Month: September 2021

As it turns out, underdog stories can have cats as the main character.

Purrington Cat Lounge, where “adoptable cats roam freely and await your visit” and patrons can pay a small entry fee for the chance to sip coffee alongside feline friends, boasted legendary adoption rates since its conception in January 2015.

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However, despite its popularity, the cafe was expected to close in November of 2018 when the previous owners moved out of state. New owners Helen Harris and Garrett Simpson stepped in to take the meowntal (did someone order a cat pun?), and the innovative life-slash-business partner duo had big plans for the cafe’s second life.

Harris and Simpson, cat people from the start, discussed owning a place like Purrington’s since their early 20s. “We had a pipe dream about owning a bar with a cat component,” Harris said. So when Simpson, who had been volunteering at Cat Adoption Team (CAT for short), heard about the purchase opportunity at Purrington’s, it must have felt like a kismet moment. “It still doesn’t seem real,” said Simpson, “this fell into our lap.” Fated or not, the kitty-loving couple partnered up with CAT, who sources adoptable cats from around the country, and began putting in the work to make this dream come true.

Harris and Simpson put extraordinary amounts of thought, as well as a wide network of creative friends, into Purrington’s reincarnation. The new wood bordered windows alone – which allow allergic guests to still be part of the fun- revolutionized Purrington’s into an even better space to frolic with felines.

Combine the remodel with an upgraded seasonal menu and stellar beer and wine selection (did I mention that Simpson has a culinary background?), and Purrington’s immediately offered way more than the usual kitschy cat cafe.

Despite Harris and Simpson’s efforts, however, the cafe still faced challenges. One being COVID compliance, no easy task in a cozy cafe that can easily overcrowd. The second being none other than a cat burglar!

“Of course the cats were our first concern,” Simpson said. “But it didn’t appear that anyone even went into the cat lounge. My heart was racing and I went in there to do a headcount. Meatball and Hamburger ran up excitedly because they thought they were being fed early.”

If this photo is any indicator, it seems Hamburger (or is it Meatball?) is recovering just fine.

And yet, despite these difficulties, “we had a successful reopening,” Simpson says. Successful in this case meaning a sold out sign on opening day, as every cat found its forever home. And since then, Purrington’s has adopted out more than 80 cats. It’s a trend that doesn’t seem to be stopping anytime soon.

Clearly, this is the tale of a little cat cafe that could.

Sportswriter and podcaster Spencer Hall shared a 1994 photo of the Eagles on Twitter Wednesday and it made anyone who lived through the ’90s cringe. “Try to find a worse-dressed band than the 1994 edition of the Eagles, it’s not possible,” he captioned the photo.

The photo looks like the epitome of 1994 mall fashion. It reeks of “Melrose Place,” The Gap, and Anchor Bay. What’s worse is that it appears as though the 40-somethings in the photo are trying to look like a hip, flannel-wearing grunge band of the time, minus the edge.

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try to find a worse-dressed band than the 1994 edition of the Eagles, it’s not possible https://t.co/WdsbPJ89G5

— BUM CHILLUPS AKA SPENCER HALL (@edsbs)
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The thing about flannel in 1994 is that you had to buy it used at the Goodwill to show your solidarity with working-class people of the Pacific Northwest. This look is just too off-the-rack to give Glenn Frey and friends any credibility.

Who thought it was a good idea for Frey to rock a leather jacket on top of an open-faced denim shirt? Or for Don Henley to actually wear a henley?

The tweet sparked off a great photo challenge where people posted shots of bands from the past six decades to compete against the Eagles’ uninspired fashion.

The biggest competitor for the Eagles’ crown was Rush who had an ill-suited Kimono phase in the ’70s.

Rush themselves have disavowed the garments that they wore on the back of the 2112 album. Good for them. I wish the Eagles would show a similar display of humility by condemning their fashion crime against humanity.

Unfortunately, some photos last forever …Doh! #rush2112… https://t.co/uDrrhyx9Tr

— Rush (@rushtheband)
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Eagles weren’t the only band with a bad look in the ’90s. Color Me Badd, the folks behind the boot-knocking jam of the decade “I Wanna Sex You Up,” had some real fashion challenges, too. The band looked like impersonators from other bands. One guy looks like a fake Kenny G. Another guy looks like a George Michael impersonator. Mili or Vanili is in there somewhere. The dude in the overalls looks like he could be in New Kids.

