Month: January 2021

Happy new year! So, uhh… Yeah. It’s been a rough week, right?

And unfortunately, it’s not a week that offered up much relief in the form of a whole bunch of great new music. Sorry. In the space of a week (yes, just one) we found out about the loss of a rap hero in MF DOOM and had to watch jerks on the internet pretend not to know the difference between an armed insurrection and protests for Black lives. But, hey, here’s some good news: The Best New Hip-Hop This Week column has been on hold for a couple of weeks to observe the holidays, which means we’ve got some catching up to do.

So, this week, as the music industry spins back up and all of us try to figure out exactly what the hell happened on Wednesday — where’s Boots Riley when you need him, amirite? — we’ll take a look back at the last couple of weeks of releases to highlight the joints our favorite rappers delivered for us on Christmas and those few late gifts that arrived on New Year’s Day. Blame the USPS, I guess.

Here is the best of hip-hop this week, last week, and the week before.

Albums/EPs/Mixtapes

24Heavy — Now Or Never

Quality Control rapper 24Heavy started off 2020 with his pandemic mixtape and ended it with this collection of 12 tracks featuring appearances from labelmates Marlo and Quavo, and fellow Atlanta rising star Lil Keed.

Lil Durk — The Voice

Capping off his incredible 2020, Durk followed through on his longstanding promise to share The Voice, his sixth studio album which was pushed back in the late summer. Album standouts include “Stay Down” with 6lack and Young Thug, and “Still Trappin” with the late King Von.

Popp Hunna — Mud Baby

Philadelphian TikTok favorite Popp Hunna struck while the iron was hot, capitalizing on the runaway success of his October single “Adderall” to drop a body of work that sees him collaborating with his hometown’s hottest star Lil Uzi Vert and fellow TikTok veteran Toosii.

Rubi Rose — For The Streets

After driving up her stock price with standout singles like “Big Mouth,” “He In His Feelings,” and her appearance on Rico Nasty’s “Smack A Bitch” remix, Rubi made a triumphant debut with this eight-song EP featuring a cosign from Cardi B and features from Future and PartyNextDoor.

TheHxliday — Batbxy

Hailing from Perry Hall, Maryland, TheHxliday kicked off the new year with six tracks of singsong heartbreak.

Tink — A Gift And A Curse

Tink’s Christmas present for her fans was yet another polished EP of soulful trap&B sounds, as she once again poured out her heart with some loose nods to the holiday like album opener “Silent Nite.”

Singles/Videos

Key Glock — “Off The Porch”

After delivering a pair of fan-favorite full-lengths in 2020, the Memphis kid maintains his momentum with a spare instrumental and machine-gun flow promising another prodigious year to come.

Open Mike Eagle — “For DOOM”

While tributes to MF DOOM poured in from all corners of hip-hop, Open Mike Eagle’s was perhaps the best, encapsulating what made the villain so fascinating and paying homage to his one-of-a-kind flow.

PAP Chanel — “Nobody”

After making a splash on Future’s “Gucci Bucket Hat” last year, the rap newcomer delivers a nostalgic video to accompany a heartfelt hip-hop love-letter and stake her claim as an artist that deserves some attention.

Pooh Shiesty — “Back In Blood” Feat. Lil Durk

Despite being a relative newcomer to the rap game, it looks like just about anything with Memphis rapper Pooh Shiesty’s name on it is practically guaranteed to go gangbusters. With a laconic delivery and chilly street narratives, he justifies the attention, especially alongside one of the originators of the drill sound that permeates his latest.

Pop Smoke — “What You Know Bout Love”

The late Brooklyn drill breakout’s lovey-dovey single is one of the home runs from his posthumous album and gets a touching video featuring archival footage showing just how much fun he was having being his burgeoning beacon.

Saweetie Feat. Doja Cat — “Best Friend”

Saweetie may have ripped her label for dropping the ball on her anticipated single’s release, but it doesn’t look like the faux pas put much of a damper on this duo’s energetic collab — nor the exuberant fan response, which accumulated over a million plays in about six hours.

