Month: June 2020

Super Mario World was slated to be a huge expansion to Universal Studios Japan ahead of the Tokyo Olympics this summer, but with the Olympiad delayed amid the coronavirus pandemic, the park is officially on ice “until further notice.”

Nintendo Life reported via Nikkei that the international expansion to Universal’s Japanese park has been officially delayed. Originally supposed to open this month ahead of the 2020 Tokyo Games, official word came down that the park will not happen as scheduled as the COVID-19 crisis continues to interrupt ordinary life around the world.

The expansion of the park, which is located in Osaka, has been in the works for years, and there’s been plenty of hype since it was first announced. Real-life Mario Kart is perhaps the most exciting attraction teased, and the layout of the park itself has been the subject of intense scrutiny. But with international travel severely hampered by coronavirus and gathering in mass groups inadvisable until there’s a vaccine, the park will remain a dream until we hear word from Universal otherwise.

There have been some early glimpses of what the park will have, including some spinning coins and Yoshi walking in a surreal-looking Mario landscape. So hopefully it’s really happening, it just will take a bit longer than we’d like to see made real.

Details are still scarce about what NBA 2K21 will look like. The longest glimpse into the game that we’ve gotten so far came during a PlayStation 5 event put on by Sony, in which New Orleans Pelicans standout Zion Williamson introduced a collection of clips of himself playing in an empty gym. Still, that was barely anything other than some brief info about gameplay, and there are still a number of questions about the game that need answered.

For one, there’s no word on who will grace the cover of this year’s game. Last year, NBA 2K20 featured Anthony Davis on the cover, with Dwyane Wade gracing the cover of the game’s Legend Edition. The good news is that we’re only a few days away from finding out this year’s multiple covers.

Davis appeared in a video on 2K’s official TikTok account earlier this week. In it, the Lakers star let it be known that covers will be announced on June 30, July 1, and July 2. Beyond the covers, Davis teased that info on 2K21 will come out throughout the week.

Perhaps Williamson’s cameo in the PlayStation 5 event is a clue that the former No. 1 pick will make an appearance on one of the covers, and following the passing of former cover athlete Kobe Bryant earlier this year, it would just seem right to have Bean on one of the covers of this year’s game. This is, however, 100 percent speculation, and we’ll have to wait until Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday to see what 2k has in store this year.

Back in April, Global Citizen teamed up with Lady Gaga to deliver a massive livestream concert, Together At Home. The concert featured a long list of well-known musicians and other celebrities performing including Taylor Swift, Pharrell, Camila Cabello, Lizzo, Billie Eilish, Beyonce, and Gaga herself. Returning with another livestream concert on Saturday, Global Citizen has rallied a number of artists once again to deliver at-home performances to fans everywhere.

In addition to performances from Usher, Shakira, Coldplay, Chloe x Halle, and more, Justin Bieber and Quavo joined the long list of livestream performances to perform their recent Changes collaboration, “Intentions,” as a part of Global Citizen’s Global Goal: United For Our Future concert. Sharing distance and a studio together, Bieber and Quavo stripped the song’s production to just a lone piano for the performance. With Bieber leading the way, Quavo performs his verse and Bieber adds a bit of jazz to the piano he played throughout the performance.

The performance comes after Bieber reportedly filed a $20 million lawsuit against his sexual assault accusers. On June 20 an anonymous woman accused Bieber of sexually assaulting her at the Four Seasons on March 9, 2014, a claim that Bieber refuted as “factually impossible.” Watch Bieber’s and Quavo’s performance above and check into the full Global Citizen Global Goal: United For Our Future livestream here.

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

Do you ever wonder if you can trust your own thoughts? Maybe you have looked at pictures of your childhood and have been confused when you saw the old, blue family station wagon that you vividly remember as being red. Maybe you remember you’re your high school gym teacher having a handlebar mustache. But, at your ten-year high school reunion, he tells you he’s always been clean shaven. Or perhaps you recall Donald Trump defeating Hillary Clinton in the 2016 presidential election. Oh, wait, that might have happened. I’m pretty sure that happened. That happened, right?