All-4-One had similar fashion challenges but at least they were their own men. Nothing says 1993 like the flannel-hoodie combo jacket.

A few years later, another boy band went all-in on the long jacket craze and the look hasn’t aged well.

The “Gish”-era Smashing Pumpkins should have been called Rayon Catastrophe.

The Grateful Dead lost their sense of style when Pigpen passed away in 1973. But Bobby Weir really took the band to a new low in the ’80s when he started rocking Daisy Dukes on stage.

The hair metal scene in the ’80s spawned a million bad looks. But Stryper with their bumble-bee-colored spandex is so terrible it’s physically disorienting.

Chicago in the ’80s provided divorced dads with a lot of fashion options.

The good ol’ boys from Kansas took a turn for the dark in early the 2000s. They look less like a country band and more like a hangman and his recently-assembled posse.

The most recent incarnation of the Brian Wilson-less Beach Boys looks like a group of aging “hip” pastors at a megachurch in Orange County, California.

I’ve never heard of East 17, a ’90s UK boy band. But they look like that cast of a 1997 Baz Luhrmann soft reboot of “A Clockwork Orange.”

Bad looks didn’t just happen in the past. Imagine Dragons are here to show you that bad band fashion can happen without the benefit of hindsight.

Maybe the Eagle’s fashion sense was just a reflection of their middle-of-the-road musical taste as well?

The subject of police brutality has been part of public discourse for years, and since the Black Lives Matter movement gained momentum after the murder of George Floyd, it’s been under a particularly bright spotlight. But even with ample examples we can point to, sometimes a story still manages to stun with its horrifying blatancy. This is one of those times.

The city of Philadelphia agreed to pay $2 million to a young Black mother after police officers smashed the windows… https://t.co/dSG3BT29Sq

— The New York Times (@nytimes)
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The headline here is that the city of Philadephia was just ordered to pay a Black mother $2 million in damages for the beating she endured and trauma she and her 2-year-old experienced at the hands of the Philadelphia police in October of 2020. But there’s so much more to the story than that.

Here’s the background:

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According to NBC10 Philadelphia, nursing aide Rickia Young was driving home in the early morning hours of Oct. 27, 2020, after picking up her 16-year-old nephew in West Philadelphia, when she unintentionally drove into a protest over the police killing of Walter Wallace, Jr. (Wallace was shot and killed by police after his family called 911 because he was having a mental health episode and they wanted him to get medical help.)

The police ordered Young to turn back, but as she started to do a 3-point turn, police swarmed her car and smashed her windows out with batons. According to Young’s attorney, police pulled Young and her nephew from the car and struck them. Then police pulled Young’s 2-year-old from the car and took him away, telling her they were taking him “to a better place.”

Young was bleeding and had swelling on her face, body, and trachea. She was able to call her mother, who went to find the 2-year-old. She eventually found him in the back of a police car four miles away, without his hearing aids and with glass shards in his carseat.

So we can agree that’s all bad, right? Well, here’s where it goes even farther south.

Two days after the incident, the National Fraternal Order of Police—the largest police union in the U.S.—shared a photo of one of the police officers at the scene, holding Young’s son, with the following text:

“This child was lost during the violent riots in Philadelphia, wandering around barefoot in an area that was experiencing complete lawlessness. The only thing this Philadelphia Police Officer cared about in that moment was protecting this child.

We are not your enemy. We are the Thin Blue Line. And WE ARE the only thing standing between Order and Anarchy.”

What the police union posted to their social media: https://t.co/YgLWUGs2tk

— Laurie Voss (@seldo)
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The irony would be hilarious if it weren’t so horrifying.

The post was taken down within a day, but not before it had been shared widely. The following day, the police union wrote that the union “learned of conflicting accounts of the circumstances under which the child came to be assisted by the officer and immediately took the photo and caption down.”

No apology. No mention of what had really occurred. No acknowledgment of the trauma that boy had endured watching the police smash the windows of his car before beating his mother in front of him.

According to NBC10, Philadelphia Police Commissioner Danielle Outlaw said that she and the law enforcement community “demand that officers exhibit the utmost professionalism, decorum, and poise while interacting with members of the public.” Two officers were ultimately fired over the incident, and 14 additional officers faced disciplinary hearings.

“The behavior that occurred during the interaction between Rickia Young, her nephew, her son, and some of the officers on the scene violated the mission of the Philadelphia Police Department,” Outlaw said in a statement. “As a matter of fact, the ability for officers and supervisors on the scene to diffuse the situation was abandoned, and instead of fighting crime and the fear of crime, some of the officers on the scene created an environment that terrorized Rickia Young, her family, and other members of the public.”

