Suicide Squad writer and director, David Ayer, took the time to interact with some fans over Twitter earlier this week about how misunderstood the character of the Joker, portrayed by Jared Leto, was in the 2016 DCEU film. Despite the immense hype that surrounded the super-villain centred movie prior to its release, Suicide Squad proved to be a widespread disappointment, with many diehard fans and newcomers alike regarding Jared's depiction of the Joker as particularly awful. Although he did have some large shoes to fill—most notably the late Heath Ledger's in 2008's The Dark Knight—his performance was still less than impressive, with some even deeming it the worst onscreen portrayal of the Clown Prince of Crime in history.

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However, Ayer certainly doesn't feel that way. In fact, he sympathizes with Jared to this day due to how much work he put into the character, only for it to be criticized so heavily. The filmmaker responded to a fan's explanation of why the Joker's notoriously mocked "Damaged" tattoo across his forehead was actually "ingenious" given the back story.

While every legendary rapper has a well-deserved appreciation for 2Pac Shakur’s music, Eminem might be one of his biggest superfans — a Stan, if you will. In 2004, Em personally asked Afeni Shakur for permission to produce a posthumous Pac album in its entirety, leading to Loyal To The Game. Not to mention likening his temperament to the late legend on songs like “Soldier” and “Say What You Say.” Clearly, Pac played a pivotal role in Slim’s artistic development, and Em recently reflected on his impact during Music To Be Quarantined By.

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“This next song is from an artist I feel might be the greatest songwriter of all time,” prefaces Em. “Debate what you want about emcee skills and all that, because he had that too. But this is one of them songs by 2Pac, where to me, he was showing ‘I can write heartfelt shit and I can write lyrical crazy shit to.’ They say pussy and paper is poetry, power and pistols. Plottin’ on murdering muthafuckas fore’ they get you.”

“Like, the play on the P words and how he was doing it was so crazy,” continues Em. “Mixed with the feel that 2Pac could give you, which is constantly why he was always saying ‘can you feel me?!’ Because you felt Pac. You can’t just listen to Pac, but you feel Pac. If you listen to him, you gon’ feel him. Anyways, this is 2Pac’s “If I Die Tonight.'”

Lofty praise from a rapper who isn’t exactly a stranger to the “greatest songwriter” conversation — do you agree with Em’s assessment on 2Pac Shakur?  

While some initially thought the UFC's latest development "Fight Island" was their first attempt at b-movie production, the reality was far more epic and typically grandiose. With the coronavirus pandemic currently ravaging the world of professional sports, essentially canceling damn near every league out there, Dana White went and secured a private island solely dedicated to staging fights. 

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With the construction of "Fight Island" currently nearing completion -- White hopes to have the whole thing up and running by June -- the fighters have already started issuing requests. Yesterday, during an interview with Barstool Sports, Dana revealed that none other than Conor McGregor was chomping at the bit, eager to pick up where his decisive victory against Cowboy left off.

Upon being asked whether McGregor had inquired about his next match, White proceeded to pull out his phone. "He's asking me what date I could fight on 'Fight Island,'" White teased. "And will there be fans? "It sounds like he wants to fight in June. He's asking if there would be fans there. There would not be fans. And the fight would either be mid-June or end of June. But Conor wants to fight."

Though there won't exactly be any fans physically allowed, it's all but guaranteed that the Pay-Per-View numbers would be monumental all the same. At the moment, all that has been revealed is McGregor's desire to fight -- any news about a potential opponent has yet to be unveiled. 

This weekend, Lil Tjay not-so-quietly tried to assert himself as the King of New York but, in the process, he tore down a few other contenders.

“ALL THAT OTHER NA NA NA SHIT ND SNITCH RAINBOW HAIR SHIT GOING ON IN MY CITY A DUBB,” wrote the 19-year-old on social media.

Fans of the rapper assumed that by “na na na shit”, he was speaking to A Boogie wit da Hoodie, who has been celebrated as one of the best melodic forces in New York. A war of words ensued between Lil Tjay and A Boogie’s Highbridge crew, including Trap Manny and Don Q, before the “Drowning” rapper claimed to have lost all respect for the up-and-comer.

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Since then, Lil Tjay has issued an apology, which was not accepted by Don Q and Trap Manny. After that, it looked like the rising star felt a need to rub salt in their wounds, filming a music video inside their hood.

It’s worth it to note that Lil Tjay also hails from the Bronx. However, by tagging Highbridge as a location on Instagram Stories, which is typically associated with A Boogie wit da Hoodie and his label, some are seeing this as a shot against the rapper.

“I’m outside, n***a. Fuck you talkin’ ’bout,” said Lil Tjay in a video uploaded to social media, possibly taunting A Boogie. Throughout the apparent shoot, the artist was surrounded by a police presence.

Do you think Lil Tjay was sending shots?

Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán's sons, Iván Archivaldo Guzmán and Jesús Alfredo Guzmán, are enforcing coronavirus lockdown measures in the Mexican city under their cartel's control by threatening violence on anyone who violates the mandatory curfew. Iván and Jesús, also known as "Los Chapitos" or "Little Chapos," currently run their incarcerated father's infamous Sinaloa drug cartel in the city of Culiacán, and they've made it very clear to the residents of the Mexican town that the coronavirus pandemic is a serious matter. “After 10 o’clock at night, all the people must be inside their homes due to the coronavirus, otherwise they will be punished," a member of the Sinaloa Cartel announced in a video circulating online. "These are orders ‘from above,'” he specified, referring to Los Chapitos.

