Mathew Knowles, music manager and father of Beyoncé and Solange, is venturing into television. Variety is reporting that his 2017 memoir Racism From The Eyes Of A Child, will be adapted into both a feature film and limited series.
The show and film will arrive by way of a partnership between Knowles and Say Unkel Entertainment. According to Variety, the film will cover the first half of the book, detailing Knowles’ childhood in Alabama in the early ’60s. During this time, the race riots took place in Alabama, and Knowles was one of six black students at an all-white school. In the book, Knowles details his participation in peaceful protests, and recalls being burnt with a cattle prod, as well as getting arrested four times in one day.
The book also covers Knowles and his admiration for key figures like Martin Luther King Jr., Albert Turner, and Ralph Abernathy. Knowles also details his father and his mother, the latter of whom was a classmate of Coretta Scott King.
“These are the men who made me proud and women who taught me to fight back,” Knowles said.
In Beyoncé’s Renaissance documentary, Bey also shares brief anecdotes about her father’s Alabama upbringing, which was also noted on her 2016 single, “Formation.”
Kelly Rowland has seen numerous performances by Blue Ivy Carter throughout the Renaissance World tour and has amazing things to say about her work. Speaking with E! News, Rowland revealed she was “very proud.”
“She works very freaking hard, period,” Rowland said. “But how could she not, you know? She sees her mother in action and she sees her father in action and how they apply everything, hard work to everything that they do.”
In addition to Rowland, Solange spoke amazing of Blue Ivy’s performances. Solange was on hand at her sister Beyoncé‘s Washington, D.C., Renaissance World Tour stop. Hitting Instagram, Solange celebrated Bey’s performance and also the showing of her niece, Blue Ivy Carter.
Before summer 2023 officially began, JT and Yung Miami declared alongside Diddy and Fabolous that it was about to be a season of “acting bad.” There has undeniably been plenty of criminal activity taking place in the celebrity world, though that’s likely not the kind of trouble the City Girls were encouraging others to get into. Rather, Caresha and Jativia have been pouring their energy into partying with friends, hitting up the mall, bragging about having “good pu**y,” and of course, twerking.
On Tuesday (August 28), a video of JT shaking her booty (once again) hit the internet. While it’s nothing new to see the “Ex For A Reason” throwing it back by herself or alongside Miami, this time around fans were surprised to see her twerking with Solange Knowles. In the video below, Beyonce’s younger sister hypes up with City Girl’s ability to make her behind move like water, even in a designer dress.
It seems the two women came together, along with other famous friends, to celebrate Solange’s new glassware collection. The 37-year-old’s mother, Tina Lawson was also in attendance and didn’t hold back when showing off her dance moves. “I love nothing better than dancing with my baby girl @solangeknowles. Last night at her new beautiful glassware party!” the family matriarch wrote on IG. “It was at the home of the amazing Black pioneering architect Paul R. Williams. A house is not home.”
As another summer comes to a close, it looks as though JT has found the perfect balance between work and play. Sure, she’s found time to hit the mall with Yung Miami and show off her twerking for Solange, but the Florida native has also been putting in work on her recently announced clothing project, as well as collaborations with Kali Uchis and Stunna Girl. Check out JT’s verse on the “Like Dat” remix at the link below, and tap back in later for more hip-hop/pop culture news updates.
Solange was on hand at her sister Beyoncé‘s Washington, D.C., Renaissance World Tour stop. Hitting Instagram, Solange celebrated Bey’s performance and also the showing of her niece, Blue Ivy Carter.
