Month: July 2023

Brian Cox is back with another one of his salty takes. The Emmy-nominated actor stopped by Piers Morgan Uncensored where he proceeded to rant about, sigh, “woke culture.”

Apparently, the opinionated Succession star is not a fan of “shaming culture,” which isn’t entirely surprising given his public defense of Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling who’s been under fire thanks to her well-documented anti-trans remarks. According to Cox, the source of the problem is “millennials” and “social media,” which the actor believes “hinders, not helps.”

Via IndieWire:

“The whole woke culture is truly awful […] and the shaming culture.” He continued, “I don’t know where it comes from. Who are the arbiters of this shaming? And it’s very hard to pin them down, and, it turns out, it’s usually a bunch of millennials. I suppose in a way they’re probably saying, ‘Well you’ve all screwed it up so we may as well do something about it.’ But it’s from the wrong principle. It comes from the wrong place.”

Hot takes are becoming par for the course for Cox. The actor hasn’t been afraid to voice his opinion on everything from Meghan Markle to the source of his recent Emmy nom. Cox’s blustery family patriarch, Logan Roy, died suddenly — spoilers, but come on — during the final season of Succession, and the actor had no reservations about saying the crucial moment came too early. (Showrunner Jesse Armstrong explained that Logan died when he did because it would have the most dramatic effect.)

“I was fine with it ultimately, but I did feel a little bit rejected,” Cox said about Logan’s sudden death. “You know, I felt a little bit like all the work I’ve done and finally I’m going to, you know, end up as an ear on a carpet of a plane.”

(Via IndieWire)

A new voice in R&B has entered the scene. Forest Claudette hails from Melbourne, Australia, and is generating big buzz around his newly released debut EP, Everything Was Green. Deftly combining elements of R&B, pop, and alternative, he’s perfectly positioned to capture an audience raised on the Pollen playlist with tracks like “Violence” and “Mess Around.”

The 23-year-old singer dropped by the Uproxx Studio to perform the latter for UPROXX Sessions, crooning his way through the wistful ballad in a fittingly emerald ensemble. While the studio version from his EP features Atlanta funk-rappers Earthgang, he’s just as able and engaging singing solo here. The Aussie singer bears every hallmark of a Gen-Z star — and he certainly shines in this performance.

Watch Forest Claudette perform “Mess Around” for UPROXX Sessions above.

UPROXX Sessions is Uproxx’s performance show featuring the hottest up-and-coming acts you should keep an eye on. Featuring creative direction from LA promotion collective, Ham On Everything, and taking place on our “bathroom” set designed and painted by Julian Gross, UPROXX Sessions is a showcase of some of our favorite performers, who just might soon be yours, too.

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

Fresh Pair is back, baby! Sneaker artist extraordinaire Katty Customs and legendary hip-hop producer Just Blaze have teamed up once again — taking their sneaker customization operation to the city of Austin, Texas for a special live episode starring UGK alum, Bun B.

A renowned sneakerhead in his own right, Bun is no stranger to a fire pair of kicks, considering that and the fact that the Fresh Pair team was visiting Bun’s home state, Katty and Just Blaze had their work cut out for them and nailing the right design was of paramount importance. We won’t spoil the reveals for you here (it’s a lot more fun to watch) but we will say that Bun was beyond impressed with what Katty and Blaze cooked up, inspiring the legend to share never-before-heard stories from his come-up and lengthy career.

Throughout this 30-minute episode, Bun takes us behind the scenes of the recording of “Diamonds and Wood,’ as well as the production process of UGK’s classic, Ridin’ Dirty. Later, Just Blaze and Bun reminisce about their early run-ins with Rockafella Records and Jay-Z and address that iconic moment in the “Big Pimpin’” video when Pimp C rocked a mink coat in 100-degree weather.

With the many references and nods to Bun’s career that Katty and Bun crammed into this single pair of sneakers, the hip-hop legend was bursting with stories to tell. Catch the full episode above and try to guess Bun’s out of 10 rating before we hit the post-interview during the credits.

