Month: April 2021

Last week, producer DJ White Shadow, one of Lady Gaga’s Artpop collaborators, offered a response to a popular petition asking for the release of the long-rumored sequel to Artpop. Since Uproxx reported on the petition on April 5, it has gained over 10,000 signatures and currently has just under 41,000. Now, Gaga herself has offered a response.

Gaga wrote late last night in a pair of tweets, “The petition to #buyARTPOPoniTunes for a volume II has inspired such a tremendous warmth in my heart. Making this album was like heart surgery, I was desperate, in pain, and poured my heart into electronic music that slammed harder than any drug I could find. I fell apart after I released this album. Thank you for celebrating something that once felt like destruction. We always believed it was ahead of its time. Years later turns out, sometimes, artists know. And so do little monsters. Paws up.”

Around the release of the 2013 album, Gaga suggested that a sequel to the album would be released, saying that a second part would feature more experimental material than Artpop did. In his response to the petition, DJ White Shadow summarized his view of Gaga’s feelings on the album, writing, “I am ready, and whenever LG is, we can get after it. That being said, try and be nice to her. She has feelings (like any other normal person) and this ‘era’ was a hard time for her too. I am sure she will be ok with revisiting it one day and building on it when the time is right.”

The Golden State Warriors hosted the Denver Nuggets in a nationally televised matchup on Monday, and observers knew there was a chance for history before tip-off. Stephen Curry needed only 19 points to pass Wilt Chamberlain to become the all-time leading scorer in Warriors franchise history, and the two-time NBA MVP needed only one quarter of action to set the new mark.

Curry scored 21 points, including 5-of-8 from three-point range, in the opening period, starting red-hot and staying that way. In fact, Curry didn’t even slow down after setting the franchise record, turning more heads by finishing the night with 53 (!) points.

The dynamic veteran guard scored 30 points in the first half, knocking down 9-of-13 from the floor and 6-of-9 from three, and he scored more than half of Golden State’s 56 points in the first 24 minutes.

Then, Curry came out of the halftime break and scored 18 points in the third quarter. That included four more three-pointers, and he was the biggest reason that Golden State outscored Denver by a 43-22 margin in the period.

By the end of the night, Curry finished with 53 points on 14-of-24 shooting, 10-of-18 from three-point range and 15-of-16 from the free throw line. In short, it was a breathtaking performance but, in on-brand fashion, Curry expressed some level of frustration when he missed his only free throw attempt in the latter stages of the fourth quarter.

It was the ninth 50-point game of Curry’s career, including his third this season, and it came in a 116-107 victory over a quality opponent. Even on a night that did include a new franchise record and the chance to surpass a legend, his showing would’ve been quite notable, but it was a memorable performance and a reminder that Curry remains one of the best in the business.

The Denver Nuggets dropped their second straight game in rather disappointing fashion on Monday night, losing to the Warriors after a 52-point explosion from Stephen Curry. Of much greater concern than a couple lackluster performances in the regular season was seeing star guard Jamal Murray go down with an apparent left knee injury with under a minute to play as Denver tried to claw their way back into the game down seven.

Murray suffered the injury driving into traffic but not on any contact, as when he planted to take off his knee buckled and he immediately grabbed at it and fell to the floor in obvious pain before being helped to the locker room after refusing the wheelchair that was brought out.

It is the opposite knee to the one Murray recently missed time with due to soreness, and the Nuggets have to be very concerned about the status of their budding star. Murray has been sensational of late, averaging 21.3 points per game on strong efficiency this season, and was one of the breakout stars of the Orlando Bubble, helping lead Denver to the Western Conference Finals. Losing Murray would be a serious blow to a Nuggets team who, prior to the last two games, had been looking once again like a contender in the West. While they’ve managed to have some success in Murray’s absence at times this season, he is such a significant part of their offense as their lead option on the perimeter, any significant knee injury would be a major hit to their hopes of another deep playoff run.

After the game, Nuggets coach Mike Malone didn’t have an update on Murray beyond saying the locker room was “down” and they would wait on the MRI.

We have been blessed with a tremendous amount of weird baseball already this season. There was Cody Bellinger hitting a home run and getting called out on the same play on Opening Day, the Marlins losing on a walkoff hit by pitch against the Mets that hit Michael Conforto in the strike zone, and plenty of other rare sights — like Opening Day shrimp and Ronald Acuna Jr. just out running a hard hit grounder to the shortstop the other night.

