Brooklyn, New York rapper Your Old Droog is one of the many, many rappers influenced by the late, great MF DOOM, both in form and in his steadfast adherence to a philosophy of being anti-famous. Like DOOM, Droog emerged from the New York underground and rose to notoriety via the internet, maintaining an air of mystery early in his career that had many fans wondering just who he really was. Droog received the ultimate blessing for a DOOM fan, getting the chance to work with his idol on multiple songs before the elder rapper’s death on Halloween last year, and today, he shared the first they ever recorded together: “Dropout Boogie.”
A short, sample-heavy song extolling the virtues of self-education (well, as much as it decries the many shortcomings of the US education system), “Dropout Boogie” really highlights the impact of DOOM’s syllable-stacking style on the generation of rappers who grew up under him. The track will be available as a 7″ vinyl on Nature Sounds, which you can pre-order here. Droog also accompanied the release with a statement on DOOM’s impact on his life and career.
This man’s work renewed my interest in hip-hop and rhyming at a time when I got tired of hearing what was on the radio or what was considered popular rap, I deadass started listening to classical music, and then I heard DOOM.
For him to end up appreciating what I do 10 years later shows the power of never giving up on your passion, staying the course, believing in yourself and having vision.
Aside from him being featured on the track, the song already had a lot of personal meaning for me. School is not for everybody. You know, it has its extracurricular pluses but overall, it wasn’t for me. For some people, it’s good but not for me. I don’t work well fitting into boxes. I dropped out of high school, and community college, twice! This is certainly an anthem of sorts.
The GED was nice though, that gave me confidence. Stay confident and follow your own path. Not the one laid out to you by your parents or teachers. Peace.
Following a two-month social media hiatus, Megan Thee Stallion is returning in a big way. Along with teasing her first new solo single of 2021 with a couple of bootylicious photos, Megan lends her vocals on Marshmello‘s club-ready banger “Bad B*tches.”
The EDM track features bouncy production by Marshmello and collaborator Nitti Gritti. Its pumped-up beat is meant to ready fans for a triumphant return to the dance floor and its euphoric sound will be a sure-fire hit at summer festivals. “Bad B*tches” is accompanied by vocals from Megan’s showstopping performance at Rolling Loud LA in 2019, where she expertly hypes up the crowd. “Where my bad b*tches at? Where my motherf*cking hot girls at? Where my motherf*cking hot boys at?” she says in a vocal sample on the song. “If you a motherf*ckin’ hot girl, no matter what season it is, make some motherf*ckin’ noise.”
The song arrives as an announcement for Marshmello’s upcoming LP Shockwave and follows an already prolific year for the producer. Along with his Megan collaboration, Marshmello has teamed up with big-name artists in 2021 like Jonas Brothers for the track “Leave Before You Love Me,” 2KBaby for “Like This,” and Juicy J for the song “Hitta.”
Listen to “Bad B*tches” above.
Shockwave is out 6/11 via Joytime Collective. Pre-order it here.
Megan Thee Stallion is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
It would seem the end of Brockhampton is nigh, as the group plans on releasing their final album this year. So, the slew of 2022 tour dates the band announced today could end up being the final chance to see them live.
The trek kicks off in January in Norway and is followed by other European dates through to mid-February. Later that month, Brockhampton returns to North America for shows in February, March, and April. All dates will feature support from Jean Dawson, Paris Texas, and HVN.
Check out the full list of Brockhampton’s upcoming tour dates below.
