Month: June 2024

After Taylor Swift spent much of the fall and winter becoming a staple at Kansas City Chiefs games to support her new boyfriend Travis Kelce, the star tight end has done the same at various stops on the global stretch of Swift’s The Eras Tour.

Travis is typically in the VIP area enjoying the show with the various celebrities that show up for each night of the tour, but on Sunday he got much more involved, taking an on-stage role for the first time. Late in Sunday’s tour stop in London, fans were stunned to see Kelce dressed as one of Swift’s dancers in a top hat and tuxedo during a transition between “The Smallest Man Who Ever Lived” into “I Can Do It With A Broken Heart,” as he came out on stage, clearly having a blast, and carried Swift to a broken heart-shaped couch before touching up Swift’s makeup (and miming doing the same for himself).

It’s the first time we’ve seen Kelce hop up on stage, and he certainly seemed to enjoy every minute of it, trotting out with a little heel click and hamming it up as the crowd went crazy at his appearance. Typically we see Kelce’s dance skills in the end zone, but this time he put himself to the test with some professionals on stage. We’ll have to see if this fall he works any The Eras Tour choreography into his celebrations. Also, this sets the bar high for Swift when she shows up at her next Chiefs game, as it might be tough to reciprocate this moment — unless she’s ready to take some snaps at slot receiver.

Now that the NBA season is over, Shaquille O’Neal can shift his focus to his true love: music. The Hall of Famer spends his summers touring as DJ Diesel, as he’s shifted his focus away from hip-hop, when he was once a platinum selling artist, to EDM and house music, previously explaining that he just loves the energy of those crowds.

Shaq will do it all, from hitting the festival circuit to a Las Vegas residency at Encore Beach Club to performances at MLB stadiums after games. His most recent stop came on Saturday night in Cleveland, where he was at Blue Jays-Guardians and performed on the field for fans after the Guards picked up a 6-3 win to improve to 46-26 on the season.

The vibes are incredibly high for the Guards right now, and that only continued with DJ Diesel hopping on the 1s and 2s and bringing out some special guests from the clubhouse, as Cleveland pitcher Triston McKenzie (and a number of ofther Guardians players) joined Shaq on stage and performed “Since U Been Gone” by Kelly Clarkson to the delight of the fans.

First off, this is a reminder that “Since U Been Gone” is 20 years old and is still an absolute banger. Kelly Clarkson was really in her bag with that one. Secondly, DJ Diesel knows what the people want, which is a Kelly Clarkson interlude before going right back into some EDM. A true showman, through and through, who absolutely knows how to work a crowd — he hyped up the Guards as a World Series contender during his set as well.

Athletes around the world have massive fan bases. Similar to the players, there are several beloved sports team mascots with followings of their own. The New York Liberty’s Ellie The Elephant has become the WNBA’s latest breakout star.

Yesterday (June 22), Big Ellie’s Halftime performance showcased that and more. The show was dedicated to Pride Month, and also paid tribute Beyoncé. The ever so fabulous mascot blended a medley of the “Texas Hold ‘Em” singer’s record-setting, Grammy Award-winning album, Renaissance.

It was clear Ellie received the silver dress code notice, as the sassy elephant was rolled onto center court dressed in a mockup of Beyoncé’s tour look. With her own Renaissance World Tour dancers, Ellie slayed the mashup of “Move” featuring Grace Jones and Nina Sky’s “Move Ya Body” with hints of “Formation.”

Users online raved about the Halftime performance. Many even joked that a floral arrangement from Beyoncé would arrive at the arena soon. Ellie welcomed the idea, writing, “If this happened, tears just might fall .”

Ellie’s Beyhive-certified tribute stated well before see hit the Barclays Center’s floor. In a clip shared to Ellie’s official X (formerly Twitter) profile she is seen Sasha Fiercly stomping across the Snipes pre-game carpet in another Beyoncé-inspired outfit with a hand fan made up of the Renaissance cover art.

Those flowers from Bey are currently en route.

