Jermaine Dupri is in the building this week at the Hard Rock Hotel New York, joining us for an Audacy Check In to talk about his new album, 'Magic City,' his docuseries of the same name, and what's next for the ATL multihyphenate producer.

The Atlanta institution known as Magic City is taking its turn on the stage, first with a five part docuseries on Starz, and now with album of music inspired by the project, now available everywhere. At the helm for all of it is Jermaine Dupri, who is once again bringing his So So Def empire into another era of excellence.

"To start in '92 and then be named the number one producer of Hip-Hop R&B of the 21st century in 2025, that's all the energy I need," Dupri reveals to DJ Buck and Big Regg, referencing the honor recently given to him by 'Billboard.' "I know what my work has done. It got me to that spot, so it's like I can't even think about stopping at this point."

Not stopping for JD includes 'Magic City,' the soundtrack to the docuseries he recently produced for Starz. The project features the producer in top-form with a roster of ATL's finest. "We have a city with a pool of artists that sometimes we overlook. We only talk about 3 or 4 of these people, but we have like 20, 30, 40 artists in Atlanta that really have made a real contribution to Hip-Hop," says Dupri. "It felt like we just ignore that, right? And I feel like if I ignore that, they're gonna ignore me, you know what I mean? You gotta lead by example."

The features on 'Magic City' stretch across decades of Atlanta influence from Pastor Troy to Quavo to YFN Lucci, and everyone in-between. Even Ludacris has bars the new project, who Jermaine Dupri considers the one that got away from his So So Def family.

"One day I went in the office and felt like I wasn't giving people that I had hired an opportunity to work," shares Dupri. "I was making all the decisions. I was choosing the artists. I was picking the singles. I'm doing everything, but as a CEO is supposed to do. But I also was looking at Def Jam and I'm watching all these other labels. They had A&R meetings and they had people that was the A&Rs and they was letting them really become stars, right?"

"One day on my way to the office, I was just like, 'you know, today I'm gonna have an A&R meeting and I'm gonna let these guys tell me what we should do,' And I went in there and I said, 'I wanna sign Ludacris,' and everybody in the meeting was like, 'no, no, no, no, no, no.' And I was like, 'what?' And it's like, 'nah, JD, he seem like he gonna, I don't know about that, that don't seem like that's gonna last long.'"

"I was like, 'alright, I'm gonna listen to y'all guys,' and that was the last time I listened."

For more on the making of 'Magic City,' why JD views music as therapy, and more, check out the full Audacy Check In with Jermaine Dupri above.

Mudvayne is ready to unleash a celebration of their breakthrough album, 'L.D. 50,' by touring across the country beginning this week. But first, Chad Gray Checks In with us to talk about the major milestone, the band's first new music in 16 years, and more.

In addition to a quarter-century of punishing grooves on 'L.D. 50,' Mudvayne recently unwrapped the first new music from the band in 16 years. "This was the reason why I came back to Mudvayne, was to continue the legacy," admits Gray. "We went away before people were ready for us to go away, I think. So when we came back, that was my biggest reason for coming back, was to pick up where we left off and continue to create music, and give our fans what they need, what we didn't give them."

"We tried this a couple years ago and it just didn't work. Then we got back in and we got back to it, and we went back and picked through some of those old parts and we're able to put these tracks together, and then, we went in the process of recording," adds Chad. "It was really cool, but it's a very necessary time. I think we came back and the ground was seriously rumbling. Like the ground was shaking. It was like, 'holy hell,' people are really excited about this."

After their return a few years ago, Gray and Mudvayne knew it was time to take the next step and get back into the studio to build on what they've already created. "I wanna keep people excited about this. I don't just wanna come back, blow our wad and then just f***ing slowly drift off, you know what I mean? Like, no. I wanna come in with a bang, I wanna go out with a bang."

In addition to their debut, 'L.D. 50,' sending shockwaves through the world of Rock, another reason for Mudvayne's success has to be their spotlight on Ozzy Osbourne's traveling Ozzfest. "His contribution to music we could never pay back," Gray says of Ozzy and his summer spectacle.

"Just the inspirations he created from what he did is unprecedented, and then you gotta think about, he broke Metallica. Straight up. He took them on the road with him. He put Metallica on an Ozzy-sized stage on 'Master Of Puppets' and dude, from that moment on it was game over, right?"

