It’s been a few years since we last heard from Baltimore duo Beach House, whose latest LP 7 arrived in 2018. But the band have apparently been hard at work on new music since then, as they’ve just announced an 18-track double LP alongside a massive North American and European tour.
Beach House’s upcoming eighth studio album, titled Once Twice Melody, is set to drop in full this February. But before then, the band will roll it out four songs at at a time over the course of the coming months. The first four songs will be available on November 10, the next on December 8, and the third on January 19 before the entire LP sees an official release a month later.
Check out Beach House’s Once Twice Melody tracklist and 2022 tour dates below.
1. “Once Twice Melody”
2. “Superstar”
3. “Pink Funeral”
4. “Through Me”
5. “Runaway”
6. “ESP”
7. “New Romance”
8. “Over And Over”
9. “Sunset”
10. “Only You Know”
11. “Another Go Around”
12. “Masquerade”
13. “Illusion Of Forever”
14. “Finale”
15. “The Bells”
16. “Hurts to Love”
17. “Many Nights”
18. “Modern Love Stories”
02/18/2022 — Pittsburgh, PA @ Stage AE
02/19/2022 — Royal Oak, MI @ Royal Oak Music Theatre
02/20/2022 — Grand Rapids, MI @ GLC Live at 20 Monroe
02/22/2022 — Kansas City, MO @ Arvest Bank Theatre at the Midland
02/23/2022 — Des Moines, IA @ Val Air Ballroom
02/25/2022 — Madison, WI @ The Sylvee
02/26/2022 — St. Paul, MN @ The Palace Theatre
02/27/2022 — Milwaukee, WI @ Riverside Theatre
03/01/2022 — Indianapolis, IN @ Egyptian Room at Old National Centre
03/02/2022 — Cincinnati, OH @ PromoWest Pavilion at Ovation
03/22/2022 — Raleigh, NC @ The Ritz
03/23/2022 — Atlanta, GA @ The Eastern
03/25/2022 — Austin, TX @ Moody Amphitheatre at Waterloo Park
03/27/2022 — Dallas, TX @ The Factory in Deep Ellum
03/29/2022 — Santa Fe, NM @ Lensic Performing Arts Center
03/30/2022 — Denver, CO @ Mission Ballroom
04/01/2022 — Missoula, MT @ The Wilma
04/02/2022 — Spokane, WA @ Knitting Factory
04/03/2022 — Seattle, WA @ Paramount Theatre
04/05/2022 — Vancouver, British Columbia @ Queen Elizabeth Theatre
04/06/2022 — Portland, OR @ The Keller Auditorium
04/08/2022 — Berkeley, CA @ Greek Theatre at UC Berkeley
04/09/2022 — Los Angeles, CA @ Greek Theatre
05/21/2022 — Dublin, Ireland @ The National Stadium
05/23/2022 — Glasgow, Scotland @ Barrowland Ballroom
05/24/2022 — Manchester, England @ Manchester Academy
05/26/2022 — London, England @ O2 Academy Brixton
05/28/2022 — Antwerp, Belgium @ De Roma
05/30/2022 — Brussels, Belgium @ Ancienne Belgique
05/31/2022 — Paris, France @ L’Olympia
06/02/2022 — Nimes, France @ Paloma
06/04/2022 — Barcelona, Spain @ Primavera Sound Festival
06/07/2022 — Cologne, Germany @ Carlswerk Victoria
06/08/2022 — Berlin, Germany @ Columbiahalle
06/09/2022 — Copenhagen, Denmark @ Falkoner Centre
07/08/2022 — Richmond, VA @ The National
07/09/2022 — Asheville, NC @ Rabbit Rabbit
07/10/2022 — Louisville, KY @ Old Forester’s Paristown Hall
07/12/2022 — Cleveland, OH @ Agora Theatre
07/13/2022 — Chicago, IL @ Radius
07/15/2022 — Toronto, Ontario @ Massey Hall
07/16/2022 — Montreal, Quebec @ M Telus
07/18/2022 — New Haven, CT @ College Street Music Hall
07/19/2022 — Brooklyn, NY @ Kings Theatre
07/20/2022 — Brooklyn, NY @ Kings Theatre
07/22/2022 — Boston, MA @ Roadrunner
07/23/2022 — Philadelphia, PA @ The Met
07/24/2022 — Washington, D.C. @ The Anthem
Once Twice Melody is out 2/18/2022 via Sub Pop. Pre-order it here.