Taylor Swift’s time in London has been nothing short of star-studded. As the “Fortnight” singer’s The Eras Tour set up home at the Wembley Stadium, celebrities (including The Royal Family) have been spotted enjoying Swift’s signature songs.

But it seems the sold-out shows didn’t move as smoothly as they appeared. Yesterday (June 22), one concertgoer uploaded a video from the venue and claimed that the main screen glitched before Swift took to the stage that evening. But fans believe that the singer used the moment to subtly hint at a project in progress.

“This can not have been an accident,” wrote the user.

“It’s the third glitch in the UK is it not?? Am I bonkers,” asked another.

In the clip, b-roll footage of Swift in a past performance was frozen mid-frame. The eerie grays black-and-white screen glitch, in which Swift’s eyes are glazed over, could have easily served as a throwaway from horror film, The Exorcist. But the Swifties have taken the issue to be a teaser of Swift’s highly anticipated re-recording, Reputation (Taylor’s Version) album.

“OMG, it’s coming #REP,” penned one user.

“She should release ‘Rep’ the same day bought her masters. Like happy anniversary b*tch ,” wrote another.

Only time will tell if the blip was secretly planned. Outside the minor tech hiccup, Hugh Grant thought the show was stellar, or so he detailed on X (formerly Twitter). Read his note below.

Dear Taylor Swift,

You have an incredible show, an amazing and very hospitable team and excellent if gigantic boyfriend (#tequilashots.). Thanks so much from one aging London boy, wife and thrilled 8-year-old #halfgirlhalfbracelet

Two decades of NCIS and counting with no sign of being over anytime soon. The flagship series will proceed into its 22nd season in Fall 2024, and although NCIS: Hawai’i viewers were not thrilled with that cliffhanger cancellation, CBS is pushing forth with plans for two new spin offs, including NCIS: Origins about the beginning of Leroy Jethro Gibbs’ naval-investigative career and a show that re-teams Ziva David and Tony DiNozzo. This return-to-basics approach follows a similar and successful move by Law & Order reviving their original series and keeping Elliot Stabler’s undercover assignments alive on Organized Crime.

After all, the secret to nostalgia is to capitalize upon subjects that audiences are truly nostalgic about. In other words, NCIS: New Orleans, NCIS: Los Angeles, and NCIS: Hawai’i have each concluded, but the main series continues going ridiculously strong, so CBS and Paramount know what people really want. Just as people missed Chris Meloni on SVU, NCIS hasn’t been the same for many viewers who miss Mark Harmon’s character along with those of Cote de Pablo and Michael Weatherly. With that said, the late David McCallum will always be missed as Ducky, but the original gang’s legacy keeps growing. What can we expect from NCIS: Tony And Ziva?

Plot

Several updates have materialized, and plenty of excitement exists for this spin off, but I have a question: why not “Ziva And Tony” instead of Tony And Ziva? Perhaps DiNozzo grabbed a Sharpie and made that call because it ain’t his endless stream of movie references that’s winning him first billing.

With that said, Cote de Pablo and Michael Weatherly’s chemistry is undeniable after multiple seasons of ex-Israeli Mossad officer Ziva David appearing to be annoyed with loverboy Tony DiNozzo’s antics. She was no-nonsense until the NCIS writers finally drew them together in a romantic manner around Season 10, and the ‘shippers loved it. To briefly recap, however, Ziva departed NCIS in Season 11 and then “died” during Season 13 while in Israel. Then DiNozzo left the series to do the right thing by raising Tali, their daughter.

As it turns out, Ziva had faked her death, and the duo is now back in each other’s orbits. How long has this been going on? CBS isn’t letting any official answers fly, but Variety has reported word of how De Pablo and Weatherly admitted to joking about the title of this series being NCIS: Trust No One. The characters are now living in Paris (with filming happening in Budapest to avoid the Olympics crush). Trust is their overriding issue, other than the outward antagonists that the pair must defeat in this spin off:

“I think the idea of trust, and the idea of how this relationship moves forward is something that was intriguing to us as actors. We’re trying to address the idea of trust and we’re trying to address how they move forward parenting together with this child and trying to make things work and having a lot of challenges thrown at them.”

