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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 Lana Del Rey keep her momentum going with a quick new album turnarond and The Weeknd’s long-awaited Swedish House Mafia collaboration. 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.

The Weeknd and Swedish House Mafia — “Moth To A Flame”

Last month, Swedish House Mafia and The Weeknd included a new snippet of The Weeknd vocals in their VMAs set that set speculation ablaze. The two quickly all-but-confirmed a collaboration was on the way, eventually setting it in stone. Now, “Moth To A Flame” is out, and it’s a thumping electronic number that builds nicely off The Weeknd’s After Hours era.

Lana Del Rey — “Blue Banisters”

So far, 2021 has offered a Lana Del Rey for almost all seasons. In March, she dropped Chemtrails Over The Country Club, and last week, she made a rapid return with Blue Banisters. A few days ahead of the album, she dropped the video for its title track, which supports the characteristically vivid imagery of the song.

Elton John, Young Thug, and Nicki Minaj — “Always Love You”

During the early pandemic, a lot of artists found their way through by hunkering down and get to work. That includes Elton John, who, based on how much collaborating he did, found solace in company. In fact, he linked up with so many artists that he got a whole album, The Lockdown Sessions, out of it. The album’s out now, and he worked with folks from multiple genres, including a pair of hip-hop’s finest on “Always Love You.”

Wale — “Light Years” Feat. Rick Ross

In a recent Uproxx cover story, Wale said of his new album Folarin II, “I feel like the process on this one was pretty much, as soon as I got into the mode, it just started feeling like, ‘You know what? Where I am, how I feel, how I know who I am, regardless of what anybody’s talking about,’ it started just speaking to me more. I was like, ‘This is Folarin II.’ Folarin is when I started really coming into my own. I really was in that space. I was just singing with my chest. I think that’s what’s happening now. […] Folarin II is its own thing, but it’s just the same intentions and the same feeling that I had when I made Folarin.”

Big Sean and Hit-Boy — “What A Life”

Big Sean got a big assist on his 2020 album Detroit 2 from Hit-Boy, as Hit-Boy served as executive producer of the effort. Last week, the pair reunited on “What A Life,” which Uproxx’s Wongo Okon notes “finds the Detroit rapper reflecting on his best moments and the hardships he got through over a quick-paced beat supplied by Hit-Boy.”

Khalid — “Present”

This summer, Khalid admitted that he is having a rough time working on his next album. Still, he has given fans plenty of advance singles to enjoy while he wraps things up, the latest being “Present.” While the track is a gift, the title is more about the singer making a conscious effort to give a special somebody his full attention.

Sean Paul and Sia — “Dynamite”

“Cheap Thrills” was a huge collab for Sia and Sean Paul, as the 2016 single gave Sia her first No. 1 song and Paul his first in a while. Now, the pair is hoping for more magic as they reunite on a new single, “Dynamite.” Of the song, Uproxx’s Adrian Spinelli notes, “It’s the kind of song that no matter where you’re listening to it, you might as well be transporting yourself to a beachside discotheque.”

Coldplay and BTS — “My Universe (Suga’s Remix)”

Coldplay and BTS’ hit collaboration “My Universe” didn’t need any help, but BTS’ Suga remixed the track and managed to add something to it. While Music Of The Spheres as a whole sees Coldplay really embracing a pop sound. Suga’s re-work of the song takes things even further in that direction with subtle but noticeable tweaks.

Jack White — “Taking Me Back”

Jack White is famously old-fashioned, but he’s been full of surprises in recent days: He’s into NFTs and he’s sporting blue hair now, for example. Another surprise came last week: His first new single since 2018. The song, “Taking Me Back,” was premiered in a new trailer for Call Of Duty: Vanguard, and as for the track, it’s not too far outside of White’s rocking wheelhouse.

Majid Jordan — “Forget About The Party”

Majid Jordan are trying things with their latest batch of music, which is extremely evident on the acoustic “Forget About The Party.” The duo’s Jordan Ullman recently told Uproxx the song is “at the center of who we are as musicians” before continuing, “I think it makes people remind themselves of a time in their lives. Anytime I listen to that, it really makes me go into a world of myself and memories.”

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

Swedish singer Snoh Aalegra continues the rollout for her third studio album Temporary Highs In The Violet Skies with its third music video, tapping Tyler The Creator to appear in a fun, throwback clip for “Neon Peach.” Playing around with uptempo pop, the song encourages the listener to let go of the past and move on from a prior, stalled relationship. In the video, Snoh and Tyler perform in surreal scenes, including a bizarre science lab and a western tableau, and perform in front of a white backdrop with a throwback fish-eye lens effect.

