Month: April 2022

In the lead-up to and aftermath of Halsey’s Trent Reznor- and Atticus Ross-produced album If I Can’t Have Love, I Want Power, there has been a lot of talk about the conversations the three had before committing to making the album together. Now, though, Halsey has shared the first look of her real-time reaction to Reznor praising her music, a moment that was clearly moving for her.

Today, Halsey released a behind-the-scenes video about the making of both the If I Can’t Have Love, I Want Power album and accompanying film. At about 7:53 into the video, Halsey discusses getting Reznor and Ross involved with the album, noting, “Since my debut, I wanted to work with Trent and Atticus.”

The video then shows footage of Halsey, in Prague, on a long-distance call with Reznor and Atticus, both in Los Angeles. Halsey was clearly nervous and excited to be on the call: While Reznor spoke, Halsey quietly asked the people around her, “Am I doing OK?”

Reznor started with brutal honestly, noting of the work Halsey had sent along to him, “When we heard the arrangements of the music, it made it feel a bit casual. Now I’m not really listening to what you’re saying because the music has told me, ‘Ah, this is something to listen to in the car.’” Reznor’s tone shifted as he continued, “Once we got rid of that or changed that, suddenly, we were really listening to what you were saying and, quite frankly, blown away by the songwriting.”

After hearing that, Halsey looked like she was about to break into happy tears before offering a shaky, “Wow.”

Reznor continued, “Once it’s stripped, these songs feel… I get more goosebumps, not just because the snare drum sounds different, but… I’m really listening to what you’re saying and I’m responding to it. We’re glad to see that you seem to feel the same way. This is something we think, you know, could be really great.”

After Reznor said “goosebumps,” Halsey gave an “Oh my god” sort of expression that communicated how meaningful that was for her to hear, before covering her eyes and resting her hands on her face.

Halsey, still seemingly overwhelmed, ended the call by responding before saying her goodbyes, “I still feel like this phone call isn’t really happening. I’m kind of out of my mind. So I promise I’ll get over my fangirl-ness as soon as possible so we can have a functioning work relationship.”

Once everybody hung up, Halsey opened her mouth as wide as possible, closed her laptop, walked around the room, and proudly recounted Reznor saying her songwriting gave him goosebumps.

It was clearly a special moment for Halsey and it’s delightful to watch it unfold, so check it out in the video above. Given that this video is labeled “Part 1,” there’s presumably more to come, so keep an eye out for further behind-the-scenes videos from Halsey.

After a fan-made TikTok musical won an actual real-life Grammy last week, the app is now beginning to invest in its creators. The video making app, which became many people’s source of entertainment during COVID lockdowns, has inspired a ton of short, quirky musicals which have attracted stars like Adam Lambert and Tituss Burgess, who starred in a live stream of Ratatouille: The TikTok Musical in early 2021 (really). Now that creators have established they are able to write, produce, and edit full-fledge musicals on the app, the company is looking to get involved.

TikTok, which is majorly popular with Gen Z, has commissioned its first official musical, titled For You, Paige, a play on words on the app’s “for you” discover page. Daniel Mertzlufft, who gained fame for his work on the Ratatouille musical is the creative lead behind the new production. It features original songs by Mertzlufft, with work from other well-known creators and artists, Julia Riew, Katherine Lynn-Rose, RJ Christian, Blake Rouse, Morgan Reilly, Alex Engleberg, Kate Leonard, and Gosz & Fotos.

For You, Paige will be available to livestream on the official TikTok account on Thursday, April 14, at 7 p.m. ET, performed at a theater in New York City. Mertzlufft posted an extremely quick explanation of the musical:

TikTok’s official announcement of the musical:

TikTok has become a home for Broadway and musical theater lovers and performers to share their talent, creativity and passion for live theater. With popular hashtags like #Broadway, #Musical, and #TheaterKid receiving 4.4B, 6.5B, and 582.4M global views to date, TikTok’s thriving creator community has helped turn creative ideas like Grammy Award-winning album The Unofficial Bridgerton Musical into reality by providing a global stage with the potential for more than one billion fans in the audience. Now, TikTok is embarking on a new stage in redefining entertainment with For You, Paige, the first commissioned TikTok musical. Performed LIVE from a theater in New York City, For You, Paige will be available to watch globally only on @TikTok on April 14 at 7pm ET/4pm PT.

