What can be made out through the pixelation is a bold red colorway covering the shoe. Beyond that, there’s not much to go on. No silhouette, no branding, and no confirmation of what the details of the Jordans on his feet actually are.

This isn’t out of character for Young at all. He’s made a habit of teasing unreleased Jordan Brand footwear during offseason training, often blurring his shoes out before letting fans catch small glimpses later on. It’s become something of a signature move for him outside of his actual playing style.

The timing here feels notable too. Young has spent much of this offseason working out ahead of a new NBA campaign, and brands often use these training sessions to quietly test performance samples. Blurring the shoes keeps the design under wraps while its still generating buzz through the tease itself.

Read More: Yeezy Footwear Officially Announces JD Sports Partnership

Trae Young’s Blurred Jordans

Young has worn plenty of unreleased Jordan pairs since officially joining the brand, including early looks at performance models before their retail debut. Given that history, this red pair could easily be tied to an upcoming signature or performance release rather than just a random sample.

Jordan Brand has leaned on this exact strategy before too. Blurring shoes worn by athletes has become a low-key marketing tool of its own, dating back to how Nike handled Michael Jordan’s original banned colorway decades ago. It keeps fans guessing while building anticipation for whatever eventually gets revealed.

For now, all anyone has to go on is a pixelated flash of red and a lot of speculation. If Young’s past behavior is any indication, a clearer look probably isn’t too far behind.

Read More: Ice Spice Still Gets A Five-Figure Payout Despite Canceling Kentucky Show

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This marks a real shift for a brand that’s mostly operated through direct-to-consumer sales since the split. Yeezy’s own website has dealt with real fulfillment issues along the way, including delayed orders and inconsistent shipping updates. Teaming up with an established retailer like JD Sports should help smooth that process out considerably.

Leading the launch is the YEEZY Slide, officially known as the YS-01, priced at $44. It’s joined by the YS-02, a sleeker slip-on version priced at $56, along with the BL-01, a chunkier mesh and suede sneaker retailing for $108. The AQ-01, a perforated water-shoe style silhouette, rounds out part of the lineup alongside a women’s model.

This also isn’t coming out of nowhere. Talk of a JD Sports partnership had already been circulating for a couple weeks. The YS-01 briefly appeared on JD’s release calendar before that listing quietly disappeared.

That confusion left fans unsure if the deal was even still happening. Today’s official confirmation feel like a real payoff after weeks of back and forth.

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Yeezy Footwear x JD Sports

Notably absent from the August 13th launch is the recently leaked YEEZY 800, the shoe that drew mixed reactions online just days ago. It’s possible that model gets folded into a future JD Sports drop once it officially launches, but for now it stays out of the opening lineup.

This deal gives Yeezy something it’s lacked since leaving Adidas: a real supply chain. Reliable in-store pickup, consistent fulfillment, and a nationwide retail footprint are all things Ye’s independent brand has struggled to offer on its own. For a brand with this much built-in demand, that kind of infrastructure could make a serious difference.

Pairs will be available both online through JD Sports and in select stores across the country starting August 13th. Given how much attention Yeezy has drawn all summer, expect this launch to be one of the more closely watched sneaker retail moments of the year.

Read More: Ice Spice Still Gets A Five-Figure Payout Despite Canceling Kentucky Show

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According to WKYT, she was on the schedule to perform at the university’s Big E Welcome event for the fall semester on August 21. Reportedly, the university explained the cancelation as a mutual agreement between Spice and organizers “due to unforeseen circumstances.”

She will reportedly receive 25 percent of the financial compensation they had agreed on, according to EKU officials. FOX 56 reported this amount is $68K out of $275K, and this would be to cover agency expenses that preceded the cancelation. Per the university, all funding that had been allocated for the concert has gone back to the student-funded Eastern Experience account. Elsewhere, the Big E Welcome event will have other events, resources, activities, and extracurricular matters to share with the student body.

Read More: Four High-Profile Hip Hop Cases Head To Trial In August

Ice Spice Performance

This cancelation is disheartening for EKU students, but hopefully the “In Ha Mood” femcee will make it up to them eventually. Elsewhere, Ice Spice has been busy on the road.

