Music

Ari Lennox And Queen Naija ‘Set Him Up’ In Their Vengeful New Video

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Building on the storyline of their recent collaboration, “Set Him Up,” R&B revivalists Ari Lennox and Queen Naija share the vengeful video for the low-key infidelity call-out. Opening with Ari and Naija calling each other on the phone to talk up their respective new relationships, as the men in question are shot with their faces out of the frame, making the revelation that the “men” are the same man even more visually compelling. In the end, the two singers link up to sing the last third of the song on a couch, which their victim tied up and gagged behind them.

“Set Him Up” arrived on the heels of Ari Lennox’s prior duets with Lucky Daye, “Access Denied,” and Jazmine Sullivan, “On It,” showing off a wide range of topics for the D.C.-born singer to address as she prepares a follow-up for her fan-favorite 2019 debut, Shea Butter Baby. Meanwhile, Naija is a few months removed from the release of her own debut album Missunderstood, which helped legitimize the former YouTube star as a proper artist alongside guest stars like Kiana Ledé, Jacquees, and Lil Durk, who appeared on single “Lie To Me.” The two singers are part of a new wave of sultry, unapologetic R&B singers aiming to bring the genre back to the forefront of pop culture that includes Jhene Aiko, Summer Walker, and more.

Watch the “Set Him Up” video above.

Lil Nas X Drops Some New Meme-Worthy, Satan-Themed ‘Montero’ Merch

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Lil Nas X’s Hell-themed video for “Montero (Call Me By Your Name)” has gotten under the skin of some folks, and perhaps nobody is taking more delight in that than Lil Nas X himself. He has long been a master troll and now he has taken it to the next level with some new “Montero” merch: A pair of hilarious text-heavy t-shirts.

One shirt reads, “I [heart] Jesus and that one part in the ‘Montero’ music video by Lil Nas X when he gets nasty with the devil because it was a cool form of self-expression and art.” The other reads, “I WATCHED THE “Montero” VIDEO BY LIL NAS X AND ALL I GOT WITH THIS LOUSY SHIRT AND NOW I’M ALSO GAY AND LOVE SATAN.”

Meanwhile, the rapper recently expressed concern that the song would be removed from streaming services for some reason he didn’t disclose, writing on Twitter that the song “may no longer be available tomorrow and there’s nothing i can really do about it.” Lil Nas X is clearly prone to making jokes on Twitter, but his label later backed up the claim. As of now, the song appears to still be available on streaming services.

Find Lil Nas X’s new merch here.

Rico Nasty Haunts The Suburbs In Her Claymation ‘Check Me Out’ Video

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Since the release of her anticipated debut album Nightmare Vacation, Rico Nasty has stayed busy. She’s already shared a visual component to a handful of the album’s tracks like “OHFR?,” “P**sy Poppin,” and “Let It Out.” But now, she’s called on claymation artists to envision an eerie world for her “Check Me Out” video.

Animated by the studio Open The Portal, the rapper’s “Check Me Out” video sees her armed with Edward Scissorhands-like fingers. She haunts the suburbs, keeping her eye out for her next victim. Rico Nasty eventually stumbles upon a family of wolves, but instead of turning them into a tasty meal, she simply offers her haircutting services.

Ahead of the release of Nightmare Vacation, Rico Nasty sat down with Uproxx to explain how she’s able to easily brush off haters:

“They just always saying something about somebody that’s different, but they still listen to them,” she observes. “It’s just like a new flavor. If I go to a restaurant and they tell me it’s a new dish I never ate before, I’m going to ask questions. ‘What is in this? What’s in this? Where did you make it? How did you make it?’ I’ve never had it before, so I’m going to ask questions. That’s how the audience is. They always ask questions. I feel like they’re never going to be satisfied because there’s no such thing as a perfect human being.”

Watch the “Check Me Out” video above.

Nightmare Vacation is out now via Sugar Trap/Atlantic. Get it here.

Rico Nasty is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Yung Miami Says She Had To ‘Beg’ DJs To Play City Girls’ Songs When JT Went To Prison

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In 2018, City Girls were an intriguing duo on the rise, receiving coveted co-signs from the likes of Quality Control Music and Drake. However, the Miami duo’s hot streak nearly came to an end after JT was locked up for credit card fraud, leaving Yung Miami to carry on performing under the City Girls moniker solo. As Yung Miami tells Megan Thee Stallion in an insightful discussion for Interview magazine, the duo’s public perception was so bad that she had to “beg” DJs to play City Girls’ music at clubs.

