Category: News

In 2014, Mac Miller released his eleventh mixtape Faces, a fan-favorite that examined his battle with drug addiction and indulged in his love for psychedelic, jazz-infused production. However, the tape has not been widely available since; like many mixtapes of the “blog era” heyday, its extensive use of sampling and the relative newness of streaming platforms like Spotify prevented Miller from being able to make it available for streaming. In February, Mac’s producer ID Labs promised it would eventually be available and now we know when.

Today, Miller’s estate announced the project’s re-issue date; which will include both streaming and a vinyl release on October 15. Faces originally featured appearances from Ab-Soul, Earl Sweatshirt, Mike Jones, Rick Ross, Schoolboy Q, Sir Michael Rocks, and Vince Staples; hopefully, the full project will be available in its original form but don’t be surprised to note some changes, as when Chance The Rapper finally uploaded Acid Rap. In addition, a new music video for its song “Colors And Shapes” directed by Sam Manson and starring an animated avatar of Mac’s dog King Ralph of Malibu hit YouTube. The video tracks King Ralph’s journey through a surreal dreamscape, encountering bizarre creatures and soaring through outer space on a flying bed.

Watch Mac Miller’s video for “Colors And Shapes” above.

Faces will be available for streaming on 10/15. You can pre-order the vinyl here.

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

This article originally appeared on 06.23.15

There were nearly 100 school shootings in the two years after Newtown.

Despite that, Congress still hasn’t found the will to deal with gun violence in the U.S. Suffice it to say a lot of people are angry. Including the pile of celebrities you’ll see below.

The plan is simple…

1. Close the loopholes.

Almost anyone can skirt the system by buying from private sellers at gun shows or even on the Internet in a lot of states. Current federal law only requires licensed gun dealers to run background checks. Only 17 states have expanded background checks to require them on all gun sales, including by private sellers.

2. Keep better records — and use them.

Background checks are one of the best ways to keep guns out of the wrong hands, but they can only work if states participate. States should be required — and given the tools they need — to track and log criminal and mental health records in the national criminal background database.

3. Keep assault rifles out of the public.

A 10-year ban on assault rifles and high-capacity magazines expired in September 2004. A lot of gun safety groups have moved away from this strategy for political reasons. But it’s still a good idea. When Australia banned assault rifles, reports of mass shootings dropped to, believe it or not, zero.

4. Crack down on gun runners.

The current penalty for gun trafficking is the same as it is for illegally trafficking livestock. Law enforcement should be equipped to find and stop gun traffickers. And when they do, the penalties should be severe enough that others will think twice before doing it.

Let’s not hold our breath for Congress to act.

An overwhelming share of voters approve of smarter gun safety rules, and state legislatures can start answering those calls. Just weeks after a school shooting in Washington state, voters passed a ballot initiative for background checks on all gun sales in the state.

Voters, you can make this a priority in your states. If that approval can get translated into state policy around the country, Congress could be left with no choice but to act.

This article originally appeared on 08.27.15

Most late-night talk show guests show up wearing more than just a rainbow sequin cape. But they’re not Miley Cyrus.

It wasn’t just the sparkles that distracted Jimmy Kimmel when Miley stopped by his show on Aug. 26 ahead of her appearance as host of the 2015 MTV Video Music Awards.

All images via “Jimmy Kimmel Live.”

“You are almost naked,” Jimmy accurately observed before turning into the most stereotypical dad ever and asking Miley what her own father thinks of her general attire (or lack thereof).

Miley’s answer came in like a wrecking ball.

Miley goes on to make some awesome points about nudity and double standards (and make Jimmy even more uncomfortable).

Jimmy gets so awkward at the sight of Miley’s sideboob that the only thing he can do is keep commenting on it before (jokingly?) asking her to please cover up. But Miley can’t be tamed, and she uses the opportunity to talk about double standards and the unfair ways that society polices women’s bodies.

Miley Cyrus can’t stop, won’t stop — and at this rate, we don’t want her to.

We’ve already talked on Upworthy about the incredible things Miley is doing for homeless LGBTQ youth through her Happy Hippie Foundation and her other astute observations about censorship (plus all the crazycool collaborations she’s done with Flaming Lips).

Sure, there was that whole twerking thing, and she goes on to do some uncouth body shaming with Jimmy toward the end of video but still. She’s come a long way from her days as the Disney-star daughter of the guy who sang that “Achy Breaky Heart” song. While there’s still progress to be made, it’s nice to know that she’s using her rainbow-sequin-cape superpowers for good.

