Month: October 2020

It’s no secret LeBron James has loved playing with Anthony Davis and takes every opportunity to pump up the big man. What we’ve seen in recent weeks though is just how closely James had followed Davis’ career prior to when the Lakers traded for him, and the detail with which James has analyzed his teammate.

Speaking with reporters on an off day between NBA Finals games on Thursday, James praised Davis’ championship one-and-done season at Kentucky with great depth, particularly the thrill of a big block Davis had on North Carolina center John Henson during early non-conference play in 2011.

“You look at his run throughout that March Madness, and he was just beyond the best player in college basketball,” James added. “Then you get into 2012 (at the London Olympics) when he’s a young Anthony Davis and he soaked up everything. He was not a rookie that came in and thought he knew it all or felt like he was National Player of the Year, national champion.”

With all due respect to Chris Bosh, James has never played with a big man quite as gifted as Davis, or a player who impacts the game on both sides of the ball to such an incredible degree. These playoffs have been a superstar breakout performance by Davis, and James seems to be having just as much fun watching it as the rest of us.

Nearly a decade ago, we published an article with the headline, “Worst. Green Screen. Ever.” The scene in question came from the pilot episode of the long-forgotten CW series Ringer starring Sarah Michelle Gellar as… not Buffy? I have no idea, because the only clip from Ringer that I’ve seen is the one where SMG’s character and her twin (?) venture out to sea on a boat with a distractingly fake ocean background. Even Mad Men‘s notorious driving scenes look better than this. However, we were premature in calling it the “Worst. Green Screen. Ever.” Because little did we know that in 2020, Donald Trump would be president (the sentence could stop there), and he would record a message supposedly on the White House lawn to “vulnerable” senior citizens during a pandemic, but all anyone would be able to focus on is the green screen backdrop.

“We’re taking care of our seniors. You’re not vulnerable but they like to say you’re vulnerable. You’re the least vulnerable but for this one thing, you are vulnerable. So am I,” the president said in the clip above, nonsensically. He also touted mysterious “medicines” that would soon be available for free, without providing any specifics. But again, his usual stream of consciousness rambling was secondary to what was happening behind him, particularly in the looping upper right hand corner.

My “favorite people in the world” are those who had fun with the green screen.

This week, Quavo opened up on how he landed Saweetie, his girlfriend and occasional music partner, through a simple Instagram DM. Quavo dropped a snowflake emoji in Saweetie’s DMs in reference to her hit song, “Icy Girl,” and the rest is, as they say, history. That has led to many trying the same maneuver in the DMs of that special someone, including the Washington Wizards who tried the same trick to cozy up to the rest of the NBA.

The Migos frontman then retweeted the Wizards, who followed up throughout the day on the responses from all the other NBA franchises. Everyone played along and provided some much-needed NBA entertainment on a day with no Finals game.

The best response was from the Pistons, who took a page out of Quavo’s book and hit Washington back with a “what’s hannin then.”

The Spurs were on the right track here, but got things all out of order when San Antonio then responded with Quavo’s own line.

The Hawks, meanwhile, made sure to let Washington know that they won’t be able to steal Quavo’s NBA affiliation away from them with this little stunt.

Quavo, a big NBA fan, is definitely getting a kick out of all this, but let’s just hope it doesn’t end up with the Wizards getting hit with tampering violations. We all know what Quavo wanted out of that fateful DM to Saweetie, but it’s hard to say what the Wizards are exactly hoping for here.

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In this week’s episode of Pod Yourself a Gun, Matt and Vince are joined by Francesca Fiorentini (@franfio) from MSNBC, AJ+, and the Bitchuation Room podcast to try to find an entertaining but still respectful way to discuss Dr. Melfi’s rape scene in Season 3, episode 4 of the Sopranos, “Employee of the Month.”

It’s a polarizing episode from the gabagoolden age of the Sopranos, with enough psychotherapy talk to really piss Vince off. The episode also features Ralphie Cifaretto (Joey Pants) and Jackie Aprile Jr. bonding over a beating, Janice’s definitely real plans to make a documentary about Livia’s generation and their music, Melfi’s Roman dog dreams, and Furio’s sensitive side. “We donna have-a the pope joke. Donna translate.”

Should Melfi have used Tony to get the revenge she wanted? Should Janice have… uh… not stolen the Russian nurse’s prosthetic leg as ransom for Livia’s records? Put your answer in a five star review on Apple Podcasts and/or wherever you get your podcasts. (-Description by Brent Flyberg)

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In June, the newly-minted National Independent Venue Association (NIVA) released a survey which offered a harrowing look at the current state of the live music industry. Their survey reported that 90 percent of venues they spoke to said they may close in just a few months without federal funding. Thankfully, a bipartisan bill titled the Save Our Stages Act successfully passed the House on Friday. In order to raise awareness for the bill, NIVA tapped several big-name musicians to join in on a virtual festival.

