At the beginning of April, many fans began worrying that XO and Republic signees 88GLAM's music career was in jeopardy, with rumors of a break-up and recurring label trouble threatening to derail the release of their 88GLAM 2 follow-up. And while the coronavirus pandemic ultimately prompted their upcoming album Close To Heaven Far From God to be delayed, the breakup rumors persisted, fueled by the narrative that inner conflict was driving the duo of Derek Wise and 88 Camino apart.

Monica Schipper/Getty Images

Now, however, the Toronto group has officially come forward to put their foot down on the matter. Taking to Twitter, 88 Camino laid down the law and stated quite plainly that "no 88GLAM isn’t breaking up." A succinct yet to the point take on a topic that has been plaguing them for a minute, and while we don't have any further details on their next endeavor, it certainly bodes well for them to be moving as a cohesive unit once again. 

It should be noted that as of now, 88GLAM is set to remain with XO Records. Back in November of 2018, the pair spoke with HNHH for an installment of On The Come Up, describing their experience working with The Weeknd's label. "They let us make the music we want to make. They trust us creatively. We have creative control over all of our stuff," explained Camino. "Even when it comes to like music videos and stuff, they're like, 'Who do you guys want to work with?' They just want to see our vision -- us capture our vision. They're like 'we're going to give you guys the resources, but just do you.'"

Keep an eye out for more developments on 88GLAM as they surface. Do you feel relieved by this development?  

The rise of Toronto’s 88GLAM only strengthened the XO roster but fans became widely concerned over the status of the group in 2020. A subreddit dedicated to 88GLAM recently speculated that they’ve split up. In addition to rumors that there’s an internal conflict between Derek Wise and 88Camino, the internet was immediately fueled with rumors that they had been dropped by both XO and Republic Records. Of course, all of these problems combined would mean that we wouldn’t receive their follow-up to 88GLAM 2. With an April 17th release date previously set, we’ve finally received some sort of response surrounding the status of their next project. 

Via HNHH

Coronavirus has officially impeded the release of Close To Heaven Far From God. The group relayed the message Instagram earlier today, stating that they wouldn’t be able to properly roll out the project.

“We hope everyone is keeping safe and well during this horrific, unprecedented time. Due to recent global events and all touring/festival cancellations, we have decided to delay our album release,” the message reads. “We wanted to release it during a time that would not compromise our roll out strategy. Cant wait to see all of our fans and go offfff to the new music.”

Some people took this as a good sign while others appeared to further question the status of the duo. However, it should be noted that there has been a screenshot of an alleged conversation with 88GLAM’s day-to-day manager Melody who confirmed that things are all good between them and that they are steadily cooking up. 

The Weeknd honoured the memory of one of his OG supporters, Lance, by dedicating his brand new album, After Hours, to the late fan. The artist's highly anticipated album—his first in four years—arrived at midnight on Friday, much to the thrill of his massive fanbase. However, After Hours' release is twinged with sadness, as one of The Weeknd's most diehard fans tragically passed away before he was able to hear it. Lance, who ran the "XO Podcast" and the Twitter account @TheXOPodcast2, died only a few days before After Hours dropped. Lance was a longtime supporter of The Weeknd's and one of his most dedicated fans.  The Weeknd learned of the devastating news on Thursday afternoon, after Lance's girlfriend tweeted an emotional message regarding his passing, in which she thanked the artist for everything he'd done for Lance.

Out of respect for Vanessa Bryant and her family, Beyoncé respectfully changed the lyrics to “one of Kobe’s favorite songs” during the memorial that was held Monday in honor of the late Laker great and his young daughter, Gianna.

Beyonce opened the memorial with a epic performance of a couple of Kobe’s favorite songs, “Halo” & “XO,” the latter of which saw Queen Bey changing up some lyrics out of respect. Swapping the line “and I’m crashing into you” with “and I’m laughing into you” and changing “you kill me boy XO” to “just kiss me boy XO,” Beyoncé respectfully swapped out the inappropriate & ill-timed lyrics and delivered another classic performance backed by an orchestra and chorus. It’s pretty obvious as for why she chose to change the lyrics too with trigger words like “crashing” & “kill me,” but it’s just another example of Bey being the GOAT.

Kevork Djansezian/ Getty Images (Kobe’s Memorial)

“I’m here because I love Kobe and this was one of his favorite songs, so I want to start that over, but I want us to do it all together and I want you to sing it so loud they hear your love,” Beyonce said before performing her records. After transitioning into a powerful rendition of “Halo,” the superstar finished with the added line, “He will be your, she will be your halo,” a reference to Kobe and Gianna.

Check out the performance (below) and sound off in the comments. RIP Kobe & Gigi.

Kobe Bryant was one of the most beloved basketball players of all-time. Unfortunately, he and his daughter Gianna tragically passed away in a helicopter crash on January 26th. Today, a memorial was held at the Staples Center where thousands came out to pay respects. The Staples Center was packed with friends, family, celebrities, and fans. It was a beautiful service that saw some tributes from Vanessa Bryant and many others.

To start off the event, Beyoncé got on stage to deliver gorgeous renditions of "XO" and "Halo." Beyoncé's performance was very powerful and resonated with every single person in that building. Many throughout the crowd were moved to tears as they began thinking about the legacy Kobe and Gianna have left us with.