Category: Trending

Any changes that happen at the top of NBA teams’ draft boards between now and the 2020 NBA Draft (whenever that happens) are likely to be a result of either careful analysis or straight-up overthinking. The information flow has ceased among NBA teams. As far as has been reported, no teams have yet begun interviewing players or taking the pre-draft process virtual in any meaningful way. Yet LaMelo Ball seems to be striking the fancy of NBA decision-makers once again.

As Sam Vecenie wrote at The Athletic this week as he placed Ball in the top slot on his big board, “… in this draft, where things are this up in the air, I’m willing to roll the dice on Ball and hope he keeps getting better. The talent level is very real at a premium position.” It’s fair to wonder how anyone is changing how they feel about anyone with pro basketball shut down across the planet. Which brings the conversation back to the central question: Thoughtful reconsideration or overthinking?

Back in September, Ball drew comparisons to everyone from Spencer Dinwiddie to Luka Doncic. As the league transitioned toward smaller lineups for the bulk of a 48-minute game, efficient wing playmakers who can bust matchups became teams’ logical counterpunch. What Kawhi Leonard did in the playoffs last year, thoroughly controlling every moment of Toronto’s championship run, showed the value such a player can have.

Ball is not that big nor at that level as a defender, but the mismatches he will pose from day one in the NBA are nonetheless similar. Where Ball’s true value lies is in his genes. Like his brother Lonzo, LaMelo is a preternatural playmaker. The aggressive version of Lonzo the Pelicans unlocked is a great template to imagine how LaMelo can translate to the NBA.

With an absence of new information, Ball tantalizes thanks to his unique style and versatility. LaVar Ball coached his sons’ teams to play fast, and they dictate tempo better than most young players. The difference with LaMelo is a far more aggressive and capable scorer in addition to quarterbacking his teams.

From sand workouts to build athleticism to the green light he’s had at every level, Ball is unpredictable because nothing scares him. Ball isn’t scared to take outrageous off-the-dribble triples or take a floater from a depraved angle.

That aggressiveness is the root of the knock on him — unlike Lonzo, LaMelo has some bad habits built into his game that could be harder to fix. In a video breakdown with Mike Schmitz of ESPN, Ball praised the Ilawarra coaching staff for helping him better understand the principles of team defense. Though he made strides in that department over the course of the season that could help him survive defending wing players in the NBA, Ball is not unlike his competition for the No. 1 overall pick, Anthony Edwards Jr., in that at his worst, he plays like an undisciplined amateur.

The idea that teams are overthinking their heightened excitement about Ball doesn’t hold much water. If anything, NBA scouts probably allowed a season-ending foot injury to get in the way of their analysis earlier in the winter. This is a player NBA teams have been monitoring since high school, and he’s improved greatly over the years. His time in the National Basketball League in Australia was inconsistent and didn’t result in a lot of winning, but the immense ceiling is still there.

As this year’s pre-draft process begins to look more like the Wild West, teams will rest on the laurels of their scouting and analytics. There will be no Draft Combine; no workouts. A player like Ball with multiple seasons of professional experience and heaps of intel is likely to benefit, especially because of how smoothly he will fill the need for any team searching for a jumbo playmaker.

Hoops fans have viewed the 2020 Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame as a potential all-timer. Three names have been frequently mentioned as first-ballot inclusions this year, and according to a report by Shams Charania of The Athletic, all three of them are going to have their names read when the class is formally announced on Saturday.

Charania brings word that the trio of Tim Duncan, Kevin Garnett, and the late Kobe Bryant will get enshrined in Springfield when the annual ceremony occurs later this year. The official announcement, which is usually made at the Final Four but had to be slightly adjusted this year due to the NCAA canceling all winter and spring championships due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

It is, obviously, a well-deserved honor for all three players. Duncan and Garnett are two of the greatest power forwards to ever step on the hardwood, while Bryant is an icon, even after his passing in a helicopter accident earlier this year. Missing out on a Kobe Bryant Hall of Fame induction speech is particularly sad, but it should still be a wonderful occasion looking back on his life and career, regardless. And besides, we predict that Duncan and especially Garnett will give speeches we’ll never forget whenever the ceremony ends up happening.

Days after Tony Ferguson called for Khabib Nurmagomedov to be stripped of the lightweight championship for pulling out of their UFC 249 showdown, the champ is apparently ready to any location in the world to make the bout happen.

