Month: May 2022

And the truth comes out…

The Boys frequently favors a tongue-in-cheek approach for how its heroes face forward to the press, and fans are usually aware of how things really flow behind the Vought International scenes for The Seven. However, the show’s flat-out telling us (ahead of time) what to expect from Jensen Ackles’ Soldier Boy.

Of course, this is happening shortly after the show released a Nancy Reagan-style “Just Say No” PSA that showed how living time capsule (and Captain America parody) Soldier Boy instructed kids to embrace their superpower of saying “no” to drugs. The twist there is that the Compound V-fueled Supes do indulge in illicit substances, including A-Train and his speedy, performance-enhanced ways. Here’s the original PSA, if you haven’t caught it already.

And here’s Soldier Boy, talking about how much he hates saying such things and admitting how much he adores drugs. “If taking drugs is uncool,” he declares before knocking back a flask (of something). “Then I’m the most uncool motherf*cker on the planet.”

Well then, it sure sounds like Colby Minifie’s Ashley Barrett will have her PR-embracing hands full once Soldier Boy starts popping off in public.

Back in the day, Soldier Boy led the group of Compound V-powered Supes called Payback, who were all failed The Seven hopefuls, and showrunner Eric Kripke has explained that, in the show, Payback “was the Seven before the Seven.” As for Jensen Ackles, fans have been looking forward to the Supernatural star reteaming with Kripke, and the buildup has included Ackles admitting that he felt (while getting ripped) “too old for this crap.” Nonetheless, he’s in it, and the results will soon be visible for all.

The Boys are back (yes, yes, yes) for Season 3 on June 3.

After performing a swan song with Brockhampton at Coachella last month, Merlyn Wood has released a new single. On “Green Light,” Wood wakes up “feeling like a Gucci ad lib,” delivering fiery bars, ready for a promising post-Brockhampton era.

Wood, who has now rebranded as Merlyn!, doesn’t mention Brockhampton or any of his bandmates by name in the song. However, he shouts out his hometown of Houston and calls out his haters.

In the song’s accompanying video, directed by Miggy Jasper, Wood plays video games on the couch in a mansion as his outfits change in rapid succession. He is joined by a group of women as he continues to play video games and later dances by the pool.

According to an accompanying press statement, “Green Light” is one of four projects set to be released on a weekly basis, until the 20th, which is when Wood is teasing something big.

Brockhampton has yet to release their final album, but Wood is gearing up for an exciting new start.

Ahead of “Green Light’s” release, Wood teased his new era in an Instagram post, saying, “My skin is tingling im so excited. This that anticipation right before the LIGHT TURNS GREEN in the most important race in your LIFE. I put my heart, soul and sweat in this and i hope you enjoy it immensely.”

Check out “Green Light” above.

Australia’s Morgan Evans has successfully carved out a space for himself in the American country music scene. After releasing his 2014 self-titled debut album, he picked up the Global Country Artist Award at the CMAs. He went on to release his second album, 2017’s Things That We Drink To, which was top-10 on the US country charts. The album also spawned “Kiss Somebody,” a hit single that climbed to No. 3 on the Billboard Country Airplay chart.

All of this success has allowed him to make a pretty good living, so about a year-and-a-half ago, he and his wife bought their first house. Now, in a new “On Repeat” video (presented by Straight Talk Wireless and Uproxx), Evans shows us around his home and gets ready for summer by making some citronella lamps.

A natural highlight is the in-home studio and creative space, which is decked out with guitars, audio equipment, and all the fixins’. The kitchen looks fantastic, too, and that’s where Evans rounds up some bottles, wicks, and other components to put the citronella lamps together.

Elsewhere, he notes of his career origins, “How music became a career path is kind of weird. I mean, the idea of growing up and playing music wasn’t really a thing. In my hometown, or even in Australia in general, I think a lot of the time when someone asks you what you do and you say music, their next question would be, ‘Well, what else do you do?’”

Evans touches on some other topics in the video, too, so check it out above.

Morgan Evans is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Harry Styles’ hit single “As It Was” has had an up-and-down journey when it comes to maintaining the No. 1 spot on the Billboard Hot 100 chart (as much of an up-and-down journey as the year’s biggest song can have, anyway). It debuted at No. 1 before being dethroned by Jack Harlow’s “First Class” the next week. It resumed its run the week after that, adding another two weeks to its tally before Future, Drake, and Tems again put “As It Was” on pause. Now, though, “As It Was” has clawed back yet again: On the new Hot 100 chart dated June 4, “As It Was” once again returns to No. 1 for a fourth total week and a third total stint on top.

Along with that, a few other Harry’s House songs debuted in the top 10 this week: “Late Night Talking” at No. 4, “Music For A Sushi Restaurant” at No. 8, and “Matilda” at No. 9. That makes him the first British solo artist to ever have four songs in the top 10 at once. Soloist or otherwise, he’s now second only to The Beatles in that category, as they actually had two weeks with five top-10 songs.

