Pop

Latto, Like The Rest Of Us, Wants To Live Like Rihanna And Doesn’t ‘See Myself Doing Music Forever’

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Latto June 2023
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Latto is the cover star for the Cosmopolitan “Skin Issue,” but she only agreed to pose nude after confirming it would be “tastefully done.” She was just as thoughtful in her answers for the accompanying interview, including her goals beyond her chart-smashing music career.

“I want to get in my acting bag, because I see myself going out like Rihanna,” Latto told writer Julee Wilson. “I don’t see myself doing music forever. Maybe it has to do with the fact that I’ve been doing it for so long already. Sometimes you just want more. I just did my first little acting gig the other day and I fell in love with that. I like more serious roles.”

Cosmo noted that Latto will be a guest star at some point during the upcoming sixth and final season of Grown-ish, premiering next Wednesday, June 28, on Freeform.

Earlier in the interview, Latto explained why she keeps her boyfriend’s identity private and was asked if she wants children someday, which led to another Rihanna reference.

“I want to be a mom so bad. Let me tell you, I think moms are superheroes. Man, I literally idolize motherhood. Like, with Mother’s Day, I get all my friends that have kids, my grandmas, my aunties, cousins, anyone who’s a mom around me, I send them flowers and gifts. I don’t play,” she said. “I send my assistant to Chanel to get, like, 10 bags for everybody I know. I’m obsessed. My TikTok algorithm is all moms talking about their experiences and packing like, ‘Get ready with me.’ Moms cleaning up after their kids. It’s so weird.”

Latto continued, “I’m not going to feel like I made it for real until I have my kids, I’m married, I just got my house out in the country, and I’m just ducked off with my little family.”

After Wilson quipped that “Rihanna’s got everybody out here having baby fever,” Latto added, “Yes. That’s why I love RiRi down. Cardi did it too. And Yung Miami. I feel like they kind of supersede the stigma that it’s over for women when you have a baby — like your career is over. They give me inspiration for real. They make me feel like I can do it too one day when the time is right, you feel me?”

Rihanna welcomed her first child, a son, with ASAP Rocky in May 2022. The polymath power couple are expecting their second child, as Rihanna revealed she was pregnant during her Super Bowl LVII Halftime Show performance in February.

See outtakes from Latto’s Cosmo cover below.

Barack Obama Swears He Doesn’t Take Any Shortcuts When Building His Famed Year-End Lists Of The Top Music, Movies, And Shows

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Barack Obama was the 44th President Of The United States for eight years, but his most eternal legacy might be as an ongoing curator of books, movies, and music. Obama shares his favorite offerings every December, and his “Favorite Music Of 2022” list included Ari Lennox, Bad Bunny, Burna Boy, Kendrick Lamar, Lizzo, Omar Apollo, Rema, SZA, and more. That’s before mentioning his 2022 Summer Playlist

Hasan Minhaj asked what all of us struggling to complete ordinary to-do lists have been thinking.

“Mr. President, when you do your end-of-the-year lists, do you really read all those books, watch all those shows, and listen to all those songs,” Minhaj posed to Obama for a sit-down interview posted to his YouTube on Wednesday, June 21.

“I do!” Obama responded.

Minhaj giggled and countered with, “No, you don’t!” But he allowed Obama to make his case.

“People, they believe the books and the movies, but the playlists, they somehow think — and this is mostly coming from young people like you. Somehow, y’all think you invented rock and roll. You invented hip-hop,” the former president explained. “And so the fact that my lists are pretty incredible, people seem to think, ‘Well, he must’ve had some 20-year-old intern who was figuring out this latest cut.’ No, man. It’s on my iPad right now!”

Obama later added, “I am very scrupulous about making sure that this is stuff that I actually like. I will confess that there are times — on the playlists, on the music lists — where I will get suggestions because it’s not like I got time to be listening to music all the time. Typically, at the end of the year, what happens is folks will be like, ‘Man, you need to listen to this. This is good.’ But unless I’m actually listening to it, watching it, reading it, I won’t put it on there.”

Minhaj and Obama spent the rest of the 29-minute conversation discussing how bleak the country’s outlook feels, reflecting on Obama’s most trying moments in office, and updating his Twitter bio.

Watch it in full above, and revisit Obama’s latest lists below.

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

Bad Bunny Confirmed A Collaboration With Travis Scott, But Isn’t Sure When He’ll Drop More Music Of His Own

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It’s not a summer without Bad Bunny. Despite taking a year of rest, he may release some new music later this year. In a recent interview with Rolling Stone, the Puerto Rican superstar teased his new sounds. While he’s not sure when a new album — or even a single — will arrive, he confirmed a collaboration with Travis Scott is on the way.

“We worked on that a while back — and I think Travis has been working on his project for a minute,” said Bunny.

But outside of this collaboration, as well as a Jersey club-influenced track called “Where She Goes,” which was released last month, Bunny will likely continue his lax approach to releasing music, which he began taking on this year.

