Month: June 2021

Xbox has approached this current console generation in an aggressively different way. For years, console generations and the box itself have been at the heart of the video game industry. However, as technology advances, there’s a good question about just how important these boxes actually are.

Xbox must have noticed this because their latest actions confirm what many of us have been thinking for a while: They care more about getting people into the ecosystem of Xbox rather than putting a box in their living room. In some ways, they plan on taking the box out of the equation entirely. In a presentation to the media on Thursday, Xbox went over what their plan is for Xbox in the near future. While consoles will still be a part of what they do, they’re going to focus on creating more ways to experience games.

This will require a stronger emphasis on cloud gaming. Xbox has already been embracing this with services like Gamepass, but they may be taking it a step further with Xbox integration into smart TVs and maybe streaming sticks. Players may not even need much more than a stick and a controller, similar to the model of the Google Stadia.

Expect cloud gaming to come to Xbox Series X/S and PC later in 2021. This will allow players to play games before purchasing and downloading them. There’s potential to play games while they download, which would fix a major problem of modern gaming where players have to wait for a game to download to their console before playing it. To assist in this push to the cloud, Microsoft datacenters are being upgraded with Xbox Series X hardware so there won’t be too many issues with framerate or stream lag.

Anyone that is a part of Gamepass Ultimate will get to experience all of this firsthand. Members of that service will be able to utilize Xbox Cloud Gaming from Chrome, Edge, or Safari. Imagine playing the newest Halo game or Gears of War from a browser — something that sounded impossible five years ago is now being advertised as a feature by Xbox.

All of this lines up with how Xbox has been approaching the current console generation with their focus on Gamepass, the accessibility of the Xbox Series S, and their embrace of PC gaming. Xbox is setting up an ecosystem to play games in rather than a single box that can play some games, but not all of them. It’s pretty clear that they believe this is the future of video games, and to be fair, they’ve got a point.

Console generations, exclusivity, and a lot of what has defined the business of gaming just isn’t as important as it used to be. Look at how the majority of multiplayer games include crossplay now. The idea of a group of friends needing to all own the same console so they could play together is long gone, and Xbox making video games more accessible is part of that. While we don’t know how effective this strategy will be, we can give them credit for trying something new.

After being nominated for Golden Globes, winning Oscars and Grammys for her songs from soundtracks and protests, and working with some of the biggest names in music, HER is finally set to release her debut album, Back Of My Mind, on June 18. The singer revealed the release date with an insightful, black-and-white trailer she posted to social media. A voiceover reveals the creative process behind the album’s concept and title cards echo HER’s words as she explains herself.

“People always ask me, ‘What’s the message? Where does this come from? Is it personal experience?’” she says. “And it’s always the thoughts that sit in the back of my mind. It’s always things that I’ve been through, things that I go through, or what I feel, and all those thoughts that I’m afraid to say sometimes… Things that feel too honest or too vulnerable or too emotional or too aggressive… It’s all of those things that have been in the back of my mind for the past few years since my first project. It’s like a peek into my soul.”

It could be odd to think that the singer has so many projects out yet is only just releasing her debut album, but prior efforts H.E.R. and I Used to Know Her were both compilations of EP tracks she’d released as she slowly revealed her identity and shed the shadowy air of mystery she cultivated early in her career. Now, she’s performing alongside Chris Stapleton at the CMT Music Awards — a sure sign of her crossover appeal — and working with perennial pitchman DJ Khaled. Now, it seems she is finally ready to deliver the album that she’s spent a lifetime working toward.

Back Of Mind is due 6/18 via RCA.

No, it’s no longer 1998. But fans of Sex and the City had better be willing to wash down their Magnolia Bakery cupcakes with a Cosmo as if Bill Clinton were still in office. Because And Just Like That, the upcoming reboot of the award-winning—and often raunchy—series keeps offering up more good news as to which original characters are returning. And while Kim Cattrall obviously won’t be one of them, The Hollywood Reporter has confirmed that several of the men in the former foursome’s life will be revisiting their roles for the HBO Max series.

