Valentine’s Day is typically one of the busiest nights of the year for restaurants and bars.
Not being one for crowded places on what is supposed to be a quiet romantic evening, I’ve compiled this list of Valentine’s Day-themed drinks you can make at home.
RED VELVET CAKE MARTINI
This is a great break from the boring-yet-classic martini. Picture this: You’ve just finished a scrumptious, home-cooked meal. What’s for dessert? Booze! And it’s delicious.
5 ounces Whipped Cream Vodka
5 ounces Creme De Cocoa
1 tablespoon Red Velvet Cake Mix
6 ounces milk
1 Ice Cube
Cream cheese icing for garnish (optional)
LOVE MARTINI
What’s the difference between “like” and “love”? Some say alcohol. This Love Martini is a little more involved, but it’s made with common, easy-to-find ingredients that won’t cost you a lot of money.
\¾ ounce Malibu Rum
¾ ounce Peach Schapps
¾ ounce Citron Vodka or plain vodka
5 ounces cranberry juice
Strawberries (optional)
Lime wedge (optional)
Sugar for rim garnish (optional)
Blend ingredients in a shaker and shake gently.
BERRY PUNCH
The holiday doesn’t have to be all about booze (though it often helps some of us get through it). This is a sweet and refreshing beverage that both kids and adults can enjoy. This drink is cheap, but requires a little extra preparation.
Heat the raspberries and sugar in a saucepan on medium heat for about five minutes. Refrigerate the puree for two hours. Once properly chilled, combine the puree, strawberry lemonade concentrate and soda in a large pitcher over ice. Add a few scoops of sorbet. Garnish with strawberries.
Detroit rapper Big Sean is continuing to build hype for his impending album, I Decided, with the release of a new trailer.
Although brief, the 30-second teaser features music from “Halfway Off The Balcony” and “Voices In My Head,” two tracks that are set to appear on the album that’s coming out Friday (February 3).
In the stylish visual (see above), which was directed by Canadian filmmaker Andy Hines, Big Sean can be seen standing in the middle of a desolate street as it floods.
In addition to today’s video teaser, Sean Don hit fans with another dose of good news. The Motor City rapper will launch four separate pop-up shops to celebrate the release of his fourth studio album.
Pop-up shop locations include Detroit, New York, Los Angeles, and Toronto.
“I’m too excited to be Dropping new merchandise this weekend for y’all exclusively at the I Decided pop-up shop. Detroit, New York, LA & Toronto. 4 locations each one starts Friday and ends Sunday,” Big Sean wrote in the caption to a photo of the flyer for the pop-up shops.
With a new album and nationwide pop-up shops on the way, Big Sean has clearly come a long way since his Shakespearean days.
Since Inauguration Day, several terrestrial radio stations from around the country have been dealing with the same problem: an unstoppable audio loop of YG and Nipsey Hussle’s track “FDT (Fuck Donald Trump).” Stations in South Carolina, Indiana, Texas, Tennessee, and Kentucky have all had their signals hacked over the past two weeks resulting in unexpected airtime for “FDT,” according to multiplesources.
On January 20th, reports began to surface of radio stations in Kentucky and Texas playing the song on repeat for hours. HeatStreet confirmed with Crescent Hill Radio in KY and 100.5 KCGF-LP in TX that the broadcasts were not intentional. Crescent Hill Radio reportedly had to go off the air entirely for several hours to fix the problem.
El Jefe 96.7 in Tennessee and Mother of the Redeemer Radio in Indiana were also hacked on January 20th, according to Radio Insight.
The stations eventually discovered it was through their Barix Estreamer devices that the hackers had gained access to their transmissions. The simple internet-connected antenna isn’t secured by default, according toBuzzFeed, which left the stations vulnerable to attack.
“Other stations that it happened to have contacted me, and we all used the same device, and none of us had set a password to the device,” Kathy Weisbach, founder and president of Crescent Hill, told HeatStreet. “My bad, as I had done other security measures at the tower and the studio but failed to password protect this device. You can bet it is now.”
But, days later, the hacks continued at other stations.
