Ari Lennox

Ari Lennox Is Back And She’s Applying ‘Pressure’ With A Fun And Free-Spirited New Single

by

After dazzling in 2019 with her phenomenal debut album, Shea Butter Baby, Ari Lennox kept things cool, calm, and collected in 2020. She made a few appearances on Dreamville’s Revenge Of The Dreamers III and Spillage Village’s Spilligion while delivering some singles of her own. They included her Shea Butter Baby remix EP, which delivered updated takes of tracks from her debut. As for 2021, it seems like Lennox could be bringing fans closer to the long-awaited release of her sophomore album and the road towards the project begins with her brand new single, “Pressure.”

The singer’s newest release is fun and free-spirited as it captures Lennox delivering sultry lines about her passionate love life with her new partner. Dreamville’s First Lady declares she’s “okay with being nasty” and adds, “Don’t need nobody but I’ll take you down tonight.” She also delivers a vibrant visual for the song that depicts her in a number of throwback looks which add to the fun of the new song.

“Pressure” arrives after Summer Walker confirmed Lennox, along with Lil Durk and SZA, will appear on her upcoming album. If you’re looking to catch Lennox live in concert, you’ll be able to do so at HER’s upcoming Lights On Festival in Brooklyn. As for her more recent releases, Lennox’s last release came alongside Queen Naija for “Set Him Up.”

You can press play on the new single in the video above.

Summer Walker Confirms SZA, Lil Durk, And Ari Lennox Will Appear On Her Next Album

by
Getty Image

At the end of 2019, Summer Walker released her debut album, Over It, which broke the record for the largest streaming week for an R&B album by a female artist. It also gave the singer her highest-charting release, debuting at No. 2 on the Billboard 200. Now Walker is wrapping up work on her sophomore album, and though a title or release date have not yet been shared, she recently revealed some of the artists that will appear on it.

In a post to her Instagram Story, Walker revealed that SZA, Lil Durk, and Ari Lennox are among the acts that are involved. “Riding around listening to this album, can’t choose which is my favorite song… it’s between durk sza and ari ft,” the singer wrote in the post before adding, “they all so good.”

It would be the first time that Walker has collaborated with any of the aforementioned artists. But if her past work proves anything, it’s that she can create excellent chemistry with various artists. Over It featured excellent collaborations with Bryson Tiller, Usher, Jhene Aiko, 6lack, PartyNextDoor, A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie, and Drake.

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

HER’s Lights On Festival Is Coming To Brooklyn This Fall With Sets From Chloe Bailey, 6lack, And More

by

A few weeks back, HER announced another edition of her personally curated Lights On Festival in Concord, California, happening over two consecutive days in September. (The first Lights On went down in 2019, if you’ll recall.) Now, Lights On is making its way to Brooklyn’s Barclays Center the following month.

Also curated by the Grammy-winning performer, the East Coast iteration of Lights On also goes down on two consecutive days — October 21 and 22 — and features performances from HER (and friends), plus R&B favorites Maxwell, 6lack, Bryson Tiller, Ari Lennox, SWV, Queen Naija, Lucky Daye, Chloe Bailey (of Chloe x Halle), Blxst, Victoria Monet, Skip Marley, Joyce Wrice, and Tone Stilth, with more to be announced.

Lights On Festival

As previously reported, Lights On Festival is making its way to the Concord Pavilion in Concord, California on September 18 and 19 with performances from HER, Erykah Badu, Tiller, Ari Lennox, Ty Dolla Sign, Keyshia Cole, Masego, Lucky Daye, Kiana Ledé, Fousheé, and lots more. According to today’s announcement, tickets for the Barclays show in Brooklyn are set to go on sale this Friday, July 23, at 10 a.m. ET, though fans can get pre-sale tickets today, July 20, at 12 p.m. ET. Get tickets here.

