The Kid LAROI’s long-awaited new project, ‘The First Time,’ now available for presave and preorder

The Kid LAROI’s long-awaited new project, ‘The First Time,’ now available for presave and preorder
The Kid LAROI’s long-awaited new project, ‘The First Time,’ now available for presave and preorder
Columbia Records

Fans of The Kid LAROI have been waiting for new music from the Australian rapper for ages, and now he’s finally delivering.

The first song from his upcoming project, The First Time, will arrive January 19. On Instagram, he wrote, “Let me know what song you want.” The project itself is available to presave and preorder now. As for when that’ll be released, so far all we know is “soon.”

In a 36-second trailer for the project, we see a series of images, including LAROI kissing a girl, jumping into a pool and smoking. “You never forget the first time,” he says in a voice-over. “The first time you fall in love. The first time you get caught. The first time you feel shame. The first real kiss.” 

On Twitter, he wrote, “So stoked we’re finally about to f***king do this holy s**t.”

In February 2022, LAROI announced The First Time, which was going to be released in June. In March, he changed the name to Kids Are Growing Up. Either way, the album never materialized. Now it appears as though it’s back to its original title.

The new project is the follow-up to F*ck Love 3: Over You, which came out in 2021 and included LAROI’s megahit Justin Bieber collab “Stay.”

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Joni Mitchell to be honored with Library of Congress’ 2023 Gershwin Prize for Popular Song

Joni Mitchell to be honored with Library of Congress’ 2023 Gershwin Prize for Popular Song
Joni Mitchell to be honored with Library of Congress’ 2023 Gershwin Prize for Popular Song
ANGELA WEISS/AFP via Getty Images)

Joni Mitchell is set to receive yet another prestigious honor. The singer will be honored with the 2023 Gershwin Prize for Popular Song, handed out by the Library of Congress.

“This is a very prestigious award,” Mitchell said in statement. “Thank you for honoring me.”

Mitchell will be feted with a tribute concert taking place March 1 in Washington, D.C., which will air on PBS March 31 at 9 p.m. So far no artists have been announced for the tribute.

The new honor comes about a year after Mitchell was celebrated as the Recording Academy’s MusiCares Person of the Year.

The Gershwin Prize has been handed out since 2007, with Paul Simon the first honoree. Last year Lionel Richie received the award, with Billy Joel, Paul McCartney, Carole King and Stevie Wonder among the previous honorees.

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Jack White recalls performing with “guitar innovator extraordinaire” Jeff Beck: “He was amazingly kind”

Jack White recalls performing with “guitar innovator extraordinaire” Jeff Beck: “He was amazingly kind”
Jack White recalls performing with “guitar innovator extraordinaire” Jeff Beck: “He was amazingly kind”
Mick Hutson/Redferns

Jack White has shared a tribute to late guitar icon Jeff Beck, who died Tuesday at age 78.

In an Instagram post, the White Stripes/Raconteurs/Dead Weather rocker writes, “Jeff Beck, guitar innovator extraordinaire has moved to the next realm.”

“He was amazingly kind and instructional to me over the years,” White continues. “Many shows that I’ve played began moments after listening to his song ‘Led Boots’ backstage.”

White’s post also includes a video of him and Meg White performing with Beck during a 2002 White Stripes show in London, during which they performed a set of songs by Beck’s legendary group The Yardbirds.

“In our rehearsals he plugged straight into an amp, no effects pedals,” White recalls. “He was changing the sound of the guitar and doing things people didn’t know were possible from his earliest days on stage.”

Beck’s passing has been mourned by many of the biggest names in rock. Those who’ve also paid tribute include Led Zeppelin‘s Jimmy Page and Robert Plant, Ozzy Osbourne, Mick Jagger and Paul McCartney.

