music blog
Updates and Improvements Abound for the 2023 Lost Lands Festival
Here’s what’s new for Lost Lands year six. Each year, headbangers from all over the world descend on Ohio for the world’s premier bass music festival, Lost Lands. The mastermind behind the madness, Excision, annually gathers an elite cast of talent for a weekend of nonstop dubstep, trap, melodic bass and everything in between. As detailed in our review of last year’s massive festival, Lost Lands has improved so much since its debut in 2017 that it’s nearly unrecognizable—in all the best ways. Now, Excision and his team of organizers have revealed what’s next for the festival, which returns to Legend Valley September 22-24, 2023. He took to his verified Instagram to share a long list of updates inspired by attendees’ feedback. Dubstep star Kompany p...
Afrojack, Chico Rose and Mougleta Reject Old Flames In Unapologetic Single, “Alone Again”
Chico Rose takes the lead in “Alone Again,” a dark and sultry dance record produced alongside Dutch compatriot Afrojack. The frequent collaborators have returned to Spinnin’ Records to release the new track, a spellbinding pop-house hybrid. This time around, Rose and Afrojack joined forces with Canadian singer-songwriter Mougleta, whose stunning vocal performance hypnotizes and haunts the senses. A stark contrast to 2019’s peak-time progressive anthem “Never Sleeps,” the woozy collab finds the duo trading soaring sound design for hypnotic bass. The track would be a seductive, come-hither banger if not for Mougleta, who unapologetically warbles about rejecting an old flame. If there was a song equivalent to leaving a desperate ex read, this is it. Take a ...
A Dream Setlist for Madonna’s “The Celebration Tour”
Madonna has never been a huge fan of nostalgia, particularly where her career and music are concerned. That’s certainly not a bad thing — in fact, her desire to push forward and keep breaking boundaries (sonic and otherwise) has kept her in the public eye for forty years. In recent years, Madonna’s tours have also been focused heavily on the present day, specifically whatever her latest record is at the time. But on Tuesday (January 17th), Madonna announced a career-spanning run dubbed “The Celebration Tour,” subtitled “Featuring Four Decades Of Greatest Hits.” (To get tix, a Live Nation pre-sale will take place starting Friday, January 19th at 10:00 a.m. local time — use access code SOUND — prior to the public on-sale beginning Friday, January 20th via Ticketmaster. Tickets will...
The Black Dahlia Murder Announce First Tour Since Passing of Frontman Trevor Strnad
The Black Dahlia Murder will embark on their first tour since the tragic passing of frontman Trevor Strnad. Support will come from Terror, Frozen Soul, Fuming Mouth, and Phobophilic during the six-week North American run. The Spring outing, dubbed “The Verminous Remnant Tour,” kicks off with a performance at the Decibel Metal & Beer Fest in Philadelphia on April 14th and runs through a May 26th gig in Minneapolis. A pre-sale begins Wednesday (January 18th) at 10 a.m. local time via Ticketmaster using the code SOUND, with a general on-sale starting this Friday. Alternatively, tickets can also be purchased via StubHub. Strnad died at the age of 41 in May 2022. No cause of death was revealed, but the band did share the number for the National Suicide Prevention Hotline when announcing his...
Selena Gomez’s Dream Guest Star Meryl Streep Joins Only Murders In the Building Cast
Just last month, Selena Gomez said that her dream guest star on Only Murders In the Building would, understandably, be Meryl Streep. Those dreams are now coming true, as the iconic actress is set to appear in the upcoming third season of Hulu’s crime comedy series that stars Gomez, Martin Short, and Steve Martin. Gomez revealed the news in a TikTok re-shared by the Only Murders official Twitter account. “Could this honestly get any better?” Gomez says, as she pans her phone camera around to show herself with her fellow cast members on the Season 3 set. “Well, I do think it could get a little bit better,” adds fellow A-list guest star Paul Rudd, before Streep appears behind the crew. Gomez first hinted at her hopes of Streep guest starring in a December profile with Vogu...
Nick Cave Doesn’t Appreciate “Bullshit” AI-Generated Nick Cave Songs
Stop sending Nick Cave those AI-generated “in the style of Nick Cave” songs made from ChatGPT because he’s just not into them. In his latest The Red Hand Files newsletter, the songwriter made that opinion very clear while tearing into a fan’s submission of one such ChatGPT song based on Cave’s own lyrics. “Since its launch in November [of] last year many people, most buzzing with a kind of algorithmic awe, have sent me songs ‘in the style of Nick Cave’ created by ChatGPT,” Cave began. “There have been dozens of them. Suffice to say, I do not feel the same enthusiasm around this technology.” He continued, “I understand that ChatGPT is in its infancy but perhaps that is the emerging horror of AI — that it will forever be in its infancy, as it will always have further to go, and the...
