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All The New Albums Coming Out In March 2021

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Keeping track of all the new albums coming out in a given month is a big job, but we’re up for it: Below is a comprehensive list of the major releases you can look forward to in March. If you’re not trying to potentially miss out on anything, it might be a good idea to keep reading.

Friday, March 5

  • A Day To Remember — You’re Welcome (Fueled By Ramen)
  • Adult Mom — Driver (Epitaph Records)
  • Alex Bleeker — Heaven On The Faultline (Night Bloom Records)
  • The Anchoress — The Art Of Losing (Kscope)
  • Andrew Bird and Jimbo Mathus — These 13 (Thirty Tigers)
  • Arab Strap — As Days Get Dark (Rock Action/Best & Fairest)
  • Barbarossa — Love Here Listen (Memphis Industries)
  • Bernice — Eau De Bonjourno (Telephone Explosion)
  • Charles Ellsworth — Honeysuckle Summer (Burro Borracho Records)
  • Charlie Peacock — Trout Creek Ranch (Twenty Ten Music)
  • Chevelle — NIRATIAS (Epic Records)
  • Daniel Kehoe — Disco Body Buzz (Tin Angel)
  • Decent Criminal — DC EP (Sell The Heart Records)
  • Denzel Curry and Kenny Beats — Unlocked 1.5 EP (Loma Vista)
  • Dodie — Build A Problem (The Orchard)
  • Dreamshade — A Pale Blue Dot (Horang Music)
  • The Drive — Can You Feel It (RCA)
  • Elizabeth And The Catapult — Sincerely, E (Compass Records)
  • Field Works — Cedars (Rollercoaster Records)
  • Fruit Bats — The Pet Parade (Merge Records)
  • Gabrielle — Do It Again (BMG)
  • Genesis Owusu — Smiling With No Teeth (Ourness)
  • G.S. Schray — The Changing Account (Last Resort)
  • The Horrors — Lout EP (Wolf Tone)
  • Ian Sweet — Show Me How You Disappear (Polyvinyl)
  • Jay Gonzalez — Back To The Hive (Middlebrow Records)
  • Jaz Elise — The Golden Hour EP (In.Digg.Nation Collective)
  • Jessy Rose — Are You Home? EP (Killing A Friend)
  • John-Robert — Healthy Baby Boy, Part 1 (Nice Life Recording Company/Warner Records)
  • John Sharkey III — Shoot Out The Cameras (Mistletone Records)
  • Judith Hill — Baby, I’m Hollywood (Regime Music Group)
  • Juliet Quick — Glass Years EP (Substitute Scene Records)
  • Kings Of Leon — When You See Yourself (RCA Records)
  • Leon III — Antlers In Velvet (Monosonic)
  • Mere Women — Romantic Notions (Poison City)
  • Oliver Jean And April March — Palladium EP (Third Man Records)
  • Painted Shrines — Heaven And Holy (Woodsist)
  • Pat Metheny — Road To The Sun (Modern Recordings)
  • Quintin Copper & Nas Mellow — Paradise (Sonar Kollektiv)
  • Soul Station — Now And Then (UMe)
  • Postdata — Twin Flames (Paper Bag Records)
  • Ron Gallo — Peacemeal (New West Records)
  • The Spill Canvas — Conduit (Pure Noise Records)
  • Spirit Award — Lunatic House (Share It Music)
  • Steve Almaas — Everywhere You’ve Been (Lonesome Whippoorwill)
  • Thirdface — Do It With A Smile (Exploding In Sound Records)
  • Thomas Blondet & Steven Rubin — Sea Songs EP (Rhythm & Culture Music)
  • Tigers Jaw — I Won’t Care How You Remember Me (Hopeless Records)
  • Various Artists — Coming 2 America (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) (Def Jam Recordings)
  • William The Conqueror — Maverick Thinker (Chrysalis Records)
  • Zara Larsson — Poster Girl (Epic Records)