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

Who among us isn’t looking for earth-rattling, shiver-inducing, sensory-overloading, “write a text to all your friends about it”-level orgasms? We want that for ourselves and we want it for you, too. Which is why we’re big advocates for cannabis as a sex enhancer. After all, weed makes music sound better, food tastes out of this world, and turns bad movies into classics — why wouldn’t it enhance life’s greatest pleasure?

If you’re a logical type and more interested in the science of sex-plus-cannabis than poetic hyperbole, there are studies out there that suggest that weed can both enhance your libido and greatly increase the quality of your pleasure. Related studies have also found that stoners have more sex than their non-cannabis smoking counterparts. For more hard (sorry!) data, check our original post on the subject.

For those who are well-versed in the wonders of cannabis and sex, welcome to the remix. This time around, we’re going to offer a targeted approach — focusing on weed strains that will excite the mind and put you into an imaginative, relaxed, and improvisational headspace. The goal is the most creative sex of your life, which is a pretty fun pursuit no matter how you spin it.

Jack Herer

Strain: Sativa
THC: 17%

Jack Herer is one of the weakest weed strains on this list, but when using cannabis in the bedroom it’s best not to overdo it and set yourself up for couch lock. Producing a pleasing spiced herbal flavor, Jack Herer has lovely dark-green leaves, heavily coated with shimmering trichomes, and produces an energetic high that will have you in fits of giggling and feeling heightened senses, making you especially susceptible to touch.

The Bottom Line

It might make you slightly goofy, so share this bud with someone you’re comfortable with. Great for stoner couples and focusing on foreplay, inspiring a creative spark after a single short smoke session.

Check Weedmaps to find Jack Herer at a dispensary near you.

Green Crack

Strain: Sativa
THC: 13%-25%

We get it, nobody wants to smoke, let alone buy a weed called Green Crack, but this strain was around back when weed was still fully illegal in the United States and it’s stood strong for a reason. Named by Snoop Dogg (seriously), Green Crack is fairly tame on the THC potency spectrum, which will keep you level headed enough to make use of the energetic and uplifting properties of this weed in the bedroom.

With palate-pleasing citrus and mango flavor notes, Green Crack won’t kill the mood despite the slightly skunky smell the unsmoked bud produces, which dissipates once lit up. No need to opt for concentrates here, go with the flowers and smoke it up in a bong.

The Bottom Line

Reserve this strain for your wake and bake morning sex in the shower sessions.

Check Weedmaps to find Green Crack at a dispensary near you.

Sour Diesel

Strain: Sativa
THC: 17%-26%
CBD: 2%

Normally, we’d tell you to avoid this one. Sour Diesel, like the name implies, has a sort of sour, chemical flavor to it with citrusy undertones that actually make the whole thing taste even more horrid.

We know, that sounds bad, but stick with us for a second.

Aside from the dank smell and horrible taste, Sour Diesel is actually packed with limonene, a terpene responsible for killing stress, battling depression, and keeping anxiety at bay. Coupled with a dash of CBD, Sour Diesel provides a powerful entourage effect that will help produce intense feelings of euphoria and shiver-inducing orgasms

The Bottom Line

Skip the flowers and go with concentrates for this one. Once you get past the taste, Sour Diesel will have you ready to experience some of the most uplifting pleasure ever. Just use mouthwash after smoking.

Check Weedmaps to find Sour Diesel at a dispensary near you.

Harlequin

Strain: Hybrid
THC: 4%-10%
CBD: 6%-15%

Harlequin is a very interesting strain — do not be dissuaded by its extremely weak THC content either, as this strain packs a whole lot of anxiety-killing, mind-relaxing CBD, which will put you in a hyper-focused headspace. This is the type of CBD you can actually feel, and is a great option for partners looking to engage in the bedroom with a singular focus that won’t get muddied by you know, being super high.

It’ll also relax your body, offer pain relief, and get you ready for anything. If you don’t know what we’re implying well then… you’re probably not looking for a strain like Harlequin.

The Bottom Line

Not really geared to those looking for super stoned sex, Harlequin will put you in a focused, level-headed and creative headspace that you’ll actually remember.

Check Weedmaps to find Harlequin at a dispensary near you.