Hence, the $2 million payment from the city.

Philadelphia Reaches $2M Settlement With, Rickia Young, Mother Who Was Beaten By Police During Unres

www.youtube.com

The Philadelphia Inquirer shared a detailed account of what occurred that night, and it’s worth a read. Again, the blatancy of the brutality and injustice alone is enough, but to have the photo of Young’s son that night used as pro-police fodder by the nation’s largest police union just added insult to literal injury. And the response from the union was pretty much the definition of “inadequate.”

No one can undo what Young and her son experienced, but the firing of the officers and the payout from the city is at least something resembling accountability.

Lil Nas X continues to be a master promoter in the week leading up to the release of his debut album. In addition to dropping a contractions video paying off the maternity photoshoot he shared a week ago, he’s now playing on the court-themed trailer for his “Industry Baby” video by sharing billboards threatening to sue… himself. The billboards, which popped up in Hollywood, are clear spoofs of similar cheesy billboard ads for real law firms. However, Nas’ billboards inform viewers they may be entitled to financial compensation for such silly reasons as being gay, being single, missing “the real America,” and crucially, hating Lil Nas X.

I’ve called Lil Nas X a masterful troll in the past but it bears repeating: The kid knows exactly how to turn any and all complaints against him into comedy gold, then use that gold to buy the adoration and attention of even more fans — and more complaints, ensuring a never-ending supply of promo fodder. Knowing that his Blackness, gayness, youth, and flamboyance will be used against him, he’s kind of like Eminem’s B. Rabbit in the 8 Mile finale, stocked up with lighthearted, self-deprecating gags that turn the light of scrutiny on his detractors and ensure that the crowd is firmly on his side.

Industry Baby, meanwhile, drops at midnight tonight via Columbia Records. It features appearances from Doja Cat, Elton John, Jack Harlow, Megan Thee Stallion, and Miley Cyrus — but no Black male artists, unfortunately. While some viewed that as intentional on Nas’ part, Kid Cudi called it part of hip-hop’s “homophobic cloud” — one that Nas’s new album hopes to help erase.

Stellum Bourbon is a new bourbon from some of the best blenders in the game. The juice is sourced by Joe Beatrice and the team behind the much-lauded and beloved Barrell Craft Spirit whiskeys. We’re big fans of Barrell’s drops around these parts, so when we found out that the same folks were releasing an accessible standard to compete with mainstream bottles, we were pretty excited.

What’s interesting about this release is that it’s meant to be a bottle you reach for every day. Whereas the rest of Barrell’s drops are special one-offs that you cherish (until they’re empty), this is more of a workhorse for sipping, mixing, and enjoying. So that’s how we’re judging it. We’re not going to think about this in relation to some limited-edition rarity but the whiskey you get for your everyday pours.

Let’s get into it! Click on the price to try this one yourself.

Also Read: The Top 5 UPROXX Bourbon Posts Of 2021

• The Best Bottles Of Bourbon Whiskey For Under $20, Ranked
• Our Favorite Bourbon Whiskey From Every Price Point Between $10-$200
• All 19 Brands From The Buffalo Trace Distillery, Ranked
• Here’s Who Won Our Big Barrel Proof Bourbon Whiskey Blind Taste Test
• The Best Bourbon Whiskeys To Drink Neat, From $50 On Up

Stellum Bourbon

ABV: 57.49%

Average Price: $55

The Whiskey:

Stellum Bourbon is the new kid on the block. The juice in that bottle is a cask-strength blend of whiskeys from Indiana, Kentucky, and Tennessee. This whiskey is all about the blending process that Stellum employs to make this special and award-winning juice. Basically, the process is a sort of hybrid reverse solera technique where the blend gets more juice to keep the proof high and the blend consistent in flavor as the batch is drained off. It’s a delicate balance of mixing great whiskeys to make something better than the individual parts.

Tasting Notes:

The nose is a holiday cake with fatty nuts next to woody spice barks — think anise, clove, and cinnamon — with a nice dose of dried red fruits and honey-dipped over-ripe Granny Smith apples. The palate edges away from the spice towards a powdered sugar sweetness with a hint of dry vanilla. Then a counterpoint bursts onto the scene with a hit of spicy, dried chili pepper flakes next to blackberry pie with a nice dose of cinnamon and nutmeg. The end lingers for just the right amount of time as the spice fades back towards the honeyed sweetness and a final touch of vanilla tobacco buzz lands in the back of the throat.

