Music

Doja Cat’s First NFT Collection Comes Through Her Own Marketplace

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The world of digital collectibles known as NFTs have been going strong since taking off a few weeks back, and the latest musical act to get in on it is Doja Cat. The singer announced the launch of her own curated NFT marketplace, called Juicy Drops, as well as the debut of her first NFT collection, which arrives this Friday, April 23.

The Juicy Drops marketplace is a collaboration with Intellctable Holdings, a new NFT-focused company founded by 20-year music executive Shannon Schlappi. The marketplace’s first official drop features a collection of NFTs made in collaboration with toy designer BOOMTRONIC. Doja’s NFTs, which are inspired by her performance at last month’s Grammy Awards, sports a collection of 3-D digital graphics that includes a spinning, metallic Doja image in a gilded frame, as well as an image of her cat Raymus. The collection comes in six different colors with varying tiers of available quantities and price points. For instance, there’s a very rare “Metallic” tier with three different rarities and a “Flavored” tier with three additional rarities. Buyers who collect all six will earn a chance to be rewarded with a very rare “Mystery” tier that will not be for sale.

Doja spoke about the new venture in a press release. “I’m helping to launch my NFT company so that I can actually own and control my art,” she wrote. “I want to be able to make all decisions related to my creative vision and help other artists do the same. My ownership also allows me to direct how we can give back to causes that I truly believe in.”

Lil Baby Was Stumped By A Quiz Of His Own Lyrics On TikTok

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The idea of a laid-back rapper like Lil Baby participating in a TikTok challenge may seem unlikely, but since one of the latest challenges tests users on their knowledge of artists’ lyrics rather than memorizing complicated, air traffic control-esque choreography, it would seem like he’d have at least this one in the bag.

Spoiler alert: [In extremely “Morgan Freeman as narrator” voice] He did not have this one in the bag. Confronted with a line from his 2018 song “I’m Straight” from breakout tape Harder Than Ever, Lil Baby was unable to recall the follow-up to “I’m cool on the love and the high-fives / You n***as can’t keep up with my guys,” which should have been “You can’t get all this drip in a lifetime.”

Now, to be fair, rappers forget their lyrics all the time, especially ones with extensive catalogs like Baby’s (see: Eminem, Lil Wayne, Nas). Despite only being around for half a decade, he’s accumulated the sort of output rappers in the ’90s would envy, with six full-length solo projects and two joint albums to his name in that time (and another on the way). Those albums are also very long, and while the general trend in hip-hop has been to shorten verses and songs overall to accommodate shorter attention spans and the greater prominence of streaming, Baby’s rather endearingly stuck to full-length verses with as many as 24 bars at a time.

That said, it’s still pretty awkward and funny to watch a rapper known for his lyrical output experience a complete brain fart during a quiz of their own lyrics, and pretty bold of him to let the TikTokers put him on blast like this. Watch Lil Baby flunk his own test below.

@jewelryunlimited

Comment down below ✅ or ❌, We need a million likes for part 2 🔥#jewelryunlimited #lilbaby #wafiway

♬ original sound – Jewelry Unlimited

City Girls’ Yung Miami Says She Doesn’t ‘Care No More’ About Fans Using Her Government Name

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Musical artists tend to go by their stage names. One exception is City Girls rapper Yung Miami, born Caresha Brownlee. Up until 2019, her fans called her by her alias. But that changed after a string of viral videos showed close friend and fellow rapper Saucy Santana screaming, “Caresha, please!” Soon after, people began using her birth name — and Yung Miami wants them to stop that.

It began with a tweet earlier this month where she asked, “Why y’all don’t call me yung Miami?” More than a week later, she returned to the topic. “I been feeling violated every time a b*tch see me in public, they keep yelling ‘Caresha,’” she tweeted. “STOP DOING THAT I DON’T LIKE THAT!” During an Instagram Livestream, Yung Miami explained that only “delusional” people would call her by her government name. “In the back of my head I got to realize that everybody knows my name, but there’s a time and a place for that,” she said.

But it didn’t work. Fans continue to call her Caresha. The rapper recently hopped in the comment section of an Instagram post from Neighborhood Talk post to reveal she had given up trying to stop them. “Lmaooooo,” she wrote. “Ion care no more fr call me whatever lol.”

Benny The Butcher’s ‘When Tony Met Sosa’ Compares Working With Harry Fraud To A Classic Movie Moment

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Benny The Butcher and Harry Fraud continue the rollout of their collaborative project The Plugs I Met 2 with the video for “When Tony Met Sosa.” The video mostly sees Benny performing his dextrous verses on a rooftop overlooking the city and seated beside a bathtub as a woman soaks in the frothy bubbles. At the very end, there’s a glimpse of the movie Scarface, from which Benny derives the song’s title.

