Month: March 2021

Rich The Kid has had his fair share of legal trouble this past year, and it looks like his run-ins with the law aren’t letting up anytime soon. This time, he’s gotten into trouble with the TSA: The rapper was arrested at an airport Monday afternoon when he was caught carrying a gun through security.

According to a report from TMZ, Rich The Kid was making his way through security at LAX when TSA staff saw a concealed weapon in his carry-on bag. Upon further inspection, they found it was a loaded gun and apprehended him on site. The report states that it’s unclear if police have processed his case, or if he’s currently being detained somewhere.

Ahead of getting busted at LAX, Rich The Kid faced a handful of lawsuits in 2020. He apparently inked a deal with the brand Fashion Nova back in 2018 and was given a $100,000 advance, but he took the money without holding up his end of the promotional deal. Then, Fashion Nova responded last October by hitting him with a $2.1 million lawsuit to cover their damages. Before that, Rich was ordered to pay $1.1 million to his former managers, who claim they had not been paid in three years. He was also hit with a lawsuit over a quarter-million-dollar unpaid jewelry tab, as well as $300K for failing to pay rent on a mansion in Holywood Hills.

You know the drill: You have no idea what to watch, so you scroll and scroll and scroll through some streamer’s endless wares, and minutes later you’re nowhere closer to an answer than you were before. Last year Netflix had a solution that seemed at once useful and kind of surreal: They added a shuffle option. You click on the button — if you’re one of the subscribers who even has it — and voilá! An algorithim picks something, anything for you to watch, based on your perhaps questionable viewing history.

Now Amazon Prime has basically the same idea. As per /Film, the streaming wing of the commerce behemoth is testing out a similar function on their Android app. One major difference: It only pertains to TV shows. So you have to find a TV show you want to watch and then let fate, or some brainiac computer that knows you better than you know yourself, do the rest.

It’s not a terrible idea, though it really only helps if said show is either a particularly episodic comedy or a drama pre-today’s Golden Age. You probably don’t want to jump into a random point in some ongoing story. That said, it’s perfect if it’s, say, Columbo (which Prime does have, with ads), where each episode is a self-contained masterpiece with a different guest killer each go. Maybe you’ll wind up with the one where Peter Falk’s nosy lieutenant squares off against Johnny Cash. Or we could recommend the British cult show Peep Show, which is pretty much uniformly excellent and therefore a great way to kill time that could always be better off reading some enormous doorstop.

(Via /Film)

Fox News poked the sleeping tiger known as Gen X and got the generation known for slacking and sarcasm to muster, a collective “whatever.”

The news network aired a segment on “cancel culture” where it urged “Generation X to lead the charge to save America from the social media mob. Can they do it?” Short answer: Who knows, but they aren’t interested either way.

Right-wing media has been apoplectic recently over a rash of incidents where iconic pieces of pop culture from The Washington Redskins to “Gone with the Wind” to Dr. Seuss have been reevaluated by younger “woke” progressives.

While there is value in a movement that holds people accountable for propagating racist and sexist ideas, the Fox News crowd dismisses it simply as “cancel culture.”

The Fox News target demographic is firmly in camp Baby Boomer, with the average viewer being around 65-years-old. According to Kasasa, “If you go by raw numbers, of the 3.3 million households taking in Sean Hannity’s show on a nightly basis in 2018, just south of 2 million would have been senior citizens.”

Baby Boomers were born between 1946 and 1964 and are currently between 57-75 years old.

So as Boomer authority over the nation’s youth wanes by the day, Fox News made an appeal to Gen X to protect older, conservative people from the ravages of cancel culture. But according to reactions on Twitter, Gen X, aka “The Coolest Generation,” couldn’t care less.

The generation that’s currently between the ages of 41 to 56 remembers a time when their Baby Boomer and Greatest Generation parents tried to cancel everything in their childhood.

But these calls weren’t from liberals in the ’80s, they were from pearl-clutching conservatives (and even some high-profile Democrats like Tipper Gore and Joe Lieberman), evangelical Christians, and paranoid suburbanites.

