Month: October 2021

For young rap stars, sometimes learning how to change and grow is the most important part of evolving into the artist they want to become. And for Uproxx cover star Yung Baby Tate, that evolution means a name change: She will now be going by just Baby Tate. She’s not the only rising female rapper to recently undergo a nomenclature shift — Latto is the second artist name that Alyssa Stephens has used since breaking out in the hip-hop world. While Tate’s shift isn’t due to backlash from fans like Latto’s was, it still represents a brand new era for the young artist.

Along with her name change, she let fans know that she’s now signed to a new label, Warner Records, and that new music is coming very soon. After initially signing a deal with Issa Rae’s record label Raedio, Tate has now made the jump over to Warner.

“New name, new label, new song drops 10/29,” she wrote in an Instagram post.

While she hasn’t shared any other previews of what the song might sound like, a tagline on the song’s artwork offers a hint: “I might be crazy but at least I’m authentic.” Keep an ear out for that new song dropping later this month, and lots more updates from the newly-minted Baby Tate.

Sometimes the adorableness of small children is almost too much to take.

According to the New Zealand Police, a 4-year-old called the country’s emergency number to report that he had some toys for them—and that’s only the first cute thing to happen in this story.

After calling 111 (the New Zealand equivalent to 911), the preschooler told the “police lady” who answered the call that he had some toys for her. “Come over and see them!” he said to her.

The dispatcher asked where he was, and then the boy’s father picked up. He explained that the kids’ mother was sick and the boy had made the call while he was attending to the other child. After confirming that there was no emergency—all in a remarkably calm exchange—the call was ended. The whole exchange was so sweet and innocent.

But then it went to another level of wholesome. The dispatcher put out a call to the police units asking if anyone was available to go look at the 4-year-old’s toys. And an officer responded in the affirmative as if this were a totally normal occurrence.

Is this what life is like in New Zealand? Practically no COVID-19 to speak of and police units casually dropping by kids’ houses to check out their toys?

Listen to the call shared by New Zealand Police:

Child calls 111 to show Police their toys | New Zealand Police

www.youtube.com

The New Zealand Police wrote on YouTube, “Constable Kurt from Southern District Police responded by arriving at the child’s house and was shown an array of toys. He also had a good educational chat with the child and his parents about only using 111 for emergencies.” The officer also showed the boy his patrol car, put the lights on for him and remarked, “He did have cool toys!”

Lovely exchanges all around, from the kind emergency dispatcher, to the clearly exhausted dad, to the officer going out of his way to look at a random kid’s toys, to the precious little kiwi who kicked off the whole chain of events with his thoughtful offer.

Add this to the ever-growing list of reasons to love New Zealand.

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and his husband, Chasten, welcomed twins Penelope Rose and Joseph August, in August. Even though Buttigieg has an important role in the president’s cabinet, he decided to take two months of paternity leave to care for his newborn twins.

As a new parent, Buttigieg learned pretty quickly that paternity leave isn’t about rest and relaxation.

“The big thing is having a newly personal appreciation for the fact that this is work,” Buttigieg told CNN. “It may be time away from a professional role, but it’s very much time on.”

Even though he took leave he has stressed that he’s been available “24/7” to handle any issues.

Buttigieg received a lot of criticism from conservatives for taking leave at a time when the U.S. is having major supply-chain issues and the president is working to pass a massive $3.5 trillion transportation bill.

His decision also came during a time when Democrats are debating whether to include a historic 12 weeks of paid parental leave in the bill.

Right-wing provocateur Candace Owens called Buttigieg “sickeningly pathetic” for taking time off from his professional life during the transportation crisis. “Privileged times have produced the weakest men that have ever lived in America. Remove this little boy from office,” she tweeted with the hashtag #BringBackManlyMen.

Owens’ criticism isn’t much more than a repeat of the old sexist trope that men who take care of the children are somehow weak.

Tucker Carlson from Fox News mocked Buttigieg on his show. “Paternity leave, they call it, trying to figure out how to breastfeed. No word on how that went,” Carlson quipped.

Tucker Carlson mocks Pete Buttigieg for taking paternity leave: “Paternity leave, they call it, trying to figure ou… https://t.co/OHCEV1miGX

— nikki mccann screamírez (@NikkiMcR)
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MSNBC’s Nicole Wallace found Carlson’s remark to be both sexist and anti-gay.

