Music

Nicki Minaj Celebrates The History-Making Success Behind Her Re-Released Mixtape ‘Beam Me Up Scotty’

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Nicki Minaj went more than a year without new music. Thankfully, that changed earlier this month when the rapper uploaded her beloved 2009 mixtape Beam Me Up Scotty to streaming services, even adding three new songs to it. One of the new additions, “Seeing Green,” found the stars of the original Young Money crew — Drake, Lil Wayne, and Minaj herself — reuniting for the first time in nearly three years. The re-release debuted at No. 2 on the Billbaord 200 and became the highest-charting re-released mixtape by a rapper and the highest-debuting female rap mixtape in history.

After hearing of the album’s newfound success, Minaj took to Instagram to celebrate. “I love you guys so much,” she wrote to her fans. “Thank you. Can’t wait to share my album with you real soon. I have to say this. Don’t care who takes it the wrong way.” She then went on throw some shade at those who used TikTok challenges and merch bundles to boost their sales.

“Beam Me Up Scotty no singles ‘Seeing Green’ is over 5 mins with no hook,” she wrote, “Singles now are 2-3 mins, catchy hook. ‘Fractions’ is just rapping for over 3 mins, no hook. No videos (which is always the biggest push for females, myself included). No RADIO, very little play listing due to a surprise release (artists get over 100 playlists for big launches).” She continued, “No TikTok challenges (which has become EXTREMELY helpful to all artists) love the app, btw. No merch to tie into sales AND NO PRE-EXISTING singles out to ADD to my FIRST WEEK SALES.”

Beam Me Up Scotty is out on all DSPs via Republic Records. Get it here.

Pop Smoke, Jack Harlow, ASAP Rocky, Lil Durk, And Many More Will Appear On The Upcoming ‘F9’ Soundtrack

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The Fast & Furious franchise has delivered action-packed thrillers for two decades now, and after a year of waiting, fans are about to get F9, its ninth installment. Just a week before the film hits theaters, a star-studded soundtrack is dropping. On Wednesday, the tracklist for the upcoming project was revealed.

Atlantic Records

The soundtrack offers 14 tracks from well-known acts that include ASAP Rocky, Jack Harlow, Pop Smoke, Lil Durk, Offset, Rico Nasty, RZA, Trippie Redd, Don Toliver, and Ty Dolla Sign. Skepta, Juicy J, Project Pat, Kevin Gates, and the late King Von also join the cast of talented artists.

As for the film itself, the cast includes familiar names like Vin Diesel, Michelle Rodriguez, Tyrese, and Ludacris who will all resume their popular roles from the franchise’s past installments. And from the sound of it, the movie completely delivers on bringing yet more over-the-top ridiculousness to the multiplexes — even finally taking the franchise into space. While F9 arrives on June 25, fans can expect to get a first listen to the soundtrack a week earlier on June 17.

You can view the tracklist in the post above.

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

Mike Dean And Shepard Fairey Reunite For Their Second ‘Obey 4:22’ NFT Auction

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Last month, well-known producer Mike Dean and noted street artist Shepard Fairey joined forces for Obey 4:22, their first NFT auction. The collection featured open-ended digital collectibles created with help from Original Protocol, and it was inspired by the duo’s experiences during the pandemic, aiming to showcase how “art and music can be personal, immersive and connecting to serve all of humanity.” Now, just a month after the first Obey 4:22, Dean and Fairey are reuniting for a sequel.

The second round will commence on May 27th at 9pm PST and last for 48 hours, ending on May 29 at 9pm PST. In this edition, the top eight bidders will each be given digital items from the rare collection, which features physical art, two never-to-be-released tracks, and exclusive experiences provided by Dean.

Items from the collection will be dished out on a tiered basis. The highest bidder will receive a unique Platinum Edition Animated NFT Art and all 7 Gold and a Silver Tier NFT Art for a total of 8 NFTs. The package also includes a one-of-one, never-to-be-released song from Dean, one song collaboration in the studio with Dean, one studio hangout session with Dean, a one-of-one unique 24×24 physical album art created by Fairey, and multitrack stems for Dean’s entire ‘4:22’ album.

The second, third, and fourth-highest bidders will get a unique Gold Edition Animated NFT Art and all Silver Tier NFT Art, which amounts to four NFTs. They will also receive a studio hangout session with Dean, a unique 12×12 Physical Earth Force Art created by Fairey, and multitrack stems for Mike Dean’s track “Earth Force.”

