Month: December 2021

Just two weeks after a judge declared that the “unprecedented” copyright case against Taylor Swift for allegedly using the lyrics to the 2001 3LW hit “Playas Gon’ Play” in her own 2014 hit “Shake It Off” could move forward, the singer has again filed a motion to dismiss the case, with her attorneys warning of dire consequences for the music business at large should it proceed. Billboard reported the filing, in which Davis Wright Tremaine LLP attorney Peter Anderson wrote, “Plaintiffs could sue everyone who writes, sings, or publicly says ‘players gonna play’ and ‘haters gonna hate.’ To permit that is unprecedented and cheats the public domain.”

The case, which was filed in 2017 by 3LW’s songwriters Sean Hall and Nathan Butler, asserts that the use of the refrain “players gonna play, play, play, play, play and the haters gonna hate, hate, hate, hate, hate” infringes upon Hall and Butler’s previous use of “playas, they gonna play, and haters, they gonna hate.” Because the usage of both phrases — often in conjunction, as they are seen in both songs — is so common, Swift’s lawyers previously argued that the case should be thrown out and won, only for the plaintiffs to successfully reopen the case and U.S. District Judge Michael W. Fitzgerald to refuse their initial motion on December 9, saying, “Even though there are some noticeable differences between the works, there are also significant similarities in word usage and sequence/structure.”

In the new filing, Anderson and co. argue Fitzgerald failed to apply an “extrinsic test” to the ruling, filtering out material that isn’t covered under copyright laws before comparing two works. Again, the phrases “playas gonna play” and “haters gonna hate” are not covered by copyright since they are commonly used phrases in the public domain. “The presence of versions of the two short public domain statements and two other tautologies in both songs … simply does not satisfy the extrinsic test,” argued Swift’s lawyers.

So, it looks like the judge will have one more chance to look at the case before it proceeds to trial, with seemingly all past and future references to players playing and haters hating hanging in the balance. Stay tuned for more updates.

Jeopardy! isn’t the only show that’s run into bizarre problems finding a new host. On Monday, Politico reported that The View is having a humdinger of a time finding a token conservative to replace Meghan McCain, who left the show in August and later claimed that it was a “toxic work environment.” In one case, the would-be substitution turned it down, allegedly because she refused to get vaxxed.

According to The Daily Beast, Lisa Marie Boothe — a Republican strategist and Fox News contributor — was one of “dozens and dozens” who interviewed for the gig earlier this year. But they ran into loggerheads when she revealed that she’s against receiving a life-saving vaccine against COVID. At that point, further negotiations became a “moot point” and a “non-starter,” as ABC News — like Fox News — requires their on-site employees to not be public health menaces.

Boothe has been outspoken about being against the medication that could help put an end to the pandemic, which is nearly two years old. On Fox News, she claimed she hadn’t received a single jab “as a giant middle finger to Joe Biden’s tyranny.”

She also penned an op-ed in Newsweek entitled “Why I’m Not Vaccinated.” In it, Boothe laid out her air-tight argument. “As a healthy 36-year-old woman, COVID-19 does not pose a statistically meaningful threat to my life. I have a 99.97 percent chance of survival,” she wrote. “Why would I get a vaccine for a virus that I do not fear and that isn’t a threat to my life—particularly when there is an element of risk from the vaccines?”

Not only are Boothe’s fears unjustified — the FDA granted full approval of the Pfizer vaccine in August and cleared the others for emergency use — but she’s also out of an easy paycheck.

(Via The Daily Beast)

Almost as much as he’s known for his long string of hits or his outsized personality and antics as a businessman, Diddy is notorious for his lavish parties, including his over-the-top, all-white Memorial Day shindigs and his blowout New Year’s Eve celebrations each year. However, for the second year in a row, Diddy has canceled his New Year’s Eve party over COVID-19 concerns as the new Omicron variant of the virus — or “Omarion” variant, if you’re feeling cheeky — continues to spread.

