Month: March 2021

It’s no secret that BTS have had a massively successful year. They broke a number of records for their music, secured a historic Grammy nomination, and were officially the best-selling musicians of 2020. It’s only right that BTS are getting recognized for all their record-breaking achievements, and Guinness World Records has them covered by teasing the group’s inclusion in their next book.

It’s true that BTS have been achieving musical milestones for years, but their 2020 English-language song “Dynamite” helped them secure a handful more. When the song debuted on YouTube, it shattered multiple viewing records. It was the fastest video to reach 10 million views, and it was the first video to eclipse 100 million views in its first 24 hours on the platform. But that’s not all. Guinness World Records just confirmed that it also broke the record for most concurrent viewers for any YouTube premiere in history, garnering over 3 million viewers at once.

Not only did Guinness congratulate the group for their impressive achievement, but they also teased that BTS will be predominately featured in their next Guinness World Records book. “@BTS_twt’s record for the ‘most simultaneous viewers for a music video on YouTube Premieres’ has now been confirmed, with the 2020 single Dynamite clocking up over three million viewers,” they wrote.

Responding to a fan saying that BTS should have their own book, Guinness said: “they may have a nice spread in the upcoming book, so look out for that.”

See Guinness tease BTS’ inclusion in their next Guinness World Records book above.

After her on-air meltdown defending Piers Morgan’s remarks about Meghan Markle caused The Talk to go into an extended hiatus as CBS conducts an internal investigation, Sharon Osbourne is now claiming she was set up by the show and has been offered up as a “sacrificial lamb.” The embattled The Talk host made the remarks during an interview with Entertainment Tonight on Tuesday, when she accused Sheryl Underwood and Elaine Welteroth of reading her questions from their cue cards that were not on Osbourne’s cards. However, Osbourne also admits that she was warned ahead of time that she would be asked about her tweet defending Morgan, which she has since apologized for. Although, the sincerity of that apology has been contested.

Via Entertainment Tonight:

Osbourne claims that she was blindsided by Underwood questioning her defense of Morgan and was not sufficiently prepared by showrunners and producers. She believes her co-hosts “had preparation, they had written questions for them.” Osbourne says that eight minutes before taping began, one of the showrunners did ask if she would be OK taking questions about Morgan and how she would feel if “maybe one of [the women] doesn’t agree with you.” To which, Osbourne said, “I’ll answer whatever they want me to answer.”

Osbourne further added of the situation, “Sheryl turns around and asks me this question and… she was reading it off a card. It wasn’t on my cards. And then Elaine [Welteroth]’s reading her questions and I’m like, ‘I’ve been set up,’” she declared. “They’re setting me up. My anger was like, I cannot believe this, I’m your sacrificial lamb.”

Despite accusing her co-hosts of “setting her up” by asking her questions that she agreed to answer, Osbourne said she would like to return to The Talk and hash this all out because she understands that she “got too personal” with Underwood while defending Morgan. “I love Sheryl, I’ve apologized to Sheryl, she’s not gotten back and I can understand. Sheryl needs her time,” Obsourne said.

However, the situation might not go away that easily. Following the highly controversial spat, new allegations have emerged that accuse Osbourne of having a lengthy history of making racist remarks to her co-hosts. According to a report from journalist Yashir Ali, Osbourne’s former co-host Leah Remini has accused her of using racial slurs to describe Julie Chen and getting Holly Robinson-Peete fired from the show. Following the report, CBS extended The Talk‘s hiatus from two days to over a week, so that the network could conduct “a process where all voices are heard, claims are investigated and appropriate action is taken where necessary.”

(Via Entertainment Tonight)

Mayans M.C. returns for a third ride this week, and this time, things feel different. For one thing, Sons of Anarchy creator Kurt Sutter has left the building, and co-creator Elgin James took up showrunner duties. For another thing, sh*t is even darker than it was at the end of the second season finale (with a dead SAMCRO member). Front and center amid all of the fallout is Danny Pino, who portrays drug lord Miguel Galindo, who managed to get his hands dirtier, even while the cartel side of the show took a breather during Season 2’s last few episodes. Pino’s still steadily chipping away at his former TV persona (portraying detectives on Law and Order: SVU and Cold Case) while technically inhabiting bad-guy territory. Nonetheless, Miguel remained convinced last year that he could succeed where The Godfather‘s Michael Corleone ceremoniously failed.