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For those of you who don’t know about the Mandela Effect, it’s an unexplained phenomenon that makes us question our memories from the past. The effect got its name from paranormal researcher Fiona Broome, who noticed that people have crystal clear memories of things that never happened or existed. It’s origin stems from the thousands of people who have a vivid recollection of former South African President Nelson Mandela dying in prison in the 1980s, right down reading the article in the newspaper or seeing his funeral televised. The truth is, Nelson Mandela was released from prison in 1990 and lived to be 95 years old until passing away in December 2013. This is one of the numerous examples of shared memories by the masses that appears to be completely false. It’s insane to think so many of us have the same false memories.

The Monopoly man definitely has a monocle. I can see it in my mind as clear as day. It is on his right eye as he is leaning forward. The thing is, he never donned such eye wear.

Do you remember Jiffy peanut butter? You are not alone, but the fact is you won’t find a peanut butter jar with said moniker. It’s Jif.

How about reading the children’s book The Berenstein Bears? You would be mistaken, as it’s actually The Berenstain Bears.

The last time I checked, no one is going to confuse Shaquille O’Neal with 90’s comedian Sinbad. That being said, there are thousands who remember Sinbad playing the Genie in Kazaam and not Shaq.

[INSERT VIDEO CLIP of star wars]

What about Star Wars? That iconic moment when Darth Vader tells Luke the truth about his family history. But Vader never said, “Luke, I am your father” in The Empire Strikes Back. He actually says, “No, I am your father.” Is this just a misremembered movie line?

[INSERT VIDEO CLIP of forrest gump]

We all recall Forrest Gump saying, “Life is like a box of chocolates.” You know, you’ve quoted it before. It turns out, the actual line from the movie is “Life was like a box of chocolates.” Have you ever eaten a box of Fruit Loops cereal? You haven’t, because they don’t exist. They’re Froot Loops. Is your mind blown yet? These are just a few examples of the Mandela Effect.

Another possibility is that we don’t know as much as we think we do. There could be alternate universes at hand, but that would be crazy, right? Think about how primitive our way of life and understanding of the universe was even 100 years ago. Then think about how far we have come and the rate at which science is progressing. It would be one thing to pay heed to the waxing theoretical of Donald Sutherlands character in Animal House. But when you have scientific heavy weight minds like astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson and iconic physicist Stephen Hawking saying that it is entirely possible that parallel universes exist— we might want to leave the light on for that possibility.

Now, more than ever, we tend to go all in on our beliefs. The truth is, we very seldom have all the facts. It is okay to be a skeptic—that mindset keeps us honest. But to be closed off to possibilities based on what we supposedly know to be true can certainly be a dangerous impediment to progress.

The concept of the earth rotating around the sun seemed insane until it was proven. The two most important concepts we can anchor ourselves with are logic and humility. Is the Mandela Effect a result of parallel universes or just a product of our imperfect minds? If the greatest scientific experts we have ever known are not closing the door on such a concept, then maybe we should keep an open mind. By the way, the Monopoly guy definitely had a monocle.

The National Women’s Soccer League was the first American sports league to return during the COVID-19 pandemic, as the North Carolina Courage and the Portland Thorns took to the pitch on Saturday and in the first match of the Challenge Cup. The month-long tournament in Utah includes 16 preliminary round matches — with seven of the league’s eight teams participating due to the Orlando Pride pulling out earlier this week — and a knockout tournament culminating in a championship game on July 26.

With no fans, extra substitutes, and socially distanced TV interviews, the games do look a bit different as the league hopes to keep all its players and staff healthy during the pandemic. All 22 starting players from the Courage and Thorns wore Black Lives Matter t-shirts and took a knee prior to kickoff on Saturday, continuing the nationwide protest against racial injustice and police brutality. The Courage won the game 2-1, thanks to Debinha’s glancing header off a Hailie Mace cross and a slick finish from Lynn Williams in the 94th minute.