08/01/2021 — Chicago, IL @ Lollapalooza
01/14/2022 — Oslo, NO @ Sentrum Scene
01/15/2022 — Copenhagen, DK @ Grey Hall
01/16/2022 — Copenhagen, DK @ Grey Hall
01/18/2022 — Stockholm, SE @ Annexet
01/20/2022 — Berlin, DE @ Huxleys
01/21/2022 — Munich, DE @ Tonhalle
01/22/2022 — Cologne, DE @ E-Werk
01/24/2022 — Brussels, BE @ Ancienne Belgique
01/25/2022 — Tilburg, NE @ O13
01/27/2022 — Glasgow, UK @ Academy
01/28/2022 — Sheffield, UK @ Academy
01/30/2022 — Dublin, IE @ Olympia Theatre
01/31/2022 — Dublin, IE @ Olympia Theatre
02/01/2022 — Belfast, UK @ Ulster Hall
02/03/2022 — Bristol, UK @ Academy
02/04/2022 — Manchester, UK @ Apollo
02/05/2022 — Birmingham, UK @ Academy
02/07/2022 — London, UK @ Brixton
02/08/2022 — London, UK @ Brixton
02/10/2022 — Paris, FR @ Elysee Montmartre
02/26/2022 — Salt Lake City, UT @ The Union Event Center
03/01/2022 — Denver, CO @ The Mission Ballroom
03/04/2022 — Irving, TX @ The Pavilion at Toyota Music Factory
03/05/2022 — Austin, TX @ Moody Amphitheater
03/08/2022 — Atlanta, GA @ Coca-Cola Roxy
03/11/2022 — Orlando, FL @ Hard Rock Live
03/12/2022 — Miami Beach, FL @ The Fillmore
03/14/2022 — Charlotte, NC @ The Fillmore Charlotte
03/15/2022 — Raleigh, NC @ The Ritz
03/17/2022 — Washington, D.C. @ The Anthem
03/18/2022 — New York, NY @ Hulu Theater At MSG
03/22/2022 — Philadelphia, PA @ The Fillmore
03/25/2022 — Toronto, ON @ Coca-Cola Coliseum
03/26/2022 — Detroit, MI @ Masonic Temple Theatre
03/27/2022 — Pittsburgh, PA @ Stage AE
03/29/2022 — Columbus, OH @ Express Live! Indoor Pavilion
04/01/2022 — Chesterfield, MO @ The Factory at the District
04/02/2022 — Kansas City, MO @ Arvest Bank Theatre at the Midland
04/03/2022 — Oklahoma City, OK @ The Criterion
04/06/2022 — Phoenix, AZ @ Arizona Federal Theatre
04/07/2022 — Los Angeles, CA @ The Greek Theatre
04/08/2022 — Las Vegas, NV @ The Chelsea at Cosmopolitan
04/09/2022 — San Francisco, CA @ Bill Graham Civic Center
04/11/2022 — Seattle, WA @ WaMu Theater at CenturyLink Field
04/12/2022 — Vancouver, BC @ Doug Mitchell Thunderbird Sports Centre
04/13/2022 — Portland, OR @ Veterans Memorial Coliseum
06/03/2022 — Barcelona, ES @ Primavera Sound Barcelona
Chris Harrison‘s time with The Bachelor has finally come to an end. Following a racism scandal that’s plagued the reality series since earlier in the year, Harrison has reportedly walked away with an eight-figure payoff that was tensely negotiated as The Bachelor made its 17th season premiere on Monday night. While the writing was on the wall for Harrison’s departure after guest hosts, including David Spade, were announced for the latest season, the longtime host reportedly made it very difficult for Warner Bros. and producers to get rid of him thanks to his intimate knowledge of the show’s dirty secrets. Via Deadline:
The confidential settlement with franchise producers and distributor Warner Horizon was finally reached after one more flurry of back and forth between the parties and Bachelor broadcaster ABC on Monday night. A motivational undercurrent, so to speak, throughout was Harrison lawyer Bryan Freedman pledging to unleash the Shiva of lawsuits exposing a swath of The Bachelor’s alleged dirty laundry unless his Gersh-repped client emerged feeling the financial love.
The controversy for Harrison began back in February when he defended contestant Rachael Kirkconnell after it was revealed that she attended an antebellum-themed sorority party in 2018 and had posted images on social media that consisted of cultural appropriation. During an interview on Extra, Harrison tried to downplay Kirkconnell’s actions by arguing with Rachel Lindsay (Extra‘s first Black lead) that the incident happened over five years ago when it was barely three years old.
After the incident on Extra, Harrison issued an apology on Twitter, which did not go over well. A few days later, Harrison issued a second apology and announced he’d be taking time off from The Bachelor. That time off has now resulted in his permanent exit from the show.
The Phoenix Suns’ opening offensive possession in their 122-105 victory over the Denver Nuggets in Game 1 of the Western Conference Semifinals on Monday set the tone for the types of shots available to them that night and the strain their offense would put on Denver’s defensive principles.
As Chris Paul and Deandre Ayton commenced a pick-and-roll at the top of the key, Jae Crowder, after setting a screen for Paul, migrated from the left elbow to the right corner, ducking behind a Devin Booker pin-in screen for a look from deep. His movement coincided with Ayton’s dive to the rim and left Crowder’s man, Aaron Gordon, in a bind: tag Ayton in the paint or stay with his man to deter the open long ball.
Correctly, Gordon selected the former, and the result was a rhythm three attempt for Crowder, though Austin Rivers battled through Booker’s screen for a serviceable contest.
That sort of play is a subplot of this series. Denver is going to aggressively rotate to tag rollers in the paint and will leave the corners open. Phoenix’s offense consistently compromises the responsibilities of the low man, either removing their presence altogether with calculated floor arrangements or running weak-side actions to ensure options are available beyond the roller if a tag does occur.
An Ayton bucket from round one exemplifies the way the Suns bend defenses by removing the traditional low man and forcing someone else to rotate, a rotation that might deviate from standard defensive instructions.
