Entertainment News
Tkay Maidza Signs to 4AD, Drops New Banger “Shook”: Stream
Rising Australian rapper Tkay Maidza has inked a deal with legendary British indie label 4AD, currently home to artists like Grimes, The National, and Big Thief. It’s not a common destination for fledgling rappers, but Maidza, who recently collaborated with Baltimore experimentalist JPEGMAFIA, is no ordinary hip-hop artist. For proof of her refreshing approach to the genre, fans won’t have to look beyond her banging new single “Shook”. On the track, Maidza can be heard rapping with an elastic flow over a distinctly Missy Elliott-esque beat. The sonic parallel isn’t purely coincidental, either; “Shook” was actually produced by Dan Farber, who helmed the instrumental for Lizzo’s “Tempo” single featuring Elliott herself. Maidza’s cadence during the verse is also slightly reminiscent...
Prince and the Revolution Concert Film to Stream on YouTube This Weekend
Your weekend just got a lot more funky: Prince and the Revolution: Live, the famed 1985 concert film capturing Prince’s iconic “Purple Rain Tour”, will stream for free on YouTube this weekend. Recorded on March 30th, 1985 at the Carrier Dome in Syracuse, New York, the concert film features a thrilling 20-song performance by Prince and The Revolution. They played all nine songs from Purple Rain, including a 20-minute version of the title track to close the concert. The setlist also included five songs from 1999, as well as several rarities and B-Sides from both albums. Joining Prince on stage was The Revolution’s Wendy Melvoin (guitar), Lisa Coleman (keyboards), Dr. Fink (keyboards), Mark Brown (bass), Eric Leeds (saxophone), and Bobby Z. (drums)., along with Sheila E. and Mike Weaver. The ...
Universal’s Watch Party Series to Kickoff With Halloween Hosted by Jamie Lee Curtis
Jamie Lee Curtis is back on her live-watch game. Today, Universal announced it will be taking over weekends with a series of Twitter watch parties, and Laurie Strode herself will kick things off this Saturday, May 16th with 2018’s Halloween. She won’t be alone when she returns to Haddonfield, Illinois. Director David Gordon Green will co-host alongside the Scream Queen and entertain special guests John Carpenter, Jason Blum, Judy Greer, James Jude Courtney, and Nick Castle. Sadly, Dr. Sartain will not be joining them. Editors’ Picks The rest of the month will see watch parties for Apollo 13, hosted by former NASA Astronaut Scott Kelly, in addition to The Breakfast Club, hosted by everyone’s favorite site founded by Chris Hardwick: Nerdist. Radical. In order to join, simply follow the...
Trapt to Release “Probably One of the Top 5 Albums That Will Ever Exist for All of Time,” Says Trapt
Trapt singer Chris Taylor Brown has been making headlines lately for challenging other bands to fights, defending President Trump’s actions on the coronavirus pandemic, and touting his own group’s Pandora streaming numbers. But now he’s ready to let some new music do the talking … well, actually he’s already doing the talking before the music even comes out. The hard-rock band, best known for the 2002 hit “Headstrong”, has announced that its eighth album, Shadow Work, will arrive on June 19th. Furthermore, Trapt planned to release the singles “Make It Out Alive” and “Tell Me How You Really Feel” this Friday, May 15th, followed by another song, “Far Enough Away”, but decided to make them all available as instant grat tracks for those who pre-order the album starting today (May 12th). B...
Robert Pattinson Spends Quarantine Cooking Up Literal Pasta Dish Nightmare
Whether you’ve been toiling over your sourdough starter, or watching Chrissy Teigen and Alison Roman feud over recipes and branding, one thing’s for sure: the kitchen has become the absolute hotspot during quarantine. With production on Matt Reeves’ new Batman movie shutdown because of the pandemic, that’s certainly where actor Robert Pattinson has been spending a lot of his time. In fact, he’s been diligently working on his fledgling pasta business and signature dish, piccolini cuscino, or “little pillow” in Italian. His culinary endeavors haven’t gone well, though. In fact, they’ve literally gone up in flames. The misfires aren’t due to Pattinson’s inability to cook, per se, but rather his overall worldview on cooking in general: The Batman star’s got some pretty batshit k...
Original Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater Games Getting Re-Released for PS4, XBOX One, and PC
Whether you’re regular, goofy, or even a cop (we see you Officer Dick) get ready to drop back in to the Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater universe. As THR reports, 1999’s Pro Skater and 2000’s Pro Skater 2 are being remastered with 4K HD graphics. The games will be available on PC, XBox One, and Playstation 4 starting on September 4th. The original Pro Skater titles represented a revolution in freewheeling gameplay, and as hard as it is to believe today, the graphics were top-of-the-line. The re-released games will feature the old familiar maps, as well as the same skaters, moves, gameplay modes, and best of all, the original soundtracks. But this isn’t just a new skin on an old structure; led by publisher Activision and developer Vicarious Visions, the updated Pro Skater gam...