In a January 30th post screencapped by BuzzFeed that has since been deleted, Frank Patterson, president of the Lake Keowee Broadcasting group in Salem, SC wrote on the WFBS-FM Facebook page, “Our internet has been HACKED at our transmitter site and the station has played anti-Trump songs. This is NOT our broadcast!”
Patterson said in the post that he planned to contact the FCC about the hack.
Radio Insightpoints out that this is not the first time this kind of hack has happened because of an unsecured Barix device. Last April, multiple stations reported their regular programming was suddenly interrupted by a podcast about furry sex.
It ain’t over until the fat lady sings or until someone’s “Baby’s Moma” is involved. The running feud between Yo Gotti, Blac Youngsta, and Young Dolph has just been reignited. Dolph drops off a new diss that will surely ruffle some feathers. Most of the shots are at Gotti, which is pretty surprising being as though he’s been rather removed from the beef between Youngsta and Dolph…
Rihanna is breaking out in every way possible, with releasing her most heartfelt and groundbreaking album Anti. Now, she is landing major movie roles such as Bates Motel, the all women cast of Oceans Eight, which is set to be released of Summer 2018, and alien movie Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets. Rihanna cannot sit still, but who can blame her.
In the A&E drama, the pop sensation plays the role of Marion Crane, the fictional character featured in 1959 novel Psycho. Executive producer Kerry Ehrin said that Rihanna will play a more fleshed out version of the character Leigh portrayed in Psycho. Little is known about her fate but if the past is any indication of Rihanna’s performance, you can be sure that she’ll absolutely kill her role.
Bates Motel returns February 20th on A&E. Along with her multi-episode arc on the show, Rihanna has several more forthcoming acting projects including Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets and Ocean’s Eight.
“I don’t have to care about what I say—I can rap about what I want,” he made clear to us in November. So, as the title hints, here’s a song in which Ugly God says the word “bitch” 83 times (I counted, twice) over a beautiful self-produced beat. That has to be some kind of record, right? Listen below.
While the world may have its racial differences, hip-hop seems to be blind to race, color and creed, leaving its door open for all to come in, with endless possibilities for anything magical to be created.
Originally from Newington, Connecticut, OnCue fell in love with hip-hop at a very young age, thanks to his older brother who introduced him to the genre.
“I’ve been listening to hip-hop since I was around 3 or 4. It was just a lot of random stuff back then as a kid that made me fall in love with hip-hop, such as Method Man and Kris Kross. Bone Thugs-n-Harmony was actually the very first CD I bought. But there was no one specific artist that inspired me to start writing rap records, I just fell love with the music and culture since I was a little kid. I was a white kid, in the average normal suburbs and it was kind of a backwards, but I was blessed to have an older brother who had good taste in music.”
While coming from a white background, OnCue did however face some hardships with trying to emerge himself in the industry. The 27-year-old artist mentioned some hesitance before actually committing himself to become a rapper.
“It’s so crazy because I started so young. I wrote my first raps before Eminem even came out. I wrote my first rap when I was 9 and always hid it from my parents and brother just because I thought that at this moment, there was so much back lash from Vanilla Ice in ‘97, ‘98, and around the time when Biggie and Pac passed, there was even more back lash on white rappers. But when Em came along, he kind of made me feel like okay, maybe I’m not insane, maybe I can do this. And then when Kanye came out, I felt like oh, I think there is a place for me. I say that because before Kanye came along, it was all gangster, drug and street rap, and then when he came in the game, he kind of made it okay to be yourself.”
While Eminem and Kanye gave him that drive to pursue his dreams, when asked, “If you had to choose someone to listen to your last piece of work, who would it be and why?”, OnCue responds, “I would have to go with Kanye. Ye cares about every last detail and I am the very same way…In fact, I was hype and freaking out that someone from Good Music was listening to my shit. Obviously I work with Just, but when I found College Dropout, that’s when my soul really connected with something”.
While OnCue had some reservations with bringing his raps to the light during his childhood, all his efforts would soon pay off. Before moving to New York and becoming the artist he is today, his formal introduction into the industry wasn’t planned, it just happened. Upon finding a craft in graphic designs, he used that skill as a means to network and build relations with figures in the industry. After one of OnCue’s graphic designs clients played his beginning records to producer, Just Blaze, it marked the beginning of his and Just Blaze’s collaborations. It was almost as if fate took its course for the two to meet. From that point forward, OnCue only went up.
