Year: 2022

Billie Eilish, Coldplay, Charlie Puth, Shawn Mendes, Chloe x Halle, and 5 Seconds Of Summer have signed Global Citizen’s new open letter to end extreme poverty, which is part of its 2022 campaign. It calls for “breaking systemic barriers that keep people in poverty” and “empowering young women and girls across the world,” demanding that global leaders focus on these urgent issues, especially climate change.

Other celebrities who signed the letter include Adam Lambert, Alessia Cara, Alok, Bill Nye, Billy Porter, Camilo, Cathy Freeman, Connie Britton, Criolo, Cyndi Lauper, DJ Cuppy, Duran Duran, Ebuka Obi-Uchendu, Femi Kuti, Finneas, Hugh Jackman and Deborra-Lee Furness, Lali, Lang Lang, Made Kuti, Måneskin, Muzi, Nancy Isime, Nile Rodgers, Nomzamo Mbatha, Padma Lakshmi, Rachel Brosnahan, Ricky Martin, Sabrina Elba, and Tropkillaz.

Eilish in particular is known for her devotion to bringing awareness to climate issues. Next month, she’ll be hosting a climate change seminar in London that will span six days and include fellow musicians like Vivienne Westwood, Girl In Red, Glastonbury co-organizer Emily Eavis, and more. She also had an inspirational ad campaign that addressed how young people can use technology for good by connecting with each other, inspiring grassroots activism, and pressuring large corporations to be more sustainable. “We all have the potential to make a positive impact on our planet, and I’m hopeful our generation will use their platforms to collaborate and communicate and make a difference,” she said in a video.

Today, Time revealed the 2022 Time100 list made up of the 100 most influential people in the world and music was well represented. Mary J. Blige, Jazmine Sullivan, Questlove, Adele, Jon Batiste, Miranda Lambert, and Michelle Zauner have all been selected for this year’s grand recognition. For the list’s 19th iteration, each nominee has been paired with a guest contributor tapped to write about them, and that list also boasts some big names in James Corden (Adele), Quincy Jones (Jon Batiste), Nas (Mary J. Blige), Elle King (Miranda Lambert), Amber Riley (Jazmine Sullivan), Jimmy Fallon (Questlove), and Bowen Yang (Michelle Zauner).

Blige, the “Queen of Hip-Hop Soul,” has been selected as one of the cover stars, joining Zendaya, Tim Cook, Mia Mottley, and Simu Liu. “Mary came up the way we all did. She was a voice for us, but she wasn’t like other R&B artists at the time. She became a household name early because she was a hip-hop artist who also sang. The industry needed someone like that,” Nas wrote of Blige. Jon Batiste is set to be one of the speakers at the Time100 Summit on June 7 in New York City. Oprah Winfrey, Quinta Brunson, Zoe Kravitz, and Ketanji Brown Jackson are among other notable names, as this year’s list features 49 women. Check out the full list here.

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

(SPOILERS for Better Call Saul will obviously be found below.)

It’s D-Day.

After six episodes of buildup, Jimmy and Kim will enact their plan / scheme / chicanery against Howard during tonight’s midseason finale of Better Call Saul. But if you’re wondering, “Uh, what is Jimmy and Kim’s plan / scheme / chicanery again? I mean, I totally know. I’m just asking for a friend,” we’ve got you covered. Here’s everything we’ve learned about what Jimmy and Kim — and their desire for revenge fueled by anger, resentment, and a multi-million dollar Sandpiper payout — have in store for Howard.

The first time the Howard plan comes up this season is in the premiere, when Kim tells Jimmy, “I think there’s a way to get Sandpiper settled and leave him standing. Bruised, maybe, but still standing. Maybe the trick is, we’re not working on Howard, not at first. Maybe we start with Cliff Main.” Jimmy isn’t so sure about the idea, but Kim is determined. The plan has to be paced right, it has to make sense, and it has to stand up in court. “There has to be a reason for everything,” she says.

Jimmy plants a bag of “white powder” in Howard’s locker, so Cliff sees it falls out.