Weatherly and de Pablo also did curiously reunite with former co-star Sean Murray, who still portrays Timothy McGee on NCIS, for an episode of the Off Duty: An NCIS Rewatch podcast. During that reunion, De Pablo remarked, “By the way, we haven’t been in the same room together in 10 years. 10 years.” Murray added, “I know when I see you guys that I feel really good.”

Hmmmmm. This tells us nothing concrete of any reunion plans, but Weatherly (that stinker) has surfaced on TikTok to tease, “There is gonna be a surprise Cote de Pablo thing, but I’m not allowed to talk about it.”

This has, of course, led to speculation about a Ziva cameo on NCIS to pave the way for the spin off. By the way, the aforementioned podcast also included a reunion between Weatherly, de Pablo, and Sasha Alexander (who portrayed Caitlin Todd) from the earliest seasons of the principal series.

No matter what happens with further reunions beyond Ziva and Tony, expect to see new characters, including (as TV Line has revealed) a “British nanny/bodyguard”-type character and “a Russian hacker extraordinaire (of course), a French Interpol liaison and #Tiva’s tweenage daughter Tali herself, to ideally be played by a French-American ingenue.” Additionally, the main duo has promised (via a Paramount statement) that “[t]he world of Tony and Ziva (and daughter Tali) promises to be an action-packed roller coaster fueled by love, danger, tears and laughter.” Now, it’s official spin off description time:

When Tony’s security company is attacked, they must go on the run across Europe, try to figure out who is after them and maybe even learn to trust each other again so that they can finally have their unconventional happily ever after.

Cast

Cote de Pablo and Michael Weatherly are reprising their fan-favorite roles, and hopefully, we’ll see some sort of cameo from another departed NCIS soul. Surely, this won’t be Pauley Perrette, but other possibilities do exist.

Release Date

The show will stream on Paramount+. As far as actual airtime goes, CBS hasn’t yet revealed whether the network will make like NBC (with the Law & Order shows) and schedule weekly NCIS night with three series running (including Origins and Tony And Ziva) in consecutive order. It’s entirely possible that these shows would be staggered (like most recent The Walking Dead shows), so that there isn’t an annual drought without new NCIS episodes running. Whatever the case, NCIS: Origins was slated for late 2024/early 2025, so hopefully, Tony And Ziva won’t be too far behind.

Trailer

Since CBS hasn’t dropped footage yet, there’s no reason that we can’t travel back in time to watch DiNozzo try to sound cool while talking about cinema:

Tragedy has struck the Jacksonville, Florida rap community. Rising artist Foolio has died at the age of 26. The musician, known for his viral remix to Fantasia’s song “When I See You,” was reportedly shot and killed earlier today (June 23).

According to News4JAX, Foolio (real name Charles Jones) and several friends were believe to be celebrating his birthday (June 21) over the weekend at a private Airbnb rental.

In a post shared to Jones’ official Instagram Stories, the late rapper claimed that police arrived to the location and shut down his promoted pool party. He then alleged that he was forced from the property’s grounds. Jones’ lawyer, Lewis Fusco, echoed that via his statement to the outlet.

Some time after Fusco said, Jones secured a room at the Holiday Inn in Tampa, where we would reportedly be killed in the parking lot around 4:40 a.m.

“What we have learned, and this is early in the investigation, two cars were shot at,” said Joneé Lewis, public information officer for the Tampa Police Department. “The victim in this morning’s shooting is believed to be Charles Jones. Positive identification is pending confirmation from the Medical Examiner’s Office.”

According to officials, three other gunshot victims were taken to local hospitals. But, Lewis if confident they will make a full recovery. No arrests have been made at this time.

In 2023, Jones was shot in the foot in his hometown. Jones attempted to relocate after that incident and his then ongoing tension with fellow rapper Yungeen Ace, who is known for his Vanessa Carlton-sampling song “Who I Smoke.”

