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In recent months, it appears that many hip-hop artists have circled back around to a tried-and-true promotion tactic while live touring is still mostly shut down: Remixing other artist’s hits. We’ve seen several artists take on SpotemGottem’s viral hit “BeatBox” and Coi Leray’s “No More Parties.” Now, it looks like we can add Mooski’s “Track Star” to the list of coveted tracks for bigger stars to cover, as A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie puts his own spin on the TikTok favorite.

The Woodpecker-produced, dancehall-influenced beat remains unchanged, and A Boogie lets the now-familiar hook play out before coming in with his revamped verse, flexing his way through a melodic rap with a number of vocal effects applied throughout.

A Boogie’s had a relatively quiet year so far, although this weekend has seemingly cracked the seal on new music from the Bronx native. In addition to dropping his remix of “Track Star,” he also appears on DJ Khaled’s new album, Khaled Khaled, rhyming alongside Big Sean, Puff Daddy, and Rick Ross on “This Is My Year.”

Listen to A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie’s take on Mooski’s viral hit “Track Star” above.

A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Lately, Sharon Van Etten fans have been hearing her songs as interpreted by others, as she recently finished rolling out her Epic Ten anniversary release, which features other artists performing songs from her album Ten. Now, Van Etten has turned the table by sharing a cover of her own, performing Daniel Johnston’s “Some Things Last A Long Time.” The song was recorded for the 2020 documentary Feels Good Man, about the creator of the Pepe The Frog meme.

This comes after Van Etten supported an initiative from the Hi, How Are You Project, a mental health-focused non-profit inspired by Johnston, last year. The campaign, launched to coincide with Mental Health Awareness Month in May, had a simple ask: “Because mental health matters, I pledge to ask others, ‘Hi How Are You?’”

Van Etten also recorded an original song for the film, “Let Go,” which was shared a few months ago. Van Etten said of the film and her song for it, “After watching the documentary, I just followed the feeling of coming to terms with something and tried to evoke peace through my melody and words. The song and film’s producer, Giorgio [Angelini], was a great collaborator and communicator and I was given a lot of freedom. That says a lot about the film and the people who made it.”

Listen to Van Etten’s cover of “Some Things Last A Long Time” above.

I was talking with my colleague, Martin Rickman, the other day about the Foo Fighters‘ new rock and roll van life documentary, What Drives Us, and he summed up Dave Grohl in a way that I hadn’t heard before: “He’s the Guy Fieri of rock.” Whether you take that as an insult or not is subjective. To me, it’s a spot-on assessment of Grohl (who directs the doc, which you can stream now through the Coda Collection on Prime), someone that is the ultimate ambassador for a more uncomplicated and less self-serious kind of rock and roll, and universally known as a good guy who always seems like he’s having fun doing what he loves.

To many, Grohl (like Fieri) is an appealing and positive part of the pop culture landscape. This, of course, makes him a target to those who view his whole thing as manufactured and inauthentic. Because trying is often regarded as such, especially within the world of rock where, historically, likeability hasn’t been quite as effective a mythmaker as sex, drugs, and indifference. Somehow Grohl found a way around that, though. Good for him and good for the survival of the rock and roll aesthetic, frankly, because while the music has been downshifted somewhat in the cultural hierarchy, the brand needs someone to keep the flame alive and make it seem cool to grab a guitar, jump into a van, and see if magic happens.

All of this isn’t to say that Grohl has lost all other relevance. The Foo Fighters still churn out radio-friendly cuts. Sure, they don’t reach the level of their past hits, but in what way is that unique for a band that’s been at it for a quarter-century? I personally liked parts of the recent Medicine At Midnight with the funky ambition of “Shame Shame” and the Lemmy-inspired muscle of “No Son Of Mine.” I want to sit in an arena with 20,000 people shredding my throat to “The Sky Is A Neighborhood” from 2017’s Concrete And Gold after running through “My Life” and “Stacked Actors” from days gone by. And they’ll sell out that arena and a bunch of other ones because people love this band and the way they still play loud and fast. Again, uncomplicated.

Grohl’s continuing relevance is what gives his second (third?) act as a documentarian and very specific rock historian credibility. That and the fact that he’s pretty good at it, bringing unique access and perspective to stories about the spaces and cities where music history has been built brick by brick with Sound City and the Sonic Highways docuseries. When you think about it, switching things up to focus on the connective tissue between those things makes perfect thematic sense, and so here we are with What Drives Us, another excuse to float in the nostalgia with Grohl, the other Foo Fighters, and a few famous rockers (Steven Tyler, The Edge, Slash, Flea, Tony Kanal) who deliver a mixed bag of memories and aphorisms.

