Music
Royce Da 5’9″ Claims Atlantic Blocked Cordae From Appearing On ‘The Allegory’
The rapper shared the news during an interview with PSA Hip-Hop’s Threeletterman3. …
Royce Da 5’9″ became a Grammy nominee last week when The Allegory, the Detroit rapper’s eighth album, earned a spot in the Best Rap Album category. This isn’t the first time he’s been nominated, having received one at the 2010 awards for his appearance on Eminem’s Recovery. But the version of the album that got released is not exactly the one he wanted. In a recent interview with PSA Hip-Hop’s Threeletterman3, Royce revealed that Cordae was supposed to appear on it but the young rapper’s label, Atlantic Records, blocked him from doing it.
“[Vince Staples] sent his verse last day because originally YBN Cordae was there in that spot,” Royce said. “Atlantic would not clear YBN Cordae, so I had to take him off. They said they wanted to ‘keep him young.’ These labels, they are so caught up young, young, young, young.” He was a bit frustrated by the label’s action, however, and he also pointed out that it put Cordae in a bad position as well.
“Obviously the kid wanted to do it, otherwise, he wouldn’t have done it! So why put him in that position?” he said. “And now the album is nominated for Grammy. You don’t think that in retrospect was a bad move from them?”
Royce’s The Allegory joins D. Smoke’s Black Habits, Freddie Gibbs and The Alchemist’s Alfredo, Nas’ King Disease, and Jay Electronica’s A Written Testimony as the other nominees in the Best Rap Album category.
You can watch the interview in the video above. Royce’s remarks on Cordae come around the 27-minute mark.
Cordae is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
Artist Spotlight
Lana Crow turns challenges into a celebration with “Laugh With You”
“Laugh With You,” the latest single from Lana Crow, is a sincere rallying cry to embrace life in all its messy, beautiful mess. In the song, indie pop and alt-pop combine to deliver an emotional blow that feels both personal and universal.
“Laugh With You” feels like an instant connection, and Crow is telling you stories of hard times with a cozy, knowing smile. This song is as much about struggle as it is about how strong you are. It serves as a reminder that these struggles are simply what give us the strength to keep going, even when life is tough.
Crow encourages people to welcome them, create happiness in the cracks, and laugh even as the world gets heavy. The result is a song that delicately nudges you to love and embrace yourself. It is an anthem for anyone experiencing tough times who refuses to give up hope. Lana Crow continues to demonstrate her songwriting skills, both musically pleasing and emotionally rich, with “Laugh With You.”
It’s a reminder that it’s how we respond to tough times, rather than how they affect us, that’s key. With this song, not only does Crow provide us with music, but she also lets us know that sometimes a laugh is what we need to remember that there is always something to smile about and that, even when it feels like life has waged war against you, laughter can still be found.
Artist Spotlight
Lisa Boostani creates a mesmerizing tidal realm in “Ocean”
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Her voice rises as if it is coming from deep within her, shaped by emotion rather than action. She intentionally channels the intangible, turning weakness into strength rather than a source of pain, and “Ocean” tells people to get involved in this inner world, not just watch it. This release is an integral part of her first EP, “One,” which will come out in March 2026 and is based on love, sensuality, and unity.
If “Ocean” is any indication, the EP will show sensuality not as something pretty, but as a kind of spiritual intelligence, a way to know yourself by connecting with others. The song’s textures and structure have an aquatic quality, moving between clarity and delirium, rhythm and freedom. Its emotional focus is on immersion instead of resolution.
The striking quality of “Ocean” is the blend of the mystical worlds. Boostani understands that strength often shows up as gentleness and that deep feelings are better expressed through frequencies than words. She wants people to see consciousness as immediacy, sensation as truth, and openness as an undeniable strength.
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