In case you can’t tell that we’ve all been trapped inside for way too long, the internet is losing its mind after recently discovering that John Oliver’s twin and lovable Muppet Elmo has been trapped in a brutal feud with Zoe’s pet rock, Rocco, on Sesame Street. To put it mildly, Elmo would fire the damn thing into the sun if he had the chance. As for how social media latched onto the battle of the ages, it’s all thanks to a random clip from the children’s program that shows Elmo losing his Muppet mind after Zoe refused to give him a cookie because Rocco wanted it. Elmo flipped, y’all.
According to USA Today‘s For The Win, the feud between puppet and rock has been simmering for ages, and when it comes right down to it, poor Elmo is being gaslit:
Why does Elmo hate this rock?
The rock is always getting in Elmo’s way, man. Zoe treats the rock like it’s an actual person on the show when we all know it’s not. It’s not a real person. It doesn’t need people things.
We know that. The kids know that. Elmo knows that. The only one who doesn’t know it is Zoe. She’s tripping, y’all. Elmo is right.
Despite Elmo clearly being psychologically tortured by an inanimate object, the internet had a freaking field day watching the little guy mentally die inside after being repeatedly forced to pretend that a pet rock is real. Who would do this to such a sweet, lovable friend like Elmo? Yes, his voice is annoying and conjures up images of murder, but he knows what’s real and what isn’t, dammit.
In recent days, there have been rumors that the 2022 Grammy Awards would be postponed, and now, it is official: The Recording Academy has confirmed that the 64th Annual Grammy Awards have been postponed, with a new date yet to be announced. This year’s ceremony was initially set to take place on January 31 at Los Angeles’ Crypto.com Arena.
“After careful consideration and analysis with city and state officials, health and safety experts, the artist community and our many partners, the Recording Academy and CBS have postponed the 64th Annual Grammy Awards Show. The health and safety of those in our music community, the live audience, and the hundreds of people who work tirelessly to produce our show remains our top priority. Given the uncertainty surrounding the Omicron variant, holding the show on January 31st simply contains too many risks. We look forward to celebrating Music’s Biggest Night on a future date, which will be announced soon.”
USA Today reported yesterday that the United States is averaging 550,000 newly reported COVID-19 infections per day over the last week, and that there were 1.08 million cases reported on Monday, topping the 1 million mark for the first time.
Someone once said, “A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.” In this case, the journey is becoming an expert (or at least semi-knowledgable) bourbon drinker and the person making the aforementioned trip is you, the bourbon beginner. The good news? You definitely won’t have to travel a thousand miles to start your bourbon odyssey (that is until you get the bug to travel to the distilleries you love).
In a marketplace loaded with reasonably-priced, well-made, flavorful beginner whiskeys, diving into the bourbon world couldn’t be easier than it is today. And all you need to do is peruse the aisles of your local liquor store or scroll through an online retailer to find them. To help you get started, we asked a handful of our favorite bartenders to tell us the best bourbons for absolute newcomers. They gave us a variety of bottles at different price ranges (but most are fairly inexpensive), all well suited to the palates of newcomers.
Wild Turkey tastes like you expect bourbon to taste. If you’re trying it out, you can scale up on proof from 81 to 101 to cask strength versions, and even Russell’s Reserve to find your sweet spot. If I had to pick one, it would be Wild Turkey 101. There’s no better quality to value bottle on the market.
It’s high proof, but mellow with caramel corn, vanilla, and slight spice.
The best bourbon for novice drinkers is Woodford Reserve. This is because it is soft and sweet on the palate with just a bit of spice to intrigue you and turn a new corner into a whiskey drinker. What more could you ask for in a beginner bottle?
Basil Hayden Toast
Basil Hayden
Christopher Rodriguez, lead bartender at Lucy Restaurant & Bar in Yountville, California
I would tell a novice drinker to try something smooth and easy to drink. Specifically, I would tell them to try the Basil Hayden Toast. It is aged in toasted oak barrels that add a very light, smooth taste with a vanilla flavor. It is quite accessible and affordable.
Angel’s Envy
Angel’s Envy
Nick du Mortier, lead mixologist at Bar Pendry in Chicago
Since we’re talking about trying one, not buying one, I’ll pick Angel’s Envy. It’s a slightly expensive but non-aggressive introduction to drinking bourbon straight up or in a cocktail. It has vanilla and maple notes which aren’t off-putting to most new bourbon drinkers.