Former 3LW and Cheetah Girls member, Adrienne Bailon, recently revealed an intriguing piece of Hollywood history. In a candid conversation on the “We Said What We Said” podcast, Bailon disclosed that Grammy-winning artist Solange Knowles was originally cast for the role of “Aqua” in the beloved Disney franchise. Adrienne Bailon Confirms Solange As “Aqua” Adrienne […]
Metro Boomin’s song catalog is quite vast at this point in his career. The producer has put out various collaborative efforts, solo projects, and more. His most recent output is the soundtrack for Spider-Man: Across The Spider-Verse. Like his other projects, this focuses on diversity, not only from him but from the artist he works with too. Like any producer, he has his go-to artists like 21 Savage, Future, and Travis Scott. However, he has worked with multiple artists and has crafted a soundscape that fits each of them well. He has collaborated with artists outside this group, such as Big Sean and NAV. Being able to veer from your signature sound as a producer is a testament to your talent. We’ve gathered five examples of Metro doing this in this list.
“Only You” – (feat. WizKid, Offset, and J Balvin) (2018)
This is a Metro Boomin song that caught many listeners off guard. Coming from his acclaimed album Heroes and Villains, this one undoubtedly stands out. Offset already had a collab project with Metro, and this song doesn’t sound like anything on that. WizKid hails from the Afrobeats world and J Balvin comes from the Latin music world. By joining forces with two of the most prominent figures in the rap world today, they all had something new to bring to their listeners. Metro worked with notable producer Allen Ritter on this one. The two of them used a Hispanic guitar melody that gets complimented by a trumpet as the song progresses. The danceable drums still leave room for the artists’ melodic delivery. J Balvin’s verse is entirely in Spanish and he trades the hook with WizKid. Metro showed his range of influences in this one.
“Steppin On N*ggas” – (With 21 Savage) (2020)
This Metro Boomin song stands out for several reasons. It sounds completely different from the eerie, haunting melodies of most of the other songs on the album it comes from, Savage Mode II. 21’s range as an artist has expanded in its own way as his career has progressed, and so has Metro’s. This song showcases this for both of them.
While 21 is from Atlanta, Metro crafts a significantly West Coast-inspired beat for him here. In fact, it’s a very ’80s-esque West Coast production. Metro trades his signature trap drums for some old-school boom-bap-like ones. There’s a synthesizer present, but this time, he opts for a glitzy melody, not a scary one. 21 adapts to it with a bouncy old-school flow that still packs his cutthroat punchlines and humor. Listeners likened this one to Eazy-E’s classic “Boyz-n-the-Hood” and this is an accurate comparison.
“Stay Flo” – Solange (2019)
Metro Boomin’s production credits can appear on songs in unexpected places. Metro has worked with people who are not rappers before, but Solange’s music is its own lane, even in the Neo-Soul/R&B world. This is a song that many listeners were surprised he was involved in because it sounds very different from his previous work. The pace of the song is unique as Solange sings on it at some moments but semi-raps on it at times, too.
Metro teamed up with her and John Carroll Kirby to craft a relaxing song that still had a danceable feel. The keys on it are sparse as they sonically float across the track. A second melody comes in that pairs with layered vocals from Solange. Metro’s contributions here are practically unrecognizable.
“Link Up” – (feat. Don Toliver, WizKid, BEAM, Toain) (2023)
This is one of the most recent Metro Boomin songs from this list. It comes from Metro’s latest project, the Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse soundtrack. Metro recruits one of his frequent collaborators on this one, Don Toliver. Like his previous song with WizKid, Metro uses dancehall elements on this track. However, this time around, he does it in a much more straightforward style. There are not many influences from other genres here. However, he does have several collaborators on it: BEAM, Al Cres, and Peter Lee Johnson. This one is more low-key in terms of tone but still has enough groove to it for dancing. Metro excelled at this style the first time he tried it, so it’s only fitting he did it again.
“Faith” – The Weeknd (2020)
This Metro Boomin song is one of the most layered ones on this list. The song is nearly five minutes long and has a cinematic outro that continues the album’s concept. Metro collaborated with Illangelo and The Weeknd himself for this one. The song lines up with the ’80s synth-wave-inspired sound that covers the rest of the album. However, this one is much more atmospheric than some other songs on the project.
