“Over the last week, Travis Scott and his team have been actively exploring routes of connection with each and every family affected by the tragedy through the appropriate liaisons. He is distraught by the situation and desperately wishes to share his condolences and provide aid to them as soon as possible, but wants to remain respectful of each family’s wishes on how they’d best like to be connected. To those families who would like to reach out directly to his team, please send an email to the below address where we will have a team on hand to assist. [email protected].”
“There was nothing Jarad “Juice WRLD” Higgins enjoyed more than delivering new music to his millions of fans around the world. He left behind an astonishingly deep catalog of music that will ensure his fans will have new songs to listen to for years to come. Jarad was always searingly honest about his struggles and through his musical genius he articulated what was on his heart and mind vividly through his art. He never gave up and his friends and family never gave up on offering their support to him. Today we announce a new album Fighting Demons out Dec 10th. We encourage all of you who struggle with addiction and mental health to never give up the fight. We continue to extend free support to you via LiveFree999.org created in his honor.”
Watch the trailer for the new album above. For context, LiveFree999.org was established after his death to honor the late rapper and help other young people battling with addiction. Fighting Demons is out 12/10 via Interscope. Pre-order it here.
Although it seems strange that 2022 is almost upon us, at least the new year is bringing some good tidings along with it. First and foremost is the stacked lineup for the Super Bowl halftime show, which includes Dr. Dre, Kendrick Lamar, Eminem, Mary J. Blige and the one and only Snoop Dogg. Since Snoop is also on the cusp of releasing his new album, Algorithm, he’s been doing a bit of press. And of course, fans and industry insiders alike want to hear whatever details might be available about the epic show these hip-hop legends have planned.
So during an appearance on SiriusXM’s “New Music & Motivation” special with Roxanne Shante, he got into some details around the Super Bowl that will definitely have some fashionable listeners interested. “What would I want to know about the 2022 halftime show,” he began. “Whatever outfit I’m wearing, I’m gonna be selling online at, at my clothing store the same night. So if ya’ll like, what I wear ya’ll can buy that sh*t the same night… See, I wear a fashion, you know, fashion statements. It’s like, even this suit I got on right now, you can’t find it nowhere. You can only find it here on me.”
Keep an eye out for that Super Bowl offering in early January then!
Following up on a busy year for the prolific rapper, Smino returns with an introspective single. Dropping his effortlessly smooth track “I Deserve,” the rapper continues to keep his fans waiting for his third studio album, which he’s been teasing for a while but has yet to release.
“I Deserve” sees Smino flexing his flow over a polished piano beat. Armed with his song-song lyrical delivery and clever verses, Smino raps lines about counting his blessings and reminding himself that he really does deserve all the good things that come to him. Throughout the song, Smino sneaks in an ode to a friend who passed last August, as well as a clever reference to Omarion’s 2006 hit track “Ice Box.”
Prior to releasing “I Deserve,” Smino collaborated with a few other artists this year. His surprise quarantine project She Already Decided boasted guest features by the likes of T-Pain and Sevyn Streeter. Before that, Smino teamed up with Chance The Rapper and MadeInTYO for “BET Uncut.” He was also tapped by Thundercat to offer a remix of the hit track “Dragonball Durag” with Guapdad 4000.
Listen to Smino’s “I Deserve” above.
Some of the artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
Thundercat has come a long way since he released his debut album in 2011. The bass player’s debut project introduced fans to his endlessly groovy sound, clever lyrics, and love of manga. Since then, Thundercat has gone on to drop several more albums, the latest of which, the 2020 LP It Is What It Is, earned him his second Grammy Award for best Urban Contemporary Album. Now celebrating a decade of music, Thundercat is plotting a deluxe vinyl edition of his debut, The Golden Age Of Apocalypse.
Not only is the deluxe version of The Golden Age Of Apocalypse repressed on a translucent red vinyl and has brand new cover art, but it also unearths some new music. The track listing includes two never-before-heard bonus tracks, “$200 TB” and “Daylight (Reprise).” The release is set to be available in participating stores on Record Store Day later this month.
Thundercat – The Golden Age of Apocalypse (10th Anniversary Edition)
A brand new ltd edition deluxe vinyl of @Thundercat’s debut album housed in a gold holographic sleeve. Includes 2 bonus tracks. Exclusively in record stores for @recordstoreday‘s Black Friday on 26th November. pic.twitter.com/go4oq84845
At the time, The Golden Age Of Apocalypse was executive produced by Thundercat’s longtime musical partner Flying Lotus. The LP was also a hands-on effort featuring some of the musician’s talented LA collaborators who would go on to find solo success, like Kamasi Washington.
The Golden Age Of Apocalypse (Deluxe) is out Record Store Day on 11/26 via Brainfeeder.
