When singer Omarion unveiled the lineup for the upcoming Millennium 2020 Tour, he received some backlash for the tour’s lack of female representation. The crooner responded to the negative feedback by announcing yesterday that Ashanti has been added to the bill. Additional dates will be added to the North American leg of the tour soon. Tickets for the tour went on sale yesterday. The Millennium 2020 Tour will also feature Soulja Boy, Sammie, the Ying Yang Twins, Pretty Ricky and Lloyd in addition to Omarion and Bow Wow. Ashanti recently released the singles “Pretty Little Thing”, “The Road” and “Floating.”
Rodrick Wayne Moore Jr., known professionally as Roddy Ricch, is an American rapper/singer/songwriter/producer. In November 2017, Moore released his debut mixtape “Freed Da Streets”, which earned him praise from established artists Meek Mill, Nipsey Hussle, DJ Mustard and O3 Greedo. In July 2018, he released the single “Die Young”, which was written the night rapper XXXTentacion died. The song, which was dedicated to the late rapper, earned 11 million You Tube views and 8 million streams on Spotify. In August 2018, he released the single “Ricch Forever.”
Eric A. Bellinger Jr. is an American singer/songwriter/producer from Los Angeles, CA. He began his music career as a member of the R&B group AKNU, which was signed to Epic Records. In 2010, he was invited to join the songwriting collective The Writing Camp. Bellinger wrote songs for Selena Gomez and the Scene, Jacob Latimore and Big Time Rush. In 2012, Bellinger contributed the song “Death Penalty” to rapper The Game’s mixtape “California Republic.” Bellinger’s association with The Game lead to him contributing several songs to The Game’s album “The Documentary 2”, which lead to more recognition and a publishing deal with Sony ATV. However, problems with Bellinger’s catalog lead Bellinger to leave Sony ATV for publisher BMI. In 2013, Bellinger released the mixtape series “Born To Sing Vol. 1”, “Born To Sing Vol. 2” and “Born To Sing Vol. 3.” On May 17, 2014, Bellinger released his full length debut album, “The Rebirth.” Bellinger has also released the albums “Cuffing Season” (2015), “Cuffing Season 2” (2015), “Eazy Call” (2018) and “The Rebirth 2.” (2019).
Newcomer Queen Naija unveiled the music video for her latest single, “Good Morning Text”, a song questioning her relationship. Directed by John Tashiro, the sultry video brings the song to life through grainy vintage filters as the songstress lithely dances in the frame. The clip adapts Queen Naija’s perspective as it details phases of a hot-and-cold romance before a climatic confrontation with a current beau, played by rapper David East. “Good Morning Text” is the follow up to “Away From You”, which has garnered 3.1 million Spotify streams to date. Her self-titled debut EP, “Queen Naija”, features the singles “Medicine”, “Karma” and “Bad Boy.” Fans who’ve wondered what Beyonce Knowles, Kelly Rowland and company sounded like before Destiny’s Child rose to prominence are in for a treat. Matthew Knowles released “Destiny’s Child: The Untold Story Presents Girls Tyme.” The unreleased Girls Tyme project was assembled before Destiny’s Child. Knowles managed both groups. “Destiny’s Child: The Untold Story Presents Girls Tyme” is now available on all streaming sites and features Beyonce Knowles, Kelly Rowland, LeToya Luckett and LaTavia Roberson before Beyonce and Rowland launched Destiny’s Child. Matthew, who teased the album a few weeks ago, is working on a musical based on the music recorded by Beyonce’s girl group titled “Survivor: The Destiny’s Child Musical.”
In celebration of his 50th birthday, rapper Jay Z’s catalog is now available on Spotify. The streaming service shared the news via social media. In April 2017, Hova pulled his catalog from the site without explanation. At any rate, Spotify users can now download their favorite Jay Z tracks for their listening pleasure.
Richard Simpson, known professionally as Chubb Rock, is an American rapper from New York City who released several commercially successful albums during the early 1990s. Discovered by cousin DJ Howie Tee, Simpson released his self titled debut album, which featured the singles “Treat Em Right” and “Just The Two Of Us”, and followed that effort with “And The Winner Is.” By the 2000s, Simpson’s work was limited to a few singles. He has released the albums “I Gotta Get Mine Yo” (1992), “The Mind” (1997) and “Bridging The Gap” (2009).
The S.O.S. Band (abbreviation for Sounds Of Success), is an American funk/R&B band that rose to prominence during the 1980s. Formed in Atlanta, GA in 1977, the band initially consisted of keyboardist/vocalist Jason Bryant, saxophonists Billy Ellis and Willie “Sonny” Killbrew, guitarist Bruno Speight, bassist John Alexander Simpson, drummer James Earl Jones and lead vocalist Mary Davis. Calling themselves Sounds of Santa Monica, the group played at Atlanta nightclub the Regal Room. The band’s manager, Bunny Jackson-Ransom, sent a demo tape to Tabu Records head Clarence Avant, who suggested that the group work with songwriter/producer Sigdi Abdullah. Abdullah was curious about the band’s name, and keyboardist Jason Bryant replied that the group enjoyed a concert in Santa Monica, CA. Abdullah came up with the name S.O.S Band. Abdullah wrote and produced the band’s debut single “Take Your Time (Do It Right)”, which was taken from their self titled debut album. The group also charted with the singles “Just Be Good To Me”, “The Finest” and “Tell Me If You Still Care” among others. They recorded the albums “S.O.S.” (1980), “Two” (1981), “Three” (1982), “On The Rise” (1983), “Just The Way You Like It” (1984), “Sands Of Time” (1986), “Diamonds In The Raw” (1989) and “One Of Many Nights” (1991).
Amazon Studios and Entertainment One are working on an untitled documentary on singer Mary J. Blige for Amazon Prime Video. The film will be executive produced by Blige and Sean “Diddy” Combs and directed by Vanessa Roth. The documentary will take an inside look at Blige’s rise to fame amid struggles with poverty, abuse, addiction and heartbreak. In addition to music, Blige has also worked as an actress, having appeared on the series “Power” and in the Netflix film “The Umbrella Academy.” She also appeared on “How To Get Away With Murder” and “Black-ish.” She earned a pair of Oscar nominations, for Best Supporting Actress and Best Original Song, for the 2017 film “Mudbound.” Tara Long, Mark Ford, Kevin Lopez, Ashaunna Ayars and Nicole Jackson will also executive produce the forthcoming Blige documentary, to be co-produced by Creative Films and Blige’s company, Blue Butterfly.