Contrary to some of the chatter online surrounding the release of Netflix’s new movie, The Harder They Fall, multiple hip-hop generations have a strong affinity for the Western. Consider that one of rap’s earliest music videos, Juice Crew’s “The Symphony,” revolves around a Wild West theme. Another, Kool Moe Dee’s “Wild Wild West,” made the connection plain, as did Will Smith’s redux over a decade later on the soundtrack of the film of the same name.
So it’s no surprise that The Harder They Fall — directed by Jeymes Samuel, aka The Bullitts, a musician and music video director for Jay-Z, one of the film’s producers who also appears on the excellent soundtrack — plays more like a long-form music video in the vein of Beyonce’s The Gift than it does genre staples like A Fistfull Of Dollars or The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly. Although it’s an important film in terms of representation of Black cowboys — who were actually just as prevalent as any other ethnicity — its true strength is as much in its soundtrack and visuals as its off-kilter storyline and mixed-bag performances.
Intriguingly enough, The Harder They Fall is far from the first movie to feature Black cowboys. In fact, it’s not the first one on Netflix this year, nor is it Samuel’s first effort. Those distinctions go to Concrete Cowboy and They Die By Dawn, respectively, although the former was a modern movie rather than a Western and the latter saw limited distribution (although, intriguingly, it also featured a strong emphasis on music, with Erykah Badu playing the same role as Zazie Beets, Stagecoach Mary, and featured another alumnus of The Wire in the late Michael K. Williams, playing Nat Love).
And while there has been much emphasis placed on the true-life inspirations of characters like Mary, Nat, Rufus Buck, Cherokee Bill, and Bass Reeves, the actual story of the films plays out more like the plot of Tombstone, with little of these real-life characters’ actual histories represented here. It’s not quite an affront to fictionalize real peoples’ lives to tell a historical fantasy, but it does feel a bit self-indulgent. The story, such as it is, doesn’t really need to use the names and likenesses of real people, and while it may generate interest in them, so too might have just playing their individual stories straight.
Meanwhile, the story itself is quite thin and feels almost like it was pulled together by committee, culling hot topics from Black Twitter without really putting much effort into making the pieces fit. Particularly, Rufus Buck’s motivations seem like a hazy reference to Greenwood in Tulsa, Oklahoma and Idris Elba’s performance is almost sublimated by the overall focus on Jonathan Majors’ Nat Love and his quest for revenge against Buck, and the film’s biggest emotional twist comes in way too late, after a set of diversions that add nothing to its forward momentum other than possibly providing a small bit of revenge fantasy. That’s fine, but if it detracts from the emotional story you want to tell, it’s really unnecessary.
But the story and the performances feel almost secondary to the visuals. They’re beside the point. The point appears to be to set right the erasure of Black people from the grandiose history of the American West. To that end, Samuels goes to lengths to portray his characters as intelligent, savvy, and beautiful, shooting them against picturesque tableaus of deserts, forests, and steppes. While things tend to get a little bland whenever the characters come to a town, a sequence featuring Stagecoach Mary’s saloon could almost fit in on MTV in its heyday.
Likewise, the film’s soundtrack peppers in classic and contemporary soul and reggae cuts to highlight the characters’ travels and the action scenes. Dennis Brown’s “Promised Land” blares over a scene of Rufus Buck’s gang riding into town, Seal’s “Ain’t No Better Love” soundtracks part of the climactic shootout, and Barrington Levy belts “Here I Come” and “Better Than Gold” as Samuels’ camera glides over twirling six-shooters, swirling gunsmoke, and galloping horses. It almost feels like the cursory storyline beats are just breaks between the bits that The Bullitts really wanted to get to: The musical set-pieces that nearly do enough to justify the film’s existence on their own.
I’d go so far as saying that they could have just been the movie without needing a story, like The Gift and other, similar films that have become almost de rigeur for a certain class of prestige artist — like Jay-Z, whose “Moonlight” video Samuels directed, likely leading to the mogul’s funding of this endeavor. I’m not the first to notice this; Okayplayer’s Latesha Harris noted as much in her own review. Films like The Harder They Fall are needed, but what’s needed more is to get beyond the need for surface representation and to actually tell stories worth telling. The movie can also be a guidepost as well, pointing out how to make those stories look and sound as pretty as possible.
After spectacularly bombing in 2013, it’s easy to forget that After Earth is a movie that not only exists, but also marked a unique collaboration between Will Smith and director M. Night Shymalan. The sci-fi film was based on an original story by Smith, and at the time, the actor famously included his son Jaden in the lead role. Unfortunately, the film ended up being an epic disaster, and while most people left the film in the dustbin of time, never to be thought of again, Will Smith has opened up about the disastrous experience in his new memoir, Will.