The Bottle:

The bottle grabs your attention immediately by having a super low-key design in a classic wine bottle. This really is elegant, with a label that doesn’t overwhelm (at all) with too much information. Instead, you have a subtle and sleek bottle for your bar cart.

Bottom Line:

This is an excellent workhorse whiskey. The flavors are deep and rich enough to drink that as a sipper on the rocks. But, wow, this makes a hell of a Manhattan and highball.

Ranking:

92/100 — For a workhorse whiskey, this is stellar. I kind of forget that this is meant to be mixed and played with and just end up drinking it on the rocks as a sipper. When taken in the context of being an “everyday pour,” I really can’t find too many faults.

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As a Drizly affiliate, Uproxx may receive commission pursuant to some entries on this list.

While Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings premiered nearly two weeks ago in the United States, there’s still been no word on when — or if — the film will hit Chinese theaters. In fact, it’s beginning to feel more and more likely that Marvel’s first Asian superhero film — and its star, Simu Liu — could be banned in the country for “perceived insults.”

According to a Variety report, “jingoistic social media users” have unearthed content featuring actor Simu Liu that they claim “insults China,” and could put the future of the film in jeopardy due to the nation’s current political climate. Among the alleged content shared in an attempt to condemn Liu is a GQ video about Liu’s favorite Asian snacks, in which he praises “a lemon tea drink made by Hong Kong beverage firm Vitasoy,” a company many Chinese citizens recently called to boycott for being “anti-Chinese.” Considering how much Disney has actively courted for Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings to be released in China, the world’s largest film market, a ban would be a massive blow for the company and could hurt Simu Liu’s chances at being cast in future films in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Interestingly enough, however, according to Variety several Chinese viewers who managed to the film abroad who have deemed it “unexpectedly good.” After hearing about the potential ban, one viewer stated, “I didn’t see any insulting of China — I saw kissing up to China,” while another said “Shang-Chi‘s take on Chinese elements is so much better than that of Mulan. Although the Chinese accents of the American-born Chinese and Hong Kong stars was a bit hard to get through, they were done with sincerity.”

So far, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings has grossed over $146 million in North America since its release on September 3 and seems likely to become the first release to cross the $200 million mark since the start of the pandemic last March. Fingers crossed China will get the chance to see the film here soon and help make those numbers even higher.

Last year, in the middle of what we thought were the darkest times of the COVID-19 pandemic, after endless months of cooking at home, my husband and I decided to venture out of our cocoon and get “slutified.” That’s what people are called after a visit to one of Atlanta’s hottest burger joints, provocatively named, Slutty Vegan.

Owned by 33-year-old fuchsia-loc’d maven and philanthropist Aisha “Pinky” Cole, Slutty Vegan has three locations in the ATL, with more in the works. Her menu reads more like a list of offerings at a bordello than a restaurant, with the “Ménage à Trois,” “One Night Stand,” and the “Super Slut,” and the atmosphere is more like a night club. But, it’s not just the cheeky burger names or the concept of plant-based fast food that has customers literally wrapped around the block at all of her locations, it’s the vibe she’s created. Slutty Vegan is more than a restaurant. It’s a culture. And Cole is at the center of it, building a community based on supporting Black entrepreneurs, getting involved in politics, giving back, and being thoughtful about what you put into your body.

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Upworthy spoke with Cole as she was hanging out at home with her one-month-old daughter, D. Ella. Now worth seven figures, the restauranteur talked about her recent honor by PETA, growing up the daughter of a Jamaican Rastafarian mother, owning a jerk chicken restaurant in Harlem that tragically burned down, the many brands vying to partner with her, and how vitally important it is for her business to be ethically aligned with her beliefs.

Upworthy: Where did the name come from?

Cole: I was a TV producer for 10+ years. The one thing I know how to do well is to make people pay attention. I know that sex sells and the two most pleasurable experiences in life are sex and food. If I could merge those two experiences, and not make it mucky, but sexy and educational, I knew it would be big, especially in the heart of the South. I’m infusing this concept into culture, music and entertainment. I’m showing you how to eat better, even if it starts with burgers, fries, and pies. I needed the name to be so racy, that you’d pay attention. Then I can start dropping the gems on you. And we have been able to bring people together in the name of food. And to help people reimagine food, especially “flexitarians,” — meaning people who are meat-eaters.

