Shortly after the release of his latest album, The Off-Season, J. Cole played his first game in the Basketball Africa League. The Dreamville rapper had signed with the Rwanda Patriots to play six matches with the team. Three games have already gone by and while it may be exciting for some to watch Cole play professional basketball, his stats haven’t been great. The rapper has only scored five points in those three games, a performance that caused one BAL player to criticize his roster spot.
“For a guy who has so much money and has another career to just come here and average, like, one point a game and still get glorified is very disrespectful to the game,” Terrell Stoglin, a guard for AS Salé, said. Some people agreed with Stoglin, while others, like Rick Ross, did not. In fact, Ross took to his Instagram Story to respond to Stoglin’s statement.
“In no way is this meant to be disrespectful, but first and foremost, should no Black man’s dreams be censored nor limited,” Ross said. “Comin’ from a brother, I think you would understand what building these types of relationships would do for the business. For the eyes on the industry, you know what I’m sayin’?” He added, “You should be there to support the brother. If he made one point on the first game, by the time he get to the 10th, you should make sure he makin’ six a game, you understand?”
On Tuesday, the NBA announced that Mavericks forward Kristaps Porzingis has been fined $50,000 for visiting a club on Sunday, May 23. Per the league, Porzingis violated the league rule that, during the COVID-19 pandemic, prohibits a player from visiting any bar, club, lounge, or similar establishment. This rule is in effect regardless of if a player has been vaccinated or not.
The NBA just fined the Mavericks’ Kristaps Porzingis $50,000 for violating the rule prohibiting players from going into any bar, club, lounge, or similar establishment, regardless of the player’s vaccination status.
Porzingis, per the league’s assessment, did not “create risks” that could spread COVID-19, so he does not have to quarantine (and thus miss multiple playoff games against the Clippers) as a result.
The news of this comes days after LeBron James made headlines for not getting reprimanded after attending a promotional event for his tequila brand that was determined to violate the league’s health & safety protocols. The league, in a statement, addressed the comparison directly, per The Athletic‘s Shams Charania.
“While we understand the inclination to compare this incident to protocol violations by other players, including LeBron James, those facts are very different. LeBron briefly attended an outdoor event related to an individual commercial activity where everyone was either required to be vaccinated or return a negative COVID test,” the statement reads. “The league reviews each potential protocol violation on a case-by-case basis, and determines quarantines and imposes discipline based on the individual facts and circumstances of each matter.”
From a basketball point of view, this is also a win for Dallas. Porzingis has been up-and-down in his Mavericks career, but they probably need him in hopes of beating the Clippers in round one. Dallas, who is currently up 1-0 in the series, plays in Los Angeles on Tuesday at 10:30 p.m. EST. In Game 1 of the series, Porzingis had 14 points on 4-for-13 shooting and 4 rebounds in a 113-103 win.
It’s always delightful to see a good news reveal video, but this couple’s proud, joy-filled reaction to their daughter surprising them with an acceptance letter to an optometry school is nearly impossible not to smile at.
Gurjiv Kaur, a graduate of University of California, Irvine, shared the video on Twitter, and it’s been retweeted nearly 100,000 times.
“So I told my parents we were making a video for extra credit,” she wrote. “But what they actually read was my first acceptance into optometry school.”
In the video, Gurjiv hands her parents, Karamjit Kaur and Jagdeep Singh, a folded piece of paper and casually tells them just to read it aloud, “like tongue twisters.” But when her dad starts reading the letter, with mom reading over his shoulder, the joy of the surprise begins—and it only gets better from there.
“Oh my God!” exclaimed her dad. “This is incredible! Whoa!”
“What??” her mother asked incredulously. “You just had your interview today!”
The acceptance letter came from the University of the Incarnate Word’s Rosenberg School of Optometry in San Antonio, Texas via email shortly after Gurjiv’s interview.
so i told my parents we were making a video for extra credit but what they actually read was my first acceptance in… https://t.co/sMfUVsnO8o
In this sweet viral video sundae, the “Dear Gurjiv, COMMA,” is surely the cherry on top. But the smiles, the pride, the finger wagging to the sky as dad says, “Let me read this!” and the laughter from Gurjiv who clearly knew her parents’ reaction would be worth capturing on video—all of it is just priceless.
