As reported, the Issa Rae Paramount comedy had been set for a theatrical release in early April.
Yet, the onset of the pandemic put a pause on plans that were very much in motion. Indeed, an initial premiere had already taken place in New York.
Still, with there being a public appetite for the flick (which also stars Kumail Nanjiani), the studio struck a unique deal with Netflix that’d bring it to the streamer.
What would you do if you had ‘4 Minutes’ to save the world?
Madonna, Justin Timberlake and Timbaland’s answer clearly was: create an infectious Pop bop.
This week’s From The Vault pick is ‘4 Minutes’ by the dynamic trio.
In 2008, after celebrating the disco era with the impeccable ‘Confessions On A Dancefloor’ era, Madonna had her sights on the future. Notably with subsequent release ‘Hard Candy.’ So, in a very expected manner, she made sure she surrounded herself with the people responsible for the biggest hits at that time.
Enter Timberlake and Timbaland, with whom she released ‘Minutes’, a glorious, brassy and high-octane number as the album’s first single.
Commercially, the collaboration proved to be successful with the track peaking at #3 in the US and topping the charts in 21 countries, including Australia, Canada, Germany, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom.
For the video, the ever-edgy chanteuse turned to French directors Jonas & François and creative director/choreographer Jamie King to come up with a visual as spectacular as the song. The result was an apocalyptic offering where Madge and JT race against a black amorphous entity in order to have fun one last time before the world ends.
The video was nominated for a MTV VMA for Best Dancing in a Video in 2008, but lost to The Pussycat Dolls’ ‘When I Grow Up’.
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We’ll never knock Madonna’s hustle when it comes to keeping up with what’s hot. Because, when it’s tastefully done (as seen with this very song), the outcome can be a commercially fruitful pop dream, as well as a big middle finger to ageists around the world.
Sadly, in recent years Magde hasn’t scored a song that was able to match the quality of ‘4 Minutes’ from any of the whoever hip collaborators she got in the studio with.
Still, what time has taught us, is to never count her out.
While the priority is for her to recover after her ‘Madame X’ tour, we’re excited as always about what’s coming next for Madonna.
Tonight brought with it the UK TV broadcast of ‘One World: Together At Home.’ And in turn ushered in more performances – specifically for the British edition of the Lady Gaga curated Covid-19 relief fundraiser.
For this instalment, Pop quad Little Mix opened with a harmonious rendition of chart smash ‘Touch,’ while other featured performers included Rita Ora, John Legend, Liam Payne, Jessie Reyez, and many more.
Collectively, they joined the likes ofBeyonce, Taylor Swift, Alicia Keys, Usher, Jennifer LopezLizzo, Billie Eilish, and Stevie Wonder on the list of those making appearances on the special – which raised $127 million.
Teddy Riley found himself at the center of worldwide trends and chatter last night when a planned Verzuz battle with Babyface collapsed into chaos.
The hitmaker’s overly robust setup stalled the duel early into the spar, when issue after technical issue arose.
And while his team lobbied for a 30 minute break, Babyface announced that he wouldn’t be returning, suggesting that they stage do-over when the circumstances were better.
Still, the disappointment was palpable and the memes were relentless.
Lady Gaga assembled some of the world’s biggest musical names for ‘One World: Together at Home.’
The superstar, in partnership with the Global Citizen and World Health Organization (WHO), served as the curator of the event– a benefit concert to combat the COVID-19 pandemic. Over 50 million tuned in, while $127 million was raised in commitments to the fight against coronavirus.
Hosted by Jimmy Fallon, Jimmy Kimmel, and Stephen Colbert, the star-studded spectacle featured the likes of Beyonce, Taylor Swift, Alicia Keys, Usher, Jennifer LopezLizzo, Billie Eilish, John Legend, Sam Smith, Burna Boy, Stevie Wonder, and more.
Beyonce made a surprise appearance on the ‘One World: Together At Home’ special moments ago.
In an unannounced feature, Queen Bey used the moment to celebrate those at the front lines of the coronavirus relief effort, while also spotlighting the affect of Covid-19 on the Black community.
She also offered words of encouragement to the world at large.
