In early February 2024, Beyoncé rocked the music world by releasing a surprise new album of country tunes. The album, Renaissance: Act II, includes a song called “Texas Hold ‘Em,” which shot up the country charts—with a few bumps along the way—and landed Queen Bey at the No.1 spot.
As the first Black female artist to have a song hit No. 1 on Billboard’s country music charts, Beyoncé once again proved her popularity, versatility and ability to break barriers without missing a beat. In one fell swoop, she got people who had zero interest in country music to give it a second look, forced country music fans to broaden their own ideas about what country music looks like and prompted conversations about bending and blending musical genres and styles.
And she inspired the Gardiner Brothers to add yet another element to the mix—Irish stepdance.
Michael and Matthew Gardiner are professional Irish-American stepdancers and choreographers who have gained international fame with their award-winning performances. They’ve also built a following of millions on social media with videos like this one, where they dance to popular songs, usually in an outdoor environment.
People are loving the blending of genres and culture that the TikTok exemplifies.
“Never thought I’d see Irish step dancing while Beyoncé sings country,” wrote on commenter. “My life is complete. ♥️”
“So happy Beyoncé dropped this song and exposed my timeline to diversified talent 👏🏽👏🏽,” wrote another.
“Beyoncé brought the world together with this song 😭,” offered another person.
“Ayeeee Irish Dancing has entered the BeyHive chatroom… WELCOME!! 🔥🔥🔥” exclaimed another.
“I don’t think I can explain how many of my interests are intersecting here,” wrote one commenter, reflecting what several others shared as well.
The Beyoncé/Gardiner Brothers combo and the reactions to it are a good reminder that none of us fit into one box of interest or identity. We’re all an eclectic mix of tastes and styles, so we can almost always find a way to connect with others over something we enjoy. What better way to be reminded of that fact than through an unexpected mashup that blends the magic of music with the delight of dance? Truly, the arts are a powerful uniting force we should utilize more often.
And for an extra bit of fun, the Gardiner Brothers also shared their bloopers from filming the video. Turns out stepping in the rain isn’t as easy as they make it look.
The recent death of basketball icon Bill Walton made a major impact in the sports world, but it was significant in the jam band community, too. Walton was perhaps the Grateful Dead’s most enthusiastic and dedicated fan, and band members wrote touching social media tributes for him. In its first performance as Las Vegas’ Sphere since Walton’s death, Dead & Company (a band featuring Grateful Dead members) devoted some time of the show to honoring Walton.
As JamBase notes, ahead of the concert, the band’s Mickey Hart wrote on Instagram, “Tonight we pulse, we vibrate, we dance, for Bill. The BIGGEST deadhead in the world!”
During the “Drums” section of the concert, Walton was shown on a giant screen as a myriad of virtual drums surrounded the audience. This was presumably because Walton had previously sat in with the band for the “Drums” portion of the show.
The Dead and Company tribute to Bill Walton at The Sphere last night was awesome. What a legend. pic.twitter.com/DnWLzydU6Q
There was another Walton tribute during “Fire On The Mountain.” The usual visuals were replaced by falling red flowers as photos of Walton with band members were shown. At the song’s end, “Walton 32” (32 being his NBA jersey number) was displayed.
After Walton’s death, Dead & Company’s John Mayer shared a thoughtful tribute, writing in part, “Bill Walton lived a life that the rest of us could only hope to achieve on our second (or third) go-round. He had an eye toward the truly important stuff, the stuff we already know better than to lose sight of, but often do. […] I think it’s pretty good advice that when times get tough, everything will be okay if you just pretend to be Bill Walton. Thank you Bill.”
It has been about two years since Jessie Reyez’s last album, Yessie, and, aside from a pair of singles in 2023 with Miguel and 6lack, she hasn’t released too much new music since then. But if you thought you’d seen the last of the Canadian singer, she’s back with a two-word message for the haters, doubters, and anyone else with anything negative to say: “Shut Up,” the title of her new single featuring Big Sean.
The video for the song features cameos from singers JoJo and Nija, who help Jessie judge a f*ckboy beauty pageant alongside actress Inanna, and from Jessie’s mom Carmen, who rides along with the singer in a Ferrari. Big Sean shows up midway through the video to offer a signature, boastful verse with one colorful sex punchline, and the video ends with a short snippet of another new song, suggesting that a follow-up to Yessie is definitely in the works.