The last time we spoke with Danny Pino, we discussed how Miguel even namechecked the Corleones while the show distanced itself from “Godfather karaoke.” and these days, Pino is no less perceptive. He was cool enough to speak with us about where Mayans M.C. goes from here and how it roared back to life despite the world’s current situation. As always, Pino isn’t even attempting to contain his gratitude surrounding this show and how entertainment can bring us all so much relief during trying times. Miguel’s got a lot on his plate this season — his mother’s killing, a business deal going seriously bad, and even more drama at home — and Pino is here to help us wade through that mess.

With all that the world’s going through, how did it feel to leave quarantine life and head into biker-drama land again?

First of all, it’s fantastic to be able to talk about a new season of Mayans M.C., especially given the reality of what we’ve all lived through for over a year and the massive losses our friends and families have suffered. It seems incredibly trivial to be discussing a piece of entertainment juxtaposed alongside the heroic efforts and sacrifices our doctors and health care workers have endured for months. Not to mention, the pressure to innovate and engage in a time of distanced learning for our teachers, administrators and educators. Thank you for the opportunity to express that and put my gratitude and focus on those who’ve shouldered the brunt of this pandemic including food service workers, truckers, mail and package carriers, etc. Now, on to entertainment. Much of my time has been spent watching film and TV; binging series, watching films and being transported outside of the well-tread four walls of my house. I’ve always known our industry to be a haven for escapism, but quarantine has brought that into focus like never before.

How is life on set with COVID protocols, and what’s the biggest adjustment made on set?

The biggest adjustment on set has been the separation from the crew. The cast is largely isolated from the crew to prevent shutdowns in production due to contact tracing. Our crew is made up of not only inspired artists and experts in their respective crafts, but fun, intelligent and engaging people to hang out with. Not being able to spend time with them, as in previous seasons, has been the biggest adjustment. Additionally, the awareness and focus to maintain those protocols for the safety of the cast and crew and our families and the longevity of our production is a constant priority that runs parallel to our storytelling now.

How did you feel about all the fans theorizing about Miguel being EZ and Angel’s brother, as well as the developments on that subject late last season?

I love reading what our fans have to say. We, as cast members, theorize, analyze and hypothesize as much, if not more, than our fans. It’s indicative of the bond created between the characters and the viewers. Even when the episode is over, our fans carry the characters with them, mulling over the relationships, considering the innuendo of a given line or the meaning of a loaded look. As far as Miguel potentially having two half-brothers who are outlaw bikers, I’m all in. Especially if that means working with J.D. Pardo and Clayton Cardenas more often. I respect and love both of them as men and artists.

This season’s darker than the previous two installments. How would you describe that thematic shift, both for your character and the show as a whole?

The co-creator of Mayans M.C. and new showrunner, Elgin James, has described Season Three as a “Reckoning,” where the sins, transgressions and debts of the last two seasons come due. Our characters will have to account for their actions, or inaction. Although the first two seasons were dark, indeed, Season Three is much more character-driven, making the darkness deeper, more personal and emotional. The writers [who are] pushing the characters center stage give agency to our ensemble cast to swing for the fences and mine the depths of the people we’ve been portraying for two years. Some characters will reveal unanticipated perspectives and others, who’ve been players in our story from the beginning, we’ll finally get to know.

Miguel will obviously carry a heavy emotional burden after Dita’s death. You previously told us that you try to get into his brain as much as possible. How do you prepare for a huge emotional lift like this?