EH Taylor Small Batch
Buffalo Trace
Josh Curtis, bar director at the Malibu Beach Inn in Malibu, California
E.H. Taylor Small Batch has a wonderfully light sweetness that blends into an aftertaste of pepper and tobacco. It has a delightful complexity. The only problem is that it’s not very easy to find at the suggested retail price.
Buffalo Trace
Buffalo Trace
Mark Phelan, beverage director at 16″ On Center in Chicago
I think Buffalo Trace is a great entry-level bourbon to showcase the general flavor of the category to a novice drinker. It is softer on the palate but has a nice balance of vanilla, oak, and spice flavors for a solid introduction to America’s native spirit.
Four Roses Small Batch
Four Roses
Jamie Shaw, beverage manager at Stella of New Hope in New Hope, Pennsylvania
I usually recommend Four Roses Small Batch or Jefferson’s Ocean to novice bourbon drinkers. Neither of these will break the bank, and they’re a little on the sweeter side so they won’t come across too harsh to anyone. If I had to pick one, it would be Four Roses because of its caramel, vanilla, and oak charred flavors.
Blanton’s Single Barrel bourbon is my pick. It is perfect for a new drinker because it is not as smoky as the traditional bourbons we are used to. It is a high-corn-based bourbon that allows for a sweeter flavor, which I believe would pair nicely with a new drinker.
Evan Williams Single Barrel
Evan Williams
Lee Noble, lead mixologist at Art in the Age in Philadelphia
Evan Williams Single Barrel is nice and smooth with a surprising chocolatey note that would make it easy for a beginner. It’s great for mixing or sipping and surprisingly well-priced for such a well-made whiskey.
I think Russell’s Reserve 10 tastes like bourbon is supposed to taste. It’s the quintessential bourbon for me. It’s big and caramelly with a wonderful vanilla flavor and the oak and the spice bring everything together. It’s definitely one of my favorites.
When I first started in the industry as a barback, I worked with a curmudgeonly old bartender who poured me the first whiskey I actually enjoyed, Basil Hayden. It’s a bit mellower but with a touch of black pepper.
All in all, it’s a solid sipper that won’t overload you with charred oak.
Michter’s US-1 Small Batch
Michter
Andres Bedoya, bartender at The Apothecary 330 in Fort Lauderdale, Florida
A must-try bourbon for a novice drinker has to be Michter’s Small Batch Bourbon. It has a bold flavor profile. Anyone who tries it will understand why Michter’s has endured to the test of time and continues to inspire generation after generation of bourbon distillers.
Maker’s Mark is a great choice for novice drinkers to dip their toes into the bourbon world. This smooth and soft bourbon has delicious notes of caramel and vanilla. Maker’s Mark is on the slightly sweeter side and has an approachable price point.
Old Forester Single Barrel 100 might be one of the best bourbons for the buck on the market. The classic butterscotch, vanilla, caramel, and toffee are all present at elevated levels and there is little or no heat.
J.K. Rowling has long been criticized for perpetuating anti-Semitic stereotypes with her depiction of goblins in the Harry Potter book series. This is on the top of all the other things that she has been rightly called out for. The latest round of discourse came from Jon Stewart on a recent episode of The Problem with Jon Stewart podcast. “Here’s how you know Jews are still where they are,” he said. “Talking to people, here’s what I say: Have you ever seen a Harry Potter movie?… Have you ever seen the scenes in Gringotts Bank?… Do you know what those folks who run the bank are?… Jews!”
That episode was posted about a month ago, but his comments have only recently gone viral — and Stewart is frustrated that they were taken out of context.
“There is no reasonable person that could have watched it and not seen it as a light-hearted conversation amongst colleagues and chums having a larf, enjoying ourselves, about Harry Potter and my experience watching it for the first time in a theater as a Jewish guy, and how some tropes are so embedded in society that they’re basically invisible, even in a considered process like movie making,” the former-Daily Show host said in a video posted to Twitter (you can watch it below).
At this point, Stewart leaned towards the camera to make his point as clearly as possible: “Hello, my name is Jon Stewart. I do not think J.K. Rowling is anti-Semitic. I did not accuse her of being anti-Semitic. I do not think the Harry Potter movies are anti-Semitic.” He also tweeted that Newsweek could, ahem, take PBR’s advice.
Virtual Reality was still new to most gamers when PlayStation first entered the market in 2016. We’d been hearing about the possibility of VR for years, but it always had challenges that made it hard to access, with price and space to use the headset always the biggest difficulty.
