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With Lil Nas X’s Satan Shoes, MSCHF Has Become The New Supreme

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MSCHF/Uproxx

When your brand is literally called MSCHF, it shouldn’t be a shocker that there’s a good dose of actual mischief embedded in the ethos. That’s exactly what the label behind Lil Nas X’s wildly viral Satan shoes promises to deliver with each of its bi-monthly drops. Note we didn’t say “bi-monthly sneaker drops” — because while the most famous MSCHF products are shoes, they’ve also launched tongue-in-cheek bath bombs, internet browser add-ons, AI-generated feet photos, and rubber chicken bongs, along with various other weird shit and ephemera.

The Satan shoes aren’t the brand’s first brush with viral fame, either. Launched in 2016 and based in Williamsburg, Brooklyn (obvi), MSCHF is the same brand that brought you this year’s Birkinstocks — Birkenstock sandals made using the leather from real Birkin bags and those dope as hell all-white Nike Aix Max 97s filled with 60CCs of Holy Water sourced from the River Jordan back in 2019. So while it might feel like they’ve come out of nowhere, stunt marketing like this is very much their #brand.

Everything out of MSCHF comes wrapped in layers of nihilistic irony that attempts to reflect the absurdity of a world where people get hyped over things like Supreme stamped bricks and shrug off stuff like an attempted coup from a game-show-host-turned-President as just another Wednesday in the waning days of the American Empire. But by adopting the uber-capitalistic “bi-weekly drop” cadence of a modern streetwear company, MSCHF is very much part of the world they’re skewering. (The line between viral marketing and literal trolling gets very tough to see when you look at things like MSCHF’s ClickSwipe app, which swipes right on Tinder for you every time you click something with your mouse).

“Our perspective is everything is funny in a nihilistic sort of way,” MSCHF CEO Gabriel Whaley told Business Insider in an interview. “We’re not here to make the world a better place. We’re making light of how much everything sucks.”

If you take those words at face value, MSCHF feels a lot of the old Supreme — which gained legitimate clout via viral product drops. When the Supreme brick happened it was product-as-commentary, a release that reflected the absurdity of the hype machine surrounding the counterculture skatewear brand itself. The fact that people actually paid for it is what made the brick such an iconically dark moment in streetwear history.

These days, Supreme plays its relatively safe, favoring official collaborations over everything, though they’ll still drop a random accessory here and there. The gap in the “is this a real commentary on commerce or just commerce in disguise as commentary?” space that Supreme left behind has since been filled by MSCHF. And the relationship is a weirdly reciprocal one — with MSCHF’s ironic products hitting harder because we saw how well that model actually served Supreme.

Now bring all that context to bear on the Satan shoes — which a judge has just ordered the brand to stop selling. Note, that this isn’t an official collab. MSCHF calls them “art pieces” and that’s correct, though Nike is arguing that the general public isn’t sophisticated enough to know that this devil-themed footwear wasn’t actually made by Swoosh & Co., which also seems to be true. While sneaker customization isn’t illegal, when you’re selling 666 customized sneakers with blood in the air bubble and freaking out square Christian parents across the country, the brand whose shoe you’re using has every right to ask you to chill.

MSCHF will surely cease and desist and their next drop will be all the more anticipated because of this episode. Nike lawyers could squash them, but why would they? Their brand got a little badass-rebel energy from this dance and their PR machine will fight to correct misperceptions among their core suburban fanbase. Round and round we go.

Eventually, the two brands will probably collaborate for real. Again, Supreme laid down the playbook for this. In 2000 Supreme received a cease-and-desist from Louis Vuitton for lifting the brand’s signature monogram print. 17 years later the two brands announced their first of several official collaborations. Let’s hope it doesn’t take that long for MSCHF and Nike to make nice.

What you think of MSCHF’s actual products depends on your life stage and whether its model feels fresh or tired to you. Do you think blood in a shoe is bold? What about a bath bomb shaped like a toaster? Or an Instagram account that proudly proclaims “DO NOT FOLLOW US“? If that sounds corny or if you’re past it because it feels like a retread of Supreme, feel free to look away.

For the rest of us, MSCHF is infusing the world of streetwear and accessory drops with some conversation-starting fun, re-capturing the counter-culture energy of an industry that has become commercialized to the point of banality. Whether it’s capitalism masquerading as rebellion or rebellion masquerading as capitalism is impossible to say. But maybe that, too, is part of the point.

If you want to sign up for early access to MSCHF products click here.

Snoop Dogg Is Set To Join ‘The Voice’ Cast As A Mentor To Coach Contestants

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Getty Image

Earlier this week, hit TV series The Voice surprised fans by announcing that a big-name star would be joining their roster. Ariana Grande is officially replacing Nick Jonas as a judge for the series’ 21st season this fall. But that’s not the only celebrity they’ve recruited. The Voice announced that Snoop Dogg will also be joining their team to coach contestants and share his advice on how to make it in the music industry.

The rapper broke the news about his new guest role Thursday. He’ll be joining Blake Shelton, John Legend, Kelly Clarkson, and Nick Jonas as a “Mega Mentor,” or someone who offers contestants advice ahead of the Battle Rounds, the segment where two contestants go head-to-head to deliver a rendition of the same song.

