Super Bowl LX pregame show to feature Coco Jones, Brandi Carlile and Charlie Puth

Coco Jones performs during the Essence Festival of Culture at Caesars Superdome in New Orleans on July 4, 2025. The Grammy-winning R&B artist will perform “Lift Every Voice and Sing” at Super Bowl LX in February 2026. (Gabriel Brooks, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons)

The NFL announced Friday that Charlie Puth, Brandi Carlile, and R&B star Coco Jones will headline Super Bowl LX’s pregame at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara on Feb. 8, 2026. It’s a lineup that feels intentional — a mix of pop, Americana and soul designed to speak to a country still searching for harmony.

Puth will perform the national anthem, Brandi Carlile will deliver “America the Beautiful,” and Coco Jones — one of R&B’s brightest new stars — will sing “Lift Every Voice and Sing,” the Black national anthem that’s become a Super Bowl fixture since Roc Nation helped reframe the event as more than spectacle.

“Charlie, Brandi, and Coco are generational talents,” Roc Nation CEO Desiree Perez said. “This moment embodies the best of culture, live performance, and our country — perfectly kicking off game day.”
NFL executive Jon Barker called the Super Bowl “the world’s biggest entertainment stage,” adding that the pregame show “spotlights artists who embody the best of music and culture.”

For Coco Jones, it’s a defining milestone in a rise that’s been impossible to ignore. The Nashville-raised singer, actress, and Grammy winner has quickly become the face of modern R&B — a genre that’s found its way back to the Super Bowl stage after decades of being left on the sidelines. Her debut album, “Why Not More?,” has earned eight Grammy nominations, and her platinum single “ICU” still sits heavy on radio rotations two years later.

Carlile, one of music’s few crossover icons who can move between rock, folk, and gospel without losing her soul, arrives fresh off the success of “Returning to Myself.” Puth, whose fourth album “Whatever’s Clever!” drops in March, remains pop’s consummate technician — the guy who can find melody in anything, including the buzz of a text alert.

The performances will be joined by American Sign Language artists Fred Beam, Julian Ortiz, and Celimar Rivera Cosme — the latter signing Bad Bunny’s halftime show in Puerto Rican Sign Language, another first.

It’s a quietly radical lineup: Black, brown, queer, pop, and country, all sharing the same space before the first whistle blows. And it’s no accident that Roc Nation is again in the producer’s chair, guiding the event from spectacle to statement. From Beyoncé’s “Formation” to Rihanna’s midair return, to last year’s Vegas-sized Usher celebration, the Super Bowl has become something closer to a cultural census — one that now sounds like the country it represents.

In 2026, it’s Coco Jones’ turn to carry that torch. Her voice, her presence, and her moment are all part of the evolution Jay-Z predicted when he said the partnership wasn’t about appeasement — it was about access.

Now, America’s biggest game is listening.

Federal Jury Rules in Favor of Megan Thee Stallion in Online Harassment Lawsuit

Megan Thee Stallion was awarded damages Monday after a federal jury found blogger Milagro Cooper liable for defamation and harassment tied to a deepfake video that circulated following her 2020 shooting.

Megan Thee Stallion didn’t cheer, didn’t gloat, didn’t throw a bar. She just looked tired and said, “I’m just happy.”

And that was enough.

A Miami jury ruled Monday that online blogger Milagro Cooper — better known as “Milagro Gramz” — defamed and harassed the Houston rapper by pushing false stories and promoting a sexually explicit deepfake video that spread across social media. The nine-member panel awarded her $75,000, later reduced by the judge to $59,000, but the number wasn’t the headline. The verdict was.

Megan Thee Stallion leaves the Miami federal courthouse after a jury found online streamer Milagro Cooper liable for defaming her, promoting a fake sexually explicit video of her and intentionally inflicting emotional distress by coordinating with Tory Lanez. pic.twitter.com/TYGI6yG10r

— Meghann Cuniff (@meghanncuniff) December 1, 2025

After years of being mocked, doubted, and digitally dissected, Megan finally got a courtroom acknowledgment of what she’s been saying all along: that the lies hurt, that the internet isn’t a free-for-all, and that even rap’s toughest woman can bleed from words.

