Month: April 2024

The Suns and Timberwolves got their first round series underway in Minnesota on Saturday afternoon, and after considerable conversation in the buildup about how Phoenix had owned the season series, the Wolves came out and made quite the statement with a 120-95 blowout win in Game 1.

Early on it was a back-and-forth affair with Kevin Durant putting on a shot-making exhibition to push the Suns to a 28-27 lead after the first quarter.

However, the Suns struggled to provide much offensive support for Durant, who finished with 31 points on 11-of-17 shooting. Devin Booker (18 points, 5-of-16 shooting) struggled with Minnesota’s ball pressure and while Bradley Beal was efficient, he only took 10 shots for 15 points. The Wolves were fine letting KD make tough shots (which he happily obliged) but made sure to stay attached to the Phoenix guard duo in order to gum up the works for the Suns offense (which hit just 9-of-28 from three).

As the Wolves defense turned up the heat, Minnesota’s offense was able to get in rhythm as well. Karl-Anthony Towns had it going in the first half, scoring 13 points to keep the Wolves offense rolling with Anthony Edwards dealing with foul trouble.

After taking a 10-point lead at halftime, the Timberwolves opened that lead up to 20 going into the fourth thanks to a sensational third quarter from Edwards. The young star guard was simply unstoppable, showing off his own shot-making expertise from all three levels, slicing to the rim, showing off the footwork in the midrange, and hitting some big stepbacks over Kevin Durant — and letting him know all about it.

Edwards put the exclamation point on the win with a breakaway dunk after a steal, sending the Minnesota crowd into a frenzy and giving Wolves fans some real hope that this could be the first deep playoff run in two decades.

While Edwards’ 33-point, 9-rebound, 6-assist performance was the dominant headline, he got help up and down the roster. Towns finished with 19 points and Rudy Gobert was a force inside with 14 points and 16 rebounds (six offensive). Then there was the bench contribution from Nickeil Alexander-Walker, who had 18 points and played some spectacular defense on Booker to frustrate the Suns star into a tough shooting night.

Going forward it will be interesting to see how the Suns adjust. They struggled shooting from deep and saw their best shooter, Grayson Allen, suffer an ankle sprain that limited him to 25 minutes of action. Booker has to be better and Beal has to be more active, but that’s easier said than done against the league’s best defense. Durant was terrific but the Wolves will be pretty content letting him put on a tough shot making exhibition if it means the other two stars are unable to have space to operate. Inside, they got crushed on the glass (52 to 28), with Drew Eubanks struggling off the bench as Jusuf Nurkic picked up four fouls and only played 27 minutes. Shooting variance might swing back the Suns way, but this was an inauspicious start for Phoenix.

Minnesota meanwhile will feel like they’ve got a great formula. Defensively they were able to apply ball pressure and keep Gobert on the court, which they weren’t always able to in the regular season when Phoenix was shooting well. They shot well (37.5 percent) but not unsustainably well, and were just rock solid across the board in the opener, proving they’re absolutely ready for the playoff for the playoff spotlight.

It seems like just yesterday that Uproxx cover star Chlöe launched her solo career. But, if you want to be technical, it has been nearly three years since the release of her debut single, “Have Mercy.” Now that the singer’s studio album, In Pieces, has officially celebrated its one-year anniversary, she’s ready to drop a follow-up.

Yesterday (April 19), Chlöe used her final performance at Coachella 2024 to announced her upcoming plans. During a quick brief on stage, she told the crowd that her sophomore album’s release date is sooner than they might expect. “‘Trouble In Paradise’ coming soon,” she yelled.

So far, Chlöe has only shared the forthcoming project’s title, both on stage and in a post on X (formerly Twitter). It is unclear exactly when the body of work will hit streaming platforms or if her latest singles “Boy Bye” and “FYS” are on the final tracklist either way fans are excited.

Ever so clever, the album was actually teased by way of Chlöe’s road to Coachella billboard in the desert days prior. “Warning. Trouble ahead,” read the poster.

For those who were hoping for new music from Chloe x Halle, don’t worry. According to the sister’s latest interview with Forbes, that’s on the agenda for 2025.

The 3-6 matchup in the Western Conference was one of the most highly anticipated series of the first round, with the Timberwolves playing host to the Suns to open things up on Saturday afternoon. The Suns won all three regular season meetings by double figures, so there was a sense Phoenix had Minnesota’s number and the Wolves would be the team having to make the adjustments.