A handful of players — including U.S. women’s national team stars Megan Rapinoe, Christen Press, and Tobin Heath — have opted out of playing altogether, but fear not, there are still plenty of exciting teams and players to watch in Utah this summer. Here’s a quick guide to each team.

Chicago Red Stars

Best players: USWNT regulars Alyssa Naeher (GK), Julie Ertz (CB), and Tierna Davidson (CB) protect the back line of the Red Stars while central midfielder Morgan Brian controls the tempo. Look out for how they replace the scoring threat of Sam Kerr, the 2019 league MVP and Golden Boot winner who scored a league-high 18 goals last season and has since departed for Chelsea.

Jersey rating: 10/10. The Red Stars came out with one of the coolest kits in the league this year, and their jersey reveal campaign was even cooler. Inspired by the different neighborhoods that make up Chicago, the white secondary kit has the city flag on the front and skyline on the back made up of the names of city neighborhoods.

Why you should root for them: Last year, the team advanced to the NWSL Championship for the first time in the team’s history but fell to the Courage, 4-0. With some fresh attacking talent and an experienced defense, the Red Stars look to be an exciting team for years to come.

Houston Dash

Best players: Starting goalkeeper Jane Campbell is a solid keeper despite having had a bit of an up-and-down year last season, finishing fourth in the league for most saves but giving up 36 goals, the second-worst tally in the league. Fellow U.S. national Kristie Mewis and her girlfriend, England player Rachel Daly, control the midfield for the Dash.

Jersey rating: 9/10. These are fire, and not just because the primary kit is orange.

Why you should root for them: Last season, the Dash only managed a seventh-place finish and they lost attacking talents Sofia Huerta, Kelia Ohai, and Kyah Simon in the offseason. Questions certainly remain surrounding this team, specifically whether their defense will hold up against more potent attacking threats.

North Carolina Courage

Best players: The Courage are stacked with USWNT talent. With the lightning quick speed and skillful Crystal Dunn in midfield alongside Sam Mewis and Brazil’s Debinha, defensive stalwart Abby Dahlkemper, and Jessica McDonald and Lynn Williams in attack, this team can be astoundingly good.

Jersey rating: 5/10. The navy primary kit and all-white secondary jersey could use some more spice but there’s nothing wrong with simplicity.

Why you should root for them: If you want to hop on a bandwagon, the reigning champions are your best bet. In the NWSL’s seven-year history, the team from NC has played in five of the last seven championship games. Few, if any, teams in the league can stack up against them at their best.

OL Reign

Best players: Rapinoe won’t be playing, but fellow USWNT midfielder Allie Long and 2019 Rookie of the Year Bethany Balcar will be. Former Houston player Sofia Huerta should also be an exciting addition to their midfield.

Jersey rating: 3/10. They look less like Seattle jerseys and more like knock-off OL Lyon jerseys.

Why you should root for them: The Reign has undergone some changes this offseason. After France’s OL Groupe — which owns the most successful club women’s team in history, Olympique Lyonnais — bought the Seattle-based team in March, the club name changed from Reign FC to OL Reign. Head Coach Vlatko Andonovski has departed to lead the USWNT after leading the team to the semifinals last season and the team is without Rapinoe, so some of these players may show up with something to prove.

Portland Thorns

Best players: There are so many! The team will be without Tobin Heath and goalkeeper Adrianna Franch, but Christine Sinclair, Becky Sauerbrunn, and Lindsey Horan give you plenty of other options to root for.

Jersey rating: 10/10. Portland often has really awesome jerseys, but this year’s black kits with red rose detail are especially dope and really show off the spirit of the city. The secondary white jerseys are quite sleek as well.

Why you should root for them: The Thorns have long been one of the most popular teams in the NWSL with a passionate fanbase that has set multiple attendance records over the years. Two-time World Cup winner Sauerbrunn is finally at home in Portland, which should delight fans immensely, and the team has another international legend with Sinclair, the greatest player in Canadian history and the most prolific international scorer ever, leading the line.