Now, in 2022, VR is as much a part of video games as the latest console or hit mobile game. While there is still a difficult barrier to entry, more people getting into VR and improved technology have helped the price become more manageable. This has made it the perfect time for PlayStation to once again enter the VR market, but this time with a new headset. The PlayStation VR2 is Sony’s new VR headset meant to connect with the PlayStation 5, and it includes a controller named the PlayStation VR2 Sense controller. Via PlayStation Blog:
PlayStation VR2 takes VR gaming to a whole new level, enabling a greater sense of presence and allowing players to escape into game worlds like never before. With the headset on and controllers in hand, players will feel a heightened range of sensations unlike any other – thanks to the creativity of the game worlds being built by our world class developers, and the latest technology incorporated into the hardware.
With VR continuing to grow, we want to see some games that those of us without headsets are disappointed we’re missing out on, thereby giving us a reason to purchase one.
Travis Barker may have rose to fame as the drummer for Blink-182, but he’s recently been making headlines for a few reasons. Not only is he engaged to mega-millionaire Kourtney Kardashian, but he’s also been expanding his musical catalog by working with artists like Willow and Young Thug. Now that he’s gotten comfortable making music with artists in other genres, the musician attempted to turn one of Adele’s hit songs into a pop-punk anthem with a cover posted to social media.
Seated behind his impressive drum kit, Barker filmed himself playing alongside Adele’s No. 1 single “Easy On Me.” Adding edge to Adele’s soaring vocals, Barker uses his percussive skills to take the song from a heart-tugging ballad to a roaring ballad. Barker went so hard on his drum kit that he even appeared to break one of his drum sticks near the end of the clip.
Ahead of Barker taking on a cover of Adele’s track, “Easy On Me” absolutely dominated the charts. The song was at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart for seven weeks straight while her album, 30, was the best-selling album on vinyl in 2021 despite being released in October.
Watch Barker add his signature style to Adele’s “Easy On Me” above.
Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
We don’t talk enough about the meteoric rise of Chance the Rapper. Just 10 years ago, Chance was known less as “the rapper” and more as Chancelor Johnathan Bennett, a Chicago high school student who had been suspended for 10-days for marijuana possession. That 10-day suspension gave Chance the opportunity to drill down and focus on his passion for rap, giving the world his debut mixtape 10 Day, a release that put Chance’s name on everyone’s radar and even garnered comparisons to fellow Chicago rapper Kanye West.
He followed up that release just a year later with the modern classic, Acid Rap, and then the beloved ColoringBook, which led to more critical acclaim, a record label bidding war, and multiple tv appearances. Chance showed up on everything from The Eric Andre Show to Ellen DeGeneres, eventually landing a dual role as host and musical guest on SNL (he was also the Obama family’s favorite rapper and regular guest). By the decade’s end, Chance would score a small role in The Lion King, befriend and collaborate with his hero Kanye West (producing Kanye’s best late-period song, “Ultra Light Beam”) and serve as the new host of the relaunched Punk’d.
Even your grandma knows who Chance the Rapper is. And while that doesn’t sound like the coolest flex, it certainly signifies just how huge Chance has really become.
If those bonafides aren’t enough to convince you, Chance has now landed the ultimate collaboration — his very own Ben & Jerry’s ice cream flavor — Mint Chocolate Chance. Now Lil’ Chano from 79th sits alongside other cultural giants like Jerry Garcia, Phish, and Stephen Colbert as his new flavor joins Ben & Jerry’s permanent roster of flavors.
But is Mint Chocolate Chance any good? We tried the new ice cream flavor to find out!
Mint Chocolate Chance
Dane Rivera
Mint Chocolate Chance, perhaps unsurprisingly, features a cool and refreshing mint chocolate base with chunks of brownie bites inside. Think mint chocolate chip ice cream with the chips replaced by giant pieces of soft, fudgy brownie. The flavor was apparently inspired by Chance’s childhood practice of mixing his favorite mint chocolate chip ice cream with his mother’s homemade brownies.
“It amazes me that no one thought to combine brownies and mint chocolate chip and I can’t wait to share it with everyone,” Chance said of the new flavor.
He’s right — how the hell is this a new flavor? It seems like one of the most obvious flavor combinations of all time! So it shouldn’t surprise you when I say that it works, because Mint Chocolate Chance is goddamn (forgive me Chance) delicious. The ice cream is wonderfully rich and creamy, it’s so thick and dense that it actually bent my spoon the first time I tried to scoop it out of the pint. Use an ice cream scooper. The brownies are sourced from New York’s Greyston Bakery, which prides itself on its use of real quality ingredients, and that commitment to craft shines through here.