Early on the two teams battled in a closely contested affair, with Kevin Durant proving unstoppable from the midrange as the Suns led 28-27 after the first quarter. However, in the middle periods the Timberwolves defense tightened up and they started to open up a lead as Phoenix couldn’t find the shot-making around Durant to keep pace. In the third quarter, it was a massive run led by Anthony Edwards that saw Minnesota stretch out a 20-point lead going into the fourth, with Edwards making tough bucket after tough bucket to close out the quarter.

After the first of his two threes over Durant, Edwards was talking loud to KD as they went back down the floor, as Edwards made sure the future Hall of Famer knew he couldn’t guard him. The best part about it was how much Durant enjoyed the young superstar’s talk, as he couldn’t help but crack a big smile as Edwards talked his shit.

It was almost a cathartic series opener for the Wolves, a franchise that has had nothing in the way of playoff success in the last couple decades. There’s still a long way to go in this series, but Game 1 was quite the statement from the West’s 3-seed that this regular season was just the beginning. No one made a bigger statement than Edwards in his 18-point third quarter, as he offered a reminder of his ability to take over and made sure KD and the Suns heard all about it.

Expect the unexpected from Lil Uzi Vert. The “Endless Fashion” rapper isn’t a fan of binaries in their gender identity or the designer labels they wear.

On April 12, during weekend one of Coachella, Uzi embraced their fluid freedom by voguing on stage (a unique style of dance birthed in the ballroom scene). Users online and Uproxx‘s hip-hop editor Aaron Williams alike applauded the spontaneous choreography. So, yesterday (April 19), Uzi pushed the boundaries even further.

After concluding their performance, Uzi left stage, purse first (hi, Bob The Drag Queen). But it was just any bag, after Uzi gestured to the item, the camera revealed it was indeed a six-figure Kelly Birkin handbag. Then allowed the fully customized ‘Chrome Hearts’ edition of the highly sought after Hermès item.

Similar to last weekend’s response to Uzi’s voguing, users online loved the moment. Many even begged that the now viral clip be turned into a GIF so that could use it on a daily basis. However, other like streamer Adin Ross, Akademiks, and more weren’t seemingly offended.

During Ross’ watch party broadcast, his face read as if he was disgusted by Uzi carrying a designer handbag.

During another stream, Akademiks spewed a few disgusting allegations.

But what does Uzi have to say about the pushback? Well, onstage Uzi knew that some would be off put by their leather crop top portion of their costume, to which they immediately brushed it off. “I look good,” they declared.

View our Coachella 2024 coverage here.

Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists.

The Cleveland Cavaliers made it clear with their season finale performance that they wanted the 4-seed and a date with the Orlando Magic in the first round, and on Saturday they got a chance to prove that to be a wise maneuver in Game 1. Cleveland would pull away for a 97-83 win, as the opener to the series was the defensive struggle many expected, with maybe worse three-point shooting on both sides than anyone anticipated.

The Cavs did come out hot, quickly knocking down five threes in the first five minutes to immediately take command of the game, with Donovan Mitchell and Evan Mobley taking the lead offensively, but would only make three more from deep the rest of the game.

The Magic would hang around, but Cleveland would push the lead out to 12 at the half thanks to continued terrific play from Mitchell.

Orlando wouldn’t fade away easily though, as the Magic mounted a third quarter response that saw them trim the lead down to just a few. They turned defense into offense, as they’ve done all season, and were able to get out into transition where they were able to free things up a bit.

However, the Cavs always had an answer for every Magic run, largely because Mitchell was nothing short of spectacular. He finished with 30 points to lead all scorers, putting the finishing touches on a Game 1 win for Cleveland with some big buckets inside and out in the fourth quarter.

Jarrett Allen (16 points, 18 rebounds) and Evan Mobley (16 points, 11 rebounds) each had double-doubles, as the Cavs got much better contributions from their big men in their playoff opener in 2024 after those two had a rough time a year ago int he first round with the Knicks. Darius Garland had 14 points and 8 assists, as he set the table for the Cavs offensively. Overall it was a solid performance, although not a good shooting night once again from their role guys, and while they might be able to get through Orlando playing this way, they’ll need to find a better offensive rhythm if they’re going to have a chance at making noise beyond the first round.