The case traces back to the fallout from her 2020 shooting by Tory Lanez, when online conspiracy theorists tried to turn her trauma into clickbait. Cooper’s posts and livestreams fanned that fire, urging thousands to share a fake video built from AI and spite. Jurors heard how the content spread faster than the truth ever could, and how it nearly broke her.

“She’s been through hell,” one of Megan’s lawyers told reporters after the ruling. “This was about setting a boundary for basic decency.”

Somewhere in the middle of all this noise, Megan has found calm again — smiling in photos on her boyfriend Klay Thompson’s boat, the one he just renamed the “SS Stallion.” Maybe it’s coincidence, maybe it’s a love note, but after everything she’s endured, it’s hard not to see symbolism in a vessel built to stay steady through rough waters.

Because on this day, that’s exactly what she did.

Jay-Z’s Roc Nation School Earns Repeat Billboard Spot, Stirs Debate Over Fine Print

Inside the Roc Nation School of Music, Sports & Entertainment’s new Dolby Atmos studio at Long Island University’s Brooklyn campus. The state-of-the-art space, designed by Young Guru and modeled after the legendary Baseline Studios, is the first of its kind in Brooklyn and among the largest in New York State. (Photo credit: Long Island University / Roc Nation)

Long before he owned a label, a liquor brand, or an NFL halftime show, a sixth-grader from the Marcy
Projects stunned his teacher by reading at a 12th-grade level. That same prodigy, JAY-Z, would go on to co-found Roc Nation — and partner with Long Island University to create a college that now bears its name. The Roc Nation School of Music, Sports & Entertainment at LIU-Brooklyn has again landed on Billboard’s Top Music Business Schools list, even as questions linger over what “debt-free” really means.

Founded in 2021 through a partnership between Roc Nation and Long Island University, the school was built to merge hip-hop’s creative DNA with the formal structure of higher education — turning hustle into curriculum. At the launch announcement, Roc Nation CEO Desiree Perez said, “The Roc Nation School of Music, Sports & Entertainment will provide unique insight, knowledge and experiences for students and will empower the next generation of leaders, innovators and entrepreneurs.”

LIU President Kimberly Cline called the partnership “an opportunity to open doors for countless young people who might never have imagined a pathway into these industries.”

From the start, the vision was ambitious. Roc Nation stated that its Hope Scholarship program would “help students graduate without debt, ensuring that financial barriers don’t stop creative potential.” And JAY-Z’s guiding principle, quoted in the company’s early materials, set the tone: “Education and opportunity should go hand in hand. Our hope is to teach the business, not just the art.”

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That vision carried the school into Billboard’s national spotlight for a second consecutive year. The magazine cited its “Music Entrepreneurship” course — which trains students to pitch business ventures to executives from Universal Music Group and Live Nation — and its financial-literacy partnership with JPMorgan Chase’s Money Smart program. Together, they reflect an attempt to fuse cultural capital with real-world economics — something hip-hop has long practiced, but academia is only starting to teach.

The honor comes as the school faces scrutiny over its “Hope Scholarship” program, which promised to help a quarter of students graduate “without debt.” Some recipients told Black Enterprise and HipHopDX they were surprised to learn that while tuition was covered, housing and fees were not — leaving them with debts of up to $40,000. University officials maintain that the scholarships were always meant to cover tuition only.

Still, the Roc Nation School’s footprint is growing. Its first graduating class crossed the stage in May 2025, with alumni joining Roc Nation, Bob Elliott’s Music Makers Studio, and other music firms. The Brooklyn campus has also become a hub for industry events, including this fall’s MetaMoon Summit on Asian representation in entertainment, drawing executives from Live Nation, Roc Nation, the NBA, and Foot Locker.

 

This year’s recognition also lands amid a broader debate about education in hip-hop. When Juelz Santana went viral this fall for downplaying reading skills in favor of financial literacy, artists and fans pushed back — while Lupe Fiasco continued teaching hip-hop at MIT, proving the classroom and the culture can coexist. Against that backdrop, the Roc Nation School represents hip-hop’s evolution: the same ambition that once fueled mixtape grinds now fuels accredited degrees.

As Roc Nation summarized in its own 2021 mission statement, “From the studio to the stage to the front office — this school exists to make sure our culture owns every part of what it creates.”

