New Arca album; Rappers getting hacked; Edward Skeletrix looksmaxxing exhibit; job opportunities; and more
Welcome Digest [7.31.26]
This Week’s Curated Headlines
The Roundups
Music
New Releases:
Arca — XXXXX
The Crying Nudes — DJ
Teezus + Warhol.ss — “Middle of July”
Ninajirachi + Porter Robinson — “WannaCry”
Edward Skeletrix + Elijah Walker + matt proxy + Current Joys — “I cannot hear what you’re saying”
Mica Levi + Klein — turn up
HariRoc — THE SQUIDFATHER 2
Artworld
Illuminati and Edward Skeletrix’s live exhibit Analytica occurred this week, with music from Weiland
Céleste Boursier-Mougenot’s from here to ear v.26 at MAAT gallery in Lisbon until August 31st
Pierre Huyghe’s exhibition at Foundation Beyeler in Switzerland through September 31st
BMW ART CARS - 20 Artists, 50 Years of Innovation at BMW Welt in Munich through August 31, 2026
Amanda Ba’s Flakken Change Ceremony curated by SAP Magazine at Market Gallery in New York opening August 1st
Ash Fure’s ANIMAL [a listening gym] at Pioneer Works in New York through August 9th
Fashion
Jared John Leonard drops new collection, “English Gardens”
AWGE will drop their first collection ever for Spring/Summer 2026
Cactus Jack drops an Odyssey inspired merch collection
Levi’s and Satisfy drops a pair of jeans engineered to rock climb
Karl Lagerfeld opens a cafe in Amsterdam
Products
Aphex Twin’s Drukqs is getting a 25th anniversary reissue, with boxes, vinyl, cassette, and CD pressings
1/1 Dragon tees by The Blank Traveler
Hand painted bleach skull shorts by Nolan Mottle
Silk scarves by Rue De Serves
Various custom 1/1 pieces by Claire Besco
Nike’s Air Zoom Hyperslide equipped with heating and vibration massaging
Blurry grenade lighter case by @unv4ulted
This Week’s Headlines
More than a dozen major rappers got hacked this week
A group of hackers targeted Frank Ocean, Ye, Drake, Playboi Carti, Kendrick Lamar, Ken Carson, Destroy Lonely, XXXTentacion, Nine Vicious, Che, Tyler The Creator, Michael Jackson, and several other artists this week. Using common music distribution exploits, they uploaded a mix of shitpost tracks and unreleased leaks across artists’ official distribution channels, including YouTube, Apple Music, and Discord. The most significant breach affected Playboi Carti, with more than 20 of his most popular leaked songs appearing on his official YouTube channel. Additionally, “Not Like Us” was uploaded to Kendrick’s YouTube.
Schools are implementing pepper-spraying drone security guards
This year, a few schools in Georgia, Florida, and Colorado will be implementing experimental non lethal pepper-spraying drones. The drones are designed to reach any location on campus in under 15 seconds, and are also equipped with remote piloting, blast sirens, the ability to smash glass windows, and fly at 50mph. Many online are questioning whether military grade equipment belongs in schools.
HBO’s is reformatting its famous shows into reels
You will soon be able to watch your favorite HBO shows in a Reels-style format on “HBO Max Shorts.” The announcement has been met with widespread disdain, with many calling it another (bad) sign of the times. Others have reluctantly defended it as a necessary move to introduce younger audiences to high-quality programming and compete with algorithmic slop.
Meet the newest micro-genre: “UK Poo”
On a no-longer-niche corner of TikTok, a new genre dubbed “UK Poo” has been flooding people’s feeds. Coined on Twitter by @cashyams, the term refers to a subset of low-quality UK rap characterized by awkward, tactless melodic delivery, iPhone-shot videos, and neon-colored lyric captions. While “UK Poo” applies specifically to British music, equally terrible Instagram Reel rappers have become increasingly common, with algorithms often rewarding them through hate engagement. Just look at this guy “rapping” over Lucki’s “Sunset” every day for the past few weeks.
Actually, Gen Z isn’t sober at all
Contrary to popular narratives from recent years, Gen Z are in fact drinking as much as older generations, as well as drinking more cocktails than any other generation. Additionally, recent data from the federal National Survey on Drug Use and Health show that in 2025, weed overtook alcohol or cigarettes as being the most popular daily drug.
Headline curation and words by Mikail Haroon (@mvkail)
Classifieds
Exciting opportunities, employment and otherwise
Aidan Zamiri — Part-Time Personal / Creative Assistant (London, UK)
Music video director Aidan Zamiri is hiring a London-based part-time Personal / Creative Assistant. Applicants should email a CV and cover letter. Creative industry experience and strong organizational skills are a plus.
Partisan Records — International Marketing Coordinator (Berlin, Germany)
Partisan Records is hiring an International Marketing Coordinator to support global artist campaigns across marketing, touring, streaming, press, and digital. Looking for at least one year of music industry experience and strong organizational skills. Initial six-month contract.
Office Magazine — Writing Intern (New York, NY)
Office Magazine is seeking a NYC-based Writing Intern for its August–October internship program. Applicants should email a brief introduction, resume, and optional writing samples or bylines. College credit available.
Jil Sander — Intern Graphic & Print Designer (Milan, Italy)
Jil Sander is seeking a Graphic & Print Design Intern to support the creative team across ready-to-wear collections, print development, research, and fabric design. Looking for strong Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator skills with a passion for fashion and graphics.
Unlock the full list of job opportunities—from New York and Los Angeles to Paris and London—plus complete access to the Welcome Magazine archive by becoming a paid subscriber.