Elsewhere on the chart, Lizzo had a good week, with “About Damn Time” rising from No. 9 to No. 5. That makes the song her fourth top-5 single, after “Good As Hell,” “Truth Hurts” (a former No. 1), and “Rumors.”

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

Donald Trump’s half-hearted endorsement of J.D. Vance, who won the Republican nomination for U.S. Senate in Ohio earlier this month, came after Tucker Carlson reportedly told the former-president about a rival’s “f*cking disgusting” and “f*cking gross” sex life. Speaking of things that are “f*cking disgusting” and “f*cking gross,” Vance wants to ban all pornography, even though he’s a content creator of poverty porn.

In an interview with Crisis Magazine, which haughtily bills itself as “A Voice for the Faithful Catholic Laity,” Vance shared his ass-backwards thoughts on porn and birth control. “I think the combination of porn [and] abortion have basically created a really lonely, isolated generation that isn’t getting married, they’re not having families, and they’re actually not even totally sure how to interact with each other,” he said. The article, which was published in 2021 but only recently unearthed by the Huffington Post, also notes that “Vance admitted he wants to outright ban pornography.”

Vance’s campaign didn’t provide a comment about his more recent thoughts on porn, and how they would factor into his priorities as a senator. In 2016, the GOP, in its own official platform, declared porn “a public health crisis,” but stopped short of calling for it to be outlawed completely.

It suddenly makes sense why Ted Cruz didn’t campaign for Vance.

(Via the Huffington Post)

A lot went down in the pop world this week: Olivia Rodrigo might have a new boyfriend, Justin Timberlake sold his entire song catalog, Billie Eilish got emotional with Ellen DeGeneres on the last episode of her show. But there were also a ton of refreshing releases including a collaboration between Calvin Harris and Dua Lipa, as well as Sky Ferreira’s first song since 2019.

Each week, Uproxx rounds up the best new pop releases. Listen up.

Zara Larsson — “Lay All Your Love On Me”

Zara Larsson morphs ABBA’s classic hit “Lay All Your Love On Me” into something softer with this rendition, which pulsates with atmospheric synths as her strong voice leads the song almost effortlessly. It sounds very early 2000s; her inflections have a dramatic flair.

Empress Of — “Dance For You”

Produced by Charli XCX and BJ Burton, Empress Of’s new single “Dance For You” rattles with infectious regret and anger against glittering beats. She sings repeatedly about trying to forget, obviously failing her own task; meanwhile, the track bounces in a way that’s memorable.

Sky Ferreira — “Don’t Forget”

Finally, the return of Sky Ferreira, whose last album Night Time, My Time was in the godforsaken year of 2013, is upon us. Her comeback is big and stunning, steeped in disco and retaining her signature brand of poetic, mysterious lyricism: “I’ll catch your disease, it’s such a raw deal world / I don’t need to deceive you, I’m the real bad girl.”

Tate McRae — “Don’t Come Back”

Tate McRae’s new album I Used To Think I Could Fly overflows with contempt and frustration, and this trap-tinged pop song exemplifies that. However, she doesn’t let her bitterness make her unreasonable: “When you’re all broke down and you’re missing us / When you finally figure out just what you lost / I hope you don’t come back,” she sings, unbothered.

Isaac Dunbar — “Sunburn”

Isaac Dunbar is the up-and-coming, grandiose pop star we need right now. At just 19, he has been churning out bombastic, idiosyncratic anthems. His vocals are the centerpiece of this new song “Sunburn”; he’s unrestrained and unhinged as he repeats the brilliant hook: “You’re making it worse / ‘Cause every time you try to kiss it better / It burns / Your kiss like a sunburn.”

Jenna Raine — “Not Again”

“Not Again,” the newest single by the rising singer-songwriter Jenna Raine, is about glowing up. Her storytelling is refined and compelling on this track about an ex-lover who keeps begging for another chance, but she’s finally been able to break from the pattern: “You want to laugh and make amends / I did one, two, three, four, five times but I won’t let you back in / Not again,” she sings.

Alex Cappelli — “Could’ve Just Left Me Alone”

This song by Alex Cappelli also dwells on a breakup, but revels in mischief and revenge. It has a club-like beat and her voice drips with annoyance: “Oh you’re so basic / Got the same old tricks / Let me fall for it / When you could’ve just left me alone,” she intones, stretching syllables so far that it’s like the sonic version of an eye-roll.

Dixie – “Wild”

The eldest D’amelio sister is proving her talent with this fearless new song “Wild” that bursts at the seams with a desire for excitement. At a little over two minutes, it’s an anthem for kids grappling with their growing ennui and boredom, and what better solution is there than an exhilarating pop song?

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

Despite Donald Trump openly trashing her new book, Here’s the Deal, Kellyanne Conway is continuing to defend the former president while making the press rounds. On Tuesday, Conway stopped by CBS Mornings where she fielded questions about Trump denying that she told him that he lost the 2020 election and his insistence that he would’ve “sent her back to her crazy husband” if she did. While Conway has repeatedly spoken glowingly of Trump, she has, however, held strong on conceding that he lost fairly to Joe Biden and that Trump’s stolen election claims are the work of sycophantic advisors who refused to tell him the truth.

