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Day in Pop Report for 06/02/2015


Lil Wayne Fights Referee At Anti-Violence Basketball Event
(Radio.com) Lil Wayne has given an unfortunate layer of irony to an anti-violence event. Over the weekend in St. Louis, Weezy attended a charity basketball game where his team Young Money faced off against a team coached by the ironically named promoter Loose Cannon Slim.

It was going well until the referee made a call Wayne didn't agree with, at which point a spat broke out. Wayne reportedly charged at the referee and spit on him and a full brawl started.

In video, captured by TMZ you can see the aftermath of the spitting where Wayne confronted the referee with his hefty entourage behind him and the man sought protection in the crowd. Read more here.

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Enrique Iglesias Injured By Drone During Concert
(Radio.com) If 2014 taught us anything about drones, it's that flying robots and music don't always mix well. Last year Cali punk band Trash Talk made headlines when their bassist threw a beer at a drone, sending it spiraling down into the crowd. Luckily no one was hurt but it served as a reminder that using a drone to film a show can be more of a risk than worthwhile.

Unfortunately Enrique Iglesias didn't get the memo. Over the weekend, Iglesias played a drone-filmed gig in Tijuana, Mexico. All was going well until the pop star reached out to grab it in attempt to take a selfie of himself. Iglesias accidentally grabbed one of the blades instead of the drone's body and sliced his hand on stage. It was a bloody mess, as you can see by Iglesias' splattered t-shirt. Pic shows quite a bit of blood, but you can see it here.

Iglesias soldiered on though, after having his hand temporarily bandaged up mid-set. "During the show a drone is used to get crowd shots and some nights Enrique grabs the drone to give the audience a Point of View shot. Something went wrong and he had an accident," said Iglesias' representative in a statement. Read more here.

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Arrests At French Montana, Busta Rhymes & Ja Rule Video Shoot
(Radio.com) Five arrests were made on the Brooklyn set of a video featuring French Montana, Busta Rhymes and Ja Rule on Saturday (May 30). The New York Daily News reports that two women and three men were taken in to custody by the NYPD.

One of those people was the set security guard. Weapons and drugs charges are being levied against the group of five, with illegal guns being found on site as well as marijuana, cocaine and MDMA.

The video was being filmed as a tribute to recently deceased rapper Chinx, who was shot in a drive-by in Queens in May. Following his shooting, Jay Z gave him an on-stage shout out and urged members of the black community to stop shooting each other, citing gun violence as the reason many in the community are "under attack like never before." Read more here.

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Another Rich Homie Quan Lyric Of Sexually Assaulting A Woman Leaks
(Radio.com) Only two weeks ago, Rich Homie Quan drew a microscope to himself and a lot of negative attention when "I Made It" leaked and, with it, a verse about potentially raping a woman. The rapper went on damage control afterward, giving a questionable apology, and saying he "would never condone rape."

But that sentiment didn't apply when Rich Homie Quan recorded at least one other song that has newly leaked. "Day 1″ finds the rapper committing the same error, this time worse.

Instead of alluding to rape like he did in "I Made It"--"She tried to resist so I took it from her/ How you gonna tell me no/ You must not know who I am"--Rich describes the situation again with even less subtlety: "Mansion full of b--es, 'bout to rape one," he raps.

He's going to have an even harder time apologizing for this one, especially when many took his previous statements on "I Made It" to be wishy-washy. Read more here.

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Ariana Grande Reveals Details About New Album 'Moonlight'
(Radio.com) Social media has become an integral part of the album rollout--just look to A$AP Rocky's Instagram account where he painstakingly uploaded a mural of images that comprised of the artwork to A.L.LA. However, one artist is using it in a new way: Instead of announcing her next album plans to all of her followers first, Ariana Grande took a more personal approach.

The big-haired pop star shared the title of her followup to 2014's My Everything with one of her fans in a private message on Twitter. When the fan asked, "'Moonlight' is a new song? Or the name of the new album?" Grande responded "Both."