Reyez’s recent collaborative output has been some of her strongest work yet; “Jeans,” her collaboration with Miguel, and “Homicide,” her third collab with 6lack, were solid songs that highlighted her seductive new direction. Stay tuned for more from Reyez.
Watch Jessie Reyez’s “Shut Up” video with Big Sean above.
There is a limited number of things you can do if you discover you have a rare and/or weird talent. You can perfect the talent, then be known among your friends as “The Person Who Tap Dances During Parties.” You can, of course, try to monetize said talent by making a TikTok account of the talent sound tracked to a sped-up version of Sabrina Carpenter’s “Espresso.” Or, if you really feel like you have something, you can audition for America’s Got Talent and prove to the world, and Heidi Klum, that you are talented.
The 19th season of America’s Got Talent premiered this week with your normal group of magicians, singers, and a few cute dogs who are competing to win both prize money and recognition. Host Terry Crews returned along with judges Simon Cowell, Howie Mandell, Sofia Vergara, and Klum.
The auditions were filmed over two weeks at the Pasadena Civic Auditorium in California. While the taping for this season has already wrapped, it took place in March and April, so you can start planning your 2025 trip now if you’re looking to impress Simon Cowell with your really cool Yo-Yo tricks, or just attend a live taping from the audience. Either works.
Episodes of America’s Got Talent air Tuesdays until July 23, then take a brief pause for some other minor talents (the 2024 Olympics) before returning on Tuesdays and Wednesdays from August 13 to September 18. It’s hard to believe that there is really so much talent out there.
America’s Got Talent airs Tuesdays at 8 p.m. EST on NBC and the next day on Peacock.
With Memorial Day behind us and summer coming, we’re officially in grilling season, and no food brings as much joy as a delicious homemade burger. Yes, you can make the argument for carne asada or hot dogs but, you’d be wrong, burgers for the win! If you’ve attended any backyard BBQs, we’re willing to bet you’ve encountered a few bad burgers. Despite being one of the simplest foods to make, it’s incredibly easy to f*ck up a homemade burger.
Considering food prices are high and there are only so many excuses in the summer to get together with friends or family to grill, we don’t want you to have a bad burger. So to guide you into the absolute best way to grill a burger we tapped an absolute burger master, Chef Mike Johnson, for some tips.
Mike Johnson is the founder and main chef behind St. Louis Missouri’s Hi-Pointe Drive-In and has appeared on screen on a number of cooking-based shows, from Travel Channel’s Food Paradise to Beat Bobby Flay, and TLC’s BBQ Pitmaster. He’s also a certified burger champion, winning the World’s Best Burger award at the 2021 World Food Championship and has competed in several international burger and barbecue competitions around the world.
If that isn’t enough to convince you of Johnson’s bonafides, he has also fed Snoop Dogg bacon-wrapped mac and cheese blunts — need we say more? Dudes a master of good eats.
We talked to Chef Johnson about the best way to grill a burger (both on a flat top and over grates) and covered some of the best toppings, sides, and techniques to elevate your burger game.
Just to start off I wanted to ask a little bit about your story and about Hi-Pointe Drive-In. What’s the philosophy of the restaurant?
I used to be a fine dining chef and then that did it for years. I worked in LA for a little bit, a long time ago, but it didn’t work out. So 12 years ago I started opening barbecue restaurants. We got about 15 of those called Sugarfire, and we had a smash burger there and we kept winning Best Burger in Missouri and Best Burger in St. Louis. So the idea for Hi-Pointe came up maybe seven or eight years ago.
It’s in the Hi-Pointe neighborhood, that’s why it’s called the Hi-Pointe and it was perfect for a burger spot. So we just did that same burger. We’re already winning the Best burger in Missouri with Hi-Pointe. So the philosophy is chef inspired smash burgers. It’s still cheap. A burger is still six bucks at Hi-Pointe.
It’s just a basic smash patty with a really good bun and really good condiments. And then we do some bun specials and honestly, a lot of the specials have a marijuana kind of nuance to them. Not in it, but just the names and stuff just because we’re just playing on the term Hi-Pointe.
So do you hold the smash patties above all other burger forms?
