Anderson .Paak

Paul McCartney Announces A Collaborative New Version Of ‘McCartney III’ With A Cover From Dominic Fike

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It appeared yesterday that a cryptic video Paul McCartney shared was teasing upcoming collaborations with Anderson .Paak, Phoebe Bridgers, Idris Elba, EOB (Ed O’Brien), Dominic Fike, St. Vincent, Damon Albarn, Beck, Khruangbin, Josh Homme, 3D RDN (of Massive Attack), and Blood Orange. Today, he has confirmed that to be the case: He is releasing a reworked version of his 2020 album, McCartney III, titled McCartney III Imagined, which features contributions from the aforementioned artists.

Tracks from the original album have been covered and/or otherwise reimagined by the guest artists and McCartney kicked things off today by sharing Fike’s rendition of “The Kiss Of Venus,” which he transformed from an acoustic ballad to an R&B jam.

During a Reddit AMA from December, McCartney cited Fike and other artists involved in McCartney III Imagined as modern performers he listens to, writing, “I’m lucky, I have a friend who sends me new music which helps me keep in touch with the modern scene. So I listen to people like Dominic Fike, Beck, St Vincent and Khruangbin. I also listen to a lot of classic oldies coming through, from rock n’ roll to 60’s to soul to R’n’B, with a sprinkling of classical music now and then.”

Listen to Fike’s “The Kiss Of Venus” cover above and check out the McCartney III Imagined art and tracklist below.

Capitol Records

1. “Find My Way (feat. Beck)”
2. “The Kiss Of Venus (Dominic Fike)”
3. “Pretty Boys (feat. Khruangbin)”
4. “Women And Wives (St. Vincent Remix)”
5. “Deep Down (Blood Orange Remix)”
6. “Seize The Day (feat. Phoebe Bridgers)”
7. “Slidin’ (EOB Remix)”
8. “Long Tailed Winter Bird (Damon Albarn Remix)”
9. “Lavatory Lil (Josh Homme)”
10. “When Winter Comes (Anderson .Paak Remix)”
11. “Deep Deep Feeling (3D RDN Remix)”
12. “Long Tailed Winter Bird (Idris Elba Remix)”*

* physical release exclusive track

McCartney III Imagined is out 4/16 via Capitol Records. Pre-order it here.

Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Anderson .Paak + Bruno Mars Publicly Beg The Grammys

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Bill Withers Remembered By Anderson .Paak

Rapper/singer Anderson .Paak and pop megastar Bruno Mars have formed a group called Silk Sonic, and their first single “Leave the Door Open” is already a hit. Now they’re trying hard to get on the Grammy Awards show lineup as a last-minute addition. Anderson .Paak + Bruno Mars Want A Piece Of The Grammys Stage […]

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Anderson .Paak And Bruno Mars Received An Invite To Perform At The 2021 Grammys

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This past Sunday, the Recording Academy revealed its long list of performers for the upcoming 63rd Annual Grammy Awards. The setlist promises appearances from Taylor Swift, Billie Eilish, Cardi B, DaBaby, Lil Baby, Roddy Ricch, Doja Cat, and many other favorites. Despite the rather lengthy list of acts, there was a pair of artists who were particularly disappointed to not be invited: Bruno Mars and Anderson .Paak.

The singers recently joined forces as Silk Sonic and shared their first single, “Leave The Door Open,” which was met with rave reviews. When they were not listed among the Grammy performers, they took matters into their own hands. Mars posted a letter to Twitter, which was co-signed by .Paak, which read in part, “Dear Grammys, If you can see it in your hearts to allow two out of work musicians to perform at your show, we would really appreciate it. We just released a song and could really use the promotion right now.” Thankfully for them, the message worked, as the Recording Academy delivered exactly the response they hoped for.

In a tweet, the Academy wrote, “.@BrunoMars & @AndersonPaak We have been trying to call you all week. Have you changed your numbers? We would love for #silksonic to make their TV debut at the #GRAMMYs.” They added, “Are you free this Sunday night? Follow back and we will DM for details.” Just like that, Silk Sonic will be on stage this Sunday.

Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Bruno Mars And Anderson .Paak Really Want Silk Sonic To Perform At The Grammys This Year

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Warner Records

Over the weekend, the Recording Academy announced its list of performers for this year’s Grammys ceremony, which includes Taylor Swift, Billie Eilish, and other big names. A pair of artists was excluded, though, and they’re not pleased about it: Bruno Mars and Anderson .Paak, who are now collectively known as Silk Sonic. The two were so flabbergasted by their absence from the list that they took to Twitter to vent their frustrations and rally the Academy to give them a shot.

Yesterday afternoon, .Paak shared a graphic of the performers list and tweeted, “YO @BrunoMars WHAT THE F*CK?!? Did you see this?!?! Call me back!!” Mars replied, “Wait… are you sure this is even real? where did you find this?” That was the beginning of a playful back-and-forth, which .Paak continued, “Bro it says CBS right at the top! It’s legit. What the F*CK!!?! ANSWER YOUR PHONE!!”

