Category: Viral

Today (December 12), Bad Bunny was selected as one of Entertainment Weekly‘s Entertainers Of The Year for 2022. One of the Puerto Rican star’s closest friends and collaborators, Colombian singer J Balvin, reflected on his record-breaking year in music.

J Balvin was one of Bad Bunny’s earliest supporters. In an essay for Entertainment Weekly, Balvin recounted his first time meeting Bad Bunny. They first collaborated in 2017 for the single “Si Tu Novio Te Deja Sola.”

“We met in his native Puerto Rico, and I immediately learned the rumors on the street about him were true,” Balvin wrote. “He was a young twentysomething kid starting out, and I was finally seeing mainstream recognition. We were both eager to take over the world through our music and beyond.”

In 2019, J Balvin and Bad Bunny joined forces for the joint album Oasis. The LP featured the hits like “La Canción” and “Que Pretendes.” The massive moment for Latin music was considered to be on par with Jay-Z teaming up with Kanye West for 2011’s Watch The Throne album.

“From the moment we stepped into the studio together, he had an incredible vibe and talent, and our musical chemistry just flowed,” Balvin wrote. “We also shared a love of fashion, and weren’t afraid to shake things up with crazy hair and bright colors. As I look back thinking of those two young men in the studio plotting world domination, I’m filled with overwhelming gratitude for being able to witness him grow as an artist.”

Now that Bad Bunny has broken records with his blockbuster Un Verano Sin Ti album and his World’s Hottest Tour, Balvin is proud to see him representing the Latinx community in the mainstream. Bad Bunny also made his big screen debut this year in the movie Bullet Train alongside Brad Pitt.

“In each generation, an artist comes around who is an undeniable superstar that both shocks and inspires. Bad Bunny has that star power,” Balvin wrote. “Bad Bunny has broken cultural barriers through music, fashion, and now film — and through it all, hasn’t shied away from self-expression and being true to himself. I’m incredibly proud of all Benito has accomplished and that he’s continuing the Reggaeton legacy by bringing the Latinx culture to the masses.”

SZA went off across the 23 tracks on S.O.S., her sophomore LP five years in the making that finally arrived on Friday, December 9. The St. Louis-bred artist’s lyricism cuts deep, but her sonic palate is vast. From the pop-punk “F2F,” to the Phoebe Bridgers-assisted “Ghost In The Machine” and tear-jerking ballad “Nobody Gets Me,” the project can’t be pigeonholed. And that’s exactly how SZA wants it.

“I’m so tired of being pegged as [an] R&B artist,” SZA told writer Jewel Wicker for a newly published Consequence cover story. “I feel like that’s super disrespectful, because people are just like, ‘Oh, ’cause you’re Black, this is what you have to be’ — like, put in a box. And I hate that. With songs on this album, it’s supposed to help round out the picture and the story.”

She added, “It’s very lazy to just throw me in the box of R&B. I love making Black music, period. Something that is just full of energy. Black music doesn’t have to just be R&B. We started rock ‘n’ roll. Why can’t we just be expansive and not reductive?”

Lizzo, SZA’s longtime friend, recently expressed a similar sentiment.

“Genre’s racist inherently,” she told Entertainment Weekly, in part. “I think if people did any research they would see that there was race music and then there was pop music. And race music was their way of segregating Black artists from being mainstream, because they didn’t want their kids listening to music created by Black and brown people because they said it was demonic and yada, yada, yada. So then there were these genres created almost like code words: R&B, and then of course eventually hip-hop and rap was born from that. I think when you think about pop, you think about MTV in the ’80s talking about ‘We can’t play rap music’ or ‘We can’t put this person on our platform because we’re thinking about what people in the middle of America think’ — and we all know what that’s code for.”

With Consequence, SZA also discussed her heightened anxiety attached to the demands of her album and the music industry in general, her wish to “disappear … for as long as I can,” and more.

Lizzo is a Warner Music Artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Thanks to the success of the global hit “Pantysito,” 2022 was a breakthrough year for Alejo. With his dreamy video video for “Estrella” that was released on Friday (December 9), the Puerto Rican teen sensation upped the Latin heartthrob ante with the addition of boy band CNCO. Alejo talked with Uproxx about his representing the new wave of reggaeton stars and working with CNCO.

Back in March, Alejo teamed up with fellow Puerto Rican singer Robi and Colombian star Feid for the reggaeton romp “Pantysito.” The collaboration amassed over 202 million streams on Spotify this past year. The music video on YouTube added 58 million views to that global haul. Alejo revealed that he spent a few years before “Pantysito” making music that wasn’t hitting and the song’s success gave him a much-needed push.

