Music

Gunna’s Charitable Efforts Were Honored With A ‘Gunna Day’ In South Fulton, Georgia

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This week, YSL Records rapper Gunna became the latest entertainer from the hip-hop world to be honored with a hometown holiday as South Fulton, Georgia declared September 16 Gunna Day to honor the rapper’s philanthropic efforts in the area. Gunna hails from neighboring College Park and has focused his community outreach in the area through projects like Gunna’s Drip Closet and Goodr Grocery Store. In addition, his Gunna Great Giveaway Foundation has hosted free grocery stores in the community and helped families in Houston, Texas survive this year’s winter storms after the intense cold disrupted the city’s infrastructure.

South Fulton Mayor William “Bill” Edwards announced the honor at a special event on Thursday, saying, “I hereby proclaim Sept. 16 as Sergio Giavanni ‘Gunna’ Kitchens Day in the City of South Fulton.” He also presented the rapper with a proclamation noting his efforts which read, “Gunna is committed to giving back to the community that raised him, buffered him, sheltered him and supported him by creating Gunna’s Drip Closet and Goodr Grocery Store, which is set to provide students of McNair Middle School with access to free meals, clothing, and toiletries for years to come.”

Earlier this year, Gunna and his YSL labelmates also hosted dinner for 30 Fulton County Jail inmates and their families after paying their bail, celebrating with the video for “Paid The Fine.” Previously, Houston’s Travis Scott was honored with his own “Astroworld Day” in 2018.

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

D Smoke And His Brother SiR Wonder What ‘Common Sense’ Costs In A Soulful New Single

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Earlier this week, D Smoke announced the title and release date of his upcoming second album, War & Wonders, after releasing a pair of singles in 2021 that built anticipation for a follow-up to his Grammy-nominated debut, Black Habits. In January, he started the long-play rollout with the video for “It’s OK,” then held back on releasing “Shame On You” until August, with its video following this month.

However, it seems now that the announcement is official, he’s not waiting to put out new music. He did so today in the form of “Common Sense,” a jazzy, introspective single that questions “Who you working for? / What you represent?” Smoke’s brother, TDE singer SiR, also appears to a plaintive chorus wondering, “What’s the price we pay for common sense?” And although the title’s parallel to the rapper who formerly went by Common Sense is probably a coincidence, D Smoke actually just performed with the Chicago legend, posting pics from the event on his Instagram.

In addition to the singles promoting his new album, D Smoke also released a handful of commercial singles this year, including the Last Chance U theme “Basketball,” the Spotify Sessions single “Sade,” and a feature verse on Nigerian artist Fireboy DML’s “Champion.”

Watch D Smoke’s “Common Sense” video featuring SiR above.

War & Wonders is due 9/24 via Woodworks/EMPIRE.

The Alchemist Says Earl Sweatshirt’s ‘Incredible’ Next Album Is Done And Will Be 21 Minutes Long

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Earl Sweatshirt hasn’t dropped a new album since 2018’s Some Rap Songs but that may soon change according to his frequent collaborator The Alchemist. The producer told Anthony Fantano’s The Needle Drop that an album he and Earl have been working on was recently completed and sounds “incredible.”

“He has an album that is done and it’s incredible,” Alc reveals. “I’m excited about that and I do have some work on that… It’s insane. I think everybody will be happy. He’s in his bag.” When asked whether he had any additional details about the project, he said, “I couldn’t even describe it… that would be a disservice to it.”

Fans have no shortage of collaborative work between the producer and the rapper to judge by. Going back to last year, the duo has worked together extensively on tracks including “Whole World” with Maxo, “Nobles” with Navy Blue, and even an entire secret album hidden on YouTube under a fake name.

Whether or not this new album is the one Vince Staples recently hinted at working on with the duo remains to be seen, although The Alchemist did say, as he does in the interview above, that he’s waiting on Earl.

Watch The Alchemist’s full interview with Anthony Fantano above.

Earl Sweatshirt is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Lil Nas X Says Drake And Nicki Minaj Aren’t On ‘Montero’ For Good Reasons

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After a months-long gestation and a slew of mild controversies, Lil Nas X’s debut album Montero has finally arrived. The album turned out to be a star-studded affair, with appearances from major names like Doja Cat, Elton John, Megan Thee Stallion, and Miley Cyrus. However, one pair of prominent names were missing from the final tracklist, although according to Nas, it wasn’t from lack of effort on his part. During the triumphant young artist’s recent interview with New York’s The Breakfast Club, he revealed which stars were missing and explained their absences.

