When the coronavirus pandemic first began spreading, Christine And The Queens was one of the premier artists to begin hosting nightly livestreams. The French pop singer has since been spending each day of quarantine in her living room performing music for her fans on social media. While Christine has been sharing songs off her recently released EP La Vita Nuova, the singer has also been gracing fans with covers of her favorite popular songs. One recent cover was a soaring rendition of The Weeknd’s “Blinding Lights.” Now, Christine returns to put her own spin on one of Travis Scott’s hits.
To commemorate the recent stoner holiday, Christine And The Queens opted to give a rendition of Scott’s “Highest In The Room.” “Morning after 4/20,” she wrote, sharing the video to Instagram. Using a mixed vocal track and expansive synths to provide a backbeat, Christine passionately delivered each lyric.
Partway through the cover, Christine added another layer of her own influence by translating Scott’s original lyrics into her native French language. It’s clear Christine was having fun while performing the cover, as she kept catching herself grinning before getting back into character.
Despite initial reports that Sony was holding strong to Venom 2‘s release date, the studio has pulled the trigger on pushing the Tom Hardy anti-hero flick into the next year. Given the current uncertainty on when to reopen theaters in light of the ongoing pandemic, the move doesn’t come as a total surprise, but Sony did sneak in a little treat for Venom fans. In announcing the delay, the studio revealed the title for the symbiote sequel. Variety reports:
Sony’s “Venom” sequel — officially titled “Venom: Let There Be Carnage” — has delayed its big screen debut. The film was expected to hit theaters Oct. 2, 2020 and will instead launch eight months later on June 25, 2021.
As Variety notes, Sony has essentially booted its entire 2020 release schedule into the next year with this latest move. At the end of March, the studio had pushed back the release dates for Morbius, Ghostbusters: Afterlife, and Uncharted, but Venom fans were optimistic when reports came in saying the sequel was specifically left off of the list and Sony was still gunning for the October release date. Obviously, that’s no longer the case. Whether the studio didn’t like what it was seeing in box-office projections as theater chains scramble to adapt a “new normal” that will limit ticket sales or it simply needed more time to finish the film hasn’t been disclosed.
Directed by Andy Serkis, Venom: Let There Be Carnage will feature the return of Tom Hardy as Venom/Eddie Brock who’ll be facing off with his classic comic book nemesis Carnage played by Woody Harrelson. The two symbiote-fueled characters have a long, complicated history that fans have been waiting to see on the big screen since the ’90s, and it sounds like things will get even messier with the addition of a third villain, Shriek.
For the second year in a row, the reigning NFL MVP will appear on the cover of Madden. One year after Kansas City Chiefs star Patrick Mahomes made his Madden cover debut, Baltimore Ravens signal caller Lamar Jackson revealed that he’s the next in line.
Jackson appeared on a video call with reporters on Tuesday afternoon and let the news slip. After announcing that he got the spot, Jackson addressed the dreaded Madden curse, saying that he’s not afraid of potentially getting injured.
“I’m not worried about a curse,” Jackson said. “Patrick Mahomes was on the front, he won MVP, so I want that curse, I hope that’s the curse.”
Of course, Mahomes hurt his knee last season, but it fortunately was nowhere near as serious as it could have been, and he was able to return pretty quickly en route to leading the Kansas City Chiefs to the Super Bowl, where he won the game’s MVP award. Jackson would serve as the second Raven to appear the cover of the game, as Ray Lewis appeared on the cover of Madden NFL 2005.
The official cover announcement hasn’t been made by EA Sports quite yet, so we’ll have to wait and see what Jackson’s cover looks like. But seeing as how Mahomes’ cover last year was announced in late-April, perhaps we won’t have to wait too terribly long.
Indie music has grown to include so much. It’s not just music that is released on independent labels, but speaks to an aesthetic that deviates from the norm and follows its own weirdo heart. It can come in the form of rock music, pop, or folk. In a sense, it says as much about the people that are drawn to it as it does about the people that make it.
While we’re at it, if you want more music recommendations curated by Steven Hyden delivered directly to your inbox every week, sign up for the Indie Mixtape newsletter.
