Year: 2022

You may know Heidi Montag from her stint on The Hills, or when she lived in the jungle for I’m A Celebrity…Get Me Out Of Here! If those don’t ring a bell, you might recall her debut album Superficial (maybe). Well, in another timeline, Montag would have been the world’s biggest pop star, according to her. While chatting on the podcast The Unpopular With Jacques Peterson, the former MTV star revealed that she has some beef with Lady Gaga.

According to Montag, the two worked with the same producer back in 2009, RedOne. When Gaga penned the song “Fashion” with the producer, she granted Montag permission to record the song. However, when producers of the classic Isla Fisher movie Confessions Of A Shopaholic expressed interest in the track, Lady Gaga wanted to take it back, according to Montag. Things then turned sour.

The reality star believed that Gaga became friendly with Montag’s known frenemy Lauren Conrad. “I was like, ‘Who is this girl? What is happening?’ She’s a hater, clearly!” Montag recalled. This was in 2009, right before Gaga became a household name. Conrad worked with Gaga on season four of The Hills.

The whole ordeal turned made both parties feel weird, and Montag then claimed that Gaga told RedOne that she wouldn’t work with him anymore if he kept working with Montag. She recalls, “He was like, ‘I’m sorry, she’s my writing partner for huge things.” The two went on to write Gaga’s mega-hits “Just Dance,” “Bad Romance,” and more. Montag, on the other hand, released her debut album around the same time which was unfortunately panned by critics and fans alike, though it did somehow gain a cult following years later.

Perhaps Montag would have been a bigger star if she had taken the song, but maybe not. These days, the reality star-turned influencer is dipping her toe into Christian music, which is the complete opposite of where Gaga ended up.

It all worked out for the best since The Hills wasn’t even real anyway.

Kehlani has revealed the artwork and release date for their much-anticipated third studio album, Blue Water Road. The album, executive-produced by Pop Wansel, arrives next month.

“Blue Water Road is a destination in my mind,” Kehlani says in a statement. “I’m giving everyone access. It’s an emotional journey, a sexual journey, and a spiritual journey. To me, the album is like a glass house. It’s light, transparent, and the sun is shining right through it.”

Kehlani began writing the album in September of 2020 while renting an Airbnb in Malibu with close friends and collaborators. After their vacation, they rented another home with Wansel to experiment with new sounds for the record. In an interview with Rolling Stone, the “Altar” singer revealed that the songs they wrote were originally planned for a deluxe edition of their sophomore album, It Was Good Until It Wasn’t.

“We just made so much cool sh*t, and it was so different from what I would consider to be able to be on the deluxe because it didn’t sound anything like it,” they said “I just was like, ‘F*ck it, this is a whole new project.’”

Blue Water Road is out 4/29 via Atlantic. Pre-save it here.

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

WARNING: Minor spoiler for The Batman below.

On the heels of The Batman‘s release, director Matt Reeves not only revealed that, yes, the “Unnamed Arkham Prisoner” in the film’s final moments is Barry Keoghan as the Joker, but that the actor had filmed a deleted scene with Robert Pattinson’s Dark Knight that was cut due to the film’s runtime stopping just short of three hours. In an interview with Variety, Reeves said the Joker basically filled a Hannibal Lecter-like role as Batman visited him in Arkham to try and get answers about Paul Dano’s Riddler. The scene also hinted at a prior history between the two.

If that sounds like the sort of thing that actually would’ve been great to see in the film, well, now you can judge for yourself. Warner Bros. has released the deleted scene, which plays out exactly as Reeves described it. Pattinson’s Batman appears in the Joker’s cell with a file on Riddler, which prompts an adversarial, but not entirely combative exchange between the two iconic characters. At least until the end, when this version of the Joker proves he’s also adept at getting into the Dark Knight’s skin.

Not only does Batman leave with barely any insight into the Riddler, but the Joker has the last laugh as he taunts Batman for being just like his puzzle-obsessed foe. And he’s not entirely wrong.

The Batman is now playing in theaters and will start streaming April 19 on HBO Max.

(Via Variety)

A dynamic lyricist whose style is forged in afrobeats and hip-hop, Obongjayar is gearing up for the May 13th release of his debut album, Some Nights I Dream Of Doors. The Nigerian-born Londoner came on strong in 2021 on Little Simz’s “Point And Kill” and Pa Salieu’s “Style & Fashion,” but as 2022 got underway, it’s been all about his singular talents and his upcoming solo release.