In a statement, The Voice shared their excitement about Snoop joining the show, saying: “Drawing from his unique experience in navigating the music and entertainment industry as a renowned rapper, producer, and performer, Snoop Dogg will impart a new and fresh perspective to help the artists craft their performances. Coaches alone choose the winner to advance from their team. Each coach has one steal in the Knockouts.”

Snoop’s official The Voice appearance will take place on 4/19 and airs at 8 p.m. EST. Tune in here.

Ice Cube Is Reportedly Suing Investing App Robinhood For Using His Photo In Their Newsletter

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The last time popular investing app Robinhood was in the news, it was because a handful of Reddit users had banned together to successfully driving up the value of GameStop stocks on their platform. Now, Robinhood finds themselves in hot water over a photo they used of Ice Cube.

In a recent newsletter, Robinhood inserted a photo of the rapper along with the caption, “Correct yourself, before you wreck yourself,” an obvious play on words from his “Check Yo Self” track. According to TMZ, Ice Cube sought to sue the company because he claims the photo wasn’t authorized by him or his team.

Furthermore, someone from the rapper’s team claims that Ice Cube would “never endorse Robinhood.” In a statement given to TMZ, Ice Cube’s team made it clear that he doesn’t want anything to do with the app. In fact, Ice Cube thinks Robinhood is “antithesis of everything that [he] stands for” and even named the app “horrible.”

However, Robinhood has responded to news of Ice Cube’s lawsuit, saying that they were completely within their rights to use the photo in question. “No, we didn’t use his image without permission. The image was licensed and used for non-commercial, editorial purposes in connection with a blog article.”

Check out the photo in question above.

Rod Wave’s Voice Allows The Moody ‘SoulFly’ To Soar

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Ralph Ordaz/Tyler Benz

The RX is Uproxx Music’s stamp of approval for the best albums, songs, and music stories throughout the year. Inclusion in this category is the highest distinction we can bestow and signals the most important music being released throughout the year. The RX is the music you need, right now.

The right voice can make even the most generic boasts sound not just convincing but compelling. That’s the lasting impression left by Rod Wave’s third studio album SoulFly after a few listens. Content-wise, the project leaves a lot to the imagination; Rod doesn’t reveal much about himself, his circumstances, or his worldview… but he sounds absolutely great singing his ghetto blues.

There’s oddly little biographical information out there about the trapsoul crooner from St. Petersburg, Florida, which would seem to run counter to the intense fervor he apparently inspires in fans. He doesn’t do interviews and he maintains a relatively low-key social media profile, mostly tweeting the sort of one-line platitudes you’d read on an office poster with a photo of a chimp in a suit.

Yet, his last album, Pray 4 Love, debuted at No. 2 on the Billboard 200 with relatively little promotion from either Rod or his label. SoulFly is reportedly on track to exceed that accomplishment, even though the rollout started with Rod goading his label, threatening to withhold the project unless some kind of dispute involving his pay was sorted out. It apparently was; the rest of the rollout proceeded without a hitch, with Rod dropping two singles, “Street Runner” and “Tombstone,” before dropping the album itself.

Even the music is atypical of most chart-toppers today; aside from one feature from Polo G on the new album, Rod seemingly avoids collaborating with bigger names to expand his fanbase. To date, his highest-profile collaborators appear to be Lil Durk, Lil Baby, and Yo Gotti, the latter duo only being added to the deluxe re-release of Pray 4 Love four months later. He’s an iconoclast in a music landscape where iconoclasts — especially commercially successful ones — are quickly becoming an endangered species.

So what gives? How does a rapper who barely promotes his work, who doesn’t work with other artists, and who doesn’t dazzle with pyrotechnic displays of lyrical wizardry end up fronting the XXL Freshman cover and topping the Billboard charts? After playing back SoulFly multiple times and wrenching my critical brain for something that explains it, there’s only one possibility: That damn voice.

It’s the sort of voice honed in a Baptist pulpit, mellowed by handles of whiskey, and put through its paces by the demands of turning dry missives like “I play the game that was taught to me / I fry the beef that was brought to me” into soulful, blues-inspired croons. It’s a warm, inviting tenor, shot through with just enough vibrato to suggest emotional turmoil, along with a sprinkling of grit, like a pinch of pepper flakes in a salt shaker.

It allows him to convincingly sell hustler narratives and their resulting trauma without getting into the authentic details that you usually need to make them work. To his credit, there are enough true-life tales that undergird the framework of those narratives to hold them up, even when you scratch the surface. On “Pillz And Billz,” he details watching “my cousin smoke crack his whole fuckin’ life,” lamenting, “Fentanyl hit the street and he OD’d the same night.” There are enough truthful moments underlying the boasts that the boasts feel earned.

If these attributes don’t necessarily make Rod Wave a singular artist — his sole guest on SoulFly, Polo G, convincingly uses similar methods in his own work — Rod has the fortuitous timing to exist at a time when he can just be the artist he is, without bothering with courting the algorithms or resorting to attention-grabbing social media shenanigans.