“That song was everything that I needed in my career, and in my life as well, to be trust in myself and keep giving it my all,” Alejo said. “That song marked the beginning of Alejo. It gave me a lot of confidence not only to keep making music, but self-confidence as well. There was a time before where I was trying [to break through] and nothing much happened. That song took me out of that sad chapter in my life.”

At 19-years-old, Alejo is leading the way for the next generation of reggaeton stars. “I live and die by reggaeton,” he said about staying true to the genre. For the highly-anticipated “Pantysito” remix, Alejo teamed up with reggaeton icons Wisin y Yandel, Nicky Jam, and Cosculluela. Due to the remix leaking online, he announced that the release was cancelled last month.

“That was sad,” Alejo said. “At the end of the day, I’m not disappointed. We made a great remix. When I heard the remix, I was like, ‘Damn, that’s Wisin y Yandel on my song!’ That’s crazy. Sometimes things happen that aren’t in my control, so the remix wasn’t released. I’m a believer that things happen for a reason. If it didn’t come out, then it wasn’t meant to come out.”

Alejo later collaborated with Wisin in “Volar” and Colombian superstar Karol G for “Un Viaje.” For his single “Estrella,” he’s now joining forces with CNCO. In the alluring love song, Alejo trades verses with the guys about not needing to be verified on Instagram to feel like a star.

“It’s about a beautiful women who doesn’t need validation from social media,” Alejo said. “CNCO is very cool. Honestly, I didn’t know a song that hard would come out of this, but we have a banger. I’m so happy. When I was with them, they’re normal people. They’re young guys like me, so we had a great time shooting the video. At the end of the day, we made great music.”

Back in June, Alejo released his Full Discoteka EP without any features. He wanted to shine solo. Alejo recently wrapped-up his first world tour in support of the EP and “Pantysito.”

“My goal is for people to enjoy my music the way I enjoy it,” Alejo said. “For us to be in a concert and sharing that same feeling. I want to enjoy myself. If people have fun with my music, that makes me happy.”

After Universal dropped the latest trailer for M3GAN, which centers on a killer robot doll, Meghan McCain couldn’t help but give her take. Despite the film not being about a senator’s daughter, or anything even close to McCain’s life (unless she’s secretly an AI cyborg with creepy dance moves), the two do sort of share a name, and that was enough for the former The View co-host to fire off a tongue-in-cheek tweet.

“I feel personally attacked by this movie title and the entire premise,” McCain wrote followed by three laughing emoji.

Naturally, McCain got lit up in the replies as people roasted the political firebrand for not being able to resist weighing in as a self-comparison.

In McCain’s defense, she’s not the first Megan/Meghan to respond connection to the film’s title. Megan Thee Stallion called out the creepy murder doll back in October after the official trailer dropped. Although, in this particular case, Thee Stallion can actually dance and is a well-known horror buff, so that significantly ups her connection to M3GAN.

“Not being biased but I think they made this movie for me I will be the THEE FIRST in line to see M3GAN!!!” she tweeted before declaring M3GAN the new champ of murder doll films. “Annabelle bitch your over.”

(Via Meghan McCain on Twitter)

Early Monday morning police in Austin, Texas responded to a call at Texas basketball coach Chris Beard’s house where he was arrested and charged with a “third-degree felony charge of assault on a family/household member-impede breath circulation,” per the Austin-American Statesman.

The University of Texas provided a brief statement noting they were “aware of the situation” and gathering details, while Beard’s attorney, Perry Minton, issued the expected denial of wrongdoing to the Austin-American Statesman.

“Coach Beard is 100% innocent of these charges. He should never have been arrested. The complainant wants him released immediately and all charges dismissed. It is truly inconceivable.”

The 49-year-old coach has become one of the biggest names in college basketball after his success at Texas Tech led to him getting the Texas job in 2021. However, that meteoric rise to the top of the coaching world is now in jeopardy if he is found guilty of the alleged strangling and assault of a family member.

Keeping up with new music can be exhausting, even impossible. From the weekly album releases to standalone singles dropping on a daily basis, the amount of music is so vast it’s easy for something to slip through the cracks. Even following along with the Uproxx recommendations on a daily basis can be a lot to ask, so every Monday we’re offering up this rundown of the best new music this week.

This week saw SZA’s sophomore album finally, actually drop and Lana Del Rey continue her recent run of productivity. Yeah, it was a great week for new music. Check out the highlights below.

For more music recommendations, check out our Listen To This section, as well as our Indie Mixtape and Pop Life newsletters. Also find our Uproxx HQ Spotify playlist, which is updated weekly with the best new music, at the end of this post.

SZA — “Nobody Gets Me”

SZA has brought some life to a mostly uneventful December (in terms of new music) with SOS, her long-awaited sophomore album. Shortly after the project dropped, SZA also shared a video for “Nobody Gets Me,” an example of the genre-spanning nature of the LP as it’s a vulnerable acoustic pop ballad.

