Month: February 2021

Cardi B’s music career origins have been well-documented, since before she came to rap on a professional level, she was an internet celebrity and a cast member of Love & Hip Hop: New York. Now, though, she has discussed the moment she actually decided to really try being a rapper.

Cardi got nostalgic on Twitter yesterday, sharing an older photo of her in a room surrounded by dollar bills, presumably from her days as a stripper. She captioned her post, “I miss the ghetto.” She followed that up with an old Instagram video of her rapping a capella and explained, “I really just used to play around making rhymes up when I was bored till my manager at the time told me why don’t you try to rhyme on a beat …I was like [rolling eyes emojis] ok I guess then I actually made some rhymes into a song.” She then shared another old rapping video and wrote, “Me when I used to throw shots at b*tches [crying laughing emojis] I will really put lil rhymes together for fun …Now it’s my and It took me a long way.”

It’s fair to say that things have worked out well for her since then, as she has a No. 1 album to her name with Invasion Of Privacy and a handful of chart-topping single, the latest among them being “WAP.”

Cardi B is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Ed Sheeran reached a major milestone this week, but it had nothing to do with streaming numbers or album sales. Rather, on Wednesday, he turned 30 years old. Part of his celebration included hopping on Instagram and teasing a new album coming at some point in 2021.

Sheeran shared a photo of a pirate caterpillar birthday cake alongside a childhood photo of himself dressed as a pirate. He captioned his post, “30 today. Thank you for all your wonderful messages, I feel very loved. Currently dressed the same as I was on my 3rd birthday about to chow down on Colin the pirate caterpillar, poor bloke. I’ll be back online with the 4th instalment in the series later this year, until then xx.”

With “the 4th [installment] in the series,” Sheeran is presumably referring to his mathematically titled studio albums: 2011’s + (aka Plus), 2014’s x (Multiply), and 2017’s ÷ (Divide). Assuming that Sheeran follows the same naming convention with his next album, it would seem his upcoming album will be called –, aka Minus or perhaps Subtract.

This news comes after Sheeran announced at the end of 2019 that he was taking a break. Indeed, the artist had a quiet 2020, although he did end the year with a new song, which he made clear is “not the first single from the next album.”

Ed Sheeran is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Netflix can’t technically keep us warm, but it’s sure gonna try to do this weekend as the United States (hopefully) begins to recover from a devastating ice storm that ripped through several states, including Texas. If you’re lucky enough to have power (and we hope you are), then there are plenty of fresh offerings to keep everyone entertained while huddling under the blankets and crossing fingers for spring to be lurking around the corner. First up, there’s a cunning duo in a Rosamund Pike-Peter Dinklage team-up. Then there’s an interactive adventure special from the guy who will probably drink his own pee, and there’s a suspense series and a Kevin James show. No matter which one of these is your particular ballgame, we encourage you to get your binge on.

Here’s everything else coming to (and leaving) the streaming platform this week.

I Care A Lot (Netflix film streaming 2/19)

Rosamund Pike’s got the Gone Girl hair again, which sends out some palpable vibes to be certain. She portrays a court-appointed guardian for elderly wards, and she’s siphoning their assets in an elaborate racket. However, she meets her match in a gangster played by Peter Dinklage, who’s got his own game while representing a mark (Dianne Wiest), who has no living heirs or family but has ruthless designs of her own. Dinklage has got a stare that can bore straight into your soul, and Pike can be as cold as they come, so this movie should be a deliciously dark treat for all.

Animals on the Loose: A You vs. Wild Movie (Netflix interactive special streaming 2/16)

Bear Grylls digs these interactive specials, in which he allows viewers to choose his fate in a Bandersnatch sort of way. How, exactly, did he end up in the above scenario, and is it real? I can’t even begin to guess the answer to either of those questions, but I imagine that he’ll be drinking his own pee at some point. In addition, expect Bear to help track down missing animals (including a hungry lion and a mischievous baboon) from a wildlife sanctuary. Chose well (or poorly) for him because, you know, he’s doing this to himself.

