Russ

Russ Explains How He Spent A Million Dollars On His Ed Sheeran Collab, ‘Are You Entertained’

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As long as he’s been in the rap business, Russ has been about sharing the secrets of his success with fans and other aspiring artists. While that sometimes takes the form of preachy-sounding lectures on social media or interviews that can rub his intended audience the right way, he’s been getting better at softening his delivery, making sure that the message isn’t getting lost in the tone. In addition to starting his own, artist-friendly label, he seems to have found his niche thanks to TikTok, where he can speak directly to his fans, answering their questions in videos that offer more context.

A great example recently found its way to Twitter. In the video, Russ responds to a fan’s comment in a previous video asking how and why he spent $1 million on his new single, “Are You Entertained” with Ed Sheeran. In typical Russ fashion, he goes into detail, but this time, he’s sure he’s giving the right information to the right people, sounding confident instead of condescending. Offering a disclaimer, he made sure to note that “I’ve had songs go multi-platinum that I’ve spent zero dollars on and I’ve had songs do nothing that I’ve spent hundreds of thousands on. It’s not as simple as, ‘Oh, if you just spend money, the song does well.’ If that was the case, then there would be no flops.”

But on to the nitty-gritty: “Basically, I spent about $300K on the music video,” he recalls. “We shot it in London, [so] it was a whole big production. Then, I spent a little over $700K on marketing, which is like: I did Spotify marquee campaigns, radio, social media ads, [and] billboards overseas.” So, there you have it, an explanation of how much it costs to promote a new song, and a warning: It takes a lot more than money. Russ knows this, but luckily for his fans, he wants them to know it too. Check out the video below.

Black Thought & Danger Mouse Take Over The Streets In Their ‘Because’ Video With Joey Badass And Russ

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Black Thought, Danger Mouse, Joey Badass, and Russ take over the streets in the new video for “Because” from Black Thought & Danger Mouse’s upcoming joint project, Cheat Codes, which drops on August 12 on BMG. The trippy visual sees the trio of rappers perform via the massive screens in New York’s Times Square, as well as on the POV character’s phone screen. Indie singer Dylan Cartlidge continues to provide the song’s melodic chorus, while Danger’s presence is constricted to the beat and some extreme closeups on the screens.

Cheat Codes was selected as one of Uproxx’s Most Anticipated Hip-Hop Albums Of Summer 2022, with excitement focused on hearing one of hip-hop’s most gifted and skilled rappers over beats guided by the quirky ear of Danger Mouse, whose previous collaborations include The Mouse and the Mask with the late MF DOOM (as Danger Doom) and ASAP Rocky’s At.Long.Last.ASAP (ALLA). Other guests on the album will include prior Danger Mouse collaborators ASAP Rocky and DOOM, as well as Conway The Machine, Kid Sister, Michael Kiwanuka, Raekwon, and Run The Jewels.

Watch Black Thought & Danger Mouse’s “Because” video featuring Joey Badass, Russ, and Dylan Cartlidge above.

Cheat Codes is out on 8/12 via BMG. Pre-save it here.

Russ Takes The World By Storm In His Jet-Setting ‘Yes Sir’ Video

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Not that long ago, calling Russ an “international star” would have been a stretch, but these days, the New Jersey rapper is getting as comfortable on private planes as he is in the studio. In his jet-setting new video for “Yes Sir,” Russ makes himself at home abroad as he raps in front of French landmarks like the Eiffel Tower and Arc de Triomphe and strolls the streets of foreign cities while making time to take pics with fans of all nationalities before performing in sold-out arenas.

The video is the latest exhibit in Russ’ ongoing case for remaining independent as an artist, which he’s been arguing ever since completing his Columbia Records contract in 2020 (truthfully, even before that). Earlier this month, he even took his message to TMZ Live, calling record labels “obsolete.” Telling his fellow artists “you don’t need them; they’re not doing anything for you that you can’t do for yourself,” he explained why rappers have so much more control over their careers these days.

“Artists in today’s day and age, they’re their own digital marketing,” he said. “I think digital marketing is one of the biggest facades in the music industry. You get with the label and they’re like, ‘Here’s your digital team.’ And it’s like, ‘What do y’all do exactly?’”