Willie Garson, who appeared as Carrie’s (Sarah Jessica Parker) other BFF Stanford Blatch; David Eigenberg, who played Miranda’s (Cynthia Nixon) husband Steve Brady; Mario Cantone, friend of the group and wedding planner extraordinaire Anthony Marentino; and Evan Handler, Charlotte’s (Kristin Davis) divorce lawyer-turned-husband Harry Goldenblatt, are all set to reprise their roles alongside their female counterparts. Last month, it was also announced that Chris Noth, Mr. Big himself, will also be joining the show.

“Everyone at And Just Like That is thrilled to be able to continue the storylines of these beloved Sex and the City characters with the actors who made them so lovable,” executive producer Michael Patrick King said of the news.

According to HBO Max’s official logline, “this new chapter of the groundbreaking HBO series” will revisit Carrie, Miranda, and Charlotte “as they navigate the journey from the complicated reality of life and friendship in their 30s to the even more complicated reality of life and friendship in their 50s.”

The 10-episode, limited-edition series will begin shooting in New York City (where else?) this summer.

(via The Hollywood Reporter)

Despite the fact that it won’t hit theaters for another year, the promotional train for Jurassic World: Dominion is already barreling out of the station as Universal and director Colin Trevorrow build up hype for the third installment in the films series starring Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard.

During a new interview, Trevorrow shared a little bit of the plot details for Dominion, which have been closely guarded outside of the announcement that original Jurassic Park trio of Sam Neill, Laura Dern, and Jeff Goldblum will be a major part of the film. While talking to Collider, Trevorrow revealed that the third film will be a more of spy movie, and God willing, that should include dinosaurs drinking martinis:

“I’m sure it’s no secret that we shot in the UK, we shot in British Columbia. We shot in Malta. And those are essentially representing our locations. There’s another major location that I don’t want to disclose just yet. But there’s any environment you can imagine, ecological environment, physical environment that you can think of, it’s represented in this movie, [because it] is a big globe-hopping adventure. It’s got a little bit of Bourne and Bond and a bit of a spy movie thrown into it too. Spy movie, science thriller with dinosaurs.”

Anyone else picturing a T-Rex playing high stakes poker?

As for how fans can get their first look at this film full of dino-espionage, it’s about to happen in the best way possible: Right before F9. According to the Jurassic World Twitter account, an exclusive extended preview of Jurassic World: Dominion will run before IMAX screenings of the Vin Diesel muscle car film.

Jurassic World: Dominion roars into theaters on June 10, 2022.

(Via Collider)

Oasis founding members Noel and Liam Gallagher have seemed to put their differences aside in recent years, even sparking rumors of a reunion tour. They may be on good terms for now, but it hasn’t always been that way. Both brothers have gained a reputation of hurling expert insults at each other nearly every chance they get. While Noel has consistently dissed his own brother, he apparently doesn’t think everyone else should hold the same contempt for family members — especially Prince Harry.

Speaking in an interview with British tabloid The Sun, Gallagher compared himself to the older royal brother. “Prince William. I feel that f*cking lad’s pain,” he said. “He’s got a f*cking younger brother shooting his f*cking mouth off with sh*t that is just so unnecessary. I’d like to think I was always the William.”

Gallagher then went on to fire off his critique of Prince Harry, who recently split with the royal family and moved the the US. “But Prince Harry is coming across like a typical f*cking woke snowflake, f*cking asshole. Just don’t be f*cking dissing your family because there’s no need for it,” he said, adding a diss about Meghan for good measure. “This is what happens when you get involved with Americans. As simple as that.”

While Gallagher doesn’t think Harry should speak poorly about his family, the musician himself has done his fair share of family insults. Since forming Oasis in the ’90s, Noel and Liam Gallagher have fought each other, sued each other, and publicly dissed each other in interviews, on stage, and in more recent years, on social media.