Lana Del Rey — “Did You Know That There’s A Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd”

To reiterate a bit: For December, last week was surprisingly busy when it came to worthwhile new music. Aside from SZA, Lana Del Rey went ahead and announced a new album, Did You Know That There’s A Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd. Yes, that’s a mouthful, but now you have to say it twice because she dropped a new song also called “Did You Know That There’s A Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd.” By the way: Yes, there is actually a tunnel under Ocean Boulevard.

Caroline Polachek — “Welcome To My Island”

Polachek has been dropping standalone singles here and there for the past 18 months or so, and now they’re about to have an album home: Last week, Polachek announced Desire, I Want To Turn Into You, which is set to drop next Valentine’s Day. With that news came another new tune in “Welcome To My Island,” an airy pop anthem.

Gorillaz — “Skinny Ape”

Gorillaz have Cracker Island dropping next February, and they previewed it last week with “Skinny Ape,” a laid back tune with a subtle groove… until it drastically kicks up the energy in the song’s final quarter. Furthermore, the Damon Albarn group is also planning performances of the song in New York and London that promise to be “immersive experiences.”

Paramore — “The News”

As Paramore inches towards their forthcoming 2023 album This Is Why, they shared some thoughts about journalism on “The News.” Uproxx’s Danielle Chelosky described the tune as a “spunky, frustrated anthem” and Hayley Williams called it “a happy medium between classic Paramore angst and bringing in some influences we’ve always had but never exploited.”

Polo G — “My All”

Polo G has an album set to drop in 2023, although we don’t know a ton about it yet. What we do know, though, is that we can expect last week’s “My All” to appear on it. Uproxx’s Lexi Lane notes of the track’s subject matter, “Struggling with trust issues and women, Polo G decides he just wants to live in the moment as the melody fades out.”

YG and Lil Wayne — “Miss My Dawgs”

There have been a lot of hip-hop deaths in the past few years that have cut deep. While YG and Lil Wayne don’t address anybody by name on last week’s “Miss My Dawgs,” the album does get at themes of a longing for people who have left your life in one way or another. YG raps, for example, on the chorus, “Man, I miss my dawgs / The ones I pick up for, ain’t never missed a call / Plottin’ to get it poppin’, we had plans to get it all / Wishin’ you was here, dawg, to ride these foreign cars.”

Dove Cameron — “Girl Like Me”

Cameron hopped in the wayback machine for “Girl Like Me,” her new single: it features an interpolation of Edwyn Collins’ “A Girl Like You,” which Cameron was inspired to utilize after hearing it in Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle. She explained, “I was like, ‘Oh my god, it would be so fun to cover on tour.’ And we were like, ‘What if we just flip the narrative? What if we just said, ‘You’ve ever met a girl like me before’?”

Blxst — “Keep Calling” Feat. Larry June

Blxst had a huge 2022, dropping his debut album and featuring on Kendrick Lamar’s top-5 Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers track “Die Hard.” Instead of just fading away into the new year, he came through with one more single, a self-laudatory new collaboration with Larry June titled “Keep Calling.”

Sparklehorse — “It Will Never Stop”

Sparklehorse leader Mark Linkous died in 2010, which meant the end of a group that still had plenty in the tank. That’s also true of the vault, as the band’s label Anti- dropped “It Will Never Stop” last week. Uproxx’s Danielle Chelosky notes of the tune, “At only a minute and a half, the song captures the special eccentricity of Sparklehorse, soaked in fuzzy reverb with a shockingly buoyant rhythm beneath such sad words.”

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

After six long years, Top Dawg Entertainment’s secret weapon Ab-Soul is finally releasing his fifth studio album, Herbert. Scheduled to drop on December 16, the album breaks the most extended hiatus between albums from one of the California label’s rappers in a catalog full of them. For comparison: The other two albums released by TDE this year, Kendrick Lamar’s Mr. Morale And The Big Steppers and SZA’s S.O.S., came after five years each. Last year, Isaiah Rashad broke a four-year hiatus with The House Is Burning.

Like Rashad before him, it turns out Ab-Soul had a heartbreaking reason for delaying his latest album for so long. In a new feature in Rolling Stone, he admits that he survived a suicide attempt. Although the story doesn’t go into detail, Soul says that most of the album was completed before this. “Most of what you’ve heard, I wrote before … it,” he says. “I just wanna make it clear: You see me smiling, but it’s not funny. I think that’s just my way of healing from it.”

However, he intends to inspire some positive results by sharing his story. “Me sharing my testimony — if it doesn’t help, it might let you know you’re not the only one going through it,” he hopes. “That’s what ultimately gives me the courage to put it out there.”

