Source: Paras Griffin/BET / Getty
Beyoncé f. Kendrick Lamar — “AMERICA HAS A PROBLEM”
Beyoncé and Kendrick Lamar are quite a formidable musical pairing. After joining forces on “Freedom” and “NILE” before this, the regal superstars reunite on the remix to “AMERICA HAS A PROBLEM” from Queen Bey’s newest album, RENAISSANCE.
King Kendrick rolls out the new version, which dropped earlier this week, with a quick-and-nimble-yet-powerful verse of his own. “Say Bey, yes, America got a problem / Geeked up, choosey lover that chose violence / Universal, please don’t play possum / I’m a business man doin’ as follows,” he raps before aiming at a nameless foe. “Truthfully, I be lying in my rap songs,” he rhymes, “’cause I always fail to mention that I’ll slap homie.”
Back to the collaboration. This collaborative partnership has also turned into an influential one. When asked what he’s learned from Bey, Kendrick beamed about an attention to detail during a 2017 Rolling Stone interview. “How particular to be about your music,” he said. “She’s a perfectionist.”
He went on: “Think about the [2016] BET performance. She was very particular – the lighting, the camera blocking, the transition from the music to the dancing. It was confirmation of something I already knew.”
Taylor Swift f. Ice Spice — “Karma”
In less than a year, Ice Spice has become one of music’s most prominent stars. She has three different songs on the Billboard Hot 100, including “Boy’s a Liar, Pt. 2” with PinkPantheress; “Princess Diana” with Nicki Minaj; and the solo single “In Ha Mood.” Now, the ginger-haired rapper teams up with Taylor Swift for “Karma,” a track that’s sure to add to Spice’s chart takeover.
The New York rapper carries Swift’s “Karma” theme into her verse. “Karma is your check’s ‘bout to bounce / Karma is the fire in your house / And she ‘bout to pop up unannounced,” Spice raps. “So I keep my head up / My bread up, I won’t let up / Promise that you’ll never endeavor with none lesser / Ever ever.”
Taylor is gushing over the collaboration. “I’m a massive fan of this brilliant artist and after getting to know her I can confirm: she is THE ONE to watch,” she writes on social media. Spice responded with: “thxx @taylorswift for being the coolest person on earth ilu.”
The original “Karma” appears on Swift’s 2022 LP, Mightnights. The new “Karma” is part of the singer’s Midnights (The Til Dawn Edition), which dropped today.
Lil Durk — Almost Healed
Lil Durk’s album cover is a painful depiction of the rap star. Blood is pouring out of one eye while the rest of his face is bandaged up, but the title of his new album has a much more optimistic tilt: Almost Healed.
Fans have already heard some of that optimism on display. In fact, that positive glow is what allows Durk’s J. Cole-assisted single “All My Life” to shine. “I’m trying to change the image,” he explains on the track. “You can’t blame my past no more, I come from the trenches / Some said I’d never be a superstar, but I know I’m different.”
And the rest of the album has star-power as well. Durk’s guest list includes Future (“Never Imagined”), 21 Savage (“War Bout It”), Kodak Black (“Grandson”), and the late Juice WRLD (“Cross The Globe”).
It’s a 21-song album full of what fans have come to love from The Voice, but Durk says it’s also a different side of him. “This album ain’t regular,” he recently explained in an interview with Rap Caviar, as per HNHH. “I just want to start working on my performances more, everything,” he said. “Giving it my all and be 100 percent instead of 50. We got a whole bunch of sh-t comin’. That’s why I’m excited.”
Sexyy Red f. Nicki Minaj & Tay Keith — “Pound Town 2”
Sexyy Red’s “Pound Town” has already garnered viral notoriety thanks to raunchy not-so-safe-for-work lyrics. But now, the buzzing track gets even more of a viral boost with a Nicki Minaj remix.
Red’s verse and hook stays the same on this version, of course. But for her part, Nicki runs through some of her own risqué bars. “I want fish and grits and don’t want hissy fits,” she raps in some of the more clean sections of the remix.
This is just the latest in a string of Nicki Minaj collaborations. The Pinkprint emcee has also linked with Ice Spice (“Princess Diana”), Kim Petras (“Alone”), and YoungBoy Never Broke Again (“WTF”) for a streak of cuts this year.
Meanwhile, Sexyy shared her gratitude for this latest collaboration online. “Thank you,” she wrote in a social media message. “I preciate you so much for blessin my track. This is major I’m so humble and grateful.”
STREAMED: Beyoncé Reunites With Kendrick Lamar For “AMERICA HAS A PROBLEM, ” Taylor Swift Taps Ice Spice For “Karma,” & More was originally published on cassiuslife.com
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