Over the years, Russ and Rexx Life Raj have developed an easygoing and prolific creative chemistry, with Rexx appearing on Russ’s “On 10” and Russ returning the favor to appear on Rexx’s Father Figure 3 track “Falling.” Now, it’s back to Russ on the newly released “Private,” which Russ initially planned to release back in 2019 or 2020. However, the breakout success of his song “Best On Earth” with Bia — which caught the attention of Rihanna, among others — meant pivoting to work that record instead. Fortunately, as an independent artist, Russ is completely in control of his own release schedule.
PRIVATE drops @ midnight
Produced by Illmind Featuring Rexx Life Raj
this was the song I was gonna drop after Best On Earth but then it went nuts so I never got around to it…special one!! pic.twitter.com/Qh1tTpSxa4
The previously shelved song has a light melody, employing soft organs and keys as the backdrop for a romantic entreaty on which Russ raps and Raj sings, wisely splitting their shared talents between them to avoid cluttering up the track. It works as their prior collaborations have because it plays to both artists’ major strength: Emotive storytelling that doesn’t feel forced or corny — as seen on Russ tracks like “Hard For Me” and “Bankrupt” and Rexx Life singles “Built For Everything” and “Your Way” with Kehlani.
While Russ hasn’t mentioned any new projects in the works, he’s clearly got a backlog of strong songs just waiting for a home — even if he’s never truly embraced a traditional release format. Meanwhile, Rexx just released a three-song set of his own, which you can check out here.
over these past months i haven’t been able to make a lot of music. but of the few i made these have been on repeat, helping me through these times.
3 new songs out now. truly appreciate all the love and support. means the world fareal. thank you.
Elton John has achieved a lot during his lengthy and illustrious career, so he was a natural choice to be given the iHeartRadio Icon Award at the 2021 iHeartRadio Music Awards last night. iHeartRadio went all out with honoring the legend, too, as they pulled out all the stops.
The award was presented to John by Coldplay’s Chris Martin, who ran through some comedic fake facts about John. Lil Nas X then joined in to pay tribute. After the award presentation, there was a tribute performance from Demi Lovato, HER, and Brandi Carlile. HER started by playing “Bennie And The Jets’ at a piano, when then segued into Carlile performing “Don’t Let The Sun Go Down On Me.” Lovato wrapped things up with a rendition of “I’m Still Standing,” and John himself even joined in during the song’s climax.
Ahead of the performances, John also gave an acceptance speech and thanked the aforementioned artists for paying tribute to him. He also spoke about how stunned he was by American radio early in his career, saying, “When I first came to Los Angeles in 1970, radio was so important. I’d never heard radio in America before because I had never been here before, but it was just incredible to me. In England, we had one station. Over here, you’d have music coming out of the radio in all sorts of formats, all sorts of styles… I was a pig in sh*t, basically.”
Watch some clips from the show below.
Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
Even after highlighting his brand sponsorships in previous videos for “Body In Motion,” “Let It Go,” and “We Going Crazy,” the “Quincy Jones of hip-hop” DJ Khaled abandons all pretense in his video for “I Did It.” He sets things off by putting the product placement right at the beginning of the video, complete with shout-outs to each individual product he holds up for the camera.
His reasoning? The video’s director, Dave Myers, “costs too much money.” The tradeoff is Khaled’s demand for Myers to finish editing the video as quickly as possible. While we may never know whether or not that requirement was fulfilled, the hard rock-accented track arrives with a Michael Bay-level amount of high-flying shenanigans.
First, Megan Thee Stallion parachutes onto the grounds at Khaled’s estate to rap her fully auto verse and hop aboard a horse. Then, Lil Baby joins Khaled on a speedboat for a tour of the canals and lights a cigar on a burning guitar. DaBaby performs from the pool, surrounded by dancers, and hangs from a crystal chandelier. Post Malone doesn’t make an appearance but his presence is still felt in the energetic hook. The video closes, fittingly enough, with a closeup on Khaled’s Chime account, flashing a notification showing just how expensive a Dave Myers video really is.
Watch DJ Khaled’s “I Did It” video with Megan Thee Stallion, Post Malone, Lil Baby, and DaBaby above.
Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
2011 was a huge year for Lady Gaga: Following the breakout success of her debut album The Fame, she released her first No. 1 album, Born This Way. The album yielded a handful of memorable top-10 singles, including “The Edge Of Glory” and the chart-topping title track. May 23 actually marked the 10th anniversary of the iconic album, and now Gaga is celebrating with a new reissue of it, Born This Way: The Tenth Anniversary, that is set to come out in June 18.
Aside from the original album, this 10th anniversary rerelease will also feature a handful of new versions of songs by artists who are representative of the LGBTQIA+ community. The first of these recordings has been shared today: A rework of “Judas” by Big Freedia. Freedia explains, “‘Judas’ was my favorite song when it came out originally, so I really wanted to cover. To me, ‘Judas’ is a love song about when someone does you dirty. I’ve sure had my experience with that. Who can’t relate?”
Aside from “Judas,” the reissue will also feature re-worked versions of “Highway Unicorn”, “You & I”, “Marry the Night”, “Born This Way,” and “The Edge Of Glory.” The other artists set to be involved have not yet been revealed.
Listen to Big Freedia’s version of “Judas” above.
Born This Way: The Tenth Anniversary is out 6/18 via Interscope. Pre-order it here.
Anybody who thought the vinyl resurgence was just a fad was mistaken: The industry has experienced a legitimate revival. As a result, music fans are interested in physical media in ways they may not have if the decades-old medium hasn’t made a comeback. That doesn’t mean everybody is listening to just their parents’ old music, though. That’s part of it, sure, thanks to rereleases that present classic albums in new ways. A vital part of the renewed vinyl wave, though, is new projects being released as records, of which there are plenty.
Whatever you might be into, each month brings a new slew of vinyl releases that has something for everybody. Some stand out above the rest, naturally, so check out some of our favorite vinyl releases of May below.
Amy Winehouse — Amy Winehouse At The BBC
Island/UMe
Before her passing, Amy Winehouse was a mainstay at the BBC and gave many performances over the years. Now, they’ve been collected on one stunning vinyl collection, which includes the audio-only versions of performances previously heard on A Tribute To Amy Winehouse By Jools Holland and BBC One Sessions Live At Porchester Hall. Other goodies from Winehouse’s career here include her first-ever TV performances and her earliest BBC Radio sessions.
My Bloody Valentine — Isn’t Anything, Loveless, EP’s 1988-1991 And Rare Tracks, and mbv (Reissues)
Domino
My Bloody Valentine’s material isn’t necessarily always the easiest to track down, but Kevin Shields and company have finally treated their fans on that front. A couple months ago, they announced their signing to Domino and subsequent reissues of their entire discography, so everything from the debut album Isn’t Anything to the newer mbv can now be enjoyed on crisp new vinyl.
Paul and Linda McCartney — Ram (50th Anniversary Reissue)
UMe
Paul and Linda McCartney only made one album together on which they were both given primary credit, and to celebrate Ram‘s 50th anniversary, a fresh new vinyl pressing has been released. This release should be about the best this album has ever sounded, thanks to the half-speed mastering process the album underwent for this edition.
St. Vincent has been strongly pushing the 1970s aesthetic here in the Daddy’s Home era, so it’s only appropriate that the album gets a slew of different vinyl editions. Of them, the deluxe LP is the most fleshed out, as it includes treats like an iron-on patch, an 11″ by 22″ poster, and an exclusive 20-page photo zine.
Fountains Of Wayne — Welcome Interstate Managers (Reissue)
Real Gone Music
Following the death of Adam Schlesinger in 2020, Uproxx’s Jason Tabrys wrote of the now-newly reissued Welcome Interstate Managers, “What stands out most about Welcome Interstate Managers is the diversity of the material. Nothing sounds like ‘Stacy’s Mom,’ but none of the other tracks really sound like each other either. Instead, Schlesinger and Collingwood pull inspiration from Tom Petty, The Beatles, The Cars, The Beach Boys, Linda Rondstadt, Paul Simon, Leonard Cohen, U2, and even country music. The end result stands out as an interesting and evocative collection of songs that too many people shruggingly dismissed as the filler around a one-hit-wonder. Because we’ve always had more content than time to appropriately assess and appreciate it.”
