The End of Pop Smoke's Posthumous Music, or is it?

It’s the day after the Met Gala, also known as May 2nd when everyone and their mother becomes a fashion critic for a day. A$AP Rocky went viral for his entrance, jumping over a barricade and using any and all fans in his vicinity to do so. In the words of Twitter u/aletrades80, “The power of celebrity is using someone’s face as a springboard and them looking at you in awe over it” 😂 In other news today:

• Billboard Hot 100 & album sales 📈 

• Willy Wonka inspired a Timbaland beat 🍫 

• The YSL RICO court is a full-fledged circus 🤡 

• Destroy Lonely on his new album, Playboi Carti & AI music 💀 

• The end of Pop Smoke’s posthumous music, or is it? 🕊️ 

• Industry Insights

Hot 100 Chart & Streams

The above chart shows Billboard’s Hot 100 ranking, as of today, and the corresponding song streams for the week of April 21-27th as reported by Hits Double Daily. Hot 100 ranks songs based on a combination of streaming activity, radio airplay audience impressions, and sales data—all measured by Luminate.

The only new song entry this week is The Weeknd’s “Double Fantasy” featuring Future debuting at #18. The single is from his upcoming soundtrack for his HBO show, The Idol. Not pictured, Ice Spice and Nicki Minaj’s “Princess Diana” dropped significantly from a #4 debut last week to #29 this week.

Album Sales

NBA YoungBoy’s new album, Don’t Try This At Home, debuted at #5 on the Billboard 200 with 60,000 first-week sales—matching the projections of 60-65K. This marks YoungBoy’s 14th album that has debuted in the US Top 10.

Willy Wonka Inspired Timbaland’s Beat for an Aaliyah Song

During a panel discussion for the 2023 Pop Conference at NYU University, Timbaland revealed that he once found inspiration in the “Oompa Loompa” song from Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory. The revelation was sparked by the topic of Aaliyah’s “Are You That Somebody?” song from 1998 which Timbaland created the beat for.

“I actually was trying to make the Willy Wonka beat from the ‘Oompa Loompa’ song,” he said and sang the hook from the original to demonstrate. “I took that rhythm and I listened back to it and I was like, ‘Man. that’s a dope addition.’ That’s what I was trying to attempt but in a hip-hop way. I gotta thank Willy Wonka for that,” said Timbaland.

If you listen to the iconic Aaliyah song (Spotify & Apple Music) and the “Oompa Loompa” song you’ll hear the skeleton version of what Timbaland manipulated to be the rhythm and drum pattern.

The Latest Antics in the YSL RICO Case

The legal circus would be a more accurate description for the ongoing YSL RICO trial as news leaked yesterday that a potential juror called presiding judge Ural Glanville a b*tch. No further context was provided but the female juror was held in contempt of court, the latest in many bizarre juror problems and punishments.

Recent highlights include a defendant saying they’ve received legal advice from Donald Trump, a juror being sent to jail for filming court proceedings, 20-page essays being handed out like appetizers, and an attorney’s arrest resulting in their defendant's case being severed from the YSL trial. This level of drama is enough to have a reality TV producer foaming at the mouth for more.

An expert on hip-hop lyrics, Dr. Adam Dunbar, took the stand last week to testify about his research and study that determined rap lyrics could inappropriately impact jurors when admitted as evidence to prove guilt.

It was part of a Daubert Hearing which is a method used to determine whether or not an expert’s testimony will be admissible during trial. If approved, Dunbar’s testimony would be helpful for Thug in counteracting the lyrics the prosecution deems is “evidence” of his criminal activity.

How is Young Thug doing?

Not good according to his lawyers and a recent motion they filed for his 4th attempt at bond. His legal team claims he is suffering mentally and physically due to poor food options and exhausting hours in court.

Thug’s been surviving on snacks such as chocolate and chips at the Fulton County Jail in Atlanta. He wakes up at 4 or 5 am to get to court on time and returns to jail late causing sleep deprivation concerns. His lawyers claim that these conditions inhibit his ability to adequately prepare for trial in an effort to persuade the court to finally grant him bail.

Destroy Lonely on New Album, Carti’s Leadership & the Meaning of Life

The Rick-Owens-wearing, fashion-conscious rapper known as Destroy Lonely is set to release his new album, If Looks Could Kill, this Friday (May 5th). You probably know he’s signed to Playboi Carti’s Opium record label, maybe you’ve even heard the comparisons to his labelmate Ken Carson but did you know he’s surprisingly philosophical?

He believes in the power of manifestation and says he’s spoken each of his achievements into existence (he has his eyes set on joining the billionaire club within the next 10 years). In a recent interview with Complex, he shares his stance on AI music, what to expect from his new album, and his thoughts on Playboi Carti’s leadership style.

How’s being signed to Opium Records and working with Carti?

According to Destroy, he feels like part of a family at Opium. They’re a group of like-minded rappers that instill motivation in each other and are always available for feedback or help if needed.