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Russell Dickerson plans to crash the opening of Nashville’s first In-N-Out

Russell Dickerson plans to crash the opening of Nashville’s first In-N-Out
Russell Dickerson plans to crash the opening of Nashville’s first In-N-Out
ABC/Connie Chornuk

Russell Dickerson can’t contain his excitement about California’s popular In-N-Out burger chain finally making its way to Nashville.

“Y’all, huge announcement! As you probably already have seen, In-N-Out’s coming to Nashville. I will be playing the opening of the In-N-Out in Nashville,” he posted on his socials.

There might be one little hiccup with Russell’s plan, however.

“I’ve not been invited to do so,” he added, “but I will be there, guitar in hand, at the opening of these In-N-Outs. Yo!”

Earlier this week, the iconic burgers, fries and shakes joint announced it will be opening a corporate hub south of Nashville, with plans to open its first couple Music City locations by 2026. So far, In-N-Out only extends as far east as Texas. 

Stay tuned to see if Russell can make his dream gig official. 

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FX announces premiere dates for ‘Dear Mama’ and ‘The New York Times Presents: “The Legacy of J Dilla”’

FX announces premiere dates for ‘Dear Mama’ and ‘The New York Times Presents: “The Legacy of J Dilla”’
FX announces premiere dates for ‘Dear Mama’ and ‘The New York Times Presents: “The Legacy of J Dilla”’
Courtesy of FX

FX shows about J Dilla, and mother and son duo Afeni and Tupac Shakur are coming in the second quarter of the year. On Thursday the network announced premiere dates for The New York Times Presents: “The Legacy of J Dilla” and Dear Mama; the former will air on April 7, with the latter premiering weeks later.

Produced and directed by Christopher Frierson and Esther DereThe Legacy of J Dilla is a documentary feature about the musician, producer and visionary who worked with the likes Erykah BaduBusta RhymesD’Angelo and A Tribe Called Quest before he passed away due to cardiac arrest in 2006. “It explores the complications that have arisen as so many people try to control his legacy,” according to a press release.

Dear Mama, named after the 1995 hit Tupac dedicated to his mom, Afeni, is a five-part docuseries that explores the lives and legacies of both individuals. It’s an audio and visual experience that paints their individual stories as “one definitive portrait of a global superstar and the woman who shaped him.”

The J Dilla documentary premieres April 7 at 10 p.m. ET on FX and Hulu. Dear Mama will premiere with two episodes April 21 at 10 p.m. ET, with new episodes airing every week. It airs on FX and streams the following day on Hulu.

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Dollywood’s Big Bear Mountain coaster is nearly finished

Dollywood’s Big Bear Mountain coaster is nearly finished
Dollywood’s Big Bear Mountain coaster is nearly finished
Dollywood

The final piece of track is now in place for Dollywood’s newest roller coaster.

Big Bear Mountain sits on 6 acres at Dolly Parton‘s East Tennessee theme park. When finished, it will be Dollywood’s longest coaster, measuring nearly 4,000 feet. It’ll also be the first one to have on-board audio, as well as “three separate launches, multiple airtime hills, high-speed carousel turns, and tunnels, including a pass behind a waterfall.”

It’s set to launch this spring. You can check out video, maps and renderings of Big Bear Mountain at Dollywood.com.

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Ringo Starr announces new All-Starr tour dates, including Vegas shows

Ringo Starr announces new All-Starr tour dates, including Vegas shows
Ringo Starr announces new All-Starr tour dates, including Vegas shows
Scott Ritchie

Ringo Starr is ready to get back on the stage. The Beatles drummer just announced some spring 2023 dates with his All-Starr Band, made up of Steve Lukather, Colin Hay, Edgar Winter, Warren Ham, Hamish Stuart and Gregg Bissonette.

“It’s a new year and here are some new tour dates,” Ringo shares. “I love playing with the All Starrs and can’t wait to be back out on the road again with this band. I send Peace and Love to you all and we hope to see you out there.”