Nurmagomedov left the United States to travel to the UAE, where it was assumed UFC 249 would take place. He was eventually re-routed to Russia due to travel restrictions and acknowledged he is under quarantine in an Instagram post. But after UFC president Dana White claimed “everyone knew” Nurmagomedov would not fight, the unbeaten champ pushed back and said he’s “100 percent” willing to fight in two weeks if White gives him a location.

“Right now, if they give me location and I can come out from Russia and I can go to any country,” Nurmagomedov said, per Yahoo! Sports. “U.S., Abu Dhabi, doesn’t matter. I’m going to fight, 100 percent. Just give me location. Every day, I send Dana White a message. ‘Hey, where’s my location.’ This is not my mistake.”

Nurmagomedov later told ESPN if the fight doesn’t happen as planned, he’d like it to be rebooked as early as August as he prepares to observe a fasting period for the month of Ramadan. Nurmagomedov also said he wouldn’t care if the UFC created an interim title in the event he doesn’t fight at UFC 249, potentially opening the door for Justin Gaethje to take his place and square off with Ferguson.

Should this be cancelled, it would mark the fifth time a scheduled Nurmagomedov-Ferguson tilt hasn’t gone through as planned.

If you’re thoroughly prepared for your home quarantine, you likely purchased a few bottles of whiskey and a whole lot of beer. When it comes to crucial supplies, these two items fall right below toilet paper, bread, and pasta in the preparedness kit hierarchy. And with the quarantine heading into its fourth full week, combining the whiskey with the pint –resulting in a boilermaker — is starting to look pretty alluring.

You’d have a good precedent to work off of if you decide to go that route. Seabass, the villainous trucker from Dumb And Dumber, is a boilermaker aficionado. It’s a simple, perfect non-cocktail and very easy to fix in between games of Jenga and Netflix binges. You can either drink the shot and then chase it with the beer or drop the shot into the beer and chug it down.

Bartenders don’t really subscribe to the second version, too messy. Better to sip on the whiskey and the beer back-to-back. But regardless of the technique you choose, you’ll want to pick two complementary flavors. To help with that, we asked some of our favorite bartenders to tell us their go-to pairings of beer and whisky. Check their answers below!

Knob Creek Straight Rye And Sierra Nevada Pale Ale

Sam Gay, bartender at Ojai Valley Inn in Ojai, California

Usually, I tend to sip on a beer or a whiskey, surprisingly not generally next to each other. But if I am mixing the pair? Probably something hotter, like Knob Creek Straight Rye and a good pale ale like Sierra Nevada.

Four Roses Small Batch Bourbon And Mikkeller Beer Geek Brunch

Osvaldo Vasquez, mixologist at Chileno Bay Resort, Auberge Resorts Collection in Los Cabos, Mexico

Four Roses Small Batch Bourbon with Mikkeller Beer Geek Brunch. I like this pairing because this bourbon is also crafted in small batches and it has caramel notes that add to the fermented process of an artisanal beer. Mikkeller is the master of artisanal brewing and it is very interesting to follow them as they look for the unique flavors and ingredients from the places they visit to produce their batch.

Wild Turkey Bourbon And Coors Light

Amanda Swanson, bar manager at Fine & Rare in New York City

I could easily sit here and think of a really beautiful and complex beer and bourbon pairing and go into detail about the tasting notes, but if I’m being perfectly honest, I only drink boilermakers when I’m feeling casual and need to let my brain unwind. My go-to boilermaker is a Coors Light and a Wild Turkey bourbon. The beer goes down like water and the Wild Turkey is quintessentially classic bourbon.

High West Midwinter Night’s Dram and Highwater Campfire Stout

Matt Hoffa, lead bartender at The Mayfair Hotel in Los Angeles

There’s no combination I enjoy more than Highwater Campfire Stout (S’more Stout) paired with High West Midwinter Night’s Dram. The chocolate, rich, bold taste of the stout pairs perfectly with the spices of the rye whiskey aged in French oak barrels.

Michter’s Small Batch Bourbon And Guinness Stout

Nikki McCutcheon, beverage director at Magic Hour Rooftop Bar & Lounge in New York City

I love drinking a stout beer – usually Guinness Stout with Michter’s Small Batch Bourbon. The deep chocolatey and bitter notes in Guinness pairs really well with the spiced caramel notes in the bourbon.