"So what does he do? He continues, now he creates a festival where it's not just one band or two bands that he can help, now it's a gaggle of bands every single year," he says of Ozzfest. "We were on that 2nd stage. System of a Down was on the 2nd stage. Slipknot was on the 2nd stage. I mean, just go down the list."

Hear more from Chad on his past projects, what to expect on Mudvayne's anniversary tour, and more during our Audacy Check In above.

2025 has been another big chapter for the six members of BOYNEXTDOOR, playing to thousands of fans at Lollapalooza, grabbing a more intimate spotlight at the GRAMMY Museum, and continuing their musical legacy with the 'No Genre' EP.

The group took a beat from their hectic year to sit down in our Los Angeles studio with Brooke Morrison for an Audacy Check In, and talk about their experience on stage, the evolution of their creative process, and more.

Don't miss our Audacy Check In with BOYNEXTDOOR above, and find more exclusive interviews with your favorite artists at audacy.com/live.

Global K-pop powerhouses, MONSTA X, are back with their first six member mini album in 4 years, 'THE X.' The group recently stopped by our studios to celebrate their next chapter, talk about the first things they did after returning from military service, and comment on their milestone of 10 years together during a special Audacy Check In.

The full group reunion comes on the heels of MONSTA X's 10 year anniversary, with 'THE X' honoring their decade together. Speaking with Bru, they take a look at some of the standout moments from the past 10 years, and reveal what advice they would offer up to that version of themselves just starting out.

Don't miss MONSTA X giving insight into their new project, the frenetic new single, "Do What I Want," and what's next for the enduring K-Pop collective. 'THE X' is available to stream now, with a physical release set for September 5 in the U.S. Find more info here, and check out the full conversation above.

ATEEZ took a pause from playing massive shows around the globe to sit with Bru for an Audacy Check In, talking about their latest project, 'GOLDEN HOUR: Part.3 'In Your Fantasy Edition,' their latest gift to global fans, and how it feels on those sold out stages.

The group shares with Bru the reason for the 'In Your Fantasy Edition' of their latest project, connecting their tour to the album for a cohesive thank you to fans around the world. "We just wanna connect," Hongjoong reveals. "We just want to give some gift to our global fans."

Leaning into the "2000s vibe" on tracks like "In Your Fantasy," the songs feel like "home" for ATEEZ and their fans, and they still have more in store for 2025. "We just prepare many good and cool things for our fans and audience," he teases. "I can't say everything but, we just want to prepare for that, so please wait a little bit."

For more about their current tour, the making of their album, and more, check out the full Audacy Check In with ATEEZ above.

After spending a year and a half writing and recording their upcoming album, The Pretty Reckless is ready to share the first sample, unveiling the new single, "For I Am Death," everywhere. Taylor Momsen joined Abe Kanan this week to unpack it all, and talk about the band's first new LP in 4 years during an Audacy Check In.

"To be honest, I want to know what it means to you," Momsen tells Abe after being asked about the story behind "For I Am Death," the band's first offering from the upcoming project.

"I think that to me that's what music is. I can sit here and tell you exactly where I was when I wrote it, and what I was thinking about and all of those things, but that doesn't actually give you the meaning of the song, that just can kind of help explain how I got there. The meaning of music, it transforms over time and honestly what it means to me isn't what it means anymore because it's out in the world. Once it's out in the world, it doesn't belong to me anymore, it belongs to you and to anyone who's listening to it."

The new album was recorded between tour stops with a little band called AC/DC, as The Pretty Reckless went around the world opening for the Rock icons on their 'Power Up Tour.' "The next 12 months of The Pretty Reckless world is gonna be insane," Taylor teases. "There's a lot coming. This is just the beginning."

For what it's worth, Momsen was warned about the tough crowds on tour with AC/DC, but gushes about the response they've gotten and the thrill of watching the band every night. "We've toured with a lot of people. I've seen a lot of bands in my lifetime, whether I've played with them or just gone to shows. I'm a music fan, and AC/DC is unlike anyone else," she raves. "They invented this and it's very clear. You're schooled by AC/DC every night as to what Rock and Roll is and why it is what it is, and it's because of them."

To hear more from Taylor Momsen about the what's next for The Pretty Reckless, their experience opening for the greatest bands of all time, and her message to the fans, check out the full Audacy Check In above.