“I don’t know if maybe I’ll release a song [this year] if I like it enough, but I don’t think so,” he said. “I said this year was for resting.”

Bunny also noted that while he’s not sure when they’ll see the light of day, he’s sitting on albums worth of new material. He’s confident that they will stand the test of time.

“I spend so much time thinking about what I’m going to do next, thinking and creating, imagining things,” he said. “I already know where I’m going.”

The Weeknd Believes Some People ‘Decided A Long Time Ago’ They Were Going To Hate ‘The Idol’

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Abel “The Weeknd” Tesfaye is still reacting to people’s reactions about his show with Sam Levinson, HBO’s The Idol. While the series is only three episodes in, it has become quite a hot topic online, particularly over whether it’s actually good.

Earlier this morning, The Weeknd put out a meme of sorts, which featured a photo of his Idol character and the caption, “Tedros Nation Rise.” Obviously, users had a lot of thoughts about this post.

“Trying the meme the show to be good now YIKES,” one person quoted.

The Weeknd wound up replying right back. “Nope people who hate it decided a long time ago… it’s fine. If you hate it don’t watch it. And let the fans enjoy… simple,” he told the person.

Over the past few days, the musician has been trying to change people’s minds about the show, and not just stan Twitter. The Weeknd found today that even Oreo’s Twitter account was piling onto the Idol hate. “Oh f*ck they been talkin sh*t,” he reacted.

“Naw I can’t beef with you @Oreo too many beautiful memories… I’m dunking you in some champagne tonight,” The Weeknd added in a separate tweet.

He’s even started retweeting an “Out Of Context The Idol” account and searching keywords for what others are saying about the show — praising the positive and discouraging the negative.

Want To Pay More For Spotify? A New, More Expensive Premium Subscription Might Be On The Way

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A couple months ago, Spotify CEO Daniel Ek spoke about the streaming service’s future, saying in part, “I think we are ready to raise prices, I think we have the ability to do that, but it really comes down to those negotiations [with major music industry stakeholders].”

Now, in a follow-up to that news, it appears Spotify could be readying a more expensive tier of streaming service. As Bloomberg reports, Spotify is readying a new, pricier subscription option dubbed “Supremium” internally, according to “people familiar with the strategy.” It’s set to be the most expensive plan Spotify offers and will reportedly include high-fidelity audio. The new tier is expected to launch this year in non-US markets before becoming available to American users.

In response to the new report, Spotify spokesperson Laura Pezzini told The Verge, “At Spotify, we are constantly iterating and ideating to improve our product offering and offer value to users. But we don’t comment on speculation around possible new features and do not have anything new to share at this time.”

Back in 2021, Spotify announced (but has yet to deliver) Spotify HiFi, so perhaps it’s finally just about ready for consumers. Earlier this year, Spotify co-president Gustav Söderström said to The Verge of Spotify HiFi, “We announced it, but then the industry changed for a bunch of reasons. We are going to do it, but we’re going to do it in a way where it makes sense for us and for our listeners. The industry changed and we had to adapt.”

The Weeknd Is Getting Combative With Randos On Twitter (Including One He Burned To A Crisp) Over ‘The Idol’

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In a recent interview, The Weeknd said of the mixed response to his HBO show The Idol, “I’m loving it. It’s definitely shaken up the culture for sure [laughs]. We knew we were making something dark and controversial but true to what we want to say.”

Just because he’s loving it, though, doesn’t mean he’s going to take any guff on Twitter without pushing back.

In one tweet from today (June 20), he replied to a Twitter user, writing, “Go cry about it more.” The original tweet is no longer available, but based on the user’s Twitter activity, they appear to be a fan of Jennie and Blackpink. So, presumably, their now-deleted tweet had something to do with Jennie and her role on the show.

In response to The Weeknd, another user tweeted, “N****s crying bout yo acting tho.” The Weeknd then got personal, replying, “Bruh if you don’t shave that sh*t stain off your chin LOL.”

After that, the user from the original now-deleted tweet returned with a screenshot of The Weeknd from the show, which was presumably intended to be unflattering, and wrote, “IK YOURE NOT TALKING WHEN U LOOK HIDEOUS LIKE THIS.” It appears the user changed their profile image between their first and second tweet, as The Weeknd responded, “not you again LOL you thought I wouldn’t recognize you cause you changed your DP… dropping that Jennie song this weekend for you! Get the bucket ready [single tear emoji].”

That last tweet probably stirred mixed feelings from the Twitter user: While they’re in a spat with The Weeknd, it at least looks like a new Jennie song is dropping soon.

Rihanna Lovingly Wished ASAP Rocky A Happy Father’s Day With A Comment On His Adorable Post

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Rihanna ASAP Rocky 2023 Met Gala
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Yesterday (June 18) was Father’s Day. Naturally, Nick Cannon is the musician that most prominently comes to mind on that occasion. ASAP Rocky, though, is one of music’s biggest power couples alongside Rihanna, so he has plenty to celebrate, too.

