Month: September 2021

Over the past couple weeks, Lil Nas X has handled the lead-up to his new album Montero as brilliantly and entertainingly as anybody ever has. It started earlier this month, when he shared some “maternity” photos, for which he made use of prosthetics to give himself a pregnant-looking belly. He went on to share a baby registry (full of charities to support) and declare yesterday that, with his album release just hours away, he was having contractions.

Sure enough, when the album was released at midnight last night, the rapper “gave birth” to the album in a new promo video. In the clip, Nas moans and groans as he’s wheeled through a hospital, on the brink of giving birth. Gags abound before he finally delivers the baby… which unfortunately for him was the vinyl edition instead of something easier to push out, like a CD or cassette tape.

As he holds his new bundle of joy, the proud parent says through sighs of relief, “It’s already Grammy-nominated.”

He had some other stellar promotional tactics outside of the whole pregnancy story line, like his series of parody billboards.

Check out the Montero “birth” video above.

Montero is out now via Columbia. Get it here.

Guillermo del Toro’s last movie, The Shape of Water, made nearly $200 million at the box office and won four Oscars, including Best Picture. If he wasn’t already, he’s now officially a Blank Check director. So, what would he do for his follow-up? Make a psychological thriller about a carny starring Bradley Cooper, Cate Blanchett, Toni Collette, Willem Dafoe, Richard Jenkins, Rooney Mara, and Ron Perlman, of course.

Based on William Lindsay Gresham’s 1946 novel of the same name, Nightmare Alley is about an “ambitious carny with a talent for manipulating people with a few well-chosen words hooks up with a female psychiatrist who is even more dangerous than he is,” according to the official plot summary. Cooper is the carny (with a mustache!), Blanchett is the female psychiatrist, and Dafoe presumably plays a grinning weirdo.

“That is a distinct possibility,” del Toro told Vanity Fair when asked about the possibility of the title misleading viewers into thinking he’s made another horror movie. “It has happened to me in the past with Crimson Peak, where people went in expecting a horror movie. I knew it was a gothic romance but it was very difficult to put that across. But yes, this has no supernatural element. It’s based completely in a reality world. There is nothing fantastic. It’s a very different movie from my usual, but yes, the title and my name would create that [impression].”

Nightmare Alley opens on December 17.

Summer Walker has lent her talents to a number of artists in the past. Her collaborations include work with Khalid, 21 Savage, Young Rog, Lil Tjay, and others. For her latest track, she and Sam Smith combine their talents for their new single, “You Will Be Found.” The track is one of the many contributions to the soundtrack for the upcoming film, Dear Evan Hansen. The movie follows a high school senior who suffers from social anxiety through a journey of self-discovery and acceptance following the tragic suicide of a classmate.

The duo’s “You Will Be Found” is an uplifting track that aims to provide hope to the lost souls of the world. Their collaboration comes last than a year after Smith released their third album, Love Goes. The 16-track project arrives with 18 songs and features from Labrinth, Normani, Demi Lovato, Calvin Harris, and Burna Boy. As for Summer Walker, the LVRN singer is placing the finishing touches on her upcoming sophomore album, one that will hopefully match the huge success that she had with her 2019 debut Over It. While a title or release date have yet to be revealed for the album, the singer confirmed that Lil Durk, Ari Lennox, and SZA are some of the features fans will hear on the upcoming project.

You can press play on the track above.

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

It’s amazing that Majid Jordan decided to stick around with their fans for once this year. Next month will mark four years since the duo delivered with their debut album, The Space Between to the world. The project was a quality output and those who enjoyed looked forward to more. Unfortunately, for the better part of the years since that album, supporters of Majid Jordan were left high and dry to wait for the duo’s next release which, thankfully, arrived earlier this year. Their outputs continue with their latest release, “Summer Rain.” On the track, they commend their new lover for calming their stress just like the summer rain does in a heatwave.

Majid Jordan’s 2021 return began this past spring with the release of “Waves Of Blue.” The confident single was the perfect way to begin their comeback as the duo used pop-leaning production for an upbeat free-floating track that found them pouring their heart to an unnamed love interest. They followed up that song with “Been Through That,” a dancefloor-friendly track that touched on the different levels of love. Majid Jordan spoke about both songs in a tweet prior to the release of “Been Through That.”

“’Waves of Blue’ was made at the very beginning of this album, and it only makes sense that we begin our next chapter with this song,” they wrote. “This song is like staring at the sea – you’re not in the water, but you’re getting carried away by its currents.”

You can press play on “Summer Rain” in the video above.

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

At long last, Lil Nas X’s debut album Montero has finally arrived and it’s quickly earned itself a favorite among his vast fan base. Many of the album’s listeners have already sprinted to “Scoop,” his collaboration with Doja Cat thanks to the “Say So” rapper’s fiery contribution to the duos’ pilates anthem. The song was already a highly anticipated cut from Montero as Lil Nas had previously teased it in an energetic video snippet that showed him turning up and rapping along to the track.

