Janet Jackson, Usher, TLC booked for Las Vegas’ Lovers & Friends festival

Courtesy Lovers & Friends Janet Jackson and Super Bowl halftime performer Usher will headline the third edition of the Lovers & Friends festival, scheduled to take place at the Las Vegas Festival Grounds on May 4. The lineup for the festival also includes Nelly, Alicia Keys, Nas, Mary J. Blige, Ludacris, Lil Wayne, Snoop Dogg, Ciara, Timbaland and TLC. Usher will be performing his megaselling Confessions album in honor of its 20th anniversary, while…

New Ludacris TV series in the works at BET+

Disney/Frank Micelotta A new TV project involving rapper Ludacris has a home at BET+, according to The Hollywood Reporter.  The untitled series will be a half-hour scripted dramedy inspired by Luda’s life and his “experience coming up in the competitive music scene in Atlanta as DJ Chris Lova Lova.” A description of the project, as listed by THR, says, “The series follows…

André 3000 announces New Blue Sun Live Tour

Tommaso Boddi/Getty Images Two months after dropping his first solo project, New Blue Sun, André 3000 has announced the album’s accompanying road show, the New Blue Sun Live Tour.  The former Outkast member will hit the road in support of New Blue Sun, his rap-less instrumental album. The concert series, billed as a “run of intimate live shows,” kicks off on January 29…

Rapper YFN Lucci pleads guilty to gang charge

Paras Griffin/Getty Images Rapper YFN Lucci, known for songs “Everyday We Lit” and “Key to the Streets,” has pleaded guilty to gang charges connected to a racketeering case in Atlanta, Georgia.  ABC affiliate WSB reports the rapper, whose real name is Rayshawn Bennett, could serve 10 years in prison as part of a 20-year sentence, after pleading guilty to one count of violating…

Offset to hit the road with first solo run, the Set it Off Tour

Live Nation Offset is hitting the road for his first solo headlining concert series, the Set it Off Tour.  He announced the 17-city tour via Live Nation Tuesday, revealing the list of dates and cities in which he’ll make stops.  After a kickoff in Philadelphia on March 10, the rapper will travel to Maryland, New York,…

Oscars nominations: ’American Fiction’ earns five, Black first-timers & more

ABC The nominations for the 96th Academy Awards were announced Tuesday, revealing the top big screen projects and actors up for a gold statuette.  American Fiction, the race-related film starring Jeffrey Wright, earned five nominations, including the coveted Best Motion Picture of the Year. With the film, Wright scores his first-ever nod, as he’s up for Performance by an Actor in…

21 Savage’s ‘American Dream’ notches historic 14-song placement on Hot 100 charts

Slaughter Gang/Epic Records Not only did American Dream, the new album from 21 Savage, debut at #1 on the Billboard 200, almost every song on the album charted on the all-genre Hot 100.  That’s what crazy about the Hot 100 feat: The album contains 15 tracks, and the only one that didn’t land a spot on the chart is the “American…

LaKeith Stanfield says ‘The Book of Clarence’ is closest to roles he’s always wanted to play

ABC/Eric McCandless LaKeith Stanfield, star of Jeymes Samuel‘s The Book of Clarence, says the biblical-set film is the closest he’s gotten to the acting gigs he’s dreamed of.  He chatted with Ebony for its January cover story, opening up about his role as Clarence and how it’s his best role yet. “I think Clarence stood singularly as the closest I’ve gotten to…

Megan Thee Stallion announces new song, “Hiss”

ABC/Chrys Davis First, there was “Cobra.” Now, there’s “Hiss” — a new song featuring a snake-themed title Megan Thee Stallion is gearing up to release Friday, January 26. She announced the song on Instagram Monday, revealing the single cover art of herself with a white, open-mouthed snake wrapped around her neck.  Over on Twitter, she released another cover art image, one with…

Dexter Scott King, youngest son of Martin Luther King Jr., dies at 62

Moses Robinson/WireImage Dexter Scott King, the youngest son of civil rights icon Martin Luther King Jr., died Monday from prostate cancer, according to The King Center. He was 62 years old. Dexter King served as chairman of The Martin Luther King Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change, known as The King Center, and president of…