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Post Malone Pops Up At A Billy Strings Concert To Join Him For A Bluegrass Johnny Cash Cover
Bluegrass and Americana favorite Billy Strings is fresh off some decent exposure, as he performed on the outdoor stage at the 2022 Grammys, where he also had a pair of nominations. He’s also captured the attention of at least one household name: Post Malone, who joined Strings on stage last night for a cover of Johnny Cash’s “Cocaine Blues.”
Yesterday, Strings and his band performed at The Observatory in Santa Ana, California, where Malone unexpectedly popped up. Strings introduced Malone, saying, “I saw this guy lurking around backstage and figured we gotta drag him up here to f*ckin’ sing for us.” Posty then offered a compliment, saying, “Billy Strings is the best to ever f*ckin’ do it.”
They then launched into the cover, with Malone strumming an acoustic guitar as he sang lead vocals on the bluegrass rendition of the song. When Malone wasn’t singing, he was smiling, and based on the audience reaction, it looked like a good time was had by all.
This comes shortly after Dre London, Malone’s manager, claimed Posty’s next album, Twelve Carat Toothache, is slated for a May release, which has yet to be confirmed by Malone himself.
Watch Malone and Strings cover “Cocaine Blues” above.
Meek Mill Thinks That Labels Fake First-Week Album Sales Numbers
Meek Mill has been on a bit of a rebellious streak lately, speaking out against music industry practices he sees as outdated or unfair. After Kanye West posted several pages of record deal revisions to Twitter in 2020, Meek claimed he wanted to do the same in 2021, writing, “I’m about to make my record deal public… just to let the world see what these people on!”
ask the record label? how much have you spent on me as a artist? then you ask how much have you made off me as a artist? i’m about to make my record deal public by monday just to let the world see what these people on!!!
— MeekMill.nft (@MeekMill) October 25, 2021
While he never quite followed through on that particular threat, he has continued to air out his issues with the recording industry. Most recently, he denounced the industry’s modern emphasis on publicizing first-week album sales numbers. In Meek’s opinion, this is an unhealthy way to do business; it unfairly hurts the public perception of artists and how their labels deal with them. He also believes that labels have more control over those statistics than they let on.
“We don’t go off first week numbers,” he wrote. “Labels run that shit … and most of the numbers be fake … you can clearly see all the artist that’s killing shit! Focus on your brand and impact!!” In a follow-up tweet, he described what he believes is the detrimental effect this is having on the music business. “They crashing the rap game out,” he predicted. “That everybody drop on Friday bs …. Wtf is that … why would you want to sell your product on the same day as the competition… for a billboard look? lol what does that do for the artist?”
We don’t go off first week numbers ….Labels run that shit … and most of the numbers be fake … you can clearly see all the artist that’s killing shit! Focus on your brand and impact!!
— MeekMill.nft (@MeekMill) April 14, 2022
They crashing the rap game out …. that everybody drop on Friday bs …. Wtf is that … why would you want to sell your product on the same day as the competition… for a billboard look? lol what does that do for the artist?
— MeekMill.nft (@MeekMill) April 14, 2022
While Meek’s issues appear to be with the recording industry in general, his MMG boss Rick Ross doesn’t believe Meek has issues with MMG. Rather, Ross recently said he thinks Meek’s label complaints are focused on Atlantic Records, which currently distributes his music.
Meek Mill is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
Vince Staples Explains Why Hip-Hop Is Not A ‘Game’ But A ‘Business’
Vince Staples has never been one to mince his words about… anything. It was just last month that Vince criticized record labels for seeking “money in the violence” against rappers. “It’s money in it and they gonna keep selling it and we gonna keep perpetuating it and we gon’ be hurt when somebody die,” he said during the interview on Hot 97. “I don’t necessarily know if they care. If they did, man the album ready in four weeks once you die. You get more press on the album after you die.” Fresh off the release of his fifth album Ramona Park Broke My Heart, Vince took a moment to give his thoughts on the way hip-hop is presented.
Rap is often referred to as a “game,” and during a recent interview with Complex’s Speedy Mormon, Vince explained why hip-hop isn’t a game in his eyes. “What’s the game? In basketball, you dribble, you shoot, you score, you win,” he said. Vince added, “The reason it’s an expression is because somebody has to lose. So that way, when it ends up and you do it and it takes everything from you, then you just lost the game. But that’s not what it’s supposed to be. This is a business, you’re supposed to have good business [and] good morals. [Instead], they pay you, and you know [they say], ‘Oh, this is an opportunity so you don’t deserve ownership of your project,’ ‘This is an opportunity, you don’t deserve this, you don’t deserve that.’”