With a handful of albums and big-name features to their name, prolific LA-based rap duo BlueBucksClan are already making waves in the industry. Proving their knack for breezy rhymes and polished delivery, BlueBucksClan fire off a stoic performance for Uproxx Sessions.
Once again taking over Uproxx studios, BlueBucksClan are back with a captivating rendition of their Clan Virus 2 album opener “She Busy.” The performance sees the pair trading smooth verses back-and-forth, proving just how tangible their musical chemistry is. With each line, BlueBucksClan jump off each others’ laid-back rhymes while further flexing over an effortless beat.
The performance arrives following one of the hottest years for BlueBucksClan to date. They’ve been dropping music and building up a steady following since 2019, but the duo’s recent album Clan Virus 2, which came in March, shows just how far the pair have come. The album saw features from hip-hop’s top heavy-hitters like Lil Yachty, Quavo, and Hit-Boy, as well as their Out Of The Blue labelmate Bino Rideaux.
Watch BlueBucksClan’s performance of “She Busy” on Uproxx Sessions above.
UPROXX Sessions is Uproxx’s performance show featuring the hottest up-and-coming acts you should keep an eye on. Featuring creative direction from LA promotion collective, Ham On Everything, and taking place on our “bathroom” set designed and painted by Julian Gross, UPROXX Sessions is a showcase of some of our favorite performers, who just might soon be yours, too.
After dropping a teaser trailer last week for “La Fama,” Rosalía and The Weeknd have delivered on their promise in spades. The first song off of Rosalía’s Motomami, due out in 2022, “La Fama” arrives with a video that’s both deadly and metaphoric.
“Good evening ladies and gentlemen,” actor and taco entrepreneurDanny Trejo says to an opulent club crowd as the video begins. “I want to introduce the following number. But I must warn you, she’s not for everyone. She will pierce your heart and she will be your only obsession! So get ready for some heat… La Fama!”
But this is no ordinary club, this is a decadent cabaret where people snort diamonds and sip gemstone martinis. Rosalía is the titular “La Fama” singing and dancing seductively and setting her crosshairs on The Weeknd, sitting front and center. His high-pitched voice joins her in Spanish as he rises to heed her siren call. They get closer and closer, and just as their lips are about to meet, she kills him.
“I wanted to write, in my own way, a bachata with a little story around ambition,” Rosalía said in a statement. “Taking as a reference the lyrics of Ruben Blades or Patti Smith and the songs of Aventura, I ended up writing a story of romance with fame.”
The video and the song’s lyrics are definitely symbolic of an obsession with stardom, something that both Rosalía and the Weeknd have experienced a lot of. It’s a cautionary tale to the endless thirst traps surrounding the entertainment industry. And as the lights dim, Rosalía poses for applause while The Weekend lays lifeless and Trejo punctuates what we just witnessed: “Don’t forget, be careful what you wish for!”
Kid Cudi made headlines earlier this year when he donned a dress while performing on Saturday Night Live. That wasn’t a one-off thing for him as he proved yesterday, when he showed up to an award show wearing another dress, one that was flashier than his previous look.
Cudi wore a custom wedding dress to attend the Council Of Fashion Designers Of America’s annual award show, the CFDA Awards, yesterday alongside American Emerging Designer Of The Year nominee Eli Russell Linnetz. Linnetz designed the look and People describes it, “Cudi’s wedding-inspired look featured a full lace catsuit worn underneath a matching tea-length skirt and sleek white blazer. Instead of heels, he opted for embellished white sneakers to add some edge. Of course, the ensemble wouldn’t be complete without a statement veil.”
Linnetz told the publication, “I just out of the blue sent him a text of a wedding dress and I was like, ‘Will you be my bride?’” Cudi also said, “I trust this man so I was down to take it wherever his mind went.”
Following Cudi’s SNL appearance where we wore a dress, he explained that he wasn’t concerned with negative reception his fashion choice, saying, “I’ve never been someone who’s like thinking about the backlash. I don’t give a f*ck about what anyone thinks. You can’t when you’re doing this sh*t. I knew it would piss some people off, but I love that. Because hip-hop is so weird about sh*t. I’ve already seen people making YouTube videos where they’re just strictly talking about me and this dress. Like grown men angry, grown Black men angry. ‘He’s doing something against men and masculinity, it’s a big thing going on…’ And I just be like, yo, this is so funny, this is crazy that I’ve stirred it up like this.
The RX is Uproxx Music’s stamp of approval for the best albums, songs, and music stories throughout the year. Inclusion in this category is the highest distinction we can bestow, and signals the most important music being released throughout the year. The RX is the music you need, right now.
The key to fully understanding the position Summer Walker finds herself in on her new album Still Over It is to remember where she left off. Every story has a prologue, and for Summer, that would be “Nobody Else,” the vulnerable confession towards love that closed her debut album Over It. “I want this, I want this to work out so bad / God, I feel it in my chest at night,” she begs on the track. “I want this, I want this, yeah, yeah / Will never fall out of love with you.” As we all know now, Summer’s wishes went unfulfilled, and while this step into love eventually tore her heart apart, it also gave the world what shaped up to be her magnum opus with Still Over It.
