title: Lake Mead

text: On October 28, 1971 Lake Mead hosted the 1st ever B.A.S.S Bassmaster Classic. This fishing site was a "mystery lake" and the 24 anglers were not told of the location of the tournament until their plane was in the air. The "winner take all" payout of $10,000 was won by Bobby Murray of Arkansas.


title: Lake Mead

text: The "Desert Princess", operated by Lake Mead Cruises, is a three-level paddle wheeler certified by the U.S. Coast Guard to carry 275 passengers. It cruises to the Hoover Dam five days a week.


title: Lake Mead

text: At the bottom of the lake is a Boeing B-29 Superfortress that crashed in 1948 while testing a prototype missile guidance system known as "suntracker".


title: Lake Mead

text: The 2018 novel "Lords of St. Thomas", by Jackson Ellis, tells the story of the last family to vacate the flooded town of St. Thomas in 1938, following construction of the Hoover Dam and creation of Lake Mead.


title: Duff McKagan

text: Michael Andrew "Duff" McKagan (born February 5, 1964), sometimes credited as Duff "Rose" McKagan, is an American musician. He played bass for twelve years in the hard rock band Guns N' Roses, with whom he achieved worldwide success in the late 1980s and early 1990s. McKagan rejoined the band in 2016, following their induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.


title: Duff McKagan

text: Toward the end of his first tenure with Guns N' Roses, McKagan released a solo album, "Believe in Me" (1993), and formed the short-lived supergroup Neurotic Outsiders. Following his departure from Guns N' Roses in 1997, McKagan briefly reunited with his pre-success Seattle punk band 10 Minute Warning, before forming the still-active hard rock band Loaded, in which he performs lead vocals and rhythm guitar. Between 2002 and 2008, he played bass in the supergroup Velvet Revolver with his former Guns N' Roses bandmates Slash and Matt Sorum. He briefly performed with Alice in Chains in 2006, with Jane's Addiction in 2010 and with the supergroup Hollywood Vampires in 2016. He has also collaborated in several short-lived projects with fellow Seattle-native musicians Mike McCready (primarily of Pearl Jam) and Barrett Martin (formerly of Screaming Trees) including Walking Papers and Levee Walkers.


title: Duff McKagan

text: In addition to his musical career, McKagan has established himself as a writer. He has written weekly columns on a wide variety of topics for SeattleWeekly.com, Playboy.com, and ESPN.com. Previously a high school drop-out, he attended Seattle University's Albers School of Business and Economics in the early 2000s, and subsequently founded the wealth management firm Meridian Rock.


title: Duff McKagan

text: Michael Andrew McKagan grew up in Seattle's largely working-class University District, the youngest of eight children born to Marie and Elmer "Mac" McKagan. He has been called "Duff" since toddlerhood, to which he once referred as "an Irish thing". Following his parents' divorce, his mother supported the family by taking a job as a medical stenographer. His brother Bruce taught him how to play bass and he further developed his skills by playing along with the albums "1999" by Prince and "Damaged" by Black Flag. In his autobiography, "It's So Easy (And Other Lies)", McKagan said that he fashioned himself after punk bassists such as Barry Adamson of Magazine and Paul Simonon of the Clash, and also Lemmy Kilmister of Motörhead.


title: Duff McKagan

text: Although an honors student, McKagan dropped out of Roosevelt High School in the tenth grade. He then worked as a pastry chef for the Great American Food and Beverage Company while earning his GED. He was later awarded an honorary diploma after speaking at the class of 2012's graduation ceremony.


title: Duff McKagan

text: In 1979, at the age of 15, McKagan formed the punk band The Vains, in which he played bass. During this time he performed under the stage name Nico Teen. The band released one single, "School Jerks", in 1980.


title: Duff McKagan

text: In 1980, McKagan joined the pop-punk band The Fastbacks as their drummer. He first performed with the band in December 1980, and appeared on their 1981 debut single "It's Your Birthday", which was issued on guitarist Kurt Bloch's label No Threes Records. He was later on the song "Someone Else's Room", which was included on the "Seattle Syndrome: Volume One" compilation album, also released in 1981. His last performance was in July 1981.


title: Duff McKagan

text: Around this time he also played guitar in the punk band The Living, which opened shows for Hüsker Dü and D.O.A., which developed a devoted following. In 1982 they recorded an EP, which remained unreleased until April 2021, under the title "1982".


title: Duff McKagan

text: In 1982, McKagan became the drummer for the hardcore punk band The Fartz, with whom he recorded several demos, five of which were included on their 1990 album "You, We See You Crawling". After several line-up changes, The Fartz evolved into the post-punk band 10 Minute Warning, for which McKagan played guitar.


title: Duff McKagan

text: In 1983, McKagan moved to Los Angeles, California, with one of his brothers where he found work as an appetizer server at a Black Angus restaurant in Northridge. Answering an ad for a bass guitarist in a local newspaper, he met guitarist Slash and drummer Steven Adler, with whom he formed the short-lived band Road Crew. They auditioned a number of singers, including one-time Black Flag vocalist Ron Reyes, and worked on material that included the main riff of what would become the Guns N' Roses song "Rocket Queen". Slash eventually disbanded the group due to them not being able to find a singer, as well as Adler's lack of work ethic compared to himself and McKagan.


title: Duff McKagan

text: In March 1985, McKagan replaced bassist Ole Beich in Guns N' Roses, which was newly founded by singer Axl Rose, rhythm guitarist Izzy Stradlin of Hollywood Rose, lead guitarist Tracii Guns and drummer Rob Gardner of L.A. Guns. McKagan's Road Crew bandmates Slash and Steven Adler joined the band two months later, after Guns and Gardner quit respectively. After two days of rehearsal, the line-up played its debut gig at The Troubadour on June 6. In 1987, Guns N' Roses released its debut album, "Appetite for Destruction", which to date has sold over 28 million copies worldwide, 18 million of which were in the United States, making it the best-selling debut album of all time in the U.S. The following year, the band released "G N' R Lies", which sold over five million copies in the U.S. alone, despite containing only eight tracks, four of which were included on the previously released EP "Live ?!*@ Like a Suicide".


title: Duff McKagan

text: In 1990, Steven Adler was fired from the band because of his heroin addiction; he was replaced by Matt Sorum of The Cult.


title: Duff McKagan

text: In May 1991, Guns N' Roses embarked on the two-and-a-half-year-long Use Your Illusion Tour. The following September, the band released the long-awaited albums "Use Your Illusion I" and "Use Your Illusion II", which debuted at No. 2 and No. 1 respectively on the U.S. chart, a feat unachieved by any other group. In November 1991, Izzy Stradlin abruptly left the band; he was replaced by Gilby Clarke of Kill For Thrills. In 1993, the band released ""The Spaghetti Incident?"", a cover album of mostly punk songs, which proved less successful than its predecessors. McKagan took on lead vocals on four songs, including live favorite "Attitude", originally by the Misfits. That same year, McKagan released his debut solo album, "Believe in Me", on which he sang lead vocals and played virtually every instrument.


title: Duff McKagan

text: On April 4, 1993 while touring with Guns N' Roses McKagan was hit in the head with a beer bottle filled with urine thrown by a fan. He was sent to the hospital minutes later. Axl Rose said this to the crowd after McKagan was hit:


title: Duff McKagan

text: In 1995, with Guns N' Roses largely inactive, McKagan formed the supergroup Neurotic Outsiders with Steve Jones of the Sex Pistols, John Taylor of Duran Duran, and his Guns N' Roses bandmate Matt Sorum. Originally a gathering of friends jamming together at the Viper Room in Hollywood, they released their self-titled album on Maverick Records in 1996. The band played a brief tour of Europe and North America, before disbanding in 1997. McKagan was the last member of the "Appetite for Destruction" lineup to leave Guns N' Roses, resigning as bassist in August 1997. McKagan had recently become a father and wrote about his decision to leave in his autobiography, stating "Guns had been paying rent on studios for three years now—from 1994 to 1997—and still did not have a single song. The whole operation was so erratic that it didn't seem to fit with my hopes for parenthood, for stability."


title: Duff McKagan

text: Following his departure from Guns N' Roses in 1997, McKagan moved back to Seattle, where he met with many of his old friends, including Pearl Jam's Stone Gossard, who convinced him to reunite 10 Minute Warning. Singer Christopher Blue was brought in to replace Steve Verwolf, who was serving a term in federal prison. In 1998, the band released their self-titled album on Sub Pop. The album featured nine tracks, including two new versions of songs originally recorded by The Fartz, namely "Is This the Way?" and "Buried". 10 Minute Warning played its last show on August 22, 1998 at the Roseland theater in Portland, Oregon.


title: Duff McKagan

text: McKagan's second solo album, "Beautiful Disease", was intended to be released in 1999, but became lost in the legal shuffle of the merge between Geffen Records and Interscope Records. McKagan was dropped from Geffen's roster, and subsequently lost all commercial rights to release the record. For the tour supporting his ill-fated solo album, he formed the band Loaded, which consisted of McKagan on bass and vocals, Dez Cadena, formerly of Black Flag, on guitar, Michael Barragan, formerly of Plexi, on guitar, and Taz Bentley, formerly of The Reverend Horton Heat, on drums. Loaded independently released the live record "", before disbanding in late 1999.


title: Duff McKagan

text: In 2000, McKagan reformed Loaded, remaining as the lead vocalist but switching from bass to rhythm guitar, and adding drummer Geoff Reading of Green Apple Quick Step, guitarist Mike Squires of Harvey Danger, and bassist Jeff Rouse of Alien Crime Syndicate. Both Squires and Rouse joined after the recording of the band's debut album, "Dark Days", released in 2001. Dave Dederer, formerly of The Presidents of the United States of America, took up recording duties for the album.


title: Duff McKagan

text: In 2002, while on tour, both Squires and Rouse left Loaded to join the reformed Alien Crime Syndicate. Former Wasted Youth and Electric Love Hogs guitarist Dave Kushner and former Burning Witch bassist George Stuart Dahlquist were brought in to replace them. McKagan and Kushner went on to form Velvet Revolver, putting Loaded on hiatus.


title: Duff McKagan

text: In 2002, McKagan founded the supergroup Velvet Revolver with his former Guns N' Roses bandmates Slash and Matt Sorum, and Loaded guitarist Dave Kushner. Stone Temple Pilots singer Scott Weiland completed the line-up. In 2004, they released their debut album, "Contraband", which debuted at No. 1 on the U.S. chart and sold two million copies. In 2005, the band was nominated for three Grammys, Rock Album of the Year, Rock Song, and Hard Rock Performance for their Contraband single Slither which won their first and only Grammy. Their second album, "Libertad", was released in 2007 to mixed reviews; it failed to achieve the same commercial success as its predecessor. The band toured extensively, until Weiland left in April 2008 to reunite with Stone Temple Pilots. Velvet Revolver has been on hiatus since Weiland's departure.