Every single week, our TV and film experts will list the most important ten streaming selections for you to pop into your queues. We’re not strictly operating upon reviews or accrued streaming clicks (although yes, we’ve scoured the streaming site charts) but, instead, upon those selections that are really worth noticing amid the churning sea of content. There’s a lot out there, after all, and your time is valuable.

10. Your Honor (Showtime series streaming on Netflix)

Hilariously, the two existing seasons of this series are still streaming up a storm on Netflix, years after they received a lukewarm reception on Showtime. Bryan Cranston was still “breaking bad” in this show, years after leaving Walter White behind in the desert, as a judge who ended up being far less than honorable when confronted with a mafia-related death involving his son. The semi-spooky setting collides with several tense story arcs, and this show is downright stressful to watch at times, but seeing Panic Cranston again is worth it. Don’t look forward to a third season, however — this show was intended as a limited series and already came back for seconds and is done.

9. Star Wars: The Acolyte (Disney+ series)

The Star Wars universe is still kicking and attempting to change up the existing formulas by putting a procedural spin on this story about a a crime spree that brings a dangerous warrior back from a Jedi Master’s past. Amandla Stenberg stars and has now released this song about the (sadly predictable) backlash she’s receiving from those “fans” who cannot handle cultural shift. For the curious, this series co-stars Carrie-Anne Moss, Charlie Barnett, Manny Jacinto, Dafne Keen, and Margarita Levieva (who should be in everything).

8. I Saw The TV Glow (A24 film on VOD & Amazon Prime)

This A24 film follows a pair of outcasts who go wild over a late-night TV cult show, which leads to a fracture in reality when the show ends up showcasing a supernatural world, and of course, you know that A24 is gonna make this as weird and wonderful as possible. Perhaps this film will also cause you to reevaluate what you seek in the television shows that you adore, as well as the selections that you grew up watching.

7. Bridgerton (Netflix series)

Finally, this Shondaland series is taking a breather from dominating the absolute top of the streaming charts while questions begin to swirl about who will be the featured courting couple for the next season. Meanwhile, Penelope and Colin are newly entrenched in wedded bliss, and Kate and Anthony are preparing to welcome their first child together. The good news, of course, is that a fourth installment is definitely happening on Netflix. The not-so-awesome news for devotees, however, is that at least two years will pass before those episodes surface.

6. Under Paris (Netflix movie)

Humanity’s obsession with sharks, and sharks’ obsession with humanity mean that streaming audiences will always be there for a film that showcases them. While the world awaits news of a sequel, there’s still every opportunity to check out this very non-Sharknado approach (starring Bérénice Bejo of The Artist) to a giant shark materializing in the Seine River, which might make people think differently about the upcoming Paris Olympics. Fortunately, this film is not a real story, although it takes cue from recognizable events, so while it feels scary to watch, this is sheer, white-knuckled escapism.

5. Presumed Innocent (Apple TV+ series)

Jake Gyllenhaal’s lead character has screwed himself so hard in this adaptation of Scott Turow’s same-named legal thriller, in which a prosecutor’s affair with a colleague leads him to become a murder suspect. His DNA is all over the victim’s bedroom, and it does not look fantastic for Jake’s Rusty in this show that dives into the overarching concepts of sex, power, obsession, and whether Gyllenhaal’s Road House abs can be adequately concealed by a suit. Enjoy his “out of shape” treadmill running, too, while wondering whether his character will be able to get himself off the culpability train and also learn to keep his zipper closed. Intrigue!

4. Inside Out (Pixar movie streaming on Disney+)

Now that Anxiety has helped this franchise revive the summer box office (the $1 billion club is coming), it’s only natural that the original movie is going on repeat at home to give Joy, Sadness, Disgust, Fear, and Anger their renewed day in the sun. Pixar has a true gem in this franchise, and reaching that milestone has been a long time coming, so hopefully, the animation studio soaks in this emotional marinade and announces a threequel soon.

3. Eric (Netflix series)

This series has been quietly riding at the top of the Netflix chart while starring Benedict Cumberbatch as a deadbeat, alcoholic dad who searches for his missing son in 1980s NYC. There’s much more going on behind the scenes of that already complicated quest, including the thematics involved with his son’s adoration of a monster puppet, and of course, this series takes a headlong dive into what is actually the monster in this story. That metaphor might sound typical, but the way that the show reaches its conclusion is anything but that.

