Home Page

Yung Baby Tate Calls Beyonce’s ‘Black Is King’ A Big Inspiration Behind Her ‘I Am’ Video

by

In the latest episode of Behind The Video, Yung Baby Tate admits that the shoot day for her “I Am” video with Flo Milli was a lot harder than it looks. The video from the Atlanta rapper’s After The Rain EP may feature glamorous women being pampered and lounging in the sun, but in reality, Tate says it was a cold, cloudy day, and her and Flo Milli’s stilettos made them sink into the wet lawn. Tate’s clearly an artist who will suffer for her art.

But we don’t want her to suffer any more than she has to, so this time around, we only pulled nice comments for her to react to. One compares the video to ones from superstars like Beyonce, Kendrick Lamar, and Missy Elliott, prompting Tate to admit that Beyonce’s Black Is King film was a “very big inspiration” on the video’s concept and editing. Meanwhile, she jokes that she was confused about who the brawny men were and why they were there but “I was eating it up,” she chuckles. Her co-star’s improvised shade throw — the literal kind — was actually a surprise, as well.

You can watch Yung Baby Tate’s Behind The Video above.

Yung Baby Tate is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Lil Baby And Megan Thee Stallion Command An Icy Kingdom In Their ‘On Me (Remix)’ Video

by

It’s been a few months since Lil Baby released his fan favorite track “On Me,” but he didn’t stop there. As a special treat for his listeners, Lil Baby tapped Megan Thee Stallion to hop on a remix of his Platinum-certified track. To celebrate the collaboration’s release, the two rappers team up to share an icy video.

The vibrant visual, directed by Mike Ho, positions Megan and Lil Baby as the rulers of an ice kingdom. It opens with the two rappers delivering the track’s lyrics in front of an ice palace. But when it comes time for Megan to launch into her verse, the rapper is suddenly seated atop an erupting volcano, continuing to rap amid the flowing lava.

Megan’s feature on the track arrives on the heels of her announcement that she’ll be taking an indefinite hiatus. Last week, a series of vague social media posts detailed that Megan will be “recharging” as a result of “the demands of the Hot Girl lifestyle.” Her posts also noted that the rapper “has now entered a period of regeneration to prepare for what’s next” and that her management team would be handling all of her social media for the time being.

Watch Lil Baby and Megan Thee Stallion’s “On Me (Remix)” video above.

Megan Thee Stallion is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Cordae Takes A Tour Of LA In His Reflective ‘Dream In Color’ Video

by

Cordae’s comeback continues today with the reflective video for “Dream In Color” from his newly released EP, Just Until…. The video is shot in DIY style, following Cordae and his crew as they wander the streets of Los Angeles, stopping at city landmark Jim’s Burgers (hell yes, that’s a landmark, and any real Angeleno will tell you so) for a quick bite before continuing their explorations.

“Dream In Color” is Cordae’s second video from Just Until… after the sentimental “More Life,” as well as his second video of the year overall. Before releasing the EP, Cordae closed out 2020 with videos for “The Parables,” “Soda” with DJ Scheme and Ski Mask The Slump God, “Freeze Tag” with Dinner Party and Snoop Dogg, and “Gifted” with Roddy Ricch. The handful of releases followed a name change after he left the YBN crew and spent much of 2020 working on a follow-up to his Grammy-nominated debut, The Lost Boy. He also turned up at the US Open, where he cheered on his girlfriend, champion tennis star Naomi Osaka.

With two songs down from his four-song EP, the question now is whether the next video we see from him will be from Just Until… or the long-awaited Lost Boy follow-up.

Watch the “Dream In Color” video above.

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

Jay-Z Explains Why He Doesn’t See Cancel Culture Going Away Anytime Soon

by
Getty Image

Although it’s widely accepted among reasonable folks that “cancel culture” isn’t necessarily as dangerous as some people with big platforms have made it out to be, it does seem apparent that social media call-outs for problematic behavior have become the new de facto status quo. In a new interview with Sunday Times in the UK about his recent partnership with Puma, Jay-Z addressed the question of whether he foresees an end to the present state of affairs: No way.

“You can’t give someone a microphone for 24 hours a day and [have them] not think they have to use it!” he explained. However, he expressed sympathy for younger social media users who may not have the best grasp of the situations they’re being asked to address. “These kids, it’s unbelievable. Imagine having a microphone and you’re asked about social justice questions at 18 years old? It’s like, ‘What? I’m meant to know the answer, and if I don’t answer the correct way, if I don’t say everything right, even if my intentions are right, and I don’t say the same right thing, it’s going to be everywhere.’”

He doesn’t think he’d be on social media much, even if his rise had come along 20 years later. Meanwhile, he expressed his own views on some of the most pressing social issues being debated online. “As a human race we’re still on basic things,” he said. “We’re still on Stop Asian Hate. We can’t sit and cry over spilled milk, but we do have to acknowledge that there’s milk, right?… it’s very frustrating. Are we here today? No. Are we further than 50 years ago? Yes.”