Do Si Dos

Strain: Hybrid
THC: 14%-30%

Be careful with this one. Do Si Dos is almost always sold in high THC varieties, as its delicious earthy berry flavor and unique hybrid genetics is favored amongst cannabis snobs. Aside from its addictive flavor profile, Do Si Dos produces a rushing euphoric high that will slap a smile across your face and a giddy perspective that’s chilled out by this strain’s relaxing Indica properties, bumping up the sensory experience and producing a long-lasting effect that’s perfect for longer sessions with your partner(s???).

The Bottom Line

For the experimentally minded. Pull out the blindfolds and get ready for a rush of closed high visuals and heightened sensations.

Check Weedmaps to find Do Si Dos at a dispensary near you.

Girl Scout Cookies

Strain: Hybrid
THC: 19%

If you read the entry for Do Si Dos and thought “that sounds awesome, but way too intense,” then Girl Scout Cookies (sometimes known as GSC) will probably be right up your alley. GSC has some of those body relaxing, senses-heightening properties you’d expect from an indica, but is considerably more sativa-leaning than Do Si Dos — with a bigger focus on producing euphoric feelings of well being.

GSC’s beautiful orange flecked rich green buds also make for beautiful looking flowers, so definitely skip the concentrates on this one.

The Bottom Line

Anxiety killing and sense heightening, Girl Scout Cookies will put you in the state of mind to take a chance and try new things. A great starter strain for experimenting with weed in the bedroom.

Check Weedmaps to find Girl Scout Cookies at a dispensary near you.

Strawberry cough

Strain: Sativa
THC: 17%

Strawberry Cough is the perfect strain to reach for if you want the foreplay and action to begin while you’re smoking rather than after. With an intoxicating smell and a berry-focused taste that coats the mouth with sweetness, Strawberry Cough won’t kill the mood with its smell or taste and will produce full-body relaxation almost immediately.

Packed with the terpene linalool, Strawberry Cough is the type of strain that brings out your appreciation for the beautiful things around, that could be a shimmering sunny morning or the way the light reflects off your lover.

The Bottom Line

One of the sweetest smelling and best-tasting sativas you’ll ever smoke, perfect for shotgunning with your partner.

Check Weedmaps to find Strawberry Cough at a dispensary near you.

Sour Tangie

Strain: Sativa
THC: 18%

Sour Tangie gets its “sour” moniker from its cross genetics with Sour Diesel, giving you that same feel-good euphoria heavy high infused with Tangie’s creativity boosting and energetic properties, resulting in a well-rounded strain that feels particularly geared toward getting active. This makes it a great daytime strain, as its sativa genetics will keep you far away from couch lock territory.

The Bottom Line

The same euphoria producing properties of Sour Diesel with an extra infusion of creative energy, great for daytime sex and afternoon quickies.

Check Weedmaps to find Sour Tangie at a dispensary near you.

Flo

Strain: Hybrid
THC: 17%

Flo, sometimes known as DJ Short Flo, is a strain all about vibing to the mood. A cross between Purple Thai and Afghani Indica, Flo has heavy indica properties, which makes the high a lot heavier than any of the other strains on this list. Luckily, the strain also has some pretty noticeable sativa properties that take hold once your high stars leveling out, giving you a clear-headed and euphoric high that is highly responsive to touch, both receiving and giving.

The Bottom Line

Flo is all about setting the mood and vibing, so use this strain for more romantic sensory situations. We’re talking good music, great setting, and a fit designed for getting down.

Check Weedmaps to find Flo at a dispensary near you.

Jillybean

Strain: Hybrid
THC: 16%

Does Jillybean have maybe the worst name for a strain next to Chemical Cat Piss? Probably, but Chemical Cat Piss sounds dangerous, and Jillybean literally sounds like a sex toy, so it’s kind of perfect. But a name is just that, a name, so how does Jillybean work as a sex enhancer?

Fantastically it turns out.

A cross between Orange Velvet and Space Queen, Jillybean has a great citrus-forward flavor with hints of tropical mango and does a great job at killing anxiety, making it the perfect strain for those who suffer from slight performance anxiety.

The Bottom Line

If you’re sometimes too in your head for your own good, Jillybean is a great strain to melt away your anxiety and inhibitions and put you in an uplifted mood.

