Month: September 2024

The semifinals of the 2024 WNBA playoffs were officially set on Wednesday night. After the Connecticut Sun took care of business in their series against the Indiana Fever earlier in the evening, the Minnesota Lynx played host to the Phoenix Mercury in Game 2 of their opening round matchup, and behind Napheesa Collier’s monster night, Minnesota was able to defend its home court and wrap up the series with a 101-88 win.

Things were tight in the opening minutes, but thanks to a 9-0 run, Phoenix was able to open up an early lead that it did not relinquish for the remainder of the first quarter — they took a 25-21 lead into the second. The 1-2 punch of Natasha Cloud and Diana Taurasi combined to score 16 of the team’s 25 points in the opening frame.

It looked like Minnesota was going to blow the game wide open in the second. The Lynx started the frame on a 19-6 run and led by as many as nine points, completely imposing themselves on the Mercury behind an absolutely ridiculous half from Napheesa Collier, who scored 23 points in the first half for the second consecutive game in the series.

But thanks to a quick, 7-0 spurt towards the end of the half, Phoenix was able to keep things in arm’s reach as the two teams went to the locker room, as Minnesota held onto a 49-47 lead.

While things were tight early on in the third, a flagrant foul got called on Sophie Cunningham for a hard foul after a review by the officials.

The Lynx responded by putting their collective foot on the gas. In the aftermath of the foul, Minnesota’s offense especially came to life, as the Lynx outscored the Mercury, 23-12, after the review, with Collier and Courtney Williams — the latter of whom got a technical foul following Cunningham’s flagrant — leading the way.

The crowd at the Target Center was already charged up, but with a spot in the semis only one quarter away and the Lynx taking a 76-64 lead into the fourth, the environment became all the trickier for Phoenix to navigate. And it did not help that Minnesota seemed like it was totally incapable of missing in the fourth, as the Lynx offense kept generating and making good look after good look against the Mercury defense.

Minnesota just never let Phoenix get close in the fourth, as the Mercury couldn’t cut the lead to single digits at any point. And with just under a minute remaining, Cheryl Reeve let her starters get a curtain call, as the emptied her bench and let them see out the remainder of the game.

The star on the night was Collier, who went for 42 points on 14-for-20 shooting from the field and 12-for-14 shooting from three. Her effort tied the WNBA record for points in a single playoff game. All five starters for the Lynx scored in double figures, with Kayla McBride being Collier’s top deputy with 15. The Mercury were paced by a 24-point effort from Griner, while Cloud had 16 points and 10 rebounds. Taurasi, who has hinted that her legendary career could come to an end once the Mercury were eliminated, had 10 points in 30 minutes of work before fouling out.

Minnesota will take on Connecticut in the semifinals of the WNBA playoffs. The two teams faced off in the first round of the postseason last year, with the Sun coming out on top in three games. On the other side of the bracket, the New York Liberty and Las Vegas Aces will square off in a rematch of the 2023 Finals.

Tommy Richman blew up with “Million Dollar Baby,” his single that debuted at No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 on May 11. Richman followed that with “Devil Is A Lie,” which peaked at No. 32 on the Hot 100 in July.

So, the bar is high for Coyote, his debut full-length album due out this Friday, September 27.

After staging his Before The Desert mini tour, Richman revealed the album’s tracklist on Tuesday, September 24.

The 11-track offering does not include “Million Dollar Baby” or “Devil Is A Lie,” but the tracklist does have “Whitney” and “Thought You Were The One,” which Richman released as singles last week and in late August, respectively.

Richman will release Coyote via Pulse Records, which partnered with Brent Faiyaz’s Iso Supremacy in August 2023, as exclusively reported by Billboard at the time. Richman was their first signee.

Watch Richman’s Coyote album trailer (starring Richman wearing clown makeup) above, and check out the full Coyote tracklist below.

1. “Elephant In The Room”
2. “Whitney”
3. “Temptations”
4. “Whisper In My Ear”
5. “Give It All”
6. “Tennessee” With Trevor Spitta & Zachary Moon
7. “Thought You Were The One”
8. “Letterman” With Paco
9. “Green Therapy”
10. “Vanity”
11. “Seems Like Time Moves Forever” With mynameisntjmack

Coyote is out 9/27 via Iso Supremacy/Pulse Records. Find more information here.