Jimmy and Kim pitch potential (fake) ways of getting Cliff to take a meeting, “but not the case,” when Kim comes up with an idea that Jimmy is going to hate: the Kettlemans. Betsy and Craig are now running a shady tax preparation service, which Jimmy and Kim use to their advantage. Jimmy tells the Kettlemans that Craig didn’t receive “proper counsel” from Howard because he may have been using a “certain illegal powder” at the time. The magic phrase is “ineffective assistance of counsel.” The Kettlemans take the claim to Cliff, but he declines to take their case. So do three other lawyers.

Betsy thinks she’s figures Jimmy out, that he’s using her and Craig’s name to “character assassinate” Howard (she’s not wrong!), but that’s only the carrot. Kim brings the stick: if Betsy and Craig don’t forget the name “Howard Hamlin,” she’ll report them — and the refund scam they’re running — to the IRS. “You think you’ve lost everything?” she tells them. “You have no idea.” Don’t come between Kim Wexler and her own scam.

Jimmy and Kim (with help from Huell) obtain a copy of the keys to Howard’s car. After completing his assignment, Huell wonders why Jimmy is going through all this when he makes decent money as a lawyer. “I know, from the outside, this looks like just another scam. But you’re not seeing the bigger picture,” he says, adding, “Trust me, we’re doing the Lord’s work here.” Huell is not convinced, and neither is Jimmy, honestly.

While Howard is in a therapy session, Jimmy “borrows” his car, picks up a sex worker named Wendy, and speeds past Cliff, who’s in a meeting with Kim. He kicks Wendy out of the vehicle in sight of Cliff, making it appear that Howard is a sex-crazy, drug-addicted speed maniac. (Jimmy is also dressed as Howard at the time, which is truly unsettling.)

The plan to make Howard come across as an unreliable drug addict with a secret seedy personal life is working so far. Cliff confronts Howard about his problem. Howard agrees, he does have a problem: a Jimmy McGill problem. He attempts to solve this problem by challenging Jimmy to a boxing match at a local gym (Howard wins).

Kim meets with her former-paralegal from Schweikart & Cokely, Viola (Lane from Gilmore Girls), to catch up over a friendly lunch — or so Viola thinks. Kim is actually using her to get information, specifically the name of the mustached judge assigned to the Sandpiper case, Rand Casimiro.

Howard has hired a private investigator to follow Jimmy, who is caught taking out $20,000 in cash.

Jimmy tests out a drug that he and Kim plan to use in their scheme at the veterinary office of Dr. Caldera (he of the Little Black Book).

Jimmy has receptionist Francesca call Hamlin, Hamlin, and McGill to get the conference call number for the Sandpiper cast meeting. We also learn that the mediation session will take place at the HHM office, where Jimmy and Kim enjoy a late-night picnic together the night before D-Day.

Uh oh. Cliff invites Kim to a luncheon in Santa Fe to meet with folks from the Jackson Mercer Foundation, which helps fund justice reform programs. Kim agrees, but the meeting is the same day as D-Day, a.k.a. when her and Jimmy’s plan is supposed to go into effect. Jimmy tells her to take the meeting (“Was Eisenhower at Omaha Beach? No!”), but on D-Day, he sees Judge Rand Casimiro at the liquor store with a broken arm. This is a problem. Jimmy and Kim hired a Rand lookalike to pose in a series of incriminating photos involving the cash that Jimmy took out from the bank to presumably discredit the actual Judge Rand Casimiro, but their doppelgänger isn’t injured. There’s no cast. Jimmy proposes trying again on another day, but Kim isn’t having it. “It happens today,” she says before turning the car around. So long, Santa Fe.

The “KABOOM” is on.

Keeping up with new music can be exhausting, even impossible. From the weekly album releases to standalone singles dropping on a daily basis, the amount of music is so vast it’s easy for something to slip through the cracks. Even following along with the Uproxx recommendations on a daily basis can be a lot to ask, so every Monday we’re offering up this rundown of the best new music this week.

This week saw Harry Styles dominate the music conversation and Tame Impala link up with a legend… thanks to the Minions franchise. Yeah, it was a great week for new music. Check out the highlights below.