Old Forester 1897 Bourbon And Grayton Staff Pale Ale

Kyle Walter, Bartender at Grayton Beer Brewpub in Santa Rosa Beach, Florida

Any day of the week, hands down the Staff Pale Ale from Grayton Beer Company alongside a pour of Old Forester 1897 Bottled in Bond. Have you ever experienced the sunrise and the sunset at the same time? Now you will.

Buffalo Trace Bourbon And J. Wakefield El Jefe Hefeweizen

Hector Acevedo, part ownder at Spanglish Craft Cocktail Bar & Kitchen in Miami

My favorite Boilermaker is El Jefe Hefeweizen from J. Wakefield Brewing with Buffalo Trace Bourbon. El Jefe is a traditional German Hefeweizen but with the addition of fresh coconut flakes and Buffalo Trace gives you lots of toffee and vanilla. What a great combination. Sign me in.

Wild Turkey 101 Rye And Bell’s Hopslam IPA

Ben Schiller, beverage director at RPM Restaurants in Chicago

Wild Turkey 101 Rye and an Imperial IPA like Bell’s Hopslam. Everyone has heard about Wild Turkey, but I don’t think they are given the love they rightly deserve. Their 101 Rye is full of flavor and perfectly paired with a hoppy, crisp Imperial IPA.

Writer’s Picks:

Glenmorangie 10 Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky And Genesee Cream Ale

We love this combination between a cheap, “dad beer”, and a nuanced, well-made, classic single malt Scotch whisky. You might be surprised that these two pair very well together because the creamy, sweet, corn-rich flavor of the cream ale matches perfectly with the vanilla, cream, and butterscotch sweetness of the Glenmorangie

Elijah Craig Small Batch Bourbon And Oskar Blues Mama’s Little Yella Pils

Bourbon and pilsners might as well have been made for each other. One of our favorite pairings is Elijah Craig Small Batch with its toffee, caramel, and oaky-flavor along with the malty, corn, and refreshing flavors of a can (or pint) of Oskar Blues Mama’s Little Yella Pils.

Last time in the Best and Worst of NXT UK: Aoife Valkyrie defeated Nina Samuels, and Travis Banks did his best against Jordan Devlin. If you’d like to read previous installments of the Best and Worst of NXT UK, click right here. Follow With Spandex on Twitter and Facebook. You can also follow me on Twitter if you want.

And now, the Best and Worst of NXT UK from April 2, 2020.

Successful Factionalism

Things I Love #1: This episode features one match with almost the entire men’s roster in it, which basically takes up the second half of the show. So what do they do? Spend the first half of the show on two matches that feature the women’s roster. Any non-NXT wrestling show (including AEW Dynamite) would have found a way to fill out that time without any extra focus on the women, and I’m glad this brand is different in that regard.

Things I Love #2: It’s great that Kay Lee Ray and Jinny seem to get along. They’re both cocky heels, so their readiness to team up might be a surprise. But all Jinny cares about is being the most stylish queen in NXT UK, and all Kay Lee cares about is the Women’s Championship. Jinny’s not after the title (at least not right now) so she’s no threat to Kay Lee, and Kay Lee only ever wears jeans when she’s not in ring gear, so she’s no threat to Jinny. Plus teaming up with KLR helps Jinny feel important, and teaming up with Jinny helps KLR look strong against her probably next challenger Piper Niven. I love it when people get along and character motivations make sense.

The team-up between Niven and Dani Luna is if anything less cohesive than the heel alliance, but that makes sense too. Dani’s brand new and does’t really know anyone, and all of Piper’s previous friends have either turned to the dark side or fled the show for Parts Unknown. So it seems likely early on that the heel team will win, and sure enough, they do.

If I have a complaint about this match, it’s that they do a little too much of that clichéd thing where the heels are cheating and the babyface who’s not legal (Piper in this case) tries to get in the ring to deal with it, so the ref spends like a full two minutes turned entirely toward the babyface corner yelling to stay out of the ring while the heels do whatever they want behind his back. You’d think refs would eventually learn which wrestlers can be trusted. But that’s just wrestling, I guess.

The Changeling Returns

Literal Faery Childe Xia Brookside is back from a hiatus (and what an episode to return on!) and celebrates by getting a solid win against Amale, who’s name I really wish was pronounced Ah-mah-lay but apparently it isn’t. This is almost a squash, but it makes Xia look strong on her return. It also reverses the body image stereotyping of the first match, by pitting a likable skinny girl against a bad girl with a booty. I’m not sure that needed doing, and I’m pretty sure it wasn’t intentional, but they did it all the same.

