Category: Music

Rapper Boosie Badazz was sentenced on Friday (Jan. 9) to no prison time following his guilty plea on gun possession charges.

At a court hearing in San Diego federal court, Judge Cathy Ann Bencivengo sentenced Boosie (Torence Hatch) to time served, plus three years of supervised release and a $50,000 fine, for illegally owning a gun after earlier felony convictions.

The light sentence comes after Boosie struck a plea deal with prosecutors in August after he said he was “tired of fighting.” But even under the terms of that deal, the feds had recommended a stiffer sentence of two years in prison.

“I’m blessed not to be in prison right now,” Boosie said in a video statement released after the hearing, adding that he planned to accelerate touring and artistic projects that had been stalled during the case. “I’m just grateful right now.”

Boosie was first charged in June 2023 with being a felon in possession of a firearm — meaning he violated a federal law that prohibits people with felony convictions from owning guns. The rapper had previously been convicted of drug charges in 2011, along with numerous other earlier convictions.

The details of Boosie’s arrest were unusual. Local authorities spotted a handgun tucked in his waistband while monitoring the Instagram feed of a “known gang member” in San Diego — then used a helicopter to track him in real-time in an allegedly gang-associated neighborhood. After a traffic stop, he was found with a matching Glock pistol in the vehicle.

Following years of procedural ups-and-downs, the case against Boosie was scheduled for a trial last summer. But in August, the rapper said he would accept a plea deal to “get on with my life.” The feds later revealed that they had promised a two-year sentence in return for the guilty plea. Last week, they formalized that request to the judge, citing the rapper’s “difficult upbringing which likely contributed to his current predicament.”

In the lead-up to sentencing, Boosie’s lawyers asked for less: No prison time at all and just two years of probation. The possession of the gun was a “serious but isolated lapse in judgment” and rather than any kind of “ongoing criminal behavior,” they said, and it had had no victims: “Mr. Hatch did not discharge a firearm or cause harm.”

In his statement following the hearing, Boosie suggested that he would seek even further to clear his name by seeking a pardon from President Donald Trump — an outcome he has already hired lobbyists to seek: “Praying for a pardon now, you know.”

Bad Bunny has been sued by a woman who claims her voice is sampled on two hit songs from the Puerto Rican megastar without permission.

The lawsuit, filed on Monday (Jan. 5) in Puerto Rico, alleges that Tainaly Serrano Rivera can be heard speaking on both “Solo de Mi,” a 2018 song off Bad Bunny’s debut album X 100pre, as well as the track “EoO” from his latest No. 1 set, Debí Tirar Más Fotos.

The sample in question supposedly features Rivera saying in Spanish, “Mira, puñeta, no me quiten el perreo,” which translates roughly in Puerto Rican slang to, “Listen, damn it, don’t take away my vibe.” Rivera says she recorded this phrase at the request of Bad Bunny’s producing partner, La Paciencia, when they were in college together back in 2018.

“At the time of the request, the purpose of the audio was not explained, nor was the plaintiff informed that her identity would be used and commercially exploited,” reads the lawsuit, originally filed in Spanish and translated by Billboard using the service DeepL. “No compensation of any kind was discussed. No contract or agreement was signed, nor was any license or authorization granted.”

Rivera is now suing for violations of Puerto Rico’s right of publicity statute and seeking $16 million in damages from Bad Bunny (Benito Martínez Ocasio), La Paciencia (Roberto Rosado) and the star’s record label Rimas Entertainment.

According to the lawsuit, Bad Bunny and his collaborators improperly used Rivera’s voice not just in the commercial releases of “Solo de Mi” and “EoO” — which hit No. 93 and No. 24 on the Billboard Hot 100, respectively — but also in performances during his record-breaking San Juan residency last year.

Reps for Bad Bunny, La Paciencia and Rimas did not immediately return requests for comment on the lawsuit.

Rivera is represented in the case by attorneys Jose Marxuach Fagot and Joanna Bocanegra Ocasio. This is the same legal team that sued Bad Bunny back in 2023 for allegedly featuring the voice of his ex-girlfriend on the tracks “Pa’ Ti” and “Dos Mil 16” without her consent.

If you live in Southern California, you might see Earl Sweatshirt delivering pizzas in a cream Toyota Cressida.

The Los Angeles rapper has collaborated with popular local shop Prime Pizza to bring fans and customers his own signature, limited-edition specialty pie.

The Heat Check — consisting of provolone, grandma sauce, jalapeño, Ezzo beef pepperoni, Bludso’s beef hot link, housemade spicy beef sausage and roasted jalapeño-cilantro ranch — will make its debut at all Prime Pizza locations on Friday, available through Jan. 23 while supplies last.

Earl will be at Prime Pizza’s Fairfax location on Sunday at 11 a.m. to host an in-person meet-and-greet to celebrate the rare collaboration. He’ll also be signing pizza boxes, and exclusive merch will be available.

To promote the collab, the two cooked up an ad spoofing local commercials that show’s Earl driving around delivering pizza in a hoodie that says “Live Pizza Love” on the back, referencing his latest album Live Laugh Love, along with the Prime Pizza logo.

The ad opens with the “hip-hop mogul” getting into his Loiter Squad bag as he details the collab by saying, “When hunger knocks, Prime Pizza answers,” as he hits the kitchen to personally build the pizzas himself and then deliver them across town. Prime Pizza has been serving NY-style pizza in the greater Los Angeles area for a decade, according to the commercial directed by Jimmy Regular.

Check out the funny ad below and be sure to check out Earl’s sixth studio album on DSPs.