Sky Blue FC

Best players: USWNT stars Carli Lloyd and Mallory Pugh will not be playing as they recover from injuries, so look out for forwards Imani Dorsey and Margaret “Midge” Purce, who was recently acquired from Portland.

Jersey rating: 7/10. I like the dark grey kit with the sky blue lightning bolt-esque lines running down the front! The club just released their new kit and the jersey sold out almost immediately, but fear not, they have been restocked.

Why you should root for them: Though Sky Blue FC have been a bit of a mess in the past (they finished eighth in the league last season), the team has undergone top-down changes in the offseason and even picked up USWNT up-and-comer Mallory Pugh. Though the team will likely struggle in the Challenge Cup without Pugh and Lloyd, they are still very much a club on the rise under new GM Alyssa LaHue and new coach Freya Coombe. And next season, they will play at Red Bull Arena, which will definitely make for a fun viewing experience.

Utah Royals

Best players: No Christen Press this summer, but look out for fellow USWNTers Kelley O’Hara and Amy Rodriguez.

Jersey rating: 8/10. The blue and yellow primary jersey is fun, with outlines of Utah mountains on the bottom but I’m not as huge a fan of the secondary kit with a bunch of grey crowns on the front.

Why you should root for them: The team finished in sixth place last season, and veteran striker and captain Rodriguez showed she still has it after scoring nine goals last season. Utah is of course the home team for this tournament, and boasts an exciting youthful group of players.

Washington Spirit

Best players: Andi Sullivan and Rose Lavelle, one of the USWNT’s best young talents, run the midfield for the Spirit while goalkeeper Aubrey Bledsoe tied for the most number of saves in the league last season with 86. Ashley Hatch and Jordan DiBiasi combined for six goals last year, and will look to provide the scoring spark for this team.

Jersey rating: 5/10. The blue primary kit is nice enough, although the CVS Pharmacy sponsor logo is curiously massive. The white secondary kit is a bit boring, although the Geico logo seems to be a normal size.

Why you should root for them: Rose Lavelle, need I say more? The 25-year-old took the world by storm in France last summer as the USWNT charged to their fourth World Cup win, and is such a mesmerizing player. The Spirit finished in fifth place last season, but has the talent to compete in Utah.

Sarah Cooper has skyrocketed to internet fame with her short, spot on lip-syncs of President Trump. It’s admittedly a strange premise for a comedy bit, but for some reason, it works. Her faces and body language along with the voice of the president just highlights the absurdity of the things he says in a way that even some Trump supporters find hilarious.

And her newest video, “How to second term,” might just be her best.

The material was already there. Sean Hannity’s softball question at the president about what’s at stake if he wins and what his priorities would be for his second term is something anyone running for any office should be 100% prepared to answer at any time. And Trump’s answer was a word salad of epic proportions.

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But what makes Cooper’s video so hilarious isn’t just her lip-sync of Trump, but her imitation of Sean Hannity. The Fox News host of his own show, Hannity, has long been one of Trump’s biggest supporters—and Cooper highlighted that fact by basically turning him into a sixth grade girl with a crush on the president. First of all, the air kiss? HA. Second, look for the heart with “Trump” inside it on the paper, then note “Sean Trump” written beneath it. Oh my. That shade is so cold.

Cooper’s video has already been viewed more than 5.5 million times on Twitter alone. Comments range from “I think your Hannity may possibly be funnier than your 45,” to “I have no idea what happened after Hannity’s kiss, because I died.” Even people from other countries are chiming in with appreciation for the subtle genius of Cooper’s humor.

What’s the old saying? We laugh to keep from crying? Thank you for giving us an opportunity to laugh rather than weep, Ms. Cooper. We all need that kind of levity right now.