Xia’s growing a lot as a performer, which I like watching. That finisher is a little slow and awkward in the middle, but I like what she’s going for. Hopefully she’ll be able to keep training for however long the show’s not taping. She’s from a wrestling family, so you have to assume she’s well-equipped for working out. (Is there a “Brookside Dungeon?”)

The Final Blow-Out

It’s pretty great actually that the last match before an unannounced hiatus of undetermined length is a 20-man Battle Royal. Just let all the guys get in the ring one last time to do all their shit before everybody goes home. Not that they knew what was going to happen when they taped this, but it was well into March so they may have at least had an inkling that things were about to get weird.

Here are some things I liked in the Battle Royal:

• Moustache Mountain entering together and smiling at each other like “Are we really going to fight if it comes down to it?”
• A-Kid using Saxton Huxley to avoid letting his feet hit the ground when he gets thrown over the top rope. You could call this “the Kofi spot” but I don’t think Kofi has ever ridden a man like a beast of burden.
• The fact that the Tag Team members of both Gallus and Imperium aren’t in the match. A three man faction would be too strong in a match like this, especially if it’s guys as big as Gallus or as skilled as Imperium. Leaving those guys out lets Joe Coffey and Alexander Wolfe look strong on their own (especially since they both make it to the final four) with dominating unfairly.
• Moustache Mountain really fighting each other when it does come down to it.
• Bomber Dave Mastiff being the guy it takes a whole bunch of guys to toss out.
• Ilja Dragunov and Tyler Bate as the final two. I know they’re both faces, but they look great in the ring together and I hope this leads to a one-on-one match down the road (even if it’s way down the road).
• Ilja winning. He’s been on the rise since his arrival, and this is a great look for wrestling’s most likable Soviet Super-Soldier. Plus he eliminates Bate because Tyler can’t help showing off instead of stepping through the ropes like a normal person, which illustrates Tyler’s number one flaw.

Of course, we don’t know when Ilja will actually get his shot at WALTER, because this is the last episode of NXT UK that was taped before the Coronavirus shut everything down. The plan had been to record some episode at WrestleMania Axxess like last year, but obviously that’s not happening. They don’t mention this on the air, but they do promote a “Rise of NXT UK” recap show for next week. We’ll see what happens the week after that, and the week after that, and so on. I’ve grown to love this show, and I’ll miss it for however long its gone. At the same time, I can’t say I’m sad that they’re not just recording crowd-free episodes at the UK Performance Center.

So we don’t know when there will be more new episodes of NXT UK, but when there are I’ll be here to recap them.

Goodbye, crowds. I hope it’s not forever.

This weekend was supposed to be when the basketball world descended on Atlanta for the Final Four, but with the NCAA Tournament canceled due to the COVID-19 outbreak, this weekend will be much like the last two, one of filling the time however possible and continuing to try and stay safe through social distancing to limit the spread of the coronavirus.

Still, we can’t shake the feeling that we should be able to take in some college hoops this weekend and as such we are firing up a 10-year-old video game to give us a glimpse at what could have been. There has not been a college basketball video game made since EA Sports’ NCAA Basketball 10, so I dusted off my Xbox 360 and, after some trials and tribulations involving an old game disc, got to work on figuring out what might have happened if the 2020 Final Four played out with rosters from 2009-10.

Since we don’t know what the Final Four would actually look like, we are going to simulate a few different possibilities. The first being the chalk favorites (Gonzaga, Dayton, Kansas, and Baylor), pitting the four top seeds from Joe Lunardi’s final bracket prediction against each other, which as we all know never happens, but it’s a starting point. The second was taking the Final Four from FiveThirtyEight’s projections (Kansas, Maryland, San Diego State, and Michigan State).

The third was building the 2020 bracket (using Lundardi’s final prediction) in the 2010 game and having the video game determine a Final Four, of which it did a surprisingly good job of and didn’t have any wild upsets. The Final Four the game projects is Kansas, Villanova, Gonzaga, and Ohio State (with full results able to be seen at the bottom of this post).