Typically, there will be someone near the right corner — behind Anthony Davis — required to help on Ayton’s roll. Instead, the tag would have to come from Davis, leaving Crowder open for an easy three off a swing pass, or Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, who is technically on the strong-side — most defensive schemes don’t encourage helping from the strong-side. Caldwell-Pope is late and undersized. The result is two points for Phoenix.
This is exactly how the Suns twist defenses into atypical responsibilities with their offensive alignments and sets. Caldwell-Pope eventually recognizes he must tag Ayton, but Phoenix expected confusion and capitalized.
Denver’s disregard for the corners benefits Phoenix, which has ranked third in corner three-point frequency (10.6 percent) during the regular season and playoffs, and second (43.7 percent) and third (47.5 percent) in proficiency, according to Cleaning The Glass.
During their first-round matchup with the Portland Trail Blazers, the Nuggets adhered to the same philosophy and vacated the corners. The Blazers lack the blend of passing talent and size that the Suns tout with Booker and Paul, so they did not as frequently target those soft spots in the defense. It didn’t particularly inhibit them, as they generated an offensive rating of 122.1 against Denver. But the Nuggets will need to tailor their approach in this series because Phoenix will crush this level of dismissal.
The Suns routinely derived offense from open corners in Game 1, whether it was teeing up threes or launching Denver into rotation by demanding an initial closeout to those regions. Corner threes composed over 15 percent of their shot profile and they converted five of their 13 attempts (38.5 percent), many of which were comfortably open, or at least to the point of undisturbed shot preparation.
To posit that corner three aptitude was the lifeblood of the Suns’ offensive success would be overstating its impact, though. Ayton dominated as a play finisher. Paul torched switches in the final frame for pull-up buckets. Booker and Mikal Bridges poured in a combined 44 points with differing styles.
Another common thread, however, was that aforementioned manipulation or targeting of the low man. Often, the onus rested on Michael Porter Jr., who struggled mightily to balance staying home with shooters and punctually tagging rollers inside. The Suns repeatedly produced good offense by involving him as a weak-side defender because he is prone to aggressively rotating before it is necessary (even by the standards of Denver’s scheme) or merely hugging his defender and failing to help at all.
If he does remain connected to shooters, his unwillingness to truly crowd assignments and impose his 6’10 frame upon them to the point of discomfort proves troublesome. Whenever this postseason run concludes for the Nuggets, there will be an assortment of data points from which Porter can learn, especially on defense. On Monday, the Suns were content to provide many of them as they flummoxed varying low men of the Nuggets.
Some notes: Every single clip in that montage is a quality shot at the rim or from deep. The set-up of the Dario Saric dunk is gorgeous. On the third quarter lob, Booker shifting Porter away from Ayton by staring down the wing is tactically masterful. Despite the missed three, that final play captures how Phoenix burdens defenses with its ball-screen actions. The Suns’ offense was dizzying for the Nuggets last night.
Phoenix is not necessarily a more potent offense than Portland. The latter finished the regular season second in offensive rating (117.1) and rosters scoring extraordinaire Damian Lillard, while the former finished seventh (116.3) and offers a more balanced attack, as evidenced by its four 20-point performers Monday (a feat the Blazers did not once accomplish in this year’s playoffs).
Yet such an approach from Denver, fleeing the corners and aggressively rotating, simplifies decisions for Suns ball-handlers and only exacerbates its hurdles toward containing them, given the challenges their offense poses without the Nuggets inviting shots from Phoenix’s preferred areas.
Tweaks can and will likely be made, perhaps better timing on tags to rollers rather than a full-fledged, early sell-out. Regardless, the Suns present different problems than Portland. Their series-opening victory helped illuminate many of those different problems and why the Nuggets should not focus all of their defensive alterations to opposing ball-handlers, as they largely could against Lillard and the Blazers. Otherwise, they’ll continue leaving themselves susceptible to back-side breakdowns, just as they did far too regularly in their Game 1 defeat.
After a whirlwind 2020 culminated in her winning several Grammy Awards, Megan Thee Stallion took some time away from the public eye to “prepare for what’s next.” Earlier this week, Megan marked her impending return by teasing her first new solo single following her debut album Good News. The rapper revealed the upcoming song is titled “Thot Sh*t” and she’s now found a cheeky way to get fans excited about her new music.
After previously sharing the “Thot Sh*t” single art and cryptically pointing to the comeback of her alter rap ego Tina Snow, Megan returned Tuesday to tease the single with a bootylicious photo set. “3 MORE DAYS UNTIL #THOTSHITDROPS,” she wrote alongside pictures of her in a revealing nurse costume.
Though “Thot Sh*t” marks the rapper’s official return, Megan was still making moves while she was taking some time away from social media. The rapper was recently nominated for seven 2021 BET Awards, tying with DaBaby for the artist with the most nods this year. She’s also been announced as the headliner for several major summer festivals like Bottlerock, Bonnaroo, Governors Ball, and New Orleans’ Buku Festival.