According to TMZ, the Omicron surge in Miami, where the party was to be held, convinced Diddy that his 500-guest hootenanny would put him and his fellow stars in jeopardy. This would appear to be a wise move according to the advice of National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases director Dr. Anthony Fauci, who recommended on CNN to “stay away from that this year,” that being “a New Year’s Eve party, where you have 30, 40, 50 people celebrating, you do not know the status of the vaccination.”

Diddy isn’t the only one to cancel his planned NYE celebration. Four days ago, garage rock revivalists The Strokes announced the cancelation of their own New Year’s Eve concerts, although NBC’s planned special featuring Miley Cyrus and Pete Davidson appears to be proceeding as scheduled. If you’re content with staying in but still fiending for something to do, you can check out TikTok’s own planned concert with Rico Nasty, Charlie Puth, and Kali Uchis from the comfort of whichever device you use to scroll the hours away.

Killing Eve ended its third season back in June 2020 with winners and losers aplenty. Seemingly, the finale concluded with an acknowledgment from both Eve and Villainelle that they can’t be apart. For long, anyway. A new teaser from BBC America forecasts a revisiting of that scene with Eve scooting up alongside Villainelle and offering a ride. Moments later, Villainelle is riding off by herself and glancing back over her shoulder.

C’mon, you didn’t think they’d be able to get along in the long term, right? Imagine what domestic life would be like for these two. A former MI6 officer and an assassin who can’t give up the life (or the luxury trappings) are as ill-equipped for reality as Westley and Buttercup in The Princess Bride. Yet there’s no reason why they’ll be able to resist each other forever, and the teaser revisits several ill-advised moments from the cast of characters throughout their previous arcs. We do get to see Clown Villainelle again, so hopefully, we can expect more wigs and costumes from both her and Eve. Here’s a few stills from the upcoming fourth season.

Also, the fourth season promises more followup on the show’s decision to kill Kenny (those bastards). From the synopsis:

After the emotional climax of Season Three, Eve and Villanelle and Carolyn are in very different places. Following Eve and Villanelle’s exchange on the bridge, Eve is on a revenge mission, while Villanelle has found a brand-new community in an attempt to prove she’s not a “monster.” Having killed Paul, Carolyn goes to extraordinary lengths to continue to chase down The Twelve and the person that ordered Kenny’s hit. This season follows our extraordinary women, each driven by passion, revenge and obsession, building towards a messy, nuanced and totally glorious series finale.

Killing Eve‘s fourth and final season will premiere (with two episodes) on Sunday, February 27 on BBC America and Monday, February 28 on AMC.

It took almost two decades, but last week we finally get a fourth Matrix movie, both in theaters and online. It wasn’t a full reboot: Among those AWOL were Laurence Fishburne, Hugo Weaving, and, course, philosopher and political activist Cornel West (who swung by the first two sequels). Also missing was one half of the Wachowskis: Lana directed but not Lilly, who decided it would be “unappealing” to go back to the franchise that made her and her sister’s names. But, we now know, it could have been made without either of them.

In an interview with Collider (as caught by IndieWire), producer James McTeigue, who was also first assistant director on the original trilogy, revealed that Warner Bros. could have very well have produced a fourth Matrix without either of the Wachowskis.

“I think when you’ve had a franchise with that much potential money-making capability, there’s always talk,” McTeigue said:

“It’s in the same way that the Marvel universe repeats and turns in on itself, or you have Spider-Man, or you have Iron Man, or Thor. There’s always a potential to update those movies just because of the possibility of making the money and telling new stories. I shouldn’t say it’s just a purely fiscal thought. But yeah, look, there was versions out there, but they hadn’t landed on the right version. So when Lana eventually came back around and said, ‘Look. I’m interested in making another movie,’ of course, they went with the filmmaker who was the genesis of the Matrix.”