You can read the full interview here.

A Mac Miller Book With Stories From His Friends And Collaborators Has Been Set For Release This Fall

by
Getty Image

Nearly three years have passed since the death of Mac Miller and this fall, a book remembering his life and music is set for release via Permuted Press. Pre-orders have already put the The Book Of Mac: Remembering Mac Miller, written by DJBooth veteran Donna-Claire Chesman, on the Amazon Best Sellers lists, where it’s currently No. 3 in Books, and No.1 in both Rap & Hip-Hop Musician Biographies and Rap Music (Books). Chesman announced the project after completing her Year of Mac editorial series on DJBooth, which compiled personal essays, interviews, and other features to commemorate Mac’s legacy over the course of 52 weekly dispatches throughout late 2018 and 2019.

The Book Of Mac will likewise be comprised of intimate interviews with those who knew Mac best, including friends and collaborators like Just Blaze, Kehlani, Syd, Thundercat, Wiz Khalifa, and more, with commentary and critique on his musical releases by Chesman.

Mac Miller passed away at the age of 26 in 2018, the result of an accidental overdose while on tour. Since then, his estate has released one album, Circles, completed with the assistance of Mac’s collaborator Jon Brion, while fan-favorite mixtapes like KIDS and Faces have found their ways to DSPs in the years since. Two new songs were released in August last year.

Due on October 26, 2021 you can pre-order The Book Of Mac on Amazon.

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

Questlove Says He’s Quit The Roots While Recording Every Album But Two

by
Getty Image

To most folks, Questlove is the heart and soul of The Roots — or at least the member most can be readily called upon to identify with any degree of accuracy (although, that doesn’t necessarily hold true all the time). However, according to Quest himself, there have been many times where that was almost not the case. In a new interview with Jemele Hill, the afroed drummer — who also dabbles in writing books and directing movies — said that he’s temporarily walked away from the band while recording every album but two.

The first, obviously, was their 1993 debut Organix, which they released independently, generating enough buzz to sign to grunge label DGC for the release of their second album, Do You Want More?!!!??!, in 1995. However, despite receiving plenty of critical acclaim, the project underperformed by the group’s standards, prompting Black Thought and the late Mailk B to seek out new production styles on their third album, Illadelph Halflife, spawning an unofficial Roots Crew tradition of Questlove threatening to quit the band for a few weeks while recording all of their albums.

Asked by Hill, “What’s the closest The Roots have come to breaking up?” Questlove breaks into peals of laughter before explaining that the recording of their upcoming project, Endgame, is the first in a while that he’s broken his habit on. “I hold the record for the longest [streak of quitting]… After three records, then it’s like the little boy who cried wolf. It’s like, ‘Yeah, he’ll be back next month. Don’t worry about him.’”

“At the beginning of Illadelph Halflife,” he continues. “I was the last to know that Tariq and Malik desired to rhyme over a more traditional hip-hop backdrop. After a while, it was like, ‘Wait a minute, am I the bad guy here? Did I kill my own group?’… I took it mad personal.” He further explains how the rest of the band sprung “Clones” on him after a failed excursion to the Million Man March in Washington D.C., prompting Quest’s first walkout. However, he has always come back to help finish each project, and over time, The Roots have earned greater public appeal and a regular gig as the house band on The Tonight Show, so it’s probably better that he stuck around.

Listen to Quest’s full interview with Jemele Hill here.

Things Between Lizzo And Chris Evans Have Progressed Since She Sent Him Drunk DMs

by
Getty Image

Lizzo delivered a delightfully fun story last week when she shared that after a few drinks, she found herself in an impaired state and decided to send a message to actor Chris Evans on Instagram. To recap how that went down, Lizzo sent him three emojis: a puff of air, a woman playing handball, and a basketball, implying that she was “shooting her shot.” Evans was a good sport and responded, “No shame in a drunk DM [kissy face emoji] god knows I’ve done worse on this app lol [facepalm emoji].”

Now, the saga continues, as Lizzo has offered an update on how the situation has evolved. On TikTok, Lizzo shared a video responding to somebody who asked how things are going on the Evans front, and she responded by sharing a screenshot of their chat, only making it visible for a few quick frames of video.

@lizzo

Reply to @tuana612 Update on Jamal

♬ Follow me song is Too much FYOTP YT – 🦈

The messages are visible when the video is paused, though, and Lizzo responded to Evans’ message with, “Well.. they say u miss 100% of the shots you never take [side-eye emoji] (and even tho I unsent it like a dork [facepalm emoji]) I’m glad u know I exist now [heart face emojis].” Evans responded, “Of course I do! I’m a fan! Keep up the great work!! xxx.” The two most recent messages after that are partially blocked and can’t fully be seen, but as BuzzFeed speculates, it seems Lizzo mentioned something about doing a shot and Evans responded by saying he’d buy it.

