Freddie Gibbs proved his versatility this week. On Tuesday (September 20), the Gary, Indiana-bred rapper visited Funk Flex on Hot 97 and performed a freestyle, taking shots at disgraced R&B figure R. Kelly and rival Benny Butcher. Today (September 23), Gibbs shows his vulnerable side with the introspective new single “Dark Hearted.”
The James Blake-produced track opens with an ethereal beat and Gibbs proclaiming, “I hope the chopper never jam on me.” He chronicles his struggles while entrenched in “murder land,” reminiscing on being in a crowded apartment where they pushed molly and powder, and prays for God’s protection. He acknowledges, “I know I took a risk with this sh*t when I put my hands on it” and laments that “this game got me dark-hearted,” but his most brutally honest admission comes when he expresses fear that “police might shoot and kill me over my dark skin.”
“Dark Hearted” comes after “Too Much” featuring Moneybagg Yo, Gibbs’ first release of the year, arrived earlier this month. The singles are generating momentum for Soul Sold Separately, his major-label debut studio album due next Friday (September 30) via Warner Records. Gibbs unveiled the full tracklist earlier this week.
Gibbs told Funk Flex on Tuesday that he’s “coming for album of the year” with his new one, “like I did last year.” His first Grammy nomination was earned for Alfredo, his May 2020 collaborative album with Alchemist, under the Best Rap Album category at the most recent ceremony.
Soul Sold Separately is out 9/30 via Warner Records. Pre-order it here.
Freddie Gibbs is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
Gorillaz revved up their North American tour last week and last night at San Francisco’s Chase Center, there were a lot of surprises in store. Before the next Gorillaz album, Cracker Island, comes out in early 2023, Damon Albarn and company were churning out every possible Gorillaz classic for their 20-plus years as a band at the show. Last night’s concert was nothing short of a sermon led by Albarn, as he was joined on stage by collaborators from over the years in Bootie Brown, Pos of De La Soul, Fatoumata Diawara, Earthgang, Sweetie Irie, and in his own Bay Area backyard, Del The Funky Homosapien.
Del joined Gorillaz for “Clint Eastwood” (as can reasonably be expected), but it was the other song that the Deltron 3030 and Hieroglyphics MC performed with Gorillaz that was historic. You see, on the band’s very first album, Gorillaz, Del also appeared on the popular track “Rock The House,” co-produced by Dan The Automator (who was in the crowd and got shouted out by Albarn). But surprisingly, Del had never performed the song with Gorillaz ever before. This is despite the rapper having toured the world with Gorillaz in the past many times over. In fact, the band hadn’t even performed it with any MC since 2002.
So to the crowd’s delight, Albarn announced to the crowd that they would be, “Playing a song we’ve never played before with Del.” A three-piece horn section scurried up on stage and they laid down the signature horn opening to “Rock The House” before Del — decked out in a sleek track suit — masterfully delivered the classic Gorillaz tune. It was a vibe. One of many in the more than two hour set from Gorillaz.
Watch Del perform “Rock The House” with Gorillaz above.
Gorillaz is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
Los Angeles State Historic Park is located on a stretch of downtown road that you’d likely miss if you weren’t looking. Surrounded by Chinatown, the downtown skyline, and the LA River, it’s most notable for long-time residents as the former home of FYF Fest. Back when that now-defunct event was held there, it felt like new problems plagued it annually. Sometimes, it was insane lines that kept people waiting for hours to get in. Other times, it was just the massive dust clouds that the crowds of people would create over the unkempt terrain. When FYF moved to Exposition Park near USC in 2014, it was both for literally greener pastures, more space, and a more grown-up, professional presentation. Until its founder was removed and its 2018 attempt to relaunch was canceled, FYF was the premier multi-genre event in the city.
FYF in many ways was inspired by Barcelona’s Primavera Sound — FYF founder Sean Carlson had frequently spoken about his travels to Spain for both inspiration and education on events. The Spanish staple, running strong since 2001, has long been considered one of the most adventurous and innovative music festivals in the world. From its all-night running time to its recently enacted 50/50 gender parity, Primavera Sound has always been on the forefront of taste and the right side of history. And with a long-planned, pandemic-delayed LA bow, it was ready to spread that vision to a new market.