Upworthy: How did you feel being honored by PETA as one of their “Most Beautiful Vegans?”

C: I love what PETA represents. They’ve supported and rallied for me since the beginning. To be alongside so many other amazing vegans shows me that I’m in the room. Meaning that I’m alongside people who stand for something. People who are making changes in their communities and it feels good to be connected in that way.

Upworthy: Let’s talk about The Pinky Cole Foundation.

C: I officially started the foundation in 2019. But, it was just a way of formalizing what I’d been doing for years. I was always a steward of people. I saw my mom do it. She helped everybody anytime she could. She’d take the clothes off her back to help people. The foundation is at the crux of who we are. Slutty Vegan is nothing without the philanthropic aspect. I want to bridge the generational wealth gap. I want people to see that a young woman can start a company and it can be beyond money, but help the community and provide group economics and give back. Money doesn’t move me. It’s the ability to utilize my resources to help people.

* Cole has supported 30 Clark Atlanta University students in clearing their balances. When Rayshard Brooks was shot and killed by Atlanta police in a Wendy’s parking lot, Cole provided life insurance for Brooks’ family, a new car, and $600K in scholarships for them to go college. She partnered with TV host Steve Harvey and his wife, Marjorie’s foundation to pay the electric bills for 100 Atlanta residents. She’s donated thousands of pounds of produce and winter coats to local families in need. Cole along with Derrick “D” Hayes, CEO of Big Dave Cheesesteaks, provided life insurance to all Black men in Atlanta who make $30k annually or less, and she partnered with the Department of Juvenile Justice to employ ex-juvenile offenders at Slutty Vegan, and so much more.

Upworthy: How do you encourage and inspire all of your thousands of customers to do something in their own communities?

C: Leading by example. I speak to so many audiences. I speak to women; minorities; children of immigrants; mothers; small business owners; people who come from middle-class families; I speak to so many different people. So, when people come and support Slutty Vegan, they feel like they’re represented. People see the representation through me. As long as I continue to be an example that you can do it. You can come from East Baltimore, or like we say, “around the way,” and be everything you dreamed of. Pinky Cole did it and I can too. That’s the empowerment they see.

Upworthy: What’s your philosophy on being vegan as it relates to health, the environment, the Black community, and neighborhoods with obvious food deserts.

C: I don’t try to push my agenda on anyone. My audience is people who aren’t necessarily vegan. It’s like Christianity and Islam. Believe in what you want to believe in. I can show you the way, but I won’t make you drink the way. My emphasis is on the experience. I want people to feel good. And feeling good is eating good and thinking good. Emotionally, spiritually, and mentally. Food can do that for you. Am I walking around with a sign that says ‘Eat Vegan or Die!’ No. But, what I will say is, let me show you another way.

Upworthy: Did you feel like you had to recreate traditional fast food, but vegan-style to assure you had customers? Particularly in the South?

C: My father has a saying, ‘Success is like mud. You throw something on the wall, something’s gonna stick.’ And this is what stuck. Obviously, I knew that I had to appeal to my audience. I did that by fusing food and culture. Slutty Vegan has grown so fast because so many celebrities have endorsed the brand. We’ve been able to utilize other people’s platforms, especially celebrities, to expand the brand. So, if you see your favorite celebrity eating something or doing something that you love to do, nine times out of ten, you’re going to want to do it. This is me meeting people where they are. Focusing on the entertainment and secondarily the food. We’re in the South, so Southern comfort food is at the center of living here. So, how can I get people to eat vegan food in the heart of the South? Put it in the music. Put it in the entertainment. The things people pay attention to. You’ve got Megan Thee Stallion eating Slutty Vegan, so of course, people who love her want to eat it too. People want to see what all the hype is about.

Upworthy: Have you seen a difference in her customers’ tastes and acceptance of veganism as a concept since opening in 2018?

C: When we started, none of the big chains had options, now all of them do. And I like to say that we have been the inspiration for that — humbly. We were the guinea pigs. We tested the market so they didn’t have to. And that’s the goal, to get more people to eat plant-based. And that’s a win for the plant-based community and for people who want to change their lives and be better.

Upworthy: What do you say when people say being vegan is too pricey for me?

