Music

Fans Speculate New Kendrick Lamar Music Is Coming Soon After A Spotify Update

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Over the past few months, there have been rumors about potential new Kendrick Lamar music coming soon. Now, fans are picking up on yet another clue and getting excited about possible fresh material from the rapper: Lamar stans noticed that the rapper’s profile picture on Spotify just changed for the first time since 2017. Some also noted that tomorrow (October 22) marks the ninth anniversary of Lamar’s 2012 album Good Kid, M.A.A.D City.

Online updates don’t always mean new material is coming, though. Fans got a taste of that disappointment this summer, when the imagery on Destiny’s Child social media pages was updated and had followers thinking the group was reuniting. However, Matthew Knowles, Beyonce’s father and the group’s manager, insisted the changes were just some routine maintenance done by the group’s record label and that no new music was imminent. So, it’s possible something like this is the case with Lamar, too.

In August, Lamar shared an update about his next album, saying it’s his last with Top Dawg Entertainment and noting, “As I produce my final TDE album, I feel joy to have been a part of such a cultural imprint after 17 years. The Struggles. The Success. And most importantly, the Brotherhood. May the Most High continue to use Top Dawg as a vessel for candid creators. As I continue to pursue my life’s calling. There’s beauty in completion. And always faith in the unknown. Thank you for keeping me in your thoughts. I’ve prayed for you all. See you soon enough.”

Lil Nas X Returned Home To Atlanta To Celebrate ‘Montero’ And Was Given His Own Day In The City

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Lil Nas X has had quite the year so far in 2021. Between his music, performances, awards, moments on social media, and more, the singer has remained one of music’s most popular names. One of biggest moment came last month when he finally released his long-awaited debut album, Montero. The fifteen-track release was highlighted by No. 1 singles “Montero (Call Me By Your Name)” and “Industry Baby” as well as appearances from Miley Cyrus, Megan Thee Stallion, Jack Harlow, Elton John, and Doja Cat. A month after sharing the album, Lil Nas X returned home to Atlanta where he was greeted by a ceremony to celebrate the album.

According to a press release about the ceremony, the event was hosted by legendary producer Dallas Austin and Gilead Compass Initiative, an organization that strives to help reduce HIV/AIDS-related disparities in the Southern United States. Guest appearances were made by Chloe Bailey, Kandi Burruss, Shanti Das, Miss Lawerence, BMI’s Vice President of Creative Catherine Brewton, and Native Son’s founder Emil Wilbekin. It was here that Lil Nas X was presented with a proclamation from Atlanta Councilman Antonio Brown that declared October 20th as Lil Nas X Day.

Elsewhere, Mardequs Harris of The Southern AIDS Coalition, a non-partisan coalition that brings together government, community advocates, business leaders, and people living with HIV to end the HIV epidemic in the Southern United States, put together a choir to sing select songs from Montero. The entire choir was made up of members of the LGBTQ community, allies, and faith leaders, with each member wearing purple in honor of GLAAD’s #SpiritDay on October 21.

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

HER Gets Lost In The Soothing Sounds Of Her Studio In Her ‘For Anyone’ Video

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Nearly fives years after she made her debut with her first EP, H.E.R. Volume 1, HER finally released her first full-length album, Back Of My Mind, back in June, with features from Lil Baby, Chris Brown, Yung Bleu, Cordae, YG, Ty Dolla Sign, DJ Khaled, and Bryson Tiller. Now four months later, she’s dropped the video for one of its stand-out tracks, “For Anyone.” It’s a simple one, finding the singer getting comfortable in her studio while she gets lost in the soothing and warm sounds of the record.

The video arrives as HER is currently in the middle of her Back Of My Mind Tour. The shows feature Tone Stith as her opening act for a string of performances that lasts just under three weeks. So far she’s held performances in Tennessee, Texas, and Massachusetts, with stops in Pennsylvania, Washington D.C., Illinois, and Michigan remaining. Next year, HER will join Coldplay on their Music Of The Spheres World Tour, which runs from March to September 2022

Elsewhere, HER recently joined Kane Brown for their collaboration “Blessed & Fire” and recruited Lil Durk to remix her “Find A Way” track with Lil Baby.

You can watch the video above.

Back Of My Mind is out now via RCA Records. Get it here.

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

Rico Nasty, Danny Brown, and Tank and The Bangas Highlight The Comeback Of The WILD Red Bull SoundClash

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For the first time in ten years, Red Bull is returning to the US with their highly unusual, unpredictable and downright intriguing SoundClash concert battle. Think of it as Verzuz, meets a good old fashioned battle of the bands, meets the unforgettable Drake vs Lil Wayne tour of 2014. The 2021 event is taking place in Atlanta, Houston, Nashville and Chicago, and before we go any further, it’s important to understand the fairly insane rules of this function according to the SoundClash site:

The rules of the game are simple: to clash in the name of creating a one-of-a-kind party and score ultimate bragging rights. Over the course of four rounds, each band or artist will play covers, reimagine one of their competitor’s tracks, perform three of their own songs in a comfort-zone stretching new style (Folk? A capella? Electro pop? Why not?), and then finally pull out all the stops in a wildcard finale. (Improvisation? Special guests? On-stage antics? Almost anything is fair game.) At the end of the night, the audience will vote will determine a winner—but not one goes home without having a good time.

