Love & Hip Hop: Miami is back — and so is Amara La Negra! The Afro-Latina has returned to the series for season four and she tells ABC Audio what keeps her coming back.

“These checks,” she says with a laugh before revealing, “I feel like Love & Hip Hop is home.”

Sharing that the show “opened up major doors,” the Dominican-American singer adds that she loves being on Love & Hip Hop: Miami because she can share who she is a person and promote new things she has going on in her life. That includes new music, which she says is on the horizon. 

“You’re going to see new music, new music videos and everything now,” Amara shares. “I’ve just been holding on to it waiting for the show to come out so I could be like ‘Look at this!'”

Speaking of new music, the Love & Hip Hop cast is full of other talented artists… So who would she want to collaborate with if given the chance? Amara picked Spice, from Love & Hip Hop: Atlanta, another branch of the franchise. 

“From the show… I am the biggest fan of Spice,” she gushes. “I love Spice. I love what she stands for. I love her body. I love that she’s a beautiful Black chocolate woman. I love that she’s an amazing mother. I love her positivity. I love who she is.”

Amara adds, “And also there’s that Caribbean energy… If I had the possibility of collaborating with her I would love that.” 

Love & Hip Hop Miami airs Mondays at 9 p.m. ET on VH1.

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Vance Joy released his first new solo single, “Missing Piece,” earlier this year, and he’s been working on even more new material. However, as he tells ABC Audio, the recordings so far are lacking, well, a “Missing Piece.”

“At the moment I’ve got quite a few songs that I’m liking,” Vance says. “I’m still doing that back-and-forth mix thing when I go, ‘Hey, is the first mix we did better than the 10th mix we did?’ and losing all perspective.”

Still, Vance’s mixing indecision isn’t as bad as say, Bruce Springsteen‘s, as The Boss detailed in his 2016 autobiography, Born to Run.

“They’d bring people in from the outside and they’d be, like, ‘This is an absolute mess, you can’t even hear the vocal,’ and he’s just, like, ‘Oh god, what have I been doing for the last year?'” Vance shares. “Just the madness of that thing makes me feel less stressed.”

Overall, Vance says he’s currently got “six or seven” songs that he “really like[s].”

“It would be nice to have two or three more songs that I was really stoked on, and then I feel like I’d have the full album,” he says. “I think looking at early-ish next year, so hopefully all that stuff falls into place before then.”

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Hip-hop legends Naughty by Nature are celebrating the 30th anniversary of their 1991 platinum album with a book, documentary and NFT planned for later this year.

“Although 30 years flew by, Naughty by Nature built the machine ready to travel through 30 more,” group leader Treach says in a statement. “God is great.”

He adds, “Following a dream can lead you from fantasy to reality, a love for a culture can start as just a love for musical poetry, human drum tracks, and DJ scratches mixes, and samples and end up as lifelong careers filled with fame, fortune, and fulfillness [sp].”

Treach, Vin Rock and DJ Kay Gee began their career in 1986 in East Orange, New Jersey. Originally known as The New Style, their career took off when they were discovered Queen Latifah. She changed their name, signed them to her Flava Unit management company, and was featured on their first album recorded as Naughty by Nature.

The first single from the album, “O.P.P.,” hit number one on the Billboard rap chart and was certified double platinum.

“I feel blessed to have a 30 year career participating in a hobby with my childhood friends,” Vin says. “We are truly lucky to have an occupation that doesn’t feel like work at all most of the time. I’m humbled by the continued love and support from our fans! Thank you!”

Adds Kay Gee. “Nothing beats doing what you love to do. The fans love it as well 30 plus years later. It’s awesome!”

The group broke up following the release of their Nature’s Fury album in 1999; however, after a few years, they came back together again, and continue to perform around the world.

“We wouldn’t have reunited if we didn’t think we could give people that authentic Naughty feeling,” says Treach.

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Tetrarch has premiered the video for “Stitch Me Up,” a track off the band’s new album, Unstable.

The clip finds the “I’m Not Right” outfit performing in a high school gym where one student is dressed like the Batman villain Scarecrow and is shunned by the rest of his classmates.

“The theme of this video is kind of about being an outcast in your everyday life,” says guitarist Diamond Rowe. “You can sometimes feel like a complete freak when it seems like no one else sees things the same way that you do or has common interests, but finally meeting up with people that are like you can make you feel safe and whole.”