Megan Thee Stallion is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
Various reports from this year have made it seem like Kanye West are Kim Kardashian are getting divorced after months and months of rumors about struggles in their relationship. It’s important to note, though, that neither West nor Kardashian have publicly confirmed the split. Whatever the case may be, it appears there’s still love between the two, as Kardashian took some time out of her day today to share a message for West on his 44th birthday.
On Instagram this afternoon, Kardashian shared a photo of herself, West, and their three children, and captioned it, “Happy Birthday. Love U for Life!” She also shared three more West photos on her Instagram Story: One of West in 1987, one of herself and West, and one of her and West with their kids.
Meanwhile, Khloé Kardashian also did a birthday post about West, sharing a photo of herself with Kim, West, and Tristan Thompson. She wrote, “Happy birthday to my brother for life!!! Have the best birthday Ye! Sending you love and endless blessings!!”
This comes shortly after a new episode of Keeping Up With The Kardashians on which Kardashian tearfully said, “I honestly can’t do this anymore. […] I think he deserves someone that can go support his every move, and go follow him all over the place, and move to Wyoming. I can’t do that. He should have a wife that supports his every move and travels with him and does everything, and I can’t. I feel like a f*cking failure, that it’s like, a third f*cking marriage. Yeah, I feel like a f*cking loser.”
Each year, an estimated 1.8 million people in the United States are affected by cancer — most commonly cancers of the breast, lung, prostate, and blood cancers such as leukemia. While not everyone overcomes the disease, thanks to science, more people are surviving — and for longer — than ever before in history.
We asked three people whose lives have been impacted by cancer to share their stories – how their lives were changed by the disease, and how they’re using that experience to change the future of cancer treatments with the hope that ultimately, in the fight against cancer, science will win. Here’s what they had to say.
Celine Ryan, 55, engineer database programmer and mother of five from Detroit, MI
Photo courtesy of Celine Ryan
In September 2013, Celine Ryan woke up from a colonoscopy to some traumatic news. Her gastroenterologist showed her a picture of the cancerous mass they found during the procedure.
Ryan and her husband, Patrick, had scheduled a colonoscopy after discovering some unusual bleeding, so the suspicion she could have cancer was already there. Neither of them, however, were quite prepared for the results to be positive — or for the treatment to begin so soon. Just two days after learning the news, Ryan had surgery to remove the tumor, part of her bladder, and 17 cancerous lymph nodes. Chemotherapy and radiation soon followed.
Ryan’s treatment was rigorous – but in December 2014, she got the devastating news that the cancer, once confined to her colon, had spread to her lungs. Her prognosis, they said, was likely terminal.
But rather than give up hope, Ryan sought support from online research, fellow cancer patients and survivors, and her medical team. When she brought up immunotherapy to her oncologist, he quickly agreed it was the best course of action. Ryan’s cancer, like a majority of colon and pancreatic cancers, had been caused by a defect on the gene KRAS, which can result in a very aggressive cancer that is virtually “undruggable.” According to the medical literature, the relatively smooth protein structure of the KRAS gene meant that designing inhibitors to bind to surface grooves and treat the cancer has been historically difficult. Through her support systems, Ryan discovered an experimental immunotherapy trial at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in Bethesda, MD., and called them immediately to see if she was eligible. After months of trying to determine whether she was a suitable candidate for the experimental treatment, Ryan was finally accepted.
The treatment, known as tumor-infiltrating lymphocyte therapy, or TIL, is a testament to how far modern science has evolved. With this therapy, doctors remove a tumor and harvest special immune cells that are found naturally in the tumor. Doctors then grow the cells in a lab over the next several weeks with a protein that promotes rapid TIL growth – and once the cells number into the billions, they are infused back into the patient’s body to fight the cancer. On April 1, 2015, Ryan had her tumor removed at the NIH. Two months later, she went inpatient for four weeks to have the team “wash out” her immune system with chemotherapy and infuse the cells – all 148 billion of them – back into her body.
Six weeks after the infusion, Ryan and Patrick went back for a follow-up appointment – and the news they got was stunning: Not only had no new tumors developed, but the six existing tumors in her lungs had shrunk significantly. Less than a year after her cell infusion, in April 2016, the doctors told Ryan news that would have been impossible just a decade earlier: Thanks to the cell infusion, Ryan was now considered NED – no evaluable disease. Her body was cancer-free.
Ryan is still NED today and continuing annual follow-up appointments at the NIH, experiencing things she never dreamed she’d be able to live to see, such as her children’s high school and college graduations. She’s also donating her blood and cells to the NIH to help them research other potential cancer treatments. “It was an honor to do so,” Ryan said of her experience. “I’m just thrilled, and I hope my experience can help a lot more people.”