Paolo Banchero led the Magic with 24 points, with Franz Wagner chipping in 18, but the Magic could not buy a shot from the perimeter (8-of-37 from three). With the Magic offering no threat from three-point range, the Cavs were able to pack the paint and make it difficult for Banchero and Wagner to get to the rim. As a team, Orlando shot 32.6 percent from the field, which simply won’t work if they’re going to win playoff games.

Cleveland didn’t fare much better from three (8-of-30), but were more effective inside and were much better equipped to deal with Orlando’s physicality compared to their struggles with that a year ago when facing the Knicks in the first round. Going forward, it’s clear the Magic need one of their guards to get hot if they’re going to have a chance of making this an interesting series. Their defense was plenty good in this one, but the offense was simply dreadful. Jalen Suggs (4-of-16), Gary Harris (0-of-6), and Cole Anthony (0-of-7) have to provide something of a threat from the backcourt, or else there’s just too much pressure on Banchero and Wagner to create everything (and neither are great shooting threats themselves).

They’ll meet for Game 2 back in Cleveland on Monday night at 7:00 p.m. ET on NBATV.

Move over Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce, there is a new crossover couple that has pop music fans attention. Since dating rumors kicked off in January, the public has grown intrigued by Sabrina Carpenter and Barry Keoghan‘s pairing. Now, with the relationship status confirmed, fans are obsessed with what will come from their romance.

Yesterday (April 19), the duo’s budding love story was engraved into the Coachella history books thanks to a not so subtle Saltburn-inspired lyric change by Carpenter. To close out her set, Carpenter decided to tweak the ending to her song “Nonsense.”

Instead of a cutesy tribute to her fans, Carpenter used the modified outro to boast about Keoghan’s twisted love for her, using the infamous bathtub scene from the film as a metaphor.

“Made his knees so weak he had to spread mine / He’s drinking my bath water like it’s red wine /Coachella see you back here when I headline,” sang Carpenter.

Keoghan hasn’t posted any response to the onstage shoutout across his social media accounts. However, during weekend one of Coachella, he put his support for his boo on full display, dancing from the crowd. So, it is safe to say he’s more than likely giddy about the song’s update.

The NBA Playoffs got underway on Saturday, which brought a return of playoff basketball to our lives on TV. It also meant the launch of a number of new ad campaigns, as the added eyeballs on games mean the league and network partners all want to debut new spots (that we will see over and over in the coming months).

There’s almost always some movie crossover promos in the playoffs, particularly since the networks that broadcast the games are owned by Disney and Warner Bros. These can range from “very funny” to “extremely cringey,” depending on how natural the fit is, and luckily the first we’ve seen this postseason falls into the former category.

Nikola Jokic has a new teaser spot for Despicable Me 4, as he pokes fun at how his suit and turtleneck outfit earlier this year led to a lot of people pointing out he looks like Gru. His issue isn’t the jokes about looking like Gru, but then reveals that the Minions won’t stop following around calling him “boss.”

I have enjoyed this year of Jokic commercials, because he seems to only do ads that he finds fun. Whether that’s doing a bit with the Minions or walking a pony around a hotel, he’s let his goofy side shine a bit this year as he’s finally stepped into the spotlight a bit more after winning a title.

This article originally appeared on June 5, 2015

Have you ever wondered if you have a “gay voice”?

If you’re anything like me, the answer is yes. Many times.

For anyone who’s laid awake wondering if your voice is just as gay as you are, I’ve created a rigorous test for you to finally get some answers. Follow the chart below to see if you, in fact, sound like a homosexual. ***(Image needs to pulled from Robbie Couch who wrote the article.)

---

Temporary pic pulled as a place holder

Yes, that’s correct: You do not have a “gay voice” — because a “gay voice” is not really a thing.

Unlike humans, voices do not identify as certain genders or sexual orientations. They’re just … sounds. (Crazy, I know!)

Stereotypes about what LGBTQ people sound like lead some to think their gay-dar can accurately sniff out queer folks in a crowd based on voices alone. However, research shows we actually do a pretty poor job at guessing another person’s sexual orientation solely using our ears.

Even if we do wear our queerness on the tips of our tongues, though, why should it matter?

Some LGBTQ people fret over their voice, fearful their queerness is on display every time they speak. And that concern is understandable. Sometimes, it’s not a matter of accepting yourself, but a matter of survival: When your voice outs you as an “other” in an environment that’s hostile toward gay, transgender, or otherwise queer people, personal safety becomes a priority.

