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Roy Woods Is As Smooth As Ever On Our New “R&B Season” Playlist Update: Stream

November 17, 2024 by newhiphopnews

Welcome back to our R&B Season playlist, whose latest update rounded up the best of the best releases of the week pertaining to the genre’s orbit. To start, we have to shout out the new single from Roy Woods, as “Rockstar Baby” is a very smooth and charismatic cut. It fuses some elements of woozy, psychedelic, but nonetheless hard-hitting trap with passionate vocal runs, light string embellishments, and what sound like some The Weeknd-inspired deliveries and flows. It’s energetic enough to perk your ear up and engage you in the sound, but chilled-out enough to let you sit back and enjoy the vibes.

As for more genre fusions in the R&B world, Jessie Reyez and Ari Lennox teamed up for a slightly dancehall-inspired and relaxing collab, “JUST LIKE THAT.” Both vocalists share a lot of vocal chemistry on the track thanks to their whispered harmonies and more powerful exclamations, and the acoustic guitar is a very tender anchor to the cut’s atmosphere. The drums are very light as well, keeping things simple so your attention mostly goes to the singers’ melodic prowess.

HNHH R&B Season Playlist: Stream

Elsewhere on R&B Season, we have more dreamy and somewhat melancholy fare, such as Chase Shakur’s new song “2ofUs.” The big draw behind this record on impact is the slick, crisp, and steady drum break that energizes an otherwise ethereal and minimal sonic pallet. Chase’s voice remains buttery throughout, mixing in well with the synth pads and keys embellishments. However, the single also adds some subtle melodic elements here and there to flesh this aspect of it out, namely some floating synthesizers and background vocals that harmonize with ease.

Finally, we’d be remiss not to mention Nao’s chilling, wondrous, but still funky new jam, “Elevate.” The high-pitched vocal delivery offsets you a little bit on impact, but by the time it matches with dramatic chords, slow-burning and cavernous drums, and a buzzing electric guitar solo, it fully reaches its evocative potential. Let us know what your favorite R&B Season inclusion was this week, as well as what else we missed, down in the comments below. Check the playlist out up above and, as always, stick around HNHH for the best new music drops around the clock.

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Skiifall Gives Us A Lush Portrait Of A “Mystery Man” On New Single: Stream

November 17, 2024 by newhiphopnews

Skiifall is coming back with a new lover’s rock EP titled Lovers Til I’m Gone, produced entirely by Kenny Beats. The “Yuteman Dennis” rapper, singer, and artist dropped the new summery relationship cut “Mystery Man” to celebrate the announcement, and the project will reportedly drop on January 15. In a statement, the Montreal creative and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines native previewed what he wanted this new direction to look like.

“When I first sat with Kenny Beats, he spoke openly about how wanting to honor his father had inspired him to release solo music that ultimately became his debut album Louie,” Skiifall shared. “That conversation gave me the inspiration and confidence to try making music that my own mother would like listening to, since my earliest music wasn’t something she could relate to.” Of course, on his previous effort Woiiyoie Tapes Vol. 2: Intense City, he already proved he could transcend genre lines and show off his talent with ease.

“Mystery Man” will definitely heat you up in the northern hemisphere as we close out the year, and it’s a very exciting and charismatic direction from the “Fam Without Blood” multi-hyphenate that we’re excited to hear grow. If you haven’t heard Skiifall’s new single yet, you can find it on your preferred streaming service or listen to it via the YouTube visualizer below. Down there, you can also find some notable lines from the record, as well as the comments section for your to leave your thoughts on the song. As always, come back to HNHH for more of the latest amazing releases in music around the clock.

Skiifall’s “Mystery Man”: Stream

Quotable Lyrics
When you rolled up, I would always bring my weed,
We could go up, still you got me on my knees,
Begging you please, to know who took you from me,
But who’s this mystery man?

