Month: April 2024

Aaron Carter died unexpectedly on November 5, 2022. He was 34 years old, and his cause of death was later confirmed as “drowning and the effects of alprazolam, a generic form of Xanax, and inhaling difluoroethane,” as reported by Variety last April. The tragic circumstances around Carter’s death are magnified through “Recovery,” a single released posthumously from the forthcoming posthumous Carter album, The Recovery Album.

The swelling anthem finds Carter singing about struggling to let go and desperately pursuing relief from the pain: “Tomorrow is a new day / Tryin’ to shake the pain away / ‘Cause I’m still in recovery.”

On April 5, Angel Carter Conrad, Carter’s twin sister, and Aaron Pearce, a longtime collaborator of Carter’s, and Carter’s former manager Lori Knight announced The Recovery Album. The posthumous project is due out on May 24 — purposefully released during Mental Health Awareness Month.

“A portion of all proceeds will go to benefit On Our Sleeves and a trust established for Aaron’s son, Prince Lyric Carter,” a press release stated. “The album and previously unreleased visuals will also serve to be a legacy Prince Carter can carry of his father when he was happy and healthy.”

Last December, Angel Carter Conrad commemorated what would have been Aaron’s 36th birthday with an Instagram post explaining the purpose behind On Our Sleeves — Kids Mental Health Foundation. She also appeared on CBS Mornings this week to discuss her mission in Aaron’s honor.

Listen to “Recovery” above, and watch a 2015 video of Carter performing the song below.

The Recovery Album is out 5/24 via Symphonic Distribution. Find more information here.

JT has gone hard for “Okay,” her latest single that finds her bars going even harder. “I’m about to get super annoying promoting okay!” The Miami rapper admitted to her followers on X (formerly Twitter) ahead of the song’s release. “I want this song to GO!”

JT shouldn’t have to try too hard to convince people on “Okay,” considering the song oozes infectious confidence. “I’m pretty than a motherf*cker, hoes be looking okay,” she raps. “She think that she f*ckin’ with me, is this b*tch okay? / He said he ain’t f*ckin’ around, I look at him like, ‘Okay’ / I used to down bad, but now a b*tch okay.”

The City Girls star is currently on her first headlining solo US tour, with her next show set for Friday, April 26, at The Harbor in New York, New York.

“The Harbor said I can go all night,” JT posted on Thursday night, April 25. “Safe to say WE OUTSIDE tomorrow & that’s on OKAY!!!”

“Okay” follows “No Bars” and “Sideways” as JT’s solo releases — all generating anticipation for her forthcoming solo project City Cinderella.

The project is named after JT’s fund “uplifting local partners who work tirelessly to ensure that every girl who dreams of going to prom can do so in a dress that makes her feel like royalty” because “economic barriers should not prevent any high school girl from experiencing the joy and self-confidence that comes with feeling beautiful on of the most memorable nights,” as detailed on the campaign’s official website.

In other words, JT is trying to make as many people as possible feel as good as she does in “Okay.”

Listen to “Okay” above.

Normani has given new meaning to long-awaited. Her fans have been waiting for her debut full-length studio album for five-plus years, and she finally announced Dopamine alongside its cover art in February. By late March, an X (formerly Twitter) user circled back with Normani about the silence since her album announcement, to which Normani replied that she’d address the matter the following day, and she did — announcing the lead single “1:59” featuring Gunna would arrive on April 26.

As promised, “1:59” is here. Plus, Normani finally confirmed that Dopamine will be released on June 14. As it were, the slow-burning R&B banger finds Normani just as tired of waiting around as her fans. “When I get you alone / Boy, what you gon’ do with it?” Normani sings, her vocals as strong as ever. “Don’t talk too much, just do this sh*t.” Gunna’s sings back to her, promising “You gon’ like the things I do.”

The sultry song is Normani’s first release since she collaborated with Sam Smith on the 2019 earworm “Dancing With A Stranger,” which peaked at No. 7 on the Billboard Hot 100. Meanwhile, Gunna is 10 days removed from announcing One Of Wun as his next album.

While “1:59” is the official lead single from Dopamine, Normani gave a taste of “Candy Paint” in a Bose ad last summer.

Listen to “1:59” above.

Dopamine is out 6/14 via RCA Records. Find more information here.

The Philadelphia 76ers got on the board in their first round series with the New York Knicks on Thursday night, winning Game 3 in Philly thanks to a huge third quarter run spurred on by their star center, Joel Embiid.

Embiid scored 18 in the third on his way to the first 50-point game of his playoff career. The big man was dominant inside and out, playing through the continued issues with his knee as he came back recently from a torn meniscus. That’s not the only ailment last year’s MVP is dealing with, however, as word emerged on Thursday night after Game 3 that he has been treated for the last week for Bell’s palsy, which causes weakness and/or paralysis of muscles on one half of the face.