Last week saw a number of shows pull episodes from online and reruns due to instances of blackface. Among them were 30 Rock, which yanked four episodes, Scrubs, which had three, and The Office, which had one. Now Community joins the group: As per Deadline, one episode of the cult comedy has been removed from Netflix and Hulu.

The episode in question is Season 2’s “Advanced Dungeons & Dragons,” in which the gang play the titular game, with Abed as Dungeon Master. The offending scene involves Ken Jeong’s Ben Chang, who shows up to the session wearing black make-up and a white wig. Yvette Nicole Brown’s Shirley asks the group, “So, we’re just going to ignore that hate crime, huh?”, to which Ben responds, “I’m a dark elf or a drow,” and that he’s trying to get into the mind of his character, Brutalitops the Magician. He continues to play the game in blackface until he’s eliminated.

So, uh, that’s a lot of blackface, not all that long ago and often located on NBC! Dan Harmon, the show’s creator, has yet to publicly address the episode’s racially charged content, although The Office creator Greg Daniels did speak up when the episode of his show was excised, apologizing by saying, “Blackface is unacceptable and making the point so graphically is hurtful and wrong. I am sorry for the pain that caused.”

(Via Deadline)

Months after her latest album Manic was released, Halsey teamed up with producer Marshmello to release their cheery collaboration, “Be Kind.” Filled with lively production, the track finds the musician making a lifelong commitment to her partner. Just a month after sharing that song, the two teamed up once again to deliver a video for the song.

The video is led by a graceful dance routine performed by Halsey herself. Starting in what appears to be a nearly-empty industrial building, she effortless moves from wall to wall before she magically transitions to a fictional outdoor park. Surrounded by cherry blossoms that sway freely in the air, Halsey continues her routine before snapping back to reality, only to see a robot of sorts, controlled by Marshmello, examining her.

After the video premiere, Halsey hopped onto Twitter to chat with some fans. There, she revealed that the video drew inspiration from Japan’s Sakura season, which is the period of time, roughly between March 20 and April 14, when cherry blossoms bloom in Kyoto. She also talked about how the video came to be, promising to share more with fans at a later date.

“I’ll tell u guys more about it soon but this video was wild to create,” Halsey said. “Learning choreo on FaceTime, then I broke my ankle, we used a Bolt camera so it was all programmed beforehand so there wasn’t a human physically operating it, the team that rendered the worlds. It was wild!”

You can watch “Be Kind” video above.

As he has done time and time again, Kanye West shook the internet Friday with a plethora of announcements, from a new 10-year partnership between Gap and his Yeezy Supply brand to a new animated Kids See Ghost cartoon with Kid Cudi. The new announcements and releases were all a part of his “West Day Ever,” and while the bulk of the news arrived during the day on Friday, he saved another release for that evening: the release of his once-shelved “Spaceship” video.

The “Spaceship” video, which dates back to 2004, finds Kanye ironically working as a Gap employee. Giving the bare minimum to his retail job, to the disappointment of his manager, Kanye constantly daydreams about a better life that does not involve folding a stack of jeans for minimum wage. Also featured on the song are GLC and Consequence. The former plays another Gap employee, who spends much of his time in the break room with a coworker, while the latter plays a customer who also reminisces about his struggle, all while another female customer gets taken out of the store for failed attempt at theft.

It was also revealed that Kanye’s upcoming album, Jesus Is King II, which is produced by Dr. Dre, would arrive in the near future. Soon after a video emerged, via Snoop Dogg, of West and Dr. Dre working on the album in a studio. “Kanye West got some hot sh*t. Only I can get exclusive footage. Shut up,” Snoop said in the video. “Kanye West got some hot sh*t. It’s finna come out. Dr. Dre touched it.”

You can watch the “Spaceship” video here.

Friday was a huge day for the NBA’s proposed restart in Orlando. The league and its Players Association agreed on the terms for the bubble league at Disney World, and later in the day, the schedule for the remainder of the “regular season” was released. It’s a packed slate of games, with the potential for seven games to take place in a single day with how the schedule is laid out.

