Music

Somebody Played The ‘Montero’ Video On A Game Boy Advance And Lil Nas X Is Blown Away

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Wikimedia Commons / Lil Nas X / Derrick Rossignol

Lil Nas X and “Montero (Call Me By Your Name)” have been everywhere lately, and now, that includes the Game Boy Advance, Nintendo’s handheld video game console that was discontinued over a decade ago.

A Twitter user known as pynnion shared a 36-second video of some of the “Montero” video playing on a Game Boy Advance system and wrote, “My mom took my phone so I’m watching the call me by your name music video on my gameboy @LilNasX.” The rapper was amazed by what he saw, as he shared the post and tweeted, “how is this real.”

As pynnion noted, this was achieved by using specialized software to convert the original video into a file format the Game Boy Advance can read and then putting the converted file on a “flash cart,” which is essentially a blank Game Boy Advance game cartridge that users can load their own game files onto. Presumably, the video format used is the same one Nintendo used back when they used to make Game Boy Advance Video cartridges that contained movies and episodes of TV shows. Somebody else did this recently when they converted Tenet for Game Boy Advance playback.

Watch “Montero (Call Me By Your Name)” playing on a Game Boy Advance above.

Fans Slam Diddy For Hypocrisy After He Penned An Open Letter Saying GM Exploits Black Artists

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Diddy, the founder of the network Revolt TV, has penned an open letter to General Motors to call them out for their performative activism. According to Diddy, GM claims they support Revolt while simultaneously making them fight for advertising money. Diddy ended his letter by demanding that corporate America “reinvest an equitable percentage of what you take from our community back into our community.” However, since Diddy himself has a history of underpaying smaller artists, many saw his words as hypocritical.

Sharing an open letter to GM on Revolt’s website, Diddy wrote:

“When confronted by the leaders of several Black-owned media companies, General Motors (GM) listed my network, REVOLT, as an example of the Black-owned media it supports. While REVOLT does receive advertising revenue from GM, our relationship is not an example of success. Instead, REVOLT, just like other Black-owned media companies, fights for crumbs while GM makes billions of dollars every year from the Black community. Exposing GM’s historic refusal to fairly invest in Black-owned media is not an assassination of character, it’s exposing the way GM and many other advertisers have always treated us. No longer can Corporate America manipulate our community into believing that incremental progress is acceptable action.

Corporations like General Motors have exploited our culture, undermined our power, and excluded Black entrepreneurs from participating in the value created by Black consumers. In 2019, brands spent $239 billion on advertising. Less than 1% of that was invested in Black-owned media companies. Out of the roughly $3 billion General Motors spent on advertising, we estimate only $10 million was invested in Black-owned media. Only $10 million out of $3 billion! Like the rest of Corporate America, General Motors is telling us to sit down, shut up and be happy with what we get.”

After Diddy shared his open letter, though, many called him out for doing the same thing.

Chicago rapper and activist Noname agreed with critics, pointing out that Diddy is close to being a billionaire. “diddy… about a 150 million away from being a BILLIONAIRE diddy is shaming white corporations for a capitalist business model he almost completely replicated,” she wrote. “abolish the black capitalist industrial complex.”

Another woman shared her own story, claiming Revolt approached her and asked her to make content without pay. “Diddy, it starts with us,” she wrote. “I was recently approached to host a show for Revolt and it came without pay. We cannot keep knocking white folks for their disrespect towards minority creators while doing the same thing to each other.”

Read Diddy’s full open letter here.

Ari Lennox And Queen Naija Are Out For Revenge On ‘Set Him Up’

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Dreamville singer Ari Lennox links up with YouTuber-turned-R&B-ambassador Queen Naija on her latest single, “Set Him Up.” In somewhat of a thematic 180 from her last all-female duet with Jazmine Sullivan, “On It,” Ari and Naija take unfaithful men to task on their unconventional crossover. The track follows a loose storyline of two friends catching up on their racy escapades with their new lovers — only to realize that their new “lovers” are the same man.

This leads to the duo forming a plot to “set him up” with a dinner invite with an extra plus-one. The two share their delight at the prospect of playing out their revenge fantasy, which involves bringing the philandering fiend to his favorite restaurant, only for both women to confront him; “Ooh, girl, I cannot wait to see the look upon his face,” smirks Naija.