C: It’s pricier. But, you pay for your health. If you choose to eat badly all of your life, you’re going to be paying for medicine. Either pay for your health now or later. Society doesn’t make you think about it that way. I think COVID started to make us think more about our health. This is why Slutty Vegan became even more successful during the pandemic. People wanted to start living better.

Upworthy: What are your tips for becoming a successful entrepreneur?

C: Mess up all the time. I make a lot of conscious mistakes. I make decisions that make sense to me, but sometimes those decisions aren’t the best, but that helps me learn. In my first restaurant, when it caught on fire, I was sick. But, that taught me to make sure my paperwork was right and make sure I had fire insurance. Also, alignment is a big thing in business. I believe you have to ask yourself some questions. Why am I starting this business? Who is it going to support? Who is going to help outside of me? If you have pure intentions you will win. Anything I’ve done, I’ve done it with pure intentions. Which is why I always win. I’m confident about that because I go to sleep at night knowing that I haven’t done anybody wrong and I’ve moved with good intentions and I’ve helped people along the way.

Despite the fact that the Trinidad health minister basically confirmed that, to their knowledge, a man is not running with super huge swollen testicles from the COVID vaccine, Nicki Minaj was still the topic of conversation at a White House press briefing on Thursday. While doing her best to keep a straight face, press secretary Jen Psaki fielded a question about whether or not the White House really did reach out to Minaj following her now infamous tweet about her cousin’s friend’s alleged predicament. (To those just tuning in, Minaj tweeted that the man’s testicles swelled up after getting the vaccine leaving him impotent, which supposedly ruined his pending marriage.)

Amazingly, Psaki confirmed that the White House did in fact reach out to Minaj in the hopes of educating her so she could use her massive Twitter platform more responsibly.

“This is pretty standard and something we do all the time,” Psaki said while doing her best to not smile (too much) during the exchange. “It was simply an offer to have a conversation. Our hope is that anybody who has a big platform is going to project accurate information about the vaccine.”

As for whether the White House really is planning to invite Minaj to the White House to settle this giant testicle beef, Psaki simply said that it was just a “very early stage call,” and the administration is still deliberating whether to even continue the conversation. You might say it’s a real ball-buster.

(Via Aaron Rupar on Twitter)

One of Tom Hanks’ sons, Chet Haze/Hanks, has been ranting about the vaccine (even after his mom and dad caught the virus), so Dad decided to do something to one-up ol’ Chet. Alright, I’m completely making that last part up, but seriously, Tom Hanks is starring in a new Apple TV+ movie called Finch. According to the film’s synopsis (which packs a hell of a wallop), the movie is about “[a] robot that lives on a post-apocalyptic earth which was built to protect the life of his dying creator’s beloved dog.”

If that wasn’t enough of a kick in the heartstrings, consider this description from Amblin Entertainment as they unveiled the poster: “Tom Hanks is Finch, the head of an unlikely family on a journey to rediscover the joy and wonder of what it means to be alive.”

Tom Hanks will be the head-of-household to a dog and a robot in a post-apocalyptic world. Also, Tom Hanks is playing a character named Finch, which probably should be the name of the dog or the robot. What is the dog’s name, exactly? We don’t know. It’s pretty confusing, actually.

Well, people are pretty sure that they’re gonna be crying after watching this movie. Will they watch, though? Almost certainly. Good on Hanx.

And here’s the obligatory Death Stranding jokes.

Finch streams on November 5.

If you were on Music Twitter yesterday, you probably saw — and had opinions on — Rolling Stone‘s 500 Greatest Songs Of All Time list. “For the first time in 17 years, we’ve completely remade our list of the best songs ever,” the veteran publication wrote in a tweet. “More than 250 artists, writers, and industry figures helped us choose a brand-new list full of historic favorites, world-changing anthems, & new classics.”

Anyway, I’m sure the curators of Rolling Stone‘s songs list expected some level of pushback from fans and artists, but I’m EXTRA-sure they did not expect Smash Mouth to come for them. Now, what specifically did Smash Mouth take umbrage with? Well, I’ll tell you. Smash Mouth, arbiters of justice that they are, did not take kindly to the fact that “All Star” — the song that probably still pays their monthly overhead costs 20+ years after being released — did not make it onto the list.

“Is ALL STAR not on this list?????????????????????? Are we missing something???????????????????????” the band wrote to RS on Twitter. And they didn’t leave it there. Smash Mouth got in every single blurb writer’s mentions, asking, “This you?”

Hey now, guys. This may(?) have started as a joke, but let’s not take it to the mentions. Those are sacred.