You can watch the “Stitch Me Up” video streaming now on YouTube.

Unstable was released in April. It also includes the single “You Never Listen.”

(Video contains uncensored profanity.)

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TJ Osborne of Brothers Osborne is opening up about the impact of publicly coming out as gay, saying that his life has changed in “a lot of ways.” 

“I didn’t realize what a sense of purpose it would bring to my life to be here. I didn’t realize how much it would resonate with some people,” TJ told CBS Sunday Morning, appearing alongside brother John Osborne.    

After host Gayle King shared a tweet from a mother citing the duo as a role model for her teen son, who has depression and anxiety and recently came out to her, the singer admits he didn’t initially consider how being open about his sexuality would relate to parents of queer youth “and how that would really help them to be able to help their relationship. That was something that never dawned on me,” he expressed. 

TJ also met a fan at a recent show who shared a heartfelt message with him. “I want to thank you for making a safe space for people like me to come the show,” the fan told him.

“And I thought ‘to me, that is worth more than anything,'” said TJ.

Brothers Osborne continue on their We’re Not for Everyone Tour through November 20.

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Today, August 24, marks the 40th anniversary of the release of The Rolling Stones‘ classic 1981 album Tattoo You.

Tattoo You spent nine consecutive weeks at #1 on the Billboard 200 in the fall of ’81, holding the top spot on the chart longer than any other Stones album.

Tattoo You featured three singles that reached the Billboard Hot 100’s top 20 — “Start Me Up,” “Waiting on a Friend” and “Hang Fire,” which peaked at #2, #13 and #20, respectively.

Respected music journalist and author Alan Light tells ABC Audio that many people consider Tattoo You to be “the last great Rolling Stones album,” while noting that it’s “such a funny and odd project” in the band’s history.

What made Tattoo You unusual was that it was put together from unfinished outtakes that The Rolling Stones had recorded during various sessions throughout the 1970s and that the band revisited to complete for the album.

Because of this, ex-Stones guitarist Mick Taylor, who left the group in late 1974, actually appears on two of the record’s tracks.

Tattoo You also features contributions from a variety of guest musicians, including keyboardists Nicky Hopkins, Ian Stewart and Billy Preston, founding Santana percussionist Michael Carabello, The Who‘s Pete Townshend and legendary jazz saxophonist Sonny Rollins.

Townshend sang backing vocals on the song “Slave,” while Rollins delivered a memorable solo on “Waiting on a Friend,” and also played on “Slave” and “Neighbors.”

To date, Tattoo You has sold over 4 million copies in the U.S. As announced last week, The Rolling Stones will release a 40th anniversary reissue of the album on October 22. The reissue’s deluxe versions will feature nine previously unreleased tracks from that period to which the band has added new vocals and guitar.

Here’s Tattoo You‘s original track list:

“Start Me Up”
“Hang Fire”
“Slave”
“Little T&A”
“Black Limousine”
“Neighbours”
“Worried About You”
“Tops”
“Heaven”
“No Use in Crying”
“Waiting on a Friend”

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Lauren Daigle‘s latest single, “Hold On to Me,” is doing well, but it remains to be seen if it can match the record-breaking success of “You Say.” Lauren says she doesn’t expect a repeat — and that’s O.K.

“You Say,” released three years ago last month, topped numerous Billboard charts, including Adult Top 40, Adult Contemporary and Hot Christian Songs.  On the latter, it stayed at number one for an astonishing 129 weeks.  In fact, it was the first song to spend 100 or more weeks on any Billboard chart, ever.

“That was a one and done, probably,” Laure laughs. “I mean, unless there’s other plans out there, I have no idea if that will ever happen again. That’s why you have to revel in the moment when it happens.”

“Being present is so…rich because moments will pass you by and you’ll realize, ‘OK, I missed out on the joy of what that moment had. And now I’m longing for that moment in a different season,'” she cautions. “And it just doesn’t work out.”

Lauren, who’ll kick off a world tour on September 24, says for her, that’s the only way to approach any sort of overwhelming achievement.

“Being present and really reveling in, like, the ‘Wow, I can’t believe that happened,’ because it may never happen again,” she says. “But hopefully, fingers crossed, you wish for the best!” 

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