Breakthrough British singer-songwriter Skye Newman has been tipped for superstardom, topping 2026’s BBC Sound Of list.

The annual poll, which was established in 2003, is voted for by more than 170 industry experts, DJs, festival bookers, critics and artists including Elton John, Dua Lipa, JADE, Olivia Dean, Yungblud and Sam Smith.

Newman, who was raised in south east London, beat the likes of Sombr, Jim Legxacy and Geese for the coveted title, which has previously been awarded to Adele (2008), Chappell Roan (2025), The Last Dinner Party (2024) and PinkPantheress (2022), among others.

“I’m still in shock that I’ve won Radio 1’s Sound of 2026,” said Newman in a statement. “So many artists that I’ve listened to over the years have been honored with the award, and now me. To think that Sound Of started the year I was born, 2003 and now I’m a winner! 

She continued: “I’m so grateful, and wouldn’t be where I am without my people and the BBC supporting me on my journey. Thank you!”

The lyrics of Newman’s hit “Family Matters” describe witnessing drug abuse and going through grief at an early age. She moved multiple times as a child, but found an outlet in songwriting at age 11, after her jazz and blues singer aunt introduced her to songwriting.

In 2025, Newman became the first U.K. female solo artist in more than a decade to have her first two singles, “Hairdresser” (No. 16) and “Family Matters” (No. 5), both reach the top 20 on the Official U.K. Singles Chart. She released her debut project SE9 – Pt 1, named after her childhood postcode, in November via Columbia, hitting No. 18 on the Official U.K. Albums Chart.

Alongside her chart success, the 22-year-old performed at last year’s edition of Radio 1’s Big Weekend festival in Liverpool. She was invited by Ed Sheeran to perform “Family Matters” with him at the megastar’s stadium show in Ipswich in July, and later went on to join Lewis Capaldi on his U.K. and Ireland arena tour through the autumn.

In April, Newman will embark on her maiden U.K. headlining tour, which will feature two nights at London’s O2 Forum Kentish Town. She is also scheduled to perform at Reading & Leeds festivals in August.

Throughout its 23-year history, the BBC Sound Of list has been used to spotlight emerging acts and help them reach new audiences. This exposure can accelerate an artist’s career trajectory, and further their live bookings for the coming year.

Diddy shouldn’t be expecting a pardon from Donald Trump anytime soon.

The president revealed in an interview with The New York Times this week that he had no plans to pardon Sean Combs, who’s serving a 50-month sentence in prison after being convicted of federal prostitution charges.

Trump said Diddy had penned him a handwritten letter seeking a pardon, but he’s not considering the request. Details of the letter remain unknown, as White House officials deferred to Trump’s comments when asked to produce a copy of the note. “[Diddy] asked me for a pardon,” he said. “Through a letter.”

Diddy is currently in the midst of appealing his conviction and 50-month sentence, which came down in October. He’s remained behind bars since September 2024 and is currently imprisoned at FCI Fort Dix in New Jersey.

Trump previously revealed in October that Diddy had asked for a pardon during an interview at the Oval Office. “A lot of people have asked me for pardons,” Trump said to reporters inside the White House. “I call him Puff Daddy, [he] has asked me for a pardon.”

Speaking to Newsmax in August, Trump explained that he had a friendly relationship with Diddy at one time, which soured when Combs criticized him while he was running for office in 2016. “I got along with him great. Seemed like a nice guy. I didn’t know him well. But when I ran for office, he was very hostile,” Trump said.

The president also revealed that Diddy’s criticism of him in the past has made a potential pardon “more difficult” for him to execute. “We’re human beings,” he added. “We don’t like to have things cloud our judgment, right? But when you knew someone and you were fine and then you run for office and he made some terrible statements. So, I don’t know. It’s more difficult. Makes it more, I’m being honest, makes it more difficult to do.”

Combs was arrested in September 2024 and charged with racketeering and sex trafficking in a sprawling indictment. He was acquitted of both heavy charges at trial in October, but was ultimately convicted of federal prostitution.

Diddy’s legal team kicked off his appeal attempt on Christmas Eve as the disgraced Bad Boy mogul continues to serve a 50-month sentence.

Adam Levine has reached a settlement over supposedly unlicensed footage he posted to Instagram after Hurricane Dorian in 2019.

A notice filed in federal court on Wednesday (Jan. 7) says the Maroon 5 frontman has “settled all claims” brought against him by Global Weather Productions LLC, a licensing company that owns the rights to scores of natural disaster videos. Settlement terms were not disclosed, and lawyers on both sides of the case did not immediately return requests for comment.

The dispute stemmed from a September 2019 Instagram carousel in which Levine showcased the catastrophic damage wrought by Hurricane Dorian and urged his millions of followers to donate to the Red Cross Disaster Relief Fund.

Global Weather Productions sued Levine over the post in July, taking issue with his inclusion of a video that showcased the storm’s damage to the Bahamas’ Abacos Islands. This footage was supposedly taken by “professional storm chaser” Michael Brandon Clement and owned by the company.

According to Global Weather Productions, Levine did not buy a license for the Abacos Islands video and ignored repeated notices of infringement after the fact. The company sought financial damages from Levine for copyright infringement, which under the law can run up to $150,000.

Levine’s lawyers denied all wrongdoing in court papers responding to the claims.

Global Weather Productions has been on a copyright litigation tear for the last few years, bringing dozens of lawsuits against publishers of supposedly unlicensed natural disaster videos since 2023.

In addition to Levine, targets of the company’s lawsuits have included news broadcasters like Reuters, Univision and NewsNation, as well as individual content creators like model Molly Sims.