Lizzo and Cardi B Have Teamed Up, At Last. Hooray?

Even if the song doesn’t slap the way it should, the video is a nice little treat

By Rich Juzwiak | August 13, 2021 | 9:00pm

Entertainment Music

Will be good for commercials: Lizzo feat. Cardi B, “Rumors”: First, the good: new music from Lizzo, that’s always something! Also, Cardi and her preggo bump look great, and that “top,” if we can call it that, which looks like just gold body paint over the tiddies, is an inspirational late summer moment. However, in the matter of the song itself, I am not particularly moved. It’s a little boring, though I bet my attitude would change if I heard this song outside at a bar or someone’s backyard, and had had a few beveraginos. Or maybe it wouldn’t! Even if the song doesn’t slap the way it should, the video is a nice little treat, as if the Muses from Disney’s Hercules got a big ol’ budget and were allowed to do whatever, so for the gals and the rest of ‘em who feel a particular nostalgia for that, this should fit the bill nicely. —Megan Reynolds

Yep: Anushka, “Serenity” – From criminally underrated Brighton-based duo of Victoria Port and Max Wheeler comes this cut from their wonderful and warm sophomore album, Yemaya. Amidst Port’s gushing affection (“All I see are blue skies/And sunrise/No surprise/It’s only when you’re near me”) a kick drum’s bump gets gently prodded with a garagey polyrhythm. The synths are squishy and bubbly. I have a Comme des Garçons fragrance (CdG3) that smells like what I imagine a citrus fruit from a distant planet would. This sounds like that cologne. —Rich Juzwiak

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Y: Cookiee Kawaii, “1 Min Man” – Songs today! They’re short! While this cut from Jersey’s Cookiee Kawaii’s recent album Vanice is technically an interlude, its 90-second runtime suits its quick-shot subject well, and leaves us wanting more. This quickie is, in fact, a well-executed formal exercise. —RJ

Yes, but I’m washed: Robert Plant and Allison Krauss, “Can’t Let Go”- Approximately one hundred years ago, when I lived in San Francisco, I attended Hardly Strictly Bluegrass in Golden Gate Park and heard Robert Plant and Allison Krauss do their thing amongst the rural idyll of some big trees and fog. It was wonderful! It made me feel old, even though in 2008, I was not! And even though this new song is definitely music that I can listen to with my agéd Boomer dad, I am here for this jaunty little Lucinda Williams cover, if only for the nostalgia. Though I have no desire to return to San Francisco or to attend Hardly Strictly Bluegrass ever again, if I close my eyes and sit in front of the air conditioner, I can at least pretend I am there. —MR