Now that TikTok is actually investing in creators, there is truly no limit on what they might make next. Why stop at Ratatouille? Why not produce the actual musical from Monsters Inc? The sky is the limit!

Last summer, DeMar DeRozan was linked to the Los Angeles Lakers during free agency. At one point, DeRozan believed a partnership was a “done deal” and he’d return home to play alongside LeBron James and Anthony Davis in pursuit of a title.

Ultimately, though, Los Angeles pivoted to trade for Russell Westbrook instead, and DeRozan landed with the Chicago Bulls, where he’s authored an All-NBA-caliber campaign for a playoff squad.

According to a report from Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN, DeRozan “felt that the Lakers were in sort of disarray” when he met with them as a free agent last year.

“I talked to someone from DeRozan’s camp,” Youngmisuk said recently. “(The Lakers) didn’t really have a vision. They didn’t know what they were doing.”

Of course, the ensuing eight months since those decisions are well-documented. DeRozan enjoyed his fifth career All-Star appearance, while Westbrook struggled mightily much of the year. Los Angeles will miss the playoffs and Chicago sits sixth in the East at 45-34.

Obviously, Los Angeles didn’t expect Westbrook to decline so drastically from last year’s splendid second half, but it remains quite fascinating to envision DeRozan as a Laker. Given all their injuries and the way DeRozan carried a shorthanded Bulls team for stretches, he clearly could’ve helped Los Angeles avoid this fate of a playoff-less season.

In her newest music video for her song, “The Dealer,” Nilüfer Yanya shows off her guitar chops. In the visual, Yanya is seen playing different color guitars corresponding to blue, red, and orange outfits. Lights of those same colors shine upon Yanya, as kaleidoscopic lenses capture every emotion on her face.

Toward the end of the video, Yanya is cleansed by rainfall, symbolizing a sense of rebirth.

“When I was writing this song I was thinking about the transient nature of life and the cyclical nature of the seasons,” Yanya said of the song in a statement. “I find it interesting how we attach certain memories and feelings to different seasons and tend to revisit them time and time again, yet our lives move in a more linear motion and even when we feel like we are going back we never really get to go back anywhere. Musically speaking it’s a bit more playful and relaxed.”

“The Dealer” comes from Yanya’s album, Painless, which she says is inspired by the discomfort that accompanies major life moments.

Of the album, Yanya said, “It’s a record about emotion. I think it’s more open about that in a way that [my first album] Miss Universe wasn’t, because [there are] so many cloaks and sleeves with the concept I built around it. I’m not as scared to admit my feelings.”

Check out “The Dealer” above.

Painless is out now via ATO Records. Get it here.

Colin Firth is known for his many iconic roles, most of them being British royalty or a long-lost father, or both! In his latest flick, Firth plays the real-life British naval officer Ewen Montagu, who plans to trick Hilter during World War II, using a combination of wit and a dead corpse.

Operation Mincemeat is based on the very real British operation during WWII. The movie will be based on Ben Macintyre’s book about the successful operation. The trailer shows the outlandish scheme and the lengths the officers go to trick the Nazis.

The movie has an all-star cast, including Firth, Matthew Macfadyen, Jason Isaacs, Kelly Macdonald, Simon Russell Beale, Mark Gatiss, and Penelope Wilton. It also features Paul Ritter’s last performance before his death in April 2021.

Like many films coming out over the last few months, production on Operation Mincemeat began in late 2019 and picked up again in 2021. Netflix acquired the film which will be released on May 11th online and in select theaters. According to the official Netflix description:

Hoping to change the course of World War II, and save tens of thousands of lives, two intelligence officers plot to break Hitler’s deadly grip on Europe by recruiting the most unlikely of secret agents: a dead man.