According to Smith, the fallout from After Earth was so bad that Jaden actually asked to be emancipated, which deeply affected his father. Via PEOPLE:
“Fans and the press were absolutely vicious; they said and printed things about Jaden that I refuse to repeat. Jaden had faithfully done everything that I’d instructed him to do, and I had coached him into the worst public mauling he’d ever experienced.”
“We never discussed it, but I know he felt betrayed. He felt misled, and he lost his trust in my leadership,” Smith continues. “At fifteen years old, when Jaden asked about being an emancipated minor, my heart shattered. He ultimately decided against it, but it sucks to feel like you’ve hurt your kids.”
While Jaden never followed through on being emancipated, the After Earth experience left its mark. He pulled back from acting and has only starred in a handful of projects since the 2013 flop. However, like his dad, Jaden has always had a foot in both the acting and music world, and he’s been leaving heavily into the latter thanks to frequent collaborations with Justin Bieber.
William Haynes wants to talk to you about your brain.
He’s a comedian for SourceFed, and he’s got kind of a strange, dark sense of humor.
See what I mean?
So when he was invited to host an episode of Discovery’s “DNews” about the science of first impressions, we knew it was going to be awesome.
Here’s what he had to say.
Your brain can decide how trustworthy a person is just by getting a split-second look at their face.
GIFs from “DNews.”
Researchers, in a study published in the Journal of Neuroscience, found that our brains help us form all kinds of spontaneous judgments of people that we may not even be aware of, including whether we can trust them.
It’s all thanks to the amygdala, the walnut-shaped area of the brain that helps us process strong emotions.
In the study, two groups of participants were analyzed. The first group was asked to rate how much they trusted certain people by looking at their faces while the researchers measured activity in the amygdala. Simple enough.
The second group was asked to lay inside an MRI machine while faces flashed on a screen in front of them. But here’s the catch: The faces appeared and disappeared so quickly that the people in this group couldn’t even really see them.
Here’s what the study found.
Regardless of whether you get a long look at someone’s face or only a glance, your amygdala lights up like crazy.
What’s even cooler is that participants in the study pretty much agreed on which faces were trustworthy and which ones weren’t.
There were certain traits that stood out as shady, like furrowed eyebrows and shallow cheekbones, in particular.
This only begins to scratch the surface of the super-awesome science behind first impressions.
Did you know that a person’s voice can have a similar effect on perception, even in small doses?
After testing a group of 64 people, researchers in Scotland found that participants were consistently able to agree on which personality traits corresponded to which voices they heard — based solely on hearing them speak the word “hello.”
The biggest remaining question is whether these snap judgments have a measurable impact on our behavior.
A study by Nalini Ambady and Robert Rosenthal found something pretty interesting.
According to Lifehacker, the two compared “the ratings given to college professors by classes at the end of the semester with ratings that another group of students gave the same professors based only on three ten-second silent video clips shown prior to any actual lectures.”
The two groups mostly agreed on how much they liked the professors, indicating that, just maybe, first impressions really do matter.
Watch the full episode of “DNews” to learn more about cool brain stuff and catch William Haynes’ killer one-liners.
Bourbon tends to be made with around 70 percent corn, 20 percent rye, and 10 percent barley. Naturally, these values go up and down a lot depending on which bourbon you’re talking about but that’s the average overall. And while the corn tends to impart sweetness, the rye in that equation often imparts spice, florals, or even herbs with a focus usually on that spice.
That means that even though bourbon is corn-centric, it can be downright spicy. That’s mostly thanks to rye (and sometimes wheat) grains adding some extra flavor profiles that range from soft white pepper to bold chili pepper bombs and everything spicy in between. And those notes are exactly what some bourbon drinkers are looking for.
To find these spicier bourbons, we turned to the professionals behind the bar. We asked a handful of well-known bartenders and bar professionals to tell us about their picks for the can’t miss spicy bourbons for fall and winter 2021. Some are high-rye and others are simply high proof. They’re all spicy so keep scrolling to see all of their selections.
FEW Straight Bourbon
FEW
Seamus Banning, bartender The W-Hotel in Philadelphia
Few Bourbon is a fantastic spicy dram. It isn’t over-aged, and the heat from the spirit will hit immediately. As it burns, notes of burnt brown sugar, clove, and orange peel reveal themselves throughout. It’s definitely one to enjoy on a chilly autumn evening.
Wilderness Trail Bottled in Bond
Wilderness Trail
Emily Franchy, Bartender at Uffda Hospitality in Louisville
Wilderness Trail Bottled in Bond bourbon gives me that rich baking spice profile of rye with bourbon sweetness that reminds me of coffee cake on the finish. Everything they release is a winner, but the high rye mash makes a perfect sweet and spicy fall sip.
