Month: December 2021

Damian Lillard’s future with the Portland Trail Blazers has been a hot topic for months. Lillard has not been shy about his desire to compete for a championship, and while he has made clear he wants to do that in Portland, the team’s on-court struggles and off-court turmoil have led to questions being asked about whether those two things are compatible.

As such, Lillard’s future in Rip City has been called into question, despite his repeated proclamations that he is not going to ask for a trade. The latest example of this came on Wednesday when Lillard was asked about potentially wanting a trade, and while he said that “any time that you’re desired is a compliment,” he once again expressed his desire to stick around.

“I’ve been here for 10 years, and I’m trying to be a part of the solution,” Lillard told reporters. “We all here to do a job, we all here to try to win, and try to win big. I feel like that’s something that I’m here to do, and I’m just trying to be a part of the solution, I’m not trying to be a part of the gossip and part of the story, I just wanna be at peace and try to do my job to the best of my ability, and do the things that I care about, and that I’m passionate about, and that’s what I’m trying to do.”

Lillard said that he’s “at peace” about seeing his name pop up in trade rumors because he knows “the truth” about how things are going in Portland, and expressed his belief that his statements over the summer and the team’s tumultuous start of the campaign have led to the latest round of speculation.

“I’m not asking for a trade,” Lillard said. “I don’t know how many times I’ve gotta say it. It’s gotten to the point in this era that people can write stories and say things, and I heard this, and I heard that, and because of who they are, people take it as, like, this is credible, this is probably true. Me, on the other hand, I don’t feel like I have to defend myself against that and come out and challenge everything that people say until I’m asked about it, because I know the truth.”

The latest round of questions comes following a report that Lillard wants a $107 million extension from the Blazers this summer, which is apparently scaring away prospective general managers who would prefer to trade him, instead. In response to that, Lillard shared a tweet alleging the piece’s author, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, and former Blazers executive Neil Olshey of working together to slander him.

As if Democrats didn’t have enough problems on their hands, now they’ve got to add the burning of the Fox News Christmas tree to their list of screw-ups.

That’s right — along with new COVID variants and the possible reversal of Roe v. Wade and the absolute gutting of voting rights by Republicans — the burnt remains of Fox News’ holiday decorations also rest solely on President Joe Biden’s shoulders. At least, that’s what RNC Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel thinks.

In the early morning hours on Wednesday, a homeless man climbed the Christmas tree sitting outside Fox News headquarters and set it on fire. He was arrested and charged with arson, and the whole debacle gave Fox News personalities like Brian Kilmeade and Ainsley Earhardt the opportunity to do what they love to do best: be outraged on national television. But, despite this being a victimless incident swiftly handled by the NYPD, McDaniel and other Republicans are using it as an example of how, under Biden’s leadership, the streets are running rampant with Christmas-hating criminals.

“Republicans are more trusted on three key issues: the economy, inflation, and crime,” McDaniel told Fox News while predicting 2022 election results. “These are issues we’re seeing every day on our streets, around our homes, in our communities, on the news. Look at your Christmas tree that was just burned down. This is a huge problem for Democrats.”

Umm … yeah, we’re pretty sure Biden has bigger problems than the crispy remains of a mainstream media company’s Christmas tree, but go off we guess? McDaniel continued to sound the alarm about the Great Christmas Tree Assault on Twitter, calling the fire evidence of “chaos in our streets.”

Still, this hysteria over what was once a staple of pagan winter solstice celebrations isn’t as weird as Earhardt claiming the tree stood for “the holiday season, Jesus, and Hanukkah.” We’re still trying to work that one out.

You can watch the full video below:

(Via Fox News)

Girlpool has been taking some time to themselves. Until today, they hadn’t released any new music in 2021 and in fact, the last track that the Los Angeles-based duo released was the synth-y darkness of “Like I’m Winning It,” in March of 2020. Uproxx spoke to Harmony Tividad and Avery Tucker shortly after the release of 2019’s What Chaos Is Imaginary, which Tividad described as “…the summary of so many experiences we shared. Weird nuances in our life together are kind of the string, but it’s not really a public string, it’s like a private string. Our inner string is all these different feelings and moments and things in our lives that happened.”

With that, the duo has been hunkering down, letting their new music take shape, making sense of their lives again as they grow and it’s on full display in the new video for “Faultline.” “Every day it’s Friday night, I hold my body like a butcher knife,” Tividad begins as the pair try to grasp a sense of reality amid desire, death as a metaphor, and spirituality. “The Faultline represents everything you do as a means of escape that pushes you further into the very thing you’re escaping,” Tividad says in a statement. Produced by Overcoats and Yves Tumor producer Yves Rothman, the gentle harmony and the song’s melody soars, just as Tividad does with angel wings spread over LA in the Julian Klincewicz-directed video.