Check out a screenshot of Lizzo and Evans’ DMs below.

@lizzo/TikTok

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

Justin Bieber Joins Jimmy Fallon And The Roots For A Classroom Instruments Version Of ‘Peaches’

by

In March, Justin Bieber earned his seventh No. 1 single when the Justice single “Peaches” debuted on top of the Billboard Hot 100 chart. The track is still doing quite well, as it is No. 3 on the Hot 100 that was revealed yesterday. Now he has put a new spin on the song by joining Jimmy Fallon and The Roots for their longstanding Tonight Show series of “classroom instruments” performances.

Bieber starts out by playing the track on a toy piano, which actually adds a charming element to the track. From there, he is joined by Fallon and The Roots, who sport instruments like shakers, bongos, xylophones, buckets, paper bags (to tear), and other things of that ilk. Giveon and Daniel Caesar, who feature on the original track, were not involved with this performance.

Justice isn’t Bieber’s latest release, as on Easter, he dropped a surprise EP, Freedom, which features collaborations with Pink Sweats, Tori Kelly, Judah Smith, Beam, Brandon Love, Chandler Moore, and Lauren Walters. He’s also fresh off appearing in Earth Day! The Musical, a Bill Nye-hosted event that also featured Jack Harlow, Maluma, Ben Platt, Charli and Dixie D’Amelio, Cody Simpson, Steve Aoki, Tori Kelly, Zac Efron, Desus Nice and The Kid Mero, and Nick Kroll.

Watch Bieber, The Roots, and Fallon perform “Peaches” above.

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

The Weeknd Hints At New Music: ‘Made So Much Magic In The Small Quarantined Room’

by
Getty Image

The Weeknd isn’t quite done with the After Hours era yet, considering he just released a new remix with Ariana Grande. He does seem to be thinking about what’s next, though, as last night, he took to Twitter to seemingly tease new material.

He began by tweeting last night, “it’s the night-time that matters…,” followed hours later by a GIF of Bugs Bunny laying in bed, unable to sleep. He then added, “what is real?” After that, he got to teasing, writing in a trio of tweets, “made so much magic in the small quarantined room,” “nothing’s ever random,” and “now just piecing it all together… it’s so beautiful.”

Those tweets seem to suggest that something new is in the works, and a fresh album from The Weeknd in the not-so-distant future wouldn’t be a surprise, given that he discussed the possibility months ago. A Rolling Stone profile from September revealed that The Weeknd has spent time working on new music in a makeshift studio in his condo, with The Weeknd himself saying, “I might have another album ready to go by the time this quarantine is over.” He continued, “I’m guilty of wanting to outdo my last album, but it’s never like, ‘I’ve got to do the same type of song.’ I’m so happy I’m not like that. My palette is so wide. […] I’m trying to find a perfect balance with the film and the music, and so far it’s going really well. I think I might have cracked the code.”

The Team Behind ‘Framing Britney Spears’ Is Tackling The Janet Jackson Super Bowl Incident

by
Getty Image

When the documentary series Framing Britney Spears bowed on HBO back in February, it caused an avalanche of support to come the singer’s way. Long a target of condescending press coverage — not to mention still legally under the control of her domineering father — Spears found the public finally rallying to her side, hoping to correct years of unfair coverage. Now the team behind the doc look to be trying to do for Janet Jackson what they did for Britney.

According to US Weekly, Left/Right TV, who produced the Spears doc, are at work on a movie about the infamous halftime show at Super Bowl XXXVIII, in 2004. That’s the one where a performance by Jackson and Justin Timberlake resulted in a “wardrobe malfunction,” in which the latter ripped off part of her costume, exposing one of her breasts for half a second. The incident led to a massive fallout. The FCC tried, and failed, to fine CBS for over half a billion dollars, while some accused the two of staging it, with Jackson receiving more vitriol than Timberlake.

Neither Jackson nor Timberlake are involved in the movie, though the former is working on a documentary about her own career to coincide with the forthcoming 40th anniversary of her debut album, Janet Jackson. Timberlake, meanwhile, has come under fire over the last couple years, as the public has begun viewing his treatment of both Jackson and Spears, who he once dated, with a more critical eye. Indeed, after Framing Britney Spears debuted, he issued a formal apology to both parties.

“I specifically want to apologize to Britney Spears and Janet Jackson both individually, because I care for and respect these women and I know I failed,” he wrote in an Instagram post. “Because of my ignorance, I didn’t recognize it for all that it was while it was happening in my own life but I do not want to ever benefit from others being pulled down again.”

(Via US Weekly)