Booker’s
Jim Beam
Katherine Ball, consumer engagement and mixology director at Black Button Distilling in Rochester, New York
Booker’s Bourbon is interesting because they don’t filter or proof down their bourbon. It’s definitely a full-punch bourbon. The warmth and spice come to life on the finish, but there’s a hint of sweetness in there too. Warm and spicy with notes of vanilla and caramel? You can’t get much more delightfully fall than that.
My favorite spicy bourbon (and just go-to bourbon overall) is good ol’ Wild Turkey 101. They use a higher rye content than a lot of other bourbons and that gives it the nice little spicy-rye-bite on the finish after the original flavors like caramel, tobacco, and oak wash away. It’s just an approachable but complex bourbon and the higher proof lets it hold up in cocktails as well. In fact, I’m craving a Wild Turkey boulevardier and a campfire right now.
The spicy high rye bourbon is not too complex and excellent to mix in a cocktail, but also has enough complexities to sip neat or on the rocks. It is a great reward after a long day of hiking or whatever outdoor adventure is up your alley.
I’d have to go with Smoke Wagon Small Batch Straight Bourbon. It’s approachable enough to drink neat or to make cocktails with. It has a persistent spiciness without the heat.
Kings County Barrel Strength
Kings County
Nicholas Karel, director of bars, lounges, and beverages at Windsor Court Hotel in New Orleans
Coming in at 128 proof, this bourbon is definitely “spicy.” It’s full-flavored and hits strong but is deceivingly smooth due to the expert distilling methods at Kings County.
Blanton’s Single Barrel
Blanton
Mohamed Khald, food and beverage manager at The Vinoy Renaissance in St. Petersburg, Florida
Blanton’s Single Barrel Bourbon is my favorite sweet and spicy bourbon. With creamy vanilla, caramel, maple syrup, and hints of rye spices like cinnamon, it has a full and tasty profile that is spot on for fall.
New Liberty Kinsey is my favorite for the fall. The smoky flavor of the drink is the real sticking point for me. I tend to like a nice mild smoky flavor to a few of my fall drinks and the Kinsey is one of those that I find myself enjoying quite a bit.
Garrison Brothers Cowboy Bourbon
Garrison Brothers
Lauren Parton, general manager of Devereaux in Chicago
If you’re looking for a bourbon with some “spicy kick” to it and complex flavors of tobacco, honey, and subtle fruit jam, the Cowboy Bourbon from Garrison Brothers is it.
My favorite spicy bourbon for the fall is Old Forester 100. Its high ABV lends to its peppery smell and finish that is reminiscent of a rye whiskey but sweet enough to remind you that it is, in fact, a bourbon. Old Forester also pairs well with classic fall flavors like apples and cinnamon, which you get hints of when you drink it on its own. It’s also a great base for a fall cocktail.
Willett Pot Still Reserve is an incredibly spicy, traditional-style whiskey. With every sip, your pallet is whisked back to the days of old when American whiskey was cultivated. It’s a real treat for any fan of spicy bourbon.
Old Grand-Dad Bonded
Jim Beam
Alex Barbatsis, head bartender at The Whistler in Chicago
Old Grand-Dad Bonded Bourbon has great spice notes from its high rye mash bill. It’s budget-friendly, plus its cinnamon notes pair well with a big orange zest flavor, making it perfect for an old fashioned.
Russell’s Reserve 10-Year
Wild Turkey
Christy Bradley, spirit guide at Virgin Hotels in New Orleans
Four Roses Small Batch Select tingles the tongue. It’s affordable and of high quality, yielding dried fruit, anise, sourdough, and oak. The 52 percent ABV also helps to create that oomph of spice and heat on the palate.
We call this the “Christmas bourbon” in our house because it’s so spicy. Huling Station has a high rye bill and it tastes like eating a ginger snap. Vanilla, cherry, and cinnamon notes are all so well balanced. Also, Old Dominick’s Head Distiller is Alex Castle, the first female head distiller in the state of Tennessee since before Prohibition.
Elijah Craig Small Batch
Heaven Hill
Jeffrey Morgenthaler, author and bartender at Clyde Common in Portland, Oregon
Fall is really the time when I start thinking about old fashioneds. And for me, there has never been a better bourbon for this cocktail than Elijah Craig Small Batch. It’s got this sort of richness with leather, spice, and wood flavors that make it so so good in that cocktail. It’s right around this time that I can’t stop making old fashioneds with it. And here in Oregon, the season has started early.