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

HER’s Lights On Festival Is Coming To Brooklyn This Fall With Sets From Chloe Bailey, 6lack, And More

by

A few weeks back, HER announced another edition of her personally curated Lights On Festival in Concord, California, happening over two consecutive days in September. (The first Lights On went down in 2019, if you’ll recall.) Now, Lights On is making its way to Brooklyn’s Barclays Center the following month.

Also curated by the Grammy-winning performer, the East Coast iteration of Lights On also goes down on two consecutive days — October 21 and 22 — and features performances from HER (and friends), plus R&B favorites Maxwell, 6lack, Bryson Tiller, Ari Lennox, SWV, Queen Naija, Lucky Daye, Chloe Bailey (of Chloe x Halle), Blxst, Victoria Monet, Skip Marley, Joyce Wrice, and Tone Stilth, with more to be announced.

Lights On Festival

As previously reported, Lights On Festival is making its way to the Concord Pavilion in Concord, California on September 18 and 19 with performances from HER, Erykah Badu, Tiller, Ari Lennox, Ty Dolla Sign, Keyshia Cole, Masego, Lucky Daye, Kiana Ledé, Fousheé, and lots more. According to today’s announcement, tickets for the Barclays show in Brooklyn are set to go on sale this Friday, July 23, at 10 a.m. ET, though fans can get pre-sale tickets today, July 20, at 12 p.m. ET. Get tickets here.

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

HER’s 2021 Lights On Festival Is Led By Erykah Badu, Bryson Tiller, And Ari Lennox

by
Getty Image

In addition to winning Grammy and Oscar awards, HER also has her very own music festival. She first premiered the Lights On Festival back in 2019 with help from Summer Walker, Jhene Aiko, and Daniel Caesar. While there might’ve been plans to have the festival again in 2020, the coronavirus pandemic forced the singer to delay the show for the forseeable future. Now that things are reopening for the most part, HER used the 2021 BET Award stage to announce that the Lights On Festival would return this fall. Moments later, the official lineup for the show was revealed.

This year’s Lights On Festival will return the Concord Pavilion on the weekend of September 18-19. The show is led by Erkyah Badu, Bryson Tiller, and Ari Lennox as well HER who will appear with “friends” that have yet to be mentioned. Other performers for the Lights On Festival include Ty Dolla Sign, Keyshia Cole, Masego, Lucky Daye, Kiana Lede, Foushee, Blxst, VanJess, Arin Ray, Tone Stith, Tiana Major9, Maeta, Brianna Castilo, Samaria, Maxx Moore, Lorea, and more names to be announced.

In addition to announcing the festival at the BET Awards, HER also performed “We Made It” and won the Best Female R&B/Pop Artist award.

You can view the full lineup above.

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

Dreamville Brings A Mini-Festival To Red Rocks Amphitheatre In Colorado

by
Getty Image

Although the pandemic forced the cancelation of numerous concerts, festivals, and tours, as live entertainment returns, fans who missed out on last year’s festivities are getting some consolation. One of the festivals that was canceled, the Dreamville Festival, is sort of coming back in a smaller capacity as Dreamville On The Rocks, a one-day mini-fest featuring nearly the entire roster at Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Morrison, Colorado. The label’s social accounts posted a motion flyer providing the details and revealing the lineup and date: October 23, 2021.

Although team captain J. Cole is notably absent — perhaps he’ll be participating in some NBA team’s fall training camp, hoping to continue his professional basketball career — all of the label’s other roster mainstays are accounted for. Ari Lennox, Bas, Cozz, Earthgang, JID, Lute, and Omen are all listed, which could also be a good sign for expected releases from each after a year of relative inactivity (although Earthgang and JID both participated in the Spillage Village album Spilligion in 2020).

Dreamville On The Rocks doesn’t appear to be as big of an event as the original Dreamville Festival was planned to be with no announced guests from outside the label and only one day, but perhaps the crew is using it as a dry-run to shake off the rust before announcing a larger event down the line. Tickets go on sale Friday at 10 am. You can find more information at Dreamville.com.

