The White Lotus has proven to be slightly controversial in season 3. For instance, there are people who don’t think Parker Posey is giving a good performance as Lorazepam-popping matriarch Victoria Ratliff when, in fact, she’s giving a great performance.
Some The White Lotus viewers are also upset that the show has a new theme song from composer Cristobal Tapia de Veer. “the new white lotus theme song is mike white’s first miss,” reads one viral tweet. Once again, I think it’s an effective and seamless fit, but don’t take my word for it: here’s The White Lotus music supervisor Gabe Hilfer defending the theme to Rolling Stone.
“The song changes every season, and it reflects the tone, mood, and the themes of the season. The theme songs for the first two seasons were a little bit more related creatively, but they’re totally different songs. Season three is about spirituality, and it’s meant to be reflective of that,” he said.
Hilfer continued:
“I think that people are just noticing it more because it’s considerably different than last season. Last season’s theme song was so beloved that now people are like, ‘What happened to my favorite stuffed animal? You guys changed it.’ I will say it grows on you. I have a feeling by episode three, four, or five, people will have adjusted to it.”
You can listen to The White Lotus season 3 theme song (which, to be clear, is still a banger) below.
Big Sean‘s doing pretty well of late; his book, Go Higher, is doing fairly well, he recently got to collaborate with a legend of rap in Will Smith on the latter’s motivational single “Beautiful Scars,” and he even has his own day at an upcoming Detroit Pistons game, complete with an adorable bobblehead.
So, when he shared the video for his joyful “Head To The Sky” freestyle on social media, although he says it’s “just ’cause,” it seems like he’s got a lot more reasons than just a stray impulse on a Friday afternoon. Over a sample of 1991 gospel staple “Optimistic” by Sounds Of Blackness, Sean does his thing, juggling double entendres like the expert he is, detailing his come-up and adamant refusal to give up on his dreams — especially as they keep coming true. You can watch the inspirational video here.
Perhaps, though, Sean told fans he released the freestyle “just because” was more in order to temper expectations for the future. After all, he’s less than a year removed from the release of his last album, Better Me Than You, which he delayed due to his self-consciousness about it. He’s an overthinker, so if he’s going to be putting out any follow-ups, he’s going to need a little more time. Still, “Head To The Sky” would be a promising start, if he wanted to put out a little EP or something (for me, please).
Los Angeles up-and-comer Malcolm Todd has a self-titled album on the way, set for April 4 via Columbia Records. Aside from the big-time label, he certainly has some good people on his side: Today (February 28), he released a new song called “Bleed,” which features Omar Apollo.
Furthermore, they also shared a video for the song, and Jack Harlow makes an appearance. In the video, Todd finds himself running with the wrong crowd, which leads to him getting beaten up and brought to an underground fight club. That’s where Apollo pops up, and so too do Harlow and Harry Daniels (the TikTok guy who sings poorly to celebrities).
This comes after Apollo and Harlow were involved in a playful love triangle alongside Harlow’s “Industry Baby” collaborator Lil Nas X. In September, Harlow shared some lyrics on Instagram: “U not the first girl / To tell me I should wear sunscreen every day / U not the first girl / To tell me who I am because of my birthday.” Apollo responded, “Lemme be the first boy to tell you.” Lil Nas X interjected, “Omar Apollo count your f*cking days!”
Watch the “Bleed” video above.
Malcolm Todd is out 4/4 via Columbia Records. Find more information here.
Lyrical Lemonade’s Summer Smash has grown into one of the world’s premiere hip-hop festivals, and this summer, it returns to Chicago for its seventh iteration. On June 20-22, Summer Smash will take over the SeatGeek Stadium in Chicago with a new lineup of some of the hottest up-and-coming talents in the business.
In 2024, the Summer Smash lineup was led by Travis Scott, Playboi Carti, and Chicago’s own Chief Keef, in his first hometown show in a decade. They were joined by Big Sean, Cash Cobain, Destroy Lonely, Flo Milli, JID, Ken Carson, TiaCorine, Waka Flocka Flame, YG Marley, and more. The year before generated viral moments and memes such as seeing Playboi Carti being chased by fans on a highway and Lil Yachty’s jaunty stage walk remixed by AI to include everyone from the supervillain the Joker to the basketball Joker, Nikola Jokic.
Tickets for the festival go on presale today (they’ll be available by the time this posts), including three-day GA passes and VIP packages. The press release explains that this will be the least expensive the tickets will be, so now’s the time to grab them. The lineup will be announced in the coming weeks and you can find more info at www.thesummersmash.com/.
