Category: News

Grimes is one of the more tech-forward musicians working today, so it’s not surprising that she has spend some time considering the relationship between music and the emerging field of generative AI. Over the weekend, she shared some of her thoughts on the subject, writing at length.

In response to a tweet about claims that artificial intelligence cannot make art, Grimes wrote a post that starts, “I think we should fight for the specialness of humans, but I think there’s a lot of room for ai in art.”

From there, she wrote about her specific use case: Instead of using AI to generate full songs (“I haven’t ever heard an ai music generation that is good on its own,” she said), she uses it as “basically a sample generator,” using AI to generate components of songs.

Read Grimes’ full post below.

“I think we should fight for the specialness of humans, but I think there’s a lot of room for ai in art.

I haven’t ever heard an ai music generation that is good on its own, but what I have found is that the ai stemming tech is SO good that I can use the ai music apps as basically a sample generator where I have way more control- then I stem separate and have rly cool samples I was able to curate to an extent rather than just going to splice or smthn which is limited to what genres are popular that they think producers will want to sample

It also works way better if u actually make music. Like it’s so good if you write ur own lyrics and then make it generate melodies on lyrics that would usually be considered too wordy to fit into a pop context.

I think overall the music generation at least rewards genuine collaboration, talent and effort. Obviously this can change

I do think there’s fair arguments that art is a sacred thing that works best when it teaches us how to be more human, connect to each other. Someone said to me once that music is sex, and when I write to seduce myself or others I make better stuff. There’s something rly human about art and I think ai making art is the hardest argument for ai that will upset the most ppl cuz art might be the most human thing.

I’ve noticed that No matter what amazing job ppl have, friends who design rockets or robots like… all secretely have an art hobby. So there’s smthn that feels a bit dark abt ai art specifically

At the same time I think the art high is also the best feeling in the world (hence everyone kinda wanting to be an artist) and I’ve made midjourney accounts for so many friends who felt they’re totally un creative and it’s so beautiful to see like a tired mom friend get the art high for the first time and open part of her soul she’s never had access too.

If u look at the data, the vast vast majority of ai artists are hobbyists not professionals, the majority of ai art doesn’t get published, and the anger at ai art has caused most professionals to avoid it – at least around me. And maybe that’s for the best?

Like being an artist is winning the lottery of life, and while the moral outrage feels a bit uninformed I think it is serving the purpose of keeping ai art as mostly a mental health thing for people who aren’t profiting off it.

The few ppl who are deeply innovating like claire silver and kngmkr are actually all professional non ai artists and tech experts first and foremost and are still using a lot of traditional skill in their output.

Overall I feel like it’s more that it’s sad that the outrage economy hurts everybody mentally but we’re moving towards an ethical balance with how ai art is used that seems best for everyone.

And the truly profound ai art that has hit me hardest has been stuff like @repligate that is basically a new medium. It’s not replacing anything, it’s almost like a new branch of philosophy if anything- and part of why it also feels genuine is there’s at least an illusion (if not a reality) of the ai mind actually caring about what it’s making.

Seems like all of this rly is teaching us that honesty, genuine care, talent, practice and intentionality in art rly does matter to us after all, and I think it’s pretty beautiful that this whole saga is reminding the whole world that art matters.”

Halle Bailey and DDG are both stars, and now so is their son Halo, as a photo of him has become the subject of a terrific meme lately.

The photo in question is a screenshot of a video DDG shared in August, of Wave on what looks like a mall train ride for children. In the viral screenshot, Wave is making a facial expression that’s a mix of concern and fear.

The image has made the rounds online and people have been having fun with it. That includes DDG: On August 30, he tweeted, “who made my son into a meme [laughing emojis].”

He also shared a tweet using the image that reads, “me looking at my bank account after a spending spree.” He added in another tweet, “my son more lit than me, i love it [teary eyed emoji].”

Sexyy Red got in on the fun, too, sharing a clip from the video and captioning it, “Me look at da 7 [black woman emoji] in a Nissan Altima Fly Pass Me Blasting Sexyy Red (I’m Doing 120).” Bailey shared that post and added a simple crying emoji.

Bailey, meanwhile, just made good on her promise of new music in August by releasing “Because I Love You.”

Louis Partridge was at the Venice International Film Festival this weekend for the premiere of his Apple TV+ limited series Disclaimer. In attendance by his side was Olivia Rodrigo, and as The Hollywood Reporter notes, this was their “public debut at an official event.”

The publication also relays they “did not pose on the red carpet together outside Palazzo del Cinema,” but they did “attend a cocktail reception at the Hotel Excelsior before the world premiere as well as a post-screening reception at Palazzina Grassi.”