During her CBS Mornings interview, Conway refuted Trump’s claim that she never told him he lost. “I did, and it broke my heart,” Conway said before, once again, praising her former employer, even if she doesn’t understand the word “girlboss.” Via The Daily Beast:

Still, she defended her former-boss-turned-current-opponent as “a great girlboss” who championed women in office (even as he disparaged a plethora of women from Hillary Clinton to Kamala Harris to Meghan Markle).

“I’ve always had a great relationship with President Trump and I go on and on in the book of how protective he was of me,” she said, later adding: “I wish he was still the president.”

It’s an unusual turn of events considering Conway revealed that last week that Trump was going to release a “beautiful” statement about Here’s the Deal that she saw in advance. However, something happened behind the scenes that made Trump change his mind and, instead, attack her on Truth Social.

“Somebody worked overtime between last evening and this morning to have him put that statement out,” Conway told Mediaite. Nevertheless, she continues to praise Trump as a… great girlboss (?) because words no longer have meaning.

(Via The Daily Beast)

The greats of the West Coast are linking up this summer. Ahead of their long-anticipated Mount Westmore collaborative album, Snoop Dogg has taken to Instagram to reveal a release date for the project, with features him, E-40, Ice Cube, and Too Short.

Mount Westmore’s album is set to drop June 7. In the trailer, fans can hear a new song, which samples Gil Scott-Heron and Brian Jackson’s “Angel Dust.”

The group first formed around this time last year. In an interview with HotNewHipHop, Snoop said the album would be “magic.”

“You bring the legends of the West Coast together, something great will always happen,” Snoop said. “Cube, 40, Short, and I have been running the game for years. This is the perfect time because each of us brings authentic and new ideas to the table. All four together? That’s magic.”

Also maintaining the group’s legendary status is Too Short, who spoke on the writing and recording process of the album last year in an interview with HipHopDX.

“I’m going to tell you one thing, one beautiful thing about the process is that early on we all acknowledge that in the studio, we are supreme alphas,” Short said. “We’ve always been that way, but on this project, we gave each other the authority to criticize, critique, veto, make suggestions, and just everything is like hands-down, I trust what you saying.

Doja Cat‘s mischievous ways have always been known to get Twitter all riled up, but her latest posts are living up to the lyrics of her breakout 2018 viral hit “Mooo!” Her milkshake is bringing all the boys to the yard, and they’re bringing their thirstiest comment with them.

The Planet Her rapper/singer shared a pair of racy bikini photos on Twitter, where they’re getting plenty of attention. In the first photo, Doja rocks a pink string bikini while pulling a silly face, and in the second, she offers a rear view of just how skimpy the piece actually is. Let’s just say she probably won’t be wearing that anywhere children are present — Twitter’s growing population of under-18s notwithstanding.

Naturally, upon seeing both photos — especially the second one — Doja’s followers turned out in force to voice their approval.

Unfortunately, fans won’t be able to do so live for a while. Doja recently dropped out of The Weeknd’s After Hours Til Dawn Tour due to having surgery on her tonsils. “I feel horrible about this,” she wrote, “but can’t wait for this to heal and get back to making music and create an experience for y’all.” Until then, it looks like she just might have more free time for viral shenanigans as she recovers.

The bonds of brotherhood may seem like the kind that will last a lifetime when you’re funneling Milwaukee’s Best on a Friday night at your college frat house, but a difference in political opinions could be all it takes to break them in later decades—as one Tulsa man just learned the hard way.

According to The Oklahoman, Levi Roy Gable was arrested just last week for the part he played in storming the Capitol on January 6, 2021. The paper reports that Gable was charged with four misdemeanor counts of entering the Capitol and partaking in disruptive conduct. The FBI learned about the 36-year-old’s antics when they were contacted by one of his college fraternity brothers, who shared several of the Gable’s Facebook posts, in which he reportedly bragged about being “among the first people to make our way into the US Capitol Building.” He also shared 10 videos taken that day.

Gable’s old pal, who is referred to simply as Witness 1 in reports, first alerted the FBI to his fraternity brother’s antics on January 10, 2021. In the weeks and months that followed, he continued to supply the FBI with evidence-based on Gable’s own posts.

On January 13, 2021, a second person alerted the FBI to Gable’s antics after he shared another rioter’s post with the caption: “Everyone is in for a surprise. It’s happening. There is a plan in motion.”

Unfortunately, Gable deleted his Facebook page before the FBI was able to independently verify the posts. According to The Oklahoman:

“Gable admitted last year in an interview that he walked to the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, after attending a rally, the FBI reported in a court affidavit. However, he denied going inside multiple times during the interview with FBI Joint Terrorism Task Force officers.”

Gable was released on the agreement that he will be forced to pay $10,000 if he misses any upcoming court appearance.

(Via The Oklahoman)