The breakneck-paced “Message In A Hammer” dropped in late 2021, and had one of the nuttiest, must-watch videos of the year. Now on “Tinko Tinko (Don’t Play Me For A Fool),” Obongjayar shows another side to his dynamic toolshed. An afrobeats cut at its core, it’s the sultry, breathy verses that flash his mighty voice. He’s an approachable lyricist and, who’s quickly coming into his own.

He shared some thoughts on the purpose and inspiration behind Some Nights I Dream Of Doors:

“This album dives into the idea of opportunity and tries to explore what that means, what lies behind those doors, and asks if we’re ready for it. The pursuit of success, what happens when you achieve it, and what happens if you don’t? What does success mean? The head, the body, and the end of a dream. Opportunity is looking forward, and in that lies the question of time. What is your place in it? To know the future, or to fully be aware of your present, you need to analyze and understand your past. It’s an endless loop that continuously piles on itself”

Watch the video for “Tinko Tinko (Don’t Play Me For A Fool)” above.

Some Nights I Dream Of Doors is out 5/13 via September Recordings. Pre-order it here.

Last week, The Recording Academy and CBS revealed the first set of artists set to perform at this year’s Grammy Awards: BTS, Billie Eilish, Olivia Rodrigo, Lil Nas X with Jack Harlow, Brandi Carlile, and Brothers Osbourne. Now, they’ve added onto that list with another set of artist reveals today. So, also performing at this year’s show (on April 3 at 8 p.m. ET) are Foo Fighters, Nas, HER, Jon Batiste, Chris Stapleton, Ben Platt, Cynthia Erivo, Leslie Odom Jr., and Rachel Zegler.

Batiste was a no-brainer selection, as he has a whopping 11 nominations this year, which is the most this year and the second-most in a single year of all time: Record Of The Year, Album Of The Year, Best Traditional R&B Performance, Best R&B Album, Best Improvised Jazz Solo, Best Jazz Instrumental Album, Best American Roots Performance, Best American Roots Song, Best Score Soundtrack For Visual Media, Best Contemporary Classical Composition, and Best Music Video.

Foo Fighters is a headlining act in the rock categories, as they’re up for Best Rock Performance (for “Making A Fire”), Best Rock Song (“Waiting On A War”), and Best Rock Album (Medicine At Midnight). As for Nas, King’s Disease II is up for Best Rap Album and DMX’s “Bath Salts” (featuring Jay-Z and Nas) is nominated for Best Rap Song.

Find the full list of 2022 Grammy nominations here.

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

As the Russian military continues to sustain heavy losses in its war with Ukraine, the Kremlin has concocted a bizarre new conspiracy theory to justify its invasion of a peaceful democratic country. And wouldn’t you know, it has something to do with Hunter Biden.

On Thursday, Russia’s Defense Ministry released a color-blocked diagram that looked to be made by a high schooler attempting to use Adobe for the first time. Within the infographic, the Kremlin made some baseless claims for why it invaded Ukraine. Initially, President Putin said the war was done with the Ukrainian people’s best interest at heart as the country needed to be de-Nazified (whatever the hell that means). Of course, since Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is actually Jewish, that reasoning didn’t hold up for long to any person with a fully functioning brain. Now, Putin’s cronies are saying Russia attacked the country because it was working with the U.S. government to create bioweapons that specifically target Slavic people, which is also of course utter nonsense.

The official document released by the country’s defense ministry is titled “Coordination of Biological Laboratories and Scientific Research Centers of Ukraine and the U.S.,” and, besides some weird pictures of a smiling George Soros and a tab dedicated to implicating the entire Democratic party in this scheme, the main argument it makes is this: that a bunch of U.S. institutions have been funding Biolabs in Ukraine and secretly working on an “especially dangerous pathogen of anthrax.” The diagram accuses everyone from the Centers for Disease Control to the U.S. military to the George Soros Foundation to the Los Alamos National Laboratory of being involved in this secret plan to infect every Russian on the planet with anthrax.

But where does President Joe Biden’s son come in? Well, according to Russia, Hunter Biden’s investment firm, Rosemont Seneca, is responsible for financing the Pentagon-backed “military-biological program.”

