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The Best Vinyl Releases Of June 2023

Anybody who thought the vinyl resurgence was just a fad was mistaken: The industry has experienced a legitimate revival. As a result, music fans are interested in physical media in ways they may not have if the decades-old medium hasn’t made a comeback. That doesn’t mean everybody is listening to just their parents’ old music, though. That’s part of it, sure, thanks to rereleases that present classic albums in new ways. A vital part of the renewed vinyl wave, though, is new projects being released as records, of which there are plenty.

Whatever you might be into, each month brings a new slew of vinyl releases that has something for everybody. Some stand out above the rest, naturally, so check out some of our favorite vinyl releases of June below.

Janelle Monáe — The Age Of Pleasure

The Age Of Pleasure was definitely the most-talked-about album of June, due in part to Monáe’s racy rollout and in part to the music just being excellent. In the video above, Monáe shows off the striking vinyl edition, which features warm alternate cover art and a gigantic painting of breasts on the inside.

Get it here.

Waylon Jennings — The Story Of Waylon Jennings

waylon jenning vinyl
Vinyl Me, Please

As part of its Anthology series, Vinyl Me, Please is revisiting an iconic Waylon Jennings run, from 1973 to 1981, with an eight-album box set. It’s a must-have for fans, as it comes alongside 28 pages of listening notes and even a podcast that dives into Jennings’ storied career as one of country’s biggest icons.

Get it here.

Otis Redding — Otis Forever: The Albums & Singles (1968-1970)

Otis Redding vinyl
Rhino

Redding tragically died in a 1967 plane crash, but the music kept flowing after that. Four posthumous albums were released from 1968 to 1970, including the beloved The Dock Of The Bay. That and more has been compiled in a new box set (limited to only 1,000 copies), which features the four albums and mono versions of 24 singles from the albums.

Get it here.

Willie Nelson — The Great Divide (Reissue)

willie nelson great divide
Lost Highway

Willie Nelson is 90 years old and not stopping, as he has Bluegrass, a new album (his 151st!), on the way soon. For now, though, it’s time to look back with a quick series of reissues. First up is 2002’s The Great Divide, which features collaborations with folks like Sheryl Crow, Rob Thomas, Alison Krauss, and others.

Get it here.

Bob Dylan — Shadow Kingdom (Reissue)

bob dylan shadow kingdom
Columbia Records/Legacy Recordings

At 82 years old, Bob Dylan is showing no signs of slowing. He just dropped Shadow Kingdom, his 40th album, in early June, and it features new recordings of songs from the first half of Dylan’s esteemed career, along with a new instrumental track, “Sierra’s Theme.” The reinterpretations stem from Dylan’s 2021 concert film, Shadow Kingdom: The Early Songs Of Bob Dylan.

Get it here.

Madonna — Finally Enough Love: The Rainbow Edition

madonna vinyl
Rhino

Last summer, Madonna dropped Finally Enough Love: 50 Number Ones, a retrospective box set that offers a great overview of her pop dominance. She decided to revive the project here in Pride Month by re-dubbing it Finally Enough Love: The Rainbow Edition. Naturally, the vinyl it’s pressed on comes in a variety of vibrant colors, making it an awesome way to celebrate.

Get it here.

Passion Pit — Gossamer (10th Anniversary Reissue)

passion pit gossamer
Sony

Gossamer was a huge moment for Passion Pit, as the 2012 sophomore album vaulted the group into the mainstream conversation with a No. 4 peak on the Billboard 200 chart and the multi-platinum single “Take A Walk.” They’re a bit late but the new 10th-anniversary reissue is still appreciated, and fans will love this: The reissue features “American Blood” and “Almost There,” both of which were previously only available as bonus tracks on the 2012 Japanese CD release.

Get it here.

Flaming Lips — Hypnotist

flaming lips hypnotist
Warner

Included on Flaming Lips’ 6-CD Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots 20th Anniversary Box Set was a collection of four fan-favorite tracks only officially available as part of that release. Now, they’ve been given their first-ever vinyl release on a new standalone collection, pressed on lovely pink vinyl.

Get it here.

TLC — CrazySexyCool and FanMail (Vinyl Me, Please Reissues)

TLC VMP
Vinyl Me, Please

Much has been made about the 50th anniversary of hip-hop in 2023, and part of Sony’s celebrations include teaming up with Vinyl Me, Please for some fresh reissues. For the occasion, TLC’s two biggest albums, FanMail and CrazySexyCool, are getting new releases, and the former even comes with a 7-inch.

Get it here.

Alex G — Live From Union Transfer

alex g vinyl
Domino

Towards the end of 2022, Alex G wrapped up a headlining tour with three sold-out hometown shows at Philadelphia’s Union Transfer. Now he’s sourced a new live album from those performances, but vinyl isn’t just the best way to hear it: It’s the only way, as the 14-track Live From Union Transfer isn’t currently set to be released on any format besides LP.