In addition to helping Snoh Aalegra promote her new album, Tyler The Creator’s busy year has included some big wins, including being given the Rock The Bells Cultural Influence Award at the 2021 BET Awards, appearing on Maxo Kream’s new album (on the single “Big Persona“), announcing his Call Me If You Get Lost tour with Vince Staples and Kali Uchis, and directing a new commercial for Converse with some of his favorite artists and entertainers. His own new album, Call Me If You Get Lost, became his second No.1-charting album, as well.

Watch Snoh Aalegra’s “Neon Peach” video featuring Tyler The Creator above.

Temporary Highs In The Violet Skies is out now via Atrium Recordings/Roc Nation Records. Get it here.

Cinematographer Halyna Hutchins was fatally struck by a bullet from a prop gun fired by Alec Baldwin on the set of the Western movie Rust. In the days since the incident, we have a clearer sense of how the tragedy happened — and how it could have been avoided.

In the hours before the shooting, many crew members walked off the set in protest of terrible working conditions, including “long hours, long commutes, and waiting for their paychecks” and numerous accidental prop gun discharges. A search warrant obtained by the Los Angeles Times also revealed how the gun came into Baldwin’s possession.

[Director Joel] Souza said three people were handling the gun for the scene: armorer Hannah Gutierrez Reed, then assistant director Dave Halls, who handed the gun to Baldwin, the affidavit said. Halls had taken one of three prop guns set up by Gutierrez Reed on a cart left outside the structure because of COVID-19 restrictions, the affidavit said. Halls did not know live rounds were in the gun when he handed it to Baldwin, and Halls yelled “cold gun,” according to the affidavit.

“Cold gun” is an on-set term intended to indicate that the weapon did not have any live rounds, but “as far as [Souza] knows, no one gets checked for live ammunition on their person prior and after the scenes are being filmed,” the affidavit read. “The only thing checked are the firearms to avoid live ammunition being in them.”

Following a lunch break, the crew and cast returned to set, and as Baldwin was explaining how he was going to draw his gun (which may have “previously been used by crew members for target practice off-set, using real bullets”) and “where his arm would be when he pulled the gun from the holster, it discharged,” according to the Times.

Souza was shot in the shoulder, Hutchins in the chest. She was pronounced dead at the University of New Mexico Hospital.

(Via the Los Angeles Times)

Anti-Trump ads have made it onto Fox News before, but you know one is good when it finally got the former president to release one of his rambling, incoherent statements frothing with rage. On Sunday, Trump blasted the conservative network for taking money from the “forces” working against him.

“What good is it if FOX News speaks well of me when they continually allow horrible and untruthful anti-Trump commercials to be run–and plenty of them,” Trump wrote in a statement (via Mediaite). “In the good old days, that would never have happened and today it happens all of the time.”

Because Trump isn’t big on specifics, it was hard to tell exactly which ad sparked his latest tantrum. But after he responded, the MeidasTouch PAC came forward and took responsibility for the epic troll. The group boasted that it “broke” Trump with their ad mocking him for not being too afraid to get involved in the Virginia gubernatorial election.

Via Mediaite:

“Donald why are you so scared to go to Virginia?” the ad says. “Is it because you know Glenn Youngkin wants nothing to do with you? Or is it because your loser stench rubs off on everyone you touch?”

“If you aren’t too weak or scared or washed up, you would get to Virginia fast,” the ad later notes, and calls him a “coward.”

According to MeidasTouch co-founder Ben Meisalas, the ads have been running in the Mar-a-Lago market for the past week, and clearly, they worked to get under Trump’s skin. The president is a notorious Fox News watcher and reportedly spent much of his time in office watching the right-wing news network while scarfing down McDonald’s.

(Via Mediaite)

Over the weekend, Justin Vernon and his Bon Iver cohorts performed a pair of shows to celebrate the ten-year anniversary of Bon Iver, Bon Iver. For fans who didn’t get to check that out, there’s some good news: Bon Iver is going on tour in 2022.

Today, the band announced shows in March, May, June, October, and November, which will feature support from Dijon, Bonny Light Horseman, and Barm. As for Vernon’s band, he will be joined by the same group he played with this past weekend: Sean Carey, Jenn Wasner (of Wye Oak), Mike Lewis, Matt McCaughan, and Andy Fitzpatrick.