She was one of multiple special guests at the “Don’t Be Dumb” tour from A$AP Rocky, specifically at his Newark show closing his North American run. Spice joined 50 Cent and G-Unit (more specifically, Uncle Murda and Tony Yayo), as well as other guests like Skilla Baby and A$AP Twelvyy.

We will see if she has any performances to announce or treat fans to soon. Elsewhere, though, Ice Spice is expanding her extracurricular resumé with video game collaborations and new fragrances, so maybe she will take a small break from the music world.

Still, fans hope Ice has more heat on the way, especially to make up for recently derailed concerts and performances. At least she and her team still got some money out of the EKU situation, and hopefully the rest of the initial compensation benefits the students above all else.

Read More: Pharrell Is Giving Atlanta’s Veterans A Second Wind

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Malone recently doubled down on these claims on The Bootleg Kev Podcast, despite other folks denying the allegation. Kev asked how sure he was of this accusation, and he replied with “100 percent.”

“This is something that they do in the business,” Glasses alleged. “They see stories. This is not no big thing. The same thing happened in the civil suit with Universal. He accused them of crimes. There’s a reason you accuse somebody of crimes… This is not some deep thing. It’s simple. It’s right in our f***ing face. That’s not deep. The fact that everybody made it like that was some, ‘Oh my God, I cannot,’ like, bro, he’s f***ing upset. Of course he is.”

Glasses Malone said his problem is with Drizzy’s “hounds” and “minions” allegedly falsely incriminating somebody. He said he doesn’t care the 6ix God is still mad about a “p***y-a**… dumb-a** rap battle,” telling him to “grow up” and stay out of the situation.

Read More: Four High-Profile Hip Hop Cases Head To Trial In August

Glasses Malone’s Drake Allegations

Malone said everyone’s talking about it, but he’s the only one saying it out loud. He claimed there’s a disconnect between public perception and what’s allegedly going on behind the scenes, saying YG did not kill Drakeo and that Mustard didn’t bail anyone out. Glasses said there are real-life implications here, although he didn’t go into detail about the allegations or point to any alleged proof. Nevertheless, the West Coast rapper pointed to an alleged pattern of the OVO mogul trying to implicate people.

Elsewhere, Drakeo The Ruler’s brother denied these Drake claims, along with other denials. To be clear, YG hasn’t been arrested, indicted, or charged regarding The Ruler’s murder. However, authorities did detain him in relation to a search warrant connected to Drakeo’s death investigation.

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As caught by Euronews, ambassador Oren Rozenblat posted a video to Instagram condemning Ye and his concert. Rozenblat reportedly called for the cancelation of the performance, pointing to examples of the Chicago artist’s hate speech. These include saying slavery was a choice, praising Adolf Hitler, engaging in Nazi rhetoric and aesthetics while praising the regime, and making disparaging or threatening comments about Jewish people.

The Israeli embassy in Portugal believe this constitutes hate speech rather than just controversy, pointing to other countries punishing Kanye West for his actions. The embassy also reportedly asked the mayor of Faro to cancel the concert and urged the general public to refrain from attending.

Reportedly, the CEO and co-founder of the event’s organizer, Raya Culture, called the cancelation of the show a “non-issue.” “It is a music event that is going ahead. It would become an issue if the security services identified a national threat to public order, which is not the case,” Torcato Jorge reportedly stated.

Read More: Four High-Profile Hip Hop Cases Head To Trial In August

Kanye West’s Tour

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It seems like the Portugal show at the Algarve Stadium will move forward as planned. Whether or not more firm consequences are in the future, this will continue to be a point of accountability and debate for Ye. His apologies have not been enough to quell the backlash against him and his continued success.

Elsewhere, future concerts at press time include Kazakhstan, New Orleans, Chicago, and Indonesia. We will see if any of those experience any cancelations or controversies, let alone similar issues concerning condemnations.