OnCue’s music has definitely shown the evolution of his life and growth. He released Angry Young Man in 2014, but spent three years working on it prior to the release. The young artist described AYM as a mere description of everything he was going through at that time of his life.
“I was angry at the past, angry at my present and angry about my future because I was dealing with a lot of shit, from dealing with my father’s drug addiction, my brother’s issue with alcohol, my breakup, and I just put it in those 12 songs. Instead of running with the drugs and alcohol, I buried myself in music. It’s where I found peace. The track, “Broken Language” specifically was about a girl I was with for years, and once my career took a turn, it was that moment where I actually became a man and made that decision that changed me forever. I did not want to say goodbye at all, but sometimes you have to make decisions for the long run. I had always been this voice of uplifting and reason, and trying to find the silver lining in things and that was really what it was about. I had to get this out emotionally and that was Angry Young Man.”
In regards to the latest EP he dropped, You Knew All Along, OnCue says, “I am just kind of giving you myself. Its not like you are going to be able to necessarily find OnCue’s voice, metaphorically speaking in someone else because I am telling my story and no one else’s. So even in the new material, You Knew All Along, was kind of fun, but it wasn’t really planned, it more so just happened. I had some records sitting in the stash, “3AM” and “Boy On The Come Up”, along with some other records I made throughout the year and basically complied them together”
In transition, Perfectly, Tragically Flawed is a more thought out, short album of me accepting who I am, growing from those growing pains, moving through heart breaks, dealing with domestic issues and all the other bullshit I had to deal with in AYM. I now have such a different perspective, because once you really hit rock bottom, anything but rock bottom is amazing. I really hit rock bottom making AYM. I went through heavy depression and after the break up, I just couldn’t deal with it. While I was simultaneously trying to work on my first project with Just Blaze, depression really got to me, certain things fell out around me in terms of my team and I mean I was really in a dark place. I was waiting on iTunes royalty checks just to buy food, a couple hundred dollar checks just to literally put food in my belly. But now, everything is really starting to look up. Life isn’t perfect but I understand that now”.
While OnCue’s life took a 360-degree spin for the best, the color of his skin was something he had no control over. “Being white in hip hop, I would be a liar to say that it does not have some benefits, but obviously on the other hand, it has been it uphill battle. Like I know I have fans that only listen to white rappers, saying things like OnCue, G-Eazy and MGK are like the dopest, and then its like, is that all you listen to? Like it is bizarre. But then on the other hand its kind of hard to get respect. More or less it’s difficult to be a white rapper. There is an uphill battle when you are trying to actually be taken seriously within the culture. But in this day in age, living with the internet, blogs, and other media outlets including SoundCloud YouTube and Spotify, there are all these counter cultures of white rap, which kind of exist outside of the culture. There is a subculture inside of the culture, which G-Eazy blew up within, and then next thing you know, he has a huge record in the country and a lot of people within hip hop are confused because a lot of times, when you are trying to make the uphill battle as a white guy and gain respect from a predominantly black art form, its totally difficult.”
Understanding that OnCue’s music has shown a true evolution of his life, he said, “I get bored easily, so AYM is very sonically and lyrically heavy and super experimental. The newer stuff is a little bit lighter, very much trap drone kid and very much what OnCue would sound like in 2016, 2017 without really losing that experimental and adventurous side… I just want to fuck shit up, but right now I am really enjoying the music that I am currently working on and I’ve never felt so proud”.
Perfectly, Tragically Flawed is expected to be released next month in February, but OnCue hopes that from his music his audience understands that everyone has issues.
Philadelphia artistAnyee Wright has been relatively quiet since the release of her stellar projectBusy. Bust she is back to grind more than ever. Anyee’s previous body of work has been hands down some of her best.
But, with her new video “Street Smart,” she is showing that she still has the drive to get her voice heard. In the David Hager-directed video, viewers are able to see the city from her perspective, e.g. what she does on a regular basis in Philly.
Is this young artist ready to be crowned as Philly’s next upcomer? We shall see.