We will be simulating these games, available for you to watch if you so choose on our Twitch channel (twitch.tv/DimeUproxx). We’ll be streaming one Final Four (semifinals followed by finals) each day Saturday through Monday on 10 minute halves, so three games will take just over an hour, total. We’ll start with the all-chalk games on Saturday, FiveThirtyEight’s bracket prediction Final Four on Sunday, and the NCAA 10 predictions on Monday, with all streams starting at 5 p.m. ET.

NCAA 2010 Bracket Prediction

Selena Gomez revealed that she was diagnosed with bipolar disorder during an Instagram stream with fellow singer and former Disney Channel star Miley Cyrus Friday (April 3). Appearing on Cyrus’ Instagram Live series Bright Minded, Gomez discussed the large donation she’d recently made to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center earlier this week and wound up recounting a visit to McClean psychiatric hospital in Massachusetts, where she learned more about the disorder and how it has affected her over the years.

Gomez is quoted in a Billboard article about the stream, saying, “Recently, I went to one of the best mental hospitals in… America, McClean Hospital, and I discussed that after years of going through a lot of different things, I realized that I was bipolar. And so when I got to know more information, it actually helps me. It doesn’t scare me once I know it.”

As she discussed the diagnosis, she also shared how she had to shake off lessons learned through her upbringing in order to process her realization. “I think people get scared of that,” she said. “They’re like, ‘Oh!’ And I’ve seen it, I’ve seen some of it even in my own family, where I’m like, ‘What’s going on?’ I’m from Texas, it’s just not known to talk about mental health. You got to seem cool. And then I see anger built up in children and teenagers or whatever young adults because they are wanting that so badly. I just feel like when I finally said what I was going to say, I wanted to know everything about it. And it took the fear away.”

Gomez said she’d had anxiety and depression throughout her career but hadn’t connected it to a possible clinical disorder. She explained that now that she knows, she felt “equal parts terrified and relieved — terrified because the veil was lifted but relieved that I finally had the knowledge of why I had suffered with various depressions and anxieties for so many years. I never had full awareness or answers about this condition.”

You can watch the full episode of Bright Minded on Miley Cyrus’ Instagram.

While the United States moves towards testing as many potential carriers as possible of COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus, the next frontier will be back-testing for healthy antibodies in the blood of those who have recovered from the infection, as it is theorized that those antibodies could potentially be used as a treatment. To that end, Philadelphia 76ers big man Joel Embiid is partnering with 76ers owners Josh Harris and David Blitzer to establish a funding campaign to test the blood antibodies of frontline health workers in Philadelphia.

Ramona Shelburne of ESPN had the report on Friday afternoon, which Embiid retweeted.

According to the city of Philadelphia, as of Friday at 9 a.m., the Sixers’ hometown had 2,430 confirmed cases of COVID-19, as well as 26 deaths. Previously, Embiid donated $500,000 to help support folks in healthcare and pay workers at Wells Fargo Arena, where the Sixers play their home games.

This time around, according to Chris Haynes of Yahoo! Sports, Embiid, Harris and Blitzer will put a combined $1.3 million into the fund to start. That should, hopefully, translate to a significant number of the tests that quickly analyze folks’ blood to determine whether they may have previously been infected by the coronavirus and have since healed.

Hip-hop is moving as fast as ever. Luckily, we’re doing the work to put the best music in one place for you. This week, there were new music videos from Drake, Earthgang, Cozz and Reason, DaBaby, Nav, Gunna, and Travis Scott, and G-Eazy, Tory Lanez and Tyga. There were also new songs from Rich The Kid, Future and Lil Baby, Young Thug, Gunna and Turbo as well as Guapdad’s Rona Raps series. Here’s the best of the rest:

Tory Lanez — “Who Needs Love”

Tory Lanez has spent the past couple of weeks on Instagram live streaming with guests like DMX and Drake, but it looks like he had time to step away from Quarantine radio to drop some new music. “Who Need Love” is a single from his upcoming New Toronto 3 project, where he sings about being snakebitten by the wrong woman for him.

Jessie Reyez — “Far Away 2” Feat. A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie & J.I.D

The era of the expeditious deluxe release is here. Following in the footsteps of Lil Uzi Vert and The Weeknd is fellow Canadian singer Jessie Reyez, who released the deluxe edition of Before Love Came to Kill Us days after the original track. The “Far Away 2” collab with A Boogie and J.I.D is a standout track from the project, where the two artists bolster her ode to the boundless reach of love.

