Fridays mean new music releases, so here’s some of the latest to drop in the worlds of hip-hop and R&B.
Megan Thee Stallion, Traumazine — Meg’s new album shows fans a more vulnerable side, which she admits was pretty nerve-wracking. “I feel really good because I was so nervous because I never talk about my real feelings,” she told GMA of releasing the project.
The Game, Drillmatic: Heart vs. Mind — Game is back, and he’s showing us all the work he’s done in his downtime. Drillmatic features 31 tracks, including the Eminem diss track, “The Black Slim Shady.”
Alicia Keys, Keys II — The deluxe version of Alicia’s double album Keys includes two new tracks: “Trillions” ft. Brent Faiyaz and “Stay” ft. Lucky Daye.
Nicki Minaj, “Super Freaky Girl” — Nicki raps about her sexual prowess on the new single, which samples Rick James‘ “Super Freak.”
Fabolous ft. French Montana, “Say Less” — The Brooklyn rapper teamed up with French Montana for the song and visual, which sees them enjoying themselves at Sei Less, an Asian-fusion restaurant in New York. Fab also dropped “1 Thing Freestyle,” in which he raps over a sample of Amerie‘s 2005 hit.
YG, “Toxic” — Produced by DJ Swish, Larry Jayy and Reece Beats, the song samples Mary J. Blige‘s “Be Happy” and details a toxic relationship. The accompanying visual sees YG remind a side chick of his happy home with his children’s mother.
Ari Lennox, “Hoodie” — Ari reunites with Dreamville collaborator Elite for the first single off her upcoming album, age/sex/location. Her love interest in the video is Isaiah Rashad.
Babyface & Kehlani, “Seamless” — The singers and The Rascals wrote the track, which “offers a frank look at a night out that’s filled with drama, thanks to a partner who always makes a scene.”
Paul Hennessy/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images
(TALLAHASSEE, Fla.) — Florida will soon bar transgender residents from using Medicaid to pay for gender-affirming care, according to the state’s Agency for Health Care Administration. The rule goes into effect Aug. 21.
Several accredited medical institutions, including the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, alongside the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services say gender-affirming care can improve the mental health and overall well-being of gender-diverse people.
These organizations recommend gender-affirming care for the treatment of “gender dysphoria” — when a person experiences emotional distress because their assigned sex at birth and gender identity don’t align.
“Because gender-affirming care encompasses many facets of healthcare needs and support, it has been shown to increase positive outcomes for transgender and nonbinary children and adolescents,” reads guidance from HHS. “Gender-affirming care is patient-centered and treats individuals holistically, aligning their outward, physical traits with their gender identity,” the guidance continues.
However, the Florida Agency for Health Care Administration changed its rules Thursday. Medicaid can no longer be used to pay for medications and surgeries of those diagnosed with gender dysphoria in the state.
A 2019 study by the Williams Institute at UCLA School of Law found that about 32,000 of the roughly 152,000 U.S. trans adults enrolled in Medicaid at the time lived in states that denied coverage for gender-affirming care.
AHCA proposed the change in a June memo, recommending limitations on puberty blockers, hormones, sex-reassignment surgeries and “any other procedures that alter primary or secondary sexual characteristics.”
AHCA proposed the change in a June memo, recommending limitations on puberty blockers, hormones, sex-reassignment surgeries and “any other procedures that alter primary or secondary sexual characteristics.”
Joseph Ladapo, Florida’s surgeon general, also released a memo in June on gender-affirming care.
He claimed treatments like sex-reassignment surgery, and hormone and puberty blockers are not effective treatments for gender dysphoria based on three cited studies that dispute the general medical consensus on the condition.
He said federal medical guidelines are “about injecting political ideology into the health of our children. Children experiencing gender dysphoria should be supported by family and seek counseling, not pushed into an irreversible decision before they reach 18,” he said in a statement.