Whether it was the “Satanic Panic” surrounding heavy metal and “Dungeons and Dragons,” the Parents Music Resource Center labeling hip-hop music, or the endless crusade against video games, the Boomer version of cancel culture was aimed squarely at Gen X.

In fact, Gen Xers lost one of their greatest childhood heroes in Pee-Wee Herman who got canceled for falling short of Bush 1-era moral norms.

Fox’s appeal resulted in a slew of hilarious tweets from Gen Xers who could care less about the Boomer obsession with cancel culture. But, to be fair, it’s not like Gen X was known for giving an F about much in the first place.

First of all, they just don’t have the time.

They reminded Fox News of everything the Boomers tried to cancel back in the ’80s.

Another huge reason not to get involved: “Whatever.”

Gen X, the forgotten generation stuck beneath two of the most populous, was canceled long ago. It’s almost like the parents of latchkey kids just realized they had children and now they want them to come to their rescue.

Like, we totally care. Seriously.

Could it be that they’re harping on cancel culture because they have nothing else to complain about?

We have a winner.

There were a lot of vampires in the aughts — you may recall four whole Twilight movies, for one thing — but real heads know there’s one that towers above them all: Let the Right One In, the eccentric Swedish import about a bloodsucker permanently trapped in a tween girl’s body, who befriends a bullied mortal boy. It’s so beloved that even the requisite American remake failed to outperform the original. And now it’s coming back, again, this time as a TV show.

As per Deadline, Showtime has just greenlit a small screen version of the wintry chiller. Moreover, they’ve already cast one of the main three roles: Demián Bichir, Oscar-nominee and always welcome supporting player, will take the role of the middle aged caretaker of the 12-year-old-looking vampire, who must commit heinous acts to keep his charge alive.

Bichir’s not the first esteemed thespian to take that role. In Let Me In, the aforementioned remake, he’s played by no less than Richard Jenkins, who gave his sometimes tragically bumbling attempts real gravitas. That redo, incidentally, is a lot better than it had to be. Directed by Matt Reeves, before his Apes films and The Batman, it manages to be just different enough, even coming up with a couple all-timer set pieces that even the original couldn’t conjure up. Then again, Reeves didn’t have to stretch it out into an entire TV show.

(Via Deadline)

On Monday night, the 2021 NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament bracket was revealed on ESPN, as the 64-team field was locked in for the Madness in San Antonio, which will be the single site as all games will be held in the surrounding area, as the men’s tournament is doing in Indianapolis.

The top seeds for the tournament are NC State, South Carolina, Stanford, and UConn, with Louisville, Texas A&M, Baylor, and Maryland on the two-line. For the Huskies in particular, they will enter the tournament with a serious absence as legendary head coach Geno Auriemma will miss the first weekend of the tournament at least after testing positive for COVID-19 on Monday. He is currently asymptomatic, but would not be able to join the team in San Antonio until he clears protocols next week at the earliest.

The full bracket, with San Antonio themed regions, can be found in full below:

ALAMO
1. Stanford vs. 16. Utah Valley
8. Oklahoma St vs. 9. Wake Forest

5. Missouri St vs. 12. UC Davis
4. Arkansas vs. 13. Wright St

6. Oregon vs. 11. South Dakota
3. Georgia vs. 14. Drexel

7. Northwestern vs. 10. UCF
2. Louisville vs. 15. Marist

MERCADO
1. NC State vs. 16. North Carolina A&T
8. South Florida vs. 9. Washington St