So taking to the now-renovated, grassy, pristine park that is known for legendary debacles — and even more legendary performances — felt fitting for Primavera. Though the footprint and capacity remain modest at the site, the lineup still felt pretty massive, with arena-level artists Lorde, Nine Inch Nails, and Arctic Monkeys headlining and support from the likes of Khruangbin, James Blake, Fontaines DC, Mitski, Pinkpantheress, Darkside, Arca, Tierra Whack, Cairo, Giveon, and many more. But the overwhelming feeling was a sense of nostalgia for what the park had meant to so many who considered those FYF years crucial to their musical journey. With the skyline towering in the distance, it’s about as LA as an LA outdoor event can feel. It’s the perfect spot for new memories to be made, and a new generation to develop their own sense of nostalgia.
Primavera’s commitment to musical discovery was on display, as a casual attendee could walk from metal icons Mayhem to post-punk trailblazers Fontaines DC to the instrumental retro funk of Khruangbin without skipping a beat. Tierra Whack wins the award for most playful hype DJ, who managed to pump up the crowd with not only the expected Kanye drop but also Panic! At The Disco and Vanessa Carlton selections, speaking directly to Whack’s sharp, left-field sense of humor. And maybe the unintentionally funniest moment came as Stereolab tried to begin their set but couldn’t get the house music to stop playing “Low Rider.”
Unfortunately, it wasn’t without its logistical hiccups. The biggest of which was a baffling decision to make the front of its two biggest stages almost exclusively 21+. For anyone outside of California, because of some strict liquor laws, many festival sites are not zoned for people to be able to carry around their drinks — Goldenvoice’s preferred site of Pasadena Brookside at the Rose Bowl is a notable exception. For Coachella and fests at Exposition Park, this means designated beer gardens, usually with a view of the stage from a little distance. Primavera decided to make almost the entire front of its biggest stages beer garden territory, with small slivers of standing room to the side for its under-21 patrons.
When this news spread the week before the show, there was an outcry on social media, especially for a Friday night slate that featured Lorde, Mitski, Clairo, and Pinkpatheress, all with notably young-leaning fans. The festival defended the decision, noting that 99% of its attendees were 21+, which feels like it can’t possibly be true in the American festival landscape. If they were using data from their previous Euro runs, that didn’t apply here.
It played out as expected. For an early artist like Pinkpantheress, the 21+ section was sparsely populated while young fans pushed in the all-ages side to get closer to the stage Families with children bemoaned barely being able to see the artist while huge swaths of real estate remained open. As the night went on, Mitski and Lorde both addressed the issue and had to ask the young fans to step back to avoid crushing the people up front. The reasoning behind this decision feels like it must have been financial, as the fest appeared to lack somewhat in attendance and festivals are struggling across the board these days due to a waning economy and tons of competition. But if you need to sacrifice inclusivity and safety to make ends meet, that’s a serious problem.
On this note — and this is not something that’s unique to Primavera, but something I’ve seen at Goldenvoice and Live Nation events since festivals returned last year — is an unwillingness for the beverage vendors to sell sodas. Who cares, you might ask? Well, considering the number of people who don’t drink for various reasons as well as the idea of sober drivers that still very much exist in the age of Uber, saving readily available soft drinks exclusively for cocktail mixers feels both financially manipulative and unsafe. Despite rows of Cokes and Sprites sitting at each beverage vendor, I was repeatedly told that they weren’t for sale, and were reserved for cocktail mixers.
Beverage vendors wouldn’t even give out a cup with ice without alcohol in it. At Outside Lands last year, I was refused a soda purchase even though they were on the menu because they were running low, and wanted to maximize the earning potential of each can. Again, this is a decision that is made with profits being put over safety and feels counterintuitive to the ethos that many of these festivals are supposedly founded on.
Now, that was several paragraphs of critique for a couple of things that should be easily fixed. And, it almost felt like a tradition for a festival on these grounds to have issues. But that’s not to say that Primavera Sound wasn’t an awesome addition to the LA — and American — festival landscape. Lorde and Nine Inch Nails both delivered iconic, visually stunning displays that took listeners through their artistic histories. Lorde would go on to tease new music coming soon and Trent Reznor waxed poetic about his love for Primavera Sound’s Barcelona iteration and the no-brainer decision to headline their LA debut.
Of the non-headliners, Mitski and Clairo were the most impressive, though. Mitski’s theatrical interpretive dancing would have been hard to imagine five years ago, while Clairo’s ’70s soft rock aesthetic brought a level of loose musicianship rarely seen in artists so young. They were as good as any non-headliner LA festival performance has been over the past decade, cementing Primavera’s legacy in its new home. Hopefully, it’s a legacy that is still being written, and the festival moves beyond Barcelona, Porto (where it has been since 2012), and LA to San Paulo, Santiago, Buenos Aires, and Madrid. And if Primavera can grow and improve in the manner of FYF before them, LA might have found its next great festival.