On Tuesday evening, two teams punched their tickets to the WNBA semifinals, as the New York Liberty and Las Vegas Aces completed sweeps in their respective first round series. On Wednesday, the Connecticut Sun got in on the fun, as they were able to complete their 2-0 series victory over the Indiana Fever with a wildly entertaining, 87-81 win.

The Fever started the game on fire, racing out to a 14-6 lead and locking in on both sides of the floor. But over the final 3:05 of the first, Connecticut was able to get into a groove. The shots started falling, which let them set their defense, which knocked Indiana completely out of the rhythm that it found early in the game.

As a result, the Sun were able to close the period out on an 11-0 run, and took a 17-14 lead into the second.

Connecticut continued its run to kick off the second quarter, as they got their lead up to as many as 10 points by starting things off with a 9-2 spurt. And while Indiana was able to settle in after that and keep the Sun from going into the locker room at halftime with an even bigger lead, they struggled to hit shots or get out and run. It meant Connecticut found itself with a 41-34 lead at the break, with all seven players who took the floor scoring at least four points, led by nine from Marina Mabrey. For the Fever, Caitlin Clark’s 14 points, four rebounds, and four assists led the way, while Aliyah Boston had a near double-double with eight points and 11 boards.

The start of the third quarter felt awfully similar to the start of the game. With their backs against the wall, Indiana ripped off the first seven points of the period, with Clark scoring or assisting on each of the first three buckets.

And yet, even though the Fever were able to briefly take a 1-point lead midway through the frame, Connecticut had a response. The Sun closed the third on a 14-4 run, with 10 of those points scored by Alyssa Thomas, and put themselves right on the verge of the semis with a 61-52 lead after three.

Connecticut looked like it had an answer whenever Indiana would try to mount a charge in the early part of the fourth, but eventually, the Fever got into a groove. The team went on a 12-2 stretch midway through the frame, which was capped off by a triple from Clark that put them up, 71-70.

Mabrey came right back down and hit a three to put the Sun back into the lead, only for Temi Fagbenle to convert a layup to tie things back up.

The two teams continued to go back-and-forth down the stretch, but back-to-back empty possession by Indiana proved to be too much. After a DeWanna Bonner three with just under two minutes to go to take a 1-point lead, the Fever could not find an answer, and a made three by Mabrey with 46 seconds left put things just out of reach for the remainder of the game.

Five players for the Sun scored in double-figures, with Thomas leading the way due to her 19-point, 13-rebound outing. Mabrey had 17 points, Bonner had 15, and both Dijonai Carrington and Veronica Burton had 10. For the Fever, Clark stuffed the stat sheet with 25 points, nine assists, and six rebounds, while Kelsey Mitchell went for 17 and Boston put up a 16-point, 19-rebound performance.

Connecticut will now sit and wait to see which team it’ll take on in the semifinals, as they’ll take on either the Minnesota Lynx or the Phoenix Mercury. Minnesota currently leads the series, 1-0.

Over the past year-plus, former UPROXX cover stars Jonas Brothers and Tori Kelly couldn’t speak highly enough about Jon Bellion to UPROXX. Bellion executive produced Jonas Brothers’ May 2023 LP The Album and Kelly’s Tori EP and subsequent Tori. LP. The Jonas Brothers and Kelly were fans of Bellion’s music from afar before he joined them in the studio.

Bellion has served as a producer and songwriter for an overwhelming number of A-list artists — the engine behind several ubiquitous hits — but he’s finally resuming position as a solo artist.

On Wednesday, September 25, Bellion posted a video teasing his first solo single in six years. In the 25-second clip, Bellion’s silhouette can be seen in the studio as he sings, “I am a kid again / I could do anything / I am a kid again.” In red lettering, a message flashes simultaneously across the screen: “After a 6-year wait, Jon Bellion’s recording contract has been reversed. Freeing him to make music for himself again. KID AGAIN.”

This May, Bellion appeared on The George Janko Show and went in-depth in explaining the machinations of his former deal with Live Nation and record deal and how the situation plummeted him into “panic attacks.”

