Month: February 2021

It’s a problem every high school-set show faces if it airs long enough: what happens when the characters graduate? Buffy the Vampire Slayer sent Buffy to UC-Sunnydale (and Doublemeat Palace); Gilmore Girls separated Lorelai and Rory, and was worse off for it; and Riverdale, well, Riverdale is playing by its own weirdo rules.

In the most recent episode of The CW series, Archie, Jughead, Betty, and Veronica graduated high school, and the couples, Archie/Veronica and Jughead/Betty, decided to split up. But the next episode, the show’s 80th, won’t deal with the fallout from the breakups; we also won’t see the gang in college. That’s because Riverdale is jumping seven years into the future. “A lot can happen in seven years,” Jughead says in the teaser for next week’s episode. “Archie had been in a war. I was a published writer. Veronica was married. And Betty was an FBI agent.” My favorite thing about that voiceover — besides all of it — is that Veronica being married is treated with the same dramatic weight as Betty being an FBI agent. But that’s not even the nuttiest thing about the promo.

“Although we are still in Riverdale and we are still tied into the school in certain ways, in the time jump I feel like we had to refresh our audience with a new theme, which is the fact that we’re all a lot older,” KJ Apa (Archie) told Entertainment Weekly about the time jump. “And I feel like that in itself, the fact that we’re all older and a lot of time has passed, no one’s really kept in touch, it adds a lot more things to play with.” Including the fallout from fighting a war (in World War II uniforms???) on a high school football field.

Never change, Riverdale. Please run for five more seasons.

(Via EW)

Chicago rapper Cupcakke recently caused a stir due to her back-and-forth battle with fellow rising rapper Sukihana but it looks like she would prefer to get more attention for giving back. In December, she announced her plans to open a homeless shelter in her hometown and today, she tried to help fans who needed day-to-day assistance with a CashApp giveaway. “Tag one person that actually needs $1,000 right now,” she tweeted. “I’ll be sending it from this CashApp. Within the next 10 mins !!! Screenshot will be posted.”

https://twitter.com/CupcakKe_rapper/status/1357341472404643840

Within minutes, her mentions were flooded and her name was trending on Twitter, but she was still able to pick out a few names to help with the desired assistance. One commenter said that they needed $500 for auto repairs, prompting a hasty response from Cupcakke. Unfortunately, her CashApp account limited the transaction so she sent the money via PayPal instead.

https://twitter.com/CupcakKe_rapper/status/1357341847211757573
https://twitter.com/CupcakKe_rapper/status/1357344198748344336

Cupcakke shared a few more screenshots, this time in $100 increments, before taking a break. That hasn’t stopped fans from continuing to share their stories with the rapper, with many joking that she’s done more for COVID relief than the US government.

https://twitter.com/CupcakKe_rapper/status/1357353155441422339
https://twitter.com/CupcakKe_rapper/status/1357356754879840256

While it’s clear that there is far more need than one rapper could ever support, it’s still nice to see someone trying to help people in troubled times like these. Despite mourning her friend Sophie, who passed away late last month, Cupcakke still found a way to brighten at least a few fans’ days.

Skillz, one of the biggest mobile games platforms in the world, will partner with the NFL on a new deal that will work to develop new football fans through mobile devices and the growing popularity of eSports.

The two companies will partner to put on a global game developer challenge that will launch this spring and be open to “all genres except for 11 v 11 simulated games,” a la Madden. The NFL’s longtime collaboration with EA Sports on the console game has generated extreme popularity among gamers and sports fans alike, but fans, especially those who play games on mobile devices, will get a new way to interact with football through Skillz.

“The NFL is an iconic brand that is synonymous with American sports, and Skillz is thrilled to help power their esports competitions on mobile,” said Andrew Paradise, CEO and founder of Skillz, in a statement.

The announcement comes just more than a month after Skillz’s IPO on the New York Stock Exchange, at which point the company received nearly $1 billion in funding. From the NFL side, striking a deal with such a large gaming company allows the league to find younger fans and those who may not come to the game from a traditional perspective, plus it allows gamers the opportunity to play a football game that is outside of the Madden universe.

HBO’s fiery and fearless I May Destroy You (created by and starring Michaela Coel) got snubbed by the Golden Globes nominations list, and while a few good things happened elsewhere on the list, there’s a lot of reasons to shake one’s head over that glaring omission. Another very good exploration of sexual consent, Emerald Fennell’s Promising Young Woman starring Carey Mulligan, did not get snubbed, and to add further insult to injury, Emily In Paris got nominated for Best Comedy. Whether or not I May Destroy You belonged in any particular category (Limited Series, Comedy, Drama) isn’t really the issue at hand, it’s more about how Emily, at best, lacked substance and how the French were not thrilled about it being an “insulting” depiction of the country.

