Month: September 2022

Though many rappers excel just fine on their own, there is something about when they link up with industry veteran DJ Drama that brings out a whole new side of them. The latest rapper to get the Drama Midas touch is none other than trap legend Jeezy. Their new collaboration “I Ain’t Gon Hold Ya” is an uptempo party record, but the bars are as present as their dance moves.

The video trades between scenes of the two dancing in the Magic City parking lot and sitting in a white room clad in all-black outfits. As Jeezy raps with the urgency of a college student trying to finish a paper before a midnight deadline, he appears cool, calm and collected as he delivers line after line.

For DJ Drama, this single follows his August collaborative project Misguided with OMB Peezy. The month prior, he went the same route with Badda TD for The World Is Yours: Gangsta Grillz. The Philadelphia producer has been riding a huge wave since his 2021 Grammy-winning project Call Me If You Get Lost with Tyler The Creator.

As for Jeezy, “I Ain’t Gon Hold Ya” breaks his two-year hiatus since his 2020 album The Recession 2.

Check out the video for “I Ain’t Gon Hold Ya” above.

Kali Uchis is tuning out everyone else, except one special interest on her new single, “No Hay Ley.” Over a hypnotic house-inspired dance track, Uchis sings about the “cosas magicas” she wants to do with her lover.

“I wrote this song about putting love above all else,” said Uchis in a statement. “‘En el amor no hay ley’ means ‘there are no laws to love.’ Be with who makes you happy, and don’t listen to what anyone else has to say about it because it wasn’t their business in the first place!”

On the song’s chorus, she sings, “No matter what we do / No matter what they say / No importa lo que digan / Yo te besaré otra vez.” In an echoing refrain, she shuts out all the background noise, repeating, “La-da-di-da-da-do.”

In an interview with Mitu last year, Uchis revealed that she had begun to work on her new album, despite still riding the highs of her breakthrough hit, “Telepatia.” She revealed that the album would tap embrace various aspects of her roots.

“It’s still a lot of Spanglish, but it’s predominantly English,” Uchis said. “My plans are to go back and forth. Make an English album, make a Spanish album, and not limit myself to just one language ever. It’s definitely the body of work that I’m most proud of.”

Check out “No Hay Ley” above.

Lil Baby has been on the run of a lifetime, but it appears he wants to recalibrate. He asserts in his new single “Detox” that he doesn’t want to see the current lady in his life for the next few days, his preference for a minimal lifestyle, and how he continues adding skills to his arsenal. In a fan favorite NBA reference, he says he is wearing six rings like Michael Jordan, six-time NBA Finals champion with the Chicago Bulls.

This record comes in what has been another active year for Baby who has made his presence felt in a multitude of ways. On the solo front, he has shared singles “Frozen,” “Right On,” and “In A Minute” all in 2022. Collaboration-wise, he doubled up with Nicki Minaj on “Bussin” and “Do We Have A Problem?” in addition to tapping 42 Dugg and Veeze for “U-Digg” and appearing on Nav’s “Never Sleep” alongside Travis Scott. Most recently, he joined Drake on DJ Khaled’s lead single for God Did, “Staying Alive” and Future on “Big Time” upon the album’s release.

In 2021, the “Freestyle” artist appeared on multiple major releases, namely Kanye West’s Donda, Drake’s Certified Lover Boy, and J. Cole’s The Off-Season. Baby hasn’t shared a full solo project since 2020’s multiplatinum My Turn anchored by “Woah” and “We Paid,” though he and Lil Durk did linkup for a two-man power trip back in June 2021 on Voice Of The Heroes.

The anticipation is high for a new Lil Baby album, especially with Migos seemingly downsizing to Unc & Phew amidst contract issues between Quality Control and Offset. The 27-year is fully ready to grab the football and continue leading QC to success, claiming he has GOAT qualities on 2021’s “Wants And Needs” with Drake. “Detox” is another indication as to why.

Check out the video for “Detox” above.