“I paid myself out of the deal, and I had to pay 25 percent extra on what they advanced me,” Bellion said of Live Nation.

He noted that, at one point, he was willing to walk away from music entirely: “I told my wife, ‘I’m going to work at McDonald’s. It’s over. I’m not doing this anymore.’”

Later in the episode, the multi-platinum-certified artist opened up about his forthcoming album, which will be his first solo LP since releasing Glory Sound Prep in November 2018 via Capitol Records.

“The stuff I’m making, I’m like, thank God I waited six years to get my spirit more correct than it was before,” Bellion said. “Thank God I’m coming from a different place of [gratitude] and whatever because the music now really reflects that. If I can give people gems on this album, to some degree, of a man who’s been through it but isn’t just covered in bitterness, you’re going to receive wisdom in a palatable, edible way that will edify a lot of people. That’s what I hope the music does.”

Macklemore has been outspoken about the ongoing Israel-Gaza war since last fall. The diamond-certified musician spoke at a “Free Palestine” rally in Washington, DC last November. This May, Macklemore dropped “Hind’s Hall” to support the pro-Palestine protestors at Columbia University — promising all proceeds would go to The United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA).

Last weekend, Macklemore performed at the Palestine Will Live Forever benefit festival in his hometown Seattle, Washington. During his set, Macklemore said, “F*ck America.” Days later, Neon City Festival announced that Macklemore “will no longer be performing due to unforeseen circumstances” and revealed new headliners. While Neon City did not cite Macklemore’s Palestine Will Live Forever appearance, Macklemore posted a lengthy statement about it on Wednesday, September 25. The statement sprawls across nine slides on Instagram.

“My thoughts and feelings are not always expressed perfectly or politely,” he wrote, in part. “Sometimes, I slip up and get caught in the moment. Saturday night was one of those times. I strive to always lead with love in an effort to bring people together and never create more division. The ‘Palestine Will Live Forever’ festival I performed at was rooted in peace, love, and solidarity. Unfortunately, the historic event in my hometown that brought thousands of people together to raise awareness and money for the people of Palestine has become overshadowed by two words.”

Macklemore continued to express his “grief and anger” due to “the last 11.5 months of watching a genocide unfold in front of us,” which “has been excruciating on a spiritual, emotional, and human level.” He shared his “utter disbelief” at how the US government’s involvement, writing, “I have been disillusioned and disheartened as our government has continued to unequivocally fund and support Israel’s ongoing violence against the people of Palestine. I don’t think I’m alone.”

Macklemore added, “Do not misconstrue the word ‘f*ck’ for the word ‘hate.’ It’s different to be angry than to disown. My ‘f*ck’ — my anger — is rooted not in disdain for where I was born but in anguish for how we can collectively allow this to continue. It is not directed at the people that make up our country, but towards our government who refuse to listen to us.”

Read Macklemore’s full statement here.

Halsey is keeping the news cycle fed.

So far this month, Halsey has performed “Ego” at the 2024 MTV VMAs, confirmed her engagement to Avan Jogia, and took the stage again at the 2024 iHeartRadio Music Festival. All of it is in preparation for The Great Impersonator, Halsey’s fifth LP due out on October 25. On Wednesday, September 25, Halsey posted a video revealing the album’s full tracklist using mesmerizing card tricks.

“For my next trick, the Tracklist for The Great Impersonator,” they wrote on Instagram.

On X (formerly Twitter), Halsey added, “18 track album nature is healing.”

“The End,” “Lucky,” “Ego,” and “Lonely Is The Muse” have been released as singles. The Great Impersonator will serve as Halsey’s first release since If I Can’t Have Love, I Want Power from August 2021. That album was nominated for Best Alternative Music Album at the 2022 Grammys.

See Halsey’s The Great Impersonator tracklist below.