This was alluded to in one of the film’s many wink-wink moments. In the film, Keanu Reeves’ Neo aka Thomas Anderson believes he’s a hit video game designer, who hit it big with a series called — that’s right — The Matrix. At one point, his boss (Jonathan Groff, who winds up being a reborn and less dastardly Agent Smith) basically lays out why there was a fourth Matrix movie to begin with.

“Things have changed, the market’s tough,” Groff’s character says. “I’m sure you can understand why our beloved parent company Warner Bros. has decided to make a sequel to the trilogy. They informed me they’re going to do it with or without us.”

If you enjoyed The Matrix Resurrections — which takes the series in some truly unexpected directions, and which even satirizes our love of revivals to being with — you probably won’t be getting any more, at least from the Wachowskis.

“We’ve got no prequel in mind,” McTeigue told Collider. “We’ve got no sequel in mind. We’ve got no further trilogy.” But while there may not be a new Matrix film in the works, McTeigue adds that there is an Easter egg to keep an eye out for when you rewatch The Matrix Resurrections.” He added, “Look at the screens when we first come into the [Thomas Anderson] office.”

(Via Collider and IndieWire)

Spider-Man: No Way Home has made over one billion dollars at the worldwide box office (it’s only the 49th film to reach this achievement), but not everyone has seen it yet. It’s been out for less than three weeks, after all, and not everyone feels comfortable going to the theater with the Omicron variant spreading like wildfire, but Kim Kardashian spoiled many of the movie’s key moments to her 273 million followers on Instagram.

As reported by People, Kardashian “posted photos on her Instagram Story while watching the blockbuster new Marvel movie Spider-Man: No Way Home. Kardashian showcased a few pivotal moments from the highly anticipated sequel’s climactic third act, prompting fans to express outrage for giving away spoilers.”

Kardashian has since deleted the posts, although you can see what she spoiled here — and yes, if you’ve seen the movie, it’s exactly what you think it is. Someone wasn’t paying attention to Tom Holland, Zendaya, and Jacob Batalon’s plea.

With great power (hundreds of millions of social media followers) comes great responsibility (to not spoil the dang Spider-Man movie).

I get it: I would be furious if before I saw No Way Home, Kardashian had ruined the third-act musical sequence between Doctor Octopus and J. Jonah Jameson set to Dashboard Confessional’s “Vindicated” from the Spider-Man 2 soundtrack. Oops.

(Via People)

“What’s something everyone should experience in their lifetime?” is not an uncommon question. But when someone asked it on Reddit, the answers were surprising.

There were the standard responses, of course, such as:

“Traveling outside their country of birth.” (Yes, definitely something everyone should do, preferably more than once and for an extended period of time.)

“Go see some stars. Go camping in a national park. Watch the stars. Go see a freakin meteor shower in the desert.” (Can confirm. Get as far away from lights as possible and be amazed by the depth of the night sky.)

“The northern lights. They really are beautiful.” (Cannot confirm personally, but I’ve heard this from many other people and it was one of the most popular responses on the Reddit post.)

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Seeing the Milky Way, watching the sunset over the ocean, going to a live concert—those are the kinds of answers one might expect. But what was striking were the answers that seemed so basic, yet profound.

Here’s a handful of them:

“Financial security.” 

Oh gracious, yes.

“I’ve never had it,” wrote u/AsPerMatt, “and that simple fact has caused me more stress and anxiety than I care to admit. I do believe that though money can’t bring happiness, when you don’t have it, it can absolutely hinder it greatly.”

Others chimed in:

“Having been with it and having been without it, I not only enjoy the former more but it actually makes me a better person. The stress and low level fear is truly debilitating.”

“Money doesn’t bring happiness. It sure as hell gets rid of a bunch of things that bring unhappiness, though.”

Everyone should be able to experience financial security, not just as a one-time experience, but as an ongoing reality. People who have experienced genuine financial insecurity (as opposed to “I could lose my investments if the market crashes”) know what an all-consuming burden it is.

“A healthy non-toxic relationship.”