Indeed, we will see a Miguel unlike the man we knew in previous seasons. He, too, will reckon with his choices, his actions and his guilt. In terms of preparation, I use anything at my disposal to put myself in the mind and given circumstances of my character. There are many ways I try to ground Miguel and immerse myself in his reality. Every actor has their own technique. What helps me is to research as much as I can about what the character would know, what he would be going through and what perspectives he would have. That research often includes reading books and articles, watching documentaries, films and television episodes, building character-influenced music playlists, or often times building a photo album filled with paintings, images and personal photographs to scroll through. However, once I’ve built that three dimensional world, I let it go and play on set. Paralysis by analysis is a real thing and I try to leave enough oxygen for the character to breathe, react, and be spontaneous. All that being said, when you have the foundation of a fantastic script, trust in the writers and the trust of the writers, most of the work is done for you, frankly.

The personal drama between Miguel and Emily (and all the Potter and Adelita developments) don’t look like too much fun for Miguel, to put it mildly. How do you think Miguel unwinds at the end of a really rough day?

While the personal drama doesn’t look like fun, I assure you Sarah Bolger (Emily), Ray McKinnon (Lincoln Potter), Carla Baratta (Adelita) and I revel in the opportunity to play these characters and find that exploration some of the most fun we’ve had in our careers. As for how Miguel unwinds at the end of the day, especially now that his marriage is fragmenting, I believe the magic elixir is referred to as “tequila.” Also, Miguel may be making unsolicited trips into Mexico behind Emily’s back. Even Miguel needs a sanctuary.

The last time we talked, you also mentioned that Miguel was putting his promise to his father (to legitimize the family) into action. How’s he doing with that dream going into Season 3?

Without giving too much away, Miguel will find hardship in most facets of his life entering Season Three, and his father’s dying mandate to “legitimize the family” is not spared. The grand plan of Galindo Enterprise’s Santo Padre Agra Park Project saving a migrant town from disaster will seem like an ancient fairytale.

Everyone always asks you if Miguel will ever ride a bike, and there are no signs (so far) that he’ll do so. If you could ever envision Miguel riding, how would that go down?

Well, I did earn my CM1 Motorcycle License recently. So, I suppose it’s not out of the realm of possibility. But, as far as Miguel trading in his Maybach and getting on a hog, only the inventiveness and imagination of our writers could do justice to that transition. Personally, I’d accept it with open arms, and a lot of leather.

Who was your favorite Sons of Anarchy character, and why?

That’s easy, Marcus “El Padrino” Alvarez (Emilio Rivera). His quiet command, stoic strength and grounded pragmatism make him powerful and valuable in the world of Sons of Anarchy and Mayans M.C. Additionally, there has only been one character to spawn a Sons spin-off; we wouldn’t be doing this interview without Emilio Rivera’s Marcus Alvarez.

Let’s get weird. If your Law and Order: SVU character could give any advice to Miguel, what would you think it would be? Could Miguel possibly offer *any* advice to Nick Amaro?

I think it would be one hell of a chess match between the two. Nick would see through Miguel’s external armor of legitimacy, but Miguel would clearly discern Nick’s attempts to befriend, intimidate or coerce him. It would likely be a game of attrition, and neither of them loses gracefully. Leaving any advice moot.

In closing, what’s the one thing you look forward to most when the pandemic is over, both at work and at home?

Travel. I haven’t been back to my hometown, Miami, in over a year. I look forward to seeing my family again. Additionally, being Cuban-American, a hug is tantamount to a handshake. I miss the physicality of expressing that bond with friends and family.

‘Mayans M.C.’ airs on Tuesday nights at 10:00pm EST on FX.

On Tuesday evening, eight people were shot and killed in the greater-Atlanta area. While more and more information is coming out regarding the incident, the gunman targeted a trio of massage parlors, with six of the eight victims being Asian-American women. It is the latest in what has been a steep uptick in anti-Asian hate incidents over the last year, per a report from the group Stop AAPI Hate.

In the aftermath of the shooting, the hashtag #StopAsianHate began trending on Twitter as folks stood alongside the community. A number of current and former NBA players joined in on showing solidarity, expressing love to those who were impacted by the tragedy and demanding an end to all forms of hate.

Among those speaking out is Jeremy Lin, who used his status as the most prominent Asian-American basketball player in NBA history to offer up prayers and rally people to continue fighting for change. In recent weeks, Lin has spoken out about the racism that Asian Americans have faced since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, including being candid about an on-court incident in which he was called “coronavirus” by an opposing player — Lin has made clear he does not want the player identified, but in a statement put out by the NBA following an investigation, it was announced that Lin has met with him.