Check out the official trailer above.

Matt Gaetz is not a doctor, nor does he play one on TV. But he seems to have an alarming amount of confidence in his terrible medical opinions, like how contracting COVID is much safer than getting vaccinated against COVID (don’t ask). Now he is sharing a somehow even more offensive medical hot take after voting against a bill last week that would cap the price of insulin for diabetics.

As Mother Jones reports, the Affordable Insulin Now Act passed the House last week after every single Democrat and a dozen Republicans voted in its favor. Among the nearly 200 House Republicans who were against making a life-saving drug affordable for millions of people, however, was the controversial Florida congressman. While Gaetz’s disapproval hardly came as a surprise to anyone, he still chose to explain to his followers why he opted to vote against the bill. On Friday, he shared his feelings on—and woeful ignorance surrounding—the deadly diabetes epidemic with his followers, stating:

While Democrat posturing of H.R. 6833 victimizes insulin payees as people with an uncontrollable disease that are being taken advantage of and need Big Brother to throw them a raft, lifestyle changes en masse would expeditiously lower demand and the subsequent prices of insulin. 90-95% of people with diabetes have type 2 diabetes, which “can be prevented or delayed with healthy lifestyle changes, such as losing weight, eating healthy food, and being active.” Arbitrary price controls are no substitute for individual weight control. Since 2000, the number of diabetes cases in the U.S. has nearly doubled. The demand for insulin has increased and the requisite price increase has followed suit. In other words, the price of insulin increases as waistlines increase.

As Mother Jones noted, more than 25 percent of Florida’s population (read: Gaetz’s constituents) are considered obese, “including Gaetz’s favorite Palm Beach resident, former President Donald Trump. And more than 10 percent of the state’s population suffers from diabetes, not all of which is caused by lifestyle factors.”

Even if we put aside the fact that there are two kinds of diabetes, Type 1 and Type 2, and that diet has no bearing on the former: Just last week, a massive study found that individuals who had contracted even mild cases of COVID were at a 40 percent higher risk of developing diabetes within 12 months—an unanticipated side effect that The New York Times described as a “public health train wreck.” But don’t go looking for any sympathy from Gaetz, who has regularly fat-shamed both his political colleagues and Americans at large.

One would think that Gaetz, who has been accused of having sex with a minor and is under federal investigation because of links to a sex-trafficking ring, would want to stay as under-the-radar as possible. Then again, of all the things Gaetz has been accused of, being an intelligent person or political operator has never been one of them. Fortunately, people haven’t held back on sharing their thoughts about Gaetz’s callous commentary:

(Via Mother Jones)

On the same night that Will Smith slapped Chris Rock at the Oscars, The Flash star Ezra Miller was about to get arrested for disorderly conduct and harassment at a karaoke bar. Hours later, they’d be slapped with a restraining order for allegedly bursting into a couple’s bedroom they were staying with and threatening the pair before stealing a wallet and passport. Factor in a prior incident involving Miller being captured on video choking a woman and slamming her into the ground in Iceland, and Warner Bros. found itself in an untenable situation that it could no longer ignore.

According to a new report from Rolling Stone, studio execs held an emergency meeting shortly after Miller’s arrest where they agreed to “hit pause on any future projects involving Miller including possible appearances in the DC Cinematic Universe.” Unfortunately, this sheds little light on how Warner Bros. plans to handle the upcoming solo The Flash movie starring Miller, which went through a laundry list of writers and directors before finally landing on It director Andy Muschietti.

However, there reportedly were issues with Miller during the production of the film, which has already seen its release date moved from November 2022 to June 2023:

One insider says Miller had “frequent meltdowns” during production last year on The Flash. While the insider stresses there was no yelling or violent outbursts, they described Miller as “losing it.” “Ezra would get a thought in [their] head and say, ‘I don’t know what I’m doing,’” the insider tells Rolling Stone.

