A Look Into Hidden Features on Hip-Hop Songs

The definitions of secret sauce. Continue reading…

Justin Bieber And Jack Harlow Are Joining Bill Nye The Science Guy For An Earth Day Musical

Earth Day is right around the corner and as the climate change crisis persists, it’s more important than ever to raise awareness about environmentalism. That’s why iconic TV host Bill Nye The Science Guy has tapped several musicians including Justin Bieber and Jack Harlow to join him in an Earth Day-themed musical.

Earth Day! The Musical takes place on April 22 and follows Nye as he and a handful of celebrities and activists share information about how individuals can do their part to help curb the effects of climate change. Other celebrities slated to join Bieber, Harlow, and Nye include 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.

The event will stream on Facebook and also showcase the important work of several entrepreneurs trying to make the world a better place. CEO Alexia Akbay will highlight their Hawaii-based company Symbrosia, which uses seaweed to reduce livestock methane, and 18-year-old Jerome Foster II will discuss how he became the youngest member of the Biden White House Environmental Justice Advisory Council.

Earth Day! The Musical premieres 4/22 at 12 p.m. ET. Watch it here.

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

Justin Bieber Once Intentionally Lost His Passport On Purpose Because He ‘Missed Normalcy’

Justin Bieber has been a superstar in the music world since he was 16. That means he missed out on a normal childhood. But in a recent profile with GQ, Bieber revealed that, early in his career, he did something in attempt to seem like a regular boy.

“I was working so much as this young kid that I got really sad, and I missed my friends and I missed normalcy,” he said. “And so me and my friend hid my passport. The record label is freaking out, saying, ‘You have to do The Today Show next week and you can’t find your passport.’ It takes a certain amount of days to get a new passport. But I was just going to do anything to be able to just be normal at that time.”

He eventually confessed to hiding the passport and later performed on the show, but the move left people worried about his well-being. Fortunately enough, the singer apparently convinced everyone that he was okay and returned to the grind of stardom.

The anecdote arrives after his sixth album, Justice, returned to No. 1 on the albums chart two weeks after it debuted there. This marks the first time in a decade that one of Bieber’s albums have spent multiple weeks at No. 1.

Justin Bieber’s ‘There She Go’ Collab With Lil Uzi Vert Highlights The Deluxe Reissue Of ‘Justice’

After making fans wait more than four years for a new album, Justin Bieber has delivered two full-length efforts in just thirteen months. It began with last February Changes which was followed up by this month’s Justice. While the singer has given fans more than enough music to indulge in for the time being, he isn’t quite done in the release department. Bieber updated Justice with six new songs for the album’s Triple Chucks Deluxe reissue. One of the new additions is “There She Go” with Lil Uzi Vert, a track that Bieber described as record that will “probably be huge on TikTok because it kind of has that feel to it,” in an interview with Vogue.

The deluxe album comes after Bieber made his long-awaited “Red Eye” single available for purchase online. The updated project also finds guest appearances from DaBaby, Quavo, Jaden, and Tori Kelly. Fans had been waiting for an official version of the track since its debut in the singer’s Seasons documentary. He also took over an eerie forest for a performance of “Hold On” which came after he reportedly visited a Los Angeles prison with his pastor to preach about Christianity.

During a recent appearance on DJ Khaled’s The First One podcast, Bieber spoke about the meaning behind his Justice album. “This album is meant to encourage people,” he said. “In the mission statement for the album I talked about how music is such a great way to connect people and bring them together, remind them they are not alone provide that safe space, comforting music to move and groove.” On the show, he also revealed Drake as one of the artists in his list of top five rappers.

You can listen to “There She Go” here.

Justice (Triple Chucks Deluxe) is out now via Def Jam. Get it here.

Lil Uzi Vert is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Justin Bieber Names Fellow Canadian Drake Among His New Top Five Rappers

Justin Bieber recently released his sixth studio album Justice, and while promoting the new project, he stopped by his friend and frequent collaborator DJ Khaled’s Amazon Music podcast, The First One. Over the course of their conversation, the discussion turned to that favorite topic of hip-hop heads everywhere: The top five rappers in hip-hop — namely, Justin’s personal list.

