Month: December 2021

Last week, Fox News host Lara Logan took the network’s anti-Fauci rhetoric to a new low by equating the infectious disease doctor with Josef Mengele, the “Angel of Death” for the Nazis, who performed grotesque experiments during the Holocaust. The controversy has caused significant blowback for Fox News, as The Auschwitz Museum and other Jewish groups called out the network for “exploiting the tragedy of people who became victims of criminal pseudo-medical experiments in Auschwitz in a debate about vaccines, pandemic and people who fight for saving human lives is shameful.” (Logan responded by blocking The Auschwitz Museum on Twitter. Yup.)

Now, Logan’s remarks are facing scrutiny from inside her own network. On Sunday, Fox Business anchor Liz Claman took to Twitter to post a thread detailing some of the atrocities committed by Mengele in an effort to show that Logan’s rhetoric was way out of line.

WARNING: The following contains graphic details of experiments committed during the Holocaust.

Hate to ruin you Sun. but facts need to be stated. Nazi Josef Mengele performed experiments on Jewish twins; personally killed 14 twins in one night by injecting their hearts w/chloroform. Performed vivisection without anesthesia, removing hearts and stomachs of victims. Nazi Josef Mengele sewed two twins together, back to back, in a crude attempt to create conjoined twins; both children died of gangrene after several days of suffering. Mengele infected one twin w/disease, transfusing the blood of one twin into the other. Nazi Josef Mengele attempted to change eye color by injecting chemicals into eyes of living subjects, killing those w/heterochromatic eyes so that the eyes could be removed and sent to Berlin for study. Let’s stop w/ANY comparison to Mengele. Dayenu. That’s Hebrew for ENOUGH

As of this writing, Logan has yet to apologize for her remarks, and neither has Fox News. However, Mediaite notes Logan has been “conspicuously absent” since comparing Fauci to the Nazi doctor.

(Via Liz Claman on Twitter)

Donald Trump just got hit with another blow in his months-long crusade to revive his social media presence.

The tweet-happy ex-president has been trying all year to get his social media handles reinstated after sites like Facebook and Twitter banned his accounts. When those platforms made his ban permanent, Trump decided to launch his own social media safe space called TRUTH Social under the newly-formed Trump Media & Technology Group Corporation. (Obviously, he’s its chairman.) Recently, Trump announced that his new venture would be going public, merging with Digital World Acquisition Corp., a Special Purpose Acquisition Company (SPAC), in a billion-dollar deal he said would help America “fight back against the tyranny of Big Tech.”

The only problem? As of Monday, the whole deal is under investigation by multiple Wall Street regulators for possibly breaking the law. (Is anyone surprised?)

Earlier today, Digital World Acquisition Corp. filed papers saying it received a document and information request from the Securities and Exchange Commission early last month that was specifically focused on communications between the group and Trump’s company. DWA Corp. also said that the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority is investigating trading that might have happened before the official deal was announced. Of course, targeting a merger before you’ve raised your capital is a big no-no for SPACs, which are also known as “blank-check companies.” Normally, SPACs collect investors and sell shares to raise money that goes into a trust account. From there, the investors in charge of the SPAC decide which opportunities and companies to invest in.

According to a Washington Post report, DWA Corp. “repeatedly told shareholders that it had not held substantive talks with a target company” despite Trump publicly discussing the merger possibly as early as March of this year. After Trump officially announced the deal in October, DWA Corp.’s rose nearly 1,657% though current filings don’t show how much, if any, income the company generates. If the SEC finds evidence that DWA Corp. and Trump planned the merger before investors were told of it, it could spell legal trouble for the former president and it would most definitely put his dream of hosting his own social media app on hold.

Naturally, many are noting how something smells a bit fishy about all of this.

(Via Washington Post)

The holidays are always a great time for Mariah Carey for obvious reasons, and over the weekend, the singer got some great news: On December 3, “All I Want For Christmas Is You” became the first song to achieve Diamond certification from the RIAA, meaning it reached ten million sales and streaming units in the United States. That makes it the first Christmas song to ever be Diamond-certified. On top of that, the song also hit a billion streams on Spotify yesterday, making it both her first song and the first holiday song overall to achieve that feat.

Carey says of the Diamond certification, “The continued love for my song never ceases to amaze me and fill my heart with a multitude of emotions. It blows my mind that ‘All I Want For Christmas Is You’ has endured different eras of the music industry. The RIAA DIAMOND award?! Wowww! I’m so fortunate to have the greatest fans on Earth, my Lambily, who continue to support my legacy. I love you.”