Finally, the remaining bidders within the top eight will earn one unique Silver Edition NFT Art made by Fairey for the never-to-be released song, “To The Moon,” made by Dean.

For more information on the upcoming Obey 4:22 NFT, click here.

24kGoldn And Future Seek ‘Company’ From A Plethora Of Women In Their Carefree New Video

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After sharing his debut album, El Dorado, earlier this year, San Francisco’s own 24kGoldn has remained quiet. That came to an end today with the release of his new video for “Company,” which sports an appearance from Future. It begins with 24kGoldn surrounded by a number of women in a room draped in gold fabrics and accessories. After walking through the house for a while, 24kGoldn lends the mic to Future, who posts up in a jewelry-filled tub with a pair of ladies as he rips through his verse.

The new album arrived months after 24kGoldn landed the first chart-topping track of his career with “Mood.” At the time, the San Francisco native celebrated the feat in a post to his Instagram post. “I’m only 19 years old, I’m not even 20 years old and we’re on top of the world, No. 1 on the Billboard charts,” he said in a video. “I did not think this sh*t was gonna happen this fast, if I’m being 100 percent honest with y’all. But I’m grateful as f*ck. I knew we could do it, and it was just a matter of time, yo.”

You can watch the new video for “Company” above.

El Dorado is out now via Columbia. Get it here.

Seven DMX Singles Were Certifed Gold Or Platinum This Week

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Although DMX has long been one of hip-hop’s best-selling artists — see: his five consecutive No. 1 album debuts on the Billboard 200 and the near-ubiquity of singles like “Party Up” and “X Gon’ Give It To Ya” — many of his most recognizable singles were only certified gold or platinum by the RIAA this week, nearly two months after his death in early April.

The certified songs include “How It’s Goin’ Down” (gold), the aforementioned “Party Up” (platinum), “Ruff Ryders Anthem” (platinum), “What These B*tches Want” featuring Sisqo (gold), “What’s My Name” (gold), “Where The Hood At” (platinum), and “X Gon’ Give It To Ya” (platinum).

For those wondering why these seven songs were only recently certified when some — like “X Gon’ Give It To Ya,” which shipped and/or sold over a million copies in 2017 — surpassed their respective certification thresholds years ago. Fortunately, DJ Booth’s Brian Zisook explained the phenomenon, which he called the result of “a combination of laziness and cost.”

“Labels often will wait until there is a ton of eligible records and they apply for certifications in bulk and then use the number as fodder for coverage,” he explained. “These 7 records didn’t all just become eligible at once.” In a separate tweet, he elaborated that, “Artists will often ask or remind their labels to apply for them on their behalf” sometime after their eligibility — which, in X’s case, couldn’t have been the highest priority (in 2017, he was on trial for tax fraud, spending nearly a year in prison as a result and spending time in and out of rehab).

However, with X’s posthumous album, Exodus, dropping this Friday, there was perhaps no more opportune time for Def Jam to file for certifications — even if it is in semi-bad taste. You can check out one of the first songs released from the album, the Griselda-featuring “Hood Blues,” now.

Saweetie Once Removed Her Tongue Piercing After A Few Days Just So She Could Eat A Cheeseburger

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Along with her viral music, Saweetie is known for cooking up some head-scratching food combinations like oysters and instant ramen or spaghetti and ranch dressing. The rapper is not shy about her tastes and oftentimes posts her concoctions right to Instagram and Twitter. Now, she recalls the time she removed a fresh tongue piercing because she was craving a burger.

Saweetie sat down with Twitter for a #BehindTheTweets segment where she explained the story behind some of her most memorable tweets. One tweet in particular touched on a time she pierced her tongue junior year in college. “Unfortunately, my tongue was swollen and I couldn’t eat,” she said. “And you know your girl loves to eat. So I remember I thugged it out for like a week and was eating nothing but soup. But then one day I was just really craving a cheeseburger so I popped it out so I could eat my cheeseburger.”

Elsewhere in the video, Saweetie explains how odd it feels to log onto social media to see her name trending. “You know that photo from SpongeBob that’s just like, you walk in and then you walk out? I don’t know. Sometimes I’m just minding my business and then I log on and then I’m trending for some odd reason. Peole are talking sh*t. Sometimes I’m just like, ‘Y’all weird.’”

Watch Saweetie’s #BehindTheTweets segment above.