I like all kinds of burgers. I’ll eat any kind of burger. I try to eat a burger a day, but I prefer smashed because I like to get a really high quality beef like we get and I like that crispy crust. I love grilled. I know somebody last year came out and said “grilled burgers suck,” I think it was David Chang. But I love grilled burgers, if you do them properly.
I’m an ambassador for a big charcoal company, Royal Oak Charcoal. I think we’re the second-biggest charcoal company. I do a lot of burgers on live fire grills with their charcoal. It just depends on what I’m the mood for really. But mostly I guess I’m in the mood for a smash burger, but I’ll eat them anyway.
To start, I’m just guessing here but I’m willing to bet you prefer charcoal over propane?
Charcoal. I just love the flavor. It’s a more dense woody smoke flavor. It’s really just most of the charcoal from the US, the stuff that’s not shipped in from out of the country is grown here in Missouri where I live in The Ozarks and I go down there and visit. I see the quality of the product. I think the charcoal gives a much higher heat than propane can ever give, which enables a better crust on it, which I think is very important for a burger.
And it also gives that good char flavor and smoke flavor too that you’re never going to get from propane.
Let’s dive in a little bit into the specifics of how to make a good grilled burger. Let’s start with meat ratio. What’s the best ratio and why?
I don’t use Wagyu, it’s a little fatty for me. We use what’s called Creekstone beef. It’s like a prime beef. Our ratio, and we worked on this for a long time, is 50% chuck and that provides the body I would say in the chew. It’s more of just the density of the meat and the bite in your mouth. We use 25% brisket, that’s fat content. And then we use 25% short rib meat because to me that’s the real beef. That’s the beefiest flavor on a cow so we use a 50-25-25 ratio. 80-20 fat blend is what we try to — I’m sorry, 85-15 is what we try and achieve because if it gets a little fattier than that, you start to lose too much on your grill so that’s our blend right there.
Interesting. So you say 80 is just a little too fatty?
Yeah, I mean it’s funny because we test them all the time and we’re always trying new products and stuff. It seems like once you start dipping below 85 especially, we have these really big fancy high-end flat top grills, and if you got a little bit too much fat in there, you lose them on the grill.
I don’t know if you’ve ever done a smash burger before, but they kind of stretch out too far and there’s holes everywhere and stuff. And then the grill’s messy and it’s just too hard to do, especially when you’re trying to pump out a lot of them, if that makes sense. I mean some places are just so crazy all day there’ll be 25 patties going at once, nonstop popping them off. And when you’re pushing them out like that and there’s grease everywhere, it’s not good.
What’s something you should never do when you’re making a grilled burger?
I would say the main mistake is don’t season too much. I say if you’re doing anything more than salt and pepper, you’re making meatloaf. So I just like good fresh ground white or black pepper. And I like to use ground sea salt and I really try and make sure I blend them 50/50.
We have this other saying in barbecue, if you’re looking, you’re not cooking. I like to let it sit on the grill, on the flat top, smash it down, and then don’t fuck with it. Don’t sit there and jiggle it around or flip it and check it. You know and I cook it on one side until I can almost see that it’s cooked all the way through because I’m trying to get that good crust on there.
So when it comes to grilled burgers, are you using a flat top in that situation?
Oh are we talking about outdoor grilled burgers? I use grates. So let me back up a little bit. So in that case, yeah, I would definitely use 80. I’m sorry, I talk about our burgers at Hi-Pointe so much those are on flat top grills. So on the grill, yes, 100%.
You can even creep it up into a 90-10 blend is what I even do so there’s not too much drip coming down. Because when the oil hits the charcoal and it really kind of burns, it leaves an unpleasant flavor for a little bit. I use grates, but you can do them cast iron. I’ve done cast iron skillets. If you really want a smash burger on an outdoor grill, I mean by all means throw a cast iron on there. I even throw the cast iron right in the coals sometimes.
And that’s seasoned the same way, just salt and pepper?
Some people try might put a little powdered garlic or something there, but I just like to go with the classic and let the beef really taste like beef. I’m not trying to make it taste like anything else. I just think it should taste beefy and cheesy really.
Is that both sides seasoning or just one side?
I do a little on both. Without over salting.
Do you have a patty forming technique?