Most recently, Russ has popped up on songs with Black Thought and Danger Mouse (“Because” with Joey Badass) and Logic (“Therapy Music“) and launched his own label, so it seems he’s doing something right.

Watch Russ’s “Yes Sir” video above.

Black Thought And Danger Mouse Tap Russ, Joey Badass, And Dylan Cartlidge For The Posse Cut ‘Because’

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Posse cuts tend to come few and far between these days, but when they do, they’re always refreshing. Something about a simple drum pattern, vocal sample, and unbridled spitting just does the beloved Hip-Hop genre justice. Today, Black Thought and Danger Mouse unleashed their latest single “Because” featuring Joey Badass, Russ, and Dylan Cartlidge. Each rapper takes turns doing what they do best, seemingly unphased by the fact they are part of the single that is shorter than a typical song. Who could complain about more bars?

“Because” is the second release from Black Thought and Danger Mouse’s upcoming collaborative project Cheat Codes, a major moment for Danger Mouse who hasn’t maintained much of a presence in the rap space since his Dangerdoom project The Mouse & The Mask with the late MF DOOM from 2006. Mouse hasn’t completely been away from music though, joining up with Karen O for 2019’s Lux Prima. For Black Thought, this follows his Streams Of Thought trilogy which concluded in 2020.

Danger Mouse and Black Thought released their lead single “No Gold Teeth” back in May, kicking off the Cheat Codes rollout which is set to also feature Raekwon, Conway The Machine, A$AP Rocky, Run The Jewels, and more.

Listen to “Because” above.

Cheat Codes is out 08/12 via BMG. Pre-order it here.

Logic’s ‘Vinyl Days’ Tracklist Is A Hefty 30 Songs Long

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It looks like Logic is going to have plenty of new material to perform on his upcoming Vinyl Verse Tour with Wiz Khalifa. In addition to the previously released singles “Therapy Music,” “Orville,” and “Bleed It,” his upcoming album Vinyl Days will host a whopping 30 tracks, closing out his time at Def Jam with one hell of a bang. Seriously, we know albums have been trending longer for the sake of streaming algorithms, but this is either ridiculous or impressive — depending on your opinion of the Maryland rapper.

Among the guests featured on the album are rap legends, contemporary stars, and underground stalwarts, making it one of the most well-rounded representations of the music business today. Action Bronson, AZ, Blu & Exile, Curren$y, DJ Premier, The Game, Langston Bristol, Nezi Momodu, Royce Da 5’9, Russ, RZA, and Wiz Khalifa all make appearances, along with Bobby Boy Records signees iamJMARS, Big Lenbo, and C Dot Castro.

Vinyl Days will be Logic’s seventh album and his first since announcing his “retirement” in 2020 — a retirement he rescinded months just months later with a string of collab tracks alongside Madlib, the single “Vaccine,” and possibly a mixtape as Doctor Destruction, who fans believe was just a barely disguised Logic all along.

Vinyl Days drops 6/17 via Def Jam. Pre-save it here and see the full tracklist below.

1. “Danger”
2. “Tetris”
3. “In My Lifetime” feat. Action Bronson
4. “Decades”
5. “JJ Abrahams (Skit)”
6. “BLACKWHITEBOY”
7. “Quasi”
8. “Bleed It”
9. “LaDonda”
10. “Aaron Judge”
11. “Clouds” feat. Langston Bristol & Curren$y
12. “Michael Rap (Skit)”
13. “Therapy Music” feat. Russ
14. “Tony Revolori (Skit)”
15. “Rogue One”
16. “Breath Control” feat. Wiz Khalifa
17. “NEMS (Skit)”
18. “Nardwuar” feat. Doc D
19. “KickStyle” feat. iamJMARS, Big Lenbo & C Dot Castro
20. “EarlyBird (Skit)”
21. “Ten Years’” feat. Royce 5’9”
22. “Porta One” feat. RZA
23. “NeedleDrop (Skit)”
24. “Introducing Nezi” feat. Nezi Momodu
25. “Orville” feat. Like, Blu & Exile
26. “Carnival” feat. AZ
27. “Lena’s Insight (Skit)”
28. “Vinyl Days” feat. DJ Premier
29. “I Guess I Love It” feat. The Game
30. “Sayonara”