For more music recommendations, check out our Listen To This section, as well as our Indie Mixtape and Pop Life newsletters. Also find our Uproxx HQ Spotify playlist, which is updated weekly with the best new music, at the end of this post.

Harry Styles — “Late Night Talking”

For nearly two months now, “As It Was” was really the only taste of the highly anticipated new album from Styles, Harry’s House. At last, though, the full LP came out a couple days ago and Styles marked the release by sharing the album’s second single, “Late Night Talking,” a bit of jaunty R&B-pop that goes in a more soulful direction than the indie-synth-pop-leaning “As It Was.”

Diana Ross and Tame Impala — “Turn Up The Sunshine”

For a minute there, it looked like Diana Ross and Tame Impala made an album together with a bunch of guests. In actuality, they simply teamed up for a new collaborative song, “Turn Up The Sunshine,” as part of the Minions: The Rise Of Gru soundtrack. The two work well together, as Kevin Parker’s increasingly soulful and funky production is a natural pairing with the Motown legend’s iconic vocals.

Unc And Phew — “Hotel Lobby”

Is Migos breaking up? It actually seems like that might be the case after Offset unfollowed Quavo and Takeoff on Instagram last week. The latter two are definitely exploring what an Offset-less career would look like, as the pair teamed up last week, as Unc And Phew, on “Hotel Lobby,” a Murda Beatz-produced track that’s very Migos-ian in its themes of wealth and doing whatever you want.

Hayley Kiyoko — “For The Girls”

Hayley Kiyoko — “lesbian Jesus,” as she is sometimes called — continued to proudly represent the LGBTQ+ community last week with “For The Girls.” The song’s video is a great time, as it features Kiyoko as the star of a queer The Bachelorette parody, where female contestants compete for Kiyoko’s rose.

Rina Sawayama — “This Hell”

Sawayama’s self-titled breakthrough album came out two years ago and now the Japanese-British singer is getting ready to capitalize on all the hype with a newly announced album, Hold This Girl. Uproxx’s Adrian Spinelli notes lead single “This Hell” (which Sawayama just performed on The Tonight Show) “culls from both country music and glam rock influences” and is “propped up on an electrifying guitar riff and is lyrically tongue-in-cheek without giving up any fire.”

Soccer Mommy — “Bones”

Soccer Mommy has teamed up with Daniel Lopatin of Oneohtrix Point Never for her new album Sometimes, Forever, so you know she’s going to be trying stuff on a sonic level. However, her latest single, last week’s “Bones,” is actually true to the bedroom-pop sound that Soccer Mommy was founded on, albeit with a new layer of polish.

070 Shake — “Body” Feat. Christine And The Queens

070 Shake has come into her own since appearing on some of Kanye West’s 2018 projects. Her sophomore album, You Can’t Kill Me, is set for this summer and fans can’t wait. She held them over last week with “Body,” which Uproxx’s Armon Sadler calls “a whirlwind of sonic experiences, opening with a sultry nature before everything heightens and becomes frantic” He continues, “Eventually, the song becomes simultaneously haunting yet beautiful but through the jarring transitions, the New Jersey artist and guest star Christine And The Queens vocally command the space with ease.”

The Notorious B.I.G. — “G.O.A.T” Feat. Ty Dolla Sign and Bella Alubo

Last weekend (May 20, to be specific) marked what would have been the late Notorious B.I.G.’s 50th birthday. To mark the occasion, his estate dropped a new song, “G.O.A.T,” which samples a Biggie classic (“I Love The Dough”), adds some afrobeats flavor, and features Ty Dolla Sign and Bella Alubo.

Ravyn Lenae — “Xtasy”

Chicago’s Ravyn Lenae has finally followed up her 2018 EP Crush with a debut album, Hypnos. That dropped last week, but not before a final preview of the album, the smooth single “Xtasy.” Kaytranada has production duty here, so sonically, it’s about what you’d expect from the exemplary producer, who plays well with the up-and-coming singer here.