title: Duff McKagan

text: In 2006, McKagan temporarily joined Alice in Chains as a rhythm guitarist, performing with the band for the first time at VH1's Decades Rock Live concert honoring Heart, and later during their reunion tour.


title: Duff McKagan

text: McKagan subsequently reunited Loaded, with Mike Squires and Jeff Rouse returning to the group, and that same year, they released the EP "Wasted Heart". In 2009, the band released its second studio album, "Sick", and embarked on tours with Mötley Crüe and Black Stone Cherry. Later that year, Geoff Reading departed the band; he was replaced by Isaac Carpenter.


title: Duff McKagan

text: In 2010, McKagan briefly joined Jane's Addiction, with lead guitarist Dave Navarro originally confirming that McKagan had joined the band on a permanent basis. On joining the band, McKagan stated, "Something like a chance to write, record, and perhaps even perform with a band of the quality of Jane's Addiction does not come around every day. I have a lot of respect for this band and the guys in it." He worked on several songs with Jane's Addiction and played four shows with the band—two in Los Angeles, and two in Europe, including one at Rock in Rio in Madrid.


title: Duff McKagan

text: On September 6, six months after McKagan joined the band, Jane's Addiction announced that they had parted ways due to the fact that "musically [they] were all headed in different directions."


title: Duff McKagan

text: On October 14, 2010, McKagan appeared on stage with Guns N' Roses for the first time since 1993 at The O2 Arena in London. He played bass on "You Could Be Mine", electric guitar on "Nice Boys" and "Knockin' on Heaven's Door", and acoustic guitar and tambourine on "Patience". McKagan then returned to Loaded, with whom he recorded a third studio album, "The Taking", which was released in 2011. Loaded twice served as opening act for Guns N' Roses in December of that year, with McKagan again briefly joining his old band on stage.


title: Duff McKagan

text: "It's So Easy *And Other Lies*" is the title of McKagan's book released in 2011 in which he tells his view and perspectives on stories encountered during his career.


title: Duff McKagan

text: On April 14, 2012, McKagan was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of the classic lineup of Guns N' Roses.


title: Duff McKagan

text: In 2012, McKagan went on tour with the Rock N Roll All Stars, a band that consisted of many of rock's most recognized performers. The band downsized and became the Kings Of Chaos in 2013. The primary members with McKagan are Joe Elliott of Def Leppard and Joe Elliott's Down N' Outz, Matt Sorum of Guns N' Roses and Velvet Revolver, Gilby Clarke of Guns N' Roses and Steve Stevens of Billy Idol's band. Others who round out the group are: Glenn Hughes of Deep Purple fame and Sebastian Bach, formerly of Skid Row. The band released the cover song "Never Before" by Deep Purple.


title: Duff McKagan

text: Also in 2012 McKagan formed the band Walking Papers with former The Missionary Position members, played on the self-titled debut album and toured with them in 2013.


title: Duff McKagan

text: In 2014, McKagan again briefly reunited with Guns N' Roses. He played five full shows in South America, filling in for Tommy Stinson. McKagan subsequently played with Guns N' Roses at the Revolver Golden Gods Awards show in Los Angeles. During Guns N' Roses' spring 2014 residency at The Joint in Las Vegas, McKagan played another full concert with the band.


title: Duff McKagan

text: In 2016, McKagan was announced (alongside Slash), as having returned to Guns N' Roses to headline Coachella. After playing a secret warmup gig at the Troubadour in Los Angeles on April 1, 2016, The band embarked on the Not in This Lifetime... Tour.


title: Duff McKagan

text: On December 5, 2018, it was announced that McKagan is currently in production for a new solo album to be released in 2019. On March 10, 2019, McKagan revealed that the album, "Tenderness", would be released on May 31 and also released a track from the album titled "Chip Away".


title: Duff McKagan

text: In April 2022 various famous artists, like Slash, Billie Joe Armstrong, Henry Rollins, and McKagan himself, publicly bemoaned the breakup of a mysterious legendary Seattle band called Max Creeps. In the following weeks it turned out to be a guerilla marketing campaign for a new project, involving McKagan and Fastbacks singer Kurt Bloch, though so far this hasn't been officially confirmed. Max Creeps released two singles, "The Internet Killed Me" and "Hung, Drawn and Quartered". On May 13 Max Creeps released their 'second' album "Nein" on Velocity Records, though no evidence exists that there ever was a first album.


title: Duff McKagan

text: In 1990, McKagan—along with his Guns N' Roses bandmate Slash—co-wrote and played several songs on Iggy Pop's "Brick by Brick". In 1995, he collaborated with Slash on his solo project Slash's Snakepit; he co-wrote "Beggars and Hangers-On" off their album "It's Five O'Clock Somewhere", which he played live during a Snakepit show in May of that year. In 1998, McKagan collaborated with his former Guns N' Roses bandmate Izzy Stradlin on his solo album "117°". The following year, he played on Stradlin's album "Ride On", and joined him on a tour of Japan supporting the album. Also in 1999, he contributed to the album "Humanary Stew: A Tribute to Alice Cooper", an Alice Cooper tribute album. In 2001, McKagan played on the album "Skyjin" by Zilch, Mark Lanegan's solo album "Field Songs", and Izzy Stradlin's album "River". The following year, he played on Stradlin's album "On Down the Road". In 2004, he again collaborated with Mark Lanegan on his album "Bubblegum", along with Stradlin.


title: Duff McKagan

text: McKagan played on three tracks off Izzy Stradlin's 2008 album "Concrete", including the title track, as well as seven songs off his album "Wave of Heat", which was released in 2010. Also in 2010, McKagan appeared on Slash's eponymous debut solo album; he played on the track "Watch This" with Dave Grohl on drums. That year, he also made a guest appearance—along with Slash and Matt Sorum—on Macy Gray's album "The Sellout", and appeared on the Manic Street Preachers song "A Billion Balconies Facing the Sun" off their album "Postcards From a Young Man".


title: Duff McKagan

text: In 2020, McKagan played bass and cowrote five songs on Ozzy Osbourne's album "Ordinary Man", along with Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer Chad Smith. McKagan's Guns N' Roses bandmate Slash is featured on the song "Straight to Hell", which also features co-writer Andrew Watt of California Breed fame.


title: Duff McKagan

text: McKagan has two minor acting credits; in 1988, he appeared with his Guns N' Roses bandmates in the "Dirty Harry" film "The Dead Pool", and in 1997, he played a rocker vampire in an episode of the television series "Sliders". In 1999, he appeared in Anthony Scarpa's documentary film "Betty Blowtorch and Her Amazing True Life Adventures", which focuses on the all-female hard rock band Betty Blowtorch, whose debut EP "Get Off" McKagan produced the same year.


title: Duff McKagan

text: In addition to his musical career, McKagan has established himself as a writer. Since August 2008, he has written a weekly column for SeattleWeekly.com, from January to December 2009, he wrote a weekly financial column titled "Duffonomics" for Playboy.com, and since January 2011, he has written a weekly sports column for ESPN.com. McKagan's autobiography, "It's So Easy (And Other Lies)", was released on October 4, 2011. His second book, "How to Be a Man: (and other illusions)" was released on May 12, 2015. McKagan released a three-song EP with the same title to accompany the book, featuring Izzy Stradlin, Jerry Cantrell, Roy Mayorga and Taz Bentley.


title: Duff McKagan

text: In 2011, McKagan founded Meridian Rock, a wealth management firm for musicians. Headed by McKagan and British investor Andy Bottomley, the firm aims to educate musicians about their finances.


title: Duff McKagan

text: McKagan has been involved in "The Heroes Project", founded by his friend Tim Medvetz, which is dedicated to helping soldiers and their families. As part of the project he took part in a climb up Mount Rainier in 2012, accompanying a former soldier with a prosthetic limb. During this climb McKagan suffered a potentially fatal cerebral edema.


title: Duff McKagan

text: It was announced in 2012 that Rainstorm Entertainment will produce a "biographical documentary" based on "It's So Easy (And Other Lies)". McKagan is listed as a producer and writer. The film, titled "It's So Easy (And Other Lies)" after the book, was released in May 2016. Those interviewed for the project include Mick Jagger, Elton John, Slash, Joe Elliott and Arnold Schwarzenegger.


title: Duff McKagan

text: Following an appearance with the Hollywood Vampires at the 2016 Grammy Awards ceremony in tribute to Lemmy Kilmister, McKagan was considered a member of the supergroup, although his time in the band was short-lived as he returned to Guns N' Roses two months later.


title: Duff McKagan

text: On May 28, 1988, McKagan married his first wife, Mandy Brixx; the couple divorced on April 1, 1990. In September 1992, he married Linda Johnson; this too ended in divorce in September 1995. On August 28, 1999 he married Susan Holmes. They have two daughters together: Grace "Grave" Elizabeth (born August 1997) and Mae Marie (born July 2000). McKagan and his family reside in Seattle.


title: Duff McKagan

text: McKagan was one of the last people confirmed to have seen Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain before he died on April 5, 1994. He sat next to Cobain on a flight from Los Angeles to Seattle on April 1.


title: Duff McKagan

text: McKagan later recalled, "I didn't have any foresight that the guy was going to do what he did. I could tell he was bummed out, and I'd been that way before... I thought I'd ask him to come stay at my house; I turned around and he was gone."


title: Duff McKagan

text: On May 10, 1994, at the age of 30, McKagan became gravely ill due to acute alcohol-induced pancreatitis, which caused his pancreas to swell to the size of a football and leak digestive enzymes into his body. He was taken to Northwest Hospital and Medical Center in Seattle, where he was monitored until the swelling had shrunken. McKagan was later told by his doctors that he would be dead within a month if he did not stop drinking. He had made previous efforts to overcome his addiction, but this health crisis was his incentive to become sober for good. In his autobiography, he attributed his sobriety to exercise through first mountain biking, and later martial arts.


title: Duff McKagan

text: McKagan has also claimed in his autobiography that the fictional product Duff Beer on "The Simpsons" was named after him, and has received no royalties, but "Simpsons" creator Matt Groening called the claim "absurd". "Simpsons" writer Mike Reiss similarly dismissed the claim in his memoir "Springfield Confidential", stating that he'd "never heard of [McKagan]".


title: Duff McKagan

text: A high school drop-out, McKagan enrolled in a basic finance course at Santa Monica Community College in 1994; he explained that going over the financial records from his Guns N' Roses days had made him want to understand the process more, stating, "I couldn't make sense of it. I didn't know how much we had made or lost on the tour. As a 30 year-old millionaire, how do I admit to somebody that I don't know what the fuck I'm doing?"


title: Duff McKagan

text: In 2000, after attending several more classes at Seattle Central Community College, McKagan enrolled full-time at Seattle University's Albers School of Business and Economics. When Velvet Revolver took off in his final year as an undergraduate student, McKagan took a hiatus from business school to go on tour; he is still one quarter short of graduating.