Watch the rest of the totally uncomfortable and delightfully inappropriate Jimmy Kimmel interview below:

This article originally appeared on 01.30.15

NOTE: We were NOT paid to feature this. This is just one of those occasional products that comes along that’s so awesome we can’t not spread the word!

▲▲FACT CHECK TIME ▲▲

Actually, it’s even worse than 1 in 4 contracting an STD. The American Sexual Health Association estimates that more than half of all Americans will have an STD/STI at some point in their lifetime!

UPDATE: We’re working on getting some updated language from the entrepreneurs about the way fair labor and sustainability practices are used in the making of these. We’ll update again when we hear back, but for now, we definitely know that Lovability manufactures these with an eye toward making these friendly to workers and the environment both.

This article originally appeared on 11.10.15

As a world-famous scientist, Neil deGrasse Tyson is known for his dispassionate embrace of cold, hard facts…

And the occasional beach ball game with a late-night comedian. Photo by Cindy Ord/Getty Images.

…which makes him the right person to address a controversial topic: the abnormally high number of Americans who die from gun violence.

Umpqua Community College in Oregon, the site of a mass shooting earlier this year. Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images.

In November 2015, he composed three tweets where he laid out the numbers.

And they’re sobering.

According to PolitiFact, this actually slightly understates the case (American war deaths were closer to 1.2 million as of 2013).

This, sadly, is also true.

Estimates vary — and Tyson’s is on the high end — but 2015 is expected to see approximately 33,000 total gun deaths, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which is nearly 3,200 every five weeks (comparable to the nearly 3,400 Americans who have died in terrorist attacks since 2001).

Tyson’s tweets are a stark reminder that we have a problem. And it isn’t going to go away on its own.

The father of a Sandy Hook shooting victim holds his son’s picture. Photo by Mark Wilson/Getty Images.

The uncomfortable statistics don’t end there. For every time a household gun is used legally in self-defense, there are four unintentional shootings, seven assaults or murders, and 11 attempted or completed suicides-by-firearm.

Yes, people do occasionally use other weapons to kill people (though firearms are far and away the most popular). Yes, people do attempt suicide by other means (though when they do, they’re far less likely to succeed). Yes, car deaths are comparable (not nearly enough attention is paid to figuring out how to reduce automobile deaths, and, as with firearm deaths, it’s ridiculous that we accept the amount we do).

But none of that is a reason to sit back and do nothing.

A gun safe. Photo by BrokenSphere/Wikimedia Commons.

On a personal level, that means making sure that, if you do own guns, they stay locked up and unloaded when they’re in storage to help prevent accidents.

On a political level, that means supporting laws that keep guns out of the hands of dangerous people and opposing laws that make it easier for them to access guns and carry them around wherever they please.

It’s true: We have a problem.

But it’s only by admitting it that we can hope to find a solution.

This article originally appeared on 03.26.15

Bathrobe. Socks. Insurance card. Snacks.

Sound at all familiar? Maybe, maybe not. These items would commonly be found on a checklist of things that expecting parents should bring to the hospital with them — in the U.S., anyway.

But what is that list like in other parts of the world?

For Doris, that list included water.

Doris, who lives Morogoro, Tanzania, had to bring her own water to the health center where she was giving birth in 2014. The water she brought was used to clean the nurse’s hands, clean the delivery area, and wash the babies (she had twins!). Unfortunately, the water Doris brought ran out before she was able to wash herself or her clothes, so she had to wait 24 hours before cleaning herself.

I’ll let Doris tell the story herself:

Lack of access to clean water in Tanzania is a very big deal.

Everything turned out alright for Doris and her babies, but thousands of other women aren’t as lucky. But there are ways to help: Organizations and individuals are pitching in to help build water taps, rainwater tanks, and latrines in Tanzanian hospitals, and they’re making a huge difference.

“I want to express my gratitude to the health workers … because they have a great sense of humor with the patients. But the problem is the availability of enough water.” — Doris Alikado

Hand Habits, aka the project of Los Angeles-based singer-songwriter Meg Duffy, will soon release a new album, Fun House, out October 22 via Saddle Creek. In advance, they’ve shared songs “Aquamarine” and “No Difference.” Now, they have a delicate new offering, “Graves,” which features Duffy’s gentle acoustic guitar-work and layered alto.

“This song is a secret message to myself, a reminder, a conversation with grief and remembrance,” Duffy said of “Graves” in a statement. “A questioning of my own memory and it’s proximity to understanding closure.”