Olivia Rodrigo is finally ready and preparing to release her sophomore album, Guts — and fans cannot wait either. Given it’s been around two years since Rodrigo stepped onto the scene with her record-breaking debut, time will only tell how much more this album will reach.

A few weeks ago, she shared the lead single, “Vampire,” where she chronicled feeling taken advantage of, whether by a relationship with someone older or by the industry as a whole — as the music video seems to suggest. In it, she is hit with a camera but tries to keep performing. However, the lights fall around her, and a group of people in black suits come to pull her off the stage of the awards show that she’s not supposed to be at.

Rodrigo recently celebrated the song reaching No. 1 this week. “Writing this song helped me sort through lots of feelings of regret, anger, and heartache. It’s one of my favorite songs on the album and it felt very cathartic to finish,” she previously posted about the track.

As for when fans can hear the rest of Guts, Rodrigo’s new album drops on September 8. “I am so proud of this record and I can’t wait to share it with you all,” she added in a separate Instagram post.

The album is currently available for pre-order via her website here.

The People of the State of California v. Orenthal James Simpson was so last century. In 2023, we got to witness the new (and far less morbid, not to mention delightful) televised trial of the century when Gwyneth Paltrow refused to roll over when a retired optimist sued her over a ski collision. O.J. did, however, weigh in on this trial, too, because how could you not? Goop lad lost a half day of skiing, and in the end, she was vindicated from liability, but not before we saw the stick-figure drawings of the century, too.

Now, we will be able to relive this madcap trial through a two-part documentary that will arrive sometime this year from Discovery+. As Variety notes, that means that “[y]ou skiied into my effing back” will receive new life, and I personally cannot wait for the dissection of Gwyneth’s “I wish you well” to retired optometrist Terry Sander following the verdict:

Production company Optomen (“Johnny vs Amber,” “Kim vs Kanye: The Divorce”) are continuing their “Vs” series for Discovery+ with a doc about the “Sliding Doors” star’s legal woes. The civil trial earlier this year saw Paltrow sued by – and then counter-sue – retired optometrist Terry Sanders, after the duo collided on an Utah ski slope in 2016.

Now for a further question: when shall we see the dramatization of this trial? We can simply slide the cast of HBO’s The Staircase right into these roles, no problem, and perhaps they can consider it a levity-filled palate cleaner. This trial was easily more entertaining than every single Pepper Potts MCU scene combined. That’s not exactly the hottest take of 2023, but I’m sticking with it.

(Via Variety)

Breaking Bad star Bryan Cranston was nominated for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series at the Emmys six times — with four wins. Bob Odenkirk has also been nominated in the same category six times — with zero wins. So far.

The Better Call Saul actor will compete against Jeff Bridges (The Old Man), Brian Cox (Succession), Kieran Culkin (Succession), Pedro Pascal (The Last of Us), and Jeremy Strong (Succession) in one of the most stacked categories at the 2023 Emmys. One of the Roy boys has to be considered the frontrunner, but Odenkirk already won Outstanding Tribute to a Co-Star*.

(*not an official Emmys category)

“This guy looks pretty beat up…BUT, HOORAY! and THANK YOU to everyone who enjoyed Better Call Saul, and for this Nom,” he wrote in response to a Discussing Film tweet. “We all cared SO MUCH everyday we made this show. It starts with the WRITING and I’m so thankful Peter Gould and Gordon Smith are nominated.” Odenkirk is particularly happy that Rhea Seehorn, who played Kim Wexler, was also nominated (a nomination is nice; a win would be better, and deserved). “RHEA being nominated makes my day, my year,” he tweeted.

Considering Seehorn saved his life, Odenkirk better say nice things about her.

You can find the full list of Emmy nominations here.

Just under 10 months after releasing her pandemic-inspired album, The Loneliest Time, Carly Rae Jepsen is back, continuing the story with The Loveliest Time.

Jepsen teased the companion album last week in an Instagram post, where she revealed that the album will home in on joy more than The Loneliest Time did.