Of course, there’s absolutely no evidence to back up these claims — and the idea that America is developing bioweapons to use against Russia isn’t even an original one. The Soviet Union made that same accusation decades ago, even accusing America of developing AIDS in a lab. And both Hunter Biden and George Soros are favorite targets of far right-wing conspiracy theorists, which is likely why Russia has started zeroing in on them both — it’s no secret the wild ramblings of these fringe groups have been the country’s preferred method when it comes to infiltrating American elections and destabilizing our democracy.

Still, we can’t help but think this new strategy of blaming President Biden’s son for the current war is going to make people like Fox News hosts Tucker Carlson and Laura Ingraham especially happy. They’ve been giddily spreading disinformation about the war in Ukraine for weeks under the guise of “just asking questions” and concern trolling this latest conspiracy theory feels juicy enough to milk for at least a handful of on-air rants. Everyone else might be tired of this war but those two certainly aren’t.

Via The Daily Beast

(Spoilers for Bridgerton will be found below.)

Bridgerton has returned for a new courting season, and you’d better believe that Lady Whistledown is watching. As viewers now know (after Season 1), the anonymous gossip-page writer is really Penelope (Nicola Coughlan), but none of the characters on the show know this yet. This season, Penelope will keep maneuvering to maintain her secrecy if at all possible, and it must be noted that fans should be pleased with this season as a whole. There’s a Queen-declared Diamond and a new set of lead characters, and Anthony Bridgerton (Jonathan Bailey) is a lot more, well, human.

What of Lady Whistledown’s inspiration, though? Author Julia Quinn hasn’t explicitly stated who she is based upon, but there are plenty of possibilities out there since society has always loved to gossip, and there were undoubtedly pages like these before, during, and after the Regency era, in which the show is based. However, Town and Country magazine recently spoke with historian Catherine Curzon (who authored The Daughters of George III: Sisters and Princesses), and she’s got one name in mind:

“She does call to mind ‘Mrs. Crackenthorpe,’ billed as ‘a Lady that knows everything,’” Curzon told Town and Country. She went on to explain that Crackenthorpe was the pseudonym for whomever wrote a popular satiric gossip page in 1709 called Female Tatler. The author gossiped aplenty even though the publication only lasted about a year, but she also produced “a gem of satire, remarkable for being intended for women, and with a primary aim to educate — often through sharp observation.”

Although the Regency Era rolled into view later than Crackenthrope, Curzon seems pretty convinced that she’s the author who most resembles Whistledown’s ways. The entire Town and Country piece dives into some of the most popular subjects of the time, who were very rarely called out by name, but plenty of hints were dropped. So, “it was simply a matter of decoding some fairly basic hints about the people involved.” As in, a prince’s actual title would be vaguely masked, or maybe an actress would be referred to by some of the characters that she played.

Actually, that doesn’t sound so anonymous! We’ll soon see if Penelope/Lady Whistledown can keep a lid on her own identity.

‘Bridgerton’ returns to Netflix on March 25.

(Via Town And Country)

Megan Thee Stallion never stops. The rapper is coming off the success of her new collaboration with Dua Lipa, “Sweetest Pie,” which made a pretty significant chart debut at No. 15. Though she’s still dealing with embarrassingly misogynistic fallout from Tory Lanez shooting her, Thee Stallion is still steady rising.

On that note, today Roc Nation and Time Studios announced they’ve partnered on a documentary telling Megan’s story. The upcoming multi-part documentary will be directed by Nneka Onuorah, and includes a mix of archival footage and new material. A press release stated that “beyond amplifying the Houston native’s journey to success, the project will also touch on how Megan overcame various personal hurdles to thrive in her professional career.”

“We are thrilled to be able to work with Roc Nation to share Megan’s story with the world,” said Loren Hammonds, the Co-Head of Documentary at Time Studios, in a press release. “Millions of people are familiar with her as an entertainer, but this series will give her a chance to share her truth as never before. Her story is a powerful one, and the accomplishments that she continues to achieve are remarkable. We feel lucky to have this opportunity to capture her at a crucial moment in her life and career, as she continues to grow exponentially in both her artistry and global impact.”