Friday, March 12

  • Allie Crow Buckley — Moonlit And Devious (Night Bloom Records)
  • Baby Boys — Threesome (Transgressive Records)
  • Blackmore’s Night — Nature’s Light (earMUSIC)
  • Cactus Flowers — Solace EP (People.Parties.Places)
  • Cameron Knowler & Eli Winter — Anticipation (American Dreams Records)
  • Charles Lloyd & The Marvels — Tone Poem (Blue Note Records)
  • Chez Kane — Chez Kane (Frontiers Music)
  • Colin Miller — Hook EP (Oof Records)
  • Cool Ghouls — At George’s Zoo (Melodic/Empty Cellar)
  • DeeCRACKS — Serious Issues (uhfrecords)
  • Dollar Signs — Hearts Of Gold (Pure Noise Records)
  • Do Nothing — Glueland EP (Exact Truth)
  • Electric Jalaba — El Hal / The Feeling (Strut Records)
  • Flo Chase — Toi (Dull Tools)
  • Haerts — Dream Nation (Rix Records/The Orchard & Humming Records)
  • Hanalei — Black Snow (A-F Records)
  • The Horrors — Lout EP (Wolf Tone/Virgin Music Label & Artist Services)
  • Israel Nash — Topaz (Loose Music)
  • Issa — Queen Of Broken Hearts (Frontiers)
  • Jaialai — As Sweet As It Was EP (Super Music Group)
  • James Levy — Soldier (Side Hustle Records)
  • Joel Gabrielsson — Citadel EP (Jivvär Records)
  • Jordan Hart — Only Pieces Of The Truth EP (Believe)
  • Justin Courtney Pierre — An Anthropologist On Mars (Epitaph Records)
  • Kelly McFarling — Deep The Habit (self-released)
  • Lake Street Dive — Obviously (Nonesuch)
  • Leanne Betasamosake Simpson — Theory Of Ice (You’ve Changed Records)
  • Louisahhh — The Practice Of Freedom (He.She.They)
  • Mike Dillon — Shoot The Moon / Suitcase Man / 1918 (Royal Potato Family)
  • Minutian — Magical Thinking (Inverse Records)
  • Neil Frances — Stay Strong Play Long (Ninja Tune)
  • Nubiyan Twist — Freedom Fables (Strut)
  • Ocie Elliot — Slow Tide EP (Nettwerk)
  • The Paper Kites — Roses (Nettwerk)
  • Pet Needs — Fractured Party Music (Xtra Mile)
  • Perfume Genius — Immediately Remixes (Matador)
  • Pino Palladino and Blake Mills — Notes With Attachments (New Deal/Impulse)
  • Raissa — Herogirl EP (Zelig Records/Columbia)
  • Reza Safinia — Yin (Terrorbird)
  • Rob Zombie — The Lunar Injection Kool Aid Conspiracy (Nuclear Blast)
  • Ronnie Atkins — One Shot (Frontiers)
  • Saga — Symmetry (earMUSIC)
  • Selena Gomez — Revelación EP (Interscope)
  • Somni — Somni Presents: Up Too Early Volume 2 (Friends of Friends)
  • Stepney Sisters — Stepney Sisters (Alcopop)
  • Valerie June — The Moon And Stars: Prescriptions For Dreamers (Fantasy Records)
  • The Vices — Looking For Faces (Mattan Records)
  • Vivian Leva & Riley Calcagno — Vivian Leva & Riley Calcagno (Free Dirt Records)