Mars answered, “Are you sure these are performers and not just presenters,” to which .Paak replied, “FAM STOP!!! Did they even hear the song?!? They don’t love us??” Mars then shared a revised image of the list and wrote, “See @AndersonPaak You’ve been misinformed. This is the real real bill. we’re all good!” As .Paak quickly pointed out, though, “And we’re not on this either you PRICK!!!” That elicited a simple “Oh” from Mars.

This is when .Paak got the ball rolling, tweeting, “Do we need to get a hashtag going or something??” Presumably rubbing his eyes while tweeting his response, Mars wrote, “Andy just chill. i’m still waking up.” .Paak was unrelenting, responding, “Nah f*ck that! I haven’t seen my family in months!! I need this to work, You promised me!! Everybody join in!!! I need all of Twitter to help make this trend!! Come on @RecordingAcad #LetSilkSonicThrive.” Mars answered, “I don’t think this is how u get on a show @AndersonPaak, & that’s a pretty long hashtag but i’m rockin wit you. #LetSilkSonicThrive.”

Mars then shared a letter that read:

“Dear Grammys,

If you can see it in your hearts to allow two out of work musicians to perform at your show, we would really appreciate it. We just released a song and could really use the promotion right now. We have a lot riding on this record (and the Pelicans game next week, but that’s another story). We haven’t been able to perform for a while and we just want to sing. We’ll send in an audition tape and take as many covid tests as we need to. I promise we won’t be extra. We just really want a gig again. I hope you’ll consider this request and give us the opportunity to shine. Love, Silk Sonic.”

.Paak added, “WHAT HE SAID! #LetSilkSonicThrive.” .Paak later noted that the hashtag had become a trending topic on Twitter, writing, “@RecordingAcad I know you see this!! We doing real numbers out here!! You can’t ignore the people!!!#LetSilkSonicThrive.” Mars responded, “Yo!!! @AndersonPaak It’s working! you’re a real twitter wizard! @RecordingAcad please log on and look at this!!! #LetSilkSonicThrive.” Mars added, “Wow this started with just us 2 and now we’re a whole army! There’s nothing we cant do. First the Grammys then the world! UNLIMITED POWERRR!”

Still, it would seem .Paak lost hope in the cause, as he was quick to attempt to hop on the BTS train, tweeting, “Bro the @RecordingAcad haven’t even responded… @bts_bighit do y’all need a drummer? #LetSilkSonicThrive.” Mars responded, “You’re right. I got excited we were trending for a while today. I’m sorry I let you down. I hope you & BTS go on to do great things,” to which .Paak replied, “You never let me down champ! Only disappointed me. But sh*t atleast it’s top trending! Don’t give up hope! Either The Grammys or BTS is gonna hit us Back I know it. thank you guys so much!!! #LetSilkSonicThrive.”

Mars and .Paak are certainly fit to appear on the Grammys stage, as they are both accomplished veterans of the awards: Mars has picked up 11 Grammy wins from 27 nominations, while .Paak has 3 wins from 7 nominations.

That’s where the situation stands now. It’s not clear if this is some sort of elaborate social media campaign leading up to an official announcement of Silk Sonic’s addition to the Grammy performance lineup, if this is actually how Mars and .Paak are trying to get involved, or if they’re just goofing around and getting some viral self-promotion in on Twitter. Either way, check out the tweets here or below.

Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Anderson .Paak + Bruno Mars Reveal How They Linked Up

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silk-sonic

West Coast rapper/singer Anderson .Paak and pop megastar Bruno Mars have formed a musical juggernaut with their Silk Sonic project. Together, they dropped a new single “Leave the Door Open” on Friday that’s a surefire hit. Anderson .Paak + Bruno Mars Bring Silk Sonic To Life Anderson .Paak’s last album, 2019’s Ventura, peaked at No. […]

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Bruno Mars Isn’t Fazed By Those Who Accuse Him Of Cultural Appropriation

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Back in 2018, Twitter ignited with accusations of cultural appropriation against Bruno Mars, who critics said was cashing in on music inspired by Black entertainers. At the time, Mars responded by saying all genres of music, from jazz to hip-hop, have roots in the Black community. “In my world, Black music means everything,” he said at the time. Now, Mars is once again addressing his cultural appropriation backlash, this time by explaining his inspirations.

Bruno Mars recently sat down for an interview with The Breakfast Club alongside Anderson .Paak in support of their recent Silk Sonic single “Leave The Door Open.” Charlamagne Tha God, the host of The Breakfast Club, asked Mars how he felt about being accused of “cultural theft.” Mars responded by saying he does draw inspiration from Black legends like Prince and James Brown:

“I’ll say, you can’t find an interview where I’m not talking about the entertainers who have come before me. The only reason why I’m here is because of James Brown, Prince, Michael [Jackson], that’s the only reason why I’m here. I’m growing up as a kid watching Bobbie Brown saying, ‘Okay, if that’s what it takes to make it, then I gotta learn how to do the running man, I gotta learn how to do the moonwalk.’ That’s it. This music comes from love. If you can’t hear that, then I don’t know what to tell you.