Shortly after, Grande seemingly confirmed the album title when she changed her Twitter bio to one word: "Moonlight." She also took to Twitter to share lyrics of the intro to Moonlight: "baby loves, i'm tryna talk to u�� there's a boy� n i don't quite know� what to do." Read more including the tweets here.

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Nicki Minaj And Meek Mill Break Up?
(Radio.com) The Instagram accounts of Nicki Minaj and Meek Mill would seem to portend a possible split. It's all happened so fast--just a few months back we thought they might be engaged. Now, rap's highest-profile courtship may be kaput.

Sure, it could be a coincidence, but here it is: Nicki Minaj posted a photo of herself with a chipper smile and a kiss-off Beyonce-lyric caption. "Thank God ya blew it!!! Thank God I dodged the bullet!!!!" she wrote, with plenty of exclamation points to go around.

Previously, Mill posted a photo of himself sitting with his legs swung out of his car door, back hunched. He's paused in the middle of opening the door--he doesn't seem to want to get out, but he can't go back in. "Even bosses got feelings ya kno?" he wrote.

Minaj followed up her initial salvo with a more demure, cryptic post: an image of herself in a mirror, eyes downcast, captioned with another song lyric: "U turned out to be thaaaaaaaa��and I'm gon always be thaaaaaaaaa��" Read more and see the posts here.

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Kendrick Lamar Kicks Fan Off Stage For Not Knowing Lyrics
(Radio.com) Do not get up onstage with Kendrick Lamar if you don't know the words because he will kick you right off the stage. Seriously, he will. At the Sweetlife Festival at the Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia, MD on Saturday (May 30), the rapper asked for a fan to come up and rap "m.A.A.d city" with him. The only stipulation being that you have to know all the words.


Lamar first called up a guy, who reportedly just happened to be Jonathan Neman, CEO and co-founder of Sweetgreen, the company behind the fest. You may also remember Sweetgreen as the company who created the rapper's signature salad the "Beets Don't Kale My Vibe."

Neman spent his time on stage trying to ad lib, screaming out things like "Sweetlife, yeah," which though a smart move when you don't know the lyrics, still got Kendrick making fun of him.

And worse, he kicked him off the stage, showing that Lamar is not kidding around about knowing the words. Read more here.

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Billy Currington Teases Two New Songs
(Radio.com) Billy Currington releases his sixth studio album Summer Forever today (June 2). Earlier this week, the country singer and beach aficionado gave fans a preview of two new tracks off the album.

Taste of Country premiered two 30-second snippets of two new songs off the album called "Give It To Me Straight" and "Good Night,: both tracks feature Currington's familiar smooth vocals.

"Give It To Me Straight" has a slight R&B vibe with a drum loop featured throughout as Currington laments for his girl to tell him the truth of where she's been.

The next track, "Good Night," has a happier sentiment of the beginning of a new relationship. Read more here.

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ICP Release NSFW Gathering of the Juggalos Infomercial
(Radio.com) The yearly infomercial marking the announcement of the Gathering of the Juggalos is likely as memorable as the actual gathering, with the YouTube clips going viral to extents just not possible for an actual festival to pull in attendance.

This year, the video takes the angle of time travel, with the hosts going back in time from a future where the 2015 Gathering of the Juggalos is already known as one of the best of all-time. In an attempt to be a sort of self-fulfilling prophesy, they clip goes on to announce a lineup that includes Waka Flocka Flame, Flosstradamus, Tech N9ne, Puddle of Mudd, Twista, and many more.

The infomercial is every bit as crude as should be hoped for, with audio clips of the performing acts inserted throughout. Many of the lesser known acts promise that this year will feature all the rap-rock that is humanly possible to cram into one weekend.

See for yourself when The Year of the Juggalos commences at July 22-25 at the Legend Valley Music Venue in Thornville, Ohio. Watch the somewhat NSFW video here.