Patrice Lee, PhD, VP of Pharmacology, Toxicology and Exploratory Development at Pfizer
Photo courtesy of Patrice Lee
Patrice Lee got into scientific research in an unconventional way – through the late ocean explorer Jacques Cousteau.
Lee never met Cousteau but her dreams of working with him one day led her to pursue a career in science. Initially, Lee completed an undergraduate degree in marine biology; eventually, her interests changed and she decided to get a dual doctoral degree in physiology and toxicology at Duke University. She now works at Pfizer’s R&D site in Boulder, CO (formerly Array BioPharma), leading a group of scientists who determine the safety and efficacy of new oncology drugs.
“Scientists focused on drug discovery and development in the pharmaceutical industry are deeply committed to inventing new therapies to meet unmet needs,” Lee says, describing her field of work. “We’re driven to achieve new medicines and vaccines as quickly as possible without sacrificing safety.”
Among the drugs Lee has helped develop during her career, including cancer therapies, she says around a dozen are currently in development, while nine have received FDA approval — an incredible accomplishment as many scientists spend their careers without seeing their drug make it to market. Lee’s team is particularly interested in therapies for brain metastases — something that Lee says is a largely unmet need in cancer research, and something her team is working on from a variety of angles. “Now that we’ve had rapid success with mRNA vaccine technology, we hope to explore what the future holds when applying this technology to cancers,” Lee says.
But while evaluating potential cancer therapies is a professional passion of Lee’s, it’s also a mission that’s deeply personal. “I’m also a breast cancer survivor,” she says. “So I’ve been on the other side of things and have participated in a clinical trial.”
However, seeing how melanoma therapies that she helped develop have affected other real-life cancer patients, she says, has been a highlight of her career. “We had one therapy that was approved for patients with BRAF-mutant metastatic melanoma,” Lee recalls. “Our team in Boulder was graced by a visit from a patient that had benefited from these drugs that we developed. It was a very special moment for the entire team.”
None of these therapies would be available, Lee says without rigorous science behind it: “Facts come from good science. Facts will drive the development of new drugs, and that’s what will help patients.”
Chiuying “Cynthia” Kuk (they/them) MS, 34, third-year medical student at Michigan State University College of Human Medicine
Photo courtesy of Cynthia Kuk
Cynthia Kuk was just 10 years old when they had a conversation that would change their life forever.
“My mother, who worked as a translator for the government at the time, had been diagnosed with breast cancer, and after her chemotherapy treatments she would get really sick,” Kuk, who uses they/them pronouns, recalls. “When I asked my dad why mom was puking so much, he said it was because of the medicine she was taking that would help her get better.”
Kuk’s response was immediate: “That’s so stupid! Why would a medicine make you feel worse instead of better? When I’m older, I want to create medicine that won’t make people sick like that.”
Nine years later, Kuk traveled from their native Hong Kong to the United States to do exactly that. Kuk enrolled in a small, liberal arts college for their Bachelor’s degree, and then four years later started a PhD program in cancer research. Although Kuk’s mother was in remission from her cancer at the time, Kuk’s goal was the same as it had been as a 10-year-old watching her suffer through chemotherapy: to design a better cancer treatment, and change the landscape of cancer research forever.
Since then, Kuk’s mission has changed slightly.
“My mom’s cancer relapsed in 2008, and she ended up passing away about five years after that,” Kuk says. “After my mom died, I started having this sense of urgency. Cancer research is such that you work for twenty years, and at the end of it you might have a fancy medication that could help people, but I wanted to help people now.” With their mother still at the forefront of their mind, Kuk decided to quit their PhD program and enter medical school.
Now, Kuk plans to pursue a career in emergency medicine – not only because they are drawn to the excitement of the emergency room, but because the ER is a place where the most marginalized people tend to seek care.
“I have a special interest in the LGBTQ+ population, as I identify as queer and nonbinary,” says Kuk. “A lot of people in this community and other marginalized communities access care through the ER and also tend to avoid medical care since there is a history of mistreatment and judgement from healthcare workers. How you carry yourself as a doctor, your compassion, that can make a huge difference in someone’s care.”
In addition to making a difference in the lives of LGBTQ+ patients, Kuk wants to make a difference in the lives of patients with cancer as well, like her mother had.
“We’ve diagnosed patients in the Emergency Department with cancer before,” Kuk says. “I can’t make cancer good news but how you deliver bad news and the compassion you show could make a world of difference to that patient and their family.”
During her training, Kuk advocates for patients by delivering compassionate and inclusive care, whether they happen to have cancer or not. In addition to emphasizing her patient’s pronouns and chosen names, she asks for inclusive social and sexual histories as well as using gender neutral language. In doing this, they hope to make medicine as a whole more accessible for people who have been historically pushed aside.