Oh. I’ve been fortunate to have lots of healthy relationships of various kinds, but there are some people who are immersed in dysfunctional families and social circles and genuinely haven’t.

“Experiencing my first currently. I had no idea it could be like this,” wrote one commenter.

Another added, “and not just romantically- platonic and family healthy non-toxic relationships too. People need good people.” Isn’t that the truth.

“It would be so damn beautiful if everyone could experience this.” Amen. Everyone deserves to be in a healthy relationship.

“Getting a hug from someone who has been waiting all day to see you.”

Aw. That really is the best, whether it’s a parent, a spouse, a child or another loved one who is genuinely thrilled when you come home. People shared their personal best hugs:

“The last hug my dad gave me when I was leaving after my visit for his last birthday. He knew it would be the last. It was the best hug I ever got. I miss you dad.”

“Getting a hug from a stranger as well. Once crying in public – and a stranger asked me if I was okay and gave me a hug. Faith in humanity restored! It was not strange – just so welcome.”

“Happened recently, I haven’t seen my aunt who I used to live by for 2 years because of covid. The embrace felt like 2 years of hugs.”

Hugs are good for our health, so definitely something everyone should experience.

“Living by yourself.”

This one was interesting, as people were quite torn. Some absolutely agreed:

“Living alone makes me extremely happy, peaceful and calm. If I were financially able to swing it 100% of the time, I definitely would!”

“And taking yourself out to eat, or to the movies!”

Others couldn’t disagree more:

“Did that for one month. It was a total shit show and I absolutely hated every second of it. I need to have roommates if I want to stay sane and alive.”

“I don’t recommend. I did it for a couple years after my divorce. I was just sad. I did sleep better but I like having a partner to come home to. I like my space and would never want to live with roommates that I am not in a relationship with but yeah I would avoid living alone if I could avoid it. A night or two by myself is alright but that’s about it.”

But this answer seemed to make sense:

“As a relative alternative to this, I would say: Being able to be comfortable with yourself, alone with your thoughts.

I guess us introverts have a head start in that department, but it’s always been wild to me how many people I see who can’t just sit alone with their own thoughts, or have to be doing other things to distract themselves from themselves, whether it be going out partying and drinking every weekend, or whatever else.

You’re gonna be with yourself for your whole life lol, so you might as well learn to like yourself!”

“Getting to know people that aren’t like you.”

Like traveling abroad, getting to know diverse people expands your ideas of what “normal” can be and opens your mind to different ways of thinking and being in the world. Most people agreed, though some disagreed with the role social media plays in this experience:

“That’s been one of my favorite parts about AA (aside from the obvious sobriety factor). I have been able to meet and become close with such a wide variety of people that I wouldn’t have met otherwise. I’m a damn hermit and I would have missed out on some seriously incredible people from literally all walks of life.”

“Too true! Especially because we get so siloed in social media and various online bubbles.”

“You’d think having access to all of the developed world would make us curious about the thoughts of others but… nope.”

“Actually, I’d say social media is a good thing for this, because it exposes everyone to so many viewpoints. For someone who grows up using social media, they’re exposed to so many viewpoints about any topic they take an interest in that they learn to sympathise with those views before they can form their own opinions and biases, causing them to be more open-minded.”

Obviously, what we think everyone should experience is going to be colored by our own experiences, but when “security” and “love” are listed multiple times as things everyone should have at least once, that’s a sign that a lot of people are missing some fundamental things in life. Let’s all work a bit harder to create a world where no one is wanting for the basics so everyone has a chance to fully enjoy things like traveling and chasing the stars.

Fall and winter exude dinner party sentiment with the sensory notes of the season driving the menu. To help you really lean into the season’s dinner party vibes, we asked some Flavor Creators in the food and drink industry to offer some guidance on your next dinner party.

