Cardi B
Flo NgalaCardi B recently addressed why she stopped being so vocal about politics on social media.
On Thursday, a Twitter user directly questioned Cardi about why the rapper, who has been a common target of many conservative Republication politicians and commentators and was never shy about taking shots back, stopped using her platform to talk politics. "@iamcardib Used to TALK ABOUT POLITICS & POLITICAL MATTERS! WHAT HAPPENED WITH THAT ?!??"
"I was tired of getting bullied by the republicans and also getting bashed by the same people I was standing up for," she responded.
The 29-year-old MC received a lot of flak when she released her sexually explicit Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 "WAP" collaboration with Megan Thee Stallion. And Cardi aptly described the song as "the one that had Republicans crying on Fox News about it." Ben Shapiro read the uncomfortably censored lyrics on his own show shortly after the single dropped in August 2020 and sarcastically analyzed what part the song plays in the feminist movement.
And when Cardi interviewed now-President Joe Biden as well as former Democratic candidate Bernie Sanders ahead of the 2020 presidential election, Shapiro brought his fellow conservative commentator Candace Owens onto his show, who claimed the tactics were "pandering" to Black American voters by appealing to their music tastes and later sparked her own political debate with Cardi. The Invasion of Privacy Grammy winner also fired back at former Republican congressional candidate DeAnna Lorraine after she made an unflattering comparison between Cardi and Melania Trump.
In her cover story last year when she was crowned Billboard's Woman of the Year, Cardi reacted to seeing her and Meg's fans sing "WAP" outside the White House the day that Biden's win was announced last fall. "So many Republicans -- not just any Republicans that got an Instagram following, but a lot of Republicans that got blue checks [on Twitter] and millions of followers, [like Ben] Shapiro, Candace Owens, Tomi Lahren -- were talking so much crap about 'WAP,'" she said at the time. "So it was just a victory for me seeing people celebrating Biden’s win with my and Megan’s song. Power of the p---y, ya heard?!"
Cardi also opened up about how she wasn't just "bullied by the republications" but also harassed by Trump supporters during an Instagram Live video, to the point where one teenage boy tried doxing her home. "They be degrading me. They be making fun of me. I ignore them. I don't give a f---," she said. "Sh-- gets so intense that a Trump supporter posted my address and encouraged people to dox my home, to put my house on fire. I literally hired a private investigator, and serve them with a warrant and arrest this boy."
Faith No More appear to be hinting at a return to the stage in 2027.
The influential alt-metal band have remained mostly quiet over the past decade following the release of their reunion album ‘Sol Invictus’ in 2015. After its arrival, they played what would become their most recent live performances in 2016 and later called off several touring plans in the years that followed.
Now, however, they seem to be preparing fans for something new. The group recently shared an image of a concert crowd on social media with nothing more than the text “2027” placed across it.
No additional information accompanied the post, but it quickly sparked speculation among fans, many of whom believe a full scale tour announcement could be coming next year.
After wrapping up their 2016 run of shows, the band intended to return to the road in 2020. Those plans were ultimately abandoned because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Further touring plans surfaced in 2021 as venues began reopening, but those dates were also cancelled before they could begin. Frontman Mike Patton later explained that mental health struggles were behind the decision and revealed he had been diagnosed with agoraphobia during the pandemic.
Until recently, a reunion seemed unlikely. Patton spoke about Faith No More’s lengthy break and said that he did not “see it as a sad thing”.
Speaking on the Kyle Meredith With… podcast and reflecting on whether he felt a “sense of closure” after the 2016 tour, the vocalist said: “I didn’t really think so at the time, but, yeah, maybe. I think that we all kind of felt it, but it was unspoken.”
“It’s funny: when you’ve been in a band or a musical situation for a period of time, you always, in the back of your head, you’re kind of thinking, ‘Well, maybe this is it.’ And I don’t mind that feeling,” he added. “I don’t see it as a sad thing. I see it as being present and being able to really appreciate it while it’s happening.”
Faith No More have never formally announced a breakup following the cancellation of their 2021 tour, although other members have suggested in recent years that the chances of touring again were uncertain.
Last year, guitarist Roddy Bottum discussed the band's future and admitted they were in a “really weird spot”. “I can’t really tell you what’s going on. I don’t know myself. I get different information from people… and I’m in the band,” he said.
Drummer Mike Bordin echoed similar thoughts last spring, saying that he and some of the other members were willing to perform again, but claimed Patton was “unwilling to do shows with us”.
In addition to leading Faith No More since 1989 after replacing original singer Chuck Mosley, Patton has also been involved with projects including Mr Bungle, Fantômas, and Tomahawk.
Tomahawk recently unveiled plans for their first tour in 13 years, with a series of US dates scheduled for this summer. The run begins in Nashville next month and will also see Patton and his bandmates reunite with longtime labelmates Melvins for the first time since 2003.
Patton has also recently launched his tour with Avett Brothers and teamed up with Jehnny Beth on the new single ‘Look At Me’.