Mitch Glazier, Chairman and CEO of the RIAA, said, “Mariah Carey is one of the top Gold & Platinum awarded artists of all time, and ‘All I Want For Christmas Is You’ becoming the only holiday song to achieve Diamond is a remarkable milestone forever etched in music history. Congratulations and happy holidays to Mariah and her amazing Sony team.”

Meanwhile, Carey also noted of the Spotify achievement, “I’m freaking out!!!! 1 billion!!! These numbers are incredible, but the love I have for the #lambily is unquantifiable. Eternally grateful and blessed.”

Along with all that, “All I Want For Christmas Is You” is in the midst of its annual climb back up the Billboard Hot 100 chart, as it’s No. 3 on the latest chart dated December 11.

Drake’s tepid relationship with the Grammy Awards is well-documented. He was famously among the rap stars who declined an invitation to perform at the 2019 awards show. Later, when “God’s Plan” beat out songs from Cardi B, Kendrick Lamar, and Travis Scott to win the award for Best Rap Song that year, Drake (who many didn’t event expect to be in attendance) spent the bulk of his acceptance speech taking a shot at the Grammy Awards establishment. “It’s like the first time in Grammys history where I actually am who I thought I was for a second,” he said. “We play in an opinion based sport, not a factual based sport… it’s up to a bunch of people who might not understand what a mixed race kid from Canada has to say,” he added, addressing kids and people trying to make it in music.

And while he didn’t submit anything this year from Certified Lover Boy for the big Record and Song Of The Year Awards, he did garner nominations for Best Rap Album and Best Rap Performance (for “Way 2 Sexy.”) But as of today, Drake has reportedly withdrawn both nominations and don’t be a part of the 2022 Grammy slate at all. Variety indicated that “… the decision was made by Drake and his management, although his motivation was unclear…”

For what it’s worth, The Weeknd has been public about his full-on Grammys boycott and perhaps his stance is inspiring Drake to take a similar stance? He might’ve even foreshadowed something like this as that 2019 awards speech came to a head. As the diatribe comes to a conclusion, he gestures to the awards statue and said: “You’ve already won if you have people who are singing your songs word for word, or if you’re a hero in your hometown. If there’s people who have regular jobs coming out in the rain, in the snow, spending their hard-earned money to buy tickets to come to your shows? You don’t need this right here, you already won.”

Sylvester Stallone found himself at the center of a swirl of online rumors last week after he posted a photo to Instagram where he’s not only wearing a hat with a “Q” on it, but he also used a popular slogan amongst QAnon cultists. However, Sly wants the record to show that he was not sending a message to the QAnon faithful, and there’s a simple, and kind of hilarious, explanation for the whole thing.

“For those incredibly inquisitive individuals, let me state unequivocally that the Q on this hat stands for QUANTUM OF SOLACE, the name of the boat I was on, NOT anything else , ok? Relax,” Stallone wrote in a new Instagram post. “So folks,The moral of the story is… Enjoy your lives and let other people enjoy theirs … So Keep Punching!”

On top of issuing a denial, Stallone has gone back and edited the caption on the original Instagram post because, apparently, the Rocky star is not leaving any loose ends behind. Originally, the caption read, “Heading into the Storm,” which is a popular QAnon phrase and raised eyebrows because Stallone is a known Trump supporter.

Now, the caption reads: “Heading into the Storm…. As IN THUNDERSTORM!!!” So, yup, that should clear things up. Thanks for the update, Sly.

(Via Sylvester Stallone on Instagram)

A few weeks ago, Taylor Swift’s “All Too Well (Taylor’s Version)” knocked Adele’s “Easy On Me” off the No. 1 spot on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. Last week, though, the Adele hit reclaimed the throne. Now, on the new chart dated December 11, “Easy On Me” is No. 1 for the sixth total week, but it has some rising tracks right in its tail.

The new Hot 100 chart shows that the annual rise of holiday music is in full swing now, as Mariah Carey’s immortal holiday classic “All I Want For Christmas Is You” is up to No. 3, up from No. 12 last week. Meanwhile, Brenda Lee’s “Rockin’ Around The Christmas Tree” currently sits at No. 4, Bobby Helms’ “Jingle Bell Rock” is at No. 5, and Burl Ives’ “A Holly Jolly Christmas” is at No. 7.

Famously, Carey’s holiday hit finally reached No. 1 on the Hot 100 for the first time in 2019, 25 years after its initial release. Last year, on the chart dated December 19, the song once again went No. 1. So, given the track’s recent ascent and how it has performed in recent years, it wouldn’t be surprising to see it ascent to No. 1 yet again on the next Hot 100 chart. Since the song was No. 1 on the first Hot 100 chart of the year, if it goes No. 1 this year, it would be the first song ever to top the charts in four separate years.