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Zac Brown Band Release 'Loving You Easy' Video
(Radio.com) Zac Brown Band are well known for their sing along choruses and laid-back vibe, and all this is showcased in their black and white music video for "Loving You Easy."

The clip, directed by Danny Clinch, begins at the beach with sounds of waves crashing in the background. Flash forward to a beautiful girl just waking up and envisioning her day at the beach.

"No makeup on shining so bright. My old sweatshirt never fit so right," Zac Brown sings as she puts on a sweatshirt before heading downstairs to begin her day.

Before a cup of coffee, the woman rightfully puts Zac Brown Band's new album Jekyll + Hyde on the record player as she dances around the kitchen to the song barefoot.

The perfect soundtrack for the day, the video for "Loving You Easy" includes reading before a nap in a hammock, a drive to the beach while singing along to ZBB and a dive into the ocean. Watch the video here.

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Nate Ruess Recruits Beck For 'What This World Is Coming To'
(Radio.com) fun. lead singer Nate Ruess is preparing to release his first solo album on June 16, titled Grand Romantic, via Fueled by Ramen. The album has already received a number of advance tastes, including "Nothing Without Love," "AhHa" and "Great Big Storm."

So, what makes his latest song so special? Well, in a word, Beck. For his latest lyric video, Ruess has shared "What This World Is Coming To," which guests the recent GRAMMY award winner for best album on the track.

The acoustic guitar-driven number finds Ruess beginning with relaxed vocals, but eventually hitting the high notes that he is known for in his main band.

The track mourns some of the modern threats that a relationship needs to endure, with Ruess revealing, "You brought faith to songs I sing / so I went and bought a diamond ring." Read more and check out the video here.

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Next 'Fifty Shades' Book To Be Told From Christian Grey's Point of View
(Radio.com) June just got a lot more grey. Christian Grey, that is. E.L. James revealed a new Fifty Shades of Grey book is coming that will be told entirely from Christian Grey's point of view.

The author revealed fans can get this new addition to the series on June 18, which happens to be Christian Grey's birthday, and dropped a preview of the cover on Instagram. See it below.

"Christian is a complex character, and readers have always been fascinated by his desires and motivations, and his troubled past," James said in a press release. "Also, as anyone who has ever been in a relationship knows, there are two sides to every story." Read more here.

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Ashley Monroe Reveals Title Track Of New Album 'The Blade'
(Radio.com) Country singer Ashley Monroe, also a member of Pistol Annies with Miranda Lambert, will release her third solo LP on July 24, titled The Blade. The release follows 2013's Like a Rose and Pistol Annie's Annie Up.

In anticipation of this new album, Monroe premiered the title track from the collection at People.com. In an interview with the magazine, Monroe revealed the personal nature of the song. "I have been on the receiving end of that pain," she said. "It actually makes me physically hurt when I sing it ' but in a good way."

The idea is that fans also feel the pain in Monroe's vocals when they listen to the new track. "I'm so thankful to the writers of that song," she said. "They talked about my heartbreak in a way that I've never heard. That's hard to do." Read more here.

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Gloriana Release 'Trouble' Video
(Radio.com) Don't mess with Gloriana's Rachel Reinert. At least, that's the sentiment in Gloriana's latest single "Trouble." The video for the song, which debuted on CMT on Monday (June 1), features the country trio performing the song with strobe lights surrounding them.

In between all of this, the shot cuts to a room of light bulbs and Reinert holding a black shaft. As she slowly walks through the room of hanging tea lights her face has a "don't mess with me" stare and she begins breaking all the bulbs, sparking a fire.

Reinert and bandmate Mike Gossin wrote the track with Ross Copperman and Jon Nite and the song is based off an experience Reinert went through personally with an ex-boyfriend. Read more here.

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Nick Jonas Covers Ariana Grande's 'Problem'
(Radio.com) Nick Jonas tried his hand at a harrowing game live on British radio this week: he appeared on Capital FM to take part in "Instaoke," a game in which a random pop song is chosen and he must sing a karaoke version of it.