Rootin’ tootin’ and gun-happy Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO) loves to toss the insults around while owning herself. She’s expressed disappointment that ruthless dictators don’t like Biden and compared fencing around the U.S. Capitol to the Berlin Wall, and now, she’s got a new parody-like video for her far-right followers. It’s not quite as strange as Ted Cruz lurking in the border bushes, but it’s also absurd.

This little ditty is focused on Republican criticism of VP Kamala Harris, who has also been the subject of criticism by some Democrats, including Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, for her handling of the migrant influx at the U.S.-Mexico border. AOC pushed back at the apparently callous wording of Harris’ message (“do not come”) to would-be migrants from Guatamala, and AOC spoke of this handling as disappointing, but Boebert needed to be more dramatic about the whole issue, I guess because Boebert doesn’t feel that Harris shut the door effectively enough? The situation is gathering criticism on many fronts, but it’s worth nothing that the migrant issue did not develop overnight, and it certainly won’t be settled overnight, either.

Still, Boebert couldn’t resist getting herself a cardboard cutout of the current VP while declaring, “More than 70 days ago, Biden named cackling Kamala as border czar but she hasn’t done a single thing to protect the American people.” In the video, Boebert walks in slo-mo and props the cardboard standee a few foot away from the wall. “I want you to look at what you’ve done,” Boebert exclaims before strutting away from the camera. (Yeah, she really told Kamala what’s up.)

Meanwhile, Politico has published a feature that includes interviews from constituents in Boebert’s Colorado district, which includes Pueblo County. All involved (including some who voted for her) express disappointment, and a community activist, Sol Sandoval, is quoted as saying, “When I think of Lauren Boebert, I think of that expression ‘all hat and no cattle.’” And a local business owner, Gus Garcia, told the publication, “I thought Lauren would be a great representative for small business owners because she owns a small business, and she came from a humble lifestyle.” However, Garcia adds, “I am humiliated and embarrassed when she speaks on the House floor. She screams all the time, and she seems to have affiliated herself with white supremacists.”

(Via Lauren Boebert on Twitter & Politico)

The well-known aphorism “never meet your heroes” often holds true, but one artist who’s always seemed to defeat that stereotype is Lil Uzi Vert. Throughout the years, the Philly native has become a fan favorite not just for his string of hits, but also for his entertaining interactions with his biggest supporters. Whether freestyling with fans in gas station parking lots or amusingly answering fans’ release date questions, Uzi’s joyful personality on record regularly carries over to his real-life personality. He explained why in a tweet:

“Im a happy person and I vibe with my fans,” he wrote. “If you see me I’m not gonna act gangster because that not what I am or who I am …. it’s okay 2 smile I’m myself.”

He hasn’t had much opportunity for these kinds of interactions over the past year, but as live entertainment slowly awakens from its year-long pandemic slumber, it’s likely he’ll get many more chances at one of the many festivals at which he’s booked, which include Rolling Loud New York and Lyrical Lemonade’s Summer Smash in Chicago. Given he’s also teasing new music nearly constantly, telling fans in March that a new album is “coming soon,” a tour announcement can’t be too far off in the future.

In the meantime, you can hear Uzi’s guest verse on Pi’erre Bourne’s “Sossboy 2” and on Juice WRLD’s posthumous “Lucid Dreams” remix

Lil Uzi Vert is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

With Migos’ long-awaited Culture III dropping this week, the North Atlanta trio turned up on The Tonight Show to preview one of the album’s standout songs, “Avalanche,” with a smooth performance marked by their matching three-piece suits and jazzy backup from a live band. Built on a sample of The Temptations’ “Papa Was A Rolling Stone,” the three rappers deliver verses in their signature head-nodding cadence with no chorus and lyrics highlighted by big-money boasts and demands for respect.

Culture III, which was originally planned for a 2020 release before being delayed by the coronavirus pandemic, is led by the single “Straightenin,” which the group released last month, and will feature appearances from longtime collaborators like Cardi B, Drake, and Future, as well as features from rising stars Polo G and Youngboy Never Broke Again. It also contains a pair of posthumous appearances; both Juice WRLD and Pop Smoke were working with the band before their deaths, and those efforts are represented here.