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Lana Del Rey Responds To Lizzo Beef Rumors

November 15, 2024 by newhiphopnews

In one of the oddest social media “beefs” of 2024, Lana Del Rey and Lizzo almost became enemies in the music space, and it was all due to a troll account. Per Complex, Twitter account Drop Pop posted alleged screenshots of the latter commenting on a TikTok video of the former on Wednesday (November 13). “I’d like to see you back on the charts,” the Special singer supposedly wrote, with the “Tough” artist replying with “I would love to see you run on a treadmill.” A lot of fans saw this and completely forgot some key details, namely that Drop Pop is a parody account. They eventually deleted the post, but they did follow it up with another fake screenshot: “I hope that alligator eats your big a**” versus “you’d know about eating biggie.”

Then, Lana Del Rey commented on an Instagram post about the fabricated Lizzo beef with some more clarifications. “I don’t think I have an official TikTok, other than the grants one sooooo,” “Or a Twitter,” and “Very random” were her responses. Of course, both are known to not really take social media criticism too seriously. The Detroit flautist recently laughed off jabs from Antonio Brown about Ozempic.

Lana Del Rey Dismisses Lizzo Beef Allegations

Lana Del Rey addresses photoshopped TikTok comments of a fake feud between herself and Lizzo:

“I don’t think I have an official TikTok, other than the grants one, or a Twitter, very random.” pic.twitter.com/91edUwkB7n

— Pop Base (@PopBase) November 15, 2024

As for Lana Del Rey, this fake Lizzo beef might not even be the most bizarre crossover with an artist outside of her genre and aesthetics this year. Fans expressed shock when she threw it back with Sexyy Red at the Hangout Festival, which was definitely not what they expected to see on their feed. They both seemed to have a great time and be well-aware of how odd this link-up must look to people on the outside.

In any case, we’re glad that Lana Del Rey and Lizzo aren’t at odds and we just hope that people stop mixing up these parody accounts with more straightforward reporting. After all, the latter has enough smoke to deal with from South Park, although she took it in stride like she always does. Both artists also face strong fan demand to follow up on their last projects with their next moves, so we’ll see what the future holds.

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SZA Previews New Album “Lana” During Revealing Interview About Her Emotions

November 14, 2024 by newhiphopnews

SZA recently sat down for a new interview with British Vogue, which proved to not be as controversial and hotly discussed as her Harper’s BAZAAR sit-down with Kendrick Lamar. But nevertheless, she dished out a lot of interesting revelations, emotional divulgations, and hints at the direction of her next album, Lana. It’s no longer a deluxe version to 2022’s SOS, but rather a full-on new LP following some leaks to the public that derailed its course for a bit. Fortunately, it wasn’t enough to fully throw it off track, and whenever it comes out, it’ll arrive as a highly anticipated LP. Now, we have more of an idea of how it could emotionally relate to the rest of the catalog.

“I think I am making music from a more beautiful place,” SZA told British Vogue concerning the emotional and personally artistic direction of the upcoming Lana record. “From a more possible place versus a more angsty place. I’m not identifying with my brokenness. It’s not my identity. It’s s**t that happened to me. Yeah, I experienced cruelty. I have to put it down at some point. Piece by piece, my music is shifting because of that, the lighter I get.”

SZA At The 2023 Grammys

SZA New Album Lana Interview Direction Personal Growth Music News — Feb 5, 2023; Los Angeles, CA, USA; SZA presents the award for Best Música Urbana album during the 65th Annual Grammy Awards at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles on Sunday, Feb. 5, 2023.. Mandatory Credit: Robert Hanashiro-USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Elsewhere during the interview, SZA also spoke on what it was like to headline Glastonbury last year. “I just felt like nothing I could do would be enough for Glastonbury, no matter what I did,” she revealed. “It scared me. I was like, well, I wish I wasn’t doing it, but I couldn’t walk away from it… I want to be the second Black woman in history, but then it’s such a f***ing tall order. It’s like, no matter what you do here, you will be subject to criticism. Because of who you are. But that’s life. That’s life, you know?”