The university that sent the letter even shared the joy on Twitter as they shared the video with the comment, “We’re not crying, you’re crying! Welcome to the UIW family, Gurjiv (and parents)!”
🥲🥲🥲
We’re not crying, you’re crying!
Welcome to the UIW family, Gurjiv (and parents)! ❤️ https://t.co/aamYxxQNqb
After the video went viral, Gurjiv wrote that she was “humbled by all the love and encouragement” and thanked everyone for their kind words.
“I definitely did not expect it to go that big,” she told TODAY. “I’m really glad that a lot of people found joy in seeing my parents’ reaction. It made them so happy.” She said that her dad has since read the letter over multiple times and keeps practicing how to say “optometry.”
Thank you, Gurjiv and parents, for this dose of wholesome delight.
Last week, comedian Chris Rock spoke out about cancel culture on Power 105.1’s “The Breakfast Club” saying it’s made entertainment become too “safe” which has been terrible for the industry and audiences alike.
“And when everyone gets safe and nobody tries anything, things get boring,” he told the New York station’s Angela Yee and DJ Envy.
“I see a lot of unfunny comedians, I see unfunny TV shows, I see unfunny awards shows, I see unfunny movies — because everybody’s scared to make a move,” he said.
Rock has a point in saying that fear of a backlash has forced a lot of people to reevaluate their material and for entertainment companies to avoid controversial topics and entertainers. However, actor Seth Rogen believes that when it comes to comedy, the real problem has more to do with the medium’s limited shelf life, than regressive political correctness.
“There are certain jokes that for sure have not aged well, but I think that’s the nature of comedy,” Rogen told “Good Morning Britain,’ adding that some of the jokes in his films haven’t aged well.
“I think conceptually those movies are sound and I think there’s a reason they’ve lasted as far as people still watching and enjoying them today. Jokes are not things that necessarily are built to last,” he said.
He added: “To me when I see comedians complaining about this kind of thing, I don’t understand what they’re complaining about. If you’ve made a joke that’s aged terribly, accept it. And if you don’t think it’s aged terribly, then say that.”
Rogen continued, saying that criticism is “one of the things that goes along with being an artist.”
“To me, it’s not worth complaining about to the degree I see other comedians complaining about,” he added.
Seth Rogen says he doesn’t understand why some comedians complain about “cancel culture”:
The “Pineapple Express” star says he’s avoided having to apologize for tweets or jokes he’s made in the past, because he’s never thought punching down was funny. “I was never a comedian that made jokes that were truly designed to target groups that were subjugated in some way,” he said.
“Have we done that without realizing it? Definitely. And those things are in our movies and they’re out there, and they’re things that I am more than happy to say that they have not aged well,” he added.
Rogen believes that a lot of it just comes down to simply being a decent human being.
“Saying terrible things is bad, so if you’ve said something terrible, then it’s something you should confront in some way, shape, or form. I don’t think that’s cancel culture,” Rogen said. “That’s you saying something terrible if that’s what you’ve done.”
Rogen and Rock’s recent comments on cancel culture show why the controversy surrounding the issue is so tough. We should work to foster a society where artists are free to speak their minds, especially in the world of comedy, an artform based on pushing boundaries.
However, we’ve also progressed as a society to the point where it’s fair to criticize artists who take shots at people from marginalized communities who don’t deserve to be targets.
If you ask Earthgang about their upcoming sophomore album, Ghetto Gods, the Atlanta rap duo will tell you it’s ready to be released. In fact, they originally teased that it would arrive on the same day as J. Cole’s latest effort, The Off-Season, which dropped on May 14. Sadly hat day came and went without Ghetto Gods, for reasons unknown to fans as well as the rappers themselves. Luckily, it appears that it’s finally on its way, as the duo released one of its songs, “Aretha.”
It’s a soul-driven effort that sees the duo reflecting on the highs and lows that occurred during their journey as artists. Johnny Venus leads the way with a verse recounting a disappointing moment from his career. “‘Options‘ dropped, barely made a sound, damn / I guess we let Nas and Cole down,” he said, referencing Earthgang’s 2020 single with Wale. As for WowGr8, he brings a bit more optimism to the mix. “This what I’m addicted to, this all I’m committed to,” he declares. “Set my sights on bigger moves, feel like this is middle school.”