“I’m just one person, and I can’t force everyone to respect you, if you’re marginalized,” Kuk says. “But I do want to push for a culture where people appreciate others who are different from them.”
Welcome to the internet, where all anyone can talk about is Bo Burnham: Inside. Filmed in quarantine, the special “exists at the cross-section of comedy, anger, and stir craziness while wrapping moments of pathos and eviscerating social commentary with colorful kaleidoscopic projections and musical vivacity,” as our own Jason Tabrys wrote in his glowing review. In other words, it’s very good. Also, there’s a song about every white woman’s Instagram with the lyric, “Some random quote from Lord of the Rings / Incorrectly attributed to Martin Luther King / Is this heaven?” Like I said, very good.
Inside is also being released as an album, which is excellent news for everyone who’s had “How the World Works” stuck in their head for the last two weeks (justice for Socko). “inside (the songs) is out as an album on thursday. sorry for the delay,” Burnham tweeted along with a link to the album, which will be available on Spotify, Apple Music, and Tidal.
Netflix hasn’t revealed how many subscribers have watched Bo Burnham: Inside since it came out, but the official “Welcome to the Internet” video has 4.3 million views on Netflix’s YouTube channel and Google searches for the word “derealization,” which Burnham mentions in the special, have spiked this month. Thank you for the content, Bo.
inside (the songs) is out as an album on thursday. sorry for the delay. https://t.co/Gy4yCI3vM9
Streaming burnout is real, and it’s probably the reason why you’re missing out on some great comedy shows over on Peacock.
We know there are too many platforms for one person to keep track of, and too much TV to catalog on each one. The good news is, we’ve done that job for you, sifting through the funniest, most imaginative, freshest comedy offerings on one of the more promising newcomers to the streaming game to find the hidden gems worth subscribing for. Come for iconic workplace comedies like The Office and Parks and Rec, stay for the musical humor of Girls5Eva, the sketch comedy of SNL, and two former Great British Bakeoff hosts playing killers for hire.
Tina Fey produced shows have a certain identifiable rhythm, and Girls5Eva is no different, blending silly asides and rapid-fire jokes of all shapes and sizes with an impeccable cast. Here, Busy Phillips, Paula Pell, Sara Bareilles, and Renée Elise Goldsberry star as the members of a splintered one-hit-wonder pop group that get pulled back out of obscurity before embarking on an ill-advised comeback. A nostalgia-fest for the TRL generation, Girls5Eva stands out as a hilarious look at female friendship. It’s also a catapult for Goldsberry, the Hamilton and Broadway actress with a long on-screen resume who plays the group’s most image-conscious and driven member. Absurd, theatrical, fabulous — here’s hoping Goldsberry becomes a Fey-verse staple.
Retronauts on the lookout for a clean hit of nostalgia may be surprised to find a different kind of Bayside that’s a little more self-aware of the beloved cheesiness of the original. Strong performances from members of the original class will still manage to delight, but it’s the kids that absolutely propel this reboot. Specifically, Josie Totah, who is divine as a fashion-forward trans teen who delivers some of the show’s most fiercely funny lines and has the most compelling arc.
Congratulations! You made it to Peacock’s streaming platform, and you probably trekked across the internet because of this show. The pinnacle of the workplace mockumentary genre, The Office has attained the kind of meme-generating, character quoting pop culture phenomenon status so many other comedies are still striving to attain. That’s mostly because of its ridiculously talented cast – everyone from Steve Carell to John Krasinski, Mindy Kaling, and Rainn Wilson cut their teeth here – but it’s also thanks to the relatable, off-beat humor that naturally arises when you follow a group of apathetic paper-pushers working under a well-intentioned buffoon.
There are a lot of unfair comparisons between Greg Daniels’ workplace mockumentary and the office-based sitcom of his protégé, Mike Schur. Though the basic premise is the same – here’s a group of weirdos working together, let’s see what shenanigans they get into! – the stakes feel a bit higher, especially post-Season 1 when it comes into its own. Amy Poehler’s Leslie Knope is the relentlessly optimistic heroine trying to get her crew (and us at home) to believe in the power of local politics over the course of seven seasons. When she’s not doing that, she’s managing a team of eccentric slackers played by actors and actresses who have gone on to lead superhero franchises (or play villains in them) and their own Netflix comedy series.
It isn’t quite a revisitation of the heartfelt small-town quirk that was Parks And Rec or a scathing satire of controversies around problematic statues across America. What it is is a clever story about identity and finding who we want to be. Eventually. The show stars Ed Helms as an over-loyal steward of his family’s legacy in a small town and Jana Schmieding as his best friend and a historian trying to promote education about her people, the Minishonka Nation. Rutherford Falls is at its best near the end of the season when those two characters’ goals come into conflict and Helms’ character is hit with a big revelation that shows immense promise for an even better second season.
