Sunday's Culture Rundown
From Beyonce's big announcement to TDE's upcoming legal troubles, we've got you covered with some of the hottest topics of this weekend.
Rod Wave cancelled the rest of his “Last Lap” tour, after the delays and rescheduled dates from the end of 2024. In October of last year, Grizzly Touring announced that Wave’s “Last Lap” tour would be postponed due to production issues. Once again, as shows in Nashville and Detroit were on the horizon, the concerts were not only postponed - but the entire tour was also cancelled. According to Rod Wave, he spent $13 million on the show and production subsequently was not “built right” and that it wouldn’t be fair to give his supporters a “half-right show”. After fans hopped on social media to voice their disappointment in the slew of cancellations, the rapper and singer posted that he would be taking a break to travel the world, find love and take care of his children. It’s always fascinating to me how fans absolutely adore their favorite artist, but do not take into consideration their mental well-being when the herd mentality sets in.
Around midnight, February 2, Beyonce released a teaser with the caption, “COWBOY CARTER TOUR 2025.” It is assumed that this was the delayed announcement, previously expected on January 14. Due to the growing devastation from the California Wildfires, Beyonce directed her energy towards assisting families affected in Pasadena and Altadena. There are no further details available for the tour. No dates. No locations. It was enough of a teaser to send fans and critics into a tailspin. On one hand, there are users who feel as if Beyonce's announcement is tone-deaf and operates from the capitalistic foundations our country is essentially suffering from. Fans shrug off the idea that Beyonce has any more responsibility than the countless entertainers and industries pushing forward alongside her.
Blacc Sam has confirmed that there is a nine-episode docuseries centered on the late Nipsey Hussle in production. In a conversation with The Hip Hop Museum, Nipsey's brother and business partner discussed the Jonah Berger inspiration behind the $100 Crenshaw mixtape, the inception of the Marathon Clothing Brand and the drop of a nine-part documentary that will feature unreleased Nipsey Hussle tracks. Sam spoke to the importance of timing and providing fans with an appropriate soundtrack in Nipsey's honor.
“I think it's more fitting that it goes to the soundtrack of the documentary, which in the doc goes through his younger days and his older days, so you'll be able to put these songs on and plug and play when these songs were created. The documentary is almost done. It's going to be nine episodes. We should be finishing it by the end of this year.”
Two anonymous women have filed a lawsuit in Los Angeles Superior Court citing TDE executives and TDE employees who allegedly created a “pervasive culture of sexual harassment.” The lawsuit was filed by Arns Davis Law and Brandon Banks Law according to a press release. Two names mentioned in suit are Anthony Tiffith Jr. and chief marketing officer, Brandon Tiffith. Within the filing are claims of sexual battery, promotion of underage drinking and breach of contract, as one of the women accused the independent record label of refusal to pay for her professional services.
TDE's lawyer, Marty Singer responded with the following:
“This is a clear example of a shakedown lawsuit by [name blocked] and [name blocked], who made a demand of $48 million through their attorneys on fabricated claims and whose attorneys are looking for their ten minutes of fame. There are text messages and communications that totally refute these baseless claims. Additionally, Ms. [Name blocked] and Ms. [Name blocked] were never employees of Top Dawg Entertainment. We are confident that we will prevail in this action,” TDE’s lawyer Marty Singer told AllHipHop.com.