Music

Pop Smoke’s Upcoming Posthumous Album Receives A New Title

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It’s been almost a year since the release of Pop Smoke’s first posthumous album, Shoot For The Stars, Aim For The Moon, and there’s more en route. The late rapper’s management recently revealed that a second such release is arriving on July 16, news that was broken in a new trailer that captured Pop Smoke sharing some motivational words with listeners. “Never let anybody get in between you and your creations,” he says in the video. “Why you just trying to be cool? You gotta make history.” With just a few days left until its arrival, Pop Smoke’s manager, Steven Victor, provided a new update.

On Twitter, Victor revealed that the late rapper’s second posthumous album is called Faith. This is not what some fans presumed it would be titled. Thanks to the pre-save page on Apple Music for the project, many believed the album would be titled Pop Smoke, as that was the name that appeared in the album title location.

The news comes after Smoke’s team shared the outro from the upcoming album. It clocks in at a brief 31 seconds and features some inspirational words from the late rapper himself. While Faith won’t be here for another five days, fans in New York and Los Angeles can preview the album’s songs thanks to QR codes on posters promoting the upcoming release.

Pop Smoke is out 7/16 via Victor Victor Worldwide/Republic. Pre-order it here.

Khalid Debuts His New Single, ‘New Normal,’ At Richard Branson’s Virgin Galactic Space Flight Launch

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For some time after he released his sophomore album Free Spirit, Khalid kept things rather quiet on the music side of things. The singer shared a few singles in the two years that followed, but things have been picking up as of late for the Texas-bred singer. With his third album hopefully on the way, Khalid is back with new music and his latest is an effort titled, “New Normal.” As of right now, the track has not been officially released but the singer debuted it during a performance at Richard Branson’s Virgin Galactic space flight launch on Sunday.

Prior to its release, Khalid shared with Rolling Stone that the song served as his “personal therapy” last year during the COVID-19 pandemic. “Around this time last year, I was super fascinated and gravitated toward space,” he added, tying in the song with the space flight launch. “I was watching this comet by the name of Neowise last year, and space travel is something that I’ve always been interested in as well. And I’ve been going through the motions of understanding this new, postmodern future that’s coming together, especially when it comes down to technology — it’s something that really excites me.”

Prior to debuting the new song, Khalid teamed with Tate McRae for their collaboration, “Working.” Khalid also connected with J Balvin for “Otra Noche Sin Ti.”

Watch the performance at the 60:20:12 mark in the video above.

Pop Smoke’s Unreleased Songs Can Be Heard Through QR Codes In New York City And Los Angeles

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Earlier this month marked one year since the world received Pop Smoke’s first posthumous album, Shoot For The Stars, Aim For The Moon. It also came five months after the rapper was tragically shot and killed during an attempted robbery that took place in a Hollywood mansion he rented. By the end of the year, the project was one of the most popular releases of 2020 as it became a mainstay on the Billboard 200. Since its arrival, the late rapper’s team has promised a second posthumous effort from the Brooklyn native, something they confirmed last month with the announcement of Pop Smoke.

At this point the music world is just days away from receiving the new project, but for folks in a pair of cities there’s an early opportunity to listen to records from the upcoming album thanks to a unique promotional tactic. Pop Smoke fans can preview songs from the upcoming album thanks to QR codes located on flyers throughout New York City and Los Angeles. The specific location of these flyers is unknown, but some have been discovered and shared on social media by excited fans.

The flyers were posted days after the late rapper’s team released the “Outro” for the upcoming album. In it, he delivers a motivational message that lines up with the thoughts he shared in a trailer for the upcoming album. “Never let anybody get in between you and your creations,” the late rapper says in the video. “Why you just trying to be cool? You gotta make history.”

You check out videos of the flyers with the QR codes above.

Pop Smoke is out 7/16 via Victor Victor Worldwide/Republic. Pre-order it here.

Justin Bieber And Chance The Rapper Will Headline The Freedom Experience Concert

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Justin Bieber and Chance The Rapper have shared a number of moments throughout their careers. From their early collaborations that include “Roller Coaster” and “Juke Jam” to their most recent one with “Holy,” the two artists are quite familiar with each other. So it’s no surprise that they’ve both signed on to headline the upcoming Freedom Experience concert in Los Angeles. The event is the finale of 1DayLA’s weeklong COVID-19 service event that takes place from July 18-24.