On Monday, the weird baseball gifts kept on giving, as Cleveland visited the White Sox on Monday night in a AL Central tilt that saw Chicago walk it off on an incredibly strange play. With two on and one out, Nick Williams broke his bat on a routine grounder to the first baseman that should’ve been an inning ending double play or, at worst, a fielders choice to get to two outs in the inning. However, Yu Chang’s throw to second skipped off Yasmani Grandal’s helmet as he was legally in the basepaths, allowing pinch runner Nick Madrigal to motor around from second to score the game winning run.

It is an absolutely miserable way to lose if you’re Cleveland, as you got exactly what you needed in that situation by getting the grounder that should’ve been a fairly routine double play. For the White Sox, it’s a win they’re supposed to get so they’ll be thrilled to get that game over without needing extra innings by any means necessary, even if that is having your catcher take one in the back of the head as he runs to second.

The Philadelphia 76ers drubbed the Mavericks on Monday night, as Joel Embiid dominated with 36 points and seven rebounds, setting up a massive showdown with the Brooklyn Nets on Wednesday, where the winner will grab hold of the top spot in the Eastern Conference. The Nets may enter that game on an unplanned back-to-back, as their game in Minnesota was postponed on Monday, with Tuesday emerging as a potential replacement date.

Either way, a Sixers-Nets showdown could very well be a conference finals preview — although Milwaukee will almost certainly have something to say about that — and given the two teams have their core groups locked up for some time, it could become a great rivalry in the East. Ben Simmons, who had eight points, seven assists, and six rebounds on Monday while playing his usual sensational defense, was asked about that Nets matchup and just his thoughts in general on Brooklyn as Philly’s rivals and wasn’t shy about offering his assessment, (h/t Jackson Frank).

“Rivalry? I mean if they keep that same team, definitely, but it’s going to be hard to do that,” Simmons said. “We’re going for the past champs — the Lakers. They were the ones that won the championship so you got to give respect to them. Obviously Brooklyn has a lot of talent, but at the end of the day, there’s only one ball and you got to play defense. We have to come out prepared mentally and physically.”

It’s certainly spicy, if nothing else, although the “one ball” critique has been lobbed at super teams for a long time and the Nets have already shown that their three stars are capable of sharing and dominating when they’re all healthy and on the floor. Still, the defensive critique is certainly the big question mark about Brooklyn, who have struggled with consistency on that end, something they’ll need in seven game series against the top teams. As Simmons noted, they are immensely talented, and while he’s right that they probably can’t keep Blake Griffin or LaMarcus Aldridge long term, any team with Kyrie, KD, and Harden will be a perennial contender, so I don’t think he has to worry too much about whether this can become a rivalry.

In case Brooklyn didn’t have enough motivation with the 1-seed on the line on Wednesday, Simmons certainly gave them reason to get up for this regular season matchup. In a season where we haven’t had many of those big games with both teams mostly at full strength and with something to play for, we should be thankful that Simmons has ensured there’s some added pride on the line for this one.

Last week Tucker Carlson came under fire for going too far — or even farther than he has on too many occasions to count. He used his top-rated Fox News show to float a theory that’s a favorite of white supremacists. It’s called “white replacement,” and the gist is that immigrants, or even just non-whites, are increasing in such numbers that white people will be outnumbered. It’s blatantly racist, and when the idea found its way onto Fox News’ biggest show, people, including the Anti-Defamation League, called for him to finally be shown the door.

According to CNN, that ain’t happening. Fox Coporation CEO Lachlan Murdoch responded to the ADL’s request with a firm no, claiming they did a “full review” of the Carlson episode in question and declared that he’d “decried and rejected” the racist theory. Murdoch also praised the organization, saying he “shares” their values and “abhors anti-semitism, white supremacy and racism of any kind.”

But the ADL wasn’t accepting Murdoch’s take. They responded with a statement, pointing out that while Carlson appeared to reject the idea, he then, “in the very next breath,” repeated the theory, but under a new name, dubbing it a “voting rights question.”

“In fact,” Greenblatt wrote, “it’s worse, because he’s using a straw man — voting rights — to give an underhanded endorsement of white supremacist beliefs while ironically suggesting it’s not really white supremacism. While your response references a ‘full review’ of the interview, it seems the reviewers missed the essential point here.”

Murdoch had also pointed out that the ADL had previously given an award to his father, Rupert Murdoch, for his services. “As you noted in your letter, ADL honored your father over a decade ago,” Greenblatt noted, “but let me be clear that we would not do so today, and it does not absolve you, him, the network, or its board from the moral failure of not taking action against Mr. Carlson.”

Mere hours later Carlson himself responded…by doubling down.