Back to the Future Cast Reunite, Recreate Iconic Scenes on YouTube Livestream: Watch
Josh Gad built a time machine… out of a YouTube channel. After reuniting the Goonies last week, Gad’s new livestream series “Reunited Apart” has now brought back together the cast of Back to the Future. In addition to the trilogy’s stars, Michael J. Fox (Marty McFly) and Christopher Lloyd (Doc Brown), the reunion featured appearances from franchise cast members Lea Thompson, Mary Steenburgen, Elisabeth Shue, and Claudia Wells. Director Robert Zemeckis, screenwriter Bob Gale, “The Power of Love” songwriter Huey Lewis, and composer Alan Silvestri also joined. Even recent Star Wars director and longtime Back to the Future fan J.J. Abrams hopped on the stream to participate in the festivities. Editors’ Picks As with Gad’s Goonies reunion, the Back to the Future v...
Billy Joel Delivers Poignant “Miami 2017” Performance During Rise Up New York! Benefit Livestream: Watch
Last month, Bruce Springsteen led Jersey4Jersey, a livestreamed concert benefiting COVID-19 relief efforts in the state of New Jersey. On Monday, New York held its own virtual fundraising event, headlined by its own local hero in Billy Joel. Following appearances by New York celebrities (Spike Lee, Jennifer Lopez, Robert De Niro) and politicians (Governor Andrew Cuomo, Mayer Bill De Blasio), the Piano Man himself closed out the virtual telethon. Joel aptly chose to pay tribute to the Big Apple, the war-weary epicenter of the pandemic, by playing a moving rendition of his 1976 single “Miami 2017”, also known as “Seen the Lights Go Out on Broadway”. As Rise Up New York!’s main event of the evening, Joel’s performance was broadcast on big screens all across the shuttered city, including Times...
Bernie Sanders Has a Red Hot Chili Peppers Poster Hanging Up in His Office
One of the unexpected consequences of the global quarantine is the chance to get a peak inside the homes of celebrities, politicians, and other high-profile public figures. Livestreams and webinars don’t just provide entertainment, they also scratch a voyeuristic itch. For instance, if not for the quarantine, how else would we have learned that Bernie Sanders has a Red Hot Chili Peppers poster and a Prince bass drum head hanging up in his home office? The music memorabilia could be seen in the background as Senator Sanders posed questions during a virtual hearing about COVID-19 on Tuesday. To his left was a framed Red Hot Chili Peppers poster, and to his right hung a bass drum head from Prince’s backing band New Power Generation. It’s worth noting that Bernie previously recruited both...
Moog Announces New Subharmonicon Analog Synthesizer, Shares Musical Score by Suzanne Ciani
Moog has unveiled its new analog synthesizer, the Subharmonicon. The instrument finally arrives on the consumer market after a prototype version was teased during a workshop at Moogfest, the company’s curated music festival, in 2018. To commemorate the occasion, Moog shared a short film, Music as Living Matter, featuring a score by electronic music pioneer Suzanne Ciani, composed entirely with the Subharmonicon. The hype is well deserved. The early models used during Moogfest sold for thousands on the second hand market, leaving artists and hobbyists wondering when the instrument would see an official rollout, much like Moog’s Werkstaat. The latest evolution in Moog’s arsenal of semi-modular analog synths, the Subharmonicon offers a limitless creative portal worthy of the iconic brand. To ...
Lou Barlow Says Next Dinosaur Jr. Album Is Finished, Plays New Song: Watch
Late last year, bassist Lou Barlow revealed that Dinosaur Jr. were in the studio recording their next record. Now, relishing his role as the official Dino-leaker, Barlow has announced that the album is finished and mixed. What’s more, he’s premiered a new, currently untitled song. The news came from Barlow’s laundry room during a lockdown livestream performance on Monday. “We just finished mixing the Dinosaur Jr. record. Of course we did it remotely,” he said, adding that John Agnella had done the work alone in his North Carolina studio. “I have two songs that I contributed. I had three but I couldn’t finish the third one because of…” He gave a shrug that took in the general state of the world. “This. There’s been a lot of cancelled Dinosaur Jr. stuff, too, but we have a record so we have ...
The Beths Second-Guess the Future on New Single “I’m Not Getting Excited”: Stream
This summer, The Beths will return with a sophomore album called Jump Rope Gazers. After previewing the release with last month’s “Dying to Believe”, the New Zealand indie pop outfit is unboxing a new single in “I’m Not Getting Excited”. While musically a jumpy, driving number, its subject matter is about denying oneself the freedom to enjoy excitement and success — all because of constant second-guessing. In a statement, lead singer Elizabeth Stokes explained this case of imposter syndrome, “People always ask ‘are you excited!?’ and it’s a fair question, because exciting things do happen to us sometimes. Support slots, overseas tours, music releases. Stuff we’ve dreamed about for years. So the correct answer is always ‘yes.’ But the truth is that deep down there’s a tiny Liz saying, ‘don’...