Montero as a whole comes complete with 15 songs and features from Megan Thee Stallion, Jack Harlow, Elton John, and Miley Cyrus in addition to Doja Cat. Lil Nas put up one of the more unique promotional runs for the album as he endured a fake pregnancy to lead up to the “birth” of his album. The singer went through all the motions like having a maternity photoshoot, opening a baby registry, and dealing with the contractions in the days leading up to the release of Montero.

Elsewhere, the singer made the Time list of 100 most influential people and performed “Industry Baby” with Jack Harlow at the 2021 MTV VMAs. The rapper also celebrated the album’s release with a hilarious video that captured him birthing Montero in the hospital.

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

Montero is out now via Columbia. Get it here.

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

The Queen’s Gambit was a work of fiction, but a line about a real chess legend just may have gotten Netflix into hot water. The Anya Taylor-Joy vehicle was a big hit for the streaming platform, as the series based on a novel by Walter Tevis brought the incredibly complex game to the pandemic-stricken that streamed the drama last winter.

But all those real-life chess boards sold because of the work of fiction got some facts wrong according to one notable chess player who is suing Netflix over a line from the series deemed defamatory. Nona Gaprindashvili, the first woman to be named a grandmaster, is a legend of the sport. But as the New York Times detailed, an announcer claimed that she never faced men like Taylor-Joy’s character did in the show.

That, she says, is false. And an attack on her character.

“The only unusual thing about her, really, is her sex, and even that’s not unique in Russia,” the announcer intones, as a woman watching the match comes into focus. “There’s Nona Gaprindashvili, but she’s the female world champion and has never faced men.”

The series is fiction, but there is a real pioneering chess champion named Nona Gaprindashvili, the first woman to be named a grandmaster. Now 80 years old and living in Tbilisi, Georgia, she was pained to learn that the television show had erased her many successes against male opponents. (A 1968 headline in The New York Times, for instance, reads, “Chess: Miss Gaprindashvili Beats 7 Men in a Strong Tourney.”)

The lawsuit, which was filed in Federal District Court in Los Angeles, hopes to recoup millions in damages for what’s deemed a “devastating falsehood, undermining and degrading her accomplishments before an audience of many millions.” The grandmaster also wants the line removed from the show.

“They were trying to do this fictional character who was blazing the trail for other women, when in reality I had already blazed the trail and inspired generations,” Ms. Gaprindashvili said in a recent video interview arranged by her lawyers, speaking in Georgian, which was translated to English by her grandson. “That’s the irony.”

Netflix said that it greatly respected Ms. Gaprindashvili but that it believed her claim was without merit. “Netflix has only the utmost respect for Ms. Gaprindashvili and her illustrious career, but we believe this claim has no merit and will vigorously defend the case,” the company said in a statement.

As the Times story notes, the Netflix show’s use of that line didn’t come from the books. In fact, the book mentions that Gaprindashvili had faced other grandmasters, men, “many times before” but not at the level of the tournament the character did in The Queen’s Gambit. But whether a court will rule this is defamation, and whether the line will have to get changed, seems entirely up in the air right now.

[via NY Times]

Lil Nas X has been quite busy in the weeks leading up to his highly-anticipated debut album, Montero. The singer is in the midst of a fake pregnancy complete with a baby registry and contractions. He also performed “Industry Baby” at the 2021 MTV VMAs with Jack Harlow and teamed up with Elton John to trade iconic looks for an Uber Eats campaign. It’s all a part of Lil Nas’ mantra to have fun through it all in the music world and it continues with the release of his debut album Montero and a new video for “That’s What I Want.”

In the new visual, Lil Nas falls for a teammate on his football team and, while their relationship quickly advances, Lil Nas finds out that his new companion is actually living a secret life, a discovery that practically breaks his heart. “That’s What I Want” is the latest track from Montero to receive the visual treatment. It joins a collection that features a highly controversial hell-themed video for “Montero (Call Me By Your Name),” a solemn effort for “Sun Goes Down,” and a breakout from prison with Jack Harlow for “Industry Baby.”

The singer’s new album and video come after he was added to the 2021 Time list of the 100 most influential people. Lil Nas joined the likes of Billie Eilish, Bad Bunny, Kane Brown, Britney Spears, Angélique Kidjo, Swizz Beatz, and Timbaland as other inclusions from the music world.

You can press play on the new video for “That’s What I Want” above.

Montero is out now via Columbia. Get it here.

Earlier this year, HER released her debut album Back Of My Mind. The 21-track effort came after nearly five years of projects that included HER and I Used To Know Her. Even in the years prior to her debut, the singer was able to tally a collection of Grammy awards, but 2021 became the year to celebrate her official coming-out party. After fans were able to enjoy the project for the better part of the last three months, HER updates one of its standout tracks with an additional guest appearance from Lil Durk.

HER’s “Find A Way” with Lil Baby receives a nice remix treatment thanks to a new verse from Lil Durk. The track is one of the more uptempo and hard-hitting songs on the album, so the addition of Durk makes sense for the record. Furthermore, the two rappers recently joined forces for their joint album, Voice Of The Heroes.