Apple said earlier today it was releasing the latest version of Apple Watch software to developers, which lets those app makers use Siri on the Watch for certain functions within their apps. This new Siri option for third-party app makers is significant, especially at a time when more and more gadgets offer voice control, but it’s the Watch’s new Theater Mode that has me more intrigued in the short term.
Because for the past couple weeks, I’ve been wearing an Apple Watch to sleep at night in the hopes that I would get some kind of valuable heart rate data out of it; and like a lot of other wrist wearables I’ve tested, the darn thng lights up the dark space around me when I toss and turn.
Theater Mode, in short, is the ability to shut off the Apple Watch’s screen and prevent it from waking even when you raise your wrist. It’s different from the Do Not Disturb option that’s been offered on Apple Watch since the beginning, because while Do Not Disturb prevents all notifications from popping up, the Watch’s display will still light up when you move your wrist around. In Theater Mode, the smartwatch won’t light up unless you physically press on it.
The feature’s name indicates it’s primarily aimed at — you guessed it — theater goers, who by now well know the etiquette around smartphone usage during a show but might still annoy people with their wrist computers. It’s a feature that could also be useful during dimly lit exercise sessions, like a yoga class or extremely cultish SoulCycle classes. That’s all well and great.
But if Apple Watch ever is going to be a sleep tracker, something the company has reportedly been working on, this is another step in that direction. Currently, the Watch doesn’t have a built-in app for tracking sleep, and the accuracy of consumer sleep trackers is questionable at best. (Also, since the battery life isn’t more than a day, you risk waking up to a dead smartwatch the next morning.)
There are third-party apps that still try to do this, though. AutoSleep and Sleep++ are two of the more well-known sleep-tracking apps for Apple Watch. Lately I’ve been using Cardiogram, a nifty heart rate-tracking app that identifies spikes in my heart rate and tells me my average resting heart rate, because I’m more interested in that kind of information than the “you were sort of awake at 3:14AM” kind of data.
While the watchOS 3.2 software is only available to developers right now, it should reach consumers soon. And while sleep tracking may not be the stated purpose of Theater Mode, I’m hopeful it will work well for that. Apple has been going hard at making the Watch a viable health gadget, but Apple also isn’t immune to the problems that its wearable competitors face: they need to offer more value, otherwise, we’ll take them off at night and forget to wear them after that.
The UK may have found its first R&B male jewel, with singer and songwriter Angel. The rising R&B artist has already made his mark by working with Swizz Beats, who mentors Angel, Ed Sheeran, Jeremih, Jason Derulo, Dizzee Rascal, Stormzy, and many more. His accolades go even further, Angel has been in the studio with Kehlani and even wrote the UK’s #1 single, “Green Light.”
HYPEFRESH chatted with Angel about his previous work, being a father and more.
We’ve learned that your real name isn’t Angel, it’s Sirach Charles! How did you come across the stage name Angel and what does it mean to you when you use it?
Name is kind of controversial for me, I am a very spiritual person and when I sing I am told I sing like an “Angel”. I did not come up with the name, I got it when I was away at camp as a nickname from my friend because of how I used to write my letters.
Your EP, HER, dropped in November under Island Records, can you describe for our readers/listeners who haven’t listened yet what they can expect from this project? What’s your most prized creation (song) from it?
It has a lot of melodies in the vocals on the EP, I am a freak for harmonies and melodies, so they should watch out for that. Also, watch out for the elements of different genres. I mix a lot of different genres in the EP: a bit of Reggae, Rock, old school R&B. The whole nostalgia era. “Fvxk With You” was one of the songs that I played with a different sound and had fun with, it reminds me of the sound I grew up around.
How did the collab with Rich Homie Quan in “Fvxk With You” come about?
I was out in LA, hooked up with a friend back home from London because she was out there for a while, I met up with Rich Homie Quan and he played the rhythm for me and I was like “yo, that right there is crazy.” After that I wanted to create a record and give the rhythm an international sound. I contacted Rich Homie and he genuinely liked what I had to offer. It was fun, organic and comfortable working with him.
In the “Fvxk With You” video, you’re sporting a retro windbreaker, and holding an old-school cellphone, is that purposefully symbolic of something greater? Do you think the 90s has had an impact on your personal style?