1. “Only Living Girl In LA”
2. “Ego”
3. “Dog Years”
4. “Letter To God (1974)”
5. “Panic Attack”
6. “The End”
7. “I Believe In Magic”
8. “Letter To God (1983)”
9. “Hometown”
10. “I Never Loved You”
11. “Darwinism”
12. “Lonely Is The Muse”
13. “Arsonist”
14. “Life Of The Spider (Draft)”
15. “Hurt Feelings”
16. “Lucky”
17. “Letter To God (1998)”
18. “The Great Impersonator”

The Great Impersonator is out 10/25 via Columbia Records. Find more information here.

(WARNING: Spoilers for Power Book II: Ghost will be found below.)

The next two episodes of Power Book II: Ghost could be the series’ most dramatic and epic episodes ever. Last week’s episode set the path toward this as we were introduced to Effie’s mom (something that could play a significant role as season four comes to a close). Brayden sought revenge on the drug dealer who nearly killed his girlfriend with fentanyl-laced drugs, though she wasn’t happy with this retaliation. Tariq and Monet attempted to pit Detective Carter and Noma against each other, but they failed. All this occurred as Cane and Noma legally became married and as Dru continues to work for Detective Carter. So what will episode nine bring?

When Does Power Book II: Ghost Season 4, Episode 9 Come Out?

The ninth episode of Power Book II: Ghost season four, titled “Married To The Game,” will arrive on September 27. The episode will be available on Friday, 9/27 on the STARZ app starting at midnight EST/PST. The episode will later air on the STARZ TV channel that same day at 8 pm ET/PT. A synopsis for “Married To The Game” can be found below:

A union that should bring the Tejadas and Noma together, couldn’t appear to be further apart; Tariq and Monet are sent on a seemingly simple mission.

You can also watch a teaser for Power Book II: Ghost season four, episode eight below:

‘Power Book II: Ghost’ season four, part one is now streaming on the STARZ app.

The witching month shall soon descend upon Netflix after Monsters and Emily In Paris got us properly warmed up for chills and spills. Soon, multiple returning hit shows (Outer Banks, The Lincoln Lawyer, The Diplomat, and Unsolved Mysteries) will deliver new seasons, and a pair of distressing movies (Don’t Move and Woman of the Hour) will deliver a themed approach to scares.

Additionally, Yellowjackets and Psycho hit the library for even more terrifying sights and sounds, so lock those doors. For some levity, the The Karate Kid movies will surface while Cobra Kai gears up for more episodes later this fall.

Here’s everything coming to Netflix in October:

Woman of the Hour (Netflix film 10/18)

The above teaser elicits far more spooky feels than the full trailer for Anna Kendrick’s directorial debut. This movie follows her portrayal of 1970s aspiring actress Cheryl Bradshaw, who unfortunately picked serial killer Rodney Alcaca on The Dating Game reality show. It doesn’t take long for her alarm bells to go off and never stop. If you have ever received a recommendation to read The Gift Of Fear by Gavin de Becker, then you will immediately realize what the above scene was meant to do. The film is, of course, dramatized but based on a prolific mass murderer who’s much scarier than vampires and ghosts.

Don’t Move (Netflix film 10/25)

The above theme continues. You surely have heard about “the man or the bear in a forest” question. That’s this movie in a nutshell. Also, Evil Dead creator Sam Raimi produces, so you know this will be sick.

Outer Banks: Season 4 (Netflix series streaming 10/10)

This season takes the Pogues in time after that 18-month leap into the future that came with an eye toward Blackbeard’s treasure. As such, this season follows the El Dorado gold discovery and subsequent attempts for the group to be “normal” and run a tour-based business at their “new safe haven,” which they are calling “Poguelandia 2.0.” Good luck? This season will see them group facing off with dangerous new forces, including a character portrayed by Pollyanna McIntosh of The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live. It’s not quite a Jadis crossover, but it will probably be that unsettling.

The Lincoln Lawyer: Season 3 (Netflix series streaming 10/17)

LA’s most sensational defense attorney will begin a third season based upon Connelly’s fifth The Lincoln Lawyer book, The Gods of Guilt. A crime victim will be somebody that Mickey knows and has previously helped as a client. Of equal (or potentially even greater) interest to viewers is how much of Neve Campbell’s character, Maggie, will be in this season. Sure, this might be due to flashback scenes, but some Neve is better than none.