Get it here.

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

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Rising Atlanta Star Kaliii Issues The ‘Area Codes Edition’ Of Her Debut EP, ‘Toxic Chocolate’

A lot has happened for rising Atlanta star Kaliii since Uproxx last spoke to her about the release of her debut EP, Toxic Chocolate. In addition to landing on the 2022 XXL Freshman list, her April single “Area Codes” has taken off, spawning a multitude of remixes featuring Luh Tyler, Mello Buckzz, and more. She was also highlighted at the BET Awards earlier this month, highlighting how far she’s come.

Now, with a slight name change and a new era ahead of her — those extra two “i’s” make all the difference — she’s turning the page with a deluxe reissue of Toxic Chocolate: Area Codes Edition and collecting all those remixes into one compilation, Area Codes: The Remixes. The new version of the EP adds the breakout hit, which peaked at No. 33 on the Billboard Hot 100, and establishes her name change, which will kick in on DSPs within the next few weeks.

Along with the reissue, Kaliii has become an in-demand feature rapper, appearing on BreezyLYN’s “Bad Bitches” remix alongside Brooklyn breakout Lola Brooke and Finesse2Tymes’ “Shiesty” with St. Louis standout Sexyy Red.

You can check out the “718” remix of “Area Codes” featuring Kenzo B up top.

Toxic Chocolate: Area Codes Edition is out now via Atlantic. Get it here.

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

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Will There Be A Season 2 Of ‘Silo?’

(Spoilers for Apple TV+’s Silo will be found below.)

With Silo‘s first season finale airing on Apple TV+, the audience saw Juliette Nichols (Rebecca Ferguson) leave her lifelong home after being cast out by a sinister Bertrand (Tim Robbins) and Common’s Inexplicable Leather Jacket. Unlike the other Cleaners who have been exiled or have left the silo due to their own choice, Juliette somehow does not die outside in the toxic air. Instead, she briefly falters, sees some janky visuals through her helmet, and then climbs up the hill and freaking disappears.

This, of course, causes some chaos — where did she gooooooo — and the season ends. Those who have swallowed Hugh Howey’s Wool omnibus already know where the show will (probably) take her, but will viewers definitely get to see it happen?

Yes. As of June 14, Apple TV+ had renewed the world-building, dystopian series from showrunner Graham Yost. Additionally, Ferguson recently spoke with Collider and confirmed that Season 2 has already begun filming. She also offered (to Collider’s Steve Weintraub) her hunch on how long the show will run, based upon her current commitment:

“I think two, three years ahead. Right now, sir, it’s one fantastic f*cking show, and we’ve green-lit number two. Apple is extremely happy, and I’m happier. That’s where I’m gonna leave it. We started filming Season 2 quite recently, so we are chockablock, smack back in the beginning of the shoot. I am doing this for some time in the future.”

Silo‘s full first season is available on Apple TV+.

(Via Apple & Collider)

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The NBA Will Vote On Giving Out Technicals For Flopping

The NBA will, once again, look to curb flopping by instituting new penalties for players that are found guilty of embellishing (or, more accurately, outright faking) contact to draw calls from officials.

After flopping fines came and went, the league will vote in a couple weeks on whether to try a new method: flopping technicals. According to Shams Charania, flopping T’s are one of two potential rules changes up for vote in July, along with giving coaches a second challenge for a successful first challenge — which would bring the NBA’s replay policy in line with most other sports.

The challenge rule is one that I would guess passes, as it will have a lot of support from coaches and teams, while only adding one potential extra stoppage. The flopping technical is a much trickier situation to figure out, because while a good idea in theory, it’s going to be incredibly hard to adjudicate in game.

Officials already have a hard time discerning flopping from fouls when making calls, especially because a lot of flops are coming after actual contact. If enacted, I would assume most of the technicals handed out will be done for egregious flops when a player completely fakes contact (and fails to get the intended call). We also don’t know if these will be reviewed (which adds another stoppage to the game) or just called on the floor by the officials, who will probably be wary of calling flopping T’s for anything borderline.

The league’s clear path rule has been a success, as the purposeful Euro-foul became nearly extinct last year by adding a free throw and possession. I have a hard time imagining flopping technicals would have the same efficacy, but I understand why they’d be willing to give them a trial run. I just can’t see a world where it works to get it out of the game simply because the players are so good at selling actual contact that officials won’t want to call a flopping T for an actual foul.

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The Nets Are Trading Joe Harris To The Pistons

As the start of the 2023-24 NBA season gets set to begin with free agency opening at 6 p.m. ET, there are still some moves being made before then as teams look to clear (or use up) some of their cap space.