Songs from Phoebe Bridgers’ album Punisher didn’t need to be re-worked by any means. That said, a handful of them took on a fascinating new life through her more string-focused Copycat Killer EP. In April, Bridgers announced the collection would be getting a vinyl release, and here in May, the Copycat Killer vinyl is out now.
As of 2021, Violent Femmes have been around for 40 years. What better way to celebrate than with a retrospective collection? Earlier this month, the band re-released the compilation album Add It Up (1981–1993). This time, though, they’ve added things like live recordings, demos, B-sides, interstitial voice recordings, and other rarities.
Angel Olsen — Song Of The Lark And Other Far Memories
Jagjaguwar
Angel Olsen’s two latest albums, 2019’s All Mirrors and 2020’s Whole New Mess, didn’t end up being released as a single double album as intended. The releases have been brought together, though, on a new box set, Song Of The Lark And Other Far Memories. But wait, there’s more: The collection also includes Far Memory, a collection of new songs, alternate versions, and remixes.
The Shins — Oh, Inverted World (Vinyl Me, Please Reissue)
Vinyl Me, Please
Vinyl Me, Please always comes through with the fantastic rereleases, and the aesthetics are always on point as well. Their repressing of The Shins’ classic Oh, Inverted World comes on a beautifully subtle but still standout “Coke Bottle Clear” vinyl, not to mention the lovely inverted cover art, which the record wonderfully pairs.
Ben Schneider and the rest of Lord Huron dropped their latest stunner, Long Lost, this month. They also released a vinyl edition of it that makes it look like the cover art was made with these colored pressings in mind. The album art features a head that looks like it’s been replaced with a sunset, and the “custard & blue sky” double vinyl pressing is a beautiful complement.
Texas native Erica Banks certainly had some work to do to follow up the massive success of her breakout single “Buss It.” The viral track’s accompanying TikTok challenge made it and Banks a veritable household name practically overnight, so all eyes are watching for her next move. Fortunately, she and her mentor BeatKing have plenty more tricks up their sleeve.
The latest is a remix of “Toot That,” her Huey-sampling from last year’s self-titled mixtape. Produced by Sgt J, the original hijacks an interpolation of Huey’s 2007 hit “Pop, Lock & Drop It,” pairing it with the trademark slurred sounds of the Dallas native’s home state. The remix brings along New York rapper DreamDoll, who matches Banks’s boastful, uninhibited energy bar-for-bar, with a closing verse from the bass-voiced BeatKing.
Meanwhile, the video imagines the women as owner-operators of a “baddie consulting firm,” flashing an 800 number across the screen as they count cash with their carefully manicured claws and train their clients on treadmills with motivational chains.
Watch Erica Banks’s “Toot That” video with DreamDoll and BeatKing above. You can also catch Banks and BeatKing in the video for Big Jade’s “Dem Girlz.”
Erica Banks is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
Late Chicago emo-rap hero Juice WRLD’s rise to stardom began in earnest in 2017, when he released his Sting-sampling single “Lucid Dreams” to SoundCloud. After accumulating a huge following there, it was re-released in 2018 on Grade A Productions and Interscope Records, becoming a phenomenon and launching the young Juice WRLD to superstardom. Today, on the three-year anniversary of the release of Juice’s debut studio album Goodbye & Good Riddance, his label has re-issued the album with a remix of the song featuring a truly appropriate guest: Lil Uzi Vert.
At the same time as Juice WRLD was skyrocketing to fame on a parallel track thanks to his 2016 hit single “Money Longer,” his feature on Migos’ “Bad And Boujee,” and his 2017 breakout “XO Tour Llif3.” The two previously collaborated on the Goodbye & Good Riddance track “Wasted” and reunite here to combine their similar aesthetic and inspirations, with Uzi providing an extended verse to the ruminative track. An accompanying animated visualizer finds Juice on the run from a female demon, who commands an army of doppelgangers to pursue him through a nighttime cityscape. Fortunately, Uzi is there for backup, and with some creative uses of his new foreheard piercing (that diamond is magic!), the two escape the army and defeat their succubus foe.
Watch Juice WRLD and Lil Uzi Vert’s ‘Lucid Dreams’ remix video above. Another new track on the reissue is “734,” which you can play below.
