What’s on our Radar this week? The revival of TRL, Chance the Rapper’s new song, Justin Timberlake at the Super Bowl and more.
MTV’s TRL Revival premiere will feature Ed Sheeran and Migos
Just in case you forgot, MTV is bringing back TRL because why not? Set to air on October 2, Ed Sheeran and Migos will perform on the premiere episode. The new TRL is set to air live weekdays at 3:30 pm ET from the revamped Times Square studio. Serving as host is rapper/comedian DC Young Young. Co-hosts include Tamara Dhia, Amy Pham, Erik Zachary, Lawrence Jackson, Liza Koshy, and the Dolan Twins. So far, original host Carson Daley has no plans to return to the show.
The music video show ended back in 2008, but the network has brought it back for one-off occasions over the years. Apparently, MTV isn’t quite finished with reboots as they’re also planning on bringing back the Unplugged series. Known for featuring rockstars performing acoustically, the first episode of the rebooted series featured Shawn Mendes. The second episode showcased Bleachers.
Chance the Rapper debuts new song on Late Show with Stephen Colbert
Our favorite Chicago native, Chance the Rapper appeared on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert last week. To everyone’s surprise, he debuted a new song. The currently untitled track finds the rapper addressing his fame, being a father, and America failing to keep its promise of equality.
Speaking about his performance with Colbert, Chance said “I was gonna [perform] ‘Grown Ass Kid,’ an unreleased song from Coloring Book, and then I called on Saturday and said, I can’t do ‘Grown Ass Kid’ anymore for reasons I don’t want to talk about. We had to come up with a song in a matter of days, and I wanted to do something fresh. I’ve been in the studio a lot lately; I’ve been cooking up some yammers. I premiered ‘Angels,’ the first new song off Coloring Book, here, so I was like, why not do another new song for you guys here tonight?”
Does this mean there’s another album or mixtape in the works? We’ll just have to wait and see. Check out the performance above.
Rumor: Is Justin Timberlake performing at the 2018 Super Bowl?
After it was revealed Jay-Z turned down an offer to play the 2018 Half Time show at the Super Bowl, there may already be a replacement. Reports broke out last week that Justin Timberlake was “finalizing” a deal to perform at the halftime show. The report has neither been confirmed nor denied by Timberlake.
It wouldn’t Timberlake’s first time on the halftime stage. He first appeared at the event in 2004 with Janet Jackson. During a performance of “Rock Your Body” Timberlake accidentally ripped off a part of Jackson’s costume exposing her breast in what is now known as “nipple gate.” The mishap caused chaos for CBS as numerous complaints streamed in. Jackson’s career took a dive as her videos became blacklisted by Viacom. Timberlake faired pretty well.
Now the question is if Timberlake gets to come back, when can Jackson return?
Upcoming Shows
Iconic alternative rock band The Pixies play the Chicago Theater October 8. You don’t want to miss this one.
To help celebrate the 25th anniversary of The Empty Bottle, Explosions in the Sky will hit up the venue October 3. You still have a chance to get tickets here.
Fleet Foxes play two nights in Chicago on October 3 and 4 at the Chicago Theatre. While the first show is sold out, you can still get tickets for the second show.
Catch Curren$y on his Pilot Talk Trilogy Tour when it swings by the Metro on October 5. Get tickets here.
Chicago Artist Spotlight: The Million Reasons
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZhKSjb9kKtM
Chicago rock/pop band The Million Reasons sound like the kind of guys you can grab a beer with after work and just chill for the rest of night. Formed in 2016, the band made up of Scott Nadeau, Ken Ugel, Mike Nichols, and Colin Dill sound like a group of friends who started a band just for the fun of it. They released their debut EP, The Runaround, earlier this year and their upbeat, high-energy jams have been getting them noticed around the city.
Their brand of garage rock mixed with pop sensibilities sounds like the type of music you’d play at a summer cookout, beach party, or any get-together where the drinks are flowing. Their sound has this good time vibe to it, something we all could use right now. If you want to catch them live, make sure to check out their October 4 Bottom Lounge show with Welshly Arms and Honors are part of 101 WKQX’s Queued Up Artist showcase. After that, they’ll play The Elbo Room on October 15.