Wow, NBC really had a thing for workplace comedies in the early ’00s, huh? And look, yes, this is another office satire about a group of oddballs all working together – this time, behind the scenes of a fictional live comedy sketch series. But what 30 Rock became known for, besides Tina Fey’s invention of something called “Night Cheese,” was its surreal humor and its jarring cutaways that always perfectly set up the punchlines of its many, many jokes.
What’s the best era of SNL? It’s the most subjective, personal preference/experience-driven question in entertainment and one not helped by the show’s oft-shifting and incomplete presence on streaming, from its Netflix days to clips on Yahoo Screen. Factor in heavily edited eps on Comedy Central and E! back in the day that focused on more popular eras, and it’s really hard to be an SNL completist and judge the whole field. To say nothing of the fact that it would take something like 1,000 hours to watch every episode. But at least now, via Peacock, one could make real headway in that effort if they so choose.
Yes, some episodes are cut down some owing to music rights issues and the like. But if you want to watch Charles Grodin pretend to be completely oblivious to the nature of the show (in one of the more bonkers episodes in SNL history) while pissing off John Belushi, check out Phil Hartman’s unfrozen caveman lawyer, or re-live the greatness of the Bill Hader/Kristen Wiig/Andy Samberg era, you can do that. You can even check out the early ‘80s non-Lorne Michaels produced episodes where Eddie Murphy first flashed his megawatt talents and the soft reboot that happened when Billy Crystal, Christopher Guest, and Martin Short were recruited for one season before Lorne returned. It really is a comedy nerd treasure trove.
A throwback to buddy action comedies of the ‘80s like Simon & Simon (with a lot more comedy than action), Psych built its foundation on the chemistry of its leads, James Roday Rodriguez (as Shawn, a meddlesome scammer with genius-level crime-solving skills masquerading as a psychic detective) and Dule Hill (as Gus, his good-hearted best friend, partner, and possessor of the super sniffer). The result is an eminently rewatchable dramedy with plenty of twists, nicknames (MC Clap Your Hands), pop culture references, and entertaining guest stars who get in on the fun. Rarely self serious, despite the subject matter, Psych endures 7 years after its run ended thanks to a passionate fan army that have helped will two TV movies (with a third on the way) into being. And they’re taking new recruits all the time.
Before Hulu gave us a family of animated aliens trying to assimilate to life on Earth, this ’90s series did it, except, instead of cartoonish extraterrestrials, the otherworldly beings in this sitcom looked very much human. That’s part of the joke really. John Lithgow, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, and Jane Curtin star in this quirky comedy about a group of aliens instructed to pose as a human family and report back on how life works on the third planet from the sun. Lithgow plays a pretentious university professor, Joseph Gordon-Levitt plays an ancient being stuck in a teenager’s body, and French Stewart steals the show as Harry – the group’s de facto antenna to their mother ship.
Justin Spitzer churns out sitcom gold on the regular, so it shouldn’t be a surprise that his latest workplace comedy — a look at the hilarious happenings of a big box department store in the Midwest — is a hit. The show stars America Ferrera, Ben Feldman, Lauren Ash, and Mark McKinney among others, and mostly centers on workers at a Cloud 9 store whose lives intersect in ridiculously funny ways. It’s got a lot of heart, plenty of humor, and surprisingly, a knack for tackling some serious issues.
This Fox transplant was originally billed as a showcase for SNL alumni Andy Samberg. Don’t get us wrong, he’s terrific in it as Jake Peralta, an over-eager immature star detective who comes across as a cocky, charming idiot. But so is the rest of the cast – from Stephanie Beatriz to Terry Crews, Chelsea Peretti, Melissa Fumero, and (obviously) Andre Braugher, everyone’s on their comedic A-game which means you can land on any episode during a re-watch and have a hell of a good time.
Seinfeld has always worn the “Show About Nothing” sash across its chest, but the distinction forgets the many brilliant sitcoms that have mined minutiae for laughs, fixating its likable characters on petty grievances, challenges, and familiar situations. On their own, no one from Cheers cast could probably hold your interest (save, apparently, for Frasier, though he wasn’t tasked with doing that on his own). They lacked dimension and often charm. What is Sam flying solo, sadly bedding every woman in his orbit? Dianne moving through life thinking she’s superior to everyone. Woody being too dim to light a dark room, Cliff being so annoying you’d probably strike him to evade his faux intellect, and Norm just… sitting there. But by interacting with each other as a part of the larger idea of Cheers, the whole thing becomes this masterful puzzle. A comfortable thing filled with enough silliness to cover over the pathos of people wasting their life away in a bar. Because at least they’ve got each other and all the laughs. A show about nothings that sometimes leads to something.
