38 June 27- July 3, 2024 miaminewtimes.com | browardpalmbeach.com New Times b e s T o f m i a m i ® 2 0 2 4 “Lip Gloss” sampled track “Big Mad,” with her lyrical counterpart Flo Milli. What’s next for the rising rapper? A debut EP hailing her the “CB County Princess.” BEST R&B ACT Scribbles Who Her name may imply she’s an elusive singer- songwriter on the fringes of R&B, but Scribbles Who is stamping her imprint on the genre. The poet turned songwriter got her start penning songs for artists like Flo Rida and Trina before transitioning from behind the board to on the mike. Her 2023 project 12 Nights Under the Sun details her travel escapades over a sun-baked blend of Afrobeats and R&B, while her latest sin- gle, “Like Me,” is a melancholy indictment of a past lover. A soft-spoken introvert, Scribbles Who radiates stardom with jewel-adorned locks and a bejeweled grill that illuminates her smile. She says her next release will offer a more per- sonal view of her artistry, promising a lot of soul and darker, blues-influenced songs. BEST LATIN ACT MJ Nebreda soundcloud.com/mj-nebreda instagram.com/mjnebreda Miami’s MJ Nebreda shows that breaking all the rules is a good look. The singer, producer, and DJ captivates crowds with her powerful prose, raunchy Spanish lyrics, and disorientating rap- ture-house music on the decks. Everything off her 2023 Arepa Mixtape shows that Latin music is no longer a boys’ club, it’s a hip-shaking, inclu- sive world where women and the LGBTQ com- munity are raising their voices and bringing a new sound that’s provocative and fun. Fans should look forward to her upcoming work with Danny From Miami (AKA Danny Daze) for a perfect hybrid of Latin music and underground electronica. It’s clear from Nebreda’s rise that the times, they are a changin’, and for the better. BEST ROCK BAND The Floridians instagram.com/thefloridiansband Some may claim “Rock is dead!” but, no, it’s alive and well — if a bit more underground these days. We only have to point to Miami psych-rock outfit the Floridians to prove our point. The band is led by frontman and guitarist Ian Renaud and key- boardist David Gonzalez and includes a cast of session musicians, including Caleb Carr, Danny Garcia, and Sebastian Holmes. The Floridians has quickly matured into an apt band worthy of throngs of adoring fans. Its latest release was back in January when it dropped “How Are You Are So Certain,” a cut that has the feel of MGMT at the peak of Oracular Spectacular. If you see the band on a local lineup, do yourself a favor and attend the show. For now, we wait until the band delivers something a bit more substantial, like an EP or, the music gods willing, an album. BEST CASINO Magic City Casino 450 NW 37th Avenue Miami, 33125 305-649-3000 magiccitycasino.com You ever get a hankering to play the slots or see some poker hands without making the hourlong drive to the giant guitar? There’s a much more central location to wager on games of chance — the Magic City Casino. Bets have been placed at the venue since it was known as Flagler Dog Track all the way back in 1935. Thankfully, the dogs stopped racing in 2019 when the casino started to offer cruelty-free jai alai competitions to wager on instead. Open from 10 to 3 a.m. Sun- day to Thursday and 10 to 5 a.m. on Friday and Saturday, a million stories get told and created every night — from the jackpot hit as soon as you walked away to the straight flush you sucked out on to beat the four kings. BEST ADULT CABARET Tootsie’s Cabaret 150 NW 183rd Street Miami, 33169 305-651-5822 tootsiescabaret.com How do we say this? Whether it’s on a half-mile stretch of Haulover Beach, crawling along I-95 and being flashed, or sitting in a sketchy mini- strip club in Miami, there are plenty of places to see boobs around these parts. Tootsie’s Cab- aret is different. The largest strip club in Miami (it’s 76,000 square feet) has upward of 300 per- formers daily. And, here, it’s not a sacrifice of quality for quantity. The quality aspects in- clude six stages, six bars, oodles of VIP areas, 300-plus HD TVs for sports action and fully nude performances throughout. A true distin- guisher is Knocker’s Sports Bar. It’s not uncom- mon to see people lining up outside the club to pick up food and not even going in. Yes, the fried lobster tail ($32) and jumbo chicken wings ($16) are that good.