The first song he's thrown is none other than fellow pop star du jour Ariana Grande's "Problem." After a moment's hesitation he dives right in, adding his particular R&B vocal flourishes to the song.

After Grande, he's tasked with N'Syncs' "Bye Bye Bye," which he manages capably. He's even more confident for his final round: Kanye West's "Gold Digger." Read more here.

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Coachella Organizers Announce 2016 Details
(Radio.com) Goldenvoice, promoters of the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival, have announced the multi-day Indio, Calif., festival will again take place over two weekends; April 15-17, and April 22-24, 2016.

They also revealed that advance tickets are set to go on sale this Thursday (June 4th ) at 11 a.m. PT via Coachella.com with a maximum of two tickets per person, per weekend.

According to the site, this will be the only opportunity to take advantage of the available payment plan. Creating an account is required to purchase advance tickets. Read more here.

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Tracy Morgan Gets Emotional In First Interview Since Accident
(Radio.com) "I can't believe I'm here." It was the first thing Tracy Morgan said when he sat down for his first interview with the Today Show after being in an accident last year that killed his friend, fellow comedian James McNair and left him critically injured.

Morgan said he does not remember being rear-ended by a Walmart truck going 20 mph over the speed limit on the New Jersey Turnpike last June on his way home from a gig in Delaware, he only remembers waking up from a two-week coma and being told that McNair had passed away.

In the accident, Morgan suffered a broken leg, several broken ribs and severe brain trauma, injuries he is still dealing with today. But, a teary Morgan made it clear, even after winning a settlement from Walmart last week, nothing will take away the pain of losing a friend.

"The case is settled, but the pain is always going to be there for Jimmy Mac," Morgan said. "Bones heal, but the loss of my friend will never heal."

Morgan also expressed gratitude to Walmart for stepping up, saying, "They took full responsibility," but explained, "[Mac] was a close friend of mine, a comrade in comedy. He was a loving man, and he was a warm man. He was a good man. It's just hard for me to see that he's gone."

Morgan was unable to attend the funeral of his friend so he said he went to YouTube to watch the funeral. "I had to pay my respects," he said. "That was my way."

In the interview, Morgan also talked about how he usually travels with his family, but that night because his young daughter was teething asked his wife to stay home.

Morgan said he will return to comedy, but not yet, explaining that he still needs time to heal. Watch Morgan's full interview here.

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Billy Currington Talks New Album 'Summer Forever'
(Radio.com) Billy Currington isn't afraid to admit it: He's got a thing for warm weather. So when the famously laid-back Georgia singer came across a song called "Summer Forever," it felt like natural fit for his new album.

In fact, it turned out to be the title track. "For me it seems so fit for the way I live my life all throughout the year," explains Currington during a phone conversation with Radio.com. "I'm definitely in search of places that are warm, I'm not the biggest fan of cold weather."

"Once I saw that [song] title, it seemed like the perfect fit for the album," Currington continues. The other songs, "they just wrapped around that title." Summer, he explains, "is happy and fun and all those things, and to me that's what this album [is]."

Currington's sixth album to date, Summer Forever hits stores June 2. Country fans, though, are already plenty familiar with at least one song from the album, "Don't It," which just topped the charts. Written by Jaren Johnston, Ashley Gorley and Ross Copperman, it's Currington's tenth No. 1 single to date.

The first time I heard 'Don't It,' it was sent to me by a friend named Brian Wright. Brian has sent me a lot of songs in the past that I've had success on. Sure enough, on first listen I was sure it would be one of the first songs we would record. It just had that groove and�I'm a big fan of shuffles, which is what this song is. Yeah, man, just that groove." Read more here.

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Jason Derulo Thinks That 'Everything Is 4' Is His Greatest Work
(Radio.com) Jason Derulo is readying the release of his fourth studio album Everything Is 4 which is due out June 2. It's an album that he calls his "greatest work thus far."

"I have so many different dimensions as a person, as we all do," he tells Radio.com. "This album is a package. It's not about one tune. It's about taking the whole entire masterpiece if you will."