Earlier in the day, Chris Duarte got moved from Indiana to Sacramento into cap space, as the Kings continue to make clear they aren’t looking to make a huge splash in free agency after also re-signing Harrison Barnes to an extension. The Pacers, meanwhile, have become the team everyone is watching with regards to wing free agents (as well as possible trades), as they’ve opened up a lot of room to make some additions to their young core, headlined by Tyrese Haliburton.

A similar move got done in the afternoon, when the Nets shipped Joe Harris off to Detroit along with a pair of second round picks, clearing some of their cap sheet as well as creating a massive trade exception for Brooklyn, while the Pistons use a large chunk of their $30 million in space to add some much-needed shooting and get some future picks for the trouble of taking on Harris’ salary.

Harris is due $19.9 million next season as the last year of his contract, meaning the Pistons will once again have considerable space next offseason but add a veteran shooter for this year. The Nets, meanwhile, don’t clear any actual space but do open up a trade exception as well as getting a lower tax bill for now, allowing them to make some additions via trade should they find the opportunity. Whether this is truly a “move before the move” or just a cost-saving measure is something we’ll only know in time, but it’s certainly a deal that will shift some eyes to Brooklyn to see if they have something else cooking over the next few days.

This also would seem to take Detroit out of the running for giving Cam Johnson a massive offer sheet, which certainly helps Brooklyn’s hopes of retaining the sharpshooting forward.

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Celebs And Fans Are Offering Loving Tribute To Alan Arkin After The News Of His Passing

Today we learned that veteran actor Alan Arkin has passed away at the age of 89. It’s strange to think of Arkin as the “Oscar winner from Little Miss Sunshine.” Yes, he was that, but his Oscar win came unforgivably late in his career (he should have won for The Heart is a Lonely Hunter) and that career spanned 60+ years of unforgettable performances. He was cool as hell, and bedraggled. Hilarious with the ability to make you burst into tears. The only person with his range that comes to mind is Robin Williams — two diametrically opposed personas where one is remembered most for manic glee and the other for rough-edged heart, even though both were more than capable of both.

For those looking to dig beyond his later-in-life roles, The New York Times has an excellent chronicle from his Tony-winning start through to his crotchety grandpa status.

After Arkin’s death, celebrities and fans have shown their appreciation by telling stories and sharing favorite clips. The list of celebs includes Rob Reiner, Natasha Lyonne, John Cusack, Paul Reiser, Michael McKean, Patton Oswalt, and Frank Oz, who described Arkin as “An extraordinary, undefinable talent & unique human-being-mensch.”

Speaking of Oz, Muppet History offered some of the best pics of Arkin interacting with Muppets:

Michael “Let’s Get Ready to Rumble!” Buffer also shared a culture-breaking photograph of Arkin, Sylvester Stallone, and Robert DeNiro on the set of Grudge Match.

Naturally, fans shared some favorite scenes and movie moments. Serpentine your way through them.

That includes an appreciation from BoJack Horseman writer Alison Flierl for Arkin’s short-but-instantly-memorable voice performance:

And Paste Movies Editor Jacob Oller shared some absolutely wild Arkin trivia:

No matter how you’re honoring this acting titan, enjoy bursting into tears for the rest of the day:

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Lauren Boebert Left Herself Wide Open For Comebacks As She Celebrated The Supreme Court Shutting Down Student Loan Forgiveness

Rootin’ tootin’ Lauren Boebert already warned the world how she would react if the Supreme Court struck down President Biden’s student loan forgiveness. On those prior occasions, she did her best to rile people up while also reminding people about her GED, and nothing deterred her from going to town on people struggling with student loans while questions swirled about her campaign finances. Additionally, some of her former employees have accused her of financial hypocrisy.

So, it’s no surprise that Boebert is elated at how the Trump-crafted incarnation of SCOTUS has formally rejected Biden’s plan and has left millions of borrowers wondering how they can afford their payments after the court didn’t seem to take into account the predatory nature of these loans’ interest cycles. The congresswoman from Colorado, however, couldn’t be more thrilled that these people will remain in serious, sometimes insurmountable debt.

“Americans that paid back their student loans and Americans who never even had student loans will not be forced to payback everyone else’s student loans,” Boebert wrote. “Huge victory for personal responsibility and common sense!”

Let’s just say that the “personal responsibility” detail raised a lot of eyebrows. Additionally, people wondered why the repayment of forgiven PPP loans never comes up in Republicans lawmakers’ conversations.

Of course, the GED-related stuff came up too, along with people wondering why on earth anyone would celebrate other peoples’ debt.

