Month: November 2020

There are many people who work extremely hard on the night of the NBA Draft. Among them is Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN, who will oftentimes tweet out the pick prior to NBA commissioner Adam Silver — although he did have to get creative with this one year.

This Draft, in particular, is slated to be fascinating, because there is no consensus No. 1 pick and a whole bunch of rumors flying around about which players and picks will get moved in the coming hours. That makes someone like Woj’s job all the more interesting for those of us sitting at home, and one Minnesota Timberwolves fan in particular wants to know if anything’s going to happen.

Minnesota congresswoman Ilhan Omar took to Twitter on Wednesday morning and let Wojnarowski know that if he has any fun scoops he’s trying to report out, he can go ahead and shoot her a DM.

The Timberwolves, of course, are a fun team to follow on Wednesday evening because they have the No. 1 pick and no clear-cut best answer for what to do with it. As we’ve laid out in the past, there are pros and cons to just about every decision they can make, especially because none of the perceived top-3 players in this class — LaMelo Ball, Anthony Edwards, James Wiseman — are perfect fits on their roster for one reason or another.

Anyway, Wojnarowski ended up liking this tweet, which I can only assume means he knows something monumentally big is going to happen and is going to reach out. Or maybe he’s just happier with this interaction with a member of Congress than his last one.

One Night in Miami might have one eventful night at the Oscars. Directed by Regina King, the film largely takes place in a Miami hotel room in 1964, where four Black icons — boxer Cassius Clay, civil rights activist Malcolm X, athlete Jim Brown, and singer Sam Cooke — celebrate Clay’s win earlier that evening. They also “grapple with their own fame and how that translates what they can and should be doing for Black people in America,” as our own Mike Ryan wrote in his glowing review (I can confirm; it’s good).

Here’s the official plot synopsis:

On one incredible night in 1964, four icons of sports, music, and activism gathered to celebrate one of the biggest upsets in boxing history. When underdog Cassius Clay, soon to be called Muhammad Ali, defeats heavy weight champion Sonny Liston at the Miami Convention Hall, Clay memorialized the event with three of his friends: Malcolm X, Sam Cooke, and Jim Brown. Based on the award-winning play of the same name, and directed by Regina King, One Night In Miami… is a fictional account inspired by the historic night these four formidable figures spent together. It looks at the struggles these men faced and the vital role they each played in the civil rights movement and cultural upheaval of the 1960s. More than 40 years later, their conversations on racial injustice, religion, and personal responsibility still resonate.

One Night in Miami premieres on Amazon Prime Video on January 15.

Atlanta trap rap anchor artist 2 Chainz always seems to find a way to make even the most simple video concepts engaging in his execution. In the video for “Money Maker,” he highlighted HBCU marching bands, while in the one for “Quarantine Thick,” a sleepover evolves into a pizza party feeding frenzy. Most recently, he adopted the doppelganger approach for “Can’t Go For That,” playing off fellow ATLien Andre 3000’s video for “Hey Ya!” His latest video from So Help Me God, “Toni,” employs another simple treatment: Chainz lounges on a bed in an opulent mansion while two women twerk and pillow fight behind him.

As I said, it’s a simple concept — but something about it just works. Chainz knows his brand and sticks to it, even when he’s opening up political rallies with rambling speeches and performances of his biggest hits or popping up on a special Atlanta rap icon-themed episode of Celebrity Family Feud. That self-possession benefits him a lot; despite havng to push back the release of his latest album, So Help Me God, he still managed to complete a near-flawless rollout, previewing songs from the album early on NBA 2K21, trading hits with Rick Ross in a good-natured Verzuz battle, and using strategic guest appearances, such as his verse on the remix of Kanye’s “Nah Nah Nah” to keep 2 Chainz on the top of rap fans’ minds throughout 2020. Now that he’s introduced us to “Toni,” it’s almost guaranteed he’ll keep that momentum going thanks to his new alter ego.

Watch the “Toni” video above. Listen to So Help Me God, out now on Def Jam, here.

