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Letter from the Editor: The Blur Cover Story
Damon Albarn reveals how years of change brought him back to Blur. Letter from the Editor: The Blur Cover Story Ben Kaye
Meet Min Woo Lee, the Pro Golfer of the Future
Min Woo Lee just crushed a drive 350 yards-plus down the middle of the fairway. Launch monitor technology recorded the ball coming off the club face at a speed of 193 miles per hour. Seconds later, a clip is uploaded to Instagram. The caption? "Let him cook." It's a phrase that not everybody in golf may be familiar with, but for the people who understand, it's a ringing endorsement.Crushing golf balls comes natural to him, and so does serving looks. Ever since The Players Championship this year when he first pulled a mock neck shirt over his head, the people can't get enough of him. Add in a mullet, mustache, and Flak Jacket Oakleys, and Min Woo starts looking more like an F1 driver than your average polo and khakis-clad PGA TOUR golfer. He's built for speed, and he has the fast ball to pr...
Ashley Monae on the Power of Storytelling as a Creative Director
Looking back, Ashley Monae acknowledges that it was a no-brainer for her to end up as a creative director. It wasn’t necessarily because she had set it as a particular goal, but rather because of her dedication to follow her love for music and visual art.School didn’t play a major role in her path, but it would be wrong to dismiss the story of how her past endeavors directly led her to become RCA Records’ Creative Director for Creative and Content Development. Monae went to school for Print Journalism and a minor in Film Theory — both of which focus on storytelling, which she describes as “an integral part of creative direction” — and kicked off her career in the industry as a music journalist for the likes of PAPER Magazine and Pitchfork. Her transition to an A&R role came at the sugg...
Meta Launched Threads and Twitter Reportedly Threatened To Sue in This Week’s Tech Roundup
This week, the tech industry was struck by the launch of Meta’s Threads, a text-based app set up to give Twitter a run for its money. Just a day after the launch, Twitter’s lawyer reportedly sent a letter to Mark Zuckerberg, accusing the Meta CEO of using “trade secrets” to build the app.Elsewhere in tech, OpenAI announced that it’ll be dedicating a team of engineers and computer scientists to control advanced AI with “superintelligent” properties. And on the product side, Nothing released its popular Ear (2) buds in a new black colorway.Below, Hypebeast has rounded up the top tech stories of the week so you can stay up to date on trends in the industry.OpenAI Shared Its Assembling a Team To Control ‘Superintelligent’ AIOpenAI is working to address concerns about potential risks that excee...
Beyoncé’s “Renaissance World Tour” Is the Summer’s Hottest Dance Club
A dazzling two-and-a-half hour spectacle that incorporated all the elements of her creative genius. Beyoncé’s “Renaissance World Tour” Is the Summer’s Hottest Dance Club Karen Bliss
Best New Tracks: Mick Jenkins x JID, Dominic Fike and More
As the week in music comes to a close, Hypebeast has rounded up the best projects for the latest installment of Best New Tracks.This week’s lineup is led by Mick Jenkins x JID and Dominic Fike, who dropped the single "Smoke Break-Dance" and the album Sunburn, respectively. Also joining this selection are offerings from JELEEL!, Coi Leray with David Guetta, Black Sherif, Conway the Machine, KennyHoopla and Little Dragon.Mick Jenkins x JID - "Smoke Break-Dance"Mick Jenkins announces The Patience, his first full-length effort in two years, with the release of "Smoke Break-Dance" featuring JID. "As best I can be, I am a person who does everything within his power to change his situation. I think with some level of consistency, that behavior inevitably leads you to a point where you have to wai...
Bktherula Manifests Her Dreams Through Mantra Music
From psychedelically melodic tracks like “Right NOW” and "okok/depressing" to high-energy party starters like "Uh Huh," Bktherula, is laying the groundwork for a career built on evolution. It's been only three years since the Atlanta native officially hopped on the scene with 2020’s Love Santana, but in that short time, she's already released four projects of what she calls “mantra music.”Whether it be Love Santana, 2020 follow-up Nirvana, 2021's Love Black or this year’s LVL5 P1, the attraction in Bktherula's music is her dance between balanced melodies and harder rap elements – making for an irrefutably versatile sound. Now the artist is adding to the versatility of her catalog with her newly released EP, Love Nirvana (Acoustic)."My sound is mantra music. I'm speaking to the world the sa...
Song of the Week: Taylor Swift and Hayley Williams Rebuild a Dynasty with “Castles Crumbling”
The new collaboration arrives on Speak Now (Taylor's Version). Song of the Week: Taylor Swift and Hayley Williams Rebuild a Dynasty with “Castles Crumbling” Mary Siroky
Hypeart Visits: Jakob Rowlinson’s Fusion of Fantasy and Reality
Jakob Rowlinson masterfully blends the natural world with medieval symbolism in his thought-provoking artworks, exploring the evolving perceptions of masculinity. Employing collage techniques and working with felt, he merges decorative patterns inspired by medieval designs and manuscript marginalia with organic iconography. These compositions are enriched by lush green moss, ferns, and foliage, harmoniously blending the natural and the symbolic. Within these captivating landscapes, Rowlinson incorporates contemporary stylized symbols.Rowlinson's creative inspiration stems from artbooks and fantasy artwork, including the alluring illustrations found on book covers and video games. Influenced by the Final Fantasy franchise and profoundly moved by Francis Bacon's emotional portraits, he devel...
True Techno: Why Kappa Futur Is More than Just a Music Festival
Kappa Futur Festival just celebrated its 10th anniversary, providing a techno utopia for thousands of attendees in a futuristic landscape to let go, express themselves, and become whoever they want to be.Based in the heart of Turin, Italy, Kappa Futur Festival provides an experience that sets it aside from other music festivals. Featuring cutting-edge lighting – designed by local artists and creatives – the venue also includes best-in-class sound systems, as well as an intricately chosen schedule that highlights the best in techno, house, and electronic music.Along with its immersive sound and ever-evolving line-ups yearly, Kappa Futur Festival is steeped in history. Held in the Parco Dora, a former car factory in the centre of Turin, the location is the result of the “most impressive post...
Collectors: Pablo Villazan on Shaping the Future of Contemporary Art With ‘Cuteism’
‘Collectors’ journeys into the homes of fledgling and seasoned art buyers from across the globe. The ongoing series offers an intimate spotlight on a range of personal collections from hobbyist ephemera to blue-chip artworks -- all the while dissecting an individual’s specific taste, at-home curation and purchase trajectory.From the very beginning of his journey as a gallery owner, Pablo Villazan of VILLAZAN Gallery had a clear mission in mind: to work alongside high-potential emerging artists, nurturing their talents and advancing their professional careers together. Recognizing the limitations of working with established artists already affiliated with international galleries, he saw an opportunity to build something from the ground up, where both he and the artists had nothing to lose ...
Zack Bia in Infinity Loop
For many, Zack Bia, the DJ-turned-label founder-turned-director of his own world-connecting records, is both a household name and a kind of puzzle. You may know what he looks like (rosy cheeks, upward wave of brown hair, standing next to someone from LA's popular kids table) but maybe not what he does, or how he got there. "How" in the broad, even cosmos-questioning kind of way, or as one friend put it: "There are a million Zack Bias, so how did this Zack Bia become ZACK BIA?" Ahead of the release of his debut project, Bia spoke about what he's been doing in the studio, how he likes to party, why LMFAO is back, and the blend of skill, blessings, and action it actually takes to get lucky.In today's industry, many artists are responsible not only for making great music, but also the work to ...