Check Weedmaps to find Jillybean at a dispensary near you.

Zack Snyder has been racking up headlines thanks to his long-awaited director’s cut of Justice League, but the director has another film universe coming down the pipe thanks to a very enthusiastic amount of support from Netflix. Later this year, Army of the Dead will hit the streaming service, and it’s a project that Snyder has been trying to get off the ground for years. Despite having a relationship with Warner Bros., the zombie heist movie stayed trapped in development hell where it eventually fizzled out.

“They didn’t want to spend that kind of money on a zombie movie, or just didn’t take it that seriously,” Snyder recently told Entertainment Weekly. But he surprisingly found a willing partner in Netflix, which was so hyped about Army of the Dead that it greenlit both the film and an animated prequel series that will do a “very deep dive” into how the zombie plague started:

“We were in a meeting at Netflix and I was talking about some of these scripts I was working on,” Snyder recalls. “And I mentioned the idea to [Netflix head of original films Scott Stuber] and he was like, ‘That is the movie! Go write that movie and let’s make it.’ I was like, ‘What, do you mean now?’ And he’s like, ‘Go write it tomorrow and we’ll shoot it in a week.’”

Netflix also released a series of new photos from Army of the Dead, which is scheduled to premiere in 2021 but does not have an official release date yet. You can see the stills and behind-the-scene shots below.

(Via Entertainment Weekly)

Five years ago today, David Bowie released his final album, Blackstar, on his birthday. Two days later, he died. A common belief about the record around its release was that Bowie, knowing he didn’t have much time left, intended it to be a farewell album. However, one of his collaborators doesn’t think that’s the case.

Donny McCaslin, who was part of the jazz ensemble with whom Bowie worked on the album, spoke about Blackstar as part of a new oral history from NME. He explained why he didn’t think Bowie saw Blackstar as a farewell, saying:

“There is the narrative of Blackstar being this farewell, which I totally get. But that coexists with the fact that he was just so creative. He was planning on doing more. When I went to listen to the album at his apartment in November 2015, the idea came up of doing some small gigs. The Village Vanguard is like Mecca for jazz folks and I had my first run there happening in January. We talked about how to do a little rehearsal and soundcheck and, of course, it was going to depend on how he felt. We talked again in December around the time of the musical and he said he didn’t want to — he was working on new music and he wanted to record in January.”

Elsewhere in the piece, McCaslin spoke about the overwhelmingly positive experience he had working on the album with Bowie:

“The first day in the studio was a mixture of excitement, anticipation and hoping that it was all going to go smoothly. I was loving the music he had sent and I had done some work on it on my end with woodwinds and with voicing things that I hadn’t told anybody about, so I was excited to unveil that. When we got going, it just felt seamless and organic — the analogy I would use is that the group was like a basketball team where we were constantly sharing the ball and throwing it back and forth.

That first day, the spirit of what David told us was, ‘Let’s not worry about what this will be called, let’s just go have fun and anything you’re hearing, I want you to go for it.’ He didn’t say ‘no inhibitions,’ but that was the spirit of what he said. It was great to have that affirmation before we even started and to sense that he trusted us with this music. You couldn’t have asked for it to be a better environment creatively.”

Check out the full Blackstar oral history here.

In one of the more uncomfortable morning talk show interviews you will ever see, CBS This Morning host Gayle King spoke to Miya Ponsetto, the so-called “SoHo Karen” who was arrested on Thursday after falsely accusing a Black teenager of stealing her phone.

The incident took place last December at the Arlo Hotel in Manhattan’s SoHo district, where Ponsetto confronted Keyon Harrold, a prominent jazz musician, and his 14-year-old son, Keyon Harrold, Jr., about her missing phone. “In the video, Ms. Ponsetto can be seen confronting Mr. Harrold and his son after they walk into the hotel lobby, insisting without evidence that Keyon Jr. has her cellphone,” the New York Times reported. “Ms. Ponsetto can be seen asking a hotel manager to help her, after which the manager identifies himself and asks Keyon Jr. to produce a cellphone, in an apparent attempt to verify Ms. Ponsetto’s claim.” Ponsetto then tackled the teenager and tried to “rummage” through his pockets. The phone was discovered by an Uber driver later that day.