“Aretha” is Earthgang’s second track in a little over two weeks, as they teamed up earlier this month to remix Drake’s “Lemon Pepper Freestyle.”
You can listen to “Aretha” in the video above.
Wale is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
Julius Randle’s 2020-21 campaign isn’t over yet, but on Tuesday night, a report indicated he will receive an award for what he managed to do this season. According to Shams Charania of The Athletic, Randle is the NBA’s 2020-21 Most Improved Player after taking a step forward and playing a gigantic role in getting the New York Knicks to the postseason for the first time since 2012-13.
New York Knicks All-Star Julius Randle has won the NBA 2020-21 Most Improved Player of the Year award, sources tell @TheAthletic@Stadium.
While the other finalists for the award, Detroit’s Jerami Grant and Denver’s Michael Porter Jr., were both magnificent this season, Randle has seemingly been the clear-cut choice for the award for some time. Long regarded as a respectable, productive player, Randle became the alpha dog for a surprising Knicks squad, leading the team in a number of statistical categories and usually ending close games with the ball in his hands.
In his second season as a member of the Knicks, Randle averaged 24.1 points, 10.2 rebounds, and six assists in 37.6 minutes per game, all of which are career-best marks. He also attempted 45.6 percent of his field goal attempts and knocked down 41.1 percent of his triples, the latter of which is also a career-high.
As for the postseason, Randle and the Knicks find themselves in a hole, as they trail the Atlanta Hawks in their first-round series, 0-1, after a thrilling Game 1. Randle struggled in that one, which doubled as his playoff debut, scoring 15 points and pulling in 10 rebounds while shooting 6-for-23 from the field.
Cillian Murphy is one of the big additions to the world of A Quiet Place Part II, but for him it wasn’t just another gig. It was a project he greatly respected. Interviews with the Irish actor and DC vet that were conducted over a year ago — before the pandemic hit, delaying the sequel’s release — are only now starting to hit, and in some he’s confessed to writing a gushing letter to John Krasinski, the series’ director, co-writer, and actor, before getting cast. But he never sent it.
The story seems to first appear in a post by Hollywood.com released last March. “I saw it in the cinema with my two sons,” Murphy he told WENN. “It knocked me out emotionally. It ticks all the horror-thriller boxes.” It stuck with him so much that he did what fans have long done to stars and filmmakers they admire.
“After I saw the movie I was so blown away by it I had to write to John Krasinski, because I didn’t know him and I hadn’t worked with [his wife] Emily [Blunt] before,” he said. “I was just big fans of both of them. I wrote this email to John saying how much I enjoyed the film and congratulating him on it. Then I chickened out and I never sent it! I was like, ‘You don’t need to be doing that. He’s a busy man. He doesn’t need to hear from some actor!’
A year later Murphy wound up getting a call from Krasinski, seeing if he was interested in the sequel, which Murphy called “a lovely sort of serendipity or simpatico that he was thinking of me for that part.”
The story was brought up in a Hollywood Reporter interview that was done around the same time but which has only now been published. Murphy was asked about reaching out to fellow actors, to let them know when they’ve done something above and beyond.
“I think it’s a healthy thing amongst artists to reach out and to compliment your colleagues on their work, whether you know them or not,” Murphy told THR. “I don’t tend to do it so much with actors and screenwriters because it can look like you’re just petitioning for a job, and that’s probably the reason I didn’t send it to John.”
He continued:
But I have done it many times with musicians, writers and novelists, just to say, “Look, you don’t know me, but I wanted to say your creation had a big impact on me. It was a serious piece of work and thank you for that.” It’s important for us to do that because a lot of this industry is set up around representatives, and I think, sometimes, the sort of artist-to-artist interaction can be lost.
THR also asked Murphy about one of his other jobs: playing Scarecrow in Christopher Nolan’s beloved Batman films. It wasn’t the role he was initially asked to play. In fact, he auditioned for the Caped Crusader himself. His screen test was made available back in 2019, which Murphy said is “not something I’d really wish to see more than once.” But he has no beef losing the part to Christian Bale.