“JT went to jail and I used to have to beg the DJs to play our song,” Miami admits. She also had trouble getting her discouraged co-star excited to continue hustling in the rap game. “I used to be like, ‘JT, we got to rap for real.’ They were going up for our songs in the club and she’d be like, ‘B*tch, I’m in jail. I’m not thinking about no f*cking music.’ And I was like, ‘JT, this is our way out. I think we should take this seriously.’”

JT also tells an amusing story about how she spent her advance. “At the time, girl, I was so hood,” she recalls. “I think I gave my ex-boyfriend some money for his lawyer and he still went to jail for a long-ass time. Whew, girl, I hate him. Other than that, I don’t remember. I was just spending money fast. I ain’t going to lie.”

You can read the full interview here.

Megan Thee Stallion is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Russ Navigates A Bad Breakup In His Melancholy ‘Bankrupt’ Video

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In the melancholy video for his new single “Bankrupt,” it looks like Russ could use some relationship counseling — or at least, learn some new coping methods. The video opens with the New Jersey rapper dipping out on a bad date, leaving his girl hanging at a diner. Then, he drives to a nearby motel and proceeds to mope a bit before using the payphone outside to call his ex — a conversation that looks unproductive, at best. Finally, he sets fire to his car, presumably to keep himself from backsliding, although it looks like he’s now stranded in the desert instead.

All jokes aside, it appears that the outspoken advocate for artistic independence has found his groove in recent months, dropping a string of artistic videos ranging from the celebratory “Ugly” to the moody “Misunderstood” and “Hard For Me.” He also recently launched his own strain of cannabis products named for his well-received 2020 EP Chomp. Despite his apparent relationship issues — three breakup videos in a row implies some emotional baggage, for sure — his career has turned out to be “pandemic proof” and his esteem among fans has grown ever since he gained some distance from past social media faux pas. Judging from his revenue from streaming, merch, and other business ventures, he’s far from going bankrupt for the time being.

Watch Russ’s “Bankrupt” video above.

Vince Staples Explains His Reluctance To Call Animal Control To Handle Home Pests

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Vince Staples‘ worldview has been pretty cleared laid out over the course of his short but critically-hailed catalog. But in the midst of a global pandemic, it appears that his worldview is evolving, as he details for comedian and TV show host Desus Nice in a new interview in GQ. The Long Beach rapper reveals that he’s had to revamp his outlook; he’s taking more time off, he reexamining his musical approach, and he’s enjoying being a homeowner.

But there’s one thing that won’t change; his reluctance to call the police, which even extends to his home pest problems. As he explains through a hilarious anecdote:

It’d be animals outside, and I didn’t think of that. When I bought a house, I got a yard. And something wanna live in it, and you’re going to have to get it out. And with me, it’s like, “All right. You mind your business, I’ll mind my business.” But the animals be getting a little too close to the house sometimes. You know what I mean? I remember there was like a giant rodent. I don’t even know what it was, but it was by the south side, by the garage. I just had to leave it there. And man, I kept calling people to try to take it out of there for like five, seven hours.

And then they told me to call animal control, and animal control is controlled by the police department. And Black people feel a way about calling the police to the house. I was scared the whole time. That was my personal hiccup as a homeowner. Eventually, they came to the house to remove the rodent; they was cool. But I was like, “Man, I don’t know if I want you all to come over here and be looking at me like, ‘Oh, look at this n****; he can’t get a rodent out of this house.’” I got to stand strong.

Of course, the real punchline is: Long Beach’s Animal control is actually under the parks department.

Elsewhere in the interview, Vince details the difference between online console gaming communities, things he’s learned from rap mentors like Snoop Dogg and Nipsey Hussle, and shares a few of his comeback plans, which include a Netflix television show and a new album titled Ramona Park Broke My Heart. You can read the full interview here.

Pooh Shiesty And Lil Durk Give A Stripped-Down Performance Of ‘Back In Blood’ On ‘The Tonight Show’

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To be honest, Pooh Shiesty’s performance of “Back In Blood” on The Tonight Show showcases an artist who is still very raw. However, it’s hard to hold that against him; he was signed and experienced his breakout during a global music shutdown that left him very few options to build the experience needed to become a standout performer (and, for what it’s worth, there are plenty of performers who just aren’t comfortable without a crowd to draw energy from, as we’ve seen with plenty of television performances over the years).