The hit sitcom Saved By The Bell is just a week away from a reboot season. While the revival series is staying true to its roots, several aspects of the show are seeing an upgrade — including its theme song. For the new Saved By The Bell opening tune, producers tapped Lil Yachty to lend his vocals.

The original Saved By The Bell theme song boasts energetic piano keys and a spirited saxophone, but the updated version gets a bit of a facelift. While the new song keeps the same lyrics, its instrumentals are modernized with electric guitar, a trap-adjacent beat, and Yachty’s recognizable vocals.

In a statement about the new theme song, the show’s executive producer Tracey Wigfield praised Yachty for his talent and humor. “We were so excited to have Lil Yachty update the original Saved By The Bell theme song,” Wigfield said. “Besides being cool and catchy, his music has a great sense of humor, which I really appreciate. I was less excited when he said he wanted to do it because his mom was a big fan of the show because that made me feel 100 years old.”

Yachty’s Saved By The Bell project isn’t the only TV show he’s worked on. The rapper recently appeared on The Eric Andre Show to join Jpegmafia and Trippie Redd for a Rapper Warrior Ninja segment. The rappers were tasked with completing an obstacle course while continuing to freestyle the entire time. Yachty came close to completing the challenge, but bailed when he came too close to something that looked suspiciously like poop.

Listen to Yachty’s Saved By The Bell theme song here.

The Saved By The Bell revival premieres 11/25 on Peacock. Watch it here.

Hit-Boy is having — forgive the expression — one hell of a year. The Fontana, California producer seemingly fell off a lot of fans’ radars in the years since crafting “N****s In Paris” for Kanye and Jay-Z but in 2020 he returned with a vengeance to remind them that he never actually left. Now, he’s got a relatively short list of demands on his new single; simply “Salute” when you see him, paying proper respect to the beatmaker who has contributed smashes to Jay Electronica, Nas, and Big Sean this year. The latter appears as a guest rapper along with breakout Brooklyn drill star Fivio Foreign, while Hit-Boy does double duty, contributing a triumphant beat and a fiery verse.

In the past few years, Hit-Boy has continued to be an in-demand beat maestro despite a lack of attention compared to his GOOD Music “heyday” — something he commented on recently on Instagram. His recent accomplishments include the Grammy Award-winning “Racks In The Middle” by Nipsey Hussle and Roddy Ricch, several songs on Juice WRLD’s 2019 album Death Race For Love, executive production duties on Benny The Butcher, Big Sean, and Nas’ albums Burden Of Proof, Detroit 2, and King’s Disease earlier this year, and his own Half-A-Mil group projects with Dom Kennedy, the most recent of which landed in July. He plans to follow up with full albums for Jay-Z and Kendrick Lamar if possible, while his HS87 label continues to pump out underground faves from the likes of SOB X RBE and Audio Push’s Price.

Listen to Hit-Boy’s “Salute” featuring Big Sean and Fivio Foreign above.

Here we are again, looking for things to listen to and fill the time. With digital streaming platforms, we have all of the music in the world at our fingertips, but still can’t seem to figure out exactly what we want to hear. Lucky for all of us, Geoff Rickly is here to help with Making A Mixtape, the new video offering from Uproxx’s Indie Mixtape. As the singer for the post-hardcore band Thursday, Rickly has a unique and experienced perspective on what it takes to craft an impactful mixtape.

After creating mixtapes with Cloud Nothings, Gordi, and Girlpool in our last season, Rickly is back with a new slate of friends to revisit the craft. First up on the docket is Alex Stoitsiadis, guitarist and vocalist of buzzy punk band Dogleg, who released Melee, one of 2020’s most beloved debuts earlier this year. Together, Stoitsiadis and Rickly create an epic “Cinematic” mixtape, pulling in all of the songs that make you feel like your life is a movie.

Check out the fourth episode of Making A Mixtape above and follow the “Cinematic” playlist below.

The Cure — “Plainsong”
Charly Bliss — “Heaven”
Mitski — “Your Best American Girl”
Dogleg — “Wartortle”
Young Jesus — “River”
The Microphones — “Glow, Pt. 2”
Elliott Smith — “Twilight”

When ESPN broadcasts the 2020 NBA Draft from its campus in Bristol, Connecticut on Wednesday night, it may seem smaller than the usual lavish event that plays out live in front of an arena full of thousands of raucous fans. But in truth, this year’s Draft will be bigger than ever.

