple Music, Lanez boasted about the large list of guest stars contributing to the album. 
 
“I got the illest features on there,” he said with a smile. “Chris Brown, 2 Chainz, I got Bryson Tiller on there. I got Lil Baby on there. I got a lot of people on there. A Boogie, PNB Rock, all fire songs.” “Keep in Touch” with the aforementioned Tiller and “Talk To Me” with Rich The Kid are Lanez’s latest singles. 
 
Tory also has an all-Spanish language called El Aqua coming down the turnpike soon as well.    Lanez, who has a residence in Miami, is just one of the plethora of MCs and singers in town as the 2018 BET Hip-Hop Awards touches down on the city. T.I., Yo Gotti, Cardi B, YG, A$AP Rocky, Lil Pump, Flipp Dinero, and the MIA's own Ball Greezy are some of the names locked in to perform today at the ceremony. The man with the number one album in the country, Lil Wayne, has been tapped to receive the “I Am Hip Hop” award that goes to rap’s biggest icons.  Be sure to tune in to the LiveXLive Facebook page for live hits from the BET red carpet today. And keep it locked to LiveXLive.com for more exclusives.

In The Event You Survive A Nuclear Holocaust, First Thing You Want To Do Is Find Jack Black And Kyle Gass.

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Just as any fan would expect, a little nuclear holocaust isn't gonna kill their vibe. Besides, it did get them out of paying rent.

Jack and Kyle do all the voices and contrary to popular belief, Pixar didn't do the animation... it is all hand-drawn by Jack himself.

You'll get an episode each week for 6 weeks and the last episode will coincide with the release of their 4th album on November 2nd.

DIO WOULD BE SO PROUD.

Fight Like A Girl

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You probably remember Anita Cochran from her 1997 duet “What If I Said” with Steve Wariner, right? She’s made music since then, and she was actively touring, but it’s been a while since she has put out anything new. Until now.

Her current story started last year when she found a lump in her breast, and she was diagnosed with Stage 2 cancer, which was treated with chemotherapy, which prevented her from touring. That was her only source of income, so her friends, including Steve Wariner, Crystal Gayle, Wade Hayes, Clay Walker, Ty Herndon, Terri Clark, Jamie O’Neal and others put on a benefit concert and raised $12,000 to help her with medical bills and every day life expenses.

She just had her final chemo treatment two weeks ago, after having a double mastectomy and the removal of a lymph node, and she’s been cancer free for a little more than 6 months now.

Now she wants to help others with that fight, so she has created a charity called the Love Anchors Fund, which will be managed by the Community Foundation of Tennessee, and will benefit various charities working to end breast cancer and help its victims and survivors. The first effort to raise money for that fund is the release of a new song called “Fight Like A Girl.” She’s donating all the proceeds from the sale of the song from October 5-12 to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation via the Love Anchors Fund.

Check out the video for “Fight Like A Girl” here, listen to it on Slacker’s Nashville Now here, and donate to the Love Anchors Fund here.

Shawn Mendes & John Legend Team Up Globally

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Shawn Mendes wants no girl left behind, and for once he’s not just talking about his fanbase. Shawn played last weekend’s Global Citizen Festival in New York, where he was joined by John Legend for his song Youth. Before they performed, Shawn spoke up about the alarming lack of access to education around the world, especially for female children.

Access to quality education was only one of the important messages from stressed at the festival – organizers also encouraged attendees to reduce their use of single-use plastic items and to rally for eliminating bail bond policies that unfairly target minorities. Several performers spoke up for victims of sexual violence, including Janelle Monae, who told the audience “this past week was a brutal, brutal week for a lot of us women. So today, I’m standing here with my sisters on this stage, and with you. And, we want to send a message loud and clear to survivors here and all over the world; let’s make sure that they know that these 60,000 global citizens right here in this audience have got your back.”

Find out more about the Global Citizen movement and their quest to end extreme poverty by the year 2030 at www.globalcitizen.org.

Rae Sremmurd Issues Apology To Fan In Phone Throwing Incident

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Watch right here.

In late August, while performing at the Starplex Pavilion in Dallas, Rae Sremmurd’s reigning hip-hop hook king, Swae Lee, was hit in the face when an overzealous fan threw her cell phone on stage at him. While the intent wasn’t malicious -- the fan just wanted him to take a selfie with her smart device -- her aim was off. The phone struck Swae in the face, busting open his lip, leaving him bloody and having to get stitches that night. 
 
He was irate immediately in the aftermath. 
 
“On my momma I’m finna sue you,” he said onstage after he got hit. “Why you throwing shit on the stage? You throwing shit like a muthafucka baseball.”
 
Recently however, at Rolling Loud in Oakland, Swae displayed a serious change of heart. After he and his brother Slim Jxmmi got off stage, Swae spoke exclusively to LiveXLive, revealing a new plan of action for the fan who struck him several weeks ago: no lawsuit. 
 
“The hoes say I’m beautiful with the scar,” Swae bragged. “It all worked out perfectly. Shout out to the girl that threw that the phone at me. Matter of fact, I want to reach out to the girl that threw the phone at me.  Matter of fact I wanna reach out to the girl. I think I scared her. I wanna apologize to her. I really want to invite her to like five shows for free. On me.”
 
Rae Sremmurd was a part of an all-star lineup that ignited the stage in the Bay. Young Thug, Lil Skies, Gucci Mane, Wiz Khalifa, E-40 and Travis Scott were just some of the names that gave frenzied performances. You can see more from Rolling Loud right here on LiveXLive.

Lil Wayne

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Lil Wayne celebrated his 36th birthday by dropping his long-awaited album, "Tha Carter V." Wayne's been working on this project in some capacity since 2012, and it faced several label-dispute-related delays up until this point. Weezy's in full control of his material now, so it's time to check out "Tha Carter V" in its entirety as our Album of the Week.