For a generation raised on the idea of ownership, Billboard’s honor feels symbolic — a stamp of legitimacy from an industry that once kept hip-hop out of its classrooms. But as the “debt-free” debate shows, the culture’s next test isn’t whether it can build institutions. It’s whether those institutions can live up to hip-hop’s original promise: freedom, fairness, and financial truth.

50 Cent Takes His Feud Global With Netflix Doc 'Sean Combs: The Reckoning'

Promotional poster for Netflix’s “Sean Combs: The Reckoning,” a four-part documentary series executive-produced by Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson. The series, directed by Alex Stapleton, explores decades of sexual-assault and trafficking allegations against Sean “Diddy” Combs and premieres December 2, 2025. (Photo courtesy of Netflix)

When 50 Cent trolls, it’s entertainment. When he warns, it’s prophecy. And this time, Curtis Jackson wasn’t joking.

The Queens mogul’s long war of words with Sean “Diddy” Combs has exploded into something bigger — a global event. Netflix just dropped the trailer for “Sean Combs: The Reckoning,” the four-part documentary executive-produced by 50 Cent and directed by Emmy nominee Alex Stapleton, set to premiere December 2, 2025. It’s the project nobody in hip-hop wanted to touch — until now.

“They said I was capping 🤷 What happened?” 50 wrote on Instagram after posting the teaser. The clip opens with a voice, low and final: “You can’t continue to keep hurting people, and nothing ever happens.” Then the screen cuts to black, stamped with 50’s calling card — “GLG 🚦 GreenLightGang 🎥 G-Unit Film & TV.”

The message landed like a gavel. For years, 50 and Diddy have traded public jabs — one man the corporate kingpin of the “All About the Benjamins” era, the other a bulletproof hustler who built an empire off instincts and smoke. But what started as an ego clash has now turned into one of hip-hop’s most consequential reckonings.

The series pulls back decades of headlines, lawsuits, and whispers around Diddy’s rise — from “No Way Out” and Bad Boy’s platinum run to Cîroc, Revolt TV, and the empire that once made him untouchable. Netflix’s synopsis calls it a “complex human story spanning decades,” but the timing says more than the tagline ever could. The streaming giant announced “The Reckoning” just a week after Combs’ 2024 arrest on federal charges of racketeering, sex trafficking, and transporting individuals for prostitution.

50 Cent had been teasing this moment since December 2023, when he first revealed plans to produce a documentary on the mounting allegations, pledging to donate proceeds to sexual-assault victims. At the time, many thought it was just another viral 50 stunt. By the fall of 2024 — after raids, indictments, and settlements — nobody was laughing.

In a joint statement, 50 and Stapleton said their mission was to “give a voice to the voiceless and present authentic and nuanced perspectives,” while reminding viewers that Combs’ story “is not the full story of hip-hop and its culture.” It’s a take that shows how carefully this project is walking the line — a film that both calls out individual power and protects the broader culture it came from.

The rivalry itself is pure hip-hop mythology — born in the early 2000s, when 50 accused Diddy of exploiting artists and disrespecting the streets that made him. For years, their feud simmered through cryptic interviews and social media. When the lawsuits hit, 50 shifted from jokes to journalism, posting court filings and clips like he was running his own newsroom. His followers called it obsession; now it looks like documentation.

Alex Stapleton’s direction adds weight to the production. Known for “Reggie” and “Black Hollywood: They’ve Gotta Have Us,” she approaches the story like an autopsy of fame and silence — combining survivor testimonies with archival footage and insider accounts from inside Diddy’s once-impenetrable circle. Netflix insiders describe “The Reckoning” as “methodical, not messy” — a rare attempt to dissect power without glorifying it.

When the trailer hit social media, hip-hop stopped scrolling. Within hours, 50’s post hit six figures in likes. Comments split between applause and disbelief — some called it overdue justice, others called it opportunism. But either way, the same name dominated the feed: Diddy.

Fifty Cent’s greatest gift has always been timing — and this time, his timing might have changed the course of hip-hop’s accountability era. The streets remember the shine, the suits, the whispers, and the silence. Now, with “The Reckoning” set to stream worldwide, it’s all coming back under lights no bottle service can dim.