There’s also the added aspect of Emily In Paris title character feeling like an unintended personification of white privilege, which gives the Hollywood Foreign Press Association another bad look by snubbing not only I May Destroy You but also Da 5 Bloods. What a mess, and guess what? An Emily In Paris writer, Deborah Copaken, agrees and explained why in an op-ed for The Guardian. In the first place, she’s rather stunned that Emily got nominated:

“I tried to avoid reading its criticism, but I don’t live under a rock. It never occurred to me that our show would be nominated [since it’s about] a white American selling luxury whiteness, in a pre-pandemic Paris scrubbed free of its vibrant African and Muslim communities.”

Copaken is not upset that Emily was nominated since she’ll be able to attend the ceremony, but she’s admittedly feeling “rage” over the snub issue:

“I May Destroy You was not only my favorite show of 2020. It’s my favorite show ever. It takes the complicated issue of a rape — I’m a sexual assault survivor myself — and infuses it with heart, humor, pathos and a story constructed so well, I had to watch it twice, just to understand how Coel did it… [my] excitement is now unfortunately tempered by my rage over Coel’s snub. That I May Destroy You did not get one Golden Globe nod is not only wrong, it’s what is wrong with everything.”

Those are harsh words for the HFPA, which has of course remained silent on the subject, although social media is obviously feeling much differently about the lack of recognition for Michaela Coel’s stunning and layered creation, which was one of the Best TV Shows of 2020.

(Via The Guardian)

Tom Brady is headed to his 10th Super Bowl on Sunday when his Buccaneers play a home game in Tampa against the reigning champion Kansas City Chiefs, led by Patrick Mahomes. It is a battle between two quarterbacks with very different styles, as Brady is among the last of the prototypical pocket passers of yesteryear and Mahomes is the prototype for the next generation of superstar quarterbacks, with a rocket for an arm, precision accuracy, and mobility that allows him to extend plays.

Eli Manning is quite familiar with seeing Brady in the Super Bowl, as he and the Giants went a perfect 2-0 in big game showdowns with Brady and the Patriots in 2007 and 2011. The recently-retired Manning will enjoy watching Brady and Mahomes go at it from the comfort of his home. Before that, he spoke with Uproxx Sports this week on behalf of Frank’s RedHot about the two QBs that will face off in Tampa, his own Super Bowl memories, and possibly dumping 100 gallons of hot sauce on TikTok star David Dobrik this week.

Super Bowl week is something you’ve experienced on a couple of occasions. When you look back on your Super Bowl experience is there anything that particularly stands out when you reflect on your two Super Bowls?

Yeah, I mean, I think there’s so many positive memories. The fact that you were there twice and you win both of ’em, I don’t have a bad memory or a bad experience with one. I think the week’s different than a normal week, just because for the last 20 weeks, you’ve basically had the same routine every week, Monday through Sunday, gameday. Now all of a sudden, except for Tampa who’s playing a home game basically, your schedule can be a little different. For me, it was all of a sudden that week you’re in Arizona for practice, you’re taking buses to practice. It’s a lot more bonding with the team on those bus rides, at night your family is not there all week so you’re having dinner with your buddies, just casual, and so I think you have a lot of great moments right there, just hanging out with your teammates all getting ready to play the biggest game of your life. There’s obviously a seriousness to that and a focus to it, but it’s still kind of a boys will be boys and when there’s time to relax and laugh we had a great crew of guys who knew how to flip that switch and never got too goofy, but like to laugh and be around each other during those bus rides after the day was done.

So all those, and also the celebration after the game when you walk into your party with your friends and family, and high school buddies and college buddies greet you. You kinda figure out that when you win a championship it’s not just the New York Giants and the owners and the fans, but everybody you played high school and college football with that didn’t get to go on to the next level, they’re winning a championship with you. And I promise you they celebrate like they just won a Super Bowl as well. So there’s a lot of great memories.

This year you’re partnered with Frank’s RedHot for The Big Pour to support Tackle Kids Cancer. How did that partnership come about and why is it so important to work with this organization in Tackle Kids Cancer for you?

Yeah, you know, it’s been a great relationship with Frank’s RedHot. We have a new commercial that’s out right now where I’m handling retirement and doing different activities and pouring Frank’s all over everything and using it in every activity I do. I got introduced to them at the beginning of the pandemic when Peyton was playing in the golf Match and I was on Twitter to tweet some heat towards him and attacking Brady when he was playing in that. I think Frank’s and their brand and their sense of humor matches up with mine, kind of a dry sense of humor. They take their business very serious but don’t take themselves very seriously though. And so I think it’s been a great relationship and they approached this idea of pouring 100 gallons of Frank’s RedHot on someone and I’m just glad I don’t have to get it poured on me.