Check out the full list of tour dates below.

03/30/2022 — Mesa, AZ @ Mesa Amphitheatre *
04/01/2022 — Austin, TX @ Moody Amphitheater at Waterloo Greenway *
04/03/2022 — Austin, TX @ Moody Amphitheater at Waterloo Greenway *
04/03/2022 — Irving, TX @ The Pavilion at Toyota Music Factory *
04/05/2022 — Houston, TX @ White Oak Music Hall *
04/08/2022 — New Orleans, LA @ Bold Sphere Music at Champions Square *
04/09/2022 — Atlanta, GA @ Cadence Bank Amphitheatre at Chastain Park *
04/13/2022 — Wilmington, NC @ Live Oak Bank Pavilion at Riverfront Park *
04/14/2022 — St. Augustine, FL @ The Saint Augustine Amphitheatre *
04/15/2022 — Miami, FL @ FPL Solar Amphitheater at Bayfront Park *
06/03/2022 — Queens, NY @ Forest Hills Stadium **
06/04/2022 — Pittsburgh, PA @ Stage AE **
06/07/2022 — Lewiston, NY @ Artpark Amphitheater **
06/08/2022 — Essex Junction, VT @ Champlain Valley Exposition **
06/10/2022 — Portland, ME @ Thompson’s Point **
06/11/2022 — East Providence, RI @ Bold Point Park **
06/13/2022 — Richmond, VA @ Virginia Credit Union LIVE! **
06/15/2022 — Kansas City, MO @ Starlight Theatre **
06/17/2022 — Maryland Heights, MO @ Saint Louis Music Park **
06/18/2022 — Lincoln, NE @ Pinewood Bowl Amphitheater **
06/21/2022 — Newport, KY @ PromoWest Pavilion at OVATION **
06/24/2022 — Nashville, TN @ Ascend Amphitheater **
06/25/2022 — Asheville, NC @ Rabbit Rabbit **
10/16/2022 — Dublin, IE @ 3Arena ^
10/19/2022 — Leeds, GB @ First Direct Arena ^
10/20/2022 — Glasgow, GB @ The SSE Hydro ^
10/24/2022 — Manchester, GB @ AO Arena ^
10/25/2022 — London, GB @ SSE Arena Wembley ^
10/26/2022 — London, GB @ SSE Arena Wembley
10/31/2022 — Berlin, DE @ Mercedes-Benz Arena ^
11/03/2022 — Amsterdam, NL @ Ziggo Dome ^
11/03/2022 — Antwerp, BE @ Sportpaleis ^
11/05/2022 — Milan, IT @ Mediolanum Forum ^
11/07/2022 — Barcelona, ES @ Palau Sant Jordi ^
11/09/2022 — Madrid, ES @ WiZink Center ^
11/11/2022 — Lisbon, PT @ Altice Arena ^

* with Dijon
** with Bonny Light Horseman
^ with Carm

James Cromwell has had a distinguished career, including five Emmy nominations; starring roles in The Green Mile, L.A. Confidential, and Star Trek: First Contact; and he’s a progressive activist who’s been arrested multiple times fighting for his beliefs. But he’s probably best known for talking to a pig. To be fair, it wasn’t just any pig — it was Babe, the eponymous star of the charming 1995 film (co-written by Mad Max‘s George Miller!) that made a surprise $254.1 million at the box office and was nominated for seven Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Supporting Actor for Cromwell.

Twenty-six-year-old spoiler alert, but Babe ends with world’s tallest farmer Arthur Hoggett, played by Cromwell, winning a sheepdog herding contest after initially being ridiculed for having a pig do a dog’s job. “And though every single human in the stands or in the commentary boxes was at a complete loss for words, the man who in his life had uttered fewer words than any of them knew exactly what to say,” the narrator says in the closing seconds. Those words: “That’ll do, pig. That’ll do.”

Crowell, who probably hasn’t gone a week without hearing “that’ll do” from a stranger since Babe came out, repeated his iconic line in Sunday’s episode of Succession. The moment occurs about halfway through “Mass in Time of War,” when my sweet boy Greg (New York’s most eligible bachelor, Nicholas Braun) reaches out to his grandfather and Logan’s brother, Ewan, about getting a lawyer. When Ewan agrees to help him, Greg goes in for a hug, but gets dismissed. Instead, he’s met with a “that’ll do” (and a grunt).