title: Meek Mill

text: Robert Rihmeek Williams (born May 6, 1987), known professionally as Meek Mill, is an American rapper. Born and raised in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, he embarked on his music career as a battle rapper, and later formed a short-lived rap group, The Bloodhoundz. In 2008, Atlanta-based rapper T.I. signed Meek Mill to his first record deal. In February 2011, after leaving Grand Hustle Records, Mill signed with Miami-based rapper Rick Ross's Maybach Music Group (MMG). Mill's debut album, "Dreams and Nightmares", was released in 2012 under MMG and Warner Bros. Records. The album, preceded by the lead single "Amen" (featuring Drake), peaked at number two on the U.S. "Billboard" 200.


title: Meek Mill

text: In October 2012, Mill announced the launch of his own label imprint, Dream Chasers Records, named after his mixtape series. Meek Mill often collaborates with MMG label-mates; he has made notable appearances on MMG's "Self Made" compilation series, with his first two singles, "Tupac Back" (featuring Rick Ross) and "Ima Boss" (featuring Rick Ross), being included on volume one. He released his second album, "Dreams Worth More Than Money", in 2015 and his third album, "Wins & Losses", in 2016. His fourth studio album, "Championships", was released in November 2018 and debuted at the top of the "Billboard" 200 chart. Its lead single, "Going Bad" (featuring Drake), peaked at number six on the "Billboard" Hot 100, marking Mill's highest charting single to date. Meek's fifth album, "Expensive Pain", was released on October 1, 2021.


title: Meek Mill

text: In November 2017, he was sentenced to two to four years in prison for violating parole, before being released while his trial continues after serving five months. In August 2019, a documentary series about his battle with the criminal justice system, "Free Meek", was released on Amazon Prime Video. Mill served as executive producer on the series alongside fellow rapper Jay-Z. The two also became the co-founders of nonprofit organization Reform Alliance, which focuses on justice, parole, and probation reform.


title: Meek Mill

text: Robert Rihmeek Williams was born on May 6, 1987, in South Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the son of Kathy Williams. He has an older sister, Nasheema Williams. Kathy grew up in poverty and her mother died when she was young. Meek's father was killed when Meek was five years old, apparently during an attempted robbery. His uncle, Robert, described Meek Mill's father as a "black sheep of the family". After her husband's death, Kathy moved with Meek and his sister to North Philadelphia, where they lived in a three-bedroom apartment on Berks Street. Their financial condition was poor and she started cutting hair, doing other jobs, and shoplifting in order to support her family. At home, Meek was shy and rarely spoke. As a kid, he became acquainted with another of his father's brothers, who under the MC name Grandmaster Nell was a pioneering disc jockey (DJ) in the late-1980s Philadelphia hip-hop scene and influenced rap artists Will Smith and DJ Jazzy Jeff. Meek's interest in hip-hop grew as a result of these early influences. He was also influenced by the independent hip-hop artists Chic Raw and Vodka, whom he learned to emulate by watching their DVDs.


title: Meek Mill

text: During his early teenage years, Meek often took part in rap battles under the pseudonym Meek Millz. He often stayed up well past midnight filling notebooks with phrases and verses that he later drew on. Later he and three friends formed the rap group The Bloodhoundz. They bought blank CDs and jewel cases at Kinkos, encouraging friends to burn them with the group's songs and distribute them.


title: Meek Mill

text: The Bloodhoundz lasted long enough to release four mixtapes. In 2008, Mill released his fourth solo mixtape, "Flamers 2: Hottest in tha City," which spawned the promotional singles "I'm So Fly," "Prolli," and "Hottest in the City." "Flamers 2" caught the attention of Charles "Charlie Mack" Alston, founder and president of 215 Aphillyated Records. Mack, who previously represented for other Philadelphians Will Smith, DJ Jazzy Jeff, Boyz II Men and Ms. Jade, was so impressed with Mill that he immediately signed him to his management company. During that same year, Meek Mill also met the founder and owner of Grand Hustle Records, Atlanta-based rapper and record executive T.I. T.I. was also impressed by Mill and offered him an opportunity to travel, to meet with him and Warner Bros. Records; within a week both record companies offered him a deal. Although he was offered other record deals, Mill felt collaborating with T.I. was "an opportunity of a lifetime" and thus chose his label. However, a setback occurred, when Mill was sentenced to a stint in jail for a drug and gun charge.


title: Meek Mill

text: After being released in 2009, he continued working as an artist under Grand Hustle, Mill formed a work relationship with the label's resident disc jockey, DJ Drama. Mill and Drama teamed up to release the third edition of Mill's "Flamers" series. The mixtape, titled "Flamers 3: The Wait Is Over", was released on March 12, 2010, and is helmed as a "Gangsta Grillz mixtape". The mixtape features his promotional single "Rosé Red", which was later remixed with additional verses from fellow American rappers T.I., Rick Ross and Vado. Rick Ross contributed his verse after he was visiting Philadelphia and asked his Twitter followers who he should collaborate with; Meek Mill was the overwhelming response. The remix was included on Mill's following mixtape, "Mr. Philadelphia". Due to Mill and T.I.'s respective legal troubles, Mill was never able to release an official album under Grand Hustle and they parted ways in 2010. That same year, a film was released called "Streets". A direct-to-DVD crime drama, starring Mill, produced by Alston and directed by Jamal Hill.


title: Meek Mill

text: In February 2011, Rick Ross announced the signing of Mill along with fellow American rapper Wale to his Maybach Music Group (MMG) label. In March 2011, Mill was included in "XXL"'s "Freshman Class of 2011". Later that year, he released his debut single, "Tupac Back", featuring Rick Ross, from his label's compilation album "Self Made Vol. 1" (2011). That same year he released his second single, "Ima Boss", also take from the compilation and featuring Ross. The song was later remixed, featuring T.I., Birdman, Lil Wayne, DJ Khaled, Swizz Beatz and Rick Ross. The remix charted on the "Billboard" Hot 100 and peaked at No. 51, becoming Mill's most successful single at that time. In August 2011, Mill released "Dreamchasers", a well received mixtape featuring his urban hit "House Party" and guest appearances from Rick Ross, Yo Gotti and Beanie Sigel among others.


title: Meek Mill

text: In February 2012, MTV listed Meek Mill as the "#7 hottest MC" in their annual "Hottest MCs in the Game" list. On May 7, 2012, Mill released the second installment to his "Dreamchasers" series. Within six hours of its release on mixtape website DatPiff.com, "Dreamchasers 2" was downloaded 1.5 million times. On May 10, it was announced Meek Mill signed with Roc Nation management.


title: Meek Mill

text: On June 19, 2012, "Amen" - originally included on "Dreamchasers 2", was released as the lead single from Mill's debut studio album. Before releasing his debut studio album "Dreams & Nightmares", Mill received co-signs from both Mariah Carey and Nas, with him appearing on Carey's 2012 single "Triumphant (Get 'Em)" and the latter stating, "I got my eyes on him. He's the next one to take this shit over." The album was released on October 30, 2012. The album debuted at number two on the US "Billboard" 200 chart with first-week sales of 165,000 copies. In its second week, the album sold 41,000 more copies, dropping six spots on the chart to number eight.


title: Meek Mill

text: Mill released the third installment of the "Dreamchasers" series, "Dreamchasers 3". The mixtape featured guest appearances from Rick Ross, Akon, Future, Waka Flocka Flame, Wale, Trina and Jadakiss among others. The mixtape was scheduled to be released on May 6, 2013. However, he had announced that it would be pushed back, eventually to be released on September 29, 2013. In November 2013, Mill announced thathe was half-way finished with his second studio album. On March 8, 2014, Mill announced that the album would be titled "Dreams Worth More Than Money". Mill's album, "Dreams Worth More Than Money", which was released on June 28, 2015, topped the "Billboard" 200 as of the issue dated July 18, 2015.


title: Meek Mill

text: Meek Mill posted 6 videos on his Instagram previewing music for his mixtape, "DC4". The mixtape was planned to have featured a remix of his enemy, Drake's song, "Back to Back", and a remix to Drake and Future's song, "I'm the Plug", but unfortunately, due to "DC4" being released commercially, neither of these two remixes made the final cut. On January 16, 2016, Meek Mill dropped songs on his extended play, "4/4", with 4 tracks. On January 30, 2016, Meek Mill released another extended play title "4/4, Pt. 2".


title: Meek Mill

text: On November 16, 2018, Mill announced his fourth album, "Championships", which was released on November 30. The album received positive reviews from critics and debuted atop the US "Billboard" 200, selling 229,000 album-equivalent units in its first week (42,000 coming from pure sales).


title: Meek Mill

text: In June 2020, Mill released his protest song "Otherside of America", amid the protests following the murder of George Floyd.


title: Meek Mill

text: On November 20, 2020, Meek returned with a four-track EP, "Quarantine Pack", which features rappers 42 Dugg, Vory, and Lil Durk, who also appears in the video for the track, "Pain Away". In October 2020, Meek said he plans on releasing an album before the end of the year. However, this did not occur, as his fifth studio album, "Expensive Pain", was only released a year later, on October 1, 2021. It debuted at number three on the "Billboard" 200 after accumulating 95,000 equivalent units. Mill went on to state that Atlantic Records was responsible for the low sales of the album and demanded his release alongside labelmates, fellow Philadelphian Lil Uzi Vert, and YoungBoy Never Broke Again.


title: Meek Mill

text: On July 11, 2022, Mill confirmed that he had ended his management deal with Jay-Z's Roc Nation Entertainment, stating that although he and the company are no longer partners in the exact term, he and Jay remain on good terms. Despite his departure, the two still work on their prison reform venture, the REFORM Alliance.


title: Meek Mill

text: On October 26, 2012, Meek Mill announced the launch of his own record label imprint, Dream Chasers Records, with the flagship artists Louie V. Gutta, Lee Mazin and Goldie. On July 24, 2019, Meek Mill announced the official launch of Dream Chasers Records as a joint venture with Roc Nation. Mill spoke on the deal saying "Creating a record label has always been the next step in my journey as a businessman and I appreciate Roc Nation and Jay-Z's support on this new venture. I want to take my experiences in the music industry, use them to find young, hungry talent and open doors for the next generation of artists." The label also handles its own operations, creative strategy, marketing and business affairs. Jay-Z spoke on the joint venture, saying "Everything he has done leading up to this point shows he is ready to [lead] the next generation. We look at the big picture — this is way beyond signing artists and having hot records." As president of the label, Mill oversees a team in a corporate New York office and also help operate a recording studio for the label's artists.


title: Meek Mill

text: When he was 18, while walking to a corner store armed, Meek was arrested for illegally possessing a firearm and was beaten up by the police. Because of the beating, his lips and both eyes became swollen and one of his braids was ripped out. He was charged with attempted or aggravated assault against a police officer after two black cops gave a statement against him in the case, saying he chased them down with a gun and tried to shoot one of them. He was then placed on probation.