A series of deadly shootings at three Atlanta-area spas (which left eight people dead, including six Asian women) has left authorities investigating whether the (white) suspect, Robert Aaron Long (21), committed a targeted hate crime. Those fears are naturally rising to the forefront during what the Atlanta Journal-Constitution is recognizing as a wave of renewed attacks against Asian Americans amid the continuing U.S. outbreak of COVID-19. The New York Times adds that at least 3,800 Asian Americans have been targeted in hate-inspired incidents over the past year — after ex-President Trump recklessly referred to the disease as the “China VIrus,” a racial slur that he repeated on Fox News on Tuesday night, the same night these spa shootings took place.

NBC News reports that the FBI joined the investigation to assist local authorities, and Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms has condemned the violence while stating, “[A] crime against any community is a crime against us all.” The New York Times is reporting word from authorities about the investigation into the motive, and there will be backlash, given that Capt. Jay Baker of the Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office said of Long, “He does claim that it was not racially motivated… He apparently has an issue, what he considers a sex addiction.”

However, South Korea’s Foreign Ministry spoke with the AJC and confirmed word from police that four of the late victims were of Korean descent. On social media, Asian-American stars are calling for action with many of the community’s prominent voices, including Santa Cruz Warriors point guard Jeremy Lin, who recently revealed that another player had flat-out referred to him as “‘coronavirus’ on the court.” Lin is calling for change, and he added, “To my Asian American family, please take time to grieve but know youre loved, seen and IMPORTANT.”

Lin was joined by Marvel’s Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings star, Simu Liu, who wrote, “Still much we don’t know, but it’s clear to me that the shooter specifically targeted Asian women.”

Padma Lakshmi is standing firm as well: “What happened last night was a hate crime and we should all be treating it as such.”

These voices were joined by Daniel Dae Kim, Mindy Kaling (who specifically calls out “the normalizing of anti-Asian hate speech in the past year”), George Takei, and Olivia Munn, and Lana Condor.

(Via NBC News, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, New York Times & BBC)

On Tuesday evening, a gunman in Atlanta took the lives of eight people, six of whom were Asian American, at three different massage parlors. The tragedy is believed by many to be racially-motivated and is an unfortunate example of an increased number of hate crimes against Asian Americans that have taken place since the pandemic’s outbreak. Many are calling for an awareness of anti-Asian violence, and John Legend is now the latest celebrity to speak out against the “horrible” news.

According to non-profit organization Stop Asian American Pacific Islander Hate, nearly 3,800 incidents of violence have been reported since the pandemic. Following the news of the tragic Atlanta shooting, many have shared an outpouring of support for the families affected and their fellow Asian American community members who fear for their own safety.

John Legend, whose wife Chrissy Teigan has a mother from Thailand, took to Twitter to condemn the crimes. “Absolutely horrible,” he wrote. “Sending love to all the loved ones of those whose lives were taken. Our nation needs to reckon with the increased threats being directed at our Asian-American brothers and sisters.”

Lana Condor, singer/songwriter and actor in Netflix’s popular film To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before, similarly used her platform to spread awareness. “Wake up… your Asian friends and family are deeply scared, horrified, sick to their stomachs and wildly angry,” she wrote. “Please please please check in on us, please please please stand with us. Please. Your Asian friend needs you, even if they aren’t publicly grieving on social media.”

Japanese Breakfast’s Michelle Zauner also posted her thoughts on the upsetting news and shared several examples of racism she and her fellow Asian Americans have faced. “We are white adjacent until we are not,” she wrote. “Til someone calls us a chink, or mocks an accent, claims we started this virus from eating dogs and bats, attacks our elders, targets and kills us. Dunno wtf it does to say stop AAPI [Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders] hate but it is important to acknowledge this is very real.”