Lil Uzi Vert is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
Currently, Silk Sonic (the duo of Bruno Mars and Anderson .Paak) has just one song, “Leave The Door Open.” (Well, two if you count the minute-long “Silk Sonic Intro.”) So far, though, that’s all they’ve needed: The song has peaked at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, a height the single achieved again a couple weeks ago. So, at least for the moment, Silk Sonic is a one-trick pony, but what a trick it is. They trotted it out again last night for a performance at the 2021 iHeartRadio Music Awards and the song still makes an impact: Silk Sonic was trending on Twitter following their performance, even still the morning after.
Last night’s performance was similar in nature to their previous live renditions of the tune, featuring .Paak and Mars accompanied by backing singers as they all bust out soulful throwback vibes.
Although the duo currently only has one single, they’ve actually performed more than just “Leave The Door Open” live: At the Grammys in March, .Paak and Mars performed a medley of Little Richard songs in honor of the late legend.
Watch Mars and .Paak perform “Leave The Door Open” at the iHeartRadio Music Awards above.
Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
Pop goddess Madonna is the latest celebrity to receive a truly astonishing ratio on Twitter after her latest post ruffled the feathers of users who took issue with her inability to tell the difference between a bandana and a du-rag. Posting a throwback photo of herself wearing dark shades and a black bandana, Madonna captioned the photo “Durag activity….” which… uh… no. On so many levels, no.
Fans were quick to express their discontent with Madonna’s misuse of the style and its nomenclature, reminding her that: 1. She is wearing a bandana, not a du-rag, in the picture, and 2. That “Durag activity” doesn’t mean what she apparently thinks it does. Naturally, Madge’s misstep was met with a deluge of reactions ranging from outrage quotes to tongue-in-cheek drags as she was compared to the plethora of pop stars in the past who’ve overstepped their cultural bounds and wound up stepping on an appropriation landmine.
— send me money cuz im prettyᴺᴹ☾ ᎤᏙᏒᏃᎡᎯ ᎠᏲᏟ ☽ (@lunaenbyjazan) May 28, 2021
Truthfully speaking, I am personally of the same mind about this stuff as comedian Sam Jay, who broke down her philosophy in the first episode of her (really excellent) new HBO show Pause With Sam Jay: I’m not offended, it just looks goofy. There are obviously way more important things going on in the world than to worry about a middle-aged mom’s off-target attempt to be “hip” — or any pop star’s, really. But if it looks bad, it looks bad, and you can get roasted like anybody else — it’s part of the culture, after all.
They’re flaming Madonna she’s about to send her dancing ass kid again to distract y’all https://t.co/YqUlbdslEq
— Sweet One Golden Lover (@PunchDrnkLove) May 28, 2021
There’s something deeply racist about her fucking on a young black man with long ass hair and she still don’t know what a fucking durag is…. https://t.co/Sgq4AQyASM
After playing a few games with the Rwanda Patriots of the Basketball Africa League (BAL), J. Cole has left the team and returned home. While he didn’t exactly set the world on fire with his on-court contributions, he got to play basketball on a professional level, which is more than most lovers of the game can say. Now that Cole is back home, he has taken some time to reflect on the experience.
In an Instagram post from last night, Cole wrote:
“So many thank you’s are due. Thank you to @thebal and to @patriotsbbc for the opportunity. Thank you to my teammates, the coaches and staff for treating me like family. I learned so much in the few weeks we were together. Congrats on that win tonight and good luck next game. Thank you to @puma for supporting a dream from day 1, and getting me to Rwanda and back safely via Puma jet.
Thank you to the entire country of Rwanda and to the city of Kigali for hosting us. BEAUTIFUL land with BEAUTIFUL people. To anyone considering visiting or moving to the continent, from everything I saw and heard, I would recommend you consider Kigali and Rwanda in general. Thank you to everybody that had kind words for me despite my inexperience. I plan to get better.”
He also wrote a bit more about his basketball experience in another post about his new Puma RS Dreamer sneaker, saying, “The first drop will have a special place in my heart forever, for obvious reasons. These are the ones I took the scariest leap in. That nervous feeling I had playing under the whistle for the first time is the same feeling I had moving to New York without knowing anybody there. I say all that to say, Despite the fear we have to choose to jump, or be forced to live with regret.”
JUDAS 
(@lunaenbyjazan) 
(@kingdj_5297) 
(@dominiquemoon_) 
