There are plenty of records released this year in the afrobeats world that helped to boost the genre’s worldwide appeal. Whether it was Wizkid and Tems’ “Essence,” which was later remixed by Justin Bieber, or Ckay’s “Love Nwantiti,” the amount of songs that appear on this list is far from short. Fireboy DML’s “Peru” is another track that can be found here and it’s one the singer released after dropping his second album Apollo during the summer of 2020. In a matter of months, the track’s lyrics were being belted out by afrobeats lovers all over the world. Today, it receives a new remix from quite the big name.
Ed Sheeran steps into the afrobeats world to deliver a remix of “Peru.” It’s a new take that the two singers have been teasing for a few weeks and now it’s finally here. On it, Sheeran shows off his bilingual skills as he briefly sings in Yoruba on the track. The new remix sees Fireboy DML leading the way with his original verse before Sheeran steps in for a fresh verse.
The updated version of “Peru” arrives after Sheeran hit a one-of-a-kind milestone. His 2017 track “Shape Of You” became the first song on Spotify to reach 3 billion streams. After learning about the feat, he thanked fans and said he’s “really, really chuffed with it.” He added, “We’ve had a really great ten years together and hopefully we have a great ten years more.”
You can press play on the remix in the video above.
Ed Sheeran is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
Sitting alone with an electric guitar, Halle delivered a stripped down version of the song that showcases her excellent voice with flourishes and trills that most artists who take on this cover could never pull off. But the best part is when she launches into the wordless vocals that Yorke employs to accompany the song’s breakdown, and though her version is decidedly different from his, it’s definitely on par! “My version of creepppp this song was in my head all day I had to sing it to get it out !” she captioned the clip.
Kudos to Halle for showcasing her ability to pull off songs in all different kinds of genres, and maybe we’ll get a few more indie covers during the rest of the holiday season? I wouldn’t mind hearing her take on some Killers — whose melodies go great with female vocalists, as that recent Phoebe Bridgers mashup revealed — or maybe something by The Strokes?
Then again, she did go a bit indie earlier, with a take on Coldplay’s “Fix You,” check that out below as well.
The 2022 Academy Awards are less than three months away. Shortlists for ten of the show’s categories were recently revealed, including the one for Best Original Song. Members of the music branch voted to reduce the initial group of 84 songs to the 15 that appear on the shortlist. Among those who made the cut are Jay-Z and Beyonce, the former for “Guns Go Bang,” his collaboration with Kid Cudi, the latter for her single “Be Alive.”
Beyonce’s “Be Alive” appears in King Richard, which features Will Smith as the father of tennis stars Venus and Serena Williams. Jay-Z’s “Guns Go Bang,” on the other hand, appears in The Harder They Fall, which he helped to executive produce. The song also marks Cudi’s second appearance on the shortlist, as “Just Look Up” from Don’t Look Up, his collaboration with Ariana Grande, is on the list, too. If he’s nominated, he would be the first songwriter in 36 years to be nominated multiple times with songs from two different films.
Talk about pushing the creative envelope. The Weeknd continues to expand the limits of possibility with his many endeavors. While he says his next album is essentially “complete,” there’s been a ton of other unpredictable marquee projects that he’s been putting out in the meantime. It starts with collaborations with Swedish House Mafia, Rosalía, and FKA Twigs, but goes on to feature a series of NFT collectibles on Tom Brady’s platform, and shifting his next tour from arenas to stadiums. Heck, he’s even become The United Nations’ World Food Programme Goodwill Ambassador and claimed the “No. 1 song of all time.”
So what’s left? Plenty. Keeping in line with the 10th anniversary re-release of the 2011 Trilogy mixtape series (House Of Balloons, Echoes Of Silence, and Thursday) that dropped earlier this year, a video for the title track to Echoes Of Silence has just been released. It feels like a post-apocalyptic Romeo and Juliet story featuring robots yearning to connect in a world that’s crumbling around them, with a visual aesthetic that’s like I, Robot in the world of Wall-E. It’s directed by Kurando Furuya, with creative direction from noted “superrealist” Hajime Sorayama, who has worked with everyone from George Lucas to Tyga, and also collaborated with The Weeknd on the Echoes Of Silence merch line.
Beyonce may be one of the most powerful women of the year according to Forbes, but she is also surrounded by some strong women in her life, namely her mother. Tina Knowles Lawson recently appeared on the screen as a guest on RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars, but she now has a show of her own — and she got some help from her daughter when it came to the show’s theme song.