“I guess I want to push on where this is coming from because it’s misogynistic I guess to think that dads shouldn’t be home,” she told Buttigieg on Friday. “It feels homophobic to suggest that you were trying to figure out breastfeeding. It feels dirtier than that.”

Buttigieg has a long history of making quick work of Fox News critics and it took him very little time to point out Carlson’s hypocrisy as a member of the party that once stood for family values.

Sec. Pete Buttigieg calls out Tucker Carlson for the attack on his parental leave, “This attack is coming from a gu… https://t.co/M6PvYNtsE7

— Sarah Reese Jones (@PoliticusSarah)
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“Well, look, in his case, I guess he just doesn’t understand the concept of bottle feeding, let alone the concept of paternity leave. But what is really strange is that, you know, this is from a side of the aisle that used to claim the mantle of being pro-family. What we have right now is an administration that’s actually pro-family,” Buttigieg said.

He then made himself a living example of the type of family leave policies that the Biden administration is pursuing.

“And I’m blessed to be able to experience that as an employee, being able to have the flexibility to take care of our newborn children, which is, by the way, work. It’s a joyful work. It’s wonderful work, but it’s—it’s definitely work,” he added.

To Buttigieg, it’s all about practicing what you preach.

“It’s one thing to believe something as a matter of policy,” Buttigieg said according to The New York Times. “It’s another to live it and see how much of a difference it could make.”

On Saturday, the Washington State Cougars won their third consecutive college football game, knocking off the Stanford Cardinal by a 34-31 margin in a Pac-12 clash. Following the contest, Washington State head coach Nick Rolovich was doused in Gatorade by a group of players and, with no additional context, it was easy to see a celebratory atmosphere in Pullman. However, that victory came only two days prior to a looming deadline for Rolovich and, on Monday, word broke that the 42-year-old would be fired for cause after failing to meet the state of Washington’s COVID-19 vaccine requirement.

Rolovich filed a religious exemption request but, as of his most recent media availability, there was no update on the status of that inquiry. With that as the backdrop, Monday was the deadline for compliance for all employees at colleges and universities. Over the summer, Rolovich indicated that he would comply, although he used vague language, but he later noted that he chose to apply for an exemption, rather than become vaccinated.

Dating back to Pac-12 Media Day, Rolovich’s situation has been national and regional news. He participated in that event only on a virtual basis, later revealing in a statement that he was not vaccinated, saying “I have elected not to receive a COVID-19 vaccine for reasons which will remain private” and declining further comment.

In addition to Rolovich’s termination, he is reportedly joined by multiple assistant coaches, though nothing is official on which assistants, or how many, have been fired at this juncture. On the football side, Washington State is 4-3 overall and 3-2 in Pac-12 play, competing for the Pac-12 North division title. It remains to be seen as to how the program will approach the rest of the season from a coaching standpoint, and it is also possible that this saga could continue should Rolovich elect to challenge his termination.

In the before-time, Marvel made sure their many trains always arrived on time. Every three months or so there’d be a new entry: a solo movie (that may actually be a small group outing), a big ensemble melee. The films moved in concert with the newish TV shows that now bow on Disney+. Some major new development in one was reflected in the others. Then the pandemic happened and threw it all out of whack. Now no less than five (5) Marvel movies have been delayed. Ditto the fifth Indiana Jones.

As per Variety, the delays range from a couple months to half a year:

Disney has delayed release plans for several upcoming films, including “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness” from March 25 to May 6, “Thor: Love and Thunder” from May 6 to July 8 and “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” from July 8 to Nov. 11. With the “Black Panther” sequel jumping to November, “The Marvels” has been postponed to early 2023 and “Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania” was bumped from Feb. 17 to July 28, 2023.

Meanwhile, the still untitled fifth Indiana Jones, also owned by Disney, is moving a mere month, from June 30, 2023 to July 29. That film has been plagued with certain on-set hiccups relating to its star, who’s pushing 80 and still, presumably, cracking that whip.

