Godfather of Funk or whatever. I tell myself that s*** in the bathroom. So when I finish patting myself on the back, I flush the toilet and leave that s*** in there.
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Thursday October 27, 2022
REDEF
On camera: Lainey Wilson at CMA Fest, Nashville, June 9, 2022. "Bell Bottom Country" is out Friday on BBR.
(Danielle Del Valle/Getty Images)
quote of the day
Godfather of Funk or whatever. I tell myself that s*** in the bathroom. So when I finish patting myself on the back, I flush the toilet and leave that s*** in there.
- George Clinton
rantnrave://
Release Now Mix Later

So many ways to set up and roll out an album in this third decade of this 21st century. You can spend weeks revealing song titles with bingo balls and lyrics via billboards. You can produce video trailers or write letters to your fans. You can do a thousand interviews. You can—and this would seem to be some kind of minimum requirement—actually finish the album.

Or, you can not. DRAKE and 21 SAVAGE announced their joint album HER LOSS on Saturday, i.e. five days ago, via a wall of text in the middle of a video for a song from Drake’s most recent album. They revealed it would be out six days hence, i.e. tomorrow. If Hits Daily Double’s sources are to be believed, this was a surprise to executives at Drake’s label, Republic, which only a day earlier had released the new album by Drake’s superstar labelmate Taylor Swift, she of the bingo balls and billboards and, it’s believed, around 1.5 million units worth of first week sales and streaming. “A lively showdown between two stars who’ve found very different ways to rule the marketplace” appeared to be in the making, Hits said, somewhat archly. But then on Wednesday night, less than 30 hours ahead of release day, Drake used his Instagram Stories to announce the album has been delayed because producer NOAH “40” SHEBIB “got COVID while mixing and mastering the crack so he's resting up."

Which is to say, as recently as yesterday Noah “40” Shebib (get well soon!) was still mixing, never mind mastering, a major pop album that was supposed to come out at midnight tonight. Drake and 21 Savage certainly aren’t the first to cram a release date, but this is really, really, really cramming. What’s the current absolute deadline for getting an album to streaming services for a midnight Friday release? What’s the current standard for considering an album finished? Does it really need to be mastered? Does it need to be mixed? Two years ago, I registered astonishment at CONWAY THE MACHINE releasing an album with a lyrical reference to a basketball game that had taken place 19 days earlier. That seems quaint now. How long until we have albums released on Friday with spoilers from Thursday night’s episode of ALASKA DAILY?

Drake and 21 Savage say next Friday, Nov. 4, is the new release day, for what it’s worth. It’s going to be a good fall for Republic Records.

It’s Thursday

And I’ll be traveling and taking tomorrow off—you might see a special edition of MusicREDEF featuring a very special guest rantnraver—so here’s what’s coming up on Friday, all of these presumably mixed and mastered:

Producer FRED AGAIN.., whose clients include Ed Sheeran and BTS, returns to his own music with ACTUAL LIFE 3 (JANUARY 1—SEPTEMBER 9, 2022), a dance album built in part on ambient drones provided by his mentor, Brian Eno, and samples collected from his phone and social feeds. “I’ve actually never heard anything quite like this before,” Eno told the New York Times.... CMA darling LAINEY WILSON showcases a throwback downhome country voice, but with deep grooves and “instrumental exploration,” on her fourth album, BELL BOTTOM COUNTRY... Mexican singer/songwriter NATALIA LAFOURCADE, who has a penchant for "processing darkness until it sprouts rays of light,” wrote her first album of all original material in seven years, DE TODAS LAS FLORES, in the shadow of a breakup. It’s a throwback recording, using analog tape and no click tracks... Experimental Zambian-Canadian rapper BACKXWASH wrestles with religion and an unpleasant childhood on HIS HAPPINESS SHALL COME FIRST EVEN THOUGH WE ARE SUFFERING, whose title is taken from a horror movie.

Plus: albums from Smino, Babytron, Nosaj Thing, Dram, Yung Gravy, Benjamin Clementine, Molly Joyce, Dead Cross, Darkthrone, Show Me the Body, Fit for a King, Ivo Perelman & Matthew Shipp, Emmet Cohen, Trevor Dunn’s Trio-Convulsant, Candy Dulfer, Theo Parrish (DJ Kicks mix honoring the music of Detroit), Carl Cox, Dapz on the Map, Marlowe, Cakes Da Killa, Drugdealer, Sobs, Julie Roberts, Emily Scott Robinson, Trampled by Turtles, Giovannie and the Hired Guns, Honey Harper, Gabe Lee, Lee Fields, Luke Haines & Peter Buck, Sea Moss, Hammered Hulls, King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard, Dorian Concept, Sunburned Hand of the Man, Junior Boys, Aoife Nessa Frances, Yesterdayneverhappened, Martha, Abraxas... And a remixed, box set version of the Beatles’ best album.

Rest in Peace

British DJ/producer MIGHTY MOUSE... Singer PAUL STODDARD of Boston metal band Diecast.