The Diplomat: Season 2 (Netflix series streaming 10/31)

Netflix already answered a question on viewers minds by confirming that the infuriating Hal Wyler (Rufus Sewell) is still alive. That complicates matters even more for Kate (Keri Russell), and they will display a united front against the onscreen debut of Allison Janey as Vice President Grace Penn while Kate will wrestle with how to prove that Prime Minister Nicol Trowbridge (Rory Kinnear) was behind the season finale catastrophe. What does this mean for the Dennison (David Gyasi) situation? Oh, soap operatics are alive and well.

Avail TBA
Children of the Church Steps
Don’t Come Home

Avail. 10/1
Making It in Marbella
Tim Dillon: This Is Your Country
21 Jump Street
22 Jump Street
8 Mile
As Above, So Below
The Birds
Boyz n the Hood
Bridesmaids
Brüno
Cinderella Man
Couples Retreat
Elysium
Escape Plan
Get Him to the Greek
The Girl Next Door
Halloween (2018)
It Chapter Two
Jarhead
Judy
The Karate Kid
The Karate Kid Part II
The Karate Kid Part III
Kung Fu Panda
Kung Fu Panda 3
Legion
Marnie
Psycho
Psycho II
Red Dragon
Robin Hood (2010)
Robin Hood (2018)
Salt
Scarface
The Sentinel
Till Death
Two Weeks Notice
Unfriended
Wipeout: Batch 4
Yellowjackets: Season 1
You’re Next

Avail. 10/2
Chef’s Table: Noodles
Love Is Blind: Season 7
Unsolved Mysteries: Volume 5

Avail. 10/3
The Bad Guys: Haunted Heist
Blue Box
Heartstopper: Season 3
Trouble

Avail. 10/4
The Amazing Digital Circus: Season 1 (episodes 1-3)
CTRL
IT’S WHAT’S INSIDE
The Platform 2
S.W.A.T.: Season 7

Avail. 10/5
Ranma1/2

Avail. 10/7
The Menendez Brothers

Avail. 10/8
Ali Wong: Single Lady
Bad Boys: Ride or Die
Dinner Time Live With David Chang: Holiday Edition

Avail. 10/9
Deceitful Love
Love Is Blind: Season 7
Starting 5
The Secret of the River

Avail. 10/10
Girl Haunts Boy
The Life and Movies of Erşan Kuneri: Season 2
Love Is Blind, Habibi
Outer Banks Season 4: Part 1
Tomb Raider: The Legend of Lara Croft

Avail. 10/11
In Her Place
Lonely Planet
Scream
Uprising

Avail. 10/12
A Quiet Place Part II
A Virtuous Business
Clifford the Big Red Dog

Avail. 10/14
Mighty Monsterwheelies

Avail. 10/25
Abandoned
All American: Homecoming: Season 3
Detroiters: Seasons 1-2
Comedy Revenge
Rachel Bloom: Death, Let Me Do My Special
Ancient Apocalypse: The Americas
I AM A KILLER: Season 5
Justice
Love Is Blind: Season 7
Selma
Sweet Bobby: My Catfish Nightmare
Untapped: Closing America’s Opportunity Gap

Avail. 10/17
Gundam: Requiem for Vengeance
Jurassic World: Chaos Theory: Season 2
The Lincoln Lawyer: Season 3
Outside
The Shadow Strays

Avail. 10/18
Ghost Hunters: Seasons 10-11
Happiness Is
Join or Die
The Man Who Loved UFOs
The Turnaround
Woman of the Hour
Yintah

Avail. 10/19
American Ninja Warrior: Ninja vs. Ninja: Season 3
American Ninja Warrior: Season 14

Avail. 10/21
Book Club
Kung Fu Panda 4

Avail. 10/22
Escape at Dannemora: Season 1
Hasan Minhaj: Off With His Head

Avail. 10/23
Car Masters: Rust to Riches: Season 6
The Comeback: 2004 Boston Red Sox
Family Pack
Love Is Blind: Season 7
This is the Zodiac Speaking

Avail. 10/24
Tyler Perry’s Beauty in Black
Territory

Avail. 10/25
Don’t Move
Hellbound: Season 2
Hijack ’93
The Last Night at Tremore Beach
The Remarkable Life of Ibelin
Simone Biles Rising Part 2