It’s impressive that there are still artists who can do it with just a voice. While there’s not a tremendous amount of true introspection or innovation on SoulFly, there is, however, a supreme level of self-assurance and technical craftsmanship. What Rod lacks in wit he makes up in emotion, and where his stories lack detail, he imbues them with a powerful sincerity that makes them read just as truthfully, resonating as deeply as an impressionist portrait. Maybe at a time when cryptocurrency is the future and math runs just about every aspect of our day-to-day lives, what people really want — really need — is music with some soul

SoulFly is out now on Alamo Records. Get it here.

A Judge Has Ordered Lil Nas X And MSCHF To Stop Selling Their Nike ‘Satan Shoes’

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YouTube

It was reported a couple days ago that Nike sued MSCHF Product Studio, which collaborated with Lil Nas X on the controversial “Satan shoes.” Now, it looks like that situation is swinging in Nike’s favor so far, as The Hollywood Reporter notes that a federal judge has ordered MSCHF to stop selling the custom Air Max 97 shoes. The shoes quickly sold out when initially put for sale, so it would seem Nike is trying to prevent those orders from being fulfilled.

Nike filed a trademark lawsuit against MSCHF earlier this week and followed up with a motion for a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction. Nike claims the shoes will dilute their brand and the company “submitted evidence that even sophisticated sneakerheads were confused.” A Nike attorney also noted, “We have submitted numerous evidence that some consumers are saying they will never buy Nike shoes ever again.”

In a letter to the judge, MSCHF’s attorneys argued that the limited edition shoes are “not typical sneakers, but rather individually-numbered works of art that were sold to collectors for $1,018 each,” and notes that confusion among the shoes’ customers isn’t likely “given the sophistication of purchasers.”

Naturally, Nas has handled the whole situation with his signature sense of humor.

All The New Albums Coming Out In April 2021

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iStock

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 April. If you’re not trying to potentially miss out on anything, it might be a good idea to keep reading.

Friday, April 2

  • Alex Little & The Suspicious Minds — Waiting To Get Paid (Light Organ Records)
  • Bambounou — Cascade EP (Bambe)
  • The Beat Farmers — Tales Of The New West (Deluxe) (Rhino)
  • Blacklist Royals — Doomsday Girl (Paper + Plastick)
  • Bryce Dessner And Australian String Quartet — Impermanence/Disintegration (37d03d)
  • Cha Wa — My People (Single Lock Records)
  • Chaz Knapp — Organ Drunes (figureight)
  • Cristina Vane — Nowhere Sounds Lovely (Blue Tip Records)
  • Demi Lovato — Dancing With The Devil… The Art Of Starting Over (Island Records)
  • Dopolarians — The Bond (Mahakala Music)
  • The Drums — Mommy Don’t Spank Me (Island/UMC)
  • Dry Cleaning — New Long Leg (4AD)
  • Du Blonde — Homecoming (Daemon T.V.)
  • Everson Poe — Grief (Trepanation Recordings)
  • Flock Of Dimes — Head Of Roses (Sub Pop Records)
  • Godspeed You! Black Emperor — G_d’s Pee AT STATE’S END! (Constellation)
  • Haunted Shed — Faltering Light (Strolling Bones Records)
  • Helstar — Clad In Black (Massacre Records)
  • January Jane — Your Drug EP (BMG)
  • Keith Kenny — Lifetime Ago Motel (iNtuRecords)
  • Kishi Bashi — Emigrant EP (Joyful Noise)
  • Kolby Knickerbocker — Over And Over EP (self-released)
  • La Femme — Paradigmes (Disque Pointu)
  • Leslie Jordan — Company’s Comin’ (PLATOON)
  • Lil Tjay — Destined 2 Win (Columbia)
  • Major Murphy — Access (Off White Records)
  • Mark Bryan — Midlife Priceless (Slow Start Records)
  • Mo3 — Shottaz 4 Eva (H$M Music/EMPIRE)
  • Mountain Bird — Once We Were Present EP (Nettwerk)
  • Mythic Sunship — Wildfire (Tee Pee Records)
  • Nasty Cherry — The Movie EP (Vroom Vroom Recordings)
  • The Natvral — Tethers (Dirty Bingo)
  • Noah Preminger And Kim Cass — Thunda (self-released)
  • Odd Circus — Mantha EP (Good Idea Music)
  • Patrick Belaga — Blutt (PAN)
  • Paul Bergmann — The Other Side (self-released)
  • Quelly Woo — Tactical Pressure EP (Equity Distribution)
  • No-No Boy — 1975 (Smithsonian Folkways)
  • Rosie Darling — Coping EP (Nettwerk)
  • Ryley Walker — Course In Fable (Husky Pants)
  • Shakey Graves — Roll The Bones X (Dualtone Records)
  • Whitehall — Swordfish Catcher (Common Ground Collective)
  • YaSi — Coexist With Chaos EP (Royal Rhythm Records)
  • Zach Person — Zach Person (BlackDenim Records)