Lykke Li — “Over”

Fans of vintage Lykke Li rejoice this week with the release of Eyeye, as the Swedish singer-songwriter’s new album sees her reuniting with Björn Yttling, who produced her first three albums. Eyeye is her fifth LP and among the highlights is “Over,” a brooding, slow-burning bit of nighttime pop that’s propelled forward by Li’s vocals.

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

On May 21 of last year, Olivia Rodrigo’s life changed forever with the release of Sour, her smash-hit debut album. That was a year ago this weekend, so Rodrigo marked the occasion by looking back on the career-launching LP.

Sharing a gallery of photos and videos from the past year or so, Rodrigo wrote, “my first album SOUR came out a year ago today. it is impossible for me to sum up in words how much this album means to me and how grateful I am to have gotten the privilege to make it and watch it exist in the world. thank u @dan_nigro for making it with me and believing in me more than anyone. and thank u to everyone who has embraced my 17 year old lamentations and forever changed my life in the process. [purple heart emojis].”

In another video shared on the same day, Rodrigo reflects more broadly on the year she’s had, saying, “It’s been almost a year since Sour‘s come out. So much has happened in that year: I graduated high school; I went to the White House, which was amazing; and I won three Grammys, which is absolutely insane. This past year, it’s been, you know, a lot of career milestones and stuff, but I’m freshly 19, there are so many things that I’m learning and just normal teenager milestones that I’m going through every day.”

She added, “I always had this hypothesis that music that was super honest and vulnerable would always cut through no matter what it was about or who was singing it, and I think for me, Sour just kind of reaffirmed that belief and made me believe in the universality of music.”

Check out the posts above and below.

With Election Day less than 24 hours away in Georgia, Republican gubernatorial candidate Kandiss Taylor — better known as the “Jesus Guns Babies” Lady — has put the petal to the metal on her wild campaign by promising to execute insubordinate sheriffs via firing squad. Taylor, who’s hoping to take out GOP incumbent Brian Kemp in the primary, unveiled her head-scratching campaign initiative during a campaign stop that was broadcast my Mike Lindell, of course.

In a clip from Frank TV, Taylor can be heard telling a crowd that if sheriffs don’t “do the will of the people,” well, she’ll have them executed, which really put the emphasis on the guns part of her “Jesus Guns Babies” slogan that was predominantly displayed behind Taylor during the rally.

“I don’t mind handcuffing them either,” Taylor said. “The Constitution says when you commit treason, it’s death by firing squad. I didn’t write it – it’s in there.”

But don’t worry, the Jesus part got a little love, too, as Taylor railed against the idea of separation of church of state. In Taylor’s view, the church “runs” Georgia, and she’s not afraid to yell that part out loud.

“We’re gonna do a political rally and we’re gonna honor Jesus,” Taylor said. “They’re not gonna tell us ‘separation of church and state.’ We are the church! We run this state! … The church runs the state of Georgia!”

Just like when she unveiled her “Jesus Guns Babies” slogans, the reactions started pouring in as people couldn’t believe that a political candidate is seriously out here here stumping on executing sheriffs and saying out loud that if she wins, her governorship will be an outright theocracy. Wild stuff, and sadly, it could play shockingly well in a state that elected Marjorie Taylor Greene.

You can reactions to Kandiss Taylor’s remarks below:

(Via Ron Filipkowski on Twitter)

Donald Trump famously pretended to be surprised after his “fight like hell” speech led to the January 6 insurrection. In reality, he was so overjoyed about his MAGA army attacking the U.S. Capitol that he rewound footage to enjoy it afresh, and he was (of course) thrilled to see his followers “fighting for me.” So naturally, he hasn’t learned anything from the experience and is cosigning the thought of “Civil War” waged by Americans who are fed up with inflation.

Trump apparently logged onto his Truth Social platform and shared a tweet from a user named “MAGA King Thanos” (naming himself after the MCU villain who committed genocide is quite the touch), who believes that Civil War is the answer, even though he’s all-in for an ex-president who managed to sit out of military service while claiming bone spurs and who fears windmills. Never mind that Trump’s practically admitting to spurring on January 6 by calling for Civil War, and a whole lot of GOP-ers are staying quiet on the issue. Some Republicans are fed up, and that includes the Lincoln Project co-founder George Conway, who tweeted a sarcastic “Nothing to see here” and “no biggie” while the Lincoln Project urged people not to see this as “normal” behavior.