Wild Turkey Rare Breed
Wild Turkey
Nicholas Bennett, beverage director at Porchlight in New York City
If I want something spicy I am usually reaching for Wild Turkey, and I really like the Wild Turkey Rare Breed. It is a sweet and spicy mix of rye spice, maple sugar, caramel, and leather that isn’t so high-proof that I would worry about having a second glass.
As a Drizly affiliate, Uproxx may receive a commission pursuant to certain items on this list.
Seth Meyers has never passed up an opportunity to unleash his Rudy Giuliani impression on the world, so he must have been thrilled to learn about Rudy’s latest gaffe—in which he admitted that, while screaming about rigged elections and voter fraud, he actually had no evidence that any of this was true… because he was too busy to do any due diligence before proclaiming that an American presidential election had been rigged and causing an already fractured country to become even further divided.
On Monday night’s “A Closer Look” segment, Meyers had the following to say about Giuliani’s latest whoopsie:
“We’ve long known from all the court cases, the lack of evidence, and, you know, reality, that the people who keep insisting that there was widespread voter fraud in the 2020 election are unhinged maniacs and liars. But now, thanks to a new court case, we know—from their own words—that they knew what they were saying might not be true. [I]n a newly released deposition, former Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani essentially admitted he had no evidence for his voter fraud claims because he didn’t have time to verify them.”
In a clip of Rudy’s deposition, the former New York City mayor says it’s not his job to investigate every single piece of evidence that’s given to him—apparently not even in a circumstance where the security of our nation’s voting system is on the line. Leading Meyers to joke that no, of course Rudy wasn’t responsible for actually looking at the evidence (or lack thereof) of the misinformation he then began spreading whenever and wherever possible, because “that’s what lawyers are for,” Meyers joked, adding:
“Your just the events coordinator for a landscaping company. Oh, Rudy. Rudy, sweet Rudy: That is your job! I mean, it was supposed to be your job. Although, in fairness, Rudy looks less like a guy who would investigate a crime and more like the guy sitting on a park bench who just tells the cops what they’re doing is wrong… And it doesn’t surprise me that he didn’t do any vetting right before his infamous press conference with fellow crazy person Sidney Powell since during that press conference he was sweating like a guy who knew his facts might not be rock solid.”
You can watch the full clip—complete with Meyers’ Rudy impersonation—beginning around the 2:45 mark above.
Summer Walker has been busy with the rollout for her new album Still Over It but now that the project is out and reportedly doing very well, the Atlanta singer has time to address a recent report that accused Love Renaissance (LVRN), her record label and management company, of signing her to a bad deal.
Last week, Rolling Stone published a feature declaring Summer a “star” but remarking that she signed a “brutal” record deal. Citing a copy of the deal the publication had obtained, the feature described Walker as “effectively an indentured servant for a series of albums,” criticizing LVRN and Interscope Records for a deal that was “lopsided.”
(For what it’s worth, the terms that were described in the feature are pretty standard for a brand-new, unknown artist with little following and no negotiation leverage, and have been in the recording industry for a very long time. It’s probably fair to say that record deals, in general, are pretty bad, but it’s also probably unfair to single out LVRN for an industry-wide practice without holding all labels to the same standard).
However, according to Walker, who posted a text response to her Instagram Stories, not only were the terms cited out-of-date but that she’s sticking by LVRN, who she says gives her “full support.”
“I’ve been seeing a lot of chatter online,” she wrote. “I didn’t say anything because I wanted to stay focused on releasing my album. Yow let me clear the air. What that article said is not my current record deal. Over the years my deal has changed many times. I’ve always had my own representation and full support from LVRN. Thank you to my fans for always having my back and for all of the love ya’ll keep showing my new album. Appreciate y’all!!”
As of this week, 19 and counting lawsuits were filed surrounding the Astroworld incident, according to a report from Rolling Stone. One plaintiff is seeking nearly $1 million in damages from the festival and even alleged Drake was partially responsible for helping to “incite the crowd” to an “out of control” level when he took the stage as Scott’s surprise guest. The plaintiff claims they were stationed at the front of the general admission section and were “severely injured” in the “stampede” that happened when Scott took the stage at 9 pm. In a separate lawsuit, another plaintiff claimed they were “trampled, crushed, and lost consciousness” during the crowd surge that night.
Attorney Alex Hilliard is representing several people who are filing lawsuits surrounding the festival, saying he expects to file complaints for over 100 people by the end of this week. “There will be hundreds of plaintiffs by Friday, if not thousands,” Hilliard told Rolling Stone:
“I have one client who gave a stranger CPR for an hour before anybody even got to him. Obviously, by the time medical personnel got there, it was too late. He said, ‘I can heal from a broken arm, but I’ll never heal from this.’ This is such a unique, rare, and unprecedented case. […] We understand at least nine people on site had the ability to shut the concert down and didn’t. This is involuntary corporate manslaughter as far as we’re concerned.”