Ari Lennox And Queen Naija ‘Set Him Up’ In Their Vengeful New Video

by

Building on the storyline of their recent collaboration, “Set Him Up,” R&B revivalists Ari Lennox and Queen Naija share the vengeful video for the low-key infidelity call-out. Opening with Ari and Naija calling each other on the phone to talk up their respective new relationships, as the men in question are shot with their faces out of the frame, making the revelation that the “men” are the same man even more visually compelling. In the end, the two singers link up to sing the last third of the song on a couch, which their victim tied up and gagged behind them.

“Set Him Up” arrived on the heels of Ari Lennox’s prior duets with Lucky Daye, “Access Denied,” and Jazmine Sullivan, “On It,” showing off a wide range of topics for the D.C.-born singer to address as she prepares a follow-up for her fan-favorite 2019 debut, Shea Butter Baby. Meanwhile, Naija is a few months removed from the release of her own debut album Missunderstood, which helped legitimize the former YouTube star as a proper artist alongside guest stars like Kiana Ledé, Jacquees, and Lil Durk, who appeared on single “Lie To Me.” The two singers are part of a new wave of sultry, unapologetic R&B singers aiming to bring the genre back to the forefront of pop culture that includes Jhene Aiko, Summer Walker, and more.

Watch the “Set Him Up” video above.

Ari Lennox And Queen Naija Are Out For Revenge On ‘Set Him Up’

by

Dreamville singer Ari Lennox links up with YouTuber-turned-R&B-ambassador Queen Naija on her latest single, “Set Him Up.” In somewhat of a thematic 180 from her last all-female duet with Jazmine Sullivan, “On It,” Ari and Naija take unfaithful men to task on their unconventional crossover. The track follows a loose storyline of two friends catching up on their racy escapades with their new lovers — only to realize that their new “lovers” are the same man.

This leads to the duo forming a plot to “set him up” with a dinner invite with an extra plus-one. The two share their delight at the prospect of playing out their revenge fantasy, which involves bringing the philandering fiend to his favorite restaurant, only for both women to confront him; “Ooh, girl, I cannot wait to see the look upon his face,” smirks Naija.

The collaboration is the latest in a string of duets featuring Lennox, including the aforementioned “On It” and Lucky Daye’s “Access Denied.” The increasing frequency of releases suggests that Lennox might be working on a follow-up to her fan-favorite 2019 debut album Shea Butter Baby.

Meanwhile, Queen Naija has been prepping the deluxe edition of her debut album, Missunderstood…Still, with an expected release on April 16.

Listen to Ari Lennox and Queen Naija’s “Set Him Up” above.

The Roots Reveal Their 2021 Jam Session Lineup Including Ari Lennox And Tobe Nwigwe

by
Getty Image

Each year around Grammy Week, The Roots hold an annual Jam Session inviting special guests from their endless list of collaborators and connections for a one-of-a-kind live show experience. Unfortunately, with most venues still shut down due to COVID-19 safety precautions, there won’t be a live show this year, but the fact that it’s streaming via Tidal means there’s no capacity limit, and fans from outside of Los Angeles get to “attend” as well. Also, this year, the band partnered with Oculus, granting virtual reality access so it can still feel like you’re front row.

The band revealed this year’s lineup in a press release sharing the details of the new partnerships. Special guests for this year’s event include R&B singers Ant Clemons, Ari Lennox, and Emily King, as well as rapper-producer Tobe Nwigwe and pianist-singer Jon Batiste. Burgeoning country star Brittney Spencer and soul icon Kathy Sledge of the legendary Sledge Sisters will also appear. Clemons is nominated for Best R&B Album for his 2020 debut Happy 2 Be Here, while Batiste has two nominations at this year’s awards.

Ahead of the Jam Session, The Roots have updated their Essentials Playlist on Tidal. You can check that out now, and watch the Roots Jam Session Saturday, March 13 at 6 pm PT / 9 pm ET in-app or via the embed below.