Watch the full teaser below:

Travis Scott’s ‘Circus Maximus’ Becomes the Highest-Grossing Solo Rap Tour Ever

Travis Scott performs onstage during his “Circus Maximus” World Tour. The record-breaking global trek grossed more than $265 million across six continents, making it the highest-grossing solo rap tour in history, according to Live Nation. (Photo courtesy of Travis Scott / Cactus Jack)

Travis Scott has closed the loop on a story few artists could survive.

The Houston rapper ended his globe-spanning “Circus Maximus” World Tour on Nov. 19 with a stadium blowout in Mumbai, India before more than 40,000 fans — the finale to a two-year run that’s now the highest-grossing solo rap tour in history, according to Live Nation and Billboard Boxscore.

By the numbers, the achievement is staggering: more than 2.2 million tickets sold, $265 million grossed, and stops on six continents from South Africa to Seoul. But behind the victory lap lies a harder question — what does triumph look like for an artist whose brand was once synonymous with chaos?

Scott’s partnership with Live Nation, the same promoter behind the 2021 “Astroworld Festival” that ended in tragedy, has quietly become one of the most scrutinized second acts in music history. After years of investigations, lawsuits, and public backlash, both sides were under pressure to prove that the artist and the infrastructure could coexist safely again. So far, they have. Eighty shows, no major incidents — and a narrative that’s shifted from controversy to control.

Still, Scott’s tour wasn’t without unease. The scale itself — a rotating stage, fire bursts, 475 performances of “FE!N,” and crowds topping 100,000 across India — rekindled memories of the dangerous synergy between fandom and frenzy that once defined his shows. The difference this time was choreography, not chaos. Stadiums were carefully engineered, capacity managed, and cameras tracked nearly every surge.

Fueled by his 2023 album “Utopia,” the production played like a global reboot of Scott’s mythology: part redemption arc, part empire expansion. The trek began in North America before spilling into Europe, Asia, Latin America, and the Middle East — bringing the rage, but also restraint, to audiences that had only watched it unfold online.

There were no public apologies built into this run, no explicit reckonings — just bigger venues, tighter logistics, and a setlist that reminded fans why his stage power was so coveted in the first place. At his best, Scott turned arena rap into cinematic theater. At his worst, he reminded everyone how thin the line between spectacle and catastrophe can be.

In Mumbai, as fireworks closed out the final show, Scott stood as both symbol and survivor — a Houston artist who turned a near career-ending disaster into an unprecedented global haul. Whether “Circus Maximus” represents redemption or simply reinvention depends on who’s watching.

Jimmy Cliff, the Voice Who Carried Jamaica to the World, Dies at 81

Jimmy Cliff performs at the 2012 Raggamuffin Music Festival in New Zealand. (Photo by Eva Rinaldi / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 2.0.)

Before Bob Marley — before global playlists turned “One Love” into a slogan — there was Jimmy Cliff, the voice that made the world stop and listen to Jamaica. He carried Kingston’s hunger, rhythm and pride onto movie screens and record players everywhere with “The Harder They Come,” the 1972 cult classic that didn’t just soundtrack a movement, it invented one. Cliff died Monday at 81 from a seizure followed by pneumonia, his family confirmed.

“To all his fans around the world, please know that your support was his strength throughout his whole career,” his wife, Latifa Cliff, wrote on his official page, thanking friends, artists and the doctors who cared for him. “Jimmy, my darling, may you rest in peace.”

Cliff was the sound of rebellion turned spiritual. Born James Chambers in rural St. James Parish, he came up through Kingston’s rough, brilliant scene in the early ’60s, recording ska sides before reggae even had a name. By the time he crossed the Atlantic to the U.K., his writing — “Many Rivers to Cross,” “You Can Get It If You Really Want,” “Vietnam” — was already global protest music: hopeful, unbowed and honest about pain.

Then came “The Harder They Come.”

In Perry Henzell’s film, Cliff played Ivan Martin, the poor dreamer who cuts a record, gets cheated and turns outlaw when the system boxes him in. The movie’s grit, humor and tragic swagger mirrored Jamaica’s post-independence struggle and pushed reggae from local rhythm to international statement. Every artist who’s ever rapped, sung or filmed about hustle and betrayal owes something to it.