“I don’t believe I was close to landing that role. The only actor who was right for that part at that time, in my estimation, was Christian Bale, and he absolutely smashed it,” Murphy said. “So, for me, it was just an experience, and then it turned into something else. It turned into that character, Scarecrow, and it turned into a working relationship with Chris. So I think back very, very fondly on that time, but I never, ever, ever considered myself Bruce Wayne material.”
A dog is a man’s best friend, so the saying goes. On the other hand, many dogs actually show a preference for women over men. We also know that dogs are famously loyal to their owners. So what happens when a dog is forced to choose between its human parents?
Judging by this viral TikTok video, a fair bit of hilarity.
TikTok user @kamilandra_ shared a video with the hashtag #dogchallengerunaway, which calls on people to “Run in opposite directions to see who your dog loves more…” In the video, the couple’s Yorkshire terrier is placed between its owners, who simultaneously run away from it in opposite directions. Forced to choose who to follow, the doggo looks back and forth, barks a couple of times, then starts spinning around in circles. It stops facing one owner, then spins the other direction and stops facing the other owner. Then it keeps doing the same thing over and over, clearly caught up in a fit of indecision.
The loyalty is real!! #fyp #loyaldog #yorkshireterrierlove❤ #dogchallengerunaway #dogchallenge
The video has been viewed more than 10 million times. People adore the sweet pupper’s faithfulness to both of its owners. Comments on the video range from “You broke your dog!” to “He’s playing spin the bottle with himself!” to “He said, “I CHOOSE ME!!!!'”
Many dogs would show a clear preference for one person over another, which is part of what makes this dog’s reaction so sweet (and kind of sad, in a “Sophie’s Choice” sort of way).
What would really be funny is to see someone try to pull this on a cat. You know a cat would just sit there, staring straight ahead, silently judging us humans for our ridiculousness.
Dogs are something else. We definitely don’t deserve them.
Indie music has grown to include so much. It’s not just music that is released on independent labels, but speaks to an aesthetic that deviates from the norm and follows its own weirdo heart. It can come in the form of rock music, pop, or folk. In a sense, it says as much about the people that are drawn to it as it does about the people that make it.
While we’re at it, sign up for our newsletter to get the best new indie music delivered directly to your inbox, every Monday.
Mdou Moctar – Afrique Victime
If you were a fan of Matt Sweeney and Bonnie “Prince” Billy’s Superwolf earlier this year, you probably will recognize Mdou Moctar’s frantic, fierce guitar tone. The Nigerian phenom’s excellent album Afrique Victime falls into the category of projects that make you think “they just don’t make em like this anymore!” Spanning just nine tracks, Afrique Victime “is loaded with moments where Moctar steps out of the song in order to ram his guitar directly into your guts,” writes Steven Hyden for Uproxx.
Mannequin Pussy – Perfect
Although Mannequin Pussy’s new EP Perfect clocks in at just 15 minutes across its five songs, the ferocity and strategic sequencing work together to illustrate the full spectrum of Mannequin Pussy’s unstoppable power. All told, Perfect is what I called in a recent feature on the band “an excellent collection of power pop and punk rock songs, but also a reminder of just how vital music can make you feel when it’s been missing for so long.”
Sharon Van Etten & Angel Olsen – “Like I Used To”
It’s hard to believe that indie legends Sharon Van Etten and Angel Olsen haven’t collaborated on music until now. The duo’s first-ever joint release, “Like I Used To” is what Derrick Rossignol calls for Uproxx a “bold Americana” track, and both songwriters have confessed that the opportunity to work together served as a reminder of the beauty of creating music.
Bleachers – “Stop Making This Hurt”
Jack Antonoff has certainly been keeping busy with a jam-packed production schedule since the last Bleachers release. Now, he is finally ready to turn his attention back to his solo project, with the forthcoming Take The Sadness Out Of Saturday Night. The new LP is preceded by “Stop Making This Hurt,” a jazzy number that continues the introspection and reconciliation with grief that Antonoff began to dig into on “Chinatown,” the Bruce Springsteen collaboration that dropped late last year.