Friday, April 9

  • Andy Bell — The Indica Gallery EP (Sonic Cathedral)
  • Ari Herstand — Like Home (Ari’s Take)
  • Benny Sings — Music (Stones Throw Records)
  • Bill MacKay And Nathan Bowles — Keys (Drag City Records)
  • The Blips — The Blips (Cornelius Chapel Records)
  • Blue Lab Beats — We Will Rise EP (Blue Note Records)
  • Briston Maroney — Sunflower (Atlantic)
  • Brockhampton — Roadrunner: New Light, New Machine (Question Everything/RCA Records)
  • CFCF — Memoryland (BGM Solutions)
  • Charlotte Cardin — Phoenix (Cult Nation)
  • Charlotte Spiral — New Light EP (Higher Plain Music)
  • Cheap Trick — In Another World (BMG)
  • Chris Cain — Raisin’ Cain (Alligator Records)
  • Christine Ott — Time To Die (Gizeh Records)
  • CJ — Loyalty Over Royalty Deluxe (CJ Music Group/Warner)
  • Clafrica — Never Not Balling EP (DRWX)
  • Courting — Grand National EP (Nice Swan Recordings)
  • Daniel Santiago — Song For Tomorrow (Heartcore Records)
  • Elephant Micah — Vague Tidings (Western Vinyl)
  • Emily Kinney — The Supporting Character (Jullian Records)
  • Ex-Olympian — Afterlife Remixed EP (Dot Dash / Remote Control Records)
  • Fake Dad — Old Baby EP (Baby’s TV)
  • Flyte — This Is Really Going To Hurt (Island Records)
  • Franz Kirmann & Roberto Grosso — In Waves EP (Days Of Being)
  • The Fratellis — Half Drunk Under A Full Moon (Cooking Vinyl)
  • Gilligan Moss — Gilligan Moss (Foreign Family)
  • Grand Soleil — Human Error (Nowadays Records)
  • Heavy Feather — Mountain Of Sugar (The Sign Records)
  • Hot Breath — Rubbery Lips (The Sign Records)
  • Indubious — The Bridge (Easy Star Records)
  • Jean-Michel Jarre — Amazônia (Sony Music Entertainment)
  • Kevo Muney — Lucille’s Grandson (self-released)
  • Lapêche — Blood In The Water (New Granada)
  • The Lion’s Daughter — Skin Show (Season of Mist)
  • The Living Pins — Freaky Little Monster Children (self-released)
  • Lxst — Famous EP (Paper Route Empire)
  • Mako — Fable Remix (Ultra Music)
  • Mark Mallman — Happiness (Eagle’s Golden Tooth)
  • Max Richter — Voices 2 (Decca Records)
  • The Medea Project — Southern Echoes (self-released)
  • Merk — Infinite Youth (Humblebrag Records)
  • MF Tomlinson — Strange Time (self-released)
  • Miguel — Art Dealer Chic Vol. 4 EP (ByStorm/RCA Records)
  • Milly — Wish Goes On EP (Dangerbird Records)
  • Nelson Beer — Orlando EP (PIAS)
  • Nick Waterhouse — Promenade Blue (Innovative Leisure)
  • Onyx — Onyx 4 Life (Cleopatra Records)
  • Orions Belte — Villa Amorini (Terrorbird)
  • Overmono — Pieces Of 8/Echo Rush EP (XL Recordings)
  • Parker Millsap — Be Here Instead (Okrahoma Records)
  • Peggy Seeger — First Farewell (Red Grape Records)
  • The Pink Stones — Introducing…The Pink Stones (Normaltown Records)
  • Quiet Marauder — The Gift (Bubblewrap Collective)
  • Rachel Chinouriri — Four° In Winter EP (Atlas Artists Recordings)
  • Raf Rundell — O.M. Days (Heavenly)
  • The Reds, Pinks & Purples — Uncommon Weather (Slumberland Records)
  • Requin Chagrin — Bye Bye Baby (Sony Music)
  • Reverend Peyton’s Big Damn Band — Dance Songs for Hard Times (Thirty Tigers)
  • Rhiannon Giddens with Francesco Turrisi — They’re Calling Me Home (Nonesuch)
  • Ross Gay — Dilate Your Heart (Dead Oceans)
  • The Routes — Mesmerised (Action Weekend Records)
  • Samantha Crain — I Guess We Live Here Now EP (Real Kind Records)
  • Sarah Cicero — Cold Immaculate Opposite EP (Orchard)
  • Sharkula x Mukqs — Take Caution On The Beach (Hausu Mountain)
  • Silver Synthetic — Silver Synthetic (Third Man Records)
  • Skullcrusher — Storm In Summer EP (Secretly Canadian)
  • Slow Dance — Moth & The Dove EP (Slow Dance Records)
  • Small Black — Cheap Dreams (100% Electronica)
  • Sook-Yin Lee & Adam Litovitz — jooj two (Mint Records)
  • Spirit Of The Beehive — Entertainment, Death (Saddle Creek)
  • Steiger — The New Lady Llama (SDBAN ULTRA)
  • Storm Gordon — The Lie I Love The Best (Wonderlust)
  • Sweet Oblivion — Relentless (Frontiers Music)
  • Wheel — Preserved In Time (Cruz Del Sur Music)
  • Yaya Bey — The Things I Can’t Take With Me EP (Big Dada)

