Long Live Michael '5000' Watts 🤘🏾
"Michael Watts, he made me hot, hard work took me to the top"
THE BEAT DROP 🥁
A pulse of the culture.
If you’re reading this, it’s another Sunday at the crib and this week, we’re celebrating the life of Swishahouse co-founder Micahel “5000” Watts and J. Cole’s return before The Fall Off. Also, the Grammys are set to air this evening with Doechii, SZA, Clipse, Tyler, The Creator and Leon Thomas, among others nominated.
Happy Black History Month! ✊🏾
THIS WEEK’S TRACKLIST 💿
The most important news items of the week.
Swishahouse co-founder and Houston legend Michael “5000” Watts passed away on Friday (January 29) at the age of 52.
It’s time for the Grammys! See the full list of nominees here.
J. Cole dropped a mixtape with DJ Clue called Birthday Blizzard ahead of his upcoming album, The Fall Off.
Hit-Boy and Mike Will Made-It’s Verzuz was a musical spectacle with the two production behemoths going hit-for-hit, bringing out friends like Big Sean, Chief Keef and Swae Lee.
Jordan Brand and Teyana Taylor came together for an exclusive Concrete Rose Air Jordan 3 sneaker and they are fire.
Drake signed Pimmie to OVO Sound and she released a new song called “Bet.”
Travis Scott was spotted in the movie trailer for Christopher Nolan’s upcoming film “Odyssey.”
MusiCares celebrated Mariah Carey as Person of the Year for her iconic legacy. Artists such as Jennifer Hudson and Teddy Swims paid homage to the award-winning singer at the event.
The “Joe and Jada” podcast is now on Netflix. Watch here.
Rihanna celebrated 10 years of Anti with a minute-trailer.
BARS OF THE WEEK 🎤
Notable quotes or lyrics that made waves.
“Grown men peddlin' gossip of all things / I remеmber when it was rappin' and ball-playin' / Now the bread and butter is yappin' and parlayin” — J. Cole rapping what it is on “Bronx Zoo Freestyle”
“I was taking heartache medication / Straight shots for the pain, no chasing / Payback's so close, I can taste it” — Swae Lee on “Rockstar Raging”
“Never was worried 'bout bills when they bill a check / Patriot, makin' this paper, then savin' it 'til it's lookin' like it's pages or somethin” — Denzel Curry going crazy on “Lit Effect.”
“Just me here to let yall know my baby daddy got the NUMBER 1 ALBUM!!!” — Rihanna celebrating her man’s album DON’T BE DUMB going No. 1.
“I'm in H-Town, this a hell of a vibe.” — Don Toliver repping his hometown on “ATM.”
“You guys gotta train your ears.” — North West on making more beats following criticism from the critics.
CHART TOPPERS 📈
Notable top-performing rap and R&B tracks on streaming platforms and charts.
A$AP Rocky’s DON’T BE DUMB landed at No. 1 on the Billboard charts. On the Hot 100 “Helicopter” hit No. 24 and “Stay Here 4 Life” hit No. 23.
“Folded” by Kehlani sat at No. 8 on the Hot 100 chart, meanwhile Burna Boy earned his first top 20 hit on the Hot 100 this week for "wgft" with Gunna.
PinkPantheress and Zara Larsson’s “Stateside” reached a new peak of #39 on the Hot 100.
Not to mention, Rihanna’s Anti is the longest charting album by a Black female artist in Billboard 200 history per Chartdata.
SOUND WATCH 🎧
Upcoming releases and recent drops worth noting.
J. Cole dropped a 4-piece mixtape with DJ Clue called Birthday Bizzard “26.”
Don Toliver shared his album Octane.
Swae Lee and Mike WiLL Made-It came together for “Rockstar Raging.”
Denzel Curry, BKTHERULA and Lazer Dim 700 offered the “Lit Effect” off The Scythe’s upcoming project.
Nine Vicious released his long-awaited project B4FN.
fakemink shared 7 tracks on his latest release The Boy who cried Terrified.
Jordan Ward dropped Backward on…Backward Day.
Summrs offered the visual for “YESSA.”
Myaap dropped her music video for “What You Wanna Do.”
Atlanta rising star Zukenee released Zuminati.
xaviersobased released his project Xavier.
OhGeesy and Renz teamed up for the buzzy “Get Loose.”
Benny the Butcher released “Squeeze First” with Grafh.
Dave East and Joyner Lucas linked up for “Traffic.”
Fivio Foreign decided to diss 21 Savage on “Rat Trap.”
Concrete Boys unleashed the monstrous “We’re Back.”
Snot was deep in his “Flow State” for his latest release.
Fredo Bang dropped “Young Ready.”
E-40 delivered “Pesos.”
Lil Yachty and Thundercat tapped in for the jazzy “I Did This To Myself.”
Lelo offered “Dice Roll.”
Babyfxce E came through with “Trackhawk.”
The Game, DJ Drama and Mike & Keys delivered a Gangsta Grillz mixtape.
Bay Area’s Yatta Bandz released the melodic “Memory Lane.”
EJ Jones got BigxThaPlug for the “Gas Station Love” remix.
NLE Choppa released “Shotta Flow 8.”
Bnyx and Kid Cudi came together for the “EVERYWHERE I GO” music video.
Cochise released a fun visual for “Custard.”
DaBaby delivered his album Be More Grateful.
BEHIND THE MUSIC 🎵
Industry news.
Rolling Loud and Pelle Pelle just dropped a limited edition collector's jacket with OsamaSon as the face. You can get it here.
Mass Appeal launched a new platform for fan-driven artists collaboration called Imagine That. Think of your dream collab and submit here.
TOUR BUS 🚌
Concert and festival announcements, tour updates and live performance highlights.
Tickets for A$AP Rocky’s upcoming world tour are on sale now.
Ye was in Mexico this week performing a bunch of his hits and even shared the stage with North West, who took the moment to perform “Piercing On My Hand.”
Ne-Yo and Akon announced their 57-city Night Like This global tour.
Kid Cudi announced his Rebel Ragers Tour and tickets are now available.
FREESTYLE 🎙️
Memes and viral moments.
Ball so hard…
RAP HILL ⚖️
Legal matters affecting the music industry.
Drake appealed the dismissal of his defamation lawsuit against UMG.
Chad Hugo sued Pharrell Williams for unpaid Neptunes royalties.
BIRTHDAYS 🎉
Celebrating artists and industry figures born this week.
Rakim, J. Cole, Kid Cudi, Gorilla Zoe, Anita Baker, Kirk Franklin, Jetsonmade, Angela Davis, Rick Ross, Big Freedia, Anthony Hamilton, Marvin Sapp, Adekunle Gold, Riff Raff, Charlie Wilson, Payroll Giovanni, Philthy Rich, Jody Watley, Jackie Robinson
OUTRO ✌🏽
A final thought.
Houston is like my second home. I really owe it to the city for a lot of what has inspired the motion of my career in the music industry as a journalist. Hearing the news of the passing of Watts has been heartbreaking. Growing up, all I did was listen to my music chopped. Beyond that, The Day Hell Broke Loose and Before Da Kappa are projects that have had a profound influence on my music taste. A lot of popular music has adopted its sound from the underground movement in Houston, and Watts was a significant part of that, so I just wanted to dedicate my first newsletter of 2026 to Watts. 🙏
Nevertheless, once again, Happy Black History Month!