Following the lawsuits, Drake broke his silence about the tragic event. The rapper said he had been trying to “wrap [his] mind around the “devastating tragedy.” “My heart is broken for the families and friends of those who lost their lives and for anyone who is suffering,” he continued. “I will continue to pray for all of them, and will be of service in any way I can.”
“Badass spiritual teacher” reads like some sort of an oxymoron. But I can’t seem to find any other way to accurately describe meditation leader to the stars, Biet Simkin. The phrase just seems to fit her. Sure, she might soothe you into a tranquil state, but she’ll also scream at you to own up to your own bullshit if that’s what the situation demands. Thanks to her rock n roll approach to chasing enlightenment, she’s been referred to as both the Patti Smith and David Bowie of meditation (she’s also a musician, so that helps the comparison).
Knowing all of this, it’s no surprise to find that Russell Brand, Mariel Hemingway, and the Sundance Film Festival have all been among Simkin’s clients. Brand, who spoke about her on The Tonight Show, gave Simkin this endorsement: “The only other methods I know to attain the states she induces through her work are illegal. She is a wonder.”
That gets you hyped to meditate, right? Us, too.
Simkin details some of her unique philosophy in her best-selling book, Don’t Just Sit There! 44 Insights to Get Your Meditation Practice Off the Cushion and Into the Real World, where she explores the missing link between the desire and motivation to meditate and the ability to process the emotional fallout of our meditative experiences to find spiritual fulfillment. To get a better handle on how we can better put the practice of meditation into our daily lives, we linked up with Simkin who quickly got us more amped to do some breathwork than we ever thought possible.
You seem to take a more aggressive approach to meditation, do you think the modern conversation or viewpoint around meditation is coming up short?
I mean some have referred to me at the Patti Smith of meditation. I don’t know if it’s aggressive but I have a rock and roll sensibility. The reason is is that we are hurtling through space to a certain death that can happen at any moment. If you don’t take it into your hands to wake up along this ride… it’s not going to magically happen for you. You either get to ride this life or this life is gonna make you it’s bitch!
That’s what I try to show people with meditation, that meditation is a chance to choreograph this journey. When I was lost and searching, all I ever wanted was a seat at the director’s table. Today as a daily meditator and an active participant in my never-ending awakening, I get to create the life of my dreams one misunderstanding after another. I uncode, discover, and discard whatever is no longer needed.
You ask if the meditation space is coming up short, I dunno to each their own, but I like my spiritual life mixed with a career, hot sex, movement, friendship, money, death, endless learning, art, culture, music, and fashion. I don’t think everyone thinks these things are simpatico. To me, they are forever entwined.
How do we become more mindful of our everyday actions and use meditation to reach our goals?
You gotta start by realizing what a shit you are. That’s the first step. Once you get a taste of how full of crap you are, you will become willing to do the work. You can’t become the person you came to this planet to be if you’re lying to yourself. Meditation and a tool I teach in my book called “divided attention” — which is an active meditation that one uses while doing daily activities — allows you to truly see who you are. Not just the role you play or the mask you wear but the real you.
Once you get a taste of that you just want it all the time. You become willing to literally go to any lengths!
Photo Courtesy of Biet Simkin
“Don’t Just Sit There…” seems to flip the conversation about meditation on its head, why was that important to you?
Well, the title can be read two ways. “DON’T JUST SIT THERE!” which implies the secret is not in just simply endlessly sitting on a cushion somewhere dreaming or on a floor making vision boards in your bedroom. It can also be read covertly as “DON’T, JUST SIT THERE!” which is also the truth. Sometimes we need to extra relax after we have made the right efforts to let the universe or the beyond have all the puzzle pieces come together.
Essentially the idea is you will have to die before you die to actually get this thing. The part of you you know as “you” dies. A new you is born. The Buddha only sat at the very end of his story. I think it’s way more renegade to be enlightened while your winning an Oscar than it is to be enlightened on a mountain while someone’s playing the flute and shit. That sounds way easier to me.
If people feel like meditation isn’t doing anything for them what do you suggest?
I usually suggest that people start with different forms of prayer (all not religious in their base). I also offer that people do active meditation that involves shaking, stomping, and at times screaming. Not everyone can enter in through stillness. Or they can but it will be fake and very surface. Think, that random yoga chick sitting there in yoga class being like “I wonder what I should buy later at Whole Foods” while she is in lotus and all quiet and the instructor is like, “You’re so peaceful now.”