Dane Rivera
A lot of times ice cream fillings, while always appreciated, are of subpar quality. It’s easy to hide grainy cookie dough or a subpar almond under layers of sweet, rich ice cream, who’s going to notice? Me, that’s who. So I’m really loving how good these brownie bites are, they are somehow still soft despite being totally frozen. It’s not quite as delicious as adding a warm fresh-baked brownie to your bowl of ice cream, but it comes pretty damn close. The mix of brownie and mint tastes like the best Andes mint you’ve ever had.
If your mouth is watering but ice cream is something you can only stomach a spoonful at a time, you’ll be happy to know Mint Chocolate Chance is also available in non-dairy form. The dairy-free version is made utilizing sunflower butter, which helps to keep the ice cream dense and creamy and not weird and icy like most dairy-free ice creams tend to be. The flavor isn’t quite as good though, it’s a bit duller in comparison to the OG Mint Chocolate Chance. Maybe that’s something I wouldn’t notice if I wasn’t eating them side by side, but I’m not about to sit here and tell you they taste nearly the same, they don’t really.
Dane Rivera
As is the case with most celebrity Ben & Jerry’s flavors, a percentage of sales of Mint Chocolate Chance will go to charity, in this case, Chance’s own five-year-old non-profit SocialWorks, which concerns itself with empowering Chicago youth through arts, education, and civic engagement, with programming that focuses on education, homelessness, mental health, and performing and literary arts.
Chance, who cut his teeth at open mics at libraries and after-school programs alongside fellow Chicago rapper Vic Mensa, has come full-circle in his career. Scoring his own delicious ice cream flavor from one of the most well-loved ice cream brands in the country feels like a fitting trophy as he approaches the ten-year anniversary of his first mixtape.
The Bottom Line:
A great addition to Ben & Jerry’s permanent lineup but opt for the dairy version over its less flavorful dairy-free counterpart. Imagine the thickest, creamiest mint chocolate ice cream you’ve ever had with big fudge brownies bites in each bite. Simple. Easy. Delicious.
We’ve seen people call into news stations to complain about news anchors for unbelievable reasons before, from complaints about clothing choices to judgments about body size. Now we can add being “very Asian” to the list. Yes, seriously.
Michelle Li is an award-winning Asian American reporter and news anchor for NBC St. Louis. On New Year’s Day, in a segment about traditional new year food dishes, she shared, “I ate dumpling soup. That’s what a lot of Korean people do.”
Neat, right? A cool cultural tradition to learn about if someone wasn’t already familiar with it.
Or, if you’re the sad woman who called into the station to complain, an “offensive” statement Li should have kept to herself. Yes, really.
Li shared a recording of the woman’s one-minute call, in which she said she was “offended” by Li sharing her tradition. “I don’t think it was appropriate that she said that, and she’s being very Asian…she can keep her Korean to herself.”
Iu2019d love to say something back.pic.twitter.com/zrXgiwQbR9
The woman’s insistence that a white person couldn’t say something similar about a cultural tradition makes no sense, of course. If an anchor had Irish ancestry and said that their family ate corned beef and cabbage because that’s a traditional new year’s meal in Ireland, would they be fired? Um, no. How this woman confused a specific cultural tradition with someone making a generalization about white people is baffling, and her complaining about an Asian American “being very Asian” is even more so.
The responses were swift and supportive.
Some support came in the form of sarcasm.
Haha I mean who does not like a dumpling. Whatu2019s she gonna say next? She hates noodles?!
Hi Twitter support. One of youru2026um very asianu2026 twitterers tweeted about eating dumplings. Iu2019m offended. I mean what if a white person just decided to share their dietary opinions? They would probably be blocked or harassed. Right @RadioFreeTom?
My parents are white and we are a #veryasian family! — Michelle (@Michelle) 1641138216
As a #VeryAsian journalist and mentor, I like taking young journalists out for #VeryAsian dumplings at Hello Dumpling in East Dallas. Oh, yeah, some of the young journalists are also #VeryAsian. @KalleyHuang @julianna_morano @praveenavsoma @zaynasyed_ https://twitter.com/MichelleLiTV/status/1477493641732149248u00a0u2026pic.twitter.com/v21cOLavdr
In fact, the phrase caught on like wildfire, resulting in “Very Asian” merch for a good cause.