Over their years as friends and collaborative partners, Eminem and 50 Cent have amassed quite a repertoire of classic tunes under their belt. From “Patiently Waiting” to “Don’t Push Me,” “Jimmy Crack Corn” to “Gatman & Robbin,” “Psycho” to “You Don’t Know,” the Shady and Fif connection has often manifested into dark and menacing bangers. It’s ultimately helped make them one of hip-hop’s surefire teams, never failing to deliver quality when called upon. It’s no wonder that fans hold their bromance in high regard to this day.

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And while it’s been a while since they united for a proper collaboration (the Ed Sheeran led “Remember The Name” notwithstanding), the friendship has remained as sturdy as ever. Today, Slim took to Instagram to proudly endorse 50’s latest endeavor, his new book Hustle Harder Hustle Smarter. 

Alongside the cover, Em channeled his inner infomercial in the caption: “Like he said: Get Rich or die tryin’!! Get my friend @50Cent’s new book Hustle Harder, Hustle Smarter to help learn how!” The kind gesture did not go unnoticed by 50, who came through in the replies to show some appreciation. “Thanks EM Love you dog,” he wrote, a departure from his traditionally hard-nosed Instagram antics. Such is the power of the 50 Cent/Eminem partnership — some things run deeper than rap. 

Chris Brown and Young Thug released their collaborative mixtape Slime & B this week and, according to one of the artists on the ballot, the project was pieced together insanely quickly.

We already know that Young Thug's work ethic in the studio is ridiculous. The man seemingly has an endless stash of unreleased music, recording dozens of songs on any given day. When he announced that he would be releasing a joint tape with Chris Brown a few weeks back, it's highly possible that he hadn't written any of his verses yet because, in a new reveal on Twitter, the Slime God just said that he put together his portions in just one day.

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Taking to social media to promote the project, Thugger detailed how seamlessly it all came together, making the revelation.

"I recorded all the verses in one day #OnGod," wrote the rapper.

So far, Slime & B has gotten great reviews from fans and critics who have enjoyed the body of work. Since Thug recorded all of his parts in one day, that's pretty impressive. Clearly, he's got a superior ear.

What did you think of the new mixtape? Will it remain in your music rotation for the next little while or was it a one and done?

NAV announced a few weeks back that he’s excited to release some new music and, finally, the time is nearly upon us to experience the next chapter in his career. The XO Records artist has been working hard on his new album Good Intentions and the release date is just days ahead of us, expected to drop on May 8. After teasing a number of featured guests, NAV has officially unveiled the full tracklist.

Much like with his previous full-length projects, NAV will be assisted by some of his closest friends and collaborators, including Lil Uzi Vert, Young Thug, Gunna, and more. The album will also include Future, Lil Durk, Don Toliver, Travis Scott, and more. Most interestingly perhaps, a posthumous verse by Pop Smoke will also be included on the song “Run It Up,” which marks their second collaboration.

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Good Intentions was executive produced by NAV himself, his manager Amir “Cash” Esmailian, and The Weeknd. 

The album was announced a one-minute trailer, showing the artist in the studio explaining the concept behind the body of work, also hopping on phone calls with Lil Uzi Vert, Young Thug, and others. Footage of his studio session with Pop Smoke was also included.

Will you be checking for Good Intentions on Friday?

Although Playboi Carti and Iggy Azalea have yet to confirm whether they recently became new parents after rumours circulated last week that the couple had welcomed their first child, Carti’s recent automotive purchase feels like a pretty big hint. According to TMZ, Carti dropped $400,000 on one of the most luxurious family-friendly rides out there: a 2020 Rolls-Royce Cullinan SUV. The rapper made the pricey purchase from celebrity car broker RD Whittington’s company, Wires Only, and paid an additional $10,000 rush shipping fee to have it delivered to his home in Atlanta ASAP.

Carti reportedly had certain upgrades added such as a set of two leather seats and cocktail table that emerge from the luggage department at the touch of a button. The car also includes a tilting and retractable sunroof and fold-down TV screens. Check out more photos of the opulent whip here.

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TMZ reported that Carti had specifically requested a larger vehicle in which he could safely install a baby car seat. While nothing is for certain, this would be a pretty odd request if he and Iggy hadn’t just welcomed a child. Only time will tell if this rap couple really do have a little one calling them “Mom” and “Dad” now.

Over the course of his career, we’ve known Metta World Peace to be one of the toughest defenders to ever step on a basketball court. He’s used several different monikers, starting off his playing career as Ron Artest, his given name, and changing it to Metta World Peace before moving to China and allegedly changing it again to Panda Friend. This week, he spoke about his eccentric history of name changes with Danny Green on the baller’s podcast Inside the Green Room with Danny Green, also touching on his friendship with Kobe Bryant and his championship legacy with the Lakers.

During the sit-down talk, Metta revealed to the world that he has officially dropped World Peace from his name. Now, he goes by a combination of his wife’s last name and his original surname.

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“My name now is ‘Metta Sandiford-Artest.’ I actually took my wife’s last and added it to mine,” said the 40-year-old. He notes that he was pretty embarrassed to hop on the court for the first time after switching his name to Metta World Peace from Ron Artest, hesitating to remove his warm-up gear and show off the backside of his jersey. He also tells Green that he never actually legally adopted the Panda Friend moniker, but he just went with the reports saying he did.

Check out the name talk at the 41:40 spot below.

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