5. Gonzaga vs. 12. Belmont
4. Indiana vs. VCU

6. Rutgers vs. 11. BYU
3. Arizona vs. 14. Stony Brook

7. Iowa St vs. Michigan St
2. Texas A&M vs. Troy

RIVER WALK
1. UConn vs. 16. High Point
8. Syracuse vs. 9. South Dakota St

5. Iowa vs. 12. Central Michigan
4. Kentucky vs. 13. Idaho St

6. Michigan vs. 11. FGCU
3. Tennessee vs. 14. Middle Tennessee

7. Virginia Tech vs. 10. Marquette
2. Baylor vs. 15. Jackson St

HEMISFAIR
1. South Carolina vs. 16. Mercer
8. Oregon St vs. 9. Florida St

5. Georgia Tech vs. 12. Stephen F. Austin
4. West Virginia vs. 13. Lehigh

6. Texas vs. 11. Bradley
3. UCLA vs. 14. Wyoming

7. Alabama vs. 10. UNC
2. Maryland vs. 15. Mount St. Mary’s

It’s safe to say that Nicki Minaj hasn’t had the easiest start to 2021. Just last month, her father was tragically killed in a hit-and-run car accident in Long Island, New York. Now comedian Tiffany Haddish, who just one a Grammy for her comedy album Black Mitzvah, has taken aim at her for being, as she sees it, disrespectful.

Haddish was a speaker on the Clubhouse app when a fan applauded her for “killing the game,” naming her the “Nicki Minaj of comedy.” Someone chimed in by saying, “But unlike Nicki, she shows up on time.” Haddish responded: “Unlike Nicki, I treat everybody with respect and dignity.”

After the clip leaked, the Barbz, Minaj’s fandom, rushed to the rapper’s defense. They questioned Haddish’s comment while mostly saying that they don’t find the comedian funny.

This isn’t the first time Minaj and Haddish have exchanged jabs, as the Barbz were quick to point out. At the 2018 VMAs ceremony, Haddish made an on stage joke about Fifth Harmony shortly after the girl group had disbanded to focus on solo careers. While accepting her award, Minaj responded to Haddish’s comment and stood up for Normani, a former Fifth Harmony member. “Tif, don’t be coming for Fifth Harmony because Normani is that b*tch,” she had said.

See the Barbz respond to Haddish’s comment above.

Since they first launched in 1994, Rap Snacks have been giving nods to today’s biggest hip-hop artists on their chip bags. Rappers like Rick Ross, Cardi B, Migos, and Lil Yachty have their own flavors, but now, Rap Snacks is expanding their enterprise. For a new line of beverages, Rap Snacks tapped Lil Baby to be the face of their product.

Rap Snacks unveiled their line of Lil Baby Oowee Lemonade products Monday. The drink comes in five flavors: Fruit Punch, Strawberry Watermelon, Mango Pineapple, Blueberry, and Sweet Tea. Along with featuring Lil Baby on the wrapper, a portion of the proceeds from Oowee Lemonade will be donated to the organizations Atlanta Children’s Center and Covenant House in Atlanta.

About his endeavor, Lil Baby called the Rap Snacks partnership “life-changing.” “I know my fans are going to love this line of Oowee Lemonades,” he said. “Rap Snacks are about hip-hop culture, I’m about the culture, and I’m excited that proceeds from every purchase are a ‘give back’ to help our communities. It’s exciting to be a part of something that will lift people from my hometown and nationally through the BossUp Foundation. It’s life-changing—I’ve never been a part of anything like this before.”

Echoing the rapper’s statement, CEO of Rap Snacks James Lindsay said: “We’re so excited to make this announcement after Lil Baby’s show stopping appearance at the Grammys. This extension of his partnership with us will connect with his growing fanbase the world over. We are the only company to feature hip-hop icons in association with our products. Our lemonade is a great-tasting product. We’ve combined flavors that haven’t been done before, and we’re expanding our market.”

Check out the new products above.

The 2021 NCAA Tournament is scheduled to begin on Thursday with the First Four matchups in Indianapolis. However, the college basketball world is holding its collective breath when it comes to COVID-19 protocols, and the NCAA instituted strict measures in an effort to ensure the event can happen and the organization’s member institutions can deposit the enormous check from CBS and Turner. With that in mind, most of the focus has been on teams like Virginia and Kansas, both of which are spending the week quarantining after battling COVID-19 issues in their conference tournaments. On Monday, though, word broke from Jeff Goodman of Stadium that the first, and hopefully last, COVID-19 problem in Indianapolis occurred with officials.