It's been a year since Ravyn Lenae first gave us her album 'Bird's Eye,' and the world still can't get enough of the lead single, "Love Me Not." The rising songstress recently made her way to New York for an Audacy Check In inside the Rock Star Suite at the Hard Rock Hotel with Mike Adam.

As a strong contender for "song of the summer," Lenae's "Love Me Not" is now one of the 10 most popular songs in the country, and an ubiquitous fixture on socials with no sign of slowing down. It's helped turn fans on to her sophomore album, 'Bird's Eye,' Executive Produced by GRAMMY winner Dahi, and featuring collabs with Childish Gambino and Ty Dolla $ign.

"We all knew there was something magical about it," Lenae says of her breakout hit. However, her first listen wasn't love at first sight. "I think what's funny is when I first cut this song, I remember leaving the studio and being like, 'I don't like it,'" she admits. "Something with it isn't right, something is too different from what I've done in the past. It just wasn't right to me. And then I listened to it on the way to the studio a few weeks later in my car. That's usually my listening test when I'm driving to the studio, and that's when I was like, 'Oh, something is crazy about this.'"

"Dahi, the producer I worked on the song with, he called me and said, 'Oh, this is, we got one.'"

Ravyn jumped right into music from high school, immediately hitting the road. "Right out of high school is really where I started to do music, and I decided not to go to college, and started touring like almost at the end of high school into my late teens, early 20s." Now at 26 things are really hitting another stratosphere with tours booked with Sabrina Carpenter and Reneé Rapp, Lenae is still finding the balance to protect her mental health through the success.

"I think that's probably the biggest challenge for me, especially with the shift of rhythm, you know, from my normal day to day," she admits. "Making the music, that's easy, doing the shows, that's easy, but really finding that balance amongst mental health, personal time, physical health, family, friends, that's the thing I'm trying to juggle. I think it's making sure I carve out moments for myself, even if it's just my shower at the end of the night to really just think and thank God for the day, for the things I'm able to accomplish, and think about the next day."

To hear more from Ravyn Lenae about her career goals, favorite Chicago artists, and the emotional story behind her song, "One Wish," don't miss the full Audacy Check In above.

Matt Maeson has set his return with the new album, 'A Quiet and Harmless Living,' due out everywhere on September 12. The fearless singer/songwriter has offered up two previews of the project, and dug a little deeper with Brad Steiner during an Audacy Check In inside the Rock Star Suite at Hard Rock Hotel New York.

After being noted as "the most likeable man in music" by Brad, Maeson went on to explain how he's become more vulnerable thanks to his child. "I think the pressure fell off a bit once I had a kid because I was like, 'oh, this isn't the most important thing to me anymore,'" Matt explains. "For me, it just feels really inauthentic and kind of corny to lean into the, 'I'm the star' shtick, and I just grew further and further from that and now I physically cannot do stuff like that makes me look like something I'm not."

Always open in his music, Maeson continues and intensifies his hallmark on 'A Quiet and Harmless Living.' "There's a lot in there that's very vulnerable, very honest," he shares. "The song 'Everlasting' that I put out, it's a lot of really ugly thoughts but thoughts that I'm like, 'I need to say these out loud to process them,' and music is a great avenue for that. It's a lot of things that I think so many people think that [they] just don't talk about it because they're ugly thoughts. They're thoughts that like people, if you just say it to them, they're gonna be like, 'whoa, you're kind of a piece of s***,' but it's like thoughts that we all have that we need to vocalize and and process through together."

"The way that I write music is like, I have to, and the reason it takes me so long is because I have to kind of experience these things and then either process or heal these things and then I'm able to write about it, for the most part," Matt details. "By the time I usually put these songs out, a lot of the subjects are things that I've healed from, but even just acknowledging those issues is a part of that process of figuring it out."

After the healing, Maeson still feels a responsibility with his music, knowing there is always somewhere out there dealing with the same issues he might have faced years ago. "There's always somebody out there that's dealing with this thing right now and I'm singing that for them," he says. "The repetition of just playing the song, it's annoying. I will say, 'Hallucinogenics' I still love playing, which is surprising because I've played that thousands of times. 'Cringe,' I would love to never play that song again in my life... and I'm gonna do it again on this tour, plenty. I'm gonna look like I love it."

To hear more from Matt Maeson on his approach to social media and the impact his location has had on his music, listen to the full Audacy Check In above.