Friday, March 19

  • 24/7 Diva Heaven — Stress (NOISOLUTION)
  • Alex Somers — Siblings (Travelling the Groove Records)
  • Alex Somers — Siblings 2 (Travelling the Groove Records)
  • Alice Phoebe Lou — Glow (self-released)
  • American Culture — For My Animals (HHBTM Records)
  • Bass Race — Tender Vittles (Northern Transmissions)
  • Becca Mancari — Juniata EP (Captured Tracks)
  • Bell Orchestre — House Music (Erased Tapes Records)
  • Blanketman — National Trust EP (PIAS)
  • The Blue Stones — Hidden Gems (Entertainment One)
  • The Bones Of J.R. Jones — A Celebration EP (Technicolour)
  • Chad Vangaalen — World’s Most Stressed Out Gardener (Sub Pop)
  • Chinah — Feels Like Forever (The Orchard)
  • Colin Miller — Hook EP (Chess Club Records)
  • Dad Sports — I Am Just A Boy Leave Me Alone !!! EP (Grand Jury Music)
  • Daniel Lanois — Heavy Sun (Maker Series)
  • David Olney — Whispers And Sighs (Schoolkids Records)
  • Deniz Cuylan — No Such Thing As Free Will (Hush Hush)
  • Frances Luke Accord — Sunnyside EP (Two-Dale Records)
  • Gentlemen’s Dub Club — Down To Earth (Easy Star Records)
  • Greg Skaff — Polaris (SMK Jazz)
  • Guapdad 4000 and Illmind — 1176 (Paradise Rising)
  • Harry Connick Jr. — Alone With My Faith (Verve)
  • Jane Inc. — Number One (Telephone Explosion)
  • Janet Simpson — Safe Distance (Cornelius Chapel Records)
  • Jon Batiste — We Are (Verve)
  • Lana Del Rey — Chemtrails Over The Country Club (Interscope Records/Polydor Records)
  • Lo Talker — A Comedy Of Errors (Arts & Crafts)
  • Michael Feuerstack — Harmonize The Moon (Forward Music Group)
  • Michigander — Everything Will Be OK Eventually EP (C3 Records)
  • Middle Kids — Today We’re The Greatest (Domino)
  • Mint Julep — In A Deep & Dreamless Sleep (Western Vinyl)
  • Morgan Wade — Reckless (Thirty Tigers)
  • New Bums — Last Time I Saw Grace (Drag City Records)
  • Nik Bärtsch — Entendre (ECM Records)
  • Nitin Sawhney — Immigrants (Outcaste Records)
  • The Oddness — Distant Voices EP (Eskimo Recordings)
  • Otzeki — Now Is A Long Time (Akira Records)
  • Palm Ghosts — Lifeboat Candidate (Becky Warren)
  • Real Numbers — Brighter Then EP (Slumberland Records)
  • Riley Pearce — Love And Other Stuff EP (Nettwerk)
  • Rivals — Sad Looks Pretty On Me (Smart Punk Records)
  • Ronna Reason — Ronna Reason EP (Damaged Disco)
  • Safety — Greetings from The Sunshine State EP (Jetsam-Flotsam)
  • Serj Tankian — Elasticity EP (Alchemy Recordings)
  • Show Me The Body — Survive EP (Loma Vista)
  • The Snuts — W.L. (Parlophone)
  • Souleye — Hunting Teardrops (self-released)
  • Special Request — DJ Kicks (K7)
  • Steve Gulley And Tim Stafford — Still Here (Crossroads Label Group)
  • Sting — Duets (Universal Music Group)
  • Stoner Control — Sparkle Endlessly (Sound Judgement)
  • Tearjerker — Deep End EP (Bombshell Radio)
  • Tunnelvisions — End Of Time EP (Forced Exposure)
  • Vallens — In Era (Hand Drawn Dracula)
  • Vegyn — Like A Good Old Friend EP (PLZ Make It Ruins)
  • Veronica Swift — This Bitter Earth (Mack Avenue Records)
  • William Doyle — Great Spans Of Muddy Time (Tough Love Records)
  • Ziggy Alberts — Searching For Freedom (Alberts & Co. Music)