Rather than just the dozen or so prospects typically invited into the green room at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, where the Draft is normally held, the NBA organized live video feeds of 58 of the top prospects, including 19 that will be shot live via satellite trucks. Four of those trucks will be in foreign countries, as the league worked with overseas partners in Greece, Spain, France, and Israel to make sure top international prospects get their moment of triumph broadcast as well. Crews at the NBA headquarters in Secaucus, New Jersey, and Bristol will beam in video footage of players and their families while they get the news that their hoop dreams have come true.

“A lot of these guys were robbed of that opportunity when the Tournament was canceled, so getting their names out there and introducing fans to a new crop of future stars, that’s what I’m excited about,” Carlton Young, NBA associate vice president of event management, told Dime.

All 58 players were sent media kits designed as big cabinets featuring everything from a personalized Spalding basketball, to streaming technology, to a copy of a draft hat from all 30 teams. It’s part of how the league is attempting to replicate the Barclays Center experience, but it’s also a matter of practicality.

Learning from the WNBA Draft that his staff pulled off back in April, Young knew he’d have to send out TVU kits to all the prospects, meaning they also received an iPhone, Beats headphones, an LED ring light, and a Microsoft Surface tablet in order to get a good feed for their reaction shot and the interview they will do after they are selected with ESPN’s Malika Andrews.

“We made a point to make sure that we could get as many players on-air as possible,” Young explains. “We focused a lot on making sure we could get a live reaction of the players as soon as their announcement is made. That’s kind of the biggest moment of the Draft for a lot of people, and it’s really a great thing to see for the viewer.”

Back in Bristol, Adam Silver and deputy commissioner Mark Tatum will be in a big ESPN studio, with a similar backdrop to what would normally be onstage at the Barclays Center and feature the “money shot” footage when players are selected. Andrews will be in a separate studio doing interviews, while the usual panel of Rece Davis, Jay Bilas, Jay Williams, and Mike Schmitz will lead coverage for ESPN. Studio commentary will come via NBA insiders Adrian Wojnarowski and Bobby Marks.

If any trades come up, the league will roll with the punches, even if communication is a bit slower virtually than in-person. Something like the Houston and Portland deal from Monday night that put the No. 16 pick in the Rockets’ hands might be handled as if it were a Rockets pick, whereas Draft night deals will not change the logistics of interviews and photos until they are finalized.

“We have a whole team of people on our side who are in constant communication with each one of these 58 draftees throughout the night,” Young says. “So if anything like that were to come up, we would try to be ahead of it to make sure there aren’t those awkward moments, but sometimes the timing is what it is and you kind of just roll with the punches.”

Afterward, the league will recreate the annual first round photo of all the prospects with Silver by asking prospects to shoot photos of themselves posing in a specific manner and patching them all together into a portrait that will be shown on the Draft broadcast and sent to rookies’ families.

In its own way, the 2020 NBA Draft may be even more memorable than past Drafts. Certainly, the league has learned lessons about how to involve more prospects that they can transfer to future Drafts. While there might be some technological hiccups or peculiarities unique to this year, NBA fans can rest assured Wednesday night will be just as fun as ever.

Fox & Friends had a big morning. First, Brian Kilmeade (who knew that Trump was watching) urged the president to work with Biden in “the country’s best interest.” The subject largely revolved around the current administration’s refusal to share COVID-19 data with the incoming guard, and that could, of course, adversely impact vaccine rollout plans. Then Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany surfaced on the show, where she blasted state COVID-19 guidelines to slow the spread — including pleas and warnings for people to keep Thanksgiving dinners to immediate family only — as “Orwellian.”

What remains completely unclear is whether McEnany knows what “Orwellian” means. She’s interpreting state guidelines as evidence of a totalitarian state, when in fact, these state guidelines are about as anti-Orwellian as one can get. In particular, McEnany’s talking about guidelines (including fines and possible jail time for violations) from Oregon Gov. Kate Brown, who stated, “For the last eight months I have been asking Oregonians to follow the letter and the spirit of the law and we have not chosen to engage law enforcement… At this point in time, unfortunately, we have no other option.”