The remix comes after HER responded to critics who have labeled her as an “industry plant.” “With social media, people think they know everything about success,” she said during an interview with Vulture. “People see my success now, and they don’t understand the sacrifices, the 15-hour days in the studio, the pressure from my parents to go to college.”

She added, “Most of the time, people think success is followers and crazy BTS popularity, like if you’re not Beyonce, you’re not famous. ‘Oh, you’ll get there one day.’ Like, everybody doesn’t want to be Beyonce! For me, I grinded it out kinda like a rapper: I dropped a mixtape, nobody knew who I was, it was a very slow build, and here we are now.”

You can press play on the remix in the video above.

Back Of My Mind is out now via MBK Entertainment/RCA. Get it here.

Thursday Night Football and the NFC East collided to provide exactly the kind of chaotic, at times hideous, football product you would expect from those two entities combining forces. The Washington Football Team snuck away with a 30-29 win over the New York Giants in what has to be one of the strangest, poorly executed final few minutes from two teams you’ll see all season.

It started with the Giants kicking a field goal to push a three-point lead to a six-point lead on 4th and 1. The Football Team responded with a long drive before kicking their own field goal to cut a one possession deficit to a…one possession deficit on 4th and 3 on the ensuing possession. From there, New York once again kicked a field goal, this time on 4th and 3 as Graham Gano got plenty of work in, drilling a 55-yarder to, once again, go from up three to up six.

In two plays, the Football Team erased all of that hard work, as Taylor Heinicke, who had settled for underneath throws almost exclusively up to this point, was suddenly possessed by the ghost of prime Dan Marino and led a swift touchdown drive with two absolute dimes.

The Giants would punt it away after a short possession and it seemed for all the world like the Football Team was going to be able to put the game to bed, but Heinicke had other ideas with a rather hideous interception well inside field goal territory for Gano.

Naturally, the Giants ran it twice for three yards and then threw an incompletion to kick a field goal before the two-minute warning, somehow, as they took the lead but left a full two minutes for a Football Team drive to win it themselves. Heinicke matriculated the Football Team down the field on a stunningly calm two-minute drill, punctuated by this 3rd and 5 to get into field goal range in which New York, somehow, gladly offers outside releases on a play Washington was desperate to get to the sideline on.

After another slant play picked up six more yards, the Football Team got set to spike the ball and set up a Dustin Hopkins field goal attempt to win it. He missed, pushing the kick wide right, but the Giants jumped offsides, once again refusing to take a win Washington seemed desperate to hand to them. Naturally, Hopkins snuck the next kick inside the right upright for the win, moving New York to 0-2 for the fifth straight year.

It was a truly awful effort from the Giants in a game where Daniel Jones was legitimately good, but the defense was incapable of getting stops when needed and Joe Judge made some mind-numbing decisions — and, somehow, the team coached by a special teams guy jumped offsides on a key field goal block situation.

Madison Cawthorn, a federal employee playing an important part in the democratic process as an elected official in the US House of Representatives, seems to know staggeringly little about how government actually works. Especially the US Constitution.

The representative from North Carolina appeared on a right wing news network on Thursday to invent protections against getting vaccinated amid rumblings that the next federal mandate to encourage Americans to get vaccinated may be targeting the airline industry. Many anti-vaxxers are worried that either airlines will ask for proof of vaccination to fly, or that the federal government could mandate it through the Federal Aviation Administration or other governing bodies.

The measures would effectively force people to get vaccinated if they wanted to use air travel, and similar mandates for train travel could impact tourists, travelers heading home for the holidays and business travel in the coming months. But while nothing is official just yet, Cawthorn and other conservatives are already railing against hypothetical measures. And on Thursday, Calwthorn falsely stated that Americans would have their constitutional rights violated because it’s written in the document that people have a right to fly without restrictions.

“This is a medical apartheid, plain and simple,” Cawthorn said before making up things in the US Constitution. “I think that’s actually a constitutional violation, because you actually have a constitutionally protected right to free, unrestricted travel within the United States.”

Cawthorn then said that he’s “very confident” if airlines like United decide to institute vaccine mandates themselves he thinks another airline will “come to the field” to take money from unvaccinated conservatives.

But the thing about “unrestricted travel within the United States” is that, well, it doesn’t exist. People take tests for drivers licenses, for example, so there are clearly some checks and balances on what you are allowed to do and how you can travel.

And there are, of course, a lot of restrictions when it comes to flying. Whether it be what’s allowed on airplanes and through security in a post-9/11 world and whether airlines let sick passengers travel regardless of illness. There’s still a literal no-fly list two decades after 9/11. So while Cawthorn is already prepared to cry foul of restrictions that don’t exist, his reasoning for outrage is all wrong here. Which is why people had a lot of fun with his rambling on social media.

The matter was enough to get Cawthorn’s name trending on Twitter, which was probably the point of all this anyway. But someone really needs to get him to read, like, several books on the US government. Please.