In the meantime, Kanye West is still dealing with legal trouble, whether it’s over musical collaborations or a settled sexual harassment lawsuit. But throughout it all, the Yeezy mogul has more fans to entertain, more music to share, and more wrongs to right. It’s been a turbulent process, but the shows have all gone pretty well.

Read More: Pharrell Is Giving Atlanta’s Veterans A Second Wind

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As a result of his efforts, he earned his spot on the Forbes highest-paid podcaster list, landing in the top 15 with $20M earned. That’s not small feat, especially for someone who has constantly emphasized the importance of maintaining creative control. 

Of course the accomplishment became a topic of discussion on The Joe Budden Podcast, and Budden expressed his gratitude for the recognition.

“I’m honored, I’m humbled. Good to be in that conversation. Shout out to Forbes for the acknowledgment,” he said. “It’s a good list. We have some really good, positive things going on that I’m excited about this summer.”

Read More: Four High-Profile Hip Hop Cases Head To Trial In August

Joe Budden Expands Into True Crime

Budden’s podcast presence is only growing from here. Most recently, he announced a new podcast with Dick Wolf, the creator of Law & Order. This podcast, titled Crime In America, will arrive later this month.

“Without giving you too much, we’re going to delve into some stories,” Joe said of the upcoming show. “I’m a true crime head. I watch it all. This will be me looking at stories, telling stories, just putting a modern spin on true crime.”

It’s going to be interesting to see Joe Budden in a totally difference genre within the podcast space. But, if his placement on the Forbes list is any indication, then it should be a promising effort. 

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The post Joe Budden Humbly Reacts To Making The Forbes Podcaster List appeared first on HotNewHipHop.

Rocky made these claims during his interview with Jason Lee on his self-titled show, denying he’s the reason RiRi hasn’t come back with new material. “Yo, she in the studio right now,” he remarked. “Yeah, I said it. Sorry, babe. Like, bro, she working. She cooking, bro. No funny s**t. Damn, I’ma get in trouble for this.”

Elsewhere, A$AP Rocky spoke on his relationship with Rihanna. “She really is a strong Black woman, and she held me down even when I was at my lowest,” he expressed. “When my dad died… She was there for me. When I got locked up Sweden… She was there for me. When the Relli s**t happened, she was there for me. Every time I’m at my lowest and darkest place, rather if we’re friends platonically or we’re in a couple relationship, she’s always f***ing there for me, bro.”

Read More: Four High-Profile Hip Hop Cases Head To Trial In August

Is Rihanna Dropping An Album?

Sadly, this hint from Rocky did not come with any official timeline announcements or any other details. He did shoot down the idea of a collab album from the couple, but we’ll have to wait for more concrete details. At least we know the album is on the way… Supposedly.

Rihanna’s last album was 2016’s ANTI, whose hits and deep cuts still resonate with a whole lot of fans. While she’s dropped a few songs, collaborations, and movie tie-ins since then, she’s seemingly been more focused on her business ventures and, of course, her personal and family life with Rocky, their kids, and their loved ones.

Rihanna recently hit the stage again for the Yankee Stadium shows from Jay-Z, giving more hope to fans about a soon-to-come LP. But nothing has changed as of writing this article. As such, we will just have to wait for this studio time to manifest into something truly special.

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The post Is Rihanna’s “R9” On The Way? A$AP Rocky May Have Revealed The Answer appeared first on HotNewHipHop.

In addition to a Sheck Wes “Mo Bamba” sample and The Isley Brothers’ “Between The Sheets” (which is the “Big Poppa” sample from Biggie Smalls), this new track also samples Soulja’s 2007 track “Donk.” He took to social media to connect the dots, as caught by Livebitez on Instagram.

“I cleared a song for Beyoncé, the ‘Donk’ remix with Jay-Z,” the Chicago native remarked. “Today I wake up, motherf***ers is posting fake news about me… Talking about ‘Nobody shows up to Rapper University.’ I ain’t even did Rapper University yet. It ain’t even started yet. They posted a video of me looking at a venue for the live, in-person auditions. Jay-Z, this what you and Beyoncé be going through, gang? What the f**k? This n***a clear a song for Beyoncé and Jay-Z, [and] the next day, these people posting fake news about me? No! No. I am not Beyoncé. I’m not Jay-Z. I’m not just gon’ sit back and let y’all say anything. I’ma get on the Internet and I’ma say something immediately. Stop f***ing playing on my name.”