Watch the video for “Faultline” above.

Adam McKay‘s upcoming HBO series on the Los Angeles Lakers finally has an official title after initially causing some confusion. Focusing on the 1980s era Lakers, the series was going to be called Showtime, which is the title of the book that McKay was adapting. However, that title created some understandable head-scratching considering the series will be airing on HBO and not its competitor, which also happens to be named Showtime.

So, in an effort to prevent people from going cross-eyed, McKay’s Laker series will now be called Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty. Oh, and it’ll premiere in March. Via The Wrap:

Based on the Jeff Pearlman book “Showtime: Magic, Kareem, Riley, and the Los Angeles Lakers Dynasty of the 1980s,” the show will dramatize the professional and personal lives of the team, described in the series logline as “one of sports’ most revered and dominant dynasties — a team that defined its era, both on and off the court.”

The series will star John C. Reilly as Lakers owner Jerry Buss, which is a casting decision that’s been getting a considerable amount of attention as of late. In a recent interview, McKay revealed that Will Ferrell was originally attached to the role before McKay made the call to cast Reilly, without first consulting Ferrell. That decision led to McKay and Ferrell not only ending their creative partnership in 2019, but also their friendship. The two haven’t spoken to each other since, but McKay told The Hollywood Reporter this week that, one day, they’ll be able to “kick back” at a Lakers game and “get back to our old kind of rhythm.”

(Via The Wrap)

Welcome To Earth (Nat Geo and Disney+ limited series) — Darren Aronofsky produces and Will Smith stars in this extraordinary global adventure that will remind everyone that there’s plenty of surfaces on Earth that humans have barely noticed as of yet. The show takes adventures to silently roaring volcanoes and journeys into morphing deserts and highlights all of the breathtaking moments that nature has to offer. Maybe, just maybe, Will’s sense of awe and palpable enthusiasm will take your mind away from all of those horror stories that he’s been relaying on the promotional trail. One can only hope, and maybe we’ll see some Independence Day jokes, too.

Nicole Byer: BBW (Netflix stand-up special) — Live comedy shows are finally making a comeback, and Byer’s first Netflix special sees her being both sexy and honest, live from NYC, where she riffs on being an almost-vegan and what’s going on with dudes. Oh, and the pandemic will receive an obligatory shoutout.

It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia (FXX, 10:00 & 10:30pm) — The gang heads to a local roller rink, back in the 1990s, and Dennis learns truths that he never wanted to know. Meanwhile, Dee may or may not be menopausal, and she makes a decision to mentor hopeful actors while the gang hatches a plan for her.

Hawkeye: Season 1 (Disney+ series) — The MCU is in holiday mood for this series, which begins to pass the arrow from Jeremy Renner’s Clint Barton to Hailee Steinfeld’s Kate Bishop, and Steinfeld is freaking fantastic while Hawkeye only wants a damn break from this hero stuff. This week follows up on that Echo backstory and a hell of a car chase scene.

The Late Late Show With James Corden — Mariah Carey

When Cordae released his debut album, The Lost Boy, in 2019, it was as a newcomer who was then best known as a member of the YBN crew. Now, two years and a name change later, we know the release date for the album’s long-awaited follow-up, From A Bird’s Eye View. Preceded by the well-received singles “Super” and “Sinister” featuring Lil Wayne, From A Bird’s Eye View is scheduled for release on January 14, 2022. It’s also available for pre-order here.

On a Zoom listening session for the album ahead of the announcement, Cordae revealed the reasoning behind the album’s title, comparing it to The Lost Boy and pointing out his evolution stylistically since 2019, saying that on his first album, he felt reluctant to leave behind his old life and embrace stardom, while on his new one, he’s taking stock of how fame has affected hiim. He also shared that life changes, such as his first trip to Africa, losing a dear friend, and having to ride out a pandemic all contributed to his growth. The new album will have high expectations; despite being his debut, The Lost Boy was nominated for a Best Rap Album Grammy Award at the 2020 Grammys, as well as a Best Rap Song award for “Bad Idea” with Chance The Rapper.

From A Bird’s Eye View is due 1/14/2022 via Art@War and Atlantic. Pre-save it here.