This comes after months of dating rumors. In October 2022, Rodrigo and Partridge were spotted in London, which first sparked rumors. On December 8 Partridge was seen supporting Rodrigo at her NYC Jingle Ball performance. The next day, he was spotted at the December 9 Saturday Night Live afterparty, for the episode where Rodrigo performed as musical guest. Then, on the 13th of that month, TMZ shared photos of the pair at a New York City gas station, and they were holding each other intimately and kissing.

Meanwhile, Rodrigo is in the midst of her Guts World Tour, and she recently wrote in an email letter to fans, “I just wanted to send a little note to say thank u so much to everyone who has attended the GUTS world tour so far. I am having the time of my life singing my heart out with u guys every night.”

The opening verse of the Ed Sheeran classic “Thinking Out Loud” goes (per Genius):

“When your legs don’t work like they used to before
And I can’t sweep you off of your feet
Will your mouth still remember the taste of my love?
Will your eyes still smile from your cheeks?
And darlin’, I will be lovin’ you ’til we’re 70
And baby, my heart could still fall as hard at 23.”

Sheeran had some fun with that in a TikTok video shared over the weekend. In the clip, he packs up his guitar and flashes his middle finger as he leaves the room, with the video captioned, “When they turn 71.”

For one fan, this video sparked a revelation, as they commented, “I THOUGHT IT SAID 17.” Sheeran responded, “You’re on a watch list somewhere.”

Sheeran, meanwhile, has kept busy lately. This summer, he hopped on the Boston Celtics bandwagon. In August, he popped up at one of Taylor Swift’s The Eras Tour concerts at Wembley Stadium to perform their collaborations together. He also purchased an ownership stake in Premier League soccer/football club Ipswich Town. At one of his own concerts, it was his turn to host a guest, as he had Chris Hemsworth playing drums.

Many of music’s biggest names have not yet commented on the Palestine and Israel conflict. While others including Macklemore, Kehlani, and Roger Waters have fiercely thrown their support behind Palestine.

The latter has even found himself in a media war with a fellow musician. During an appearance on Reason podcast (which was then covered by Independent), Nick Cave referred to Waters’ support of the BDS (Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions) movement as “deeply embarrassing.”

So, yesterday (August 31), Waters issued a scathing response to Cave’s callout by way of a video uploaded to his official Instagram page. “Dear Independent, here is my response to the Aussie bloke,” he said. “Nick Cave. Nick f*cking Cave. The Palestinian mother/father carrying the bits of her or his dead child back along the bitter road to nowhere in a plastic bag pauses on the roadside to scratch a message in the rubble. Nick, here’s the message. Dear Nick Cave, we, the Indigenous people of Palestine, in this agony, implore you, please don’t cross the BDS picket line to sing for your supper in Israel. It’s not complicated, Nick. It’s not complicated.”

In the caption of the video, Waters continued to plead his case. “Hey, Nick Cave, it’s ok to be wrong mate,” he wrote. “Obviously you not opposing genocide is a biggy? But hey! Nobody’s perfect? Just say you’re sorry.
Not to me and Brian Eno, we don’t give a f*ck. No, say you’re sorry to the Palestinians. Join BDS and we’ll let bygones be bygones.”

Nick Cave hasn’t issued a rebuttal to Roger Waters’ comments.

Sabrina Carpenter’s breakout hit “Espresso” made the singer a pop music mainstay. But another culinary delicacy will have her name on the lips of foodies around the country.

Yesterday (August 31), Crumbl Cookies used its official X (formerly Twitter) page to tease its next crossover collaboration. “Me when my friend says they want a mini n’ sweet treat,” read the post.

Based on the post’s subtly, it seems that Sabrina Carpenter’s latest album, Short N’ Sweet, will seemingly be immortalized in the bakery world with a specialty menu item.

But the promotional graphic, recreating Sabrina Carpenter’s album cover was all the confirmation users online needed. Although frequenters of the establishment were excited about the upcoming drop, one fan base appeared to be a bit more bitter.

After launching her GUTS World Tour, Olivia Rodrigo revealed that a celebratory treat would hit select Crumbl Cookies locations. Underneath the companies’ teaser post about Sabrina Carpenter, Rodrigo’s fans were sure to remind other users of this fact.

“She really stole Olivia’s whole rollout ,” wrote one user.

“Her and her weirdo team really said copy/paste all of Olivia’s ideas and rollout,” penned another.

“Oh, the Olivia Rodrigo influence,” added another.

Others stepped in to neutralize the unnecessary tension. “Livies in the replies and quotes are so miserable. It’s just a cookie stop crying. Crumbl cookies do collab with many big artists,” chimed one user.

Welp, whoever said delicious treats are supposed to be a great unifier was sadly mistaken.

In her own words, Adele is not “a big touring artist,” but her residencies have been a must attend show. Since 2022, the “Set Fire To The Rain” singer consistently sold out her Weekends With Adele Las Vegas dates. Now, she’s move on to conquer, Munich, Germany with record-breaking performances.