Check out some exclusive photos from Primavera Sound LA below.
Yesterday, Lil Nas X shared a video of his new Madame Tussauds wax figure, which is so convincing that he successfully used it to prank Lizzo, Olivia Rodrigo, and others into thinking it was actually him. Other artists haven’t been so lucky when they were immortalized in wax, as questionable figures of Billie Eilish, Ariana Grande, Nicki Minaj, and Rihanna bear at best a passing resemblance to the source material.
Plenty of famous folks have gotten the wax figure treatment aside from the aforementioned, like Taylor Swift, Brad Pitt, Jackie Chan, Grumpy Cat, and the list goes on and continues to grow. As new figures of varying quality emerge, it begs the question: Just how are these things made?
How It’s Made, the long-running documentary series that has been on the air since 2001, did a segment on wax figures in a 2011 episode. The Science Channel, the Canadian show’s home in the US, uploaded that clip onto YouTube about a year ago and it offers a detailed breakdown of what goes into the process.
The video is better watched than it is read about, but in summary, the subject of the figure has a bunch of measurements taken, mostly of the face, when possible. From there, a mold is made, which is then used to create a wax casting. Then, painting and other techniques are used to add realism to the figure.
Watch the How It’s Made segment above. Insider also spoke with Andres Lopes, a studio manager at Madame Tussauds, in a video from 2018, so find that below.
Do Revenge, a teen dark comedy starring Maya Hawke and Riverdale’s Camila Mendes just hit Netflix today. The film, which fancies itself a Hitchcockian homage, features an inviting soundtrack of songs that will certainly appeal to not only today’s teen audiences, but also to those of us who have fond memories of certain songs in our teen years as well.
So for every song like Olivia Rodrigo’s “Brutal,” Billie Eilish’s “Happier Than Ever,” and Tate McRae’s “She”s All I Wanna Be,” there’s also a heavy dose of Gen X and millennial teen classics like Third Eye Blind’s “How’s It Going To Be,” “Dreams” by The Cranberries and Fat Boy Slim’s “Praise You.”
Check out the complete list of songs that will appear on the Do Revenge soundtrack below.
Hayley Kiyoko – “For The Girls”
Robyn – “Do You Know (What It Takes)
Syd – “Cybah”
Olivia Rodrigo – “Brutal”
The Mighty Mighty Bosstones – “The Impression That I Get”
Third Eye Blind – “How’s It Going To Be”
Chloe Moriondo – “I Eat Boys”
Rosalía – “Milionària”
Hole – “Celebrity Skin”
Le Tigre – “Deceptacon”
Blu DeTiger – “Blondes”
Mazie – “Dumb Dumb”
Caroline Polachek – “So Hot You’re Hurting My Feelings”
Kacy Hill – “Easy Going”
TOBi – “Move”
The Symphonic Pops – “How Bizarre” (orchestral version)
Maude Latour – “Kids In America”
Juliana Madrid – “Pretend”
Helen – “Bitter Bitch”
MUNA – “Silk Chiffon” (feat. Phoebe Bridgers)
Harvey Danger – “Flagpole Sitta”
Tate McRae – “She”s All I Wanna Be”
Pom Pom Squad – “Shame Reactions”
Billie Eilish – “Happier Than Ever”
Chloe Adams – “Dead To Me (Simonyouth remix)”
Fatboy Slim – “Praise You”
Meredith Brooks – “Bitch”
The Cranberries – “Dreams”
Some of the artists mentioned here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
Today is a relatively busy New Music Friday, with Mura Masa’s new album Demon Time among the more exciting releases. One of the fresh songs available now that the album’s out sees Masa reuniting with a regular collaborator, as he’s joined by Slowthai on “Up All Week.”
On the two-minute track, Slowthai deals with themes of complacency, media consumption, and consumerism, all over a thumping electronic instrumental. He says on the hook, “Just can’t get no sleep / Faithless stage, just don’t believe / We stay up all week.”
Fans know the this new song is just the latest example of the two hopping on a track together. In 2019, the pair had a song called “Doorman” on Slowthai’s debut album, Nothing Great About Britain. Months later, in early 2020, the two teamed up for the song “Deal Wiv It,” from Mura Masa’s second album, RYC.