“Demographic change is the key to the Democratic party’s political ambitions,” Carlson said, careful not to once again use the term “white replacement.” “In order to win and maintain power, Democrats plan to change the population of the country. They’re no longer trying to win you over with their program. They’re obviously not trying to improve your life. They don’t really care about your vote anymore. Their goal is to make you irrelevant.”

Though he said all this immigrant fearmongering was “provably true,” others were quick to call bull.

But at least Fox News has Tucker’s back.

(Via CNN)

The nation’s movie theaters have been in trouble since they hit these shores, and though the major chains may get through this after all, smaller ones have had been in even more trouble. Here’s one that it looks like won’t make it after all: According to Deadline, Decurion, which owns Los Angeles-based Pacific Theatres as well as the legendary ArcLight Hollywood, won’t be reopening its theaters.

The ArcLight, which opened in 2002, is one of the highest grossing movie theaters in the country, but it also has a major piece of history attached to it. It’s the home of the Cinerama Dome, which opened in 1963 with a geodesic shape, equipped for the curved widescreen process that bears its name. Located in the heart of the Hollywood neighborhood, the Dome has for decades been the place to see gigantic, 70mm extravaganzas. When Quentin Tarantino shot Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, he made sure to give it prime real estate during one of his many loving montages glorifying 1969.

Before this, the ArcLight was set to reopen over Memorial Day weekend, with A Quiet Place Part II and Cruella helping it make its splashy return. But no more. A press release issued by Decurion said that “despite a huge effort that exhausted all potential options, the company does not have a viable way forward.”

Deadline reports that the company may not be bankrupt; they’ve simply handed the keys back to their landlords, who may always put it up for sale. There’s still hope online that someone may come to the chain’s rescue, or at least save the ArcLight and its 58-year-old dome.

Many reminisced about the countless amazing experiences they had there over the years.

But for now, here’s to the ArcLight, one of the greatest.

(Via Deadline)

On Monday, the Minnesota Twins elected to postpone a home game following the tragic death of 20-year-old Daunte Wright on Sunday, and the Minnesota Timberwolves followed suit shortly thereafter. Wright was shot and killed during a traffic stop by a police officer in Brooklyn Center, and protests and demonstrations emerged in Minnesota in the aftermath.

Just hours later, both Philadelphia 76ers head coach and San Antonio Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich delivered powerful statements in addressing the media before scheduled games. Rivers spoke first before a matchup with the Dallas Mavericks, expressing that the discussion should be framed as “frustrating for Black Americans,” but rather that frustration should emerge for all.

Later, Popovich spoke before his team’s game in Orlando and indicated that the events “make you sick to your stomach,” later asking “how many young black kids have to be killed for no freaking reason?” From there, he took many to task, including Texas governor Greg Abbott.

It goes without saying, but Rivers and Popovich certainly do not stand alone, as many have already shared similar sentiments and that likely will continue in the coming days. Still, both head coaches have powerful voices that extend well beyond the sports world, and their words carry considerable weight.

It’s one thing to see a little kid skateboarding. It’s another to see a stereotype-defying little girl skateboarding. And it’s entirely another to see Paige Tobin.

Paige is a 6-year-old skateboarding wonder from Australia. A recent video of her dropping into a 12-foot bowl on her has gone viral, both for the feat itself and for the style with which she does it. Decked out in a pink party dress, a leopard-print helmet, and rainbow socks, she looks nothing like you’d expect a skater dropping into a 12-foot bowl to look. And yet, here she is, blowing people’s minds all over the place.

For those who may not fully appreciate the impressiveness of this feat, here’s some perspective. My adrenaline junkie brother, who has been skateboarding since childhood and who races down rugged mountain faces on a bike for fun, shared this video and commented, “If I dropped in to a bowl twice as deep as my age it would be my first and last time doing so…this fearless kid has a bright future!”

It’s scarier than it looks, and it looks pretty darn scary.

Paige doesn’t always dress like a princess when she skates, not that it matters. Her talent and skill with the board are what gets people’s attention. (The rainbow socks are kind of her signature, however.)

Her Instagram feed is filled with photos and videos of her skateboarding and surfing, and the body coordination she’s gained at such a young age is truly something.

Here she was at three years old:

And here she is at age four:

So, if she dropped into a 6-foot bowl at age three and a 12-foot bowl at age six—is there such a thing as an 18-foot bowl for her to tackle when she’s nine?

Paige clearly enjoys skating and has high ambitions in the skating world. “I want to go to the Olympics, and I want to be a pro skater,” she told Power of Positivity when she was five. She already seems to be well on her way toward that goal.

