The 44 Percent: Rolling Loud, Kanye West & one smart 13-year-old
.jpg "A view of the crowd in attendance during the third day of Rolling Loud Miami, an international hip hop festival, at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida, on Sunday, July 25, 2021.")
Welcome to Rolling Loud week.
Just so you know, the biggest hip-hop festival in the world is coming to town, primaries are up ahead on Aug. 23 and there’s lots more going on.
I’m not complaining; just want y’all to know what my world’s looking like. More than that, tell me what’s going on in your world. Any tips and/or feedback on this newsletter would be much appreciated.
Enjoy your Thursday, people.
INSIDE THE 305
Formula One invests $500,000 to help financially support small businesses in Miami Gardens:
Formula One partnered with two local organizations to invest $500,000 in Miami Gardens’ small businesses.
The investment comes two months after the inaugural Miami Grand Prix, an event that divided many Miami Gardens residents.
Courtnee Chun, chief portfolio officer at Formula One’s parent company Liberty Media, told the Herald that the funds are part of the company’s initial promise to be a positive force in the Miami Gardens community.
“We said at the time of securing this race that we wanted to ensure that we left a positive lasting impact on this community and this is an important step,” Chun said. “We look forward to racing here through 2031 so this is definitely a long-term relationship.”
The Herald’s Alexander Lugo broke down the deal:
Formula One is collaborating with the Community Fund of North Miami Dade and the Opa-locka Community Development Corporation to help those organizations provide technical assistance, subsidize interest rates on loans and offer a 10% forgiveness on some loans, said Willie Logan, president of the Opa-Locka Community Development Corporation.
In addition to the $500,000 from Formula One, the Truist Foundation is giving $100,000 to the Formula 1 Miami Gardens Small Business Loan Program.
Kanye West abruptly pulls out of Rolling Loud Miami. His replacement is a former protégé:
Imagine my surprise when I woke up Sunday to the news that Kanye West was no longer performing at Rolling Loud.
The news definitely struck a chord with fans (more on that later) as Ye was arguably the best artist that the Miami-bred festival has ever got. Kid Cudi was subsequently chosen as his replacement.
Ye’s recent track record when it comes to performances has been spotty as of late. He pulled out of Coachella Valley Music and Arts festival in April. Grammy Awards officials also cancelled his set due to his “online behavior,” according to CNN.
Bye-bye turnover chain! It has been fun, but Miami coach Mario Cristobal makes it official:
RIP to the turnover chain.
My favorite part about the Miami Hurricanes over the past five years will be no more after the football program elected to shelve the coveted ornament.
“It’s not part of our culture,” Canes coach Mario Cristobal told @ActionNetworkHQ’s Brett McMurphy.
The Herald’s Susan Miller Degnan has more:
It was pretty obvious that the turnover chain, created in 2017 when Manny Diaz was coach, was not going to be part of the no-nonsense Cristobal style. And when it was reported months ago by rivals.com that Miami offensive line coach Alex Mirabal told then-recruit and now UM offensive line commit Francis Mauigoa that the Canes were not using the chain, it became even clearer. “We got rid of the turnover chains and stuff like that,” Mirabal reportedly told Mauigoa during Miami’s Elite Prospect Day. “We’re here to play football.”“
A quick stat, courtesy of ESPN: since the turnover chain was implemented in 2017, turnovers have gone down every year from 31 to 11 in 2021.
OUTSIDE THE 305
A 13-year-old just got into medical school:
This is quite possibly the best news I’ve heard all week.
Contrary to Alena Analeigh Wicker’s sentiments, she is not a normal 13-year-old.
Wicker already attends both Arizona State University and Oakwood University. If that sounds a bit extraordinary, get this: Wicker just got accepted to University of Alabama’s Heersink School of Medicine for 2024.
“What is age?” said Alena, who lives just outside Fort Worth and is completing most of her courses online. “You’re not too young to do anything. I feel like I have proven to myself that I can do anything that I put my heart and mind to.”
HIGH CULTURE
Rolling Loud just lost its biggest headliner ever. What does this mean for the festival?:
With Ye’s abrupt Rolling Loud exit, I decided to explore whether that loss would affect the brand. The story features interviews with a range of individuals including fans, iHeart Radio hip-hop editor Tony Centeno and Andre Howard, an Warner Music Group executive and music business professor at New York University.
Ye or no Ye, hopefully you got your Rolling Loud tickets. The three-day festival kicks off Friday and has always been a vibe — even if the self-described “most impactful artist of our generation” decided he’s not performing.
Where does “The 44 Percent” name come from? Click here to find out how Miami history influenced the newsletter’s title.