Lawson is the star of her upcoming Facebook show, Talks With Mama Tina, where she invites various musicians and celebrities to join her in her home for some good food and great conversation. Lawson shared a short preview of the new talk show on social media today, which featured a soaring theme song with recognizable vocals by Beyonce. Lawson’s grandchildren also helped out with the song, lending their voices for the intro.
The preview shows that Lawson’s guests will include Chloe x Halle, Ciara, Zendaya, Kevin Hart, and more. “I’m so excited to announce the launch of my new @wetheculture @Facebookwatch show “Talks With Mama Tina” where I’ve invited some of my favorite people over to my home and have a talk with me,” Lawson wrote. “I loved filming this show and sitting down with so many amazing people because we got to have such honest heartfelt conversations and I got to make them my famous GUMBO!”
While in lockdown, Elton John found himself with ample time on his hands. Rather than picking up crocheting as a hobby or buying a Peloton bike like so many others did at the time, John decided to get to know some of today’s chart-topping musicians the best way he could — by collaborating over Zoom. Thus, his album The Lockdown Sessions was born, a 16-track genre-spanning project featuring today’s top artists.
To ring in the holidays and celebrate the success of The Lockdown Sessions, which landed at No. 1 in the UK, John once again opened up Zoom and gathered all his collaborators in once place for the “Ultimate Zoom” call. John began the call and soon after, artists like Dua Lipa, Nicki Minaj, Miley Cyrus, Lil Nas X, Rina Sawayama, Eddie Vedder, SG Lewis, Charlie Puth, Brandie Carlile, Damon Albarn, Stevie Wonder, Stevie Nicks, and Young Thug all joined.
The 4-minute video was both a celebration of the album and a reminder of all the little frustrations of virtual calls like WiFi issues or distracting noises in the background. According to press materials, the video is meant as a “celebration of the way that Zoom has enabled people to continue to work, interact and create music in the most challenging of circumstances.”
Watch Elton John, Dua Lipa, Lil Nas X, Miley Cyrus, and more on the “Ultimate Zoom” call above.
The Lockdown Sessions is out now via EMI Records. Get it here.
Some of the artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
Every year we hear a lot of the same classic holiday songs. There’s no denying the holiday power of Mariah Carey’s “All I Want For Christmas,” or DMX’s “Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer.” But bless the artists who keep pushing the holiday music envelope and are giving us new tunes to break up the monotony of the season. So with that, these were the songs, albums, and more that stole the show this holiday season.
There I Ruined It’s Mariah Carey x Twisted Sister Christmas Mash-Up
You didn’t think you were gonna get through this list without a Mariah Carey song, did you? So we’ll get it out of the way right now, but it’s not what you think. The folks at the There I Ruined It YouTube channel present some of the most unpredictable mash-ups of songs. Think Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit” expertly collided with a K-Pop band. For the holiday season, however, they have taken the liberty of mashing up Carey’s “All I Want For Christmas” with Twisted Sister’s “We’re Not Gonna Take it” in dedication to “the warriors of Christmas retail during another Mariah Carey Season.” It’s the stuff that holiday heavy metal dreams are made of. I wonder if Mariah’s gotten wind of this one yet? While she’d probably be repulsed, she’d certainly applaud the fact that the song is part of the “Un-Ruin Christmas” fundraiser for Toys For Tots. Donate here.
HAIM’s Reboot of Adam Sandler’s “The Hanukkah Song”
The Sandman created a timeless joint back in his SNL days with “The Hanukkah Song,” but who better to give it a re-fresh than Los Angeles’ most famous trio of Jewish sisters, Haim? But you know what the funniest thing is about this song? It’s the little differences. Maya Rudolph, Japanese Breakfast, and Bryce and Aaron Dessner of The National kick off the tune’s laundry list of famous Jews, then instead of naming who “eats together at the Carnegie Deli” (a la Sandler’s original), Este, Alana, and Danielle swap in LA institution “Canter’s Deli.” The Haim version has a distinct knack for including prevalent pop culture personalities and lines like “Doja Cat’s half-Jewish, Chalamet’s half too. Put ‘em both together, what a fine-looking Jew!” would make the Sandman proud. The big payoff comes at the end of the clip, when we find out that the video released during Hanukkah, is actually a clever ruse to tease their 2022 tour.
