Hip hop

“Our branding team is constantly looking for ways to move the needle for both our management and publishing clients,” a representative from Primary Wave tells Rolling Stone. “We’ve made deals with American Greetings for a digital card and Shinola for a watch, [both of which incorporated] Smokey Robinson’s songs. We were also the company behind the Aerosmith lottery scratch-off and Kurt Cobain converse sneaker.” The rep says Primary Wave has also struck artist partnerships with companies like Sony’s TriStar and sunglasses brand Oakley, and that it is already planning other music-related games with FITZ for the near future. … [Read more...] about Cypress Hill’s Newest Venture Is ‘HotBox,’ a Weed-Centric Card Game

Within the stygian murk of an unused train tunnel, Nikki (Held) has carved out a home for her and Little, a shack of sorts decorated with arts-and-craftsy mobiles and sparkly things. Wisely eschewing explicit backstory, the screenplay doesn't spell out how long they've lived under the streets, but it would seem to be as long as Little can remember. All she knows about "up top," or "topside," is that her mother makes regular forays there and says she's working on a plan to find them a home. Before they can move, though, Little needs to grow her angel wings — a fantasy that the girl embraces but whose whimsy quickly wears thin for the viewer, because it's painfully clear that Nikki's plight renders her incapable of realizing such a plan. … [Read more...] about ‘Topside’: Film Review | Venice 2020

But Carter took the rock and politics dance to unforeseen new levels. Paul Simon and Aretha Franklin sang at his inaugural balls. During their 1977 reunion tour, Crosby, Stills & Nash stopped by the White House for a quick visit; at one point, one of their managers sneaked over to a nearby window, lit up a joint and quickly extinguished it, just to say he’d done it. That same year, Willie Nelson and Carter’s son Chip smoked weed on the roof of the White House. In 1978, Carter snagged the Atlanta Rhythm Section — known for Southern soft-rock mainstays like “So into You” and “Imaginary Lover” — for a pig-roast cookout and concert on the south lawn of the White House. That may seem corny, and no big deal in light of Obama inviting members of the Grateful Dead to the White House right after they’d played at one of his inaugural balls. But it’s hard to understate how unprecedented Carter’s rock hangtime was at the time. … [Read more...] about How Jimmy Carter (Literally) Rocked the Presidency

For “Turntables,” Monáe worked with some of her most trusted collaborators: Nate “Rocket” Wonder, Roman GianArthur and George A. Peters. “The table ’bout to turn,” she repeats as the song opens. As the track progresses, she calls America “a lie,” adding that “the whole world ’bout to testify” against it. … [Read more...] about Janelle Monáe Ready to Testify on Invigorating New Single ‘Turntables’

WhoHeem is the latest artist to go from unknown to ubiquitous in an astonishingly short time period thanks in part to the widespread adoption of his song “Lets Link” on TikTok. This trajectory has become increasingly common in the music industry over the last 20 months, helping Sub Urban, Benee, 24kgoldn, Arizona Zervas, Conkarah, and Jawsh 685, among others, earn breakout hits. … [Read more...] about WhoHeem’s ‘Lets Link’ Debuts on the RS 100 After Exploding on TikTok