The reason for the reshuffling? It’s tied to productions taking a little longer than usual in the COVID era. Black Panther 2, for instance, is still filming in Atlanta. Meanwhile, long-delayed Marvel movies are still hitting theaters. Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings has been one of the biggest hits of the pandemic era, although it’s still slightly behind the franchise average. So this is not about box office panic. It’s just because, you know, making movies is hard, especially during a public health crisis.

(Via Variety)

Sylvester Stallone has said he was quitting things before. Back in 1996, he claimed Daylight — the instantly forgotten tunnel thriller — would be his farewell to action movies. It wasn’t. He’s said he was retiring Rocky Balboa before. He came back, multiple times. (Although it sounds like Rocky may be retired for real this time.) Sly usually comes back for more, and even at 75 years old, he could always do another Rambo.

So take this with a quarry of salt: Stallone says that he’s done with the Expendables franchise. He did recently wrap on the fourth one, the first in the all-star action star series since 2014 (the one where Mel Gibson is the baddie, and Harrison Ford is also there). He reunites with longtime costars Jason Statham, Dolph Lundgren, and Randy Couture. It adds Megan Fox, Andy Garcia, 50 Cent, and more. But if there’s an Expendables 5, Stallone won’t be there.

Stallone broke the news on Instagram. “The greatest thing is being able to provide films [and] entertainment [where] maybe there’s a little message in there, because what I try to convey in my successful films is the human touch,” he said. “Not so much the action; the action is self-evident. But it’s just relating to the audience in a way that they can identify with whatever the mission is, with the characters at hand.”

He added that he’s “getting ready to accept the next challenge,” whatever that may mean.

Again, Stallone has retired characters before only to resurrect them anyway. And again, he’s 75, but that doesn’t appear to be slowing him down. But if it’s true and Expendables 4 is the last time we see Sly’s Barney Ross, the plus side is that Jason Statham — one of the only actors to be in all four movies — may lead his first franchise since the Transporters.

(Via Deadline)

The NBA’s rookie scale extension deadline came and went on Monday evening at 6 p.m. ET, and a number of players from the 2018 Draft class cashed in. Max deals were handed out this offseason to Trae Young, Luka Doncic, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, and Michael Porter Jr., with others like Mikal Bridges and Jaren Jackson Jr. landing major deals as well.

There were some notable names that didn’t get extensions, most surprising being Deandre Ayton, along with Collin Sexton not coming to terms with a deal in Cleveland. Still, there were some others who were able to get a deal done before the deadline on non-max level contracts, which isn’t always the easiest thing to workout. Non-max rookie deals require the team and player to be seeing eye-to-eye on value, something that’s rare for a player entering their fourth season in the league who isn’t viewed as a max player by both parties.

Three players worked out deals in the final hour that will bolster the rosters of a trio of playoff contenders this season.

Kevin Huerter, Atlanta Hawks: 4 years, $65 million

Huerter’s emergence in the postseason for the Hawks was a major catalyst for their run to the conference finals, and he was rewarded with a $65 million deal. For the Hawks, it ensures that they lock up another core piece long-term after already doling out extensions or new deals to Trae Young, John Collins, and Clint Capela this offseason.

Huerter averaged 11.9 points, 3.3 rebounds, and 3.5 assists per game last regular season, and came up big in key moments for the Hawks in their playoff run. With him, De’Andre Hunter, and Bogdan Bogdanovic on the roster, the next very interesting decision for Atlanta will be the future of Cam Reddish, who could end up as the odd man out on the wing eventually.

Landry Shamet, Phoenix Suns: 4 years, $43 million

Everyone but Ayton got paid in Phoenix, and that will only fuel the drama around the Suns big man heading into the season. After trading for Shamet this offseason, they clearly wanted to lock him up long-term, handing out a near $11 million per year deal for the sharpshooter who has some very real questions about playoff viability after the way his tenure in Brooklyn ended. That said, Monty Williams is a big fan having coached him for a year in Philly as a rookie, and it’s clear Phoenix sees him as a rotation piece for a hopeful title contender.

Grayson Allen, Milwaukee Bucks: 2 years, $20 million

A similar deal to Shamet’s, just with two fewer years, the Bucks lock Allen in for the next three years after dealing for him this offseason.