The LCD Soundsystem Holiday Special Featuring the All My Friends Sitcom
If you hadn’t heard yet, the Omicron coronavirus variant forced LCD Soundsystem to cancel the final three shows of their 20-night residency at New York City venue Brooklyn Steel. It’s definitely the prudent move given the circumstances in NYC right now, but rest assured, you can celebrate with LCD Soundsystem on Christmas week by watching their brand new holiday special. The LCD Soundsystem Holiday Special is part concert and part LCD sitcom, and the sitcom is directed by comedic genius Eric Wareheim. It stars Wareheim as James Murphy, alongside Macaulay Culkin, Aparna Nancherla, Luenelle, and more. It airs on December 22nd via Amazon Music here and the trailer below is can’t miss stuff.
Jhené Aiko – “Wrap Me Up”
A holiday love song from Aiko, “Wrap Me Up” opens with jingle bells and a harp as she hopes to spend the holiday season with a lover by the fire. Where a lot of holiday pop comes across as an over-produced year-end formality, Aiko’s gorgeous voice is undeniable here. She evokes the imagery of the sights, sounds, and feel of the holiday season as she sings:
“Every December you’d make sure you’re here
So I pray as soon as I wake
That we spend today up under each other
‘Cause there’s nothing more I need
Than you here with me, no gift would be better”
A Very She & Him Christmas Deluxe Edition
There is no album I’ve played more this holiday season than the now classic and officially ten years old holiday album from the She & Him duo of Zooey Deschanel and M. Ward. Deschanel’s voice has this built-in nostalgia that makes us think about her singing Christmas carols in the movie Elf, an iconic modern Christmas tale if there ever was one. But I digress, because the deluxe version of A Very She & Him Christmas comes with new bonus material like a cover of Madonna’s “Holiday,” and a splendid take on “It’s Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas” that’s a little bit country and a little bit rock and roll. Also, all proceeds from album sales benefit 826 National, which funds creative writing programs for kids. Get it at Bandcamp.
Nathaniel Rateliff and Jon Batiste’s Video Magic On “Run Rudolph Run”
Chuck Berry’s raucous “Run Rudolph Run” always seems to call to mind the Home Alone scene when the McAllister family is running for dear life through Chicago’s O’Hare Airport as they attempt to barely make their flight to Paris. Now the soul and folk rock and roll of Nathaniel Rateliff meets the dizzying multi-instrumentalism of 11-time 2022 Grammy Award nominee Jon Batiste on this new version. Debuted at the end of a Late Night With Stephen Colbert episode (where Batiste serves as the bandleader), they totally do Berry’s bluesy song justice. But the way they filmed their video is eye-popping to say the least, as our eyes are drawn to multiple Jons and Nathaniels playing the song. Watch it below.
Gucci Mane and 1017’s So Icy Christmas mixtape
Gucci Mane has put his East Atlanta Santa series to bed and now has the So Icy Christmas mixtape on deck featuring artists from his 1017 records label. 1017 Signees like Big Scarr, BigWalkDog, Enchanting, and Hotboy Wes grace tracks on the album that don’t necessarily fit into the holiday theme, but it’s the Christmas bangers that Gucci Mane himself is on that stand out best. Album opener “Street Ni66a Christmas” is produced by long-time collaborator Zaytoven. “All I Want For Christmas” is a street rap Christmas carol for the ages, where Gucci Mane spits: “All I want for Christmas is my Glock with the extension / A handgun with some monkey nuts, that’s all I want for Christmas.” He then takes a moment to say a prayer for Young Dolph on the Metro Boomin and Zaytoven-produced tribute track, “Long Live Dolph.” As far as holiday music traditions in rap go, Gucci Mane might as well be on his way to sainthood.
Kurstin x Grohl: The Hanukkah Sessions 2021
Picking up on the tradition they started last year, Foo Fighters’ Dave Grohl and super-producer Greg Kurstin (Adele, Sia, Foos) posted a YouTube video of them performing a cover of a song by a Jewish artist on each of the eight nights of Hanukkah. It was something to look forward during Hanukkah with Grohl (not Jewish) and Kurstin (Jewish) performing songs like Van Halen’s “Jump” (shout out David Lee Roth,) “Copacabana” with Grohl doing his best Barry Manilow impression, and Amy Winehouse’s “Take The Box,” with Grohl’s daughter Violet on lead vocals.