Amend: The Fight for America (Netflix docuseries streaming 2/17)

This six-part docuseries will dive deep into the Fourteenth Amendment that’s promised liberty and equal protection for all since 1868. Along the way, expected to hear form luminaries including Mahershala Ali, Diane Lane, Samuel L. Jackson, Pedro Pascal, Yara Shahidi, and more. They’ll read speeches and writings from Frederick Douglass, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Ruth Bader Ginsburg, and Andrew Johnson; and the series welcomes hosts Will Smith and Larry Wilmore for a powerful journey through U.S. history.

Behind Her Eyes (Netflix series streaming 2/17)

This series follows a single mother who has an affair with her boss, who happens to be a psychiatrist, and then his wife ends up in her circle of friends. Naturally, this leads to a web of secrets and lies and so much drama, all from the producers of The Crown.

The Crew (Netflix series streaming 2/15)

The Crew (Netflix series) — Kevin James has his own Netflix show, y’all. He plays a NASCAR crew chief who must step up when the owner steps down. James must resist all efforts to “modernize” his team, and there are members of The King Of Queens and Paul Blart: Mall Cop 2 production teams behind this show, so all those Kevin James followers out there will know the drill.

Here’s a full list of what’s been added in the last week:

Avail. 2/15
The Crew

Avail. 2/16
Animals on the Loose: A You vs. Wild Movie
Good Girls: Season 3

Avail. 2/17
Behind Her Eyes
Hello, Me!
MeatEater: Season 9 Part 2

Avail. 2/18
Thus Spoke Kishibe Rohan

Avail. 2/19
I Care A Lot
Tribes of Europa

Avail. 2/20
Classmates Minus

Avail. 2/21
The Conjuring
The Conjuring 2

Avail. 2/23
Brian Regan: On The Rocks
Pelé

Avail. 2/24
Canine Intervention
Ginny & Georgia
Two Sentence Horror Stories: Season 2

Avail. 2/25
Geez & Ann
High-Rise Invasion

Avail. 2/26
Bigfoot Family
Captain Fantastic
Caught by a Wave
Crazy About Her
No Escape
Our Idiot Brother

And here’s what’s leaving next week, so it’s your last chance:

Leaving 2/19
Bates Motel: Seasons 1-5

Leaving 2/20
A Haunted House

Leaving 2/21
Trespass Against Us

Leaving 2/24
Dolphin Tale 2

Leaving 2/26
The Frozen Ground

Leaving 2/28
A Walk to Remember
Basic Instinct
Easy A
The Gift
GoodFellas
Gran Torino
Haywire
LA 92
Little Nicky
My Little Pony Equestria Girls: Friendship Games
Retribution
Saving Mr. Banks
Sleepover

Jimmy Kimmel’s two greatest feuds are with Matt Damon and Ted Cruz (Seth Rogen can relate). In recent months, he’s called the Texas senator a “scumbag,” “lying little bitch,” and someone who’s “willing to roll the dice on a civil war.” The Jimmy Kimmel Live host naturally had a lot to say about Cruz deserting Texas, where his constituents have been without power for days due to a historic winter storm, for sunny Cancun.

“On a day when the most newsworthy landing should have been the NASA Rover successfully touching down on Mars, instead, it was a senator from Texas touching down on Cancun,” he said. “While his fellow Texans are freezing with the power out Ted Cruz did what any great leader would do when his state needs leadership most. He booked a flight to Mexico and said, ‘Adios, amigos!’” Kimmel also called Cruz a “snake on a plane” who was “headed, ironically, to the very place he tried to build a wall around.”

As for the senator’s piss-poor excuse for why he abandoned Texas, Kimmel said, “But why settle for just being the planet’s biggest hypocrite when you can be a world-class liar, too?” Cruz was “careful not to say he was planning to fly back this afternoon because he wasn’t,” Kimmel pointed out. “He just said he did, and in fact, NBC News has a source that says he was originally booked to fly back Saturday. He booked his return ticket at 6 a.m. this morning after he got busted. But I guess we were supposed to believe he was chaperoning his wife and kids to Mexico and was planning to come back the next day all along — with a carry-on bag stuffed like a piñata.” You can watch the clip above.