Almost simultaneously, the Florida State Board of Medicine voted on Aug. 5 to begin formulating a rule that would deny gender-affirming care to people under the age of 18 and require adults to consult with their doctors before receiving such care.
In a recent press conference, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis railed against gender-affirming care.
“You don’t disfigure 10, 12, 13-year-old kids based on gender dysphoria,” DeSantis said in a recent press conference. “I think these doctors need to get sued for what’s happening.”
He also made claims that children with gender dysphoria often regret their gender-affirming care; however, a 2021 study from researchers across the country found that the total number of people who regret their care is almost non-existent.
Health care providers have told ABC News that gender-affirming surgeries are not used on minors.
These moves led to outrage from LGBTQ groups and health care providers across the country.
“Science, medicine, and evidence-based approaches have demonstrated time and time again that transition-related care is medically necessary and life-saving care, and if this proposal is adopted, it will go against the recommendation of every major medical association,” said Sarah Warbelow, Human Rights Campaign Legal Director in a statement. “The truth matters and so does protecting Florida’s youth and their families.”
Under DeSantis’ leadership, Florida has continuously battled against professional and activist-based recommendations for gender inclusivity. Recently, several of the state’s agencies openly dismissed nondiscrimination recommendations from the federal level. In July, the Parental Rights in Education law, dubbed the “Don’t Say Gay” law, went into effect.
Supporters of the law say that children should not be learning about gender identity and sexual orientation in grades K-3. Critics say it will silence and shame LGBTQ identities in the classroom.
The 11-track collection, which can be preordered now, is made up of new original songs. The title track has been released as an advance single via digital formats.
The group now features three Cowsill siblings — Bob, Paul and Susan.
Bob says the songs on Rhythm of the World were mostly written by the group in hotel rooms, dressing rooms and the tour bus while taking part in the Turtles-headlined Happy Together summer tour.
He explains that the lead track, “Ya Gotta Get Up!,” was inspired by Turtles singer Howard Kaylan‘s “exuberant plea with the audience each night of the tour,” while the closing song, “Katrina,” tells the story of brother Barry Cowsill‘s 2005 death in New Orleans when Hurricane Katrina devastated the city.
“[For] all the songs … we use melody and harmony to bring some love and the hope of peace to the world,” Bob notes. “We are thrilled to be here to claim our legacy and share our music!!!”
The Cowsills are best known for such hits as 1967’s “The Rain, the Park & Other Things” and their 1969 cover of the Broadway musical Hair‘s title song, which both peaked at #2 on the Billboard Hot 100. The group also served as the inspiration for The Partridge Family.
The Cowsills currently are part of the lineup of the 2022 Happy Together Tour, which runs through an August 29 show in Grand Island, Nebraska. The group also has several other concerts on their schedule, including performances on September 9 in Somers Point, New Jersey, and September 10 in New York City.
Here’s Rhythm of the World‘s full track list:
“Ya Gotta Get Up!”
“Lend a Hand”
“Hawks on the Line”
“Every Little Secret”
“Nuclear Winter”
“Rhythm of the World”
“Largo Nights”
“Goodbye’s Not Forever”
“The Long Run”
“Try to Believe It Too”
“Katrina”
Sammy Hagar was among the many well-known artists who contributed original songs to the soundtrack of the classic teen comedy-drama Fast Times at Ridgemont High, which premiered 40 years ago this Saturday.
Hagar wrote and recorded the movie’s title song, a riff-heavy rock tune that Sammy notes was one of a series a tunes he recorded specifically for films around that time.
“They just would send me the script of the movie, and I would read…through it,” Hagar explains to ABC Audio. “And they didn’t ask me to write the title track. I just wrote a song called ‘Fast Times at Ridgemont High.’ So…lyrically, I just kind of mimicked what was going on in the movie. You know, just a bunch of high school kids messing up…and trying to get laid, basically.”
