Year: 2022

The first game of Sunday’s second round slate in the men’s NCAA tournament was a 4-5 matchup between Illinois and Houston that became an unsurprising defensive struggle. Illinois, desperate for a spark in the second half, went to a couple freshmen off the bench and found some success, particularly from RJ Melendez.

Melendez had nine points midway through the second half, including this highlight reel dunk on a fastbreak where he flew out in front of the pack and threw down a big dunk to ignite the crowd. The freshman swung back and started running back down the court to get on defense, not taunting Houston or really offering much of any reaction when he got whistled for a dreadful technical foul that had Reggie Miller incensed in the commentary booth.

Miller was 100 percent correct, as even CBS officiating consultant Gene Steratore said he didn’t pull himself up or swing over an opponent or anything else they look for in that situation and felt a technical shouldn’t have been called. Reggie broke down why Melendez had to swing on the rim in that situation so he didn’t fall and possibly hurt himself because of how fast he was moving on the dunk initially.

It’s a truly awful call and unfortunately one that may end up being important in a tight game where points have been hard to come by. Houston made the technical free throw on the other end to push the lead back out to five rather than four, and if the Illini end up losing by a slim margin, it’ll be hard not to see that as a massive moment that should never have happened.

It’s safe to say that few in Congress are as in deep doo-doo as Matt Gaetz. For more than a year, the Florida representative has been under federal investigation for his ties to a sex trafficking ring. Gaetz has been preparing for a “scorched-earth” trial that looks to be getting worse, not better. But he’s also tried to pretend as though everything was normal, as witness the triumphant announcement of his re-election campaign.

On Saturday, Gaetz welcomed whatever supporters he has left to the grand opening of his campaign office. “It’s choose your fighter time,” Gaetz roared to the crowd. “I’m your Florida man. I’m ready to take the fight to Washington and I hope you’ll fight with me.”

He tweeted a variation of this message on social media, complete with a glaring typo.

When asked why he was running for re-election at all, Gaetz said, “I continue to be inspired by the people of Northwest Florida and I think I have an important role to play in fashioning the shape and flavor of the upcoming majority.”

Gaetz also railed against “woke generals.”

How popular is Gaetz, though? Last month it was reported that the PAC he runs with Marjorie Taylor Greene had received a lone donation from September — from Gaetz himself.

But as Gaetz said, he’s a “Florida Man,” and who’s more “Florida Man” than someone accused of sleeping with a minor he met via a sex trafficking ring, whose members he may have paid over Venmo, still running for public office — and having a good chance of winning?

(Via NWF Daily News)

For quite some time now, Kid Cudi has been a very open person when it comes to his mental health. Last summer, he shared an honest message about his well-being through an Instagram post. “Sadness eats away at me sometimes,” the post read. “How do I deal? A lot of u hit me and ask how I get through. Truthfully, idk. Some days are great, others not so great.” Cudi has made it a point to do whatever he can to keep his spirits up, and in his latest attempt to do so, Cudi announced that he’s stepping away from social media.

He shared the news in a string of posts on Twitter. “I’m turnin’ off all comments on IG for all posts,” he wrote. “And I’m thinkin’ about gettin off IG all together, honestly. Think I’ma just keep my Twitter. And I’m only gonna do that cuz I have to. I really wanna get off all socials.” He added, “There’s a lot of love out there for me, which is why I got back on socials, but some of the shit I see, the trolls, I don’t need to see that shit. For my mental.”

Cudi also notified his followers that his most recent Instagram post would be the last photo that he shared himself. “So I think that pic is my last post. From here on out I’ma have my team make posts,” he wrote. “I love y’all. This was fun. Until it wasn’t.” Before stepping away from social media for the foreseeable future, Cudi assured fans that he was doing well. “And no im not in a bad mood or in a f*cked up place im actually very happy!!” he wrote. “In order to maintain that, im steppin away. I like being a mystery anyway.”

His announcement comes after he revealed plans to release two albums in 2022. Cudi is also set to appear in the upcoming Brittany Snow-directed film, September 17.

You can view the posts from Cudi above.

Thirty-plus years is a good run, but this is still the end of an era: According to Deadline, Maury, the syndicated daytime talk show hosted by Maury Povich, is coming to an end. When the current season ends, that will be it for the oft-trashy program, which has long tackled hot-button issues in the oft-lurid ways. It’s not clear if it was cancelled or if Povich simply decided to retire, but that’s what he’ll do when he no longer has to lord over one of the TV’s wildest programs.