Goodman reports that six officials scheduled to work the tournament “have been removed” and there is one positive test, with contact tracing putting the others in the crosshairs. The six-person group includes famous officials like John Higgins and Ted Valentine, and the NCAA reportedly has only 60 officials in Indianapolis.

Stadium’s reporting indicates that the referees visited a steakhouse in Indianapolis after arriving to the hotel and finding that rooms were not prepared and food was not available. That decision caused a ripple effect, as one of the officials reportedly tested positive upon return and, due to the meal shared together, all six were ruled out due to contact tracing.

This is a familiar tale to those paying close attention to the sports world in the last 12 months, with contact tracing affecting many players, coaches and teams along the way. However, this could have wide-ranging implications, as the NCAA now has a smaller pool of referees to utilize in Indianapolis. Hopefully, this kind of issue won’t pop up again with any of the teams quarantining in their hotel rooms before taking the floor this week, but this certainly won’t assuage any lingering fears about how quickly things can spiral in the NCAA’s pseudo-bubble.

For Erika Thompson, it was “just another Tuesday,” but for the millions of people watching her work, it was a jaw-dropping (and terrifying) feat of insect-whispering magic.

A viral video shows Thompson, a professional beekeeper and the founder and owner of Austin-based Texas Beeworks, moving an enormous hive from the floorboards of someone’s shed to a wooden hive. Her job is to move beehives from where they shouldn’t be to where they should be, but seeing her do it with no special safety gear is impressive, if not alarming.

I mean, this combo of skill and fearlessness is something you just have to witness:

“This wasn’t an extraordinary removal or an atypical one by any means,” Thompson told the BBC. “Bees are often looking for a new place to build a hive, and these backyard sheds give them a really good environment where they’re protected from the elements.”

At the beginning of the video, we can see Thompson using a smoker to keep the bees calm. When a bee senses danger, it will emit an alarm pheromone that other bees pick up, which can quickly send them all into a panicked, stinging frenzy. Smoke temporarily interferes with bees’ sense of smell so they can’t detect those alarm pheromones, thereby keeping them calm.

That calm state allows Thompson to pull up the floorboards covered with bees and transfer the combs into the wooden hive. What’s remarkable, however, is how she handles the bees barehanded, scooping them up like she’s scooping up a thick liquid and then gently shaking them off at their new home.

In her TikTok videos, she’s explained that she does wear protective equipment if bees are agitated. But when they are docile like this, the gear makes the work of moving the bees more cumbersome and increases the chance of them becoming alarmed. As long as she remains calm and intentional with her movements, the bees don’t seem to mind.

And how about that “queen clip”? Thompson told the BBC that clips like that trap the queen bee during the move while still allowing the worker bees to take care of her. The bee colony will follow the queen’s scent, so it’s important to make sure she stays put in the new hive.

Thompson told BBC that what we see in the video is simply what she does on a regular basis. “One of the most incredible things about seeing the reaction to my videos has been just everybody’s shock and awe at what is really just a normal Tuesday for me.”

Honey bees are a vital part of our ecosystem, so calling a beekeeper like Thompson is a far better way to get rid of a bee problem than calling an exterminator. We all rely on bees to pollinate crops—without them, we’d have a much harder time eating. Many people found the video terrifying, as most of us have been stung at some point in our lives and the traumatic memories are real. But Thompson is doing us all a great service with this work. It’s clear from seeing her in action that she truly cares about these creatures.

The Texas Beeworks TikTok videos have millions of views each, as people marvel at Thompson’s ability to handle bees in ways that most of us would consider nightmare scenarios. But changing people’s view of bees is a big part of why Thompson shares her work this way.

“Species of all types of bees and insects are incredibly important to the diversity of our ecosystem and to our food system,” she told the BBC. “I hope that by showing people the incredible world of honey bees, that hopefully, they can learn something about them and maybe have a new understanding and respect for them.”