The response to #VeryAsian has been AMAZING…nnA lot of you asked for ways to support. Well, @Gia_Vang + I heard you: http://veryasian.usu00a0nnYou can buy a wearable but be quick – up for a limited time. All proceeds go to @aaja after costs to support #AAPI journalists. 1/2pic.twitter.com/xyJ2mPKTyG
Along with another anchor, Gia Vang, Li created a website with shirts and hats with “Very Asian” on them, some of them in Li’s handwriting. For a limited time, people can buy these “Very Asian” wearables, with all proceeds going to the Asian American Journalists Association, an organization that supports Asian American journalists, works to advance diversity in newsrooms and strives to ensure fair and accurate coverage of communities of color.
They even have merch for #VeryAsian kids:
You asked, @Gia_Vang listened. Now little kid clothes for the lil dumpling in your life.nnAgain, limited sale… all proceeds go to @aaja after costs!pic.twitter.com/YV0D324xbI
If someone is going to complain about a woman doing her job and being herself simply because she is of Asian descent, at least some good can come out of it. Michelle Li should not have been subjected to that woman’s racism, but it’s heartening to see how she and those who support her take that lemon and make lemonade from it.
To donate directly to the Asian American Journalists Association, go here.
From a young age, Deddeh Howard was enthralled by fashion and its role in culture. Unfortunately, she was never really able to see herself in it.
“Something that always bothered me when you see these amazing images [was] that very rarely you ever see a black woman on them,” Howard, who grew up in West Africa but now resides in Los Angeles, wrote at her blog, Secret of DD.
“Black girls are almost invisible,” she wrote.
So Howard created “Black Mirror,” a photo series in which she re-creates famous photos with herself in place of models like Kendall Jenner, Gigi Hadid, Gisele Bundchen, and others.
Howard’s partner, Raffael Dickreuter, shot the series. As its title suggests, it holds a “black mirror” up to the fashion world. The project’s goal is both to make people notice the lack of diversity in the fashion world and to provide inspiration to other non-white models.
Of the models featured on the fall 2016 runways, 75% were white. There’s a major need for a diversity boost.
Sometimes, that lack of diversity can be downright embarrassing. Earlier this year, one fashion show featured models walking to Beyoncé’s “Formation,” a song Essence described as a “wholly and undeniable a tribute to Blackness — particularly Black girl power.” The problem: The show didn’t feature a single non-white model.
Diversity, representation, and visibility play key roles in shaping ambition and self-acceptance in the real world.
It’s important to be able to see yourself in the world, and it’s important to know that someone who looks like you can succeed.
“The next generation can only get inspired and reach for the stars themselves if they believe they can do it too,” Howard wrote on her blog. “For that reason diversity in ad campaigns is in my opinion much more important than you might think.”
Donald Trump is predictably firing back at the latest batch of Sean Hannity texts revealed by the January 6 committee. In the newest round of texts, a frantic Hannity tries to convince White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows and Senator Jim Jordan to keep Trump quiet after the attack on the U.S. Capitol building. In fact, Hannity is insistent that Trump should go back to Florida and lie low until Joe Biden is inaugurated. The texts also revealed that Hannity was failing to get through to Trump about the seriousness of the attempted coup.
“Guys, we have a clear path to land the plane in 9 days. He can’t mention the election again. Ever,” Hannity texted. “I did not have a good call with him today. And worse, I’m not sure what is left to do or say, and I don’t like not knowing if it’s truly understood. Ideas?”
Trump, however, has naturally fired back on Hannity’s assertion that he should’ve remained quiet after the January 6 attack. “I disagree with Sean on that statement and the facts are proving me right,” Trump told CNN’s Kaitlin Collins in a statement.
Trump is now responding to the Hannity texts released by the Jan. 6 committee, including when he told Mark Meadows that Trump should stop talking about the election. “I disagree with Sean on that statement and the facts are proving me right,” Trump tells me, via a spokesman.
As for whether there will be repercussions for Hannity’s texts with Trump during the January 6 insurrection, c’mon, this is Fox News we’re talking about.
remember when it was revealed chris cuomo had been texting his brother about sexual assault crimes and cnn fired him and then it was revealed sean hannity had been texting the president about overthrowing the government and fox news was like we’ll see you at 9pm.
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https://t.co/uU9zjJiFkU
(@kdot3H) January 5, 2022
America Is Musty