While the plot has been kept closely under wraps, The Flash is a significant film for the DC Cinematic Universe, which has been finding its footing after the poor reception to Batman V Superman and Justice League. The film will mark Ben Affleck’s final appearance as Batman while also inserting Michael Keaton’s classic take on the Dark Knight into the shared universe. That’s a lot of heavy lifting for a movie whose star’s future at the studio is already in question.

(Via Rolling Stone)

The xx’s Oliver Sim has begun releasing solo music as of late. While the bassist/singer/songwriter said previously that he’s “still very much in a loving and happy relationship/band with Romy and Jamie [xx],” he has been using his solo work to explore identity. Now, on the new video for “Fruit,” he celebrates his queerness in spades.

“Have I made you proud? Take a look at me now. If I’ve got my father’s eyes, I’ve got my mother’s smile,” he sings.

The clip depicts him as a TV star, coming out, proud, and with his younger self watching on. Like last month’s release of “Romance With A Memory,” “Fruit” is both produced by Jamie xx and features a video by Yann Gonzalez, whom Sim calls “….sexy, hilarious, scary and soulful… One of my absolute favourite directors.”

“Oliver and I have so much in common: we love pop culture, horror films and we used to be femme kids before turning into proud queer adults,” Gonzalez added in a statement. “The song and the TV show here are like a multi-faceted mirror where Oliver and the kid, the live performance with its crew and flirtatious TV host, the 35mm film and the Ikegami video all shine and merge in order to create the same exhilarating feeling of being freed.”

Sim has also announced his first-ever solo tour. Check out all of those dates below, get tickets here, and watch the video for “Fruit” above.

05/10 — London @ Shoreditch Town Hall
05/11 — Paris @ Gaite Lyrique
05/13 — Berlin @ SchwuZ
05/15 — New York City @ Bowery Ballroom
05/17 — Los Angeles @ Masonic Lodge at Hollywood Forever

Majestic pyramids and ancient hieroglyphics are probably the first things that come to mind when you think of Egypt, and while they certainly deserve their fame, there’s so much more to it than that. This according to full-time travel blogger and content creator Kimmie Conner.

She’s been on the road and blogging for the past seven years, and throughout her adventures, she’s worked as a tour guide, and in sales and hospitality to stay on the road while building her platform. Now she lives the “digital nomad” lifestyle with her boyfriend, billeting in different places around the world for a few months to a year at a time, getting to know the areas, and then writing all about them on her site and sharing her experiences on Instagram and TikTok.

“Our latest destination was Egypt — where we’d planned to stay for one month but ended up falling in love and staying for four, exploring all the incredible places to visit,” says Conner.

With four months in Egypt under her belt, Conner has valuable insight into the best places to eat, play, stay, and explore — from where to get the best view of the pyramids of Giza (the answer will surprise you!) to the one dish every Egyptian tourist needs to try. We did our best to pick her brain below.

WHY EGYPT?

Egypt is one of the countries that surprised and captivated me the most. We first decided to visit partly out of convenience. We came to visit a friend and to see the main sights — pyramids, Luxor, etc. But once we arrived and discovered the incredible depth and complexity of this country — history, culture, scenery, adventure — we fell more and more in love.

Egypt is a must-visit for SO many more reasons than just the pyramids of Giza. I would even argue that if that’s all you see, it hardly even counts! To truly experience Egypt, you must travel to the Red Sea Coast to dive and snorkel around some stunning reefs and sea life, get lost in remote deserts with other-worldly scenery, bathe in hot springs surrounding remote oases, drink tea with hospitable Bedouins and learn about their culture, haggle for your life at city markets, learn about hieroglyphs inside ancient temples, and enjoy views with delicious Egyptian street food. Oh, and the locals here are some of the kindest and most hospitable I have come across.

Egypt because is literally the oldest tourist destination on Earth, with some of the most ancient, mysterious, and fascinating history, but also the most incredible and varied scenery and surprises around every corner.

What’s one thing that every first-time visitor should see or do in Egypt?