Embiid had been wearing sunglasses at times when meeting with the media and after Game 2 he did his availability looking down while reporters crowded around his locker. That led to questions as to whether he had an eye injury, but then some watching Game 3 noticed Embiid struggling to blink with his left eye while at the free throw line.

After Game 3, Embiid confirmed he was dealing with Bell’s Palsy, calling it “pretty annoying” and noting the muscles on the left side of his face, particularly his mouth and eye, have been impacted. He also said it’s just another thing to push through and that he’ll continue playing while navigating the issue.

He certainly did that admirably in Game 3 and got the Sixers back on track in the series.

The 2024 NFL Draft is being held in Eminem’s beloved Detroit, so he was prominently featured alongside NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell in the league’s promotion. Once the NFL Draft began on Thursday night, April 25, Eminem pivoted to promote something else — announcing a new album. Of course, Eminem fooled people with a faux album announcement on April Fools’ Day, but this announcement seems real.

According to Variety, a trailer for the album began making the rounds on X (formerly Twitter) after Eminem appeared on stage with Goodell to officially commence the NFL Draft.

XXL was among the accounts circulating the 30-second video, which shows a true crime reporter on “Detroit Murder Files” discussing “the blond anti-hero known as Slim Shady,” who “has had no shortage of enemies.” 50 Cent appears, saying, “He’s not a friend; he’s a psychopath.” Back to the true crime reporter (or rather, the man spoofing a true crime reporter with impeccable accuracy), detailing that Slim Shady’s “rude lyrics and controversial antics may have ultimately led to his demise.” He concludes, “Join me as we recreate the events that led to the murder of Slim Shady.”

The screen is then populated with the message, “THE DEATH OF SLIM SHADY (COUP DE GRACE) SUMMER 2024.”

Earlier this month, Eminem also announced an upcoming documentary by posting a casting call for real-life “Stans.”

See the video below.

Wednesday night’s edition of AEW Dynamite saw Tony Khan, the promotion’s CEO, get beaten down as the show came to an end by The Elite. A whole lot happened during the segment, and at one point, Khan got picked up, turned upside down, and was on the receiving end of a Meltzer Driver from the Young Bucks.

Now, here’s the thing with professional wrestling: You can let it be an episodic TV show, or you could let it be a lifestyle. We were going to learn how Khan approached things on Thursday night, as he was in the Jacksonville Jaguars’ war room for the 2024 NFL Draft. And in an effort to sell the ass kicking that he received the prior night, Khan sat there and watched his team make a pick while wearing a neck brace.

As for the pick, the Jags decided to go out and get Trevor Lawrence some more help in the passing game, as the team selected LSU wide receiver Brian Thomas Jr. with the No. 23 overall pick. Thomas is really big and really fast, and should be able to provide quite the deep threat once the season rolls around. Hopefully by then, Khan will not have a neck brace on.

The Philadelphia 76ers left New York feeling like they’d been robbed after Game 2, voicing their frustration with the officiating after a wild sequence saw the Knicks erase a 5-point deficit in the final 27 seconds of action.

There was a question of how they would respond in Game 3 back home in Philly, and after two quarters of play, it looked like we were in for another dog fight as New York led 58-55 at the break. Whatever the message was from Nick Nurse in the locker room was the right one, because the Sixers came out and blitzed the Knicks in the third quarter, winning the period 43-27 to take control of the game on their way to a 125-114 win.

Leading the way was Joel Embiid who had 18 of his 50 points in the third, as the reigning MVP (for a few more days) put up a new playoff career-high. Embiid was highly efficient to get his 50, going 13-of-19 from the field, 5-of-7 from three (including three straight at one point in the third), and 19-of-21 from the free throw line.

Helping the cause was Tyrese Maxey, who added 25 points and seven assists on the night, including a couple threes early in the third quarter to kick-start the Sixers big run.

The Knicks would make a fourth quarter push to get the game down to single digits late, but unlike in Game 2 there were no late game heroics to be found for New York. Jalen Brunson did his best to give New York a chance, finally breaking out of his slump with 39 points and 13 assists on the night.

Offense wasn’t the issue for New York, as they got solid contributions again from Josh Hart (20 points), OG Anunoby (17 points), and Isaiah Hartenstein (14 points). The issues were on the other end of the floor where they got carved up by Philly, which shot 54.7 percent from the field and 48.4 percent from three. The whistle was also a bit different, as the Sixers (led by Embiid) paraded to the free throw line with 33 attempts, knocking down 28.

The game wasn’t without a little controversy, as Embiid picked up a first quarter Flagrant for a dangerous play after getting knocked to the ground and grabbing Mitchell Robinson’s leg as he went up for a shot. He was able to keep his emotions in check from there, though, and channeled his energy into the best playoff performance of his career. The Sixers will hope to build on this showing to even the series in Game 4 on Sunday afternoon (1:00 p.m. ET, ABC), while the Knicks will have to figure out how to get their defense back in form to try and pick up a road win.