Make sense? Two artists on two stages and one winner in each of four cities as determined by the crowd. Here’s the breakdown of who battles who and where:

SoundClash Atlanta goes down on November 30th at The Eastern between Love Renaissance signees Shelley (fka DRAM) and Westside Boogie.

SoundClash Nashville pits “Queens of Gulf Coast Soul” at the Bayou Music Center on December 2nd, with a battle between Tank and the Bangas versus The Suffers.

SoundClash Houston is at Marathon Music Works on December 9th with a showdown between Bren Joy and a TBD opponent.

SoundClash Chicago might be the wildest of the all, with DC’s Rico Nasty facing off against Detroit lifer Danny Brown on December 16th at Radius.

Tickets and more info on each city’s event are available here.

Red Bull

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

R. Kelly Was Reportedly Put On Suicide Watch After His Conviction On Federal Sex Crimes

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At the end of last month, R. Kelly was found guilty of sex trafficking and racketeering after a nearly two-month trial. The charges against a single count of racketeering and eight violations of the Mann Act, which prohibits transporting people across states lines for the purpose of prostitution. Less than a month after the verdict was revealed, the singer was placed under suicide watch, according to the Chicago Tribune.

During a preliminary hearing on Wednesday, Kelly’s attorney Steve Greenberg told U.S. District Judge Harry Leinenweber “after he was found guilty, [Kelly] was placed under suicide watch.” However, it was noted that the watch has been lifted. The reveal comes after the trial date for his Chicago child pornography case was set for August 2022. In that case, he also faces charges for obstruction of justice in relation to alleged witness tampering and witness intimidation.

As for Kelly’s sex trafficking and racketeering conviction in New York, he faces life in prison as a result of the guilty verdict. The sentencing portion of the trial is set to begin on May 4, 2022. Greenberg revealed that he would be “revamping” his legal team for him in order to appeal the conviction once sentencing was finished. This comes after reports suggested that Kelly’s legal team for the New York trial was disorganized and unprepared.

Big Sean Delivers A Blistering LA Leakers Freestyle Over Songs By Drake, Jay-Z, Kanye West, And More

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It only took Big Sean five albums to find his way onto LA Leakers, the famed show on LA’s Power 106 platform that welcomes rappers to lay their hottest bars. The Detroit rapper took the mic for the show’s 122nd episode and he did not disappoint, freestyling for nearly nine minutes in an episode released on Wednesday. During his appearance, Sean rapped over Kanye West’s “Hurricane,” on which he originally had a verse, Drake and Jay-Z’s “Love All,” Jay-Z and Memphis Bleek’s “Dear Summer,” and Nardo Wick’s “Who Want Smoke??”

During his appearance, Sean touched on a number of topics. He spoke about Kanye West signing his advance check to him before officially bringing him onto the GOOD Music roster, being with Kobe Bryant on New Year’s Day in 2020 just weeks before the Lakers legend passed away, and NBA players shooting their shot in his girlfriend’s DMs. He also addressed artists he wrote hit songs for that failed to pay him for his work. “A lot of songs I wrote for icons that I still ain’t even get publishing on / And some of them up more than me,” he raps. “I don’t know how they sleep at night knowing they wrong.”

Sean celebrated his freestyle in a pair of posts on Twitter, writing, “Y’all really playing wit me man! Okay!” and “Donda signed my advance check on God, that’s how long we been at this…”

Snoop Dogg Teams Up With The Harlem Globetrotters For Their NFT Sitcom ‘Da Dogg Gone Gym’

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Snoop Dogg turned 50 years old today and despite living a half-century life, the longstanding hip-hop act has no plans to reduce his role as an entertainer. On Wednesday that he will team up with the Harlem Globetrotters in their upcoming NFT sitcom Da Dogg Gone Gym. According to Hypebeast, the sitcom is part of the Globetrotters New Tech, New Trainer, New Tour campaign, which will feature limited-edition releases from Snoop and the Globetrotters. This includes the rapper’s new theme song for the team, which will be exclusively available on the cryptocurrency promotion site, VAST.

The sitcom will take place during the 1970s and feature Snoop as a Globetrotter trainer working with the viral Bay Area dancer Junebug. A release date for has not yet been shared, but it marks his latest step into the NFT world. Earlier this year he released a song inspired by blockchains titled “NFT,” as well as his very own Snoop Dogg Coins. Last month, according to Hypebeast, he also revealed himself to be the real-life buyer behind the NFT moniker Cozomo de’ Medici.

In addition to the NFT sitcom announcement, Snoop Dogg joined E-40, Too Shoot, and Ice Cube in their video for “Big Subwoofer.” Together, the quartet comprises the rap supergroup Mount Westmore, and they premiered the song itself in a performance prior to a boxing matchup between Jake Paul and Ben Askren back in April.