The insights derived from the experience of watching this doc are… fine. Rock greybeards talk all about the experience of piling into an Econoline or other metal beast and how it forged a sense of family with their bandmates while archival images of babyfaced versions of them occasionally dot the screen.

Grohl’s central thesis is that there’s a commonality to the experience of a van tour, something that’s illustrated by appearances by St. Vincent and a Missouri-based punk band, Radkey, who rides around the country in a rented van with their dad as a roadie. But while Radkey gets a few minutes to tell their story, I wanted more, specifically around the challenges of touring in a van and getting your name out in modern times (especially since I’m now pretty obsessed with their music thanks to the doc). That’s something Grohl, Flea, and others aren’t going to be able to speak to. All of this sparks a wonder on if this project might have been better served going the Sonic Highways docuseries route where Grohl could focus whole episodes on some of the feature’s more compelling artists like Radkey or Dead Kennedys drummer D.H. Peligro, who goes into detail on his substance abuse struggles throughout his career and how it took him to a point where he was homeless.

Aside from Peligro, there really isn’t much about the downfall of life of the road, nor is there the expected sleaze about groupies and random hookups. Maybe that’s because Grohl is shining a light on the moment before the trappings of fame began to impose themselves on these musicians or maybe it’s in the name of his broad reputation as a nice guy who wouldn’t traffic in such stories. This is not a complaint, by the way. If you want that kind of on-the-road confessional, there are plenty of other places to get it. But it’s an interesting omission. As is the sparsity of Nirvana references and reflections or really much at all to do with the Seattle scene from which Grohl was launched (after his start in DC with Scream, which does get some real estate here). Though, again, it’s not like those stories aren’t out there.

Similar to the feelings evoked when watching the Radkey and Peligro segments, I wanted for a full episode around Grohl’s own tour stories, which are heavily tilted toward the first Foo Fighters tour here (Grohl’s continued possession of the 1995 Ram van that they used is a key point in the story). Oddly, you’ll get more from Grohl on his time on the road with Nirvana in a recent THR interview than you do in the doc.

What Drives Us is sometimes scattered and too short. It could have hit a few notes with more force and focus if given more time or more priority in planning, but it nevertheless stands out as another solid entry in Grohl’s growing filmography. It’s also another entry in his (intended or not) efforts to sell the awesomeness of the rock and roll odyssey with its ingrained rebellion, camaraderie, chaos, crowds, and the exhalation that comes from performing in front of a crowd as they join you in celebrating the music. If you watch this and don’t wish you were an 18-year-old kid, checking out of your life to join the rock and roll circus, then something’s wrong with you, not What Drives Us.

‘What Drives Us’ hits Amazon Prime on Friday, April 30th.

It’s hard to reconcile the life and career of Rudy Giuliani. In the wake of 9/11, he experienced a worldwide boost in popularity where he was dubbed “America’s Mayor” and named TIME Magazine’s Person of the Year. Yet he also spent nearly 15 years married to his second cousin.

While he’s always been a polarizing public figure, the past several years have definitely not been kind to Rudy’s public image. So when news broke that the FBI came knocking at Giuliani’s door at 6 a.m. on Wednesday to serve search warrants for both his home and office, few people were surprised. And while Seth Meyers joined in the public mockery, he also pointed out that Rudy’s downfall is largely a disaster of the former mayor’s own making.

On Thursday night, Meyers dedicated more than 13 minutes of his show to “A Closer Look” segment about the raid on Giuliani’s apartment, the cartoon-like gang of goons he has surrounded himself with, and a brief history of how Giuliani has repeatedly invited suspicion to fall on him, particularly in his role as Donald Trump’s personal attorney, by outing his misdeeds for all the world to see.

Meyers took a stroll down criminal misdeeds memory lane to remind viewers of Rudy’s many public gaffes. Like the time he accidentally butt-dialed an NBC reporter and left a long voicemail in which he can be overheard complaining about the Bidens and telling an associate that he was in need of lots of cash. Or when he left an obsequious voicemail for Alabama Senator Tommy Tuberville in which he attempted to get him to drag his feet on a vote so that Rudy and Donald Trump could try and overturn the results of a completely legitimate public election… but made a whoopsie and left the message for a different senator (who promptly released it to the public).

While a big part of the FBI raid story has been that Rudy’s electronic devices were confiscated, Meyers rolled footage of the many, many times the former president’s lawyer popped up on Fox News and openly scrolled through his own screens for all the world to see. “No wonder they never asked Rudy to wear a wire,” Meyers said. “He is a wire.”