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

Jay-Z Admits He Used To Forget His Lyrics When He Performed On LeBron James’ ‘The Shop’

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LeBron James‘ HBO Show The Shop returns for its fourth season this Friday, bringing with it an impressive list of guests including Puerto Rican star Bad Bunny, WNBA champion Nneka Ogwumike, and Bron’s big homie Jay-Z. In a new clip previewing the season premiere airing this Friday, the latter makes an admission that might surprise a few fans of the 30-year rap veteran: He wasn’t always as cool, calm, and collected as his rap persona might have you believe.

When LeBron asks whether his guests ever got “so zoned out they couldn’t see anything,” Jay confesses, “In the beginning, I used to get on the stage and just forget all my lyrics.” Of course, Jay is far from the only rapper ever to forget his own lyrics — on stage or otherwise. Both Eminem and Lil Wayne have copped to having to Google their rhymes to ensure they don’t repeat themselves, while current hitmaker Lil Baby was stumped by a TikTokers lyrics quiz when he couldn’t complete his own bars. Among them, it’s probably easiest to forgive Jay and Wayne, who’ve both embraced a style of songwriting heavy on mental formulation without writing anything down.

The Shop airs 5/28 at 9 pm ET on HBO. Watch the promo above.

Sean Kingston Makes His Return With The Moody ‘Darkest Times’ For ‘UPROXX Sessions’

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Jamaican American superstar Sean Kingston is on the album comeback trail after a half-decade hiatus with his new album Deliverance and its lead single “Darkest Times” featuring G Herbo, and his latest stop is UPROXX Sessions. Kingston stops by the studio in LA to deliver a smooth performance of the moody new track, showcasing his vocals, undulled by the time away and ready to compete with a new generation of singing rappers and rapping singers.

Kingston, whose last album Back 2 Life was released in 2013 and featured the Hot 100 single “Beat It” with Wiz Khalifa, had been relatively inactive in the years since, although he maintained that he was working the entire time. Deliverance, which is set for release later this year via Empire, is called “a rebirth” in press materials, and if anyone can manage a successful comeback, it’s an artist whose calling card includes one of the biggest hits of the resurgent 2000s, “Beautiful Girls.”

Watch Sean Kingston’s UPROXX Sessions performance of “Darkest Times” 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.

Polo G Announces His Highly Anticipated ‘Hall Of Fame’ Album

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Chicago rapper Polo G is riding on a string of major successes. Now with a recent No. 1 single to his name, the 22-year-old rapper details his highly anticipated third album, Hall Of Fame.

The rapper took to social media to share a short teaser clip as an album announcement, revealing Hall Of Fame is slated for a release on June 11. “I got somethin special for you I hope you appreciate it,” he wrote.

In the video, Polo G lays out his hopes for the LP. “My goals for Hall Of Fame was just to make sure that I can show my diversity as an artist, really like elevate my sound, for the people to hear something that I ain’t ever did before,” he says.

Polo G has already previewed the album with a few singles. His track “Rapstar” hovered at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart for two consecutive weeks and more recently, the rapper dropped his Lil Wayne-featuring number “Gang Gang.”

Hall Of Fame will arrive just over a year after his 2020 sophomore effort The Goat. Featuring artists like NLE Choppa, Juice WRLD, and BJ The Chicago Kid, the LP debuted at No. 2 on the Billboard 200 chart and was certified Platinum in December.

Watch Polo G’s album teaser above.

Hall Of Fame is out 6/11 via Columbia. Pre-order it here.

Lil Wayne’s Upcoming Uproar Festival Will Mark The Grand Re-Opening Of LA’s Legendary Coliseum

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With more and more rappers holding their own festivals, Lil Wayne‘s Uproar Festival — named for his 2018 Carter V single produced by Swizz Beatz — found a perfect one. The August 13 event will mark the grand re-opening of Los Angeles’ legendary landmark, the Memorial Coliseum, after a $315 million renovation project that was completed in 2019. The 77,500 seat venue has been empty ever since due to the coronavirus pandemic and resulting shutdown of live entertainment and sporting events. However, the historical site will officially reopen its doors to host Lil Wayne, Young Money, and “friends.”

In addition to the usual music festival features — including a Vendor Village highlighting local eateries, a beer garden, and a “3 Point Cut” basketball experience — Wayne’s fest will accept submissions for its Dance Competition and Art Walk ahead of the event. The winning dance team will earn the opportunity to perform on the big stage at next year’s Uproar Fest. The Art Walk will showcase rising visual artists.

For fans unable to attend, the festival will also live stream via a “first of its kind” Festival Platform provided by Mandolin. The stream will not only include live video of performances but also roaming audience cameras and interactive features.

You can find more information here.