In the hours before she was arrested (she “nearly slammed her car door on a deputy and needed to be yanked from her ride during her arrest,” according to authorities), Ponsetto sat down with King for a “disastrous interview” that, I mean… just watch.

The “Daddy” hat, the defensiveness, the “I am a 22-year-old girl” excuse (I’m still trying to make sense of, “I don’t… racism is… how is one girl accusing a guy about a phone a crime?”). But it’s Ponsetto snapping at King and telling her “enough” that really set people off. As pointed out by activist and writer Charlotte Clymer, “I don’t know why Miya Ponsetto’s lawyer didn’t step in and end this disaster.” Through it all, King does an incredible (and incredibly patient) job of letting Ponsetto, who claims that she’s “super sweet” and “never, never meant” to hurt Harrold Jr., dig her own grave, essentially.

I can’t get over the hat.

Ponsetto is being held without bail at a pre-trial detention facility in Ventura, California.

Bad news, Verzuz fans. After previously postponing the upcoming Ashanti Vs. Keyshia Cole battle, the show announced it again pushed back their upcoming appearance out of COVID-19 safety concerns. In a statement posted to the Verzuz social channels, the organizers also revealed the show would be returning to its original format, with each artist calling into the live stream from a separate location after the most recent handful of shows saw the battles being staged at places like Atlanta’s Magic City and various studios.

For some fans in the comments, that’s good news. After all, Verzuz was initially sparked by the search for communal entertainment during the socially isolated shutdowns, with the artists taking turns playing their favorite hits for an appreciative digital audience. However, corporate sponsorships eventually led to more elaborate presentations beginning with the May Bounty Killer Vs. Beenie Man show. Since then, DMX and Snoop Dogg, 2 Chainz and Rick Ross, Gladys Knight and Patti LaBelle, Brandy and Monica, and E-40 and Too Short have all appeared in the same room. The crowning achievement of the new format was the battle between Gucci Mane and Jeezy, which saw the two rivals come together for the first time in a decade to perform their hit song “So Icy.”

However, such events drew criticism from longtime fans who pointed out the increased risk of infection of stars. That point was hammered home in December when Ashanti’s COVID diagnosis caused her showdown with Keyshia Cole to be postponed the first time. It appears that after COVID cases rose precipitously, shutting down new hospital admissions in cities like Los Angeles, the Verzuz organizers aren’t taking any more chances with the lives of our musical legends.

We have known for over two months now that Hilarie Burton — the real-life wife of Jeffrey Dean Morgan — would be playing the fictional wife, Lucille, of Morgan’s fictional character, Negan, on The Walking Dead. Burton, who met Morgan through his Supernatural co-star Jensen Ackles, will be featured in an episode adapted from “Here’s Negan,” based on a stand-alone issue of Robert Kirkman’s comic tracking the character’s origin story.

Before the apocalypse, Negan was a middle-school gym teacher who cheated on his wife. However, after his wife, Lucille, was diagnosed with cancer, Negan redoubled his efforts to be the best husband he could. Unfortunately, Lucille’s death from cancer coincided with the rise of the zombies in a particularly tragic way, which may partially explain Negan’s behavior on The Walking Dead. He did, after all, name his deadly baseball bat after his late wife.

In the video above, we see Burton and Jeffrey Dean Morgan (among other cast members) conducting a virtual table read for the episode, “Here’s Negan.” In that episode, a newly reformed Negan reflects on his past. The episode will take us back 12 years to Negan’s basement, where he and his dying wife try to decide on a James Bond DVD and figure out whether to kill a walker drawn to their generator.

“It’s not like killing a person, babe,” Lucille tells him. “It’s not even like killing an animal. You have to stop letting it bother you.”

“It doesn’t bother me,” Negan says. “It doesn’t bother me, but I’m worried that I’ll get used to it.”

As we know, of course, Negan gets more than used to killing not only walkers, but humans, too.

The episode will air as part of the 6-episode extension of the series’ 10th season, which will kick off on AMC on February 28th.