Allen has become a quality 3-and-D wing, and for a team that wants to bolster its depth in that area, it makes sense to bring him in and sign him up long-term. How much Allen helps comes playoff time remains to be seen as rotations shorten, but there’s value in having players who can bring regular season depth even for contenders. On top of that, the Bucks learned last year that having additional help on the wing is never a bad thing after having to make their title run without Donte DiVincenzo.

Last Friday, multi-hyphenate star KYLE dropped a video for his latest single ‘Sunday,’ which follows the singer through dreamy melon-toned visuals of Los Angeles set to a beat that samples Craig David’s “7 Days” and borrows the framing from the song’s chorus to tell a tale of the fleeting qualities of love in 2021.

“Started vibin’ On Monday, then you started trippin’ on Tuesday. And now we makin’ love by Wednesday, and even Thursday and Friday and Saturday. You tell me that we break-in’ up on Sunday.” Sings KYLE, over some plucked Spanish guitar, thumping 808s, and skittering hi-hats.

“Every time I make music I try to discover something new about myself and what I make,“ KYLE tells me over the phone while discussing the origins of the track. “I was listening to a lot of late Garage music, I wanted to make uptempo R & B but I was having a hard time finding that. I made ‘Sunday’ out of complete fandom for Craig David and how smooth his records and vocals were over these really fast-moving tracks.”

Despite being heavily indebted to the source material, KYLE’s ‘Sunday’ presents a different vibe to David’s original, which keeps it from sounding like a straight-up cover. Instead what we get is an expert interpolation of a classic that comes off as smoother and altogether more romantic than the original. For the visuals, KYLE reached out to director Made By James, and the duo attempted to make a video that felt as thematic and stylized as a movie, while still giving a glimpse into KYLE’s personality,

“I was always a fan of early 2000s music videos, especially surrounding r&b culture. Very smooth and about love and sexy — featuring this day in the life storyline that made you fall in love with the artist.”

The result is a dreamlike and slightly eerie video that acts as a companion piece to KYLE’s “Love Me Like You Say You Love Me.” Part of what makes the video so appealing are the visuals that capture the romance of LA driving culture. To better understand things from his perspective, we hit up KYLE for the perfect LA date night, driving routes included.

“It would start early in the morning, right from the jump. We’re going to wake up and the first thing we’re going to do is get some coffee.”

The perfect cup of which can always be found at KYLE’s go-to LA roaster Cognoscenti:

“Cognoscenti on Washington Blvd is the best coffee shop in Los Angeles. We can fight about it, but I’ll win. My go-to order is the Green Matcha Latte Iced, with oat milk, or a half-caff almond milk latte with a hint of agave sweetener.”

From there the date would continue on through the city:

“Then we’re going to head to the Culver City stairs. We’re not going to run up the stairs, we’re going to drive up and take in the view.”

The stairs offer a great panoramic view of the downtown Los Angeles skyline and served as an obvious inspiration for some of the scenes in the video.

“After we do that we’re going to get some bunch, probably somewhere on Melrose. Sitting out on the street, people watching. Before we know it It’ll be nighttime when we’ll head to Javiar’s in Century City, and maybe catch a movie after.”

But to really capture the vibe of the song, your best bet is to jump in a car, blast ‘Sunday’, and just enjoy the sights that driving in LA always provides. If you’re looking for the best experience, follow KYLE’s route.

“You want to start somewhere in Mid-City, head toward West Hollywood. Take that down until you hit PCH, and take that to Malibu so you can sit on the beach, throw on ‘Sunday’ again, and take in the sights before you head home.”

Watch the video for ‘Sunday’ above, and then watch the companion piece “Love Me Like You Say You Love Me.”

For years, Deandre Ayton was harshly and unreasonably compared to what he wasn’t: Luka Doncic and Trae Young. Then, suddenly, he became an integral member of the Western Conference-winning Phoenix Suns. He authored two-way dominance against the reigning champs, Los Angeles Lakers. He posed issues for MVP Nikola Jokic. He feasted inside against the Los Angeles Clippers’ small-ball brigade.

By the second half of the season, Ayton was a marvelous pick-and-roll defender, an elite play-finisher, and excellent rebounder. For the betterment of the team, he sacrificed counting stats and starred in his role, the latter of which emerged as a tagline of sorts for him down the stretch. Many top picks whose play is juxtaposed with All-Star ball-handlers racking up nightly double-doubles might not embrace that.