It’s peak Succession to turn a heartwarming moment into a grandfather’s cold rejection of a grandson’s hug. But the Babe reference was not lost on viewers.

While the world is starting to open back up, we’re not done with COVID-19 yet. People are still getting it, and that includes Ed Sheeran, who announced over the weekend that he tested positive and is therefore unable to make any planned in-person appearances for the time being.

Sheeran wrote on social media, “Hey guys. Quick note to tell you that I’ve sadly tested positive for Covid, so I’m now self-isolating and following government guidelines. It means that I’m now unable to plough ahead with any in person commitments for now, so I’ll be doing as many of my planned interviews/performances I can from my house. Apologies to anyone I’ve let down. Be safe everyone x.”

It appears, then, that Sheeran won’t be able to perform on the upcoming November 6 episode of Saturday Night Live; The day before Sheeran shared his COVID news, it was announced that Sheeran will be the musical guest on the SNL episode hosted by Kieran Culkin. Page Six cites a “source” that says the show’s producers are “scrambling” to replace Sheeran, preferably with “another singer who appeals to the same demo,” citing Shawn Mendes or Justin Bieber as examples. It’s apparently also possible that Sheeran could still perform on the show, as the source notes, “Ed is offering to perform live via video link, but this isn’t something SNL does. The show likes to have the performer in studio.”

This wouldn’t be the first time SNL had to quickly find a replacement musical guest. In fact, around this time last year, Morgan Wallen was pulled from the show after he was seen at a non-socially distant party and replaced relatively last-minute with Jack White.

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

Last Week Tonight deep-dove into the controversial subject of Taiwan, and in the process, John Oliver took aim at John Cena for his May 2021 apology to China. That was a strange pop-culture moment for sure, and Cena’s video-recorded statement carried surreal vibes as he attempted to squash an international incident. His perceived offense occurred when he (during F9 promotion) referred to Taiwan as a country, which greatly upset China. Since the Chinese box office is a vital source of cinematic revenue (and was particularly seen as such in early spring as Hollywood desperately wanted to return to the big screen), the apology isn’t too surprising in retrospect.

Yet it was still an unsettling video to witness. “I must say now, [it’s] very, very, very, very important [that] I love, and respect even more, China and the Chinese people,” Cena declared. All of this happened because China, despite Taiwan being a self-governed (not to mention Democratic) island for seven decades (and counting), refuses to recognize Taiwan as independent. And here’s what John Oliver thinks about Cena’s video (shortly after the 2:00 minute mark above):

“Every part of that is so weird. It’s weird John Cena apologized to China. It’s weird he did it for calling Taiwan a country. And it’s weird to see him do it in pretty decent Mandarin. That’s just too many weird things.”

Fair enough. Oliver later concluded that it’s BS that the commercial and governmental powers that be are allowing this vibe to continue unchecked. He’s definitely not taking Tucker Carlson’s angle in this criticism, though. Carlson’s stance was the usual far-right argument against China because of communism. Oliver’s perspective is that pretty much everyone who is not Taiwanese needs to step out of the argument altogether because “people who are not Taiwanese making decisions for Taiwan is a bit f*cking played out, historically.”

Also, Oliver would like to point out that Taiwan shouldn’t be treated like a “poker chip” any longer, not by any political party or by Hollywood. Nor should people feel as though it’s “some sort of island-sized Viagra to rejuvenate the Chinese nation.” Rather, Oliver argues that the 23 million people of Taiwan have “built a free, Democratic society and very much deserve the right to decide their own future in any way that they deem fit.” To be continued, no doubt.

Everyone knows Scorpio season kicks off with Drake’s birthday. As the mogul rapper turns 35 today, his longtime friends had to come through with a gift that fit the occasion. Obviously, the celebration kicked off with a massive, themed party, this year it was a Narcos theme and guests like Future, YG and Offset all stopped by to celebrate.

But one friend, Future The Prince, had an extra special gift for The Boy, a Rolls Royce Phantom like the one a young Drake used to rent in order to keep up appearances. He even paid $5,000 a month just to rent the thing! Check out his heartfelt gratitude and reflection on the gift below, he explains it better than I ever could.