GOP Rep. Adam Kinzinger felt likewise, and he asked why more Republicans aren’t pushing back at Trump’s consistently dangerous rhetoric. He pointed out that those who call for “civil war” can’t even be bothered to mask up during a pandemic, let alone be expected step onto a battlefield. Democratic Rep. Eric Stalwell joined in, too.

From there, people hoped that the FBI is paying attention while also pointing toward a certain section of the U.S. Code, which calls for prison time in response to anyone who incites insurrection. Lots of eye rolls going on out there.

Happy Monday, y’all. What a start to the week.

James Blake has been known to create music that makes listeners feel many different ways that are scattered amongst the wide-spanning “good-bad” spectrum. His vulnerability and elaborate songwriting stand out among his generation, but the English singer is looking to take things in a different direction with his new album Wind Down, available to purchase today (May 23). Created in collaboration with the German software company Endel and their signature AI engine, the project is aimed at helping listeners sleep by focusing on ambient sounds.

“The Wind Down soundscape I created with Endel lets me explore the more ambient side of my music and create a project to support people in a new way,” the 33-year-old said in a statement. The “Mile High” artist especially values the non-musical impact of it all, continuing, “It’s mesmerizing to hear how my music blends with the science-based sounds of Endel’s AI and I think we’ve invented something not just beautiful or even meaningful, but truly practical.”

Endel is no stranger to this concept or its derivatives, as the company previously worked with Grimes on her “AI Lullaby,” a music generator focused on sleep that was released in 2020. For James Blake, Wind Down arrives just seven months after his 2021 release Friends That Break Your Heart featuring SZA, JID, and more.

Listen to the “1st Soundscape” off of Wind Down above.

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

Grimes has been making a lot of headlines lately, but not for her music. The “Oblivion” singer always has a lot to share with the public, whether it’s stories about giving birth to her child with Elon Musk or being behind the cyber attack that took Hipster Runoff off the web.

A few months ago, though, she was teasing a new album titled Book 1, revealing some of the artwork options. She finally shared some new music of hers last night during her DJ set at the Electric Daisy Carnival festival. The song is called “Welcome To The Opera” and is as big and otherworldly as one might expect. At one point, her voice comes in, saying, “Join me for the next hour, as I take you on a techno odyssey.” Her vocals are as haunting as ever, wielded as an instrument against murky, sporadic synths and powerful bass.

Grimes divulged in January that before her next LP Book 1, she will be unveiling an EP titled Angels C*m First, which she described as a prelude to the album. It will feature her most recent single “Shinigami Eyes.”

Watch her ethereal performance of “Welcome To The Opera” at Electric Daisy Carnival above.

This past weekend, the 1969 Fender Mustang that Kurt Cobain played in Nirvana’s iconic “Smells Like Teen Spirit” video went up for auction via Julien’s Auctions. The starting price was expected to be somewhere between $600,000 and $800,000, but the guitar went for a whole lot more than that: Forbes reports the guitar sold for $4.5 million. Furthermore, the buyer is somebody sports fans know well: billionaire Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay.

Irsay himself confirmed the news on Twitter, noting he purchased the six-string for The Jim Irsay Collection, the website of which notes, “Jim Irsay’s passion for rock music, American history, and pop culture led him to assemble a robust collection of historic and culturally significant artifacts over several decades that together make up The Jim Irsay Collection. An active philanthropist, Mr. Irsay hopes to establish a museum to share these treasures with the world.”

Irsay also said Cobain’s estate donated a portion of the proceeds to Kicking The Stigma, Irsay’s initiative focused on mental health and raising money for Indiana-area nonprofits.

In other recent Nirvana news, the band’s “Something In The Way” made its debut on the Billboard Hot 100 chart back in April (31 years after its release) thanks to The Batman. Cobain’s final days are also being turned into an opera.

Revisit the “Smells Like Teen Spirit” video below.