Avail. 10/28
Blippi’s Ultimate Bounce House Challenges: Season 1
Blippi’s Wonderful Talent Show

Avail. 10/29
Botched: Seasons 2-3
Tom Papa: Home Free

Avail. 10/30
Go Ahead, Brother
The Law According to Lidia Poët: Season 2
The Manhattan Alien Abduction
Martha
Time Cut

Avail. 10/31
The Diplomat: Season 2
Murder Mindfully

And it’s your last chance to stream these titles:

Leaving 10/2
The Super Mario Bros. Movie

Leaving 10/5
Crazy Rich Asians

Leaving 10/10
It Follows

Leaving 10/21
Whitney Houston: I Wanna Dance with Somebody

Leaving 10/26
Wentworth: Seasons 1-8

Leaving 10/31
Bride of Chucky
Child’s Play 2
Child’s Play 3
Cult of Chucky
Curse of Chucky
Dark Waters
Dr. Seuss’ The Cat in the Hat
Dr. Seuss’ The Lorax
Eat Pray Love
Hellboy
Identity Thief
Jack Reacher
Jack Reacher: Never Go Back
Jumanji
Key & Peele: Seasons 1-3
La La Land
Magic Mike
Magic Mike XXL
Monty Python and the Holy Grail
Mr. Deeds
Save the Last Dance
Seed of Chucky
Sonic the Hedgehog
The Expendables
The Expendables 2
The Expendables 3
The Wedding Planner
The Young Victoria
World War Z

Spooky season is right around the corner, and it looks like Abel Tesfaye is getting in the mood early. At least, that’s how it appears in the teaser The Weeknd shared from his upcoming Hurry Up, Tomorrow single, “Timeless.” In a tweet, he shared an ominous-looking screenshot from the music video featuring the highly demanded guest star Playboi Carti with both artists draped in their signature black-on-black aesthetics. Carti appears to be wearing a samurai helmet, while Abel himself sticks with his now-familiar shades.

The two artists previously collaborated on the soundtrack from The Weeknd’s much-maligned HBO series, The Idol, teaming up with Madonna on “Popular.” That song, intriguingly enough, also appeared in Fortnite during the game’s Fortnite Festival performance. At the time, Tesfaye said of the collaboration: “I’m proud of it. I’m definitely proud of it. Me and Carti had this… I mean, we’ve jammed out before. We’ve had a different version of this song prior. So I’ve had these vocals for a while, and I’ve kind of just worked around it, and then kind of kept it in the tuck. But now it felt like it was time.”

Whether the vocals for “Timeless” also derived from this jam session is unknown, but they’ve displayed compelling chemistry before, so to see this record also succeed in that respect wouldn’t be a surprise. “Timeless” will be the second single from Hurry Up, Tomorrow after “Dancing In The Flames.”

With the season premiere of SNL‘s 50th season approaching, The Los Angeles Times asked a bunch of famous folks, some involved with the show and some not, to name their favorite sketches of all-time. There was a lot of love for “More Cowbell,” including from “Let It Go” songwriters Bobby Lopez and Kristen Anderson-Lopez (“The commitment every single person has to that sketch, except for maybe Jimmy Fallon”) and actor Jude Law. But one of the people who made “More Cowbell” an all-timer had a different answer.

Will Ferrell went with “Fred Garvin: Male Prostitute,” a season 4 sketch starring Dan Aykroyd as, well, a male prostitute named Fred Garvin.

“He was a male prostitute, and he never could get to any [sex acts] because would do these poses, and as he started to undress he had this series of — he had a hernia belt he had to undo. It was so elaborate,” the Will & Harper star said. “This is early days. I’m still so little [when it aired] that I don’t even know [what it’s about], but the way he said it — it was way over my head but so funny at the same time. That’s one that sticks with me to this day.”

You can watch the sketch below.

SNL season 50 premieres this Saturday, September 28, with host Jean Smart and musical guest Jelly Roll. Just imagine Deborah Vance saying “Jelly Roll.” Go on. It’s fun.

(Via The Los Angeles Times)