title: Meek Mill

text: In 2008, Mill was convicted of possession of drug paraphernalia, and second-degree possession of a loaded firearm by a convicted felon. He was sentenced to eleven to twenty-three months in prison, followed by eight years probation, by Philadelphia County Superior Court Judge Genece Brinkley. After Mill's 2008 conviction, Brinkley continued to handle Mill's further legal cases and oversaw his probation. Mill was released in early 2009 under a five-year parole agreement after serving seven months.


title: Meek Mill

text: On the night of Halloween 2012, following an album release party for his debut, "Dreams and Nightmares", in South Philadelphia, Mill was detained by city police after a car which he was riding in was pulled over. The outcome of the arrest remains unknown; no charges were filed, and Mill was released from custody. However, in December, because of the incident, Mill was found to have violated his probation for his 2008 federal drug and gun charges, resulting in judge Brinkley revoking Mill's travel permit.


title: Meek Mill

text: In May 2013, Mill was again found to have violated his probation and ordered to take etiquette classes. The violation was a failure to report travel plans as required and social media postings that resulted in death threats to the probation officer who assigned his case. In requiring the classes and stressing the requirement to report travel, Brinkley noted, "You need to try to get this right next time." In June 2013, the court noted that Mill continually failed to report his travel plans. Brinkley established an August deadline for the classes, noting that Mill has "a lot of issues" and that the classes would provide him with a "big-picture perspective" on his personal and professional actions. Brinkley said the classes were "more important than any concerts he might have." Of the requirement to provide travel plans to his probation officer, Mill complained, "You just gonna miss money all day." The ADA explained that it was a consequence of being on probation. On July 11, 2014, Mill's probation was revoked and he was sentenced to three to six months in jail. He was released on December 2, 2014.


title: Meek Mill

text: He was found guilty for a parole violation again on December 17, 2015, due to him performing at an Atlanta show for Nicki Minaj's "Pinkprint" tour, the 2015 BET Awards and American Music Awards respectively, all without reporting his actions as related court orders to gain approval. The judge hearing his case refused to give him a second chance and ordered him not to work or perform before his sentencing on February 5, 2016. He was sentenced to 90 days of house arrest on February 5. The sentence became effective on March 1. Mill was not allowed to work and was required to do daily community service with groups serving adults. He was also sentenced to an extended six years probation. On June 2, 2016, Mill was sentenced to eight additional days of house arrest as a result of him not completing his required community service hours. His house arrest ended fifteen days later.


title: Meek Mill

text: On March 11, 2017, Mill was arrested at the St. Louis Lambert International Airport in Missouri for assaulting two employees. Shortly after his arrest, he was given a court summons. Then, in August, he was detained in New York City after a noise complaint was filed over Mill popping a wheelie on his motorcycle. Soon after, he was released once the disturbance violation and reckless driving charges were dropped. The case was later taken to court in October, and was to be dismissed if Mill would have completed six months of therapy, resulting in good behavior and thirty hours of community service added to his Pennsylvania-state related twenty-hour term. On November 6, 2017, he was sentenced to two to four years in state prison for violating his parole. He served five months at the State Correctional Institution – Chester in Chester, Pennsylvania.


title: Meek Mill

text: On April 24, 2018, Mill was released, pending outcome of an appeal to the Pennsylvania supreme court. The Philadelphia district attorney petitioned Brinkley for his release, citing credibility issues with the arresting officer in his initial 2008 conviction. Brinkley declined and instead scheduled the case for a hearing. Hours after his release from prison, Michael G. Rubin, a minority owner of the Philadelphia 76ers and longtime supporter of Mill, flew Mill in by helicopter to a 76ers game to perform a ceremonial bell-ringing on the court. Garnering support from other public figures such as Jay-Z and fellow Philadelphian Kevin Hart, Mill has said that he would like to use his situation to "shine a light" on the criminal justice system.


title: Meek Mill

text: On July 24, 2019, the Superior Court of Pennsylvania granted Mill's appeal, overturning his 2008 conviction and ordering a new trial to be overseen by another judge other than Judge Brinkley. In a statement, the Philadelphia District Attorney's Office said it was pleased that the appeals court "validated our position that Robert Rihmeek Williams deserves a new trial before a court that has no appearance of partiality." However, the D.A. declined comment on its plans for a new trial, stating the office was weighing its options before proceeding.


title: Meek Mill

text: Reports alleged that there was an FBI investigation into the conduct of Brinkley, the judge presiding over his case. This was later publicly acknowledged by Mill's defense team. Mill's attorney, Joe Tacopina, made several allegations of inappropriate statements and actions by Brinkley, including that "she requested he re-record a Boyz II Men song and shout her out, and how she wanted him to leave [the management of] Roc Nation to sign with a friend of hers", referring to Mill's former partner, Charlie Mack of 215 Aphillyated, and that "she showed up at his community service" when a typical judge would not, among several other irregularities.


title: Meek Mill

text: In February 2018, the officer of Mill's original 2007 case was brought under scrutiny for the potential mishandling of his arrest. This came upon a whistle-blower's testimony responsible for the revelation of hundreds of other corrupt officers. An appeal to reverse Mill's conviction was submitted.


title: Meek Mill

text: With Mill's continuous arrests and probation from Brinkley, he is estimated by his booking agency and management to have lost millions of dollars in profit.


title: Meek Mill

text: In August 2019, Mill pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor firearm charge in Philadelphia. All other charges were dismissed, officially ending the case against Mill from 2007 and temporarily dismissing him as a convicted felon.


title: Meek Mill

text: On August 9, 2019, a docuseries "Free Meek" premiered on Amazon Prime Video. The five-part series was produced by Roc Nation, with Mill and Jay-Z serving as executive producers.


title: Meek Mill

text: On November 29, 2017, Meek Mill and Roc Nation were sued by the family of Jaquan Graves, who was shot and killed in the parking lot outside a Connecticut concert in December 2016. Graves had just left the facility when gunfire started and he was killed. The lawsuit also claims that Mill and Roc Nation allowed "thugs" to remain on the premises after exhibiting disorderly, disruptive, argumentative, angry and agitated behaviors toward patrons.


title: Meek Mill

text: In May 2019, Meek Mill was turned away from the Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas when attempting to attend a show. His attorney, Joe Tacopina, alleged that Mill was turned away because of his race. On May 25, 2019, Mill said that he intended to pursue legal action against the hotel for racial discrimination. Within days, the Cosmopolitan issued the requested apology. Tacopina then announced that his client had accepted it, and no lawsuit would be forthcoming.


title: Meek Mill

text: In 2016, Meek Mill spent $50,000 to donate 60,000 Ice Mountain brand bottled water to contribute to and support the Flint water crisis in Michigan as he teamed up with Big Sean.


title: Meek Mill

text: In 2018, following his release from state custody, Mill immediately became a leading advocate of criminal justice reform in the United States, where he transitioned his advocacy into the co-formation of Reform Alliance with fellow recording artist and entrepreneur Jay-Z. The nonprofit organization states its mission is "to dramatically reduce the number of people who are unjustly under the control of the criminal justice system – starting with probation and parole", where it plans on doing so by gathering leaders from various fields such as business, entertainment, government, sports, technology, and more, who have the common interest of donating and advocating for criminal justice reform in the United States. Later, in August 2018, Mill donated 6,000 backpacks to students of Philadelphia.


title: Meek Mill

text: The founding partners of Reform Alliance, besides Meek Mill and Jay-Z, includes Kraft Group CEO and New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft, Philadelphia 76ers owner Michael G. Rubin, Brooklyn Nets co-owner Clara Wu Tsai, Vista Equity Partners founder Robert F. Smith, as well as other leaders in business, law and politics, whom have collectively pledged a total 50 million dollars to the foundation as of 2019. To lead the organization, Reform hired political activist, and CNN host/political analyst Van Jones as their inaugural CEO.


title: Meek Mill

text: Following the release of the lead single for "Dreams & Nightmares", entitled "Amen", Philadelphia area pastor Rev. Jomo K. Johnson called for a boycott of Mill due to the song's lyrical content. "As a hip-hop fan, I want to encourage every rap fan in Philadelphia who is a believer in Jesus Christ, to boycott Meek Mill until he acknowledges this blatant disrespect. And being a resident of North Philadelphia and a pastor, I revoke Meek's 'hood pass' until this happens," Johnson said in a statement.


title: Meek Mill

text: On July 17, 2012, in an interview on the BET show "106 & Park", Mill stated, "I don't think no preacher or no church approves of any type of rap music—because rap music, period, is a lot of bad stuff said. But at the end of the day, it's real life. And me, I wasn't trying to disrespect no religion or anything like that."


title: Meek Mill

text: A feud started between Meek Mill and fellow Philadelphia-born rapper Cassidy, when Mill offered to battle several underground rappers including Cassidy. Cassidy would later accept the challenge, adding "if the money was right". They participated in a short social exchange, after which Cassidy released "The Diary of a Hustla", which was originally thought to be a diss track towards Mill. This was later refuted by Cassidy. They both asked $100,000 each for the battle to take place. However, after Meek Mill dissed Cassidy's song, "Condom Style" (a remake of Psy's "Gangnam Style"), Cassidy released a formal diss track towards Mill with "Me, Myself & iPhone". Afterwards, Meek Mill responded with the diss track "Repo", which Mill later said would be the final diss record he would release against Cassidy.


title: Meek Mill

text: Cassidy later said the feud was not personal, saying it was all in the spirit of hip hop. On January 6, 2013, Cassidy released a 10-minute-long diss response titled "Raid". Eight months later, on September 5, 2013, Meek Mill released another diss record towards Cassidy, titled "Kendrick You Next". This was despite the fact that he said "Repo" would be his final diss record. Three days later, Cassidy released a diss record titled "Catch A Body", as a response. By 2017, the two rappers had resolved their differences.


title: Meek Mill

text: In July 2015, Meek Mill publicly criticized Canadian Toronto-based entertainer Drake on Twitter, calling him out for not writing his own lyrics. In a series of tweets, the rapper claimed his counterpart used a ghostwriter for "R.I.C.O.", a song off Mill's second album, "Dreams Worth More Than Money". He also admitted that he was upset that Drake did not promote the album on Twitter, upon its release. "Stop comparing [me to] Drake. He don't write his own raps. That's why he ain't tweet my album because we found out!", Meek Mill commented. Meek Mill had identified the ghostwriter as Quentin Miller, a local rapper from Atlanta. Meek Mill's claims received support from Funkmaster Flex, an American hip hop DJ on New York City's Hot 97 radio station. Flex released multiple audio recordings of reference tracks featuring Quentin Miller performing the soon-to-be Drake songs, "10 Bands", "Used To", "Know Yourself" and his guest verse on "R.I.C.O." Drake was later supported by his long-time friend, collaborator and co-founder of OVO Sound, award-winning multi-platinum selling producer Noah "40" Shebib, who claimed that not only does Drake write his own songs, he has also written number-one records for other artists. "No one is as talented as Drake… [there are] countless number ones and songs Drake has written for others never mind himself", 40 said on Twitter.