There’s no telling what Staten Island rapper CJ thought would happen when he released his “Whoopty” towards the end of last year. He probably didn’t think it’d grow to be one of today’s latest viral anthems, but here we are. The song currently sits at No. 11 on the Billboard Hot 100, dropping just one spot from its peak position of No. 10. While that song continues to live out its success, CJ is back to prove that his career is much more than a breakout hit.

The rapper returns with his debut project, Loyalty Over Royalty. The eight-track effort is an entirely-solo release minus a lone feature from French Montana on their “I’m Lit” track. The project also features his “Bop” single, one he released a flashy video for at the end of last month. In it, he stays tethered to his roots and while posting up with his crew and heading out for a cruise through Times Square in his Rolls Royce. Altogether, Loyalty Over Royalty looks to solidify CJ’s position as one of drill rap’s newest and most promising acts.

Just in case you thought the Staten Island rapper’s success wasn’t as big as it seems, Tierra Whack recently hijacked his “Whoopty” beat for a thrilling freestyle.

Loyalty Over Royalty is out now via Warner. Get it here.

CJ is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Just a little over a year ago, Denzel Curry and Kenny Beats surprised their fans with their joint album, Unlocked. Now, the duo is ready to drop Unlocked 1.5. However, before they do so, Denzel and Kenny released the project’s first single, a remix of “So.Incredible.Pkg” with Smino and Robert Glasper.

The reworked version of the Unlocked song features a bit more relaxed production thanks to jazzy contributions from Robert Glasper. Smino’s verse fits perfectly with the song’s new production, resulting in an overall great remix. The new track is one of eight that will appear on Unlocked 1.5, which will also see appearances from Arlo Parks, Joey Badass, Benny The Butcher, Charlie Heat, Kenny Mason, Jay Versace, Sango, and more.

The new project was announced with a comical trailer from Denzel and Kenny. It begins with the two on a zoom call with Glasper, The Alchemist, and Georgia Anne Muldrow while Smino can be found on a FaceTime call on Denzel’s phone. The group just finished listening to what we assume was Unlocked 1.5, but things take a weird turn after they express their disappointment with the project’s quality. Denzel abruptly hangs up the call and turns into an evil villain who details his plans to release the project thanks to obtaining digital copies of the guest acts.

You can listen to the song in the video above and check out the tracklist below.

1. “So Incredible.pkg (Remix)” Feat. Smino
2. “Track07 (Remix)” Feat. Arlo Parks
3. “’ Cosmic ’ .m4a (Remix)” Feat. Joey Bada$$
4. “Take_it_Back_v2 (Charlie Heat Remix)”
5. “Pyro [Remix]” Feat. Kenny Mason
6. “Lay_Up.m4a (Remix)”
7. “DIET_1.5” Feat. Benny The Butcher
8. “Take_it_Back_v2 (GODMODE Remix)”

Next month will make one year since YG announced he signed West Coast rapper Day Sulan to his 4Hunnid imprint. Prior to Friday, the two worked on three songs together and today, their fourth collaboration arrived in the form of their new track, “Bailar.”

Here, YG and Sulan show their growing chemistry over the song’s Latin-influenced production. The rappers deliver verses in both English and Spanish while laying provocative raps to their partners. YG and Sulan also dropped a music video for the song, finding them partying and dancing with a select group of friends.

In 2019, YG and Day Sulan unleashed their first song together with “Her Story” from the former’s fourth album, 4Real 4 Real. A year later, Day Sulan was signed to 4Hunnid and the collaborations kept pouring in. They joined forces for a second time on “Equinox,” a track that arrived with a raunchy music video that was centered in the middle of a wild pool party. Months later, they delivered their third song, “Hit Em Up,” which featured song help from fellow 4Hunnid-signee D3szn.