Meanwhile, SZA’s recent conversation with British Vogue also held some more personal details and confessions, such as her reflections on getting a BBL. It was a pretty engaging and enlightening conversation from someone who’s always down to share herself in front of the world and use that power in her own personal journey. We can’t wait for what Lana has in store.

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Lil Nas X Hints At New “Dreamboy” Era With Single Announcement

November 11, 2024 by newhiphopnews

Lil Nas X has dropped a whole lot of music in 2024 in anticipation of his NASARATI 2 mixtape, and it looks like there’s even more on the way. Moreover, he returned on Sunday (November 10) to announce that “phase 1” of Dreamboy, presumably a new album, will begin today (Monday, November 11). The pop sensation announced the new single “Light Again,” which will drop this week. While some fans are still wondering about that mixtape, maybe this is just that exact same era but under a different name. Regardless, music listeners are still excited to hear this follow-up, especially considering the wait in between projects.

“I don’t know how long I’m going to be able to have this s**t up, or I don’t know what my CEO thinks right now, or whatever,” Lil Nas X remarked when he revealed a demo version of “Light Again” back in March. “[…] Bro, these last couple years have been crazy, ’cause I’ve made so much music and I just want to release music. I just want to release music, but expectations are just, like… insane. Like, I can’t even have fun. I just want to f***ing have fun with this s**t. I don’t even give a f**k about all the other s**t. Of course I want to, like, be number one all the time, I want every song to go up, and I want you to go crazy.

Lil Nas X Teases Dreamboy

https://twitter.com/LilNasX/status/1855806569574990200

“But it’s, like, at the same time, I want to f***ing have fun, I want to go and live life, I just want to make music,” Lil Nas X continued. “I don’t want to have to do crazy s**t all the time. I want to make music, I want to f***ing have fun, I want to live.” For those unaware, some previous singles include the Kevin Abstract collaboration “Tennessee.”

Meanwhile, some social media antics can get in the way of these celebrations, but such is life for Lil Nas X. He recently clashed online with Azealia Banks via a pretty nasty Twitter feud. Hopefully we get less of that from the haters moving forward and more of this exciting and long-awaited new era.

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Mario Is “Glad You Came” To Our New “R&B Season” Playlist Update: Stream

November 10, 2024 by newhiphopnews

Even though the year is starting to die down a bit as far as new music releases, we still have some gems to talk about on our latest R&B Season playlist update. First off, we have two new records from Jorja Smith on her most recent two-pack: “Loving You” featuring Maverick Sabre and “Don’t Let Me Go.” The former is a piano-led ballad with lovelorn lyrics, a gorgeous vocal performance, soft snaps, and grand harmonies to beef the cut up a little bit. As for the latter, it’s a soft acoustic guitar track along a similarly romantic and melancholy line, with vocal harmonies that serve more as emphasis than the building swells of the other song.

Elsewhere on R&B Season, we also wanted to shout out another collection of a few loosies, Ella Mai’s 3 EP. As the title suggests, these three new records are pretty distinct from each other, with “One Of These” being a peppy and highly percussive brass cut and “Little Things” being more of a smooth, woozy journey over a trap beat. For our money, though, the highlight is definitely “Hearts On Deck” thanks to its warm bass, glistening synth keys, catchy melodies, and a simple but grounded snap-based instrumental.

HNHH R&B Season Playlist Update: Stream

Finally, we’d be remiss not to mention the ongoing return of one of the R&B world’s most beloved stars of the early 2000s. Mario brought a lot of soul and class to his latest single “Glad You Came,” built around a crisp and groovy drum kit, light piano flutters, and gliding vocal runs. The heartwarming record definitely embodies its comforting and optimistic lyrical matter in its sonic presentation, as it doesn’t feel overly dramatic or bombastic. If there was any doubt if he still had it, you can cross that skepticism off.

If you’re looking for more new music this week, we’d recommend you check out our Fire Emoji playlist (linked in the “Read More” section below) for the best new hip-hop this week. MCs like Ferg and SahBabii came through with some solid albums, whereas Kenny Mason’s “HOODRAT” ranks among the best new songs of November so far. Let us know what your favorite R&B Season pick was this week, as well as what else we missed, down there in the comments section. Check the playlist out above and, as always, stick around on HNHH for more amazing music drops around the clock.