The Red Rocker says having one of his songs as the title track of a popular movie then felt like he’d hit the “big time.”
Hagar notes that he always enjoyed writing songs for films, explaining, “I loved having a theme. For a songwriter, the first thing you need to have, after you have the [music]…I needed a title, a subject. ‘What am I writing about?’ And when they would hand that to you in a script in a movie…I just said, ‘Oh, yeah. Boom! I know what to do.'”
Meanwhile, Hagar says one of the cool things about his “Fast Times” song was getting to work with a soundtrack musician who was experimenting with synthesizers, and who added an effect that Sammy described as sounding “like a knife being sharpened.”
“It was so advanced [at the time],” Hagar notes. “It was really cool…You know, no one had ever heard anything like that before.”
Mark Ruffalo has joined Elizabeth Olsen and other Marvel movie stars in coming out swinging in defense of their recurring day jobs in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
In a chat with Metro UK to promote reprising his role as Bruce Banner/The Hulk in Disney+’s forthcoming She-Hulk: Attorney At Law, Ruffalo was asked if there’s too much Marvel content out there.
“It’s not something I worry about,” Ruffalo, who has played the role for a decade, said.
“I understand that these things run their course and then something else comes along. But the thing Marvel has done well is that, inside the MCU, just as they do with comic books, they let a director or an actor sort of recreate each piece to their own style, their likeness. Marvel generally lets them bring that to the material.”
He jabbed, “If you watch a Star Wars [project], you’re pretty much going to get the same version of Star Wars each time.” He allowed that some Star Wars projects “might have a little bit of humor” or “a little bit of different animation,” but “you’re always, really, in that same kind of world.”
Instead, he offers, “with Marvel you can have a whole different feeling, even within the Marvel Universe.”
As for his character, Ruffalo noted, he’s closer to himself than some might think. “I really related to the Hulk as a kid and it’s been the same way through my life — you wrestle with anger and self-destructive behavior and then … you think, ‘Man, what was I doing?'”
She-Hulk debuts August 18 on Disney+.
ABC News’ parent company, Disney, is the owner of Marvel Studios and Star Wars.
Charlie Puth released a new version of his and Jung Kook‘s “Left and Right” today, which was remixed by EDM artist Sam Feldt. This new spin transforms the song into a dance track.
TikTok sensation Bella Poarch released “Living Hell” and its creepy music video, which sees her submerged in yellow slime and being at the mercy of an invisible force that treats her like a plaything. This is the latest single off her just-released Dolls EP.
Sean Kingston also released a new song and its accompanying music video, this time for “Side.” The hypnotic track features heavy percussion as Sean sings about not being able to get a girl out of his head. The track will be featured on his upcoming album Road to Deliverance, which is due out later this year.
Carly Rae Jepsen released the music video for “Beach House,” a tongue-in-cheek track about her standards getting in the way of finding true love when, in reality, the dating pool is filled with duds. The video flips gender roles, with Carly acting like a boss as dancing men surround her.
Joshua Bassett released “Smoke Slow” and its music video today. He said of the track, “This song is about savoring those moments together with a person you feel close to, but know you can’t be with. Since I couldn’t say it aloud, of course, I had to write a song about it.”
Nothing More has premiered a new song called “You Don’t Know What Love Means,” which will appear on the band’s upcoming album, Spirits.
In a statement, frontman Jonny Hawkins says “You Don’t Know What Love Means” reflects the “emotional and intimate side” of Spirits.
“The lyrics and tone of this one feels like it hits in a similar way that ‘Go to War’ and ‘Jenny’ did,” Hawkins shares. “It’s going to feel huge playing this next one on tour.”
You can listen to “You Don’t Know What Love Means” now via digital outlets and watch its accompanying video streaming now on YouTube.
“You Don’t Know What Love Means” is the fourth song to be released from Spirits, following “Tired of Winning,” “Turn It Up Like (Stand in the Fire)” and the title track. The album will arrive in full on October 14.