If you’re a fan of juicy, hazy IPAs, you likely also enjoy fruity and citrus-forward flavors. But just because you’re on board with subtly hoppy, juice-centric beers, doesn’t necessarily mean you’re going to enjoy a fully fruit-forward beer. You know, beers that literally get their flavor from one or more specific fruits vs. “juiciness,” which relies more on the combination of hops and yeast.

Below, you’ll find ten of our favorite fruit-forward beers. These beers might not always be juicy, per se. Sometimes they are, other times they can be quite dry or tart. Still, the fruit aspect is undeniable — we’re talking rasberry, lime, blueberry, sour cherry, and even guava.

Check all ten of our picks for Spring 2021 below!

Karbach Viva Chela

ABV: 5.5%

Average Price: $8.99 for a six-pack

The Beer:

This crisp, fresh Mexican-style lager gets a kick from the addition of lime and salt. The result is a tangy, subtly salty refresher that’s well-suited for spring drinking.

Tasting Notes:

On the nose, you’ll find a subtle salt presence as well as zesty citrus. The first sip is sour, with hints of citrus zest, freshly squeezed lime juice, and a subtle salinity at the finish.

Bottom Line:

You can make yourself a classic chelada-style beer by adding lime juice and salt or you can just drink this beer. One sip and you’ll be hooked on the ease of this option.

Founders Rübæus

ABV: 5.7%

Average Price: $10 for a 4-pack

The Beer:

One of the most popular fruited beers on the market, this 5.7% ale is loaded with fresh raspberries. The result is a pink-hued, slightly sour, homage to the zesty berry.

Tasting Notes:

The nose is brimming with the aromas of fresh raspberries, crisp apples, and subtle yeast. The palate is filled with sour raspberries, yeast, apples, and a slight, tangy, sour finish.

Bottom Line:

If you’re the type of person who likes to go out and pick fresh berries in the summer, this is the beer for you. It’s literally the flavor of fresh berries in beer form.

Shipyard Smashed Blueberry

ABV: 9%

Average Price: $20 for a 4-pack of 16-ounce cans

The Beer:

When you see a beer called “Smashed Blueberry,” you might assume it’s just a simple blueberry ale. But, this 9% hybrid of Scotch ale and porter is well-balanced, delicious, and filled with complimentary blueberry flavors.

Tasting Notes:

Take a few whiffs and you’ll find aromas of freshly brewed coffee, chocolate, and subtle fruit flavors. Take a sip and you’ll find a nice mix of espresso, bitter dark chocolate, and fresh blueberries. The finish is complex, smooth, and ends with a nice combination of blueberries and resinous hops.

Bottom Line:

Most fruited beers are made for fans of lighter lagers and ales. This is the fruit beer for dark beer drinkers who also enjoy the subtle flavor of blueberries.

Ballast Point Grapefruit Sculpin

ABV: 7%

Average Price: $12 for a six-pack

The Beer:

Ballast Point Sculpin IPA is one of the most beloved beers in the world. Its grapefruit-filled version is equally good if you’re a fan of the sharp, tangy citrus fruit. The original Sculpin is already loaded with fresh citrus flavor. The addition of grapefruit only ramps up this highly drinkable brew.

Tasting Notes:

Give this beer a nice nosing and you’ll find hints of fresh citrus zest, pine, and fresh tropical fruits. The palate is swirling with flavors of tangy grapefruit, bitter hops, lemon, and a salty, sweet finish.

Bottom Line:

If you’re already a fan of Ballast Point Sculpin, you owe it to yourself to give this grapefruit version a try. You’re going to love the extra layer of citrus.

Victory Kirsch Gose

ABV: 4.7%

Average Price: $13 for a six-pack

The Beer:

When it comes to fruited beers, it’s no surprise that many of them are also sour beers. But few work in harmony with their featured fruits as perfectly as Victory Kirsch Gose — a beer brewed with sour cherries, sea salt, and various spices.

Tasting Notes:

On the nose, you’ll be greeted with aromas of dried cherries, yeast, and subtle salinity. Take a sip and you’ll find hints of coriander and sour cherries, wrapped up in a tangy, subtly salty package. The result is crushable and crave-able.