“A lot of gay men are self-conscious about sounding gay because we were persecuted for that when we were young,” LGBTQ activist and media personality Dan Savage said in the 2014 documentary “Do I Sound Gay?”

CNN’s Don Lemon, who is openly gay, also chimed in on the topic. Has he ever felt insecure about “sounding gay”? “I’d have to say, if I told you ‘no,’ I’d be lying,” Lemon admitted in the documentary.

But we should never let a bully’s bigotry convince us our voices should be silenced. You sound perfect the way you are, honey — and don’t you forget it.

Checking out the documentary “Do I Sound Gay?”, available on multiple streaming platforms. Here’s a look at the trailer:

This article was written by Robbie Couch and originally appeared on 11.5.15

Lynelle Cantwell is in 12th grade at Holy Trinity High School in Torbay, Newfoundland and Labrador (that’s Canada).

On Monday, she found out that she had been featured on another student’s anonymous online poll entitled “Ugly Girls in Grade 12,” along with several other classmates.

---

Cantwell responded via Facebook with her own message, which has already been shared more than 2,000 times and counting.

Take a look:

Since posting her brave response on Facebook, more people have come out to show support than people who voted in the first place.

Check out some of the responses:

The School District of Newfoundland and Labrador has announced that it will be looking into the incident further. For Cantwell, the positive outpouring of love and support vastly outweighs the initial cyberbullying and is raising her confidence in new ways.

This article originally appeared on 08.20.17

These are called “anti-homeless spikes.” They’re about as friendly as they sound.

As you may have guessed, they’re intended to deter people who are homeless from sitting or sleeping on that concrete step. And yeah, they’re pretty awful.

The spikes are a prime example of how cities design spaces to keep homeless people away.

---

Not all concrete steps have spikes on them, but outdoor seating in cities like Montreal and Tokyo have been sneakily designed to prevent people from resting too comfortably for too long.

This guy sawing through a bench was part of a 2006 protest in Toulouse, France, where public seating intentionally included armrests to prevent people from lying down.

Of course, these designs do nothing to fight the cause or problem of homelessness. They’re just a way of saying to homeless people, “Go somewhere else. We don’t want to look at you,” basically.

One particular set of spikes was outside a former night club in London. And a local group got sick of staring at them.

Leah Borromeo is part of the art collective “Space, Not Spikes” — a group that’s fed up with what she describes as “hostile architecture.“

“Spikes do nothing more than shoo the realities of poverty and inequality away from your backyard — so you don’t have to see it or confront what you can do to make things more equal,” Borromeo told Upworthy. “And that is really selfish.”

“Our moral compass is skewed if we think things like this are acceptable.”

The move by Space, Not Spikes has caused quite a stir in London and around the world. The simple but impactful idea even garnered support from music artist Ellie Goulding.

“That was amazing, wasn’t it?” Borromeo said of Goulding’s shout-out on Instagram.

“[The project has] definitely touched a nerve and I think it is because, as a whole, humans will still look out for each other,” Borromeo told Upworthy. “Capitalism and greed conditions us to look out for ourselves and negate the welfare of others, but ultimately, I think we’re actually really kind.”

“We need to call out injustice and hypocrisy when we see it.”

These spikes may be in London, but the U.S. definitely has its fair share of anti-homeless sentiment, too.

Spikes are pretty obvious — they’re a visual reminder of a problem many cities are trying to ignore. But what we can’t see on the street is the rise of anti-homeless laws that have cropped up from sea to shining sea.

Legislation that targets homeless people — like bans on panhandling and prohibiting people from sleeping in cars — has increased significantly in recent years.

For instance, a report by the National Law Center on Homelessness & Poverty that analyzed 187 American cities found that there’s been a 43% hike in citywide bans on sitting or lying down in certain spaces since 2011.

Thankfully, groups like “Space, Not Spikes” are out there changing hearts and minds. But they need our help.

The group created a video to complement its work and Borromeo’s hoping its positive underlying message will motivate people to do better.

“[The world] won’t always be happy-clappy because positive social change needs constructive conflict and debate,” she explained. “But we need to call out injustice and hypocrisy when we see it.”

Check out their video below:

This article originally appeared on 07.24.15