Vince continued, “They don’t call any other genre ‘the game.’ They call the rap game the ‘rap game’ because there’s a bunch of n****s running around and they don’t want to give Black people sh*t.’”
You can watch the full interview in the video above.
Ramona Park Broke My Heart is out now via Motown Records. You can stream it here.
Ty Dolla Sign is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
The Kid Laroi Insinuates That Scooter Braun Was His ‘Last Mistake’ In A Viral TikTok
Back in September, The Kid Laroi left Scooter Braun’s management group SB Projects just a few months after signing with them. The Australian singer would then take his talents to Adam Leber’s Rebel Management where Lil Nas X is also a client. At the time of the announcement, Laroi did not give a reason for his departure, but it now appears that things between the F*ck Love singer and Braun turned sour before he walked away. In a new TikTok that Laroi posted to promote his upcoming single “Thousand Miles,” he asked his fans to share their “last mistake,” but it’s what Laroi revealed that surprised people.
The upcoming record features the lyrics, “Here goes another mistake I know I’m gonna make / I know I’m gonna make tonight / And I will never change.” As those words play in the TikTok, photos of Braun appear across the screen, pushing some to believe that Laroi considers his former manager to be his “last mistake.” Many were confused by Laroi’s TikTok as one person commented, “The way I can’t tell if this is a joke or not.”
If the TikTok is not a joke, Laroi would join the likes of Taylor Swift and others who have publicly shown their dismay for Braun. Swift and Braun were tied up in a very public feud after he bought the label that owned her masters and made it very difficult for her to buy them from him. As for Laroi, his split with Braun came after he released “Stay” with Justin Bieber which spent multiple weeks at No. 1.
You can view Laroi’s TikTok above and stay tuned for “Thousand Miles” which drops on April 22.
Cardi B Invents A New Dance, ‘The Seaweed Sway,’ In Her Guest-Starring Role On ‘Baby Shark’s Big Show’
Cardi B once said that she won’t let her daughter sing one of her biggest hits, but now, thanks to Nickelodeon, at least one of her songs will be acceptable for Kulture’s little ears. This Friday at noon, Cardi will be guest-starring on the kids’ series Baby Shark’s Big Show! as a toothy, finned, bright-pink version of herself named Sharki B. She’ll be joined by fishy animated versions of her husband Offset and her daughter Kulture to perform a new song called “The Seaweed Sway.” Today, Billboard premiered a clip of the song, in which Sharki B shows off its accompanying “viral” dance alongside the show’s title character.
To be honest, the song ain’t half bad, and considering the origins and ubiquity of the Baby Shark theme song, I’m sure there will be plenty of parents breathing a sigh of relief at getting a break from the hypnotic tune that kids can’t seem to get enough of. On the other hand, I’m equally sure there’ll be a ton of pearl-clutching from the sorts of people who act like Cardi b’s music will be the end of Western civilization, despite the song being about as kid-friendly as it gets. But the video’s cute (look at Offshark!), the song’s catchy, and kids kind of already love Cardi B — at least this is one song of hers parents won’t mind them singing along to.
Watch Cardi’s — ahem, Sharki B’s — new video for “The Seaweed Sway” above.
Buddy Announces The Tour Dates For His New Album, ‘Superghetto’
Compton rapper Buddy is fresh off the release of his new album, Superghetto, which dropped on April 8 via RCA, and today, he announced the tour dates promoting the new album — his first in nearly four years. The tour begins June 15 in Oakland, California at The New Parish and includes dates in LA at The Roxy, New York at the Bowery Ballroom, and Toronto at Adelaide Hall before concluding in Chicago at Subterranean.
Fans can expect to hear new singles “Wait Too Long” featuring Blxst (which Buddy performed recently on The Tonight Show) and “Hoochie Mama,” as well as favorites from Buddy’s 2018 debut album Harlan & Alondra and the Dreamville compilation Revenge Of The Dreamers III, on which Buddy was a standout. Buddy will be joined by Houston rapper HVN and LA rapper/singer Kent Jamz, who collaborated with Buddy on their 2020 joint mixtape, Janktape Vol. 1. Tickets go on sale on Friday, April 15 at 10 am local time. You can see the full schedule of dates below.