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Rihanna Sends Fans Into Panic Mode After Hinting At Retirement Again

November 8, 2024 by newhiphopnews

Rihanna keeps fans on the edge of their seats with every move, as they patiently (or desperately) wait for a new album update. However, various hints over the years made fans fear that retirement was right around the corner in this regard, a worry that a recent speech at a Fenty event in Barbados on Thursday night (November 7) fueled once again. “I’m in an industry, right? For music,” she expressed in her native country. “And I want to say that music was the thing that got me attention, but God had other plans for me. And I was able to create in ways that were very sincere and genuine, organic, and authentic to the things that I love. So it doesn’t even feel like a job.

“But when you bring it home…” Rihanna continued amid crowd cheers. You can check out the full video for yourself by clicking on the “Via” link down below. Of course, all jokes and worries aside, RiRi should absolutely fulfill herself through her career and creativity in any way she sees fit. If music isn’t the answer, so be it. We have so much great material already. Fans just hope that they get a definitive answer on whether or not they can expect a new studio album in the future.

Rihanna Performing At The 2023 Super Bowl Halftime Show

Rihanna Retiring Music Rumors Speech Fenty Barbados Music News — Feb 12, 2023; Glendale, Arizona, US; Recordist artist Rihanna performs during halftime of Super Bowl LVII at State Farm Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matt Kartozian-USA TODAY Sports via Imagn Images

Another Rihanna feather-ruffler recently came from her thoughts on the 2024 United States presidential election, as she joked about having her young son vote for her instead. She clapped back at a lot of haters who opposed her staunch support of women’s reproductive rights and her crucial emphasis on the importance of a fair and peaceful democratic process. We all sadly know how that turned out…

Meanwhile, Rihanna did recently name a dream collaboration that kept fans hopeful for more music on the way. “If I could only do a song with Billie Eilish,” she told Access Hollywood. “She’s so good.” Billie was absolutely shocked by her praise, and her excitement and gratitude for the shoutout means that not all hope is lost. But let’s respect and cherish this career whatever direction it goes in, and understand that this is all just speculative.

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Quincy Jones’ Family Releases Emotional Statement After His Passing

November 4, 2024 by newhiphopnews

Quincy Jones left behind a massive void in the music world, as he sadly passed away at the age of 91 on Sunday night (November 3), according to an Associated Press report. Per his publicist Arnold Robinson’s statement to the outlet, he passed in his Bel Air home while “surrounded by his family.” Speaking of which, they also issued a statement on this news. “Tonight, with full but broken hearts, we must share the news of our father and brother Quincy Jones’ passing. And although this is an incredible loss for our family, we celebrate the great life that he lived and know there will never be another like him.”

Moreover, this message comes amid a mountain of tributes and celebrations regarding the life of Quincy Jones. “You were a father and example at a time when I truly needed a father and example,” LL COOL J shared via Instagram. “Mentor. Role model. King. You gave me opportunities and shared wisdom. Music would not be music without you. My condolences to the entire family. I love you. Rest in the sweetest music eternally. #ripquincyjones one of one.”

RIP Quincy Jones

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by The Shade Room (@theshaderoom)

“I woke up today to the Terrible news that we lost Quincy Jones..” Ice-T expressed on social media. “Genius is a discription loosely used but Rarely deserved. Point blank, Quincy was the MAN. I won my 1st Grammy with Quincy and I live with his Wisdom daily. My condolences go out to his family who I had the honor of meeting. This one Hit me. God bless you KING.” Other musicians like Tyler, The Creator, The Weeknd, Victoria Monét, Darius Rucker, and Flying Lotus also took to online spaces to share their heartfelt condolences and thoughts on one of the most legendary musicians and creatives of the modern era.