Friday, March 26

  • 24kGoldn — El Dorado (Columbia)
  • Afternoon Bike Ride — Skipping Stones EP (Friends of Friends Music)
  • AJR — OK Orchestra (Bmg Rights Management)
  • The Alex Leach Band — I’m The Happiest When I’m Moving (Mountain Home Records)
  • Anna Fox Rochinski — Cherry (Don Giovanni Records)
  • The Antlers — Green To Gold (ANTI‐)
  • Band Of Spice — By The Corner Of Tomorrow (Scarlet Records)
  • Ben Howard — Collections From The Whiteout (Island Records)
  • Black Light Smoke — The Early Years (Cut Mistake Music)
  • Blind Faith — Closer EP (Wormholedeath)
  • Brigitte DeMeyer — Seeker (BDM Music)
  • Carrie Underwood — My Savior (Capitol Records Nashville)
  • Citizen — Life In Your Glass World (Run For Cover Records)
  • Clark — Playground In A Lake (Deutsche Grammophon)
  • Clever Girls — Constellations (Egghunt Records)
  • Cujo Moon — Bridges II EP (Tone Tree Music)
  • David Olney & Anana Kaye — Whisper And Sighs (Schoolkids Records)
  • Death For Above 1979 — Is 4 Lovers (Universal Music Canada)
  • Dntel — The Seas Trees See (Morr Music)
  • Dr. Lonnie Smith — Breathe (Blue Note Records)
  • El Michels Affair — Yeti Season (Big Crown Records)
  • Esther Rose — How Many Times (Father/Daughter Records)
  • Evanescence — The Bitter Truth (BMG Rights Management)
  • The Eye Of Time — Acoustic II (Denovali Records)
  • Fitz — Head Up High (Elektra)
  • Floatie — Voyage Out (Exploding In Sound Records)
  • Frankie & His Fingers — Universal Hurt (SubFamily Records)
  • Fretland — Could Have Loved You (Soundly Music)
  • Grande Royale — Carry On (Sign Records)
  • The Holy Brothers — My Name Is Sparkle (Regional Records)
  • Jackson Scribner — Jackson Scribner (State Fair)
  • Janina Jade — Heart Of Rock N’ Roll (GMR Music Group)
  • Jess Locke — Don’t Ask Yourself Why (Dot Dash)
  • Joe Strummer — Assembly (Dark Horse Records)
  • John Smith — The Fray (Thirty Tigers)
  • Josh Carter — The Hideout Sessions (Pravda Records)
  • The Juliana Theory — A Dream Away (Rude/Equal Vision Records)
  • Kalbells — Max Heart (NNA Tapes)
  • Magnet Animals — Fake Dudes (Rarenoise Records)
  • Mike Clerk — The Space Between My Ears (Wardlaw Music)
  • Minor Moon — Tethers (Ruination Record Co./Whatever’s Clever)
  • The Mobile Homes — Trigger (Wild Kingdom Records)
  • Naoko Sakata — Dancing Spirits (Pomperipossa Records)
  • Neil Young — Young Shakespeare (self-released)
  • Nisa — Guilt Trip EP (Terrorbird)
  • Noga Erez — Kids (City Slang)
  • Odd Dimension — The Blue Dawn (Scarlet Records)
  • Play Dead — Skint EP (Blitzcat Records)
  • Real Estate — Half A Human EP (Domino)
  • Revoltone — For The Silent Voices (Secret Entertainment)
  • Sara Watkins — Under The Pepper Tree (New West Records)
  • Sarah Jerrom — Dream Logic (ECM Records)
  • Serpentwithfeet — Deacon (Secretly Canadian)
  • Simon Provencher — Mesures EP (Michel Records)
  • Solstice Rey — Sunday, Someday (Get Better Record)
  • Stepson — Help Me, Help You (SharpTone Records)
  • Tim Cohen — You Are Still Here (Bobo Integral)
  • Tune-Yards — Sketchy (4AD)
  • Various Artists — Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World Soundtrack: Seven Evil Exes Edition (ABKCO)
  • Xiu Xiu — Oh No (Polyvinyl)

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

Nipsey Hussle Received A Shout Out In A Golden Globe Winner’s Acceptance Speech

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The late, great Nipsey Hussle’s influence is undeniable. Not only did he leave a mark locally before his death in 2019, but he also continues to have a massive impact on pop culture after it. While he continues to receive reverent tributes from friends and admirers like LeBron James and Barrack Obama, his name also occasionally pops up in unusual circumstances — even for a self-made mogul whose funeral procession shut down the city of Los Angeles and whose memorial service filled the Staples Center.