“I got to know loneliness and discover the beauty in it,” said Jepsen in the post’s caption. “The loneliest time taught me that growth comes from being planted in darkness. But now the world has opened itself back up again and in turn so have we. It’s time for celebration and for all the lessons we have learned to burst into joyful action.”

On The Loveliest Time, Jepsen enlisted the help of producers John Hill, James Ford, Patrik Berger, Rostam Batmanglij, and Kyle Shearer to breathe new life into a collection of songs she wrote during a period of isolation.

Ahead of the new album, Jepsen has shared its breezy lead single, “Shy Boy.” She will also be joining Boygenius on a series of tour stops this summer, and is set to perform at Lollapalooza.

The Loveliest Time is out 7/28 via Interscope and School Boy. Find more information here.

Let’s not pretend that you’re reading this right now. And why should you? The trailer sells itself. You’ve already watched it five times and are diving back in for more.

With Nic Cage looking like Jimmy Buffet’s corpse and a stellar cast of That Guys, The Retirement Plan only has enough plot to justify Cage’s character beating the hell out of as many henchmen as possible. Seems like some bad dudes want to do bad stuff to a woman (Ashley Greene Khoury), so her daughter (Thalia Campbell) goes to get grandpa, and that grandpa is Nic Cage, and he slumps out of the rum bottle long enough to jab it into some throats.

Team Crime also features Jackie Earle Haley as the big boss, and Ron Perlman as his right-hand man, and Team Allies From The Past features Ernie Hudson seeming incredulous that a child wouldn’t know that her father was a trained killer.

It looks like big dumb fun, but it’s also a sincere tragedy. It’s the tale of a man who has lived through loads of trauma and come out the other end to enjoy his twilight years only to be disturbed from his beachside idyll by career criminals. The man has put in his time. Can’t we just let him suntan in peace?

The Retirement Plan will hit select theaters soon.

A few months after Kaytranada and Aminé joined forces to release their first self-titled album together as Kaytraminé, the duo now have some other fun plans in store for their fans. They will be hitting the road across North America this fall to play a handful of shows in major cities and showcase their latest tunes.

While Kaytranada brought Aminé out during his weekend one Coachella set, the two haven’t played together since. And, considering the record boasts a ton of features, including Big Sean, Freddie Gibbs, Pharrell Williams, and Snoop Dogg, we can only hope that they might have some special surprise guests in store for the tour.

“It has some of the best Kay beats that he’s ever made, and some of the best singing and rapping I’ve ever done,” Aminé told W Magazine upon the release. “It really leveled up my artistic capabilities.”

“‘4EVA’ is one of the dance songs on the album, and people expect it’s going to go in that direction, but it’s completely the opposite,” Kaytranada added. “They are really going to experience my versatility as a producer.”

Tickets for the tour are available starting this Friday at 10 a.m. local time for each city. Find additional information here, and a complete list of dates below.

09/07 — Montréal, Quebec @ Off Piknic
09/09 — Portland, Oregon @ McMenamins Edgefield
09/12 — Chicago, Illinois @ The Salt Shed
09/14 — New York, New York @ The Brooklyn Mirage
09/16 — Los Angeles, California @ Greek Theatre

The RX is Uproxx Music’s stamp of approval for the best albums, songs, and music stories throughout the year. Inclusion in this category is the highest distinction we can bestow and signals the most important music being released throughout the year. The RX is the music you need, right now.

There’s been a lot of talk of late about “Album of the Summer” — a lot more than usual. Perhaps it’s a function of the dark times we’re living through, but most folks just seem more eager than ever to designate a work of art as thee definitive escape from the drudgery and chaos of everyday life. I could write a whole other essay on why this way of approaching art is not just inane but futile, but instead, I want to draw your attention to a project that has all the hallmarks of an “Album of the Summer” that you might have missed.

