New music you might have missed this month

June sure has been a busy month, hasn't it? This month we've seen the rise of the Black Lives Matter movement sweep across the country with protests and rallies. We've seen confederate statues being torn down across the country, the 50th Anniversary of PRIDE,  LBGTQ marches/celebrations, States reopening, spikes in COVID-19 confirmed cases and for the grand finale, the President of the United States thanking the "great people" who chanted "white power" in a video he retweeted while he was at a retirement community in Florida on Sunday, June 28th. 

On top of all of that June is Black Music Month and a lot of good music was released.

Flatbush Zombies EP Now, More Than Ever cover art 

The rap threesome from Flatbush New York, Flatbush Zombies released Now, More than Ever on June 5th. The new EP features 6 songs and the last two "blessings" and "when I'm gone" feat. Sophie Faith really standout from the rest right now. 

Norah Jones and Naeem released new albums on Friday, June 12th. 

Pick Me Up Off the Floor is Norah Jones' 8th album while Naeem's Startisha is the artist's debut album. 

Nora Jones Pick Me Up Off The Floor & Naeem Startisha cover art 

Alicia Keys "Perfect Way to Die" cover art 

Alicia Keys and Anderson .paak both dropped new singles on Juneteenth. The new songs don't come off of any upcoming albums that we know of (yet) and they both came on a very important day in Black history: June 19th, the day it was announced that slavery was abolished, freeing slaves in America. 

Flush with a cascade of shimmering piano "Perfect Way to Die" tells the heartbreaking truth about what it's like to be a black mother of a slain black child. There's power behind Alicia Keys' gentle vocals and when she hits those high notes then effortlessly transitions into the soft name-sake lyrics of the chorus you're sure to get chills, mother or not. 

Anderson .paak "Lockdown" cover art 

.paak's "Lockdown" delivers a powerful one two punch: shedding light on the current state of affairs dealing with the shift of the covid-19 lockdown to the Black Lives Matter movement uprising during the pandemic. The single was released with an accompanying music video featuring a masked Anderson paak. The attention grabbing song + video combo is moving, insightful and empowering. 

The Album, is Teyana Taylor's 3rd album was also released on Juneteenth. 10 of the 23 tracks on her third instalment feature other artists, including Erykah Badu on "Lowkey",  Missy Elliot and Future on "Boomin", Big Sean on "Shoot It Up" and Miss Lauryn Hill on our favorite track "We Got Love". The Album as a whole is great listening for smooth grooves in the morning to start any day off on the right foot. The singer's androgynous look she's rocking on the cover is also a noteworthy message of love, understanding and acceptance just like we hear throughout the album it represents. 

Teyana Taylor The Album cover art 

Beyoncé "Black Parade" cover art 

Before the momentous Juneteeth of 2020 ended, Queen Bey surprised everyone with a hot new track, "Black Parade". A little over a week later Beyoncé announced that she will be releasing a visual album titled Black Is King on July 31st via Disney +. Beyoncé not only wrote but she also directed the updated spin on the story and moral of The Lion King. 

Fantastic Negrito "I'm So Happy I Cry" feat. Tank cover art 

Oakland's own Fantastic Negrito dropped a single off his upcoming new album, Have You Lost Your Mind Yet? On June 25th we got  "I'm So Happy I Cry" feat. Tank from Tank and The Bangas. 

On June 26th brought us:

-  a beautiful cover of "What The World Needs Now" by Tank and The Bangas

-  singing trio The Dixie Chicks who will from now on be known as The Chicks after dropping Dixie which is a reference to a nickname for southern states during the Confederacy. They reemerged with a new name and  two new politically driven singles "March, March, March" and "Gaslighter". 

- a brand new one from a Toni Braxton, "Do It" feat. Missy Elliot. 

- CeeLo Green released soulful, retro sounds on his sixth album CeeLo Green is Thomas Callaway. 

Ceelo Greene, The Chicks, Tank and The Bangas and Toni Braxton cover art 

The 2020 B.E.T (Black Entertainment Television) Awards aired on Sunday June 28th celebrating achievements in entertainment, honoring the black community in music, television, movies and sports. With great live performances from Lizzo, Jon Legend, Megan Thee Stallion, Jennifer Hudson, a special ensemble performance of "Fight the Power" plus so many more. 