title: Meek Mill

text: On July 25, 2015, Drake premiered a track, titled "Charged Up" on the Beats 1 OVO Radio Show that is widely seen as a response to Meek Mill's allegations. Drake highlighted Meek Mill's relatively low sales volume and further claimed that the rapper was fading into obscurity. Drake also dissed Funkmaster Flex by promoting his rival DJ Clue?. On July 29, Drake released an aggressive diss track, named "Back to Back", that further attacked Meek Mill. The track, streamed over 500,000 times in 4 hours, heavily suggested that Mill's relationship with Nicki Minaj is lopsided in the latter's favor and also further criticized the former for not responding to "Charged Up" and for only relying on Twitter to attack Drake. The track was released for streaming on the OVO SoundCloud account and on Apple Music. The next day, Meek Mill released a track attacking Drake titled "Wanna Know" through Funkmaster Flex on Hot 97. On "Wanna Know", Meek Mill revealed another reference track, ghostwritten by Quentin Miller for Drake, who he criticized for being soft. Meek Mill also dissed AR-Ab on the track, and claimed that Drake was urinated on inside a movie theatre. Mill then removed the song from SoundCloud and said that he was moving on from his feud with Drake after WWE sent him a cease and desist.


title: Meek Mill

text: On January 30, 2016, Drake released a new diss track aimed at Mill, titled "Summer Sixteen", as the buzz single, used to promote his fourth studio album, "Views". Less than fifteen minutes later, Mill released a response track with his cousin and label mate Omelly called "War Pain". The track references several lines from "Summer Sixteen", including an incident in which Drake played "Back to Back" in a public hotel, in which, he had a room directly above Mill. Four months later, Mill released a remix of Fat Joe and Remy Ma's "All the Way Up" with fellow rappers Fabolous and Jadakiss. Meek directly references Drake in several lines of the song, such as "If you didn't write it, don't record it." He also implied that he was in a relationship with Drake's current love interest, Rihanna. Meek Mill and Drake were both respectively endorsed by Burger King and Whataburger for their feud.


title: Meek Mill

text: After Mill's release from prison in 2018, the feud was officially squashed. Drake was featured on Mill's song "Going Bad", from his post-incarceration album "Championships".


title: Meek Mill

text: On September 16, 2016, The Game released a five-minute freestyle, "92 Bars", which was rumored to be a diss towards Meek Mill. Previously, Mill and Game collaborated on 2015's "The Soundtrack". Hours after the release of "92 Bars", Game admitted that the freestyle was specifically a diss towards Mill. The next day, the two rappers ended up in an Instagram exchange, with The Game cyber-flirting with Meek Mill's girlfriend, Nicki Minaj, as well as accusing Mill of informing the authorities of a robbery involving Sean Kingston. On September 18 Meek Mill released a diss track toward Game, a remix to Young M.A.'s "Ooouuu" with Omelly and fellow Philadelphia-based rapper Beanie Sigel. Two days later, The Game responded with "Pest Control", using the same beat and sending shots at Meek Mill, Omelly, Beanie Sigel, and Sean Kingston. In 2018 the two reconciled after Mill's incarceration and subsequent release from prison.


title: Meek Mill

text: A dispute between Meek Mill and Beanie Sigel ensued on September 26, 2016, when the latter ridiculed the former's intelligence towards him through a radio interview. Minutes after the interview, Sigel was punched on the back of his head by someone who was believed to have been one of Meek Mill's affiliates. Three days later Mill criticized Sigel through many derogatory Instagram messages. Later Mill dissed Sigel, The Game and Drake in a freestyle on Funkmaster Flex's radio show. Sigel responded by releasing a diss track titled "I'm Coming". In November 2018, Sigel supported Mill's album, "Championships", stating there were "no skips" on the album, assumably ending the dispute between the two.


title: Meek Mill

text: In an interview with Power 106 in November 2018, when Meek Mill was asked about rapper 6ix9ine, who was arrested on racketeering, weapons and drugs charges earlier that month, he spoke about wanting to warn him of the consequences of his antics. In January 2019, after it was revealed that 6ix9ine would be cooperating with prosecutors, Meek tweeted that he already predicted that 6ix9ine would do so, and would continually diss him for that. After 6ix9ine was released earlier from prison in 2020, he and Mill continued to take shots at each other; at one time Mill called 6ix9ine's song "Gooba" "trash". In June 2020, 6ix9ine criticized Mill for releasing his protest song, "Otherside of America", while not "protesting". On February 14, 2021, the rappers got into an altercation outside an Atlanta club, in which 6ix9ine clowned Mill for having security around him and lunged at them, but was stopped by Mill's security. Both rappers posted videos of the incident. On February 19, 2021, 6ix9ine released a diss track towards Mill, titled "Zaza", with a music video that includes a clip of the altercation. In response, Mill issued a cease and desist to 6ix9ine.


title: Meek Mill

text: In August 2013, Mill was one of the many rappers mentioned by Kendrick Lamar on his guest verse on Big Sean's "Control". Lamar touted himself as the king of both coasts and threatened to "murder" the rappers he mentioned, despite being associated with them before. During a performance at a music festival in New York City, Mill sent derogatory messages to Lamar. On September 9, 2013, Mill later released "Ooh, Kill 'Em", a response to Lamar's verse on "Control".


title: Meek Mill

text: In October 2013, Mill instigated an argument on social media with fellow Maybach Music Group artist Wale for not backing him up in his feud with Cassidy, despite the fact that Cassidy had dissed Wale and several others Meek and Wale were affiliated with. He also criticized Wale for not helping him support his second studio album. Two years later their dispute reignited after Wale sided with Drake over Mill during their high-profile feud. The following year, after a long talk with their mentor Rick Ross, Mill and Wale ended their feud and released a duet, "Make It Work", on July 8, 2016.


title: Meek Mill

text: Mill's dispute with AR-Ab ensued after the former's rival, Drake, referenced the latter on his song "Back to Back", saying, "I waited four days, nigga, where y'all at? I drove here in the Wraith playin' AR-Ab." AR-Ab appeared on VladTV in August 2015, said he had not signed to Drake's OVO Sound, and sided with him. He was also disappointed at Mill's response, since he called out AR-Ab on "Wanna Know", the response to Drake's diss track. On August 6, during a performance at the BB&T Pavilion in Camden, New Jersey, Mill responded, "fuck AR-Ab" and questioned his allegiance to an out-of-town rapper. AR-Ab responded by releasing his own version of "Back to Back" on August 8, which disses Mill and also contains violent lyrics threatening to unleash his "shooters" on Mill. In response, Meek's cousin and Dream Chasers signee Omelly released his own version of "Back to Back" that dissed AR-Ab. AR-Ab did another interview on VladTV and said Mill was too scared to respond himself and Omelly was the "softest one on Dream Chasers". He also said he would not respond to Omelly's diss because he was a "worker". In January 2016 AR-Ab revealed that he and Mill had talked it out and their feud was now over.


title: Meek Mill

text: On January 25, 2016, Mill dissed his record label boss Rick Ross's long-time nemesis, 50 Cent, on his extended play, "4/4" (not counting the remix to Drake and Future's "I'm the Plug"). After hearing the EP, 50 Cent replied with a set of over 22 memes, including one where he said that he should run to his girlfriend at the time, Nicki Minaj, and cry to her. Mill disparaged 50 in a direct message, ridiculing his case involving Ross's ex-girlfriend, followed up by his bankruptcy case. On January 30, 2016, Mill dissed 50 again on "War Pain", in the middle of his verse, saying, "My Philly boys will creep up on you when you ain't looking, with your little memes." The next day, 50 and several members of his group, G-Unit, counter-dissed Mill at a concert. The conflict between Mill and 50 also reignited the feud between 50 and Ross.


title: Meek Mill

text: On June 30, 2016, Joe Budden dissed Mill and Drake on "Making a Murderer, Pt. 1", a counter-diss to Drake's "4PM in Calabasas", as well as on his guest verse to French Montana's "No Shopping".


title: Meek Mill

text: Following his release from his three-to-six month prison sentence for probation violation on December 2, 2014, Mill began dating rapper and singer Nicki Minaj in early 2015; he accompanied her as an opening act on her 2015 world tour. On January 2, 2017, it was reported that Mill and Minaj had ended their two-year relationship. Their breakup is furthermore detailed on Minaj's 2017 single, "Regret in Your Tears". While shopping in Maxfield in early 2020, Mill was involved in a verbal altercation with Minaj and her husband, Kenneth Petty, before he was escorted out of the store. The issue resulted in a Twitter exchange between Mill and Minaj, highlighting a series of abuse allegations by both parties.


title: Meek Mill

text: Mill has three children. In 2020, Mill's then-girlfriend, Milan Rouge, gave birth to his third child, and her first, on the rapper's 33rd birthday.


title: Saturn (mythology)

text: Saturn ( ) was a god in ancient Roman religion, and a character in Roman mythology. He was described as a god of time, generation, dissolution, abundance, wealth, agriculture, periodic renewal and liberation. Saturn's mythological reign was depicted as a Golden Age of abundance and peace. After the Roman conquest of Greece, he was conflated with the Greek Titan Cronus. Saturn's consort was his sister Ops, with whom he fathered Jupiter, Neptune, Pluto, Juno, Ceres and Vesta.


title: Saturn (mythology)

text: Saturn was especially celebrated during the festival of Saturnalia each December, perhaps the most famous of the Roman festivals, a time of feasting, role reversals, free speech, gift-giving and revelry. The Temple of Saturn in the Roman Forum housed the state treasury and archives ("aerarium") of the Roman Republic and the early Roman Empire. The planet Saturn and the day of the week Saturday are both named after and were associated with him.


title: Saturn (mythology)

text: The Roman land preserved the remembrance of a very remote time during which Saturn and Janus reigned on the site of the city before its foundation: the Capitol was called .


title: Saturn (mythology)

text: The Romans identified Saturn with the Greek Cronus, whose myths were adapted for Latin literature and Roman art. In particular, Cronus's role in the genealogy of the Greek gods was transferred to Saturn. As early as Andronicus Jupiter was called the son of Saturn.


title: Saturn (mythology)

text: Saturn had two mistresses who represented different aspects of the god. The name of his wife, Ops, the Roman equivalent of Greek "Rhea", means "wealth, abundance, resources." The association with Ops is considered a later development, however, as this goddess was originally paired with Consus. Earlier was Saturn's association with Lua ("destruction, dissolution, loosening"), a goddess who received the bloodied weapons of enemies destroyed in war.


title: Saturn (mythology)

text: Under Saturn's rule, humans enjoyed the spontaneous bounty of the earth without labour in the "Golden Age" described by Hesiod and Ovid. He became known as the god of time.