Run The Jewels worked with a number of artists on RTJ4, on both the album itself and on remixes they’ve released after the fact. Last month, for example, they teamed up with Royal Blood on an aggressive rework of “The Ground Below,” and now they’ve brought another collaborator into the fold. This time, it’s Australian producer What So Not (real name Christopher Emerson), who delivered a new take on the Pharrell and Zack De La Rocha collaboration “Ju$t.”

Interestingly, it appears this version of the song didn’t begin its life as an officially sanctioned production. In a statement about the track, Emerson said, “Starting as a bootleg, I was honoured to get the nod to put this record out, not only with RTJ, but also my childhood heroes Zack and Pharrell.” It would seem, then, that Emerson made the remix on his own volition, then El-P and Killer Mike caught wind of it and liked it enough to make it an official release.

El-P shared the remix this morning, writing on Twitter, “i dont know how i missed that this dropped already but here is the very [fire] official remix of JU$T by @WhatSoNot. guess when you’re busing watching the death of a republic one can forget to self promote [shrugging emoji].”

Listen to What So Not’s remix of “Ju$t” above.

As Tracy Chapman’s copyright infringement lawsuit against Nicki Minaj came to a close, the two sides apparently came to a settlement without going to court. Nicki agreed to pay Chapman $450,000 for her unlicensed sample of “Baby Can I Hold You” in the leaked song “Sorry,” according to The Hollywood Reporter. In September, U.S. District Court Judge Virginia Phillips determined that Nicki had a fair use right to use “Baby Can I Hold You” to create “Sorry,” but not to distribute it, setting up a separate trial to determine responsibility for the leak.

On Thursday, California court documents became public revealing the results of the judgment, which nixes the second trial. Chapman agreed to accept the settlement amount, avoiding trial costs should the trial have fallen in Nicki’s favor. Chapman initially sued the rapper in 2018, after blocking her clearance request for “Sorry” ahead of the release of Nicki’s fourth studio album Queen. Incidentally, Nicki’s revelation that Chapman had denied her request led to a days-long campaign of social media harassment from her Barbz, which probably didn’t help her case much.

Although the song was ultimately removed from the Queen tracklist, someone leaked it online and Funkmaster Flex played the leak on the radio, prompting Chapman’s lawsuit to block it from official release or public performances. Now that this case is in her rearview, though, Nicki still faces other legal issues. Earlier this week, TMZ reported Nicki had been sued for $200 million by another Queens rapper claiming that he’d written the entirety of her song “Rich Sex.”

After the now-infamous picture of Senator Josh Hawley fist-pumping the throng of Donald Trump supporters who attacked the Capitol building, and his continued dedication to their cause by attempting to overturn the 2020 election results even after violent assault, Simon and Schuster canceled Hawley’s book The Tyranny of Big Tech that was due out in June. “We take seriously our larger public responsibility as citizens, and cannot support senator Hawley after his role in what became a dangerous threat to our democracy and freedom,” the publisher wrote in a statement.

Less than an hour after the news hit, Hawley fired back at Simon and Schuster by calling them part of the “woke mob” and labeling their decision as “Orwellian” in a statement on Twitter. “Let me just be clear, this is not just a contract dispute. This is a direct assault on the first amendment.” While numerous voices on social media noted that Hawley has a law degree from Yale and should be well aware that book deals are not covered by the first amendment, Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez went right to the point and blasted Hawley for being more concerned with a book deal than inciting a norm-shattering assault on democracy that left five people dead. AOC also echoed calls for Hawley’s expulsion from the Senate.

“You fist-pumped insurrectionists and baselessly attacked our elections,” AOC tweeted. “Your actions fueled a riot and you fundraised in the chaos. Five people are dead. Even your GOP colleagues have distanced from your acts. Yet here you are crying over a book deal. You should be expelled.”

You can see AOC’s tweet below:

In related news, former U.S. Sen. John C. Danforth is now regretting his past act of helping to get Josh Hawley elected. In an interview with the St. Louis Dispatch, Danforth said, “Supporting Josh and trying so hard to get him elected to the Senate was the worst mistake I ever made in my life.”

(Via Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez on Twitter)