Bottom Line:

Some beer drinkers are afraid to jump headlong into the world of gose-style beers. This is a great first step into the salty, sweet world of gose.

Sixpoint Berry Jammer

ABV: 4%

Average Price: $15 for a six-pack

The Beer:

Sixpoint made this session beer to be a sweet, tangy, fruity, crushable brew. It’s made with ripe cranberries, raspberries, and strawberries to give it the perfect sour to sweet ratio.

Tasting Notes:

Nosing this beer is like breathing in the aromas of fresh, ripe berries waiting to be picked. Sipping it is like a symphony of fresh, tart cranberries, sweet, tangy raspberries, and lush, juicy strawberries. The last gulp is sweet but ends in a tart, subtly sour finish.

Bottom Line:

This is the perfect session beer for fans of fruited beers. The mix of berries gives it a unique, easy-to-drink flavor.

10 Barrel Guava Crush

ABV: 5.3%

Average Price: $12 for a six-pack

The Beer:

Like Sixpoint’s Jammer series, 10 Barrel has a whole slew of Crush flavors. The best, however, is its guava brew. This tart Berliner Weiss-style beer is flavored with sweet-n-tart pink guava. The result is a juicy, sweet, highly drinkable brew well-suited for sipping on a hot day.

Tasting Notes:

On the nose, you’ll find scents of papaya, guava, and fresh grapefruit. The sip yields tangy, tart pineapple, guava, and various citrus and tropical fruit flavors. It all ends in a pleasing sour, subtly hoppy finish.

Bottom Line:

This series is called “Crush” for a reason. Guava Crush is designed to be enjoyed rapidly while you play yard games or lounge on a porch on a sunny day.

Magic Hat #9

ABV: 5.1%

Average Price: $10 for a six-pack

The Beer:

In true Magic Hat fashion, this “not quite pale ale” doesn’t actually say what fruit gives it the sweet, juicy flavor. But it can be assumed based on the color of the can and taking one sip that it’s apricot. It’s crisp, fresh, subtly sweet, with a nice, bitter kick of hops.

Tasting Notes:

Take a few moments to breathe in the aromas of sweet peaches, dried apricots, and caramel. The palate is loaded with crisp pear, more juicy apricot, toasted caramel, and a nice citrus-filled hoppy finish.

Bottom Line:

This crisp, sweet pale ale is a great gateway into the world of fruited beers. Plus it’s available pretty much everywhere.

21st Amendment Hell or High Watermelon

ABV: 4.9%

Average Price: $10 for a six-pack

The Beer:

This is the beer that put San Francisco’s 21st Amendment on the craft beer map. This summery, American-style wheat beer is ramped up with the addition of fresh watermelon. The result is a hazy, yeasty, subtly melon-flavored brew that drinks well any time of year.

Tasting Notes:

On the nose, you’ll find aromas of spicy wheat and sweet melon. Take a sip and you’ll be greeted with flavors of cantaloupe, watermelon, honeydew, and sweet yeast. It all rounds out with a subtle-bitter, hoppy finish.

Bottom Line:

If you were to make a beer that tastes like summer in a can, this would be it. It brings up memories of eating ripe watermelon on a hazy summer day.

Dogfish Head Super Eight

ABV: 5.3%

Average Price: $12 for a six-pack

The Beer:

This fruited beer isn’t for the faint of heart. It’s jam-packed with fruit and that can be a bit overwhelming for some drinkers. This sessionable beer is brewed with mango, prickly pear, boysenberry, raspberry, blackberry, elderberry, and juice, toasted quinoa, and red Hawaiian sea salt.

Tasting Notes:

The nose is swirling with fresh, ripe fruits, sweet grains, and subtle salt. On the palate, you’ll find hints of oats, ripe berries, tropical fruits, and tangy pear. The finish offers a nice, gentle, slight salinity.

Bottom Line:

So you can’t make up your mind about which fruited beer to try? Why not try them all at once with this unique, fruit-loaded, and tart brew?