Chef Michael Reed and Pastry Chef Karolyn Plummer joined forces to build a menu around not just the season, but the personalities of the people sitting around the table. To do this, Chefs Reed and Plummer met with dinner party host Indy Srinath to take the menu of a dinner beyond just pairing food to time or place. They decided to go deeper and really look at the personality of everyone around Srinath’s table to build a menu that spoke to the nuances of those people. From there, they consulted our Spirits Editor Zach Jack Johnston, who worked to pair Jack Daniel’s Tennessee Apple cocktails with the food and the vibe of the party.

As with any party, each guest brought their own charisma to the table. Their energetic, bold, and adventurous personalities gave the chefs ample inspiration to then craft a three-course menu with cocktail pairings. And right there, that’s enough to start building a menu of cocktails, appetizers, main dishes, and a big finale dessert.

Check out the video above to see the dishes that these guests inspired and how the Jack Apple cocktails paired with them for a night to remember. Hopefully, you’ll be able to take some tips from the pros in this video and our recent guide when you plan your next dinner party around your crew.

Back in 2017 (a simpler time, comparatively speaking), then-President Trump unleashed a typo heard ’round the world. This led to the magical invention of “covfefe,” which Trump subsequently ruined by responding to the tweet. Well, Lauren Boebert is a ride-or-die fan of Trump, so maybe there’s some subconscious imitation that’s happening with her latest (bizarre) tweet. Or maybe she’s simply typing gibberish on her own?

It’s difficult to say what’s really amiss here, other than to say that something is wrong because Boebert essentially made up a word while attempting to insult President Biden. “It’s almost the end of 2021,” the rootin’ tootin’ representative tweeted. “[A]nd I’ve yet to see Biden mobilize truinternatialdepressure like he promised. What’s the hold up?”

Wow. Naturally, “truinternatialdepressure” is being googled here and there while people wonder if maybe, just maybe, this is a term that’s been invented by the far-right, who is still (somehow) running the “Let’s Go Brandon” ball into the ground. Yet this seems a lot more like a genuine typo, or like Boebert attempted to type a clever amalgamation of some sort, and the effort backfired.

Or perhaps she simply sneezed while typing? Who knows. Regardless, people are noticing the new “covfefe.”

And everyone’s wondering what on earth Boebert really intended to say with this declaration. Surely, this was a phone tweet, no? That’s no excuse, though, but she’s so far leaving the tweet up (whereas she has been known to delete those tweets while attempting to scrub previous errors).

In addition, some people would like to know why the Rifle Republican has yet to mention the latest mass shooting in her state of Colorado. That’s a fair question, but so far, no comment from Boebert.

The Indianapolis Colts are one of the NFL’s hottest teams, winning six of their last seven games, most recently taking down the Cardinals on Christmas to move to 9-6, allowing them to control their own destiny in the playoff hunt.

They are a game back of the Titans for the AFC South division title, but tied with the Patriots for the fifth and sixth wild card spots in the AFC. Two wins in their final two games would guarantee the Colts a playoff berth, and with the Raiders and Jaguars remaining on the schedule, they figured to be favored in both. However, this Sunday they will have to face the Raiders, by far the tougher of the two, without starting quarterback Carson Wentz. Wentz was placed into COVID protocols on Tuesday, and as an unvaccinated player he cannot test his way out of protocols and will not be able to possibly return by Sunday.

That is a significant deal for the Colts and a lot of other teams in the AFC playoff hunt, including the Las Vegas Raiders, who are one of the four teams tied at 8-7 and chasing that final wild card spot. The Colts will likely turn to rookie Sam Ehlinger in Wentz’s absence, which is far from the ideal circumstance for a team hoping to lock up at playoff berth this weekend.

While Jonathan Taylor and the Colts rushing attack is by far their biggest strength on offense, having the threat of the pass that Wentz provides is critical to keeping the box at least a bit lighter for Taylor and the Colts O-line to go to work. That won’t be there with Ehlinger and the Raiders figure to load up to slow down Taylor on Sunday. Should Vegas be able to win against a Wentz-less Colts, it will create an even bigger logjam in the AFC, one Indianapolis was really hoping to avoid being in entering Week 18.