But David Dobrik was willing to take the pour and it’s because it’s for charity and Tackle Kids Cancer, which has been a charity very close to me these past five years and dealing with that and helping out research and patient care programs. It’s been a great fit and hopefully the Big Pour — we’re trying to hit that 100,000 tweets with the hashtag #FranksBigPour coming up — and it should be pretty exciting. I have no idea how it’s gonna look or work out or go down, but it should be interesting to say the least.

You mention the commercial where you put Frank’s on everything, which is their slogan. What’s the strangest food that you put hot sauce on that folks might not think?

Nah, I think that’s the great thing about Frank’s is I don’t think there’s anything too strange you can put it on. Obviously the wings are great and I put it on my eggs, but I don’t know if there’s anything totally outrageous. I think anything’s acceptable and wouldn’t be frowned upon putting Frank’s on.

I want to get your thoughts on the game on Sunday and particularly these two quarterbacks, because they’re very different in terms of playing style but they’re two of the best we have in the league right now. Obviously Tom’s been doing it for a long time and somebody you know well, and then Patrick is the new guy coming up. When you look at their games what are the things that stand out the most when you watch those two?

You know, I think they have a similar quality and it’s hard to put a finger on, but that “it” quality where at the critical moment of the game they seem to be able to raise their level of play that much more. And they get that much more focused or make that key throw, make that key play. So the moment is never too big for them and I think you just see it over and over again. Patrick through the playoffs last year, Tom Brady through his whole career and other championships. So it’s a matter of, this game, it could be a high scoring game throughout the entire game — you never know how it’s going to play out — but I can tell you in the fourth quarter both teams will be scoring, because those quarterbacks will know it’s crunch time and each drive in that fourth quarter is so important to get points to try and either take a lead or extend a lead.

So you just know there’s going to be a lot of fireworks going on in that fourth quarter of the game.

And they both have Super Bowl experience. How does that change your approach going from your first Super bowl into a second Super Bowl because you know that extra stuff like how the routine changes and a better understanding of the magnitude of everything?

Yeah, I think, well, I know one thing, that winning a championship does not make you content. You’re not like, “Oh, I’ve done it all.” It is a feeling and a high that you can’t replicate, and you want to have that feeling again. You want that feeling that you are the world champion. That you get to hoist up the Lombardi Trophy. That you get to celebrate, you get that ring. Those are just feelings that you can’t replicate in other ways, so it makes you want to do it and take advantage of that opportunity. So I don’t think either team will be distracted or think that it’s going to be automatic.

They both know the challenge ahead of them and the opponent they’re playing is worthy of being in this situation and being in this game, so I think they’ll both come out ready to play.

Windy City rap upstart Polo G is barely old enough to buy himself an alcoholic drink, but that didn’t stop him from buying his mom a house bigger than his. The “Pop Out” rapper boasted of his accomplishment on Twitter, adding a sobbing emoji to underline the poignant nature of the moment.

Meanwhile, his mom Stacia Mac went a step further — as proud parents tend to do — showing off the house on Instagram. Mac, who is also Polo’s manager, posted a detailed explanation of the promise he made to her at the outset of his rap career. “He promised he’d create a life for our family free of struggle and/or lack,” she wrote, expressing her approval of him delivering on that promise. “September 2020. Today my son purchased my dream home! I showed him the home and he didn’t flinch. His response was ‘What you need?’”

She continued, “To say I’m appreciative is an understatement. Thank you, son! Thank you for being a man of your word. Thank you for giving me things, that at times, I was unable to provide you or myself. I love you and I’m eternally grateful.” She also thanked the realtor, with whom she took a commemorative photo that she also shared in the slideshow.

Mac previously told DJBooth she’d given her son an ultimatum about his rap career — either make it big in a year or go to college. He was able to secure his major-label deal in less than a year, and now, just two years later, purchase both himself and his mom homes far from the Chicago trenches he raps about. Don’t be surprised if his follow-up to The GOAT sounds way different. Check out his celebratory post for his own home purchase below.