Derulo compares the album to a painting, explaining that you wouldn't just take a chunk off the left corner to represent the painting, you instead look at the entire work as a whole.

"During the writing of this album I wanted to make sure that I was being true to myself and explaining the stories of my life and in turn I would be explaining the stories of other people's lives," he says. "You can find yourself in my stories because we go through very similar things."

Tracks like current single "Want To Want Me" and the accompanying music video for the song further describe these stories. "It's the age old story of wanting the person that you want so badly to want you back the same way. It's told in a very sexy way," he says with a smile. "It's very steamy, and it talks about how that obsession feels very vividly."

For his 11-track album, Derulo invited guests along as well, including Meghan Trainor on "Painkiller." A friend with "an amazing spirit," Derulo says the "All About That Bass" singer exemplifies the concept of being humble. Read more here.

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Zach Condon Talks Beirut's New Album 'No No No'
(Radio.com) The upcoming release of Beirut's fourth full-length LP, No No No, on September 11 will end a four-year recording drought for the band. It will also mark the follow-up to 2011's The Rip Tide, an album that launched Beirut into headliner status at amphitheaters and festivals like FYF Fest in Los Angeles and Northside Festival in Brooklyn.

But, while that album marked success for Beirut mastermind Zach Condon, he quickly found himself pushed to his breaking point, winding up hospitalized for exhaustion in Australia and unable to produce new music he was happy with.

The turning point for Condon came from falling in love with a Turkish woman, and even by phone during his first interview discussing this new album, his voice changes at the mention of her, as if blushing had a sound. Her presence can be felt in not only the lyrics on the nine song record, including the album's first single "No No No," but in the tone, as if Condon is enjoying himself again for the first time in a long time.

Radio.com: At the end of the release and touring cycle with The Rip Tide, you had reached a new echelon of success, playing bigger venues than ever and headlining music festivals. How did you feel about where you were creatively at that time?

Zach Condon: We had gotten to the point where we were touring the same material for three years, and basically I'd get back to New York, I'd scramble to write new material and I'd record some instrumentals or something, and we'd go back on the road again. I'd never finish what I started and never get the chance to sit down and concentrate. And, it just kept going. It was working. We just kept playing bigger and bigger venues, so, why stop when its getting bigger? But, creatively, I was getting frustrated. It started to feel really repetitious. Read the full interview here.

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Fans Upset After Lorde and Ellie Goulding Delete Katy Perry Photos
(Radio.com) Lorde and Ellie Goulding are well known members of Taylor Swift's girl gang; so why were they hanging out with her nemesis (and the rumored subject of her single "Bad Blood"), Katy Perry?

The trio have been friends for quite some time, notably hanging out together after the 2014 BRIT Awards and Perry did ask Lorde if she's like to open for her on the Prismatic World Tour. Lorde, of course, turned her down in favor of headlining her own tour.

What some people are making a big stink around are that Lorde and Goulding both posted shots of the trio hanging out on social media that have since been deleted. Katy fans are taking to Goulding's Instagram account in particular, since she appeared in Swift's "Bad Blood" video, and posting comments to ask why'and to do some name calling. Read more here.

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Young Thug Gets Ice Cream Tattoo on His Face
(Radio.com) Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, and by getting an ice cream cone face tattoo Young Thug has proven himself a master flatterer. Young Thug's first major attempt to honor a personal icon--naming his album Carter 6, as an homage to Lil Wayne--backfired when Lil Wayne didn't appreciate the effort and became upset with him.

This beef is ongoing, and while it may be part of a larger squabble between Birdman and Lil Wayne, it seems as if Thug's effort to pay homage may have played a crucial role in inflaming the dispute.

This time, though, there probably won't be any hard feelings. Thug has gotten an ice cream cone face tattoo, in direct homage to his former mentor and hero Gucci Mane, currently imprisoned.

He posted the photo on his Instagram, showing him smoking in bed with the tattoo prominently displayed. See it here.

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