Daniel Kaluuya, one of the stars of the thriller Judas And The Black Messiah, shouted out Nipsey Hussle during his acceptance speech at last night’s virtual Golden Globes ceremony. After winning Best Supporting Actor for his role as Black Panther Illinois chapter chairman Fred Hampton, Kaluuya quoted Nipsey, explaining how Nip’s worldview shaped his superb performance. “I gave everything,” he said. “Like the great Nipsey Hussle says, we’re here to give until we’re empty.”

Nipsey also appears on the film’s companion album alongside a slew of hip-hop all-stars, including Jay-Z, with whom Nipsey shared their first-ever collaboration, “What It Feels Like.”

Watch Daniel Kaluuya’s acceptance speech above.

Nipsey Hussle is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Cardi B Is Eying A Lizzo Collaboration But Also Wants Her Fans To Chill About It

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Like many of us, Cardi B is a big Lizzo fan, as she has expressed on multiple occasions. She did so again over the weekend, which actually led to a bit of an annoying moment for Cardi.

Yesterday, Cardi tweeted a diverse gallery of Lizzo photos and wrote, “These pics do it for me.” Naturally, as tends to happen when one artist shouts out another, fans were quick to flood Cardi’s notifications with requests/demands that she and Lizzo collaborate. One person replied, “now drop that collab with her,” to which Cardi responded, “Can I do a song first thst I can put her on.” Somebody responded to that tweet, “YESSS WE WANT A COLLAB,” and Cardi answered, “Ok but stop pressuring me to do stuff .I can’t even show love to people with 100 collab collab collab.”

A handful of months ago, Cardi revealed that she actually tried to get Lizzo involved with her “WAP” video, but unfortunately, she was unable to take part due to a scheduling conflict. She also called Lizzo “the [nicest] person in the world” after she received flowers from her amid her divorce.

Cardi B and Lizzo are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Ghostface Killah And Raekwon Will Bring Their Classics To The Table In An Upcoming ‘Verzuz’

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The music world is still recovering from a great display of R&B talent thanks to D’Angelo’s Verzuz show on Saturday night. Rather than facing another artist like other participants on the platform have done, the legendary singer put on a concert that saw him go through his beloved albums — Brown Sugar, Voodoo, and Black Messiah — with some special guests. Once D’Angelo’s show came to an end, Swizz Beatz and Timbaland got together on Instagram Live to discuss the night and tease what would be next for the platform and it was here that they revealed an upcoming battle would take place between Ghostface Killah and Raekwon.

Neither Swizz nor Timbaland revealed when the matchup would take place, but their excitement for it was clear. They delivered the news after excitingly playing select songs from the rappers’ catalogs, including Raekwon’s “Incarcerated Scarfaces” and “Verbal Intercourse” as well as Ghostface’s “Run.” Raekwon and Ghostface will now be the third and fourth members of the Wu-Tang Clan to participate in a Verzuz. RZA went against DJ Premier last April while Method Man joined D’Angelo last night to perform “Left & Right” and “Breakups 2 Makeups” with him.

The upcoming Ghostface Killah and Raekwon battle joins a growing list of matchups that have been teased. Foxy Brown and Lil Kim were reported to be locked in for a Verzuz, but Swizz Beatz said it was unconfirmed. Bun B also said a matchup between him and 8Ball & MJG was in the works, but it had yet to be confirmed.

You can watch a clip from Swizz and Timbaland’s Instagram Live above.

Nick Jonas Anchored An ‘SNL’ Edition Of The ‘Dionne Warwick Talk Show’

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Dionne Warwick has become everyone’s favorite auntie on Twitter. The legendary singer has graced her growing social media fan base with phenomenal content that ranges from poking fun at the young generation of artists to seeking knowledge about them as well. All in all, it’s been a joy to watch Warwick work through the Twitter world and it was only a matter of time before Saturday Night Live emulated her personality on the show, something the cast did during their most recent episode.