2. The Boys (Prime Video/Amazon series)

Antony Starr delivered an unparalleled performance in this week’s episode when Homelander goes “Home” as he knows it. The results are not even remotely pretty, and “Life Among The Septics” will be spoken of for many years to come when people have those inevitable late-night discussions about the greatest-worst antagonists of pop cultural history. Also, do not sleep on what’s going on with Butcher while you’re distracted by the warm-up tactics between Sister Sage and Deep, but feel free to keep recoiling at that hot mess between Annie January and Firecracker, and also get ready for things to get much deeper for Hughie.

1. House of the Dragon (HBO series streaming on Max)

The so-called “dance of the dragons” will soon start taking real flight in the sky after the second season began with both Blood and Cheese and a compromising position, and the next episode will pick up with King Aegon II Targaryen wanting blood while Daemon sits with himself for awhile over what he’s done. And then get ready for the whole affair to grow even more bloody and fiery while a dynasty begins to take itself out ahead of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms and (by the Westeros timeline) Game of Thrones.

Revivals, reboots, reimaginings, and resurrections are not considered a genre, but you could have fooled Hollywood. Many of these efforts surface on a regular basis, and only a few rise to the top of the crop. Those successes include Prime Video/Amazon’s Mr. & Mrs. Smith, which was an unexpectedly essential reimagining that hailed from the minds of co-creators Donald Glover and Francesca Sloane. The other necessary ingredient in this spy-action series happens to be Maya Erskine, who helped deliver a layered edition of John and Jane Smith as well as an expanded world for their missions.

Also, we received a realistic and funny take on a couple’s first farts and eight episodes showing how they circled each other romantically while disposing of bodies. This gave us much more than the Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt-starring movie of yesteryear, and Amazon didn’t waste time in announcing a renewal. However, a claimed bit of bad news also arrived, so let’s discuss what has been floating around the rumor mill and whether it’s true.

Plot

This is a tricky topic. After all, part of the beauty of the Mr. & Mrs. Smith series is the idea that John and Jane Smiths are everywhere, which does bring the end of John Wick 2 to mind. Glover’s John discovered that there were other Johns and Janes to socialize with (and despise and later fear) when Wagner Moura showed up with Parker Posey in tow. Heck, the first moments of the show dared to unveil these two sexy assassins (Alexander Skarsgård and Eiza González) enjoying some quiet porch time with a little squirrel buddy before they were (probably) wiped off the map:

Also, Glover’s John killed a wayward John on that super-high-risk mission in the jungle! So, the series already had a built-in mechanism to anthologize itself with new leading couples for follow-up seasons, but contradiction exists surrounding a recent report, and we gotta hash this out.

The first season ended on a cliffhanger with Maya and John’s Jane and John seemingly corned in a panic room with a single bullet and Parker Posey’s Jane waiting outside to kill them after they’d gone rogue. It didn’t look good.

Then the second-renewal announcement arrived, and Variety reported word from nameless “sources” who “say that Season 1 stars Donald Glover and Maya Erskine are not expected to return to star in Season 2.” No response came from Amazon, Glover, or Erskine, and although it’s tempting to simply take the report at face value, it sounds like a “not so fast” exists.

Showrunner Francesca Sloane did decide to talk about that report to Entertainment Weekly, and in the process, Sloane revealed that she and Donald found the report awfully funny, especially since they cannot respond with detail, or they would “ruin” the season cliffhanger:

“I was just talking to Donald last night about this and we were laughing, because one of the pieces of press said, ‘according to our sources,’ and we’re like, ‘Who are these sources?’ We wrote a cliffhanger, we thought about it long and hard. It was one of the first things that we wrote. Why in the world — we haven’t said anything — but why in the world would we ruin a cliffhanger based on a headline?”