Fiona Apple — Fetch The Bolt Cutters
It’s been eight years since we last heard from Fiona Apple. On her new album, Apple sets a new high bar for herself by showing “how she has pared her music down to the barest essentials, while also deepening and broadening her lyrics, finding fresh nuances that eschew easy answers or reductions,” writes Steven Hyden for Uproxx. “She’s furious and forgiving, full of love and hate, and capable of both eviscerating and soothing her subjects.” This is Apple at her very best, and comes at a time when we needed it the most.
Ed O’Brien — Earth
The debut solo album from the Radiohead guitarist slowly took shape over much of the 2010’s while O’Brien was still unsure of whether he wanted to pursue work outside of Radiohead. “The resulting work is about what you might expect from the guy in Radiohead who is still enamored with the emotionally direct, guitar-centric rock music that the band made in the ’90s,” writes Steven Hyden for Uproxx. That said, rather than just taking inspiration from his band’s past work Earth is instead imbued with a sense of community that O’Brien has experienced while attending music festivals and other mass gatherings as a fan.
Lido Pimienta — Miss Columbia
With 2016’s La Papessa, Lido Pimienta became the first-ever Spanish speaking artist to win the Polaris Prize, a prestigious Canadian award. Now, she is back with another electro-pop collection with Miss Columbia. Here, the album features tracks in both Spanish and English, leaving Lido Pimienta primed and ready for a breakout year in the States.
Big Thief — Demos Vol 1
Last year we got two full-length records from Big Thief, both of which stemmed from a moth of recording in a cabin in Topanga Canyon, California. “34 demos came from those sessions, some of which went on to appear on the aforementioned albums,” explains Derrick Rossignol for Uproxx. Now, the band has shared a handful of those unreleased demos to benefit their touring crew that is out of work due to the ongoing coronavirus crisis. In addition to a few Big Thief tracks, the EP also features full-band recordings of two songs that ended up on Adrianne Lenker’s solo album, Abysskiss.
Steve Gunn — Livin’ In Between
Only a year removed from his excellent LP The Unseen In Between, Steve Gunn has released an EP of miscellaneous cover songs recorded over the last few months. The three tracks show Gunn’s eclectic music taste, spanning from Neil Young to The Misfits and display his ability to translate songs perfectly into his wheelhouse to the point that they don’t stand out much from his other work.
Florence And The Machine — “Light Of Love”
The latest in a line of tracks to benefit healthcare workers during the ongoing crisis, Florence And The Machine’s “Light Of Love” is taken from the same sessions that yielded the 2018 album High As Hope. As with many of Florence Welch’s best songs, “Light Of Love” can be categorized as an “anthemic ballad,” according to Derrick Rossignol for Uproxx.
Bon Iver — “PDLIF”
Justin Vernon has been intermittently sharing new music over the last few weeks, the first arriving during a Bernie Sanders livestream, and now as an official release on streaming services. “PDLIF” stands for “Please Don’t Live In Fear” and comes as a benefit track for healthcare workers. “The song is based on a sample of Alabaster DePlume’s ‘Visit Croatia,’ and it features contributions from Jim-E Stack, BJ Burton, Kacy Hill, Rob Moose, and Michael Lewis,” explains Derrick Rossignol for Uproxx. Maybe the time in isolation will yield a new full-length Bon Iver project sooner rather than later.
Jamie xx — “Idontknow”
The first Jamie xx solo single in five years is not necessarily a new song — it has been a staple of his live sets for at least a year. But now, the producer has shared the track officially, with a physical release coming later this year. Carolyn Droke for Uproxx writes that “Idontknow” is a “revved-up track,” marking the beginning of a new era for the producer, and one that we can’t wait to dive into.
Hayley Williams — “Why We Ever”
It seems that a week doesn’t go by without a new track from Hayley Williams. With her debut solo album Petals For Armor now just around the corner, “Why We Ever” recounts and introspective period in her life. “i was at the lowest point i’d been in some time,” she wrote in a statement. “my sadness shows. now i look back and credit this night as being the beginning of a new season of my life, where i hold myself accountable for learning to love better.”