That said, when you think about the many blatant blunders Rudy has made out in the open, who knows other secrets those devices might hold.

You can watch the full clip above, complete with the pretty spot-on Owen Wilson imitation mentioned in our headline.

Guy Fieri’s hair might be a joke, but his relief efforts are anything but that.

The flamboyant Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives host has raised over $25 million for restaurant workers impacted by the pandemic. “So many people work in the restaurant industry in multiple jobs, second jobs, single moms, single parents, students, retirees. And the restaurant industry is massively important to our communities,” he told CBS earlier this month about working with the Restaurant Employee Relief Fund. “So, when I saw this coming, I said, ‘We got to do something to get some money to these folks.’”

Fieri was also profiled by the Hollywood Reporter, where he discussed his fundraising work — and revealed that the world’s richest man didn’t give a penny. “I don’t get pissed or lose my shit. But I was pissed,” he said about his mood in the early days of the pandemic. Fieri channeled that energy into asking “his business manager for contact info for CEOs of major corporations,” according to the Reporter. “He drafted personal emails to power brokers like Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, soliciting donations for an emergency relief fund that would ultimately award more than 43,000 grants — of $500 each — to out-of-work line cooks, servers, and other restaurant professionals.”

The CEOs of PepsiCo, Uber Eats, and Procter & Gamble came through with “huge sums of money,” but although Fieri doesn’t enjoy “shaming people and telling who didn’t donate, that’s not my style,” he did admit, “Jeff, by the way, didn’t help us.” That would be Jeff Bezos, who has a net worth of over $200 billion. The Amazon CEO might be worthless (the irony) for this particular cause, but Fieri is being hailed as a “national treasure” and a “blessing” on social media.

(Via the Hollywood Reporter)

The streaming wars aren’t looking the peachiest today for Roku users, who may not be pleased with a YouTube TV development. Granted, the news today isn’t a complete red alert, although it might signal a transition on the horizon following Roku’s warning earlier this week about YouTube TV subscribers potentially losing access to the YouTube TV app. At this point, current subscribers still retain access to that app, but the cause of the back-and-forth continues to escalate and points towards what Roku says is a growing dispute with Google. Roku essentially claims that its attempt to re-up its carriage agreement has led to Google playing favorites with its own products (in this case, Google’s separate YouTube app and preferential results for YouTube content searches), and negotiations between the two companies still aren’t resolved.

Previously, Roku accused Google of “predatory, anti-competitive and discriminatory” practices that “harm Roku’s users.” Earlier this week, Variety noted that Google denied requesting preferential Roku search results or for access to user data from Roku while stating of the dispute, “We hope we can resolve this for the sake of our mutual users.”

Fast forward to today, and Roku says that re-up negotiations are no closer to success. As of Friday, Roku has pulled the YouTube TV app from the channel store; this means that new subscribers won’t be able to access it, although existing subscribers can (“at this time”) keep using YouTube on Roku. It’s also worth noting that this dispute only involves the paid live TV service known as “YouTube TV,” rather than the free YouTube app. Here’s a statement from a Roku spokesperson:

“We are disappointed that Google has allowed our agreement for the distribution of YouTube TV to expire. Roku has not asked for one dollar of additional financial consideration from Google to renew YouTube TV. ​
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“We have only asked Google for four simple commitments. First, not to manipulate consumer search results. Second, not to require access to data not available to anyone else. Third, not to leverage their YouTube monopoly to force Roku to accept hardware requirements that would increase consumer costs. Fourth, not to act in a discriminatory and anticompetitive manner against Roku. ​
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“Because our contract has expired, we have removed YouTube TV from our channel store. To continue to provide our users with a great streaming experience, we are taking the extra step to continue to offer existing subscribers access to YouTube TV on the Roku platform unless Google takes actions that require the full removal of the channel. Because of Google’s conduct, new subscriptions will not be available going forward until an agreement is reached.”

The streaming wars are only bound to include such a perpetually shifting landscape, although Roku users sure have to roll with those changes. For several months, Roku fans felt left out of the HBO Max launch party until both services finally struck a deal. Hopefully, things will settle down soon for Roku’s YouTube TV subscribers, too.