Ernie Johnson has worked alongside Charles Barkley for more than two decades, which means there aren’t an awful lot of things the two don’t know about each other personally or professional, but on their latest episode of The Steam Room podcast, Barkley revealed something that had Johnson completely dumbfounded.

Barkley’s daughter, Christiana, got her name from a Delaware mall Barkley used to frequent during his time with the Sixers, a fact that Johnson simply could not believe.

Barkley: “Well, she’s named after a mall, in fairness. There’s a Christiana Mall in Delaware that I used to always go by. That’s how she got her name, Christiana.”

Johnson: “Hold…stop.”

Barkley: “Wait, what is it?”

Johnson: “You named your daughter after a mall?”

Barkley: “Yeah.”

Johnson: “Why?”

Barkley: “I don’t know, I just liked the mall.”

Johnson: “God, you’re a mess, man. [laughing]”

Ernie’s reaction is, truly, priceless, as he is so taken aback by this newfound information from Barkley that he simply cannot believe he named his daughter after a mall. Given Ernie is, typically, playing the straight man on Inside The NBA, it’s always great when he can’t help but be taken aback by something he’s hearing and stopping the conversation to make Chuck (or Shaq) explain themselves. For Chuck’s part, he doesn’t see why this is a shocking revelation, and inspiration for naming a child can strike anywhere, even a mall in Delaware.

There are a lot of women in the music industry that could be labeled “powerful,” depending on how one defines the word. Billie Eilish used her influence to get a high-end fashion designer to commit to ending the use of fur permanently, for example. But for Forbes, money is power. And because of that, Forbes has named Beyonce, Rihanna, and Taylor Swift on a list of the 100 most powerful women of the year.

Coming in at No. 68 on the list is Rihanna. According to Forbes, her addition to their roundup is thanks to the success of her cosmetics line Fenty Beauty, which also made her become a recent billionaire. Beyonce followed Rihanna on the list at No. 76. Forbes named her powerful due to the success of her On The Run II tour with Jay-Z, which they said raked in a total of more than $250 million. Swift landed shortly behind Beyonce at No. 78 due to her process of re-recording her albums and earning her 10th No. 1 album.

The three musicians are in good company on Forbes‘ list. Some other names that make an appearance on the list have both political and financial power, like MacKenzie Scott, who was awarded 25 percent of her ex-husband Jeff Bezos’ Amazon stock and donated nearly $8 billion. Kamala Harris also made the list for her historic role as Vice President.

Read Forbes‘ full list of the 100 Most Powerful Women Of 2021 here.

One of the latest additions to the legendary roster of Run For Cover Records, Connecticut’s Anxious have been making a name for themselves over the last few years by finding the sonic and thematic middle ground between hardcore, emo, and ’90s alternative. After a string of impressive EPs, the quintet is finally ready to unleash their debut full-length album early next year.

To celebrate the new LP, drummer Jonny Camner sat down to talk Olivia Rodrigo, North Face slippers, work ethic, and more in the latest Indie Mixtape 20 Q&A.

What are four words you would use to describe your music?

King Fortunate The Prophet.

It’s 2050 and the world hasn’t ended and people are still listening to your music. How would you like it to be remembered?

I would hope Little Green House would be remembered as an album where we did what we wanted to regardless of genre binary.

What’s your favorite city in the world to perform?

We love playing Chicago many friends there and the shows have all been great. Just wish we didn’t always play there in the dead of winter.

Who’s the person who has most inspired your work, and why?

I would probably say my dad, I get my work ethic and any musical talent from him. He’s an amazing guitar player without him I wouldn’t even have the opportunity to play the drums.

Where did you eat the best meal of your life?

Indigo Burger in Newark, CA. I’m a sucker for a vegan spicy chicken sandwich! Shoutout Angel from Dare!

What album do you know every word to?

Trophy Eyes – Chemical Miracle

What was the best concert you’ve ever attended?

First that comes to mind is the first day of the Have Heart reunion. I will never forget the energy in the room when they started playing the first song of the set, “The Machinist.” INSANE.

What is the best outfit for performing and why?

I always like to wear I’m One Step Closer shorts and an online ceramics shirt. Naturally I must stay drippy wid it.

Who’s your favorite person to follow on Twitter and/or Instagram?

HallofMeat on Instagram yo! Few things give me more pleasure than seeing people slam on skateboards.

What’s your most frequently played song in the van on tour?

This last tour with Koyo my most frequently played song was definitely Settings App – “Webcage.” Super catchy hyperpop.

What’s the last thing you Googled?