Herbert is due on 12/16 through TDE.

Warning: Spoilers for The White Lotus season two finale ahead.

After a tumultuous week at The White Lotus filled with sex and more sex, the floating dead body from episode one was finally revealed to be a fan-favorite vacationer who was forced into an early checkout… from life. There were many theories about exactly what was going down in Italy, and it soon became pretty evident that Jennifer Coolidge’s Tanya was not going to make it out of this situation alive. But not for lack of trying!

In the finale, Tanya realized that her shady husband Greg had hired his old friend Quentin to orchestrate an elaborate plan that would end in Tanya’s demise. Due to the prenup agreement, Greg would only be able to inherit Tanya’s money if she died, which is probably why he fled just a few days into his vacation. Why else would you leave a picturesque dream vacation other than securing an alibi for your wifes’ murder?

Luckily, Tanya was able to realize what was happening after finding rope, duct tape, and a gun while dining on Quentin’s boat (three things that you never want to associate together) and went on a panicked shooting spree.

Tanya was able to shoot Quentin and another of the other men on the boat, though a third friend ran away, possibly to wherever season three will take place?! It seemed like Tanya would really be able to get out of this one and reunite with Portia. Unfortunately, that’s not how it was meant to be.

While trying to escape from the boat, Tanya gives herself a little pep talk (“You’ve got this”) before tragically falling off the side of the boat and hitting her head, ultimately drowning in the water. She is found the next morning by Daphne, and her story comes to an untimely end.

Of course, this inspired a whole new set of potential questions for next season. Will Greg get away with it? What happened to the other men on the boat? And what happened to all of Portia’s “cute clothes” she left at the hotel?! Some mysteries are never meant to be solved. On the bright side, at least Ethan and Harper are having sex!

On Sunday, Mississippi State announced football coach Mike Leach was taken to University of Mississippi Medical Center in Jackson with a health emergency. Official details have been scarce beyond the severity of the situation, with the school announcing on Monday that Leach was in critical condition.

Ross Reilly of the Mississippi Clarion Ledger reported on Monday morning that Leach suffered a heart attack at his home and the situation was “dire,” citing multiple sources who detailed the scary situation involving the coach.

Mississippi State football coach Mike Leach had a massive heart attack on Sunday in Starkville and was transferred to University of Mississippi Medical Center in Jackson, where he is still being cared for on Monday.

According to multiple sources, Leach, 61, collapsed at his home in Starkville, but did not receive medical attention for between 10 to 15 minutes. EMTs used a defibrillator machine and delivered multiple shocks to restore normal heart rhythm.

Per Reilly, Leach was stabilized at a local hospital and then flown to Jackson by helicopter to the University of Mississippi Medical Center.

Leach just finished his third season at Mississippi State and 21st season overall, having spent 10 years at Texas Tech and eight years at Washington State prior to taking over in Starkville. Upon learning of Leach’s condition, many of the coaches in the SEC and other prominent figures in the college football world offered their thoughts and prayers to Leach and his family.

Ronaldo was beside himself after his Portugal squad was stunned 1-0 by Morocco in their the 2022 FIFA World Cup quarterfinal match on Saturday, December 10. French Montana does not feel bad for him. The Moroccan-American rapper was already riding high from Morocco’s Cinderella run making it past Spain, but becoming the first-ever African country to compete in a men’s World Cup semifinals (as noted by ESPN) left French Montana in a state of pure euphoria.

French Montana began his celebration by trolling Ronaldo, partially captioning his first Instagram post, “Ronaldo u had your time g … it’s Morocco time lol.” He followed that up by photoshopping himself sitting across from Ronaldo and playing chess with the even more savage caption, “ RONALDOO AIRPORT THIS WAY ”

IRL, French Montana was fully engaged in an overwhelming Times Square celebration. “Hours later after a ig post !MASHALLAHHHHH REAL LOVE ! YOU AINT NEVER SEEN THIS MANY MORROCANS [sic] IN 42nd street NYC FEEL LIKE CASABLANCA RN,” the diamond-certified artist caption an Instagram video of cheering fans waving Moroccan flags. In another video, French Montana holds up the flag and says to the camera, “Morocco, we outside!”

French Montana was born in Casablanca, Morocco before his family relocated to the South Bronx in New York City when he was 13. “It was a culture shock at first. It was hard,” he told Esquire earlier this year, noting he only spoke Arabic and French at the time. He added, “I take all the pride in being from the Bronx. You could become a rapper anywhere in the world. Still, to do it in the mecca of hip-hop, where all the pillars come from, makes me even more proud.”

Morocco will try to make him the most proud on Wednesday, December 14, when they go up against the reigning World Cup champion and perennial favorite France in the semifinals. The match begins at 2 p.m. EST on FOX.