title: Saturn (mythology)

text: According to Varro, Saturn's name was derived from "satus", meaning "sowing". Even though this etymology is problematic from the viewpoint of modern linguistics (for, while historically-motivated vowel length alternations do occur in Latin roots, the long "ā" in "Sāturnus" in particular remains unexplained with this etymology, and also because of the epigraphically attested form "Saeturnus"), nevertheless it does reflect an original feature of the god. Perhaps a more probable etymology connects the name with the Etruscan god "Satre" and placenames such as "Satria", an ancient town of Latium, and "Saturae palus", a marsh also in Latium. This root may be related to Latin phytonym "satureia".


title: Saturn (mythology)

text: Another epithet, variably "Sterculius", "Stercutus", and "Sterces", referred to his agricultural functions;


title: Saturn (mythology)

text: Farming was important to Roman identity, and Saturn was a part of archaic Roman religion and ethnic identity. His name appears in the ancient hymn of the Salian priests,


title: Saturn (mythology)

text: Quintus Lucilius Balbus gives a separate etymology in Cicero's "De Natura Deorum". In this interpretation, the agricultural aspect of Saturn would be secondary to his primary relation with time and seasons. Since 'Time consumes all things', Balbus asserts that the name "Saturn" comes from the Latin word "satis"; Saturn being an anthropomorphic representation of Time, which is filled, or satiated, by all things or all generations. Since farming is so closely linked to seasons and therefore an understanding of the cyclical passage of time, it follows that agriculture would then be associated with the deity Saturn.


title: Saturn (mythology)

text: The temple of Saturn was located at the base of the Capitoline Hill, according to a tradition recorded by Varro formerly known as "Saturnius Mons", and a row of columns from the last rebuilding of the temple still stands. The temple was consecrated in 497 BC but the "area Saturni" was built by king Tullus Hostilius as confirmed by archaeological studies conducted by E. Gjerstad. It housed the state treasury (aerarium) throughout Roman history.


title: Saturn (mythology)

text: The position of Saturn's festival in the Roman calendar led to his association with concepts of time, especially the temporal transition of the New Year. In the Greek tradition, Cronus was sometimes conflated with Chronus, "Time," and his devouring of his children taken as an allegory for the passing of generations. The sickle or scythe of Father Time is a remnant of the agricultural implement of Cronus-Saturn, and his aged appearance represents the waning of the old year with the birth of the new, in antiquity sometimes embodied by Aion. In late antiquity, Saturn is syncretized with a number of deities, and begins to be depicted as winged, as is Kairos, "Timing, Right Time".


title: Saturn (mythology)

text: The figure of Saturn is one of the most complex in Roman religion. Dumézil refrained from discussing Saturn in his work on Roman religion on the grounds of insufficient knowledge. Conversely, however, his follower Dominique Briquel has attempted a thorough interpretation of Saturn utilising Dumézil's three-functional theory of Indo-European religion, taking the ancient testimonies and the works of A. Brelich and G. Piccaluga as his basis.


title: Saturn (mythology)

text: The main difficulty scholars find in studying Saturn is in assessing what is original of his figure and what is due to later hellenising influences. Moreover, some features of the god may be common to Cronus but are nonetheless very ancient and can be considered proper to the Roman god, whereas others are certainly later and arrived after 217 BCE, the year in which the Greek customs of the Kronia were introduced into the Saturnalia.


title: Saturn (mythology)

text: These three elements in Briquel's view indicate that Saturn is a sovereign god. The god's strict relationship with the cults of the Capitoline Hill and in particular with Jupiter are highlighted by the legends concerning the refusal of gods Iuventas and Terminus to leave their abode in the shrines on the Capitol when the temple of Jupiter was to be built. These two deities correspond to the helper gods of the sovereign in Vedic religion (Briquel refers to Dhritarashtra and Vidura, the figures of the Mahabharata) and to the Cyclopes and Hecatoncheires in Hesiod. Whereas the helper gods belong to the second divine generation they become active only at the level of the third in each of the three instances of India, Greece and Rome, where they become a sort of continuation of Jupiter.)


title: Saturn (mythology)

text: Dumézil postulated a split of the figure of the sovereign god in Indoeuropean religion, which is embodied by Vedic gods Varuna and Mitra. Of the two, the first one shows the aspect of the magic, uncanny, awe inspiring power of creation and destruction, while the second shows the reassuring aspect of guarantor of the legal order in organised social life. Whereas in Jupiter these double features have coalesced, Briquel sees Saturn as showing the characters of a sovereign god of the Varunian type. His nature becomes evident in his mastership over the annual time of crisis around the winter solstice, epitomised in the power of subverting normal codified social order and its rules, which is apparent in the festival of the Saturnalia, in the mastership of annual fertility and renewal, in the power of annihilation present in his paredra Lua, in the fact that he is the god of a timeless era of abundance and bounty before time, which he reinstates at the time of the yearly crisis of the winter solstice.


title: Saturn (mythology)

text: In Roman and Etruscan reckoning Saturn is a wielder of lightning; no other agricultural god (in the sense of specialized human activity) is one. Hence the mastership he has on agriculture and wealth cannot be that of a god of the third function, i.e. of production, wealth, and pleasure, but it stems from his magical lordship over creation and destruction. Although these features are to be found in Greek god Cronus as well, it appears that those features were proper to Roman Saturn's most ancient aspects, such as his presence on the Capitol and his association with Jupiter, who in the stories of the arrival of the Pelasgians in the land of the Sicels and that of the Argei orders human sacrifices to him.


title: Saturn (mythology)

text: Briquel concludes that Saturn was a sovereign god of a time that the Romans perceived as no longer actual, that of the legendary origins of the world, before civilization.


title: Saturn (mythology)

text: Sacrifices to Saturn were performed according to "Greek rite" ("ritus graecus"), with the head uncovered, in contrast to those of other major Roman deities, which were performed "capite velato", "with the head covered." Saturn himself, however, was represented as veiled ("involutus"), as for example in a wall painting from Pompeii that shows him holding a sickle and covered with a white veil. This feature is in complete accord with the character of a sovereign god of the Varunian type and is common with German god Odin. Briquel remarks Servius had already seen that the choice of the Greek rite was due to the fact that the god himself is imagined and represented as veiled, thence his sacrifice cannot be carried out by a veiled man: This is an instance of the reversal of the current order of things typical of the nature of the deity as appears in its festival.


title: Saturn (mythology)

text: Pliny notes that the cult statue of Saturn was filled with oil; the exact meaning of this is unclear. Its feet were bound with wool, which was removed only during the Saturnalia. The fact that the statue was filled with oil and the feet were bound with wool may relate back to the myth of "The Castration of Uranus". In this myth Rhea gives Cronus a rock to eat in Zeus's stead, thus tricking Cronus. Although mastership of knots is a feature of Greek origin it is also typical of the Varunian sovereign figure, as apparent e.g. in Odin. Once Zeus was victorious over Cronus, he sets this stone up at Delphi and constantly it is anointed with oil and strands of unwoven wool are placed on it. The stone wore a red cloak, and was brought out of the temple to take part in ritual processions and "lectisternia", banquets at which images of the gods were arranged as guests on couches. All these ceremonial details identify a sovereign figure.


title: Saturn (mythology)

text: Little evidence exists in Italy for the cult of Saturn outside Rome, but his name resembles that of the Etruscan god Satres. The potential cruelty of Saturn was enhanced by his identification with Cronus, known for devouring his own children. He was thus used in translation when referring to gods from other cultures the Romans perceived as severe; he was equated with the Carthaginian god Baal Hammon, to whom children were sacrificed, and to Yahweh, whose Sabbath was referred to as "Saturni dies", "Saturn's day," in a poem by Tibullus, who wrote during the reign of Augustus; eventually this gave rise to the word "Saturday" in English. The identification with Ba'al Hammon later gave rise to the African Saturn, a cult that enjoyed great popularity until the 4th century. Besides being a popular cult it also had the character of a mystery religion and required child sacrifices. It is also considered as inclining to monotheism. In the ceremony of initiation the "" (initiate) ""intrat sub iugum"" ("enters beneath the yoke"), a ritual that Leglay compares to the Roman "tigillum sororium". Even though their origin and theology are completely different the Italic and the African god are both sovereign and master over time and death, a fact that has permitted their association. However, the African Saturn is not directly derived from the Italic god, but rather from his Greek counterpart, Cronus.


title: Saturn (mythology)

text: Saturn is associated with a major religious festival in the Roman calendar, "Saturnalia". Saturnalia celebrated the harvest and sowing, and ran from December 17–23. During Saturnalia, the social restrictions of Rome were relaxed. The figure of Saturn, kept during the year with its legs bound in wool, was released from its bindings for the period of the festival. The revelries of Saturnalia were supposed to reflect the conditions of the lost "Golden Age" before the rule of Saturn was overthrown, not all of them desirable, except as a temporary relief from civilized constraint. The Greek equivalent was the Kronia.


title: Saturn (mythology)

text: Macrobius presents an interpretation of the Saturnalia as a festival of light leading to the winter solstice. The renewal of light and the coming of the new year was celebrated in the later Roman Empire at the "Dies Natalis" of Sol Invictus, the "Birthday of the Unconquerable Sun," on December 25.


title: Saturn (mythology)

text: It was customary for the Romans to represent divine figures as kings of Latium at the time of their legendary origins.


title: Saturn (mythology)

text: Macrobius states explicitly that the Roman legend of Janus and Saturn is an affabulation, as the true meaning of religious beliefs cannot be openly expressed. In the myth Saturn was the original and autochthonous ruler of the Capitolium, which had thus been called the "Mons Saturnius" in older times and on which once stood the town of "Saturnia".


title: Saturn (mythology)

text: He was sometimes regarded as the first king of Latium or even the whole of Italy. At the same time, there was a tradition that Saturn had been an immigrant god, received by Janus after he was usurped by his son Jupiter and expelled from Greece.


title: Saturn (mythology)

text: In Versnel's view his contradictions – a foreigner with one of Rome's oldest sanctuaries, and a god of liberation who is kept in fetters most of the year – indicate Saturn's capacity for confounding social distinctions.


title: Saturn (mythology)

text: The Golden Age of Saturn's reign in Roman mythology differed from the Greek tradition. He arrived in Italy "dethroned and fugitive," but brought agriculture and civilization for which he was rewarded by Janus with a share of the kingdom, becoming himself king. As the Augustan poet Virgil described it, "He gathered together the unruly race" of fauns and nymphs "scattered over mountain heights, and gave them laws ... . Under his reign were the golden ages men tell of: in such perfect peace he ruled the nations." He was considered the ancestor of the Latin nation as he fathered Picus, the first king of Latium, who married Janus's daughter Canens and in his turn fathered Faunus.