I’ve written before about Kota The Friend, the Brooklynite hip-hop traditionalist whose music veers less aspirational than inspirational. And you might have seen that he had a new album out and, perhaps expecting more of the same, kept scrolling by since the sort of music he usually makes is not your cup of tea. That’s understandable, but here’s the thing: Protea, Kota’s latest album, is not the sort of music he usually makes. Riding the wave of joyful, uptempo dancefloor-filling tunes that has overtaken hip-hop lately, Protea not only presents a fresh take on those sounds but also perhaps the best version of them of the year to date.

You’re probably aware of the sort of sounds I’m talking about. Spurred by the ongoing Black reclamation of dance music that was accelerated by Drake and Beyoncé with their much-lauded projects last year, more entertainers in hip-hop and R&B than ever have embraced the booty-moving (and soul-sustaining) grooves of latent Black genres like house, funk, and jazz, updating and fusing them in new and exciting modes with more contemporary rap and soul.

The results have been crowd-pleasing fare like Aminé and Kaytranada’s joint project, Kaytraminé, which was awash in tropical sounds and poolside aesthetics, much like the funk-hop of Ric Wilson’s Clusterfunk. We’ve also seen Coi Leray embrace the exuberant energy of jock jams with her self-titled sophomore album, and even Lil Uzi Vert dabbled in Eurohouse alongside Nicki Minaj on “Endless Fashion” from his new album Pink Tape. And then, there’s the continued dominance of Beyoncé’s Renaissance, particularly tracks that combine genres, like “Virgo’s Groove” and “Plastic Off The Sofa.”

This is the climate into which Kota introduces Protea, which opens with the declaration, “I wanna hear love songs. Don’t wanna hear no more sad songs… What about the good times? What about love?” You really have to love an album that puts its thesis right out front; there are no heady metaphors to wade through here. Kota tells you what the album is, and with that out of the way, proceeds straight to the ecstatic two-step of “Super 8”: “Let’s have it all,” he semi-croons on the chorus. Kota wants to shake off the blues and invites listeners to join him in doing so.

There are certainly plenty of blues worth shaking off. Dotted throughout the 16-track set are interludes of Kota in conversation with his wife in which they refreshingly excavate the highs and lows of their relationship. It’s like a therapy practice but without the ostentatious jargon or obvious staging that so often accompanies mental health discussion within the genre. Meanwhile, there’s consistency between the theme and the lyrics, another area in which hip-hop consistently tends to come up short in recent years.

Even on the sole scuffing, hip-shaking nu-disco take “Barcelona,” Kota raps about overcoming tribulations and sharing his successes with the people he loves most. I hate to say it, but this is the album Chance The Rapper was trying to make with The Big Day, capturing the exuberance and optimism of newlywed life — it’s a take on Chance’s “I love my wife, EUGH!” music that remains focused on the feeling instead of The Big Day‘s didactic approach to its “find a good one and settle down, my brother” messaging.

The thing about Protea that makes it so much fun is its commitment to presenting the good vibes in such a way that it feels freeform and engaging — bursts of saxophone and joyous belting from its who’s-who of guest vocalists give it the underpinnings of a jazz jam session, but the four-on-the-floor beats and disco strings keep the mood lively. You could throw this on at a party or nightclub and let it play from end to end (save the interludes, of course) and no one would ever stop dancing.

So when Kota chants “They gon’ try to bring you down” on “Forget About It,” he captures the same spirit of rebellious intent behind early house that made Beyoncé’s “Break My Soul” such a revelation, particularly when the hook switches the focus to the positives of life while maintaining the refrain. This is music made for forgetting your problems, if only for the moment; the defiance in its message of uplift is sublimated within the music itself, making the jazzy keys and snaking basslines a stealth delivery system for words of love, affirmation, and resistance.

Like the summer itself, Protea is a break from the routines, it’s the splash of sunshine cascading through the window to remind us that there is more beyond the office, the struggle, the anxiety and depression of our modern times. It’s the knowledge that today brings at least one good thing, the hope that tomorrow can be better, and the beach of better days is waiting.

Protea is out now on FLTBYS Music and Venice Music.