music
50 Rappers Who Changed the World Celebrates Hip-Hop’s Rich History: Review
The Lowdown: Public Enemy’s Chuck D has long advocated that the history of Black music in America — from the blues and R&B to soul and hip-hop — is inextricably linked to the history of the Black community. To understand, for instance, the origins of hip-hop — its power to give a voice to the once voiceless and shine light on both the cultural richness and profound systemic suffering found in urban communities — is to know something vital about the Black experience in America. Candace McDuffie’s new book, 50 Rappers Who Changed the World, does a service to both the history of a genre and of a people by paying tribute to the game-changing emcees from rap’s earliest days right up through artists topping present-day charts. <img data-attachment-id="1077449" data-permalink=&qu...
Artist of the Month beabadoobee Unleashes the Raw and Gutting Fake It Flowers: Review
The Lowdown: If you’ve ever scrolled TikTok, you’ve heard beabadoobee’s sweet single “Coffee”. It — plus a song that samples it — has been used to soundtrack almost every clip that includes any of the following: a nausea-inducing relationship montage, a racoon (or other wild animal) doing something kind of cute, or a craft project that you will absolutely never do but bookmark anyway. “Coffee” had taken off even before it made its way onto the omnipresent app, when it was posted by 1-800-LOVE-U, a popular YouTube channel with 700,000-plus subscribers. Characterized by a soft, almost dissolvable voice, the song is just under two minutes of simple guitar chords, doughy lyrics, and pleasant feelings. It’s charming, the equivalent of a gentle hug and kiss on the forehead. If, at times, the son...
Ennio Morricone’s First Posthumous Album Announced
Ennio Morricone died this past summer at the age of 91. Now, less than four months later, his first posthumous album is being prepped for release. Titled Morricone Segreto, it’s a 27-song compilation collecting rarities, alternate takes, and seven never-before-heard songs from the legendary composer. Due out November 6th via CAM Sugar/Decca, the forthcoming project is billed as “the hidden, dark-tinged, and psychedelic side of Ennio Morricone.” A press statement further describes the album as an “acid-tinged sonic journey through mysterious voices, fuzz guitars, airy strings, eerie synths and modern grooves”, suggesting we might be hearing a different version of Morricone — not the one we’ve grown accustomed to through scores like The Hateful Eight, The Untouchables, and The Good...
John Fogerty Serves Trump with Cease and Desist Over Use of “Fortunate Son”
Donald Trump is not the introspective type, and so he has no qualms about playing “Fortunate Son” at campaign rallies without permission. The CCR classic was written by a US Army veteran about children of privilege who found ways — for example, lying about bone spurs — to avoid the draft lottery during the Vietnam War. But even if Trump can’t comprehend the irony, that songwriter has had enough. John Fogerty has issued a “cease and desist” order, tweeting, “He is using my words and my voice to portray a message that I do not endorse.” Fogerty posted his statement along with a picture of himself in uniform. He said “Fortunate Song” came about “because, as a veteran, I was disgusted that some people were allowed to be excluded from serving our country because they had access to political and...
Diddy Warns If Trump Gets Reelected “There Will Be a Race War”
Diddy has launched a new political action committee, the Our Black Party, with the goal to “center the needs of Black people and Black communities in the political process.” In a fiery interview with Revolt TV, the mogul repeatedly made the point that politicians have neglected the needs of Black Americans, and warned that “If Trump gets elected, I really do believe in my heart there will be a race war” (via Yahoo! Entertainment). In conversation with Charlamagne the God, Diddy suggested that Trump further exacerbated racial tensions with his recent remarks about white nationalist militias in which he said they should, “stand back and stand by.” “White men like Trump need to be banished,” Diddy said. He explained, “That way of thinking is real dangerous. This man literally t...
Do Five Finger Death Punch Take an Anti-Mask Stance with “Living the Dream” Video?
Five Finger Death Punch have released a music video for the single “Living the Dream” that is rife with political symbolism. One aspect of the video appears to take an anti-mask stance, although there’s some ambiguity in the band’s intentions. In the video, civilians who wear masks are given a button that says “Compliant” emblazoned with a hammer and sickle (a longtime communist symbol). A sinister female leader who gives out the masks doesn’t have to wear one, as her button reads “Exempt”. There are also zombies hoarding toilet paper and Pulp Fiction-like gimps who are walked on a chain by the “Exempt” leader. The American flag is seen in the video with the stars replaced by the hammer and sickle, as well. When a masked ice cream truck worker is spotted with an actual American flag, Mrs. ...
