Urban News

Suno has pulled its controversial Mary J. Blige campaign after claiming it had entered into a business deal with someone who lacked authority to represent the R&B icon. The AI music company scrapped the advertisement after learning Blige was uncomfortable with the campaign. Suno said the unnamed person who arranged the deal had presented themselves as an official representative for the Queen of Hip-Hop Soul. “We entered into a business deal with someone who presented themselves as Ms. Blige’s official representative,” a Suno spokesperson told Variety. “As soon as we learned this was not the case, and that Ms. Blige was uncomfortable, [...]

Drake just locked in September 15 at 9 P.M. EST for his next move, and the internet’s already losing it trying to figure out what FOMO actually means. The Toronto megastar announced a YouTube livestream with zero additional details, no album confirmation, no tour announcement, nothing except the date and the platform. That’s the entire play right now, and it’s working exactly as he planned. The mystery surrounding FOMO, which stands for Fear of Missing Out, has split the culture into two camps. Some people are convinced it’s a new album dropping, while others think he’s about to announce a tour or something [...]

Federal prosecutors rested their murder-for-hire case against Lil Durk on Thursday, shifting the trial to a defense team that immediately began calling witnesses. The government rested shortly after the morning break, according to courtroom reporting from Los Angeles Magazine reporter Taylor Parise. Lil Durk’s first witnesses supplied context for several pieces of evidence prosecutors presented as proof of an alleged conspiracy, including an armed driver, instructions to “lay low” and a message mentioning a wedding. Before resting, prosecutors called FBI Special Agent Conor Goepel to describe Lil Durk’s October 24, 2024, arrest in South Florida. Goepel said agents first expected Lil Durk at Miami [...]

Brooklyn-based singer/songwriter Eliza Edens channels grief, desire, and a newfound appetite for risk into “Death Drive,” a charged indie rock rush that embraces life’s unruly impulses while opening the door to their boldest, most liberated era yet. [...]

Nicki Minaj turned X into her pulpit on Thursday and positioned herself alongside Donald Trump and Elon Musk as an irreplaceable truth-teller. The three-part thread starts with Minaj claiming an unnamed group lost three figures whose public appeal cannot be copied, programmed or rebuilt. “If I was in a group that lost Trump, Musk & Nicki I’d be losing it too. Three very strong spiritual signatures that can never be replaced because they can’t be duplicated. That means they can’t train a model to embody their signatures. They are one of one. That is a major loss to any system because systems [...]

Don’t get mad at the word “cheap.” Walk with me for a spell. Fat Joe may have just exposed the great divide between artistic craftsmanship and emotional value with the cover of his new album, Organized Rhyme. Photographer Joshua Wann, who is very talented, took one look at the decidedly simple artwork and apparently saw everything wrong with the modern music business. And then posted it on social media. “Seeing Fat Joe’s cover for Organized Rhyme has broke me. It looks like something I designed when I was 16. We’re moving into an age of devaluing art, devaluing craft, and making [...]

A Dallas police detective testified that concert footage from October 31, 2020, provided the first physical evidence placing defendant Kewon White and rapper Yella Beezy on stage together just days before rapper MO3‘s murder. Detective Lawrence presented video evidence from a Houston concert at the Ava Center showing White, wearing a tan hoodie and black gloves, performing alongside Yella Beezy. The detective explained the significance of this connection during testimony on September 2. “It was the first time that we had physical evidence that could put Kewon White and Yellow Beezy in the same area together, on the stage together…a few days before [...]

As he closes ‘The Hours’ trilogy, genre-blurring artist Cautious Clay reflects on collaboration, self-care, authenticity, and holding onto emotional openness in an industry where relationships can quickly become transactional. [...]

Lloyd gave Detroit an R&B show and a surprise wig snatch after one fan’s hair got hooked on his jacket. The singer joined Keyshia Cole last week, for her “Love on the River” show at the Aretha Franklin Amphitheater. The official bill named Cole as the main act and Lloyd as her guest for the 8 P.M. riverfront concert. Lloyd left the stage to greet people in the crowd, then made his way back while wearing a dark suit. One woman’s wig caught on a button as he passed, turning a sweet fan moment into a fast hair rescue. Lloyd kept walking, and [...]