Well it’s Christmas so I was looking for some North Face slippers for my dad’s gift haha. “north face thermoball slippers”

What album makes for the perfect gift?

The Best Of Mac Dre Vol. 3 on vinyl everyone needs to listen to “Dreganomics” at least once I’m their life, you feel me?

Where’s the weirdest place you’ve ever crashed while on tour?

I won’t say who, but we had 14 people on the floor of a studio apartment that was covered head to toe in funkopops and memorabilia alike, with like purple tik tok lights.. it was unnerving for sure.

What’s the story behind your first or favorite tattoo?

I am a connoisseur of bad tattoos so obviously my first one was a K on my ring finger for a girl and it was done with a homemade tattoo machine and pen ink. I was 17. I’m sorry, dad.

What artists keep you from flipping the channel on the radio?

If we are talking radio, like actual radio, any Olivia Rodrigo or Ariana Grande is worth keeping on before I plug in the aux cord.

What’s the nicest thing anyone has ever done for you?

Our singer Grady’s mom let me live with her for like over a year and straight-up treated me like her own son. Shout out Erika Allen for her unwavering kindness and love.

What’s one piece of advice you’d go back in time to give to your 18-year-old self?

Stop getting tattoos and learn a rudiment or something haha.

What’s the last show you went to?

One Step Closer record release, creative group of DIY handsome boys. Go stream This Place You Know.

What movie can you not resist watching when it’s on TV?

The Grinch and yes, of course I mean the live-action one with Jim Carrey!

What would you cook if Obama were coming to your house for dinner?

Yo I make a mean bahn mi with my homemade pickled veggies. If you don’t know it’s a Vietnamese tofu and sriracha-based sandwich on a baguette, traditionally with pickled veggies. Obama would surely enjoy!

Little Green House is out January 21 on Run For Cover Records. Pre-order it here.

The world of celebrity weed exists independently from the weed world at large. For the most part, these brands, as well as their namesakes, have little to do with cannabis culture or the cannabis they’re selling. Many celeb weed brands (especially those that popped up right after legalization) are little more than exercises in marketing — where flashy campaigns and absurd profit margins eclipse any intention of delivering a good product.

But there’s a catch with the celebrity weed industry that makes it trickier to navigate for the rich and famous than other celeb-branded spaces. Weed is a subculture with a distinct cool factor. Interlopers can be spotted from a mile away. Just because a celebrity puts out a brand, doesn’t mean smokers are going to like it. Even if they’re fans. These days, celeb brands are actually given more scrutiny than normal weed brands.

Why? Partly because there are so many of them now. But also because as cannabis culture is devoured by the mainstream, stoners have grown wary of business Chads and celebrity vultures swooping down to cash in on our magical plant and the subculture it’s created. There’s very much a sense of “where were you when we were getting high?”

If the celebrity in question was not in the trenches, using their platform to advocate for cannabis use with the stoners they’re now trying to sell weed to, the brand has a major problem and is likely going to get ridiculed within the community. It’s also the brands from non-stoner celebrities that tend to have the worst weed.

While great celebrity brands are heavily involved with the cultivation and selection of the strains they implement, others rely on white labeling — where cannabis is bought in bulk then re-branded (you also see this in plenty of celebrity booze brands too). The result is a totally polarizing sub-genre of the cannabis industry with some fire-ass weed, a lot of mids, and a handful of expensive trash.

Here’s a list to help you suss out the good, the bad, and the almost-un-smokeable of celebrity weed brands out there.

Cookies by Berner

The Brand:

While it seems almost redundant to write anything about Cookies as they’re possibly the most visible brand in the weed world, it’s easy to forget that not only is Cookies a celebrity brand, it’s the most successful one of all time. Founded by Bay-area rapper Berner in 2012, Cookies has ballooned into its own empire– complete with a hype-beast subculture of avid fans.

Bottom Line:

With over 30 retail outlets in eight states and two countries, Cookies maintains their reign with proprietary genetics like their eponymous Girl Scout Cookies strain, as well as working with some of the best farms and growers in the world, like their recent collaboration with the Humboldt legacy brand Ridgeline Farms.

Insane by B-Real

The Brand:

Insane by Cypress Hill artist B-Real is a perfect example of a celeb weed brand that checks all the boxes. Great weed? Check. Bonafide stoner owner? Check. Insane in the membrane? You betcha.

Bottom Line:

B-Real is one of the most legit businessmen in legal weed today. He’s the owner of the Dr. Greenthumb dispensary chain and now the cannabis company Insane. Each carefully curated and extremely potent strain is a reflection of B Real’s lifelong commitment to loving, smoking, and creating great cannabis.