Friday, April 16

  • Alex Henry Foster — Standing Under Bright Lights (Hopeful Tragedy)
  • Amigo The Devil — Born Against (Liars Club)
  • Andy Stott — Never The Right Time (Modern Love)
  • Apparat — Soundtracks (It’s Complicated Records)
  • The Armed — Ultrapop (Sargent House)
  • Arthur King — Changing Landscapes (Isle Of Eigg) (AKP Recordings)
  • August Burns Red — Guardians Sessions EP (Fearless Records)
  • Autogramm — No Rules (Nevado Records)
  • Babygirl — Losers Weepers EP (Sandlot Records)
  • Benedikt — Balcony Dream (Koke Plate)
  • Benjamin Belinska — Lost Illusions (1879550 Records DK2)
  • Bewitcher — Cursed Be Thy Kingdom (Century Media Records)
  • Big Scarr — Big Grim Reaper (Atlantic)
  • Bill Kwan — No Ordinary Love: The Music Of Sade (Ikeda Music)
  • Bob Mould — Distortion: 2008-2019 (DMON)
  • The Brother Brothers — Calla Lily (Compass Records)
  • Bushido Code — The Ronin (Upstate Records)
  • Cale Sexton — Sustain (Heavy Machinery Records)
  • Cannibal Corpse — Violence Unimagined (Metal Blade Records)
  • Caroline Kingsbury — Heaven’s Just A Flight (Fortune Tellers)
  • Caroline Polachek — Standing At The Gate: Remix Collection (self-released)
  • Childe — Childe EP (Prolifica Inc.)
  • Clicks — G.O.T.H. (Dependent Records)
  • Crown — The End Of All Things (Pelagic Records)
  • Deine Lakaien — Dual (Prophecy Productions)
  • Drongo — 1 (eBird)
  • Elise Davis — Anxious. Happy. Chill. (Tone Tree)
  • Eric Church — Heart (UMG Nashville)
  • Francesca Ter-Berg — In Eynem (Phantom Limb)
  • Garage A Trois — Calm Down Cologne (Royal Potato Family)
  • Greta Van Fleet — The Battle At Garden’s Gate (Lava/Republic)
  • Holding Absence — The Greatest Mistake Of My Life (SharpTone Records)
  • Holly Macve — Not The Girl (Modern Sky)
  • Imelda May — 11 Past The Hour (Decca)
  • Jaguar Jonze — Antihero EP (Nettwerk)
  • Jakob Mind — The One Who Got Away (Lovely Records)
  • James Holvay — Sweet Soul Song EP (MOB Town)
  • Jeffery Silverstein — Torii Gates (Arrowhawk)
  • jess joy — Patreeachry (Joyful Noise Recordings)
  • Jo Below — No Control EP (Inverse Records)
  • John Pizzarelli — Better Days Ahead (Ghostlight Deluxe)
  • John Moods — So Sweet EP (Arbutus Records)
  • Josh Radnor — One More Than I’ll Let You Go EP (Flower Moon Records)
  • Julia Stone — Sixty Summers (BMG)
  • Kenny Mason — Angelic Hoodrat: Supercut (Alamo/Geffen)
  • Lea Bertucci — A Visible Length Of Light (Cibachrome Editions)
  • Low Island — If You Could Have It All Again (Emotional Interference)
  • Lyke — Stay With Me EP (Armada Electronic Elements)
  • Miles Gannett — Meridian (self-released)
  • NEEDTOBREATHE — Live From The Woods Vol. 2 (Elektra Records)
  • Nick Hakim And Roy Nathanson — Small Things (NYXO)
  • Norah Jones — ‘Till We Meet Again (Capitol Records)
  • The Offspring — Let The Bad Times Roll (Concord)
  • Paul McCartney — McCartney III Imagined (Capitol Records)
  • Robin Trower, Maxi Priest, And Livingstone Brown — United State Of Mind (Manhaton Records)
  • Saint Raymond — We Forgot We Were Dreaming (Cooking Vinyl)
  • Sam Eagle — She’s So Nice EP (Cooking Vinyl)
  • Sasha And The Valentines — So You Think You Found Love? (Oof Records)
  • Shaed — No Other Way (Photo Finish Records)
  • SKAAR — Waiting (WM Norway)
  • Son Lux — Tomorrows III (City Slang)
  • Steve Bug & Cle — Gentle Push EP (Poker Flat)
  • Syna So Pro — Chill/Hype (FPE Records)
  • T Bear — Fresh Bear Tracks (Quarto Valley Records)
  • Talib Kweli & Diamond D — Gotham (Dymond Mine Records)
  • Triston Marez — Triston Marez (Torrez Music Group)
  • Two Feet — Max Maco Is Dead Right? (AWAL)
  • The Vintage Caravan — Monuments (Napalm Records)
  • Vision Video — Inked In Red (Kool Rock)
  • Vladislav Delay — Rakka II (Cosmo Rhythmatic)
  • Waxflower — We Might Be Alright EP (Rude Records)
  • The Workday Release — Like The Light Of Stars (Enci Records)