Russ Says Record Labels Will Become ‘Obsolete’ And Artists Don’t Need Them

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There has been a lot of discussion about major labels in the wake of the Halsey controversy, in which they claimed that their label wouldn’t let them release a song until they had a viral TikTok moment first. In a recent interview with TMZ Live, rapper Russ, who never hesitates to share his beliefs, has weighed in with his opinion on major labels.

“I do think at some point [major labels] will become obsolete, just because the juice isn’t worth the squeeze. You don’t need them; they’re not doing anything for you that you can’t do for yourself,” he said. “I just think that some artists are not very business-minded and they kinda just want to be the artist, so that’s why they go the label approach so that they have a team that does everything for them.”

He added: “But you can get a team to do everything for you and still just be the artist without the label. Artists in today’s day and age, they’re their own digital marketing. I think digital marketing is one of the biggest facades in the music industry. You get with the label and they’re like, ‘Here’s your digital team.’ And it’s like, ‘What do y’all do exactly?’”

Watch the interview below.

The Music World Shares Their Condolences After The Tragic Shooting At Texas’ Robb Elementary School

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On Tuesday, The United States was once again hit with news of a mass shooting, and this time, it sadly occurred at an elementary school. An 18-year-old gunman entered Texas’ Robb Elementary School and began shooting at students and teachers in the building. The suspect, Salvador Ramos, was eventually shot and killed during a stand-off with officers. According to AP, the incident is the deadliest shooting at a U.S. grade school since 20 students and six adults were killed at Sandy Hook Elementary in Newtown, Connecticut back in 2012.

The shooting at Robb Elementary School occurred just ten days after a racially-motivating shooting at a supermarket in Buffalo left ten dead. Unfortunately, both cases are examples of the mass shootings that occurred over and over again in the United States over the last decade. The shooting has left the music world to send condolences and extend a loving hand to a community, and a country, that could really use it.

Taylor Swift offered her words after she watched Golden State Warriors coach Steve Kerr speak passionately and criticize government leaders during a press conference. “Filled with rage and grief, and so broken by the murders in Uvalde,” Taylor wrote. “By Buffalo, Laguna Woods and so many others. By the ways in which we, as a nation, have become conditioned to unfathomable and unbearable heartbreak. Steve’s words ring so true and cut so deep.”

Missy Elliot also shared a message of her own on Twitter. “We living in some TRYING TIMES… It’s heavy,” she wrote. “I am praying for everyone that is struggling MENTALLY/FINANCIALLY/PHYSICALLY that some PEACE be RESTORED! So many in the world is dealing with pain & I don’t have the answers but I send you LOVE virtually.”

You can view more messages from artists in the posts below.

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

Logic And Russ Clear Their Heads With Some ‘Therapy Music’

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In all the talk about whether Jack Harlow has surpassed Lil Dicky’s career aspirations (and how he definitely surpassed Asher Roth’s), we’ve all been overlooking two very important members of the melanin-challenged rappers’ coalition: Logic and Russ. Fortunately, they’ve both returned to remind us they deserve consideration too — and, happily, they’ve done so on the same track. “Therapy Music” finds the Def Jam lyricist recruiting the indie champion for a throwback, boom-bap production to address their personal mental health journeys with some extremely flexy raps.

Logic particularly sounds revitalized, which is a good thing, since he’s working on a new album called Vinyl Days. If the new track is any indication of the sound on that project, it looks like Logic has been blasting “Lofi Beats To Study To” and collecting his best material to address the backlash against his prior albums. But although he does sound disappointed in the reception to his prior efforts to talk about mental health, he can at least rest easy in the knowledge that those efforts at least had some positive impact.

Meanwhile, Russ, one of Uproxx’s latest cover stars, is launching his own label, seeking yet another route to disrupt the music industry and return power to the hands of the artists.

Listen to Logic’s “Therapy Music” featuring Russ above.