Nicki Minaj Will Not Have To Pay A $20 Million Default Judgement In Her Harassment Lawsuit

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Nicki Minaj and her husband Kenneth Petty are currently facing a lawsuit from Jennifer Hough, who claims that, since getting married in 2019, the two have intimidated, bribed, and harassed her to change a past testimony in hopes of getting Perry removed from a sex offenders list. The harassment case has not yet started, but according to Rolling Stone, Minaj landed somewhat of a win, as it was ruled that she will not have to pay a $20 million default judgment in the case.

Earlier this week, Hough’s lawyer Tyrone Blackburn filed a motion on his client’s behalf alleging that Minaj and Perry failed to respond to the harassment case against them. However, a federal clerk for the Eastern District of New York ruled that Minaj did not fail to respond to the lawsuit, writing, “it appears” that she filed paperwork last week to hire a lawyer to defend her in the case. Despite this, the clerk noted that Petty “has not filed an answer or otherwise moved with respect to the complaint.”

Minaj delivered a sworn statement on October 15, stating that she hired a lawyer last month, but “innocent miscommunications” led to late payment fees and the inability to secure the attorney’s services. “My failure to respond to the complaint was the product of an innocent mistake, and I ask the court to excuse the delay so that I can defend what I believe to be an entirely frivolous case,” her statement read.

Judd Burstein, who will now represent Minaj in the case, shared a statement that aligned with her claims. “I confirm the truth of those portions of defendant’s declaration concerning my role in her failure to secure my services promptly,” he said.

Despite the ruling, Blackburn plans on defaulting the motion against Petty for the $20 million. “It’s interesting that Kenneth Petty is currently in the Eastern District of New York suing the state of New York, but he has no respect for this proceeding and no respect for this judge to come forward and to answer for raping Jennifer Hough in 1994 and all the harassment he and his wife and his goons visited upon her since then,” he told Rolling Stone.

Wu-Tang Clan’s ‘Once Upon A Time In Shaolin’ Buyers Have Been Revealed

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The buyers of the Wu-Tang Clan album, Once Upon A Time In Shaolin, have been revealed as promised. PleasrDAO, a collective of self-declared “DeFi leaders, early NFT collectors, and digital artists,” with a penchant for “acquiring culturally significant pieces with a charitable twist.” The once-of-a-kind album, which was purchased by, “Pharma Bro” Martin Shkreli in 2015 for $2 million, certainly qualifies. The album, created by RZA in secret over a six-year period, was auctioned off as a kind of high-art stunt after only being played for a handful of people.

Shkreli, of course, lost possession of the album when it was seized by the US government after his 2018 conviction for securities fraud and subsequently auctioned off earlier this year. At the time of the sale, the buyers in question remained anonymous, agreeing to confidentiality with regard to the ultimate sale price. Today, though, The New York Times revealed PleasrDAO as the anonymous buyer in a story documenting both that sale price, $4 million, and the collective’s reasoning and ultimate goals for the album.

It should come as no surprise that the endgame is to make the album available to fans in some way — with permission from RZA and producer Cilvaringz — which, given the group’s own self-description, will likely involve non-fungible token (NFT) blockchain technology. Jamis Johnson, the group’s “Chief Pleasing Officer,” according to Rolling Stone, explained, “This album at its inception was a kind of protest against rent-seeking middlemen, people who are taking a cut away from the artist. Crypto very much shares that same ethos. The album itself is kind of the O.G. NFT.”

PleasrDAO — which stands for “decentralized autonomous organization” — shares collective ownership among its 74 members and have Cilvaringz support to make the album more widely available through listening parties or gallery exhibitions, but for now, it remains bound to the terms of its original sale: It cannot be released to the general public or reproduced until 2103.

Watch Belly’s Passionate ‘Moment Of Silence’ Performance For ‘UPROXX Sessions’

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In today’s UPROXX Sessions, Belly stops by to deliver a passionate performance of his song “Moment Of Silence.” The Canadian Roc Nation rapper got California cozy to show off the new track from his recently released album, See You Next Wednesday, rocking a colorful ensemble that countered his usual monochromatic looks. His performance drops after he previously made his React Like You Know debut, joining our panel to chat up Lupe Fiasco’s “Kick, Push” video.

Belly’s new album, See You Next Wednesday, marked a return to the limelight for him after releasing his last album, Immigrant, in 2018. Between then and now, he stayed busy behind the scenes, helping his XO Records benefactor The Weeknd with his smash hit album, After Hours, which won the two Toronto natives five 2021 Juno Awards (the Canadian equivalent of the Grammys). Belly then made his return earlier this year with a string of singles promoting See You Next Wednesday, including “Better Believe” with Young Thug, “Die For It” featuring Nas, and “Requiem” with fellow Canadian Nav.

Watch Belly’s “Moment Of Silence” performance for 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.