Friday, April 23

  • Ade — Midnight Pizza (Trickwork)
  • Alan Vega — Mutator (Sacred Bones Records)
  • Art d’Ecco — In Standard Definition (Paper Bag Records)
  • Ben Cosgrove — The Trouble With Wilderness (self-released)
  • Birthday Ass — Head Of The Household (Ramp Local)
  • Black Orchid Empire — Live In The Studio EP (Long Branch Records)
  • Black Wail — Born On Fire EP (Rhyme & Reason)
  • Carla Geneve — Learn To Like It (Dot Dash)
  • Chapel — Room Service EP (Rise Records)
  • Charlie Houston — I Hate Spring EP (Arts & Crafts)
  • Chicane — Everything We Had To Leave Behind (Modena Records)
  • The Cush — Riders In The Stardust Gold (Mad Bunny Records)
  • Danny Golden — Changes EP (Carry On Music)
  • Dans Dans — Zink (Unday Records)
  • Dan Wilson — Vessels Of Wood And Earth (Mack Avenue Records)
  • Dinosaur Jr. — Sweep It Into Space (Jagjaguwar)
  • Dirty Honey — Dirty Honey (self-released)
  • Dumpstaphunk — Where Do We Go From Here (Mascot Label Group/The Funk Garage)
  • Eli West — Tapered Point Of Stone (Tender And Mild)
  • Eric Church — Soul (UMG Nashville)
  • E.R. Jurken — I Stand Corrected (Country Thyme)
  • Ethel Cain — Inbred EP (Daughters of Cain)
  • Field Music — Flat White Moon (Memphis Industries)
  • Fog Lake — Tragedy Reel (Orchid Tapes)
  • Gilby Clarke — The Gospel Truth (Golden Robot Records)
  • Glimmers — Worlds Apart EP (Common Ground Collective)
  • Graywave — Planetary Shift EP (False Peak Records)
  • Hannah Jadagu — What Is Going On? EP (Sub Pop Records)
  • The Jeff Carlson Band — Yesterday’s Gone (RFL Records)
  • John Splithoff — All In (self-released)
  • Jupiter & Okwess — Na Kazonga (Everloving Records)
  • Justin Moore — Straight Outta The Country (Virgin)
  • Ki Oni — Stay Indoors And Swim (Sound As Language)
  • Lucid Den — Ice Storm X (Lucid Trax)
  • The March Divide — cinq (Slow Start Records)
  • The Mars Volta — La Realidad De Los Sueños (Clouds Hill)
  • The Mars Volta — Landscape Tantrums (Clouds Hill)
  • Moon Vs Sun — I’m Going To Break Your Heart (Wea)
  • The Pale White — Infinite Pleasure (Illegal Cinema Records)
  • The Peter Frampton Band — Frampton Forgets The Words (UMe)
  • PJ Harding And Noah Cyrus — People Don’t Change EP (RCA Records)
  • Polly Paulusma — Invisible Music (Wild Sound)
  • Porter Robinson — Nurture (Mom + Pop Music)
  • Rag’n’Bone Man — Life By Misadventure (High Focus Records)
  • Remember Sports — Like A Stone (Father/Daughter Records)
  • Satomimagae — Hanazono (RVNG Intl.)
  • Sindy — Horror Head (PNKSLM Recordings)
  • Sir Sly — The Rise & Fall Of Loverboy (Interscope)
  • Sonic Boom — Almost Nothing Is Nearly Enough (Carpark Records)
  • Sour Widows — Crossing Over EP (Exploding In Sound Records)
  • Steve Cropper — Fire It Up (Provogue Records)
  • Summer Sleeves — In The Throes Of Woes (Jigsaw Records)
  • Tashaki Miyaki — Castaway (Metropolis Records)
  • Tilian — Factory Reset (Rise Records)
  • Tom Jones — Surrounded By Time (S-Curve Records)
  • Trace Kotik — Everything Has Been Done By Now, So Now, Everything Is Possible… (IMU Records)
  • Tristan Kasten-Krause — Potential Landscapes (Whatever’s Clever)
  • WarCall — Dead End Pt. 1 EP (Plan B Music)
  • WheelUp — Good Love (Tru Thoughts)