The collaboration is the latest in a string of duets featuring Lennox, including the aforementioned “On It” and Lucky Daye’s “Access Denied.” The increasing frequency of releases suggests that Lennox might be working on a follow-up to her fan-favorite 2019 debut album Shea Butter Baby.

Meanwhile, Queen Naija has been prepping the deluxe edition of her debut album, Missunderstood…Still, with an expected release on April 16.

Listen to Ari Lennox and Queen Naija’s “Set Him Up” above.

Shelley Explains The Touching Reason For His Album’s Release Date

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Shelley — FKA DRAM — has a new album dropping in April, his first in over four years. Since then, he’s gone through a musical reinvention, a physical transformation, and a couple of name changes, but the biggest change to his life was the passing of his mother last year. The duo was close; in 2017, they released a holiday EP together, dueting on the Christmas classics “Silver Bells.” According to Shelley, she’s also the reason for his upcoming album’s release date, April 29.

Posting a photo of the pair on Instagram, Shelley explained that he pushed back the release date of his album to his mother’s birthday in honor of a favor she did for him before her death. As he expands in the caption, “Before she passed I played her my upcoming album and I begged her to promise she wouldn’t play it for anyone else. She held her promise and took the music with her beyond this life.”

For Shelley, the new release date is his way of paying her back. “Her birthday is April 29th, so I’m pushing my album Shelley FKA DRAM’s release date to April 29th as not only my gift back to her, but my promise to play it for the world.”

To promote the upcoming album, fittingly titled Shelley FKA DRAM, Shelly has presented the rollout in the form of a mock late-night talk show, which provided a smooth framing device for the videos for singles “Exposure” and “Cooking With Grease.”

Shelley FKA DRAM is due 4/29 on Atlantic Records.

Rod Wave Plays A Toned-Down Rendition Of ‘Tombstone’ On ‘The Tonight Show’

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It’s been a strong week of firsts for Florida rapper Rod Wave. Earlier this week, Billboard confirmed his first No. 1 album, SoulFly, and Wednesday night, he made his late-night debut on The Tonight Show performing the emotive album single “Tombstone.”

The pre-recorded performance appears to take place at a boathouse on the Everglades, which provides a sparkling background as Rod and his band play a stripped-down, moody rendition of the reflective track. With just a piano and a trio of backup singers, Rod wrings every last drop of emotion from the heart-swelling single, wisely letting his voice — the true star of SoulFly — take center stage.

SoulFly — Rod’s third album after Ghetto Gospel and Pray 4 Love — reached No. 1 behind a massive streaming push, which included singles “Street Runner,” “Tombstone,” and the Polo G-featuring “Richer,” which accumulated the bulk of the streams on the album. Another likely factor was his placement on XXL’s 2020 Freshmen cover, exposing him to the wider audience that helped him make the jump from Pray 4 Love‘s No. 4 debut to SoulFly‘s chart-topping first week. One thing’s for sure: Rod Wave is now a bona fide star.

Watch Rod Wave’s “Tombstone” performance for The Tonight Show above.

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

Logic Hints At Coming Out Of Retirement On A New Song, ‘Tired In Malibu’

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Last summer, Logic released No Pressure, which ended up being his final album before he announced his retirement from music and his pivot to streaming on Twitch. Now, though, the (former?) rapper suggests that he might make a return to music on a short new song he shared yesterday, “Tired In Malibu.”

The song runs for just a minute, and after some lines about Elon Musk, Animorphs, and wrestling, he concludes, “Retired for a minute, but I guess I’m back, man.”

Back in July, Logic explained why he decided to retire, saying, “I just wanted to retire because I’m over it man. Not even in a negative way, I’m just over it. I love music and I’m gonna continue to make music on my own. I can’t not just make music. It’s a journal for me. It’s how I express myself. It’s how I heal, but with Logic, I’m stepping away. And the thing is, too, I’m not trying to make it this big show like, ‘Oh my God,’ because it’s not that deep. You either believe me or you don’t man. I don’t give a sh*t. I’m over here doing my thing.”

Listen to “Tired In Malibu” above.

Lil Nas X Shakes His Jiggly Butt In The New Video Game ‘Twerk Hero’

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YouTube

Lil Nas X is diversifying his empire. Aside from music, he recently released a best-selling children’s book, C Is For Country. Now he’s getting into video games, as he has released a new one based on his “Montero (Call Me By Your Name)” video, called Twerk Hero.