The synthesizer is the most prominent instrument in the song. We’ve heard Metro use one multiple times, but it didn’t sound anything like this. This song also combines modern trap-equse drums and ’80s gated reverb drums. This gives the song a vintage feeling with a present-day sound. Metro and his collaborators were going for something new here, and it worked.
What are some of your favorite Metro Boomin tracks where he did something different? Let us know in the comments section.
After Summer Walker announced the release date for her new EP Clear 2: Soft Life at Dreamville Festival last month, she’s followed up today, revealing its tracklist. In a video clip Summer shared on social media, the singer shares a conversation with raunchy rappers Sexyy Red and Sukihana, complete with a ’90s sitcom-style laugh track. At the end of the clip, the tracklist appears, containing nods to guest stars J. Cole — who Summer beat at pop-a-shot basketball — and Childish Gambino. In addition, the final track is produced by Solange and Steve Lacy, which has fans on Twitter sharing their excitement.
Upon finding out that Solange is involved, Summer fans were flourishing. Solange hasn’t put out new music since 2019’s When I Get Home, so it’s understandable. And while she did compose a score for the New York City Ballet, that’s not quite the same as getting new music for public consumption.
In January, Summer celebrated reaching her goal of having “hella kids before 30.” Despite having three kids now with the birth of her twins, the Atlanta singer has still found the time to appear on tracks from Kali Uchis and Daniel Caesar and perform at Dreamville Festival.
It has been a while since we’ve gotten some new music from Solange, but it looks like that may change in the near future. There’s a catch, though: To indulge in Solange’s latest work, you’ll have to be in New York on September 28 for the New York City Ballet’s Fall Fashion Gala.
According to The New York Times, while Beyonce is busy bringing ball culture to the mainstream, Solange will be bringing her unique sensibilities to the ballet, composing the score for an original work by choreographer Gianna Reisen. It’ll be performed by a chamber ensemble made up of City Ballet orchestra members as well as some of Solange’s own musicians.
To be fair, it won’t be much of a jeté (that’s “leap” in ballet) for Solange to move into this new field. After all, she’s worked with museums like the Guggenheim and Getty, where she’s curated collections of fine arts from music to film. She also, according to The Times, dreamed of attending the prestigious Julliard School in New York, inspired by Houston Ballet’s own Lauren Anderson.
Meanwhile, Solange’s collaborator Reisen has already choreographed two prior shows for City Ballet. The upcoming Fall Fashion Gala will feature dances paired with designers such as Giles Deacon and Raf Simons.
Being sick — especially when the symptoms impact the mouth, nose, or throat — can have a noticeable impact on how our voices sound. For Lizzo, she sees some instances of that as a positive: She actually recorded “Naked,” a song from her new album Special, while she had a sinus infection, which she insists is when she’s at her vocal best.
“Initially, I wanted to write a song about how comfortable I’ve become with myself, but then I evolved as a person. And as I’ve evolved, ‘Naked’ has undergone a lot of rewriting. It has evolved with me. So now it’s like, ‘How accepting are you of me?’ It’s very intimate. I saw Solange perform a couple years ago now at the Lovebox Festival in London, and I was in awe of her set because she had so much nuance. Meanwhile, I’m all bravado. I’m in-your-face, loud-loud-loud, full-throttle. I was like, ‘Man, on my next album, I want nuance.’ Because there’s nothing like the control that she has, the power she has in the quiet.”
She then added of her singing on the song, “So on ‘Naked,’ I’m in a half-falsetto for most of the song. I’m ad-libbing here and there. I’m having a little chat. It’s under your breath. Also, I had a sinus infection when I sang this, and frankly I give the best vocals with a sinus infection.”
Listen to “Naked” above.
Special is out now via Atlantic Records/Nice Life. Get it here.
Lizzo is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
(@B7Album) 
Forever in awe”