(Via Hollywood Reporter)

Last we heard from Hayley Kiyoko — aka “Lesbian Jesus” — she was pivoting from music for a bit to release a gender-inclusive fragrance, Hue. The perfume-making business was something the singer compared to songwriting when we spoke about the process, and clearly, making music will always be her first love. That’s why it’s a welcome surprise to have a brand new single from Kiyoko. First she released the track itself last night, “Found My Friends,” and today has shared a moody but bright video that was shot on on 16mm film and filmed at the Biltmore hotel in downtown Los Angeles.

Speaking on the song, Hayley said in a press release that she wrote it “during a challenging time when I realized instead of being my own worst enemy, I could actually be my own best friend.” She continued, “It’s about discovering and nurturing a strong friendship with yourself. This song resonates even more so now with everyone experiencing isolation in quarantine, when we still somehow find the resilience to connect with one another and find comfort in each other.”

As for the video, above, Hayley characterized it as a chance to capture a moment of “being fully present.” She also described it in a press release as “about taking control and owning it.” The other major element of the video is that it’s shot on film, which can be limiting, but has a huge payoff. “Color is always a huge inspiration and so it was truly a dream come true to have the opportunity to shoot this video entirely on film,” she explained. “Shooting on film captures color differently than digital but can be a very challenging process because the lighting has to be perfect, the number of takes is limited, and you can’t see the true outcome until you are in the editing room. I am so grateful for our crew who worked hard to pull it all off, especially while still following all the CDC Covid protocol to keep everyone safe on set. I hope when people watch ‘Found My Friends’ they share the same feelings of liberation that I felt when shooting it.”

Check out the video above, and hopefully this is just the start of a new era from Kiyoko, following up her 2020 EP I’m Too Sensitive For This Shit and 2018’s breakout debut, Expectations.

DJ Khaled released his new album Khaled Khaled today, but just yesterday, he changed the tracklist by adding a new Cardi B-featuring song, “Big Paper.” It turns out the song truly was a last-minute affair, as Cardi says she wrote and recorded her contributions to the track in just two days.

In a recent Instagram Live broadcast, Cardi said, “Literally, I didn’t [think] I was going to make the record, to be honest with you. I didn’t [think] I was going to make it. I got the beat before yesterday… and yes, I wrote the record. And I was just like brainstorming, brainstorming […]. One thing I’ve been really insecure about is my accent — I have a really big accent — and my pronunciation. So I was making sure that everything was mixed right. Literally, I think Khaled got the song today […] at 7 a.m. my time. […] I hope you guys like it. It’s just a little something-something to hold y’all up until I release my next project.”

Following the broadcast, Cardi had doubters who didn’t believe that she actually made the song as quickly as she says she did. Cardi responded by sharing a video from Khaled (which she has since deleted), which he filmed on Wednesday and in which he says he’s still waiting for Cardi’s vocals.

Khaled Khaled is out now via Epic Records. Get it here.

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

Coi Leray may have blown up this year with the TikTok favorite “No More Parties,” but the 23-year-old New Jersey rapper is no greenhorn. While her appearance on The Tonight Show to perform the breakout hit on Thursday constituted her television debut, the performance itself was more polished and professional than many, with an off-camera band performing a dazzling arrangement, engaging staging that played into the theme, and the sort of swaggering confidence that comes with putting in the work to be a star.

The charisma exuded by the second-generation rap star (her dad is Benzino, the Boston rapper who famously battled with Eminem in the early 2000s) is what prompted her inclusion in Uproxx’s “Rappers To Watch Out For In 2021,” bolstered by her slick performances on mixtapes Everythingcoz and EC2.

I first caught on the wave with her 2018 video for “Huddy,” a hard-hitting thumper that showcased Coi’s quirky personality and a real gift for penning blunt witticisms. While “No More Parties” is something of a departure from the more straightforward bars and rhymes on “Huddy,” the seeming disparity between the singles actually highlights her versatility as an artist. That’s why she’s suddenly in such high demand, with features on Yung Bleu’s “Thieves In Atlanta,” DDG’s “Impatient,” and TruCarr’s “Beat It Up,” as well as a cameo in Mooski’s “Track Star” video — her star power is shining through the TikTok trending, revealing an artist who is destined to be more than just a one-hit wonder.

Watch Coi Leray’s television debut with “No More Parties” on The Tonight Show above.

The Handmaid’s Tale is back for its fourth season and Gilead, along with all of her subjects, is in trouble. That’s mostly thanks to Elisabeth Moss’s scrappy heroine June, who managed to send 84 children and a handful of Marthas across the border to Canada at the end of season three. June’s victory was a major blow to devout Gilead followers, chief among them, Aunt Lydia, the maternally-inclined overseer of the Handmaids, and when the show returns — the first three episodes are already streaming on Hulu — a reckoning amongst those in power will be had.