In the browser game, the player controls a 3D model of Lil Nas X, facing backwards with his hands on his knees, in full twerk position. The player is instructed to “grab the booty and hit the incoming temptations,” and when players drag Lil Nas X’s rear end around, there are some impressive jiggle physics at play as his butt hits incoming quad-directional indicators, much like Guitar Hero or Dance Dance Revolution.

“Montero” has generated a ton of attention, enough to where it just debuted in the top spot of the Billboard Hot 100 chart, making it Lil Nas X’s second No. 1 single following “Old Town Road.” He also got parodied on Saturday Night Live, where he was portrayed giving a lap dance to God. His “Satan shoes” also led to some controversy, as Nike took legal action against the maker of the limited edition shoes, to which Lil Nas X has a characteristic reaction.

Play Twerk Hero here.

Benny The Butcher And Rick Hyde Carry ‘Survivor’s Remorse’ On Their Shoulders In The Reflective Video

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Last month, Benny The Butcher dropped his The Plugs I Met 2 EP, which featured production exclusively from Harry Fraud. The nine-track effort presented features from 2 Chainz, Fat Joe, Rick Hyde, French Montana, Jim Jones, and the late Chinx. Aiming to keep it alive for a bit longer, Benny and Hyde join forces for a reflective video for “Survivor’s Remorse.” In the visual, the two rappers take viewers on a trip through their past lives and discuss the close calls they encountered, all of which would have resulted in unfortunate circumstances if things did not go in their favor.

The Plugs I Met 2 is the sequel to Benny’s highlight 2018 project, but the second installation in the series didn’t arrive without some controversy. After hearing Fat Joe’s verse on one of the project’s song, “Talkin’ Back,” a number of fans criticized the rapper for anti-Asian comments. On it, Fat Joe raps, “Track me in and out of court, Harvey Weinstein / Threw that white up in the pot, gave ’em pipe dreams / And watch it spread like the Wuhan virus / Do ’em dirty for the low like Wu-Tang ’Sirus (ODB).” He later responded to the backlash in a tweet, writing, “I’ll adress the Benny verse i did that verse a year ago when the news was calling it the wuhan virus before they called it COVID i support and love all my asian brothers and sisters never hate.”

You can watch the “Survivor’s Remorse” video above.

The Plugs I Met 2 is out now via Black Soprano Family. Get it here.

Doja Cat And SZA Are Releasing A New Single At The End Of The Week

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Doja Cat‘s sophomore album Hot Pink may have been released 18 months ago yet it still remains extremely popular. But fans are still hungry for more. Though her third album, Planet Her, is still en route, she’s throwing them a bone: Its first
single, “Kiss Me More,” featuring SZA, will arrive at the end of the week — news she revealed on Twitter in a post also showcasing the single’s artwork.

During an interview with V Magazine last month, SZA spoke about the song during a conversation with Doja, who was also a part of the sit-down. “I know our little ditty ‘Kiss Me More’ is a different strut and I’m just excited,” SZA said. As for Planet Her, Doja confirmed that the project was complete during an interview with Fat Joe. “It’s all ready. I hate that I’m holding onto it right now,” she said. “I see everybody’s like, ‘Put it out’ … You have to plan things accordingly and there’s a lot going on.” She also revealed a possible list of guest features, including The Weeknd, Ariana Grande, SZA, French Montana, Megan Thee Stallion, ASAP Ferg, Saweetie, and Young Thug.

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

Coi Leray Stars In Mooski’s Video For ‘Track Star’ As His On-And-Off Love Interest

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Back in June 2020, Alabama rapper Mooski released what became one of today’s most popular hip-hop songs, “Track Star.” The melodic bass-driven tune finds the rapper speaking about a love interest who can’t seem to keep things exclusive with him, always running away only to return a short time later. Nearly a year after the song’s release, Mooski drops a video for the track that gives images to his words.

The rapper’s on-and-off lover is played by Coi Leray, who has attained viral moments of her own thanks to tracks like “No More Parties.” After meeting at a party, Mooski is quick to pick up on Leray’s habit of running away. So he cozies up to another girl, played by there-time Grammy-winning songwriter Nija Charles.When Leray returns, she sees Mooski and Charles spending time together, which upsets her and causes her to runaway once again.

After the success of “Track Star,” Mooski kicked off 2021 with his latest single, “Game Of Love,” which has also racked up more than 475 million views on TikTok and over 42 million global streams. As for Leray, her track “No More Parties” was certified Gold by the RIAA.

You can watch the video for Mooski’s “Track Star” above.