Benny the Butcher Reveals New Album Burden of Proof: Stream
Benny the Butcher has uncorked his new album Burden of Proof. Scroll onwards to stream it through Apple Music and Spotify. Benny and his cousins Westside Gunn and Conway the Machine have spent the last half-decade slowly building up Griselda Records into an artistic powerhouse. The trio leveled up after 2019’s WWCD, and now 2020 has been the Year of Griselda: W.G. and Con have already released three albums with a fourth on the way, while Griselda associates Armani Caesar and Boldy James have put out excellent projects of their own. Burden of Proof is the latest bid for world domination, but it is sonically separate from the rest of the Griselda universe. While Mr. Gunn and Mr. Machine have favored throwback beats and collaborations with legends like DJ Premier and the W...
Beabadoobee Mines Her Own Cosmic Dust
Like a lot of Instagram users her age, 20-year-old Bea Kristi has at least one alt account. Her main, for the confessional guitar music she releases as Beabadoobee (styled lowercase, of course), remains a trove of promo pics, song teases, and bedroom selfies. That frees up her alt to devote prime grid real estate to extremely cute red pandas. As with plenty of other ideas rooted in comfort and good vibes, Bea’s @redpandadoobee emerged from being stoned and scrolling on her phone. “I’m on the tour bus, and I think I just had the munchies. I was just munching on some food and I just come across this video of this red panda,” she tells MTV News. “So my guitar tech walks in, like, ‘You look like you’re crying,’ and I’m like, yeah, no, these are the cutest things I’ve see...
Lous And The Yakuza’s Kate Bush Nod, Hope Tala’s ‘Crazy’ Voice, And More Songs We Love
Rust on gold is physically impossible, but Claud doesn’t care. The nonbinary, indie-pop singer defies the laws of chemistry in their latest cut, a mellow, self-aware take on a doomed relationship with an absolute earworm of a chorus. (“Gold” is their first release under Saddest Factory, Punisher songstress Phoebe Bridgers’s new record label.) “I’m too optimistic when I think that this’ll work out / Without anothеr emotional night where we both break down,” Claud confesses, which — ouch. Too real? Chase the burn with the song’s campy, pastel-hued visuals. —Sam Manzella You Deserve to Make Money Even When you are looking for Dates Online. So we reimagined what a dating should be. It begins with giving you back power. Get to meet Beautiful people, chat and make money in the process. Earn rewa...
Refused Announce The Malignant Fire EP, Unleash “Born on the Outs”: Stream
Swedish hardcore veterans Refused have announced a new EP, The Malignant Fire. In advance of its November 20th release, the band has unleashed the single “Born on the Outs”. The Malignant Fire will arrive roughly a year after Refused’s most recent full-length album, War Music. The new five-song collection features four new tracks and one War Music cut (“Malfire”). “Born on the Outs” has a post-punk vibe, with singer Dennis Lyxzén delivering clean vocals to start before escalating to his raspy howl. It’s as infectious as it aggressive, even delving into a melodic Sisters of Mercy-like bridge around the 2:10 mark. Lyrically, “Born on the Outs” continues the progressivism and radicalism of the band’s 30-year career, as Lyxzén rails against hate crimes, fascism, and oppression throug...
The Weeknd Officially Releases Saxy New “In Your Eyes” Remix Featuring Kenny G: Stream
The Weeknd’s “Blinding Lights” may be one of the best songs of 2020, but it’s the After Hours single “In Your Eyes” that’s extra sax-y — quite literally. Today, the R&B superstar has shared a new remix of “In Your Eyes” featuring the one and only saxophone legend Kenny G. The unlikely collaborators first debuted a version of this rework at last month’s TIME 100 event, where The Weeknd was honored as one of TIME’s 100 Most Influential People of 2020. While that live rendition saw Kenny G lend a silky instrumental outro, this official studio release of the remix features two additional solos from the jazz musician and Kanye West associate. We never would have guessed we’d be mentioning The Weeknd and Kenny G in the same breath — they each offer their own very different vision of “sexy mu...
Lost Under Heaven Return with New Single “Alpha Omega”: Stream
LUH. Lost Under Heaven, aka LUH., have returned with a new song called “Alpha Omega”. After releasing their previous albums, 2016’s Spiritual Songs for Lovers to Sing and last year’s Love Hates What You Become, via Mute, LUH. have decided to go the independent route. “Alpha Omega” marks their first release under their new label/arts platform, LUH.international. The single was entirely funded via the band’s Patreon, where subscribers got an early listen a few days ago. Today, the heavy swirling lament has been released wide for all to hear. As LUH. detailed in a statement, “Alpha Omega” was born out of exploring existential questions during lockdown. “After reflecting on our rapturous moment, from the sensational and quickly suppressed alternative narratives (or ‘conspiracy’ theories) to th...