6/15 — Oakland, CA @ The New Parish
6/16 — Los Angeles, CA @ The Roxy Theatre
6/17 — San Diego, CA @ Soma – Side Stage
6/22 — Washington, D.C. @ Union Stage
6/23 — New York, NY @ Bowery Ballroom
6/24 — Philadelphia, PA @ Foundry
6/25 — Boston, MA @ Brighton Music Hall
6/28 — Toronto, ON @ Adelaide Hall
6/29 — Detroit, MI @ Blind Pig
6/30 — Chicago, IL @- Subterranean
Webbie’s ‘Independent’ Video Predictions Blow Young Rappers’ Minds
In 2007, Baton Rouge rapper Webbie’s “Independent” video featured a scene in which a fake news clip reports on a US President being impeached. While the actor in the video didn’t resemble any president at the time, years later, in 2021, a sitting US President actually did get impeached… and that actor bears a pretty striking resemblance to that guy.
So, when our latest React Like You Know video panel — consisting of Uproxx faves like Blueface, DDG, Kali, KenTheMan, Jucee Froot, Strick, and more — gets a load of the video, their minds are appropriately blown. Considering the video dropped when many of them were still in primary school (meaning they likely missed the Clinton impeachment hearings of the ’90s, the probable inspiration behind the video), Webbie’s “prediction” must seem like sorcery.
Strick puts it best; “Man, them folks knew the future,” he jokes. KenTheMan echoes that sentiment, determining that “Webbie and Boosie knew some sh*t that we didn’t know!” They also note that the video’s other prediction of the first female Black president eventually being elected also recently came true — in part — with the election of Kamala Harris as Vice President under Joe Biden. And even if it’s only a technicality, it would also seem to be an eventuality, as well, making that prediction one of the safest long-term bets ever.
Of course, they also have plenty of nostalgia for the song, which reached No. 9 on the Billboard Hot 100, making it a certified defining hit of their youth. That doesn’t mean that they have any more luck singing along to it these days, as they amusingly misspell the title, which doubles as the hook. They don’t have to feel bad though; everybody other than Webbie and a few spelling bee champs probably struggle to keep up with the exuberant hit.
Check out the latest React Like You Know above.
Future Reveals When His Next Album Is Coming Out But Is Staying Tight-Lipped On The Title
2020 brought two new full-length projects from Future: his eighth album High Off Life and his collaborative Lil Uzi Vert project Pluto x Baby Pluto. Since then, though, fans have been waiting for a new LP from Future. The rapper has been hinting at when it’s set to arrive, as last week, he indicated it would be coming later this month. Now, he has doubled down on the release window in a new Instagram post.
Sharing a photo of himself (perhaps the album cover given its square crop), he wrote, “date 4.29 title TBA.” So, it looks like the album’s dropping on the 29th this month but we’ll have to wait a bit longer to find out what it’s called.
While it’s been a year-plus since a new Future album, fans haven’t been hungry for new material from the rapper. In January, he and Gunna dropped perhaps the most viral song of 2022 so far, “Pushin P” (which they performed on Saturday Night Live earlier this month). Aside from that, he popped up on Lil Durk’s “Petty Too” (which they later performed on The Tonight Show). More recently, he featured on Earthgang’s “Billi.”
Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
50 Cent Is Looking For A New Home For ‘Power’ After Starz Contract: ‘Only 5 Months Left On My Deal!’
50 Cent has been less than happy with the current situation at Starz, where he currently produces the Power universe of television shows. He recently complained about the network’s treatment on social media, threatening to relocate his shows after being frustrated by its refusal to announce any renewals for the next few seasons of the handful of Power spinoffs currently airing. Now, after voicing his frustrations and still receiving no new information on those renewals, he says he’s had enough.
“Everybody ready to work,” he wrote in the caption of his latest Instagram post, which included a video of a mixed martial artist asking for a role in Power during a post-fight interview. “I’m trying to buy my universe back from STARZ so it goes where ever I go. Only 5 months left in my deal, and I’m not on the air for 6 months so We Out!”
In his previous posts, 50 explained his reasoning. “They renewed High Town, and FORCE is the highest-rated show they have sitting in limbo,” he argued. “If I told you how much d*mb shit I deal with over here, you would think they all went to school on a small yellow bus.”
The finale of Power Book IV: Force is set to air on April 17.