The new song comes after YG joined Ty Dolla Sign, Post Malone, J. Bavin, and Tyga for a multilingual remix of “Spicy.” Outside of the music world, the rapper also revealed his new line of sneakers, entitled “The Flame.” The standalone shoes will arrive at some point next month.

You can listen to “Bailar” in the video above.

You might remember Matt Berninger from such musical highlights as collaborating with Julien Baker, collaborating with Phoebe Bridgers, and collaborating with Taylor Swift.

But actually, aside from working with all these incredible artists, Berninger released a solo album of his own in 2020 as well, and it’s pretty excellent. Serpentine Prison came out in October of last year, and The National frontman’s first proper solo record was originally conceived as a covers album, and produced by Booker T. Jones.

The sessions with Jones did end up including a few covers, but there was also some original material that didn’t quite make the cut for the album the first time around, and now some of those songs are going to be released as part of a deluxe version of the record coming next month. The first of which is a new song called “Let It Be,” that Berninger has shared tonight, a harmonica-laden affair that is decidedly not a Beatles cover, despite the fact that their song of the same name will probably have a few fans thinking it is one.

The full deluxe of Serpentine Prison will be out March 12, for now, check out Berninger’s latest above. And keep your eyes peeled for him to collaborate with your favorite female musician in the near future.. seriously if he was on one of Ariana Grande’s new bonus tracks I wouldn’t be surprised at this point. I’ll be willing that one into existence as I play through his solo album before bed tonight.

Conan Gray has been slowly, meticulously building his footprint as a pop star for quite some time now. Developing an online presence at an early age via Youtube, Gray used his videos as a form of creative expression to escape a home life that wasn’t always idyllic, and his early EP Sunset Season put him on the map in a huge way. Building off early singles and a high-energy live show, Gray eventually landed a deal with Republic Records and continued releasing intimate, catchy songs that indicated big things were on the way for him.

The dream coalesced for Gray in March of last year, when he released his debut album Kid Krow, packed with singles that have racked up millions of streams all while staying true to the same clever, personal songwriting that initially catapulted him to stardom. Then, of course, the pandemic hit, and his performance at Coachella was canceled, along with a whole slew of planned international appearances. But, never one to sit on his laurels, Gray continued on despite a changed landscape, collaborating with Lauv, performing on Corden, and releasing a brand new track of his own tonight that somehow already feels leaps and bounds ahead of his 2020 debut.

“Overdrive” is classic, blockbuster pop with huge guitar riffs, soaring vocals, and the kind of chorus that makes you want to roll the windows down and scream it out into the night. It’s an instant hit, the kind of unstoppable young love tribute that will be adopted by kids cooped up inside as a breakout anthem, even if they’re just singing along with the car stereo. This one is destined for arenas, as soon as those stages are safe again. Check it out above and keep an eye out for Conan, he’s only on the way up.

Ariana Grande has been teasing her Positions deluxe edition for a few weeks now, letting fans there would be four new tracks including the “34 + 35” remix with Megan Thee Stallion and Doja Cat, and even sharing a snippet of the “Someone Like U (Interlude)” along with an updated tracklist earlier this week.

Tonight, the moment of truth is finally here and the four new tracks — the interlude, “Test Drive,” “Worst Behavior,” and “Main Thing” — are available to the world. These new additions build on the overall sound of the album, not straying too far from the loved-up, sex-positive feel, which makes even more sense now that we know Grande is officially engaged once more.

The “Someone Like U (Interlude)” is a minute-long, music box-style ode to finally finding that special someone she’s been waiting for, “Test Drive” is an upbeat pop anthem that uses car imagery to further the album’s sexual themes, “Worst Behavior” is indeed not a Drake cover, though there’s some sung-rapped sections, but a celebration of acting out when you’re fully secure in a relationship, and finally, “Main Thing” is another slower jam professing her love for the one and only Dalton Gomez. These songs are nice additions, but there’s nothing here to suggest they should’ve been on the original album. Still, it’s always nice to hear her flexing her vocals and continuing to sing about how happy she is.

Check out all four new tracks below.