There are two ways of looking at Action Bronson’s transformation during the quarantine. You could say he’s experienced some tremendous weight loss, but I prefer to think of it as him making health gains. The Queens, New York chef-turned-rapper focused on making some big life changes thanks to the pandemic shutdown, and he appears delighted to show them off in the season five premiere of his now independently-produced food travel show, F*ck That’s Delicious.

You could call Bronson a prophet of sorts watching this season. He was one of many nationally-known artists harping on ownership and diverse revenue streams pretty early on in the blog era/streaming revolution. He did the latter by starting F*ck That’s Delicious in partnership with Viceland, but he insisted on ensuring the former, which allowed him to retain the show and move it online, which further secured the additional outlet as live touring shut down across America. It’s a pretty impressive thing.

In the first episode of the new season, he cooks up stuffed, Sicilian-style calamari with his trainer outside the gym and details his commitment to transforming his body and getting healthy. His progress is stupendous; he looks way different than he did when he was promoting last year’s Only For Dolphins. He and trainer Dave Paladino talk about how his efforts over the last five months may have saved his life. Then, as only befits the man named Bam Bam Baklava, they eat good.

Watch the season premiere of F*ck That’s Delicious above.

It was reported in 2019 that the average length of a song on the Billboard Hot 100 chart was three-and-a-half minutes and that songs that run for under three minutes are becoming increasingly common. So, in general, songs are getting shorter, but now meditation app Calm and Universal Music Group (UMG) taking things in the opposite direction, as they have announced a series of remixed songs that will push their lengths up to an hour.

This Friday (March 19, which is World Sleep Day), Calm will release seven extended tracks: Ariana Grande’s “Breathin’,” Jhené Aiko’s “While We’re Young,” Kacey Musgraves’ “Golden Hour,” Katy Perry’s “Double Rainbow,” Luis Fonsi’s “Sola,” Post Malone’s “Circles,” and Shawn Mendes’ “Wonder.” For three months, the hour-long tracks will be exclusive to the app, but after that, UMG will be allowed to share the songs to streaming platforms.

Calm co-founder and co-CEO Michael Acton Smith told Rolling Stone, “The problem with most music is it’s quite short: When built for the streaming era or even the radio era, it’s three or four minutes long. Even if something is really soothing, you can’t always get into a flow state and drift off to sleep. You have a song for a few minutes and then you go onto the next one and the next one.” He added of the new remixes, “If they’re boring, you’re [less likely] to play them in the first place, and we want your attention. We want you stop thinking about your to-do lists and that silly comment you made at work.”

Courtney Phillips, Calm’s Head of Music also noted, “I was just on a call with an artist’s team talking about tracks. I asked, ‘Would it be cool if he made longer versions?’ And they were like, “Oh my god, he’s been killing us! We keep trying to get him to shorten these down because they’re so long. He would love to make a longer version.’ That’s what we want to be here for. We want to give artists that creative freedom, let them think out of the box and go, ‘Yes! I get to make something really weird, long, and beautiful.” She added, “We didn’t have any comments at all from any of our artists not liking the final mixes. Not one.”

The RX is Uproxx Music’s stamp of approval for the best albums, songs, and music stories throughout the year. Inclusion in this category is the highest distinction we can bestow and signals the most important music being released throughout the year. The RX is the music you need, right now.

Chika’s story is as close to a hip-hop fairytale as it’s possible to get. That’s what makes the storybook theme of her latest EP, Once Upon A Time, so apt. The theme is doubly deft when it comes to Chika’s actual rhymes, which are shot through with a dazzlingly visual narrative style; the Alabaman MC is a naturally storyteller, blessed with a gift for understated metaphor and witty lyrical plot twists. That gift comes to the fore on her latest, which builds on the promising foundation laid by 2020’s Industry Games.

Clocking in at a trim six tracks — one fewer than on Chika’s previous effort — Once Upon A Time is not exactly a concept album but it feels like one. It has four songs whose titles play on the concept of the fairy tales from which the EP takes its title, with the intro actually being called “Fairy Tales.” They also express familiar narratives from the form like searching for true love and climbing from rags to riches, but as Chika notes within the first four bars of “Fairy Tales,” “No heroes inside a book look like me.”