According to a press release for the event, 1DayLA’s goal is to mobilize 20,000 volunteers in the Southern California area to help “organize beautification projects, back-to-school events, free medical clinics, homeless assistance, and aid distribution.” The concert itself will take place at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California which holds up to 70,000 people. Jaden, Tori Kelly, and more are also slated to perform at the upcoming show.

Bieber revealed that his reason for joining the 1DayLA show was his commitment to the “powerful idea that a movement for change can start with individuals helping one another and their community.”

The news comes after Bieber joined The Kid Laroi for their latest collaboration, “Stay,” an effort Laroi described as “probably the most organic way of making a song I’ve ever done.” Chance, on the other hand, is preparing to release his upcoming concert film, Magnificent Coloring Book.

Scroll up to see a flyer for the event and for more on 1DayLA, click here.

Vince Staples Explained How The Music Industry ‘Monetizes People’s Struggles’

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On Friday, Vince Staples ended the nearly three-year-long stretch that he went without releasing a full-length project to fans. The Long Beach native shared his official third album, Vince Staples, and it arrived following weeks of frequent headline-making comments and interviews from the rapper.

Vince continues that streak with a recent sit-down with The Independent where he shared his thoughts on the current landscape of the music industry and how some rapper use gang affiliation to boost their rise and appeal in hip-hop.

“This is a business where we monetize people’s struggles, pain, death and murder,” he said. “If you’re a kid from a situation, and you feel the only way that you will get out of the situation where there’s immense poverty or bad home life or low self-esteem is by doing this thing that everyone is selling, you’re going to try to sell that thing.”

He added, “We’ve seen people market and distribute death and destruction within our communities for decades; they do these things because it gets attention. What do we really expect when we give people millions of dollars to say they’re tough? They’re gonna say they’re tough. It’s common sense.”

The rapper also pointed out that rather than focus on the individuals doing good, the media instead choose to pay attention to those who fit a “bad boy” image.

“These people who do the wrong thing are always brought up [by the media], but no one who’s done the right things has been mentioned,” he said.

Vince Staples is out now via Blacksmith Recordings/Motown Records. Pre-order it here.

Pooh Shiesty, G Herbo, And No More Heroes Do It All In Their Reverent Video For ‘Switch It Up’

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While legal troubles have kept Pooh Shiesty in the news, the Memphis native isn’t letting it stop him from sharing new content with fans. His latest release comes in the form of a new visual for “Switch It Up” with G Herbo and No More Heroes.

The video is quite the reverent effort as the trio gets busy on both the good and bad sides of the laws They accomplish some light flexing throughout the video while giving viewers a look into the not-so-good deeds they involve themselves in.

The song is housed on Shiesty’s spring deluxe edition of his debut album, Shiesty Season, which he released back in May. The project’s arrival came just before a string of low moments for the Memphis native. In the weeks that followed, the rapper would be arrested and charged for two separate shooting incidents in Miami, for both of which he was denied bond and remains in police custody. The first came during a club event where he allegedly shot someone after money was apparently stolen from him. This led to a charge of aggravated battery. The second came from a 2020 Miami robbery that went wrong and led to the rapper and a friend shooting two men. In this case, he was charged with discharging a firearm during a violent crime, conspiracy, and robbery under a law regulating commerce.

You can watch Pooh Shiesty’s new video above.

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

Travis Scott’s New Cannabis Line, ‘Cactus Farms,’ Marks His First Step Into The Marijuana Industry

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While it’s been scarce on the music side of things for Travis Scott lately, the rapper has proven himself to be the king of brand partnerships over the past twelve months. He’s teamed up with the likes of McDonald’s, PlayStation, Fortnite, and more to deliver merchandise and content that his fans rushed to get their hands on. Scott looks to continue that streak as he joined forces with marijuana cultivator Connected Cannabis to launch his very own cannabis line, Cactus Farms. The strains are already available in some dispensaries in a few states across the country.