Friday, April 30

  • Adrian Crowley — The Watchful Eye Of The Stars (Chemikal Underground)
  • Ali Barter — Chocolate Cake EP ([PIAS])
  • Amy Shark — Cry Forever (Sony)
  • Amy Speace with The Orphan Brigade — There Used To Be Horses Here (Wind Bone Records)
  • Arts Fishing Club — The Show EP (Arts Fishing Club)
  • Ashley Monroe — Rosegold (Warner Music Nashville)
  • Ben Seretan — Cicada Waves (NNA Tapes)
  • Birdy — Young Heart (Atlantic)
  • Cadence Weapon — Parallel World (eOne Music)
  • Dawn Richard — Second Line: An Electro Revival (Merge Records)
  • Del Amitri — Fatal Mistakes (Cooking Vinyl)
  • Dree Leer — Throw Hands (Bettamax Records)
  • Dropkick Murphys — Turn Up That Dial (PIAS Cooperative)
  • Elsa Hewitt — Lupa (ERH)
  • Enumclaw — Jimbo Demos EP (Youth Riot Records)
  • Far Lands — There Be Monsters (Get Loud Recordings)
  • Girl In Red — If I Could Make It Go Quiet (World in Red)
  • Glüme — The Internet (Italians Do It Better)
  • Gojira — Fortitude (Travelling the Groove Records)
  • Guided By Voices — Earth Man Blues (Rockathon Records)
  • Hadda Be — Another Life (Last Night From Glasgow)
  • Joe Kaplow — Sending Money And Stems (Fluff & Gravy Records)
  • Joseph Shabason — The Fellowship (Western Vinyl)
  • Juan Wauters — Real Life Situations (Captured Tracks)
  • Kohsuke Mine — First (Barely Breaking Even)
  • Laufey — Typical Of Me EP (Transgressive Records)
  • Leon Vynehall — Rare, Forever (Ninja Tune)
  • Manchester Orchestra — The Million Masks Of God (Loma Vista Recordings)
  • Marianne Faithfull with Warren Ellis — She Walks In Beauty (BMG)
  • Moderate Rebels — If You See Something That Doesn’t Look Right (Moshi Moshi)
  • Myd — Born A Loser (Ed Banger Records)
  • Paper Beat Scissors — La Mitad (Seayou Records)
  • Paul Jacobs — Pink Dogs On The Green Grass (Blow the Fuse)
  • Rochelle Jordan — Play With The Changes (Young Art)
  • Rosie Tucker — Sucker Supreme (Epitaph Records)
  • Royal Blood — Typhoons (Warner)
  • Rural Tapes — Rural Tapes (Smuggler Music)
  • Sarah Louise — Earth Bow (self-released)
  • The Shootouts — Bullseye (Soundly Music)
  • Teenage Fanclub — Endless Arcade (Merge)
  • Telex — This Is Telex (Mute)
  • Tetrarch — Unstable (Napalm Records)
  • Thomas Rhett — Country Again: Side A (Virgin)
  • Tobias Meinhart — The Painter (Sunnyside Records)
  • Tony Allen — There Is No End (Blue Note Records)
  • Tōth — You And Me And Everything (Northern Spy Records)
  • Vacation Manor — Vacation Manor (Nettwerk)
  • Vincent Herring — Preaching To The Choir (Smoke Sessions Records)
  • Vreid — Wild North West (Season of Mist)
  • Will Graefe — Marine Life (11A Records)
  • Zhu — Dreamland 2021 (Astralwerks)

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

Quavo And Saweetie’s Elevator Fight Is Reportedly Being Investigated By The LAPD

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In the wake of a video surfacing that depicts a physical altercation between rappers Quavo and Saweetie at her North Hollywood apartment, TMZ reports that the LAPD is now investigating the situation. Law enforcement sources told TMZ that the department wants to question both rappers separately to obtain a clearer idea of what happened before, during, and after the fight, as the video only catches the tail end of what appears to be an argument that escalates to Saweetie swinging at Quavo and Quavo throwing Saweetie to the ground, apparently tussling over what appeared to be a video game console. There’s no sound, either.

If investigators find grounds for a criminal case, they’d turn their findings over to the City Attorney, who would determine any charges. Neither rapper has commented on the incident since the video surfaced, but Saweetie did confirm their breakup a week before it emerged, seemingly accusing Quavo of infidelity. Meanwhile, Quavo maintained that Saweetie was not “the woman [he] thought [she was].”

Until their breakup, the former couple was the toast of social media, with their cutesy stories and interactions becoming a source of fascination for fans and prompting the view of their relationship as “goals.” Unfortunately, it turns out that the curated social media image didn’t show the whole story — it never does — and the only goal fans should have is keeping violence out of their own relationships.

Tayla Parx And Other Songwriters Call On Artists To Stop Demanding Credit On Songs They Didn’t Write

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Songwriters are an invaluable part of the music industry, but some of them feel like they aren’t getting a fair deal. Now, a group of songwriters have formed The Pact and are calling on artists to drop demanding credit on and publishing rights of songs that they didn’t help write.

The group has shared a letter, which asserts:

“Over the last few years, there has been a growing number of artists that are demanding publishing on songs they did not write. These artists will go on to collect revenue from touring, merchandise, brand partnerships, and many other revenue streams, while the songwriters have only their publishing revenue as a means of income. This demand for publishing is often able to happen because the artist and/or their representation abuse leverage, use bully tactics and threats, and prey upon writers who may choose to give up some of their assets rather than lose the opportunity completely. Over time, this practice of artists taking publishing has become normalized; and until now, there has been no real unity within the songwriting community to fight back.”

It goes on to declare, “This body of songwriters will not give publishing or songwriting credit to anyone who did not create or change the lyric or melody or otherwise contribute to the composition without a reasonably equivalent/meaningful exchange for all the writers on the song.”