- Matty Karas (@troubledoll), curator
parliament
Variety
It’s Not Just ‘Exhaustion’: Why Mental Health Is Finally a Priority for Music Artists
By Ryan Dusick
I used to think pop stars who canceled tours "due to exhaustion" were just being divas, or worse-yet, downplaying a major drug or alcohol problem... until I suffered a breakdown on tour that effectively ended my career as a performing musician and sent me into a tailspin of depression, anxiety and alcoholism that lasted a decade.
The Ringer
George Clinton Is Ready to Retire--Unless He Isn’t
By Lex Pryor
The Godfather of Funk talks his career, his craft, and what matters--and doesn’t--about his legacy.
Los Angeles Times
The Great American Novelty
By Alex Pappademas
On the eve of his delightful sorta-fake, sorta-not biopic, 'Weird: The Al Yankovic Story,' we reflect on the comic genius of the world accordion to Al.
Billboard
Crypto Hacks Have Siphoned $3B In Record Time: How Safe Is Music on the Blockchain?
By Benjamin James
Experts explain how to operate securely in the wild west of Web3, where “safety rules are written in blood.”
The Guardian
UK music industry to implement anti-racism code of conduct from 2023
By Safi Bugel
A 2021 report found racist abuse and racial inequality across the industry. The UK Music Industry Anti-Racism Code aims to protect and represent Black and ethnically diverse musicians and workers.
Apple Music
Fred again..: New Album, Boiler Room, and Creative Process
By Zane Lowe and Fred again..
The British singer, songwriter, and producer sits down with Zane Lowe for an in-depth and personal conversation about his third album, ‘Actual Life 3 (January 1 - September 9 2022)’. 
Teen Vogue
Phoebe Bridgers on Her Abortion, Me Too, and Misogyny in the Music Industry
By Lexi McMenamin
Given the state of the world, Phoebe Bridgers thinks it's healthy to be angry. As her star rises, the Grammy-nominated musician is taking her indignation and demanding better.
Pitchfork
'The Anti-Woodstock ’99': An Oral History of the Tibetan Freedom Concert
By Marc Hogan
Co-organized by Beastie Boy Adam Yauch and featuring Björk, Rage Against the Machine, Fugees, Sonic Youth, and many more, the 1996 San Francisco concert set the template for combining music and activism in the 1990s.
DigBoston
The Real Impact Of Having Fewer and Fewer Local Opening Acts
By D-TENSION
Local support benefits everyone--the opener gets an opportunity, the headliner gets a warmed-up crowd, the crowd sees a new band, the band gets new fans, the venue gets a longer show.
Jezebel
I Can't Afford to See the Love of My Life on Tour, and I Blame TikTok
By Rodlyn-mae Banting
Who on god’s green earth are the girls who’ve suddenly jacked up Noah Kahan’s tickets to hundreds of dollars?
funkadelic
The New York Times
What Is the Future of Kanye West’s Music?
By Joe Coscarelli and Ben Sisario
As corporate partners cut ties with the artist now known as Ye following weeks of antisemitic statements, many wonder if the recording catalog that was his bedrock will withstand the backlash.
HITS Daily Double
Why Allen Grubman's RRHOF Induction Should Be Applauded
There’s been considerable chatter over stories in Penske-owned trade publications regarding former Rolling Stone chief Jann Wenner’s opposition to superattorney Allen Grubman’s induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, which Wenner formerly led, and Grubman’s selection as recipient of the Hall’s Ahmet Ertegun Award.
Kerrang!
Backxwash: 'This is therapy for me… I’ve created a universe for all these pieces of work to live in'
By Luke Morton
As Ashanti Mutinta prepares to bring Backxwash’s current album trilogy to an end with "His Happiness Shall Come First...", the Zambian-Canadian rapper reflects on religion’s role in her life, the importance of having a creative outlet, and how others have “healed” through her art.
Revolver
Mike Patton: My Career Is a 'F***ed-Up Mixtape'
By J. Bennett
Revered vocalist on tragedies, triumphs and new Dead Cross album.
Billboard
Amidst The War, Kyiv’s Leading Techno Club Reopens for One Night: ‘The Crowd Today Is Different’
By Caleb Larson
After eight months of war between Russia and Ukraine, Kyiv’s ∄ reopened its doors on Oct. 15, reviving the canceled season in a defiant display of resiliency.
Black Music and Black Muses
The territory shall be the universe
By Harmony Holiday
A meditation on broken recording contracts and their fallout.
Detroit Metro Times
Detroit soul man J.J. Barnes looks back on his career ahead of what he says could be his final live performance
By Adam Stanfel
The "Chains of Love" singer grew up within a fertile Detroit music scene that birthed jazz, soul, and rock legends who are now household names the world over. 
Musician's Union
MU’s Response to ‘Misogyny in Music’ Inquiry Published
In July we submitted a response to the HoC Women and Equalities Committee 'Misogyny in Music' Inquiry. Here we outline some key highlights.
Chicago Reader
How punk adopted the Godfather of Gore
By Leor Galil
Herschell Gordon Lewis invented the modern splatter film with "Blood Feast"—and he’s inspired two thousand rock ’n’ roll maniacs.
GQ
How Hit-Making Producer Kenny Beats Took Center Stage
By Grant Rindner
He’s been a guru to everyone from Vince Staples to Dominic Fike. Now with his new album ‘Louie,’ he’s figuring out who he is on his own.
what we're into
Music of the day
“Kammy (like i do)”
Fred again..
From "Actual Life 3 (January 1—September 9, 2022)," out Friday on Again..
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