Just less than a week after DJ Khaled dropped his 13th studio album, God Did, Fivio Foreign has shared a freestyle of the album’s title track. Despite only putting out one major label album, Fivio has become one of the most prolific rappers in the game right now, by way of his several guest verses.

The Brooklyn drill rapper has collaborated with several of hip-hop’s heavy hitters, and he lists some of his most notable collabs in his freestyle.

“I did Drake / I did Ye / I did Nas / I did Alicia Keys / I did Mary J. Blige / I did Nicki Minaj / I went verse for verse with the top legends and survived,” he raps.

He also takes time to remind us that he has a fan in none other than the Queen Bey herself, Beyoncé.

“I even sampled one of Beyoncé’s best,” he raps, referring to the fact that he sampled Destiny’s Child’s “Say My Name” on his B.I.B.L.E. cut, “What’s My Name?” He also shouted Bey out for using one of his catchphrases, “demon time,” on the “Savage” remix with Megan Thee Stallion.

Elsewhere in the freestyle, Fivio thanks Khaled for coining the “God Did” catchphrase on a song called “B.I.B.L.E. Talk” from Fivio’s B.I.B.L.E. album.

Check out Fivio Foreign’s “God Did” freestyle above.

(SPOILERS for this latest Rap Sh!t episode will be found below.)

Well, just like that, season one of Issa Rae’s Rap Sh!t is now in the books. For the past eight episodes, we watched Miami natives Shawna and Mia go from regular names to a rap duo making noise on the South Beach music scene. Their two records, “Seduce & Scheme” and “Nann Badder,” boosted the girl into places they only dreamed of being. There’s a tour ahead of them for season two, but there are new and bigger obstacles ahead of the duo that will have to be tackled next season in order for their careers to progress.

For starters, Shawna seemingly has her credit card fraud habits catch up to her as police officers meet her at her job to speak to her. Mia has a new romance brewing in her life, but it’s one that will surely affect the relationship she has with her baby father Lamont who produces for Shawna and Mia.

Weekly episodes of Issa Rae’s Rap Sh!t are filled with funny sh!t, wholesome sh!t, good sh!t, and odd sh!t — all in just 30-minutes. After each episode, we’ll recap each of the moments for you which you can check out below.

Funny Sh!t

Mia’s Friends: After having a disagreement with Shawna following their performance in episode seven, Mia reconnects with her other girlfriends for a night out at the club. Once the drinks come to them, Mia and her girls get to turning up, especially as “Seduce & Scheme” plays in the club. Soon enough, Mia is spotted by a fellow Miami rapper who shoots his shot with her. While Mia is certainly interested, her girlfriend’s comments and actions throughout the night make for some hilarious moments in the season one finale. The jokes and antics only increase when Mia and her girls join the Miami rapper and his guys for a late-night meal — which ends with the rapper giving Mia a large amount of money so she can skip work to hang out with him.

Wholesome Sh!t

Mia and Lamont: Early into the season one finale of Rap Sh!t, it seemed like Mia and Lamont were actually set on making things work out for themselves. The affection between Mia and Lamont can be seen as they wake up in the same bed following an intimate night together. One could say they were just coming off the high of the night before, but even as Mia rushes to get Lamont out the window before their daughter sees them, this moment showcases their desire to take things slow and figure out where they want to go with things. Unfortunately, this doesn’t last until the end of the episode as Mia decides it’s better that they don’t try again with their relationship.

Good Sh!t

Chastity: For much of the season, Chastity, also known as the Duke Of Miami, was seen more as a joke or pest rather than the serious move-maker she wanted to be viewed as. She saw a new opportunity to prove that when she stumbled upon Shawna and Mia’s music. It took some work, some finessing, a bit of convincing, and more, but Chastity helped bring more attention to Shawna and Mia. She did it through key moments like getting their music played at the club for the first time and getting them to perform at James Harden’s party. Despite this, Chastity hadn’t received the respect she deserved and it forced her to sit Shawna and Mia down towards the end of the season finale and remind the ladies of what she’s done for them as well as her status and influence in South Beach.