Just because June is over doesn't mean supporting black artists ends. 

Black lives and black music always matter. 

 

Battle Royale Cupcake from Sift Dessert Bar

I didn't even look at any other cupcakes the last time I went to Sift Dessert Bar in the Fillmore district in SF. If I did I do not remember any of the other flavors that were there because apparently I had blinders on for one. 

The Battle Royale cupcake sat pretty on the top shelf with it's light lavender colored frosting on a very light cake that looked like it could have been vanilla. But it's not vanilla, it's an almond cake and that's probably why there's shaved almond pieces on top of the frosting. The lavender frosting caught my eye but seeing the name of cupcake is what sold me because I'm a big fan of the movie Battle Royale. 

That and I'd never had a cupcake with a blueberry filling before.

 Battle Royale cupcake @ Sift Dessert Bar

photo by Nikki DeMartini

It fit comfortably in it's Chinese food carry-out container that was just the right size for one cupcake. There was a buoyancy to it when I took it out to eat at home. The bottom of this cupcake was so heavy it felt as if, if I moved it to my mouth too quickly to take a bite, it's bottom would plop out. There was a faint waft of mixed berry yogurt which I attributed to the Acai frosting. It made my mouth water and I knew that the frosting had to be super fresh if I was able to smell it's flavor. 

Battle Royal cupcake from Sift Dessert Bar

photo by Nikki DeMartini

Sure enough, when I looked under the cupcake there was a circular puncture mark that revealed a hue of purple from deep inside. Sift must use some sort of filling contraption that they stick in the bottom of their cupcake before it's frosted in order to fill it with whatever filling the flavor calls for. Other places probably use a similar filling contraption, and I've had filled cupcakes from other places (SusieCakes for example) but I've never had a filled cupcake as heavy as the Battle Royale Cupcake from Sift. 

Usually rip the bottom part of a cupcake off so that I am able to take get a bite of both the cake and the frosting at once. But this time, since the Battle Royale cupcake is filled with something other than frosting, I tried to get a some of everything, cake, filling frosting in my first bite. I definitely got some of the scrumptious almond cake and a little bit of the blueberry filling but my mouth just wasn't big enough to reach the Acai frosting, too. 

Battle Royale cupcake from Sift Dessert Bar 

photo by Nikki DeMartini

I'm a huge fan of almond cookies but I have never had almond cake before and I wouldn't have known that the cake was almond if the tag didn't say so. It was super moist and buttery and so fresh I had to unwrap it slowly so pieces of it wouldn't stick to the paper wrapper. It was way more decadent than vanilla cake which probably added to the heaviness of this cupcake. The blueberry filling isn't a jelly or a jam. It's somewhere in between a pie filling and fresh blueberries: it's not viscous or as sweet as pie filling is but it's not just a stash of blueberries in the middle of a cupcake either. 

My guess is that the Acai changed the texture of this cream cheese frosting because it is the lightest, creamiest, cream cheese frosting I have ever tasted.  It is not thick like other cream cheese frosting, it almost has a whipped element to it but not a whipped texture. It reminded me of yogurt: it's scent and flavor, the perfect mix of berries and sweet cream. 

Battle Royale cupcake from Sift Dessert Bar

photo by Nikki DeMartini

The Battle Royale cupcake from Sift Dessert Bar is probably the most sophisticated cupcake flavor I have had to date. Almond cake with blueberry filling and Acai cream cheese frosting?! It sounds like it'd all be overwhelming but it isn't because all of the flavors are pretty subtle, not rich but complex. 

Blueberries are in season until September and Acai is in season until August making the Battle Royale cupcake a scrumptious evening treat in the Summer time. It might be too heavy for a Summer's day. 

Battle Royale cupcake from Sift Dessert Bar

photo by Nikki DeMartini

Unfortunately Sift Dessert Bar didn't partake in Baker's Against Racism, however they said that they do strongly support the BLM movement (I asked! They answered!). 

 There's still time for them to get on board with Baker's Against Racism though because after June 20th the Baker's Against Racism account turned into a platform supporting and elevating chefs and bakers of color. And, that sounds really good to us! 

Juneteenth, music & the movement

This is hard to admit but here I go...until a few weeks ago, I did not know what Juneteenth was. 