For Ann Dowd, who’s spent the past few years playing an abusive tyrant, the chance to peel back some of Aunt Lydia’s layers was enough reason to return to Margaret Atwood’s particular dystopia. The author’s latest book, The Testaments, imagines Gilead years into the future as Aunt Lydia, now firmly in opposition to the world she helped build, tries to take down the theocracy from the inside. It’s a major shift for the character, one that made all the clawing and social-climbing she’s forced to do this season to reclaim her status even more interesting for Dowd.

We chatted with her about this season’s cat-and-mouse game between Aunt Lydia and June, future spin-off possibilities, and yes, her thoughts on being compared to character actress Margo Martindale.

Aunt Lydia is in a very bad way when we meet her this season. What’s her mindset?

Well, it’s certainly a humbling position she’s in. I think she is very tough on herself regarding the fact that this happened on her watch, so to speak. She is personally in favor of taking ownership of one’s mistakes so she has a long road there, just to forgive herself, but then on top of that of course, are the commanders. It’s their job to punish her and have her tortured.

They’re putting the blame on her.

That’s enraging to her, I’m sure. She has the good sense to push a little but not too far, to fight for her job and her position. I think it’s a tremendous period of personal adjustment and I would say personal growth in terms of her relationship with Gilead.

There are some heavy scenes this season, especially between you and Elisabeth Moss. Do you have room for downtime? Do you get to have a little laugh in between these torturous scenes?

That’s the built into the day, hun. That has to be present, or madness happens. [laughs] Yeah, we’re very comfortable with one another. There’s a great deal of laughter going on. We know each other well. We trust one another and we take the time we need just before we do our scenes, but other than that it’s a lot of laughter or chatting or just checking in with one another. It’s a terrific environment.

Why is it that Aunt Lydia can’t actually watch June be tortured by Gilead after her capture in episode three?

I would say because it’s unbearable.

She actually cares about her, still?

There’s tremendous love for her and despite the anger she feels, the rage she feels, that’s her girl. She doesn’t want to watch her suffer.

The Testaments, Margaret Atwood’s sequel to The Handmaid’s Tale, came out last year and it basically charts Aunt Lydia’s crusade against Gilead years into the future. Is some of the groundwork for that – and maybe for a spin-off series – being laid this season?

I think what makes a lot of sense is — as in life — change happens slowly in a human being and I think the experiences of this season deeply affect her. I think they will gradually bring her to the place where she begins The Testaments. She doesn’t miss a thing, Lydia. Do you know what I mean? She takes it all in. I think she believes in that motto, ‘What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger.’ She’s endured a lot. She’s provoked a lot; she’s caused a lot of pain in people’s lives but she also loves them. Who is that person?

This new power struggle she has with Commander Lawrence – does that also play into her future rebellion? Who’s in control of this relationship right now?

She’s risking a tremendous amount because at the end of the day women do not have power. She hopes, of course, that what she has on him will push power in her direction, which is pretty thrilling. , There is information that could sink him. She’s got something. The question is, will he fold?

Lawrence seems disillusioned with Gilead’s belief system. Does Aunt Lydia really believe in Gilead or is she also just playing a part?

I think that’s a conflict for her. I do think she’s attached to the ideology. I do think she’s attached deeply to her belief in God and how she thinks one should live one’s life. On the other hand, it’s about survival as well. You either do as we say or you die. She’s very aware of the imbalance of power.

Freaks and Geeks just came to Hulu. People are re-watching The Leftovers. There’s a lot of Ann Dowd on social media right now. Looking back on your career, which roles are you happy to be recognized for?

This is so boring, my answer here, hun, but so many of them, you know? Because I loved them. When people say they watched Law and Order — that’s just the birthplace for actors. That’s the christening. You’re an actor, man. But I’m just grateful for every single one. As I’ve said before, celebrating the small victories — I mean every single job. I don’t believe I ever took a role I didn’t want to take. There are probably some I enjoyed more than others, but just the fact that someone said ‘Yes.’ It just all means so much.

Are you just trying one-up character actress Margo Martindale at this point?

[laughs] She’s a doll. I adore her. We had an interview together sort of about that. We laugh because, first of all, I think she’s phenomenal, and there’s nobody like her. We laughed at each other like, ‘How are we alike? Someone help me out here.’We had a good laugh about that and a great time. We also did a Zoom film, which is to say we did it on Zoom, but also the story takes place on Zoom in large part. It was a fantastic experience and just getting to work with her, I just love her. We have a very nice relationship.