Well, we do balls. At work we have a machine that’s called Patti-O-Matic. We grind the meat and it just pumps up. But at home I prefer a ball. And then I let that ball sit out and I have them cold in the fridge in balls. And when I’m doing a grill with the outdoor grill, with the charcoal, you can’t really smash them down beforehand. So I like to make the patties a little bit bigger than my burger bun. And I do them thicker than maybe about I would say 3/8 of an inch thick, a little less than 1/2 an inch thick on the grill because you can’t smash it down on the grill, it just disappears. So I just form them ahead of time into I would say pucks. Some people have these lid things and they kind of smash them in there and flip them out. I haven’t really done that.
So you’re doing it just by hand?
A hand patty, yep. And I don’t mind if they’re ugly.
You mentioned having the meat chilled, so I want to talk a little bit about temperature. Do you want those burgers to hit the grill cold?
Yeah, cold. That’s how I do it. That’s the way, plus I’m always scared about food poisoning. I do some of these steak contests sometimes and everybody in the steak gets their steak hot. I mean 100 degrees hot. They let it kind of sit in a warm place before they cook it and I don’t really understand why they do that. I’m not scientist. I don’t know, but I like to go on cold. I don’t know why.
I mean, you’re a burger champion, so don’t question the method.
I don’t know why I do that. It just feels like it might stick a little easier on the grill. When you have it on these hot outdoor grills with the grates, I don’t want it to stick.
So I’ll have the charcoal pile on say half the grill and I’ll start the burger away from the direct heat so it’s not dripping and getting burnt. And then at some point when I figure out it’s not going to stick to the grill, then I’ll move it over for char because you don’t want it to get all stuck on the grates.
So is this just a one flip kind of situation?
No, I usually end up flipping them a bunch when I’m outside. I don’t really care about grill marks because I would personally never eat a burger without American cheese on it because that’d be Communist.
I don’t really care about if you’re looking for marks, some people think that’s cool, I don’t know. It might be cool, but no, I’ll flip it and then I’ll flip it again and then make sure it doesn’t stick and then I’ll move it around on the heat. It just depends on what temp, and however whoever I’m cooking for likes it. I like a burger medium, unless I’m eating a really delicious, crazy fresh kind of wagyu burger or something, micro medium rare or something but I pretty much do all my burgers medium.
As we’re approaching grill season, can you walk us through how to make the best grilled burger that we’ll ever have? How are we preparing it? What’s on it? Be as detailed as possible.
Okay, I’m going to sound probably like a psycho with all the detail. The first thing is you need a good bun and I think a potato roll is the perfect softness ratio. I don’t like a bun that’s too doughy and I don’t like a bun that’s too big. My favorite bun is a Martin’s Potato Roll. I don’t know if you guys can get those in LA, but it’s a company out of Pennsylvania. They make the best burger bun of all the time.
That’s almost just as important to me as everything else. I think the bun needs to be butter toasted. So I’ll butter toast that and I don’t do it on the grill. I want the whole thing crispy. I’ll do it in a cast iron on the side or on some kind of a flat surface because the crust, it provides crunch so it’s like a textural thing. And it also protects that bun from getting soggy.
So when people don’t toast their buns, it makes me think they’re lazy and I don’t like them anymore. I really judge. It’s like my judgiest thing about a burger is if you’re not toasting a bun, I’m already like, “I’m done with you.” I mean, I’ll still eat it, but I’ll be upset. So you got to have that bun really golden brown toasted on both sides.
I prefer a yellow onion, very thin slice, one layer. And that’s the one thing that I put on the bottom bun below the burger. Because it not only protects that bottom bun from getting soggy, but it also soaks up the juices from the burger really well. And that’s another textural thing for me that I really enjoy. So I’ve got that butter toasted bun on the bottom, very thin shaved one thin slice of onion. I mean it can cover the bun if you want, but I don’t like a lot of stuff on there like tomato.
So then I would go burger and cheese, American cheese, obviously. I think American cheese is the best. I mean obviously people can do whatever they want. I do shredded iceberg lettuce only. And I like to just cut that paper thin, like julienne style and I’ll put that on top with one slice of tomato.
The tomato doesn’t have to cover the whole burger, it just needs to be on there. And I prefer that thinner than… Some people like a thick tomato on there. But tomato to me — that’s the worst part of the burger, but it needs to be on there. And so I do a really thin sliced tomato, one tomato only, that’s it. And then pickles, I prefer a really good crunchy fresh dill pickle and I like to cut them oblong, oval-shaped.