ASAP Rocky’s forthcoming album Don’t Be Dumb has been a forthcoming album for a long time. Back in 2022, he said it was finished. Since then, the project has been delayed many times, with the latest expected release window set for early 2025.
The situation has proven to be frustrating for fans, and Rocky gets that. He said as much in a new GQ feature, while also sharing a status report on the album, saying:
“I’m in the mixing and mastering realm of it, but I think quite frankly, people are tired of hearing about updates about the album. They’re just ready to get this sh*t, you know what I’m saying? I don’t think anybody wants to hear where I’m at with it, how far is it along and all that. They just want to hear some sh*t just to see where I’m at, and I promise I got some new sh*t in store. I’m challenging myself. It’s like anything, I approach it with a different tactic, degree, or finesse.
The album’s done. I just want to drop it. I don’t want to keep saying what I’m going to do and I want to give people what I’ve been promising them for a long-ass f*cking time.”
Lizzo is officially back — and fans are saying she sounds better than ever. Today (February 28), the Grammy Award winner shared the title track and lead single from her forthcoming album, Love In Real Life.
To celebrate her musical return, the “Break Up Twice” singer is gearing up to take the stage. Next month, Lizzo will treat some lucky fans to a string of intimate shows ahead of her forthcoming project’s release. Over on Lizzo’s website, Lizzo revealed a string of pop-up performances she has titled “Lizzo In Real Life.”
While Lizzo is used to commanded tens of thousands at a time, these concerts are about closeness. To kick things off, on March 12, Lizzo will tackle The Wiltern in Los Angeles, California. Lizzo’s next cozy show will be held at New York City’s Irving Plaza. To end off her live schedule, Lizzo will perform at First Avenue in Minneapolis on March 18 — a return supporters have long hoped for.
Details surrounding the shows (special guests, setlists, etc) have not yet been released. Still, fans are ready to throw their support behind the drastic scale back to hear what Lizzo’s been cooking up in the studio.
The general sale for Lizzo’s upcoming show is scheduled to start on March 6 at 10 a.m. local time. However, over on Lizzo’s website fans can sign up to join the presale queue. Find more information here.
Michael Shannon has been a big R.E.M. fan for a long time. The actor has been taking that to the next level lately, as he and veteran musician Jason Narducy are in the midst of an R.E.M. tribute tour celebrating the 40th anniversary of the album Fables Of The Reconstruction.
R.E.M. members have actually popped up and performed alongside Shannon and Nerducy on the tour. Now, though, it has happened: The tour played host to a full R.E.M. reunion, with all four members — Bill Berry, Peter Buck, Mike Mills, and Michael Stipe — joining to perform “Pretty Persuasion.”
For context, R.E.M. don’t perform together much these days and reunions are rare: Per setlist.fm, R.E.M. have only played live a handful of times since their Accelerate tour wrapped up in 2008: Once in 2009, once in 2016, and once in 2024.
Check out the video above and find Shannon and Narducy’s remaining tour dates below.
Michael Shannon and Jason Narducy’s 2025 Tour Dates: Michael Shannon, Jason Narducy, And Friends Celebrate The 40th Anniversary Of R.E.M.’s Fables Of The Reconstruction And More
02/28 — Athens, GA @ 40 Watt
03/01 — Carrboro, NC @ Cat’s Cradle
03/03 — Richmond, VA @ The National
03/04 — Washington, DC @ 9:30 Club
03/06 — Philadelphia, PA @ Union Transfer
03/07 — Boston, MA @ Royale
03/08 — Brooklyn, NY @ Brooklyn Steel
03/12 — Minneapolis, MN @ First Ave
03/13 — Milwaukee, WI @ Turner Hall Ballroom
03/14 — Chicago, IL @ Metro
After crossing the 1 billion mark, Snoop Dogg revealed his supposed shocking payout. However, yesterday (February 27), a representative for Spotify finally came out to address Snoop’s claim that he only received $45,000 for one billion streams. In a statement to TMZ, the spokesperson said:
“It’s well documented that a billion streams on Spotify generates millions of dollars to rights holders. It’s unfortunate to hear that Spotify’s payments didn’t make it through to Snoop. Snoop’s a legend and, hopefully now that he owns Death Row Records, he’s seeing more of that money.”