The whole situation is extremely unique, but fortunately for those who are itching to watch some basketball, a whole host of games will take place on television. Twenty games will take place on ESPN or ABC, 18 will be broadcast on TNT, and 14 tilts will air on NBA TV. Every day from July 30 until August 14 is slated to have at least two televised games, with as many as four games on TV a day for much of that stretch.

Here is how the television schedule will play out once things tip off at the end of next month. (Note: All times EST)

July 30
Jazz vs. Pelicans, 6:30 p.m., TNT
Clippers vs. Lakers, 9:00 p.m., TNT

July 31
Grizzlies vs. Blazers, 4:00 p.m. NBA TV
Celtics vs. Bucks, 6:30 p.m., ESPN
Rockets vs. Mavericks, 9:00 p.m., ESPN

Aug. 1
Heat vs. Nuggets, 1:00 p.m., ESPN
Jazz vs. Thunder, 3:30 p.m., ESPN
Pelicans vs. Clippers, 6:00 p.m., ESPN
Lakers vs. Raptors, 8:30 p.m., ESPN

Aug. 2
Blazers vs. Celtics, 3:30 p.m., ABC
Kings vs. Magic, 6:00 p.m., NBA TV
Bucks vs. Rockets, 8:30 p.m., ABC

Aug. 3
Raptors vs. Heat, 1:30 p.m., NBA TV
Nuggets vs. Thunder, 4:00 p.m., NBA TV
Grizzlies vs. Pelicans, 6:30 p.m., ESPN
Lakers vs. Jazz, 9:00 p.m., ESPN

Aug. 4
Nets vs. Bucks, 1:30 p.m., NBA TV
Suns vs. Clippers, 4:00 p.m., NBA TV
Celtics vs. Heat, 6:30 p.m., TNT
Rockets vs. Blazers, 9:00 p.m., TNT

Aug. 5
Sixers vs. Wizards, 4:00 p.m., NBA TV
Thunder vs. Lakers, 6:30 p.m., ESPN
Nets vs. Celtics, 9:00 p.m., ESPN

Aug. 6
Pelicans vs. Kings, 1:30 p.m., NBA TV
Heat vs. Bucks, 4 p.m., TNT
Clippers vs. Mavericks, 6:30 p.m., TNT
Lakers vs. Rockets, 9:00 p.m., TNT

Aug. 7
Thunder vs. Grizzlies, 4:00 p.m., NBA TV
Magic vs. Sixers, 6:30 p.m., TNT
Celtics vs. Raptors, 9:00 p.m., TNT

Aug. 8
Clippers vs. Blazers, 1 p.m., TNT
Jazz vs. Nuggets, 3:30 p.m., TNT
Lakers vs. Pavers, 6:00 p.m., TNT
Bucks vs. Mavericks, 8:30 p.m., ESPN

Aug. 9
Spurs vs. Pelicans, 3:00 p.m., ABC
Sixers vs. Blazers, 6:30 p.m., NBA TV
Nets vs. Clippers, 9:00 p.m., NBA TV

Aug. 10
Mavericks vs. Jazz, 3:00 p.m., NBA TV
Raptors vs. Bucks, 6:30 p.m., ESPN
Nuggets vs. Lakers, 9:00 p.m., TNT

Aug. 11
Rockets vs. Spurs, 2:00 p.m., NBA TV
Celtics vs. Grizzlies, 6:30 p.m., TNT
Pelicans vs. Kings, 9:00 p.m., TNT

Aug. 12
Pacers vs. Rockets, 4:00 p.m., NBA TV
Raptors vs. Sixers, 6:30 p.m., ESPN
Clippers vs. Nuggets, 9:00 p.m., ESPN

There are still six more games that need to be all sorted out: TNT will air three games on August 13 at 4, 6:30, and 9 p.m., with ESPN following the same schedule a day later. It is unclear which teams will fill those slots. It is also unclear whether the untelevised games will appear on NBA League Pass.