Here’s McEnany’s response:

“I think a lot of the guidelines you’re seeing are Orwellian… the American people know how to protect their health. We’ve dealt with Covid for many months. But it’s Orwellian in a place like Oregon to say, ‘If you gather in numbers more than six, we might come to your house and arrest you, and you get 30 days of jail time.’ That’s not the American way. We don’t lose our freedom in this country. We make responsible health decisions as individuals.”

What McEnany fails to recognize is that the Trump administration’s use of propaganda and lies — which has stirred up a massive, violent anti-mask sentiment in the U.S. — is far more “Orwellian” than what she’s criticizing.

McEnany’s lies this morning also included talk of a second Trump administration being locked and loaded.

Naturally, she’s being mocked into oblivion over the “Orwellian” claim.

Run the Jewels bandmates El-P and Killer Mike are no strangers to the beer game. Before the hip-hop duo became a household name, Run the Jewels dabbled in the world of craft brews with a branded beer made by Goose Island. Since that first beer, RTJ has since collaborated with a handful of other artisan breweries, making branded beers a fixture of their merch output. Now, in promotion of their newest single “No Save Point” from the soundtrack to the upcoming video game Cyberpunk 2077, they’re returning to the scene with 12 different iterations of a craft IPA made by 13 different breweries across seven different countries.

Dubbed, fittingly, “No Save Point,” each of the 12 brews will consist of RTJ-inspired artwork with imagery from Cyberpunk 2077 and will play on a very loose base recipe: a 6.5% ABV hazy IPA. While it’d be fair to say that 12 different iterations of the same concept is a bit excessive, the breweries selected were given free rein to get as wild as they wanted with things, and it looks like a lot of them delivered. Weather Souls’ Coconut and Marshmallow Fluff IPA, Cerveza Minerva’s Mezcal IPA, and Deviant & Dandy’s Sour Blackberry IPA, and sound particularly creative (and delicious).

The full list of brewers includes London’s Deviant & Dandy, Australia’s Moon Dog, Weathered Souls, Poland’s Inne Becski, the Netherland’s Vandestreek, Germany’s Brlo, Mexico’s Cerveza Minerva, Pipeworks, Modist, City Built, Horus, Interboro, and collaboration between Mason Ale Works x Horus. According to Food & Wine, most of these beers are set to drop this Thursday, with a second smaller batch to follow next month. To find out where to buy the “No Save Point” IPA line, hit up Run The Jewels’ official merch store, which consists of a beer section so expansive you’d think you were at a brewery’s own website.

Even after Biden became the projected winner of the 2020 election, Lil Pump hasn’t let up on his Trump-supporting antics. The rapper first endorsed the president at the end of October. His support even caught the attention of Trump himself, who invited him on stage at a Michigan MAGA rally and introduced him as “Lil Pimp.” The incident made it clear that Trump had absolutely no idea who Pump was, but the rapper continues to bask in his clout through his new MAGA-supporting anthem.

Pump released the song “Lil Pimp Big MAGA Steppin” on SoundCloud Tuesday. Clocking in at under two minutes, the song references Trump’s “Lil Pimp” slip-up while throwing out other controversial verses. “Got a whole foreign on my right wrist / F*ck a bad b*tch, send her back to ISIS / Look at all my diamonds, they bitin’ / Got a Rolls truck with no license / And I’m screamin’ out ‘Fuck Sleepy Joe,’” he raps.

While Pump has been spouting Trump-supporting rhetoric to maintain a place in the public eye, the rapper’s support of the president is only skin deep. Despite his endorsement of the president ahead of the election, Pump never even registered to vote. The rapper’s Florida homestate requires citizens to register to vote 29 days before Election Day but Pump missed the deadline. That means Pump had already missed his chance to cast a ballot for Trump even while he was showing up at MAGA rallies across the country.

Listen to Pump’s “Lil Pimp Big MAGA Steppin” above.