BET is bringing the “Soul Train Awards” back. This time, it won’t be in Beverly Hill. It will go back to where th iconic show was created – Chicago. The show returns Nov. 27 with a twist. The network announced Thursday that the 2026 “Soul Train Awards” will air on BET with simultaneous broadcasts on CBS, BET HER, VH1, MTV2 and LOGO. Spotify will serve as the exclusive music streaming partner while Toyota returns as the exclusive automotive partner. The Chicago homecoming carries considerable history. Don Cornelius created “Soul Train” in the city before the program grew into one of television’s [...]

Diddy is counting down the days as his freedom gets closer by the week, and his prison release date keeps shifting in his favor. The music mogul’s latest update puts him walking out of the Federal Correctional Institution Fort Dix in New Jersey on February 5, 2028, shaving another two weeks off his previous February 20 date. He’s serving a 50-month sentence after a jury convicted him in July 2025 on two counts of transporting women across state lines for prostitution purposes. The conviction came after prosecutors detailed how he orchestrated what they called “freak-offs” where he’d watch and film his girlfriends with male [...]

Atwood Magazine’s writers dive into Olivia Rodrigo’s bruised, mature, and meticulously crafted third album ‘you seem pretty sad for a girl so in love,’ a brilliantly conflicted portrait of romance as both rush and reckoning – unpacking its split-sided concept, Rodrigo's emotionally charged lyricism, and the anxieties that refuse to disappear inside devotion. [...]

Lil Durk’s defense challenged one of the government’s alleged signs of a cover-up by showing jurors that the rapper regularly changed his telephone number years before Saviay’a “Lul Pab” Robinson was killed. FBI Supervisory Special Agent Cody Burke testified Wednesday that investigators identified approximately 17 numbers used by Durk between December 2017 and October 2024. Prosecutors focused heavily on two numbers connected to Lil Durk around the August 19, 2022, shooting that killed Lul Pab near the Beverly Center. The government’s theory is that Lil Durk switched his numbers shortly after the attack to conceal his communications. Prosecutors say the shooting was a failed [...]

Los Angeles duo The Army, The Navy reclaim the sacred space another person left behind on “Walls,” a hypnotically tender indie folk highlight from their debut album ‘Fake Brave Life’ that transforms heartbreak’s empty architecture into a shiver-inducing act of self-worth. [...]

Alabama Shakes return after more than a decade with the feverishly spellbinding ‘I Must Be Dreaming,’ a soul-shaking third album wrestling with love, mortality, political disillusionment, and the stubborn possibility of hope – all while pushing their singular blend of rock, soul, blues, and fearless experimentation further than ever before. [...]

Across thirteen tracks, singer/songwriter Brennan Wedl pulls from the best of country and grunge rock, forging a new union between the two on her dynamic self-titled debut record. [...]

Guatemalan, London-based artist Gabriel Dinero strips alt-R&B to one voice, one guitar, and the ghosts that refuse to leave on “Apariciones,” a haunting, hypnotic reverie whose sparse, atmospheric arrangement and aching melodies transform the lingering presence of lost love into an intimate, visceral, and utterly spellbinding performance. [...]

New Zealand indie rock band Borderline channel collapse into cathartic release on “Watching It Burn,” a blazing, widescreen anthem from their self-titled debut album about communication breakdown, doomed architecture, and the strange freedom of watching a life you built go up in flames. [...]

Southern indie rock band Winyah live for hard work, brotherly love, and above all, a constant pursuit of presence, all of which were on display at their recent home-state performance. [...]

Detroit singer/songwriter Ally Evenson pulls at the tangled threads of heartbreak, rage, and panic on her sophomore album ‘Speed Kills’ – spinning the pieces into a larger-than-life spectacle. [...]