I don’t know why. I just like those and I’ll put just two of those, nothing crazy.
Personally, I like Duke’s Mayo on there. To me that’s the ultimate burger, very simple. Duke’s Mayo and you might get some heat for this but I also love a little Heinz 57 on there. That’s just for me personally. I wouldn’t do that to everybody, but this is always the way I’ve eaten my favorite burger. I’ll put a little bit of Heinz 57 or even make a little Heinz 57 mayo with the Duke’s. So I’ll do one part Heinz 57, three parts Duke’s. And to me that really sets it off and that’s pretty much it.
How do you feel about brioche?
Yeah, it’s my second favorite. If I can’t find potato rolls, I go to brioche every time.
You mentioned Sugarfire and I know you did some barbecue competitions and you gave Snoop Dogg some bacon wrapped mac and cheese blunts. So I just wanted you to hit us with the perfect side for the burger you just created.
Oh, fries, crinkle cut fries. And they’re impossible to make yourself. I’ve been trying in the restaurants for years. There’s one machine that can make them and it’s 50,000 bucks. But we buy really top quality fries and then this is even going to sound crazier. I work in Australia a lot and in Australia, every french fry in Australia… Have you ever been to Australia?
You got to go. You’re in LA. You just pop down. There’s flights there all day long.
18-hour flight.
I know, brutal. I mean I’ve been working there probably three, four times a year for seven, eight years. They love barbecue down there. So I go down and do these barbecue kind of festival things with them. But the one thing I brought back from Australia was chicken salt. Have you heard of chicken salt?
No.
Every french fry in Australia goes out with this stuff called chicken salt on it and it’s a really umami kind of like you know ramen seasoning kind of a salt that they put on the french fries and no one would ever make it in the States so I brought some home a few years ago. We have a fried chicken small chain called Chicken Out and we sell it out of there. It’s amazing. I shake that in those crinkle cut fries and it’s the best fry you’ve ever had. I’m sure somebody in LA has it somewhere. All the hipsters out there making their fancy food. But you know what? Give me your address. I’ll send you a bottle.
All right, I’ll take it!
Okay, I’m going to get a chicken salt out there. It’s going to blow your mind.
Oh, dude, I put it on pasta. And the funny thing is we just made it for our little chicken chain and now all the famous barbecue guys that win the World Championship Barbecue shit whenever they do chicken, they shake a little bit on the edge of their chicken so when the judge bites it, their first bite is chicken salt. It’s pretty funny.
As my last question to close out, and you’ve kind of hinted at this already, and I’m right there with you. Make the case for why American cheese is the best burger cheese over cheddar.
It’s the flavor. It’s the melting. It melts better. It sticks. It’s the way it sticks in your teeth. I think when you put cheddar on the burger, you’re tasting cheddar more. When you taste American cheese, it’s like the cheese and burger come together. I’m more crazy about burgers than other people, but to me it’s just a magical ingredient. I can’t imagine having a burger and not having cheese. That’s the other way I judge people is if they don’t want cheese on their burger.
But I mean I’ll eat a cheddar burger. If somebody gives me one I’m like, “Okay.”
I was at my neighbor’s house grilling, he asked me to come grill some stuff for his family the other day. We’re hanging out and he had American cheese in the fridge and he had cheddar cheese out and I went in the fridge and I got American cheese. He was like, “What are you doing?” I’m like, “Dude, I’m putting American cheese on the burger.” He’s like, “Why? I got this really nice cheddar.” And so I’m never going over there again.
That’s how I feel about people who put cheddar on their burger. It’s like, “What are you doing?
Earlier this week, Beabadoobee announced her This Is How Tomorrow Moves Tour. She and Hovvdy are set to hit the road together starting in September, but ticket sales start sooner than that. As for how much admission will cost, here’s what to know.
How Much Are Tickets For Beabadoobee’s This Is How Tomorrow Moves Tour?
Ticket sales started today (May 31), and using the September 8 concert in Philadelphia as an example, prices currently range from $65 to $234, depending on the seat and ticket tier. More information is available on Beabadoobee’s website.
