music blog
BLACKPINK’s Second Album ‘Born Pink’ Has Arrived: Stream It Now
Blinks, the wait is finally over. After several months of teasers, tour announcements and tantalizing campaigns, BLACKPINK‘s highly anticipated second album, Born Pink, officially arrived on streaming on Friday (Sept. 16). In addition to the album, fans were also treated to the vibrant, neon-colored visual to accompany “Shut Down,” the lead single (also known as the “title track”) from Born Pink at the stroke of midnight. Though Born Pink is mere hours into its infancy, BLACKPINK’s previous Billboard successes provide some indication on how the album may fare on the charts. “Pink Venom,” the first taste fans got of the album, netted the four piece its second-highest charting song on the Billboard Hot 100 after debuting at No. 22 on the Sept. 3-dated chart. (“Ice Cream” with Selen...
NCT 127 Drops New Album ‘2 Baddies’: Stream It Now
NCT 127 unveiled their new album 2 Baddies on Friday (September 16) via SM Entertainment. The 12-track collection is the K-pop group’s first full-length studio set since 2020’s Sticker: The Third Album (which was repackaged last October as Favorite) and contains tracks like “Faster,” “Time Lapse,” “불시착 (Crash Landing)” and album closer “1, 2, 7 (Time Stops).” While the nine-piece act hasn’t shared a single from the project yet, they have hinted at its concept and aesthetic with teaser videos filled with sleek luxury sports cars — just like the one that appears on the album’s birds-eye cover shot featuring all nine members. The album’s sound, meanwhile, shows off the idols’ eclectic versatility as they run through R&B, pop, electronic dance and hip-hop-leaning sounds. To support 2 Baddi...
Ab-Soul Shares New Single “Moonshooter”
Ab-Soul surprised fans with the release of his latest single, “Moonshooter.” Clocking in at just a little over three minutes, the cut is produced by Poptartpete and marks the TDE artist’s second release of 2022, following “Hollandaise” from April. TDE recently hinted that “Moonshooter” may be part of Ab-Soul’s upcoming record, announcing on Instagram that the Carson rapper’s album is finished. Ab-Soul’s last full-length release dates back to December 2016’s Do What Thou Wilt., which featured guest appearances from Zacari, Bas, Dash, Kokane, BR3, ScHoolboy Q, Teedra Moses, JaVonté, TDE President Punch, SZA, Rapsody and the late Mac Miller. Stream Ab-Soul’s “Moonshooter” on Spotify and Apple Music, and stay tuned for updates on his upcoming album. Elsewhere in music, take a listen to Blood O...
Usher Celebrates 25th Anniversary of ‘My Way’ With Special Edition
Usher is commemorating the 25 years of his celebrated album My Way with a special anniversary edition. The latest version features the original album in its entirety along with three “freshly reimagined” cuts — the Ryan James Carr remakes of “My Way,” “Nice & Slow” and “You Make Me Wanna…” — and their respective instrumentals. In addition, Usher and Sony Music Entertainment will release the mini-documentary Usher: 25 Years My Way, which hears the artist delving into the origin stories and the album’s culture impact, plus more interviews from Jermaine Dupri and Carr. My Way was originally released in 1997 and has been certified 7x platinum since, with the tracks “You Make Me Wanna..” and “Nice & Slow” being 3x platinum. The record is regarded as his breakout album, giving hi a...
Doja Cat Reveals Her Fourth Album Will Be Influenced By “Rave Culture”
Doja Cat is delving deep to find new artistic drive from her childhood influences—and she’s turning to rave culture for inspiration. The “Say So” songstress previously announced her upcoming fourth studio album would focus more on her rapping ability, but in a recent interview with CR Fashion Book, she said its production style would also mark a departure from her prior works. Amid a recent rush of major hip-hop artists turning to dance music for inspiration, such as Drake, Megan Thee Stallion, Beyoncé, and Big Sean, Doja Cat is the latest to gravitate towards the genre while noting that these days, ’90s German rave music has been more her speed. Doja Cat demonstrating a makeup routine for Vogue Taiwan in 2020. Vogue Taiwan Scroll to Continue Recommended Articles &#...
Experiences With Carl Cox, Martin Garrix, More Confirmed for 2022 ADE Lab: See the Full Program
As the return of the world’s largest electronic music conference nears, its organizers have poured gasoline on the hype. Amsterdam Dance Event today revealed the lineup for ADE Lab, its slate of programming that offers a more accessible alternative to the industry professional-oriented ADE Pro business conference. The program is vast, boasting a myriad of workshops, think tanks and panels exploring dance music culture. ADE is beloved for its rare, one-of-a-kind electronic music experiences. And after the scourge of COVID-19, which threw a wrench into the conference’s last two iterations, organizers are now going bigger than ever. Holders of the ADE Lab Pass will be able to visit Martin Garrix’s STMPD Studios, where they’ll learn about mixing spat...