RAYNES CONFRONTS ENVY AND SELF-WORTH ON NEW SINGLE “JOSEPHINE” DEBUT ALBUM RADIO REMIND ME OUT OCTOBER 1 British-American trio Raynes return with their latest single “Josephine,” a playful yet sincere reimagining of the classic “Jolene” narrative from a different perspective. “Josephine,” written almost a decade ago, turns the story of romantic rivalry into one of […] The post Raynes – Josephine appeared first on Indie Music Review. [...]

Manchester indie rock band Westside Cowboy wrestle with self-control, perception, and the limits we learn to live within on “Pin Up Boys,” a restless track that grows heavier and more forceful as it unfolds. [...]

At Vail’s GoPro Mountain Games, Mountains of Music turns four days of outdoor adventure into a breathtaking concert experience against a picturesque backdrop. 2026’s series saw acts like the Allman Betts Family Revival, Wilderado, Michael Marcagi, and more carry the weekend’s energy from sun-soaked days into unforgettable nights in the Colorado Rockies. A celebration of live music as the heartbeat of mountain culture, Mountains of Music belongs on every music lover’s festival list. [...]

Rising duo Ruby & Sasha are turning heartbreak into a warning sign on their new single, “Red Light,” out now. Equal parts biting, vulnerable, and self-assured, the country-folk ballad captures the moment when disappointment finally becomes clarity and walking away starts to feel a whole lot better than sticking around. Built around the universal experience […] The post Ruby & Sasha – Red Light appeared first on Indie Music Review. [...]

An exciting selection of new music curated by Mitch Mosk, this week's Editor's Picks features VANITY, Mansdaughter, Keo, Black Lounge, M.O.T.H.E.R., Emma Ogier & Eden Joel!! [...]

Atwood's staff share the music they've been listening to in the moment. This week's roundup includes Alabama Shakes, Aquilo, Red Head Redemption, The Menzingers, wakelee, Sailor Honeymoon, Icona Pop, After Eight, Dogwood Tales, New Junk City, Ruby Alexander, Forget Them Wendy, navy june, Africaine, Cloudbelly, Charlotte Morris, Gregory Douglass, BASHT., Savannah Pope, and AMOS & RIOT NIGHT!! [...]

Charley Yang steps fully into himself as chandol on ‘Mercurial,’ a thrilling, genre-blurring debut album that transforms childhood memory, buried conflict, and the weight of a public past into an expansive act of artistic self-definition – with “Lakeview Ct” opening the door through a cinematic return to innocence. [...]

Cult American Singer-Songwriter Gary Marks Shares “Nobody’s Following” Anti-War Bonus Single An Accompaniment To His Flagship Political Novel, The Dance and the Diamond Sky, New LP Crossroads – Selected By Record Store Day 2026 Out Now On Vinyl + All DSPs Singer-songwriter Gary Marks has released his new single “Nobody’s Following,” an unreleased track originally recorded in 2007. The track features Marks on vocals, guitar and keyboard, […] The post Gary Marks – Nobody’s Following appeared first on Indie Music Review. [...]

New York City singer-songwriter Alwyn Morrison announces his sophomore EP, Trial, arriving October 23, 2026, following last year’s acclaimed debut, Heartsplit. In his new release, Morrison moves through betrayal, inherited pain, self-defense, and survival. The result is a loud, yet vulnerable rock record that treats emotional wreckage as both confession and evidence. Mixed by Alex Aldi (Goo […] The post Alwyn Morrison – Trial appeared first on Indie Music Review. [...]

Much-lauded songwriter, vocalist and producer Lizzy McAlpine today shares a new single, “Ugly Things,” and its accompanying video directed by McAlpine. Watch here and listen here. The track is the latest release from her highly anticipated fourth album, Angel, out September 18 via Indigo Blue/RCA Records—pre-save/pre-order here. “I made this video by myself in my […] The post Lizzy McAlpine – Ugly Things appeared first on Indie Music Review. [...]