I was going to say the pyramids, but that one’s painfully obvious. I will say, however, that it’s worth visiting all three pyramid sites in Cairo — check out the pyramids of Dahshur and Saqqara before going to Giza to understand more context.

Other than the pyramids, I’m torn between saying everyone should go to the Red Sea or should do a Nile River cruise. I think both are super important to get a well-rounded idea of Egypt! When you do a Nile River cruise between Aswan and Luxor, you’ll be able to understand a lot of the history from Egypt’s New Kingdom. There are dozens of temples you’ll visit while on this river cruise that can give you a great perspective into what life may have been like all those thousands of years ago. You can also visit the Valley of the Kings — where dozens of Egyptian Pharaoh tombs were found, including King Tut’s. History buff or not, it’s absolutely fascinating.

I think it’s imperative to visit the Red Sea on your first trip to Egypt, because it’s absolutely spectacular, and one of the most beautiful parts of Egypt for sure. The Red Sea has some of the clearest and most pristine water in the whole world and is famous for boat trips, scuba diving, snorkeling, freediving, and simply swimming in warm sparkling water. My most recommended place to visit near the Red Sea would be the little hippie town of Dahab (more on that later), or Hurghada or Sharm El Shiekh for a more resort-style trip.

Where to get the best view of the Giza Pyramids?

Well, I did find one of the most…controversial views of the pyramids by checking out the KFC rooftop right outside the lower entrance! It’s true, you can get a great view from the fourth story rooftop of a hybrid KFC-Pizza Hut just outside (check out my video here). But there are plenty of other amazing views of the pyramids too!

You can get some other amazing views of the pyramids from the “panoramic viewpoints” out in the desert to the west of the pyramids (most tours will take you there), the new boho desert restaurant 9 Pyramids Lounge, and my personal favorite, from a jacuzzi in a studio apartment room overlooking the pyramids sunset.

Can you recommend a lesser-known city in Egypt worth visiting?

This is an easy one — DAHAB!! Dahab is one of the main reasons we stayed in Egypt so long. We actually lived here for two and a half of our four months in the country. Why? It’s purely MAGICAL! Dahab has one of the best lifestyles of anywhere I’ve lived and seriously rivals our other favorite, Bali.

Dahab has a laid-back hipster vibe with an air of adventure and happiness. Dahab has some of the best water for diving, freediving, and snorkeling, and many people learn here or just have a few refreshing swims a day. It’s close to the desert for hiking, climbing, and camping — you can also hike up the coast and stay in camps along some beautiful beaches in Ras Abu Galum or the Blue Lagoon if you want to get away from it all. There’s great melodic music playing throughout the entire town (we’re fans of organic house and techno — Dahab is too) with occasional parties and festivals around as well. There’s a spectacular and varied range of restaurants and foods to try, from classic Egyptian to Indian to cute breakfast cafes to Italian. It’s also very affordable and the people are so welcoming. Can you tell how passionate I am about this place?

We hope to be able to have a home here one day, but for now, I recommend anyone who aligns with this type of adventurous hippie town vibe should pay this place a visit.

What’s a food item that every tourist needs to try, and where to get the best of it?

The first thing that comes to mind is the Egyptian national dish, Koshary. Koshary is a popular street food comprised of lots of different kinds of carbs — rice, pasta, and lentils, generally with tomato sauce, crispy onion, and other spices and hot sauce. You can find Koshary for 10 Egyptian pounds on the streets of Cairo (less than $1), but my favorite place to get Koshary is in Dahab at a tiny restaurant called Roots.

Roots only serves two things — “normal” Koshary and “yellow” Koshary, known by many as Alexandrian Koshary. The normal Koshary here is the best I have had, and the yellow Koshary is a bit healthier, made with yellow rice, quinoa, and cooked vegetables. All the dishes are 40LE, under $3. You can’t go wrong!

What’s the coolest hotel or place to stay in Egypt?