It’s the truth, it’s not a secret. Like I said, we’re wearing the inspiration on our sleeve. What is the point if us as musicians if we can’t learn from the guys that come before us? I hope later on, down the road, there’s going to be a band that’s taking what we did and flipping that, and freaking that, and putting their own spin on it. Because if we don’t, then what was the point of us doing this?”

Charlamagne then asked Mars if he was ever “pissed off” by the cultural appropriation critics, and Mars said he wasn’t fazed. Rather, he understands that Black creators are oftentimes not given the credit they deserve. “There’s merit to what people are saying about Black entertainers not getting their flowers,” he said. “I’m champion of that, I’m with that. […] I understand. It’s just Twitter, man.”

Watch a clip of Mars and .Paak’s interview on The Breakfast Club above.

Bruno Mars is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Silk Sonic Began With Bruno Mars Calling A Drunk Anderson .Paak To The Studio On His Birthday

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Anderson .Paak was one of the supporting acts on Bruno Mars’ world tour in support of his album 24K Magic, and it turns out that’s where the seed of pair’s new band, Silk Sonic, was planted. The way Mars tells it, though, things really got started with .Paak getting drunk on his 25th birthday and joining Mars in the studio.

Mars and .Paak chatted about the project and their new song “Leave The Door Open” with Apple Music’s Zane Lowe. Mars explained, “There’s a song on the album that we started in 2017, that was on tour. And it was just a little phrase that we had that we were joking around going back and forth about. When we got to the studio, I actually called him on his birthday and I said, ‘I think I figured out that little hook we had. Come to the studio.’ He’s like, ‘It’s my birthday.’ So he came drunk. After every take, he was on fire.”

.Paak then chimed in, “My 25th birthday, bro, what was I going to do?”

Mars continued:

“That’s what it was. It snowballed. And it was like, well, want to come back tomorrow? And we kept coming up with music. It felt like why you fall in love with music in the first place. And jamming with your buddy… There’s no plan, just working out the parts and trying to excite each other. That’s why this wouldn’t happen if it didn’t make sense and it didn’t feel natural and organic. This was a series of events that led us to, ‘Man, why don’t we just do it?’ Starting with the tour, us creating a friendship and a bond and talking to each other and sharing the same love for music, getting into the studio, quarantine, all of these things. it was the equation to get this album and it’s… that’s God.”

Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Anderson .Paak And Bruno Mars Unite As ‘Silk Sonic’ With Their Groovy New Single, ‘Leave The Door Open’

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Anderson .Paak and Bruno Mars have both proven to be phenomenal artists in their respective fields, but sometimes, two good things are better as one, and that’s exactly what the two singers will look to show next. Anderson and Bruno announced last week that they would soon release an album together as Silk Sonic.

Outside of a confirmed appearance from Boosty Collins, details on the upcoming body of work are limited, but tonight the first single from the effort has arrived. “Leave The Door Open” is a groovy number that sees the duo promising to keep a spot in their lives open for a past lover. It comes with a match visual that finds Anderson and Bruno passionately playing the song in a studio.

The new track is the first piece of music from Anderson in a few months. The Cali-born singer was a bit busy in 2020 thanks to singles like “Jewelz,” “Cut Em In” with Rick Ross, and “Lockdown,” a track that was later remixed with help from Noname, Jay Rock, and JID.

Bruno, on the other hand, has been rather quiet for the last few years. His last album arrived in 2016 with 24K Magic, an effort that gave him six awards at the 2018 Grammys including Album of the Year, Record of the Year, and Song of the Year. His other releases since then include “Please Me” with Cardi B and “Blow” with Ed Sheeran and Chris Stapleton. Elsewhere, he’s also set to produce and star in music-centric Disney film.

Give the new single a listen above.

Bruno Mars is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Bruno Mars And Anderson .Paak Are Teaming Up For A Whole Album Together As Silk Sonic

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Stop the presses — two of music’s most legendary groovers are collaborating.

In an unexpected Instagram post from Bruno Mars — who has been relatively quiet on the new music front since his controversially won Album Of The Year at the 2018 Grammys — revealed that he and Anderson .Paak have teamed up for what is sure to be one of the funkiest supergroups around. Dubbing themselves Silk Sonic, Mars shared that the two have already made a whole album’s worth of material together, and the first new song will be dropping next week, March 5.

“We locked in and made an album,” Bruno wrote on Instagram. The band’s called Silk Sonic. First song drops next Friday 3/5.”

This isn’t the first time .Paak has worked with another artist for an entire album. His project NxWorries is a supergroup with LA legend Knxwledge, and their 2016 album Yes Lawd! is still a fan-favorite. Bruno isn’t a stranger to working with other big names, he infamously pulled Cardi B onto “Finesse” at the height of her career, and has worked with The Police (!) already. But he hasn’t gone as far as to create an entire album with another artist, so it will be fascinating to see how this plays out. In the meantime, check in next Friday to get the first taste of Silk Sonic.