Vundabar – “Aphasia”
Vundabar has been more or less prolific over the last several years. Now, barely a year after the release of their last full-length album Either Light, the Boston outfit is back with “Aphasia.” The track is more low-energy than what we’re used to hearing from the band, and came to be after songwriter Brandon Hagen’s father suffered a stroke that left him with global aphasia.
Japanese Breakfast – “Savage Good Boy”
2021 is a huge year for Michelle Zauner, with the recent release of her debut memoir Crying In H Mart, and the forthcoming new Japanese Breakfast LP, Jubilee, which is just around the corner. Ahead of the album’s release, Zauner has shared “Savage Good Boy,” a relatively straightforward track featuring grand piano accents that was inspired by an article discussing how billionaire’s are buying bunkers to prepare for the possible coming apocalypse (that they likely had a hand in perpetuating).
Pronoun – “I’m Right Back In It”
Pronoun’s I’ll Show You Stronger was one of our favorite sleeper albums of 2019, and Alysse Vellturo’s forthcoming EP OMG I Made It picks up right where the full-length left off. “I’m Right Back In It” is another beautiful, anthemic bedroom pop number that might feature what is very possibly Vellturo’s most infectious hook to date.
Hurry – “A Fake Idea”
Philadelphia outfit Hurry make beautiful music, plain and simple. “A Fake Idea” is the (almost) title track from the band’s forthcoming album Fake Idea, and finds songwriter Matt Scottoline wishing so hard for different realities that he starts to manifest them for himself, over shimmering guitars and gorgeous melodic structures.
Just Friends ft. Lil B – “Stupid”
On a recent episode of Indiecast, Steven Hyden and Ian Cohen discussed new bands that might be able to push ska back into the mainstream. Just Friends are certainly in the running to be that band that breaks through, especially with their insanely fun new track “Stupid,” which features none other than Lil B.
Bad Luck – “ROY”
Pop punk seems to be making a comeback these days. New York outfit Bad Luck represents what the future of the genre might sound like, with fun and catchy melodies anchored by massive drums and distinct vocals. “ROY” is a song about pushing through peer-induced stagnancy and trying to find a path that truly makes you happy. No one else matters.
Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
Today’s wrestling thespians are not like they used to be. Back in the day, Hulk Hogan was barely credible playing other wrestlers in movies, much less Mr. Nanny. A modern pugilist can do it all. Right now we have three bona fide wrasslin’ movie stars: Dwayne Johnson, John Cena, and Dave Bautista. They can do action, but they can also do comedy, some light drama, maybe even some romance, if someone would let them. So when Bautista, who’s said he’s probably done with Marvel, announced that he really wants to play Ernest Hemingway, it wasn’t like Macho Man Randy Savage demanding he play Macbeth. In fact, it made some sense.
Bautista was speaking to Polygon about Army of the Dead, Zack Snyder’s new Vegas zombie pic when the subject of a dream role came up. “I’ve given a lot of thought to inspirational stories I could play, interesting stories I could play. And the one that seems to keep coming back to me is Ernest Hemingway,” Bautista said. “If I could play any character, I still think it would be him. I think I could do him justice. I think he’s so interesting, everything about his life, and the way he lived, and also the way he died. It’s just very intriguing, his ideas are intriguing to me.”
There was another role he’s been more seeking more publicly. “I’ve also been very vocal lately about playing Bane in the DC Universe, and I still feel very strongly that I could do that character justice,” he said. “So fiction vs. non-fiction, that would be Bane or Ernest Hemingway.”
Perhaps you never thought the WWE guy who played Drax the Destroyer would be a perfect fit for the guy who wrote A Moveable Feast, but, now that he mentions it, it doesn’t sound so far-fetched. Hemingway was one of literature’s more macho superstars — a burly hard drinker whose succinct, no-frills prose style belies his tough-guy image.
So, if you have yet to watch Ken Burns’ new documentary series on Hemingway, do so while trying to imagine the guy from My Spy embodying him onscreen. Get on this biopic, cineastes, and let’s get the guy who once got into a backstage fight with Ric Flair his Oscar.
This website uses cookies to improve your experience. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish. Cookie settingsACCEPT
Privacy & Cookies Policy
Privacy Overview
This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience.
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