A fun thing about this topic is that someone’s list can change a lot over the years (contrary to some folks’ opinions) as they grow and learn or as new rappers enter the scene. Justin has answered this question in the past, offering an unusual mix of names that included Eminem, Mase, Nas, The Notorious B.I.G., and Tupac, mixing in some conventional favorites with a rapper few would expect (but don’t act like you don’t hit your two-step the instant “Feel So Good” comes on).

This time around, though, he shook things up almost completely. Although he retained Biggie and Eminem from his prior list, he now counts fellow Canadian Drake, Mase disciple Kanye West, and the seemingly immortal Lil Wayne among the best to ever grace the mic. Drake is the most recent addition to the rap game overall, but Bieber justifies his inclusion by pointing out his music is “constantly pushing culture and the needle forward”.

Watch Justin Bieber’s conversation with DJ Khaled above.

People Think Donald Glover’s TV Series ‘Atlanta’ Predicted Justin Bieber’s Album ‘Justice’

For years, people have been noticing how certain predictions of the future in The Simpsons end up actually coming true, like Trump’s presidential campaign and Kamala Harris’ Inauguration Day outfit. But now, people have noticed that Donald Glover’s Emmy-nominated series Atlanta may have coincidentally made an accurate pop culture prediction about Justin Bieber. The singer released his album Justice on Friday, a title that Atlanta forecast in their first season’s episode “Nobody Beats The Biebs.”

The episode originally aired back on September 27 2016. Earn’s cousin and client, Alfred “Paper Boi” Miles, participated in a celebrity basketball game benefiting the community’s youth. The celebrity in question ended up being Justin Bieber. Instead of tapping Bieber to act in the episode, the show cast Black actor Austin Crute.

During the episode, Bieber held a press conference at the charity basketball game where he announced his next album would be titled — you guessed it — Justice. “I’m not a bad guy. I actually love Christ,” Bieber says in a scene from the episode. “I guess I’ve just been hanging out with the wrong people. Which is why I want to sing this new single from my upcoming album, Justice.”

Watch a clip from Atlanta‘s “Nobody Beats The Biebs” episode above.

Justice is out now via Def Jam. Get it here.

Justin Bieber Previews A New ‘Justice’ Song In A Stripped-Down Tiny Desk Concert

With anticipation for his new album Justice reaching its peak, Justin Bieber delivers a stripped-down, at-home Tiny Desk Concert to preview one of the most eagerly anticipated songs from the upcoming album. Although Daniel Caesar and Giveon were unable to appear, fans get to hear a version of “Peaches” featuring Justin on keys and some light scratching from his DJ, Jay James. The performance also opens with a Chance The Rapper-less version of “Holy” and features “Hold On” and “Anyone,” also from Justice.

Justin previously revealed the latter two songs during the months-long rollout for his new album, debuting “Anyone” in a livestream concert for Spotify and releasing a neo-noir-styled music video for “Hold On.” He also later released a video for “Anyone,” harkening to classic boxing dramas in a narrative video that required three hours of makeup to hide his tattoos. “Holy” is, of course, the best-known track he performs here, after Justin used the new song and its cinematic music video to usher in a “new era” back in September of 2020. He also performed the song during his October appearance on Saturday Night Live and offered an acoustic remix with an accompanying, bare-bones video. Now, the wait is nearly at its end; Justice drops 3/19 via Def Jam.

Watch Justin Bieber’s Tiny Desk Concert above.

Justin Bieber Shares A Tracklist For ‘Justice’ And Fans Are Intrigued By One Song In Particular

Justin Bieber’s tracklist for Justice, which he shared on Instagram last night, has fans buzzing with excitement. In part, it’s because the album is just a week and some change away from its March 19 release date, but many fans took note of some of the notable guests, who include R&B singers Daniel Caesar, Giveon, and Khalid, as well as Chance The Rapper. Juice WRLD protege The Kid Laroi appeared on Justin’s corkboard as well, inviting some pretty apt comparisons between the two artists despite their generation gap.