Odd Sh!t

Shawna and Francois: While Shawna and Mia had yet to resolve their issues, Shawna sought ways to boost the rap duo’s career. One thing led to another and she decided to reconnect with Francois for a second time and squash their beef. Truthfully, with Shawna on the up and up in her career, one would think that she would prefer to keep Francois as a burned bridge, especially as someone who did her wrong in her earlier days. However, in seemingly a desperate attempt to make a move, or maybe to settle an old beef, Shawna decides to start fresh and bring him into the mix to help make moves for her and Mia. Furthermore, Francois calls Shawna a “sister” despite making no attempt to resolve their issues until Shawna started to rise in the underground scene. I feel uneasy about where this is going, but I guess we’ll just have to wait until next season to see what happens.

Season 1 of ‘Rap Sh!t’ is now available to watch on HBO Max.

After an 11-year absence, one of the great rivalries in college football made its return on Thursday night, as No. 17 Pitt played host to West Virginia in the Backyard Brawl to open the season.

The two teams stopped meeting after Pitt left the Big East for the ACC, with West Virginia ultimately ending up in the Big 12, but renewed what has often been a chaotic and wild rivalry for the first game of the season and picked up right where they left off. The game was filled with wild moments, starting as a defensive struggle before both teams started to find the end zone in the second half. The game had it all, from blocked punts to wild catches, but the game took its biggest and final swing in the late fourth quarter.

After West Virginia opted to punt on 4th and 1 from just across the 50 while leading 31-24, Pitt marched down the field for a game-tying touchdown with inside five minutes to play. On the ensuing possession, West Virginia picked up a first down and looked like they might go march for a game-winning score when JT Daniels hit Bryce Ford-Wheaton in the hands across the 50 yard line.

The problem was the Mountaineers star receiver didn’t haul in the catch, instead having the pass go straight through his hands, off his helmet, and fall into the waiting hands of M.J. Devonshire, who showed off his track speed on the return, taking it to the house for what became the game-winning touchdown.

It was a brutal drop in a game that featured more than a few, and while West Virginia would drive deep into Pitt territory on their final drive of the game, they would come up shy of a game-tying score by the narrowest of margins, as a 4th and 16 pass just bounced on the ground before a receiver could haul it in on the goal line.

For Pitt, it was an incredible escape to keep their lofty goals this season alive, while West Virginia will feel like they let a golden opportunity to take down their rivals and set themselves up for a big year slip through their fingers, quite literally.

Earlier today, JID dropped the video for “Kody Blu 31,” a cut from his new album, The Forever Story. In the video, JID is seen with his family packing up a house, enjoying lunch outdoors, and taking a family portrait.

The song itself is equally as personal. In an interview with Ebro Darden on Apple Music 1 Radio, JID revealed that he sampled audio of his father singing at his grandmother’s funeral, and his mother chanting.

“The way it starts is actually at my grandma’s funeral,” J.I.D said. “I have the actual footage. I’m sitting there crying, holding the phone, recording this, because I know it’s a big moment. A couple years before that, we lost my other grandma on my mother’s side. This is my dad’s mother we lost. Recording this, my dad is singing his heart out on this recording.”

JID continued, breaking down the song’s intro, explaining “At the beginning of the song, if you listen to it, the first 15, 20 seconds, you could hear my whole family singing. You could hear my momma say, ‘Thank you, Lord.’”

You can watch the video for “Kody Blu 31” here.

The Forever Story is out now via Dreamville and Interscope. Stream it here.

Sealing the deal on their two-movie contract, Netflix is following up the Lindsay Lohan-starring Falling For Christmas with a rom-com called Irish Wish. The Ireland-set film stars Lohan as a bridesmaid named Maddie at the wedding of her best friend (yay!) and the love of Maddie’s life (boo!). Maddie makes a wish, wakes up engaged to her love, and then discovers that this world isn’t all sunshine and rainbows. Classic case of Wish Remorse.