The video for “When Tony Met Sosa” arrives just over two weeks after the clip for the Rick Hyde-featuring “Survivor’s Remorse” and a little over a month since the release of the
The Plugs I Met 2 project, which launched alongside the video for the 2 Chainz-featuring “Plug Talk.” The Plugs videos give a strong push for the Griselda Records rapper — who also appeared on Belly’s comeback single “Money On The Table” — as he capitalizes on the newfound notoriety he’s received since his 2020 breakout, Burden Of Proof and the past year’s string of show-stealing guest appearances. While it may have taken the Griselda gang over ten years to climb to their current position, it looks like they’re taking full advantage, both as a unit and individually.

Watch Benny The Butcher and Harry Fraud’s “When Tony Met Sosa” video.

Key Glock Revels In Riches In His Instructional ‘I Can Show You’ Video

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Young Dolph & Key Glock’s Dum And Dummer 2 has been out for nearly a month, yet the two Memphis MCs show no signs of pulling back on their prolific rollout for the joint project. After releasing videos for nine of the songs from the twenty-song project, including “Move Around,” “Rain Rain,” “Dummest & The Dummest,” and “Penguins,” they followed up today with Key Glock’s solo song “I Can Show You.”

The video has a relatively simple concept: Key Glock gives a step-by-step manual for making money, posing with his MCM Worldwide luggage and a rather large gun as CGI $100 bills fly around. The solo outing gives Glock the opportunity to highlight his own star power — which may soon be needed, now that Dolph has announced his official retirement, although he previously reneged on a promise to get out of the game. Fortunately, Key Glock has more than enough back catalog to support a long, successful catalog of his own.

His rise to stardom first kicked into overdrive in 2020 with a pair of albums that showed his hitmaking prowess: Yellow Tape and Son Of A Gun. In 2021, he’ll certainly be one to watch and knowing the Paper Route Empire crew, they’ve already got something in the works to make sure there’s something to see.

Watch Key Glock’s “I Can Show You” video above.

Moneybagg Yo’s ‘A Gangsta’s Pain’ Tracklist Features Lil Durk, Jhené Aiko, Pharrell, And More

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Moneybagg Yo is currently gearing up for the release of his anticipated LP A Gangsta’s Pain, which he officially announced just a few weeks ago. The rapper has offered previews of the upcoming album with “Hard For The Next,” his joint track with Future, as well as his Big 30-featuring song “Go!.” Now, just a few days ahead from the album’s debut, Moneybagg Yo has returned to unveil the final tracklist to A Gangsta’s Pain.

Along with Future and Big 30, A Gangsta’s Pain features notable artists like Polo G, Lil Durk, Jhené Aiko, Pharrell, and more. The album follows a prolific 2020 for Moneybagg Yo, who impressively released two full-length LPs and a deluxe album all in less than a year.

Check out Moneybagg Yo’s A Gangsta’s Pain tracklist below.

1. “Memphganistan” Feat. Kaash Paige
2. “Just Say Det”
3. “GO!” Feat. BIG 30
4. “Wockesha”
5. “Shottas (Lala)”
6. “Hard For The Next” Feat. Future
7. “If Pain Was A Person”
8. “I Believe U” Feat. TripStar
9. “Time Today”
10. “Interlude”
11. “Free Promo” Feat. Polo G and Lil Durk
12. “Hate It Here”
13. “Love It Here”
14. “Clear Da Air”
15. “Projects”
16. “One Of Dem Nights” Feat. Jhené Aiko
17. “FR”
18. “Certified Neptunes” Feat. Pharrell
19. “Change Da Subject”
20. “Least Ian Lie”
21. “Bipolar Virgo”
22. “A Gangsta’s Pain”

A Gangsta’s Pain is out 4/23 via CMG/N-less Entertainment/Interscope Records. Pre-order it here.

Cardi B Responded To Praise From Olivia Rodrigo With Advice For The Young Singer

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Ever since Olivia Rodrigo ascended to the top of the pop world earlier this year thanks to “Drivers License,” she and Cardi B have done a bit of bonding. After Cardi made a joke about not having a driver’s license herself, Rodrigo offered to drive Cardi wherever she wants, which Cardi was all for. Now the two are forging their friendship further, as Cardi has responded to some high praise that Rodrigo recently heaped on her.

During a recent conversation with Apple Music’s Zane Lowe, Rodrigo spoke highly of Cardi, saying:

“I’m so in love with her, I want to marry her. […] I feel lucky to be a teenager at the time when Cardi is making music. As a songwriter, some of the stuff that she says is just so honest, almost like shockingly honest. When I listened to her song, I’m like, ‘Oh wow, she really just said that on a recorded album.’ […]

That’s definitely something that I grapple with in my songwriting. I’m making a lot of music right now to put it out, and I listen to it back and I’m terrified sometimes. I’m like, ‘Oh my God. I’m literally writing about stuff that I don’t tell some of my closest friends and I’m going to put out for the whole world to scrutinize and talk about.’ It’s a really horrible, terrifying thing. [Cardi] gives me courage to sort of say whatever I want to say and be honest in telling my story.”