Exactly. I’d love to see Glover and Erskine again, but you know, I also wouldn’t be mad at a prequel season with Skarsgård and González’s story. [Cough]

Cast

I can only gather that Prime Video/Amazon knows exactly what they are doing with the mixed signals. Maybe Donald and Maya will star, or simply make cameos, or perhaps the show could bring back Michaela Cole or Paul “Hot Neighbor” Dano. Stay tuned for updates, which shall surely come.

Release Date

This isn’t a special-effects heavy show, so it’s possible that 2025 could see a return if the now-pregnant Maya Erskine does not continue as Jane. If Donald and Maya do return, then the wait will likely be longer.

Trailer

Oh, the idea of a trailer is funny right now. However, Donald and Maya paid a June 2024 visit to Jimmy Kimmel and carefully avoided declaring whether their characters survived the first season finale. Those stinkers.

Kali Uchis has a never-ending well of creative works, or so it appears. The “Moonlight” singer thought she fed her fans’ appetite in January with the release of her latest album, Orquídeas.

But, it turns out, she didn’t. Now, Kali Uchis is back from maternity leave to share the track, “Never Be Yours.” To some, the moody Josh Crocker-produced song may appear to be new. However, Kali Uchis’ day one fans will tell you it is actually an oldie but goodie.

If the lyrics, “Hello Kitty, why the long face? / You keep on standin’, standin’, standin’ in the same place / New coupons, riding in the Chevrolet with big bass / You’re deep on talkin’, talkin’ ’bout how we all lack taste / Beamer, Bentley / Make me, spend me / Nеw chain, you changed / Here’s your rеceipt,” don’t spark a flashback, you must have missed her appearance on the Kinda Neat podcast.

Back in 2014, Kali Uchis performed the record live for the show. The clip has since racked up over twenty-four million views on YouTube. With a snippet of the song currently gaining steam on TikTok, she decided to officially release the record across music platforms, starting with Kali Uchis’ official YouTube page.

Listen to the re-recording of Kali Uchis’ song “Never Be Yours” below.

Country music has a ton of fresh new faces, including Reyna Roberts, Jelly Roll, Shaboozey, Tanner Adell. But there’s another rising star to look out for—Dasha.

This summer, the “Shiny Things” singer will be on the tips of everyone’s tongue thanks to her upcoming live show run. In August, Dasha will hit the road for her debut headlining tour, Dashville, USA.

Ahead of the tour, Dasha will highly-anticipated song, “Didn’t I” on July 12. In the meantime, fans are going to sure to run up the stream on her album, What Happens Now?, which features breakthrough single, “Austin (Boots Stop Workin’).”

The ticket sale for the Dashville, USA tour kicked off on June 21 at 10 a.m. local time. To secure your access to a show near you, click here. Continue below to view the full tour schedule, official tour poster, and more.

Dasha 2024 Tour Dates: Dashville, USA

08/12 — Stockholm, SE @ Nalen
08/14 — St. Polten, AT @ Frequence Festival
08/16 — Hasselt Kiewit, BE @ Pukkelpop
08/17 — Stradbally, IE @ Electric Picnic
08/19 — London, UK @ Scala
08/21 — Amsterdam, NL @ Melkweg
08/23 — Reading, UK @ Reading Festival
08/24 — Leeds, UK @ Leeds Festival
10/08 — New York, NY @ Bowery Ballroom
10/09 — Boston, MA @ Brighton Music Hall
10/14 — Denver, CO @ Bluebird Theater
10/15 — Salt Lake City, UT @ Soundwell
10/18 — San Luis Obispo, CA @ SLO Brew Rock
10/19 — Los Angeles, CA @ The Roxy
11/05 — Minneapolis, MN @ Fine Line Music Cafe
11/08 — Cincinnati, OH @ Top Cat’s
11/09 — Grand Rapids, MI @ The Stache
11/11 — Toronto, ON @ Opera House
11/13 — Indianapolis, IN @ Hi-Fi
11/14 — Nashville, TN @ Exit In
11/15 — Atlanta, GA @ The Masquerade – Hell

Dasha’s Dashville, USA Tour poster