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The last few weeks of political news has felt like a decade — so, Randy Rainbow is summing it all up in one convenient, five-minute video.
For his latest parody, Rainbow took on Rodgers & Hammerstein’s classic musical Oklahoma! with his own rendition of Act II opener “The Farmer and the Cowman.” In order to frame up the current state of political affairs, Rainbow decided to change the title to reflect the contenders in the 2024 election, calling it “The Lawyer and the Conman.”
Kicking off the track in full cowboy regalia, Rainbow welcomes the audience by pointing out the constant deluge of political news in recent days. “I reckon the last few weeks alone have been enough to fill 10 chapters in the history books, and frankly I can’t keep up!” he offers with a Southern twang. “I’ve had to re-write this damn song six times … we need a Rodgers and Hammerstein B-side just to keep things straight.”
Starting the song back in early July, when Democrats expressed unease over President Joe Biden’s slipping poll numbers against former president Donald Trump, Rainbow sings the story of “the conman” (Trump) and “the old guy” (Biden) vying for the highest office in the land. Quickly covering the assassination attempt on Trump and Biden’s disastrous debate performance, Rainbow explained their respective issues as candidates early on in his song: “One was crooked and unfit/ The other couldn’t run for s–t/ But just the same they damn sure ran for prez.”
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But once Biden announced his decision to drop out of the 2024 race, Rainbow re-framed the presumptive Democratic nominee Vice President Kamala Harris as “the lawyer” coming after Trump’s “conman” on the campaign trail. “One’s a felon and a crock/ The other’s ’bout to clean his clock/ And now it’s up to us who will be prez,” he sang.
What ensued was Rainbow’s classic brand of roasting-via-musical-number, where he described Trump and his campaign as wanting to “block our rights,” claiming that he has his “head up Putin’s a–” and very simply describing him as a “whiny little putz.”
But right near the end of the song, Rainbow slowed things down to deliver a full-throated endorsement of Harris, and asking his viewers to keep paying attention until the election in November. “I know we’ll choose the light and this all will turn out right,” he sang. “Or maybe not, girl what the f–k do I know?”
Watch Rainbow’s full parody video of “The Lawyer and the Conman” above.
Perry Farrell is reclining with a vitamin IV inserted into his left arm, talking about the reunion of Jane’s Addiction, a band that redefined rock music the ‘80s and ‘90s, and offering a stream-of-thought commentary about his music and the state of the world.
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“I don’t want to talk badly about anybody, but I shouldn’t want to let people get away with murder and destroy this planet,” Farrell tells Billboard’s Behind the Setlist podcast when asked about his mindset regarding the intersection of music and commerce. “This planet is too precious to me, and my way of of combating that is to sing [and] to wisen myself. And then I try to get through [using] art and music. And then I build the party and I invite the best people I could invite. And they invite their friends, and they want to show up. And then the next thing you know, you’re standing next to people you’d never be standing next to, you know, and they’re all getting off, and they’re doing their thing, and they feel safe and they feel welcome.”
Jane’s Addiction has been through breakups, arguments and a rotating cast of visiting and semi-permanent members since their 1990 LP Ritual de lo Habitual. This time around, though, Farrell has gathered his original bandmates — guitarist Dave Navarro, bass player Eric Avery and drummer Stephen Perkins — for the first time since 2010.
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The foursome toured Europe from May to July and released a blistering new track, “Imminent Redemption,” on July 24 that harkens back to the group’s first two studio albums, 1988’s Nothing’s Shocking and Ritual de lo Habitual. “It was wonderful to have us all together again,” Farrell admits.
Next comes a co-headlining tour with Love and Rockets that started on Aug. 9 and runs through Sept. 26. “The tour is centered around the the idea of redemption,” says Farrell. “And the era that we’re living in, the era of redemption, it’s going to be a bumpy road. But then there should be peace for 1,000 years. I’ve studied mysticism for a good 30 years. I’m looking forward to the future of the world.”
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With the original members reunited, Farrell says the concerts are featuring only songs they recorded together: the initial three albums — including the 1987, self-titled live album — and “Imminent Redemption.” That means nothing from 2003’s Strays, which features the band’s highest charting single, “Just Because,” nor 2011’s The Great Escape Artist. Strays featured bass player Chris Chaney in place of Avery. Chaney and Dave Sitek from the band TV on the Radio played bass on The Great Escape Artist.
“I wanted everybody to feel comfortable,” Farrell says about the decision not to play songs from other incarnations of Jane’s Addiction. “And I think that was the a good decision. In that regard, I like it. There are other songs that we could do with the original members. That I would like to see before everything is … I don’t want to say busted apart, but I don’t know the next time we’ll be touring again.”