The film’s story — ambition, betrayal and survival against a rigged system — would later echo through hip-hop, the kind of hustler narrative artists from Jay-Z to Nas would identify with. Its soundtrack remains a cornerstone of global Black storytelling: defiant, spiritual, cinematic.

I don’t know if it’s possible for someone to be more alive than Jimmy Cliff is in this clip from The Harder They Come. I don’t think I can put into words what this whole record means to me. It’s overwhelming in so many ways, his positivity in the face of sadness… his incredible… pic.twitter.com/oHDG7Bb4bn

— Benny safdie (@benny_safdie) November 24, 2025

Film director Benny Safdie captured that energy perfectly in a post Monday: “I don’t know if it’s possible for someone to be more alive than Jimmy Cliff is in this clip from ‘The Harder They Come,’” he wrote. “His positivity in the face of sadness… his incredible performance here. He’s still here! JIMMY CLIFF.”

Cliff never chased Marley’s saintly myth; he stayed the restless craftsman. His 2012 album “Rebirth” — which earned him a Grammy and a Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction — sounded like a man circling back to first principles. “One has to go back to point zero to move forward again,” he told NPR that year, recording with the same live-band energy that birthed reggae itself.

Tributes poured in across the music world. Trojan Records called him “a true pioneer whose songs and spirit helped carry reggae across the world.” UB40 said he’d “finally crossed over the last river.” On social media, messages from African and Caribbean artists hailed him as a revolutionary who used melody as protest and rhythm as hope.

From Kingston’s studios to Burkina Faso’s revolutionary stages, where he once performed at the invitation of Thomas Sankara, Cliff’s voice became a vessel for resistance, unity and joy. Few artists balanced defiance and grace so completely.

Jimmy Cliff is survived by his wife, Latifa, and their children, Lilty and Aken. Further memorial details are expected.

Judge Sentences Fugees Founder Pras Michel to 14 Years in Federal Case

MiamiFilmFestival, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Prakazrel “Pras” Michel, the Grammy-winning rapper and founding member of the Fugees, was sentenced Thursday to 14 years in federal prison, closing a years-long foreign influence case that prosecutors said represented one of the most brazen political donation schemes in modern U.S. history. Michel, 53, stood silently as U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly delivered the sentence in a Washington, D.C. courtroom.

A federal jury convicted Michel in April 2023 of 10 counts, including conspiracy, acting as an unregistered agent of a foreign government, witness tampering and submitting false statements. According to prosecutors, Michel funneled millions from Malaysian financier Low Taek Jho — the fugitive behind the 1MDB scandal — into Barack Obama’s 2012 reelection campaign through a network of straw donors. Prosecutors said Michel later attempted to interfere with a Justice Department investigation into Low and lied repeatedly during the course of the scheme.

Federal sentencing guidelines recommended a life term. In their filing, prosecutors wrote that Michel “betrayed his country for money” and “lied unapologetically and unrelentingly to carry out his schemes.” They argued, “His sentence should reflect the breadth and depth of his crimes, his indifference to the risks to his country, and the magnitude of his greed.”

Michel’s attorneys called the 14-year punishment excessive. Defense lawyer Peter Zeidenberg told reporters the sentence was “completely disproportionate to the offense,” reiterating the team’s position that a life recommendation was “absurdly high” and normally reserved for terrorists or cartel leaders. In a sentencing memo, they wrote that the government’s stance “would cause Inspector Javert to recoil” and illustrated how federal guidelines “can be manipulated to produce absurd results.” Michel plans to appeal.

Michel’s trial drew national attention, in part because of witnesses such as Leonardo DiCaprio — who testified about Low’s involvement in financing the film “The Wolf of Wall Street” — and former Attorney General Jeff Sessions. Low, who has lived in China since fleeing charges in the United States, maintains his innocence.

Prosecutors said Michel obtained more than $120 million from Low and routed a portion of it into Obama’s campaign. They also said Michel attempted to influence the government’s investigation into Low and tampered with witnesses to obstruct the case. His attorneys argued that Low’s goal was less sinister, writing that Low simply “wanted to obtain a photograph with himself and then-President Obama.”