Cardi B says it best at the end of “Bitter.” “Put that drama in your music,” the rapper advises Summer while telling her to not “let b*tches… feel like they have a one-up by destroying your moment by telling your business to the world.” For better or for worse, the best way to regain control of a narrative for a successful musician like Summer is to make that best music of your life, and that’s what is present on Still Over It. Through the project’s 20 songs, Summer issues responses to women that interfered with her relationship, onlookers who questioned her decisions without knowing the entire story, and the very man who caused her heartbreak and destroyed the love she hoped would last a lifetime.
On Still Over It, Summer excellently reinforces that despite the whirlpool of controversy, turmoil, and toxicity that her relationship drowned in, her true desire was a love that was offertory rather than transactional. “All I wanted was for you to stay / It’s the bare minimum for me,” she bellows on “Reciprocate.” “I don’t wanna throw it all away / It’s a good thing, it’s a good thing.” It’s this standard reciprocation, which she asks of her partner and fails to receive, that drives her into a pit of sadness and regret. “You should know my mind by now / And it don’t seem to matter how many times I try,” Summer sings on “You Don’t Know Me” in disenchanted spirits. “But I cry, I say it nice / Yell it out loud, write it down, I’m tired.” It’s tracks like these where Summer uses tender production and her best songwriting to cast her pain through a projector to the world, one so big that it allows all the necessary details of her story to exist and roam free for listeners to digest.
As we progress further and further into Summer’s sophomore album, she’s forced to loosen her resistance towards letting go of a love that once made her melt. Through records like “Insane,” “Constant Bullsh*t,” and “Unloyal” with Ari Lennox, Summer almost jumps out of the moving car that is her relationship, but the unknown dangers that await her once she takes that dive delay this long-overdue exit. The man in question is London On Da Track, the father of her first child, and on “Switch A N***a Out” she uses sheer honesty to explain why she stayed beside him much longer than she should have. “’Cause I don’t want nobody, nobody else but you,” she sings, referencing her Over It closer. “And I used to be on my replacin’ sh*t / I would switch a n**** out so damn quick / If he ain’t gettin’ with my sh*t / But it just ain’t like that with you.”
Just like it would for anyone else, Summer reaches her breaking point through the last third of the album. After failed moments to fully shut the door on “Closure,” “Toxic,” and “Screwin,” Summer finally issues the grand closing for a love that she realizes was truly never meant to be. It brings forth some of the most painful and heartbreaking lyrics on the album. “Cause my heart is breakin,’” she bellows on “Broken Promises.” “I’ve been mistaken / You’re not the man I thought you were / And they tried to warn me.” Another example arrives on “Session 33.” “’Cause a house is not a home when no one’s there,” she notes. “So alone, no one’s there / Should I move on since no one’s here? / You know what you got is good, that’s why you refuse to let me walk out your life.”
Calling Still Over It Summer’s true villain story might be taking things a bit too far. Even her most ruthless moments, like dragging London and his mother on “4th Baby Mama,” seem well-deserved for a woman who was left to spend her “whole f*cking pregnancy alone.” In a perfect world, the happiness Summer exhibited to close Over It was still supposed to be alive and well on her sophomore project. A true love story and a child to raise with this forever partner should’ve been the narrative for her second album. Things were supposed to be different, but to her disappointment, that was not the case. Summer has grown as a singer, songwriter, and overall artist set on bringing her vision to life. However, until she receives the love she truly deserves, Summer Walker will still be over it.
Still Over It is out now via LVRN/Interscope. Get it here.
In the days since the Astroworld Festival tragedy, Travis Scott has shared two statements about it on his social media pages. Now, his lawyer is stepping forward to speak about it and he’s calling out the Houston police department. In a statement released on Wednesday, according to Billboard, Edwin F. McPherson said, “There has been multiple finger-pointing, much of which has been by city officials, who have sent inconsistent messages and have backtracked from original statements.” McPherson then criticized Houston Police Chief Troy Finner for comments he made in a recent interview with The New York Times.
During the interview, McPherson cites Finner’s claim that Astroworld was not shut down for fear that fans would riot. However, McPherson said, “a short time later, Chief Finner states the responsibility to stop the show falls on Travis.”
“It was reported that the Operations Plan designated that only the festival director and executive producers have authority to stop the show, neither of which is part of Travis’s crew,” McPherson said. “This also runs afoul of HPD’s own previous actions when it shut down the power and sound at this very festival when the performance ran over 5 minutes back in 2019.”
He concluded, “Investigations should start proceeding over finger-pointing so that together, we can identify exactly what transpired and how we can prevent anything like this from happening again.”