The road to redemption hasn’t been without its bumps, though. Last year, Farrell told a journalist the band planned on entering the studio and recording a new album after a tour in Australia. One of those tracks was “True Love,” a song the band debuted on tour in 2023. But while “Imminent Redemption” reached the public, no album materialized.
“I’m sad to say we got those two songs out, and I thought we were going in a great direction, and all of a sudden, you know, arguing started happening again,” Farrell says with disappointment. “But we’ll still go forward,” he adds. “I’m not going to give up. Not giving up on this. I have to put my money where my mouth is. If I want to talk about freedom and redemption, I’ve gotta live it—and I’ve gotta be truthful too, about it. So, hang in there and pray, really pray for us. I’m praying for the world to to come together.”
Listen to the entire interview with Perry Farrell at the embedded Spotify player, or go to Spotify, Apple Podcasts, iHeart, Amazon Music or Everand.
Rolling Loud is celebrating its 10th anniversary this year, and the rap festival unveiled its loaded lineup for Rolling Loud Miami 2024 on Monday (Aug. 12). Travis Scott, Future and Playboi Carti will serve as headliners when the festival takes over Miami Gardens’ Hard Rock Stadium for the weekend of Dec. 13 through Dec. 15. […]
Nipsey Hussle‘s older Blacc Sam sat down with legendary radio personality Big Boy on his Off Air interview series.
In the recently published episode, they talked about a bunch of topics ranging from Sam and Nipsey’s childhood to the rapper’s untimely death that shook up the rap world. Toward the end of the interview, around the 1:07 mark, Blacc Sam opened up about the day his younger brother was killed in 2019. He remembered being optimistic that Nipsey would make it as they headed to the hospital but admitted to having his faith shaken when he ultimately passed. “Just couldn’t understand it. It was like the Twilight Zone after that,” he told Big Boy. “Everything I believed in — my faith was shattered.” Big then asked Blacc Sam if the murder was really as random as the public was led to believe, which prompted Sam to discuss the security protocol that was usually implemented whenever Nipsey visited his Marathon Clothing store.
“Somebody come to the shop, they know we in the doorway,” he said. “When Hussle pull up, we in the doorway. You’re gonna see me with a hoodie on and I got a pistol on me. You’re gonna see one of the team members in the hoodie in the doorway with a pistol. That’s protocol when Hussle pull up.
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“So, it’s Sunday. It’s busy in there. Why the n—a in there didn’t follow the protocol? I wasn’t there. Why they didn’t follow it? Maybe they was f—king around, helping a customer who was doing some f—king customer service. This is what I’m thinking, trying to transition into some legitimate, just selling clothes. But nobody was in the doorway. From my understanding ol’ boy walked up with no shirt on first to check the scene ‘cus he knows what’s going on in that parking lot,” he said. “Had a conversation, probably seen no one was in the doorway, checked Hussle had on shorts, checked everybody else, left. They say he came back with a red shirt on. Tip-toed through the alley, went right and started shooting.”
He continued: “So, to me that’s premeditated. Number one, there’s no red shirts in the hood. Can’t buy no red shirt, no liquor store sell no red shirt. Number two, when a n—a come through the alley with the red shirt, that’s the throw-off.”
This year marks the fifth anniversary of Nipsey’s death. His girlfriend at the time, Lauren London, paid tribute to the late rapper on Instagram, writing, “If you know me You know March is always tough for me 31 days of holding my breath,” she said. “This day decided to fall on Easter Sunday this 2024 Interesting…. considering your name #GodWillRise Energy never dies…. I love you. Eternal.”
Nipsey was recently in the news because he has a posthumous verse on Rakim’s first album in 15 years. The legendary MC talked about getting a Nipsey verse in an interview with Billboard last month.
You can watch the full Big Boy interview here.
Fuerza Regida continue to make significant waves in the industry with their most recent album, Pero No Te Enamores, an audacious genre fusion that has captivated a diverse audience and propelled them up the Billboard charts. Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news Billboard Explains traces the Mexican […]
Actor Haley Joel Osment reacted to being referenced on Kendrick Lamar’s “Euphoria,” and he believes K. Dot purposefully mixed him up with pastor Joel Osteen on the Drake diss. Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news The Associated Press caught up with Osment at the Blink Twice premiere […]
Looking for some motivation to help power you through the start of another work week? We feel you, and with some stellar new pop tunes, we’ve got you covered. These tracks from artists including Nina Nesbitt, Sophie Thatcher, Lunar Vacation and more will get you energized to take on the week.
Coolest New Pop Song of the Week: Addison Rae, “Diet Pepsi”
Before artists like Miley Cyrus, Selena Gomez and Demi Lovato were accepted as arena-level pop stars in the 2010s, they were largely dismissed by critics and adult listeners as Disney-kid performers, making music for the youth and not to be taken too seriously. A pop generation later, the designation previously bestowed to Disney Channel grads has been transferred to social media influencers — many of whom, from the D’Amelio sisters to Huddy to Bella Poarch, are trying to translate millions of TikTok followers into mainstream music stardom, and who are still largely brushed off by music-biz gatekeepers.