title: Saturn (mythology)

text: Saturn was also said to have founded the five "Saturnian" towns of Latium: Aletrium (today Alatri), Anagnia (Anagni), Arpinum (Arpino), Atina and Ferentinum (Ferentino, also known as Antinum) all located in the Latin Valley, province of Frosinone. All these towns are surrounded by cyclopean walls; their foundation is traditionally ascribed to the Pelasgians.


title: Saturn (mythology)

text: But Saturn also had a less benevolent aspect, as indicated by the blood shed in his honor during gladiatorial "munera". His consort in archaic Roman tradition was Lua, sometimes called "Lua Saturni" ("Saturn's Lua") and identified with Lua Mater, "Mother Destruction," a goddess in whose honor the weapons of enemies killed in war were burned, perhaps as expiation. Versnel, however, proposed that "Lua Saturni" should not be identified with "Lua Mater", but rather refers to "loosening"; she thus represents the liberating function of Saturn.


title: Saturn (mythology)

text: Saturn's chthonic nature connected him to the underworld and its ruler Dis Pater, the Roman equivalent of Greek Plouton (Pluto in Latin) who was also a god of hidden wealth.


title: Saturn (mythology)

text: In 3rd-century AD sources and later, Saturn is recorded as receiving gladiatorial offerings "(munera)" during or near the Saturnalia.


title: Saturn (mythology)

text: These gladiator combats, ten days in all throughout December, were presented by the quaestors and sponsored with funds from the treasury of Saturn.


title: Saturn (mythology)

text: The practice of gladiatorial "munera" was criticized by Christian apologists as a form of human sacrifice. Although there is no evidence of this practice during the Republican era, the offering of gladiators led to later theorizing that the primeval Saturn had demanded human victims. Macrobius says that Dis Pater was placated with human heads and Saturn with sacrificial victims consisting of men ( "virorum victimis" ). The figurines that were exchanged as gifts "(sigillaria)" during the Saturnalia may have represented token substitutes.


title: Saturn (mythology)

text: In 104 BCE, the plebeian tribune Lucius Appuleius Saturninus issued a denarius depicting Saturn driving a four-horse chariot "(quadriga)", a vehicle associated with rulers, triumphing generals, and sun gods. Saturninus was a popularist politician who had proposed reduced-price grain distribution to the poor of Rome. The head of the goddess Roma appears on the obverse. The Saturnian imagery played on the tribune's name and his intent to alter the social hierarchy to his advantage, by basing his political support on the common people ("plebs") rather than the senatorial elite.


title: Google Sheets

text: Google Sheets is a spreadsheet program included as part of the free, web-based Google Docs Editors suite offered by Google. The service also includes: Google Docs, Google Slides, Google Drawings, Google Forms, Google Sites and Google Keep. Google Sheets is available as a web application, mobile app for: Android, iOS, Microsoft Windows, BlackBerry OS and as a desktop application on Google's ChromeOS. The app is compatible with Microsoft Excel file formats. The app allows users to create and edit files online while collaborating with other users in real-time. Edits are tracked by a user with a revision history presenting changes. An editor's position is highlighted with an editor-specific color and cursor and a permissions system regulates what users can do. Updates have introduced features using machine learning, including "Explore", offering answers based on natural language questions in a spreadsheet.


title: Google Sheets

text: Google Sheets originated from XL2Web, a web-based spreadsheet application developed by 2Web Technologies, founded by Jonathan Rochelle and Farzad “Fuzzy” Khosrowshahi. XL2Web was acquired by Google in 2006 and turned into Google Labs Spreadsheets. It was launched as a test for a limited number of users, on a first-come, first-served basis on June 6, 2006. The limited test was later replaced with a beta version available to all Google Account holders, around the same time as an official announcement press release was issued. In March 2010, Google acquired the online document collaboration company DocVerse. DocVerse allowed multiple-user online collaboration on Excel-compatible documents as well as other Microsoft Office formats such as Microsoft Word and Microsoft PowerPoint. Improvements based on DocVerse were announced and deployed in April 2010. In June 2012, Google acquired Quickoffice, a freeware proprietary productivity suite for mobile devices. In October 2012, Google Spreadsheets was renamed Google Sheets and a Google Chrome app was released that provided shortcuts to Sheets on Chrome's new tab page.


title: Google Sheets

text: Google Sheets is available as a web application supported on: Google Chrome, Microsoft Edge, Firefox, Internet Explorer, and Safari web browsers. Users can access all spreadsheets, among other files, collectively through the Google Drive website. In June 2014, Google rolled out a dedicated website homepage for Sheets that contain only files created with Sheets. In 2014, Google launched a dedicated mobile app for Sheets on the Android and iOS mobile operating systems. In 2015, the mobile website for Sheets was updated with a "simpler, more uniform" interface and while users can read spreadsheets through the mobile websites, users trying to edit will be redirected towards the mobile app to eliminate editing on the mobile web.


title: Google Sheets

text: Google Sheets serves as a collaborative tool for cooperative editing of spreadsheets in real time. Documents can be shared, opened, and edited by multiple users simultaneously and users can see character-by-character changes as other collaborators make edits. Changes are automatically saved to Google's servers and a revision history is automatically kept so past edits may be viewed and reverted to. An editor's current position is represented with an editor-specific color/cursor, so if another editor happens to be viewing that part of the document they can see edits as they occur. A sidebar chat functionality allows collaborators to discuss edits. The revision history allows users to see the additions made to a document, with each author distinguished by color. Only adjacent revisions can be compared and users cannot control how frequently revisions are saved. Files can be exported to a user's local computer in a variety of formats such as PDF and Office Open XML. Sheets supports tagging for archival and organizational purposes.


title: Google Sheets

text: Launched for the entire Drive suite in September 2016, "Explore" enables additional functionality through machine learning. In Google Sheets, Explore enables users to ask questions, such as "How many units were sold on Black Friday?" and Explore will return the answer, without requiring formula knowledge from the user. In June 2017, Google expanded the Explore feature in Google Sheets to automatically build charts and visualize data and again expanded it in December to feature machine learning capable of automatically creating pivot tables. In October 2016, Google announced the addition of "Action items" to Sheets. If a user assigns a task within a Sheet, the service will intelligently assign that action to the designated user. Google states this will make it easier for other collaborators to visualize who is responsible for a task. When a user visits Google Drive or Sheets, any files containing tasks assigned to them will be highlighted with a badge. In March 2014, Google introduced add-ons; new tools from third-party developers that add more features for Google Sheets.


title: Google Sheets

text: To view and edit spreadsheets offline on a computer, users need to be using the Google Chromium-based web browser (e.g., Google Chrome, Microsoft Edge). A Chrome extension, "Google Docs Offline", allows users to enable offline support for Sheets and other Drive suite files on the Google Drive website. The Android and iOS apps natively support offline editing.


title: Google Sheets

text: Files in the following formats can be viewed and converted to the Sheets format: .xls (if newer than Microsoft Office 95), .xlsx, .xlsm, .xlt, .xltx, .xltm .ods, .csv, .tsv, .txt and .tab Overall document size is capped at 10 million cells.


title: Google Sheets

text: The Sheets app and the rest of the Google Docs Editors suite are free to use for individuals, but Sheets is also available as part of the business-centered Google Workspace (formerly G Suite) service by Google, which is a monthly subscription that enables additional business-focused functionality.


title: Google Sheets

text: Sheets can produce Google Charts and has a third-party plugin which allows for integration with Wikipedia.


title: Google Sheets

text: A simple find and replace tool is available. The service includes a web clipboard tool that allows users to copy and paste content between Google Sheets and Google Docs, Google Slides, and Google Drawings. The web clipboard can also be used for copying and pasting content between different computers. Copied items are stored on Google's servers for up to 30 days. Google offers an extension for the Google Chrome web browser called "Office editing for Docs, Sheets and Slides" that enables users to view and edit Microsoft Excel documents on Google Chrome, via the Google Sheets app. The extension can be used for opening Excel files stored on the computer using Chrome, as well as for opening files encountered on the web (in the form of email attachments, web search results, etc.) without having to download them. The extension is installed on ChromeOS by default. As of June 2019, this extension is no longer required since the functionality exists natively.


title: Google Sheets

text: Google Cloud Connect was a plug-in for Microsoft Office 2003, 2007, and 2010 that could automatically store and synchronize any Excel document to Google Sheets (before the introduction of Drive). The online copy was automatically updated each time the Microsoft Excel document was saved. Microsoft Excel documents could be edited offline and synchronized later when online. Google Cloud Connect maintained previous Microsoft Excel document versions and allowed multiple users to collaborate by working on the same document at the same time. However, Google Cloud Connect has been discontinued as of April 30, 2013, as, according to Google, Google Drive achieves all of the above tasks, "with better results".


title: Google Sheets

text: While Microsoft Excel maintains the 1900 Leap year bug, Google sheets 'fixes' this bug by increasing all dates before March 1, 1900, so entering "0" and formatting it as a date returns December 30, 1899. On the other hand. Excel interprets "0" as meaning December 31, 1899, which is formatted to read January 0, 1900.


title: Sweyn Forkbeard

text: Sweyn Forkbeard ( ; ; 17 April 963 – 3 February 1014) was King of Denmark from 986 to 1014, also at times King of the English and King of Norway. He was the father of King Harald II of Denmark, King Cnut the Great, and Queen Estrid Svendsdatter.


title: Sweyn Forkbeard

text: In the mid-980s, Sweyn revolted against his father, Harald Bluetooth, and seized the throne. Harald was driven into exile and died shortly afterwards in November 986 or 987. In 1000, with the allegiance of Eric, Earl of Lade, Sweyn ruled most of Norway. In 1013, shortly before his death, he became the first Danish king of the English after a long effort.


title: Sweyn Forkbeard

text: Historiographical sources on Sweyn's life include the "Anglo-Saxon Chronicle" (where his name is rendered as "Swegen"), Adam of Bremen's 11th-century "Deeds of the Bishops of Hamburg", and Snorri Sturluson's 13th-century "Heimskringla". Conflicting accounts of Sweyn's later life also appear in the "Encomium Emmae Reginae", an 11th-century Latin "encomium" in honour of his son king Cnut's queen Emma of Normandy, along with "Chronicon ex chronicis" by Florence of Worcester, another 11th-century author.


title: Sweyn Forkbeard

text: There are conflicting accounts of Sweyn's heritage. One chronicle, "Gesta Wulinensis ecclesiae pontificum", only recently discovered in 2019 and written around 990 by Avico, the chaplain of Harald Bluetooth, states that Sweyn was the son of Harald's older brother, Knut Danaást and Tove. According to this source, Knut Danaást was killed in battle on 17 October 962 and his wife was pregnant with Sweyn at the time. Tove married her brother-in-law Harald in January 963 and Sweyn was born around Easter 963. Harald raised Sweyn as his adopted son. According to Adam of Bremen, Sweyn was the son of Harald Bluetooth and a woman named "Gunhild". When Harald converted to Christianity, Sweyn was baptised "Otto" (in honour of German king Otto I).