Setting up the stage for her daily show, Ego Nwodim played the role of Warwick for the Dionne Warwick Talk Show. The sketch began with Kenan Thompson, who appeared dressed as The Weeknd in his current After Hours plastic surgery look. She asked him about his apparent plastic surgery addiction, confusing his “love” for it as the basis of his “Can’t Feel My Face” track.

Warwick quickly rushed him off stage and invited Nick Jonas, who hosted and performed on the SNL episode, to replace him. The comical questions continued as she asked Nick, who is currently a coach on The Voice, how he could be a more boring contributor to the show than fellow coach John Legend. Warwick also mixed up him with his fellow Jonas brother, Joe, before asking Nick a daring question about his manhood.

The sketch continued with an appearance from Dua Lipa, played by Melissa Villasenor, who agreed to join Warwick in egging Wendy Williams’ house. Lastly Machine Gun Kelly, played by Pete Davidson, joined to close the show, but Warwick was extremely disturbed by his look and quickly asked him to leave.

You can watch the sketch above.

Dua Lipa is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

D’Angelo’s ‘Verzuz’ Was Supposed To Be Against Maxwell And Take Place On Valentine’s Day

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It’s been more than a month since the last Verzuz battle, one that took place between Keyshia Cole and Ashanti. While the platform made its return on Saturday night, the rules were a little bit different this time around. Rather than a matchup between two artists, legendary R&B singer D’Angelo took the stage for what became more of a livestream concert. It wasn’t an entirely solo affair, however, as the singer promised the appearance of some “friends” which turned out to be HER, Method Man, and Redman. While the show was definitely an enjoyable one, it wasn’t the plan from the start.

Once D’Angelo’s Verzuz concluded, Swizz Beatz and Timbaland hopped on Instagram Live to recap the event and it was here that Swizz revealed the battle was supposed to be D’Angelo against Maxwell and take place on Valentine’s Day. Unfortunately, the plans fell through.

“That didn’t work out…the fact that D’Angelo was still ready to go…and motivated, we had to celebrate him…no matter who was on stage with him,” Swizz said. “We had to celebrate that king because, as you can see, those songs that he played tonight, man, that’s real music and this is celebrational stage…and we couldn’t play around with him. We had to let him get his garden because he showed up and showed out.”

You can watch Swizz’s comments above.

Nick Jonas Gave Debut Performances Of ‘Spaceman’ And ‘This Is Heaven’ On ‘Saturday Night Live’

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It’s been nearly five years since the pop world received an album from Nick Jonas. His last effort was 2016’s Last Year Was Complicated and since then, the singer has been fairly busy thanks to his role as a coach on The Voice and the reunion of Jonas Brothers with siblings Joe and Kevin. Now, Nick is getting back to his solo career, a return that began with the release of “Spaceman” this past Friday. Just days later, he brought his talents back to the Saturday Night Live stage to perform the single for the first time and to debut a new track as well.

Serving as host and musical guest for the SNL episode, Nick began the night by performing “Spaceman.” He performed the track while rocking a thin astronaut-like jumpsuit, ideal for the out-of-this-world feeling he details on the song. Later in the show, he returned to debut a brand new single, “This Is Heaven.” This track is much livelier than the aforementioned single and found Nick getting lost in the groove of the uplifting song to end the night

Both songs will appear on his upcoming album, Spaceman, which is set for a release on March 12. During a recent interview on Zane Lowe’s Apple Music show, Nick spoke about the meaning behind the album’s title. “The key for me was trying to find a way to give this idea a persona, give it a name,” he said in regards to his 2016 album, Last Year Was Complicated. “So ‘Spaceman’ kind of came into my mind as I was thinking, ‘What’s the one thing that all of us have felt during this time? Completely disconnected from the world.’ We’ve gotten so accustomed to looking at a screen instead of human interaction and I think the thing that keeps us all encouraged and hopeful is the idea of knowing that there will be a tomorrow when this is our reality.”