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Nicki Minaj’s Verse On Lil Uzi Vert’s ‘Pink Tape’ Left Her ‘Exhausted’ With How Long It Took To Get Done

Nicki Minaj wears her ability to pen her own revered rap verses as a badge of honor. Despite how easy the “Barbie World” rapper makes it look, it is nothing of the sort. In a series of tweets on social media, Minaj opened up about her appearance Lil Uzi Vert’s Pink Tape drained her.

Her latest guest appearance on Uzi’s track “Endless Fashion” is being celebrated as their best collaboration to date, but it was quite overwhelming to get finished on time for its’ release. During a chat with fellow rapper and Uzi’s girlfriend JT, Minaj retold the story to fans.

JT prompted her to, writing, “Can I tell them how fast you turned your verse in? I almost had a heart attack today![crying laughing emoji] you really too real & raw I love you.”

To that, Minaj replied, “Girl, I started at 8 am & finished like 5 pm. When I tell you, I was exhausted by the time I was done. Lol. B/c I was rushing to get it in on time. I kept telling him ’30 mins’ then hitting him back 2 hours later TB 15-20 more minutes Uzi!!!! I did that ALL DAY LONG, YO!”

Listen to the full track below.

Pink Tape is out now via Generation Now/Atlantic Records. Find more information here.

Lil Uzi Vert is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

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The Supreme Court Shut Down Joe Biden’s Student Loan Debt Relief Plan And Meek Mill Has A Big Question

For months now, student loan borrowers have been holding onto hope that Joe Biden’s plan to forgive up to $20K in loans per borrower would come to pass. Now, though, we know that it won’t: Today (June 30), the Supreme Court voted 6-3 to overturn the Biden administration’s student loan debt cancellation plan.

Meek Mill had a quick reaction to that, comparing the situation to how much funding the government devotes to other areas. He tweeted, “why are we having a problem with money for education but giving money away for war?? I’ve been seeing this narrative on the news since a child I’ll never understand it!”

Biden is in the same camp as Meek: After the SCOTUS decision was revealed, Biden shared a statement that reads in part, “The hypocrisy of Republican elected officials is stunning. They had no problem with billions in pandemic-related loans to businesses – including hundreds of thousands and in some cases millions of dollars for their own businesses. And those loans were forgiven. But when it came to providing relief to millions of hard-working Americans, they did everything in their power to stop it. […] I believe that the Court’s decision to strike down our student debt relief plan is wrong. But I will stop at nothing to find other ways to deliver relief to hard-working middle-class families.”

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

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Report: The Sixers Are Being ‘Patient’ In James Harden Trade Talks, With The Bulls As A Team To Watch

James Harden has likely played his final game with the Sixers after picking up his player option for next season to facilitate a trade out of Philadelphia. However, while there were immediately connections to the Clippers (considered the favorites to land Harden, in part because he prefers L.A.), Knicks, and Heat, the Sixers aren’t going to rush to deal their star guard.

Jake Fischer of Yahoo provided a lengthy report on Friday detailing all the news and notes he’s hearing around the league regarding Harden and more before the 6 p.m. ET start of the new league year, and he noted that Philadelphia is going to be patient and canvas the league, with Fischer noting the Chicago Bulls as a team that could get in the mix.

Philadelphia does not have to move Harden to his preferred destination with the Clippers. President Daryl Morey, league sources told Yahoo Sports, has already been active in exploring the trade market for Harden outside of just dealing with Los Angeles and the team’s obvious interest in landing the point guard. At this early point, the Sixers are at least projecting a patience to this trade process, similar to how Philadelphia signaled it would take its time moving Ben Simmons before ultimately flipping him to Brooklyn for Harden at the 2022 trade deadline. Chicago would be one potential trade partner to keep in mind, as the Bulls have made Zach LaVine available in conversations this offseason, sources said, and could also send an All-Star such as DeMar DeRozan back to Philadelphia. But there will be many avenues the Sixers explore before finalizing a Harden trade.

As Fischer goes on to note, it’s not clear if Philly can get enough from another team for Harden on an expiring if his desire is to be in Los Angeles. That said, they will certainly try to and will be doing their best to extract the most they can from the Clippers by shopping Harden around the league to ensure L.A. at least comes with a bit more than just Norman Powell and Marcus Morris.

Linking Harden to the Bulls is particularly interesting, because their greatest need is at the point guard spot with Lonzo Ball expected to miss another season. While it’d likely have to be a much larger deal to get LaVine, that would allow the Sixers to turn Harden into a different second-star with Joel Embiid — whether that’s the right star is a different question. They also could look to add DeRozan, who may be more easily attainable and would, again, maybe help save face a bit better than a package built around Powell from L.A.

In any case, it seems as though we won’t be getting a resolution on the Harden front for some time. Morey, as we’ve seen previously, is willing to let things get uncomfortable to try and get the most out of a deal — albeit that is provided Embiid is on board with that plan.