Formerly the host of the tabloid news show A Current Affair, Povich transitioned to his own show in 1991. For its first handful of years, it was called The Maury Povich Show. In 1998, the title was shortened to simply Maury. Over its three-decade run, a lot has happened. He’s unearthed double medical oddities. He’s gotten into feuds with David Letterman. It planted its flag on Father’s Day, trying to become a fixture of the paternal holiday.

Maury’s not the only recent daytime casualty. It’s been a bloodbath, with NBCUniversal axing Judge Jerry, Sony doing the same to The Good Dish and Nick Cannon. The Wendy Williams Show will be turned into Sherri, hosted by Sherri Shepherd, but that’s because Williams had to ditch her longtime show over health concerns. In any case, fare thee well, Mr. Povich. The scene you helped change wouldn’t be the same without you.

(Via Deadline)

For weeks, the “Freedom Convoy” truckers have attempted to ape the protests that took over parts of Canada earlier this year. They haven’t had much success. They promise massive turnout, then few show up. Their demands are vague. One of their grievances, mask and vaccine mandates, have by now been eased or lifted. They’ve had to hang with Ted Cruz. And now they’ve been humiliated by a lone cyclist.

On Saturday, hundreds of truckers and other motorists, some definitely not in trucks, made their way to the nation’s capital, where they largely inconvenienced and annoyed locals. But at one point they were themselves inconvenienced and annoyed by some guy riding a bicycle. Video shared on social media showed the man riding in front of a line of trucks. He takes his sweet time, a David enraging an army of Goliaths.

One video showed people trying to get his attention. When they do, the cyclist either can’t hear the person asking him questions or pretends not to hear. Either way, truckers were honking like mad, creating a din of noise.

The convoy, which spends their nights camping out on a speedway in nearby-ish Hagerstown, Maryland, had stuck to circling the D.C. beltway. Last Monday they stepped things up, descending into the city itself, disrupting traffic, causing delays, and generally irritating residents trying to get on with their lives. But at least they met their match.

(Via Newsweek)

Donald Trump has spent his life gleefully evading comeuppance. Six bankruptcies, and a possible loss of almost all his income, haven’t ruined his public image as a rich guy. He’s bragged about not paying his taxes, during a presidential debate. He’s lied about election fraud (while his own cronies possibly commit it) and encouraged his violent supporters to attack the Capitol, and yet he could get re-elected. Speaking of, a his 2024 run seems to already be “marked by corruption,” and it hasn’t even officially started yet.

In a new column for MSNBC, political analyst Zasheem Aleem points to a recent complaint filed with the Federal Elections Commission that alleges Trump has been illegally spending fundraising dollars on a campaign that has yet to file the official paperwork.

“The argument behind the complaint is that Trump is using rhetoric that signals that he is, in fact, running already but declining to formally declare his candidacy to avoid the restrictions and regulations on his fundraising capacity that would kick in if he did,” Aleem writes. “Trump’s rhetorical sleights of hand raise the possibility that his de facto third presidential campaign is already marked by corruption before it even formally kicks off.”

Trump has been fundraising ever since losing re-election in 2020, though that money doesn’t always go where he claims it will. After exiting office in disgrace, he raised funds to, he claimed, fight election fraud. Instead that money lined his own pockets. Now he’s allegedly raising money to keep his presidential brand front and center, but since he’s not officially running for office, he doesn’t have to disclose his donors, as any candidate would be required to do. He would also have a limit on how much he can raise. But since his campaign has not formally begun he doesn’t have to do anything.

And yet it’s clear he’s running, Lisa Gilbert, executive vice president of Public Citizen, told Aleem. “On its face,” she says, “the combination of Trump’s own statements about 2024 and his aggressive fundraising certainly could be enough evidence to trigger the standard for becoming a candidate for president under federal law.”

In other words, it appears Trump is once again breaking the law then laughing at anyone who tries to stop him.

You can read Aleem’s full column at MSNBC.

Nicki Minaj has made it known that she feels like a groundbreaking force when it comes to women in rap. Truly, for so many years, Minaj was one of the few women in hip-hop enjoying commercial success, so she does have a bit of a point. But her opinion of younger female rappers coming up behind her hasn’t always been the the highest. A recent collaboration with Coi Leray on the song “Blick Blick” led to a conversation between the two, where Nicki asserts back in her day, she experienced a level of hate that younger artists have never seen or felt.