title: Sweyn Forkbeard

text: Sweyn married the widow of Erik, king of Sweden, named "Gunhild" in some sources, or identified as an unnamed sister of Boleslaus, ruler of Poland.


title: Sweyn Forkbeard

text: Historian Ian Howard describes Sweyn as "a competent military commander, politician and diplomat" who made "a formidable and successful king."


title: Sweyn Forkbeard

text: In the mid-980s, Sweyn revolted against his father and seized the throne. Harald was driven into exile and died shortly afterwards in November 986 or 987.


title: Sweyn Forkbeard

text: Adam of Bremen depicted Sweyn as a rebellious pagan who persecuted Christians, betrayed his father and expelled German bishops from Scania and Zealand. According to Adam, Sweyn was sent into exile by his father's German friends and deposed in favour of king Eric the Victorious of Sweden, whom Adam wrote ruled Denmark until his death in 994 or 995. Sørensen (2001) argues that Adam's depiction of Sweyn may be overly negative, as seen through an "unsympathetic and intolerant eye".


title: Sweyn Forkbeard

text: Adam's account is thus not seen as entirely reliable; the claimed 14 years' exile of Sweyn to Scotland does not seem to agree with Sweyn's building churches in Denmark throughout the same period, including the churches in Lund and Roskilde. According to Adam, Sweyn was punished by God for leading the uprising which led to king Harald's death, and had to spend fourteen years abroad (i.e. 986–1000). The historicity of this exile, or its duration, is uncertain. Adam purports that Sweyn was shunned by all those with whom he sought refuge, but was finally allowed to live for a while in Scotland. Adam also suggests that Sweyn in his youth lived among heathens, and only achieved success as a ruler after accepting Christianity.


title: Sweyn Forkbeard

text: Harald Bluetooth had already established a foothold in Norway, controlling Viken in c. 970. He may, however, have lost control over his Norwegian claims following his defeat against a German army in 974.


title: Sweyn Forkbeard

text: Sweyn built an alliance with Swedish king Olof Skötkonung and Eirik Hákonarson, Jarl of Lade, against Norwegian king Olaf Tryggvason.


title: Sweyn Forkbeard

text: The Kings' sagas ascribe the causes of the alliance to Olaf Tryggvason's ill-fated marriage proposal to Sigrid the Haughty and his problematic marriage to Thyri, sister of Sweyn Forkbeard. According to the sagas, Sigrid pushed Sweyn into war with Olaf because Olaf had slapped her.


title: Sweyn Forkbeard

text: The allies attacked and defeated king Olaf in the western Baltic Sea when he was sailing home from an expedition, in the Battle of Svolder, fought in September of either 999 or 1000. The victors divided Norway among them. According to the account of the "Heimskringla", Sweyn re-gained direct control of Viken district.


title: Sweyn Forkbeard

text: King Olaf of Sweden received four districts in Trondheim as well as Møre, Romsdal and Rånrike (the "Fagrskinna", by contrast, says that the Swedish part consisted of Oppland and a part of Trondheim). He gave these to his son in law, Jarl Svein Hákonarson, to hold as a vassal. The rest of Norway was ruled by Eirik Hákonarson as King Svein's vassal.


title: Sweyn Forkbeard

text: The Jarls Eirik and Svein proved strong, competent rulers, and their reign was prosperous. Most sources say that they adopted Christianity but allowed the people religious freedom, leading to a backlash against Christianity which undid much of Olaf Tryggvason's missionary work.


title: Sweyn Forkbeard

text: Sweyn apparently recruited priests and bishops from England, in preference to the Archbishopric of Bremen. In part, this reflected the fact that there were numerous Christian priests of Danish origin in the Danelaw, while Sweyn had few personal connections to Germany. However, Sweyn's preference for the English church may also have had a political motive, because German bishops were an integral part of the state. It has been suggested that Sweyn was seeking to pre-empt any diminution of his independence by German leaders. This may have been a reason for Adam of Bremen's apparent hostility in his accounts of Sweyn; by accentuating English ecclesiastical influence in his kingdom, Sweyn was effectively spurning the Archbishop of Bremen.


title: Sweyn Forkbeard

text: The "Chronicle of John of Wallingford" (c. 1225–1250) records Sweyn's involvement in raids against England during 1002–1005, 1006–1007 and 1009–1012 to avenge the St. Brice's Day massacre of England's Danish inhabitants in November 1002. According to Ashley (1998), Sweyn's invasion was partly motivated by the massacre of Danes in England ordered by Æthelred the Unready in 1002, in which his sister and brother-in-law are said to have been killed, but Lund (2001) argues that the main motivation for the raids was more likely the prospect of revenue.


title: Sweyn Forkbeard

text: At the outset of the invasions, Sweyn negotiated an agreement with Duke Richard II of Normandy whereby the Danes gained permission to sell their spoils of war in Normandy.


title: Sweyn Forkbeard

text: Sweyn campaigned in Wessex and East Anglia in 1003–1004, but a famine forced him to return to Denmark in 1005. Further raids took place in 1006–1007, and in 1009–1012 Thorkell the Tall led a Viking invasion into England. Simon Keynes regards it as uncertain whether Sweyn supported these invasions, but "whatever the case, he was quick to exploit the disruption caused by the activities of Thorkell's army".


title: Sweyn Forkbeard

text: Sweyn acquired massive sums of "Danegeld" through the raids. In 1013, he is reported to have personally led his forces in a full-scale invasion of England.


title: Sweyn Forkbeard

text: before the month of August came king Sweyn with his fleet to Sandwich. He went very quickly about East Anglia into the Humber's mouth, and so upward along the Trent till he came to Gainsborough. Earl Uchtred and all Northumbria quickly bowed to him, as did all the people of the Kingdom of Lindsey, then the people of the Five Boroughs. He was given hostages from each shire. When he understood that all the people had submitted to him, he bade that his force should be provisioned and horsed; he went south with the main part of the invasion force, while some of the invasion force, as well as the hostages, were with his son Cnut. After he came over Watling Street, they went to Oxford, and the town-dwellers soon bowed to him, and gave hostages. From there they went to Winchester, and the people did the same, then eastward to London.


title: Sweyn Forkbeard

text: But the Londoners put up a strong resistance, because King Æthelred and Thorkell the Tall, a Viking leader who had defected to Æthelred, personally held their ground against him in London itself. Sweyn then went west to Bath, where the western thanes submitted to him and gave hostages. The Londoners then followed suit, fearing Sweyn's revenge if they resisted any longer. King Æthelred sent his sons Edward and Alfred to Normandy, and himself retreated to the Isle of Wight, and then followed them into exile. On Christmas Day 1013 Sweyn was declared King of England.


title: Sweyn Forkbeard

text: Based in Gainsborough, Lincolnshire, Sweyn began to organise his vast new kingdom, but he died there on 3 February 1014, having ruled England for only five weeks. Sweyn's cause of death is unknown. Some theorise that he was killed, whereas other sources say he died after falling off a horse. His embalmed body was returned to Denmark for burial in the church he had built. Tradition locates this church in Roskilde, but it is more plausible that it was actually located in Lund in Scania (now part of Sweden).


title: Sweyn Forkbeard

text: Sweyn's elder son, Harald II, succeeded him as King of Denmark, while his younger son, Cnut, was proclaimed King of England by the people of the Danelaw. However, the English nobility sent for Æthelred, who upon his return from exile in Normandy in the spring of 1014 managed to drive Cnut out of England. Cnut soon returned and became king of all England in 1016, following the deaths of Æthelred and his son Edmund Ironside; he succeeded his brother as King of Denmark in 1019 and eventually also ruled Norway, parts of Sweden, Pomerania and Schleswig.


title: Sweyn Forkbeard

text: Cnut and his sons, Harold Harefoot and Harthacnut, ruled England over a combined 26-year period (1016–1042). After Harthacnut's death, the English throne reverted to the House of Wessex under Æthelred's younger son Edward the Confessor (reigned 1042–1066).


title: Sweyn Forkbeard

text: Sweyn's daughter, Estrid Svendsdatter, was the mother of King Sweyn II of Denmark. Her descendants continue to reign in Denmark to this day. One of them, Margaret of Denmark, married James III of Scotland in 1469, introducing Sweyn's bloodline into the Scottish royal house. After James VI of Scotland inherited the English throne in 1603, Sweyn's descendants became monarchs of England again.


title: Sweyn Forkbeard

text: The "Chronicon" of Thietmar of Merseburg and the "Encomium Emmae" report Cnut's mother as having been Świętosława, a daughter of Mieszko I of Poland. Norse sources of the High Middle Ages, most prominently "Heimskringla" by Snorri Sturluson, also give a Polish princess as Cnut's mother, whom they call Gunhild and a daughter of "Burislav", the king of "Vindland". Since in the Norse sagas the "king of Vindland" is always "Burislav", this is reconcilable with the assumption that her father was Mieszko (not his son Bolesław). Adam of Bremen in "Gesta Hammaburgensis ecclesiae pontificum" is unique in equating Cnut's mother (for whom he also produces no name) with the former queen of Sweden, wife of Eric the Victorious and by this marriage mother of Olof Skötkonung. To complicate the matter, "Heimskringla" and other sagas also have Sweyn marrying Eric's widow, but she is distinctly another person in these texts, named "Sigrid the Haughty", whom Sweyn only marries after "Gunhild", the Slavic princess who bore Cnut, has died. Different theories regarding the number and ancestry of Sweyn's wives (or wife) have been advanced (see Sigrid the Haughty and Gunhild). But since Adam is the only source to equate the identity of Cnut's and Olof Skötkonung's mother, this is often seen as an error on Adam's part, and it is often assumed that Sweyn had two wives, the first being Cnut's mother, and the second being the former Queen of Sweden. Cnut's brother Harald was the youngest of the two brothers, according to "Encomium Emmae."


title: Metric system

text: The metric system is a system of measurement that succeeded the decimalised system based on the metre that had been introduced in France in the 1790s. The historical development of these systems culminated in the definition of the International System of Units (SI) in the mid-20th century, under the oversight of an international standards body. Adopting the metric system is known as "metrication".


title: Metric system

text: The historical evolution of metric systems has resulted in the recognition of several principles. Each of the fundamental dimensions of nature is expressed by a single base unit of measure. The definition of base units has increasingly been realised from natural principles, rather than by copies of physical artefacts. For quantities derived from the fundamental base units of the system, units derived from the base units are used—e.g., the square metre is the derived unit for area, a quantity derived from length. These derived units are coherent, which means that they involve only products of powers of the base units, without empirical factors. For any given quantity whose unit has a special name and symbol, an extended set of smaller and larger units is defined that are related by factors of powers of ten. The unit of time should be the second; the unit of length should be either the metre or a decimal multiple of it; and the unit of mass should be the gram or a decimal multiple of it.