After being completely inept offensively in the first two games in Cleveland, the Magic found their rhythm back in Orlando for Game 3. The Magic had to hold home court in Game 3 to have any hopes of making this a series, and they did so in a big way, absolutely destroying the Cavs in a 121-83 blowout.

It was a reversal of fortunes from the first two games where Cleveland cruised to double-digit wins while the Magic were stuck in the mud. Back home in central Florida, the Magic found their offensive rhythm and were able to crack the code of the Cavs defense to finally unlock the paint. Paolo Banchero led the way with 31 points, 14 rebounds, and five assists, as he authored his best game of the series, hitting 13-of-26 shot attempts, including 4-of-9 from three.

Offering Banchero support was Jalen Suggs, who looked fresh despite an injury scare in Game 2, scoring 24 points on 9-of-11 shooting on the night, getting downhill to the rim and also knocking down three threes.

By halftime, the Magic were in full control, leading 61-45, but the floodgates opened in a 35-16 third quarter that saw them put the game to bed early. Orlando’s defense was sensational and their offense finally had some rhythm and flow to it, getting the Cavs into rotation and taking advantage of space they finally created by lifting the lid off of the rim.

It wasn’t an outrageous three-point shooting performance from the Magic by any means (13-of-37) but it was enough to lift the Cavs defense higher and open up the paint more for them to attack the rim where they are at their best. Franz Wagner chipped in 16 points and eight assists, and it was the best performance from Orlando’s backcourt as a whole. Along with Suggs’ big night, Cole Anthony and Markelle Fultz came off the bench to combine for 21 points on 8-of-13 shooting, as the Magic’s wings finally got the support they needed from the backcourt to divert some defensive attention.

On the other side, the Cavs found themselves in the same funk Orlando had been in, shooting just 39 percent from the field including a woeful 8-of-34 performance from three. Jarrett Allen was the only Cav from their main rotation to hit 50 percent or more of his shots (5-of-6), as the backcourt duo of Darius Garland and Donovan Mitchell went a combined 8-of-26 for 18 points in a rather hideous night for the Cleveland guards.

We’ll see how the Cavs bounce back in Game 4, as they were carrying all of the positive momentum as the series left Cleveland but now have to lick some wounds themselves. For a young Magic team, finally seeing things go right in the postseason is a big dea, and they’ll be looking to build on this performance. Orlando will look to pull back even in the series on Saturday afternoon at 1 p.m. ET on TNT>

The biggest shock of the 2024 NFL Draft came when the Atlanta Falcons picked Washington quarterback Michael Penix Jr. with the No. 8 overall pick. While many of the projections pegged the Falcons as a team that would select a defensive player, the team went in the completely opposite direction, as they took the fourth quarterback off the board and got their signal caller of the future.

There’s just one problem: The team’s high-profile offseason acquisition plays quarterback. Back in March, the team signed Kirk Cousins on a 4-year deal with the first two years guaranteed. He can make up to $180 million on the deal, which is not the kind of investment teams tend to make before they pick a quarterback. And according to multiple reports, the decision to pick Penix came as a surprise to Cousins, too, because while he apparently got told that the team would consider picking a QB at some point, he wasn’t told that the pick would come at No. 8.

Now, while the Falcons don’t have to keep Cousins in the loop, it is not usually a good thing when the decision to select your quarterback of the future catches your franchise QB off guard like this. Now, the relationship between the two will assuredly be put under the spotlight during the 2024 season and beyond.

All available evidence indicates that Tate McRae is very happy with The Kid Laroi, who publicly confirmed their relationship during his The First Time Tour stop in Dublin, Ireland, on April 14. That did not prevent her from bodying a cover of Ariana Grande’s Billboard Hot 100 chart topper “We Can’t Be Friends (Wait For Your Love),” a bonafide breakup anthem.

McRae performed the song during her headlining Think Later World Tour concert in London earlier this week. A fan-recorded video made the rounds on X (formerly Twitter), and by the end of McRae’s rendition, the person recording the video was audibly sobbing.

Someone named Maureen asked, “omg did someone ask her to sing it or did she just do it?” The McRae fan account @t8mcraetours responded, “she said before she sang ‘this is my first cover this tour’ so she probably wanted to do it herself.”

McRae’s tour in support of her December LP Think Later will continue throughout the UK and Europe until late May. The North American leg is scheduled to kick off on July 5 at Cowboys Music Festival in her hometown Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Grande has not confirmed any plans to tour in support of Eternal Sunshine, so McRae’s cover might be the closest anyone gets to hearing it performed live — at least in the immediate or intermediate future.