Nothing More will be touring the U.S. ahead of the Spirits release alongside In This Moment. The outing launches August 26 in Evansville, Indiana.
Alice in Chains has announced a vinyl reissue of the band’s 1992 sophomore album Dirt in honor of its 30th anniversary.
The two-LP collection, which includes remastered audio of the original record, will be released September 23, six days before Dirt officially turns 30 on September 29.
The reissue will also be available as a super deluxe box set, which, along with the two LPs, also includes a remastered Dirt CD and each of the album’s five singles — “Them Bones,” “Down an a Hole,” “Rooster,” “Angry Chair” and “Would?” — on seven-inch vinyl, plus various memorabilia, including an 80-page photo book and exclusive art prints, posters and a reprinted set list.
The box set is available to preorder now via the Alice in Chains web store.
As previously reported, Alice in Chains is also marking the 30th anniversary of Dirt with an album-themed collection of Funko Pop! figures. Dirt was also recently certified five-times Platinum by the RIAA.
Meanwhile, you can catch Alice in Chains live on their U.S. tour with Breaking Benjamin and Bush. The outing, which just kicked off earlier this week, is currently scheduled into October.
Twenty-five years ago today, Backstreet Boys released their self-titled debut U.S. album … and they’re still performing most of the songs from it every night on tour.
This 1997 album was actually a compilation of two international albums: a 1996 release also called Backstreet Boys and a 1997 release called Backstreet’s Back. It initially debuted at #29, but thanks to the success of the group’s first big U.S. hit, “Quit Playing Games (With My Heart),” its popularity continued to grow.
In five months, the album had climbed to its peak — #4 — and sold 2 million copies. By the end of 1998, it was the third best-selling album of the year, with more than 5.7 million copies sold. To date, it’s sold more than 14 million copies.
In addition to “Quit Playing Games (With My Heart),” Backstreet Boys also included many of the group’s most beloved songs, including, “All I Have to Give,” “As Long as You Love Me,” “Everybody (Backstreet’s Back),” “I’ll Never Break Your Heart,” “We’ve Got It Goin’ On” and “Get Down (You’re the One for Me).”
The success of Backstreet Boys helped set the stage for the release of their next album, Millennium, which set a record for most copies sold in a single week — 1.124 million — when it arrived in 1999. Millennium went on to become one of the best-selling albums of all time, with 24 million copies sold.
And while BSB has gone on to release many more albums since then, the impact of Backstreet Boys can be seen in the group’s current set list, which includes no less than seven songs from that album. Their current DNA World Tour is set to wrap up this November; their first holiday release, A Very Backstreet Christmas, arrives October 14.
Ahead of the one-year anniversary of her breakout single “abcdefu,” GAYLE is ready to embark on her next chapter in music. She just dropped an all-new single and confirmed her forthcoming EP.
The teenage sensation dropped the experimental new track, “indieedgycool,” as well as its grunge-inspired music video. The song does channel ’90s grunge elements — reminiscent of Hole, Veruca Salt and Garbage.
GAYLE sings — and sometimes shrieks — in the track about how she thinks she’s such a trendsetter and “everybody is copying me.” Her voice is masked with a soft, low tone as she lists all the reasons why she isn’t mainstream.
“I’m too cool for the radio/ Got vintage kicks, I’ma let you know/ Got champagne bottles in the bathtub/ That my best friend stole from the yacht club,” she chants in the chorus. “Parents got money, but they ain’t rich/ I got Gucci, but I prefer to thrift/ I’m hot s***, you know how it is/ I’m an indie, edgy, cool kid.”
That’s not the only new offering we got from GAYLE. The singer announced her new EP, a study of the human experience volume two, that’s coming out October 7 — the day before her new North American headlining tour is set to take place.
Preorders for the new EP are now live. You can also buy tickets for her upcoming tour on GAYLE’s official website.
