What The Hell Just Happened In Music This Week?

Snoop Dogg beefed with Iggy Azalea online, Chris Brown shared a conspiracy theory about Ebola, and more.

October 18, 2014

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Snoop Dogg vs. Iggy Azalea? That became a reality this week when the Long Beach legend took shots at the Aussie rapper on Instagram. The two continued their feud throughout the week, with Iggy calling out Snoop for being disingenuous, and Snoop making fun of Iggy with a bunch of memes that played off her appearance. T.I. eventually stepped in to squash the beef between the rappers, which probably should have never occurred in the first place.

Plus, Chris Brown's Ebola conspiracy theory, the BET Hip Hop Awards, new music from Lil Wayne and Young Thug, and tour announcements from Common, Jay Electronica, YG, and A$AP Ferg. Check out all that and more in What The Hell Just Happened In Music This Week?

Chris Brown shared an unpopular theory on the Ebola virus.

Date: October 13

Chris Brown's mother reached out to the family of Thomas Eric Duncan, the first person to die of Ebola in the U.S. last week. According to Brian Curtis, a Dallas-Fort Worth reporter/anchor, Mama Breezy called on behalf of the Brown family to offer help.

Afterward, Brown shared some thoughts on the outbreak on Twitter, which has killed more than 4,000 people, according to the World Health Organization. “I don’t know…But I think this Ebola epidemic is a form of population control. Shit is getting crazy bruh.” After being criticized by followers, he added, “Let me shut my black ass up!” —Lauren Nostro

T.I. released his highly-anticipated album Paperwork.

Date: October 13

T.I. has teamed with iTunes to stream his project, Paperwork. The album boasts the lead singles “About the Money” featuring Young Thug, “No Mediocre” with Iggy Azalea, and the just-released title track with the assistance of Pharrell. Additionally, the album includes feature appearances from Skylar Grey, Usher, Trae Tha Truth, Young Jeezy, Chris Brown, and more. —Zach Frydenlund

Kesha sued longtime producer Dr. Luke for sexual assault and battery.

Date: October 14

Kesha is suing her longtime producer Dr. Luke for sexual assault and battery that, according to the lawsuit, went on for 10 years. The disturbing claims, discovered by TMZ, document years of sexual, physical, emotional, and verbal abuse from the well-known producer towards Kesha which includes a time where he reportedly made her snort something before getting on a plane, and once on the plane, he forced himself on her while she was drugged.

She's asking to be released from her contract with Luke, who she says was a reason behind her well-documented eating disorder, which was first reported on earlier this year. TMZ received the following statement from Kesha's lawyer on the matter:

Kesha's lawyer, Mark Geragos, tells TMZ, “This lawsuit is a wholehearted effort by Kesha to regain control of her music career and her personal freedom after suffering for ten years as a victim of mental manipulation, emotional abuse and an instance of sexual assault at the hands of Dr. Luke.“

Geragos adds, “The facts presented in our lawsuit paint a picture of a man who is controlling and willing to commit horrible acts of abuse in an attempt to intimidate an impressionable, talented, young female artist into submission for his personal gain. Kesha is focused on moving her life and her career beyond this terrible time.“

Dr. Luke is countersuing Kesha for extortion, according to TMZ. In new report, Luke claims that Kesha is lying about her claims of abuse and the she is only doing it to get out of her binding contract with him. He also claims that the whole thing is an extortion scheme from Kesha and her new management team to get out of the deal by spreading false information about him. —Zach Frydenlund

Tyga dropped his Kanye West collaboration "40 Mill" amid label issues.

Date: October 14

Despite recently calling out his label and threatening to leak his own album, Tyga returns to release his new single, “40 Mill,” which is produced by Kanye West. It is worth noting though, that under label on the iTunes link, it says “Last Kings Music” and not “Cash Money Records Inc.” like his previous singles and albums.

During Tyga's Twitter rant, he not only threatened to leak the album, but also replied to a fan that he wasn't going to be on Young Money/Cash Money for very much longer, and based on this song release, it appears that the move may have already been made.

As for the actual record, the song is laced with some very dynamic production from 'Ye that features a menacing sequence of drums and hi-hats, while Tyga raps about not wanting to be famous, but rather rich. Tyga's upcoming project, The Gold Album: 18th Dynasty, is slated to drop in November, but it's unclear if that will stick with his current label situation. —Zach Frydenlund

Common announced plans to tour across the country with Jay Electronica.