He did so with an Instagram post featuring a handful of photos and videos. The gallery starts with a video of Rocky brushing his teeth, followed by a video of him and RZA (his son, not the Wu-Tang Clan rapper) napping in bed and a photo of RZA flashing a big, happy smile. Next is a video of Rocky and Rihanna hanging out in the bathroom, as Rocky prompts RiRi to show off her pregnant belly as she insists, “This is so sad.” She then jokingly moves her belly around before Rocky pats his own stomach and insists he and his wife match, which gets a laugh from Rihanna.

The post ends with a photo of Rocky kissing Rihanna’s pregnant belly, a video of RZA, and Rihanna and RZA laying in bed. It’s a cute look into the couple’s family life and Rihanna seemed to enjoy it, as she commented on the post, “The Mayers boys stole my whole heart! Happy Father’s Day nerd.”

RZA may not be old enough to enjoy Rihanna’s music yet, but he’ll probably be happy with her upcoming role in a Smurfs movie.

If You Want To Buy A Bidet Beyoncé And Jay-Z Might Have Used, Well, It’s On eBay Right Now

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As children’s author Tarō Gomi wrote in the iconic 1977 book Everyone Poops: “Everyone poops.” That includes global superstars like Beyoncé and Jay-Z. Now, if you want to own an implement that may have one point been a part of that process for the Carters, here’s your chance.

As TMZ reports, Eric’s Architectural Salvage LA is selling a bunch of items supposedly from a home that Jay and Bey used to rent in 2015, a mansion in Holmby Hills, Los Angeles. After the couple left the home, the owners did a complete renovation and Eric’s Architectural Salvage LA ended up with some of the items from the building. That includes a fancy-pants bidet from the house, which is up on eBay right now.

The listing is titled “Bidet With Sherle Wagner Hardware Beyoncé Jay Z Estate” and is currently priced at $2,400. The description reads in part, “This is one of the prettiest bidets it features amazing Sherle Wagner hardware . SW was known for making beautiful Glamorous over the top hardware that was often gold plated. I’m not sure if this hardware is gold plated for we are unable to test it but it is highly possible that it is . This hardware is featured in the SW catalog it was salvaged out of the Holmby Hills area out of the $55 million home it was formerly occupied by Jay Z and Beyoncé this home was lavished with nothing but the best.”

Other items up for auction include doors, sconces, exterior lights, and other household miscellany, so find the Eric’s Architectural Salvage LA eBay store here.

Post Malone Played ‘A Song That Nobody Knows’ (And Was Sorry About That) After Accepting A Songwriters Hall Of Fame Award

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Last year, Lil Nas X accepted the Hal David Starlight Award at The Songwriters Hall Of Fame. “This award means a lot to me for the simple fact that, somehow, I keep just doing things and it keeps working out,” he said in his acceptance speech.

It was revealed in May that this year’s award would go to Post Malone. It honors “gifted young songwriters who are making a significant impact in the music industry with their original songs,” and the 27-year-old is undoubtedly one of the biggest hitmakers of this generation. He accepted the award at the ceremony last night (June 15) at the Marriott Marquis Hotel in New York City, and thanked his fiancée and their baby.

Along with his speech, he also gave an acoustic performance of his 2016 song “Feeling Whitney” from his debut Stoney. “I’m sorry that I played a song that nobody knows,” he joked (as Stereogum notes).

The “Circles” performer is set to hit the road soon on the If Y’all Weren’t Here I’d Be Crying tour. It kicks off in the beginning of July, a few weeks before the release of his highly anticipated new album Austin.

Austin is out 7/28 via Mercury Records/Republic Records. Find more information here.

Dionne Warwick Canceled Upcoming Shows After Experiencing A ‘Medical Incident’

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Dionne Warwick has canceled a number of performances due to a “medical incident” and will be refunding tickets for June 22-24, according to Entertainment Tonight. ET is calling it a “minor medical incident” and says the 82-year-old R&B/soul legend (and Twitter’s favorite auntie) is “on the mend.” She was scheduled to play the Rivers Casino Des Plaines near Chicago next weekend. She has future dates in New York and Delaware in July; no announcements have yet been made about those.

Warwick experienced a burst in renewed interest in recent years thanks to her jovial and witty Twitter presence. Her commentary on such subjects as being a Swiftie, roasting The Weeknd and Chance The Rapper’s stage names, and her unfamiliarity with Billie Eilish endeared her to younger fans, who then set out to discover her timeless music, which includes Grammy Hall of Fame hits “Alfie,” “Don’t Make Me Over,” and “Walk On By.”

She’s since built on her reputation as a classic cut-up with jokes about becoming Twitter’s new CEO and following up on a collaboration with Chance The Rapper. However, one subject she won’t speak on is fellow R&B pioneer Anita Baker’s recent beef with former tour opener Babyface. When Lil Duval asked her to squash the beef, she replied, “Baby, that ain’t got nothing to do with me.”