Beabadoobee 2024 Tour Dates: This Is How Tomorrow Moves Tour
05/30 — Utrecht, Netherlands @ Ekko
05/31 — Hamburg, Germany @ Nochtwache
06/01 — Berlin, Germany @ Prachtwerk
09/06 — Raleigh, NC @ Hopscotch Music Festival
09/08 — Philadelphia, PA @ The Met Philadelphia*
09/09 — Washington, DC @ The Anthem*
09/11 — New York, NY @ Central Park @ Rumsey Playfield*
09/13 — Boston, MA @ MGM Music Hall at Fenway*
09/15 — Toronto, ON @ Coca-Cola Coliseum*
09/17 — Chicago, IL @ Byline Bank Aragon Ballroom*
09/18 — St Louis, MO @ Saint Louis Music Park*
09/20 — Denver, CO @ Fillmore Auditorium*
09/21 — Salt Lake City, UT @ The Union*
09/24 — Woodinville, WA @ Chateau Ste. Michelle*
09/28 — Los Angeles, CA @ Greek Theatre*
* with Hovvdy
This Is How Tomorrow Moves is out 8/16 via Dirty Hit. Find more information here.
What happens when we die? What is the meaning of life? Why can’t every restaurant carry Coke products instead of Pepsi? These are some of the toughest questions we ask ourselves, none more difficult than: Alien or Aliens? It’s something that director Fede Álvarez considered while working on his new film, Alien: Romulus, before landing on the correct answer: both.
“To ask an Alien fan to choose between them is a perverse question,” he told Empire. “So I thought, how do I do both?”
Based on the trailer for the film, Alien: Romulus successfully combines the haunted house-in-space eeriness of Ridley Scott’s original film with James Cameron’s blockbuster sequel. “There’s a moment where the characters are walking around areas familiar from the Nostromo,” Álvarez teased. “Then they cross through that building and on the other side: boom! You’re in a hallway that looks like Hadley’s Hope [from Aliens].”
There will presumably be fewer nods to Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem.
Alien: Romulus, which follows a group of space colonizers who come face to face with “the most terrifying life form in the universe” while scavenging a derelict space station, stars Cailee Spaeny, David Jonsson, Archie Renaux, Isabela Merced, Spike Fearn, and Aileen Wu. Also, some xenomorphs.
There are two types of Starbucks drinkers. You’re either one of those people who pull up to your local Starbucks and order the same drink, the same way, at the same time every day. You know, a psychopath. Or you’re the occasional drinker, who every once in a while feels an urge for something intensely sweet and knows Starbucks is always going to deliver on that front. No matter what type best describes you, we’re willing to bet you’re hit with a bit of panic whenever Starbucks drops a flight of new drinks.
Do you go with your tried and true go-to drink or mix it up and try something brand new and untested? We’re living in an expensive world, and sometimes the risk of trying a new drink completely blind just costs too much. Well, good news — we’re willing to take the hit for you.
In the past, we’ve tried and ranked every Starbucks iced coffee and Frappuccino on the menu, so we know the menu pretty deeply. So read our reviews and know what to expect the next time you step into a Starbucks. Let’s dive in, starting with our least favorite of the three variations.
Summer-Berry Refresher
Dane Rivera
Thoughts & Tasting Notes:
The Summer-Berry Refresher is the foundation by which the other two drinks are built, and because of that, this is by far the weakest of the three. The drink features a mix of raspberry, blueberry and blackberry flavors shaken with ice and cut with water, the result is a sweet vaguely berry flavored drink that comes across as watery and muted.
The boba-like pearls are less gummy and chewy than what you’d find with actual boba — tapioca balls — instead what you get here are light plastic-y bubbles that pop in your mouth and give an extra dose of raspberry flavor.
The drink is very much a delivery device for the pearls, which feature all the flavor.
The Bottom Line:
Muted and watery. The worst of the Summer-Berry Refresher line. Completely skippable.
Summer Skies Drink
Dane Rivera
Thoughts & Tasting Notes:
On appearance alone, this is the drink I had the highest hopes for. That’s probably because of the three, this looks most like a traditional Boba milk tea, and build-wise, it comes pretty close. The drink features the Summer-Berry Refresher base cut with creamy coconut milk.
The drink has a creamy tropical flavor with hints of vanilla over a base of berry flavors. That creamy and berry-rich blend pair nicely with the raspberry pearls.