Usher, Mariah Carey, Missy Elliott and More Slated to Perform at Lovers & Friends 2023
If there is any festival out there right now that knows how to win over the hearts of R&B/hip hop fans from the ’90s and early ’00s, it’s Lovers & Friends. The lineup tends to feature some of the most nostalgic veterans from these genres, and it has just finally announced its 2023 lineup. Returning to Las Vegas, Nevada this Spring, the festival has tapped Usher, Mariah Carey and Missy Elliott to headline the one-day event. However, the throwback energy doesn’t stop there because the undercard is replete with other old-school chart-toppers such as Christina Aguilera, 50 Cent, Nelly, Chris Brown, Busta Rhymes, Bow Wow, Boyz II Men and more. Artists from the modern generation of R&B are also expected to touch the Lovers & Friends stage such as Jhene Aiko, Summer Walker, Bryson...
Trippie Redd Announces New Album ‘Mansion Musik’ Executive Produced by Chief Keef
Trippie Redd is following up 2021’s Trip At Knight and the deluxe LP Neon Shark vs Pegasus with a new body of work. The Ohio rapper’s next record is called Mansion Musik and will be executive produced entirely by Chief Keef. Redd took to social media to share the tracklist and features for the forthcoming project. Clocking in at 25 songs, Mansion Musik is scattered with a star-studded lineup of guest appearances from Future, Lil Baby, Kodak Black, Lil Durk, Rich The Kid, Travis Scott, Chief Keef and more. There’s also a posthumous appearance from the late Juice Wrld. The vast majority of the songs feature Redd alongside at least one other artist. After opening with the titular “Mansion Musik,” the rapper will team up with Chief Keef for “Atlantis,” followed by Future on “Psycho.” On the ne...
Peep The Trailer ‘The Mandalorian’ Season 3 On Disney+
HipHopWired Featured Video Source: YouTube / Disney+ Star Wars fans rejoice for The Mandalorian is set to return to action and Disney has just given us a sneak peak as what to expect in its upcoming season. Last night (Jan. 16), Disney released the first trailer for the highly anticipated third season of The Mandalorian, and it looks like it’s going to be an emotionally driven and action-packed affair. Looking to redeem himself after the surprising events of season two, Din Djarin aka The Mandalorian makes his way to the planet Mandalore in hopes of being “forgiven for my transgressions.” Related Stories With the adorable, yet powerful Grogu (baby Yoda) by his side, Din Djarin gets sidetracked from his plan when he learns that “There’s something dangerous happening out there,” which will n...
Lil Tjay Nabbed On Gun Charge, Misses Ice Spice Video Shoot
HipHopWired Featured Video Source: Roy Rochlin / Getty Rapper Lil Tjay’s mission to support fellow rapper Ice Spice ended with him in handcuffs as he was arrested on the way to her video shoot. According to reports, officers from the New York Police Department conducted a car stop of a black Cadillac Escalade on Monday afternoon (Jan. 16) at West 183rd Street and Ryer Avenue in the Bronx around 4 p.m. They reported that five men including Lil Tjay were in the vehicle and that four handguns were recovered. A passerby took video footage of the encounter, which was later shared on Twitter. He was reportedly en route to film the video for “Gangster Boo” with Ice Spice. Related Stories Lil Tjay, aka Tione Jayden Merritt, was arrested and taken to a local precinct. Representatives for the NYPD s...
Drake Drops New Video For “Jumbotron Sh*t Poppin”
HipHopWired Featured Video Source: Prince Williams / Getty It’s been a few months since the release of Drake and 21 Savage’s hit album, Her Loss, and Drizzy is looking to keep that project’s popularity alive going into 2023 by dropping off a new visual for one of the album’s standout cuts. Choosing to breath life into “Jumbotron Sh*t Poppin,” Drake keeps the concept as simple as can be as he shows us what his life is like on any average day. From shopping for a new Rolex to dining out at fancy restaurants where they serves exquisite meals on smoke filled platters, the life of the King of The North is something to behold indeed. With all the celebrity cameos in the video, we’re lowkey surprised 21 Savage wasn’t one of them as this track is off their duet album. Just sayin.’ Check out the vi...
Right-Wing Bozo Nick Adams Puts Struggle MAGA “Musician” Kid Rock Over Bruce Springsteen
HipHopWired Featured Video CLOSE Kid Rock fans are a curious bunch these days, especially given the Detroit artist’s deep embrace of Donald Trump and all things MAGA. Conservative blowhard Nick Adams posted a ludicrous tweet on Tuesday (Jan. 17) declaring the birthday boy (he turns 52 today) is a better artist than veteran rocker and actual musician Bruce Springsteen. We won’t dignify or help Adams’ on the Twitter engagement tip by linking his tweet but we’ll share what was written by the Aussie commentator. From Nick Adams’ Twitter feed: Kid Rock is more talented, both lyrically and musically, than Bruce Springsteen, and it’s not particularly close. Kid Rock’s music perfectly captures the essence of America in a way Springsteen could only dream of. I don’t understand how this is even a di...
