NEWS
On July 25, GloRilla returned to Memphis not just as a rising star, but as the city’s new cultural cornerstone.
The inaugural Glo Bash at a sold-out FedExForum, the 26-year-old rapper turned her birthday into a full-scale hometown celebration. A spectacle of defiance, pride, and Southern rap supremacy.
The event revived a tradition cemented by her CMG label boss and mentor Yo Gotti, whose Birthday Bash concerts once defined the Memphis summer. From local theaters to sold-out arenas, Gotti’s annual shows united generations of Southern hip-hop fans. His retirement from the stage in 2022 left space for a new torchbearer—one GloRilla has stepped into with conviction.
The lead-up to Glo Bash wasn’t without headlines. Just days before the show, the rapper—born Gloria Hallelujah Woods—was arrested on felony drug charges in Georgia after police responding to a break-in at her Atlanta-area home allegedly found a large stash of marijuana.
But instead of shrinking from the attention, she capitalized on it. At the concert, fans snapped up limited-edition merch featuring her mugshot, flipping controversy into branding with savvy irreverence.
The show itself was pure theater. Opening with a biographical short film, GloRilla rose from a two-story platform in a black-and-gold ensemble, her energy electric from the first bar. Over the course of 20-plus songs, she delivered a performance as sharp as it was celebratory, commanding the stage with a mix of grit and charisma.
A parade of high-profile guests turned the concert into a Southern rap summit. Kodak Black, Rob49, and BossMan Dlow brought raw intensity. Muni Long slowed the pace with a duet on “Don’t Deserve.” Sexyy Red ignited a frenzy with “Whatchu Kno About Me,” while Big Boogie and Moneybagg Yo anchored key moments with Memphis pride. In the finale, Yo Gotti emerged for a blistering rendition of “Pull Up,” passing the torch in real time to his most dynamic protégé.
Glo Bash wasn’t just a birthday concert—it was a coronation. In a city that birthed legends, GloRilla now commands the main stage. Her voice is bold, her vision clear, and her moment is now.
NEWS
Oliver Tree’s team has provided a new update following the singer’s death in a helicopter crash on June 14, confirming that a new artist grant will soon be established in his memory to help creatives secure funding, a plan he had detailed in his will before his passing.
Accompanying a collection of photos highlighting Tree’s performances, travels and creative work through the years, a post shared Sunday (June 21) on his Instagram account revealed that the musician’s remains have been brought back to California, the state he called home and where he will be laid to rest. “His legacy will live on through his foundation/endowment named ‘Dr. Oliver Tree’s Extremely Epic Grant For Baby Geniuses’ coming soon,” the caption reads. “This is something that Oliver had put together before his passing.”
“We will make sure his wish comes to fruition so that more joy, love and art can be spread into the world, that was his final wish,” the statement continued, adding that “the constant love, support and positivity” shown by fans throughout the past week has helped his “family, friends and collaborators make it through these extremely difficult times.”
Tree was among six people who lost their lives in a helicopter collision in Rio de Janeiro. The musician was in Brazil for his The World’s First Tour run and had performed what would ultimately be his final concert on June 6 in São Paulo. The other victims of the crash were identified as passengers Lucas Vignale, Gaspar Prim and Lucas Brito Chaves, along with pilots Alexandre Souza and Charles Marsillac.
Just months before his death, Tree discussed his plans to direct his fortune and future earnings from his music toward a grant program for artists during an appearance on the Zach Sang Show. “I take no credit for anything I’ve ever done,” he said during the April interview. “Furthermore, I don’t believe that any of the wealth or things that get made from it is mine. So when I die … my will is set up so that when I pass, my family, nobody is going to get a penny.”
“If I have a wife or kids or anything, they’re not getting a penny,” he added at the time, explaining that the initiative would focus on helping artists create work rather than funding education. “I’ll get my kids through college, that’s the agreement, but there’s not gonna be a silver spoon. All the money is going to go back to artists.”