As my readers know, I’m a big fan of unique and boutique hotels. While we stayed with a friend a lot of the time in Egypt, we discovered some incredible places to stay. I think my top favorites in Dahab are Sukoon Guesthouse and Alf Leila Boutique Hotel. Sukoon was designed by a good friend of mine, and it constantly keeps a relaxing and inclusive vibe among guests in only six rooms. Alf Leila was designed in Moroccan style around a central courtyard with warm and inviting colors and decor.

If you have some time in Dahab I recommend hiking up the coast and staying in Girneta Camp in Ras Abu Galum — you can stay in a little open-roof dome to look at the stars, including breakfast and dinner for just about $20! As I mentioned, coming up to camp on the coast is the best getaway from reality and WiFi.

In Cairo, I wanted to mention that my favorite suburb is called Maadi. Cairo is a difficult city to crack — with 20 million people and too many suburbs to count, it’s hard to know where to stay. Maadi is a bit far outside the city center but it’s definitely the cutest, greenest, and most walkable/welcoming place in Cairo, which might be less of a shell-shock for first-time visitors. The cutest boutique place to stay in Maadi is called Villa Belle Epoque (built from a converted Victorian mansion).

Best time of year to visit?

Going to Egypt in summer entails risking 45-plus temperatures (113 Fahrenheit), and winter could get below 15 (59 Fahrenheit). So, it depends on what you want, but Egypt is truly beautiful year-round. The most ideal time to visit Egypt is the shoulder seasons between summer (VERY hot) and winter (pretty darn cold). October and November are ideal, with warm days and chilled nights, as well as March, April, and early May.

Anything else you’d like to add about Egypt?

Alexandria is a fascinating and beautiful historic city to visit also — it’s worth checking out at least as a day trip from Cairo or for one to two nights, but you won’t need more than that. There are tons of fascinating historic sites, beaches, and museums!

I can’t sign off without mentioning some of Egypt’s most incredible deserts, too — make sure to sign up for a one to two-night trip out to the White Desert and Black Desert from Cairo. This is a standard day trip from Cairo and will allow you to see some of the most other-worldly scenes ever, from basalt-covered mountains to white mushroom rocks to massive desert cliffs. You can camp in the desert under the stars and even see a fox if you’re lucky.

If you have time, a more involved trip in Egypt would be to visit the Siwa Oasis — a massive oasis out west near the Libyan border in Egypt about 10 hours from Cairo. I’m not kidding when I say there is barren desert for hundreds of miles around this place, but you can find massive lakes, hundreds of natural warm springs, and salt lakes out here in Siwa. The city is built on a 600-year-old mud fortress, where you can stay in hotels carved into the sides of rocky mountains, swim in stunning salt pools, and more. I went to a festival out there but I can’t wait to get back and explore properly.

In a clip from an upcoming episode of “The Shop,” LeBron James is asked which players he most wants to play with, whether it be future, current, or past. His immediate first answer was not a surprise to anyone who has kept up with some of James’ recent comments about his future, as he put his son, LeBron “Bronny” James Jr., atop the list.

LeBron praised his son for wanting to reach the NBA to make a name for himself and distinguish himself from his father’s legacy.

“He changed his name to Bronny,” LeBron said. “I didn’t. I made him a junior, but he Bronny. And he Bronny to the world.”

When the topic shifted to active players, LeBron briefly pondered the question before opting for Stephen Curry.

“I love everything about that guy,” LeBron said. “When he gets out of his car, you better guard him — right from the moment he pulls up to the arena. You might wanna guard when he gets out of the bed. Swear to God. He’s serious.”

Among all-time players, LeBron considered names like Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant, but ultimately landed on Scottie Pippen and Penny Hardaway. He identifies shades of his own game in their skill-sets and that’s why he gravitates toward them — “I saw myself in Pippen and Penny,” he said. “Tall guards, point forwards, getting everybody involved, defend all types of positions.”

Imagining LeBron teaming up with any of these three Hall of Famers is a pretty fun thought experiment. And maybe, in the near future, his first choice will come to fruition as well.