Meanwhile, last year’s charts from around this time may offer a preview of what the Hot 100 will be looking like around Christmas: On the Hot 100 chart dated December 26, 2020, a whopping eight of the top ten songs were Christmas songs, which is an all-time record for most holiday songs in the top ten at once.

The New York Knicks are searching for answers right now, as Tom Thibodeau tinkers with lineups and rotations in an effort to recapture the magic of last season as the team has sputtered to an 11-12 start, good for 11th in the crowded East just over a quarter of the way through the season.

One of the latest changes to the Knicks rotation was the removal of veteran Kemba Walker from not just the starting lineup, but the rotation as a whole, inserting Alec Burks and providing more opportunity for second-year guard Immanuel Quickley. Walker has sat out the last four games, during which time the Knicks have gone 1-3, albeit against tough competition with losses to the Nets, Bulls, and Nuggets.

Walker’s stat line was fine (11.7 points and 3.1 assists per game on 42.9/41.3/80 shooting splits), but the defensive end of the floor had become a nightmare for the Knicks when Walker was on the court. Given Thibs’ constant focus is on defense, and it wasn’t as though the offense was humming with Walker running things, it wasn’t a huge surprise that Walker would fall out of favor. Still, there was such excitement for his return to New York, a player looking to re-establish himself in the league after being dealt to OKC and bought out by the rebuilding Thunder, that it would be easy to understand if he was bitter about the quick hook.

Instead, Walker is trying to take it all in stride and, at least publicly, is saying all the right things. Kemba spoke to the media on Monday about his weeklong absence from the rotation and said that it’s been tough for all the reasons you’d expect, but noted that he’s always about doing what’s right for the team and will keep working and supporting the guys on the court.

It’s not a surprise that Walker is taking this approach, as he’s long been beloved in whatever locker room he’s in. Hopefully he can get healthy and find some of that magic from earlier in his career to work his way back into the rotation and help the Knicks turn things back around this season, but until then, it seems he’ll provide vocal support and leadership from the bench.

After ten illustrious years on Alabama’s Gulf Shores, Hangout Festival has had to postpone year number 11 twice due to the pandemic. But the wait is finally over as Hangout Festival 2022 will be going down from May 20th to 22nd with a stacked lineup.

Post Malone is the lone holdover from the previously announced but postponed headlining slate, and he’ll be joined by Tame Impala, Halsey, Doja Cat, Fall Out Boy, Illenium, Kane Brown, and Megan Thee Stallion on top of the bill. It’s a loaded lineup of all kinds of music that will even feature an appearance from Shaquille O’Neal, as his music persona Diesel. Hangout is marked by its bustling oceanside venue footprint and there will be plenty of sunshine to go around next summer at the festival.

The complete lineup includes, in alphabetical order, 347aidan, Audrey Nuna, Bankrol Hayden, Beabadoobee, Blu DeTiger, Breland, Bren Joy, Briston Maroney, Chelsea Cutler, Dayglow, Diesel (Shaquille O’Neal), Doja Cat, Ericdoa, Fall Out Boy, Fletcher, Flipturn, Flo Milli, Gabriel Black, Halsey, Hastings, Hugel, Illenium, Jvna, Jack Harlow, Joy Oladokun, Kane Brown, KennyHoopla, Koffee, LP Giobbi, Leon Bridges, Lil Yachty, Louis The Child, Lucii, Luttrell, Madds, Madeon, Maren Morris, Megan Thee Stallion, Montell2099, Moon Taxi, Notd, Neal Francis, Nightly, Oliver Tree, Paul Cauthen, Petey Martin, Phoebe Bridgers, Post Malone, Remi Wolf, Renforshort, Role Model, Sidepiece, Slander, Snbrn, Ship Wrek, Still Woozy, Sublime With Rome, Surf Mesa, Surfaces, T-Pain, Tame Impala, The Band Camino, The Blossom, The Brook & The Bluff, The Head And The Heart, Tre’ Amani, Tyla Yaweh, Vnssa, Zach Hood, and Zedd.

Presale tickets are live on 12/10 at 10 a.m. CT. Register for early access here.

Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

While many American families spend an idyllic Christmas day watching the snow fall while gathered around the fireplace opening presents, Christmas falls smack in the middle of the summer in Vance Joy‘s native Australia. So, his family spends Christmas day on the beach. “My dad usually cooks a huge trout for us and we are just happy to finally be there with each other all together. We will go walk and see the kangaroos on a nearby trail too.” When asked about his favorite holiday memories, he struggles to settle on just one. “There are too many — swimming with my siblings and looking at the fish in the rockpools at the beach.”