You can watch the performances above.

Spaceman is out 3/12 via Island. Pre-order it here.

J. Balvin Returns Home To A Barrio In Medellin For The ‘Ma’ G’ Video

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J. Balvin made an appearance tonight to walk boxer Canelo Alvarez into the ring for his fight against Avni Yildrim at the Hard Rock Stadium in Miami. And what better walkout music for Alvarez than a brand new song from the Latin pop superstar? Balvin performed his new single “Ma G” before the fight for the first time, and a video to accompany the new song dropped shortly after, check that out above.

It’s good to see the Latin legend in good spirits and good health again, as last summer he contracted a bad case of Coronavirus and had to spend some time in recovery. Though he bounced back in time for a partnership with McDonald’s last fall, and has apparently been busy in the studio based on the new music tonight. This is the first thing the Colombian star has released since his 2020 collaboration “Un Dia (One Day)” with Dua Lipa, Bad Bunny and Tainy.

Along with the new music, Balvin also announced a merch collection that’s a collaboration with 747 and La Plaga Invade, including a varsity jacket, mask, cap, hoodie, sweatpants, and music bundles. Shop that collection here and look out for more info on Balvin’s fifth album coming very soon.

Watch D’Angelo’s ‘Verzuz’ Battle Against A Slate Of Friends, Live At The Apollo

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Since the advent of the pandemic and subsequent quarantine measures pretty much shut down live music and touring as we know it, Verzuz battles have taken off in a big way. Streamed live on Instagram, and now Apple Music, the face-off framework usually pairs two legends from the same era and style, who take turns playing songs from their discographies to determine a winner. Of course, like in most subjective battles like this, the real winner is the friends we make along the way… AKA the chance to celebrate the artists who have impacted our lives and made history. It’s much less about anything competitive as it is celebrating the artists and songs, as past setups with Gucci Mane and Jeezy, or Ashanti and Keyshia Cole (which went off when Cole finally showed up) or the Bay Area championship between Too Short and E-40 clearly illustrated.

Tonight things take a slightly different turn, though, probably because R&B icon D’Angelo doesn’t really have any nearby peers in terms of talent and status. Instead, D’Angelo is appearing live for a Verzuz at the equally legendary Apollo Theater in Harlem to face off against a crew of as yet unannounced friends. Tune in via the Verzuz Instagram, or Apple Music if you have it, to see who shows up. The DJ is spinning his warm up tunes, but D’Angelo is just taking the stage around 7 PM PST, so you still have time to settle in.

Jewelry Designer Lorraine Schwartz and Beyonce Created A Scholarship For Black Gemologists

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Beyonce has always been the kind of pop star who is interested in giving back to the communities she’s been a part of or benefits from. So when jewelry designer Lorraine Schwartz, who has been responsible for plenty of Bey’s red carpet gem-laden looks, decided to began advocating for diversity and inclusion in the precious gems world, it’s no surprise that Beyonce would be a part of it.

As announced via Beyonce.com, the singer and designer are teaming to launch the Beyonce Knowles-Carter x Lorraine Schwartz scholarship at GIA, the Gemological Institute of America. Schwartz has designed jewelry for everyone from Oprah to Lady Gaga to Jennifer Lopez, but Beyonce fans will probably know her work best for the diamond earrings the singer wore on the cover of Dangerously In Love.

“This scholarship is an homage to Beyonce for the inspiration she’s given me through my career,” Schwartz said of the new initiative. “It’s about the love formed from relationships and knowing at the end of the day, we are all the same. Now I have the opportunity to bring that inspiration full circle and show the community the endless possibilities that are in this industry, especially for Black professionals.”

The scholarship will be give “two members of the Black community” the chance to earn credentials at GIA, for the GIA Graduate Gemologist Diploma, with full tuition and paid expenses for the program. The program is primarily online through distance education, and applications for the scholarship are open from March 1 of this year until March 16.

Check out more information on here.