Save Our Stages Fest is a three-day virtual music festival streaming on YouTube. The festival has booked over 30 artists to give special performances. Save Our Stages will feature sets by artists like Foo Fighters, Miley Cyrus, G-Eazy, Phoebe Bridgers, Gus Dapperton, Finneas, YG, and many more.

Speaking about his role in the festival, Foo Fighters leader Dave Grohl told Billboard that America’s independent venues are vital. “The smaller music venues and the ones that are really struggling are not only culturally important, they are emotionally important,” he said.

Watch the Save Our Stages Fest trailer above and check out the full lineup below.

Save Our Stages Fest takes place from October 16 to 18 on NIVA’s YouTube channel. Watch it here.

For the first time during the 2020 NFL season, we didn’t net a profit last week in this space. Granted, it was a break-even week at 2-2-1, but alas, the results could have been better and it’s a reminder that handicapping professional football contests (in the world’s sharpest market) is pretty difficult. Still, we press on with an interesting card in Week 5 and, before we get to our five selections, it is time to take a glance at the season-long results.

• Week 4: 2-2-1
• 2020 Season: 12-7-1

Come get these winners.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Chicago Bears UNDER 44.5 points

We haven’t dipped much into the Unders this season and, well, that is fortunate given how things have played out across the league. With that said, there is some an intrigue with this Thursday night number. Tampa Bay’s offense, headlined by Tom Brady, is enough to scare you a little bit, but the Bucs are missing weapons all over the place. As for the Bears, count me as a skeptic of this offense, while still buying the defensive side. Cross your fingers.

Las Vegas Raiders (+7) over Kansas City Chiefs in the first half

Earlier in the week, the full-game number was high enough to like it but, at this juncture, the value may be gone. I do, however, like the first half at a full touchdown or better. The Chiefs are the better team. We all know that, but the Raiders are frisky and Kansas City sometimes takes a little bit longer than they’d like to get started. It’ll be a sweat but I like it.

Philadelphia Eagles and Pittsburgh Steelers UNDER 22 points in the first half

This total feels juicy, and sharp money has come in on the full-game Under to a significant degree. If you can get more than 44 points, that full game is still pretty appetizing but, even so, I like the first half more. There is a chance, of course, that these two quarterbacks start firing in the fourth quarter but, in the first half, I trust Pittsburgh’s defense and Philadelphia should have enough to slow a Steelers team coming off an unexpected bye.

Miami Dolphins (+9) over San Francisco 49ers

We rode the Eagles to success over the Niners last week, and I’m going back to it with the Dolphins. Yes, Miami is kind of bad, but San Francisco remains completely devastated by injury. This number should probably be 6.5 or 7, and we’ll take the 9 with glee.

Cleveland Browns (+2) over Indianapolis Colts

I actually believe in the Colts. Really, I do … but I also believe in the Browns. That is, of course, abjectly terrifying, but I don’t really see the justification for Indy laying points on the road here. Cleveland is probably more trendy than I would like, but I think it’s the right side.

Even if you only have a passing knowledge of whiskey, you’ve probably heard the name Pappy Van Winkle. In an era when whiskey has sneaker-culture levels of hype, “Pappy” has become the most sought-after unicorn brand of them all. In the hierarchy of American whiskey (especially in the minds of famously cultish aficionados), the brand’s expressions stand above the likes of Old Forester Birthday Bourbon, Blanton’s, E.H. Taylor, Jr., and even the Buffalo Trace Antique Collection.

Whiskey lovers are well acquainted with Pappy Van Winkle and its easy-sipping, subtly sweet flavor, derived from a high level of wheat in the mash bill. They’re also well acquainted with the scarcity issues that have grown synonymous with the brand’s name. Every fall, the company drops its yearly release of bottles — a sort of pre-Christmas for spirits collectors — but since they don’t actually detail how many bottles will be available to the public, your chances of finding one are really a crapshoot. At best. (Befriend your local neighborhood liquor store owner and ask for a text if bottles happen to come in, you might get lucky!)

This year, Pappy Van Winkle says that the number of bottles of its 10, 12, and 15-year-old bourbons will be similar to previous years, while the much-anticipated 20 and 23-year-old offerings are available in much smaller quantities due to barrels yielding less whiskey than past years. If you have your sights set on getting a bottle of Pappy, target a bottle of its 13-year-old rye — they’re shipping more bottles of that expression than usual.

If you can manage to find a bottle of the new Pappy Van Winkle releases at your local retailer, here are the brand’s suggested retail prices:

Sadly, as these are the suggested prices, the brand can’t control whether or not stores mark it up bottles to astronomically high prices. Spoiler: Stores will definitely do that. Hopefully, they don’t get too egregious. It’s a longstanding problem that the brand seems interested (albeit vaguely) in fixing:

“We are committed to releasing quality whiskey at a reasonable cost and we hope retailers will honor what we suggest as a fair retail price,” says Julian Van Winkle, president, Old Rip Van Winkle Distillery.