Blood Orange Delivers First New Music in Three Years, ‘Four Songs’
Blood Orange/Dev Hynes is back with his EP Four Songs, marking the first piece of new music the artist has released since 2019. The four-track record is produced and written by Hynes himself and features a series of both new and old Blood Orange collaborators, including Ian Isaiah, Eva Tolkin and Erika de Casier. Between 2019 and Four Songs, Hynes has kept himself busy, scoring and soundtracking Luca Guadagnino’s We Are Who We Are, Gia Coppola’s Mainstream, In Treatment, Naomi Osaka’s Netflix documentary and Passing, as well as receiving his first GRAMMY nomination for Best Chamber Music/Small Ensemble Performance. Hynes has been opening for Harry Styles’ Madison Square Garden shows and will continue to do so for Styles’ last two dates on September 21 and September 22. Stream Blood Orange’...
Stanning BTS: “Sexy Nukim” and Our BTS Favorites
Listen via Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Google Podcasts | Radio Public | Pocket Casts | RSS RM is bringing “Sexy Nukim” back! BTS’ leader has teamed with Balming Tiger on their latest track, and Kayla and Bethany have some thoughts. Advertisement Related Video Also on this episode of Stanning BTS, the hosts pose some questions to themselves about their favorite BTS highlights. The run through their favorite “sexy” songs, band eras, concert moments, photo shoots, and more. All these questions will be asked to listeners during the next ICONIC hangout on Monday, September 19th at 7:00 p.m. ET, but you can learn what the hosts think now. Listen to their thoughts on all this and “Sexy Nukim” in the episode above, then make sure to like, revie...
See How They Run Review: An Engaging Meta Riff on the Fun of a Whodunnit
The Pitch: In part thanks to Daniel Craig’s Benoit Blanc, detective stories are having a bit of a moment right now, but stories of mysterious murders have been around for eons, with Agatha Christie being one of the 20th century’s pioneers in the genre. It’s Christie’s legacy that plays a huge role in See How They Run, which takes its inspiration from a famed play of the writer’s, but still has its own original mystery to unfurl. In the new film, directed by first-time feature director Tom George, it’s the 1950s, and a murder has taken place at the theater where Christie’s The Mousetrap has just celebrated its 100th performance. Enter Inspector Stoppard (Sam Rockwell) and Constable Stalker (Saoirse Ronan) to investigate, with everyone present the night of the death, including producer Petul...
Saturday Night Live Welcomes Four New Faces to Season 48 Cast
Saturday Night Live had somewhat of a mass exodus following the end of its 47th season, but the long-running sketch comedy series has now added a slew of fresh faces to its upcoming Season 48 cast. New featured players include Marcello Hernandez, Molly Kearney, Michael Longfellow, and Devon Walker. Kate McKinnon, Aidy Bryant, Kyle Mooney, Pete Davidson, Alex Moffat, Melissa Villaseñor, and featured player Aristotle Athari all left SNL this year, marking the biggest cast turnover since Kristen Wiig, Andy Samberg, Jason Sudeikis, Bill Hader, and Fred Armisen moved on from the show in 2012 and ’13. All four of Saturday Night Live’s new additions have roots in standup. Hernandez hails from Miami and serves as creative director for the “citizen’s journalism” comedy Instagram account O...
Jeremy Allen White Joins Cast of Von Erich Brothers Film The Iron Claw
The Von Erich family is set to be immortalized in a new film from A24 called The Iron Claw, where Jeremy Allen White, Zac Efron, and Harris Dickinson will play three members of the wrestling clan. White has been cast as Kerry Von Erich, Efron as Kevin, and Dickinson as David. The film is written and directed by Sean Durkin and produced by Tessa Ross, Derrin Schlesinger, Harrison Huffman, and Angus Lamont. Led by their father Fritz Van Erich, the Van Erich family dominated the professional wrestling sphere in the 1980s, especially in the World Class Championship Wrestling circuit of their home state of Texas. While Kerry, known as “The Modern Day Warrior” and “The Texas Tornado,” was probably the most well-known Van Erich, Kevin and David became circuit staples as well, known respectiv...
Kanye West Tells Gap Their Partnership Is A Wrap
HipHopWired Featured Video Source: Gilbert Carrasquillo / Getty Kanye West is terminating his partnership with Gap. Reportedly, Ye had his lawyers send the apparel company a letter informing the brand that he is on to the next one, and it’s their fault. The Wall Street Journal reports that on Thursday (Sept. 15), the “Power” rapper’s attorneys sent a letter to Gap notifying them that Yeezy LLC is terminating their arrangement. Whether this is legal, we’ll surely be finding out. Per the letter, Ye contends that Gap breached their contract by not releasing certain apparel and not opening planned retail stores. Currently, the Yeezy Gap by Balenciaga collection is in stores, with its latest drop being a $40 black keychain. Last month, Ye himself responded to criticism about how the apparel was...