In addition to dropping the album this week, Migos will hold a festival in Las Vegas this autumn to celebrate/promote its release.

Watch Migos perform “Avalanche” above.

Culture III is out 6/11 via Quality Control Music, Motown, and Capitol Records.

Seth Meyers has never met an impression he didn’t want to try out, and he treated Wednesday night’s show like it was sweeps week by breaking out all of his very favorites. Including and especially Rudy Giuliani, whose infamous Ukraine call and general buffoonery were the subject of the evening’s “A Closer Look” segment.

Earlier this week, CNN obtained audio of a July 2019 phone call in which Giuliani—who, you might remember, was once married to his cousin (as Meyers reminded us)—attempted to pressure Ukrainian officials into announcing a fake investigation into Joe Biden. And Meyers couldn’t resist the opportunity to rake the man once known as “America’s Mayor” over the coals for just how far he has fallen.

After reminding viewers of the Russia investigation (remember that?) and Donald Trump’s famous “quid pro quo” call, wondering “How is it that every time these guys do something shady or illegal they get caught on tape?,” and finding a way to mention the potential Wedding Crashers sequel so that he could segue into his famous Owen Wilson impression, Meyers got back to the matter at hand: Giuliani’s desperate attempt to get a pat on the head from his pal Trump for doing good by bullying a foreign country into pretending that Biden did something bad there:

“The fact that the phone call is 40 minutes long means there’s lot of damning stuff in there. For example: Rudy had this insane theory that it was actually Ukraine that actually interfered in the 2016 election to hurt Trump, and he wanted Ukrainian officials to investigate that theory…

But then Rudy got down to business and made it clear that what he and Trump wanted was for Ukraine’s president to make a public statement declaring that they were opening an investigation into Joe Biden… These guys can’t even bring themselves to believe their own BS. This is how they always do it: They float the same theories, then cover themselves by saying they’re just asking questions like they’re gossipy high school sophomores…

It was clear that what they were doing was shady, and that they knew it was shady. Because they all talk in that vague, Mafia-esque tone where they never actually demand something explicitly but they make it clear that what they’re asking for is a quid pro quo.”

The segment includes several clips of Rudy’s audio, which Meyers thinks makes him sound “like he should be wearing a tracksuit and running his fingertip along the bar at a New Jersey restaurant saying, ‘This is a nice place. Nice and flammable if you know what I mean.’” He added that:

“I also love that Rudy’s reward for their cooperation was saying that he would personally visit them in Ukraine. I’m sure they were psyched about the idea of Rudy showing up at their door, asking to sleep on their futon, and then spending three days talking about cigars and the Yankees and asking them where to find the best salami in Kiev.”

You can watch the full segment above.

HER has become an awards show staple in recent years, so naturally, she found a way to pop up at the CMT Music Awards last night. During the ceremony, she performed her 2020 single “Hold On” alongside Chris Stapleton. While the two artists don’t exactly run in the same musical circles, Stapleton’s raspy country howl actually paired wonderfully with HER’s smooth R&B vocals.

Meanwhile, at a different point in the show, Stapleton (whose “Starting Over” visual was up for Male Video Of The Year but lost to Kane Brown’s “Worship You”) also took to the stage solo to perform “Arkansas.”

Elsewhere, some notable award wins for this year included Carrie Underwood and John Legend winning Video Of The Year for “Hallelujah,” Taylor Swift’s Best Family Feature win for the “The Best Day (Taylor’s Version)” video, and Kelsea Ballerini and Halsey’s rendition of “The Other Girl” from the 2020 CMT Music Awards taking home this year’s CMT Performance Of The Year award. Meanwhile, also receiving nominations in various categories were Maren Morris, Noah Cyrus, Elle King, Pink, Lady A, Kelsea Ballerini, and Darius Rucker.

HER, by the way, also revealed this morning that her upcoming album Back Of My Mind has a release date of June 18.

Watch HER and Stapleton perform “Hold On” above, where you’ll also find Stapleton’s performance of “Arkansas.”