Mind Your Head by Mickey Heart

The Brand:

Mind Your Head is a magical preroll brand from the legendary Mickey Hart, drummer for the most stoned band of all time, The Grateful Dead. With two offerings, Magic Minis (mini prerolls) and Space Tickets (blunt-like prerolls infused with ice-water hash), this brand from a true OG is sure to steal your face.

Bottom Line:

Though it’s not clear where the weed comes from for these prerolls, Mickey Hart can do no wrong in the eyes of the stoner community. That passes the vibe check with kaleidoscopic colors.

Forbidden Flowers by Bella Thorne and Glass House Farms

The Brand:

Forbidden Flowers is an example of a different type of celeb weed brand, the collab. It’s often that celebrities (with little connection to the cannabis industry) will team up with an already existing brand to put out their line. In my opinion, this is a more reputable route to take than the straight corporate white label. At least the celeb is coordinating with people who care/know about weed in some capacity.

Bottom Line:

While Bella Thorne definitely smokes weed, this is a brand that feels more branded in her likeness than something she has a ton to do with. Glass House is a good weed brand, though, so at least the flower is worth smoking. And I like the glittery packaging.

Houseplant by Seth Rogen

The Brand:

Now for one of the most polarizing brands in celebrity cannabis today, Seth Rogen’s Houseplant. A bit of an enigma, Houseplant has garnered significant criticism for a brand coming from such a well-liked and extremely stoned celebrity. I think this is in part due to the fact that the cannabis community expected much more from one of our own.

The Bottom Line:

Houseplant flower is beautifully branded, totally expensive, and grown by THC Design, a popular Los Angeles cannabis brand known for high THC indoor flower with insane bud structure. Unlike Forbidden Flowers, whose Glass House collab is front and center in their marketing, Houseplant tried to keep their THC Design connection a secret, which didn’t particularly sit well when it came out. For example, Houseplant’s Pancake Ice strain is basically just rebranded Crescendo by THC Design, the #1 selling flower in California last year. Come on, Seth. You can do better than that.

Tyson Ranch by Mike Tyson

The Brand:

Now for one of the most confusing brands in the celeb weed world, Tyson Ranch. When Mike Tyson launched Tyson Holistic Holdings in 2016, he had big plans. Aside from cannabis and edibles, the brand would include the first cannabis resort of sorts, a 418-acre ranch in the desert that would include a festival venue and the world’s longest lazy river, among other things.

The Bottom Line:

Despite countless feature articles that claim to take you “Inside Mike Tyson’s Cannabis Ranch,” the photos are all drawings, and everything exists as a hypothetical. The reality is that, five years later, there is no ranch — only mediocre weed and subpar gummies. I love Mike Tyson and hope he realizes this bat shit idea as only he could. But so far, no dice.

Peaches by Justin Bieber

The Brand:

As we near the end of this list, things are only getting worse. Next up in Dante’s descent into the inferno of celebrity mids is Peaches by Justin Bieber. Everything about this brand is annoying to me as a lifelong stoner. One, Justin Bieber has one of the largest platforms in the world and has never once used his voice to advocate for cannabis use. Suddenly entering the arena now that it’s socially acceptable seems like a cash grab from a dude who has plenty of cash.

Bottom Line:

The weed sucks. Grown by Palms Premium, it will get you high, but it doesn’t taste like anything or particularly smell like anything either, two major signs that the weed isn’t good, and clearly grown in some kind of industrial juggernaut that harvests 20 times a week and douses everything with chemicals.

Even if you get your peaches out in Georgia, I suggest you get your weed elsewhere.

Monogram by Jay-Z

The Brand:

Monogram by Jay-Z is far and away my least favorite celebrity cannabis brand. While the packaging is gorgeous and the celebrity founder has extensive cannabis chops, the flower is terrible and absurdly expensive. Like…. $60 for a “hand-rolled” joint expensive. Even for the highest quality flower infused with kief or live resin, $60 would still be very expensive for a blunt. Instead of top-shelf flower, this joint is filled with shwaggy dried-out weed that honestly just makes you feel weird because it’s been so juiced for THC.

And that’s their flagship product.

The Bottom Line:

Their version of an eighth (four grams) is $70. This price point is usually reserved for some of the best weed on the market, not total mids from who knows where. The fact that the founder is a literal billionaire who came from nothing makes it all the ickier. He should know better and does.

This totally exploitive pricing system on shitty weed is nothing short of a bummer.