He explained that despite reaching out to both Drake and Nicki Minaj, he was unable to secure their features. “No reply from Nicki, Drake was still working on [Certified Lover Boy].” Nas accounted for Drake’s rejection by pointing out how busy he was on his own album. “Drake replied, ’cause you know Gee Roberson’s my manager,” he said. “Drake and Gee are cool. And he was still working on Certified Lover Boy and whatnot and he was 100 percent focused on that. This was like a few weeks ago and I understood completely, and he said he’s down to do something but [it was] just not the right time. He was trying to get his own sh*t together.”

When asked which song he wanted Drake on, Nas’ answer, “Dolla Sign Slime,” prompted some light roasting from Charlamagne, who wondered, “‘Slime’ is gang slang. Is Nas in a gang? Is Nas banging?” Ever the diplomat, Nas replied simply, “Next question,” with a shy grin. The hosts took a minute to educate him on the slang’s origins after he explained how it’s meaning has expanded for Gen Z — it’s a pretty funny moment.

Watch Lil Nas X’s interview with The Breakfast Club above.

Montero is out now via Columbia Records. Get it here.

Lil Nas X Literally Gives Birth To His Album ‘Montero’ In A Hilarious New Promo Video

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Over the past couple weeks, Lil Nas X has handled the lead-up to his new album Montero as brilliantly and entertainingly as anybody ever has. It started earlier this month, when he shared some “maternity” photos, for which he made use of prosthetics to give himself a pregnant-looking belly. He went on to share a baby registry (full of charities to support) and declare yesterday that, with his album release just hours away, he was having contractions.

Sure enough, when the album was released at midnight last night, the rapper “gave birth” to the album in a new promo video. In the clip, Nas moans and groans as he’s wheeled through a hospital, on the brink of giving birth. Gags abound before he finally delivers the baby… which unfortunately for him was the vinyl edition instead of something easier to push out, like a CD or cassette tape.

As he holds his new bundle of joy, the proud parent says through sighs of relief, “It’s already Grammy-nominated.”

He had some other stellar promotional tactics outside of the whole pregnancy story line, like his series of parody billboards.

Check out the Montero “birth” video above.

Montero is out now via Columbia. Get it here.

Sam Smith And Summer Walker Provide Hope For The World’s Lost Souls On ‘You Will Be Found’

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Summer Walker has lent her talents to a number of artists in the past. Her collaborations include work with Khalid, 21 Savage, Young Rog, Lil Tjay, and others. For her latest track, she and Sam Smith combine their talents for their new single, “You Will Be Found.” The track is one of the many contributions to the soundtrack for the upcoming film, Dear Evan Hansen. The movie follows a high school senior who suffers from social anxiety through a journey of self-discovery and acceptance following the tragic suicide of a classmate.

The duo’s “You Will Be Found” is an uplifting track that aims to provide hope to the lost souls of the world. Their collaboration comes last than a year after Smith released their third album, Love Goes. The 16-track project arrives with 18 songs and features from Labrinth, Normani, Demi Lovato, Calvin Harris, and Burna Boy. As for Summer Walker, the LVRN singer is placing the finishing touches on her upcoming sophomore album, one that will hopefully match the huge success that she had with her 2019 debut Over It. While a title or release date have yet to be revealed for the album, the singer confirmed that Lil Durk, Ari Lennox, and SZA are some of the features fans will hear on the upcoming project.

You can press play on the track above.

Burna Boy is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Majid Jordan Praises A New Lover That Provides Relief Like The ‘Summer Rain’ On Their Latest Song

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It’s amazing that Majid Jordan decided to stick around with their fans for once this year. Next month will mark four years since the duo delivered with their debut album, The Space Between to the world. The project was a quality output and those who enjoyed looked forward to more. Unfortunately, for the better part of the years since that album, supporters of Majid Jordan were left high and dry to wait for the duo’s next release which, thankfully, arrived earlier this year. Their outputs continue with their latest release, “Summer Rain.” On the track, they commend their new lover for calming their stress just like the summer rain does in a heatwave.

Majid Jordan’s 2021 return began this past spring with the release of “Waves Of Blue.” The confident single was the perfect way to begin their comeback as the duo used pop-leaning production for an upbeat free-floating track that found them pouring their heart to an unnamed love interest. They followed up that song with “Been Through That,” a dancefloor-friendly track that touched on the different levels of love. Majid Jordan spoke about both songs in a tweet prior to the release of “Been Through That.”