And yet, the reward for his admirable selflessness and growth is to play out the final year of his rookie contract, and pursue a new deal next summer. Every night, he will suit up and risk injury without the safety net of another contract, all because he’s beholden to the financial preferences of an exorbitant billionaire.

According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, Ayton and the Suns ended extension talks ahead of Monday’s 6 p.m. ET deadline without reaching an agreement. Ayton rightfully wanted the max. Owner Robert Sarver refused to grant it. Sure, Ayton will probably receive a max contract next summer, whether it’s Phoenix outright or the organization matching another team’s offer, but this is a matter of principle and acknowledging the human aspect of sports. Sarver is disregarding relationships. He’s jeopardizing an environment that has been lauded for its culture since head coach Monty Williams took over following years of dysfunction fueled in part by Sarver’s previous ineptitude.

Ayton took a backseat and welcomed the grunge work of NBA basketball. He posted career-lows in points per game (14.4) and usage rate (16 percent). After frequenting midrange jumpers his first two seasons, perhaps in the hope of stretching out beyond the arc, he largely excised those shots from his profile. He guarded three top-10 superstars across four playoff series. He played his absolute tail off to try and deliver the Suns a title.

Some may try to justify this move by referencing Ayton’s struggles in the NBA Finals. Maintaining such prolific impact in that context simply cannot be threshold for a 22-year-old in his third season, tasked with containing Giannis Antetokounmpo, who is en route to one of the greatest careers in league history. If that’s the bar, almost every player in the NBA fails to meet it.

What’s more is even if you don’t deem Ayton to be the caliber of guys at similar price points, which is roughly the 40th-highest-paid player, he has another year to reach that level (at worst, he’s already close). Given how much he’s developed and altered his game since entering the NBA, future growth should be expected. He recently turned 23. Who he was in July 2021 will not be who he is in October 2022 when a new deal begins.

Sarver should reward Ayton for his vast, difficult improvements and commit to him long-term. Affirm your belief in him and the team’s title aspirations. Relationships matter and this was a golden chance to strengthen one. Sarver bungled it, seemingly because of greed.

Bypassing an extension for Ayton does not and will not free up significant money to be applied elsewhere and mitigate his potential departure in restricted free agency during this era of Suns championship contention. This “saved” money does not translate to the open market. Phoenix had avenues to retain its key players like Chris Paul and Mikal Bridges because of provisions in the CBA that allowed them to go over the cap to re-sign them. Ayton, even if he came off the books completely next summer, wouldn’t create any space for Phoenix to replace him. This is predominantly use it or lose it money that exists only within this context.

In re-signing Paul and extending both Bridges and Ayton, Sarver and the Suns had a chance to help maintain or accentuate the rosy vibes cultivated last season. Instead, this story line will lurk in the shadows. That’s not to say it will derail anything this year, but it’s an unnecessary risk motivated by relatively mild financial gain.

The Suns will not reach their goals without Ayton. He deserves his money. This was a disheartening misstep in which an owner wielded too much power over a player. Pay the big fella, he’s done everything possible to earn it.

The best things come to those who wait, and that goes extra for Succession heads. Fans of the HBO show about one evil family of wealth monsters went two whole years without a new episode, the series having to go on hiatus thanks to a certain once-in-a-century public health crisis that still hasn’t been licked. They were rewarded with a predictably excellent season 3 premiere. In that time the show even picked up more supporters, because Sunday’s numbers were (allegedly) a series record.
Variety reports that HBO says the show’s belated season premiere netted some 1.4 million viewers across HBO and HBO Max. That’s a 21% increase from the Season 2 finale, back around this time in 2019. It was also, they say, the best premiere-night performance of any HBO show since HBO Max went live in May of last year. And it had the biggest digital premiere of any HBO show since Season 2 of Big Little Lies in June of 2019.

Mind you, this is all from HBO, which, like Netflix, tends to only report numbers when they’re very good. They’re also saying that, in the lead-up to Sunday night’s premiere, a ton of people were catching up (or catching back up) with older Succession episodes. So it’s (allegedly) more good news for the unimaginably rich fictitious family that once indifferently destroyed a media company called “Vaulter.”

(Via Variety)