Once Upon A Time, therefore, is an effort to change that — not just in storybook form, but in hip-hop as well. Think about how, in the last few years, there has seemed to be a concerted effort by labels to sign and promote more female talent in the genre than ever before. But when you scratch the surface, it can often look and sound like many of these newer rappers are coming straight off a Cardi Clone assembly line. At the risk of sounding like a respectability politics-wielding misogynistic old head, Chika presents a break from the norm.

No, she’s not telling women to cover up and “respect themselves.” She is, however, offering to tell the flip side of a story many of her peers have been serving up in the past few years. She is speaking for women whose hair isn’t augmented by 30-inch bundles, who haven’t been to Dr. Miami, who aren’t usually centered in discussions about beauty and desirability. That goes beyond the surface stuff as well; few rappers in general are telling the “American-born child of immigrants who defies their parents’ American Dream for them to live out their own” story. Chika does here.

On “Hickory Dickory,” Chika shouts out her Nigerian-born parents but also laments the sharp uptick in family members appearing to remind her of their existence now that she’s acquired a modicum of fame. Later, on “Save You,” she addresses her depression, calling her mind a busybody who “make time to plan out a damn pity party.” While mental health is a topic we’ve heard more about recently, it hasn’t often come from anyone who looks like Chika — someone many rap fans can relate to a lot more than the dominant “bad bitch” styles.

The crowning achievement of the album, though, is the two-part “Cinderella.” Aside from being an expertly crafted “art of storytelling” song with a clear plotline and some truly scintillating pen work from Chika, it’s also one of few songs on the mainstream level addressing one of rap’s biggest elephants in the room. Chika tells a “girl meets girl” story, eschewing rap’s usual focus on hypermasculinity where plenty of peers have subverted it. Instead of milking a trick for his dollars, Chika recounts a tender tale of finding a connection — with a woman, no less.

The significance of this is incredible. You see, once upon a time, rappers like Da Brat and Queen Latifah had to keep their queerness on the low, either playing coy about their relationship statuses or playing up their femininity to appeal to male fans and quiet rumors about their sexuality. Later on, Nicki Minaj leveraged her ambiguous attitude to appeal to LGBTQ fans before revealing that she was straight. Dej Loaf was another rapper who felt the need to fend off rumors, refusing to answer either way. Chika being able to write a straightforward love song addressed to a woman is a massive stride for representation and acceptance in hip-hop.

Rappers often come into the game loudly proclaiming that they have a story to tell — word to Biggie Smalls. But over time, it becomes clearer which stories are worth telling, and that’s when artists must grow beyond the bounds of what has already been done. That takes as much courage as it does creativity, and on Once Upon A Time, Chika shows she has both in abundance. While Industry Games was a bold and welcome entrance, her latest is an astonishing display of vulnerability and musicality that assures listeners her story will be worth paying attention to.

Once Upon A Time is out now via Warner Records. Get it here.

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

Deante’ Hitchcock hasn’t announced a follow-up to his excellent 2020 debut album Better yet, but it looks like he’s got his eye on ensuring a bigger, more attention-getting rollout this time around. The Atlanta rapper has spent the last two weeks raising his profile by rapping on other artists’ hits as part of his #NewAtlantaTuesdays initiative and on his latest, he aims to one-up one of the biggest artists out: Drake. Hijacking the beat from Drake’s Scary Hours 2 single “What’s Next,” Hitchcock delivers a witty freestyle showcasing his clever wordplay and relentless flow.

The video accompanying the freestyle takes a similar lighthearted-but-competitive tack, depicting a neighborhood Nerf gun shootout with Hitchcock and his friends. They definitely seem to be having a blast in the video, as does Deante on the track as he snaps off slick lines like “Tell Charmin I’m on a roll and I did this sh*t off the dome / Ain’t signing to TDE, but I got Top on the phone.”

Deante’s last #NewAtlantaTuesdays freestyle found him imitating Tupac and doing the TikTok Junebug Challenge as he rapped to SpottemGotem’s “BeatBox” after capping his stellar 2020 with a live version of Better.

Watch Deante Hitchcock’s “What’s Next” Freestyle above.