Despite the difference in environment on Christmas day, holiday music still remains a centerpiece of the holiday. To celebrate the holidays this year, Vance Joy has officially offered a cover of The Pogues’ “Fairytale Of New York” after uploading his rendition to YouTube last year and garnering quite a bit of fan support. To celebrate the release of the cover, Vance Joy took part in the first installment of the Uproxx Holiday Playlist series, and selected some of his favorite holiday music to help ring in the time of year. “Music is the best and there are some truly great holiday songs that I included in my playlist. Some of the holiday music creates the atmosphere and some of it can hit you in the heart and tell a story.”

Check out the full playlist, along with Vance Joy’s explanations for each of his picks, down below.

Mykola Dmytrovych / John Williams — “Carol Of The Bells”

As a little boy I watched Home Alone hundreds of times. This song and scene are very memorable and powerful. Haunting Christmas. Get chills!

Paul Kelly — “How To Make Gravy”

One of the great songs. Christmas from the perspective of a guy in prison missing his family. ‘That won’t stop the roast’!

The Pogues — “Fairytale Of New York” (Feat. Kirsty MacColl)

This is one of the great songs of all time. It’s not sugary and corny but tells a Christmas story from the perspective of the down and outs. Nick Cave says all this better than me in a letter he wrote about this song – definitely worth a read.

John Lennon — Happy Xmas (War is Over)

“Let’s hope it’s a good one without any fear.” “For weak and for strong”. For “the rich and the poor ones.” The song speaks for itself. I like the idea of us all being connected and included and at peace.

Mariah Carey — “All I Want for Christmas is You”

This is the biggest Christmas tune out there and like clockwork zooms up the charts around this time every year. Makes me think of the scene in Love Actually.

Sia — Snowman

I love Sia. “Snowman” tells a tender and comforting Christmas story and it’s so unique, like everything Sia does.

Coldplay — “Christmas Lights”

Christmas lights keep shining on – I love Coldplay and Chris Martin’s soul is easy to find in the way he sings his lyrics. So who better to sing at Christmas time.

Sinead O’Connor — “Silent Night”

This song is peaceful and makes me think of Christmas as a kid. And of the versions out there I chose this one.

Vance Joy is Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Jordan Peele won an Oscar for the screenplay to his directorial debut, 2017’s Get Out. Other writers to win an Academy Award in the 2010s include Quentin Tarantino, Bong Joon-ho, Spike Jonze, and Barry Jenkins, and in the decade before, Diablo Cody, Charlie Kaufman, Sofia Coppola, and Pedro Almodóvar. This group wrote some of the best movies ever, but Peele has them beat, according to the Writers Guild of America.

On Monday, the WGA released its list of the “101 Greatest Screenplays of the 21st Century (So Far).” Get Out was ranked number one, ahead of Kaufman’s Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Aaron Sorkin’s The Social Network, Bong and Han Jin Won’s Parasite, and Joel and Ethan Coen’s No Country for Old Men. Five films, five classics. Other highlights include Best Picture winner Moonlight at #6, Bridesmaids at #12 (it’s the highest-ranked movie written by a woman, or in the case of Barb and Star icons Annie Mumulo and Kristen Wiig, women), and only two non-Pixar animated films, Spirited Away and Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, at #67 and #71.

Here’s the top 10:

1. Get Out (2017)
Written by Jordan Peele

2. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004)
Written by Charlie Kaufman, Story by Charlie Kaufman & Michel Gondry & Pierre Bismuth

3. The Social Network (2010)
Screenplay by Aaron Sorkin, Based Upon the Book The Accidental Billionaires by Ben Mezrich

4. Parasite (2019)
Screenplay by Bong Joon Ho and Han Jin Won, Story by Bong Joon Ho

5. No Country for Old Men (2007)
Written for the Screen by Joel Coen & Ethan Coen, Based on the Novel by Cormac McCarthy

6. Moonlight (2016)
Screenplay by Barry Jenkins, Story by Tarell Alvin McCraney

7. There Will Be Blood (2007)
Screenplay by Paul Thomas Anderson, Based on the Novel Oil! by Upton Sinclair

8. Inglourious Basterds (2009)
Written by Quentin Tarantino

9. Almost Famous (2000)
Written by Cameron Crowe

10. Memento (2000)
Screenplay by Christopher Nolan, Based on the Short Story by Jonathan Nolan

You can find the full list here.