“Back in 2007 we used to finesse this Rolls Royce Phantom rental to convince people in the city we were destined to make it. I used to scrape together 5k a month somehow to keep up appearances. We whipped this to Ottawa to see @belly and @cashxo and to Montreal for my first show ever. I used to pick up @ovoniko and roll every day or wait outside @nebzilla class for her. Park outside 15 Fort York while me and @ovo40 and @oliverelkhatib would be upstairs cooking what would eventually become So Far Gone. Even though I don’t recommend putting yourself in financial trouble for material things I realize now that this was just my way of extreme manifesting. I needed to see it and feel it and have it to believe that I could see and feel and have anything I wanted. Today in 2021 my brother @futuretheprince tracked down the exact car I use to stress over and gifted it to me…it’s mine now. Manifestation complete. Thank you for all the love and appreciation and gifts and texts and dm’s…more than just loved I feel truly appreciated and that is the only gift I ever needed. TREY FIVE EASY MONEY DRIZZY let’s get this shit. BLICK EMMMMMM ”

That plus a No. 1 single with “Way 2 Sexy” off his new album Certified Lover Boy should make 2021 a pretty good year for Drake.

Republicans have been trying for months to sabotage the technically bipartisan committee investigating the lead-up to Jan. 6, some even ignoring subpoenas (at their peril, of course). But at least a few people involved with the protest that mushroom clouded into the storming of the Capitol building are playing ball. In a new report, Rolling Stone spoke anonymously with three sources who are communicating with the committee. Among the many explosive tidbits is that one top Trumpist sought help in staging the doomed protest by dangling “blanket pardons” in front of their faces.

Two of the sources — one identified as a “planner,” the other an “organizer” — alleged that a number of representatives partook in “dozens” of briefings planning the protest. Their names oughtn’t be surprising: They include Paul Gosar, Lauren Boebert, Mo Brooks, Madison Cawthorn, Andy Biggs, and Lauren Boebert. One remembers Marjorie Taylor Greene “specifically.” In the weeks before what should have been a smooth certification of the election, these elected officials helped organize demonstrations around the country.

But it was Gosar who “allegedly took things a step further”:

And Gosar, who has been one of the most prominent defenders of the Jan. 6 rioters, allegedly took things a step further. Both sources say he dangled the possibility of a “blanket pardon” in an unrelated ongoing investigation to encourage them to plan the protests.

“Our impression was that it was a done deal,” the organizer says, “that he’d spoken to the president about it in the Oval … in a meeting about pardons and that our names came up. They were working on submitting the paperwork and getting members of the House Freedom Caucus to sign on as a show of support.”

The organizer claims the pair received “several assurances” about the “blanket pardon” from Gosar.

The sources, who say they still stand by Trump’s agenda, say they have more dirt where that came from:

While it was already clear members of Congress played some role in the Jan. 6 events and similar rallies that occurred in the lead-up to that day, the two sources say they can provide new details about the members’ specific roles in these efforts. The sources plan to share that information with congressional investigators right away. While both sources say their communications with the House’s Jan. 6 committee thus far have been informal, they are expecting to testify publicly.

“I have no problem openly testifying,” the planner says.

They also claim Katrina Pierson, who worked on both of Trump’s presidential campaigns, served as a “key liaison between the organizers of protests against the election and the White House,” and their “go-to girl.”

The sources point out that they themselves weren’t planning on a violent insurrection. The original plan was for a rally at the Ellipse, where speakers, Trump among them, would present “evidence” of voter fraud (which, several months later, we know no one had). But things got out of hand — which wasn’t that surprising. They claim people approached former White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows with concerns about the potential for violence, but that he did nothing.

One source blamed what wound up happening on “a lot of bad actors” who “set out to create chaos.” They added, “They made us all look like s*it.” One of those “bad actors” was Trump himself:

“The breaking point for me [on Jan. 6 was when] Trump starts talking about walking to the Capitol,” the organizer says. “I was like. ‘Let’s get the f*ck out of here.’ ”

“I do kind of feel abandoned by Trump,” says the planner. “I’m actually pretty pissed about it and I’m pissed at him.”

The organizer offers an even more succinct assessment when asked what they would say to Trump.

“What the f*ck?” the organizer says.

There’s plenty more in Rolling Stones’ report, including Stop the Steal protest leader Ali Alexander, who, in a now deleted livestream broadcast, basically “told on himself” about all the wrongdoing, including ratcheting up the violence. “They knew that they weren’t there to sing “Kumbaya” and, like, put up a peace sign,” one source said. “These frickin’ people were angry.”

(Via Rolling Stone)