He calls labelmate Ken Carson his “real brother” and hates the comparison or competition fans try to instigate, “I’m not here to be bigger than fucking Ken Carson. I don’t give a fuck. I want to see both of us go however far.” The two are also working on a collab project.

As far as Carti’s leadership style, he says Carti is really focused on what he’s doing and it helps everyone else around him, “Carti’s got a good head on his shoulders and he’s got a vision. A lot of n***as be trying to lead shit and don’t even know where they’re going.”

What’s the sound of his new album?

The song, “If Looks Could Kill”, is representative of the whole album. It started with buying a Halloween mask in October and wearing it in the studio. That inspired him to say the opening line, “if looks could kill” and everything snowballed from there.

He says the production and sound of the song are a good indication of what to expect from the 26-track project. “My whole album sounds like that. My album don’t sound nothing like fuckin’ “NOSTYLIST” or anything before that. I’m on some new shit.”

His thoughts on AI-generated music?

“I’m a person of realism. So anything artificial or fucking cooked up in a lab, I don’t like. And it’s not to be pessimistic or nothing. It’s just like, bro, the shit we’re talking about in music started from people having feelings. So how could a robot make some music? Robots don’t got feelings.”

The End of Pop Smoke: Late Rapper Has “No More Music” Left

It’s been 3 years since the world lost Pop Smoke, the rising New York star whose life was tragically cut short just as his career was beginning to take off. His gruff voice and gravelly delivery set him apart in the drill scene becoming the ubiquitous sound of New York thanks to hits like “Dior” in 2019.

Pop’s manager, Rico Beats, confirmed in an Instagram DM exchange with a fan that there is no more music recorded from when Pop Smoke was alive to release posthumously.

“What else ya want? Pop died 3 years ago, how much more music ya think he did in one year?” Rico Beats typed. “If Pop was alive, he would not approve of 99 percent of the stuff they put out,” he continued touching on the 2 posthumous albums and multiple singles released that have garnered mixed reviews.

The news of an empty Pop Smoke vault deserves more than a quick news summary—does posthumous work build or destroy his legacy? Should AI be a component of posthumous music? Let’s explore this further below.

Pop Smoke’s posthumous success 🕊️ 

Shoot For The Stars, Aim For The Moon was Pop Smoke’s debut studio album, executive produced by Steven Victor and 50 Cent, and released posthumously. The album debuted at #1 on the Billboard 200 chart with massive first-week sales of 251,000 equivalent album units.

Pop was a known 50 Cent fan and 50’s involvement in the project felt like a fitting tribute to Pop’s roots. The inclusion of “Dior” on the album earned Pop his first Grammy nomination for Best Rap Song in 2021 and 8 out of the 19 songs had no features. The album’s R&B-influenced sound gave fans a taste of the direction he was planning on going before he passed.

Steven Victor told Billboard that drill was the sound Pop found success in but it wasn’t the music he wanted to make in his heart. “He grew up singing in a church, and he loved R&B music. He was like, ‘This is what I’m really trying to do. I really want to be a global star, and make super melodic music.”

How did it shape his legacy?

For the above reasons, Shoot For The Stars was a body of work that honored Pop Smoke’s wishes as much as possible without him being present. The world got to experience his versatility and talent beyond drill music.

The recognition and accolades the album received played a meaningful role in shaping Pop’s legacy. He didn’t deserve to be known as just the “Welcome To The Party” rapper when he was clearly capable of so much more.

On the other hand, his second posthumous album, Faith, is a prime example of why posthumous work is widely criticized. It was bloated with features that felt inorganic (looking at you Dua Lipa) and sadly sounded like Pop was a guest at his own party.

It’s unsurprising that after those 2 albums, his vault is empty and if future music was anything like Faith, it’s best to let the music that’s already released speak for itself.

What’s the potential for AI?

AI-generated music is particularly interesting in the context of artists who are no longer with us. On the one hand, it extends an artist’s musical life in a way that was previously impossible and gives their fans more music but on the other hand—AI can never replace the soul and emotion Pop put into his music.

An artist that is still alive has the ability to comment, approve, renounce, and generally weigh in on the way their image, sound, and likeness are being used artificially. Would Pop Smoke approve if he was alive today? There’s no way to know but it feels distasteful to make those creative decisions without him.

He was pivoting to R&B but perhaps 2 years later he would pivot to another style or sound. The limitations of AI will always keep a deceased artist in the time capsule of their previous work—created for others to experience in the future 🤔 

It’s a Black Mirror episode waiting to happen. Ultimately it would be best if artists could outline their wishes for posthumous and AI-generated work while they’re still alive.

• NBA YoungBoy becomes the youngest artist to score 100 entries on the Hot 100 chart. At just 23 years old, thanks to his new song “Big Truck”.

• Brent Faiyaz inks $50M deal with UnitedMasters to start creative agency and announces world tour. Titled F-k the World, It’s a Wasteland, tickets go on sale May 5th.

• Frank Ocean fan gets cease-and-desist over Coachella concert film. Brian Kinnes edited 150 videos of user-generated content from the festival to capture Frank’s full set.

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