For those who are interested in trying out the Cactus Farms line, they’ll have to stop by dispensaries that stock Connected Cannabis products in California or Harvest dispensaries in Arizona. According to Connected Cannabis, the first strain from Travis’ Cactus Farms line is a hybrid that was hand-picked by the rapper himself. It’s labeled as an “Indica-leaning strain” that features a “dense, purple bud that releases a pungent, funky-sweet gas aroma rounded out by a unique berry twist,” according to NME.

The news comes after a report revealed Travis and Meek Mill had to separate from each other following a verbal altercation at a Fourth Of July event earlier this month. The cause of the fight is still unknown at the moment, but thankfully, the two rappers walked away from each other before things turned physical.

Meek Mill is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Jay-Z, Drake, Rihanna, SZA, Bruno Mars, And More Appear On Barack Obama’s 2021 Summer Playlist

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Ever since his days as president, Barack Obama has been very open about his musical taste. Year after year, he’s shared playlists of favorite songs, both old and new. On Saturday he continued that trend. He dropped his 2021 summer playlist on Instagram, and it’s comprised of 38 songs featuring some of the biggest names of today and yesterday.

“With so many folks getting together with family and friends, there’s a lot to celebrate this summer,” Barack wrote. “I put together a playlist of some of the songs I’ve been listening to lately — it’s a mix of old and new, household names and emerging artists, and a whole lot in between.”

Some of the artists include Rihanna (“Desparado”), SZA (“Good Days“), Bruno Mars and Anderson .Paak (“Leave The Door Open“), Drake (“Wants And Needs”), Migos (“Straightenin“), and J. Cole (“Neighbors”). Older additions include The Rolling Stones (“Tumbling Dice”), Stevie Wonder (“If You Really Love Me”), Bob Marley and The Wailers (“Exodus”), Erykah Badu (“Didn’t Cha Know”), Bob Dylan (“I’ll Be Your Baby Tonight”), and many more.

You can see the full list of songs on the playlist in the post above.

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

Drake Reveals ‘Certified Lover Boy’ Is Complete And Will Be Mixed Soon

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Drake promised fans they would get his sixth album Certified Lover Boy by the end of January. A knee surgery forced that back, and since then the rapper has been extremely tight-lipped about a new release date, only going as far as to say it would be out by summer’s end. And, as of now, at least, it seems he’ll make good on his promise.

Drake made a surprise appearance on the Sirius show Fry Yiy Friday, where he slipped in a casual update about Certified Lover Boy. “You know Uncle Drake’s on his way back home to mix the album,” he said on the show, adding that there’s “a bunch of new tracks coming.” While there isn’t a timetable for the album’s mixing stage, fans can rest assured knowing Certified Lover Boy is very close to arriving.

While the wait for Certified Lover Boy has been a pretty long one, at least Drake has been releasing new music. He recently teamed up with Brent Faiyaz for “Wasting Time,” which arrived after he lent verses to Migos and Nicki Minaj for their respective tracks “Havin My Way” and “Seeing Green“.

You can listen to Drake’s comments in the video above.

Tinashe’s Futuristic ‘Bouncin’ Flaunts Her Flirtatious Ways

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As a newly independent artist, Tinashe has a lot more leeway with what she releases and when. In the case of her new song “Bouncin,” the day is today, and its release is stripped-down and no-frills. Without releasing a video or putting out a whole bunch of fanfare, Tinashe keeps the attention squarely on the music itself rather than its visual presentation or the circumstances of its rollout — a kind of old-school way of going about things that suggests she may be saving those components for a later date.

As far as the song itself goes, it fits firmly in her usual lane of futuristic-sounding, pop-leaning R&B. A flirtatious, dancefloor-ready song, “Bouncin” finds her enjoying the physicality of seducing a potential paramour. “Watch it bouncin’ on the ground / Got my edges sweating out / Turn it up extra loud,” she croons. She also jokes that she hopes her dirty pics “make it to the cloud,” which seems like the opposite of what most stars want, but hey, more power to her if it’s true.

“Bouncin” joins the Buddy-featuring “Pasadena” as the singer’s only two single releases of the year, and while that might constitute a slow rollout for a signed artist, it actually gives Tinashe more room to work her singles without the pressure of the arbitrary deadline and release schedule that might constrain her art and keep it from flourishing. She gets to take her time, which is alright with her fans because the music she’s put out lately has been stellar.

Check out “Bouncin” above.