Before he famously became the father of a dozen children, Nick Cannon was a dad to only the two kids he shares with superstar ex-wife Mariah Carey. But according to the actor, late friend Quincy Jones always knew that more kids were in his future. 

In a Vulture cover story published Tuesday (July 15), Cannon reflected on a few words of wisdom that the iconic producer passed on to him after they met in 2007 on the set of Nick Cannon’s Star Camp, on which Jones served as a mentor. “He used to talk to me when I only had two kids, and it was just me and Mariah,” began the Masked Singer host, who shares 14-year-old twins Moroccan and Monroe with Carey.

“He’s like, ‘Yeah, that’s light work. You going to get tired of that soon,’” Cannon continued of Jones. “And I was like, ‘What do you mean? … I got an amazing wife who’s my dream girl!’”

According to the Drumline star, Jones replied, “I know your kind … You’re cut from the same cloth as me.”

The 28-time Grammy winner, who had seven kids of his own before dying at the age of 91 last November, would later become something of a blueprint for Cannon. “People ask, ‘Why you got 12 jobs?’ Because I’ve got 12 kids!” Cannon told the publication, citing how Jones reportedly left each of his children large inheritances. “I was like, ‘He did it right.’”

Cannon was married to Carey from 2008 to 2016, and they had their son and daughter in 2011. Following their split, the comedian would welcome 10 more kids with five other women. He shares Golden Sagon, Powerful Queen and Rise Messiah with Brittany Bell; Zion Mixolydian, Zillion Heir and Beautiful Zeppelin with Abby De La Rosa; Zen and Halo Marie with Alyssa Scott; Legendary Love with Bre Tiesi; and Onyx Ice with LaNisha Cole.

The Wild ‘n Out star has since said that he isn’t actively looking to father more babies — but, as he told Vulture, “I never say ‘never.’”

“I always say people have so many different opinions about my parenting and who I am as a father, but one thing I know is that whatever my children want to do, I can help cultivate and amplify,” he added to the publication. “It’s maybe not the traditional or conventional way of parenting. Everybody else says, ‘There’s no way he could spend all the time with them kids and be present for all them kids.’ But I’m doing my best, and where I fall short, hopefully the things that I do have that bring me an advantage, I can lend to them.”

See Cannon on the cover of Vulture below.

A fundraiser has been launched for JD Twitch, one half of the beloved Scottish DJ duo Optimo (Espacio) following his reveal of a terminal brain cancer diagnosis earlier this month.

The duo’s official Instagram account posted about the fundraiser on Tuesday (July 15) with a message from his wife, Marissa. “After so many kind messages from friends and fans around the world asking how to help, we are launching a Crowdfunder to support Keith’s urgent care needs,” she wrote, providing a link to the page where fans can donate.

The Crowdfunder page for the artist born Keith McIvor notes that “professional second opinions about Keith’s diagnosis have been sought, and while suggestions for medical interventions or alternative therapies have been gratefully received, it’s important to stress how advanced, inoperable and untreatable this particular tumor is — and that we can’t be raising false hopes.”

The statement continues by saying that McIvor “now requires 24-hour nursing care. His condition has affected his speech, his mobility and his independence. While he’s managed to take a few supported steps, he’s extremely vulnerable and needs constant assistance to do so safely. Referral by the NHS to a hospice in Glasgow would make everything much simpler. However, his symptoms are not currently advanced or severe enough to justify a successful referral, nor is it easy to predict when this might be the case.”

The Crowdfunder has already raised £61,630 (approximately $82,500). Money raised will prioritize private residential nursing care, additional support services and ongoing transport and palliative care needs.

The fundraiser follows McIvor’s announcement earlier this month that he’d been diagnosed with glioblastoma, the most common and aggressive type of malignant brain tumor experienced by adults.

In a July 3 statement on Instagram, the artist wrote that his symptoms “weren’t immediately diagnosed, and my health declined very quickly over just a few weeks.” He went on to thank “everyone who has supported me throughout my journey in music, from the early days of Pure in Edinburgh in the ’90s and through the past 28 years of Optimo (Espacio). Jonnie and I have been lucky enough to play out music at countless clubs and festivals throughout the world, and it has been one of the greatest honors of my life to make a career out of something I love. We have connected with so many beautiful souls through our shared passion for music.”