It’s not quite as decadent or indulgent as the type of milk tea you’d find at a boba shop (these are usually made with non-dairy creamer, which give a much sweeter flavor and a thicker texture), but it is refreshing without coming across as heavy.
As much as I like that, it wouldn’t hurt if Starbucks made a more indulgent version of this drink. We’d love to see a blended version!
The Bottom Line:
The closest thing to boba milk tea Starbucks has ever made. Creamy and sweet without being heavy or too indulgent.
Summer-Berry Lemonade Refresher
Dane Rivera
Thoughts & Tasting Notes:
As much as I liked the Summer Skies (appearance, name, flavor, it’s got everything) I have to give it up to the Summer-Berry Lemonade Refresher. This drink features the berry blend base cut with lemonade, shaken with ice, and poured over the raspberry pearls.
The way the tart and citrusy lemonade interacts with the berry-base just tastes right — as if Starbucks formulated this drink before all the others. But where it really shines is the way it elevates the raspberry pearls. Complementing the mix of citrus and berry-rich flavors, each burst of flavor from the pearl serves as a counterbalance for the tart quality of the lemonade.
Not only does the flavor of the drink dunk on the other two variations, it serves as the perfect showcase for the raspberry pearl gimmick, and because of that, it’s the ultimate iteration of this drink.
The Bottom Line:
If you’re curious about the pearls and this line of drinks, start here. It’s the ultimate iteration of this flavor gimmick and the best showcase for the pearls.
In the video for “Young N****,” Luh Tyler rides ATVs with his friends, shows off his jewels and cash, and makes it clear he’s just as cool as ever. The Florida teen (for two more years) has been enjoying life since his song “Law & Order” took off on TikTok, and he’s just about a year removed from releasing his debut mixtape, My Vision, on Atlantic Records, so the time is ripe for a follow-up.
After his appearance on the 2023 XXL Freshman Class cover, expectations are high for the 18-year-old, who just graduated from high school last year. His 2024 has already been eventful; earlier this month, he set off on tour with A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie, on whose Better Off Alone Tour he’ll be opening until late June. He hasn’t announced a new album yet, but don’t be surprised if that announcement comes sooner rather than later.
Watch Luh Tyler’s “Young N****” video above. See Luh Tyler’s tour dates with A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie below.
Luh Tyler’s 2024 Tour Dates
06/01 — Irving, TX @ The Pavilion at Toyota Music Factory
06/02 — Woodlands, TX @ The Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion presented by Huntsman
06/04 — Jacksonville, FL @ Daily’s Place
06/05 — West Palm Beach, FL @ iTHINK Financial Amphitheatre
06/06 — Tampa, FL @ MIDFLORIDA Credit Union Amphitheater at the FL State Fairgrounds
06/08 — Atlanta, GA @ Lakewood Amphitheatre
06/09 — Charlotte, NC @ PNC Music Pavilion
06/11 — Virginia Beach, VA @ Veterans United Home Loans Amphitheater
06/12 — Bristow, VA @ Jiffy Lube Live
06/14 — Detroit, MI @ Pine Knob Music Theatre
06/16 — Tinley Park, IL @ Credit Union 1 Amphitheatre
06/18 — Philadelphia, PA @ Wells Fargo Center
06/20 — Boston, MA @ TD Garden
06/22 — Hartford, CT @ Xfinity Theatre
06/24 — New York, NY @ Madison Square Garden
To be so young, Chicago rapper Polo G has been through a lot in his life. In the video for his new song “Angels In The Sky,” Polo appears to have been committed to a psychiatric hospital, where he watches his past videos on a TV that’s probably older than he is. Each version of him from those videos is pulled out of their reality and time and brought to a holding cell, where they confront each other at a table, until the contemporary Polo enters to reconcile these past lives.
Polo is currently in the midst of his revamped rollout for Hood Poet, which will be his fourth album since 2019 and his breakout with “Pop Out.” Initially announced in August 2023, Polo delayed the album after being arrested on charges of kidnapping, robbery, and assault with a deadly weapon. He relaunched his campaign in February with the video for “Sorrys & Ferraris,” but was again derailed in April after being arrested for possession of a firearm in New York.
As of this writing, Hood Poet still has an August release date; with the “Angels In The Sky” video, it seems like the rollout is still on schedule.
Watch Polo G’s video for “Angels In The Sky” above.
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