The Pact’s website has a list of artists involved and it includes Tayla Parx, Justin Tranter, Tobias Jesso Jr., Emily Warren, Toss Golan, Amy Allen, Lennon Stella, Shae Jacobs, Sam Harris, Deza, and Joel Little. The aforementioned artists have had a huge impact on the music industry in recent years, as they have collaborated with big names like Ariana Grande, Khalid, Normani, Mariah Carey, Jennifer Lopez, Alicia Keys, Demi Lovato, Chloe x Halle, Janelle Monáe, Anderson .Paak, Megan Thee Stallion, Dua Lipa, Britney Spears, Gwen Stefani, Linkin Park, Justin Bieber, Selena Gomez, Lady Gaga, Kygo, Kacey Musgraves, John Legend, Maroon 5, Halsey, Cardi B, Imagine Dragons, Jonas Brothers, Sia, Adele, Shawn Mendes, Charlie Puth, Florence And The Machine, Haim, Niall Horan, King Princess, and Ellie Goulding. All those credits, by the way, are for just Parx, Tranter, and Jesso.

Read the full letter below and learn more about The Pact here.

“The beauty of the music industry is that it operates at its best as an ecosystem. Behind most songs, there is a story of collaboration. By the time of release, a song has been touched not just by the artist, but by songwriters, producers, mixers, engineers, record labels, publishers, managers and more.

Over the last few years, there has been a growing number of artists that are demanding publishing on songs they did not write. These artists will go on to collect revenue from touring, merchandise, brand partnerships, and many other revenue streams, while the songwriters have only their publishing revenue as a means of income. This demand for publishing is often able to happen because the artist and/or their representation abuse leverage, use bully tactics and threats, and prey upon writers who may choose to give up some of their assets rather than lose the opportunity completely. Over time, this practice of artists taking publishing has become normalized; and until now, there has been no real unity within the songwriting community to fight back.

That is why we have decided to join together, in support of each other, and make a change. What we are saying is this:

This body of songwriters will not give publishing or songwriting credit to anyone who did not create or change the lyric or melody or otherwise contribute to the composition without a reasonably equivalent/meaningful exchange for all the writers on the song.

To be clear – this action is being taken for two main purposes. First and foremost, we hope that this action will protect the future ‘us’, the next generation of songwriters — those who believe they have no leverage and no choice but to give up something that is rightly theirs. The second purpose is to shift the rhetoric and perspective surrounding the role of a songwriter. As songwriters, we are fully aware of the importance of the artist who goes on to perform and promote the songs we write, the role of the producer who takes the song to the finish line, and the role of the label that finances the project and plans for strategy and promotion. In light of that, we are not suggesting we dip into those revenue streams, we are not asking for something we don’t deserve. We are simply asking for that respect in return. We are simply asking that the ecosystem stay in balance; we are simply asking that we not be put in positions where we are forced to give up all we have in exchange for nothing; we are simply asking that we give credit where credit is due and only take credit where credit is earned.

If we take the song out of the music industry, there is no music industry. As of today, we will no longer accept being treated like we are at the bottom of the totem pole, or be bullied into thinking that we should be making sacrifices to sit at the table. We are all in this together, and we all need each other for this wheel to keep turning. So let’s start acting like it.

Sincerely,

The Pact”

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

Westside Gunn Readies ‘Hitler Wears Hermes 8’ With Two New Singles: ‘Julia Lang’ And ‘TV Boy’

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People thought that Westside Gunn would retire from rapping at the end of last year and focus on the other interests. This was due to a tweet he posted in September, in which he tweeted, “Only 3 more months left and I’m still at peace with my decision but this will be a dope 3 months I promise u that #FLYGOD.” But the rapper changed his mind at the beginning of the new year, saying there’s “more work to do” in his rap career. He even went ahead and announced his next album, which is entitled Hitler Wears Hermes 8: Sincerely Adolf.

With the full-length effort very much en route, Westside shares his latest singles, “Julia Lang” and “TV Boy.” The former is named after the founder of the genderless lifestyle label VEERT. They also appear beside Westside in the track’s accompanying video, which sees the rapper, his crew, and Lang kicking it at a studio as the Griselda rapper lets off a string of sharp raps. As for “TV Boy,” the song boasts production from frequent collaborators Daringer and Beat Butcha, who help create a grimy track for Westside to strut his stuff.

You can listen to both tracks in the videos above.

Deante Hitchcock Makes The Most Of A Hotel Room In His Freestyle Over Spillage Village’s ‘Baptize’

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Atlanta’s Deante Hitchcock has been one of the most active hip-hop acts in 2021. The bulk of his work has came from his revived series New Atlanta Tuesdays, which sees him freestyling over new and old rap songs. He continued it today with a bars over Spillage Village’s “Baptize.” Just like the other songs in the series, Deante shares the new freestyle with an accompanying video. In the latest, the rapper can be found in hotel where talks to himself in the mirror before sitting fully-clothed in a tub full of water, once again impressing with his lyrical skills.

The freestyle is the fifth track Deante has dropped in 2021 as part of the new series. He began with bars over Lil Wayne’s “Let The Beat Build” and continued with a wild take on SpotemGottem’s “Beat Box.” Then he took on Drake’s No. 1 song, “What Next,” and his most recent saw him rapping over Outkast’s classic track “Roses,” off their 2004 album Speakerboxx/The Love Below.

Along with the string of freestyles, Deante has also teased a new album to be released in the near future. Until then, you can revisit his debut album, Better, which he released in 2020 and updated this year with a live version that came with videos of the performances.

You can listen to the freestyle in the video above.