The rep opened up with a subtle jab at Snoop’s recently announced partnership with Tune.FM.
“We can’t speak to endorsement deals for Web3 companies but… $45K for a billion streams,” sarcastically chimed the rep.
Spotify doesn’t appear to be a fan of the Web3 platform, but Snoop sure is, or so he joyoulys told Billboard. “I don’t f*ck with Spotify anymore,” he said “I’m only on Tune.FM.”
Tune.FM’s founder and CEO Andrew Anta echoed Snoop’s excitement, saying, “We are thrilled to welcome Snoop Dogg as the face of Tune.FM. Snoop is the OG pioneer who is always on the cutting edge of technology and new ways of doing business. He totally gets it, and we are ready to take on the world together.”
Artists have walked away from the Spotify before for countless reasons. Still, Snoop Dogg’s decision to sever ties could spark others to join his boycott.
Every month, Uproxx cultural critic Steven Hyden makes an unranked list of his favorite music-related items released during this period — songs, albums, books, films, you name it.
1. Big Thief, Passional Relations
It’s been a sneaky long time since the last Big Thief album — Dragon New Warm Mountain I Believe In You dropped three years ago as of this month. The component parts have been busy with solo projects, and they have of course been worthy and often great. But Passional Relations — an EP released as a fundraiser for victims of the L.A. fires — demonstrates yet again that those components become something greater than themselves when reassembled as Big Thief. Four of these tracks derive from the Dragon sessions, and they naturally have the same loose-limbed spirit as that record, as well as the same general high level of quality. (The fifth song, “Shadow Too,” dates back to 2018.) There are reportedly still some 20 songs left in the vault from that era, though one would assume this chronically prolific band has been up to more music making since then. Hopefully we hear more later on in 2025?
2. Sharon Van Etten & The Attachment Theory, Sharon Van Etten & The Attachment Theory
Not to be that guy, but I saw Sharon Van Etten very early on her career, way back in the late aughts, when she was a stand-alone folkie who often looked ill-at-ease on stage. So, it’s been doubly fascinating (and gratifying) to watch her evolve into a true-blue rock star over the course of 15 or so years. Her 2019 album Remind Me Tomorrow, where she discovered her inner Patti Smith, was a milestone in that regard. But her latest album, billed as a group effort with The Attachment Theory, confirms that transformation. Van Etten has always been a great singer, but something about these pounding synth-rock jams brings out an extra layer of swagger that seemed unimaginable back in those lonely club days.
3. Sam Fender, People Watching
I have had a soft spot for Sam Fender since his 2019 debut Hypersonic Missiles, in part because he’s an inherently likable bloke (being a blue-collar British kid) and in part because his music is catered to pander to my specific biases (Springsteen, The War On Drugs, Sam’s Town). Which is not to say that he’s not prone to a cringe-y moment or three — the less said about “Dead Boys” the better — but that’s part of the cost of loving heart-on-your-sleeve heartland rock. (What is the “heartland” of England, exactly?) On his latest album, he opted to ignore the “War On Drugs rip-off” allegations and hire Adam Granduciel to produce half the record, which is good news for those of us thirsty for the follow-up to I Don’t Live Here Anymore and looking for some TWOD methadone.
4. Horsegirl, Phonetics On And On
In the sixties, a generation of rock bands dedicated themselves to studying and replicating blues music that was anywhere from 10 to 30 years old. In the 2020s, something similar is going on with current indie bands and the indie music of the nineties. (In this scenario, Stephen Malkmus is Robert Johnson.) Horsegirl is a Chicago band whose members are all in their early 20s, and yet the music they make — wiry post-punk with lackadaisical but nonetheless catchy melodies — sounds nearly twice as old. Add in producer Cate Le Bon — whose dry, naturalistic sounds is perfectly suited for this band — and you potentially have the finest 1992 album of 2025.
5. Momma, “I Want You”
Actually, maybe I mean “finest 1992 indie rock album” of 2025. Because Momma is another absurdly young rock band drawing on nineties sounds, only they have their eyes trained on the MTV Buzz Bin. I liked their previous record, 2022’s Household Name, but early indications point to the upcoming Welcome To Blue Sky (out April 4) really hitting that Veruca Salt/Siamese Dream sweet spot.