What’s more is that the Chicago native almost did so much more than what he already offered to the world, such as a curious story about his original theme for The Fresh Prince Of Bel Air. But the legacy and greatness he left behind is enough to fill countless careers, spanning from jazz arrangements with Frank Sinatra to Michael Jackson’s best-ever material.
Rest In Peace Quincy Jones.

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Quincy Jones Passes Away At 91

November 4, 2024 by newhiphopnews

Whether as a conductor, producer, musician, philanthropist, or cultural force, Quincy Jones’ love of music transcended pretty much any barrier you can think of. His legacy and impact cannot be overstated, and the whole music and entertainment worlds now mourns his loss. The Chicago native, per an Associated Press report, passed away at the age of 91. According to his publicist Arnold Robinson’s statement to the outlet, he transitioned into a higher plane on Sunday night (November 3) in his Bel Air home. Jones was “surrounded by his family,” who issued a statement on his passing that spoke to his magnanimous place in music history.

“Tonight, with full but broken hearts, we must share the news of our father and brother Quincy Jones’ passing. And although this is an incredible loss for our family, we celebrate the great life that he lived and know there will never be another like him,” the family stated. His career spans all the way back to the 1950s, impressing as a jazz conductor and arranger while working with artists like Frank Sinatra and Leslie Gore.

Quincy Jones Passes Away At 91

https://twitter.com/ABC/status/1853371924287504662

In addition, Quincy Jones’ expansion into movies, TV, and other mediums of music resulted in him being the first African-American Oscar nominee for Best Original Song in 1968 for the track “The Eyes Of Love” from Banning. He also worked on various other iconic shows and films even if the breadth of his ideas didn’t always come to light, such as an original theme for The Fresh Prince Of Bel Air. There are many iconic musical moments over the modern era that you can attribute to Jones, even if the connection wasn’t always explicit. He was just that prolific and passionate.

Perhaps the most iconic and recognizable contribution that Quincy Jones offered music was his work with Michael Jackson. He produced arguably the most consequential albums of the King of Pop’s catalog: Off The Wall in 1979, Thriller in 1982, and Bad in 1987. This and other masterworks led Jones to win 28 Grammys in his career, the third-most of all time as of writing this article. His magic will never fade.
Rest In Peace Quincy Jones.

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Jacquees Steals The Show On Our New “R&B Season” Update: Stream

November 3, 2024 by newhiphopnews

As the year starts to close out, the music industry as a whole is slowing down a bit with its new releases. But we still have a couple of killer tracks to share from the R&B world on our latest R&B Season playlist update, including a selection from Jacquees’ new aptly titled album, Baby Making. It’s a big blend of a lot of what makes the genre so great, and what has made fans appreciate him for so long. The track “Touchdown” in particular is what we want to point you to, with its slow-burning drums, light guitar licks to kick it off, and some subtle but welcome background vocal harmonies.

Next up on our R&B Season playlist update is the new single from Lola Young, “Charlie” featuring Lil Yachty. It’s a fitting link-up given their musical styles, and one that starts off pretty smoky and intimate. The lengthy cut builds little by little with some muted and evolving drums, gruff electric guitar riffs, and soaring vocals from Lola. Yachty eventually breaks through with a steady but still enveloping flow that transitions from a verse to some great melodies.

HNHH R&B Season Playlist: Stream

Finally, Cleo Sol’s new cut “Fear When You Fly” is a very tender and soothing guitar-led ballad that’s also very patient. It’s not until over a third of the way in that the drums come in. Most importantly, it’s probably the most passionate vocal performance on all this R&B Season update, beautifully balancing soars and soft-spoken affirmations seemingly about companionship. It’s mostly a minimal cut, but small yet effective additions of brass and background vocals give it that extra kick.

Meanwhile, outside of the R&B world, we actually had a pretty big week for hip-hop with a lot of big releases, including Tyler, The Creator’s “CHROMAKOPIA.” If you want to find the best of the best of those, check out our Fire Emoji playlist in the “Read More” section down below. Let us know what your favorite R&B Season inclusion was this week, as well as what else we missed, down in the comments section below. Check our playlist out above and, as always, come back to HNHH for the best new music around the clock.

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