While fans had previously deciphered some of Justin’s collaborators via the synopsis on the Walmart pre-order page for the album, this is the first glimpse we’ve had at who all’s on which tracks — and seeing Daniel Caesar and Giveon’s smooth baritones grouped together on “Peaches” has prompted its share of enthusiastic reactions. Both Caesar and Giveon’s names trended on Twitter as fans expressed their anticipation to hear that particular melange of voices together for the first time.

One fan, however, was skeptical of Caesar’s placement, demanding an “apology” before they’ll grudgingly give the song a listen. Caesar was the subject of some controversy a couple of years ago after he dared fans to “cancel” him for defending influencer YesJulz from accusations of cultural appropriation. However, others seemed sanguine, pointing out his continued popularity in the years since.

One thing is for sure, though: Fans are ready to hear Justice when it releases 3/19 on Def Jam.

The Weeknd Isn’t Up For Any Grammys This Year, But He Just Got A Bunch Of Juno Award Nominations

The Weeknd was somehow not nominated for any Grammy Awards this year, a fact from which he says he’s moved on. So while The Weeknd won’t get any wins this weekend, the ceremony was preceded by some good news for the Canadian artist: The Juno Awards, Canada’s biggest music awards ceremony, revealed their list of 2021 nominees today. Unlike the Grammys, The Weeknd leads the pack with six nominations.

The Weeknd and his work are up for Juno Fan Choice, Single Of The Year, Album Of The Year, Artist Of The Year, Songwriter Of The Year, and Contemporary R&B Recording Of The Year. Other artists to score big include Justin Bieber, Jessie Reyez, and JP Saxe, who each have five nominations.

The ceremony is set to take place on May 16. In the meantime, check out the nominees in the major categories below and find the full list of nominees here.

Juno Fan Choice
Ali Gatie
Curtis Waters
JP Saxe
Justin Bieber
Lennon Stella
Les Cowboys Fringants
Nav
Shawn Mendes
Tate McRae
The Weeknd

Single Of The Year
“Drink About Me” — Brett Kissel
“If The World Was Ending” Feat. Julia Michaels — JP Saxe
“Intentions” Feat. Quavo — Justin Bieber
“Kissing Other People” — Lennon Stella
“Blinding Lights” — The Weeknd

Album Of The Year
You — Ali Gatie
Courage — Céline Dion
Changes — Justin Bieber
Thanks For The Dance — Leonard Cohen
After Hours — The Weeknd

Artist Of The Year
Ali Gatie
Celine Dion
Jessie Reyez
Justin Bieber
The Weeknd

Group Of The Year
Arkells
Half Moon Run
Loud Luxury
The Glorious Sons
The Reklaws

Breakthrough Artist Of The Year
Curtis Waters
JP Saxe
Powfu
Ryland James
Tate McRae

Breakthrough Group Of The Year
2Freres
Crown Lands
Manila Grey
Peach Pit
Young Bombs

Songwriter Of The Year
Alanis Morissette — “Ablaze,” “Reasons I Drink,” “Smiling”
Alessia Cara — “Hell and High Water
Jessie Reyez — “Coffin,” “Before Love Came To Kill Us,”
“Far Away,” “No One’s In The Room”
JP Saxe — “A Little Bit Yours” “Golf On TV,” “If The World Was Ending”
The Weeknd — “After Hours,” “Blinding Lights,” “Save Your Tears”

French Language Album Of The Year
A tous les vents — 2Freres
Notre-Dame-des-Sept-Douleurs — Klo Pelgag
Les antipodes — Les Cowboys Fringants
Quand la nuit tombe — Louis-Jean Cormier
Pour dejouer l’ennui — Pierre Lapointe

Rap Recording Of The Year
New Mania — 88GLAM
Baby Gravy — 2 Bbno$ & Yung Gravy Baby
Cold World — Eric Reprid
Good Intentions — Nav
Elements Vol. 1 — Tobi

Indigenous Artist Or Group Of The Year
Kîyânaw
The Ridge
North Star Calling
Nunarjua Isulinginniani

Contemporary R&B Recording Of The Year
“Before Love Came To Kill Us” — Jessie Reyez
“Where You Are” — Savannah Ré
“After Hours” — The Weeknd
“Holiday” — Tobi

Producer Of The Year
Akeel Henry
Jordon Manswell
Kaytranada
Murda Beatz
WondaGurl

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