Quelle Chris — “Sacred Safe” Feat. Homeboy Sandman

On “Sacred Safe,” Quelle Chris and Homebody Sandman join Cavalier and vocalist Merrill Garbus to weave a tale of perseverance when it feels like “the goal seems far prolonged,” as Chris rhymes. The song is from Quelle and Chris Keys’ Innocent Country 2 project that will release on April 24th.

K Camp — “Cry To You”

K Camp has commenced Wavy Wednesdays, where he’ll be releasing a new track on hump day. This week he dropped “Cry To You,” a solemn track where he proclaims “I’m in my feelings and don’t wanna bother you” over glum production.

Yung Baby Tate — “Don’t Want It”

Yung Baby Tate recently said she “wanted to release a fun song you can dance to and help give people a boost of good energy.” She did just that on “Don’t Want It,” a bouncy, bossy track where she boasts about all her competition “tryna catch up with a b*tch like me.”

YFN Lucci — “America”

YFN Lucci’s “America” is a reflective track from his HIStory, Lost Pages project, where he figuratively paints a picture of all the treachery befalling him and laments, “gotta stop fuckin’ with n****s that told me / It’s cool to have feelings but can’t never show it.”

Rod Wave — Pray 4 Love

Rod Wave has been steadily buzzing with a relatable, melodic brand of pain rap, and his newly released Pray 4 Love album will likely keep the Florida artist buzzing in the right direction. The 14-track project is another exhibition of his bluesy lyricism over thumping, pensive production.

Smoove L — “Just A Dream”

Many fans may consider buzzing Brooklyn rapper Smoove L a primary member of the city’s Drill rap scene, but he shows off his versatility on “Just A Dream,” rapping charismatically over production that’s more bouncy than Drill’s typically swaying sonics.

Asian Doll — “Come Find Me”

Asian Doll is “young, pretty and gifted” on “Come Find Me,” a newly released single where then newly-independent artist talks greasy over a drill-influenced beat.

Calboy — “Dope Boy”

Calboy serves up his “dope boy” fantasies on “Dope Boy,” a song from his Long Live The Kings Project. The rising Chicago rapper rhymes with a catchy cadence while reflecting on memories of the trap that he’s thankfully no longer living as a rapper.

Flo Milli — “Not Friendly”

Alabama rapper Flo Milli breathed new life into a classic on “Not Friendly,” where she unleashes her prim mic presence over a sample of Soulja Boy’s “Gucci Bandana,” explaining “these h*es really be jealous that’s the reason I’m not friendly.”

Brady Watt — Wavridin

A change of scenery will do a lot for an artist. That’s the case for Brady Watt, who recently moved from Harlem to LA. That transition — and a newfound synergy with LA MC Demrick — resulted Wavridin, Watt’s latest collaborative EP. The breezy, three-track EP shows off Demrick’s considerable lyricism and memories of being “14-years-old holdin’ stones like the Alchemist” over Watt’s groovy, bass guitar-driven compositions.

Thutmose — “Memories”

Just about everyone in the world is ready to make good memories that consist of something other than waiting out a pandemic. Until that point comes, perhaps Thutmose’s “Memories” will provide some solace. The lovelorn track from the SpiderMan: Into The SpiderVerse Soundtrack was paired with a creative video that freeze frames moments from a relationship — both the good ones and the ones that caused the love to go up in flames.

Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Producer Marshmello and 808Mafia’s Southside join forces with Saint JHN and Giggs for the effortlessly smooth track “Been Thru This Before.” The grime-inspired offering fuses Marshmello’s captivating production with hard-hitting bars.

Directed by Myles Whittingham, the visual is set in an ominously hazy forest. Sinister figures wearing animal masks gather on the scene with mystic artifacts like gargoyles, a crystal ball, and an old cabin to offer a heightened sense of suspense. Giggs’ gruff delivery lays down the song’s hook as Saint JHN’s musings cut through over a feathery flute mix. “We been through all of this before, duckin’ from the law / Hopin’ that forever comes, knowin’ this is life / But only life that we saw, pistols in a drawer,” Saint JHN raps.

The track arrives after a prolific year for Saint JHN. The singer’s 2019 sophomore effort Ghetto Lenny’s Love Songs saw features with big-name artists like Meek Mill, Lil Baby, Lenny Kravitz, and A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie. Saint JHN has since been celebrating his success and “Been Thru This Before” is his first track of 2020.

Watch the “Been Thru This Before” video above.

Some of the artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.