At my events, I shake people out of any capacity to fake anything. Participants cry, hold each other, experience hallucinations, sometimes faint. It’s my belief that the kind of person who needs a breakthrough sometimes can’t have one because they need to be shocked into it with love, beauty, and a more somatic approach than just sitting in silence pretending to be still. Don’t get me wrong, we do all that just not right away… in my experience that just doesn’t work.
Why is meditative consciousness important for fields beyond just well-being? How does this stuff integrate into the worlds of music, fashion, and other creative and expressive fields?
If you don’t meditate, you won’t have the stamina to withstand the pain of art, fashion, and any creative field. You could douse yourself in alcohol or drugs but that’s pretty much the only other way of withstanding the pain of creation. As a former heroin addict, I can say that my art and health took a toll from drugs and booze. Meditation on the other hand is supportive. It gives rather than zaps your energy. You can thrive in the arts while also simultaneously having a successful career, a happy family, a fit body, a calm mind, a thriving community of friends, and great sex.
Meditation allows for more, not less time. Time becomes your bitch. Energy becomes your bitch!
What’s the most valuable piece of advice you can give to someone who has just started to explore meditation?
You are wrong. You are completely wrong about your capacity, your possibility, your strength, your beauty, your talent, the meaning of life. You are wrong. The wronger you can see you are the sooner you will remember the truth of who you actually are. Make meditation your top priority, bow to it every morning, and ask it what it would have you do. Do whatever it inspires you to do. Never say no to that whisper inner voice of yours. Surrender to it completely and melt into its arms. The pearls of life and all the jewels will be handed to you.
How do we become better meditators?
Just show up and try every day. Also, follow teachers or readings that light you up specifically. There is a brand or lineage that will take you to your high. Pursue and you will find your line
A big part of your identity and book is being the Spiritual Teacher for people who were maybe raised to think it’s all bullshit. What do you say to the skeptic, who mocks all of this and claims that they’re too busy for 15 minutes of meditating (even though they probably watch 45 minutes of Seinfeld reruns each day)? What do they need to hear in order to give it a chance?
I mostly have seen it turn around at huge events I have led. Once, I was leading meditations at Bonaroo and the tent was filled with about 200 people who were all like laying in their own vomit or eating burritos or just hanging out drinking a beer. My husband said to me, “Whoa Biet, I think this gonna go very badly”. I went up on the stage and I tore everyone a new asshole. I told people to get out of the tent if they weren’t ready for this shit. Some left. The ones who remained, approx 150 people were all shaking their hands in the air and screaming and crying and hugging each other by the end.
I just spoke to them from my heart. Not as some guru on the hill, it was just from my heart. There is no such thing as a skeptic. There are people who have shut themselves off from their heart to protect themselves. I did that in my past, with depression, with poverty, with death, with heroin and cocaine, with loss after loss. Sometimes through the din of their resistance, I break something in them with my vulnerability. I never lie about who I am or where I have been and I never tell anyone to do anything I haven’t myself done.
Essentially, I think meditation is just like falling in love. You need the right teacher to get it. Once you get it you will have to give it. It’s like a disease, it spreads… if that makes sense. So in essence, I don’t teach meditation, I am meditation. If you get around me, you will get it. Just like an actor doesn’t teach acting, they just act, and by acting you become. You leave the theatre changed. This is being!
We’ve all been told not to judge a book by its cover, and while the same thought can be applied to album covers, the rule becomes a bit harder to follow in this scenario. An album’s artwork is the first thing that grabs our attention — negatively or positively — before we can press play on it. Oftentimes, the cover art is used to promote a body of work before its official release which then opens the flood gates for fans to judge its appearance and rate how good the album may or may not be.
For better or for worse, there have been a number of memorable album covers in 2021. There’s Drake’s pregnant woman-emoji-laden cover for Certified Lover Boy that was considered a troll until he went out his way to confirm it. Ye kept things simple with a black square for Donda while Lil Nas X’s artwork for Montero finds him nude and suspended in the air. Yung Bleu appears as an astronaut in his Moon Boy cover and Lorde’s own for Solar Power was a bit… cheeky, wouldn’t you say?
With that being said, 2021 also gave us album covers with artists showing off their best looks. It’s always great to receive a quality collection of music that’s wrapped in a well-captured portrait of the artist. Without further ado, here are the ten most stylish album covers of 2021.