Read More: Four High-Profile Hip Hop Cases Head To Trial In August

Soulja Boy & Beyoncé Collab

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“Why is y’all lying?” Soulja continued in another clip. “What the f**k? I’m finna sue y’all n***as… Ain’t no way in hell y’all just posted on the blogs… And it ain’t even started yet. We ain’t even start shooting it yet. I’m suing all you b***hes. You think you can do this s**t to me? […] Say anything about me, whether it’s true or not. Okay, cool. Y’all gon’ learn today.”

“Why yall posting fake news?” he wrote on Twitter. “Rapper university hasn’t started yet. This was me looking for a venue for auditions.”

For those unaware, Soulja Boy and Beyoncé have worked together before. She interpolated his “Turn My Swag On” hit on Lemonade‘s “Hol’ Up” in 2016. This remix of “Morning Dew (Donk)” follows the original version, which is leading up to the 20th anniversary edition of B’Day.

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The post Soulja Boy Claims His Work With Beyoncé & Jay-Z Is Why People Hate Him appeared first on HotNewHipHop.

In a recent Instagram comment, Fenix Flexin finally opened up about the creation of “Rubberz,” claiming that he never denied using AI on the song. “Never said I didn’t use AI, I said it had nun to do w recording process. I didn’t even know what da app was till we mixed it and erbody started commenting. Ain’t nothing wrong w using new technology as a too keep up with the times or get left behind,” he wrote.

His comments led to a flurry of different reactions but not necessarily ones that disagree with his stance. Sada Baby wrote in the caption, “We been knew it was AI. Don’t matter I’m just mad I kouldnt get in the video sht still fire.”

Read More: Four High-Profile Hip Hop Cases Head To Trial In August

Fenix Flexin’s AI Use & Tyga’s Comments

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Fenix Flexin’s admission comes shortly after Tyga echoed similar statements regarding his new album $TARFACE. Even though Tyga said that he recorded the vocals on his own, he said that some of the specific sounds used to give it that retro vibe were made through AI.

“We definitely used AI as a tool,” Tyga said. “And I know people are going to be mad about me saying this, but it’s where technology is going.” Similarly, he compared to the rise of AI to the rise of auto-tune in the late-aughts, explaining how it’s important to keep up with the times rather than fall behind. 

Check out what Fenix Flexin had to say above and sound off with your thoughts in the comments. 

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The post Fenix Flexin Finally Confesses To AI Use On “Rubberz” appeared first on HotNewHipHop.

Release Date: August 7, 2026

Genre: Hip-Hop

Tracklist for Dragon’s Breath

1. Dragon’s Intro
2. Never Fold — ft. Raekwon, Sauce Money, Skyzoo, D.V. alias Khryst
3. H.E.C.T.O.R.
4. Lighter Fluid — ft. ETO, Mickey Factz, RJ Payne
5. Shaolin Rebel 2 — ft. Siah
6. The System — ft. L. Biz
7. Up At Night — ft. Peedi Crakk, M.O.W.E.
8. Day In The Life — ft. Baegod
9. One of One — ft. G4 Jag, M.A.V., KXNG Crooked
10. Flight School — ft. Chedda Bang
11. Burgundy — ft. L. Biz
12. Cold Case — ft. Ransom, Gripz
13. Divine Protection — ft. Sa-Roc, Che Noir, Reddaz
14. Solitude — ft. Flee Lord, Hus KingPin, BVNGS
15. Anointed — ft. 7xvethegenius, 40 B.A.R.R.S., Bahamadia
16. Possession — ft. Hell Fire, Cappadonna, Blue Raspberry
17. Funny Style — ft. CEE Brown
18. Czariana Grande — ft. CZARFACE
19. Explicit Material — ft. CZARFACE

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