“Can you girls stop talking about hate?” Nicki said during a recent Instagram Live conversation with Coi. “Y’all have never experienced hate the way I have experienced. What y’all have experienced is nothing. Y’all have just experienced some of the growing pains of artistry and of social media. Y’all be thinking y’all have experienced hate and trust me, you ain’t experienced it yet. A lot of y’all have gotten, not coddled, people have been nice. People have been gentle with y’all.”

Now that she’s back to releasing new music in 2022, though, Nicki might be feeling the heat of the current era herself. We’ll see if she decides now is tougher than the early 2000s were or not after the next album drops.

A 15-seed is once again headed to the Sweet 16. One year after Oral Roberts stunned the college basketball world to make it to the second round of the NCAA Tournament, Saint Peter’s earned a ticket to the Sweet 16 by going wire-to-wire against Murray State en route to a 70-60 win on Saturday night.

The Peacocks were led by a stellar effort from senior big man KC Ndefo, who was a menace on both ends of the floor. The New York native led the team with 17 points, 10 rebounds, six blocks, three assists, and a steal, with one of those blocks being a crucial chasedown as the Racers were trying to make it a one-possession game in the second half.

Late in the game, Saint Peter’s got a boost off the bench from sharpshooting guard Doug Edert, who scored 10 of his 13 points in the second half and scored seven points in just over a minute.

Five other Peacocks scored at least six points. The team entered Saturday’s game as the winners of their last eight games, a stretch that included the MAAC Tournament and a stunning opening round win over the Kentucky Wildcats. Murray State, meanwhile, had not lost since Dec. 30.

Now, the Peacocks will wait to find out who they will play in the Sweet 16 — they will square off against the winner of Sunday’s game between the Purdue Boilermakers and the Texas Longhorns. They will probably be underdogs for the third time during the 2022 NCAA Tournament, but so far, that has not mattered.

If anyone is familiar with the ins and outs of being an indie musician, it’s Alex G. The Pennsylvania songwriter started off releasing tapes on Bandcamp, and quickly amassed a cult following. But that didn’t stop him from getting embroiled in a legal snarl with his stage name, that resulted in a brief stint as (Sandy) Alex G, and then back to just Alex G. Following up his latest release, 2019’s excellent House Of Sugar, Alex is now releasing a film score.

Tapped by We’re All Going To The World’s Fair director, Jane Scoenbrun, to score the film, he’s also released a new song simply called “End Song” that rolls during the film’s credits. “Whenever it rains at night I put on Alex’s score and listen to how the rain on my roof sounds mixed with Alex’s beautiful, lonely music,” Scoenbrun said in a statement. “I’ve been a fan of Alex’s records for so long, and it was literally a dream come true to get to collaborate with him on my first feature. I can’t imagine a better or more moving accompaniment to the film.”

For Alex G fans, that kind of co-sign might be reason enough to get out and see the film. Either way, check out his new single “End Song” up top and look out for the score’s release date on 4/15 via Milan Records.

After initially going viral on TikTok for behind-the-scenes videos about the making of his latest song, “Light Switch,” Charlie Puth finally released the new track a few weeks ago. And while it’s doing really well for him — and he recently performed it live on Jimmy Kimmel — the pop star admitted that younger fans who are watching his TikToks don’t necessarily know his past work.

And for Puth, that includes the massive hit single “See You Again,” which spent so long at the No. 1 spot on Billboard charts that it broke records. As a song tied to the Fast And Furious film franchise, the sentiment of it was dedicated to the late Paul Walker, and a verse from Wiz Khalifa rounded it out. The song was nominated for three Grammy awards, and also won Charlie a Golden Globe. But for fans of his “Light Switch” TikTok videos, those awards might as well not exist. “I’m 30 years old and I’m going viral on TikTok with Gen Z,” Puth told Jimmy during his recent visit to the show. “There was a 10-year-old fan who came up to me the other day and said ‘It’s Charlie from TikTok!’ And I was like, ‘No, I’m actually like three times Grammy nominated, and I have like a Golden Globe…”

So there you have it, that’s the power of TikTok. Check out the rest of the interview above to hear about Charlie’s perfect pitch and more. And if you’re wondering where his third album is, the one that all the TikTok fans will probably think is his first, Charlie gave us a detailed update about the timeline last summer. And if you haven’t heard “Light Switch” yet, check it out below.