It is very symbolic to where I come from and the time I grew up in, which was the 90’s. It also showcases my British style. I remember growing up watching that type of style in videos, and I wanted to emulate that into the video this time around. In all of my music I like to just be and showcase that I am me, this is Angel.
They say looks can be deceiving and in your case, that saying would be pretty accurate. You seem to carry yourself with this bad-boy persona, but then you turn around with this voice of an angel. Has anyone ever pointed that out to you before?
I often do get that how I sound or how I even speak is shocking to some people. They often tell me that “I never thought you’d sound like that;” however, that is just who I am — I never wanted to be the “bad-boy” type.
Many artists dream of being picked up by big names to help jumpstart their careers but few ever make it. You were blessed enough to work with the likes of Swizz Beats early in your game. Can you tell me a little more about what that was like? What is your relationship like with him today? How has he influenced you?
Swizz Beats has been a mentor, a brother, and friend to me. He is always there to keep me grounded and show me what and what not to do. Swizz Beats reminds me to continue the hard work and dedication I have for music, all the conversations that I have with him are encouraging. Swizz is a genuine true soul, it’s a blessing to have him around.
Do you remember the exact moment you decided you were going to start music and take it seriously? What was that day like for you?
I remember a day I came home from school and I just wanted to record. My dad was a musician and had all the equipment but never let me record. So, one day when my dad went out, I used the equipment to record and from that day on I wanted to do nothing else but record music. After that I just locked myself in the room at night for years making and writing music, until I decided to make it my life.
If you could work with anyone in the industry, dead or alive, to produce the next chart topper, club banger, feel-good song, who would you have to be featured?
It would have to be Michael Jackson; I’ve been inspired by Michael when it comes down to music. I love his sound. In the videos, I start off with dialogue, I take advantage of skit usage like Michael Jackson did back in the day when creating the music videos.
In your recent feature with UK’s edition of Complex, you talk about your children and I understand that you’re a new dad to a beautiful baby girl. How do you balance being a father and being an artist at the same time?
It gets tough sometimes because I always want to be with my daughter, every second I’m away from her. But I always remember that I also have a responsibility and that I’m doing it for her. What I’m doing is for my daughter. I want my children to know to always be open minded, have faith and be strong. Do whatever you want to do, and if things happen to not go as plan, continue to have faith and positivity.
There are many brilliant British female R&B singers, including Marsha Ambrosius, Sade Adu, Emeli Sande, and Corinne Bailey Rae, just to name a few. But here in America, we don’t hear about black male R&B singers too often from the UK. What is that scene like where you are? In a way, you sort of show what that demographic is capable of. Some would say that would make you an icon. How does it feel to be a break out artist?
It’s a great feeling. Every day I open my eyes and it overwhelms me that I’ve come this far in accomplishing what I want to do and I’ve met so many great artist along the way. I pray about it every day because I still can’t believe it. Making that transition into the United States and have people from my hometown support me, it means something to our community and the British culture because it is something that we need and always wanted. I represent me and where I come from in my music, I am proud to be from London.
The most recent iteration of the YEEZY release went down in December, when the “Core White” 350 V2s arrived before Christmas. Now, we have reason to suspect that the highly coveted “Black/Red” edition will arrive on February 11, with the “Zebra” version dropping two weeks after on February 25. Reports have also stated that there will be a very limited release, in even less numbers than the “Beluga” V2, so if you’re still trying to get your hands onn the glory, now is your chance.
Breaking records since 1985, the Air Jordan 1 Mid is back with a new colorway that sees the entire silhouette embossed in an updated tonal grey iteration. Combining full-grain leather and a Nubuck upper, the Air Jordan 1 Mid also features solid rubber cupsoles and outsoles for the perfect fusion of flexibility, durability and style. Check out the images above and gets yours now at select retailers such as SneakerPolitics for $110.00 USD.
Casanova is Brooklyn’s latest lethal weapon. The rapper is making major waves sonically. When he’s not tearing down the stage with high energy performances, he’s unleashing valuable gems. Listen and find out #WhatsInSeason for the “Don’t Run” rapper.