With that being said, Shiesty makes the best of a bad situation in his pre-recorded performance, saving the bells and whistles and giving a stripped-down performance in an alley alongside the song’s guest rapper Lil Durk (an artist who is in the midst of his own breakout, after nearly 10 years in the game). We could quibble all day about his mic discipline (keep that thing in front of your face, buddy) but for a television debut, we’ve seen worse — and when we’ve seen better, it’s usually with artists who have a different scale of budget, notoriety, and production value. The important thing is that he draws attention to his debut mixtape, Shiesty Season, and “Back In Blood” is enough of a banger that we can consider that mission accomplished.

Watch Pooh Shiesty’s “Back In Blood” performance with Lil Durk above.

Pooh Shiesty is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Moneybagg Yo Announces His Upcoming Album, ‘A Gangsta’s Pain,’ On The Rowdy ‘Go!’ With Big 30

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Moneybagg Yo is someone who always keeps the pedal to the metal with his full-length releases. In 2020, he began the year with his third album, Time Served, and nearly four months later he dropped a deluxe reissue, with seven additional songs. In September of that year, the Memphis rapper also teamed up with Blac Youngsta for their joint album, Code Red. Now Moneybagg has returned with an announcement for his next album, A Gangsta’s Pain, one that arrived with a rowdy new song, “Go!”, featuring Big 30.

The track finds the Memphis native flexing some muscles and throwing plenty of attacks to his opponents, while Big 30 uses his verse to remind his peers of the potential enemies that lay around them. A Gangsta’s Pain is currently led by two singles, “Time Today” and “Hard For The Next,” the latter with Future. The former arrived with a video that saw him take aim at the media while the latter took a moment to praise their romantic partners. As for the album itself, Moneybagg will present 22 songs, though the titles and additional guest features for the album remain to be seen. The rapper confirmed it would arrive next week on April 23.

You can listen to “Go!” in the video above.

A Gangsta’s Pain is out 4/23 via N-Less Entertainment/Interscope Records. Pre-order it here.

Lil Nas X Explains ‘Coming Out’ To Some Kids Who Don’t Quite Get It

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Lil Nas X has dominated the entertainment world for nearly three consecutive weeks. The streak began with the release of his latest single “Montero (Call Me By Your Name),” followed by its controversial video, and by the even more controversial “Satan Shoes,” a customized pair of Nike Air Max 97s in collaboration with MSCHF. Through it all Lil Nas stuck to his trolling ways. But as the drama dies down, he joined a recent episode of Arts & Raps to answer some questions from a couple of kids.

One kid asked him, “What does it mean to ‘come out of the closet?” Sticking to his humorous ways, Lil Nas X said that it “means you’re like, ‘Hey everybody, I’m this thing and you guys didn’t even know that but now you know.” Soon after, another child asked, “Why are people in the closet in the first place?” The singer replied, “Back to the thing I said earlier about [how] we think about what other people think about us. Once we tell somebody we’re this thing or that thing, their mind shifts completely. It doesn’t matter how close you are to them or whatever.”

This answer led into a quick “closet story” from one of the show’s young co-hosts, in which they talked about locking his cousin in a walk-in closet and flickering the lights on and off while screaming “666” and “Bloody Mary.” Lil Nas tried his best to hold back from laughing and said, “That’s exactly what happened to me. That’s what I meant when I said I was coming out of the closet.”

You can watch the full episode in the video above.

Kendrick Lamar’s Engineer, MixedByAli, Sheds Some Light On The Rapper’s Upcoming Album

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Today is the fourth anniversary of Kendrick Lamar’s Pulitzer Prize-winning fourth album, DAMN. which went on to win big at the 2018 Grammys, taking home five awards including Best Rap Album and Best Music Video. However, the anniversary of DAMN. also means it’s been four years since he dropped a solo album. As his fans continue to wait for his next release, TDE’s in-house engineer, MixedByAli, who has worked on all of Lamar’s albums, spoke a little bit about the rapper’s forthcoming project.

“I would say, every album that he has dropped since Good Kid has come with a different feeling so just look forward to Kendrick obviously expressing himself in the most creative way– the most highest of the creative way,” he said during an interview with Complex. “How he works, I’ve never seen it before. The recording process, the thought process of piecing an album together and sequencing it. Things like that is what keeps guys like me great. Watching his work ethic… You would expect someone like Kendrick to be at home and sitting back– nah, he still comes in on time and is punctual.”

MixedByAli was later asked if Lamar’s album would arrive this year, and he replied, “It might, it might, you never know.”

You can watch his conversation, which includes discussion of his work with SZA and Baby Keem, in the video above.