After vowing to take a Twitter break on Tuesday, Elon Musk lasted less than 24 hours before returning to tweet one word early Thursday morning: “Doge.” The tweet refers to the cryptocurrency Dogecoin, which originally started as a joke, but is now a viable contender in the crypto market. As GameStop stocks began their descent following a coordinated buying frenzy by Reddit traders, talk began swirling around Dogecoin becoming the next big thing to take investors “to the moon,” and that prediction may be true. After Musk tweeted “Doge,” the price of the coin immediately took off and has nearly tripled in the hours since. Via The Guardian:

Dogecoin, which uses a shiba inu dog meme as its logo, was started in 2013 as a joke, after the invention of bitcoin prompted a wave of imitator cryptocurrencies. However, the joke caught on, and the coins had a market value of $6.3bn (£4.6bn) on Thursday morning, according to Coinmarketcap.com, a cryptocurrency data provider.

The value of a single coin rose to $0.05204 that Thursday morning, up by almost three cents in 24 hours. The volume of trading more than tripled over the course of the day.

Clearly, Musk noticed the activity that his first tweet caused, and it didn’t take long before he began leaning into the attention with memes and more endorsements of Dogecoin. (And, yes, that is Musk’s face photoshopped into The Lion King.)

However, it should be noted that Musk tweeted about Dogecoin last weekend, which saw the price rise before dropping sharply. So as with any investment, buyer beware.

(Via The Guardian)

Olivia Rodrigo is still riding the wave from her breakout single “Drivers License,” but she’s starting to think about the future. For example, if Taylor Swift’s wishes come true, Rodrigo could end up working with Swift’s Folklore and Evermore collaborator Aaron Dessner.

In a new Nylon profile, Rodrigo said, “I don’t even know if I’m supposed to be saying this, but I think it’s fine. Somebody told me that Aaron Dessner said that Taylor talks to him about me. And Taylor said that Aaron has to work with me because she loves my music and she thinks that it’s going to be big.”

The singer says she has about eight songs she’s happy with, and in her mind, she already has a vision for her eventual album:

Elsewhere in the piece, Rodrigo said she’s not sure what’s next for her musically, but she has an idea of what she wants her debut album to sound like: “I want it to be super versatile. My dream is to have it be an intersection between mainstream pop, folk music, and alternative rock. I love the songwriting and the lyricism and the melodies of folk music. I love the tonality of alt-rock. Obviously, I’m obsessed with pop and pop artists. So I’m going to try and take all of my sort of influences and inspirations and kind of make something that I like.”

Check out the full feature here.

One of the best ways to tell an artist is a bonafide superstar is by their brand looks. Although hip-hop comes from the streets, you know a rapper’s made it when they’re doing Super Bowl ads for huge national brands like Rockstar, Inc. (makers of the energy drink, not the video game developers). Cardi B and Lil Nas X have already appeared in ads themselves, and they’re two of the genre’s most recognizable acts. With those criteria in mind, it certainly looks like Lil Baby, who was called the best rapper of 2021 by multiple outlets, is now a superstar.

“I wasn’t born in the spotlight,” he says in the 30-second spot. “I had to grind to shine… something about the struggle now resides in my muscles.” While Baby himself only appears in the commercial for a few seconds, he narrates the ad straight through as the camera takes in a skater practicing his tricks, a fashion designer finishing off a dress, and a producer clicking through tracks on his desktop. “Real stars don’t chase the spotlight,” Lil Baby declares toward the end. “It chases them.”

The spotlight certainly chased Lil Baby over the past year — even when he didn’t want it to. The Atlanta rapper had the best selling album of 2020, beating out Taylor Swift for the honor, but also received attention for the recognition he didn’t acquire at several major awards shows, including the AMAs and the Grammys. He also became a reluctant figurehead of the summer uprisings thanks to his song “The Bigger Picture,” prompting him to take a step back from political or social commentary.

Watch Lil Baby’s first Super Bowl ad above.

Around this time last year, Tool leader Maynard James Keenan was dealing with the effects of the coronavirus, as he revealed in October. Now, he says he is once again recovering from COVID-19, as he got it a second time.

He spoke about it with Apple Music’s Strombo yesterday, revealing that he contracted the disease in mid-November and found himself in the ER in December. He described the situation:

“Ugly, ugly. Couldn’t breathe. I could barely put two words together without going into a coughing fit, you know? It ended up kind of also progressing into pneumonia. So, if I stayed in the hospital, they said, ‘OK, we can keep you here, but you’re fighting 12 other people for a bed and a ventilator we don’t have, so what do you want to do?’ I’m like, ‘Well, I need to breathe and I need to sleep.’ So, you’re just treating symptoms at that point. There’s nothing you can do other than treat the symptom, so for a real cough medicine – not the crap over-the-counter [medicine] – and then like an inhaler and some antibiotics to fight the pneumonia, and strap the f*ck in.”

Listen to the full Apple Music interview with Keenan here.