But don’t expect this run to extend much further. Yesterday (August 31), during her final set in Munich, Adele announced an indefinite hiatus. In a video captured by an attendee (viewable here) Adele broke the news to the packed audience.

“After that [remaining 10 shows in Vegas], I will not see you for an incredibly long time,” she said. “I will hold you dear in my heart for that whole length of my break. It has been amazing, I just need a rest. I’ve spent the last seven years building this life for myself, I want to live it now. I want to live my new life I’ve been building. I will miss you terribly.”

As she fought back tears, the crowd took over to sing “Someone Like You.”

Back in July, Adele first hinted at the break, so the announcement shouldn’t come by surprise. However, she’s also stated in January that for her next album she will officially tour the project. Just don’t expect that to be anytime soon.

With her recent engagement to Rich Paul and baby fever spiking, this much deserved break comes at the perfect time for Adele.

Megan Thee Stallion isn’t done collecting international collaborations. The “Down Stairs DJ” rapper might’ve hard launched her latest boo, but on August 30, she bread crumbed her next BTS collaboration.

Today (September 1), Megan Thee Stallion finally revealed the details surrounding the upcoming track. Over on X (formerly Twitter), Megan announced that her forthcoming song with BTS is actually a single with member RM.

“NEVA PLAY WITH RM OUT FRIDAY HOTTIES X ARMY #MEGJOON,” she wrote.

She then went on to promise big things regarding “Neva Play.”

“PS. This is one of my favorite RM verses I’ve heard, she wrote. “I’ve never heard him rap in this style before .”

Although BTS (and by association its members) are known for producing K-pop bangers, this won’t mark the first time they’ve dappled into rap. For RM that includes his album, Right Place, Wrong Person, which dropped in May.

This forthcoming record follows Megan Thee Stallion’s 2021 guest verse on BTS’ “Butter Remix.” At the time, the song’s rollout was reportedly nearly derailed after Megan Thee Stallion’s former label, 1501 Entertainment, supposedly attempted to block its release. It appears this go around is flowing much smoother.

“Neva Play” is out 9/6 via Hot Girl Productions/Big Hit. Find more information here.

Lana Del Rey’s rocky dating history have been the center of her tantalizing tales. Across her discography, the “Life Lesson” singer has outlined the ins-and-outs of former flames.

As a hopeless romantic, Lana Del Rey continues to be pulled into fictional fan-fueled relationships with fellow musicians including Quavo. However, the latest Lana Del Rey dating rumor doesn’t include a celebrity rather an everyday working class man. Although it was easy to believe, Lana Del Rey has shutdown a viral claim that she was intimately connected to an alligator tour guide from Louisiana.

In the comment section of Just N Life‘s Instagram post about the whispers (viewable here), Lana Del Rey simply replied: “No.”

The rumors quickly spread online and one user came forward claiming to be the gentleman’s daughter. “In regard to my dad and Lana from my last few tweets, if there’s any type of update I’ll give it,” the user wrote. “But for now I’ve got nothing to give. I barely talk to my dad. Let alone care about his love life. I’m just shocked WHO he’s dating.”

However, Lana Del Rey also shut that down in her response. “Also, that’s not his daughter on Twitter,” she wrote.

It is unclear if the user responded to Lana’s remarks as their account has been switched to protected (or private).

If it was true, this wouldn’t have been the wildest part of Lana Del Rey’s romantic lore.

The Cure is known for its no nonsense experimental sound. That same stick it to them attitude applies to the band’s public stances, most recently lead vocalist Robert Smith’s crusade against Ticketmaster.

Now, The Cure’s composer and musician, Roger O’Donnell, is using his voice for another worthy cause. Today (September 1) on X (formerly Twitter), O’Donnell revealed he was diagnosed with cancer in 2023. After receiving aggressive treatment, he is urging others to get tested while opening up about his road to recovery.

“September is Blood Cancer Awareness Month so it’s a good opportunity to have a dialogue about these diseases,” he wrote. “In September last year I was diagnosed with a very rare and aggressive form of lymphoma. I had ignored the symptoms for a few months but finally went and after surgery the result of the biopsy was devastating. I’ve now completed 11 months of treatment under some of the finest specialists in the world and with second opinions and advice from the teams that had developed the drugs I was being given.”

O’Donnell went on to discuss his treatment. “I had the benefit of the latest sci-fi immunotherapy and some drugs that were first used 100 years ago,” he wrote. “The last phase of treatment was radiotherapy which also was one of the first treatments developed against cancer. I’m fine, and the prognosis is amazing. The mad axe murderer knocked on the door, and we didn’t answer.”

He went on to encourage others to get screened and tested. “Cancer CAN be beaten but if you are diagnosed early enough you stand a way better chance,” he wrote. “So all I have to say is go GET TESTED, if you have the faintest thought you may have symptoms go and get checked out.”