Masa also played a part in Slowthai’s biggest moment in American mainstream pop culture: The two performed “Deal Wiv It” on The Tonight Show in 2020 and Slowthai put on an energetic display, making use of the whole studio and even standing on Jimmy Fallon’s desk to look him right in the eyes.
Today is a relatively busy New Music Friday, with Mura Masa’s new album Demon Time among the more exciting releases. One of the fresh songs available now that the album’s out sees Masa reuniting with a regular collaborator, as he’s joined by Slowthai on “Up All Week.”
On the two-minute track, Slowthai deals with themes of complacency, media consumption, and consumerism, all over a thumping electronic instrumental. He says on the hook, “Just can’t get no sleep / Faithless stage, just don’t believe / We stay up all week.”
Fans know the this new song is just the latest example of the two hopping on a track together. In 2019, the pair had a song called “Doorman” on Slowthai’s debut album, Nothing Great About Britain. Months later, in early 2020, the two teamed up for the song “Deal Wiv It,” from Mura Masa’s second album, RYC.
Masa also played a part in Slowthai’s biggest moment in American mainstream pop culture: The two performed “Deal Wiv It” on The Tonight Show in 2020 and Slowthai put on an energetic display, making use of the whole studio and even standing on Jimmy Fallon’s desk to look him right in the eyes.
At the 2022 MTV Video Music Awards a couple weeks ago, Jimmy Fallon was on hand to present Harry Styles the Album Of The Year award for Harry’s House. He ended up causing quite the stir by showing up with a new beard, which plenty of folks online found attractive. Later, Fallon acknowledged the ‘thirst’ and ‘confusion’ his VMAs appearance was causing on the internet.
Since then, he’s been back to hosting The Tonight Show and he still has the beard. Last night (September 12), Drew Barrymore guested on the program and she and Fallon have a strong rapport, considering they co-starred in Fever Pitch once upon a time and that Barrymore co-founded production company Flower Films with Fallon’s wife, producer Nancy Juvonen. So, she wasn’t shy about opening the interview by having some fun with Fallon’s look.
Fallon started by telling Barrymore that she looked good and Barrymore responded by exclaiming about how Fallon kept his beard. Barrymore then teased, “You love it because everybody’s saying you’re so hot right now. You love it and now you don’t want to lose it.” As Barrymore spoke and the audience cheered, Fallon bashfully laughed and said, “No, that’s not why I love it.”
After talking about it some more, Fallon offered an explanation (but not really) for why the beard has stuck around, saying, “I figured, I’m just going to keep it on. I have nothing… I figured… I don’t know why, I’m just going to leave it on…”
Check out Barrymore’s interview with Fallon above.
Earlier today (September 8), Queen Elizabeth II died at 96 years old. Given how long the Queen had maintained a public presence, her passing prompted many reactions on social media, including from the music community.
Elton John, who Elizabeth knighted in 1998, wrote on social media today, “Along with the rest of the nation, I am deeply saddened to hear the news of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth’s passing. She was an inspiring presence to be around and led the country through some of our greatest and darkest moments with grace, decency and a genuine caring warmth. Queen Elizabeth has been a huge part of my life from childhood to this day, and I will miss her dearly.”
Duran Duran offered a lengthy post, writing, “Her Majesty the Queen has presided over the UK for longer than any other British monarch. She dedicated her life to the people and set an extraordinary example to the world throughout her reign. She’s seen changes that are beyond what any of us can imagine. She has faced challenges that she has risen to time and again. Her life has been remarkable in so many ways. We will all miss her and are grateful for the incredible service she gave to the people of Great Britain and the countries of the Commonwealth. We send our deepest condolence to the royal family. Her death brings to an end a long and unique chapter in the history of the United Kingdom and the world.”
Ozzy Osbourne also chimed in, “I mourn with my country the passing of our greatest Queen. With a heavy heart I say it is devastating the thought of England without Queen Elizabeth II.”
I mourn with my country the passing of our greatest Queen. With a heavy heart I say it is devastating the thought of England without Queen Elizabeth II pic.twitter.com/JZYXGRz2hb
Sad to hear of The Queen passing. I remember the street celebrations when she was crowned Queen. Always a staple of growing up in England. GSTQ- RIP pic.twitter.com/TEROdsZvGk
https://t.co/dtOBrxAtvg pic.twitter.com/FuhmsaYF63
(@FreddieGibbs) September 20, 2022
trin #RenewSandman (@trinistired)