Date: October 14

To help continue the promotion for his latest album, Nobody's Smiling, Common announced that he will be embarking on a 12-city tour across the U.S. with Jay Electronica. The tour, which kicks off November 23 in Santa Ana, California, will span through late-November and run into the middle of December, touching down in such cities as Dallas, Houston, New Orleans, Atlanta, Washington D. C., and two New York City dates to wrap up the tour.

The inclusion of Jay Electronica to the tour pretty much makes it a must-attend event, mainly because he rarely tours, and also there is a good chance he and Common will perform the “Kingdom” remix live at the shows. —Zach Frydenlund

The BET Hip Hop Awards took place, which featured some dope cyphers and a special tribute to Michael Brown.

Date: October 15

Another year, another set of cyphers to argue about. The BET Hip Hop Awards are never short of any moments that people talk about online and off. This is mostly due to the cyphers, a segment that takes up much of the event to showcase the forgotten art of free form rapping. This year's awards feature a varied mix of new and established artists, some of them first timers to the annual test of skill.

Last year Kendrick Lamar stunned viewers his freestyle, which had people talking for weeks. Wiz Khalifa and the Taylor Gang, Papoose, Remy Ma headlined this year's cypher along with newcomers Troy Ave, G-Eazy, Logic, and more. The BET Hip Hop Awards also featured some memorable performances, including a special tribute to Michael Brown during Common, Jay Electronica, and Vince Staples performance of "The Kingdom." —Justin Davis

Snoop Dogg and Iggy Azalea got into an online feud.

Date: October 15

The Snoop Dogg and Iggy Azalea “beef” turned into an all out war on social media but now it's thankfully over. It all started when the West Coast legend posted a meme making fun of the Australian rapper on his Instagram. Iggy got upset and shot back on Twitter but rather than apologize Snoop went ahead and put up a few more IG posts disparaging Iggy.

Iggy's boyfriend and Lakers star Nick Young (a.k.a. Swaggy P) got in the mix and took some shots at Snoop on Twitter, only to have Twitter tell him to sit his ass down. Meanwhile, Snoop went on the offensive and posted a series of images and videos directed at Iggy on his Instagram, including one of a white woman sucking an enormous dildo with the caption, "One more. Iggy. Suckn dick. Like the punk bitch she is now post some more shit hoe !! I'm jus Getn started on ya fake wanna b black bitch #wrongnigga2fucwit n yoniggaBetta not say shit." Iggy got on her Twitter once again and wrote a series of tweets to Snoop and seemingly walked away from the situation.

Afterward, Snoop announced that he spoke to T.I. and now the beef is over and he apologizes. So let's all please put this terrible chapter of rap history behind us. —Insanul Ahmed

YG and A$AP Ferg revealed plans for a joint tour.

Date: October 15

YG and A$AP Ferg will be joining forces in November for a quick eight city tour along the Eastern coast of the U.S. and one show in Toronto. The tour, properly titled “BestCoast Connection,” will kick off November 13 in Philadelphia at the Electric Factory and will then make stops in Rhode Island, Maryland, New York, and Michigan before wrapping up in Boston on November 25.

Ferg is currently working on a new Gangsta Grillz mixtape with DJ Drama, while YG is still pushing his critically acclaimed album, My Krazy Life, which he released earlier this year. —Zach Frydenlund

The world finally got to hear the first collaboration between Lil Wayne and Young Thug.

Date: October 16

The anticipated collaboration between Lil Wayne and Young Thug is finally here. The two rappers meet on “Take Kare,” which will serve as the first single from the upcoming Rich Gang 2 album. It's a known fact that Thug has a lot of admiration for Wayne, even expressing his intention to name his first album Tha Carter VI, and the first track between the two is just as we expected. London On Da Track provides a slow, brooding beat for Wayne and Thug to spaz out on.

The two almost sound alike on the song, but Thug steals the show on his second verse. The most interesting takeaway here is how much Wayne sounds stylistically similar to his older self next to Young Thug—bringing back the signature unorthodox raspy delivery that made us (and Thugger) a fan. —Justin Davis