Jucee Froot As A Raunchy Grinch In The “Christmas List” Video”
Christmas just got a little more ratchet with Jucee Froot’s latest…errrr…holiday video. The rapper tips her Santa cap to the magic of Dr. Seuss with her provocative Grinch costume that spares no detail (all the way down to the green body paint. Uproxx Hip-Hop Editor Aaron Williams said this one best: “Her daughter’s also in the video, which lends another layer of heightened absurdism to the proceedings as Jucee reels off a Christmas list that will probably not only land her on the naughty list, but also send Santa to the doghouse for a week should Mrs. Claus peek over his shoulder while reading it.” Smash that play button below.
Beach Bunny – “Christmas Caller”
Holidays or not, this is just a damn great song and a welcome addition to the indie rock holiday music canon. Singer Lili Trifilio has a knack for oh so sweet hooks and she rides a poppy guitar hook on this one while delivering sugar cookie and cinnamon spice dusted “doo doo doos.”
Some of the artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
Dominic Fike is rolling. After the success of last year’s What Could Possibly Go Wrong, he’s spent 2021 appearing on high-profile collaborations like”Die For You” off of Justin Bieber’s smash Justice, Remi Wolf’s sizzling “Photo ID,” and even covered “The Kiss Of Venus” on Paul freakin McCartney’s III Imagined album alongside St. Vincent, Anderson .Paak, and others. He’s also rumored to have a Live From Electric Lady EP due out soon as well. These are high-profile looks and it’s all been building towards Fike’s acting debut on the second season of HBO Max’s Euphoria.
Today the trailer for the new season dropped and Fike is all over it. “I don’t have to do much acting. He’s exactly like me. It’s sh*t I would say and sh*t I would do,” he told Variety back in August. His musically-minded character is even playing guitar in one of the scenes. “I’m just in go-mode right now,” Fike said. “It’s kind of like I’m walking and people are putting tiles under my feet as I take each step.”
He joins the now-Emmy-winning Zendaya in the cast, which also includes Maude Apatow, Angus Cloud, Eric Dane, Alexa Demie, Jacob Elordi, Barbie Ferreira, Nika King, Storm Reid, Hunter Schafer, Algee Smith, and Sydney Sweeney.
Euphoria Season 2 comes to HBO Max on 1/9/2021. Watch the new trailer above.
Looks like there’s absolutely nothing Chloe x Halle Bailey can’t do. These sisters have been Beyonce’s proteges for years now, and broke out in a big way in 2020 with their second album, The Ungodly Hour. Since then, Chloe Bailey has launched her own solo career with the single “Have Mercy,” and Halle landed a starring role as Ariel herself in new live action The Little Mermaid remake. Not too shabby for a few pandemic years! But they won’t stop there, now the sisters are getting involved in the gaming world, and advocating for more women in the male-dominated and historically sexist space.
In an attempt to combat some of the past toxicity, LG is launching a content series as part of its Only On OLED campaign. Chloe and Halle will face off in a live streamed Twitch battle and during their 90-minute match the sisters will be joined by Evil Geniuses Creator Collective stars Lisa Wallen and Aruuu. “We want to encourage women to get involved, learn more, support and take over gaming!” said Chloe of the collaboration. No exact info has been shared on what games the sisters will be competing against each other in, but in the practice snippets from above, they’re driving cars — so definitely some races. Check out the teaser above and look out for the live stream tonight at 7:30 PM EST.
The Kelly Clarkson Show has been airing for a couple years now, and during the program’s run, its titular host has established herself as a real force in daytime television. She hasn’t lost touch with her music roots, though, as the show’s “Kellyoke” segment regularly has Clarkson putting her spin on recognizable tunes with her covers. On today’s episode, she took on Bruno Mars and Anderson .Paak’s Silk Sonic hit “Leave The Door Open” and showed that she can really sing just about anything.
Clarkson’s backing band delivered a serviceable performance of the soulful song, and Clarkson, being the pro that she is, dominated the track with her powerful vocals, whether she was belting it out during the climactic moments or keeping things reserved and smooth during more low-key sections.
Clarkson has had a handful of memorable moments on her show this year. She successfully covered some of this year’s other biggest hits, like Olivia Rodrigo’s “Drivers License” and Billie Eilish’s “Happier Than Ever.” Of course, she also had a particularly illuminating conversation with country legend Clint Black, in which she described a time that she narrowly avoided voiding her bowels on stage, saying, “I got some kind of wrecked up from some kind of food and I literally… we were in an arena, and I shouldn’t tell this story, but like I said, my man: I don’t have a filter. I had to run backstage to my quick-change. I grabbed this poor trash can and boy, I destroyed it. It was bad. It was bad, Clint.”
Watch Clarkson sing “Leave The Door Open” above.
Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