There is nothing revolutionary about Everybody Loves Raymond — a sitcom about a suburban dad beset by his extended family — save for the way it spun tropes into gold for 9 seasons. Launched at a time when networks were throwing contracts at every noteworthy comic under the sun while questing to find the next Seinfeld, Ray Romano smartly stayed grounded with his idea, pulling from his own life and stand-up routine as opposed to building out some fake scenario. He also surrounded himself with an amazing supporting cast — Peter Boyle! Doris Roberts! Patricia Heaton! Brad Garrett! Like Seinfeld, Romano also had no fear in playing straight man or simply standing in the corner while others got big laughs during the show’s endless and loud family squabbles. Though the show spawned plenty of imitators (seriously, it’s up there with Friends for the amount of bad TV its existence inspired from lazy copycats), it still stands out as a clever dive into the chaos of family that always has the potential to inspire a big laugh.
Who knew the world needed a dark comedy about a couple of hitmen played by former Great British Bakeoff hosts Mel Giedroyc and Sue Perkins? Peacock, that’s who. The longtime comedy partners pair up to play Fran (Perkins) and Jamie (Giedroyc), best friends and contract killers. The comedy comes thanks to their droll back-and-forth, the chatty, oblivious nature of Fran juxtaposed against Jamie’s more nihilistic attitude – oh, and the fact that most of their mishaps involve some kind of bizarre interaction with their intended victims.
Another sitcom that makes use of the fake documentary format, this long-running comedy behemoth eschews the office in favor of taking a closer look at the generational relationships of one L.A.-dwelling blended brood. There’s a packed cast – Julie Bowen, Ty Burell, Sofia Vergara, Ed O’Neill, Jesse Tyler Ferguson, and Eric Stonestreet – and the storylines manage to be hilarious and inclusive, giving fans an authentic picture of, well, modern family life. No wonder this thing won so many Emmys.
As many shows do, A.P. Bio has found its level over time, softening some as Glen Howerton’s revenge-focused user of people has found more affection for the teachers and students at the high school in Toledo where he works during his exile following his exit from Harvard. They’ve also found better stories for Patton Oswalt, often pairing him with Paula Pell and giving him a bit more agency than when he was more singularly focused on winning the approval of Howerton’s character. Also, it has to be said, that the kids on this show have proven to be a quirky and talented bunch that hold their own opposite the aforementioned comedy All-Stars, giving the show a fuller feeling than it had in season one. And with more on the way and only 34 episodes in the can, this is the perfect comedy to get in on.
It would be fair to say that no one expected Frasier to challenge Cheers, the show it spun off from when it came time to discuss the greatest sitcoms of all time. After all, the previous attempt at a Cheers spinoff, The Tortellis, had been a quick failure. But Frasier’s legacy and critical acclaim is at the level of its host. Why? For one, it would be easy to forget that it’s a spinoff. Save for a handful of guest spots, characters from Cheers never made their way to Seattle. And in fleshing out Frasier Crane outside of a bar stool, audiences were treated to a smartly written, hilarious, and antagonistic relationship between Frasier and his father, Martin, as they uncomfortably cohabitated and dealt with their very different personalities and interests. Add Frasier’s brother, Niles, into the mix and the formula was clear. Never mind suds-fueled shenanigans centered around the ultimate Peter Pan in Sam Malone. Audiences were ready for the war at home and for Frasier to move through life constantly annoyed and full of himself.
We still haven’t seen the full breadth of what The Amber Ruffin Show can be due to COVID restrictions, but what we have seen has been imbued with energy, wit, and plenty of musical numbers. No surprise considering Ruffin’s amazing contributions to Late Night with Seth Meyers as a writer and oft on-screen performer. What will the show become as restrictions lessen? We are 100% here for whatever Ruffin has planned.
Nick Mohammed is one of the most likable characters on another British comedy series not found here, which is reason enough to check out this sitcom he created that blends the spy genre with the office hijinks Peacock is most known for. Mohammed plays Joseph, a bumbling tech guy working for the U.K.’s Cyber Security unit who meets his idol, a brash, overconfident NSA Agent named Jerry (David Schwimmer) on loan from across the pond. Both men have undeniable chemistry and Schwimmer’s jerkish bravado is clearly meant to be the punchline here – but it’s Mohammed that gives this thing heart.
If you were a ’90s kid, you likely grew up on this wild, hard-partying comedy series that, looking back now, really feels like the black sheep of the early aughts family sitcom era. The show follows an Irish-American Catholic family living in Staten Island with Donal Logue and Megyn Price playing parents Sean and Claudia Finnerty and trying to manage their three (later four) unruly children. Because they had their oldest so young, most of the comedy happens when Sean and Claudia try too hard to hold onto their youth – raging and having run-ins with the law that rival the mischief their kids often get into.
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