The Front Bottoms — “Everyone Blooms”
After sharing the standalone single “Camouflage” back in December, The Front Bottoms have returned with another new track. “Everyone Blooms” is the latest export from the band as they finish up work on the follow-up to their 2017 album Going Grey. “This year has been a disaster, but we are pushing forward with positive and creative energy,” the duo said in a statement. “We poured ourselves into making ‘Everyone Blooms’ and are really proud of how it turned out. We hope you like it.”
Retirement Party — “Runaway Dog”
Retirement Party are proving themselves as one of the most exciting bands coming out of the DIY scene right now. On “Runaway Dog,” the guitars are bigger and the songwriting more direct and insightful, showing a band poised and ready to level up. “Over the intricate production, vocalist Avery Springer uses the narrative of a loss of a dog as a metaphor for breaking out of old, unhealthy habits and finding new meaning in motivation,” writes Carolyn Droke for Uproxx.
Diet Cig — “Who Are You?”
Diet Cig’s new LP Do You Wonder About Me is quickly approaching, set for a May 1 release. Thematically “Who Are You?” is directed at “anyone who’s ever received a completely self-serving apology from someone who’s hurt them,” vocalist/guitarist Alex Luciano wrote in a statement. “I learned that healing doesn’t wait for an ‘I’m sorry’ to appear, and it can feel silly to have one arrive when you’re completely over it. This song takes these bad feelings and turns them into a fun upbeat jam to dance around in your kitchen to!”
Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
For many fans, their first exposure to Wale was through the DMV rapper’s 2009 Lady Gaga collaboration “Chillin’” but Wale says a sequel may never happen and explained why on Twitter. During another one of his infamous Q&A sessions on the bird app, Wale reminisced on an ill-fated meeting in which he tried to make a connection with a potential famous fan, but missed out on the opportunity. After one of his followers advised him to try to work with Gaga again to raise his profile, Wale explained why such a collaboration was unlikely — at least in the near future.
I rmemeber askin this brother who played for the _______ To check out my album . He looked through me.. that was the piece of humility I needed… so moral of the story .. I don’t know the moral of the story nvm
“Y’all got to understand these fantasy features work two ways,” he explained. “Pop people don’t wanna work wit us unless we sittin in that top 40 or unless it’s a white rapper.”
Y’all got to understand these fantasy features work two ways . Pop people don’t wanna work wit us unless we sittin in that top 40 or unless it’s a white rapper .. prove me wrong https://t.co/aYJh11PCto
While it’s true that pop-rap crossovers have become much more commonplace than they once were (Royce Da 5’9 was villified for working with burgeoning pop star Willa Ford, once upon a time), Wale may have a point. Most of the crossovers that have taken place in recent years often involve a rapper who’s charting highly — think Nicki Minaj, Cardi B, Drake, or Kendrick Lamar — or a pop star who is either still on the rise or experiencing a decline in popularity — remember when Britney Spears employed Iggy Azalea for the failed “Pretty Girls?” Even at the time “Chillin’” came out, Lady Gaga wasn’t yet the massive international star she’s since become, allowing Interscope to A&R that connection between their two most recent acquisitions.
With regard to the other part of Wale’s assertion — look, Eminem had Alicia Keys, Beyonce, Ed Sheeran, Kehlani, and Pink on Revival and it wasn’t even good.
There’s an obvious reason why these collaborations only ever take place between the highest-charting rappers and their pop counterparts. The only reason for either side to even collaborate outside of their genre is to increase their reach and if you’re going to gamble, wouldn’t you want the highest return on the investment — i.e. a large fanbase of potential listeners? Songs with features tend to be bigger hits, but only if both sides bring something to the table. So, sorry “Chillin’” fans, but you’ll probably have to wait for Wale to climb back into Billboard‘s good graces before Lady Gaga picks up the phone for a second take on their hit collaboration, which is a real shame.
For old times’ sake, press play on the “Chillin’” video above.
Wale is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
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