Addison Rae exists in that group, too: the 23-year-old Louisiana native is a true triple-threat as an actress, former competitive dancer and recording artist, who happens to have the fifth-most followers of any TikTok account. Last year, Rae’s debut EP AR contained some bright spots as a bubblegum project, and she popped up on the remix to Charli xcx’s “Von Dutch” in March alongside A.G. Cook, joining the Brat extended universe months before Brat Summer officially kicked off.
Now, with a newly signed Columbia Records deal, Rae has released her first solo single of 2024 — and after Rae’s past gestures at pop stardom, “Diet Pepsi” suggests that she could someday make the leap.
“Diet Pepsi” plays out like a Lana Del Rey song refracted through a radio-ready lens. Soda gets sipped and blue jeans get ripped during a backseat encounter with a dude in a gold chain, as Rae delineates between sexually charged exposition in the verses, breathless utterances in the pre-chorus and blissed-out falsetto in the hook (“When we drive in your car, I’m your baby / Losing all my innocence in the backseat,” she sings) — shifting keys on the final chorus to emphasize her yearning.
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The “Diet Pepsi” music video, directed by Sean Price Williams, leans into the Lana-esque Americana haze, with rapid black-and-white clips communicating bleary lust and pinup-model iconography. Yet Rae also puts her own playful spin on that image, grinning while covering her face with the American flag and planting her lipstick on a car window.
Regardless of its future chart impact or role in preceding a proper Columbia Records album, “Diet Pepsi” is a promising step for Rae, as a beguiling pop track that establishes an aesthetic for the multi-hyphenate. The darkly shimmering sound is more mature than that of AR, but more importantly, it’s more clearly defined; Rae’s debut EP was impressive, but we’re now starting to get a better sense of who she could be as a recording artist. For Rae, “Diet Pepsi” might not be an immediate smash, but it could very well prove to be a turning point.
Here are some new pop songs worth checking out this week…
Nina Nesbitt, “Anger”
Chappell Roan had to lay down the law during her performance at Outside Lands Sunday (Aug. 11), lightly scolding a section of VIP fans who apparently thought they were too cool for school when it came time to do the “Hot to Go!” dance. At her live shows, the 26-year-old singer-songwriter typically teaches her increasingly […]
Elle King and her dad, comedian/actor Rob Schneider, don’t exactly see eye to eye. On the latest episode of Bunnie XO’s Dumb Blonde podcast posted Monday (Aug. 12), the “Ex’s and Oh’s” musician didn’t hold back when discussing her challenging childhood, calling her father “toxic” and emphasizing that she doesn’t align with many of his controversial views.
When the topic of Schneider came up, the podcast host confessed that the Hot Chick star used to be one of her childhood crushes — but by the end of the discussion, Bunnie said that the fantasy was officially dead. That’s because King said that her dad was not often involved in her life, alleging that he forgot her birthdays and sent her to “fat camp” during childhood.
“I go four or five years without talking to my dad,” the singer-songwriter said. “My dad called me and was like, ‘Don’t f–king talk about me in the press.’ I was like, ‘Get f–ked.’”
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“If I would ever spend a summer with my dad, it would be on a movie set … I’d just get lost in the shuffle,” she continued. “I was a really, really heavy child, and my dad sent me to fat camp. Then I got in trouble one year because I sprained my ankle and didn’t lose any weight — very toxic and silly. My dad forgot every single birthday,” King added. “I spent my 18th birthday in a summer school and they brought me cupcakes. I came home, and my dad forgot my birthday.”
When contacted for this story, Schneider’s reps declined to comment.
Schneider welcomed the four-time Grammy nominee with former model London King in 1989. Elle’s parents split up a year later, and she was raised by her mom. Elle adopted her mother’s maiden name for her stage moniker to distance herself from her father, whose help she told Bunnie she “never wanted” when breaking into the music industry. “He also didn’t have a very good reputation,” she noted. “I don’t want to be associated with him. He’s just not nice.”
“I disagree with a lot of the things he says,” Elle added of Schneider’s controversial conservative commentary. “You’re talking out your a–, and you’re talking s–t about drag and gay rights — get f–ked.”
Listen to Elle’s discussion with Bunnie XO below.
If you’ve ever wondered: “why hasn’t anyone pitched a Curb Your Enthusiasm-style mockumentary sitcom about beloved 1980s pop singer Huey Lewis in which the News leader tries to figure out what life looks like after hearing loss with the help of his eccentric friends and clingy family?” Well, your prayers are answered, because according to […]