“’Waves of Blue’ was made at the very beginning of this album, and it only makes sense that we begin our next chapter with this song,” they wrote. “This song is like staring at the sea – you’re not in the water, but you’re getting carried away by its currents.”

You can press play on “Summer Rain” in the video above.

Majid Jordan is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Doja Cat Wows Listeners With Her Snappy Verse On Lil Nas X’s Pilates Anthem, ‘Scoop’

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At long last, Lil Nas X’s debut album Montero has finally arrived and it’s quickly earned itself a favorite among his vast fan base. Many of the album’s listeners have already sprinted to “Scoop,” his collaboration with Doja Cat thanks to the “Say So” rapper’s fiery contribution to the duos’ pilates anthem. The song was already a highly anticipated cut from Montero as Lil Nas had previously teased it in an energetic video snippet that showed him turning up and rapping along to the track.

Montero as a whole comes complete with 15 songs and features from Megan Thee Stallion, Jack Harlow, Elton John, and Miley Cyrus in addition to Doja Cat. Lil Nas put up one of the more unique promotional runs for the album as he endured a fake pregnancy to lead up to the “birth” of his album. The singer went through all the motions like having a maternity photoshoot, opening a baby registry, and dealing with the contractions in the days leading up to the release of Montero.

Elsewhere, the singer made the Time list of 100 most influential people and performed “Industry Baby” with Jack Harlow at the 2021 MTV VMAs. The rapper also celebrated the album’s release with a hilarious video that captured him birthing Montero in the hospital.

You can listen to “Scoop” in the video above.

Montero is out now via Columbia. Get it here.

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

Lil Nas X Falls For A Football Teammate Living A Secret Life In His ‘That’s What I Want’ Video

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Lil Nas X has been quite busy in the weeks leading up to his highly-anticipated debut album, Montero. The singer is in the midst of a fake pregnancy complete with a baby registry and contractions. He also performed “Industry Baby” at the 2021 MTV VMAs with Jack Harlow and teamed up with Elton John to trade iconic looks for an Uber Eats campaign. It’s all a part of Lil Nas’ mantra to have fun through it all in the music world and it continues with the release of his debut album Montero and a new video for “That’s What I Want.”

In the new visual, Lil Nas falls for a teammate on his football team and, while their relationship quickly advances, Lil Nas finds out that his new companion is actually living a secret life, a discovery that practically breaks his heart. “That’s What I Want” is the latest track from Montero to receive the visual treatment. It joins a collection that features a highly controversial hell-themed video for “Montero (Call Me By Your Name),” a solemn effort for “Sun Goes Down,” and a breakout from prison with Jack Harlow for “Industry Baby.”

The singer’s new album and video come after he was added to the 2021 Time list of the 100 most influential people. Lil Nas joined the likes of Billie Eilish, Bad Bunny, Kane Brown, Britney Spears, Angélique Kidjo, Swizz Beatz, and Timbaland as other inclusions from the music world.

You can press play on the new video for “That’s What I Want” above.

Montero is out now via Columbia. Get it here.

HER Invites Lil Durk On Board For A Remix Of ‘Find A Way’ With Lil Baby

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Earlier this year, HER released her debut album Back Of My Mind. The 21-track effort came after nearly five years of projects that included HER and I Used To Know Her. Even in the years prior to her debut, the singer was able to tally a collection of Grammy awards, but 2021 became the year to celebrate her official coming-out party. After fans were able to enjoy the project for the better part of the last three months, HER updates one of its standout tracks with an additional guest appearance from Lil Durk.

HER’s “Find A Way” with Lil Baby receives a nice remix treatment thanks to a new verse from Lil Durk. The track is one of the more uptempo and hard-hitting songs on the album, so the addition of Durk makes sense for the record. Furthermore, the two rappers recently joined forces for their joint album, Voice Of The Heroes.

The remix comes after HER responded to critics who have labeled her as an “industry plant.” “With social media, people think they know everything about success,” she said during an interview with Vulture. “People see my success now, and they don’t understand the sacrifices, the 15-hour days in the studio, the pressure from my parents to go to college.”

She added, “Most of the time, people think success is followers and crazy BTS popularity, like if you’re not Beyonce, you’re not famous. ‘Oh, you’ll get there one day.’ Like, everybody doesn’t want to be Beyonce! For me, I grinded it out kinda like a rapper: I dropped a mixtape, nobody knew who I was, it was a very slow build, and here we are now.”

You can press play on the remix in the video above.

Back Of My Mind is out now via MBK Entertainment/RCA. Get it here.