Ayra Starr — 19 & Dangerous
Mavin Global Holdings
Afropop singer Ayra Starr dropped off 19 & Dangerous, her sophomore project and second release of the year. The project delivers a tale of growth that arrives as the singer prepares to exit the teenager status for adulthood. For its cover, Starr sits on a blue bag dressed in what appears to be red stain pants and golden elbow-length gloves. She’s also surrounded by deep green walls to complete the truly colorful cover.
CKay — Boyfriend
Warner Music South Africa
Keeping things in the afrobeats world, Ckay delivered another sharp cover art with his Boyfriend EP. He released the project at the top of the year and it’s masked with a purple hue that is complemented by the car Ckay leans on, the night sky and flowers behind him, the scarf and fingernails on the arm of a woman that’s wrapped around him. Altogether, it makes for a sharp cover that captures the Ckay’s sensitive side along with the seven songs that appear on the EP.
Doja Cat — Planet Her
Kemosabe/RCA
There has yet to be a moment too big for Doja Cat to handle. So even when the pressure for her to surpass expectations with her third album Planet Her continued to rise, Doja stepped up to bat and hit a home run. The artwork for the album helped listeners envision the weirdo spectacle that she presented on the project. She lays on what appears to be a glittery body of land which neon shades of glitter covering her body from head to toe. Might I mention that the album is also one of the best releases in 2021? Long story short, Doja came through from top to bottom.
Kirby — Sis. He Wasn’t The One
Kirby
At the beginning of 2020, Memphis singer Kirby arrived with her debut project Sis. Nearly two years later, she returned with its sequel Sis. He Wasn’t The One in what also sports a very underrated cover. Kirby lays beside a man with her light brown hair tied up while wearing a red top that compliments the flowery blanket she lays on and the room she’s in. If you’re looking for a body of work that vents one’s struggles with love while expounding on a man’s failure to be a solid partner, Sis. He Wasn’t The One delivers that with an aesthetically pleasing cover to look at.
Little Simz — Sometimes I Might Be Introverted
Age 101 Music/ AWAL Recordings
Little Simz’sSometimes I Might Be Introverted is truly a beautiful body of work. It’s one of those rare projects where everything from the lyrics, the production, the sequencing, and more fall into the place so exquisitely. Its artwork is another notable point The London rapper sits nervously in a wooden chair while rocking a yellow and black checkered suit as his hair is tied up to a high altitude. The mustard yellow backdrop also pairs well with Little Simz’s look in what comes together as an eye-pleasing cover.
Masego — Studying Abroad: Extended Stay
EQT Recordings/Capitol Records
Masego ended 2020 with Studying Abroad, his first project since his pristine 2018 debut album Lady Lady. Studying Abroad received the deluxe treatment back in May as five more songs were added to the project to accompany highlights like “Mystery Lady” and “Silver Tongue Devil. The deluxe reissue also granted us a new cover that presented the already-stylish Masego in a salmon suit as he posed longing into the camera which captures nature’s beauty behind him.
Serpentwithfeet — Deacon
Secretly Canadian
Serpentwithfeet began the spring season this year with his Deacon project. It’s a release that was filled with music he described as “a lot softer, a lot more gentle than my previous work,” “something that felt very sensuous,” and “something that felt calm and restrained.” This tender approach comes alive on the project’s cover art as it presents Serpentwithfeet in a white button-up top and gold accessories on his fingers, neck, ears, and hair. He also holds another man in his arms who sports a similar white top as they both stand amid a hazy desert.
Symphani Soto — Under The Sun
Bizness Boi Music Group
South Florida’s Symphani Soto earned herself a nice career boost with her June project Under The Sun. Its 11 tracks make for a body of work ideal for an afternoon drive or warm evening at the beach. Soto appears relaxed and free throughout the project and if you need a visual for that, it’s available on the project’s cover art. The singer stands tall and free in a detailed and intricate bright orange dress as the slightly cloudy sky behind her helps to enhance her features and make her stand out.
Umi — Introspection Reimagined
Umi/Keep Cool/RCA
Umi breathed new life into her 2020 album Introspection and re-released it with a new dose of vibrancy and lucidity through eight songs. It also comes with a beautiful cover that sees Umi in an elaborate white gown. Captured from an aerial view, Umi stares closely into a mirror with her arms almost stretched fully apart over a rich red backdrop.
VanJess — Homegrown
Keep Cool/RCA
Nearly three years after their career-solidifying debut album Silk Canvas, VanJess returned with their Homegrown EP. Music aside, the project was presented with a flawless cover that captured the beauty of Ivana and Jess. Seated at a gold table and on golden chairs, VanJess stuns with clothing that ranges from cheetah print, bright red, shimmery gold, and lavish accessories. Oh, and the music on the project and its eventual deluxe edition are great too!
Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
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