I'm pretty sure I had never heard about Juneteenth. 

Juneteenth is an unofficial holiday in the United States that commemorates Union Army general Gordon Granger's reading of federal orders in Galveston Texas on June 19th, 1865 proclaiming that all people who were enslaved in the U.S state were free. The Emancipation of Proclamation freed slaves on September 22nd, 1862 and the American Civil War (1861 - 1865) ended with the defeat of the Confederate States on May 9th, 1865 but slaves were not officially free or knew that they were officially free until June 19th. 

In short, Juneteenth (June 19th) is viewed as the day that slavery ended in the United States. 

Before the 13th Amendment was passed in 1865 a black enslaved person was treated as property and could be bought and sold. After the 13th Amendment was passed, where in the Constitution of the United States of America "abolished" slavery, slavery was then replaced with share cropping and convict leasing...which more or less brings us to where we are today. 

June is also Black Music Month. 

The music that we love either stems from black culture or is influenced by it.

 Rock N Roll came from Blues. Soul, Jazz, Hip-Hop, Rap...all black. 

Now, think about what musical genres stemmed from those.

Here are some ways the music industry is getting involved in the Black Lives Matter movement to make changes happened (a lot of people are speaking up and doing things, this list is just a little bit). 

 For 24 hours, starting as soon as the clock strikes midnight on Friday June 19th, the on-line music company headquartered out of Oakland California, Bandcamp will be donating 100% of their share of sales to the NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People) Legal Defense Fund. Music, merch, whatever you buy on their website today will go directly to help fight the good fight for racial justice. 

Yesterday afternoon, Mom + Pop music announced that they're joining Bandcamp's effort and will also be donating 100% of their share of sales made on Juneteenth to the NAACP Legal Defense Fund. 

Roots Picnic has been an Annual Music Festival since 2008 in Philly. 

This year not only is the Festival going virtual BUT first lady herself, Michelle Obama is co-hosting it! Headliners SZA and Lil Baby play second fiddle to the huge clout that Michelle Obama has and will bring to the stage. It's a powerful move. It's a political move. It has people giddy with hope and reassurance as her presence will offer some form of much needed guidance. 

The event takes place about a week after Juneteenth,  on June 27th, but it's still relevant to mention here because it is an election year, people need to get out there and vote and Michelle Obama a great voice to advocate for that. Change can only happen if you get to the root of the problem (see what I did there? The root of the problem...The Roots...). So tune in and enjoy the show. 

Oh, and Live Nation, the promoter of Roots Picnic supports the movement for racial justice, too. 

June 21st marks the first official day of Summer which is known as the Summer Solstice. This weekend, June 19th - June 21st,  Natasha Knows Consulting is hosting "Summer SOULstice". 

It's an on-line musical experience, live streaming performances from black musicians and artists. It's also a fundraiser to raise money in support of black art, culture, advocacy, community building groups and organizations. Tune in on YouTube or Instagram Live at 7pm June 19th, 20th and 21st. 

Anderson .Paak released a new song "Lockdown" and it's accompanying music video last night at midnight EST (10pm PST). There's surely no coincidence that his new single, which depicts the era of COVID-19 and police brutality, dropped on Juneteenth, 2020. 

There's a lot more information on the inequality and injustices that black people have endured in America. 

There are documentaries, movies and shows (When They See Us and 13th on Netflix are great places to start). 

There are books to read. 

There are Black owned businesses of all sorts to support. 

There are companies that support Black Lives Matter  and on the flip side there are companies that support Trump and his racist ideals which you can stop supporting.    

There are organizations to donate to like Grass Roots Law Project, NAACP, Color of Change and so many more. 

You can donate, you can volunteer, you can protest, you can contact local and federal officials about racial injustices, you can get information about politicians running for office and vote for the ones who say they'll make a change (we're talking local and beyond here folks!). 

 If you don't know where to begin that's ok, join the club. Start anywhere, just log in and search, it will get easier once you start. There are so many ways to get involved. 

We're all a part of this time in history, what side will you be on? 

Run The Jewels' Killer Mike & RTJ4

It has been a week, to say the very least. Waves of protests ignited by the murder of George Floyd, spawned from decades of injustice and insensitivity to our Black communities have been non-stop for over a week now. This movement has been a long time coming and I like so many others am ashamed that it has taken this long. I am so sorry. I didn't realize how deeply rooted racism is because I didn't ask. Because I thought I couldn't help. I didn't realize I needed to educate myself.

