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Lil Wayne Explains How Missy Elliott Was His Biggest Influence

Blame it on Joe Budden, but rappers have started to clue in on the expansion potential that podcasting brings to the table. Now, DJ Khaled has officially tossed his hat into the ring with The First Onehis brand new Amazon Music-exclusive podcast. And while some may wonder what the affable mogul is set to bring to the table, the debut episode kicked off in an appropriately major way thanks to a clutch appearance from the legendary Lil Wayne. 

Lil Wayne Missy Elliott

 Ezra Shaw/Getty Images 

While the entire conversation can be heard on Amazon Music, Wayne took a moment to share an interesting bit of insight regarding one of his formative influences. Taking it back to the early Hot Boys days, Khaled asked Wayne who inspired him the most during the creation of “Block Burner” and “Block Is Hot.” Wayne didn’t hesitate to answer. “Missy Elliott,” he says, his tone decisive. “That was my favorite rapper.” 

“That would be why I was making so many sounds,” he continues, praising one of Missy’s many influential characteristics. “Missy was into the who — brrrrr — the whole heeheeheeHA. And so when Mannie Fresh would get you in the studio, he gon’ remind you ‘hey, you need to throw that ha ha in there.’ I was like ‘man, he want me to do a sound for every damn line!’ And so the ‘Block Burner’ song was my best favorite song because my favorite artist was Missy Elliott.”

He also explains that “The Block Is Hot” was a direct result of “Block Burner.” “I would say ‘the block is hot, the block is hot,’ and Mannie would remind me, ‘you need that ha ha, to throw that in there.’ That’s Mannie Fresh for real, he get’s it. Plain and simple.”

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Snoop Dogg Wants To Pay Someone $10,000 A Month To Eat Ice Cream

Snoop Dogg in Hollywood, California, 2019
Photo: Glenn Francis / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Snoop Dogg has had a lot of job titles over the years, but “official ice cream taster” wasn’t one of them until now — and he’s hiring someone else to fill it. His company Dr. Bombay just opened applications for the role, and it pays $10,000 a month.

The gig is fully remote and open to anyone on the planet, which Snoop announced himself in a video that’s exactly as laid-back as you’d expect. “I love the paper, but not the paperwork,” he said, explaining that HR firm Deel is handling the logistics while he handles, presumably, the ice cream.

The actual job is less “sit around and eat pints all day” and more part-time cultural scout. Whoever gets it will track flavor and food trends around the world, report back on what people are eating and talking about, and work directly with Dr. Bombay’s in-house flavor lead to help shape what the brand does next. It’s a three-month contractor role, and Snoop’s team says they’re actively looking outside the usual resume pile — creators and non-traditional applicants welcome.

Dr. Bombay itself leans nostalgic, with flavors like Long Beach Fruit Cart, Sticky Caramel Apple Pie, and Peanut Butter Jelly Time already sitting on shelves at Walmart and moving through DoorDash and Instacart. Somewhere out there is one very lucky applicant about to get paid five figures a month to have opinions about ice cream, and honestly, good for them.

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Ronan Furlong finds renewal in the sea with latest release “Splitting The Ash”

Ronan Furlong

“Splitting The Ash” opens with a distinctly Celtic riff before Ronan Furlong moves into an energetic song influenced by ideas of healing, rebirth, and spiritual renewal. The title and subject of the song are based on an ancient Irish ritual in which an ash tree is split open, giving the song a strong link to tradition, while its message is firmly rooted in the present: finding strength, renewal, and inspiration when life puts barriers in your way.

The sea is central to the track’s feeling, a symbol of challenge and regeneration. Furlong links his power to the resilience that can develop from exceeding physical boundaries. The song’s backstory lends that notion further weight, penned during a swim in the Irish Sea in January. The music’s context of creation gives it a particularly direct relationship with endurance and the willingness to push beyond discomfort.

“Splitting The Ash” ultimately feels life-affirming but never loses sight of struggle. The Celtic opening of the song gives an immediate sense of place, while its focus on renewal keeps the message open and universal. Ronan Furlong uses an old image of healing to remind us that difficult experiences can also be a source of strength, inspiration, and a renewed connection to life.

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