Cardi caught wind of that quote today and seemed touched by Rodrigo’s praise. She responded with some advice for the up-and-comer, writing on Twitter, “This is so sweet .You doing sooo good for your age. Don’t let no toxic sh*t get to you and don’t let nobody restrict you from your voice.”

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

RZA Launches His ‘Saturday Afternoon Kung Fu Theater’ WIth A New Single Called ‘Pugilism’

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With Marvel’s release of the Shang-Chi trailer on Monday, expect kung-fu movies to start making a big comeback in the coming year (if they haven’t already; see Raya And The Last Dragon, the renewal of Warrior on HBO Max, and the recently premiered reboot of the classic show Kung-Fu). It’s likely that no one is more ecstatic about this turn of events than RZA, who based the Wu-Tang Clan’s entire aesthetic on hs Saturday afternoon forays to the matinee to catch the latest Shaw Brothers movies growing up in Staten Island, New York.

RZA is about to pay further homage to his first love as he revives his 36 Cinema platform he started at the outset of the pandemic, which hosts weekly screenings of classic kung-fu and blaxploitation films with live commentary from RZA and weekly guests. His new programming slate is fitting titled “Saturday Afternoon Kung Fu Theater” and kicks off — heh — this Saturday, April 24 with a screening of Heroes Of The East at 9 pm ET with Portland’s Hollywood Theatre’s head programmer Dan Halsted.

Celebrating the announcement, RZA also resurrected his Bobby Digital persona for a new single called “Pugilism” — the first such release since 2008’s Digi Snacks album. It’s the first single from RZA’s upcoming fourth solo album, Bobby Digital: Digital Potions, which he’ll share more info about during this Saturday’s screening.

Listen to “Pugilism” above and get tickets for the inaugural Saturday Afternoon Kung Fu Theater showing of “Heroes Of The East” here.

Little Simz Announces Her Next Album With The Cathartic ‘Introvert’ Video

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Today, British rapper Little Simz announced that she will soon return with a full-length follow-up to her critically-hailed 2019 album Grey Area. The new album, due on September 3 via Age 101, is titled Sometimes I Might Be Introvert and preceded by lead single “Introvert,” for which Simz also dropped a video today. The song features a boisterous orchestra backing Simz’s poetic lyrics while the video evokes scenes of the past year of social justice struggle, juxtaposed with classical art depicting generations of conflict and cathartic, interpretive dance choreography.

Despite being two years removed from Grey Area, which was praised as one of 2019’s best albums, including in Uproxx’s “Best Hip-Hop Albums Of 2019,” Simz hasn’t been far from the spotlight. In 2020, she released the surprise EP, Drop 6, which she’d recorded throughout the quarantine. She also appeared in a regular role on the reboot of Top Boy, while recent debates about female rappers on Twitter have consistently surfaced her name among the genre’s most innovative and interesting female representatives.

Watch Little Simz’s “Introvert” video above.

Sometimes I Might Be Introvert is due 9/3. You can pre-save it here. Check out the tracklist and cover below.

Little Simz

1. “Introvert”
2. “Woman” feat. Cleo Sol
3. “Two Worlds Apart”
4. “I Love You, I Hate You”
5. “Little Q Pt 1 (Interlude)”
6. “Little Q Pt 2”
7. “Gems (Interlude)”
8. “Speed”
9. “Standing Ovation”
10. “I See You”
11. “The Rapper That Came to Tea (Interlude)”
12. “Rollin Stone”
13. “Protect My Energy”
14. “Never Make Promises (Interlude)”
15. “Point and Kill” feat. Obongjayar
16. “Fear No Man”
17. “The Garden (Interlude)”
18. “How Did You Get Here”
19. “Miss Understood”

SZA Commends Lizzo For Sharing An Unedited Nude Selfie To Instagram

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No matter what she does, it seems as though Lizzo cannot escape critics. However, Lizzo takes a lighthearted approach to her haters, trolling people for questioning her weight and having very open discussions about the body positivity movement. But seeing as we live in a society that upholds unrealistic beauty standards, even Lizzo admits to occasionally airbrushing her selfies. That’s why the singer opted to ring in Taurus Season by sharing a completely unedited, naked photo with her over 10 million followers.

Lizzo shared the photo to her Instagram page Tuesday. “WELCOME TO TAURUS SEASON,” Lizzo wrote in the photo’s caption. “To celebrate I wanna give y’all this unedited selfie.. now normally I would fix my belly and smooth my skin but baby I wanted show u how I do it au natural.” The singer also mentioned that she’s partnering withe the brand Dove, saying that the company is “helping to reverse the negative effects of social media and changing the conversation about beauty standards.”

Many celebrities like Jonathan Van Ness, Grimes, and even Marc Jacobs expressed their support. But Lizzo’s friend SZA was perhaps the most vocal. In the comment section, SZA applauded Lizzo’s beauty: “It’s you having no blemishes at ALL lol .. sigh I jus admire u Fren,” she wrote. “I wanna drop the FaceTime pics.”

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