How did she get so good? Well, Paige’s mom gave her a skateboard when she wasn’t even preschool age yet, and she loved it. Her mom got her lessons, and she’s spent the past three years skating almost daily. She practices at local skate parks and competes in local competitions.

She also naturally has her fair share of spills, some of which you can see on her Instagram channel. Falling is part of the sport—you can’t learn if you don’t fall. Conquering the fear of falling is the key, and the thing that’s hardest for most people to get over.

Perhaps Paige started too young to let fear override her desire to skate. Perhaps she’s been taught to manage her fears, or maybe she’s just naturally less afraid than other people. Or maybe there’s something magical about the rainbow socks. Whatever it is, it’s clear that this girl doesn’t let fear get in the way of her doing what she wants to do. An admirable quality in anyone, but particularly striking to see in someone so young.

Way to go, Paige. Your perseverance and courage are inspiring, as is your unique fashion sense. Can’t wait to see what you do next.

Hideki Matsuyama won his first major championship on Sunday, holding on just long enough at the Masters to get into the clubhouse with a final round 73 to post 10-under for the tournament and take home a green jacket. It was a momentous occasion, as Matsuyama became Japan’s first men’s major champion in golf, a sport the country has a great affection for but had never seen a man climb to the pinnacle of the sport.

The call from Jim Nantz and Nick Faldo on the CBS Sports broadcast was simple, as Matsuyama tapped in for a two-putt bogey on 18 to win by one.

It was to the point, and then the two stepped out and let it breathe, allowing the cheers from the crowd and Matsuyama’s celebration with his caddie to tell the story for itself. It is the same manner in which they handled the incredible Tiger Woods win in 2019, when he likewise cleaned up a bogey on 18 and after a quick call of the win, Nantz and Faldo went silent for 2 minutes and 45 seconds to allow the celebration greenside to say everything that needed to be said.

This was apparently unacceptable this time around to some, however, as Bill Simmons went on a bizarre cancel culture rant on his podcast about how Nantz was somehow scared of making a cheeky pun (which he has been known to do at times in the past) as Matsuyama won (h/t BroBible).

“We were hoping for one of his classic pre-baked one-liners when Matsuyama won The Masters. I think he was scared off,” Simmons said. “He felt nervous to me the last twenty minutes, um, cancel culture, I don’t think Nantz wanted to go near anything. He kept kind of throwing it to Faldo and then when Matsuyama hit the…Nantz basically said, ‘Hideki Matsuyama, the first Japanese golfer to win The Masters.’ I’ve never heard him put less thought, energy, creativity, anything into one of his calls and it was a scared Jim Nantz, let’s be honest.”

He then went on to offer his own suggestion, which unsurprisingly was a 1980s pop culture reference that definitely would’ve gotten the people going (h/t The Big Lead).

“So I had it. I had the savvy one. ‘Heat of the Moment,’ which was a song that won like five Grammys by a band called Asia in the 80’s. I think Nantz could have gone stealth and done, It was the heat of the moment, Hideki Matsui is our Masters champion. Something like that and then it just would have been really underground. Nobody really would have gotten it. But he just played it chalk. You know what? You just signed a new contract Jim Nantz. We don’t want a scared Jim Nantz. Come up with some sort of line. Anything? Disappointing.”

If nothing else, Simmons’ best effort at a clever quip being a reference to a 40-year-old song by the band Asia might be the best argument for why Nantz didn’t dial up a pun in this situation because, well, there wasn’t a really easy one to do — also confusing Matsuyama with former Yankees outfielder Hideki Matsui really puts the icing on the cake.

Nantz simply pointed out the history of the moment and let it breathe, which is never a bad idea. Also, the thought that Jim Nantz, who as Simmons notes just inked a monster new deal with CBS and is arguably the most powerful play-by-play announcer in all of sports given how he bounces from NFL to NCAA to The Masters each year, would be scared in this moment is rather incredible.

On top of all of that, making sure you don’t do some casual racism is probably a good way for everyone to operate and isn’t a cancel culture thing so much as a respect thing. This was a massive moment for golf and particularly golf in Japan, and Nantz is certainly aware of that and wanted to be respectful of the moment and what it meant. He did all the traditional Jim Nantz things on the call, there was nerves talk as things started moving quickly for Matsuyama on 15 and the win became in doubt, as always he nailed the family tree on the walk up 18 once it was clear the win was there, and when there wasn’t an exclamation point on the round as he just got it over the line with a bogey, Nantz gave it a solid call and stepped out.