According to Pappy, their whiskeys will be available beginning in November. There’s no set date because different markets will receive shipments at varying times. Some stores will also save bottles for Black Friday and big holiday sales. If you miss out on a bottle in November, be aware that you might see more pop up in the coming months. Keyword: might.

Yesterday, Quavo shared how he struck up a conversation with his now-girlfriend Saweetie, sharing the DMs he sent her that led to them forming their relationship. He led off with a reference to her song “Icy Grl” by sending just a snowflake emoji, and since that worked so well, a bunch of people have been trying the pick-up line.

Quavo is a big fan of people stealing his moves, as he retweeted a screenshot of somebody DMing somebody the emoji and receiving a confused question mark back. The pick-up artist followed up with Quavo’s follow-up, “u so icy Ima glacier boy,” which only further complicated the situation further, as the addressee replied, “N**** f*ck is you talking about.” Quavo later shared the tweet and wrote after some laughing emojis, “Snow flake Is The New One! It’s Work Trust.”

He had a similar reaction to another screenshot, which somebody captioned, “You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.” Their screenshot showed his list of DMs, which showed then sent snowflakes to Rihanna, Doja Cat, Vanessa Hudgens, Megan Thee Stallion, and a bunch of other women.

Saweetie has also shared a few of her favorite snowflake DM attempts as well:

Somebody else tried the move on Seth Rogen, but they were unsuccessful. The actor got a kick out of it, though, as he responded, “Haha. That line might work on some people but not me!”

Even the NBA’s Washington Wizards got in on the action. They sent the snowflake DM to every other NBA team and got a few responses from squads like the Memphis Grizzlies and San Antonio Spurs.

Check out some other snowflake-themed pick-up attempts below.

Ever since the climactic events of Avengers: Endgame, Marvel fans have heavily speculated that Peter Parker would receive a new mentor as he grows into more than just your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man. The name that came up the most was Benedict Cumberbatch’s Doctor Strange, and now, comes word that Cumberbatch is reportedly joining Spider-Man 3 to guide the young hero. Via Hollywood Reporter:

The move puts Cumberbatch in the mentor role that was previously occupied by Robert Downey Jr., who played Tony Stark/Iron Man in Spider-Man: Homecoming, and by Samuel L. Jackson in Spider-Man: Far From Home, the latter reprising Nick Fury. The role gives Holland a chance to play opposite seasoned actors, gives Peter Parker a father figure and gives the movies extra star power while also tying them to the greater Marvel Cinematic Universe.

The announcement lines up with the production of both films, which would seem to suggest the plan to share Doctor Strange (and possibly even Spidey) has been in the works for a while. Spider-Man 3 is reportedly filming in mid-October. Meanwhile, Cumberbatch recently revealed that Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness will start filming in November.

Cumberbatch’s casting also strengthens fan theories that Jamie Foxx’s return as Electro in Spider-Man 3 will be related to the Multiverse wreaking havoc on the MCU. As you can plainly see in the title, the Multiverse will play a central role in the Doctor Strange sequel, and Marvel fans may get a glimpse into the world of alternate realities when WandaVision arrives on Disney+. That series focuses on Elizabeth Olsen’s Scarlet Witch and will reportedly lay the groundwork for the next Doctor Strange film, in which Olsen is also starring.

(Via Hollywood Reporter)

The only thing missing from RMR’s impressive UPROXX Sessions performance of his Drug Dealing Is A Lost Art single “Welfare” is Westside Gunn’s physical presence but even without it, the masked crooner still delivers a show as charismatic as any. He draws the viewer in with his eyes leering and gold teeth gleaming from beneath his custom ski mask while his live singing proves that the vocal acuity he demonstrates on his debut EP is no tech-assisted fluke; he’s got real chops.

The genre-bending troubador first appeared, of course, in the viral video for “Rascal,” his trap-country cover of Rascal Flatts’ “God Bless The Broken Road” earlier this year, prompting a bout of breathless speculation on social media and amusing music fans with his masked-up gimmick. Folks couldn’t tell if it was tongue-in-cheek or dead serious, but one thing was for sure; the camouflaged crooner really could sing, and when his next few singles saw him hold his own alongside the likes of Future, Lil Baby, and Young Thug, it was clear that he was being taken seriously by established stars — stars he would eventually come to call his peers.

Watch RMR’s charismatic performance of “Welfare” above.

UPROXX Sessions is Uproxx’s new performance show featuring the hottest up-and-coming acts you should keep an eye on. Featuring creative direction from LA promotion collective, Ham On Everything, and taking place on our “bathroom” set designed and painted by Julian Gross, UPROXX Sessions is a showcase of some of our favorite performers, who just might soon be yours, too..

RMR is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.