Optimo (Espacio) is revered around the world for incredibly selected and often soaring sets played at clubs and festivals across continents. The pair, JD Twitch and JG (Jonnie) Wilkes originated in their hometown of Glasgow and have continued ongoing club nights in the city. McIvor’s statement continues to say that “I trust Jonnie implicitly to continue Optimo (Espacio). I know he will carry it forward with the same spirit and passion we always shared showing you, as ever, just how much we ‘love your ears.’”

After more than 12 years working together, Colombian superstar Maluma and marquee manager Walter Kolm and his team at WK Entertainment have terminated their managerial relationship. 

The split, confirmed exclusively to Billboard and expected to be announced today (July 15) was amicable, and puts an end to one of the most successful and stable artist-manager relationships in Latin music in recent years.

“I can only be thankful for so many special moments together, both inside and out of the industry,” Maluma (real name Juan Luis Londoño) said in a statement. “Looking back to the first minute that we started working together, I wouldn’t change a thing. On the contrary, together we showed that the sky is the limit and we accomplished the unimaginable. Today is the end of a professional cycle, but also the beginning of new opportunities for both of us. Our personal relationship remains intact, and like I always have, I wish only the best for him and his team.”

He added, “Thank you, Walter, for your passion and dedication during these years. I love you, thank you and appreciate you.”

The singer told Billboard that he does not have new management and is “building a new team with new ideas. I want to give myself space and I’m focused on making new music, from my heart.”

Kolm signed Maluma in 2013, when the then-19-year-old was still largely unknown outside Colombia — but he immediately recognized the young artist’s star potential.

“From that very moment I knew he had something special and seeing him become who he is today has been one of the proudest moments of my life,” said Kolm in a statement.

Now, he added,  “After many years of building a shared dream side by side, my time as Maluma’s manager comes to an end. Together we broke records, traversed borders and redefined what it means to be a global Latin artist. From his early days in Medellín to selling out international stages, every step has been an act of love, faith and total dedication. I’m very proud of you, Juancho. You are a superstar and even though our professional relationship ends, our personal one remains intact because I’m a second father to you and will always be here for you.”

Maluma would go on to become one of Latin music’s biggest global stars, grazing the cover of Billboard three times: once with Shakira, another with Jennifer López and another alone. He was the first artist to top Billboard’s Global Excl. U.S. chart when it launched in 2020, with “Hawái” and he became the face of multiple global brands, including Hugo Boss.

Although Maluma and Kolm are no longer artist and manager, the two still have projects together, including an upcoming tour in Mexico that’s slated to kick off in August and includes three dates in Mexico City’s Palacio de los Deportes. Those dates are the follow-up to Maluma’s 12-city European arena tour, which included three sold-out nights at Madrid’s Wizink Center.

Now, says Maluma, he’s focused on releasing new music. “I’m excited about starting a new chapter. I have incredible songs and collaborations,” he told Billboard. A new single, “Bronceado,” is due July 17.  Maluma will also continue to helm his label, Royalty Records, whose roster includes rising star Maisak.

On his end, Kolm this year expanded his roster of artists, signing música mexicana star Xavi and, most recently, Colombian pop/rockers Morat. They join a group of stars that includes Argentine pop star Emilia, Colombian icon Carlos Vives, Puerto Rican legend Wisin and Prince Royce.

Kolm, who was Billboard’s 2018 Latin Executive of the Year, is widely viewed as one of Latin music’s most successful managers. He is also the founder of WK Records, whose roster includes Ryan Castro.

It’s no ordinary day when one of the biggest rappers in the world calls you out, but Alex Warren is taking Drake‘s recent diss in stride.

In response to Drizzy’s comments about the TikToker’s smash hit “Ordinary” blocking the former’s “What Did I Miss?” from debuting at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 this week, Warren posted a tongue-in-cheek video of himself Monday (July 14) on Instagram Stories. In the clip, he dances along to Drake’s “Nokia,” staring innocently into the camera as he shakes his hips to the lyrics, “Baby girl/ Let me see you do your dance, let me see you twirl.” 

In lieu of a caption, Warren simply tagged Drake’s username. “Nokia” also happens to have never reached No. 1 on the Hot 100, debuting at No. 10 in March before eventually climbing to No. 2 the following month.