The tour kicks off May 19 in Temecula, California, and includes a three-night stand at The Venetian Theatre inside The Venetian Resort Las Vegas over Memorial Day weekend, May 24, 26 and 27. It also includes a return to Los Angeles’ Greek Theater on June 15, with dates confirmed through June 17 in San Jose, California. 

Tickets for the Vegas shows go on sale to the general public Thursday, January 19, at 10 a.m. PT. Click here for more ticket info.

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Jack Harlow teams up with Doritos for their 2023 Super Bowl ad

Jack Harlow teams up with Doritos for their 2023 Super Bowl ad
Jack Harlow teams up with Doritos for their 2023 Super Bowl ad
Kevin Winter/Getty Images

While some people watch the Super Bowl for the football, others tune in purely for the commercials. With the big game weeks away, Doritos amped up the excitement by releasing a teaser of their ad, which features Jack Harlow.

The commercial starts with the rapper being swarmed by fans and paparazzi as he escapes into his car. He then cracks open a bag of Doritos and is about to dive in when a pap screams at him, “Is it true about the love triangle?”

Jack shrugs before letting out a noncommittal “maybe,” then shoves a chip in his mouth.  

The clip ends with another paparazzi mishearing Harlow and screaming, “Baby? You’re having a baby?!”

Fans can watch the “Love Triangle” commercial in full when it airs during the Super Bowl on February 12. The big game, held this year at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona, starts airing at 6:30 p.m. ET on FOX.

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Idina Menzel heading back to the stage in new show ’Redwood’

Idina Menzel heading back to the stage in new show ’Redwood’
Idina Menzel heading back to the stage in new show ’Redwood’
Dominik Bindl/Getty Images

Idina Menzel got her start on Broadway, and the singer is making her grand return to the stage in the new musical Redwood.

Variety reports Menzel is heading to La Jolla Playhouse in San Diego, California, to debut the new production, which she has reportedly been working on for the past 20 years.

The musical was initially inspired by environmental activist Julia Butterfly Hill, a prominent figure in the late ’90s who lobbied against loggers cutting down redwood trees. Menzel will star as a woman named Jesse, presumably inspired by Hill.

The singer adds the musical’s plot now includes experiences she and director Tina Landau — who is behind Broadway’s The SpongeBob Musical — have had since they first began working on the production.

“I subscribe to this feeling very often in my life of wanting to just escape,” Menzel said. “I’m more of a recluse than people think I am … I definitely grapple with that a lot in my life, just like, ‘Can I just put it all down and leave and do something different?'”

She said her partnership with Landau challenged her to explore elements that are both new and intimidating to her. “It’s opening my vernacular and forcing me to find new colors and places in my voice that I think are just fun,” she said of the forthcoming musical, “and have different emotional connections for me to the character and hopefully open up different chakras, if you will, for other people when they’re listening.”

While a premiere date for Redwood has not been announced, the musical will reportedly take its bow as the production closing out La Jolla’s 2023-24 season.

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Black Stone Cherry premieres new single, “Out of Pocket”

Black Stone Cherry premieres new single, “Out of Pocket”
Black Stone Cherry premieres new single, “Out of Pocket”
Mascot Label Group

Black Stone Cherry has premiered a new single called “Out of Pocket.”

“‘Out of Pocket’ is a song born out of that exact feeling,” says frontman Chris Robertson. “The song was what I personally, and I think a lot of us, felt over these very trying last couple of years. Facing your demons, knowing that you have to come out the other side stronger than before.”

You can listen to “Out of Pocket” now via digital outlets.

“Out of Pocket” is the first new song from Black Stone Cherry to follow their 2020 album, The Human Condition, and their first with new bassist Steve Jewell, who joined the band following the departure of founding member Jon Lawhon in 2021.

Black Stone Cherry was recently confirmed to play at this year’s Welcome to Rockville and Sonic Temple festivals.

(Video contains uncensored profanity) 

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