According to Variety, Falling For Christmas director Janeen Damian will also direct and write Irish Wish. Damian has served as executive producer and/or writer on several Hallmark and made-for-TV rom-coms, like The Christmas Waltz, A Royal Christmas, Crown For Christmas, and A Princess For Christmas. Her foray into Ireland marks a rare departure from Christmas-based romantic goofballery. Unless the wedding is in Ireland and at Christmas, which is totally possible.

This is pure speculation, but the lack of pronouns in the plot synopsis at least leave the door open for this to be a romance between two women. They might also be leaving their options open since they haven’t cast anyone else. Again, speculation.

At any rate, good for Lohan! She’s been missing from the mainstream scene since the very Schrader-ish Paul Schrader movie The Canyons in 2014, so it’s high time for a bit of a Renaissance. First she’ll take over Christmas, then Ireland, then the world.

(via Variety)

(SPOILERS for this latest Rap Sh!t episode will be found below.)

Season one of Rap Sh!t is now in the books, and in just eight weeks, Shawna and Mia (played by Aida Osman and KaMillion) achieved many of the early goals they set out for as a new rap duo. They secured not one but two successful records with “Seduce & Scheme” and “Nann Badder.” Their songs were played in clubs and they were also invited to industry parties. Shawna and Mia have plenty to be excited about as season one comes to a conclusion, but their future is also in question now.

The aforementioned events in the finale of season one are soundtracked by records for the ladies. They’re songs that will boost your confidence and even make you want to shake something if that’s your vibe. Nonetheless, these records perfectly encapsulate the world that Shawna and Mia live in and hope to thrive in as well.

What Songs Were In The Season On Finale Of Rap Sh!t.

In addition to Shawna and Mia’s trademark records, “Seduce & Scheme” and “Nann Badder,” playing in the episode, there are three records that soundtracked biggest moments in this episode of Rap Sh!t. The first two are Kiddo Marv and Dreezy’s “Do It” and Saucy Santana and Renni Rucci’s “Money.” These two songs, along with “Seduce & Scheme,” soundtrack Mia’s time at a strip club. She heads out there with two of her friends for a moment of fun after the frustrating moment with Shawna during their performance in the last episode. It’s also during this scene that Mia records a video for Instagram that makes her fans think that she and Shawna had a split. The second is Steve Lacy’s “Infrunami” which can be heard after Mia hits it off with a fellow Miami rapper. He certainly piques Mia’s interest and the stacks of cash he gave her also boosted his chances.

The soundtrack for this week’s episode also includes the following songs:
City Girls — “You Tried It”
Josh Levi — “Vices”
Tokyo Jetz — “Just Ride”
Foogiano — “Dead In Miami”
Big Boss Vette — “Heavy”
Chelly Flame — “Bandz”
Jackboy — “Hate the B*tch”
Yung Miami — “Rap Freaks”
King Bucc — “Scam B*tch”

HBO Max’s ‘Rap Sh!t’ airs on Thursdays at 9:00pm EST.

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

Ahead of his upcoming album, Luv 4 Rent, Smino has dropped a new single called “24-8.” On the track, Smino delivers introspective rhymes over a chill, whistletone-ridden beat.

“I parked on Parker road / I took the route that’s hella scenic / Bare my heart on all these songs / And leave my soul all on all the speakers,” he rap-sings.

Upon the release of the song, Smino has taken to social media to show an open letter to fans, detailing what he’s been through in the time leading up to the album.

“It been a while…,” he said. “I Spent Alotta time becoming a better fren to myself..I spent Alotta time searching for time I already had…I spent Alotta time tryna make this shit perfect only to realize the only perfect things come from God and just being myself is perfect bc I come from God Himself…I spent Alotta moments wondering if I even gave a f*ck about dropping Music bcuz in dis world…it seems like the talent isn’t appreciated as much as the ‘Challenge’ or the moment..”

While he has not revealed an exact release date for Luv 4 Rent, Smino teased in his letter that the album will arrive in “Droptober,” a term he has used over the years when sharing music in October.

Check out “24-8” above.