Warren’s response comes shortly after the Canadian superstar expressed his disappointment with debuting at No. 2 on the Hot 100 chart dated July 19. On his Story, Drake wrote earlier on Monday, “Suppressor on the 1 spot.”

“I’m taking that soon don’t worry one song or another,” he added at the time, sharing a graphic of the U.S. chart’s top 10, which showed “What Did I Miss?” sitting just below Warren’s “Ordinary” at No. 1.

Though Drake may not be happy with the position of “What Did I Miss?” on the charts this week, the track still earned him a record-extending 81st top 10 hit on the Hot 100. He also now has 359 total entries on the ranking, more than any other artist in history.

Plus, “Ordinary” has proven pretty hard to beat. Warren’s breakthrough hit has spent a total of six weeks in the top spot, dethroned only temporarily by Sabrina Carpenter’s “Manchild” spending one week at No. 1 in late June.

Warren is currently fresh off the release of “On My Mind” with ROSÉ, which followed his Jelly Roll duet, “Bloodline.” Both tracks will appear on Warren’s new album, You’ll Be Alright, Kid, which drops Friday (July 18).

David Kaff, a British musician and actor best known for playing keyboardist Viv Savage in the classic 1984 musical mockumentary This Is Spinal Tap has died at 79. The news was announced by Kaff’s bandmates in the metal group Mutual of Alameda’s Wild Kingdom on Sunday (July 13), who wrote on Facebook, “Our brother David Kaffinetti passed away peacefully in his sleep yesterday. We are devastated by this event. David always had a kind word and a quick wit that would slay you where you stand. Then he’d make you smile doing it! RIP dear brother.”

Kaff was born David Kaffinetti on April 17, 1946 in the coastal town of Folkenstone in Kent, England and studied classical piano as a child before pivoting to rock in his teens and co-founding the prog rock group Rare Bird. The band was signed to former journalist Tony Stratton Smith’s Charisma Records — home to Genesis, Peter Gabriel, prog legends Hawkwind and the comedy troupe Monty Python — and released five albums on the label between 1969 and 1974, scoring one U.K. singles chart hit with 1970’s moody “Sympathy.”

Though he started out as a serious musician, Kaff made his biggest mark in director Rob Reiner’s beloved send-up of rock pomposity.

Appearing in the satirical film alongside stars and co-writers Christopher Guest, Michael McKean and Harry Shearer, Kaff played dopey keyboardist Viv Savage, whose most memorable line comes in the movie’s credits when director Marty DiBergi (Reiner) asks for his philosophy of life. “Have a good time… all the time,” Savage says with a crooked smile of his party-all-the-time credo.

Despite his limited screen time, Kaff got off a number of pithy one-liners in the film that gave fans such iconic bits as an amp that “goes to 11” and the announcement that Tap’s drummer died in a “bizarre gardening accident.” Among them is a scene when the band is billed beneath a puppet act at an amusement park and guitarist David St. Hubins (McKean) asks if Viv can play bandmate Nigel Tufnel’s (Guest) bass line from the group’s legendary triple-bass hit “Big Bottom,” the keyboardist deadpans, “yeah, I got two hands, yeah, I can do it.”

Though according to Rolling Stone, Kaff is not expected to appear in the upcoming sequel, Spinal Tap II: The End Continues (Sept. 12), he continued his Tap association over the years by appearing with the group on Saturday Night Live in 1984 and filming a comedic 1990 PSA for the hearing loss group H.E.A.R. (Hearing Education Awareness for Rockers). “Viv Savage of the band Spinal Tap speaks out on hearing loss,” a voiceover says, as Kaff’s Savage cluelessly asks, “what?”

In an 1991 interview with BAM, Kaff said, “I have a great affection for Viv… I played him very close to my heart… just a little dimmer. If people like that character, chances are they’ll like me.” Noting how much fans loved his character, he said they would often write him letters addressed to Viv.

He also described joining the short-lived supergroup Natural Gas with Badfinger guitarist Joey Molland and Humble Pie drummer Jerry Shirley and moving to California before getting fired just after the band completed the demo tape that landed them a record deal. He later played piano on Chuck Berry’s 1972 The London Chuck Berry Sessions and wrote songs with the British group Marillion before joining the Oakland rock band Model Citizenz in the 1990s.

Check out “Sympathy” below.