6. Oklou, Choke Enough
This French-goes-London-club singer-songwriter makes arty electronica that is heavily zoomer-coded, i.e. it sounds like a cross between a Disney soundtrack and hyperpop. And yet when I put it on I’m instantly reminded of the sort of “forward-thinking” indie-adjacent pop records that clogged best-of critics’ lists in the late nineties and early aughts. Put another way: It sounds like the future and also like “the future” as it was envisioned 25 years ago. Or put another another way: Good record!
7. Sam Moss, Swimming
“Guy goes to North Carolina to make a record with some excellent local musicians” is always an elevator pitch that will get my attention. And so it goes for Sam Moss, a veteran Virginia songwriter whose latest effort Swimming features backing from guitarist Isa Burke and Jake Xerxes Fussell and drummer Joe Westerlund, among others. Not to give short shrift to Moss’ songs, which have the same understated sense of rootsy uplift that one typically gets from a Hiss Golden Messenger record. Suffice it to say, I look forward to playing this album outdoors on the patio in a few months.
8. Dutch Interior, “Fourth Street”
I’ve been predicting for a while now that the rise of MJ Lenderman will usher in an era of sad-guy rock songs with sick Son Volt-style guitar solos. Cue this California band, which drops their new album, Moneyball, next month. “Fourth Street” resides square in the Manning Fireworks zone, though with a subtle west coast flavor that will no doubt put a unique spin on this otherwise southern vibe. Anyway: I welcome this era wholeheartedly (until it starts to produce bad music).
9. Panda Bear, Sinister Grift
The title of this album is somewhat misleading — there’s little about this otherwise warm and inviting record that reads as “sinister,” at least as it relates to Animal Collective and AnCo-adjacent music. Instead, Sinister Grift feels like a continuation of recent AnCo albums, which represent some of the poppiest and most accessible music of their career. I actually kind of miss the more sinister side of Panda Bear’s music, but I can’t really complain about that when I’m listening to this consistently lovely LP.
After releasing a number of buzzy singles and EPs, Slow Joy — the recording name of Chicano artist Esteban Flores — has announced his full-length debut album. A Joy So Slow At Times I Don’t Think It’s Coming is a heartfelt mixture of emo and shoegaze, which you can hear in electric first single “Gruesome.”
In a statement, Slow Joy discussed the importance of representation in the music scene: “Someone [in Albuquerque, New Mexico] told me, ‘It’s important to keep doing what you’re doing, championing it for all of us, because we had to work really hard to get to do music. Our families didn’t come from much. We had to grow into this. This is important for our culture.’”
Watch the “Gruesome” video above.
You can check out A Joy So Slow At Times I Don’t Think It’s Coming album cover artwork and tracklist, as well as Slow Joy’s upcoming tour dates, below.
Slow Joy’s A Joy So Slow At Times I Don’t Think It’s Coming Album Cover Artwork
Mick Music
Slow Joy’s A Joy So Slow At Times I Don’t Think It’s Coming Tracklist
1. “Suburbuan Heaven”
2. “Gruesome”
3. “Drowning”
4. “Wound”
5. “Bent”
6. “Hi Mijo”
7. “Te Amo”
8. “Here For You”
9. “Until The End”
10. “Crawl III”
11. “Do I Wear You Out”
12. “Bittersweet”
13. “4u4me4everyone”
Slow Joy’s 2025 Tour Dates
03/12 — Phoenix, AZ @ The Underground
03/13 — Los Angeles, CA @ El Cid
03/14 — Anaheim, CA @ Chain Reaction
03/15 — Santa Cruz, CA @ The Atrium
03/16 — Reno, NV @ Holland Project
03/18 — Seattle, WA @ Madame Lou’s
03/20 — Salt Lake City, UT @ Kilby Court
03/22 — Denver, CO @ Lost Lake
03/23 — Colorado Springs, CO @ Vultures
04/04 — Atlanta, GA @ Altar
04/05 — Orlando, FL @ Will’s Pub
04/06 — Tampa, FL @ Crowbar
04/08 — Chapel Hill, NC @ Local 506
04/09 — Vienna, VA @ Jammin Java
04/10 — Queens, NY @ Trans-Pecos
04/11 — Boston, MA @ Crystal Ballroom
04/12 — Providence, RI @ Alchemy
04/13 — Philadelphia, PA @ Warehouse
04/15 — Buffalo, NY @ Rec Room
04/17 — Detroit, MI @ Pike Room
04/18 — Columbus, OH @ A&R Room
04/19 — Nashville, TN @ East Room
A Joy So Slow At Times I Don’t Think It’s Coming is out 5/16 via Mick Music. Find more information here.
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