Roc Nation echoed those sentiments, specifically noting this artist’s resilience. “Megan has quickly blossomed into one of the pre-eminent entertainers in the world and it’s a testament to her perseverance, resilience and professionalism,” said Desiree Perez, the CEO of Roc Nation, in a press release. “Her journey is inspirational and we’re proud to have partnered with Time Studios to highlight her personal and professional trajectory over the years. Our hope is that this documentary will inspire viewers to stay the course and pursue their passions through the ups and downs.”

Executive producers on the project include Time Studios’ Ian Orefice, Loren Hammonds, Alexa Conway and Mike Beck, and Roc Nation’s Desiree Perez and Lori York, along with the director Nneka Onuorah. No release date for the project has been shared yet, but keep an eye out for more information.

The 2021-22 season has not been kind to the Los Angeles Lakers. After losing to the Philadelphia 76ers on Wednesday night, Los Angeles fell to 31-42 on the year, putting them in ninth place in the Western Conference. They’re currently two games ahead of the 11th-seed San Antonio Spurs, and while they’re in a play-in spot right now, the possibility of them missing the postseason altogether is very real.

Still, it’s not all bad for the Lakers. They still have LeBron James, which has historically been a pretty good way to win games in the playoffs, and Anthony Davis is expected to return from a foot sprain sometime soon. That second thing, in particular, has one Laker legend believing they’d take down the best team in basketball if they met up in the playoffs.

“I’m disappointed in my Lakers, a lot of people are,” Shaq said on The Big Podcast with Shaq. “We all forgot about their ages. ‘Ooh, Westbrook’s comin’, ooh, they got Carmelo,’ like, we’re used to having teams with big-name stars on them. So, you got a team with three Hall of Famers, you would think they’d be in six or seven, and then AD’s not playing. So, I doubt they even make the play-in game.

“But if they do, they have to win, and they will face Phoenix in the first round,” Shaq continued. “And then, if they make it to the eight spot, they will beat Phoenix.”

Shaq believes that the return of Davis will be the thing that pushes the Lakers over the top, and while he concedes that “Westbrook’s been playing bad,” he is holding out hope.

“All it takes is for certain people like that to just play good one or two games and then it snaps right back,” he said.

With nine games left in their regular season, it’d take quite the turn of events for the Lakers to catch up to the Clippers, which have a 4.5-game lead on the 8-seed and have the tiebreaker between the two teams. As such, the overwhelming likelihood is that Los Angeles’ path to the playoffs would require winning the 9/10 game, then beating the loser of the 7/8 game, then beating a Suns team that bounced them last postseason four times in seven games. It would be quite the turn of events if they could pull this off, but at least Shaq is optimistic.

Yesterday, Swedish singer-songwriter Lykke Li finally followed up her last (and arguably best) album, So Sad So Sexy with a new single called “No Hotel.” We got the Still Sad Still Sexy EP in 2019, but she hadn’t released a full-length project in a minute, so the news that will be changing this year is welcome. She’s officially announced that her next record will be called EYEYE, and according to a press release, Lykke wanted to pursue a completely different, very analogue approach to this album.

“There were no clicktracks, no headphones, and no digital instruments,” the release stated. “The vocals were recorded on a handheld $70 drum mic, often in the moment of composition, giving the lyrics the still-beating sound of fresh heartbreak being whispered into your ear.” In her own words, Lykke said she “wanted the record to have the intimacy of listening to a voice memo on a macro dose of LSD.” Based off this first track, she seems to have achieved all she was looking for. The analogue setup also continued to the mixing stage, as this album was mixed to tape by Shawn Everett.

Today she’s shared a visual component that will set the album apart, too. Directed by Theo Lindquist and shot on 16 millimeter film by cinematographer Edu Grau, seven one-minute visual “fragments” will accompany the music. Lykke stars in the clips alongside Jeff Wilbusch, and you can watch a preview of the films up top. “We wanted to capture the beauty and grandeur of a three-hour European arthouse movie, while making something native to modern media,” Lykke said. “The intention is to deliver the full impact of a movie in sixty seconds on a phone screen, which is where most of our emotional experiences happen now anyway.”

EYEYE will be out on May 20 and she will embark on a tour behind the project beginning in September of 2022. Check out the tracklist for the record below.

EYEYE tracklist:
1. “No Hotel”
2. “You Don’t Go Away”
3. “Highway To Your Heart”
4. “Happy Hurts”
5. “Carousel”
6. “5D”
7. “Over”
8. “ü&i”