In the wake of the devastation that the music industry has faced since being hit with COVID-19 cancellations, musicians from what I've seen have been the first to step up. Musicians and Jamie Foxx, who made an appearance at a rally in front of San Francisco's City Hall on Monday June 1st where he urged his Hollywood friends to come out from behind the screen and support the movement. Foxx took a  knee in solidary with Mayor London Breed, he sang a little bit and after his speech he brought out TANK. 

You can thank the music industry for launching Black Out Tuesday June 2nd which was meant to be a day when the music industry took a break from social media to educate themselves and their companies about race and allow for knowledge about race/racism/anti-racism to spread across social media outlets without clogging it up with unrelated posts. Sadly, the public took the idea and ran with it, causing all types of confusion about which hashtags to use, which hashtags not to use and if you should post a black square or not.

Yesterday Billie Eilish, Matt and Kim and Joe Jonas were spotted marching in the High Land Park protest in Los Angeles. Kayne West reportedly gave $2 million to George Floyd's daughter for her college fund but he hasn't announced if he is still a MAGA & Trump supporter (as of April he still was).  

The loudest support in music so far has come from hip-hop duo, Run The Jewels. In March, El-P and Killer Mike teased the release of their album with the release of the first single from it, "Yankee and the Brave."  RTJ4, their fourth album was due out on Friday, June 5th. 

The course of history started changing before our eyes following the murder of George

Floyd by a police officer in Minneapolis, Minnesota on Monday May 25th. 

One week later on Monday June 1st amidst, protests turned to riots , Killer Mike made a powerful speech in Atlanta, where he is from. He wore a black shirt baring lyrics from one of his then up-coming new songs. In bold white text his shirt proclaimed, Kill Your Masters. 

I am not going to tell you what Killer Mike says in the video because I want you to see it for yourself. 

You need to hear what he says. 

You need to see and hear and feel the emotions behind his words. 

On Wednesday, June 3rd Run The Jewels dropped their 4th album, RTJ4 two days early. 

 

Along with dropping the album ahead of schedule, Run The Jewels is also letting you "pay what you want" to own a digital copy of RTJ4. you can download the album from their website www.runthejewels.com  for free and when you proceed to check out, enter the amount that you want to pay/donate. All proceeds go to the Mass Defense Program.  

The album opens with the single, "Yankee and the Brave". A rhythmic, synth heavy, beat dropping war with the police anthem with a chorus that has the familiarity of the sound of gun shots. Is it weird that they were making music about this topic before all of the protests in the streets? No. It's not. And they're not the first. What they're rapping about has been going on for a long time, for too long and they're not the first to rap about it. Music, albums, songs are a form of protest, a form of spreading knowledge, enlightening, uniting.   

Piano driven "ooh la la" featuring Greg Nice and DJ Premier which was the second single they released off of the album earlier this year and it's the second song on the album. 

RTJ4 features a handful of different artists including 2 Chainz on "out of sight", Pharrell Williams on "JU$T" with Zach De La Rocha (Rage Against the Machine), Mavis Staples and Josh Homme (Queens of the Stone Age) on "pulling the pin." 

RTJ4 cover art 

The theme of a racist police state is heard through out the album. With lyrics like "You so numb you watch the cops choke out a man like me/until my voice goes from a shriek to a whisper - 'I can't breathe'/ And you sit there in the house on couch and watch on TV" Run the Jewels is talking directly to the people who've done nothing to stop the police brutality against black people.

 They're talking to the people who've done nothing to stop the injustice in the judicial system that's affected so many black people and black families. 

They're talking to the people who've done nothing to really help black people. 

I hope all of those same people who did nothing for so long are listening now. 

With an effortless approach, creatively catchy beats, layers of hooks and wickedly smart lyrics that make you listen. Now, with all of the current events that are going on hopefully people will hear what they're saying.
Turn it up, listen to it loud. 

On June 4th, the day before the album was suppose to drop, Pichfork named RTJ4 best new music and we couldn't agree more. It's great that Run the Jewels is able to utilize this time in history to amplify their message and in turn help amplify the movement. 

Don't forget, we are in this together.