Michel’s legal troubles have unfolded alongside a long and complicated legacy. As one-third of the Fugees — alongside Lauryn Hill and Wyclef Jean — Michel helped define an era in hip-hop that blended Caribbean roots, political consciousness and mainstream success. The trio sold tens of millions of albums and earned two Grammy Awards, becoming one of the most influential groups of the 1990s.

The current case, however, has overshadowed Michel’s musical legacy. In August 2024, Judge Kollar-Kotelly denied Michel’s request for a new trial, rejecting his claim that his attorney’s use of a generative AI program during closing arguments constituted ineffective assistance of counsel. The judge wrote that, even if “ill-advised,” the AI usage and other alleged errors did not amount to a miscarriage of justice.

Michel, dressed in a suit, declined to speak during sentencing. He was taken into custody immediately after the hearing.

The sentence ends a remarkable fall for an artist once positioned at the center of one of hip-hop’s most celebrated groups. It now places Michel among the highest-profile musicians convicted in a federal influence case, closing a chapter that has stretched across more than a decade and leaving the future of his public life uncertain as he prepares to begin a lengthy prison term.

B2K to Reunite After Two Decades for National Tour With Bow Wow

Official poster for the “Boys 4 Life” Tour, the 28-city 2026 run produced by the Black Promoters Collective and headlined by B2K and Bow Wow. The tour begins Feb. 12, 2026, and features Amerie, Jeremih, Waka Flocka Flame, Yung Joc, Crime Mob, Dem Franchize Boyz and Pretty Ricky. (Image courtesy of Black Promoters Collective)

B2K will reunite for its first nationwide tour in more than two decades, a return that brings the group behind “Bump, Bump, Bump” — one of early-2000s R&B’s definitive hits — back into the spotlight after years marked by commercial triumph, internal conflict and public distance. The announcement arrives as part of the upcoming “Boys 4 Life” Tour with Bow Wow, reconnecting two acts whose ascents helped shape a formative chapter in millennial pop culture.

For fans who remember the group debuting with two albums in the same year, topping the Billboard 200 in early 2003 and igniting the hysteria of the Scream Tour era, the news reads not just as a reunion but as a re-entry into unfinished history. B2K’s run was brief — a two-year burst from 2002 to 2004 — but its impact reverberated far beyond its lifespan. Their polished harmonies, precision choreography and youth-centered R&B helped define the sonic and visual identity of the period. Their leading roles in “You Got Served” brought that blueprint to a wider audience, cementing the group as both chart staples and cultural touchstones.

The group’s dissolution was as public as its rise. In January 2004, their label, T.U.G. Entertainment, announced that Omarion would continue as a solo artist while B2K disbanded — a decision later complicated by disputes over management, finances and personal fallouts among members. Over the years, the fractured dynamics played out in interviews, social media exchanges and reality television, reinforcing the perception that a full reunion was unlikely.

That perception shifted in June 2025, when Omarion, J-Boog, Lil Fizz and Raz-B made an unexpected joint appearance at the BET Awards. Though the moment lasted only seconds, it was the first time all four had stood together publicly in years, immediately triggering speculation about whether their long-running divisions had finally begun to ease. The brief reunion circulated widely and reopened conversations about their legacy. Omarion later referenced the chemistry the group once had in a short Instagram clip, saying, “There was a certain level of authenticity that we all had. So in a way, we’re completing it.”

Bow Wow’s participation connects the tour to another central figure of the same era. Signed by Snoop Dogg as a child and mentored by Jermaine Dupri, Bow Wow’s debut album Beware of Dog went platinum before he reached high school. Over the next decade, he delivered seven No. 1 singles, sold more than 10 million albums and built a parallel acting career that included “Like Mike” (2002), “Roll Bounce” (2005) and “The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift” (2006). His tenure as host of BET’s 106 & Park solidified his role within youth-driven hip-hop culture.

The tour will open Feb. 12, 2026, in Columbia, S.C., with stops in Atlanta, Chicago, Los Angeles, Houston, Philadelphia, Brooklyn and Washington, D.C., before closing April 19 in Hampton, Va. The lineup features Amerie, Jeremih, Waka Flocka Flame, Yung Joc, Crime Mob, Dem Franchize Boyz and special guests Pretty Ricky.

Both B2K and Bow Wow are expected to release new albums in February through BPC Music Group. The releases coincide with the tour calendar and mark a formal return to recording for both acts.