Produced by Sasami Ashworth (known mononymously Sasami) and engineered by King Tuff’s Kyle Thomas, Fun House follows Hand Habits’ 2019 album Placeholder and this year’s Dirt EP. “I think Fun House is about figuring out how to even talk about identity,” they recently told Paste. “And I didn’t have to leave my house to make the record I wanted to make. That was also really grounding for me, being home.”

“In this period of trying to make sense of my life, I was turning over these boxes of memories that I had never really allowed myself to think about,” Duffy continued. “Specifically about my mother passing away when I was young, it’s made its way into my songs before, but not in such a palpable way… I allowed myself to say things that I think, in the past, I would have been too afraid to even think about.”

Listen to “Graves” above.

Fun House is out on 10/22 via Saddle Creek. Pre-order it here.

After serving up her While We Wait album in 2019 and It Was Good Until It Wasn’t LP in 2020, Kehlani is gearing up for yet another release in 2021. The Bay Area singer returned this week to tease her upcoming Blue Water Road release, which she has now previewed with the new love struck single “Altar.”

Directed by Kid Studio, the opulent video leans into the recently popularized cottagecore aesthetic, filled with flowing outfits, colorful flowers, and rustic decor. Kehlani and her crush delicately dance around the small house until nightfall and the room is filled with the warm glow of candlelight.

Speaking about the new single and video in a statement, Kehlai said it’s dedicated to the ones she’s loved loved and lost. “To all those i have lost, all the angels i have gained, all those that walk with me with hands cracking my chest open, this is for you. i love you,” she wrote.

Ahead of the “Altar” visual’s release, Kehlani announced her Blue Water Road album with an eerie trailer. It opened with the singer stranded on a deserted dirt road with an injured leg. A dragonfly lands on her hand and instantly burst into flames. So far, Kehlani hasn’t shared a solid release date for the upcoming album, but she did note that it’s slated for a winter release.

Watch Kehlani’s “Altar” video above.

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

Toronto natives Belly and Nav link up in the video for “Requiem” from Belly’s new album See You Next Wednesday, which dropped in August on Roc Nation and XO. The song is a mellow Trap&B ballad that references the film Requiem For A Dream as the two rappers boast their lavish lifestyles, inviting women to participate therein. While guest rapper Nav takes the back end, bragging about his rapidly filling passport and treating his lady to the finer things, Belly celebrates his sobriety while noting “I made addiction look elegant.”

See You Next Wednesday constitutes something of a comeback for Belly, who spent the years since dropping his last album Immigrant in 2018 operating behind the scenes, helping pen hits for his XO boss The Weeknd and pursuing a lawsuit against Goldenvoice and Coachella for assaulting him after his 2018 performance. He re-emerged this spring with the first two singles from the new album, releasing a smooth cadence of singles throughout the summer including “Zero Love” with Moneybagg Yo, “Better Believe” with The Weeknd and Young Thug, and “Die For It” with Nas and The Weeknd. The rollout culminated in a No. 27 debut on Billboard‘s US Independent Albums chart.

Watch Belly’s “Requiem” video featuring Nav above.

See You Next Wednesday is out now via XO/Roc Nation Records. Get it here.

Melania Trump has never seemed interested in… well, much of anything. She didn’t seem to care about the plight of children being kept in cages at the border; she didn’t give a sh*t when MAGA diehards violently stormed the Capitol; she reportedly has no desire to see her husband run for president again in 2024; and really wasn’t interested in being First Lady. And according to a new book from Stephanie Grisham, Melania’s former chief of staff, the former FLOTUS was so blasé toward her husband’s 2020 reelection bid that she ended up sleeping through most of Election Night.

As noted by Business Insider, Grisham’s book, I’ll Take Your Questions Now: What I Saw at the Trump White House, Melania—who at one point is compared to a “doomed French queen”—snoozed away the bulk of Election Night 2020. As BI writes:

“According to CNN’s Brianna Keilar, who reviewed Grisham’s book, Mrs. Trump had to be awakened ahead of her husband’s late-night, non-concession speech, in which he falsely claimed to have won the election before many states had finished counting votes.”

Amidst various media outlets reporting on the details emerging from Grisham’s book, Melania’s office released an official statement to Politico, dismissing the book as a hatchet job full of lies:

“The intent behind this book is obvious. It is an attempt [by Grisham] to redeem herself after a poor performance as press secretary, failed personal relationships, and unprofessional behavior in the White House. Through mistruth and betrayal, she seeks to gain relevance and money at the expense of Mrs. Trump.”

I’ll Take Your Questions Now: What I Saw at the Trump White House is scheduled to be released on October 5, 2021.

(Via Business Insider)